Spring Broke

by Melody Carlson

  SPRING BROKE

  Published by David C. Cook

  4050 Lee Vance View

  Colorado Springs, CO 80918 U.S.A.

  David C. Cook Distribution Canada

  55 Woodslee Avenue, Paris, Ontario, Canada N3L 3E5

  David C. Cook U.K., Kingsway Communications

  Eastbourne, East Sussex BN23 6NT, England

  David C. Cook and the graphic circle C logo

  are registered trademarks of Cook Communications Ministries.

  All rights reserved. Except for brief excerpts for review purposes,

  no part of this book may be reproduced or used in any

  form without written permission from the publisher.

  This story is a work of fiction. All characters and events

  are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance

  to any person, living or dead, is coincidental.

  LCCN 2008942922

  ISBN 978-1-58919-107-5

  eISBN 978-0-7814-0354-2

  © 2009 Melody Carlson

  Published in association with the literary agency of Sara A. Fortenberry

  The Team: Andrea Christian, Erin Michelle Healy,

  Amy Kiechlin, Jaci Schneider, and Susan Vannaman

  Cover Design: The DesignWorks Group, Charles Brock

  Interior Design: The DesignWorks Group

  Cover Illustration: Rob Roth

  First Edition 2009

  Contents

  One: Megan Abernathy

  Two: Lelani Porter

  Three: Anna Mendez

  Four: Kendall Weis

  Five: Megan

  Six: Lelani

  Seven: Kendall

  Eight: Anna

  Nine: Megan

  Ten: Lelani

  Eleven: Anna

  Twelve: Kendall

  Thirteen: Megan

  Fourteen: Lelani

  Fifteen: Anna

  Sixteen: Kendall

  Seventeen: Megan

  Eighteen: Lelani

  Nineteen: Anna

  Twenty: Kendall

  Twenty-one: Megan

  Twenty-two: Lelani

  Twenty-three: Anna

  Twenty-four: Kendall

  Twenty-five: Megan

  Twenty-six: Lelani

  Twenty-seven: Anna

  Twenty-eight: Kendall

  Twenty-nine: Megan

  Thirty: Lelani

  Thirty-one: Megan

  AfterWords

  Discussion Questions

  A Conversation with Melody Carlson

  An Excerpt from Three Weddings and a Bar Mitzvah

  To Jennifer Bird,

  a dear friend with a compassionate heart.

  mc

  One

  Megan Abernathy

  “I’m starting to get seriously worried about Kendall,” Lelani said as she stirred milk into her coffee. “She hasn’t been herself lately.”

  “She’s been pretty bummed,” Megan admitted quietly. She knew it was unlikely that their unpredictable landlady would be up at this hour—especially after she’d gotten what looked like a lifetime supply of puppy potty pads for Tinkerbell last week. Still, Megan didn’t want to take any chances of being overheard.

  “I think Valentine’s Day was especially hard on her this year.” Lelani put the milk carton away and shook her head. “She said it was the first time she’d never gotten a valentine from anyone.”

  “I gave her a valentine.” Megan reached for a mug. “She didn’t even say thank you.”

  Lelani smiled. “I know, you gave them to all of us, and that was some good chocolate. But you’re not a guy.”

  “Kendall needs to learn to be happy without a guy.” Megan poured coffee into her mug. “I heard that if you can’t be happy without a guy, you will never be happy with one.”

  “I agree.” Lelani nodded. “But I think Kendall’s bummed about more than just not having a guy. She’s starting to freak because she’s beginning to show.”

  “Yeah. When I got home from work yesterday, I found her crying because her favorite jeans were too small.” Megan stirred some sugar into her coffee. “I told her that she could borrow some of mine, but that didn’t seem to help.” To be honest, Megan thought tight jeans seemed fairly minor in comparison to being pregnant, unemployed, and unmarried, but to Kendall it was a major crisis.

  “It doesn’t help matters that Matthew Harmon is treating her like a stalker now.”

  “You can’t really blame him,” pointed out Megan. “If you think about it, she sort of did stalk him when she popped down to Tinsel Town and tried to put the move on him at his wife’s birthday party.”

  “I know.” Lelani frowned. “Still, it seems like he could show a little more compassion. It’s not as if she got pregnant on purpose.”

  Now, Megan knew this was a tough issue for Lelani, and she didn’t want to step on her toes. By now all the housemates were aware that Lelani had been through a similar situation before she left Maui. But as a result, Megan felt that Lelani had a tendency to be extra hard on dads who weren’t willing to bear their share of the responsibility. These guys got blamed for everything, but Megan knew it took two people to make a baby.

  “To be fair to Matthew,” Megan began cautiously, “Kendall isn’t a hundred percent certain that it’s his baby.” As far as Megan was concerned, this was just another bone of contention. Kendall had finally admitted that she’d slept with more than just one guy last fall. Not only had she been stupid, she’d been careless. Okay, Megan knew it was unkind to judge Kendall like that, so she never expressed these thoughts out loud, but it’s how she felt underneath it all. And it was just one of many reasons that Megan felt that sex outside of marriage was a foolish mistake. “And even if it is Matthew’s child, it’s not like she can make him drop everything and come to her side. Although I’m sure she could force him to pay some child support. What a mess.” Megan downed the last of her coffee.

  “It’s no wonder that she’s depressed. Being single and pregnant is never easy. I guess we should be more supportive of her. Especially when she’s as down as she’s been these past few days. I kept thinking she’d bounce back.”

  “It seemed like she had more resilience earlier on.” Megan rinsed her mug and placed it in the dishwasher. “Remember how upbeat she was when the pregnancy test turned out to be positive?”

  “Being pregnant can play havoc with your hormones,” explained Lelani. “And your emotions. I remember having moments of unexplainable happiness during my pregnancy. But then I’d get blue—really blue. It’s kind of a rollercoaster ride.”

  “So we just hang on tight and hope that she stays on the track?”

  Lelani smiled. “And try not to say the wrong things.”

  “Tell me about it.” Megan lowered her voice again. “The other day Kendall was talking about terminating her pregnancy. I was just minding my own business. I mean, she knows how I feel about abortion. She knows how we all feel. So then she looks me in the eyes and asks me what I would do if I were in her position.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yes.”

  Lelani’s brow creased. “What did you tell her?”

  “That first of all, I wouldn’t be in her position, since I don’t plan to have sex until I’m married.”

  “I have to agree with you on that now.” Lelani shook her head. “Although I didn’t feel that way before.”

  “So I told her that I’d definit
ely have the baby, but that I’d probably adopt it to a loving family.”

  “And?”

  “She fell totally apart.”

  “Oh.”

  Megan looked at the kitchen clock. “Well, I better get to work. Cynthia’s gone this week and Vera has been stressing over absolutely everything. I wouldn’t dare be one minute late lest she fly into a rage.”

  “Despite the fact that she makes you work overtime?”

  Megan made a half smile. “But, oh, I’m so lucky to have this job.” She imitated Vera’s voice. “‘Hundreds of young women would love to be in your shoes, Megan.’” Megan looked down at her Cole Haan loafers. “Of course, Vera would then make fun of my practical shoes and suggest I wear something a bit more stylish.”

  “You lucky girl!” teased Lelani.

  Still, as Megan walked to work, she did feel lucky. Or maybe just blessed. And as the morning sun shone down, Megan felt truly optimistic for the day ahead. Oh, sure, Vera could be a witch. What else was new? But this was one of those rare late-winter days with hints of spring in the air. The plum trees that lined Bloomberg Place had burst into pale pink blooms, and the sunny faces of daffodils were making their cheerful appearances. Spring had always seemed a promising time of year to Megan. New life, freshness, the hope of things to come.

  Of course, that’s probably not how Kendall felt these days. Despite the new life that was growing within her, Kendall seemed more confused and worried and troubled than ever. And why shouldn’t she be? A surge of empathy rushed through Megan. Poor Kendall!

  As Megan turned onto Main Street, she felt a stab of guilt for not being kinder and more understanding toward her perplexing friend. Naturally, she couldn’t help but disapprove of Kendall’s lifestyle and choices. But at the same time, she should be careful not to condemn her. And she did want to help Kendall. But how? Often it seemed that Megan’s words only irritated her. And for that reason, Megan had been trying to keep her mouth shut. Really, other than praying for Kendall, there seemed little Megan could do.

  As Megan got closer to the design firm, she spied the homeless lady who often waited for her. By now Megan knew that her name was Margie. But she hadn’t been around much during the past few weeks.

  “Hello,” called Margie, grinning widely to expose her missing tooth.

  “Where have you been?” asked Megan as she fished inside her bag. She usually kept a couple dollars or McDonald’s gift certificates handy, but since Margie had been gone, she’d gotten out of the habit.

  “I’ve been sick.”

  “Really?” Megan extracted a five from her wallet.

  “I stayed at the shelter for a while. A lady there took me to the free clinic and they gave me some medicine.”

  “So you’re okay now?”

  “Oh, yes. And darn glad to be out of that nasty shelter.” She frowned. “So noisy and dirty in there. I can’t stand it.”

  Megan had never asked Margie too much about herself. In fact, Margie had never said this much before. “So … where do you stay now?”

  Margie gave her a mysterious smile. “Oh, you know … here and there.”

  Megan handed her the five.

  “Oh, God bless you, dear child!” cried Margie.

  “God bless you too.”

  Megan entered the design firm, a lavishly decorated place with expensive furnishings, authentic art, and pretty much useless accessories. Not for the first time, she noted the sharp contrast between this fancy place and poor old Margie’s world. To be honest, Megan sometimes felt totally disgusted by the entire decorating business—so much money wasted on making someone’s overly priced home into a showplace. But then, it had never been Megan’s career goal to land here. Hopefully she would secure a teaching job by next fall. In the meantime, she was thankful to be gainfully employed. Certainly, she wasn’t getting rich. But she made enough to pay her bills.

  As Megan hung up her coat, she noticed Margie still standing on the sidewalk out front, gazing up at the sky with an expression of wonder and delight. Megan wondered why it was that some sweet people like Margie wound up homeless, while others like mean Vera Craig ended up rich. Although to be fair, Margie seemed content with her lot in life. Compared to grumpy Vera, Margie seemed downright happy. Go figure.

  Megan went straight to work on a floor plan that Vera wanted finished by two o’clock so that she could present it to Helen Ferguson. So far it was coming along just fine. But a little before noon, Megan’s phone rang. To her surprise it was Kendall—and she sounded extremely distraught.

  “I need help!” cried Kendall.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I’m—I’m in trouble.”

  Okay, that went without saying, but what did Kendall really mean? “What is going on?” Megan spoke slowly and clearly. “What happened, Kendall?”

  “I need you to come home”—Kendall broke into fresh sobs—“right now!”

  Megan glanced at the clock. It wasn’t quite time for her lunch break, but this sounded dire. “Okay. I’m on my way.”

  Megan grabbed her bag and her coat and headed out to the reception area.

  “Early lunch?” Ellen, the receptionist, frowned at her.

  “Kind of an emergency. But I’ll make up the time.”

  “I’m sure that Vera will be pleased to hear that.” Ellen tossed a warning look.

  Megan felt sure that Ellen wouldn’t tell on her, although if Vera asked, Ellen would probably be honest. Megan pushed those thoughts from her head as she hurried out and jogged the six blocks back to 86 Bloomberg Place.

  She was about halfway there when she realized that she should’ve gotten more information from Kendall. Perhaps Kendall was having some kind of medical emergency—maybe something was wrong with the baby. But in that case she would’ve called 9-1-1. Or maybe it wasn’t that serious. Maybe she just wanted Megan to drive her to the doctor’s or the hospital. Fortunately Kendall had a car, since Megan did not.

  Then Megan wondered why Kendall hadn’t called Lelani instead. They seemed to be closer. But Lelani was harder to reach at Nordstrom. Employees weren’t supposed to take personal calls while on duty. But what about Anna? Kendall could’ve called her. And Anna did have a car.

  In a crazy way, Megan felt honored that Kendall would call her in a time of crisis. She just had no idea what to expect once she got home. So Megan prayed as she jogged the last block. And, with a sharp pain in her side, Megan hurried into the house to find Kendall sitting in the living room. Still in her bathrobe, she had Tinkerbell in her lap and tears running down her cheeks.

  “What’s wrong?” Megan asked breathlessly as she sat down on the sectional next to Kendall. “Are you okay?”

  “No. I’m not okay.”

  “What is it?” Megan placed a hand on Kendall’s arm. “Is something wrong with the baby?”

  “No, that’s not it.”

  “What is it then?”

  “I’m broke.”

  Megan’s hand slipped off Kendall’s arm and she sat up straighter and just stared at Kendall. “Huh?”

  “I’m broke and a debt collector just showed up and—and it was horrible!”

  “That’s why you called me at work?” Okay, as kind and understanding as Megan had wanted to be earlier this morning, as sympathetic as she’d been feeling toward Kendall, as much as she’d prayed for her, Megan wanted to throttle her! Kendall had sounded like she was having a life-and-death emergency—and she had called Megan at work simply because she was broke? Like that was big news? Since when had Kendall not been broke? They all knew that her finances were a complete and nearly hopeless disaster. That’s why she’d taken in renters to start with. Good grief!

  “I—I just thought you could help me,” sobbed Kendall. “You’re so—so sensible.”

  “What is i
t you thought I could possibly do?” Megan knew that her voice sounded harsh and angry. Okay, she was angry. This was ridiculous! Besides, hadn’t she already attempted to help Kendall sort out this mess? Hadn’t she helped her to start making the minimum payments and suggested ways to consolidate her bills? But Kendall hadn’t listened. Instead she’d gone out and accumulated even more debt. In her pathetic attempt to snag Matthew, she’d opened additional high-interest-rate accounts and made more ridiculous purchases. Some things she hadn’t even used. Not to mention buying all the accessories for her dog. And while they all thought Tinkerbell was cute, they also questioned the sensibility in the additional expense of feeding—not to mention clothing—a pet.

  “I don’t know what you can do.” Kendall turned and looked at Megan with watery blue eyes. “I just thought you might have some ideas. You’re so much smarter at this stuff than me. What do you think I should do?”

  Megan knew what she’d like to tell Kendall to do. But then she remembered that she was a Christian and she was supposed to be patient, kind, loving.… So she took a long, deep breath and steadied herself. “Fine. At least you’re willing to admit that you’re broke, Kendall. They say the first step to recovery is acknowledging you have a problem.”

  “I have a problem,” Kendall said in a tiny voice.

  “You have a lot of problems.”

  Kendall nodded sadly. “I know.”

  Of course, Megan doubted she could help Kendall with all of her problems. In fact, Megan felt doubtful she could help her mixed-up housemate with much of anything. Really, only God could help someone like Kendall. But then Megan spied one of Kendall’s latest shopping conquests, an absurdly expensive Hermès bag that she’d gotten on sale after the holidays, now lying on the floor by the coat rack like a discarded piece of rubbish.

  “I think I’m getting an idea.” Megan remembered how her mother used to entice her to help with spring cleaning with the offer of a little extra cash.

  “What is it?” Kendall looked up hopefully.

  “We’ll have a garage sale.”

  “A garage sale?” Kendall looked disappointed. “Are you serious?”

  “Totally.” Megan grinned. “It’s a great way to make some money while you do some spring cleaning.”