E;TR. Ch 36.

Instructions

Trigger Warnings: ig shipping? First: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/1154371538/ Previous: Next: soon Lizzie: Chapter 36. My heart stutters when I see him walk in the door. I’m sitting with a black tea in my hands, waiting for him. Not that I still have feelings for him. It’s muscle memory, and your heart’s a muscle. “Dark chocolate mocha.” He says to Cleo, fidgeting with his hands as he waits. “Sure thing.” He glances over at me, face pink. I wave. He waves back nervously. When Cleo hands him his coffee he thanks them and then walks over to me. “Hey,” He says. “Hey.” I respond, slightly breathless. “Sorry I left you for the weekend. I would have talked to you sooner-“ “It’s alright.” His voice is soft. It surprises me. I feel like I remember him being more… confident, and loud. “I want to say… I’m sorry. And I’m glad you didn’t talk to me immediately after. I might have yelled at you, or done something I’d regret. I was angry.” He confesses. He takes a sip of his coffee. “I’m sorry.” He repeats. “I… I’m sorry too.” I whisper. My words feel heavy. “I’m sorry for forgetting you.” “You- Lizzie, you forgot! That’s not something you can control. I stopped believing in you. That’s my bad.” I can see Cleo watching us over the counter. “Yeah, but-“ “Shush.” He says firmly. “I came here to talk to you, not have an apology match. How come you’ve lived here for so long and I never knew?” “After my last place…” I trailed off. I didn’t want to think about that town. “I just didn’t want to make any more mistakes. I kind of went full hermit for a bit? I’ve never been much for going out.” “So what changed?” ”I guess… I guess Oli changed.” I decide. My mind wanders to the jar of shells, smashed crystals in the bottom. “And then I changed. How about you? Even before that, I never saw you in Lower Cove.” ”Well, My shop’s in Upper Cove, so… I just used the market up there. Eefo does the shopping usually. And I- well, I guess you’ve met them.” I nod. “They seem nice.” Joel brightens. “He is! He works for a redstone company. He's an engineer.” ”That’s cool… hey, unless there’s another redstone place, does he work with Tango?” ”Oh! Er, yeah. Yeah he does, I forgot you know Tango.” “He asked out Jimmy yesterday.” I whisper hesitantly. “Woah, really? Good for him. Good for Tim.” He takes another sip of coffee. “How about you, Lizzie?” “In what sense?” “How are you doing? Work wise, mentally, physically?” I think about how much I want to share. I figure he’s technically still my husband, I trusted him enough the first time around. And Cleo’s still eavesdropping but they’re fine. “I… I work in the library, y’know. That’s where I met Etho. I’m definitely doing a lot better now that I’m out of hiding. I think I’m actually sick of my bedroom. I should probably do some kind of makeover. I read all the books in my room and most of the ones in the library. The thing about working in the library is that it’s never busy, I only get a few browsers, or kids coming to do homework, and we haven’t gotten any new books since January.” I take another breath and drink some more tea. There’s a beat of silence between us. “You said you’d love me even if I was a fish.” Were the next words out of my mouth. My tea has suddenly become very interesting as I stare at the swirls on the glassy surface instead of Joel’s face. “I did. Say that. And… and I waited four years for you, and then I moved on. It was hard. I held on to any chance you might have been alive, it’s why I moved to the Cove. So I could watch the ocean. I checked the newspapers to see if there were any reports or anything that could be a chance you were out there. I’m sorry I gave up. I am.” “It was for the best. If you still had hope and found me and I didn’t remember you… but I’m glad you have Etho. I do have work today, but as I explained… empty. You can come if you want.” I offer quietly. “I… sure. I’d like that.” He looks like there’s something else he wants to say but he shuts his mouth, which I’m sure is a new experience for him. I down the rest of my tea and stand up. “Right now?” He asks, surprised. “My shift is in 30 minutes. Actually, last week they hired someone new to work part time… i should meet them”