Page 26 of Codename: Dustoff
“Have you heard from her since last week?” Finn asked, pulling me out of my musings.
“Yeah, she texted me a few days ago. But nothing else. Like just one short little text that doesn’t say much at all.”
I handed over my phone to Finn so he could see what she said. He glanced at it, closed down my phone and handed it back to me. We walked in silence for two beats before he spoke.
“Here’s the thing. You and Gemini get along so good because the two of you are very similar in your personalities. You’re passion and emotion. Me? I’m boring. I like simple stuff. I’m perfectly happy sitting on a boat in the middle of lake with just me and my thoughts. I think that Amelia is very similar, and her being a vet—it just like amplified that part of her even more. Based on how worried she was about hurting your feelings, and the amount of embarrassment she expressed when she was with Gem and me, there is no question in my mind that she digs you hard. I think you’re expecting someone to communicate and share like you and Gemini do. But the reason you and me are such great friends, and the reason that I love Gem with every cell in my body—is because we’re different. We’re puzzle pieces that fit together and complement one another.”
Somehow, I got the feeling he was talking more about him and Gemini and less about me. My new, barely sprouted, couldn’t even be called a relationship yet, as it was more of an undefined “thing.” I’d been so focused on trying to put a name to what Amelia and I had, that I missed Finn taking something out of his pocket.
“I’m going to give it to her for Christmas.”
An engagement ring? He was going to give her an engagement ring. A beautiful, antique ring with an elegant pink sapphire stone.
“Do you think she’ll like it?”
Finn was gruff. Quiet but listened and thought through everything he heard, weighing all information together before coming to a decision. There is no way Gemini would ever not like something he gave her. First because she loved him and thereby would love any gift from him. But Finn also paid attention and kept mental track of cues I would never pick up on. The shift in emotion, the pitch of her voice, the way she arched her back and would stand like a flamingo when she got worn out from standing and cooking for too long. He cataloged it all and would react to her based on his observations.
“She’s going to love it. It is perfect for her.”
“I hope so. I’m nervous that she isn’t going to want to get married so soon after she just got divorced. But I can’t imagine not being married to her. Every time she introduces herself as Gemini Tate, I realize how badly I want her to introduce herself as Gemini McKay.”
“I get what you’re saying, but I think as far as her professional identity she’ll probably stick with Gemini Tate. Just preparing you for that. Because, as a chef your name is your brand. And well, she just had to go through a massive rebranding to go from James to Tate. I’d suggest not hitting the gas on the Tate to McKay.”
Finn snapped the ring box shut with a clack, nodding to signal he heard me.
“How did I make it here before the two of you?” Gemini called from the door to the resort. “You left ten minutes before I did!”
“We decided to take the scenic route,” Finn joked, holding open the door so she and I could walk through, “I check the ravine every so often to make sure no one else is out there traipsing around in flip flops.”
* * *
Amelia wasn’t early for our group like she’d been the last two weeks. Maybe her car was still with Flynn and she’d needed a ride to group. I had my phone out to text her, when I saw her out of my periphery come into class. Henry—or maybe it was Gemini or Elyse—had us all sitting in the oversized captain’s chairs this week. She surveyed the room, saw where I was sitting, smiled and bee-lined right toward me. That action alone settled my jitters.
“How are you doing?” I whispered, when she sat down.
“I’ve been thinking about you,” she replied, a warm smile spreading across her face. “I’m sorry that I haven’t gotten back to you. Between what happened, and sorting out my car, and the doctor’s appointments…” her hand went to mine and that brief moment of contact had tide of warmth lapping through my bloodstream. “I’m really sorry that I freaked out on you last week. Sincerely.”
I opened my mouth to say who knows what, probably a lot of flowery shit about how I wanted to always be the one she could lean on and that I never wanted her to feel embarrassed in front of me, when Elyse called to us from the front of the room.
“Emmett, Amelia!” She pointed towards us with the tip of her pencil. “Since the pair of you are so chatty, it must mean that your assignment went well. How about you update us on resist and adapt.”
Amelia looked like she wanted to disappear. Eyes wide with panic, she turned to me, speechless. I brushed aside a strand of hair that escaped and had fallen over her eyebrow. Seeing her her eyes briefly flutter closed as she leaned into my hand, shifted something into place inside me. Even if she didn’t say anything I knew she was as into me as I was her. I gave her a smirk and a wink before turning towards Elyse. I had no problem being the spokesperson.
“Honestly I think the two of us made significant strides this week. Not only did we have a couple of instances to interact—with the huge snowstorm keeping her trapped in Barren Hill for the weekend—but we also discovered as we talked about our childhoods that these coping mechanisms we have are actually devices we’ve used since we were young. For example, I didn’t have a mom growing up. And so, as a result of being raised by a single dad, I always had to roll with the punches as they came. When I lost my arm, it was just another punch that I needed to roll with. Adapting is almost like a comfort behavior because it’s what is familiar.
“Very good job, Emmett. I’m impressed with how much the pair of you worked out in such a short span of time. Amelia, would you like to add anything?”
“Well, I’m not really much for group participation. But since I’m trying to act counter to my typical coping mechanism, and not resist this process, I’ll say that the week has been very enlightening in many ways. Emmett has seen me at my absolute worst this weekend—I got triggered into a panic attack during the Christmas tree lighting. Instead of talking to him and telling him what was going on, I retreated and hid in shame. Resisting once again help from others to get me through.
“I also had my meeting with my monthly care coordinator. Her name is Pam. She was the one that made me come to these meetings. Anyhow, when I saw her, she said she could already tell that I was changing just by how I interacted with her during our consultation. I know that I can be a bit, brash. But seeing her yesterday it was like talking to a girlfriend. It was if I was hanging out in her living room, and we were having a chat.”
“That’s great, Amelia, but how does that pertain to our partner work?”
I could clearly see the connection. It irked me that Elyse would be so flippant with what she shared. How did she miss how one influenced the other?
“I shared with her this exercise, told her about how Emmett and I were putting it into practice. She thought resist was the perfect word for me. Wednesday was a big day for me at the hospital, and having her by my side to help navigate it was a big step for me. Normally I would have just done it on my own. But because of Emmett, and the work we’ve been doing, it was as if he sat on my shoulder whispering ‘check’ every time I wanted to push away.”
Amelia reached across the table and took hold of my hand, her caress against my skin said so much more than her words did. It was tender. Her thumb moving against mine was a seductive dance that felt like she understood this deeper connection we’d been dancing around.