Today's Reading
"I need to tell you something, but you have to promise to keep it to yourself."
Alarm widened Amy's eyes. "What's wrong, Hollz?"
I took a deep breath. "My doctor found a lump in my breast."
Gasping, Amy clutched her chest. "No!"
"I'm fine," I said immediately and watched Amy release the breath she held. "It was small," I reassured her. "They did a biopsy, and I had a quick procedure to remove it. A small cyst. No cancer. I'm all good now."
Amy went to open her mouth, probably to rip into me but I held my hand up, stopping her.
"I kept it to myself because my doctor assured me there was nothing to fear and that it could easily be taken care of. Ma and Aunt Shirleen don't need unnecessary bad news at their age."
Both women were old enough to be our grandmothers.
Amy shook her head and squinted at me.
"Just hear me out." I rummaged through my brain in search of the right words. "I know it seems incredibly selfish, but I promise you I was thinking of all of you more than me. If it was bad news, I would have said something. And this scare made me think about how much more I wanted out of life. I'm moving to Charleston and pressing the restart button. This is something I need to do for me."
"Normally, I would have a mouthful of spicy words for you, but I get it." Amy shrugged. "I understand."
Amy reached over and hugged me, then pulled back with tears shining in her eyes. "I'm not happy about how you handled that by yourself, but you deserve this move. And! I want daily play-by-plays so I can live vicariously through you. Fly, little butterfly. Fly!" Amy flailed her arms and smiled and we laughed through our tears.
"Let's get inside," Amy said. "Patience is waiting for us and you know how she gets."
Relieved, I exited the car feeling lighter than when I'd entered. Like Amy said, my sister Patience was right inside the restaurant waiting on us. Her striking gray eyes were glued to her cell phone. Some days, an olive-green hue rimmed her irises. Mostly, it depended on her mood, her eyes shifting like a temperature gauge, getting greener when she was sullen and lightening when she was excited.
Long acrylic tips tap, tap, tapped against the phone screen at lightning speed. Blond braids cascaded down the back of her hourglass figure, meeting the ragged hem of her cutoffs.
"Hello!" I sang, breaking through her self-absorbed bubble.
Twisting her lips, she rolled her eyes. "It's about time," she teased before throwing her arms around my neck. Patience hugged like every embrace could be her last, tight and lingering. This time I matched her intensity. It was going to be hard leaving her behind.
The energy in the restaurant was electrifying. Waiters and customers hustled and scurried in a well-orchestrated ensemble. Summer Walker's latest hit floated through the speakers.
Amy, Patience, and I pressed through the crowd, waving at friends. We knew almost everyone in there.
"What's good in the neighborhood?" Tony, one of the longtime waiters, said once we sat down. "Your regulars?" he yelled referring to our drinks. We nodded. "Be right back," he said, his voice muffled by the loud music.
Our city wasn't one-traffic-light small, but small enough to know people based on who their family members were. Smaller towns came to us for action.
Patience's attention was back on her phone as we sat. I leaned close enough for her to feel my breath in her ear. "No texting all night. Hear me?" This needed to be said. Patience could live her entire life through her cell phone while the outside world passed her by.
She laid her phone face down on the table and blinked at me. "Why do you have to leave?" she asked for the umpteenth time.
Amy and I snickered when Patience folded her arms across her chest and pouted.
"You are so mature," Amy teased.
"And pouting won't help," I laughed.
...
