The Way it Should Be (Part 6)

The plane landed in Minneapolis right on time. Rory was still sleeping next to me; I gently shook him awake. He smiled and yawned hugely.

We left the plane, the monitor telling us which carousel our bags would be on. We walked down there, holding hands. Rory yawned again.

“Did you sleep well, dear?” I asked, trying to wake him up a little.

His voice was still groggy, “Yeah, your shoulder is pretty comfortable.”

I laughed and grabbed my bag as it came around the ring. Rory shook his head vigorously and grabbed his. We walked out of the airport into the frigid Minnesota winter air. It was starting to snow lightly. I looked in my phone’s notepad, finding what level I’d parked on. We took the elevator to it, and I hit the autostart button. My Impala’s taillights blinked about halfway down the row and it started.

“Impala, eh?” Rory said.

“Yeah.”

“Nice.”

I pushed the trunk button, lifting my bag into it. I helped Rory with his, and then I opened the passenger side door for him. He beamed at me, sliding in. I wobbled around, got in, and backed out.

Rory was unbuttoning his jacket and taking his scarf off. I clicked the heat up one more notch while I waited behind another car at the exit of the parking garage.

“So…,” Rory said, “Tell me about your family.”

“Well, my mom and dad live in Duluth. My mom doesn’t work anymore, and my dad is a middle school teacher.”

“Cool,” he said.

“My sister lives in New York. She’s an actress on Broadway.”

“Awesome!”

"Yep. That’s my family. What about yours?” I asked.

“My parents and younger brother live in Fargo. I came down here for college, and I never left.”

“What’s your brother like?”

“He’s 17. I’m not sure how I feel about him. He likes to irritate me. I’m eight years older than him, so we fought a lot. Not as much anymore though. I haven’t been home in two years. I’m planning on going for Christmas.”

“Cool. I’m staying here for Christmas this year. My mom and dad are visiting my sister.”

“Would you like to come with me?” he asked me.

“I’ll think about it.”

We sat in silence for a minute, watching the snow fly towards us in the headlights.

Suddenly, Rory laughed. “The snow looks like we are going into hyperspeed. It looks like the stars.”

I laughed. “I never noticed. You’re right!”

“Hey, Rory. What jobs have you done in your life?”

He laughed, “I worked as a waiter for my first job. I worked through college as an…,” he trailed off.

“Yeah?” I prompted.

“Well, I was actually a porn star. I’m not proud of it. It needed the money,” he blushed.

“No, I don’t mind. Actually, it’s kinda sexy. Either way, you’re still who you are. I love you for you.”

“I love you too.”

We talked for a few hours. We were just coming over the hill into New Ulm when I asked him how to get to his apartment.

He started directing me, and in no time we were pulling up in front of it. I stopped the car and got out to help him with his bags.

I looked up into the snow, smiling. “Ahh, it feels so good to be home in good old Minnesota.”

“I love it here.” Rory said.

I pulled his suitcase out of the trunk, carrying it up the hill to his apartment door so it wouldn’t get wet in the snow. Rory carried his other bag and his coat. He walked a little faster than me so he could get the door unlocked.

He invited me inside. “Well, here you go.”

It was very attractive. There was formal furniture in the living room. The kitchen was right to the left, and the stairs were down the hall. There was a door on the right of the hall; I assumed it was the bathroom. He had a huge flatscreen TV with an Xbox 360 and a Wii connected to it. The whole room was painted brown. It was also immaculately clean.

“I like this,” I said.

“Thanks, dear. Do you want to stay the night?”

I was severely tempted. “Hon, I would, but my apartment is a mess; I need to clean it up before I let you see it. I’ll be over here tomorrow morning? Or actually later today, now that I think about the time. Urgh, it’s 3 a.m.”

“Sure, dear. How about 2? That will give you some time to sleep in and clean?”

“I’ll text you all day, my love,” I said.

He hugged me. “I’ll miss you. Goodnight, my beloved,” he said.

Then he kissed me. I kissed him back, nibbling gently on his lower lip.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” I said.

“Goodbye, Jared.”

I walked out the door, and he kissed me again on the patio. The snow was falling harder now, and he had Christmas lights strung around the railings. It was cute. I walked back to my car, driving the mile to my house. We were pretty close—a fact that made me very happy. I grabbed my suitcase out of the car and hurried inside. My apartment looked like a bomb hit it. There were my clothes (which probably didn’t fit anyway) strewn about the floor, pop cans laying everywhere, and my shoes were all over. I didn’t realize how much of a pig I was.

I spoke to myself. “Ugh, I’ve gotta get this place cleaned up before Rory comes over.”

I waded through the shrapnel and went into my bedroom. It wasn’t much better. I collapsed on the bed, but I struggled to fall asleep. I had too much on my mind. Sleep found me after a few minutes, however.