“Hey sweetie, I’m not feeling the best. Better now that you’re here, though.”

Her eyes trail to the mail on the table. Her face freezes as she eyes the letter and picture in my hands.

“Wh…what are you doing with my mail?”

Looking at my hands, and slightly embarrassed she caught me with her mail, I let out a slight laugh.

“This is so weird, but your friend here is a client of Micah’s. I met her today and let’s just say she’s taken with my boyfriend.”

“What?” Her shaking hand lingers over her mouth as every bit of color drains from her face.

“How do you know her?” I had to ask, this was just weird not to know.

“Um…I’ve known her for a few years. I didn’t know she contacted Micah, guess I had no idea he ran a security company.”

Yeah, I spend the next half hour filling her in on all the new things happening with me. Starting with the fact I’m now living with Micah. She spent the half hour looking like a deer caught in a headlight. I’m not sure she even heard half of it, but it was one of the most uncomfortable talks ever. We’ve not had a close relationship over the years and right now she seems very interested. Whatever!

“Mom, what did you want when you called?”

“I wanted to apologize and wanted to…tell you something, but now I’m not sure.” The way her words trail off I continue to look at her, wondering what the hell I missed. She’s just not acting right. I hope she's not sick and afraid to tell me.

“Okay, well if that’s it, I need to get back to work.”

“Elsa, I know what today is… how are you?” Okay, now I realize she’s not sick this visit was more of a fishing expedition.

Oh God, I just knew this was coming.

“Mom, I’m fine. It’s over, and I’m happier than I’ve ever been.”

“Three years ago today you weren’t. This happens to be the day I thought we lost you…for good.”

Not the time or the place and I’m not in the mood for a stroll down memory lane. I’ve had one reminder with Nick’s phone call, and now my mom. She takes Carla’s letter and photos from me and stuffs them in her purse. I make a mental note to talk to Micah about this lady.

Wasted lunch trip, I head back to the office without even bothering to call Micah. I’ll see him soon enough, this just gives me a few more minutes to listen to music while driving back to the office. Upon getting out of my car, I don’t even get my door closed, and Micah comes storming towards me.

Holding his hands up, he’s visibly upset. “Elsa, no more messing around. Tell me what’s bothering you and what the hell lunch was about?”

Well, no time like the present.

“Okay.” Biting my lip, I’m frantically searching for next words carefully. “Three years ago today, my parents found me unresponsive. I ended up in the ER and was watched over for a few days.”

“What the hell?” He definitely was not expecting that I’m sure. To lighten the moment I let out a hint of a laugh.

“Listen, it’s not what you think. Everyone thinks I tried to end my life, but that is not true. I took some pills to get rid of a migraine, only I took my dad’s pills from his cabinet. I took the wrong ones and nearly overdosed.”

“Baby, please tell me you didn’t…” I can see it in his eyes, and I hate it. This is the one reason I never wanted to tell him.

“No, Micah, and don’t look at me like that. My migraine was so bad I accidentally picked the wrong bottle. I knew my dad had some powerful pain medications for his back. Honestly, I picked up the wrong bottle. I read the dosage wrong and took more than I should have.”

It happened so fast, he grabbed me, instantly crushing me in his arms, asking me if I’m telling him the truth. I tell him the whole story of how my parents and even Nick did not believe me. They seriously thought things got too hard, and I wanted to end my suffering. Not true, but how many times can you continue to say the same things only to have no one believe you.

What started out as a quick discussion ended up being a four hour long ordeal in Micah’s office while Matt and Trevor covered the phones and clients. Most of the time, I spent crying, trying to convince Micah how much of a mistake it was. A costly mistake but a mistake nonetheless. Pity was the last thing I wanted, especially from him. I got that from Nick and my parents for a long time afterward and if he dares to pity me, I might lose it all together.

Sitting on the small couch in his office, I decide to change the subject.

“Hey, did you know Carla Mitchell is a friend of my mother’s?”

Micah does a double take. “What? Um, hell no.”

“Yeah, I saw a letter and pictures she sent my mom. What a coincidence.”

“Weird, I was thinking of turning her back over to Matt to handle for the installation.” What a relief.

“Good idea.”

It sounded good until Matt laughed and explained it was a big enough job it would take Micah and Trevor’s help to get the job done. I swear Matt loved to see his brother squirm, he made sure to point out once she laid her eyes on Micah, it was lights out for Matt. He held her attention up until that point. Trevor, the poor soul, made it known how sad it was that none of the ladies were ever hot after him.

I gladly told him he could have Carla if he wanted. They all laughed, thought it was funny. I, on the other hand, was serious.

CARLA MITCHELL’S INSTALLATION day was today, and it was an all-day install at that. All three of the guys were busy getting it finished making sure it met her time schedule. Poor Trevor spent his day going back and forth from the office to her house troubleshooting with replacement parts. It took him several trips back and forth throughout the day. Now, it was after hours, so I agreed to take the last few items they needed to her address.

I did not want to see this lady, but the job needed to get done. I wanted to get home with Micah. It’s a Friday night, and we had a quiet evening planned for the two of us. Driving up to her address I could see our company truck out front. Matt happened to be outside the front door, messing with a camera he was installing. Having no idea where Micah could be, I startled Matt when I walked up with the two boxes of wires they needed to finish up the job. Instead of being happy to see me his face shows the exact opposite. Not at all comforting.

“Where the hell is Trevor?” His eyes are searching behind me, expecting Trevor to show his face.

“Um… back at the office waiting for you to finish up. I told him I’d bring these over instead. Why, what’s wrong?” Holding the boxes, I don’t see the issue with me being here.

Lowering his face, he sighs. “Nothing, it’s been a really long day. Why don’t you leave the boxes and head back and tell Trevor we need him.”

“Okay, where’s Micah?” Looking around the bushes for some reason, thinking he’s somewhere outside I ask Matt. It’s dark out, so it’s difficult to focus.

“Um… he’s inside finishing things up.” He says without looking me in the eyes.

The way he’s fumbling with his words raises red flags. My insecurities start to boil, and the only thing I want, is to find Micah and let him know I’m here. It’s been hours since I’ve heard from him. Suddenly hearing loud voices coming from inside I snap my head back thinking how odd it was that someone would be raising their voice at all.

My eyes swiftly shift back to Matt only to find him covering his face with his hands, lightly cussing to himself.

“Listen El, let us finish up so we can get done with this install. He can explain later, when he sees you.” He looks wiped out, like he’d rather be anywhere but here.

“No, don’t think so,” I say with a sneer. “I want to see him now.”

Instead of waiting for his answer, I walk right into the house calling out Micah’s name. No need to wait long, I instantly see him holding a child as he’s in deep conversation with…Carla Mitchell. How wonderful and completely bizarre.