This is the last of the one-day posts, unless a day turns out to be epic. Cameron's routines are no longer new, and a number of our characters have come on stage. The narrative has taken shape, and the story isn't simply about the details anymore.
Thursday, 12 Spring
5. A sense of direction
Almost as soon as Cameron got home from work on Thursday, his phone rang.
“Hi, sweetie…how are you doing?” The comforting voice on the other end was Courtenay’s.
“I’m doing okay,” he admitted.
His mom knew from the tone of his voice that Cameron was not, in fact, okay. She also knew he had replied to a playful text from his sister with silence, which was not like him at all. It was time for some gentle motherly intervention.
“I can tell there’s something wrong. Do you want to talk to me about it?”
Cameron paused for a moment. “It’s like nothing is fun, Mom. I just go through the motions with everything.”
“Nothing is fun?” Courtenay repeated. “You told me the other day that you and Patrick had a good time when he came over the other night. And he said the Grilled Cheese sandwiches you made were actually edible.”
She could hear Cameron chuckle on the other end. “Okay, you’re right,” he admitted. “That was fun. But…it’s kinda lonely most of the time.”
Courtenay paused. This can’t be easy for him, she thought. On the one hand, he wants to be on his own. He’s not a kid anymore. But now he’s living alone, in a place that’s familiar, but one that still makes him think of childhood and family.
“It’s like I don’t know what to do,” Cameron continued.
Then it came to her. “You need some direction,” Courtenay concluded.
Cam knew that, as usual, his mom was right. “Yeah, I do.”
“Here’s what you can do, Cam. Set some goals for yourself. Make a list. A literal list. Challenge yourself. When you get bored or lonely, look at the list and pick the thing that looks like it would be the most fun right then."
Cameron felt his mood brighten a bit. “Kind of like a daily challenge.”
“Right! But don’t get down on yourself if you don’t always ‘win.’ Be easy on yourself, Cam. You’re doing something hard. Being independent isn’t easy. I’ve never had to do that. I lived at home until Dad and I got married, so I went from being a daughter to a wife. You’re…well, you’ll always be our son…but you’re in single dude mode now.” She giggled, and Cam laughed too.
“Your first challenge is to make your list,” she announced.
When they hung up, Cameron did just that. He found a pen and a piece of paper and started jotting things down. He liked to play chess, and he hadn’t done that in a while. He put that on his list. Halle did yoga and said it calmed her down. Maybe that would be fun, too. Onto the list went yoga.
He looked over at Grandma Martha’s piano. That was a non-negotiable goal.
This process was rewarding and stimulating, and Cameron found himself thinking farther and farther outside the box, coming up with things he thought he might like to do in the next few months. Learning to cook. Learning to ski.
Tackling the loneliness problem was a must, and to his credit, Cameron wrote down his intentions to meet it head-on. Getting out and making friends in Brindleton Bay would help him feel more like a part of his new community.
When he finished, Cameron had divided his list into three parts, like this:
https://i.imgur.com/pFBF7Os.jpg
Now it was time to pick something to do. He scanned down his list, and his eyes landed on “Play chess.” He knew there were chess tables at the Brindleton Bay Library, so off he went.
Your move...
He found an empty table and sat down, rearranging the pieces into their starting position. This universally-recognized signal meant “Please come play chess with me.” Cameron wondered if anyone nearby felt like joining him at the table.
He got his answer within moments.
As Willow Petersen emerged from the Library, she spotted Cameron at the table and paused. She and Cameron had met, and they’d briefly chatted in Sable Square a time or two. Willow had also seen him on the UBrite campus, but she didn’t think he was a student there. Cameron seemed like a nice guy. She was tired of studying. Perhaps a game of chess might be fun…
She smiled as she sat down across from him. “Hi, Cameron,” she greeted him.
Cameron was taken aback for a moment. Willow was cute. Definitely cute. While Cameron was not the most Outgoing person around, he was usually a comfortable, competent conversationalist. But, at the same time, the presence of a cute girl could tie up his tongue.
“Hi, Willow,” he replied. He had the white pieces, so he started the game…which relieved him temporarily of the necessity of coming up with a more engaging comment than “hi.”
The two of them pondered over their moves in near-total silence for a while. Willow, in particular, seemed unsure about which of her pieces to move, and where to move them.
https://i.imgur.com/mgOmFoS.jpg
“I confess I’m not much of a chess player,” she admitted.
“I haven’t played in a while, not since I moved here.”
“That’s right; you moved in pretty soon after we did. You’re from Willow Creek, right?”
Cameron nodded. “Right.”
“I have to admit I like the name.” She smiled sweetly. Cam nearly knocked over his pieces.
“I know a few people from WC at school,” she continued. “Katie van de Mark is from there, isn’t she?”
“Yes. Katie and I went to high school together.”
“We’re both Communications majors. We take a lot of the same classes.”
It didn’t take long for Willow to make a mistake on which Cameron could capitalize. Willow’s response to her defeat may or may not have been deliberate.
https://i.imgur.com/gGpTTHU.jpg
By now, evening was approaching and the sun was beginning to fade. Behind the Library there was a cozy-looking fire pit overlooking the bay. Cameron took a book and settled into one of the comfortable chairs beside the pit. The fire crackled cheerfully, and the breeze off the water was soft and friendly. Maybe Mom had been right once again. Perhaps all he needed was some direction…and a friendly smile.
https://i.imgur.com/7GL5wls.jpg
Perhaps Brindleton Bay might turn out to be home, after all.
