Leave This Town

My only defense was to write down every word they said. There was no way in hell that I was going to let anyone in town gaslight me. I was always getting into all sorts of trouble because of Brookline's horrible scandals. My name is Corinna Sylvia Gardner, but everyone around the Worchester area calls me “The Wild One.” Corinna isn’t my real name; it’s Margaret. I legally changed it to Corinna so that I would become more badass. I guess that is one of the benefits about having a birthday before summer arrives.

It was almost as if I needed trouble in the sense to feel alive. The academia of Boston University bored me to death: I was never a fan of the frat parties, the desperate women who looked like the mediocre Baddies on Instagram, or even the pathetic loser who dressed up for Halloween every year near Brookline as the "Dancing Jester." Who the hell would ever want to be the Dancing Jester? On top of that, I need to be at Coachella. Thankfully, I would be spared going to Boston’s 14^th Annual Hearty Party.

God, the names just keep becoming worse... I thought as I shook my head, allowing my luscious brown locs sweeping from side to side. It may have not been Paris or Monte Carlo, but Brookline, Massachusetts had its own perks. Deep down, I really love the vibrant colors that my favorite season had to offer. Fall was the perfect time of year for me to not worry about bundling up for the beginning of winter’s wrath. There was also no obsessing over the ludicrous heat temperature that choked everyone’s throats every summer. If it was up to me, it would be fall all day every day.

The biggest thing I have been grateful for was the fact that I don’t have to be at my boyfriend’s dysfunctional house anymore. I feel really bad for Sy. The Jacksons were so awful they made the family from This Boy’s Life seem like a fairy tale. Ironically, that was one of Sy’s favorite films. His real name is Samuel Jacob Jackson, but everyone always calls him “Sly Sy.” I thought it was very fitting. Sly Sy and The Wild One, always causing havoc around each environment they entered!

Despite the fact that Sy and I had lived next door to each other since we were children, they didn’t start dating until their senior year of high school. By the time we had broken the news to everyone, no one was that surprised to find out about our relationship. I’m more surprised at the fact that neither Sy nor I (hey, that rhymes!) were able to say the “L” bomb towards each other. His family wasn’t exactly picture perfect, but mine didn’t model that epic love story you hear about in movies and romance books either.

Our friend, and former Science teacher, Muriel Emerson was holding onto the territory around here. Her job was to be in charge of the diner, Danby Restaurant, around Brookline’s wonderful vast environment of 1940s music, red dining booths, and a warm picture of Elvis Presley on the walls. I had known Muriel since my sophomore year of high school. She had gotten into the restaurant industry after her father died of lung cancer last summer. She even gave us a hug after finding out about our news.

I always loved hanging out with Muriel after school

“Will you make me the maid of honor at your wedding?”

We laughed at her becoming a mini-bride on our wedding day.

“Sure,” I said, laughing more at that little fantasy. “Just don’t steal my bridal thunder.”

 Even though it seemed far from now, I never felt more intimate with the man that I planned to spend the rest of my life with. Alright, enough with the sappy talk, Gardner. Pull yourself forever.

The plane was two hours late. I had to haul my sorry behind through the slow traffic before I had entered the Boston International Airport to fly towards California.

Sy was doing his best to hold onto my heavy luggage. “Don’t worry, babe. The sooner this plane lands, the sooner we leave the frigid West Coast.”

He took a glance at me. It felt like he wanted to say something more. But he hesitated and glanced down on the floor with his gorgeous blue eyes. Sy didn’t know this, but I have wanted him to say these words to me:

Corinna, we have been together for over four years. Even though we are about to graduate high school, and everyone around us is insane, would you marry me?

Time has never really been my best friend. It was an elusive concept. Personally, it’s an overrated one to me. How can you be obsessed every moment about where to go, who to meet, or whether Bobby Thompson was able to go to third base with you at the back of the bleachers during your annual football game?

Don’t ask.

Hopefully this airplane will come sooner than later. Sy will do anything to get away from his family. They weren’t always an awful family. He’s never really been the type to be vulnerable in front of others. The only family member that we seemed to tolerate in our presence was Tiffany Yu. She was Sy’s grandfather’s wife and had emigrated from Japan. Sy’s grandfather was the notable Gregory Simpleton Jackson, the head honcho that had created the most famous Simpleton-Jackson coffee brand in America. Personally, I think they’re the only people that really understand where we are coming from in regards to the dynamics of a happy, loving home.

Too bad all of that went up in smoke. Surprisingly, Grandpa Jackson wasn’t the one who ruled with an iron fist. It was his daughter, Porsha Kathy Carol.

 The last straw for both of us was the time he invited his mother to dinner. She had this sadistic habit of making Henry cry. Henry is Sy’s half-brother. He had been born seven years before Porsha had met their father, Ryan Christopher Jackson. She was a beauty pageant queen back in her home state Arizona. She was able to win second place in four beauty pageants by the time she was 23 years old. While she wasn’t what I would call a toxic person, that condescending attitude about being better than everyone else used to piss the both of us off. Even though I personally believe that money can buy you happiness, it sure doesn’t buy you a better attitude for some people. For some insane reason, she seemed threatened by the fact that Ryan had been with another woman before either of them met.

Sy begged me not to say anything, but I didn’t care. If you love making children cry, you deserve to get your ass kicked.

“Hey Porsha, were you always this overweight, manipulative, dramatic bitch or did the doctors just make you born that way?”

I swear to God, her jaw dropped. We both walked out of the house and high fived each other. Sy kissed me with such passion that day I thought we were going to have sex outside before the cops arrested us for public indecency. It would have been totally worth it though. Still, we didn’t say “I love you” to each other then.

We plan on going to California to become real estate brokers. It was always our dream and we planned on achieving it.

While we were on the plane, Sy looked at me. He seemed serious.

“Corinna…”

Great. I’m being dumped. Romance isn’t real, kids. It’s just a lie Disney loves to tell us.

“I love you so much. I know my family isn’t what you expected it to be. Sometimes I would be so scared that I would push you away. We’re a real family soap opera, huh?”

Holy crap! I’m not being dumped after all. Woohoo!!!

I didn’t know what to say. I was speechless. I was like a fish gasping for air, but in a good way.

I wanted to reply back that I loved him too, but instead, I asked something else.

“Why did it take you so long to tell me this?”

Sy arched his eyebrows and cocked his head. His brown hair was usually nice to look at. Now I wanted to mess it up.

“I wanted to, but I wanted you to say it first.”

I shook my head at that laughable idea. “Why do I need to do the heavy lifting? I may have kissed you first, but that doesn’t mean I need to take the lead in this tango. Men should be gentlemen for a reason.”

Sy almost got angry. I hated when he acted this way. I was supposed to be his protector, not his own specialized vial of toxic poison.

“Oh my God, babe…this isn’t helping. We cannot become like our parents, especially mine. They practically defined the word ‘dysfunction’ from the moment that I was born!”

I noticed a few airplane guests next to us. They didn’t seem to notice our little squabble.

Sy saw me take a deep breath. He knew that I always took deep breaths when I needed to get my anxiety under control.

“How about this? Let’s just put both of our stubborn egos aside and admit that we both can’t live without each other. Sy, all I care about is spending the rest of my life with you.”

We both smiled at each other. How can we stay so stubborn at each other? I guess it’s not surprising given the fact that one of us is a Taurus and the other person is a Leo.

We are going to be rich and take California by storm. The world won’t stop us now. No dysfunctional family would get in the way of that. Muriel, our trusted friend, was able to keep a secret fund of $800,000,000. It touched me so much that she would donate so much money to us. The best part is that our backstories are simply a cover up to always get people off our backs for a very long time. Money can buy happiness sometimes.