Glimpses

Chapter 2

September 11th, 2021

Going out anywhere, without being in the role of a mom, was refreshing if she were to be honest. She loved Em more than life itself, but parenting was exhausting. But the feeling was a little bittersweet - after all, one of the highlights of her day was seeing an optometrist and picking out a pair of glasses for herself, her first ones. She really was getting old - it was not a reminder she needed.

Rory was about halfway through with the first display case, having already gotten her prescription, only so far having found a pair of wayfarer shaped frames that she kind of liked. They were fairly large, strong framed and dark plastic ones. It only really made her look more like a school teacher, truth be told, if she were to avoid saying they made her look geeky. But with that label, she was truthfully more comfortable with than she'd ever been in her life. She was a bookworm, a movie geek, she liked homework, she was a workdork.

The door of the little store that offered optometrist services on a Saturday, chimed, but Rory was taking choosing the right frames pretty seriously, so she didn't really take her glance off the display case.

"There you are, darling," a familiar Australian accent approached her.

"Hey," Rory recognized Finn, turning to him to accept a friendly hug, having to raise to her toes for that.

"I'm a little early, I hope that's okay," Finn replied, apologetically. He'd been supposed to meet her in ten-fifteen minutes in nearby restaurant, but as Rory told him what her day entailed, she wasn't really surprised he'd shown up.

"It's fine. I just might be a while, I have no idea what to choose," Rory replied, feeling both overwhelmed by the selection and determined to choose something today.

Finn was in town for a visit from the City to see his sister, who lived in Ellington, and since his drive took him through Hartford anyways, he'd often made it a point to meet up with Rory along the way.

Seeing him always felt good, the man being like from some alternate universe, packed with all things happy, radiating off his optimism and energy each time. Rory needed that, especially these days.

"Well let's see - anything in particular that you're looking for?" Finn asked, offering to help. He didn't mean to rush her, he wasn't in any real hurry to get going, but he was always the type of guy to get the ball rolling, whatever it was that he was doing.

"I kind of like these, but I'm not sure..," Rory replied, putting on the frames she'd tried a few minutes ago.

"Maybe," Finn shrugged, tilting his head as he observed her.

Rory got that this was his way not to say anything directly negative about her choice, and she rolled her eyes at him.

"How about these ones?" Finn suggested, and took a pair of ful vue glasses in titanium grey and held them out for Rory. Rory took them from his hand and put them on.

This option was definitely a lot less dominating on her face, modest and delicate.

"Pretty good, right?" Finn observed her view herself in the mirror. Her hair was loose, having not had really time to do anything much with it since she'd been in a hurry, but it fit well with the burgundy turtleneck she was wearing, under her demin jacket.

"Maybe it's too...biblical?" Rory burst out in laughter, having lacked a better word for it. During the many times they'd met up during the past four years they'd covered, among other things, her being called Mary when she'd went to Chilton herself.

Her look was innocent, they would've suited the Mary that went to Chilton, not the Magdalen who'd travelled the world, jumped off scaffoldings and played golf off of rooftops, to name some of the more admirable things she had on her track record, not wanting to think of the more embarrasing bits. Either way, deep down she didn't feel like just some humble spinster governess even if her current look might have spoke of just that.