by Morrel, Amy
“They said it exploded because you didn't do maintenance on it?”
“No” she sobbed, “they just told me it exploded and started the fire. Why else would it explode though?”
“Let me see now. It could have been faulty workmanship, age, a poor quality heater, a leak in the fuel line, there are any number of reasons it might have exploded. There are far more reasons that aren't due to you being negligent than there are that would be your fault.”
“Just how would you know any of that?”
“I work for a construction company. We build houses and install heaters in them. I have a passing familiarity with them.”
“Really, it might not have been my fault?” Margaret glanced up at him.
“Really, there are a lot of possibilities. I'm not saying it wasn't your fault but if they didn't tell you that it exploded due to lack of maintenance, then it could have been any number of reasons.”
Margaret finally leaned towards Greg, seeking the comforting embrace that he had so recently been offering. He put his arms around her and drew her in to him:
“Go ahead and cry it all out. I'm not going much of anywhere for a few days. Doctor's orders, you know?”
Margaret gave in and cried once more. This time there was no pain and agony evident in her sobs. They sounded, now, as though they might actually be getting grief and pain out of her system. By the time Margaret had finished crying Greg's back was feeling better. He headed upstairs to get her some clothes, and to change out of the ones he was wearing, since they were from the day before.
He came back down with a sweater and a pair of sweat pants with a cord tie so that she could snug them down to keep them up. He handed her the clothes and then headed into the kitchen:
“Would you like some coffee and oatmeal? They're both instant so it's nothing fancy but they're what I can make for breakfast with the power out.”
“You don't need to do that for me.”
“No I don't but I'm making some for myself so I thought I'd offer. I'll bring you some of both, how do you take your coffee?”
“Black please, and thank you but you really don't need to go to any trouble for me.”
“It's no trouble at all. Like I said, I was making some for myself anyhow, easy enough to make a little more.”
Greg came out with two steaming mugs of coffee and two bowls of oatmeal. He set one of each on the table in front of Margaret.
“Dig in” he said, following his own advice, “I'm pretty sure your body will want some fuel to help it recover.”
They ate in silence for several minutes. Once they had finished their oatmeal, they both sat back sipping at the hot coffee.
“So, you lost all of your ID and everything. You can get it reissued, can't you?”
“Yes, but I need other ID to get my license back and I don't have any other ID. I can send away for a copy of my birth certificate and social security card but they'll take weeks to arrive.”
“Did you know that you can also have another person with a valid state ID vouch for you in place of alternate ID?”
“No, I didn't know that. How will that help me though?”
“I'm another person with a state ID that can vouch for you. When you're ready, let me know and I'll go to the DMV with you.”
“I can't ask you to do that. You've already done so much for me.”
“I offered, you don't have to ask. But I think that once the streets are clear of ice we should call an ambulance for you and have you checked out for any problems from the hypothermia.”
“NO! I won't do that. The last time I went in an ambulance, I woke up and my son was back with my ex-husband even though I was awarded custody. Plus, I don't know how I'll afford that last hospital visit already, I certainly can't afford another one.”
“Don't you have insurance?”
“Yes, but I'll need to file a claim and it's pretty crappy insurance. I'm sure there will be a high deductible that I'll have to pay out of pocket, getting them to pay anything at all is like pulling teeth.”
“Okay then, it's your call. But my offer still stands to help you get your ID back. One condition though, you need to drive. My painkillers are strong enough that I shouldn't be driving while on them.”
“I don't want you to have to go through that much trouble for me. You've already done so much for me that I feel like I owe you.”
“You don't owe me anything. I'm happy to do it, and I'm on two weeks paid leave while my back heals.”
“Is it really that bad?”
In answer Greg set down his coffee cup and turned around. He pulled up the back of his t-shirt, revealing his back to Margaret. Her shocked gasp told him that his back still looked like crap.
“I didn't know the skin could turn those shades of yellow and green.”
“Well, I beat it up pretty badly by landing on it poorly. It's healing already though, it used to be blue, purple, and red instead of green and yellow.”
“I'm so sorry, that's all because of me, isn't it?”
“I just landed poorly getting you out of the house. It isn't your fault, you didn't force me up the ladder or anything.”
“Yes, but...”
Greg interrupted her:
“Really, it isn't your fault. It might have happened while I was saving you but you didn't force me to do so. It was my own choice to do so.”
“Why, why did you run into a burning building? I don't understand, I don't think we'd ever even spoken more than twenty words to each other ever.”
“Well, I saw your son's hand out the window. I'm a father myself, although my wife has custody of my two daughters. I couldn't stand there and watch a child burn to death if I could do something about it. Once I was up the ladder, he wouldn't leave until I had gone in to get you.”
“Oh, I saw a video but it doesn't show any of that. It just shows you swarming up a ladder, my son coming out, then you dragging me out and the ladder flying off the wall.”
“There was some sort of explosion that blew the ladder off the wall. The door to the room blew in and pushed us off the wall.”
“Why last night then? If you were already injured, why did you hurt yourself more to save me again? I'm not worth that. I'm mostly worthless, I can't even bring myself to talk to strangers normally. I don't know how I'm managing to hold a conversation with you now even.”
“Promise you won't laugh?”
“I promise.”
“Well, when they took me into the ambulance and we were on our way to the hospital I looked over and saw you in there with me. Admittedly they had me on some serious drugs then and I was hallucinating but... I looked over and saw your face. It was totally relaxed because you were out cold but I saw it as the face of an angel, even in repose it was marked by sorrow. The drugs knocked me out and I dreamed of your face. I dreamed of ways to try to remove the sorrow lines from it. It seemed wrong to me that an angel's face should be marked by sorrow that way. So last night I was going to offer you a spare bedroom in here to stay warm, try to ease some of the sorrow from your face. When I found you were in a bad way I didn't even think about it much, just picked you up and brought you in to try to help you.”
“Greg, you are one crazy man. I'm no angel, according to everyone I've ever been close to I'm an abject failure.”
“You asked, I answered you. I chose to help you again. In both cases it wasn't even a conscious choice, I just did it.”
“Well, thank you I guess. I can't help but wonder if I might have been better off if you'd just left me there though. My life is such a screwed-up mess right now; it'll be hell trying to put it back together.”
“I've got a week and a half of my two weeks off still. I'll help however I can if you like.”
“Greg, please! I can't accept any more help from you, you've done more than I can repay already.”
“I'm not asking for repayment. I'm just offering to help if you need it. For example, where do you plan on staying? You're welcome to one of my be
drooms if you like.”
“I can't do that, I'll just stay in my car.”
“Please, spare my back from going through that again. I have three spare bedrooms in this house. Please take one of my spare bedrooms so I don't have to worry about you. I'm not using them and you certainly could use one.”
“Why would you worry about me? I shouldn't accept, I don't want to be any more trouble for you.”
“You're no trouble at all. I find myself actually enjoying your company. I haven't enjoyed the company of a woman since my ex-wife left me. It's nice to know that I still can. I would worry about you because I'd feel it was my fault if you ended up in a bad way when it could've been prevented by you using one of the rooms in my house that I don't even use.”
Margaret blushed and looked down so as not to meet Greg's gaze.
“Thank you. I'll tell you what though. I'll take you up on the offer of a spare bedroom on one condition. I can see that it's hurting you to move around. Let me take care of you, at least some. I can cook, I can clean, I can fetch stuff from upstairs if you're down here or downstairs if you're up there. Is it a deal?”
She looked back up to see if he agreed. Greg was surprised to find himself eager to have the opportunity to spend time in her company. He quickly answered:
“Okay, but if you're going to put conditions on it, so will I. You have to let me help you start getting things back together. Things like the DMV trip, and we can use my internet connection to get contact information for your credit cards, bank, and things like that once you have your ID again. We've got a week and a half before I need to be back at work, we can take care of a lot in that time. Plus I'm supposed to be on very limited activity and those are all things I can do to feel useful while I'm supposed to be resting. Do we still have a deal?”
“If you insist, I still don't know why you want to help me out though.”
“Maybe I just want to see what you look like with a smile instead of a frown or no expression at all? I'll have lots of opportunities to get you to smile if you're staying here.”
Margaret blushed and looked down once more.
* * *
Chapter 6 – Recovery Plus Interest
The power came back on early in the afternoon. By then both Greg and Margaret were bundled up in sweaters and coats even while in the house. The icy coating on the ground had begun to thaw around ten AM. The streets and sidewalks were mostly clear by noon but there were still patches of ice in areas that the sun didn't get to.
They had mostly kept busy by making a list of what they would need to take care of for Margaret. The very first thing was to replace her ID, then they needed to contact the bank and get her a new debit card, call her credit card companies and get those replaced, get her a new phone and replacement SIM card from her provider, the list went on and on. Greg made a mental note to take her to a department store and buy her some replacement clothes as well. She was sure to protest but he could be stubborn as well, his ex-wife had honed his abilities with being stubborn beyond all belief.
They had a light lunch, sandwiches and chips with water to drink. When the power finally came back on Greg immediately got up.
“I'm tired of the instant coffee we've been having, let me treat you to some good stuff. One of my few luxuries I allow myself is some high quality coffee, and my coffee maker even grinds the beans fresh.”
“Greg, please, you don't have to treat me to anything. You're already doing more for me than I'm comfortable with.”
“Well, first off I'd make the coffee for just myself, if I have someone to share it with then that's all the better. Second off, why are you uncomfortable with me helping you out?”
“I don't know you well Greg, I'm afraid of how you might ask to be repaid. I'm sorry to admit that but I believe in being honest with people.”
“I won't ask for any repayment, I promise. I believe in honesty being the best policy also. What exactly are you afraid of me asking for?”
Margaret blushed a very, very deep red.
“I noticed that when I woke up you appeared more than platonically interested in me. I'm sorry, I never know what to say when trying to talk about such things.”
“Oh that. I apologize. I was trying to check your core body temperature and had my hand on your stomach. I was drawing it back after I found that you had warmed up when you moved. You curled up into a ball and the movement drew your breasts across my arm and hand. I reacted to that.
I do find you attractive and certainly wouldn't kick you out of my bed if you wanted to be there. I'd never ask for sex as repayment for any help I provide you though. It would have to be because you were willing, not as any form of repayment. I prefer my partners willing and not coerced. Besides, it's been long enough for me that I'm not sure I'd remember what to do.”
Despite his attempt at levity at the end of his statement, Margaret was blushing an even deeper red now, if that were possible. Midway though his statement she had turned her gaze to the floor again. After a moment's silence she managed to mumble a reply:
“Thank you, I'm sorry for having doubted you.”
The next statement was soft enough that Greg was sure she hadn't meant for him to hear it:
“Why you'd want me in your bed, I'll never know.”
Greg answered the statement, if softly, despite his surety that he hadn't been meant to hear hers:
“Because you're the first woman in years that I have found attractive and enjoyed the company of. Because instead of insisting that I help you, you keep trying to convince me not to. Because I want to wipe the lines of sorrow from your face and replace them with anything that means you're happy.”
Margaret obviously heard him, for a third time that day she burst into tears. This time they seemed to alternate between despair and joy, although there was far more despair in the mix.
“Oh Greg, you don't even know me. Maybe we can talk about it when your back feels better. We'll have had a chance to get to know each other some by then. I won't bother you about it though. If you still feel that way later on, you'll need to bring it up with me but I think you'll change your mind once you get to know me.”
“I'll hold you to that.”
Greg shuffled out into the kitchen and started a pot of fresh coffee. He found the whirring of the blades as the coffee maker ground the beans to be a good anchor back to how his life normally went. Currently he was adrift, strong painkillers and strong emotions had his mind whirling about. He knew Margaret was right and that they needed to get to know one another better before anything else. He knew from experience that you could easily fall for someone that you thought you knew and have them turn out to be not the person you thought they were at all. He had been bitten once, now he was suffering through the twice shy portion of the old adage. From what he could see, Margaret had had an even worse experience, and might be even more wary about any form of relationship.
When the coffee was done brewing he took two cups of steaming hot java out to the living room and handed one to Margaret. The surprised look on her face when she took a sip told him that she wasn't familiar with fresh-brewed gourmet coffees. This batch was Jamaican Blue Mountain, one of his favorites. The full-bodied coffee had a low acidity and a hint of chocolate flavor to it as well as being almost completely lacking in bitterness. Margaret had obviously noticed and he would swear that for a moment he had seen a hint of a smile on her mouth when she lowered the cup after her first drink.
“That is simply incredible. This is just coffee?”
“Yes, like I said, good coffee is one of my few vices. I have a few different types I like to keep around but this one is my overall favorite. I thought you might like it, I'm glad to see I was right.”
“I normally just drink Folgers or a generic if the budget is tight that month. This is so much better it's almost like they aren't the same drink.”
“I drink the cheap stuff a lot when I'm out. When I'm relaxing at home though, I prefer something a bit more interesting.
I also keep some single serving packets of instant around for when I go camping”
They sat back and sipped their coffees in companionable silence for a while.
“Do you listen to music?” asked Greg.
“Yes, I do.”
“What kind do you like to listen to?”
“Anything but Country-Western, I grew up having to listen to that and then my ex-husband wouldn't listen to anything but that. I've got a severe dislike for it now.”
“I don't do much Country-Western, there are maybe ten Country songs I like. I don't listen to rap either, but I do listen to pretty much anything else. More rock and classical than the rest though.”
“Well, I would've mentioned I don't listen to rap but you did ask about music.”
Greg chuckled, “Did you just make a joke?”
“I guess maybe I did.”
Margaret wasn't smiling but she wasn't frowning either, it seemed to Greg that her face had lost some of its stress as well. He got up and booted up his computer:
“How about some classical for right now? I tend to move to the music with rock and that might not be the best idea with my back how it is.”
“Sure, do you have Ode to Joy? I always liked that piece.”
“Yup, I have Beethoven's ninth with Ode to Joy as part of it in one of my classical playlists, as a matter of fact it's the first song on that playlist.”
Once his computer finished booting up, Greg started his classical playlist. As the music swelled out into the living room, he relaxed into the couch sipping his coffee. He kept half an eye on Margaret and could see that she was caught up in the music. He closed his eyes and let the music carry him away.
He enjoyed this piece very much himself, he had spent a lot of time checking out different versions until he found the one he wanted. This one was a thirteen minute version of Beethoven's ninth with Ode to Joy included. He'd always used this piece to relax and recharge so he thought it was a good choice for the current situation. It had an incredible tenor singing in the original German, and the entry of the Ode to Joy section in the middle of it was one his all-time favorite musical segues.
