After the Glee...

I’m still going through this really slowly, so apologies, but a lot happened and I have to explain it properly. Also, I kind of like making you suffer, folk of the internets.

As we reach the outskirts of the town and start driving towards the port, my phone rings. I flip it out one handed and press it to my ear.
“Emma?”
“Hi Vikkie. We’re nearly home”
“That’s great….why do you sound weird?”
“Weird?”
“All chirpy and….It’s an Arthur thing isn’t it?”
My smile stretches impossibly wider. “Yup”
“Well soak in the joy now because you are about to walk into the storm. Your parents are here, and they want to talk to you.”
I say goodbye to Arthur outside his house, allowing myself another brief moment to enjoy finally being allowed to hold onto him. Fear builds in me as I walk to my house alone. My parents are inside, sitting together on one side of the small table, like it’s a job interview….or a police interrogation. I am momentarily at a loss, then I cross the room and perch on the end of the bed, waiting for the yelling to begin.
“Emma, just what is it that you think you’re doing?” Mum starts, backed up by some glaring on behalf of Dad. “Dropping out of University” she pauses, dramatically, “Lying to us”.
“Ok, I apologise for lying, I just didn’t know how to deal with telling you the truth.”
“That should have told you something, when you’re ashamed of your decisions you’ve clearly made a mistake.” She fiddles with the empty mug I left on the table before went away.
“I don’t think it was a mistake, it was just difficult….” She cuts me off in disbelief.
“Not a mistake? Emma, you passed all you’re A levels, made it through all the applications without any trouble and your tutors seem to think you were doing really well.”
“You spoke to my tutor?”
“Well, they were concerned when you just dropped out in the middle of a successful term! You have a good future all laid out, you’ve been working for it for years, these last few months are a blip compared to that.”
“It’s not a blip! I chose to do this, I’ve been working really hard on everything, the house, the site….It’s all going really well.”
“But where is it going? Are you still going to be here when you’re fifty? How are you going to meet anyone out here, in the middle of nowhere. I know you probably “don’t care” about meeting someone and getting married…but it’ll sneak on you, one day you’ll be old and lonely and stranded on a rock in the middle of the sea.”
I can’t think of anything to say, She seems so certain that for a moment I’m sure that I have made a mistake. What am I doing here? I’ve given up my future for the sake of an unstable present. One lot of campers at my site, no money coming in, no idea how to run a business and a man whose twice my age…I stop myself. I refuse to get into that again, not when I‘m finally happy, a brief wave of warm emotion thaws my panic stricken mind. There is no such thing as a single, life ruining moment, one decision that if made wrongly with take out your entire life. I realise my Mum is still talking.
“Mum!” I cut her off with a wave of my hand. She stops mid sentence. “Enough, ok?”
She falls silent and my Dad jerks out of his seat, I suspect that she’s just kicked him into action.
“Emma, we’re worried about you, all these changes, so suddenly, could be a bad thing.”
“Really?” despite myself I’m getting angry, angry at them for ruining what should be the best day of my life, and angry at myself for letting them.
“And what would you know about change, the pair of you? All you do is sit around watching other peoples dreams come true on TV and talking about doing it yourself. But you’re still the same house you’ve been in for ten years! Nothing has changed and you’ve just wasted your time!”
There’s a stunned silence and I suddenly feel bad. It seems cruel to tell someone over fifty that they’ve wasted their life, its not like they can do anything about it now.
“Look” I say, placating “You can stay here for a few days and we’ll sort things out, and I’ll tell you everything. But I’m not going back to University, I’m sorry but it’s not what I want to do.”
I pick up the dirty mugs and heap them in the sink, then tidy up the rest of the place while my parents sit silently, as if they’re communicating telepathically. I catch sight of my chickens through the window, noting that they’ve recently been fed and that the soil in the garden is dark with water when it hasn’t rained since I left. I spot Arthur’s coat, draped over the wall and forgotten, I feel another dart of happiness. He took care of everything for me.
I put my parents bags in a corner and set up another bed which was intended for Vikkie when she visited later on in the year. The house is cramped with the three of us there, and I suddenly have an idea. I get out my phone, and, excusing myself, head into the garden. I dial and listen to the dialling sounds.
“Emma?” Arthur’s voice comes down the line “Everything ok with your parents?”
“Sort of” I wince, I cannot tell them about Arthur, they would die, literally die of shock. “Actually they’re going to be staying with me for a while.”
“Really?” he pauses “That sounds…fun.” humour colours his voice, detectable even over the phone.
“It does, doesn’t it?” I wait for a second, internally arguing with myself. I cannot just invite myself to stay it would be rude, and stupid and totally inappropriate….
“You could always stay here” I could swear I heard him shuffling his feet and running a hand through his hair.
“I suppose so…..” I dither, not wanting to seem too eager.
“Come on, it can’t be that hard to get you back here…Daniel managed it.”
“Git” I say, feigning offence. He chuckles.
“Couldn’t resist, sorry. Pack a bag and I’ll put you in one of the spare rooms.”
“Daniel isn’t there is he? Because that’s not a conversation I need to have today…or ever really.” I shred a few leaves anxiously.
“No, he said he was going back to his flat yesterday. Wont be back till Christmas.”
“Alright, I’ll be down there in about an hour.”
“See you then.”
I hang up feeling light with happiness, but also a little nervous. Despite being (very) attracted to Arthur, I had never actually spent a lot of time around him and the prospect of doing so was a little daunting. What if we had nothing in common? What if I bored him? Feeling now slightly more than a little nervous I grabbed a few things from the house and said an awkward goodbye to my parents, before walking down to Arthur’s.
And that’s it so far. I’ll let you know how it goes.