SORP 1.2
For the first part of the story, click here. SORP 1.1
Skye pulled the old trunk across the attic floor, closer to the light for her grandmother to inspect. "Ahh, that’s the one. Open it up."
She opened the lid to reveal a dozen or so shoeboxes, all bound up with duct tape. There were various names on all the boxes, and Maggie pointed to one sitting on the top. "That one. With Sammy written on it. There should be another, a bigger one that held boots or something with his name on it."
Skye pulled the boxes out of the trunk and handed them to her grandmother, who stacked them next to the ladder. "How many Sammy boxes are there?"
"Altogether, I believe there were seven or eight. Two, maybe three are downstairs in your closet. The others should be in that trunk. Just pull the boxes out, until you find them. I’m pretty sure there are five in there. Though I may have combined two of them at one point."
In the end, a total of seven Sammy boxes were loaded into the car with the suitcases, water coolers, bags of food, along with two empty shoe boxes and duct tape. Skye found the last box in her closet, hidden behind a very large box labeled THB in large black marker. That box was too heavy to lift, so Skye just left it in the closet. Like the others, the box was sealed with duct tape, but its seal was unbroken. Skye was desperate to know what was in the box, but did not broach the subject until dinner at the diner by the cabin.
"I’d almost forgotten that box was in there," Maggie said, surprised. "Thomas Barker was my high school sweetheart and probably my first true love. I would have married him if he asked."
"I’m guessing he never did."
"No, though we discussed it at length. I was a senior in high school, trying to decide on a college and career path. The place I wanted to go was not nearby. We took an stance of ‘If its meant to be, it will be’ and basically broke up. I thought we’d still end up together, but he started dating someone at his college and I believe eventually married her."
"Is that how he broke your heart?" Skye asked. "By finding a new girl?"
"Not really. Don’t get me wrong, that hurt a lot. But I really loved him and I wanted him to be happy, even if that wasn’t with me. What broke my heart, what really destroyed me was something else. While we were dating, he told me he loved me. It was really very sweet…"
I had just gotten home from a week at the All-State Conference. Nearly every night, I had snuck out of my room and down to the lobby to call him. It was the first time we were really apart since we had started dating over a month earlier. The night I got home, I called him to let him know I was back.
"Can I see you tomorrow?" I asked.
"I think so. My class is done around 12:30, so I can pick you up from school. I don’t have work until four. I really missed you."
"I missed you too. The conference was totally great, but I really wished you could have been there too."
"Do you have anything to do in the afternoon? Cause I was thinking of calling out of work. I just want to spend some time with you. I’ve got something to tell you."
My heart jumped a beat in fear. "What do you have to tell me?"
"It can wait until tomorrow. But are you gonna be busy? I don’t want to call out if I won’t be able to see you anyways."
I swallowed hard. Was he going to break up with me? What was so important? Do I drop everything I need to do, or try and put some distance between us? "I really need to catch up on my school work. I’ve been out nearly a week."
"Yeah, okay. I understand."
I couldn’t tell if he was disappointed or relieved. I heard his mom yell in the background for him to get off the phone.
"You gotta go."
"But I’ll see you tomorrow okay? We’ll talk then."
"Okay. Goodnight, Tom."
"Night, Maggie."
I hung up the phone and sat down next to my bed. What exactly was that all about? My mind was racing. A good thing? A bad thing? A scary thing? What in the world was he…
My thoughts were interrupted by the phone ringing in my hand. I jumped about a foot into the air and grabbed it before my parents could answer.
"I don’t want to wait to tell you," his voice came across the line. "I just can’t wait until tomorrow."
"Ahh…okay." I tried to keep the nervousness from my voice.
"I love you." He paused but before I could speak, he continued. "I don’t want you to say anything back. I don’t want anything in return. In your own time, when you’re ready. But I do and I wanted you to know. I love you."
My heart swelled, both with happiness and fear. "Oh, Tom!"
"Don’t say anything else. I’ll see you tomorrow. I have to go before my mom catches me. Goodnight, Maggie."
The phone clicked before I could say anything else and I just sat there for a moment, dumbfounded. He loved me.
"Did you ever say it back, Grandma?" Skye asked, munching on her fries.
"Eventually, yes I did. I was really scared though. I didn’t want to get hurt. I didn’t want to open myself up that much to someone."
"Was he annoyed?"
"Not that I knew. He was patient and kind. I remember one day, sitting on my counter. I don’t remember exactly how we got onto the subject of trust. But I was crying, saying I didn’t want to get hurt. Other people had hurt me and I didn’t want a repeat. He just kept saying ‘I’m not like them. Trust me.’"
"So you did."
"I did. I let go. I believed that he wouldn’t hurt me and even if we didn’t end up together forever, we would always have that time together."
"So what happened?"
"When we broke up, we had said we would remain friends. There was a lot of stuff going on in my life and I didn’t want to lose him as a friend. But he got a new girlfriend and never returned my calls. Until finally one night I got a hold of him through some stroke of luck. He told me that he never really loved me. Everything we felt wasn’t real and he knew that now. It was pretty devastating."
Skye pushed h
er fries across her plate, watching the ketchup form pools.
"Anything on your mind, hun. A boy you want to talk about."
Skye glanced up at Maggie and shrugged. "Not much to tell. He was a jerk."
"I’ve learned in my years that nearly all men are jerks. It just a matter of degrees. So what degree was he?"
"Class-A."
"How long were you two dating?"
Skye’s eyes narrowed as she looked at Maggie. "You’re going to tell Mom. Then she’ll think he’s the reason I broke curfew. She’ll never let me date again."
"Skye, you’re not an idiot. So I won’t treat you like you’re an idiot. You know your mother is worried about me."
"Yeah, which is why she shipped me off to you. She doesn’t know what to do and is hoping I’ll spill my guts to you."
"Right on. But something she’s forgotten about is the code of girlfriends."
"The what?"
Maggie grinned. "I know I’m an old fart, and your grandmother to boot. But we’re both women here. Girls who are spilling their guts about the rotten jerks in their lives. When you get together with your friends and talk about boys, that talk says amongst you, right?"
Skye nodded, a small smile taking root.
"Well, the same rules apply here. Anything you tell me falls under the code of girlfriends and I can’t reveal it to another living soul. When your mother had her little brainstorm about shipping you out here, I told her I wouldn’t tell her anything you told me. She agreed, though I know she’ll try to get it out of me. But I’ve kept secrets for longer than she’s been alive."
"Like the fact you dated Samuel Valdes IV."
"Exactly. And not just dated him, but fell in love with him. So I will not be telling your mother a word about what you might say to me. That is, if you decide to tell me anything. This weekend is about those boxes. You wanted to learn what was in them."
"You’re really gonna show me?"
"After over 40 years, I certainly hope I can open those boxes without losing my mind. But that’s why you’re here. To take care of me if I do," Maggie winked at her granddaughter. "Now do you want dessert or some more of that pudding pie? I brought some packets along to make at the cabin."
Skye grinned. "Pudding pie."