“I’ll let it go when I’m sure that you’re not getting special treatment because your brother is screwing your advisor.”
Only the knowledge that another fight would ruin everything that his dad and Kurt planned stopped Sam from giving him a bloody nose.
He turned around and started walking.
“You walking away, Holland?” Garrett taunted. When Sam ignored him, his voice rose. “So I’m right? You are getting special treatment?”
Just as he was about to throw his future away, a teacher walked out in the hall and started chewing on Garrett.
Sam grinned when he realized it was Mrs. Filmore, who was as old as the school and mean, too. When he heard her say “detention,” it was all he could do not to start laughing.
He continued to smile as he walked out the back of the school to where the cheerleaders were. He heard them before he saw them. They were all in a line and following one of the seniors through some complicated dance routine.
He watched for ten minutes. Long enough to admire Kayla in those shorts and long enough for her to catch sight of him and smile. But after another five minutes, it was obvious that she wasn’t going to be getting done anytime soon. After making sure she had a way home, he walked back to the parking lot.
Only when he got into his truck did he allow his problems to resurface. Both his grades, the vocabulary, and the fact that Kurt hadn’t seen the need to tell him about hitting Garrett’s father.
That’s when all the stress in his life rolled back into his chest and threatened to suffocate him.
There were some days when he wasn’t sure if he was ever going to make it through the week, let alone the school year and getting into college with a scholarship.
Then there were days like today, when he would give just about anything if he could get on the highway and start driving back home.
CHAPTER 19
FROM LES LARKE’S
TIPS FOR BEGINNING POKER PLAYERS:
Play against opponents worse than you. If you only play against tournament winners, you’ll always be the loser. That won’t help your game!
There were twelve checkout lines at Walmart. Clerks were only at two of them. Looking at his cart, which was full to overbrimming, Kurt shifted and looked restlessly around him. He was sore, covered in sweat and grime, and he was pretty sure he’d gotten a blister on one of his heels from his new work boots.
And then there was the new mower he’d put a bid on. The seller was supposed to have given him an answer that morning, but here it was four o’clock, and he’d still not responded.
It was frustrating.
He really needed that mower. If he could get it, then he could hire another two guys and pick up some jobs.
Which meant that he’d have an even better cushion in the bank account to get through the winter.
As the customer three people in front of him finally swiped a credit card and went on her way, Kurt rolled his cart forward another couple of inches. He half prayed that the next person in line would simply pay for his items and not feel like chatting to the clerk about the weather.
His phone ringing was a welcome relief.
“Hey, Dad,” he said. “What’s up?”
“Hello, Kurt,” his father said quietly, his voice sounding thicker than usual. “I didn’t think I’d catch you on the phone. Thought you’d still be working since it wasn’t near five o’clock yet.”
Kurt heard the criticism in father’s tone but tried to ignore it. “I’ve told you I usually stop this time of day. I’m at the building by seven or seven thirty most mornings.” He stopped himself from saying what was really on his mind, which was if his dad hadn’t expected him to pick up, why did he call in the first place?
“What are you doing now, Son?”
Worry started traipsing up his spine. “I’m standing in line at Walmart. Why? Do you need something?” He looked around, tempted to pull out of line so he could concentrate on his dad’s words. Maybe he was sick or something?
“Since it ain’t too convenient for you to bring me home some TV dinners, I’ll say no.”
His father had just made a joke. He sort of felt like trotting out one of the doors of the supercenter to see if the sky was still intact.
His father hadn’t called to chew on him. No, he’d simply called to say hello. “How are you, Dad?”
“Pretty good. Ace stopped by to see me last night. He said y’all had a real good time together over there in Cincinnati.”
“Yessir, we did.”
“I heard y’all played some poker, too.”
“We did. There ended up being six of us. We played Texas Hold’em in the garage.”
“You found yourself that many men?”
“Yessir. It wasn’t a crowd, but it was good enough.”
“You win anything?”
“Nah. We kept a limit on the betting so nobody lost more than twenty bucks. We had a good time though. That’s what mattered.”
“Sounds like a real good time. Sorry I missed it.”
He was? Impulsively, he said, “I was thinking about hosting another game in two weeks. You should come up for it.”
“Is Ace coming back then?”
No way was Kurt going to share what Ace had told him about Liz and Finn. “I don’t think so, but I’m not sure,” he hedged. “But even if he stays back, you could come. If you wanted to, that is. You know we’d love to see you.”
As his dad waited to answer, the line moved up again. The woman in front of him was setting her things on the conveyor like she worked on the line. He was going to get on out of there in no time.
Finally his dad spoke again. “You got room in your place for your old man?”
“You know I do.”
“I’ll think about it, then.”
Kurt knew he wasn’t going to get any more of an assurance than that. “All right. Good enough.”
“How’s Sam doing at his fancy new school?”
“Well enough, I reckon.”
“That boy, you really think he’s going to make something of himself, don’t you?”
For the first time he could remember Kurt heard hope in his father’s voice. “Yeah, Dad. I really do. I can’t help but think that God gave him that brain for a reason.”
“Maybe He did at that.” He coughed. “I better get on my way and let you get to your grocery shopping.”
“Yessir.” Kurt opened his mouth to tell him something more—he wasn’t sure what—but his father ended the call.
“You about ready?” the checkout girl asked.
“Huh? Oh, yeah.” Reaching over, he started laying the items on the conveyor belt, feeling both melancholy and hopeful about the future.
***
He would have given anything to feel half as hopeful an hour later. Sam was in a snit and was bound and determined to make sure Kurt got that way, too.
The kid had been laying on the couch when he got home and acted like it had been an inconvenience to help unload all the groceries. His attitude hadn’t gotten any better when Kurt had told him to finish putting everything away while he showered.
And now Sam was eating a can of soup and a roast beef sandwich with a big frown on his face. Honestly, the kid was acting like the simple supper was a huge disappointment, like he was used to someone cooking up meat with two sides.
“Wanna tell me what’s going on with you?” Kurt asked after he rinsed his dish and set in on the counter to dry.
“Nothing.”
That one word had been spit out like a curse word—and grated on him something fierce. “How about you try that again?”
Sam scraped his chair back. “Why do you even care?”
Where did that come from? Confusion and irritation matched with a real good dose of exhaustion and worry caused Kurt’s tone to harden.
“It might have slipped your mind but I’m real new at this parenting stuff so I don’t know how I’m supposed to answer that. Except to remind you that I’m your brother. That’s why I care.”
“I didn’t ask you to try to be my parent.”
“Well, someone had to be since our father decided to take an early retirement.” He leaned forward. “And don’t start acting like this arrangement is a surprise or that we didn’t talk about it either. ’Cause we did before we moved and since we got here, too.”
“I didn’t say it was a surprise.”
“I know you didn’t, ’cause you haven’t said anything worthwhile since I walked in the door.” Just as he was about to tell his little brother exactly what he thought about that, he got a good look at Sam’s eyes.
Shoot. The kid looked like he was about to start crying.
He stood up, thought about a beer, then decided on a glass of cold water. After drinking about half, he sat down on one of the other kitchen chairs. “Sam, when I was your age, I had Mom. She made chicken-fried steak, she did the grocery shopping, and she always acted like doing laundry and looking after us was something special.”
He sighed, hating to bring up the memories but knowing that it was important. “Dad worked at the mine. He was a lot younger so I don’t remember him complaining about his back so much. I do remember that he worked with Ace’s dad and they went fishing every chance they could get.”
Sam didn’t say anything, but everything in his body language showed that he was listening intently.
So Kurt continued. “And me? Well, I went to school. I wasn’t all that good at it. But I was pretty good at football. Not like Troy or even Ace, but good enough to be on varsity for three years. That was high school for me. I knew I wasn’t going to go to college.”
“’Cause we didn’t have the money.”
“You’re right. We didn’t. But it wouldn’t have mattered if we had. I didn’t want to go. I had just always planned on making money outside instead of in the middle of the earth.” He paused, then continued. “What I’m trying to say is that I had a different life than you do. I’m trying to understand what you’re going through, but I don’t always know. You’ve got to talk to me.”
Something in Sam’s posture changed. “Do you ever wish you weren’t here?”
“Hell, yeah.”
His eyes widened. “Really?”
“Of course, really. Life is different here. The people are different.” He thought about that, then corrected himself. “Or maybe it’s just that they like different things.”
“Some of ’em are spoiled.”
“Yeah. Maybe that’s it … or maybe not.” He shrugged. “Maybe it’s just that I miss my friends. I miss hanging out with people I’ve known all my life, just like I know you do.”
“The guys back at home are all playing ball and having field parties.”
“I know you miss playing football. I know you miss Coleman and the rest of your crew. But, things here are also real good, Sam.”
“You mean that, don’t you?”
Kurt nodded. “Just because it hasn’t been easy doesn’t mean I hate it. But some days are hard. I mean, I know jack about running my own business. If I didn’t have Troy helping me out I probably would be having a heck of a time already working on my loan.”
“I could help you out more.”
He shook his head. “You already work twelve hours a week for me. If I need you more, I’ll let you know. Look, I didn’t say all that because I thought you needed to be reminded about Mom and Dad. I said it all because I’m trying to get you to remember that I don’t have a clue about any of what you are going through. My life was real different. I had both parents and my goals were smaller. But that doesn’t mean I don’t care or want to help you if I can.”
“Kurt, I’m okay.”
“I know you aren’t. But this doesn’t work if you don’t talk to me.”
Sam leaned back his head. Then, like he was about to divulge a terrible secret, he sighed. “Fine. First off, I’m making a B in English. Miss Springer called me back after the bell and talked to me about my grades.”
“Is a B bad? I always thought Bs were pretty good.” They’d been really good in his world.
“Bs are all right for most people. Not me, though. I need to get into college.”
“You will.” Thinking of all the letters and brochures Sam received every day in the mail, he said, “Colleges have already started scouting you out.”
“Kurt, I need to get a full scholarship to college and I’m not playing sports so it needs to be academic. And Bs don’t cut it. I need to get straight As.”
“What does Emily say you need to do?”
“Miss Springer volunteered to start tutoring me. She thinks my vocabulary is low.”
“Then you better let her tutor you, Sam.”
His brother hung his head.
“What else is going on?”
“School is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be,” Sam said hesitantly. “I’m doing okay in everything else, but I’ve got to study, like, all the time. It’s like I’ve got gaps that need to be filled in.”
“Nothing wrong with studying.”
“You don’t understand. I’m having to teach myself stuff everyone else around here already learned. And it’s only October. If I don’t get better, I’m going to be making Bs in everything and I won’t get into college at all.”
Kurt’s head was spinning. Never had he imagined that the school year would be anything but a walk in the park for his little brother. “Want me to talk to the principal about it? Or Emily?”
“No. Miss Springer is my advisor and I’m seventeen. I can talk to her on my own. I … well, I just haven’t known how to tell you.” Looking like he was afraid Kurt was going to start storming around the room, Sam said, “Are you mad?”
“What? Hell, no.”
“Promise?” His voice was tentative.
“I promise, Sam,” he said, hoping he sounded even more positive. “Now, is there anything else on your mind?”
“Yeah.” Sam stood up and carried his dishes to the counter. “Then I got in an argument with Garrett.”
“Another one? Sam, I told you to give him space.”
“That was kind of hard to do since he was bound and determined to tell me that his dad was going to raise hell with the school about you.”
“Me?”
“It seems that Garrett’s dad is real sure I got special treatment because you’re screwing Miss Springer.”
Seeing red, Kurt rose to his feet. “You better apologize right now, Sam. That ain’t no way to talk about your teachers or the woman I’m dating.”
Sam rolled his eyes. “I didn’t say those words, Garrett did. I was too busy staring at him like an idiot because you didn’t tell me that you hit his father on Sunday night.”
And just like that, the tables were neatly turned, and he was the one on the defensive. “I was hoping you wouldn’t find out about that.”
“If you didn’t think word would get around then you’re smoking crack. Of course everyone’s going to be talking about it. This town is small, and everybody gossips like they get paid to do it.”
Kurt couldn’t disagree with that. “Don’t worry about Garrett’s father or the rumors. I’ll fix it.”
“I don’t know how. The damage’s been done.”
Kurt realized then what he was going to have to do. He was going to have to cool things off with Emily for a while. It wasn’t fair to make his brother deal with that crap.
It was going to hurt but they’d done too much in order for Sam to have these opportunities.
“Yeah,” he said lightly. “You’re probably right.” He picked up the pot and started rinsing it out.
Sam stared at him. “Are you mad I told you?”
/> “Mad? No. Not at all. I should’ve told you about that argument with Mr. Condon. I didn’t because I was embarrassed. And, if you want to know the truth, I wasn’t all that sorry about it either. You and me ain’t all that different when it comes to handling bad situations.”
Sam stared at him for a moment. Then, to Kurt’s surprise, he started grinning. “Guess you can take the Hollands out of West Virginia, but we’re still just two hicks at the end of the day.”
Kurt laughed. “Maybe you’re right, kid. So, is there anything else we need to talk about? Might as well get it all out now.”
“Besides struggling in school for the first time in my life, feeling guilty because I may not do what you moved your whole life here for me to do, and feeling squidgy because asshole kids are talking about my brother screwing my teacher? I’m good.”
“Not that it is any of your business, but Emily and I have not been screwing around.”
Sam groaned. “TMI!”
Feeling his cheeks heat, Kurt forced himself to continue. “What I’m trying to say is that I respect her. I respect Emily enough to take things slow. All I’ve done is kiss her.” Of course some of that kissing had been on the heated side …
Sam wrinkled his nose. “I really don’t want updates on this. Like, ever.”
“Understood. I don’t intend to tell you any more. I just, well, I started thinking about you and Kayla.” And he was remembering that “respect” wasn’t always the main thing on his mind when he’d been dating in high school.
Sam groaned. “Kayla and I are taking things slow, too. Real slow. Like, glacially slow.”
“If you ever need to talk or …”
“I don’t. Believe it or not, Dad already had that talk with me.”
“No way.” Kurt hadn’t thought their father would’ve taken the time to discuss girls with his brother. All of a sudden, memories from that long-ago conversation hit him hard. He couldn’t resist grinning. “Did he bring up vegetables?”
“Oh, yeah. I couldn’t look at an ear of corn for two months.”
Kurt started laughing. Then laughed so hard he couldn’t even sit up. When he finally caught his breath enough to look at Sam, his little brother was grinning like he used to do when he’d won a slew of tickets at the county fair.
Take a Chance Page 13
