we hang up

My phone rings and I flip it open.

it reads her name. I wonder what piece of me I left behind this time that she wants me to come pick up. I'm on the decline of a painkiller high, which had been smooth sailing since I left work. Storm clouds gathering now.

Hello, I answer, and ask what's up.

She responds. Says she's calling to see how I'm doing. A long pause.

What? I think. Not once since we broke up, even before all the madness, did she call just to see how I was doing.

I question what she said.

Just calling to see how I'm doing? That's, umm, bizzare.

that doesn't make me sound like a nice person, she says back. She seemed taken a-back by my comment. Another pause. To be honest, I hadn't thought of her as being the nicest person as of late. When someone outright falls out of love with you, you have a lot of conflicting emotions towards them.

Well, when was the last time you called just to see how I'm doing? I ask, rhetorically answering the dispute of whether the call is bizzare or not.

Exactly, she says, that's why I'm calling. Because it's been a while.

I let it drop at that. There's no need to pick at her reasons. It was nice of her, and I take that, leaving the rest.

I'm also calling to tell you that you can probably pick up your things after next thursday. I'm really busy studying for grad school tests.

That's fine, I tell her, I'll need a cab to get the stuff anyway, and I won't have money until next week.

I ask her how she's doing. Good, she says.
I ask about the cats. Getting fat, she says.
I tell her I'm moving to ireland in february. Oh, she says. Good luck with that, she says. Yeah, I'm really exited about it, I say.

She says she should get going. She just got home and needs to eat. Hadn't eaten all day.

Ok, I say. Call me or email me and let me know when it's ok to come pick up my leftover things. I thank her for gathering them together for me.

I'll see you later, she says.

Yeah, talk to you later, I say.

We hang up. I pull on my cigarette. The declining high of the painkillers made it through without a tremble. The landing won't be rocky.

We hang up, and I think, that was nice.

We hang up, and I think, that was almost confusing.

we hang up, and I think, I feel fine.

we hang up, and I notice, that I'm ok.