In the last few days she had in Torrington, Sam managed to get rid of the majority of what she didn’t want to keep. The Salvation Army brought a truck and a couple of guys who loaded all of it up and took it with them. It seriously made it a lot easier for her. The things she kept, like her bedroom set and a few other pieces of furniture, scattered boxes and a few large pictures, she had arranged to have it all brought to her after she got to Florida.
The hardest part for her wasn’t the last-minute packing or planning. The most difficult thing for her was dealing with her emotions. Especially, her growing feelings over Junior. She knew and accepted that she didn’t want a relationship, but she couldn’t get the memory of their kiss out of her mind. The softness of his touch as he held her face and the way his lips felt on hers.
Why hadn’t she controlled herself better? She knew, or believed at least, that the best thing to do was to not venture into anything more than friendship with him. She couldn’t allow herself to get close to another man again, not intimately. Her heart was fragile and she didn’t think her soul was much stronger in that category, either.
Since the night they had dinner she busied herself getting the last remaining tasks done and cleaning the apartment. She already talked to the landlord and he told her to simply put her key in the mail. With all the last-minute details that needed to be done before getting in her car and leaving she shouldn’t have had time to think, but her brain thought otherwise.
It was hard leaving the apartment even though she had no doubt it was best for her. It was painful to leave her friend behind. She thought about going to see him before leaving, but decided it was better to just go. It would be easier because if they saw each other again it would renew the still raw and fresh feelings within them both.
Sam got up early the morning of her departure. She had a long drive ahead of her. Her clock was set for 4:00 and the sound of it blaring near her head was a sharp reminder of everything. She already had everything ready. All she had to do was get dressed and brush her teeth and she could leave. She had packed the remaining items in her car the night before. Even her coffeemaker. So the first thing she needed to do when she pulled away from the apartment was stop at Dunkin’ Donuts and get a hot cup to go.
As she sat in her car the guilt set in on her and knew she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t leave without at least calling him and saying goodbye one more time. The clock said five minutes past five, and she wondered if he was awake. She knew he worked first shift and was an early riser so she took the chance and dialed his number. He answered on the third ring with a sleepy voice.
“Hello.”
“Good morning. Did I wake you?”
“Oh, good morning. I was lying here. I need to get up anyhow.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
She took a deep breath and tried to calm her nerves. Why was she so nervous?
“I wanted to call before I left and say bye. I’m getting ready to leave now,” she told him.
She could hear him moving around in bed and he made a soft grunt as he was probably sitting up.
“So, today’s the big day,” he said. “I hope it’s a good drive and I’m glad you called. I was hoping to get to talk to you before you left.”
She smiled at his words and her heart fluttered slightly.
“I’ll give you a call when I get there, if not before. I doubt I’ll try to drive the whole way in one day. I’ll probably get a room somewhere about halfway. I’m not used to driving for that long and going the whole way alone will make it even longer.”
“How long do you think it would take?”
“About twenty hours, but that’s non-stop. So, with stopping for bathroom and rest breaks and eating and of course coffee I would say about twenty-three. Of course, that’s not staying overnight someplace. I’ll be fine, but once I get there I’ll be worn out.”
“No doubt about it. Please, be careful.”
“I will, thank you.”
“Of course.”
A moment passed and there wasn’t much else that could be said between them at that time. It was early and she was wired with so many emotions and needed to get on the road.
“I guess I better go if I want to try to beat at least some of the traffic. I’m sure I’ll have plenty of that on the way.”
“Yeah, I’m sure you will. Take care of yourself Sam.”
“You too.”
They ended the call and she felt sadness creep in on her. She couldn’t let that get to her. It wasn’t meant to happen between them and she truly believed that. She hoped for his sake that he believed that too.
The need for her caffeine boost hit her again and she started the car.
“Goodbye, Torrington. Goodbye, forever.”