by M. Sembera
Closing the refrigerator, Jackson smiled at me and said, “No drinks.”
“Yea, I’m pretty sure you’ve had enough,” I shared.
Attempting to scowl through his smile, he replied, “Well, you’re no fun.”
Finding it hard not to find him humorous, I agreed, “I know,” before suggesting, “You should go to bed.”
With an exaggerated sigh, he gave in, saying, “Alright, can you get my bag outta the bathroom?”
Nodding with a smile, I walked to get his bag.
It was so funny to see him like this. Jackson was without a doubt the happiest drunk I had ever seen. Whatever cheer and happiness he had in him was magnified a thousand times by the alcohol. Picking up his bag, I carried it into the living room.
Stopping dead in my tracks, I shouted, “Jacks!” when I saw him standing there in just his boxers and an undershirt.
“Get dressed,” I fussed handing him his bag.
Taking it from me, he smiled wide and tossed it on the couch.
Placing one arm around me and grabbing my hand with the other, he spun me around saying, “Let’s practice.”
“For what?” I asked.
Laughing, he replied, “Your dance thing.”
Patting him on the shoulder, I stepped back, informing, “I’m pretty sure dancing with you, while you’re in your underwear, exceeds the bounds of our friendship.”
With a heavy sigh, he pouted, “Yea, I know,” and flopped down on the couch.
Tossing a blanket at him, I said, “Get some sleep.”
Stretching out on the couch, Jackson pulled the blanket over himself and complained, “I’m sad.”
Stepping to where his head was, I questioned, “Why are you sad?”
Questioning my question, he asked, “Are we okay?”
Smiling, I assured, “Yea Jacks, were good.”
With a wide smile, he placed his hand on the left side of his chest as he patted it, saying, “'Cause I always love you.”
Nodding with a smile, I said, “I know, Goodnight,” as I walked to the stairs.
Making my way up, I figured he passed out, seeing as I did not receive a goodnight in return.
Climbing into bed, I decided Jackson going out was simply a way to get out of the house and to get his mind off things. Since it didn’t seem like he had done either of the things I had wondered about, I felt better. Aside from seeing him in his underwear, which was a surprising first for me, I was convinced our friendship was still the priority for both of us. Falling asleep, I had to admit, I was pleased the only place he went after The Bar was downstairs on my couch.
Chapter 13
Up and downstairs before both Jackson and Sophia were awake, I decided toast would be best for breakfast. With a full schedule ahead of me, I walked into the living room with toast, orange juice, and aspirin in hand. Setting it on the coffee table, I sat on the edge of the couch and patted Jackson’s shoulder. With a loud groan, he rolled over, pulling the blanket over his head.
Giving him a little shake this time, I said, “You need to get up.”
He wrapped his arm around my waist and curled into me, as he urged, “Please let me sleep.”
“Sorry, time to get up,” I stated, starting to feel a little odd.
He let go of me and grabbed hold of the blanket. As he wrapped it around himself, I moved out of his way. Jackson picked up his bag and he headed to the bathroom.
Returning in a t-shirt and shorts, he shared, “I feel like hell.”
“I bet you do. You were pretty drunk last night,” I replied.
Sitting down on the couch, Jackson said, “I can’t believe I drank that much. I don’t even remember leaving The Bar.”
Starting to laugh, I said, “Then I guess it’s a good thing Gus and Lou brought you back.”
Shaking his head, he took the aspirin saying, “Geez I don’t remember that at all.”
I couldn’t help myself as I offered, “It’s better that you don’t. I imagine you’d be pretty embarrassed if you remembered that you stripped down to your underwear and tried to dance with me last night.”
The look on his face as it turned red made me laugh out loud as I handed him his toast.
Sitting back down on the couch next to him, I watched him silently eating his toast. Since I had my fun with him already, I thought it would be nice of me to reassure him that he didn’t make a complete and total ass out of himself.
Scooting closer to him, I nudged him saying, “It wasn’t that bad. It’s not like you were naked and you had an undershirt on.”
Placing his plate on the coffee table, Jacks turned to me and said, “Oh yea, then get down to your bra and underwear and see if you’re not embarrassed.”
For some strange reason my mind snapped, ‘ok’, before better judgment overruled it and I admitted, “I see what you mean but it was actually kinda cute.”
With a curious look, he asked, “Cute?”
“You know…Well, after being surprised and all, you spun me around saying you wanted to practice for The Ball. It was cute,” I replied.
With a wide grin, he said, “So you saw me in my underwear and thought, ‘awe isn’t that cute’. That makes me feel good.”
Laughing, I nudged him again, saying, “Okay, what you did was cute. Is that better?”
Shrugging, Jackson replied, “Sorta.”
Scooting back a little, I remembered I wanted to do something nice for him and flattering his ego was the perfect thing.
Turning to him, I asked, “Can I tell you something and you not get all weird on me?”
Appearing unsure, he answered, “Sure.”
Taking a breath, I lowered my voice and revealed, “Seeing you in only boxers and an undershirt was a…impressive.”
“I know,” he cheered.
I blurted, “Jacks!” popping him on the arm as I stood up.
As I headed up the stairs, I shook my head and laughed.
Doing my best to shower and get dressed before Sophia woke, I hurried to get ready. I picked out a long dress that looked nice with a sweater so I could wear it to The Society meeting and the institution. Just as I finished my hair, Sophia woke up. After she was ready and her diaper bag was packed for the day, I carried her downstairs and fixed her cereal. Jackson sat at the table with her as I called the institution to make sure Ms. Herterand would be there.
Joining them at the table, I said, “After my meeting I’m going to go see Ms. Herterand, then I’ll be back.”
“Is my mom coming over?” he asked.
Shaking my head, I replied, “I’m bringing Sophia over there.”
Getting up from the table, he offered, “Why don’t I take ya’ll over there then? The driver can get you and bring you back to my parents’ house; I’ll just hang out there today.”
“Okay,” I agreed before he asked, “Do you wanna know the colors I picked for next Friday?”
Glad he remembered, I said, “Oh, yea, I need three.”
“Gold, dark green, and regular green,” he stated.
With a disgusted expression, I said, “I think I hate you a little bit right now.”
“Why?” he questioned.
Shaking my head, I informed, “Those are awful.”
“No they’re not,” he argued.
“Okay, the colors aren’t by themselves but together, really?” I explained.
Smiling, he said, “Those are my colors and the gold can be light gold if you want.”
I rolled my eyes, thinking at least he didn’t pick orange and yellow. Sophia finished her breakfast and we headed to his parent’s house.
It wasn’t long before the driver arrived at the Thomas’ to take me to my meeting. At the meeting, I patiently waited for it to be over before I could talk to The Society head Ellis Montgomery.
Finding her near the front, I said, “Excuse me Ellis,” as I tapped her on the shoulder.
“Rennillia,” she smiled before asking, “Are you prepared for your first Ball?�
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Returning her smile, I replied, “No ma’am that is actually what I would like to discuss with you.”
With a displeased expression, she said, “Oh.”
“My husband is out of town on business and he will not return in time for the event,” I informed.
She offered, “Would it be possible for Emerson to accompany you.”
“No ma’am, he is unavailable for the event,” I stated, hoping maybe I could get out of it.
Shaking her head, Ellis questioned, “You have no one that is able to stand in?”
Unless I was going to blatantly lie to the woman, I had to admit, “I do have an old friend that is willing to accompany me. It was my understanding though, that this is a romantic event and I am concerned it will be uncomfortable for the both of us.”
Pleased, she imparted, “Erin, I assume, told you her gift was an engagement ring,” as I nodded she continued, “Dear, it can be a very romantic evening, however, over the years we have had friends, fathers, and sons all accompany members to The Ball. The evening is what you choose to make it.”
Feeling an incredible sense of relief, I started to get excited about the function.
“Thank you,” I said, before sharing, “I have my colors.”
Pulling her book out, she wrote my name down before asking, “They are?”
“Champagne gold, regular green and dark green,” I stated.
Almost as if it hurt her to be polite about it, she replied, “Well, that will be…unique.”
Nodding, I felt her pain and forced a smile of my own.
Back on the road, the driver headed towards the institution. When I arrived, I checked in and waited for Ms. Herterand in our usual spot. I stood up and made my way to her as she walked in. I hugged her. I was so happy I thought I would cry.
Hugging me back, she said, “I’ve missed you.”
“I’m so sorry it’s been so long,” I apologized.
Shaking off my apology, she said, “It’s alright, Francis told me about the accident, how is my son?”
“Better. He’s away right now,” I answered.
“Would you like to take a walk with me?” she offered.
Nodding, I walked outside with her to a little garden area on the side of the institution.
“How are the two of you?” she politely asked.
Shrugging, I replied, “I honestly don’t know. I thought things were getting better since he came back but…”
As I trailed off, she said, “I’m not envious of your situation. I’ve spent awhile now wondering what it would have been like if Mason had been obligated to me instead of Erin,” stopping to shake her head, she cringed, saying, “Some people just aren’t meant for each other.”
Not wanting to be in any way responsible for Ms. Herterand having a relapse, I carefully asked, “So you don’t wish things had turned out different?”
Slowly smiling, as if she wanted to laugh, she shared, “Things turning out different isn’t the same.”
“Because some people aren’t meant for each other?” I questioned.
Nodding, Ms. Herterand replied, “It has been way too many years without clarity but I have realized that there was a reason why Mason and I were not together.”
As I nodded back, I changed the subject saying, “You and Dr. Chepelli seem to be spending a lot of time together.”
Slightly smiling, she said, “It’s nice to have someone who knows.”
“Knows?” I asked, wondering what he knew.
Nodding, she explained, “He knows me.”
Walking back inside the institution, I hugged her promising new pictures of Sophia next Tuesday with my visit.
On the way back to the Thomas’ house, I was sincerely happy for Ms. Herterand. Not only was she coherent and expressive, she was walking around. Although I could have done without her, ‘some people aren’t meant for each other’, I was too excited about her continued recovery to dwell on it. After thanking the driver and dismissing him, I thought today was shaping up to be a wonderful day. The Society meeting went well, Ms. Herterand was good and I was topping it all off by spending a little time with the Thomas’.
I knocked at the door and heard a faint, ‘come in’, through it. Walking through the living room, I headed straight for the kitchen. Mrs. Thomas was at the stove cooking. Quickly turning, she smiled letting me know Sophia was in the den with Jackson. I thanked her and after she declined my offer to help with dinner, I walked to the den.
Standing in the entryway, I watched them play for a minute before saying, “Hey.”
Sophia looked up and quickly crawled to me as Jackson asked, “How was your day?”
Scooping her up, I replied, “Good but yours was better 'cause you got to play with this little girly all day,” hugging her tight.
Sophia giggled as I swung her around.
Standing up, Jackson asked, “Mind if we stay for dinner?”
“Sure,” I chirped before informing, “Oh, and you better get me a dang good gift. You should have seen the look on Ellis’s face when I told her your colors. I’m surprised she didn’t ban me from the event right then and there.”
“What colors did he pick?” Mrs. Thomas walked in asking.
After giving a quick rundown of the rules for the event, I replied, “Two different greens and gold.”
Making a face, Mrs. Thomas questioned, “For a Ball Jacks?”
“See!” I blurted at him before saying, “Your mom agrees with me.”
Taking Sophia from me, Jackson smiled wide at her, asking, “You like ‘em, don’t ya Pea?” while he nodded at her.
As Sophia nodded back at him with smile, he gave Mrs. Thomas and I a ‘so there’ look and walked to the living room. Mrs. Thomas and I headed back to the kitchen.
In the kitchen, I set the table while Mrs. Thomas finished cooking dinner.
With a few minutes left before Mr. Thomas made it home for dinner, Mrs. Thomas gave me an inspired look before asking, “Is it okay for people to give you suggestions for your event?”
The second I nodded, she grabbed my hand and rushed me to her bedroom.
Closing the door behind us, she cheered, “I have the best idea!”
“For the centerpiece?” I asked.
Nodding, she shared, “For the theme and all.”
Excited, I said, “Okay!”
Opening her closet door, Mrs. Thomas pulled out a bolt of sheer gold fabric and her sewing box.
“You need a gown right?” she asked rolling the fabric out on her bed, then saying, “I can make you one out of this and I have some dark green ribbon…”
Stopping her, I knew I shared her idea as I said, “That’s perfect. I can do a clover boutonniere for him; it can be like an Irish theme.”
Nodding with a wide smile, she pulled out her cloth measuring tape, saying, “Let me get an idea of your measurements.”
I turned around and stood up straight as she took my measurements. When she was finished writing them down on a little piece of paper, we left her room.
Jackson gave the two of us a curious look as we walked into the kitchen, smiles beaming. I was so excited I wanted to jump up and down. I knew exactly what to do with the centerpiece and unless Jackson showed up in a crayola green suit, which I would make sure did not happen, my first Society Ball would be perfect.
Dinner was a typical meal at the Thomas’. We laughed and ate way too much. I helped Mrs. Thomas clean up her kitchen as we whispered about the upcoming Ball. When we were done, Jackson, Sophia and I said our goodbyes and headed back to the house. It was later than I had realized and Sophia was fast asleep before we left the neighborhood.
On the way, Jackson asked, “What were you and my mom doing?”
Smiling, I said, “Um, none of your business,” before I offered, “Can I make a tux suggestion?”
“You don’t trust me?” he laughed.
Thinking after his color choices, ‘no’, I replied, “I was just thinking, if you wore a da
rk green jacket and slacks it would look handsome.”
With a peculiar expression, he said, “Ya know that’s funny, my mom said the same thing before we left.”
“Then it must be true,” I assured, thinking, ‘Yay, Mrs. Thomas!’
With an umhum, Jackson continued driving us back to the house.
I quietly carried Sophia upstairs and carefully laid her in her crib. After taking a quick shower, I told Jackson goodnight from the balcony and headed back to my room. I still needed to talk to Emerson but as I curled up in bed I was glad I had put it off. Being able to go to bed after having a good day was nice. Still, I was holding out hope that Hert would call and say he wanted to see me for our anniversary, even if it was for just a few minutes. I fell asleep hoping Ms. Herterand’s, ‘some people aren’t meant for each other’, wasn’t meant for Hert and I.
Around two in the morning, I woke from a depressing dream. In my dream, I was walking down a long hallway of pictures. As I made my way down the hallway I glanced at the pictures, smiling as they started off with Hert and me as kids then progressed as I walked. Smiling wider as I neared the end, I stopped suddenly seeing only two pictures at the end of the hallway. One was of me and one was of Hert. Inspecting the pictures, I noticed we were neither happy nor sad. Confused, I turned trying to see what expressions we had in the previous ones but they were gone. Looking back at the only two pictures left, I saw a little plaque between them. Leaning very close to read it; I found the closer I got, the smaller the print until I leaned so close the words completely disappeared. Out of frustration, I hit the plaque with my hand. When I did it shocked me hard, causing me to fall to my knees. Holding my hand in a tight fist it felt like it was on fire. I opened my hand and saw
Some people just aren’t meant for each other
burned into my palm.
With a heavy sigh, I rolled out of bed. Checking my hand just in case, I shook my head, thinking how silly that was. I looked in on Sophia before quietly creeping down the stairs. Tip toeing into the kitchen, I gently opened the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water.
Making my way back to the stairs, I heard Jackson ask, “Ren?”
Nodding, I walked to the couch, saying, “Yea, I was just getting some water.”
Squinting at me, he said, “Oh, okay.”