“Really. What?” TJ put the pizza on the table along with the bag.
“Watch this. Okay Oliver you can put it back now.” Alex was looking at Oliver who was standing at the sink.
TJ looked in the same direction and her eyes opened wide as a spoon floated out of the sink and landed softly on the table.
“No way. That is so awesome. Oliver you rock, dude.” TJ moved closer to the spoon and picked it up. “Wow its ice cold.”
“Really?” Alex wanted to touch it as well.
“Really?” Oliver was just as surprised.
“It is. That’s so interesting. Is that not the coolest trick you ever saw?” Alex looked at TJ and knew she would be just as complimentary as she was.
“Absolutely. That blows me away. Is he working on any more?” TJ wished she could see him.
“Not yet, but he only started practicing on this one today. So give him another couple of days and who knows what he’ll be able to do.” Alex winked at Oliver.
“Yeah, I’m going to do my best to learn as many tricks as I can. I’m going to my room and watch the picture box. Is that okay, Alex?” Oliver figured that TJ was there to talk to Alex and not him.
“Yes, you may. Thank you, Oliver.” Alex smiled as he headed for the guest bedroom. “He’s off to watch TV.”
TJ grabbed the pizza box and put it in the oven and turned it to warm, then pulled a six pack of Root Beer out of the bag and placed it in the refrigerator. She had come by early to talk to Alex about her best friend Cyn. TJ was feeling very insecure and needed to run a few things by Alex.
“So what brings my favorite Boston Red Sox’s fan by this early?” Alex motioned to TJ to take a seat.
“Oh, Alex I think Cyn is great. But I don’t think I’m smart enough for her. I only went to high school and then tech school. She has a Masters in History. What can she possibly see in me?” TJ was feeling very insecure at that moment.
“Whoa, girlfriend. IQ has nothing to do with how Cyn feels about you. You’re brilliant in her eyes. What Cyn and I know is book learning. Memorizing facts or rules and then repeating them to the class. You, on the other hand, are more like a car doctor. You have to listen to the symptoms and then make a diagnosis. So much more thinking than we have to do. Not to mention all the new things you have to learn every year when the new models come out. History hasn’t changed that much. Except for the countries that keep changing their names. English is English – period. You shouldn’t think this way at all. Sam had these same feelings when we first got together. I think she’s amazing and I hope she knows that, even if I haven’t told her lately.” Alex reached for TJ’s crossed hands and gave them a squeeze. “Trust me. I know I’m right. And as far as her Masters, she told me she got it because she could stay in school one more year and not have to go out into the cold cruel world and get a job.”
“Really? I know you’re right. I guess I just let all the talk about how smart Cyn was get to me. Her parents think that girl is a genius. I guess I just felt I wasn’t good enough for their daughter.” TJ had even endured her own father’s praise of Cyn’s education.
“Well, Sam would never have to hear that from my mother. She told me how I would never amount to anything and how stupid I was for wanting to teach English. So we all have to know in our hearts that we’re brilliant in our own special way.” Alex tried hard not to let TJ see how much this bothered her, even after all these years.
“Wow, I’m sure grateful my father loves me and my work. I’m sorry, Alex.” TJ could tell Alex was bothered by it.
“So. I have a change in our plan. You go pickup Cyn and take her to the Ridgeside and teach her how to play pool. But first you two talk about what’s been bothering you. I know you may think that Cyn has been distant lately. I just think you two need to talk about what’s wrong.” Alex knew she was right and these two needed to do a lot more talking about what bothered them both. “Let me pay you for the pizza and you take my place with Cyn tonight.”
“Thanks, Alex. Is it all right if I say ‘love you.’ like you were my big sister?” TJ missed having a mother to talk too, but a big sister would work just fine.
“If I can say ‘love you more,’ as if you were my little sister.” Alex stood and walked around the table to give TJ a hug. Their fifteen year age difference could almost make them mother and daughter. But not quite.
As TJ drove out, Alex called Cyn and told her about the change in plans. Alex emphasized how much she and TJ needed to talk and the sooner the better. They would do amazing things next Wednesday night and hopefully all would be wonderful in Cyn/TJ land, once again. At least Alex hoped so as Cyn didn’t seem too thrilled with this new plan.
Chapter 18
As Sam opened the door to her truck she had never felt so wiped out in her entire life. If this was the first day, could she endure another? She was thankful her truck was an automatic and she didn’t need to use her left leg to depress a clutch. In fact she hoped she wouldn’t need to brake suddenly as her right leg may not respond to quickly either. But, besides the tiredness she loved every minute of it. The instructors were great and were aware of her drive. Cap Sobczyk was just as tough as Sheriff Taylor said he would be, but Sam caught a few winks from him throughout the day. She had several manuals she needed to learn and the instructors quizzed her on a few things to see how much she knew. She would need to work extra hard to get it all down, but it was doable.
Sam was almost home and knew she wasn’t going to be able to hang with TJ tonight. She wanted a hot shower, food, Alex and bed. But not necessarily in that order or by herself. As she turned up the driveway and saw the garage door open with Alex’s truck sitting inside she wondered what was wrong. As she backed in, Alex came out to meet her with Oliver close behind. Alex watched as Sam opened the door and then paused, her left leg wasn’t moving any too quickly.
“Are you okay?” Alex figured she’d be tired, but not this bad.
Chuckling Sam grabbed her leg and pulled it up and let it dangle hoping to get some blood circulating since she needed to walk into the house.
“I’m so beat. I feel like I’m 80 instead of 35.” Sam grabbed her right leg and swung it out the door. Now just slide to the ground was all she had to do.
“Wait. I’ll come around and make sure you don’t go down in a heap.” Alex moved around her truck so she could come up to the driver side and be behind Sam when she got out. “Okay, take it easy. I’ll catch you, I hope.”
“Oh, that’s reassuring. I can’t move. You’re going to have to pull me out.” Sam was stuck and not a muscle below her chest seemed to want to work at the moment.
Alex started to giggle as Sam was already laughing at this pathetic scene. Oliver felt so useless as he couldn’t help or could he? Now was a good time to see if he could move more than just a spoon. Oliver walked up and could try and grab Sam while standing in the truck door itself. Then with all his concentration he reached for Sam’s arms and pulled. Sam came forward enough to be able to slide off the seat. Sam looked at Oliver in awe.
“Oliver, when did you learn to do that? That’s awesome!” Sam landed on her feet and her knees only slightly buckled.
“Okay, move slowly so we can shut the door. Oliver do you think you can close it when we get clear?” Alex was shuffling Sam clear of the door opening.
“I’ll sure try.” Oliver focused on the door and hoped he could impress Sam even more.
“Okay, we’re clear.” Alex held onto Sam’s arm. She didn’t want to take any chances.
Oliver looked determined and then pushed with all he had. The door slammed shut with considerable force.
“That’s great, Oliver. He’s been working really hard all day to show you he can take care of the house. And me!” Alex could see the pride on Oliver’s face as he backed away.
“Well, after that demonstration I have no worries at all. Well done.” Sam was moving better now that she had some feeling come back in her legs. “I need to call TJ. There’s n
o way I can make it tonight.”
“No worries. TJ is taking my place tonight. She and Cyn need to have a long talk. So you’re stuck with Oliver, me and pizza tonight.” Alex knew Sam would be fine with that.
“Perfect. I love being stuck with you two, and pizza. Fantastic!” Sam made it to the table and plopped down in the first chair. “Oh my gosh. Could I please have three Ibuprofen?”
As Alex walked to the bathroom to get the pills, Oliver followed closely as he had a question.
“Alex. What does awesome mean? TJ said it and now Sam.” Oliver hoped it was good.
“Awesome, means the best thing ever. It’s the highest praise a person can get and you heard it twice today. I think that’s pretty special, don’t you?” Alex could see Oliver’s mind working.
“Awesome. I like that.” Oliver followed Alex back into the kitchen where Sam looked half asleep.
“How about a nice hot shower and you can eat your pizza either lying on the couch or in bed?” Alex handed Sam the pills and then went about getting her a glass of water.
“Sounds like a great plan. Could you bring the shower in here?” Sam looked at the pills in her open hand and then looked at the long walk to the bathroom.
“I wish I could.” Alex handed Sam the glass of water and knew this shower may take some extra time, if Sam needed help. Turning the oven off, the pizza would be perfect when they came out. “Let’s go, lover.”
Sam finished off the water and with Alex’s help stood up. Shuffling to the shower, Alex just put her in the shower and undressed her there. Then stripped herself and closed the door. She was grateful that one thing this little house had, was a two girl shower.
The shower would have been quicker if not for the make out session after Alex turned off the water. Sam’s lips were working quite well and this little activity helped energize her whole body. The next step after toweling off would be to put her pajamas on, which was cause for another giggle session. After that task was completed Sam made her way to the couch and plopped. Oliver had the remote and found the right channel for another evening of watching old Westerns. Alex spent the rest of the evening seeing to Sam’s every need, which included a foot massage. It wasn’t long after Sam finished her third piece of pizza that her eyes closed and she slept through the rest of the movie. Fortunately for Alex and Oliver, Sam didn’t snore so they could watch the rest of “My Darling Clementine” starring Henry Fonda in silence. During the commercials Oliver would ask questions about who was who as he’d never heard of Wyatt Earp or the shoot out at the OK Corral. Since it happened in 1882 and Oliver died in 1863, Alex was wishing Cyn was around as her history of the old west was lacking in details. Then the conversation branched off into what was tuberculosis, the disease that Doc Holliday eventually died from. By the time the movie was over Alex was ready for a good night sleep herself.
Gently shaking Sam and getting her to wake up enough to shuffle her off to bed was the next task. Alex had the bed turned down and guided Sam to her side, then just let her sprawl out. She had a few more chores to do before she could turn in and Oliver continued the questioning while she finished up for the evening. Saying good night to each other they parted in the hall and Alex went in to get as much sleep as she could before doing it all again tomorrow.
Chapter 19
When the alarm went off Sam felt like her body was on fire when she tried to move. Not having moved all night, her joints weren’t all that crazy about being asked to move now. Sam welcomed Alex’s hand on her back as she began to rub it. It was a combination of good and bad. It hurt a little, but felt good at the same time.
“What was I thinking? I may be too old to do this.” Sam thought she needed a cattle prod to help get herself out of bed.
“No way, lover. I’ll bet by next week you’ll be jumping out of bed before the alarm goes off.” Alex sure hoped it would be the case.
“Well, you may need to move that timeline out a bit. Ugh, I need another hot shower to help me get this body to function without so much pain. Can I count on your support?” Sam was still lying in the same position.
“Completely. Let me get the shower turned on, so it will be nice and hot. I put three ibuprofen on your night stand last night and a glass of water.” Alex rolled out of bed and headed for the bathroom.
“Thank you, so much.” Sam took a deep breath and tried the same maneuver. It didn’t look as smooth, but she did get up. Sam would have preferred the pills be in the form of an IV, but she was just thankful Alex had thought ahead, every second counted.
Alex returned to retrieve Sam, who was still sitting on the bed and guided her back to the shower for a repeat of last night’s activities. As Alex massaged Sam’s sore muscles, she leaned against the tile waiting for a sudden burst of painless energy to enable her to help. Thank goodness she was clean and this was only to help loosen everything up.
“Sam, do you think I’m codependent?” Alex worried that she’d crossed the line between thoughtful and considerate to codependent.
“Why would you think that? Because you anticipated I would be a total wreck this morning. Not hardly.” Sam wondered who Alex had been talking to.
“I just hear that word thrown around a lot by the other teachers. Maybe I need to find out exactly what it means. But the gist of what I get is someone taking care of another person above and beyond what is normal.” Alex had never thought about any of this until she placed the pills and glass of water on Sam’s nightstand.
“Normal. Now there’s a word that has a whole range of meanings. What’s normal for me could be abnormal for someone else. Besides you aren’t trying to control me. Just help me feel better. You need to let this one go, you’re fine and please don’t change. I love you just the way you are.” Sam knew Alex, and she definitely had boundaries and could say “No” when she needed to exert herself. It’s just that Alex had to be pushed to her limits before she’d say it.
“Okay, as long as you let me know if I do cross that line.” Alex needed to stop listening to the other teachers complaining about their significant others. It was just going to confuse her more about her own relationship.
“Deal. Now I think I can move on my own so hows about a good morning kiss to get me energized for the day?” Sam knew a few minutes with Alex would definitely get the blood flowing.
“My pleasure.” Alex turned off the hot water and made good use of the following few minutes.
Alex then left Sam to dress herself, since the hot shower had done the trick, and headed for the kitchen to get breakfast and Sam’s lunch going. Today’s lunch was going to be cold pizza, a treat Alex new Sam would love. When Sam flew into the kitchen her egg sandwich was ready, coffee was in her thermal cup and lunch was sitting in a brown bag on the counter.
“Bye, have a great day. Love you.” Alex had hit the garage door opener when she heard Sam coming. Plus, she had the back door open when she grabbed her things and left the house.
“I feel a lot better. Thanks for the drugs. See you tonight.” Sam gave Alex a quick kiss and was out the door.
Alex had plenty of time before she needed to leave for school and Oliver was nowhere to be found. She could get to school early and find out how Cyn and TJ’s talk went, but only if Cyn knew to get there early. A quick call may help find out Cyn’s status on getting there early. But if things had gone great she may be interrupting a cozy morning between the two of them. She could go back to bed, but that always seemed to make her sluggish when she got up the second time. No, just get up and get going was going to be the new schedule, if Sam could do it so could she.
Alex stopped and felt the quietness that filled the house. Not having Oliver around watching the picture box seemed strange. Where could he be? Maybe he was off practicing somewhere and didn’t want to disturb either of them this early in the morning. Alex decided to get dressed, since she’d had her shower, and just enjoy her coffee and toast at her leisure. Then maybe a call to Cyn in half an hour should be a safe amount of tim
e to get the 411 on last night’s talk with TJ.
As Alex stared at the clock and watched each minute tick by, she was brought out of her trance by the sound of TJ’s truck coming up the driveway. The look on TJ’s face told Alex more than just words alone. She was upset and wanted to talk to her new big sister about what was bothering her.
“Hey Little Sis. What’s wrong?” Alex could see TJ trying to keep her emotions under control, but it was really hard.
“Alex, I’m sorry to bother you with this. But I need to talk to you. Cyn and I broke up last night and I’m at a loss for a good reason why.” TJ walked in and gave Alex a big hug and didn’t let go.
“Oh, no. TJ I’m so sorry.” Alex’s mind raced to figure out what could have gone wrong between these two.
Alex felt TJ crying and knew how she would feel if Sam broke it off with her. She would be inconsolable to say the least. She let TJ cry softly on her shoulder for what seemed like only a few minutes. Then TJ pulled back and wiped the tears from her eyes. Alex hated seeing this darling woman in such a state of despair.
“Tell me what happened. Maybe it isn’t as bad as you think. I can talk to Cyn and find out what’s wrong.” Alex was going to be really pissed off at Cyn if it was something stupid and petty.
“In a nutshell. She thinks I’m too immature.” TJ was paraphrasing, but it was what she felt was the reason.
“Immature. How are you immature?” Alex was at a loss as to what Cyn meant.
“I’m not you. That’s what I think. It’s an excuse. She’s in love with you.” TJ felt she was being dumped so Cyn could spend more time with Alex.
“In love with me? Oh, no! That’s not the reason. TJ there has to be something else. Cyn wants a girlfriend, trust me. Maybe it is an excuse, because she thinks you can do better. Did you think of that?” Alex needed to find out what was going on in Cyn’s head ASAP.
Not A Good Reason Page 10
