Learning To Fly

Jaime Faces An Interrogation

As soon as I’m off the plane and situated in Jack’s truck, I pick my phone up from the bottom of my bag, its weird not to have heard from him at all today and no wonder looking at it, it’s been fucking turned off since I got to work this morning. When I turn it on there’s about fifty missed calls flashing up on my screen from Marshall.
“Shit” I say under my breath and call him quickly back, he answers on the second ring “where the fuck are you? Are you OK?” He fires questions at me and yells at me, sounding frantic and upset, I’m immediately contrite that he’s got himself worked up like that because I forgot to turn my stupid phone on.

“Hey, I’m OK, I’m in California, I just decided this morning to come after work” I speak calmly and slowly it’s the best way to calm him when his temper gets the better of him I’ve discovered. “I was worried” he’s very short with me and I know now he must have been really worrying about me, I can only imagine he’s pouting, chewing on his bottom lip. Probably fighting the urge to say something he’ll regret.

“I’m good, staying with Sarah and Jack till Sunday afternoon” we’re both silent and I can’t say any of the things I want because Jack’s sat next to me “You’re not alone are you?” he whispers as if he thinks Jack could hear him.
“Jack picked me up from the airport, I’ll call you later when I’m settled ok” I really wanted to blurt out that I loved him but just about stopped myself in time. “OK Angel, as long as you’re ok” he sounds sad, tired and I hate that and he hangs up on me without saying goodbye.
I send him a quick text ‘I’m so sorry Marshall, I just didn’t think. Please answer the phone when I call you later xx’
I stress about him on the way to the house and I could kick myself for not calling him before I got on the plane.

As soon as the truck is parked I’m out and pulling off my clothes, my bikini already on underneath. Jack and Sarah are used to me doing this. I walk out towards the ocean and wade out deeper and deeper until I can’t touch the sand any more and lay back letting the gentle waves bring me back to me. Its dark and peaceful.

“Hmm something smells good” I wander into the kitchen after showering from my swim, I needed to get out into the ocean just to centre myself, rebalance.
“Its your favourite, meatballs and spaghetti, I made enough for about ten people though so we’ll be eating it till you go back”  she stares down into her pot, Jack sets the table for us and I stand about trying to help but honestly just getting in their way really.
So instead I just love on Zoe whilst trying not to think about Marshall being mad at me.

“So Jack said you called your mystery man on the way here?” Sarah probes, I glance over to Jack, glaring at him and he has the good grace to look embarrassed. “I did, I had lots of missed calls from him, didn’t tell him I was coming here” I tell my nosey friends.

“Is he controlling then? Is that why you won’t tell me much about him?” Sarah’s question gets my back up immediately, she doesn’t know enough about him to make a snap judgement by reading anything into one sentence “Umm no, he’s not controlling at all, he was worried about me that’s all, he doesn’t deal with that kind of thing too well” she looks at me, trying to gage if I’m telling her the truth.

“You’re in love with him aren’t you, come on Jaime it’s been months and I know nothing about this guy, we’re family and I’m feeling hurt that you won’t tell me anything, I wouldn’t tell anyone else and you know it” she sounds hurt and I guess if the boot was in the other foot I’d feel exactly the same, I sigh wanting to give her more but not wanting to be disloyal to Marshall either, not that he would know that I’d told her but I’d know.

“I am in love with him, so much Sarah but I can’t tell him just yet, he’s had problems with the women in his life before and he feels vulnerable about his feelings for me. But he’s come a really long way since we started, just please trust me on this.” She looks up from her pot and smiles at me “He’s a good man Sarah and he likes that no one knows about us” she purses her lips at me “Isn’t that a little bit worrying that he doesn’t want anyone to know about you two?”
If I could tell her his name she’d understand so much better about the secretive nature of our relationship “I like it too and I have my job to worry about, my career even and once its out there they’ll be more to deal with” I’m bracing myself for the time the press finds out about us.

“Is loving him worth losing your career over?” she asks me sincerely and I’m quiet for a beat thinking how to answer it, I’ve thought about it a hundred million times “honestly 3 months ago I would have said No, a great fuck wasn’t going to be ever worth losing my job over but now is different, it all feels different. if he could commit to me I’d give it up tomorrow and find something else to do” and that’s the truth of the matter, I love him and I’ll fight for us and do whatever it takes to keep us together.

“You’re too cute Jaime, dinner’s ready, go sit down” Sarah is a couple of years older than me and sometimes she can be quite bossy, she calls it maternal, I say bossy but I take my seat nonetheless, very excited about Sarah’s meatballs because they are simply the best.

The doorbell rings and Jack heads out to answer it, he comes back a moment later looking like he’s seen a ghost, a secret look passes from him to Sarah and he kisses her quickly before addressing me “Jaime you’ve got a visitor” I look at him confused, nobody knows I’m here but I see a movement out of the corner of my eye realising that someone has stepped in the room behind him and I stop breathing, it can't be. My skin prickles in a pleasant way and tears prick at my eyes as Marshall pulls his hood down and looks at me. I completely forget that Jack and Sarah are in the room and lunge towards him, throwing myself into his arms luckily he catches me and I wrap my arms and legs around him planting sloppy kisses all over his face “Hi Angel” he whispers in my ear sending shivers all the way through my body.

A loud cough causes me to pull my face away from his and I look at Sarah’s dumbfounded face “Excuse me, sorry to interrupt! But what the hell is going on? can anyone, anyone at all, tell me why the fuck my best friend has her body wrapped around Eminem right now” I pull away from him at the sound of Sarah’s hard voice and check him over, he looks edible right now.
As he let’s me go from him I turn around to face the music.  “Jack, Sarah this is Marshall, Marshall my best friends Jack and Sarah” I introduce them and stand back waiting for the penny to drop for her “Oh my god now I know why you wouldn’t tell me his name” I listen to her going on and on before Jack drags her by the arm back out to the kitchen.

“Baby, you outed us to my friends” I scold him lightly and he laughs “I’m staying thirty minutes away, there was no way I was going to sleep tonight knowing you were here, told Paul I had a headache, went to bed and snuck out the back entrance” he looks really pleased with himself and I kiss him passionately before I hear Jack coming back in the room, he sets a place for Marshall next to me and tells him to sit down, we both sit and Marshall finds my hand under the table and clings onto me “You’ll get used to Sarah, she’ll be cool...... Eventually” Jack smiles at him.