Lost

by Christina Draper

  I hugged him tightly. I loved my friends dearly. The kids too. But this man gave me something no one else had. He got it, and he told me that it was okay to laugh again.

  “Thank you. Now, come out to lunch with us.” I requested.

  “You’re on.”

  “But... you have an appointment in 45 minutes.” Poor Beezu. She looked confused. “It’s Mrs. Halcourt.”

  “Call her and push it back. Better yet, reschedule it,” Romeo said as he gathered up his things.

  “But it’s Mrs. Halcourt,” Beezu whispered.

  “Beez, call her up and tell her there was an emergency. Tell her I can’t get her in today, and she can either have someone else cut her hair, or give her the first available appointment. Okay?”

  “Okay,” she said quietly. “She’s gonna be mad.”

  Romeo just shook his head and opened the door motioning us out. “That girl is a whiz with hair. Dare I say it, she might be as good as me one day, but her confidence is in the shitter.”

  Bee laughed. “Well, I can’t imagine working for you is good for one’s self esteem.”

  “Woman, shut your mouth. You know I take care of mine.”

  * * *

  We met Amy at Hot Cross Buns, a local coffee shop that always has a lot of fattening treats. Amy remarked on my hair, and I blushed under the attention. We enjoyed the tasty snacks and coffee, we gossiped, we giggled like school girls, and we had a blast! I hadn’t laughed that much in months. And then somehow they convinced me to hit Sephora for a makeover. Even though I kept telling them that I would never be able to replicate the look, I ended up buying everything the pretty, young salesgirl put on my face. I was more of a lipstick and pressed powder type of gal. Heck, the eyeliner I just bought would most likely be used as a pencil at some point.

  We hit a few more shops and bought clothes and other odds and ends, and I even bought a new bikini for the Fourth of July party that Bee decided to have. With Jimmy going to Claudia’s and Carey working, I didn’t see any point in having one at our place, so Bee volunteered.

  Once we were done browsing the shops, we said good-bye to Romeo. I thanked him again for my new look. He smiled with a wink and headed back to the salon.

  The three of us were walking out to our cars. And then we saw it.

  “What the hell is that?” Amy said, pointing to my windshield.

  A message was scrawled in dripping red paint on my windshield.

  HE’S MINE

  “Who could do this? It’s a busy afternoon!” Bee looked upset.

  Me? My husband was dead, and I wasn’t seeing anyone at the moment. On the other hand, my van is easily recognized because of its size. But, it certainly wasn’t the only one in town.

  “Ladies, this is obviously a mistake,” I said calmly.

  “A mistake? Is that what we’re calling it,” Amy looked furious.

  “No, no. I mean someone probably got the wrong car. Look.” I pointed to another van, exactly like mine further out. “I’m not seeing anyone, and I’m a widow for Christ’s sake. What does that even mean? He’s mine?”

  I could see Bee and Amy considering my theory.

  “But... they did screw up my windshield, so let’s call the police and file a report,” I assured them as I pulled my cell phone out of my bag.

  A policeman arrived in just under five minutes, and he started taking our statements. I assured him that I didn’t think I was the intended victim. I wasn’t seeing anyone, had no prospects, and since I was a widow, I didn’t see any point in one of Brian’s exes saying anything now.

  “Ma’am, are you sure you can’t think of anyone that would have done this? Did your husband have an ex-wife? Anyone you can think of. Maybe an ex-girlfriend?”

  “Really, Officer. That’s the last person it would be. I’d been with my husband almost 18 years when he died, and before that, he only had a few relationships—none of which I would call very serious. Certainly no threat to our marriage.”

  “And you?” He indicated Bee and Amy, who were standing off to the side.

  “Well, my car’s right here”—Amy gestured to her gleaming BMW—“and I have vanity plates. So my car is easy to find.”

  “You?” The officer looked at Bee.

  “Me?” Bee was aghast at the accusation. “Nope, I’ve been married for over 20 years. My husband isn’t having an affair.”

  “Are you sure?” The officer pushed.

  “Excuse me?” Bee’s eyebrow went up, and her tone took on an edge. “Do you really think my husband would cheat on this?”

  The officer followed Bee’s hands as it pointed up and down her trim figure. Bee was 43 and looked 25. Nope, Anthony wouldn’t cheat on her. The fact that she was an expert marksman probably had something to do with it too.

  “Well, just in case, we can follow up.” The officer—his name tag said Gainey—obviously wanted to get out of there. I’m sure he had more pressing cases of jaywalking and expired parking meters to attend to.

  I waved it off. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll take it in and have it cleaned up. No harm, no foul.”

  “Julie, are you sure you want to just blow this off?” Amy was always a worrywart.

  “I do. Like I said, I think this was a case of mistaken identity.” I shrugged.

  I called Sam to come pick us up. Sam suggested a car detailing place that we could meet at, and then he could drive us home.

  The officer finished up the paperwork and said he would be in touch if he heard anything. I figured that was the last we would ever see of Officer Gainey.

  * * *

  About ten minutes later and after multiple maneuvers to see around the paint on the windshield, we pulled into the parking lot of Deetz Auto Body and Detailing.

  “Spiffy name,” Bee remarked.

  “You’re such a snob.” I laughed at her.

  I saw Sam pulling in behind us, so I went inside.

  “Hi there. Are you Sam’s mother?” A young man with a shaved head asked.

  “I am. Thanks for letting me bring the car in.”

  “No problem. Sam and I went to school together. He’s a good guy.”

  “He is a good guy. Is this your place?”

  “Me?” The young man laughed. “No, it’s my brother’s. He just lets me work here.”

  “Gotcha. Well, I’m not sure what I do here.”

  He stood up and came over to the counter. “Alright. I’m Tim.” He held out his hand to me. “So what’s the problem? Sam said it was an emergency.”

  “I’m Julie.” I shook his hand. “I don’t think it’s really an emergency, but someone wrote... or painted on my windshield. Obviously, I’d like to get it taken off.”

  “Hey, Tim,” Sam said as he came into the shop. “Thanks again. The car’s out there.”

  Tim followed us outside and spotted my van. “Someone did a number on your windshield. He’s mine, huh?”

  Tim poked and scratched at the paint. “Well the good thing is this is coming right off. Whatever they used looks easy to remove. Sure is ridiculous the way some people act.”

  “I know!” That from Bee, who was standing by Sam’s Jeep. “Bunch of bullshit.”

  Tim nodded. “Right on. I can have it ready for you this afternoon, Mrs. Klevan.”

  “Are you sure?” I asked him. “No rush.”

  “Nope. Not a problem. I’ll get this off and give this baby a thorough cleaning, and you’ll be good to go.”

  I thanked Tim again and filled out the necessary paperwork. I gave him my key and went outside to get in the Jeep. Bee had already tied her hair back with a scarf and was settled in the back seat. I jumped into the passenger side and nodded to Sam that I was ready to go.

  “You really think that was just an accident?” Sam asked pulling into traffic.

  “I think someone picked the wrong green van to scribble on,” I told him. “Honestly, I do. Sorry, guys. I have no mystery guy, and I can’t see it being someone from your dad’s past.”
<
br />   Sam nodded. “Yeah, I agree with that. You and Dad were together for like... ever.”

  “Amy’s car was right there, and Anthony wouldn’t cheat on Bee.” I looked at Sam. “You have something you want to tell us?”

  “Me?” Sam asked incredulously. “No, not me.”

  I smirked and shrugged. “I think it was just bad luck. Once Tim takes care of it, I think that’ll be it.”

  Bee and Sam either agreed with me or sensed I just wanted to drop it. I didn’t see any point in getting upset about something that was no doubt a mistake. It would apparently be easy to get off, so that was that.

  About 15 minutes later, we pulled up to the house.

  “Hey, Bee. Can you take Mom to get her car later when it’s ready?” Sam asked, not getting out of the car.

  “Sure. No problem.” Bee answered as she pulled our bags out of the back of the Jeep.

  “Where are you going?” I asked Sam, and then looked at the time. “OH MY GOD! The girls! I completely lost track of time.”

  “Mom, relax. I have plenty of time to get to the park. It’s no big deal. I was going to take them out for ice cream, if that’s cool?”

  “Yeah, yeah. Thank you so much. I can’t believe I forgot about my babies.”

  Sam laughed, and then backed his car out of the driveway. Bee and I walked up to the front door, and I let us in.

  “God, I’m a crappy mother.” I muttered.

  Bee laughed and shoved me playfully. “Spare me. Remember when I forgot to get Ant off the bus in kindergarten? I just let the bus come and go. I’ve been late picking up Ant after practice I don’t know how many times. It’s fine. Sam’s not even late. Relax.”

  “I know. It just slipped my mind with all this craziness with the van. What a pain in the ass.” I shook my head. “Oh well, at least Tim seems capable.”

  “That he does. So we can just hang out until it’s time to get your car. Now, show me what you bought.”

  * * *

  For the next few hours, we poured over my makeup haul, the hair products we bought at Fusion, and the beautiful summer dresses and bathing suits we bought. At some point, a bottle of wine was cracked open, and before I knew it, kids started pouring into the house.

  “Hey, Mom!” Carey called to me. “You home?”

  “Hey! We’re in here!” I called back.

  He walked into the kitchen, looking tired but satisfied.

  “How was your first day of work?” I asked him while clearing off the table.

  “Awesome!” He smiled as he flopped in his chair. “I actually had a lot of fun. Mr. Carideo’s a lot of fun to work for. He showed me how to make the dough today and how to use the pizza oven. And Mrs. Carideo, who’s huge by the way, came in for a little while and showed me how to run the register. It was all pretty easy.”

  I clapped my hands together, aware that I looked like a total dork. “Yeah!” I gave him a hug. “I’m glad it worked out.”

  “Congratulations!” Bee chimed in. “Your first job’s a big deal.”

  We talked for a little while longer, and then Sam came in with the girls.

  “MOMMY!” The girls called out to me as they ran into the kitchen.

  “Where’s the van?” Maggie asked.

  “Oh, I’m getting it cleaned. It should be ready soon.” I didn’t see any point in telling the girls what happened. I didn’t see a point in telling Carey, to be honest.

  “No, it’s ready Mom.” Sam said.

  “How do you know? I left the home number and my cell.”

  “We drove by. Tim said it was good to go. Hey, Carey, let’s go pick up Mom’s car.” Sam motioned to Carey.

  “Wait!” I called out to the boys. “How much is it?”

  “Oh, duh,” Sam answered. “$240 total.”

  “Wow, detailing’s expensive!” I said, pulling out my wallet. “I don’t have much cash.”

  I walked over to the computer. “I’m just gonna transfer some money to your student account. Okay, Carey? So just use your debit card to pay, alright?”

  Carey nodded and ran upstairs to quickly change. The girls were busy looking at the makeup we had bought, and Bee was helping them apply lipstick. Sam sat down to wait for Carey.

  “Can I talk to you guys for a minute?” He asked.

  “Bee and I? Of course.” I replied as I walked to the table.

  “Hey, monkeys, can you give us a minute?” Sam gave each of the girls quick hugs, thereby guaranteeing they would do anything he asked. They gave him kisses and ran out of the room.

  I sat down. “What’s up?”

  “Umm... I feel weird, but Karie and I agreed that we should say something.”

  “Say what?” Bee perked up when she heard her daughter’s name.

  “Well, I ran into Karie at school when I was signing up for classes, and we decided to get some coffee. And well—”

  I knew my son. “She’s the girl you’ve been spending your time with, isn’t she?”

  “She is. Is that okay? I really like her.” Sam looked down at the table, awaiting our response.

  I waited until Bee weighed in on this one.

  “I’m cool with it, as long as you two realize that we’ve all been friends a long time. If you guys blow this, it’s between the two of you. Don’t drag us or your mom into it. Cool?”

  I nodded, agreeing. “I’m with Bee. You and Karie are both old enough to realize that some things stay between the two people involved. This isn’t high school, where you drag everyone around into your drama. You guys are both adults, and we expect you to act like adults.”

  Sam nodded. I could tell he understood, but he still looked worried.

  “I know you guys are all close, like family, and I want you to know I wouldn’t have even said anything to you if this wasn’t serious.”

  I closed my eyes, and took a deep breath. Serious?

  “Serious like Dad and I serious? Or serious like puppy love serious?” I prodded.

  He thought for a minute, unsure how to answer. “Well, we aren’t talking about marriage. I’ll say that much. I’m only 20. Karie’s 21. But we are having a nice time together. It isn’t just ’all about fun’ as Dad used to say. We have a lot in common. She makes me laugh. And she knew Dad. That’s really cool because she seems to get it. She understands my moods and knows when to back off and give me some space.”

  He stopped for a moment, and then continued, “Dad told me that when I found someone that sensed what I needed, I should take notice. He said that’s rare, and if you find it, consider yourself lucky. Dad said he had that with you. That’s how he knew you were the one.”

  Bee started to say something, but Sam interjected, “Hold on, Mrs. B. I’m not saying Karie and I are fated to be together or anything like that. I’m just saying that I think there is something special here, and because of that, I felt I should say something out of respect to you and Mr. A... and Mom.”

  My breath caught—not because I was worried about Sam and Karie, but because I was single. I wasn’t part of a unit. Sam didn’t say “Mom and Dad.” He said “Mom” because I was no longer a part of a unit.

  Bee went first. “Well. I think your dad was right. That’s one way I knew Anthony was the one. He got me. It was almost like he knew what I needed. Occasionally, it was eerie how well he seemed to anticipate my needs.”

  Bee stopped and stared at me. I sensed what she wanted to say, but I knew she didn’t want to step on my toes.

  So I spoke. “Relationships take work. I know your dad told you that too. You’ll argue. You’ll have disagreements. You’ll fight. You’ll cry, scream, and then you’ll make a choice. You’ll either man up and realize that all of that goes along with the territory, or you’ll pussy out and give up. If you think this is something you’re willing to man up about, we’ll be happy for the two of you. If, at the first sign of problems, you do pussy out or hightail in the opposite direction, just know that I’m going to ask you to end things to avoid compromising the f
riendships involved.”

  Maybe that was harsh, but I knew that’s exactly what Brian would have said. Growing up without siblings, Brian valued his relationships with Anthony and Ben. They were the brothers he never had. Bee and Amy were the sisters-in-law he would have wanted. He wouldn’t want anything to mess that up.

  Bee added, “And if this means that much, the idea of walking away will hurt your heart. If it doesn’t, walking away will just hurt your pride. But I feel safe in saying this, I think we trust you guys to know the difference.”

  “I understand. And we’ve thought of all that. Karie and I wanted to talk to you about it at the party, but since you were both here—well, we might get into our first fight over this one, when she finds out I talked to you both without her.”

  I laughed. “You’re probably right about that.”

  “I care about her. It feels different, and I would—no, we would like to pursue this.”

  Bee and I looked at each other, something passed between us.

  “Okay” was all I said.

  “You’re sure?”

  “Are you?” I looked him dead in the eye, searching for indecision.

  “I am.” He stared right back.

  “Well, okay. That’s that! Now, call her and tell her to come over tonight!” Bee ordered. Guess we were having dinner at her place.

  * * *

  “You told them?” Karie asked when Sam answered the door. She had come to our house first.

  “Well, hello to you too!” Sam said.

  “No, nope, no way. You aren’t charming your way out of this one, Sam Klevan,” Karie said from the porch.

  Oh yeah. This was serious.

  “I’m not trying to. I’m sorry—”

  “No! You know I wanted to be there. Mom and Dad, your mom... they deserved that. Now, I look like some little bitch...” She trailed off.

  Sam shook his head and attempted to hug her. She let him put his arms around her, but didn’t return the gesture.

  “No, Karie. You don’t. I told our moms that we meant to do this together. I just thought since I had the chance, maybe we wanted to tell them before we told your dad.”