Anna's Story - Part 16

(Today’s episode is a little longer because I’m going to Marblehead for the weekend with my sister.  So this posting will be for both Friday and Saturday.  Readers, have a wonderful weekend.)

Part 16

 Anna went to bed early Saturday night but slept fitfully because her muscles were very sore from all that she did on moving day.  She woke up and took a couple of aspirins and then finally she drifted off into a restful sleep.  She awoke on Sunday morning and prepared for church. 

She had refused Jeremy’s request to come over the night before and she didn’t regret that.  But she knew he would possibly be calling back later and she had to think about what she wanted to say.  If her mother was alive, she could have asked her opinion.  Maybe she’d call her aunt after church; she might have a suggestion or two.

Mass was peaceful, and Anna was so thankful to be receiving Communion again.  She didn’t feel like the odd one out anymore, and there were a few people she exchanged greetings with when she sat down in the pew.  After Mass, a couple of teens from the Kentucky trip told the parishioners about their experience.  Anna wondered how Erin’s father was doing; she figured no news was good news on that front.  However, she noticed that he was listed among the sick in the bulletin.

Out of habit, Anna started to drive towards the apartment and she laughed at herself.  The day before, moving day, she pulled out of the donut shop parking lot and headed back toward the apartment before she caught herself.  This time, she went around the block and headed home – what a wonderful word that was for Anna – home. 

She made coffee and had some toast, then ran the vacuum cleaner to tidy up after all of the activity the previous day.  She started the new dishwasher after reading the appliance manual and getting some directions; it was very quiet.  The phone rang.  Darn, she thought, if that’s Jeremy she hadn’t checked in with her aunt.

“Anna, it’s Jeremy.  Could we talk today?” he asked politely.

“Well, I guess so.  I moved, so you’ll need to come over to my mother’s house – now my house,” she said.

“Oh, you moved?  Umm … sure, I can come over there.  I’ll be over in about 20 minutes,” he said.

Anna started another pot of coffee and she got out a few cookies.  There was nothing wrong with being a decent hostess, she thought.  She got the morning paper, scanned the headlines, and sat on a stool at her new kitchen island.  In a way, she was a little peeved.  This was the first day in the house and she wanted to really appreciate it.  She was also peeved at herself.  She should have told Jeremy to wait.

The doorbell rang and Anna answered it. 

“Hello, Anna,” Jeremy said.

Anna answered, “Hello.”  She motioned for him to come into the house. 

He made a whistling sound as he saw the transformation.

“Wow, this place looks great.  What did you do?  Hire someone?” he asked.

“Yes, I decided that it would be worthwhile to have all of this done when I wasn’t trying to live here at the same time,” she said.

 “It is absolutely beautiful.  Like a different house,” he said.  “Sorry about your mother.  I saw it in the paper.”

“Thanks.”

Anna handed Jeremy a mug of coffee, and set the cookie plate down on the coffee table.  Jeremy sat on one of Anna’s new couches.  She sat on the other.  He seemed ill-at-ease.  It made Anna feel stronger.

“Look, I won’t beat around the bush.  I just wanted to let you know how sorry I am the way I left and all.  It wasn’t what you deserved,” Jeremy said.

“That’s certainly true,” Anna answered.

“And I wouldn’t blame you if you hated me for it.  It’s just that Julie, she seemed like such a perfect match.  And probably that’s because it was so quick and I didn’t really take the time to get to know her.  At any rate, I just wanted you to know that we’ve split up,” Jeremy said.

“Your idea?” Anna asked.

“Yes, actually it was.  I don’t know what I was thinking.  We had a good thing, Anna, and basically I just took all of that for granted.  And I’ve had time to mull it over a lot, and I really miss you,” Jeremy said.

“Look Jeremy, everything has changed.  Everything, I don’t even know where to start,” Anna said.

“Changed?  How?  Did you meet someone?” he asked.

“No, nothing like that.  I’m just not the same person you left behind,” she said.

“What do you mean?” Jeremy asked.

“For one thing, I’ve gone back to church.  Then I decided to renovate Mom’s house and that was a really neat experience for the most part.  And then I went for a week to Kentucky with the teens of the parish and we fixed up a house down there,” she said.

“Wow.  That doesn’t sound like you,” Jeremy said.  “I thought you were pretty much finished with the church thing.  You always said it was a total waste of time.”

“Turns out it wasn’t,” Anna said. “I do appreciate that you came over here and apologized, but I’m not sure where you are going with this.”

“What I wanted to ask is if maybe you’d want to come back,” Jeremy said, his head down.  “We could start over again, and I promise you that I’ve learned something and I’d never hurt you again.”

“I just can’t see that happening.  My life is like the reset button on a computer game.  I’ve moved in another direction now, and for the first time in a long while, I’m honestly happy,” she said.

“Alone?” he asked.

“I’m hardly alone,” Anna answered.
 
Jeremy got up and shook her hand, and walked towards the door.

“Well, thanks for seeing me anyhow,” he said.

“That’s okay,” she said.