The weekend was over too soon and we headed back to Manny’s. I took a couple of days to explore at a more leisurely pace. I walked around to see what there was close by, used my bike to go farther away, and went to another beach or two. As beautiful as the California scenery was, I missed Ithaca. It was all just so different. Different trees, different terrain, even different smells. With Ithaca on my mind, I called Penny and wished I hadn’t. From the second she answered, she was on the offensive. I remembered why I hadn’t called her more often and why time apart had seemed like such a good idea. I couldn’t do or say anything right and she threw my vacation back at me at every opportunity as though I was a slacker. That pissed me off. It wasn’t like I’d just quit and left. I’d been fired and had taken the time to make some plans and talk about it with her. Nor was I mooching off Manny. Despite his protests, I gave him some money for rent and utilities. Penny ignored me when I pointed all of that out. “I saw Lee the other day,” she said by way of changing the subject. “Yeah? How is he?” Lee and I had worked for the same company but he’d survived the last round of layoffs. “He’s good. He asked me out, actually.” “What’d you say?” I was curious; after all, seeing other people had been her idea. “No, of course. God, Diz.” şişli escort She huffed out an indignant breath. “I also saw Pat Troklas a few days ago and he asked me if you and I were still together. I said yes, and he said that was too bad, because he’d always wanted to ask me out.” I could hear the threat under the words, that if I didn’t want her there were other guys that did. I wasn’t going to play that game. “Penny, if you want to go out with somebody, go ahead. It’s pretty clear that you and I aren’t working and you said we should see other people anyway.” “What?” “You heard me, Pen.” “Diz, are you breaking up with me? Over the fucking phone?” She was incredulous. “I’m sorry it’s over the phone, but yes, and we should have done it a long time ago.” As I said the words, I knew I was doing the right thing. “Jesus, I can’t believe you!” What could I say to that? She ranted at me for a few minutes and then disconnected. I tossed the phone on the couch next to me. I guessed I should have been upset, but instead I was relieved, and I was ready to give Callie my full attention. x-x-x-x The weekend came and not a moment too soon. The weather looked iffy, but I was determined to go to King’s Bay. I was tempted to drive out Friday night, and mentioned it to Manny, but he shook his head. “Don’t bother, man. Traffic şişli escort bayan will be hellish, and it’ll be dark and cold by the time you get there. Seriously, if you want more time, just leave early Saturday morning.” “Okay.” I nodded. I wanted to get back there as soon as I could, but Manny was right. I needed to calm down. King’s Bay would be there in the morning. “Why are you so anxious to get out there, anyway?” Manny asked. He’d come home late from work and Helena was at her mom’s or her sister’s or whatever, so it was just us. We bonded over beers and nachos. “I need to clear my head, and the best surfing is there.” So was Callie, but I didn’t say that. “You want to see Callie.” Manny saw through me. “Yeah, I do.” “What about Penny?” “We’re done.” I told him about our last conversation. He’d been working a night shift all week so I hadn’t had a chance to tell him Penny and I had broken up. “You didn’t dump her to go after Callie, did you?” “Oh, hell no. No, it was going to happen anyway. Penny wanted me to be the bad guy and so I finally did it. I should have done it a while ago, I guess. I was sick of the passive-aggressive crap.” “I’m with you, man. That sucks.” Manny nodded in agreement and drank some more beer. “Yeah, well, it’s for the best. Even if I go back, it wouldn’t fix anything.” Manny mecidiyeköy escort looked at me in surprise. “You’re not going back?” I started to answer, then stopped and frowned. I was going back to Ithaca, wasn’t I? I’d never considered staying in California. Until now, apparently. “I don’t know. Doesn’t matter.” I waved a hand to dismiss the idea. “I don’t need to make a decision yet. Besides, I’m enjoying the beach too much.” I grinned. “Ithaca’s fantastic, but you can’t surf there.” And, I thought later as I lay in bed, Callie wasn’t in Ithaca. x-x-x-x I didn’t sleep well and woke up early Saturday morning. At six I told Manny I was leaving, and he stared at me as though I was insane. “Jesus, Diz, even the fish aren’t awake yet.” He shook his head, yawned, and went back to sleep. I threw my stuff into the car and took off. The morning was dazzling despite the forecast. Pastel pinks and oranges colored the sky as I headed to King’s Bay. I rolled the windows down to enjoy the California breeze. It rushed through me, sparking feelings that you just don’t get from Freon-cooled air. I tried to relax and enjoy the ride, but my thoughts were a jumble of Ithaca, California and Callie. In an effort to distract myself, I turned on the radio. Commercial. I made a mental note to bring my iPod next time and tapped the station buttons. On the fourth I at last found a song, something by the Beach Boys. Couldn’t get away from them during the summer in California, I supposed. When I saw the turnoff for King’s Bay, I drew in a deep breath and released it slowly.