Chapter Two: Wellfleet:

It was going to be two-hour drive home. The longest two hours of my life. It didn’t help that I was going home alone. It would probably be dinner time when I got home. I probably should call somebody. I pulled out my phone. Even before I made the call, I could predict what she was going to say. Still, she would like to know that was coming home.

“Hello?” she asked on the other line. I lifted my chin and took a breath.

“Mom, it’s me,” I said. There was a pause on the other line.

“Nathan?” she asked. “How have you been? I haven’t heard from you in weeks. Are you okay?” I sighed and dropped my shoulders.

“No,” I said.

“What’s the matter?” mom asked. I sighed and rubbed my forehead.

“They fired me,” I said.

“Oh no,” she said. “Why?”

“I don’t really know how to explain it,” I said. “Listen, I’m coming home.”

“You are?” mom asked.

“Yes,” I said. “I got evited from my apartment.”

“What? How did that happen?” she asked.

“Listen, I will tell you when I get there,” I said. “Goodbye.” I hung up before she could say a word. I breathed out. That’s done. I started up the car and drove off. This going to be a long drive.

Good thing I have music to keep me calm. “Longview” filled the inside of my car as I drove out of Boston. Driving gave me a chance to try and figure out what to do. I didn’t know how long I was going to stay in Wellfleet. I still needed a job. It was a good thing that it just four more days before summer break. I would probably make it before the tourist season starts. Oh, I am not going to enjoy repeating the story to my family. I could only picture what they would say. Mom would probably try to get me a teaching job at home. Truth is, do I want to do more teaching?

I shook my head. I don’t know what I’m doing. I just need to get home and work from there. Even that didn’t sound like a great idea. I let myself get lost in my thoughts as a commercial for McDonalds played on the radio.

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The sun was about to set by the time I made it to Wellfleet. It’s a little town close to the beach. Yeah, I was a beach kid. I’m not going to bore you with the history of the town. That is what Google is for. There’s a whole website about the town. Instead, I will talk to you about me for a brief moment. Wellfleet is okay. I just felt like I could do so much more. And I did. Until I was fired, of course. Let me stop before I start to feel depressed again.

I should probably go home first. I can’t put off the inevitable. Mom was already waiting for me at home. I needed to call her again to let her know that I am about there. I pulled up to a red light.

“Call mom,” I said.

“Calling mom,” my car said. The ringing filled my car, cutting off the music. Was she going to pick up? Usually, mom is calling my aunt or one of her friends. How could I forget that? Never mind, I will just be there. The phone rang until it went to the answering machine.

“Hey, this is the Garret residence,” mom’s cheery voice said. “I am not available right now. Leave a message and I will call you back. Jesus loves you.” I sighed as the answering machine beeped.

“Hey, mom,” I said. “It’s me. I’m about thirty minutes away from the house. I will see you there, I guess. Goodbye. End call.” The call ended. Here began the longest thirty minutes of the trip. Some pop song came in through the car, but I wasn’t paying attention.

I slowly pulled into the gravel driveway. That house looked the same as it did when I left ten years ago. Maybe a little bit smaller. Our house stood out with the yellow bricks and bright green roof. Mom thought it was cute when she first bought it with dad. She’s pretty much alone on that opinion. I sat in the car, gripping the steeling wheel. Give me the strength to do this. I took in another breath and jumped out of the car. I fought the urge to stall with taking out my luggage. But then I realized what would be the point? I am going to have to go inside anyway. When I got the last suitcase out, I counted down in my head and walked down the path. The gravel crunched at my feet. I started to play back everything that mom would say with each step. She’s going to ask questions and raise hell. There was no way that I was going to stop her this time.

I knocked on the door and waited. I held my breath as I started counting down. Just act nature. You already told her the bad news. Just tell her what happened and let her vent. From there, I would try and figure out what to do next.

I looked up when I heard the door open. Mom stood in the doorway wearing her apron.

“Nathan!” she said as her eyes lit up.

“Yes,” I said. “It’s me.” She stepped forward and hugged me. I started to feel a little bit better from that. I slowly put my arms around her.

“Come inside,” mom said. “Mallory and Kim are already at the table.” She led me into the house. I followed in silence. It feels good to home, I guess.