“They loved him,” I continued, “and that will never end. Ten years from now, twenty years from now, they’ll still love a ten-year-old boy who was a part of their lives. He’ll never really be gone because he lives on in his family. And now, he lives on in me. Because more than anything else I know, just like Justin, I love Timothy Cooper.”
The class sat silent, the girls dabbing at their eyes. I turned about and handed Mrs. Walker my paper. She was crying too. She took it with a nod, her hand trembling. And I returned to my seat. Then Tim stretched his hand across the aisle and took mine. He lifted it to his lips and kissed it.
“Taylor Lawton,” he said.
The class swiveled their heads.
I gazed into his blue eyes, uncertain what came next.
“I love you.”
CHAPTER 12
I love Timothy Cooper, and Timothy Cooper loves me. He said so in front of the entire class. The bell rang minutes later, and he and I left together, his arm around my shoulder, my head leaning back on his chest.
I was stopped three times in the hallway by people telling me how beautiful my report was, and Mrs.Walker said I’d gotten an A. It wasn’t until we’d gotten to Tim’s car that I started wondering what he’d written about me.
You know me. I had to ask. “So what did you write?”
He smiled. “You want to read it?”
I did, but he’d turned the paper in, so I figured I wouldn’t get to.
“Yes,” I said instead.
He reached over the seat and fetched his book; from inside he pulled a paper. “Here.”
I stared at it and stared at him. “Didn’t you turn it in?” I asked.
He nodded. “Yes, but I made a copy.”
I unfolded the sheet and leaned back. The vinyl was warm from the afternoon sun.
“Read it out loud,” he said.
I looked long and hard at his cramped handwriting before I began. “Taylor Lawton spent a lot of time looking at me and not speaking to me, and I don’t know why I ignored her for so long. Maybe it’s because I’m male.”
I laughed at him. He waved me on.
“She seems to blame a lot of things on males, and mostly she’s right. I did want to see down her shirt when she tried to get her phone.”
I started giggling, my hand over my mouth. He tapped the page.
“She was right about that,” I continued. “I also checked up on her because I’m male. I wanted to know where she lived and what she did after school. I thought she was pretty. When she sprained her ankle, I picked her up and carried her into my house because I am male. I was taking advantage of the situation for my personal pleasure. I then furthered my male intentions by tricking her into swimming in the pool.”
I stopped short. “You tricked me? I tricked you.”
He laughed. “It’s all in your perspective. In any case, you won that one. Didn’t you?”
I grinned. I did. He turned into a complete sap that day.
“Keep reading,” he said.
“What would I change about Taylor Lawton. Nothing. I love her quirks as much as her perfections. To look at her, she is faultless. To kiss her is sublime. To argue with her, complete frustration, yet I like her that way.”
“What would I keep about Taylor Lawton? What would I write about? The way her hair looks in the morning when she wanders into the kitchen. The way she laughs when I’m being not funny at all. Her humility – that she has no idea how great she is or why anyone else would think so. Her gentle heart, that she held my hand as I told her about the worst day of my life.”
My throat closed up again, and tears pushed at my eyelids.
“Taylor Lawton is the best thing that ever happened to me, and someday I will make her my wife.”
I gasped. “You … you wrote that? To … to the teacher?”
He smiled. “Yes.”
“Timothy Cooper!” I said, and I climbed into his lap, facing backwards, my back on the steering wheel.
He was laughing at me, but I didn’t care.
“You’re the best, the best, the best, the best.” And I kissed him right there, windows open, students milling about.
Me and Timothy Cooper making out in the school parking lot.
EPILOGUE
Two years, six months later
“So are you ready to find out?” Brianna smiled down at Tim and me from her position by the ultrasound machine.
Tim gripped my hand tighter. “I’m ready,” he said.
“Me too,” I chimed.
She lifted my shirt and pulled down my stretchy pants to reveal the mound that was now my belly. The gel was cold and squishy as she swirled it around.
“I can’t believe they let you have time off,” she said to Tim.
His eyes sparkled. “Are you kidding? They shoved me out the door.”
“He’s been given a position here,” I chirped. I was especially happy about that. The thought of days and days without seeing him made my heart ache. Boot camp had been hard enough.
“That’s super,” Brianna said. “What’ll you be doing?”
“Paperwork,” he laughed.
She moved the sensor around over my skin and settled on one particular location. The steady swish-swish-swish echoed through the monitors.
“Is that …?” I asked.
She nodded. “That’s your baby.” She then slid the sensor left and angled it, her brows drawn up. I guess she was concentrating.
“Can you see what it is?” My own heartbeat sped up; I wanted to know so badly.
“Well, what do you want it to be?” she asked.
I turned my face sideways toward Tim, and he laid his head down on my shoulder. Nose-to-nose, heads inverted, we stared at each other. I loved this man more than the whole world and only cared the baby was his. He smiled at me.
“You are both so cute,” Brianna said. “Have you picked out a name?”
“Justin,” we both said at once.
Brianna chuckled. No one was surprised by that. “And if it’s a girl?”
“It’s not.” Tim kissed my nose as he said it. “A man knows these things.”
“So it’s because you’re male?” I replied.
“Yep.”
“Well, could be you’re right,” Brianna said.
I gave a squeal. “A boy? Really?”
She nodded. “It’s a boy, but that’s not all.”
My face stilled and my pulse pounded in my ears. “Wh-what do you mean?”
Tim lifted his head. “Yeah, Bri, what do you mean?”
“Parrots. If you two get any more alike, you’ll be become twins.”
The word shot through my being and into my toes. “Twins? You’re kidding, right?”
She shook her head. “They do train me to use these things, you know. You’re having a boy and a girl.”
I shot up on the table, gel sliding down onto my clothes. “But … but we’re not prepared, and that means twice as much stuff. And I haven’t gotten a name picked out, and …”
Tim laid a hand over my mouth. He was way calmer than I was. “I have one,” he said. He lifted his hand and smoothed my hair from my face. He pressed me back flat on the table.
“You … you do?”
“Mmmhmm.”
“What would that be Mr. Cooper?”
“It’s Private Cooper,” he said. “And Mrs. Cooper, it’s the best name ever.”
Brianna began to clean up the mess she’d made on my belly.
“What then?”
I hadn’t any idea what he was thinking. We’d gotten married exactly two years after we first spoke, just like he said we would. Half our old classmates attended. Lisa Maiton was my maid of honor. She and I became fast friends our senior year. And Eric was the best man.
I’d become pregnant within one month. Me and Timothy Cooper were having a baby. Now, here we were expecting twins. Our parents would flip.
He kissed my lips softly. “Southern.”
A smile spread wid
e on my face. “It’s perfect,” I breathed.
“I know,” he said. “I thought of it.”
And we all started to laugh.
FROM THE AUTHOR
I wrote this story as an exercise in short story writing. I had a general idea of a first person-third person meshed point of view, something I have used before, and the perception to make it a YA (young adult) story involving teenagers.
Other than those two things, I did not plan one thing about this tale. It simply flowed out of me over the period of a week. I saw halfway through exactly what was happening and where it was going. So when I arrived at the scene where Taylor is forced to read her paper, I knew what she would say and how Tim would react.
I have said when an author is writing a scene, write what makes you uncomfortable. If you feel emotions, then the reader will as well. Well, I cried at that scene, bawled like a baby and then told my best author friend I did so. Some stories move you more than others, they touch a place in your heart that leaves you forever changed.
I am proud of all my work, each book or tale I have written. But this story goes down as one of my absolute best. I hope you agree with me.
God bless,
Suzanne D. Williams
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Suzanne D. Williams is a native Floridian, wife, mother, and dachshund owner who loves photography and writing. She writes a monthly column for Steves-Digicams.com on the subject of digital photography. She also does graphic design for self-publishing authors.
To contact Suzanne and read her latest work visit: http://suzanne-williams-photography.blogspot.com
or on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/suzannedwilliamsauthor
Also by Suzanne D. Williams:
Nonfiction:
Fearless - Suzanne's testimony of freedom from fear
http://www.amazon.com/Fearless-ebook/dp/B004T4LO5S/
Life, God, and Photography, Volume 1
http://www.amazon.com/Life-God-and-Photography-ebook/dp/B005UCWDMG
Short Stories:
It All Began With A Salad (The Amanda Series #1)
http://www.amazon.com/Began-Salad-Amanda-Series-ebook/dp/B006FX7126
Playing With Fire (The Amanda Series #2)
http://www.amazon.com/Playing-With-Amanda-Series-ebook/dp/B0080WWCCE
Christmas Angel: A Murder Mystery Novella
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A4N7CKO
Me & Timothy Cooper: A Novella
Fiction:
MISSING (The Sanders Saga #1)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008DFT1VS
FOUND (The Sanders Saga #2)
http://www.amazon.com/FOUND-Sanders-Family-Series-ebook/dp/B009UC91DQ
Upcoming Fiction Novels:
Love & Redemption (The Florida Irish Series #1)
Visit my blog to read the PROLOGUE: http://suzanne-williams-photography.blogspot.com/2012/12/love-redemption-florida-irish-series-1.html
Life & Deliverance (The Florida Irish Series #2)
Faith & Forgiveness (The Florida Irish Series#3)
For Eternity (Time-Travel Romance #1)
Crossing Eternity (Time-Travel Romance #2)
Maire’s Song (Children of the Irish Series #1)
If you have enjoyed this novella, please support the author by leaving a book review at Amazon and Goodreads. Thank you!
Me & Timothy Cooper Page 6
