All three of us sleep together in my bed that night, happy to be together again.
Once the girls are asleep, I quietly pick up my phone and send Harmon a thank you text. The word will never be enough to show my gratitude, but I have nothing else to give him in return, so it’ll have to do.
I wake up alone but hear laughter coming from the apartment. I smile to myself as I lie in bed. I’ve never felt so happy in all my life. I didn’t know what this felt like. Still, I can’t help the black cloud in the distance, threatening to hover over me once again.
I’d love to go back to sleep, but I can do that after I drop Chrissy off at school. I find her and Cammy in the dining roomtogether, sitting at the table, eating cereal… and I find out what they’re laughing at.
“Seriously?” I question as I look at the TV that’s resting on the kitchen counter, facing the girls.
“What? We can do what we want,” Chrissy says.
“If you want a TV in the dining room, I’ll buy another one. Whose is that?”
“Living room,” Cammy says.
I roll my eyes. “I’ll get another one today.”
I pour myself some cereal, which isn’t a gourmet meal… but it’s name brand and more than we ever had before.
Cammy isn’t working today, so she comes with me to drop off Chrissy. We all get coffees and donuts—because we can—even though it’s completely out of the way.
“What do you think about going to the movies on Friday?” I ask.
“The movies?” Chrissy asks.
“I’m working,” Cammy says.
“Call out.”
“I can’t, we—” She snaps her mouth shut, then looks at me with a strange look. “I think that’s a great idea.”
“You don’t need to work at all anymore, Cammy. Maybe you should look into school.”
“I don’t know, Cass. It feels…”
“What?”
“Too soon?”
“Harmon told me we’d sign another contract when the six months are up. This time for a year.”
“He said that?” she asks.
“Yeah. So, quit your job.”
“I don’t know…” She glances out the window. “Maybe when you sign it.”
“Then you should look into classes now. This way it’ll be all set.”
“I agree,” Chrissy says as she stares at her phone. “Do what makes you happy, Cam.”
“Yeah, Cam.” I nudge her with my elbow.
A couple minutes later, we pull into the school parking lot. Chrissy hops out with a smile on her face.
“Later!” I call out.
She waves and takes off toward the doors.