Juniper Falls - Ch. 74

Just Enjoy The Now. That’s Where The Magic Happens

Holly Evans is trying to work, but she’s having trouble focusing. Her mind is busy with imaginary conversations in which she’s roasting Milo Parker.

She replays their last interaction repeatedly while adding snappy comebacks and witty zingers. If she could only return to that moment on the street after their walk. Boy, she would put that smug metrosexual in his place.

Until now, Holly has never thought about Milo leaving Juniper Falls.

She has enjoyed working with him for the past four years but has been in relationships most of the time. Recently with Jeremy, and before that, with the smarmy yoga teacher who was screwing half his students. 

Now she’s free, and feeling happier than ever. And there’s this great guy at work she’d like to get to know better. Oh, by the way, he’s considering moving to Portland.

It’s not that she needs to be in a relationship. 

She’s fine with taking some time off. Much as she hates to admit it, there’s probably a lot of Jeremy still in her system. Spend enough time with anyone, and you adopt some of their idiosyncrasies.

It would only be fair to the next guy that Holly arrives with a clean slate. 

It’s not even that Holly wants to jump right into something with Milo. But when you’re single, it’s always nice to have possibilities in your peripheral, offering a sliver of hope that you will eventually find love again. 

“What’s the good word, Miss Evans?” Gary Harper asks as he approaches Holly’s desk.

She swims to the surface from the depths of her thoughts. “Hey, Gary.”

“Looks like you’re chewing on something pretty important.”

Holly pauses. “Uh, yeah.” She moves her mouse to wake her computer. “I’ve got to revamp the Halloween circular for Randy’s SuperMart, and all that’s coming to me are the same old tired puns and clichés everybody else uses.”

Gary chuckles.

He saw the faraway look in Holly’s eyes and knew she wasn’t ruminating on no supermarket circular. But hey, if she’s not ready to dish, he’ll play along. “What, you mean Spooktacular savings has already been used?”

“Afraid so,” says Holly. “Same with Deals so good they’re scary.”¹

“How ‘bout, These prices are no trick, just treats,” says Gary.

“Ooh, that’s bad,” says Holly, grimacing. “Or maybe, Treat yourself to Randy’s Halloween Sale.” 

“Right? Or, We’re having a monster of a sale,” tries Gary.

“Or, Missing this sale would be a monster of a mistake,” says Holly finding the rhythm. Not quite the same as her banter with Milo, but she appreciates Gary trying to cheer her up.

“These deals are sweeter than candy,” he says.

“Don’t be haunted by regret, visit Randy’s SpookyMart.”

“Ooh, nice one,” says Gary thinking for a minute. Then, “What did Dracula say when he missed this sale?”

“I don’t know. What did he say?” says Holly.

“That sucks.”

“Oh, man, you’re killing me!”

“Girl, I’m just getting warmed up,” says Gary getting into the game. 

“No offense, Gary, but you should probably stick to sales.” 

“Yeah, maybe so.” He pauses and looks out the window. 

Across the street in Parkington Plaza, four townies are slumped around the picnic table. One guy is standing and gesticulating wildly as if regaling an epic tale steeped in bullshit.

“So,” Gary continues. “CalifOregon wants to set up another meeting and I’m trying to nail down a date. Do you have anything on your calendar I should be aware of?”

She opens her calendar app and scrolls a bit. “Nah, looks like I’m pretty flexi.”

“Cool. I’ll schedule a meeting when Milo is back in the office.” He watches her face and sees an almost imperceptible cloud roll over her features.

“Yeah,” she says. “That makes sense.”

“Look, I don’t mean to pry, but are you feeling okay?”

“Yeah, why?”

“You just seem a little blue,” says Gary half-sitting on the corner of Holly’s desk.

Not sure how much she should divulge, Holly considers her answer.

“I guess the office seems a little quiet without Milo around,” she finally says.

“Yeah, he’s a pretty cool cat. Definitely brings a presence to the team.”

“I miss bouncing ideas off him.”

“What am I, chopped liver?” Gary feigns insult. “Our Halloween brainstorm was pure gold, girlfriend. I fully expect to see one of those headlines in your circular.”

Holly laughs. 

“We also had a little argument before he left,” she says.

“I see,” says Gary. “You know, my wife and I made a deal. Whenever we argue, we don’t let more than four hours pass before we make up.”

“What if you’re still mad at each other?”

“That’s okay. We can still discuss our problems. Four hours is a long time to cool off. It’s best to address things head on. You can waste a lot of time and energy being upset with someone, and we’ve found it’s more important to be in sync.”

“I suppose so.”

“Have you heard from Milo at all this week?”

“Nope.”

“Maybe you should send him a text.”

Holly scrunches her forehead. “I don’t want to grovel.”

“You don’t have to grovel. You can just communicate,” says Gary. “If he doesn’t respond, at least you made the effort. Ball’s in his court.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

“Of course, married couples have a deeper obligation than coworkers. But still, every personal relationship can benefit from open lines of communication.”

“I like him,” says Holly. “More than I realized.”

“He’s just on vacation, right? He’ll be back soon enough.”

“Maybe,” says Holly. Gary has no clue that Milo is considering a move to Portland, and she doesn’t want to be the one to blow his secret. “I’m not sure Juniper Falls has enough to offer a guy like him in the long term.”

“Don’t worry about the long term. Just enjoy the now. That’s where the magic happens.”

“What if he realizes he’d rather be in Portland?”

“You wish him well, and let him go. You’ll be fine either way. Might not feel like it now, but you will.”

Holly thinks about her history of boyfriends. No matter how devastated she was after each breakup, another guy came along eventually. Problem is, she’s finally ready to seek men of a higher quality, which could prove difficult in Juniper Falls. “Yeah, you’re probably right,” she says.

Gary scoots off her desk. “And if you ever need to brainstorm, I’ve got plenty more spooktacular ideas just waiting to be unleashed.”

Holly smiles. “Thanks, Gary.”

Gary heads back to his desk. “Send him a text,” he says over his shoulder as he walks away.

Holly glances at her celly. 

Maybe later, she thinks. 

She turns her focus back to the Halloween circular, hoping to high heaven that she can come up with at least one idea that doesn’t suck.

“Ugh,” Holly groans at the unintentional pun.

1. AI image by Ideogram / Prompt & Design > N. Allen.