The next morning, Dani took Makayla to school on her way to work, letting me sleep in. I laid around her apartment all morning in my pajamas, then went for a quick run before getting myself some lunch. I was very consciously not thinking about work, or Cassius, or anything else. I had half-expected him to call me at some point, but he didn't, and I couldn't help but be relieved. I didn't think I could talk to him until I decided what to do about Mr. White.
In the afternoon, I picked up Makayla from school and took her to the park to play. That night, the three of us made pasta and played board games. It was nice to have some time to just have fun, without thinking about all of the stress of the past few months. The next day, after dropping off Makayla at school, I found myself thinking about my blog. I hadn't thought about it in months. I went to the home page and started looking over some of my past entries. Before long, I found myself writing down ideas for new posts. It had been years since I'd felt this inspired.
I guess Dani had been right that taking a few days break with her to help out was just what I needed. But it was also true that I was using some of the things I'd learned at my new job. It felt like returning to my old dreams from a new perspective. I mentioned it over dinner as we were talking about our day, and Dani gave me a curious look. After Makayla was asleep, I asked her why she'd looked at me like that.
"Well, I actually have some news that I've been trying to figure out how to tell you..." She paused, looking nervous. "You remember my Aunt Margaret?"
"Of course," I replied. Dani had always been close with her aunt, who lived in a small town down south, along the coast. Dani had spent every summer there as a child, as well as staying there for a couple of months during high school. I was always jealous, hearing about that quaint, small town and the big beautiful house that Aunt Margaret owned.
"Well, she's getting older, and finding it harder to live on her own. So, she... Well, she asked me to move in with her." Dani said the last bit in a rush, as if pulling off a Band-Aid.
"Oh," I said, taking a deep breath in. Move in with her? So, Dani might leave her? "What did you tell her?" I asked, trying to keep my face neutral, even though the idea of her leaving was heartbreaking.
"I told her I had to think about it, but honestly, I'm leaning toward going." Dani was watching me carefully, and I knew she was looking to see how I'd react. I forced myself to smile.
"I think that's great, Dani," I told her, trying to sound cheerful.
"There's more," Dani said, and my heart sank. How much more could I take? "You remember she has that guesthouse that I helped her fix up a few years ago so she could rent it out to vacationers? Well, she decided she wants to find a permanent tenant. And I was thinking... why not you and Makayla?"
I blinked, not sure I'd heard her correctly.
"Deira?" Dani said, looking at me expectantly.
"What do you mean, me and Makayla?" I asked, shocked.
"I mean, what if you and Makayla moved with me, and rented the guesthouse from Aunt Margaret?"
"Dani," I gasped, "we can't just up and move!"
"Why not?" she said, and I laughed in disbelief. "Deira, listen to me! I'm not joking. I've actually thought about this a lot. The cost of living is cheap, especially during the winter. And Aunt Margaret loves you, so I'm sure she'd give you a discount. I've been looking at jobs, and I think there's a couple you'd be perfect for. Or, if you wanted, you could get a part-time job and finally have some time to work on your blog!"
"But," I started, and then my objections died on my lips. It was a crazy idea, definitely. But was it a bad idea?
"You were just telling me the other night that your life has been turned upside down lately," Dani continued in what I knew was her most persuasive tone. "Instead of trying to put it back together, what if you used this as an opportunity to start fresh?"
A fresh opportunity... It was very tempting. Dani was right. My whole life had fallen apart lately, and the idea of putting it back together was exhausting. The past few days had me thinking about how my life could be different. I knew this town would be a slower pace of life, and I couldn't discount how important it was to me to keep Dani in my life.
A voice in the back of my mind whispered,what about Cassius?But all I could think about when I thought about him was that day in the car, when I risked telling him what had happened with Mr. White, and he had doubted me. Before this past week, I had started to think that maybe Cassius wanted us to be a family, and I was feeling like we could depend on him. Between losing Makayla at the park and doubting my story about Mr. White, I just didn't think he could be there for us like we needed. Even if he wanted to, he just wasn't ready for a family. He didn't have his priorities straight. It was just me and Makayla, like it had always been. Why couldn't we move somewhere new? Why couldn't we start over? Maybe that was just what we needed.
Dani sat quietly watching me think things over, and then she nudged me gently.
"How about this?" she asked. "I'm planning to go visit her next weekend. Why don't you come along and see for yourself how great the town is? A little beach holiday that maybe turns into a brand new life for you guys!" She gave me a long, winsome look and a charming smile. I looked into her hopeful face and finally nodded. She squealed and hugged me, and I couldn't help but feel hopeful about the future for the first time in a while.