“Hello.” My voice squeaks. I close my eyes and count to ten in preparation of his raised voice.
“Eleanora?”
Duh! But I keep my comment to myself. “Hi, Rhett.”
“I thought you should know, Roy’s looking for you. I ran into him last night. He was a bit drunk and going on about how you’re leading him on, how you won’t answer his calls, and he said something about asking Mom and Dad to put out a missing person’s report on you. I’d like to chalk his paranoia up to being drunk, but we both know Roy.”
That tiny bit of dread I was feeling is now full on. My stomach twists into knots as I try to form a coherent thought. Roy’s going to ruin everything, all because I’m not there for him. He doesn’t love me, only the thought of me and the fact that I’m a Boone.
“Eleanora?”
“Yes, I’m here. Sorry.”
“You’re gonna to have to come home.”
Tears fall. They’re instant, hot against my already warmed cheek, and streaming fast. I’m not ready to go home. This little bit of freedom is really showing me how different the world is. Sure, college did that, but this time I’m on my own. I’m working and living a life away from my studies and the watchful eye of college administrators.
“I don’t want to,” I say, sounding like a petulant child being asked to clean their room or eat a plate full of carrots.
“I know—”
“You don’t know, Rhett. Daddy isn’t trying to marry you off to better the plantation. You get to do whatever you want, no one ever says anything.”
Rhett sighs. “Williemae—”
“Is just like our mother,” I interrupt him again. “She was fine with having Daddy hand pick her husband, but that’s not me. Who am I hurting by staying?”
“Mom if she were to find out.”
“But I’m not doing anything wrong, Rhett. I’m trying to live my life before it becomes someone else’s. There shouldn’t be anything wrong with what I’m doing.” I pause and inhale deeply, trying to calm down. I know my brother sees things my way, we’ve always been close, but family is important to him. It’s important to me too, but right now I want to pretend Eleanora Boone doesn’t exist. I just want to be Nola, the girl from nowhere, who showed up one day and took Los Angeles by storm.
My phone beeps. I pull it away and clear the screen, so I can see who’s calling. It’s Roy and instantly, as if on command, my stomach lurches. The thought of talking to him doesn’t make me sick, it’s the thought that he’ll demand that I come home and tell my parents where
I am.
“Roy’s on the other line. I have to go,” I tell my brother.
“Call me back.”
I switch over, knowing I won’t call Rhett back. The less I talk to people back home, the better off I am.
“Hey, Roy,” I say as happily as I can. I even smile and adjust the way I’m sitting, although I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s out of habit from living with the girls. I always sought out privacy when Roy would call.
“Sweetheart, where are you? I’m worried. Your parents said you were driving back and should’ve been home days ago.”
“I’m fine. I just took a little detour with Sofia. We’re trying to see as many sights as possible. You know before life starts.”
Roy chuckles. I’m tempted to ask him if he’s laughing because he knows my life’s over once I get back to town or if he understands what I’m going through.
“What was the last four years you spent away from me called?”
I roll my eyes. “College, and we’re not exactly together, are we?” I point out. We’ve been broken up for a while, but according to Roy, we’re still very much a couple, with an understanding.
“Only until you graduated, which you’ve done. Don’t you think it’s time you come home so we can get our lives started. I’ve waited longer than necessary.”
Only because I left for school and you couldn’t follow me. “Of course, but you don’t want to deprive me of seeing the country, do you? Just think about the places we can visit after we’re married.” My stomach falls into the pit of hell with that statement. “We can take a road trip, visit the States, and explore our beautiful country.”
“You sound like you’re running a political campaign, Eleanora. I thought you wanted to be a teacher.”