Mikey and the Chickadee

Chapter 5 - Part 2

We gathered in the dining room and sat down. My mom had separated the meat, greens and rice into different serving bowls. Wine glasses were set for all of us, each containing the same generous amount. We were quiet as we dished up our plates and began to eat.

I knew my announcement of the possibility of moving would have to occur sooner or later, so I spoke up after a minute or two. "Tandon and Dufresne wants me to move to Fern Hill. They told me on Wednesday. I would leave in a little over five weeks."

Everyone stopped eating.

"What?" said my mom. "Isn't there plenty of work in the city?"

"They have kind of a little stronghold up there," I said. I explained about how they were short on room and some of the new hires were expected to, in essence, do their time away from the main branch. "They'll pay for relocation costs. I'm just not sure if I'm going to do it."

My dad cleared his throat. "Hold on. Are there any ramifications if you don't?"

"Well, yeah," I said. "I won't have a job with them anymore."

He frowned. "Well, what is it that you're not sure about?"

"I don't know," I said. "There's like a ninety-five percent chance I'll go. It's just hard to imagine actually doing it. There's a lot I'll miss about the city. Plus it's nice to be close to you guys again."

"Sweetie," said my mom, "we love it, too. Every minute of it. But if this is your career we're talking about, and as long as it's only temporary, I just don't think it's right to pass it up. Not if it'll cost you your job."

"I know. That's where the ninety-five percent comes from."

"Okay," she said. "Alright, that's fair. You just need some time to get used to the idea. I understand that."

Stephanie had been listening silently and began to eat again. "He'll probably go," she said with a mouthful of rice, "but if he doesn't, it's because it wasn't right for him." She swallowed. "Anyway, it's his decision, not yours."

"We know that," said my dad, "but spending, what, a year or two away? That's not a big deal. Not with a job that has so much potential for growth."

"Don't worry about it," I told them. "Stephanie's right; I'll probably go. And I could use some help with the move."

"Of course," said my mom, gesturing up to the ceiling with her fork. "We'll get the old truck out of the garage—it'll be just like when you left for school. Dad and I will come visit as often as you let us."

"I'm not eighteen anymore," I said. "You can visit whenever you want."

We continued to eat for a few minutes and then my dad said, "Stephanie's officially a single woman again. I'll drink to that." My dad had never liked my sister's marriage with her now ex-husband because he had suspected, long before any actual evidence surfaced, that Craig was closeted.

"Hide your husbands," Stephanie muttered, sipping her wine.

"You've handled it all with such poise, sweetie," said my Mom.

She sighed. "Ultimately, there's not much to contemplate. Makes things easier. That and hopefully staying friends."

"I like you better as friends," my dad announced.

"Yes, thank you, Dad," said Stephanie. "So good to finally know how you feel."

I couldn't help but laugh.

"So, Wyatt," my mom began, "I know you don't want me to ask, but you're always so quiet about your love life. If a boy spends his time driving you around, I think that could mean he's more than a little into you."