A few hours after she said good-bye to Ender, Remi stared out of the plane window as they flew high above the clouds. She had promised herself she would not cry.
"Remi, dear, let's go over some things you've missed. We have a lot to catch up on...." Andrea meant well, but Remi needed time to grieve. She put her earbuds in and tuned Andrea out, as she no doubt kept talking a million miles an hour.
Had she make the wrong decision? She shook her head and forgot she was on a plane of people who probably thought she was looney. She had made the right decision. Ender didn't fit in her life and she didn't fit in his. She would end up like Andrea one day, which is what Andrea had planned all along. Working a job that left little time for a personal life, one that was so full of meetings and deadlines that there was no time to remember how lonely you were.
Ender was meant for a lifetime of happiness. That morning in front of the Christmas tree, she could picture him surrounded by a family. She wasn't sure she would even know how to really and truly be a part of something like that. He deserved better.
So here she was on a plane somewhere over Georgia as she headed back to Miami to begin the whirlwind that would be releasing her second novel. Georgia. Ender had said he played for the Braves, they were located in Atlanta, which by chance, was in Georgia.
Remi pulled up her phone and quickly connected to the in-flight WiFi, thankful that there was such a thing these days. A quick Google search provided all of the information she needed. Ender was telling the truth, he was actually a professional baseball player, and according to the news articles her search had pulled up, a pretty good one.
Remi had to laugh at herself. She had spent two weeks with a professional athlete and it had been the best two weeks of her life. She leaned back in her seat again and to recall every little moment. Sure, she had left Ender back on the mountain in their cabin with no plans to continue what they had started, but she knew she never wanted to forget even a second of their time together.
—————
"So, you let her leave?" Ozzie reached across Ender to grab the salt and pepper. As soon as Ender had gotten back into town, he had texted him to see if he wanted to hang. He had a lot on his heart and really wanted to talk about it, and he and Ozzie had become pretty close this past season.
Ender sighed as he ran his hands through his hair. He had relived that moment over and over again, the whole drive back to Atlanta. Had he been right to let her leave without telling her how he really felt? Sure, he had expressed interest and there was definitely a physical attraction, but he had not said the words point blank.
He loved her.
"Ozzie, if I had chased after her she would have still fled. She's guarded. Rightfully so, she has been through a lot. She used work as her excuse, but I think it's deeper than that. She is still scared. I'm not letting her go forever, though. I just have to time it right. "
Ozzie picked up the ticket the waitress had left. He had never seen Ender like this, the least he could do was buy the lovestruck man dinner, "Okay, brother. I understand that. But just know, when it comes time to go get your girl, I'm always down for a road trip to Miami."
Ender headed home after their dinner, exhausted from driving. It had felt good to get everything off of his chest though. And it sure beat talking to himself, which is what he had done on the drive home. He thought about Remi and wondered what she was doing at that very minute. He thought about going to sleep that night without her body beside him and an ache started forming in his chest. He rubbed the area with his hand but knew that it wasn't physical pain that was causing the feeling. It was a hole that could only be filled by his snow angel, who was hundreds of miles away.
——————
A few weeks had passed and they were in a new year. Remi did not feel refreshed and renewed as many claimed to feel when starting a new year. The thing she wanted the most she left back in 2017. The publishers had loved the book and being that the book was so anticipated, the whole process was put into overdrive as they tried to get the book out to fans as soon as they could.
As happy as Remi was that she had finished the book, it also made her sad. It was a reminder of what she so quickly let slip through her fingers. If she had ended the book the way that the real-life inspiration had ended, people would not have been near as happy.
"Honey, I'm home...." Remi jokingly called to her empty apartment as she threw her keys and purse down onto the island. Coming home to an empty house was getting old, and she thought of Chance and hoped he was keeping Ender company.
After a quick shower, she changed into her pajamas, throwing on Ender's flannel like a robe. This was her nightly routine, and it had been since the first night she got back from the cabin. It had lost Ender's scent long ago, but it still gave her comfort just knowing it was his.
The other part of her nightly routine, she was a little ashamed of. She pulled out her phone and went to Instagram, pulling up Ender's page. She had given into the temptation a week or so ago, scared of what she may find. She didn't think Ender was the type that would already have another girl, but every day while she waiting for his page to load, she had to give herself a pep talk and tell herself that she would be okay, no matter what. Deep down, though, she knew without Ender in her life she would never be okay.
Remi stood up and grabbed the wooden ornament Ender had made her for Christmas. She felt like it was time. Pulling up Google Translate she typed in the words that Ender had scribbled onto the ornament.
"Arriesgarse. No tengas miedo de caer, te atrapare."
Take a chance. Do not be afraid to fall, I will catch you.
She held the ornament to her chest, smiling through tears. She went back to Instagram and pulled up his page, clicking the "follow" button, hoping that her first baby step towards being ready would not go unnoticed.
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Ender got home from his evening walk with Chance and threw his keys onto the island as he hung Chance's leash on the hook by the door.
"Home sweet home, Chance. Let's get you some dinner and we can watch some basketball."
Ender poured food into Chance's bowl and headed to shower and get ready to wind down for the night. It was nice to have Chance with him because he wasn't sure he could come home to an empty house.
After a quick shower, he put on his sweatpants and lounged on the couch watching basketball. This had pretty much been his nightly routine when he was home. The other part of his nightly routine, he was a little ashamed of. He grabbed his phone off of the table and pulled up Instagram, ignoring all of the notifications he had and going straight to Remi's page. He had found her page shortly after getting home and he checked in every night. There was nothing new that day, the last post being a sneak peek of her book cover from a few days ago. He had considered following her, but he truly did want to give her space if that is what she wanted and needed.
Chance let out a sigh and rested his head on Ender's outstretched leg. "I know, buddy, I miss her too. I promise you, I'm going to get your momma back."
Chance looked away and hid his nose under his paws before he stood up and went to sit in a completely different chair.
"Are you mad at me?" Ender asked, getting the feeling that his dog was judging him. Truth be told, he didn't blame Chance. He wasn't sure the protocol for giving someone time and space, but he was sure he had far surpassed it. Chance tilted his head and gave Ender a look that he could only assume meant yes.
"Ok, since you are such an expert on this matter, what exactly am I supposed to do? Just show up at her house in Miami and hope she wants to see me?" Ender had thought it through many days. He was fairly sure he could find out where she lived if he could get in contact with her boss, but he wasn't sure that was the best way to approach it. Should he try and email her? Her email was on the website of her company.
Chance barked as if he knew what Ender was thinking. "No, you're right buddy. I need to do this in person. Maybe I will take Ozzie up on his offer to road trip with me to Miami right before Spring Training."
Ender was due to leave for Orlando the following week. His brother, Astolfo, had offered to keep Chance for him while he was gone. He was ready to get back to playing, ready to have something to focus his time and energy on. He just wished he had his girl by his side to experience it all with. He was envious of the other guys now that he had met someone. Before Remi, he had not given a second thought to the guys with wives or girlfriends talking about what it was like having their significant other in the stands watching them, but now he wanted and craved that feeling. He wanted to go out and get 200 hits again and have her watching every single one of them. He wanted her there when they won, and he wanted her there when they lost as well.
In short, he knew that the only thing he wanted that season, more than a repeat World Series win, was having Remi in his life. It was time to go get his girl, he just had to work out the details.