Washed Up

Rift Valley

Riley & Ross

Rift valley. Noun. [rift val-ee]. A deep valley that forms where two plates move apart.

~~~~~  

Dear Ross,

Hey, remember me? Duh, of course you do. Who could forget. It's the weekend before finals here at Cornell and I'm procrastinating by talking to you. Don't you feel important? It's weird--even when I'm trying to memorize Piaget's stages of cognitive development, you still come into my mind. I wish we'd taken more pictures this summer. I just have one crappy selfie with saltwater on the screen hung behind my desk. It doesn't feel like enough to sum up one entire summer. But then again, sometimes summer feels like a dream.

I guess I should tell you about my fascinating life. It's cold and snowy here, and all I want to do is hide under a blanket with fluffy socks and Parks and Rec. If you were here, I bet you'd say we should go sledding or build a snowman or something, but I'm too boring for that kind of thing. School is good, by the way. My roommate, I told you about her in my last letter, is actually pretty cool. We're not best friends or anything, but I don't want to shank her in the night, so I guess that's a bonus. Plus, I'm going to live off-campus starting next semester to save money on room and board. And I'm going to cook for myself, so this may be the last letter you ever receive because I'm either going to poison myself or starve myself.

Oh, and I got a new job for next semester! I think I told you I got stuck vacuuming this year--still better than the dish room--but if I get a GPA about 3.75 in my Psych classes, then my advisor said I can work at the counseling center. I'm really excited because this could lead to career opportunities--I just said career opportunities without laughing. I'm really growing up.

Christmas is going to be awful. Mom and Dad are taking me with them to D.C. for some Christmas ball thing and they've insisted I can't just stay home in previously mentioned comfy socks. No, I have to go, and they even bought me this bedazzled dress. You'd compliment me if you were here, and then die laughing because there are gems and glitter literally everywhere. Plus, my parents have appointed themselves my matchmakers. I think they're worried I'll run off and fall in love with some lifeguard--ridiculous, right? They're trying to get this stuffy Harvard guy who wears coral shorts in all his Facebook pictures to go to the ball as my date. Don't worry, I'm not interested. He's more of a sailor than a lifeguard, and I need to keep a lifeguard around what with the last time I went swimming.

I don't have anything else to tell you. I know you're feeding starving kids in Africa or whatever, but write me a letter sometime soon. I miss you, and summer is too far away.

Love,

Riley

~~~~~

Dear Riley,

I miss you like crazy. Last night I dreamed you were here in my arms, and waking up completely sucked. I want to be kissing you right now, not stretching my muscles that are sore from ditch digging.

Can it be summer now?

I'm mostly kidding. As much as I miss you, this year has been awesome so far. I spent Christmas in Latvia and had gingerbread and bacon rolls--yes, bacon rolls--after seeing the world's first Christmas tree. It was incredible. Now I'm in Kenya digging ditches for some new water pipes. My arms and shoulders ache from using muscles I didn't even know I have--me, the lifeguard and professional box picker upper. Most of their tools are really old and broken which just makes the work take longer, but still, it's exciting. We're working together to finish the water pipe and next week, they'll be able to run water from a well three miles away to houses all throughout the village. It's cool.

I got an actual letter from Dad this week, believe it or not. He's stuck with the grief counseling and he said he was thinking about going to Alcoholics Anonymous. His words, not mine. He sent me notes from Ivy, Mason, and Sammy. I miss them almost as much as I miss you. As much as I love traveling and everything, I don't think I want to travel for the rest of my life. Maybe just once a year, in the summer maybe? I'll have to look for a good traveling partner.

Did Lucy tell you that they're getting married? Ernie sent me a wedding invitation and asked me to be a groomsman. Apparently they're getting married on the beach this summer. Man, I feel too young to have friends who are getting married, but Ernie and Lucy, I think they'll make it work. By the way, are you going to be busy on the weekend of July 8th? I might need a plus one.

I still have four and a half more months of this internship. I mean, that's partially a good thing. I've seen things I never even imagined, Ry. I thought I would care more about nature and scenery and stuff, but it's the people that amaze me most. There's so much resilience and strength in people--I think I kind of gave up on people after Mom committed suicide and Dad lost himself. But there are good people out there, Ry. Don't worry though, you're still the best.

I don't have anything else to say but I really don't want to end this letter because it's my only connection to you. The next time I travel the world, I'm just getting an international cell phone plan. Writing letters is not as romantic as I thought it'd be.

For now, I love you and I miss you and I'll see you soon. Meet you on the first day of summer?

Ross

~~~~~

So what do you think? Will Riley show up? Only one chapter left in this story, and I'm hoping to finish it by the end of the week, so stay tuned!

~ Hannah