My Last - Riley & Chelle

by Melanie Shawn

  Chelle caught Katie’s arm as she was turning to head back inside, “No Katie, don’t.” Chelle didn't want to be the cause of Katie's plans getting derailed. That would only make her feel 50 times more miserable than she already did. But Katie was in “determined mode” - Chelle needed to think of something...and fast!

  “Look, I was already planning on taking off an entire month for my wedding. Since I won’t be needing to do that, I think I'll just see if I can get my shifts covered and take the time now. Maybe I'll head out of town for a while. You know...just take some time for myself and figure all this out, far away from the mass of prying eyes and gossipy talk that is Harper’s Crossing.”

  Katie still looked slightly skeptical, “Okay, well. That does sound like a decent plan. After my conversation with Douchebag David, I guarantee you won't have to worry about him touching your stuff while you're gone, or changing the locks. Where will you go?”

  “Um, I’m not sure. I haven’t thought that far ahead,” Chelle answered honestly.

  Katie thought for a moment before her expression filled with excitement, “Well, I have the perfect solution. My lease isn’t up for another two months, so my apartment is just sitting there. It’s still furnished, and you’ve been saying you always wanted to see San Francisco.”

  Tears started forming in Chelle’s eyes again, this time springing from sheer love and appreciation for her friend. “Thank you, Katie. That sounds perfect. You are the best friend a girl could ever have.”

  “Diamond friends,” Katie began.

  “Forever!” They finished in unison.

  Chapter Three

  Riley was a free man. He had just left Camp Pendleton, the San Diego Marine base where he received his discharge papers. It was a little bizarre looking down at his DD214 - the paperwork that said he was no longer the property of the U.S. Marines Corp. He was really out.

  Damn. It was a strange feeling.

  He had served his country for the last twelve years, and had served it well. But now he was free to do what he wanted. He could go where he wanted, when he wanted. There was no one to report to, no one to check in with, and no one’s life was depending on him.

  He took a deep breath, reveling in the smell of the salty ocean air as he drove up PCH. He didn’t have a care in the world. He felt lighter and happier than he had in years. Hell, maybe ever. He was ready for the next chapter in his life.

  Riley had invested in a bar with some guys from his division who had gotten out a couple years earlier. They had presented him with an investment opportunity that he just couldn’t pass up.

  They were opening a bar in New Orleans and he had put up one-third of the start-up capital. Up until now, he had been a silent partner, letting the other two completely control the day to day operations and merely reaping the financial rewards. The strategy had paid off. They had made the bar, Freedom, extremely successful, and Riley had already doubled his initial investment.

  Landon and Dax, his business partners, had been sending him monthly reports, and Riley knew they were doing great – but, he couldn't help it, he was itching to be a more hands on part of the business. He had been studying marketing online and had some great ideas he wanted to implement.

  He turned on the Pandora feature that came with his rental car and was in the process of searching for a station that sounded good when his phone vibrated loudly in the console beside him. He wanted so badly to ignore it. To just drive without interruption. To take this well-deserved slice of time just for himself and to shelve any intrusions.

  But Riley was who he was, and when duty called (literally), he couldn’t bring himself to dismiss it.

  Checking the screen of his phone, he saw his brother Jason’s number. With a wide smile, he answered, “Hey Bro, if you are taking time out of your honeymoon to call me, then obviously you're not doing something right.”

  “Where are you?” His brother did not sound amused.

  “In California.”

  “Where?”

  Riley narrowed his eyes, thinking maybe the sun, sand, and sex had drained Jason's mental capacity. He repeated slowly, “In California...”

  “Where in California, numb nuts?”

  Okay, that was more like the Jason that Riley knew and loved.

  “On PCH headed up to Oakland. I’m going to see a buddy of mine who just had a baby, then I’m flying home. Why, what’s up?”

  He heard his brother say, “He’s headed that way baby, don't worry. It’s all going to be okay.”

  “What’s going to be okay?” Riley asked, clearly not following.

  He heard Jason clear his throat, “Look, can you do me…”

  “And me!” He heard Katie chime in in the background.

  “...and Katie, a favor?” Jason asked.

  “Yeah, what do you need?” Oh well, Riley thought, this short reprieve of no one needing anything and not having to answer to anyone seems to have ended quite abruptly.

  “Chelle, Eddie’s sister, is in San Francisco, staying in Katie’s apartment. She hasn’t answered her phone in a couple of days, and now it’s just going straight to her voicemail.”

  Riley felt like his heart stopped beating in his chest, “Shit! I won’t be able to get there for hours! Why aren’t you calling the police?”

  “No, no, it’s not like that. We know nothing has happened to her. Katie’s landlord, Randall, said he saw her last night when a pizza was delivered.”

  “Then, if you know she’s fine, why did you call me?” Riley snapped at his brother. He didn’t mean for his voice to come out sounding so harsh, but he was a bit taken aback by the out-of-control sensation he had just experienced at the thought that something may have happened to Chelle.

  Truth be told, he never liked any of the feelings he had ever experienced which related to Chelle. They all seemed a little out of control. He didn’t appreciate them being brought to the surface, not today. Today was supposed to be carefree and happy, not intense.

  “Look, do you remember David Price?” Jason asked.

  “Yeah, that douchebag from school,” Riley stated dismissively. He had never liked David, even before he and Chelle had started dating in high school, and he had definitely not liked the little prick after that.

  Jason laughed a little, “You always were a good judge of character. Well, David and Chelle were engaged, in fact, they were supposed to get married next month.”

  Riley felt like someone punched him in his gut. He had seen that Chelle was engaged to David when he had checked out her Facebook profile a few months back. And even though he had tried not to, he had been checking it fairly frequently since then. He had not seen any posts that indicated that the wedding was that damn soon!

  “Then a week ago,” Jason continued, “on the morning of our wedding, as a matter of fact – thank you, Douchebag David – he tells her that he’s been cheating on her with his secretary Kayla, who is eighteen and pregnant.”

  Now he didn’t feel like someone had punched him. Now he just wanted to punch - no scratch that - kill David.

  “She needed to get out of town, and Katie still had the apartment, so she went to San Francisco to stay in it. Katie's been calling her every day to check on her, and she seemed to be doing okay until a few days ago. That's when she stopped picking up her phone when Katie would call, she would just text back that she was fine. Now she’s not even texting back and when we call her phone, it's going straight to voicemail.

  “Eddie was going to head out to California and bring her home, but Emily came down with the chicken pox and so he had to stay with her. Katie wants to catch the next flight out of here to go make sure she’s alright, but I remembered you were gonna be in California. So, I thought if you could go and check on her, then maybe I can convince my wife to stay in paradise with me just a little longer.”

  Riley heard Katie in the background saying that of course she wanted to stay with Jason, but she was just worried about her friend. He smiled. He had always liked Kat
ie, and he knew his brother had been head over heels for her all his life. He was glad that things had finally worked out for them.

  Riley, truth be told, was still having a hard time wrapping his mind around the fact that Jason and Bobby were both married. When he had left for the Marines, Jason was 16 and Bobby was 12. Now they were grown men - married men. And he had missed both of their weddings. Jason’s by only a few days. He had a lot of time to make up for in this new phase, he knew.

  “Yeah, no problem. Tell Katie not to worry, she can stay in paradise. I’m only about four hours from San Francisco. I’ll stop by before my flight out of Oakland tonight.”

  “Great, I’ll text you the address. Thanks Riley.”

  The phone line went dead and Riley couldn’t quite put his finger on what he was feeling about this unexpected detour. He no longer felt light and carefree. He felt tense, on edge, anxious. Partly because he now did have someone he had to check in with. But mainly because he knew that he was a few hours away from seeing the only person he had ever let in, ever let see behind the curtain.

  He didn’t know what it was about Chelle that made her so easy to talk to, so easy to open up to. What he did know was that every time they had spent any amount of time alone together he had ended up spilling his guts.

  Other girls in high school had tried to get close to him, unsuccessfully. And then, in his adult, life he’d had a couple of fairly serious relationships. The women he had been involved with had done everything they could to break down, climb over, go around, or even walk right through the high walls he had put up around his inner life. But none had even come close to breaching that front.

  None except for Rachelle Thomas, his best friend Eddie’s little sister. The good girl. The one girl that someone like him should stay as far away from as possible.

  She was sweet and funny. She was smart and had a good head on her shoulders. She always saw the good in people, no matter what others saw or said. Everyone liked her, and she liked everyone. Including him. Hell, maybe even especially him.

  He had seen the looks she had given him. Had always felt that she might have had a crush on him. But he knew better than to ever pursue it.

  He had tried to stay away from her, had intentionally treated her like Eddie did, like she was just an annoyance. But the problem was - he was always drawn to her. Chelle was one of the only people that didn’t look at him with disgust, or worse yet pity, whenever the subject of his family, or more specifically his Mom, had come up. She had never acted like she was afraid of him when he would get in stupid fights, or disappointed in him when he and Eddie would get in trouble with the law.

  She had always talked to him like he was just…Riley. Not a mischievous trouble maker. Not a dangerous bad boy. Just Riley. Thinking back now, Riley thought that maybe the reason she didn’t treat him like he fit any of those stereotypes was because, around her, he didn't.

  He had always felt like he could be himself around her. He never felt the need to be anything he wasn’t. He never felt like he had to prove, or disprove, anything to her.

  On top of all of that, he had always been attracted to her. He had tried not to be, and he had obviously never acted on it. But, God...she was so beautiful. Her big brown almond shaped eyes, her long silky chestnut brown hair, her gorgeous olive-toned skin, her petite figure...they were all perfection. But all of those things, even put together, didn't begin to compare to her smile.

  Her smile had always made his heart feel like it was going to explode. When Chelle smiled, it was the closest thing Riley ever felt to pure unadulterated love. When she smiled, everything was right in the world. He still dreamt about that smile.

  He hadn’t seen her since the day he left for basic training, but he had seen some pictures that Eddie had tagged her in on Facebook, and, well...damn. From what he could tell, she had only gotten better with age. She was still thin, but had curves in all the right places. Just thinking of her curves now, Riley's jeans were getting a little snug.

  Man, he really had to shut that kind of thinking down. Riley shouldn’t be letting his mind wander when it came to Chelle, that would only get him in trouble. He would be seeing her in just a few hours, and who knew what state she would be in? He just needed to make sure she was good, see if she needed anything, and be on his way.

  Hell, she might not even be happy to see him. With everything she had just gone through, she probably just wanted some time alone. If anyone could understand that it was him.

  He just needed to get visual and verbal confirmation of her well-being, report back to Jason, and get out of there as quickly as possible.

  --- ~ ---

  Riley made good time getting to San Francisco, partly due to the fact that he hadn’t hit much traffic. Also, he had cut over to Highway 5 instead of taking the scenic route so that he could cut about an hour off of the trip. Now, as he drove across the Bay Bridge, it barely even registered how amazing the city looked at sunset. All he could think about was that, in a few minutes, he would be seeing Chelle.

  All of his extensive military training had apparently not prepared him for this mission. His mind was racing, his palms were sweaty, and he felt like his heart was going to pound out of his chest. Riley couldn’t believe he was having such a strong physical reaction to Chelle before he had even laid eyes on her.

  Maybe, Riley reasoned, this was just the result of pent up anxiety, stemming from the fact that he had built her up in his mind as this “perfect creature” over the years. But, the truth was, he hadn’t seen her. Once he saw her, once the fantasy he had built up was disproven by reality, then he would be able to get past all of these overwhelming emotions.

  That knowledge did not, however, change the fact that he was feeling like a nervous teenage boy, not a grown man.

  He just needed to remain calm, stay focused and - with any luck - he would be on a plane tonight headed to Illinois, where he planned on staying for a few weeks before making his way to his new life in Louisiana.

  Riley found the address that Jason had texted to him, and he had to circle the block ten times before he was able to find a parking space to squeeze the rental car into. By the time he climbed out of the car, he was exhausted from driving all day, annoyed from having to look so hard for a place to park, and cognizant of the fact that he needed to be in Oakland in a few hours if he was going to make his flight. And who knew what traffic would be like? All in all, he was ready to get this reunion over with! He had already called Tommy, the buddy he was supposed to meet up with, and had told him that something had come up, so that was off his plate. Now, all he had to do was a quick inspection and an even quicker report. After that, he was out of here.

  He walked halfway up the block and stopped in front of the glass door that had the number 2202 painted over the top of it. He opened it and headed directly up the stairs. Katie’s apartment was on the third floor. He glanced at the text message again to reconfirm the apartment number: #314. On his way up the stairs, he noticed that it was a nice building. Older, but well-maintained. He could see Katie living here.

  On his way to the unit, he passed an elderly woman who was peeking out of her door. She looked to be about 4’10” and she had curlers in her hair and a lit cigarette hanging out of her mouth. She eyed him suspiciously, but he smiled at her and noticed a faint flush rise from her neck to her cheeks. She mumbled something about him being a flirt and closed the door.

  Before long, he had reached the door that had a plaque next to it with the metal numbers '314' attached to it. He took a deep breath. It was go time. He knocked and waited for an answer. Nothing. He knocked louder and said, “Chelle? Its Riley. Open up.”

  Nada.

  He knocked again speaking loudly, “Chelle, Katie is really worried about you. Jason sent me to check on you. Open the door.”

  He put his ear to the door to see if he could hear any movement, any noise – anything at all that would tell him that she was, in fact, alive and in the apartment.

 
He heard footsteps behind him and turned to see a portly man who looked to be about seventy coming up the stairs with a large set of keys in his hands. Riley exhaled. Wow. He hadn’t even realized that he had been holding his breath at the thought that it might be her walking up behind him.

  “Hey there, young man,” the elderly gentleman said as he bustled up beside Riley, “I got a call from Katie and she said that you needed access to her apartment.”

  Riley nodded.

  The older gentleman unlocked the door, “There you go, son. My name is Randall, let me know if you need anything else.”

  Riley extended his hand, “Riley Sloan, nice to meet you.”

  The man smiled warmly, “Sloan, huh? Are you related to that boy Jason who swept in and stole our Katie from us?”

  Riley liked this man, it made him feel better knowing that Katie, and Chelle for the last week, had been under his watchful eye. “I am, sir. Jason’s my little brother.”

  “Well, he seemed like a good man. But I told him,” Randall sternly pointed his finger at Riley’s chest, “I said, if you hurt our Katie, mister, you’ll be dealing with me. And I meant it.”

  “I’m sure you did, sir. And I'm also sure that he heard you loud and clear,” Riley knew for a fact that Jason would never do anything to hurt Katie. Jason was one of the good guys.

  Not like him.

  “Hey, do you know if Chelle, the girl who has been staying here, is out?” Riley asked.

  Randall lowered his voice, “That poor girl hasn’t left the apartment in three days. She just keeps having food delivered...and I did notice a couple of deliveries from the liquor store across the street, as well,” Randall’s eyes narrowed and he took a protective step in front of the door. Keeping his voice low, he asked, “You aren’t the reason she’s been holed up in here crying her eyes out, now are ya, son?”

  “No, sir.” Riley answered honestly, “I’m just here to make sure that she's alright.”