Kent had the grace to blush before nodding and saying. “Yeah, but you know we were once good friends. Before . . .”
Matt didn’t need Kent to finish that sentence. He wasn’t so high that he couldn’t figure things out.
“Yeah, Jerry and his bunch sort of came between us didn’t they?”
When Kent only nodded, an uncomfortable silence settled over the three until Larry perked up and said, “Hey, Matt, it doesn’t look like anyone’s signed your cast yet. Where’ve all the broads been? Man, you always seemed to have two or three of them hanging on you all the time.”
Matt snorted. “Yeah, I guess they don’t think I’m any good to them laid up like this.”
There was more awkward silence before Larry made a big deal of signing Matt’s cast then they left.
Once they were gone, Matt began to think about Grace. Why did his little sister think he needed people to keep popping in on him? His mom had already been by twice and he had finally told her that he didn’t need any help. He felt bad that it seemed like he’d hurt her feelings. Oh well, she’d get over it.
He must have dozed and was awakened by a soft knock on the door. Why not the doorbell?
Well, his answer came when his mom stuck her head in the door. “Are you decent Matt?”
He didn’t think that question needed an answer and apparently neither did his mom. She barged on in and perched on a chair near where his head rested on the couch. She just sat there staring at him for a full minute. That look made him want to squirm in spite of the fact that he was twenty-eight years old.
Finally, she spoke and Matt wished she hadn’t. Tears came to her eyes and she sniffed before saying, “Why Matt? Why have you let your life go the way you have?”
He didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want to say anything so he just sat there watching her pull a tissue from her purse and dab at her eyes. She didn’t look at him for a long moment, just looked down at her hands which were clenched in her lap.
When she finally looked back up at him, her eyes were clear and she tried to smile but never made it.
“I never expected or even wanted you to be just like your dad Matt.”
She let that little bomb settle for a moment before continuing. “I’ve always thought that you would find yourself someday and realize what it was that God wanted you to do with your life.”
He still didn’t know what to say but he sure hoped she’d get off the subject of God. It made him extremely uncomfortable.
“And I don’t really think that God intended for you to drive a truck for the rest of your life either.”
Now she had started meddling. He was getting mad when she held up a hand and this time was able to give him a tentative smile.
“Oh Matt, I’m not trying to tell you what to do. I guess your father and I have done a little too much of that over the years.”
She looked away for a second then back at him with a pleading look on her face. “I just want you to be happy, that’s all.”
With that, she leaned over, kissed him on the cheek, and hurried out the door without saying another word.
But the damage had certainly been done. Matt felt like he’d just survived a tornado. He couldn’t seem to be able to breath for what seemed like a long time.
* * *
Betty Sue had fought the urge to go see Matt all day Tuesday, knowing that he was supposed to get out of the hospital sometime that morning. But she hadn’t wanted to give him the wrong idea about her feelings for him. Well, for that matter, even she didn’t really know what her feelings were for the guy.
So she was surprised on Wednesday morning at the diner when Trish went into the kitchen to answer the phone and immediately called out to her.
“Betty Sue, it’s Grace and she wants to talk to you.”
She really liked Grace but couldn’t figure out why she would be calling her in the middle of the week and at the diner too.
“Betty Sue, I hope I’m not being too presumptuous but I want to ask you a favor, please.”
Betty Sue was somewhat surprised at that. What could she possibly do for Grace?
Grace giggled, “I’m sorry if I’m pushing our friendship a little, but I already feel as if I’ve known you far longer than just a few days. And I know you’re a special person if Trish has not only given you a job but taken you into her own home as well. She was truly wonderful to me when I worked there as a teenager.”
Betty Sue didn’t know what to say to all that, so she just waited to see what kind of favor Grace wanted her to do.
“Well, Betty Sue, the thing is that I don’t trust my brother to take good care of himself while he’s laid up there in his apartment. I called him, but he’s not . . .”
Grace paused and Betty Sue wasn’t sure what she was going to say next. Was there something else she needed to know?
“Would it be too much to ask you to go over to his apartment this afternoon after you get off work and just check on him?”
“Grace, is he on drugs?”
There was a pause before Grace finally answered. “I think so.”
Betty Sue started to say no but Grace forged on. “But I don’t think he’s bad. He won’t hurt you. I really think seeing you will sober him up. And I’m also praying that you can keep him off the stuff.”
“But what about your mom? Shouldn’t she be the one checking on him?”
Grace snickered. “You would think so, but Mom has already tried several times. Now Matt has finally told her that he didn’t want either of our parents going over there and bothering him anymore. He said he’d be okay by himself and he had a few friends who were helping him.”
This time it sounded to Betty Sue like Grace snorted. “Yeah, all of his friends are druggies and I can just imagine what kind of help they’ll be to him. If it hadn’t been for them, he probably wouldn’t be in the predicament he’s in now.”
Betty Sue did some quick thinking. What would Matt think of her if she went to see him? What would it mean to her if she did?
Then she made a decision. “Okay, Grace, I’ll go see him if I can get over there somehow.”
Grace seemed excited now. “Oh I’m sure Trish will gladly take you over there if she agrees that you can help Matt.”
They hung up then and before Betty Sue could find Trish to ask her, they were already getting busy with their noon rush.
The next time she even had a moment to think about talking to Trish was toward the end of their shift. She was about to go back to the kitchen where Trish was when two men about her age came in the door. She didn’t know why, but her first thought was that the taller one with short light brown hair looked like a teacher.
Betty Sue had learned the hard way to wait until people, especially men, were seated before she approached their table. That way, she could stay back a little and slouch some so she wouldn’t overwhelm them so much with her height. These two men weren’t short but she was still taller than either one of them.
When she did approach their table, the one with blond hair hanging down almost in his eyes spoke. “Matt told us all about you Betty Sue. So we decided to come in and get acquainted with you just to see if everything he told us was true.”
Betty Sue always tried not to make snap judgments about people when she first met them but she couldn’t help it with this man. She took an instant disliking to him. There was just something about him. Maybe it was the way he looked her up and down as if he was taking her clothes off. Maybe it was the way he had of almost sneering when he was talking to her.
She immediately looked at the other man and noticed how uncomfortable he seemed to be at the way the blond man was looking at her and talking to her.
“Hey Larry. We just came in for a cold drink to unwind from our day. I’m sure Betty Sue doesn’t need for us to be bothering her like that.”
The blond, Larry, gave his friend an almost dirty look but remained silent.
The nice one smiled at her. “Hi Betty Sue, I’m Kent J
ackson and this is my twin brother, Larry even though I don’t always claim him. We both teach at the high school here.”
Betty Sue was shocked. They couldn’t be twins, could they? She looked back at Larry and wondered what kind of a teacher he might be. But then when she looked at Kent, she thought that he must be a good one.
He frowned. “Don’t let Larry get to you. Sometimes he comes across a little too strong but for the most part, he’s harmless.”
Larry glared at Kent again but still didn’t say anything.
Betty Sue took their order then but as she was about to go back to the kitchen to get their drinks, she paused and looking at Kent said, “Have you been over to see Matt?”
Larry started to answer but Kent held up his hand. “Yes, we were just over there and he’s doing as well as can be expected. He’s having quite a bit of trouble with that cast and his crutches. In fact, he’s barely able to get around in his little apartment.”
She didn’t know what to say to that so she went to get their drinks.
A couple of minutes later when she served them their drinks, she thought she’d try again. She again addressed her question to Kent and this time Larry just sat there.
“Did Matt seem . . . Was he . . . ?”
Kent chuckled. “If you’re wondering if he was high or not, the answer is yes, he’s on something and I don’t think it’s the painkillers either.”
With that news, Betty Sue slumped over and turned to go with the decision made that she wouldn’t be going to see Matt after all.
“Betty Sue?”
She turned back as Kent spoke.
“He’s kind of mellow. Grace said she asked you to go by and see him. I don’t think he’s dangerous in any way.”
He paused then said, “In fact, I think from the way he talked about you that you might just be able to make a difference with him.”
Now she was really in a quandary. On one hand, she was mad at Matt for getting high and shouldn’t want to have anything else to do with him. But on the other hand, if what Kent said was true, then shouldn’t she at least try. After all, wasn’t that what Grace had asked her to do?
Grace. Yes, she’d almost forgotten that she’d promised Grace that she’d go see Matt. Well, that made up her mind for her . . . again.
* * *
Betty Sue hadn’t had an opportunity to ask Trish about going over to Matt’s apartment since they’d stayed unusually busy after lunch until they got off that afternoon.
Finally, on their way home, Betty Sue turned to Trish as they were approaching Trish’s house. “Trish, do you think that you could take me over to Matt’s apartment later? That’s what Grace wanted when she called. She wants me to check on him”
She paused to think. “And for some reason she seems to think that I can get him to stay off the drugs.”
“So do I Sweetie.”
Trish didn’t say anything else as she pulled into her driveway and the garage door opened. When she pulled into the empty side, she pointed to the pickup sitting on the other side.
“That’s Richard’s pickup. It was almost new when he died and I just haven’t wanted to drive it or get rid of it. Oh, I start it every once in a while and Steve down at the garage comes down and gets it every six months or so to keep it in good shape.”
Betty Sue didn’t know what Trish was getting at for a minute. But when they got out of the Escalade, Trish held up her hand, stepped just inside the utility room, and came back with a key ring in her hand.
“Here, Betty Sue, you can drive it as long as you need to.”
Betty Sue didn’t know what to say. “Are you sure Trish?”
Trish smiled. “Yes, I’m very sure. I really think that Richard would have loved you just as much as I do and I know he’d have wanted you to drive his pickup.”
Betty Sue still didn’t know what to say, as her eyes grew moist. She took the keys then reached out to pull Trish into a hug. “Oh Trish, you’re too good to me. I just don’t know what to say.”
Trish giggled. “No need to say anything Sweetie. Now you just go on over to that big galoot’s apartment and see if you can’t straighten him out for all the rest of us who love him.”
Wiping furiously at the tears in her eyes, Betty Sue hopped into the truck, turned it on, and began to back it out of the garage but then stopped and rolled the window down.
“Trish! I don’t know where Matt lives.”
Trish laughed and stepped up to the window to tell her.
After parking at Matt’s apartment complex, it took Betty Sue a few minutes to find Matt’s ground level apartment. Then when she finally did, it took her a while to work up the nerve to ring the doorbell.
She stood there for a long moment before finally raising her hand and hesitantly pushing the button. She wasn’t prepared for the loud, gruff voice yelling out, “Well, come on in or get away from here.”
She cautiously turned the knob and pushed the door open. Then she only opened it far enough for her to timidly stick her head in.
Again, she wasn’t prepared for the booming voice. “Betty Sue! Come on in!”
He pointed at a chair near where he was lying on the couch. “Sit down. I’m glad you came.”
When she didn’t say anything, he said, “How’d you get here? Did Trish bring you over?”
She shook her head. “No, she’s letting me use her husband’s pickup.”
Matt looked shocked. “She’s letting you drive Richard’s 4x4?”
When she nodded, he said, “Man, she must really like you. She hasn’t even driven it since he died.”
Betty Sue didn’t know what to say now. She couldn’t get herself to look up at Matt. She kept her eyes down and was extremely relieved when Matt’s phone rang.
He had a portable phone lying on the coffee table nearby and he gave her a sheepish look before he picked it up.
Betty Sue knew almost immediately that it was Grace. How in the world had Grace known exactly when to call? Hopefully, Grace would be able to get Matt to accept why Betty Sue was there. Well, wait a minute. Why was she there? Grace had asked her to just check on Matt but as she had shared with Trish, she was fairly certain that Grace had much more in mind than that. But what was it?
“Yes little sister, I will be nice to her. What did you expect me to do? No, don’t answer that.”
He listened for a while then said, “I will. Good-bye.”
He turned the phone off, laid it back down, and just lay there staring up at the ceiling for a time. Betty Sue was content to let him do that while she gathered her thoughts. She still didn’t know what to do or say.
She was shocked when Matt finally turned to her and said, “What do you want me to do Betty Sue?”
What? What could he possibly mean by that?
He had to have seen her confusion for he said, “My dad wants me to be like him. My mom wants me to be like Grace.”
He kept staring up at the ceiling so she remained silent.
“Grace keeps telling me to just be me.” There was a long pause. “But the problem is I don’t know who that is anymore.”
Now, from the intent expression on his face as he stared at her, Betty Sue knew he expected an answer before going on. But what?
Then without even thinking about it, she asked God in her mind to give her the words to say.
“Matt, I need to ask you a question first.”
When he nodded still staring at her, she continued, “Who do you want to be?”
Still nothing. But she wasn’t going to let that stop her.
“Matt. When you were little, did you ever dream of being or doing anything in particular?”
He snorted then. “Well, I’m not sure. I’ll have to think about that for a bit.” He snorted again. “But I know it wasn’t driving a truck for a living.”
That surprised her. “But Matt, when you told me that you drove a truck, you sounded proud of it.”
He was shaking his head all through her statement. “Th
at’s what I want people to think, especially my parents.” He frowned. “Do you think I want people to know that I’m not doing what I’d like to do?”
Betty Sue was stumped now. He would have to take it from there. So she waited to see if he would tell her what he’d really like to do.
Finally, he turned to her and said, “You know, I haven’t thought about it for years but when I was just a teenager, the furnace in our house quit one winter when it was really cold outside. And my dad couldn’t get anyone to come fix it right away because they were all too busy. Well, I’d watched a guy fix the church furnace not long before that and I knew I could fix it.”
He fought with his cast to be able to turn enough to lean on his elbow allowing him to look at her without turning his head. “Well, I sneaked down into the basement and I fixed it.”
Now she was confused. “But Matt, why didn’t you try to get a job in heating and cooling?”
He shook his head. “My parents both threw a fit. They wanted me to go to college and be something where I wouldn’t have to get my hands dirty all the time.”
* * *
Matt stopped talking to be able to gauge Betty Sue’s reaction to all that he’d just told her. He’d never told anyone, not even Grace, that he’d wanted to work in heating and cooling. Why was he telling Betty Sue?
One thing Matt was beginning to realize about Betty Sue was that he could almost read her mind by the expressions crossing her face. And right now her expression went from confusion to joy. Was that right?
“Oh Matt. Why in the world haven’t you gone into heating and cooling?”
When he just dropped his gaze, she said, “How did you wind up driving a truck then?”
He frowned and realized he was blushing a little. “Don’t get mad at me but I did it because my dad told me not to.”
There, it was out.
Betty Sue shook her head and he just knew he was in for a lecture now. He was kinda disappointed too. He’d really thought that Betty Sue would be different from the others.
“Matt? Look at me please.” Her voice was so soft that he barely heard her.
Walking Straight (The Walking Together Series Book 1) Page 9
