The Pastor's Son

by Rebecca Joanne

  “And the water fountain?”

  “Guilty as charged.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “You two were the ones responsible for trashing that television down there, too. Weren’t you?”

  “Why do I get the feeling you’re about to swat at me again?”

  “Depends. Were you responsible for it?”

  A few beats passed. “Yes. Phil and I were responsible for that, too. The shaving cre--hey!”

  She chucked a pillow at my face. “It took my father and me three weeks to set that thing up downstairs!”

  She kept whacking me with the pillow as I scrambled to get away.

  “I didn’t know! How was I supposed to know!?”

  She moved with me. “Why. Did. You. Ruin. All my hard work!?”

  “Help! I’m being attacked by a crazy woman!”

  I got off the floor and started running for the couch. I felt her pillow smack hard against my back before I found a pillow for myself. I whipped around, hitting her square in the face. And as I stood there, beaming with pride, she reached her hand out for the love seat.

  Before picking up another pillow.

  “You’re going to pay for that,” she said.

  “If you can catch me first.”

  I laughed as we ran up and down the hallways of her cabin. We darted into my room, grabbing pillows and throwing clothes at one another. I made a break for her room, where I proceeded to rip her comforter off her bed and toss it at her face. I wrapped it around her while she struggled to get out, her arms and legs flailing everywhere.

  “You’re going to pay, Adam!”

  I snorted with laughter. “It was two decades ago. Let it lie, Dell!”

  She bucked against me. “That’s it. I’m bringing out the big guns.”

  I didn’t know what she meant until she dropped to her knees. She slipped out from the grip of my arms before she wiggled herself underneath the bed. She kicked the comforter off as I dropped down, trying to catch her feet. As she scrambled beneath the bed, I squinted my eyes to try and see her.

  “Dell?” I asked.

  She didn’t say anything, though.

  “Dell? You okay under there?”

  “Peekaboo!”

  I felt something fluffy and soft smack against my face, and it startled me. I yelped, scrambling away from the bed as something else came flying through the air at me. I furrowed my brow as I watched the blurred yellow object crash into the wall. And when I went to retrieve it, I found myself gripping a fluffy yellow duck.

  “A stuffed animal?” I asked.

  “And boy, do I have an arsenal,” Dell said.

  I turned around and saw her arms filled to the brim with little fluffy animals. Bears and cats. Puppies and little ducklings. There were tie-dyed beanie babies I never thought I’d see again and a snake peeking out of the bunch.

  I held out the duck. “Don’t you dare.”

  She raised a bear in the air. “And if I do?”

  I chucked the duckling at her before I turned my back. I covered my head as she pelted me with the army of fluffy objects she had clamored for underneath her bed. I sank down, listening to her laughter as I shielded my head from the onslaught. And when the flood of fluffiness finally ceased, I slowly looked over at her.

  Then she threw the snake right in my face.

  “Mature, Dell.”

  She smiled brightly. “My father always said, ‘use what you’ve got, Princess.’”

  I reached for a beanie baby. “Well, my father always said, ‘keep your chin up, son. You’ll get it someday’.”

  “Doesn’t sound very inspirational to me.”

  “Not really. Until you finally have the upper hand.”

  She cocked her head. “Say what now?”

  I grinned. “All of your ammo sits at my feet now. And the only thing you’ve got is a pillowless bed.”

  Her face fell. “Don’t you dare.”

  I picked up another stuffed animal. “Oh, I think I should.”

  She held up her finger. “Adam, don’t.”

  I cocked my hand back. “Guess my father had a decent point there.”

  “Adam!”

  “Geronimo!”

  As her laughter filled the room, I pelted her with those same stuffed animals. I picked them up, one by one, and threw them at her until she collapsed in a fit of giggles on top of her bed. I picked up the comforter and tossed it on top of her. I leapt onto the bed, straddling her body as my fingers danced up and down her sides. I heard her gasping for air. Her laughter brought a kind of peace to my soul I hadn’t experienced in weeks. Months. Heck, even years.

  “I give. I give. Adam! I give! Have mercy on me!”

  I slowly peeled the comforter back. “Tell me I’m the greatest.”

  “Never.”

  I wiggled my fingers at her. “Tell me I’m the awesomest person you’ve ever met.”

  “I’m not saying anything that isn’t an actual word.”

  My hands fell to the mattress on either side of her head. “Then, tell me how you’re feeling. And the tickling shall cease.”

  She smiled up at me. “I’m feeling… happy.”

  I blinked. “Happy?”

  “Yeah. Happy. I feel happy, Adam.”

  Took the words right out of my mouth, beautiful.

  I scrambled off her body. “I should let you get ready for bed.”

  “Well, at least I’m tired now. That tickle torture wore me out.”

  “I’m pretty sure it was you scrambling underneath that bed that did it. That would wear out anyone.”

  “Or, endlessly pelting you with furry animals.”

  “Or, trekking out into the snow without the proper attire.”

  She slowly sat up. “I get it. Dumb move. I’ll put on better pants next time.”

  I chuckled. “I’m just glad you’re feeling better. Physically, and otherwise.”

  She stood from her bed. “Stay with me until I go to sleep?”

  “You want me to do that?”

  “If you’re okay with it. I kind of… like you here. You’re comforting. I think I’ll fall asleep easier if you’re here with me.”

  I nodded. “Of course, then. Of course I’ll stay. Where do you want me?”

  She pointed to a chair in the corner. “Over there is fine. Or, if you want…”

  “Tell me what you wish I would do, Dell.”

  She bit down on her lower lip. “Would you hold my hand until I fall asleep?”

  My heart melted at her words. “I can do that. I’d love to do that.”

  She smiled. “Okay. Give me a few minutes to get ready.”

  She rushed into the bathroom like a giddy little schoolgirl, and I felt the walls around my soul slowly crumbling to her. As I stood there, leaning against the wall of her bedroom, I thought about our time together. The week and a half that we’d spent up on the mountain with one another. I thought about what would happen once the snow melted. Once a pathway cleared for me to get back down into town. For the first time since my father passed away, I hadn’t thought about the pain once. Or the sadness. I experienced nothing short of unadulterated joy with that woman. And part of me wasn’t ready to let that go. Part of me wasn’t ready to leave the mountain. To leave the little bubble we had created for ourselves.

  Then again, I also knew staying here wasn’t an option.

  After all, I still had a father to bury.

  “Give me a few more seconds, and I’ll be out!” Dell said.

  “I’m not going anywhere, so take your time.”

  And after I heard her squeal with delight, my heart sent up one last silent prayer for the night.

  Lord, if it is your will for this woman to stay in my life, I’m begging you to make it so.

  No matter the consequences.

  Chapter Fourteen: Kendall

  A click caught my ear before the humming started. My eyes fell open as I felt something sliding down the bridge of my nose. I shot up from bed, my hand warm
to the touch. And when I brought it to my nose, I wiped something wet off my skin.

  Am I crying?

  No, I was sweating.

  “The power’s back on,” I murmured.

  The humming of the heater pulled me from bed. The light shining from my bathroom made me smile through my sleep-fogged state of mind. I heard something ringing in the distance. A sound I hadn’t heard in days.

  But it wasn’t my cell phone that was ringing.

  Wrapping my arms around my chest, I walked toward my bedroom door. I stuck my head out into the hallway, turning to the front door. I saw Adam standing near the kitchen table as the smell of coffee wafted down the hallway. The faint scent of eggs hung in the air, beckoning me closer to the kitchen. When the sound of a phone ringing filled the hallway again, I drew in a deep breath.

  Watching as Adam took the battery out of the back of his phone.

  “Don’t you have more stuff to plan?” I asked.

  Adam yelped. “Holy--! My word, Dell. I didn’t realize you were awake. Did my phone wake you up?”

  I made my way for him. “If anything, the sound of your phone put me in a good mood. Means the power’s up and running again.”

  “Yeah. Well, it woke me up this morning with a bombardment of texts, messages, and voicemails. And now, the stupid thing won’t stop ringing!”

  His frustration puzzled me. “I mean, given the circumstances--.”

  He smiled at me. “How did you sleep?”

  I blinked. “Uh, what?”

  “Sleep. You wanted me to hold your hand last night. Did you sleep all right after I went back to my room?”

  “Oh, yeah. Yeah. I didn’t even hear you leave. So, why did you just take the battery out of your phone?”

  He shrugged. “It can wait. Besides, there’s not much I can do about it anyway since I'm up here with you.”

  I furrowed my brow. “If you need help planning the funeral or sifting through information, or generally catching back up on things, I can--.”

  Something passed behind his stare that stopped me in my tracks. His nostrils flared, and I thought I saw his temple pulse. He wasn’t happy. That much was for certain.

  I simply didn’t know why.

  “Adam?”

  He turned his back to me. “Would you like some coffee? I made it about half an hour ago.”

  “Adam, talk to me.”

  He reached for a mug. “I never did figure out how you take your coffee. Are you a cream and sugar kind of person?”

  “Adam.”

  “One or the other, maybe?”

  “Please, turn around and talk to me.”

  “Oh! You take it black, don’t you?”

  “Adam!”

  He sighed. “What, Dell?”

  I shook my head. “You can’t avoid this. Don’t do that to yourself. Don’t be like me.”

  “They embalm bodies for a reason. It’ll be okay. I can figure this out in another week or so once I can get down this mountain and get home.”

  “Don’t use me as an excuse not to make headway on this.”

  He snickered. “With all due respect, it’s not always about you.”

  “I’m well aware of that. Trust me. But, you’re making this mountain--and this cabin--an excuse to not face what’s going on down there. Being cut off from the world doesn’t mean your father didn’t die.”

  “That’s enough.”

  “And I’m not going to let you make me the reason why you don’t face this.”

  “That’s not your call!”

  The trumpeting of his voice made me jump. I’d never heard him speak that way before, and it took me by surprise. He abandoned my coffee and slowly turned around with enough anger in his eyes to level an entire city.

  It gave me great pause.

  “Dell, just because you lost both of your parents and decided to run up here and act like nothing ever happened doesn’t mean I’m doing the same.”

  I swallowed down my hurt. “Well, not wanting to pick up the phone for people who I’m sure are worried about you doesn’t help your stance much.”

  “Just because I don’t want to be bombarded by the Myrtles and the Maybels of this world doesn’t mean--.”

  “Then, call the funeral home.”

  He groaned. “You can make your own coffee.”

  “Call the people you’ve hired to make the tombstone. Get on the phone with someone from the church and plan the service. Order some flowers. Do something to make some headway, Adam.”

  “I’m going to my room.”

  I reached my hand out for him. “You can’t make me the reason why you don’t do this. You can’t stay up here and act like your life isn’t happening down there.”

  He glared at me. “Why in the world does everyone think they know better for me than I do for myself?”

  “Maybe on this particular topic, I do. Did you ever consider that?”

  He wrenched away from me. “You sound like my father right now. Always telling me what to do. Not allowing me to make my own mistakes and do what I want. I’m a grown man, Dell. And if this is how I choose to tackle this problem, then that doesn’t concern you.”

  “Well, I’m not your father, Adam. He’s dead, and you have to face that before it eats you alive, too.”

  I knew my words were harsh. I knew I should’ve bitten my tongue. My mother always told me the reason I’d never make genuine connections with anyone was because of that blasted thing. I was watching the only person who had given me any semblance of an idea of happiness storm down the hallway with his fists clenched and his voice growling, and his shoulders hunched.

  You need to go apologize.

  “Adam, I’m sorry,” I said.

  I walked down the hallway, growing closer to his bedroom.

  “I don’t want you to make the same mistakes I--Adam?”

  I watched him shove his things into the pocket of his pants. He opened the bedside table and picked up some of the snacks I had planted there for him, in case he had a day or two where he didn’t want to get out of bed. He whipped around, his angry eyes locking with mine. As he tossed his coat around his shoulders, my lips finally started working again.

  “What are you doing?”

  He snickered. “Like you care.”

  “Of course, I care. Maybe a little too much.”

  He stormed past me. “Well, you’re about to be relieved of that burden.”

  I furrowed my brow. “What does that mean?”

  I walked behind him, watching Adam pick things up and shove them into his pockets. His phone. More snacks. He even took a water bottle out of the fridge for him to hold.

  Then, he made his way to the door.

  “Oh, no you don’t,” I said.

  I rushed over and planted my hand against the door. Preventing him from opening it.

  “Move, Dell.”

  I shook my head. “Not a chance. You're not thinking clearly right now.”

  “For the first time in a few days, I’m thinking clearer than I was. And you’re right.”

  I blinked. “What?”

  “You’re right. I can’t ignore what’s going on down there. But, there’s nothing I can do about it from up here.”

  “You can’t go out into that snow. Just because we have power--.”

  He reached for the doorknob. “Don’t make me open this while you’re standing here.”

  I slid in between him and the door. “I’m not letting you go out there. The roads aren’t cleared. It’s only two degrees outside with the windchill. You don’t have your car. How in the world are you going to get down this mountain, Adam? What in the world are you thinking right now?”

  “I’m thinking that I don’t want to turn into you.”

  I paused. “There’s a middle ground here, Adam. It doesn’t always have to be black or white. Right, or wrong. Good or evil. The world doesn’t work like that.”

  He reached out for me and wrapped his arms around my waist. He buried his face in
to the crook of my neck, and I closed my eyes, relishing the way his skin felt against my own. I wrapped my arms around his neck. I was so glad I had talked some sense into the man. I knew his emotions were tumbling head over heels. But I also knew he wasn’t incapable of--.

  “Adam!”

  “I’m sorry, Dell.”

  “Adam. Put me down. Don’t you da--Adam!”

  He picked me up and moved me away from the door. And when he placed me down onto my feet, he reached behind him. Fiddling with the doorknob. His hand planted into my chest as I tried to get back to the door. Fighting him so that he wouldn't make the most idiotic decision of his life.

  “Adam. Stop it. Stop this right now. You’re being insane. You don’t even know the roads!”

  He sighed. “Goodbye, Dell.”

  “Adam, no!”

  When he opened the front door, the cabin filled with the mountain’s bitter wind. A chill crept over me, rooting me to my spot. It shivered me to my core as Adam pulled a hat over his head and wrapped a scarf around his neck. My toes curled. My skin puckered. I felt like I couldn't move as the icy wind whipped against my face. I watched helplessly as Adam walked out into the cold, deserted landscape. Walking effortlessly off the porch before he peered back over his shoulder.

  “Adam, please,” I choked out.

  Then, the snow washed him white.

  Erasing him from my view as I drew in a cold, painful breath.

  “Adam!”

  Chapter Fifteen: Adam

  Every step I took seemed slower and slower. The further down the mountain I got, the snow seemed to get deeper. I pushed onward, creating a path with my legs as my arms wrapped themselves around my body. But, when my teeth began to clatter from the cold, I knew Kendall was right.

  She’s right about everything.

  I couldn't stay at her place and listen to that phone incessantly ring. I couldn’t stay up there and feel trapped when there was an entire catastrophe happening down below. But I should have stayed put. I should have stayed with her. I should have found a compromise.

  I felt helpless.

  And that feeling rang painfully true as the theme of my entire life.

  “Why do you do this to me?” I asked.

  As I came to a stop sign, I dropped into the snow. I sank deep into the hilly patch, nearly up to my stomach. My hands tucked themselves against my armpits, seeking warmth wherever they could. And as I hunched over--my nose almost touching the snow--I felt desperation swallowing me whole again.