She Never Said Goodbye

Chapter Twenty-Four

"Are you sure you don't wanna come along?" Owen asked, opening and closing drawers.

"I'm sure. I have a lot of things I need to get done in preparation for Autumn Fest at school. You know if I go with y'all, I'll be way too distracted. I won't get anything done before or after the show."

He found the jeans he was looking for and rolled them up before shoving them into his backpack. He popped into the bathroom quick to get his toothbrush, razor and deodorant.

"Monny," his brow furrowed, "this is the first time in a long while that you haven't come with us. Are you sure it's just work keeping you home?"

"Yes. It's just work." She wasn't looking into his eyes, though. She had her attention on the literary journal Jane had left at their apartment a while ago.

He zipped up his backpack and crawled over to the side of their bed that Monica was laying on.

"Hey," he placed his hand on her cheek, moving it towards his face, "gimme a kiss."

She put the journal down and kissed her boyfriend. She could tell he was a little upset that she wasn't joining him and the band and the other girlfriends for a weekend in the city. The Sun Also Rises did not get gigs too often so far out of town, and she almost always tagged along when they did.

He put his backpack on his shoulders, propped his sunglasses up onto the crown on his head and slid his cell phone into his pocket. He took one last look at her.

"Get some rest, too, okay?" he pleaded.

"Well, thanks. Do I look that awful?"

"No," he walked over to her and held her hand. The curtains were drawn, and she could see the autumn leaves meandering in the breeze outside their window. "Just, take care of yourself, alright? Working full-time at a daycare seems pretty stressful. And you have to do all this added stuff on top of it all, too."

She squeezed his hand and brought it to her cheek before she kissed it and let it go. "Babe, I'm fine. I'll try my best to not stay up too late finishing up the festival crafts." She smacked his bottom and added, "Behave yourself."

"I'll be a complete saint." He brought his sunglasses down and did a silly little move, rolling his shoulders back and forth. He slid his sunglasses back up, helping to tame his longer and therefore more unruly hair, and placed a final kiss on her forehead.

She knew very well, as he walked out of their bedroom and then out of the apartment, that he would drink too much and smoke far too much without her around, yet with all the parenting she did at work, she welcomed not having to be on patrol all weekend. The guys and the girls would just have to fend for themselves.

Monica worked on a few things for Autumn Fest after Owen left. It only took her a few hours. After she laid her creations on the floor to dry, she took a very long bath and then left the apartment. Her first stop was the coffee shop.