Somewhere Only We Know

It had been weeks since she’d heard anything. Jane had never sent her any sort of indication of whether she’d gotten Matt’s letters, so Jenna decided to assume that no news was good news. Hopefully, Jane had gotten the letter and immediately picked up the correspondence with Matt.

Despite this, however, Jenna found herself more miserable than ever. Although there had been only two, she had found herself looking forward to Matt’s next letter. She knew it had been the right thing to forward the letters to Jane, but she couldn’t help feeling a little regretful.

It was another hot day. August had just begun and Jenna was looking forward to the change in the weather. Although she enjoyed the dry heat and spending hours lounging in the warm garden, she had a sweater collection packed away that was calling her name.

Not to mention, she was sick of having to change her sweaty clothes two or three times a day.

Jenna was sitting on the garden bench, listening to the babbling of the brook and turning Matt’s letter over and over in her hands. Although she had sent his first letter to her, she held onto this one. After all, this one had been intended for her, as a response to the letter she had written. At least, that’s how she justified it in her head.

As the sun filtered down through the trees, bathing her in patches of light, Jenna found herself sliding a finger under the flap and breaking the seal. After all, what could reading it hurt? Matt and Jane had obviously made up and picked up the correspondence. Why should reading this change anything?

Sighing, Jenna set the letter down next to her and rested her chin in her hands. After everything she’d heard, why was she still even thinking about Matt? He and Jane had obviously been involved in a highly strained relationship. How was she to know that Jane had done anything more with Matt’s letter other than throwing it straight in the trash. All the clues she’d gathered seemed to indicate that Jane had used Matt’s departure as a means of escaping the relationship.

Jenna didn’t like to judge, but she found herself doing it as she thought about the flawed couple. How could anyone just pack up and leave without a word? She certainly never could have done it. Especially not with the man she’d spent such a significant amount of time with expecting her to be waiting when he returned home from overseas. How could Jane do such a thing?

You don’t know that that’s what she did, Jenna reminded herself. She probably just forgot to leave her forwarding address.

Finally, unable to stand it anymore, Jenna picked up the envelope and pulled out the single sheet contained within.

J, it began...

I’m so happy you wrote to me. I miss home so much. It means a lot to have someone waiting for me at home. I thought you hated reading, but I’ll give you some good material. Just remember you asked for it ;)

We haven’t had any fights so far. We haven’t even seen any terrorists. Brian and I spent most of the time doing stuff around the camp. A lot of poker tournaments happen. I’m making pretty good money since I have the best poker face. There’s a little river by our camp. It’s nothing like the one at home. It’s tiny and brown. But it reminds me of home and you. I miss the garden. I always thought you hated it but I’m glad you’re taking care of it in this summer heat. I heard that it’s the hottest summer home in like twenty years. Hope you’re staying cool.

I have to admit your last letter surprised me. I know things have been rough between us, but your letter really helped me find more confidence. It might surprise you to know that I’ve worried a lot about is in the last few months and your letter helped a lot. It’s good to know you understand why I left. I’m also glad you seem happy. Even a little funny. Grown a sense of humor, ha.

In all seriousness, it was like hearing from an entirely different person and I’m honestly glad. I’m hoping we’ll be stronger for this and I just wanted to say that I love you, despite everything.

Here’s to the future.
Cheers,
Matt

Jenna’s heart fluttered as she set the letter down on her knees, taking a few slow breaths and reminding herself that the words were meant for Jane and not her. And, yet, her eyes lingered on the words like “an entirely different person.” Maybe, just maybe, there was a chance that he could learn to love her instead of Jane.

“Now you’re just talking crazy,” said Jenna aloud. Even if she could continue to convince Matt that he was talking to Jane, it would end when he ultimately found out the truth.

Her musings were interrupted by a knock on the front door. Jenna groaned – since her encounter with Charles at the farmer’s market, he’d been personally delivering in-season vegetables to her every week. It was sweet, but he really didn’t need to be going so far out of his way when she was perfectly capable of going into town herself.

She stood up, straightening out her dress, and walked into the house. She stuck the letter in her pocket as she went and opened the door without looking to see who was on the other side, fully expecting it be old Charles.

But it wasn’t Charles. It was a man, probably in his early thirties, and dressed in a military uniform. He was tall and broad, intimidating in Jenna’s doorway. His eyes were a light hazel-brown and he had a grim look on his handsome face.

“Can I help you?” Jenna asked, her mouth suddenly dry.

“I’m looking for Jane,” the man said, his eyes traveling easily over Jenna and into the house.

“Matt,” Jenna breathed.

Matt looked back at Jenna, confused. “You know me?”

“Um...yes. You’re Jane’s...”

He shifted rather awkwardly in the doorway and said, “Listen, not to be rude, by why are you the one answering my door?”

“Oh. Well, um...I’m...Jane’s roommate.”

One dark eyebrow rose, his suspicion evident on his rugged face. “Jane got a roommate?”

“Yes, she’s been lonely since you left to go overseas,” said Jenna quickly. “So she let me move in...in exchange for...for taking care of the garden.”

Matt’s lips twitched, as though he was fighting a smile, and he said, “I knew she still couldn’t stand the garden. So where is she?”

“Um...she’s out of town.”

“Let me guess...Vegas?”

“I’m not sure. She didn’t tell me where she was going.”

There was a tense moment as they both stood there, looking at each other. Jenna was blocking the doorway, hands on either side of the frame, and Matt was shifting from one foot to the other, his hand tight around the drawstring of the bag slung over his shoulder.

What was he doing here? Surely if he’d arranged to meet with Jane, she would have sent him to her current address. The only thing Jenna could think was that Jane must have done the worst...she must have thrown Matt’s letter away.

“Well...can I come in?” he asked then, probably feeling ridiculous for having to ask to come into his own house.

Jenna felt a wave of pity swell up in her chest. This man had no idea that his girlfriend had moved out, sold his home to a total stranger, and had no intention of ever contacting him again. She almost opened her mouth to tell him so, but something held her back. She knew, deep down, she didn’t have the heart to tell him. It would destroy him, and she wasn’t ready to be the person who did that.

“Sure,” she said softly, stepping out of his way.

Matt stepped into the house, looking around as he did so. The cottage was still furnished with all of the previous furniture, so Jenna’s story was actually fairly believable. There had been very few pictures of either occupant hung up, so this also helped keep her story credible.

“Would you like some iced tea?” Jenna asked, closing the door behind him and following him into the kitchen. Matt took a seat on one of the yellow kitchen chairs, looking around at the space.

“Where’s the armoire?” Matt asked, gesturing to the empty space by the back door.

“What armoire?”

“There was an armoire by the door.”

Jenna felt herself starting to sweat and not just from the heat. Truthfully, she said, “I’ve never seen an armoire over there. Not since I moved in.”

Matt stared at the spot for a few moments, then said softly, “Tea would be great.”

“Coming right up,” said Jenna, going over to the fridge. She worked extra slowly, worried she would drop things due to her sweaty palms. It wouldn’t be long before Matt started asking questions. How was she going to keep this up? Her stomach dropped as she remembered the story from the grocery store? What if his temper flared up and he took it out on her? Not that he seemed the type, but you never knew.

When she finally managed to put together two glasses of iced tea, she sat down at the table and put the glasses between them. Matt picked his up, examining the glass. “New glasses?”

“My glasses,” said Jenna. “I brought all my own kitchenware.”

As Matt sipped the tea, Jenna found herself staring at him. He was incredibly handsome and she was aware that it had been a very long time since she’d been romantically involved with anyone. His words from the letter bounced around in her head, threatening to make her forget that they weren’t meant for her.

“I missed this house,” Matt said after a minute, looking around the room. “How’s the garden?”

“It’s lovely,” said Jenna. “The roses are flourishing.”

“Is Jane still complaining about the ivy on the fence?”

“Yes. I like it, though.”

Matt looked at Jenna as though only seeing her for the first time. She almost felt embarrassed under his intense gaze. She began mentally comparing herself to Jane. There really wasn’t that much competition, looks-wise. Jane was sexy, with an hourglass figure and flaming red hair in a stylish bob. Jenna had medium-length, reddish-brown hair, a round face, and a too-skinny frame. She was positively tiny compared to Matt.

“How do you know Jane?” he asked, his hazel eyes locked on hers.

It took her a moment to find the ability to speak, then she said, “We met at the...the corner store. I was asking around about a place to live and she volunteered.”

“Jane volunteered to let a stranger move in with her?” Matt asked skeptically.

“She really needed me to do stuff around the house. I, um, take care of the garden and clean up the house.”

Matt snorted. “The laundry, too?”

“Sometimes,” said Jenna softly, looking down at her drink. “She’s out of the house a lot. I still don’t know a lot about her.”

“Where does she go?”

“I don’t ask.” She shrugged. “It’s her business, I guess. She did tell me this trip would be pretty long, though.”

Matt leaned back in his seat, letting out a sharp huff. “Did Brian tip her off?”

“About what?”

“About me coming here? Did he rat me out?”

“I...I don’t think so.”

“It would make sense. She hears what I’m planning, she avoids it.”

“What were you planning?”

“I am planning on having a serious conversation about our relationship. Has she told you I wrote her two letters and she never responded to the last one?”

“She didn’t.”

Matt was frowning, looking out at the garden now. Jenna hated seeing him look upset. She couldn’t tell what emotion was playing most strongly on his face – a tie between annoyance and hurt, she decided. It made sense. Despite their fighting, he must have loved her a lot to still be with her. Although, a surprise visit to talk about their relationship sounded an awful lot like a breakup to Jenna.

“I think I’m gonna go walk around the garden,” Matt said suddenly, standing up and striding from the room. Jenna was relieved: the guilt had been threatening to loosen her tongue and she had time now to pull herself together.

You can’t tell him, she reminded herself. It would destroy him. It’s better not to tell him. What if you told him and he got so depressed that he stepped in front of a gun once he’s back overseas? The thought made her shudder and she went to dump out her tea, suddenly feeling cold and sick to her stomach.

No, it was definitely better not to tell him.