Peace of Mind
Copyright© 2021 by DB86
Chapter 20
In the next weeks, Landon and Grace settled into a routine. She came every morning to the cabin to drive Landon to the museum. Three evenings a week she cooked for him. On Saturdays, they went exploring the mountain trails and Grace showed Landon some of the wonderful natural landscapes Middletown had to offer. She also took turns with Derek to drive Landon to Seattle every other Friday.
She started kissing his cheek each time they parted.
The mayor invited Landon to have dinner with him and his wife every other week. Derek and Bella did the same. None of them put pressure on Landon to accept, but he found himself enjoying those moments. Grace was always his plus one. She was the rock he leaned on if things got hard.
Landon also played poker on Thursday evenings. Derek joined the group. Very slowly, he shared bits and pieces of his story with his newfound friends. They listened to him without judging him or offering him empty words of support. Most importantly, no one pitied him. There was a lot of laughter. Even the silences were comfortable.
Landon realized that shared pain was easier to handle, and also that sharing with the right people was a source of strength and life experience.
His friends supported him to an extent that surprised him.
He still had flashbacks, but he was learning to handle them. One night, he had an especially bad one and he got to call Grace. She was with him on the phone for one hour while he lay curled on the floor. Scout was laying at his side licking his hand, while Grace talked to Landon, guiding him to breathe and relax, reminding him that those images were not real, that he was safe and loved.
A knock at the door took Landon out of his thoughts. He stopped writing in his journal and opened the door and let Grace in.
“Good evening, I hope you’re hungry. I’m making lasagna tonight,” Grace said showing Landon the paper bags in her arms. “I finally convinced Tony to share his recipe with me. I’m not sure he gave me all the ingredients though.”
“Come on in,” he said with a shy smile. “Lasagna sounds just perfect.”
Landon shook his head, he usually didn’t feel like eating. He could skip a meal without even realizing he had till his stomach growled. But lately his hunger was coming back.
“I’m glad you came. It can get lonely in this cabin.”
To read the complete story you need to be logged in:
Log In or
Register for a Free account
(Why register?)
* Allows you 3 stories to read in 24 hours.