Chapter 16
Lane (April 2023)
...
Ophelia had taken Lane out shopping one day and decided to stray away from the usual thrift store they shopped at. The pair looked for things in their local mall and luckily it wasn't overcrowded like it was most days.
"What do you think of this?" Ophelia asked. She was holding up a dress and wanted Lane's opinion on it. They were zoned out and staring off in the distance while Ophelia attempted to gain their attention. “Lane?” Ophelia said. There was no response.
"Lane?" she said again.
"Hm?"
"What do you think of this dress?" She held up the dress again. Lane thought it matched her style perfectly. It was black and would go with every other piece of black clothing she owned.
"You'd look so good in that," they said.
"Are you okay?" she asked as she put the dress in her shopping basket.
"Yeah, I'm okay. It's just—Atlas showed up at my work the other day."
Ophelia stomped her foot. "What?! Why didn't you tell me?"
"I didn't want you to worry. I handled it."
"Of course I'm going to worry, Lane. Now he's stalking you? What happened?"
Lane sighed. "He asked me to come back to him and then called me a piece of shit who no one else would love."
"Fuck him," Ophelia scoffed.
"Then he said I'll be sorry." Lane scratched their head.
"He said that?"
Lane nodded. "Yeah, he looked like he really wanted to punch me in the face. He said I was hurting him."
"You hurting him? Right. I'll punch the fucker in the face," Ophelia laughed and Lane slightly smiled.
"Whatever, I don't really wanna think about it right now. I had him banned from Declan's so there's that at least."
"Good. Atlas doesn't deserve you or good coffee," Ophelia said as she put her arm around Lane's shoulder.
The two best friends finished looking for clothes and went to the food court to get some food and smoothies.
"You know, they don't have many good vegan options here," Lane said as they ate chicken nuggets.
"I'll just have to settle for the fries then," Ophelia smirked as she took fries from Lane's tray and threw them next to her salad bowl. They playfully slapped her hand away when she went to get more. Lane really didn't mind.
"How've you been?" Ophelia asked and then took a sip of her starfruit smoothie. "In the apartment, I mean."
Lane sipped on their blackberry and cream smoothie. "Fine. Yeah, it's all slowly coming together. It's probably going to be a while before it really feels like home but it's good."
"You know you can always move in with me," Ophelia said. "Just let me know and the guest bedroom is yours."
Lane nodded. "Thanks, I really appreciate that but I need to do this, you know? Something for myself for once."
"I understand," Ophelia replied. "Just don't forget, I'm here for you always!"
"I know," Lane smiled.
"Your birthday is coming up," Ophelia said cheerfully.
"Oh goody, twenty-six. I was hoping you'd forget." Lane laughed.
"I would never forget your birthday!"
"I'm gonna be old just like you."
"Now hold on, I'm only twenty-eight. That's not old."
Lane chuckled. "Face it, we're old."
"Eh, we'll be alright." Ophelia sipped her smoothie.
The two of them finished eating and decided to relax in the food court for a bit before leaving. Lane looked over the things they had bought. They got new clothes, shoes, and a few more things for the apartment to make it feel more cozy. Lane noticed Ophelia spacing out, staring at her empty smoothie cup.
"You alright?" Lane asked.
Ophelia looked up and slightly smiled. "Yeah, I'm okay."
"What's on your mind?" Lane could tell she was thinking deeply about something.
Ophelia sighed. "I just remembered the time when Atlas tried keeping you away from me when I was getting my top surgery."
"I'm glad I was there," Lane said.
"I'm really glad you were there too," Ophelia replied. "I was in the hospital and he was really trying to keep you away. We're best friends and I just can't believe how selfish he was."
"He's still selfish," Lane said. "I would have never missed it, Ophelia. How could I? You're always there for me and I'm always there for you. He was so angry when I stormed out of the house to make it in time for the appointment."
Ophelia sniffled. "I'm so happy you're free from that asshole." She tried her best to hold back her tears.
"Me too."
When Lane got home they put their shopping bags down in the living room and took out the clothes from them. Lane had kept the store hangers so they could put their new clothes in the bedroom closet. They carried the bundle to the bedroom, tossed the pile onto the floor, and swung the closet door open. Then Lane pulled a string to turn on the light and they could hear the hum of the lightbulb as it began to glow and rid the darkness from the bedroom closet. They still didn't have many clothes so there was plenty of space for the new items they had bought but Lane noticed something in the corner by the floor just around the door frame. Something was peeking out from the molding.
"What's this?" Lane said out loud. There was something sticking out from the baseboard of the closet, like a little secret waiting to be found. Lane knelt down to get a closer look and realized it was a piece of paper. The paper looked aged and wrinkled and Lane thought it was probably something left behind by the last tenant. They gently pulled the corner of the paper that was trapped in the baseboard and it slid out with little resistance. Lane held the paper in their hands and examined it carefully. They were worried it would tear. It was a large folded page from a notebook and when Lane unfolded it, they realized it was an old letter. To Lane's surprise, the letter was dated June of 1957.