Soundtrack for this chapter:
Thunder—Imagine Dragons
All My Life—Foo Fighters
Angela—The Lumineers

29

Jules

I'd say that it took all of three seconds for me to realize how much I loved skiing. It had nothing to do with the skill or the sport of it; it was all in the rush I felt gliding down the slope.

The wind was cold on my face but it filled my lungs and reinvigorated every sense within me. The snow beneath my feet was soft and fluffy yet also somehow packed and smooth and helped propel me down the mountain. I'd never in my life felt so revitalized; that was exactly why I tackled Theo at the bottom of the slope and why I hopped into the shower with him the second we returned to our cabin.

I never thought I'd remarry after Will; Theo was able to change my mind in a mere few months. Sure there were things he did that annoyed me, and sure we'd gone through significant highs and lows, but the feeling of support I got from Theo was more powerful than anything else. He was my person, and it took trudging through all of the mud that was my life in Savannah to get to him; he was worth every speck of dirt.

Soon after we returned to Boston, I was back at Parnassus as classes were getting ready to begin again. It was weird sleeping alone after having a partner in bed for the previous few weeks, but I quickly sunk back into my normal schedule. I was glad for it too; I loved Theo, that much was clear, but I never wanted to lose myself, never wanted to feel like I had to ultimately rely on him for something, and the fact that he completely understood that about me made my love for him plunge even deeper.

When I got the text from Theo's dad that he had processed all of my divorce paperwork, my heart felt lighter than it had in years. All that was left was my final phone call with Will; the cards were stacked in my favor, and for the first time in a while, my wings felt as if they could help me soar across an entire ocean.

As my fingers tapped out Will's number, I made certain my laptop speakers were up at full volume; if he was going to hear just how awful of a human being he was, he was going to hear it at full blast.

He picked up, and no chill, no shiver consumed me when he said my name.

"Jules. I've been waiting for this call."

"Have you?"

"Sure have, sweetheart. I told your Boston fling that you'd come back, just like always."

Pure revulsion swirled in the back of my throat. "There's not a doubt in my mind you said that. Unfortunately, your prediction couldn't be farther from the reason for this call. In a few days, you're going to be served divorce papers. I can guarantee, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that it would be in your best interest to sign them."

He laughed, and I imagined his head tipping back, eyes squinting closed. "That's a good one. I've got to imagine whatever shitty lawyer you found down here will be as easily persuaded as your previous one to shred whatever it is you asked him to draft up."

But there wasn't a single thing he could say to shake me. "Who says I have a lawyer from Savannah?"

"We were married in Georgia, Jules. Your residence is here in Georgia. State law says—"

"State law in Massachusetts says that so long as someone can prove residence for one year, she can file for divorce. You're smart enough to count the number of months between when I left Savannah and moved into the university up here in Boston."

But he wasn't going to let me get any note of wavering on his end. "Okay, darling. You want to play this game? You think you can win this?" His voice dripped equal parts arrogance and loathing.

"I know I can."

"You know what I know? I know that there isn't a chance in hell you'll be able to foot the bill for this one."

"I won't have to." I was waiting, waiting so patiently to throw him over the edge.

"And how's that?" He was getting annoyed; I could feel it in the tension of his voice. My next move would utterly shatter him.

I set the phone on speaker, held it out in the open, and pressed play on my computer screen.

Will's voice filled my apartment. His threats, his cruel words, everything.

When the recording stopped, his laughter came through once again, but it wasn't nearly as confident as it had been at the beginning of our call. "Bravo, Jules. I didn't think you were smart enough to think to wiretap me. It doesn't matter though, darling. None of that will be admissible in court."

Something about him questioning my intelligence spurned me to just go for it; really, what did I have to lose? "My lawyer seems to think otherwise. Should we go to court, he plans on asking you if you've ever threatened me in any way. And, should you deny that you have, these tapes become admissible."

"Bullshit."

"Nope. And let me throw one more curveball your way; should you take your time signing the paperwork, or, heaven forbid, refuse to sign, that local news source your company is always featured in is going to be sent the most wonderful of audio clips to publish, free of charge of course."

"You're fucking bluffing. You wouldn't do this to me, to your fam—"

"Oh Will, that's where you're mistaken. I'm done with Savannah. I'm done with the Calhouns. And I'm done with this marriage. I have all I need up here in Boston, and there's not a damn thing in this world you could do or say that would change my mind. If you think I'm bluffing, ignore the paperwork. I know how much you love a good gamble; I also know you only ever bet if the odds are in your favor. I highly suggest you stop while you're ahead."

The slightest of noises began to break through the line, but I'd already hung up. There wasn't a single thing left for him to say. A tiny bit of my heart told me he'd still take me to court, that he'd still fight me for as long as possible, but even if that did happen, I knew I had the best team in the world behind me, and nothing Will said could take them away from me.

***

I'd equate the feeling of freedom my phone call with Will gave me to that of the one skiing gave me. I felt lighter. And with all of our students back and classes starting up again, life felt like it was back to normal.

Nora and I trekked through the Boston cold to grab lunch at our favorite little spot our first official day back at work, which at that point meant it was mid-January. It had felt like I hadn't seen her in so long—really, it felt that way with all of my coworkers. To go from seeing them every day to being off for a few weeks and truly feeling like I missed them, helped to solidify the fact that I was where I was meant to be and with the people I was meant to be with. Boston was my new home, a home I was going to continue to build, hopefully, with Theo for the rest of my life.

On our way back into our offices after lunch, Nora and I both had our gloved hands held tightly against our mouths as we attempted to breathe life back into our frozen fingers.

"I love it here in Boston, I really do, but these winters are going to take quite a while to get used to." I scrunched the tip of my chilled nose at Nora, but she just laughed.

"That's that warm blood of the South in you. You'll adjust...eventually."

Amidst our laughter, I almost didn't notice a student waiting in the chair outside my office. A second look and a little shake of my head helped me to realize that Katie had finally made her way back to Parnassus. She'd changed her hair again. It was no longer the deep brunette it was back in September, but back to her blonde roots again.

Unlike our reunion in the beginning of the school year, she didn't run up and embrace me upon first glance. Instead, she diverted her eyes from mine and stared down at her boots. Nora gave me a little head nod as if to say good luck and went on her way to her office.

"Do you want to come in?" I always liked to give a choice. Even though Katie was there, and even though I knew she wanted to talk, I knew I had to put the ball in her hands.

"Okay." She followed me in once I opened the door and plopped down on my little couch. I set my purse down at my desk and walked over to her, sitting opposite of her.

"I'm happy you're back. How is everything?"

She twisted a lock of hair between her fingers. "Things are okay."

"What did you want to talk about?"

She took a moment before responding. "I got your email a few months ago. I...I understood why you did what you did. I mean, you had to, right?"

I nodded at her.

"But...I guess, well, I think I was angry with you because I wished you would have said something to me first."

An understandable point on her end. "I can see where you're coming from, but, Katie, you were in the hospital because things had gotten so out of control for you that you abused your sleeping pills. If you try to look at it from my perspective, you can probably see why I didn't think it was best to tell you in that moment. You were fragile, and it's my job to help you get better, not worse."

"I know." She looked everywhere but at me.

"Do you remember that when I came in to see you, you'd noticed the bandaging on my hand?"

"Yeah. You said it was nothing."

"I did, but that was because I didn't want to burden you with anything else. That car accident, the one Jeremy was involved in, caused that injury. It also nearly killed someone."

Katie finally looked up at me, and her eyes frosted over with tears. "You...you were there?"

"I was. But someone else was much more seriously injured than I was. I'm sorry I didn't tell you about that or about the fact that I had to tell the police what you told me, but I was under a legal obligation to do so."

She sighed, and looked back down at her feet again. "Jeremy and I aren't together anymore."

"Was that a mutual decision?"

"No. But I went to a facility after the hospital, and Jeremy was so angry at me that he said the most hurtful things, and at first when he broke up with me, I was really upset and disappointed, but the counselors and the psychologists at the facility helped me see how wrong it was for Jeremy to treat me the way he was."

"I'm glad they were able to help get you through that." Inside, my heart was thumping happy beats; there was never a moment I thought he was a good fit for her.

"I...I guess I really wanted to come in today to say that I was sorry for the email I sent you. I was angry that you recommended that facility because I hated the one my parents sent me to when I was in high school and I wanted to try to figure things out on my own. I didn't think I needed help because I thought I could handle things myself."

"I think that you and I are far more alike than you know, Katie."

"We are?"

"Mhmm. But, recently, a very important person in my life reminded me that it's okay to ask for help sometimes, and that sometimes we need other people to help us because we can't do everything on our own. Asking for help or accepting help from someone else is in no way a failure; I'm willing to bet that you felt like you'd be a failure at something if you couldn't take care of it on your own?"

She nodded at me, and for the first time I truly recognized how much of my own struggle I saw in Katie.

"Ask for help when you need it. Come to me or go to Dr. Mellnor. Or your parents, or anyone who has your best interests at heart. That doesn't make you any less of a person or a success, take my word for it."

She smiled at me, a genuine smile, and I finally had my Katie back. "My new schedule this semester has an opening on Mondays at eleven. Can that be our meeting time?"

"Absolutely. I'm really glad you decided to come back, Katie."

She stood, and I met her on the other side of the couch in a hug. "Me too. Thanks, Jules."

And then she was gone. I sat back down at my desk and made some notes in Katie's file. I was glad we'd gotten to her before things got worse; she was starting to really recognize her worth, and that was everything.

***

At the end of my first full week back with students, I received a call from Theo as I hurried back to my apartment in the cold.

"I'll never forgive you for making me take my gloves off to answer this call."

He laughed on the other end. "You'll get used to our winters eventually."

"That's what Nora said."

Another laugh, and I stored it away in my memory.

"It looks like the weather is going to get pretty wicked tonight. Want to come over and get snowed in?" I could visualize the grin on his lips.

"Do you have hot cocoa?"

"Who doesn't in the winter?"

"Alright, you've convinced me. I'll hop on the next train and be over within the hour."

"You sure you don't want a ride?" He sounded just slightly disappointed.

"Positive. Don't order anything for dinner."

"Jules—"

"Let me be the one to surprise you for once."

"You've maxed out your surprise quota for the year."

"Impossible. The year just started."

He tried to protest, but I cut him off.

"Nope! Gotta go. See you in an hour."

As I went to end the call, he yelled into the phone. "Hey! HEY!"

I pulled it back up to my ear. "Sorry! Love you."

"I love you, too. See you soon, Calhoun."

Up in my apartment I packed an overnight bag and my guitar and took the T over to Theo's place. Something his mom had said on Christmas Eve had sparked an idea in my head, and after working out some of the logistics, I finally had a plan I wanted to pitch to him. But, to make it perfect, I wanted to be armed with something that would remind him of the beginning of our relationship, something that would take him all the way back to the start. He may have said I was out of surprises for the year, but I had a few major ones to lay on him that night.

A/N: Hi! ONE MORE CHAPTER!

Ahhhh. I almost can't believe it. If I get it done early, I'll upload early :)

Life has been crazy, but would it be life if it wasn't?

I can't get Jude and Elle out of my head, so I guess that's a good thing. I'm doing lots of traveling over the Christmas holiday, so I'm sure they'll be coming with me (which I'm sure my husband is just thrilled about 😂).

I hope you'll vote and comment and chat with me! Oh! Also, have you read that New Yorker short story that went viral? It's called "Cat Person", and I'd absolutely recommend the read. It's got pretty mature content in it, so fair warning, but my goodness it's an engaging read.

Have a lovely weekend,
L