Chapter XIII
Mattie peered at herself in the full-length mirror and smiled. She took a deep breath as she assessed her outfit for the trip. Long sleeve rust colored tee shirt, dark blue jeans and white tennis shoes. Perfect. She walked to the bathroom and looked in the mirror as she inserted her large gold hoop earrings. She gazed at her reflection for a moment, and blinked slowly, feeling that her eyes appeared clearer and more relaxed already, after the recent turmoil. The cut was healing nicely to her relief. She was heading to Canada, and she was ready for whatever came next in her life. She checked the upstairs, making sure she wasn't leaving anything behind, then headed downstairs, where she grabbed her bag of snacks from the kitchen, picked up her white windbreaker, cane, and shoulder bag from the sofa, and left the house keys on the front table. She closed the front door behind her without a backward glance, and headed down the steps, turning right as she reached the sidewalk.
The sun was just peeking through the maple trees bordering the faculty parking lot as Mattie organized her belongings in the front seat of her car.
"Mattie...!"
She turned to see Fran walking quickly across the lot, and she opened the door and stood as her friend approached her, laughing and panting at the same time.
"Mattie, I couldn't let you leave without giving you this." Fran took deep breaths as she handed her a round tin adorned with candy canes and Christmas tree designs. "Sorry, this was all I could find to put them in," she laughed. "There are several types of cookies and chocolate-dipped brioche in there for you. I know how much you like those."
"Thank you, Fran." Mattie took the tin and laid it on the seat of the car, then wrapped her arms around her dear friend, as she felt tears well in her eyes. "I was determined not to cry...now look what you've done." They pulled apart and laughed as they both wiped their eyes.
"Have a safe trip, Mattie. We'll be thinking of you." Fran sniffed, then waved her off. "All right, I don't want to keep you from leaving on time, so I'll head back. We love you, sweetie. Have a glorious time in Cape Breton." She backed away, and Mattie nodded and got back in the car and shut the door, rolling down the window.
"Bye, Fran. I love you, too." Mattie wiped her eyes again, and resolutely backed the car out of the spot, and waved out the window. "I'll keep in touch." She smiled and waved again as she drove slowly toward the street, rolling up the window, and then tucking the tin next to her shoulder bag and windbreaker in the passenger seat. How sweet. She would miss Fran and Jerry so much. They were crazy about Clay, and she knew that one of the first things she wanted to talk to him about was inviting them to Cape Breton.
She glanced in the rear view mirror and could see Fran heading back to the faculty housing, and she peered around her in the soft light of morning as she pulled out onto the small street, heading east toward the highway and southern Maine.
Well, this was it. Goodbye, Brooksford College. Goodbye New Hampshire. Goodbye, America. She smiled. Actually, that sounded pretty good to her now. She turned on the radio, and fiddled with the knob until she found a station with no static, and she took a deep breath, and hummed along to the Beatle's The Long and Winding Road, thinking to herself how appropriate the words were at that point in her life. She glanced down at the gas gauge, figuring that she could make the three hour trip to Bangor, Maine on what was in the tank. Then she would take a break, gas up, and continue northeast on to Houlton, a two hour trip, where she would enter New Brunswick, Canada at the border crossing there. She smiled, anticipating their reunion at the border, and she couldn't wait. This was her life now. Clay was her life now, and she suddenly realized, that she did indeed, feel free as a bird, as Fran had put it the night before. A weight had truly lifted from her shoulders, and she took a deep breath. She slung back her shoulder length blonde hair and readjusted her hoop earrings. She would figure out what to do about her finances within the week, and, if she could afford it, she was determined not to worry about securing another job until she knew for certain what she really wanted to do for her next career. Mattie hummed along to the next song as she turned onto the interstate.