I went about this for another hour, making two separate piles. The first pile was for cookware, anything that said “His & Hers,” and well-wish cards. The second pile, the “keep” pile, was for jewelry, money, and mementos.
After opening every gift, my “keep” pile had amassed $4,600, three diamond necklaces, a Rebecca Moses dress, five bracelets, and a collection of framed Hollywood movie posters.
I wasn’t sure what to do next. Watching TV was out of the question and I was sure that my parents hadn’t updated their DVD collection in years.
I wandered from room to room, failing to feel any nostalgia, any ties. They’d remodeled the house beyond recognition.
The staircase that once served as the backdrop for family photos was stripped of its soft beige carpet and fitted with hardwood and white paint. The family den, the former home of celebrations —graduations, milestones, birthdays—was now a great room with a dining table and two sets of oversized furniture. My childhood room was no longer a pink Barbie-haven. It was a yellow guestroom that reflected my parents’ love for the beach.
I ran my fingers across our old family portrait and smiled. My younger sister Jennifer and I looked like twins back then. Our red hair hung loose and wild, our green eyes glimmered underneath the hot Memphis sun. My mom’s squinty eyes were nearly covered by her blunt bangs, but her toothy smile made up for it. My dad stood to her side, bald and stone-faced, wearing his trademark black suit.
I stood by my former window and tilted the blinds. The rain was still falling heavily and the lake was long abandoned.
Something in me snapped and I headed outside again. I was soaked within seconds, but for some reason I began to laugh. I stepped down from the deck and waded into the lake.
I waded further and further, farther and farther, until my feet no longer touched the bottom. I flipped over on my back and brought my arms over my head, paddling with no destination in mind.
If Sean had been there, he would be yelling at me, telling me to get out of the water immediately.
That was the one thing he and I didn’t share: a love for the open water. He preferred pools with designated depth markers while I preferred unrestricted oceans and large lakes.
I shook the thought of him out of my mind and kept swimming in the rain, relishing in the freedom.
“Melody!” my mom shouted as she and my dad came through the front door. “You’re a redhead again!”
“Hey Mom. Hey Dad.”
“I see you went ahead and took my advice on the wedding gifts,” she nodded.
“Yeah,” I sighed. “I’m going to write out the thank you cards tonight.”
“And I assume that the pile with the cookware is staying here?”
I laughed. “Of course.”
“Have you heard anything from that boy?” my dad hissed.
“No, I haven’t. Whoa! Nice watch!” I eyed his wrist.
He smiled and held it to the light. “Thanks! It’s an Audemars Piguet! Sean bought it for my birthday this year. He sure did know his jewelry.”
“Really Dad?”
My mom slapped the back of his head and they both walked over to the cookware pile.
I went to my room and plugged my phone into the wall: forty seven missed calls, twenty nine voice messages, and seventy three text messages. There were no missed calls from Sean, but he’d sent me fifteen texts.
Coward.
I wasn’t going to call everyone back, and I wasn’t going to listen to any voice messages. I deleted my call log and called my sister.
“Melody!” she picked up on the first ring. “I told you to call me as soon as you landed! It’s been like two weeks! Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I’m okay. How are you?”
“Stressed. I’m still not done with my thesis and—who cares? Don’t worry about me. Has that ass**le said anything to you?”
“No,” I felt a lump rise in my throat.
“Good! I told him to never call you again or I would have my guy friends come to that store and beat him up.”
“Jennifer!”
“What? It’s the truth. Let me know if he calls okay? I bought some new pepper spray yesterday.”
I laughed at the excitement in her voice. “Were you and Lilly able to get my stuff out of his condo?”
“Yeah, but we weren’t able to get all of it. There wasn’t enough room in the car and Lilly had to go back to Jersey.”
“That’s okay. I guess I’ll get those when I get back.”
“Oh my god, please tell me when you go! I’m dying to test out this new spray!”
“I love you, Jen. I’ll talk to you later.”
“You better! I love you too.”
I hung up and smiled at the thought of Jen and her friends beating Sean to a pulp in Belazi. Then again, he’d probably charm his way out of it or offer them jewelry to get them to go away.
I called my office.
“Melody Carter’s office,” Sophie answered.
“I take it everyone at work heard about the wedding?”
“Miss Carter! It’s so nice to hear from you!” she coughed and changed her tone. “I did as much damage control as I could ma’am.”
“Thank you, Sophie. Did you get my review about the latest Matt Sterling film?”