by Nella Tyler
Plus, in the back of my mind, I knew that going there would also give me a chance to see Jenna. While my other reason was legitimate and genuine, the underlying agenda certainly didn’t hurt my motivation.
When I walked into the hospital, I went right to the wing where my father had been during his stay. As soon as I got there, I asked the nurse sitting in the middle station to speak to the doctor who was in charge of my father’s care. I was directed to an older gentleman I had only seen a few times. He recognized me almost instantly.
“Mr. Meck,” he called and put his hand out for me to shake as he walked toward me.
“Hi, Dr. Pierce.” I shook his hand, thankful to have remembered his name at the last moment.
“How’s your father doing?”
“I think he’s doing all right, but to tell you the truth, doctor, I am a little concerned about him.”
“Oh?” the doctor asked. “Why is that?”
“He seemed to be doing all right until this morning. Of course, he doesn’t tell me a damn thing, but I could tell by the way he moved and the fact that he had gotten himself to the kitchen table, that he hadn’t slept well and he was in more pain than normal. I’m worried that it might be a warning sign for something else.”
“Has he complained of anything?”
“No.” I shook my head. “Nothing. He tells everyone else anything, but won’t speak to me to save his life, and I’m starting to be afraid that might be the case.”
“Can he still walk, use the bathroom by himself, eat, that kind of thing?”
“Yes.”
“Are you certain that he’s taking his medication?”
“I give it to him exactly as prescribed. I watch him take it. I don’t check to see that it’s gone, but if he’s going through all that trouble, I don’t think he wouldn’t be taking it. I think he knows how serious his injuries were and how lucky he was. I don’t think even my father is stubborn enough to tempt fate like that. The one thing my old man does fear is God.”
Dr. Pierce grinned and nodded.
“Well, sometimes, people have good days and bad. You’re right to be concerned, but at the moment, I think it would be more dangerous to try to get him to come back than it would to wait it out. If you notice that he isn’t himself, or if the pain doesn’t seem to get better in a few days, or if it gets significantly worse in a short period of time, bring him in.”
I thought about if there was anything else I needed to tell him that I might have overlooked, but could think of nothing. So, I thanked him and thought about walking away. However, at the last moment, I stopped him again.
“Um…Dr. Pierce? I was wondering if you had any idea where Dr. Barnes was?”
“Yes,” he answered somberly as he turned back around. “Unfortunately, she is not in right now. She had a family emergency.”
“What?” I demanded, feeling as though I had gotten punched in the stomach. “Is she all right?”
He nodded and moved in closer, lowering his voice. “It’s her sister. Everyone is fine, but her house burned down. It’s been all over the news. Honestly, I’m surprised you haven't heard.”
“That’s terrible!” I exclaimed, instantly wondering what I could do to help.
“It is. So unexpected…” Dr. Pierce shook his head. “It just goes to show you…well. In any case, Dr. Barnes understandably took a few days off to help her sister and her sister’s family settled.”
“Of course,” I replied and thanked him for letting me know. When I reached my rental car, I tried to focus on the rest of my day, but I couldn’t. All I kept thinking about was Jenna and how I could help.
I should go to her, I thought. I should see if there is anything I can do to help. I wonder if she’s okay. However, after a moment, I got a hold of myself and shook my head.
“What the hell am I doing?” I demanded out loud, reprimanding myself.
What is wrong with me? I wondered, catching my reflection in the mirror. I shook my head. My God, I have turned into those crazy, needy bitches that I used to fuck. Jesus Christ! I’m not her boyfriend! She has made it abundantly clear that I am nothing more than a good screw.
You could learn a thing or two from her, Tim. I decided not to go see her. Instead, I opted to go straight home, forgetting about the coffee shop entirely.
Chapter 22
Jenna
I woke up to a starfish in my bed. Kassie was only two-feet tall and barely twenty-five pounds, but somehow managed to take up the entire bed. I rolled over and looked at her sleeping soundly, while I had to grab the side of the bed to keep my balance.
I snickered at her, happy to see that at least someone in the family was getting a good night’s sleep.
However, my grin was short lived when I thought about Michelle and Gavin.
Of course, I was sad for Kassie, but my sister and her husband were taking the tragedy exceptionally hard. Kassie was sad because her stuff was gone, but my sister had lost precious memories, like pictures and irreplaceable family heirlooms.
Monetarily, no one in the family was all that concerned, but the memories that were destroyed by the fire and the future that they were building had literally gone up in smoke. There were a few pictures that remained unscathed by the fire in the part of the house that was salvaged, but almost everything else was gone forever.
I knew that was depressing my sister. She was much more sentimental than I was and being that she loved her house and her life, I could understand why it was affecting her so badly.
Still, I was proud of the whole family. Michelle, Gavin, and Kassie all made it a point to put a smile on and try to make the best of it.
While Gavin had sorted out the insurance affairs, Michelle and I had kept Kassie busy the day before and tried to pretend, at least for a little while, that life was normal. I took them to the movies, and we went to the mall to get new clothes.
Michelle had a breakdown in the dress section when she remembered that her wedding dress, which had been our mother’s, was probably destroyed in the fire, but it was short lived. Other than that, the girls kept themselves together wonderfully.
I hadn’t heard Gavin get up to go to work, but I was sure that he had, and I wanted to check on Michelle. So, I scooted out of the bed, eased my way onto the floor, and did my best to slip out of the room without disturbing the sea-creature inhabiting my bed.
I closed the door behind me with caution and slid down the hallway into the living room. Michelle was still asleep, but since I wasn’t, I wanted someone to have coffee with.
So, in the name of making the best of the situation and doing what little sisters did best, I spread my arms and legs out as wide as I could and fell, face first onto Michelle. When my weight was distributed on her completely, she turned and pushed up, groaning like she did when I woke her up as kids.
“Jenna…what are you doing?” she demanded, still trying to push me off of her as I teetered around on top of her, giggling hysterically.
“I’m doing an impression of Kassie,” I replied as she finally shoved me to the side of her. “Do you like it? I thought it was pretty accurate.”
At this, Michelle laughed and turned toward me. “Is she a starfish this morning? Sometimes, when she’s feeling generous, she’s a half-moon, but that isn’t often. It is a little better, but the starfish is her classic, go-to move.”
“I noticed.”
“Although, that’s still better than the tornado. Sometimes, she swirls all over the bed, continually landing in starfish position until she falls out, cries, and doesn’t go back to sleep until an hour before it’s time to get up.”
I giggled.
“Gavin mentioned getting a dog,” Michelle continued, “but I told him he was crazy. Give it a week and we’d have more room on the dog bed than our own.”
“You just teach him to sleep in his own bed.”
She raised her eyebrow condescendingly. “We haven’t figured out a way to teach our four-year-old how to do that consist
ently. Do you really think that we would have the time, patience, or even care to try to teach a puppy?”
She rolled her eyes and let out a deep, troubled breath, as though she only now remembered why they were here. When she spoke again, her voice was somber. “Although, maybe our dog would have told us about the fire sooner. Maybe he would’ve sensed something was wrong…”
“Michelle!” I snapped, grabbing her shoulders and practically glaring at her to stop her from crying. “You can’t do this to yourself. You have to focus.” I waited until I was fairly certain she was listening to me fully before I continued.
“You have to move forward. It happened, it’s over. I know it is your house and your memories, but you can’t think that if you had gotten a dog, your house would’ve been spared. You don’t know that. Having a dog would've been one more living thing that you would’ve had to worry about getting to safety.
“You did the most important job. You, Gavin, and Kassie are safe. Stuff, even the pictures, are nothing. You have one another, and that is all you need. You can’t try to sort out what might have happened or what you could’ve done differently. You’re all safe. That’s the most important thing.”
Still trying to hold back tears, Michelle nodded. “You’re right.” She sniffled. “I should be thankful. My husband, my baby, and I all escaped without so much as a bruise.”
“I know it’s hard, and it’s okay to be sad. It’s still tragic. You still lost your house, but I don’t want you lamenting on the past.”
Again, she nodded her head up and down in agreement.
“So, y’all are welcome to stay with me as long as you want, but have you and Gavin talked about what you’re gonna do?”
“Yes. Last night…sort of.” Her shoulder rose and fell as she continued her explanation. “We agreed that it needs to be rebuilt. We don’t want to move. We love the neighborhood and Kassie is starting to have friends.” She chuckled. “As silly as it sounds, we really like living there and even with the memory of the fire…”
I grinned and squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. “I get it. I’m glad.”
She huffed a laugh that wasn’t exactly devoid of humor, but did have a sting of cynicism. “Gavin keeps trying to tell me that we should look at this as a new opportunity, but I can’t see it that way. At least not yet.”
“I know you know this, but you have a wonderful husband. You're all going to be fine.”
“I’m trying to believe that,” she admitted, swiping a stray tear away from her eye.
“Well, I have an idea…” I grinned and took Michelle’s silence for an invitation to continue. “Maybe we can ask the community to help.”
“You want to have a barn raising, but with my house?” she asked sarcastically.
“There are plenty of qualified people in this town and I’m sure they would love to help.”
Michelle thought for a minute and even though she didn’t seem completely convinced that this was a good idea, she couldn’t help but be intrigued.
“So, what’s the plan?”
I thought for a second before I shrugged my shoulders, hating to have to admit that I hadn’t thought that far ahead.
“I’m not sure. I want to…ask for help. We could make flyers or something. Kassie could help us decorate them, and we could go around town, delivering them to local businesses.”
By this point, I was completely making up everything I said simply hoping that it was a viable plan. I thought it sounded good, but Michelle still didn’t seem so enthused.
When I stopped to hear what she had to say about the idea, she didn’t give a reaction right away. Instead, she fell into thought, which I decided had to be a good thing. So, I waited, trying to think of anything more convincing to say, in case I needed to plead my case more.
The more I thought about it, the better it sounded. I could definitely see the community getting behind something like this.
After all, this was what living in a small town was all about: supporting one another and treating your neighbors like family.
Finally, she spoke. It wasn’t convincing, but at least it was somewhat positive. “Okay. I guess it’s worth a shot. It isn’t like I have a better idea.”
I grinned widely. “Yes! Michelle, I promise you, this is going to be fun.”
She rolled her eyes and slid off of the pullout couch. “I’m going to wake Kassie up. I’m sure she’d never forgive us if we started designing the flyers without her.”
I grinned and watched her leave, pleased that she seemed to be in good spirits, for the most part. At least she was willing to put on a good face for Kassie and try to get her mind off of the tragedy by doing something productive.
I stretched out in my starfish impression again, closed my eyes, and sighed. It felt as though this was truly the first time I had had a moment’s peace since receiving that phone call.
I knew that was kind of selfish, but I couldn’t help but finally enjoy a deep breath of relief. For the moment, my house was quiet and the tension that was brought about by the fire had lessened some.
I had no idea if this was going to work, but at least we had a plan – a purpose that might lead us to a better situation than my poor sister and her family currently had. Once I had my moment of peace, I rolled over to get my computer.
About that time, Kassie came barreling down the hall and leapt into my arms. “Good morning! How did you sleep, my little sea monkey?” I teased.
“Momma said I was a starfish…” She giggled. “Not a sea monkey.” After which, she paused, visibly thought about what I had said and squinted her eyes in wonderment. “Monkeys live underwater?”
I laughed. “No. They don’t live underwater. It’s a different kind of monkey…” I tried to explain it, but realized I couldn’t, so I simply added, “You know what, never mind,” and laughed it off.
“Are we gonna make flyers?” she asked, which was obviously more pressing to her than trying to talk about sea monkeys.
“Yes. We’re going to ask the community to help you guys rebuild your house.”
“Cool!” she exclaimed as her eyes lit up. “I’ll get the glitter!”
“Kassie…” Michelle started, but I interrupted her.
“Don’t worry about it, Michelle. She can make some of her flyers and we’ll make the majority of them. Just let her have some fun.”
By this point, we could hear Kassie in the kitchen, rummaging around for some glitter, glue and other art supplies. I returned my attention to my laptop and started to create a professional flyer.
Michelle wanted to put the whole story on the flyer, but I assured her that the whole town already knew what happened. A simple plea for help would suffice.
She still didn’t seem all that convinced, but between the three of us, we came up with a nice, succinct, to-the-point flyer that asked for any assistance the community was able to give. It took us about an hour, with ten special flyers from Kassie and the rest emailed to the local office supply store to have them printed in bulk. When we had sent them off, we got dressed, grabbed a quick bowl of cereal, and headed off to start our day.
When Kassie asked what the plan was, we had to convince her that asking people if we could put the flyers in their shop was much better than throwing them off buildings. Her reach would certainly be more immediate, but it was likely that even her cuteness couldn’t get us all out of trouble for that one.
So, instead, we picked up the stack of flyers, separated them in half, went to the center of town and started walking from one business to the next.
One of my first businesses was Hayden’s hardware store. I didn’t know him personally, but everyone knew that he had taken over when his daddy died and was known to be a good man. When I walked into the store, it was only him working there and a few customers.
He greeted me warmly and even though I hadn’t had use for a hardware store in years, I instantly recognized him through the resemblance to his father.
“What have you g
ot there?” he asked with a big grin on his face.
“As you probably know, my sister’s house burned down and she has to rebuild. We’re going around town, asking local businesses if it is all right to post these flyers.” While I spoke, I pulled a flyer from the pile and handed it to Hayden.
“Yeah. It’s a damn shame. I heard about that the other day.” He shook his head. “Terrible. Your family has always been such a blessing to this community, especially with all you’ve been doin’ in the hospital. I’d love to help. Let me see exactly what I can do, and I’ll give you a call. In the meantime, put a whole stack of ‘em over there and I’ll give them out with purchases. Is this your number?”
“Yes. The second one. The first is my sister.”
“Okay, great!”
“Thank you!” I grinned, feeling a warmth from him that gave me the encouragement to know we weren’t wasting our time.
“Of course, Dr. Barnes. I’ll be in touch soon.”
After dropping off some flyers, I went to different businesses. Everyone was receptive and most went above and beyond to get the word out. By noon, both Michelle and I were already receiving calls from neighbors, asking how they could help.
Even Gavin was receiving calls, gifts, and questions about what we were doing. It was a funny conversation, listening to Michelle explain what seemed to be unbelievable. At first, it seemed like they were arguing, as if Gavin thought it was some kind of sick joke, but by the end, they were both crying with relief, touched by the town’s generosity.
However, the more time that passed, the more word spread. By late afternoon, what seemed like a shot in the dark that morning had turned into something that seemed doable. Eventually, it got to the point where we had enough volunteers that we could start putting a date together.
Unanimously, we decided on Saturday, with a lot of the hospital staff even giving up their time to help out, either between their shifts, or their entire day off.
In a matter of hours, this situation was turning around and becoming a memory that we would all cherish forever. From the literal ashes of tragedy, we witnessed the rising of not only a new house, but the hope for humanity. It was beautiful.