Sound the Alarm

By the time everyone finally left, the house was quiet again.

The moving boxes had been stacked neatly in my room.

The pizza was gone.

Dad's employees had headed home.

Mom had finally stopped rearranging furniture.

And Dad had fallen asleep on the couch sometime during a baseball game.

Which wasn't surprising.

The man could fall asleep anywhere.

After unpacking a few things and taking a shower, I changed into an old t-shirt and a pair of shorts.

For the first time all day, I felt exhausted.

Physically.

Emotionally.

Mentally.

The kind of exhaustion that settles into your bones.

I looked around my room.

It didn't look exactly like my childhood bedroom anymore.

Mom had definitely been busy.

New bedding.

Fresh flowers.

A lamp I was still trying to understand.

Pictures had been rearranged.

The room somehow felt both familiar and brand new.

I smiled.

Then climbed into bed.

For approximately ten minutes.

That's all the peace I got.

Suddenly—

BEEP!

BEEP!

BEEP!

BEEP!

I sat straight up.

"What the hell?"

The noise echoed through the entire house.

Another alarm joined it.

Then another.

Then another.

Within seconds it sounded like every detector in the house had declared war.

I jumped out of bed.

At the same moment I heard my mother scream downstairs.

"PAUL!"

The alarm continued.

BEEP!

BEEP!

BEEP!

I rushed into the hallway.

Mom appeared from her bedroom looking terrified.

"DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING!"

"Dad?"

"PAUL!"

The alarm kept screaming.

Downstairs, Dad snorted awake from the couch.

Completely confused.

"What?"

The alarm continued.

"What is that?"

I couldn't help it.

Even in the middle of the chaos, I started laughing.

Mom looked horrified.

"The carbon monoxide detector!"

Dad blinked.

"What?"

"The carbon monoxide detector!"

"What?"

"The detector!"

Dad finally stood up.

"Oh."

The alarm continued screaming.

Mom immediately grabbed her phone.

"I'm calling 911."

Dad rubbed his eyes.

"Pam."

"No."

"Pam."

"No."

"Pamela."

"No."

Mom pointed at him.

"The house could be filling with gas and you're arguing with me."

Dad wisely stopped talking.

A few minutes later, firefighters arrived.

Several of them.

Lights flashing.

Trucks outside.

The entire neighborhood probably thought the house was on fire.

One of the firefighters explained that everyone needed to step outside while they checked the house.

Mom immediately agreed.

Dad attempted to argue.

Mom won.

As usual.

A firefighter pointed toward the porch.

"Just sit outside while we check everything."

So that's what I did.

Wrapped in a blanket, I settled into one of the rocking chairs on the front porch.

The night air felt cool.

The neighborhood was quiet except for the activity around the house.

Firefighters moved in and out carrying equipment.

Mom stood near the front walkway nervously talking to one of them.

Dad looked half asleep and mildly annoyed.

The contrast was hilarious.

I sat back in the rocking chair and watched the chaos unfold.

For the first time all day, I wasn't moving.

Wasn't talking.

Wasn't thinking about Chris.

I was simply sitting there.

Then my phone buzzed.

I smiled immediately.

Jack.

The message was simple.

"How are you doing?"

I stared at the screen for a second.

Then laughed.

Because if there was ever a difficult question to answer, it was that one.

I quickly typed back.

"Currently sitting on my parents' front porch while the fire department searches the house."

A few seconds passed.

Then my phone immediately rang.

I laughed.

Of course it did.

I answered.

"Hello?"

"Lela."

His voice sounded concerned.

"What happened?"

I smiled.

"Apparently the carbon monoxide detector decided to ruin everyone's evening."

"What?"

I laughed.

"Trust me, that's exactly how I feel."

He sighed.

"You scared me."

The sincerity in his voice caught me off guard.

For a moment I simply smiled.

"I'm okay."

"Good."

"I think."

"You think?"

I looked toward the front door where firefighters continued walking in and out.

"My father slept through most of it."

Jack started laughing.

"He did not."

"He absolutely did."

"That's impressive."

"You don't know my father."

The two of us laughed.

For the next twenty minutes we talked.

Not about Chris.

Not about moving.

Not about problems.

Just talked.

About the ridiculous situation.

About my mother nearly having a heart attack.

About Dad trying to negotiate with firefighters.

About life.

About nothing.

About everything.

The conversation felt easy.

Comfortable.

Exactly like it had during dinner.

At one point, I realized I was smiling again.

Actually smiling.

After the day I'd had, that felt like a miracle.

Eventually there was a pause.

Not an awkward pause.

A comfortable one.

The kind where neither person feels the need to fill the silence.

I looked out at the street.

The flashing lights reflected against the neighboring houses.

The rocking chair gently moved beneath me.

Then I smiled.

Because suddenly a thought crossed my mind.

A bold thought.

One that surprised even me.

Before I could overthink it, I spoke.

"Jack?"

"Yeah?"

I laughed nervously.

For the first time since meeting him, I felt nervous.

Actually nervous.

"What are you doing tomorrow night?"

There was silence.

Then I heard him laugh.

"What am I doing tomorrow night?"

I smiled.

"That's what I asked."

Another pause.

Then his voice softened.

"Nothing."

I took a deep breath.

Then said it.

"Would you like to go to dinner with me?"

The silence that followed seemed to last forever.

Then I heard him laugh.

Not a mocking laugh.

A surprised laugh.

A happy laugh.

"Are you asking me out?"

I immediately started laughing.

"Maybe."

"Maybe?"

"Okay, yes."

His laughter grew louder.

"I would love to."

For some reason, hearing that made my heart race.

Not because it was a huge moment.

Because it felt normal.

Simple.

Easy.

For years, relationships had felt complicated.

Heavy.

Difficult.

This didn't.

This felt like two people wanting to spend time together.

Nothing more.

Nothing less.

Finally Jack spoke again.

"You know."

"What?"

"I've been hoping you'd ask."

I laughed.

"Really?"

"Absolutely."

"Why didn't you ask me first?"

There was a pause.

Then his answer came.

"Because I figured you needed someone willing to wait."

The words settled deep inside me.

Because he was right.

I did.

For a moment, neither of us spoke.

Then one of the firefighters walked outside.

"False alarm."

I laughed.

Of course.

The entire evening.

The fire trucks.

The panic.

The chaos.

A false alarm.

I shook my head.

Only my family.

Jack laughed.

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah."

I smiled.

"Everything's okay."

And for the first time in a very long time, I truly meant it.