No. 108

Holly was leaving.

“I’m not very good at goodbyes,” she told Jake. “But I got you this.”

She handed him a small box wrapped with an elegant bow.

Jake opened it. Inside was a key.

He looked oddly at Holly. “What’s this for?” he asked her.

“It doesn’t open anything right now. But hang on to it. Someday it’ll come in handy,” she told him with a smile. “Goodnight, Jake.”

She got into her car and pulled away.

Jake watched her until the tail lights disappeared into the night.

He held up the key and looked at it. It looked just like any ordinary key. Then he shrugged, put it in his pocket, and went back inside his house.

That was last time Jake ever saw Holly.

Every so often, though, he would choose a lock, and take out the key to try it. It never worked, of course.

Then, one day, somebody caught him in the act.

““That’s the laundry room,” a passing woman told him. “Doesn’t your key work?”

“I see,” he said, feeling a little embarrassed. “I’m just new here. I must not have the right one on me.”

“My name’s Jenny,” the woman told him. “I’m just down the hall. Here, I’ll get that door for you.”

Jenny bent down to pick up the unexpected package on the doorstep. She read the label. “Honey, there’s mail for you.”

Jake came down the stairs and took it. He removed the wrapping to reveal a delicate wooden box. He understood instantly. He reached into his pocket. There was something on his key-ring that he hadn’t thought about in years. He inserted it into the key-hole and turned. The lock released.

He opened the lid. Inside was a small piece of paper with familiar handwriting. It had three words on it.

“Told you so!”