𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 ; 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐰 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐨

𝐦𝐲 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐦𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐝

˗ˏˋ third person 'ˎ˗

"are you coming or not?"

noa had blown up matthew's phone practically all day long. While he was at work, he couldn't help but notice the frequency of buzzing in his pocket. when he'd finally shut his phone off, he was granted a few minutes of peace. when he turned it back on, he'd missed 32 calls from none other than noa.

"noa, i already told you it's a bad idea. it's not practical and there's no point in us going all the way to california for clarification of something we already know to be happening," matthew explained. he wanted nothing more than to brush this entire thing under the rug. to pretend that he never knew noa and she'd never told him about any of this.

"this morning, you told me that you didn't think it was a horrible idea. not great by any means, but you were somewhat okay with it. what changed?" noa was pressing him for more information. she was going to be pretty angry if he'd had some change of heart, if he felt it was okay to forgive bri. bri ruined noa's relationship too, and she had no intentions of letting her off that easily.

he had to come up with some quick excuse as to why this wasn't going to happen. "i can't get the time off work," he paused. "my boss is on my ass for missing too much time already."

"have you ever told them that your grandma died? you know, you're granted two living grandmothers and two living grandfathers whenever you start a new job, regardless of reality..."

matt chuckled. noa could be funny.

"i haven't used that excuse yet," he admitted. he clicked unlock on his car keys, climbing into the driver's seat. "how would we even get there?"

"take a plane?" noa responds, perplexed as to why he was even asking something so obvious.

"i can't take a plane," matthew muttered. "i am terrified of heights."

matt hated admitting it to anyone. he feared that everyone thought it was a stupid fear for a young man to have. after all, the chances of dying from a plane crash are practically zero.  but, truth be told, he hated being off the ground. it was a miracle that he was able to live comfortably in his sixteenth floor apartment.

"we can drive then," noa suggests. she didn't seem fazed, and matt was oddly relieved that she hadn't burst out laughing across the phone.

"noa, with all due respect, i don't even know what you look like. i know nothing about you. i have no idea what your criminal record is or-"

"i'm wanted for first degree murder." noa interrupts. she was annoyed with how careful matthew seemed to be. if there was one thing about noa, it's that she ran on pure impulse.

"can you ever be serious?"

"i am being serious, matt. i'm begging you to see my point here," she spoke. "i think it would be closure for both of us."

matt sighed, looking off into the distance. from inside his car, he could see the sunset that poured over the buildings in front of him. he didn't know how to break this to noa.

"what if i don't want to be done with her?" he picked at the skin around his nail. It was a nervous habit. "what if i don't want closure with her?"

noa was silent. he could hear shuffling across the line. he wondered if she was still in bed or if she was at the grocery store. he wondered what she was up to at this very moment.

"then...that's up to you. but please, find it in yourself to help me get mine."

matthew cleared his throat, starting the car. the engine roared to life, noa's call connecting to the car's bluetooth speaker. "are you...are you actually wanted for first degree murder?"

he could hear noa chuckle. she waited a second to respond. "no. but with everything that's happening, it's a future possibility."

"i feel you there," matt replied, merging onto the interstate. "i'll send my boss an email about taking a leave of absence. in the meantime, you find directions on how to get to san francisco that doesn't involve a plane."

a smile spread across noa's face. "message me as soon as you know."

with that, she hung up.

when matthew walked through the front door of his apartment, he felt a sense of relief. he was finally getting used to bri not being there, which was something he never thought would happen.

he opened his laptop, sitting at the kitchen island and typing out an email to his boss.

───── ───── ───── ───── ─────

To: raymondnemock@gmail.com
From: matthewbsturniolo@gmail.com
Subject: My grandma died.

Good evening Mr. Nemock, I regret to inform you that my grandmother has passed and I am requesting a leave of absence as I deal with this difficult time. Her and I were very close, and I will have to travel to San Fransisco to attend her funeral. Please get back to me as soon as possible. If needed, I can complete some of my work from my laptop in CA. Thank you.

- Matthew Sturniolo
Head of Operations
Nemock Technology Inc.
Boston, MA'

───── ───── ───── ───── ─────

matthew sat impatiently. his heart was pounding in his chest. despite telling noa he missed too much work already, the truth was he hadn't ever missed a day. he wasn't one to call out, it made him far too anxious.

as he was just about to get up to begin cooking dinner, a ding came from his macbook. in the corner was a notification from gmail.

───── ───── ───── ───── ─────

Reply to: matthewbsturniolo@gmail.com
From: raymondnemock@gmail.com
Subject: I'm sorry that your grandma died.

Matthew, this sounds okay with me. Take the time you need, I will email you any assignments that are urgent & that can be done online. My condolences.

- Raymond Nemock
CEO of Nemock Technology Inc.
Boston, MA.

───── ───── ───── ───── ─────

matt breathed out a sigh of relief, pulling the phone out of his back pocket to message noa.

matthew
all clear. figured out
directions?
6:52 pm

random noa girl 🤢
omg no way
6:53 pm

random noa girl 🤢
well its 46 hours
from bos. are we
taking two cars?
6:53 pm

matthew
that wouldn't make sense.
should i drive down to
nc to pick you up first?
6:54 pm

random noa girl 🤢
i can take a
plane to bos
and you could
get me from the
airport. i am not
afraid of heights. ;)
6:57 pm

matthew
shut the fuck up. lmk what
time your flight gets in.
6:57 pm

random noa girl 🤢
10:30 tomorrow morning
6:58 pm

matthew
that was quick.
7:00 pm

random noa girl 🤢
i already had
it booked
7:01 pm