Stay Long Enough

A hot dry breeze rolled lazily past carrying the scents of the diverse meals of the street vendors. The clanging of their tongs on grills mingled with the boisterous laughter of the booze-soaked bar flies that had stumbled into the streets.

Yep, that’s my city.

Kameron followed Jacob as Jacob expertly weaved past the drunk and joyous who littered the sidewalk. Kameron bumped into a few just trying to keep up. After a solid bump into one building of a man, Kameron nearly lost his balance, but he kept his pace up so he wouldn’t lose Jacob in the crowd. He adjusted the shoulder and collar area of his navy button-down shirt which had been altered after smashing into the large man now behind him. He ran his fingers through his brown hair, pushing it to the left, making sure it was still fairly in place, scratched his scruffy cheek nervously, and then moved even quicker to catch up to Jacob.

“Hey, is this one of those bars on wheels?” Kameron backhanded Jacob in the shoulder lightly.

Jacob stopped and stared at him with a preposterous look. “What? No.”

“Oh, so it’ll still be there when we show up. Slow down, man!”

Jacob laughed when he finally understood the joke. He spun around and started walking again, only slightly slower than before. “I just want to make sure I get there early enough so I can talk to Mindy, you know?”

“You think this time something will happen?”

“I do.”

“But you think that every time something will happen.”

“I do.”

“Do you notice a pattern?”

“I notice your slow ass keeping me from getting to the damn bar! Hurry up!”

Jacob kicked it into overdrive and Kameron was forced to speed walk just to keep up with him. The dry air continued to roll past. It was always dry out here, but it felt so much more dry after having returned from extreme humidity. Kameron usually hated the way the dry air affected his skin, but he was loving it now, so happy to avoid sweating through his shirt just because he stepped outside. They got to the bar, the bouncer checked their ID’s, and ushered them in. Jacob searched the faces in the crowd like an eager meerkat, finally finding Mindy with her large group of friends and making a beeline for her.

Jacob did his usual half-introductions. “You remember Kameron! Kam, you remember Mindy. And Tasha. And Amy… and… so, Mindy, what drink am I buying you?”

Kameron did remember Mindy from all four times he met her. And he did remember Tasha from all two times he met her. And Amy, well, she was beautiful, but he didn’t think he remembered her. She appeared to remember him though, so he pretended like he did as well. He didn’t want to hurt her feelings. Maybe she was acting just as much as Kameron was. Jacob was insisting on buying Mindy a birthday drink so the two of them had marched off to the bar. Kameron was left to talk with Tasha and Amy and after a few minutes it became clear they were more interested in talking to one another… and to their other friends.

Kameron looked around at the group. A dozen or so people, all of whom he was certain he’d never met. A couple guys, but mainly women, each of them was so attractive and done up for a night out. But did Kameron have enough of an “in” to really make a move. He meandered through the crowd, saying hello to everyone and introducing himself, feeling out the flow of the conversation. Everyone was perfectly nice but he didn’t feel any sparks. That was OK, they were here for Jacob to try to spark something. Not him. Kameron was just happy to be around people once again. Animals were great and all, but not outstanding for a conversation.

Then again, Kameron wasn’t even having much of a conversation with any of these people. He feared he had lost his conversational skills… as he always did when he got back from a job. He tried to convince himself that this was just like every other time and to remain calm.

But his heart fluttered when one more woman joined the group, having exited the hallway leading to the bathrooms. He hadn’t seen her yet. He knew he’d remember meeting this girl. Flawless, olive skin and wavy hair the color of chocolate. Food metaphors aside, she still looked delicious. Her skirt was checkered red and green and made Kameron think of Christmas… among other things. She walked with a casualness that was both friendly and exuding extreme confidence. She looked around in the group of Mindy’s friends.

“Where’s Mindy?” She asked.

“At the bar with that Jacob guy.” Tasha responded.

“Ohh!” The girl laughed.

Tasha turned back to Amy and continued her conversation and Kameron realized the girl had the same look on her face that he did. Like she was searching for a lifeline among all the people here. Like she knew she was supposed to be “here” with everyone but she wasn’t sure which semi-group to attach herself to… which conversation to inject herself into.

Kameron approached her. “Hey, I’m Kameron.”

“Hey. Yvonne. You one of Mindy’s friends?”

“Eh, not really. I’m Jacob’s friend. I’ve met Mindy a handful of times.”

“Ohh. Do you… know anyone else here?”

“Not really.” Kameron whispered with a smirk.

“Oh my God! Me neither!”

“So, what are you doing here?”

“Oh! I know Mindy. She started working with me last year and invited me out for her birthday, but I don’t know any of her other friends.”

“So, we’re basically in the same boat.”

“I guess we are.” And then Kameron’s heart fluttered once more when she smiled, tilting her head down, pointing her eyes up at him.

Kameron asked where they worked as he had no idea what Mindy’s new job was. It turned out that they were teachers, which Yvonne spoke excitedly about. She clearly had a passion for it. Seeing as how it was July and school was done with in June, Kameron asked Yvonne what she had been doing lately. She told him she usually helped her sister at her company in the summers, but she had just gotten back from a trip a few days ago.

“I just got back from a trip too!” Kameron said excitedly. “Yesterday.”

“Wow!” Yvonne was pleasantly surprised. “From where?”

“Brazil.”

“Wow. Were you… in the Amazon?” Yvonne joked.

“I was.”

“Oh.”

“Where were you?”

“Australia. Melbourne.”

“Oh man, you must have been freezing, huh?”

“Yeah.” Yvonne smiled. “Most people just think it’s hot year-round there. Everyone forgets this is their winter.”

“And Melbourne is so far south, they get snow all the time this month.”

“It did snow one day.”

“Did you happen to go see the penguins?”

“I did! I had an Uber driver tell me about them. I saw them the second to last day there. Wait, how do you know about them?”

“I was there once.”

Yvonne just stared at Kameron curiously and he realized this was the point in a conversation in which he needed to explain what he did for work. That he was a zoologist and was regularly sent to different countries to study and observe and film animals. He went on to explain that he was in Brazil to observe the giant otters of the Amazon and that he was there for three months.

“Wow. Three months. That’s a while.”

“Yeah, it’s usually two or three months at a time. But you know, I see some really unique things. Unique wildlife.”

“What else did you see?”

“Caimans. They’re actually enemies of the giant otters.”

“Oh God. You didn’t have to watch them… you know…”

“It’s all part of it.”

“The caimans eat the giant otters?”

“Sometimes. Usually just the smaller ones.”

“And you just watch it?! And film it?!”

“That’s my job.”

“That’s horrible!”

“Well, sometimes the giant otters gang up on the caiman and they actually kill him.”

“Is that supposed to make it better?”

Kameron thought for a moment. When he said it, it seemed like it was going to make it better. But now he didn’t know why it was supposed to.

“And you just sit there and do nothing about it!?” Yvonne was appalled.

“Well, this is life. Things just happen out there, you know? I can’t intervene one way or another. That’s not the natural order of life.” Kameron tried to explain.

“But do you have to film it?!”

Kameron got a little annoyed. “Yeah, that’s the job. People want to see the world, they want to learn about it.”

“Do they want to see death?”

“Death is a part of life!”

“Whoa! That doesn’t sound like happy birthday talk!” Jacob suddenly interjected with Mindy on his arm. “Hey, Kam, can you come do us a favor?”

Jacob pulled Kameron away. He dragged him over towards the front door and Mindy wandered off to talk to one of her friends. Jacob explained that he and Mindy were about to leave together and go back to her place. He was leaking excitement. Kameron told Jacob that was great but he had no idea what kind of a favor he could do for them. Jacob explained they were going to get an Uber back to Mindy’s place, but they were having trouble getting one to come down the main street as it was so crowded, so he wanted Kameron to drive them a few blocks over so they could call an Uber elsewhere.

“You can’t drive?” Kameron asked.

“No, we did a few shots.” Jacob said. “Look, just drive us over in my car, and then, you know, whatever. Come back. Go home. I don’t care.”

“Well, I was talking to that girl, Yvonne.”

“So, come back and talk to her.”

“Maybe I should tell her I’ll be right back.”

“You’re fine! It won’t take long! Come on, man! Mindy is ready to go… now.”

Kameron agreed. Jacob got Mindy and they left together, piling into Jacob’s car with Kameron behind the wheel. Kameron fought the traffic and managed to drive them several streets over. They hopped out of the car and Jacob opened the app to call for a car. Kameron said goodbye and drove back to the original bar in a hurry, but the parking space was gone. He drove around and around, finally finding a spot a block away, and then hustled back to the bar.

Kameron pushed through the drunk people, searching for Yvonne, searching for anyone. He couldn’t find her anywhere and he didn’t see anyone in the group! They were all gone! He called Jacob and explained the situation to him. Jacob said that Mindy had mentioned it may be a bar-hopping night, so there was a possibility that they went to one of the other bars. Kameron pleaded with Jacob for help.

“We’re in the Uber, man. What can I do?” Jacob said bluntly.

“Can you ask Mindy to call Yvonne and ask where she went?”

“Her phone died.”

“Jesus! Any idea what bars they may have gone to?”

“No idea.”

Kameron hung the phone up and surveyed his surroundings. So many bars on this street. He’d just have to start trying them all. He tried the bar right next door, popping in, scanning the entirety of it, finding no one. He moved on to the next one, did the same. No Yvonne. No one. He tried a third bar, same results. Kameron stopped and examined the other bars on the street, at least a dozen more. Was this a futile attempt? How could he be sure Yvonne would even be in any of the other bars? She said she didn’t know anyone else in the group, if they moved on, would she have moved on with them?

But the conversation they were having, the way he felt just when he saw her once. And… as strange as it was… the fact that she was getting mad at him and expressing it to him so honestly. Her honesty. It was exciting. He had to keep trying. Kameron ducked into the next bar, looked around, searching the back of the bar, everywhere… and he saw no one. On his way back out to the front, something caught his eye. Tasha and Amy sitting at a table!

Kameron raced over to them and asked where everyone else was. They said they had no idea.

“Weren’t you guys all bar hopping?”

“Sure.” Tasha responded.

“Well, didn’t the others hop on over here with you?”

“I didn’t notice if they followed. I guess not. Maybe they went home.”

Kameron’s heart sunk in his chest. A missed opportunity. He trudged to the bar, figuring he’d drown his sorrows in a beer. He hadn’t had a drink all night, but now was as good a time as any. As he waited for a bartender to notice him he looked back at Tasha and Amy, laughing. It annoyed him. He didn’t know why. So, he left.

Plenty of other bars to choose from. He could drown his sorrows in any of them. He headed into the very next bar and found his way to an opening in front of a bartender. He got a beer and took a big sip. It tickled his throat on the way down to his stomach and warmed his belly. Kameron sighed and gazed across the bar… to find Yvonne! She was standing over there with some of the others from the group! Kameron quickly walked over, and as he approached, ready to say hi to Yvonne, he realized she was mid conversation with some guy… a tall guy… a guy that wasn’t part of the group.

“Oh, wow! There he is!” Yvonne was surprised to see him. “I thought you just ditched me mid conversation because you didn’t like what I was saying!”

“No, no, not at all! I liked that you were saying that!” Kameron responded.

“You liked that I was trashing your job?”

“Trashing is a bit strong. Challenging?”

“So, where did you go?”

“Jacob and Mindy needed me to drive them a few blocks over.”

“To where?”

“Just a few blocks over?”

“For no reason?”

“Not for no reason. To get an Uber.”

“Why couldn’t they get an Uber here?”

“Too crowded.”

Yvonne made a face like she was trying to decide if she believed him or not. She was caught in between the two options. And then the voice of the tall guy decided to help her make her decision.

“I don’t know, sounds kinda made up.”

Yvonne laughed at this and the tall guy laughed along at his own joke. Kameron scowled at him but he just ignored Kameron as if he wasn’t there.

“So, Australia.” The tall guy said to Yvonne. “You must have loved it.”

“Yeah, it was great.”

“Are you a surfer?”

“Oh, no. It wasn’t a surfing kind of area. Plus, not the season.”

“Oh, gotcha, gotcha, gotcha.” The tall guy nodded along in a way that just didn’t look authentic or like he was paying attention. “Yeah, I hear that whole country is big on surfing.”

“Well, yeah there are some parts that are. It’s not every part.”

“But you came back tan, it looks like, huh?”

“Uh no. This is just how I look.” Yvonne glanced over at Kameron momentarily.

“Yeah, it’s like, hot there, year-round, right? Must have been so nice. What was it like 90’s the whole time?”

“Umm…” Yvonne looked back at Kameron who was trying not to laugh. She looked back at the tall guy while leaning towards Kameron. “You know what? I forgot, I need to go help him… move his car. I gotta go, but I’ll be back.”

The tall guy was thoroughly confused as Yvonne grabbed Kameron’s arm and yanked him away. Kameron only managed to take a few more sips of his beer before Yvonne pulled him out of the bar and into the street. The two laughed at how little that guy was even paying attention to what Yvonne was saying. Yvonne said she did want at least one drink, and Kameron said he liked the idea of finishing at least one drink, so they went into the next bar, got a beer each, and talked and laughed.

Yvonne asked Kameron more about his job, and the more he explained, the better she felt about it. She explained that she was an animal lover and didn’t love the idea of animals being killed and someone filming it… but she wasn’t so naive that she didn’t think it was happening. It just wasn’t something she enjoyed watching.

“I get it. I’d rather not have to see that.” Kameron said. “It’s not like I always see it. But it’d be way better if I could just observe animals in their habitat and, you know, not have to see death.”

“It’s an interesting job.” Yvonne gave him that smile again.

Kameron’s knees weakened, but once they solidified again, he realized that Yvonne was purposely giving him that smile. Her beer was nearly empty. So was his.

He finished the last few sips. “You know, this beer kind of reminds me of one that I had when I was in Scotland a few years back. I found something like it here too, and I always keep my fridge stocked with it.”

“Mm. One beer might be about it for me.” Yvonne said.

“Oh.”

“Yeah, not huge into beer. I’m more of a wine girl. The problem is, I can never finish a bottle all on my own, so I rarely can even open a bottle.”

Kameron smiled. “Well, that’s so sad. You know, I hate to see you suffering such a fate. I’d love to lend a hand if I could.”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah, you know, just as a favor, if you want, I could help you finish a bottle.”

“Perfect. Because I have one at home I’ve been dying to try.”

They were back at Yvonne’s place in a flash and she was showing Kameron to the couch in the living room. She put some music on, something that sounded like slow jazz. Kameron felt his blood warm up just at the smooth sound of the music. Yvonne fetched a bottle of wine, popped it open, and brought it back into the living room with two glasses. She poured them each a glass and they enjoyed their first sip together.

“That’s good.” Kameron said. “I don’t know a ton about wine but this one is full-bodied, yeah?”

“Mm, not so much.” Yvonne smirked.

“I guess my mind is just somewhere else.” Kameron hid his grin as he lifted his glass to take another drink, glancing at Yvonne in the dim light next to him on the couch.

Her olive skin flushed to red, but only on her face, and she quickly took another sip herself. They continued to sip the wine and comment on how delicious it was. Yvonne told Kameron where she had gotten it from and how she first found it. Kameron took another sip and then quickly wiped some tiny spillage on the corner of his lip.

Yvonne stared on at his mouth curiously. “Can I ask you about your facial hair?”

Kameron chuckled. “I wouldn’t see why not.”

“What stage are you in? Is this freshly shaved as low as it goes, is this grown out, somewhere in between?”

Kameron ran his finger on his own scruffy beard, analyzing it himself and thinking. “I shaved about two weeks ago, usually shave every three weeks, so you caught me right in the middle. Why? Too long for your liking?”

“Not at all.” Yvonne said softly. “Just curious.”

“You know what’s funny about my facial hair? I don’t know why, but the hair on the left side grows faster than the right.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, it isn’t so noticeable on the face and chin, but it is on the lip. The mustache area. The left side is noticeably longer than the right.”

“No way!”

“I swear.”

“Can I?”

“Yeah.”

Yvonne reached out and gently rubbed her fingers along the left part of Kameron’s upper lip, feeling the facial hair there. He immediately sensed a shiver but suppressed it so it wouldn’t look like he disliked the touch. Yvonne moved her fingers back and forth, feeling the length of it, and then she moved over to the right side.

“Whoa!”

“Noticeable, right?”

“Instantly!”

“I know. I have no idea why either.”

“I wonder how noticeable it is on… another part of the body.”

Kameron chuckled with surprise and felt his heart flutter again. “They say you learn best by doing.”

They moved close to one another and Kameron pressed his lips on Yvonne’s. He kissed her, and she kissed back firmly. Several times. And then she pulled back.

“Noticeable?” Kameron asked.

“Mm, good noticeable.” Yvonne pushed her head forward and kissed him again.

The wine glasses were clumsily set down on an end table and Yvonne climbed on top of Kameron. He couldn’t believe this. He wrapped his arms around her back and clutched her tightly, but then she pulled back once more… to remove her shirt. Kameron followed, removing his shirt. By the time he had gotten it off she had yanked off her bra and had her pants and underwear halfway down her legs. Kameron did his best to catch up, removing everything just in time for Yvonne to jump back on top of him.

Kameron would admit, he was curious if he would see Yvonne’s bed that night. It turned out that he didn’t. All he saw was the couch. After a passionate 40 minutes of fumbling around on the couch, realizing there wasn’t quite enough room for everything they were trying to maneuver, but not caring because they couldn’t pull themselves off of each other, they fell back on the couch exhausted and satisfied, and Yvonne put a movie on. They both fell asleep 20 minutes in.

She woke Kameron up later when the sun had risen and she dragged him into the bedroom, where he finally saw her bed. She pushed him into the bed and climbed on top of him once more.

“I swear, I don’t ever do this.” Yvonne said.

“Well, I never let girls touch my mustache on the first date.” Kameron joked. “So, I think we’re even since we both broke a rule.”

“First date? Was this a date?” Yvonne laughed.

“Well, it was something. And it was the first something. I never let a girl touch my mustache on the first something.”

“Lucky for you it’s morning, so this is the second something. So, what would you want now?”

Kameron stared up at Yvonne, beautiful in the morning light that flooded her room and washed over every inch of her bare skin. “I’d like a second helping… of everything.”

Kameron grabbed Yvonne and rolled her over onto her back and took a slight second to thank Jacob in his mind for having dragged him out last night before he completely put everything else in the world out of his mind.

Before Kameron left in the morning, he made sure to ask Yvonne for her number. He somehow didn’t even have it yet! Yvonne gladly gave it to him and they both talked about how they should get together again, maybe for a proper date. It was a night a few days later that they were able to agree on and that lined up with their schedules where they went out for dinner at a new restaurant neither of them had tried. The food was delicious, the wine was extraordinary, but sometimes food and drinks seem that way when you’re in the best company. Yvonne was extremely interested in Kameron’s work studying animals, which was new for him. Most women he dated weren’t so interested in it, but Yvonne, being a teacher and a lover of education and learning, she ate it all up. Kameron also showed his admiration for her career, teaching young people, he found it to be one of the most important jobs in the world. He remembered a teacher that he had in 7th grade that helped him to realize his love of animals which set him on the career path he was now on.

They went back to Yvonne’s place after dinner and she opened another bottle of wine… another bottle they likely wouldn’t finish… and then she excused herself for a second. Kameron took one sip of the wine, just to taste it, and then waited patiently, admiring the paintings and posters that Yvonne had hung in her living room.

“I swear, I don’t ever do this!” Yvonne called out from elsewhere in the apartment.

“I feel like I hear you say that a lot!” Kameron called back with a chuckle.

“You did say you were an admirer of school teachers…” Yvonne entered in a school uniform, skirt revealing much of her thighs, button down shirt underneath buttoned… way down. “What about the school girl?”

“Is that a Halloween costume or… a real uniform of yours?” Kameron was nearly breathless and taken off guard.

“It’s neither.” Yvonne straddled Kameron’s lap. “It’s what you told me to wear, remember?”

“And did I tell you nothing under the skirt?”

“No, I chose that all on my own.”

That first sip of wine was excellent, but it was the only sip Kameron had all night. Instead, his lips were occupied with Yvonne’s mouth, Yvonne’s neck, Yvonne’s bare shoulder, Yvonne’s chest, Yvonne’s stomach, Yvonne’s hips… and then she dragged him back to her bed since her couch wasn’t so supportive of what they had planned.

Yvonne woke Kameron up in the morning, standing by her bed still completely naked, eating strawberries off a plate. “They’re my favorite.”

She gave one to Kameron to eat, set the plate down on the table, and the two commenced in what was becoming a pattern for them, nightly and morning sex. Last time was The Original. This was a slight variation… Strawberry Flavor.

Kameron went home and showered and then took a nap. He ran some errands that he had to do and called Yvonne later asking if she wanted to go out again the following night. She jokingly asked if he had seen enough of her or not. He said that even though he had seen all of her he still hadn’t seen enough of her.

And the two continued to see a lot of one another, metaphorically and literally. The dates were frequent, two or three times a week. Then, they became an assumption, it was just about “when.” Kameron couldn’t believe his great luck, finding Yvonne, not just a physical beauty, but mentally too. Her interests aligned with his and they could talk about anything for hours. Kameron had so much free time seeing as how he was between assignments and Yvonne did too since the school year hadn’t started yet. It did eventually start in September but the two still made plenty of time to see each other.

When it had been two months since the two had first met, Kameron jokingly called it their two-month anniversary, but he also treated it seriously enough that he thought he should get Yvonne a present. A stuffed animal and a bag of candy. Yvonne laughed awkwardly and thanked Kameron for the gift “a six-year-old would love.” It was a strange reaction but Yvonne seemed to like the gift. That same day Yvonne asked what the longest relationship Kameron ever had was to which he answered truthfully, four months. Yvonne was shocked, citing her longest relationship being over two years. But Kameron reasoned with her mentioning, he just hadn’t found someone worth being with for so long.

Or so he supposed.

It was just a week later, Kameron got news. Exciting news that he couldn’t wait to share with Yvonne.

“Guess where my next assignment is!” Kameron said.

“Where?” Yvonne was excited for him.

“Thailand! The assignment is for the sun bear!”

Yvonne admittedly didn’t know much about the sun bear so Kameron told her all he knew about it, granted, he’d have to do more research.

“That’s so exciting! So, when do you leave?”

“November 1st.”

“Oh, that’s good. So, you’d be back for the holidays then.”

Kameron snorted. “Yeah, uh, the holidays of St. Patrick’s Day and Easter.”

“What do you mean?” Yvonne was thoroughly confused.

“These assignments are usually months at a time Yvonne. I’m gone from November 1st and return March 1st.”

“What?! That’s… four months!”

“That’s the assignment.”

“You won’t be here for Thanksgiving… or Christmas… or even Valentine’s Day.”

“Well… no.”

“No wonder why you never have a relationship that lasts.”

“It’s not like they always overlap with the holidays.”

“No, I mean, you leave for months at a time, you can’t sustain a relationship that way.”

“Well, yeah, sure I could.”

“I mean… us… it felt like we were going somewhere, but before we even hit four months, you’ll be leaving for four months? And during the holidays… the times when someone most loves having a boyfriend, a partner… I don’t know, Kameron.”

“I’ll be back in March. I’m always back.”

“That’s fine. I’m sure you will be back. But how about this Kameron? Before we get too serious, before this goes on any longer, let’s… let’s just…”

“What?”

It took Yvonne a while to finally say the words. But she told Kameron they should just end it. She didn’t want their new relationship to have to endure the long-distance aspect… one in which Kameron wasn’t even able to communicate for weeks at a time. Yvonne told Kameron she was so looking forward to Christmas with him. And Valentine’s Day. That those are special times and she thought he was special and wanted to be with him during those days. And this just pained her too much to know she’d be alone. Kameron pleaded with her to not end things, but no matter how much he tried, she wouldn’t budge.

He left later that night after they shared an awkward dinner together. He went to sleep, lost, caught between the amazing news and the terrible news. He slept for 10 hours, but intermittently, waking up every hour, his heart cold and aching. He was sad… and mad… mad at his job. But so happy with his job. He couldn’t imagine doing anything else for work. But now he couldn’t imagine continuing to go off on these trips if it meant being alone.

The next day, Kameron called Yvonne, but she didn’t pick up. He left a short voicemail but she never called back. He called again later that night. It went to voicemail but he hung up.

Kameron texted Yvonne the next day. She apologized to him and said she didn’t want it to be this way and she really liked him, but they just needed to stop talking or else it would be worse. She said they just needed to stop communicating altogether. She couldn’t imagine being in a new relationship just to be alone on Christmas and Valentine’s Day.

September passed and October arrived. Kameron had only tried calling Yvonne once more after that, and as he expected, she didn’t pick up. So, he stopped. He tried to put her out of his mind, knowing it wouldn’t happen immediately, but after a few weeks it should get a little bit easier. It had happened a handful of times in the past. He just needed a few weeks to see some progress. But after a few weeks, he only missed her more. This wasn’t how it was supposed to happen.

Kameron sat at home one night, thinking about Yvonne’s words. They echoed in his head and he focused on them. Really focused on them. He almost entered a meditative state… and then the answer came to him.

The next day, he was at work, giving his boss the news. His boss didn’t look thrilled, but he said he understood. He was a good man. And he told Kameron that he was one of the best. And then Kameron asked his boss a strange question.

His boss laughed. “What are you into dendrology now?”

“Maybe something like that.”

His boss called a friend and gave Kameron the answer he needed.

“Long drive.” His boss said.

“That’s alright.” Kameron smiled.

And it was a long drive, he’d never be able to make it roundtrip in one day. So, Kameron left early in the morning, drove for 9 total hours along with three half hour stops, found his hotel, checked in, and relaxed. He slept through the night, probably the best he had slept in weeks. The next morning, he got the thing he needed, tied it to the roof of his car, and started the drive back. Another 9 hours driving, only stopping twice for 20 minutes each this time. He arrived back in town, found a grocery store, and picked up a few things.

He texted Yvonne, starting the message off with, “Hey, I actually have a sweater of yours I need to drop off.” To which she responded quickly, “Sure, that’s fine. Thanks.”

They coordinated a time that Yvonne would be home, which wasn’t difficult, she said she was about to head home soon enough. Kameron arrived at her place, took a deep breath, and got everything he needed to bring with him. It was a lot. But luckily, Yvonne was on the first floor. He knocked on her door and waited. Her footsteps approached, the knob turned, and she opened the door, her eyes instantly popping open.

There stood Kameron with a bag of groceries in one hand, and his other hand clutching a 5-foot-tall, very real, Christmas tree.

“I lied about your sweater.” Kameron said.

“I can see that. Where did you find a Christmas tree in the middle of October?”

“Not here. But look, I lied about your sweater so I could tell you something. So, please, hear me out. This is the truth. I can’t imagine not being with you. I hate that my job is not allowing me to be with you, because I love my job. But I can’t let it stop me from seeing you. So, I’m going on this assignment in November, I’ll be back in March, but after that, no more. No more assignments where I’m gone for months. I told my boss I can’t do it anymore.”

Yvonne opened her mouth but Kameron kept talking so he wouldn’t lose his train of thought. “I want to be here with you for Christmases and Valentine’s Day, and if you’ll have me, I can be. Starting next year. In the meantime, I figured we could do Christmas and Valentine’s Day here… before I leave.”

Yvonne laughed but then her laugh faded into shock. “Did you quit your job?”

“No. I told my boss I didn’t want to do the several-month-long assignments in other countries anymore. But we have a different division. Assignments locally. I never have to leave the state and I’ll never leave for more than two weeks. And never during holidays.”

Yvonne fought a smile, but she couldn’t hold it back. “And what if I didn’t agree to this?”

“Doesn’t matter. I’m ready to live a life where I can have a relationship. I hope that means I can have one with you.”

“Of course!” Yvonne hugged Kameron so tightly he nearly dropped the Christmas Tree.

They laughed as he lugged it inside. Kameron asked to make sure it was OK that he brought a whole tree to her place. He was afraid it was too much. Yvonne told him it was the sweetest thing she’d ever heard of. She gave him a big kiss, and Kameron licked his lips after.

“Salty.” Kameron said.

“Oh. Yeah. I was just eating peanuts. Sorry.”

“No. Don’t apologize. I like the… salty.” Kameron kissed her again.

“What’s in the bag?” Yvonne asked.

“Strawberries.” Kameron emptied the bag. “For Valentine’s Day. And candy. Hopefully that’s something an adult would like.”

“On Valentine’s Day, of course. But I have an idea. Can you wait here?”

“Uh, sure.”

And with that, Yvonne left her own apartment. And Kameron stayed. Sometimes she was so spontaneous he was shocked, but it made his heart vibrate rapidly. He walked through her place, examining her things, pretty much the same as the last time he was here. There was a new chest in the corner, it exuded elegance. Kameron wondered how expensive it was. Above it, a new painting. A wine glass, half-filled with wine, on a monochromatic background. Oh, how she loved her wine. He studied her other paintings, the ones that he had seen many times before. They were wonderful, and he got lost in them. So lost, he almost didn’t hear Yvonne enter her place again.

“Stay there! Don’t peek!” Yvonne called out.

Kameron froze, directly in front of the elegant chest, smiling, but not turning around. He heard Yvonne scamper off, and then shortly after return, run in the kitchen, and reemerge.

“OK. Turn around.”

Kameron spun around to see Yvonne in a green teddy, light and flowy, and not made of too much fabric at all. She held the strawberries in a bowl in one hand, and a plate of melted chocolate in the other.

“This is the way to do Valentine’s Day.”

She came over and dipped the strawberries in the chocolate and fed them to Kameron. As he ate, and she indulged in one herself, he felt his back pressed up against the chest, Yvonne’s chest against his chest.

“So, if we’re doing Valentine's Day now, then what about Christmas?” Kameron asked before Yvonne gave him another strawberry.

“The holidays are all mixed up this year, we can just do Christmas in a week. Give us some time to get some presents.”

“That sounds good.”

“And then you’ll be gone, and that will be hard…”

“But I’ll be back… and then I’ll always be here.”

Yvonne set the bowl and plate down and pinned herself against Kameron. “But for now, just be right here.”

Kameron tasted strawberries and chocolate. He smelled the pine from the Christmas tree. And he felt a feeling that had escaped him his entire adult life, but now that he had grounded himself, the feeling was there. It was within him. It was the feeling of never wanting to leave home.

**************

If you enjoyed this story and want to read more of my work, then please come check out my website where I post all my latest work, plus you can even subscribe for updates!