Chapter 8 8

MEL (2017)

Someone patted me on the shoulder. I took off my headphones and turned my head towards an athletic blonde my age.

There was a slightly hesitant smile on her face.

"Sorry to interrupt."

The girl pointed to the treadmill. I turned off the machine and got off it.

"It's ok. I was about to finish anyway."

I used to go to the Denver gym all the time, and now that I had settled into Payson a bit, I planned to return to regular training.

"Your face looked familiar to me. Melissa Wallace, right? I'm Gia Berber - we used to go to school together."

I got embarrassed because I didn't remember this girl. Guessing that this does not mean anything to me, she hinted:

"Glasses, braces, ashy hair. I was the president of the chess club."

When she mentioned braces, my eyes popped out of my head. At school, we only had one girl who went with this dental system, and she was... the complete opposite of this girl.

Gia laughed merrily at my astonishment.

"Sorry! Just... wow!"

She shrugged modestly.

"Yes, it's hard to recognize me now. And you are still such a beauty!"

The girl has kind and sincere eyes, and although we did not communicate at school, our encounter was pleasant to me.

"Yeah." I grinned, wiping my sweaty neck with a towel. "So you work out here too?"

"Not really - I'm a fitness trainer, so I'm kind of at work."

Now it's clear where such a relief, toned body comes from.

"Didn't you leave Payson?" Gia asked, and I wondered if she knew that at the moment I am in the process of divorce proceedings with a football star.

"Yeah, I left, but now I'm back. I teach economics in high school."

"Really? Great!"

She seemed very friendly, and even if she didn't think so at all, that's fine.

***

"Did that piece of shit call you?"

Nancy always speaks disparagingly of Ryan. It wasn't always like this, but after the truth with his betrayals became known, she literally got on him.

As for myself... I should probably grieve. My marriage fell apart, barely over a three-year milestone. My husband began to cheat on me, quarrels began and everything completely deteriorated.

The fame and money changed Ryan - made him someone I didn't want to have anything to do with. He cheated on me right and left while I sat at home and waited for him, like an exemplary wife. I gave him a chance - several chances - in the hope that everything would work out. But this did not happen.

"No, and it's good. I don't want to talk to him."

I put the last cup in the dishwasher, closed the door and turned it on. Holding the phone to my ear, I leave the kitchen.

" I feel sick when I think about how many years I spent with him," I admitted.

Nancy is my only school friend with whom I kept in touch. She knows everything that goes on in my fucking personal life.

Nan lives in Salt Lake City and now that I'm back in Utah, I hope we'll see each other more often.

"You had a good time too, Mel," Nancy rightly recalled.

She, of course, is right, but, oddly enough, I only remember bad moments. And there have been more in the last year.

"I saw Shane," I said suddenly.

Nancy on the other end of the line exhaled sharply.

"AND...?"

"And what?"

"Details, Mel!"

I laughed awkwardly.

"Nothing interesting. We talked. That's all."

"You don't know how to talk at all," She grumbled.

I sighed.

"Sorry."

"Hey, you didn't come back to Payson because of him, didn't you?"

I literally saw her stern look at this moment.

"God, of course not! It was he who came to me, I was not looking for him."

"But I could have started if we hadn't met before".

"Did he get fat and bald?"

I snorted:

"No, not at all. He is... in good shape."

I would even say too good - perfect, but I didn't want to give Nancy a reason to speculate.

"How did everything go?"

"Fine. We talked, as befits old acquaintances. That's all."

"But you're not just 'old acquaintances'," She continued. "You are ex-lovers. And your breakup was... heartbreaking."

I rolled my eyes: she was mocking me.

"It wasn't like that," I said dryly. "We just stopped being... lovers."

"No, it was," Nancy argued. "You loved him and still chose someone else. That jerk Ryan!"

I winced - it's like salt on a fresh wound.

"I didn't 'choose another guy', Nancy. Plus, I thought I was doing the right thing," I muttered.

"At that moment, maybe it was like that," The friend softened. "Hey, did you tell him you came back then?"

"No."

"And you're not going to?"

"No."

"It's a pleasure talking to you," She grumbled.

I was smiling.

"I know."

"So have you decided on staying at Payson?"

I was glad Nan changed the subject.

"Yes, probably." I want to put my grandmother's house in order. I looked at the wall in the living room, where the wallpaper is still hung, which has not been changed since the eighty-fifth year of the last century. "I like working at the school. I think this is what I need for the next few years, and then we'll see."

"I'll visit you soon," Nancy promised.

'I'll be looking forward to it."

"You know," She suddenly said as we said goodbye, "I always thought you would stay with Shane."

***

On my lunch break, I decided to call the number Gia gave me.

She came over on Saturday evening, and we had a good time with a bottle of wine. I shared with her my plans to get my grandmother's house in order, since I intend to live in it for the next few years. I need to find a repair company that can start the work as soon as possible.

First of all, I want to change the floors and update the plumbing in the bathrooms. I also want to modernize the kitchen.

This is a new project in my life and I want to devote as much of my time and energy to it as possible to take my mind off the divorce process.

"Oh, I know who you should turn to!" Gia exclaimed when I told her my plans. "These guys recently added extra rooms to my parents' house and they were happy with it. I'll take my father's business card and bring it to your next practice."

I said that would be great. When we saw each other a couple of days later, she actually handed me the Mancini Building Works business card.

"Good afternoon! You've called Mancini Construction Works," a female voice informed me with a slight rasp - it looks like the woman on the other end of the line is a heavy smoker.

"Hello! May I speak to..." I looked at the name on the business card "Mr. Mancini?"

"Mr. Mancini is not here right now, but you can speak to his deputy."

The woman then appeared to be covering the speaker with her hand because her voice wasn't as clear, and yet I could make out when she yelled "Shane!" to someone.

"Wait a minute," She turned to me again.

Shane? I'm tempted to ask if she called Shane Keller. And yes, it is him - I immediately recognized his voice when he picked up the phone.

"Keller is listening."

I closed my eyes, letting out a silent curse.

"Well, why you?"

"Hi! I am interested in the services of your company. By the way, this is Mel."

I was worried, which can be clearly seen in the voice.

"Mel," Shane said after a long pause. "Can you come to our office, or is it better if we meet somewhere else?"

Gotta give him credit, he carried himself professionally and calmly.

Maybe that's how it should be? What if I'm fooling myself for nothing? Most likely, Shane's feelings for me have long cooled down. We can talk like two old friends, can't we?

"I can come to your office. When do you close?" I pulled myself together and now I spoke a little more confidently.

"At five. But if necessary, I can linger," He offered.

We agreed that I will arrive today at half past five.