Halfway There by Aubrie Elliot Read Free Book Online

over—?” I started when she picked up the phone.
    â€œWhat’s wrong?” she asked before I had even finished my question. I must have sounded desperate.
    â€œNothing. Can you just come over? I’ve got some wine.” I let my voice linger over the bribe.
    â€œWhat kind?”
    â€œWhite, of course. You know I always keep a bottle around for you.”
    â€œAll right. Give me a bit to find a babysitter. I think Mom might do it.”
    I hung up the phone and took a long drink. The scotch was smooth and sent a little shiver throughme. I looked down at my glass. Time for a refill. As I went into the kitchen, I thought about where I was when a little voice, a hateful little voice that sounded a bit like my mother’s, rang in my head. “What are you doing with your life?”
    I didn’t have an answer. I was over forty. I was out of a job—again—and, no, I didn’t have a fucking clue what I wanted to do with my life. I poured the scotch into my glass and splashed some symbolic water over the top. Beth came through the front door as I was making my way back to the living room.
    â€œHey, there! Where’s the wine?”
    â€œIn the fridge. Go ahead and pour yourself some. I’m heading toward the couch.”
    I went in and set my glass down on the coffee table. My cat sniffed at it, then turned up his nose and walked out. I guess he wasn’t in the mood for one himself. I followed him back to the kitchen and threw out some catnip on the floor. Why should I have all the fun? I watched as he started rolling around through the little green flakes. He was easy to please.
    â€œSo are you going to tell me what’s going on?”
    â€œI got laid off today. Well, actually, I got fired. They gave me a nice severance, though.”
    â€œOh, sweetie. But you knew it was coming.”
    â€œThat doesn’t make me feel any better.”
    â€œWhen’s Ellen coming home?”
    â€œI don’t know. Tonight, I think.” Beth followed me back to the living room where I proceeded to tell her the details. When I finished, she looked at me.
    â€œSo, what are you going to do now?”
    â€œHow in the hell do I know? I don’t want to go back. God, I can’t go back. I hate working.”
    â€œWho doesn’t?”
    â€œYou’ve got it pretty good. You get to stay home.”
    â€œYeah, right. Like taking care of a six-month old is a cakewalk.”
    â€œThat’s not what I meant. You wanted to be a mom. You wanted—” She didn’t let me finish.
    â€œNo, what I wanted was to teach philosophy. What I got was a husband, a child, and a part-time job at a community college. How’s that for working your ass off getting a Ph.D.?”
    About that time, my stoned cat came racing across the floor, jumped into Beth’s lap, and flung her drink all over her and the couch. It took a few minutes to clean up and collect the cat. When I found him, I threw him outside to terrorize the dog. We settled back in our places and picked up where we left off.We didn’t bother to complain about the cat. It’s probably because we had both known him to do worse.
    â€œDid you think you’d be here at forty?”
    â€œI didn’t know where I’d be,” Beth answered. “I didn’t think about it much. I just figured if I finished school everything would work out the way it was supposed to.”
    â€œI want a damned job where I make a difference. I’m tired of working to line somebody else’s pocket.”
    â€œYou’ve done pretty well for yourself. You and Ellen have a nice house, cars, and each other. Don’t make it sound as if you’ve hit rock bottom.”
    â€œThat’s all fine.” I couldn’t keep the sarcasm from my voice. “But it’s not like anybody really cares. What have I contributed?”
    â€œThat’s a hard one. I think most of us just try to get