One More Chance Page 4

  She strides into the office, unaware that she’s being consumed by her anger and her compulsion to enact revenge. Her mother may have struggled with alcohol, but she is just as addicted to vengeance. Hailey has been having dreams about her mother, and she thinks it’s just because she is back in her mother’s house.

  But in reality, it’s her mind warning her that she is blinded by her urge to get rid of her pain. It could make her go too far, just like it did for her mother.

  After Hailey arrives early as usual, she writes the daily goals on the board. She goes into her office and feels a wave of emotion as she sits down. It’s an indescribable sadness that makes her stop.

  It’s almost as though she’s struggling with depression, and she considers seeing a shrink. She realizes as she waits for her computer to load that she is utterly alone. No one is waiting for her to get home. No one is calling her to see how her day was.

  She is best friends only with her career, though she tells herself that a woman cannot get caught up with the idea of needing other people to feel secure. Otherwise, she’ll be just another woman who gives up their career to get married and raise children. She doesn’t feel she is one of those people who needs other people to be okay.

  She reminds herself she has to fend for herself. No person asking how she is or giving her a back rub at the end of the day is going to fill the void of being able to take care of herself. She shakes off the loneliness and maintains her determination to be self-sufficient.

  She knows if she ends up working her way up the ladder, she’ll be able to buy a home and start her own business with the experience and capital. She has a plan that’s going to give her the pride of being a powerful businesswoman, and that is who she’ll keep in the forefront of her mind to prove to the world she’s not some pushover who can be easily forgotten. She spent too many years being nice and acting like what people did to her didn’t matter.

  But not anymore.

  ***

  Jimmy walks into work with a bandage wrapped around his hand, from when he accidentally missed a nail and hit his hand with the hammer. His finger is swollen, so he has it wrapped to another one to immobilize it.

  Hailey comes out and notices his hand. “How do you think you’re going to type with that?”

  He smiles. “Don’t worry. I’ll get my work done in time.”

  She shakes her head. “Try not to be so careless.”

  The ladies show up, as does Jimmy’s friend, who always seems to be tired. He has hair that always looks like he just rolled out of bed. Hailey looks at the motley crew of her team who looks like an army that would be assembled from the villagers of a small town.

  She frowns. “Okay, now that you’re getting the hang of this, I expect everyone’s output to increase. I’ve added new goals on the board, and you can see the numbers for the week. If we increase our numbers each week, the monthly bonus comes through. If we drop, we are SOL.”

  One of the women is confused, but the other lady adds quietly, “That means shit out of luck, sweetie.”

  The woman nods.

  Jimmy takes a seat at his little desk and gets to work even though his finger is throbbing. After a while, he stops and goes into the break room to see if there is an ice pack. He finds some Ibuprofen and pours a cup of water from the cooler. He hears Hailey speaking loudly to the ladies as he swallows the pills.

  “Ladies, will you give me your honest opinion on my dating profile? What do you think?”

  The ladies are thrilled to be able to talk about romance and all start giving their opinions about her pictures. One of them says, “Oh honey, this one is hot. The men are going to love your cleavage.”

  Jimmy feels a pang in his heart as he hears the conversation, but realizes he can’t let it crush his positive energy and motivation to win Hailey back.

  “Thanks for your input,” Hailey says. “I’m putting myself out there to date and want to get this moving. I already have messages, so maybe I’ll even get a date tonight. Look at this guy.”

  The women gasp. “A firefighter! Look at that body. Now that’s a real man.”

  Hailey smiles and says loudly enough for Jimmy to hear, “Yes, I’m very interested in that one. I think I’ll message him right now.”

  ***

  Hailey goes back into her office with a grin and sits down at her desk. She looks at her phone, but feels no urge to contact the person on her screen. She puts her phone away and gets back to work. After an hour, she finally reaches out to the guy to continue to make Jimmy feel bad.

  Her message reads, “Hey, want to meet for drinks tonight?”

  The guy almost immediately messages her back. “Yes!”

  Hailey ventures back into the main area of the office and tells the ladies, “Well, it looks like I have a date with the eager hot firefighter.”

  The women get excited and start throwing ideas at her about how to act, what to wear, and what to do on the first date to get him interested. Hailey takes a deep breath, listening to their cliché advice. “Let’s just hope he still has the muscles from his pictures.”

  One of the women says, “You have to tell us everything tomorrow. I feel like I’m going on a date!”

  Hailey grins. “Well, I’m sure it’s going to be fun. Now, we need to talk about fielding calls. Now that we are approving loans for people in town, we are going to start getting phone calls. You are going to have to provide excellent customer service. Do not give false promises.” She glances at Jimmy. “Jimmy, are you listening?”

  ***

  Jimmy has his chair turned to her and is looking right at her. Admittedly he was not really listening, because he was trying to figure out how soon he could finish the treehouse. “Yes.”

  “What did I just say?”

  He clears his throat and says, “You were kindly explaining to us phone etiquette?” He smiles again as he was able to throw in another compliment.

  Hailey frowns. “I knew you weren’t listening. I said you have to be careful not to say anything inaccurate or it will get our office in trouble.”

  “Yes, I will be courteous and accurate.”

  “I don’t really think you’re cut out to speak to people on the phone. Let’s let the others handle that.”

  Jimmy smiles, trying not to show he’s struggling to feel adequate. He shakes off the disappointment of his failing efforts to win Hailey over. Fake it ‘till you make it, he thinks.

  At the end of the day, he decides to peek his head into her office. “Hey listen, if that guy on your date gives you any trouble, call me. You know I’ve always got your back.”

  Hailey looks at him with a face that says you’re pathetic.

  With a shrug, he adds, “Okay, well good luck on your date.”

  Jimmy chest aches as he says this. He really is just trying to be nice. Hailey used to give him dating advice when he was chasing girls in school, and she was really a good friend when he needed someone to tell him he was being stupid.

  He realizes that he isn’t going to win Hailey’s friendship back, let alone her heart, if he’s just trying to get her to like him. He’s going to have to show her he cares about her and her happiness. He knows that she’ll respond to that, because that’s what kept them friends for so long. He was the one looking out for her when people bullied her and her mom neglected her. He knows somewhere beneath all of Hailey’s pain and anger, she wants that friend back. And hopefully more.

  Chapter 4: Eating Humble Pie

  At the end of the workday, Jimmy puts his finished papers on Hailey’s desk. He plans to go work on the treehouse this evening and try avoid thinking about what Hailey might be doing on her date with the firefighter.

  Hailey picks up his papers and scans them. She says nothing as she puts them down and turns back to her computer.

  Jimmy finished twice as many loan applications as the other employees, but Hailey is not going to tell him he did a good job. He decides to let it go. He doesn’t deserve recognition for what he did
to her.

  “Hey, this weekend is my mom’s birthday party. I know she would love to see you.”

  Hailey looks at him, feeling a bit of inner conflict over his mom. She helped Hailey so much growing up. Hailey looked up to the woman, and it has been hard not to have Jimmy’s mom in her life anymore.

  “I’ll probably have to work.”

  Jimmy smiles. “I’ll take that as a maybe. Great.” He walks out, overwhelmed with another glimmer of hope that the old Hailey is still somewhere underneath the polished cold businesswoman.

  He decides to get her something to warm up her office besides the plant because it’s just grey cast in the bleaching fluorescent light. It kind of feels like a morgue. On his way home, he stops at Target to look at the decor. He spent so much money on building supplies for the treehouse; he’s now running low on cash. But he’s determined to brighten her office and hopefully her mood.

  ***

  After work, Hailey has some time to kill. She decides to go look for some new art to hang on the walls at home, so she’ll start feeling like it’s her own place. She plans to finish painting before and after her date – a date she plans on cutting short. She just wants to be able to say she went and make Jimmy mad.

  As she walks down the store aisle, she considers what would go well in her house with the new additions she’s made. She doesn’t notice the people around her, as she picks through the artwork. She grabs one with a beach scene, and on the bottom, it says, “Relax.”

  When she glances up, Hailey sees Jimmy standing next to her, holding the same exact piece. She makes a disgusted face at him.

  He smiles. “I was actually going to surprise you with this for your office, but it looks like you might have already found it.”

  “This is stupid. I’d never buy it. I get that you’re trying to make yourself feel better. How about you leave me out of your little guilt trip because from where I stand, there’s no future for our friendship. That ship has sailed.”

  Jimmy looks at her, choking back emotion and nodding. He’s trying hard to respect what she wants. He puts the picture back on the shelf and walks away.

  When Hailey resumes looking through the decor, tears well up in her eyes. One drops onto a frame. As she wipes the frame, she glances at the painting. This one has a refreshing light blue sky above a winding road. At the end of the road, the sun is rising. Something about it makes her feel a little better, so she decides this is the one. She imagines hanging it on the wall to bring some sunshine into what feels like a gloomy life right now.

  ***

  Once back to his car, Jimmy turns on his favorite Beastie Boys album. He bobs his head, trying to shake off the bad vibes and regain his sense of optimism. He arrives home and grabs a Hot Pocket before going to the back to work on the treehouse.

  His mom peeks her head in. “You still love hot pockets huh?”

  “Some things never change, Mom.”

  She smiles. “I kind of thought you and Hailey would be watching superhero movies on the couch now that she’s back.”

  Jimmy bites into his dinner, burning the roof of his mouth. “Ouch!” He shakes his head. “We just may.”

  His mom never knew why he and Hailey stopped talking, but she can tell he still cares for her. His mom went through counseling to deal with her relationship issues, while Jimmy was in school. She has more insight into healing now that time has passed. She wants to talk to Jimmy more openly now that he’s home, but still hasn’t found a way to approach it with him. It seems they are stuck in their old ways of poking fun and keeping their distance.

  Should Hailey be the one she tries to talk to, or more importantly, why hasn’t Hailey come to say hello after basically growing up here?

  Jimmy stops at the doorway, as though he might say something. He wonders if his mom’s feelings are hurt that Hailey hasn’t come over, but he decides not to bring it up. He goes outside to keep his mind busy, or at least, try to. His mind keeps wandering back to Hailey and her date. He hopes she doesn’t fall for this stud that all the women at work were talking about.

  ***

  As soon as Hailey gets home, she touches the painted wall to make sure it’s dry before hanging her new artwork. She hammers the nail into the wall, and as she places the painting on the nail, she tells herself this is all just temporary. She can’t get used to being here. She tells herself that she’s just making the place bearable until her next promotion.

  She dresses in a purple shirt, jeans, and heels for her date. After adding some red lipstick, she walks out to her car and glances across the street. She doesn’t see Jimmy. As she pulls out of the drive, she wonders if he’s upset that she is dating a total stranger.

  She arrives at the sports bar a few minutes late and walks into a loud and crowded building. She finds her date at the bar, clearly hitting on the waitress with a low-cut top and lots of cleavage. Hailey rolls her eyes and then walks toward him, ready to flash a fake smile.

  Hailey is annoyed at how good looking the guy is. He looks like a male model with perfectly chiseled features and not a single blemish. He’s tall, strong, and doesn’t appear to have any body fat. He looks like he knows he’s good looking, too.

  Hailey approaches him with a smile. “Hi, I’m Hailey.”

  “Wow, you’re gorgeous.” The two of them begin a conversation that is anything but deep. Her date keeps discussing features he likes about Hailey and talking about posing for the fire department calendar.

  Hailey wants to run out of the bar but waits until they finish their wings. She then lies, “I’m sorry I don’t have a ton of time today, but let’s talk soon.” She stands.

  “Yeah for sure, hottie.” Hailey knows the guy wouldn’t have let her split the bill with him as he spent the entire time objectifying her, so she doesn’t even offer. She walks away, feeling like she might throw up if she has to sit through another arrogant encounter.

  ***

  As Jimmy listens for Hailey’s car to pull into the driveway, hoping she comes back right away, he patiently sands the wood of the treehouse, so that each surface is smooth. No one will be getting a splinter this time around.

  He has printed a superhero photo, and he uses a ruler to divide it into squares. He counts the same amount of squares and scales them to make the picture larger on a flat piece of wood. He pulls out some of his mom’s arts and crafts paints and starts the time-consuming project.

  He tries to make each part just like the picture, copying one box at a time. He chose Wonder Woman, because he wants to show Hailey that’s what he thinks of her. He hears Hailey’s car pull up and the door shut as he works under the spotlight in the dark. He feels a sense of relief knowing she is at least safe. He works late into the night and suddenly snaps back to reality when he sees it’s after one in the morning.

  Realizing he needs to be up in six hours, he puts the paint away and washes the brushes. He’s about halfway done and is eager to have it finished by the weekend to show Hailey. He goes up to his room where he still has a twin bed, and as he lays down, he wonders if he is kidding himself and living in the past. What if Hailey is not the person he knew? What if he is just torturing himself? He tells himself that he’s just tired and not thinking straight. He goes to bed with his stomach growling.

  ***

  Jimmy’s stomach growls waking him up early the next day. Jimmy glances up at the ceiling where his Spider-Man poster still hung over his bed. He wonders if there are any new movies coming out about superheroes. He reaches for his phone and looks up the local showings.

  He sees one of the old theatres in town is playing The Dark Knight Rises. They frequently play old movies because they can’t afford to play the new releases. He decides to invite Hailey to go with him. But then he realizes he is coming off as desperate, buying her things, inviting her to stuff, and building her a new treehouse.

  He walks downstairs to make some coffee, trying to figure out a better approach with Hailey. Growing up, he was just there for her. H
e never tried to force her to do something she didn’t want to do.

  “That’s it,” he tells himself.

  He knows she is going through a hard time being back in town, because it brings up bad memories. He will just patiently be there for her, just as he was growing up. He makes a pact with himself not to let her anger beat him down. He’s going to try to make her feel she can trust him again. He’s not going to try to force his agenda with her anymore because it may be making her feel worse.

  He showers and dresses casually for Casual Friday. This time, he doesn’t look in the mirror, hoping she will like how he looks. Instead, he’s thinking about how he can create a safe space for her again like he did when they were young. As he drives to work, he realizes he’s been extremely selfish, thinking that he deserved her in any sense. Hailey wasn’t the one that destroyed their friendship. He was. He feels a deep sense of regret and humility as he walks into work knowing that her emotional scars and tough exterior are all because of him and his poor decisions.

  ***

  Hailey’s already in the office when Jimmy arrives. She is burying herself in her work, crunching numbers and trying to predict their first month of performance. She is pleased that they are doing so well, but decides not to let on about it. She’ll let them know they are all going to have to kick it up a notch if they want to make the minimum objective. She knows that fear can really motivate people, and she plans to crack the whip. The women come in loudly laughing and chatting. They rush to Hailey’s office trying to each get through the door first and almost get stuck in the doorframe. They all at once say, “How did it go?”

  Their enthusiasm makes Hailey laugh out loud. Her plan to crack the whip is melted by their enthusiasm. “I don’t kiss and tell, ladies.”

  They hoot and holler. “So you kissed!”

  Hailey smiles. “Ladies don’t you have desks?”

  They turn around and one says, “You have to tell us everything. Our lives are so predictable.”