Chapter 12 An Old Flame? #2
“I’m quite well,” Harry cut in. “Thanks for not noticing me Erica!” Harry said with some bitterness in his voice.
“OMG! Harry, I am so sorry. I did not see you there,” she stammered.
“You’d think that as many times as you saw the back of my head you’d recognize me from behind,” Harry huffed.
“Harry, truly I’m sorry. I was just so shocked by Aunt Janet being here,” she tried to explain as Greg approached from the counter.
“Erica, I think they are pulling your chain,” he said and cast both of them a knowing glance.
They gave each other a high five and Erica dropped her face into her hands and shook her head back and forth.
Harry and Janet laughed and Erica looked up realizing they had been putting her on.
“They’re in a mood this morning,” Greg explained.
“Okay! Okay,” she said softly. “Uncle. You got me, good and proper.” She looked at Greg. “You are looking exceptionally well rested, Greg. In fact, you look a little brighter than the last time we met.”
“It was a more serious meeting the last time,” Greg admitted. “Look, I’ve just ordered but if you want to join us, you can put it on my bill,” he offered.
“Are you sure?” she replied. “I don’t want to intrude.”
“No, child. You won’t be intruding,” Janet responded. “You are welcome to join us for the meal.”
“Thanks. I was just going to get some Chicken Lo Mein,” she said.
“Alright, let’s go add it to my order,” Greg said, then offered her his arm.
They moved to the counter where Erica ordered and Greg paid the bill, then returned to the table.
“They’ll have our order ready shortly. I’ve got the drinks here,” he said, handing them each a cup.
“We should get our drinks then sit down together while we wait for the meal to be ready.” Everyone chose their drink then returned to the table.
The counter woman called out that their order was ready.
Greg and Harry retrieved the orders, bringing them over one at a time, carefully setting them down around the table.
The scent of soy sauce, garlic and fried rice quickly filled the small restaurant space while quiet conversation drifted from the few now occupied tables nearby.
Greg thanked Harry as he sat the General Tso’s Chicken in front of Janet before placing the Chicken Lo Mein down for Erica.
Greg looked up at everyone who then joined hands and bowed their heads.
He asked God for the blessing on the meal, the conversation, and the lifelong friendships they had formed while attending Christian Academy Prep together. They released hands and dug in.
“I swear this place smells exactly the same as it did twenty years ago,” Erica laughed softly as she picked up her fork.
“That’s because they’ve probably never cleaned the grease traps once in all that time,” Harry teased.
“Harry!” Janet scolded immediately while trying not to laugh herself.
“What?” Harry grinned. “You know I’m right.”
Greg shook his head while opening one of the packets of soy sauce for his rice. “Somehow I suddenly lost my appetite,” he said dryly.
“No you didn’t,” Erica countered immediately. “You used to eat three full lunch specials with egg rolls after basketball practice.”
“That was before thirty started catching up with me,” Greg replied dryly.
Janet smiled warmly watching the exchange between them.
The conversation flowed with an ease she hadn’t expected.
No hostility. No awkwardness. Just familiarity worn smooth by years of shared history.
“You know,” Janet began while breaking apart a piece of chicken with her fork, “the two of you were among the most frustrating biology students I ever taught.”
Greg looked up immediately. “Excuse me?”
“Oh yes,” Janet continued calmly. “You were both brilliant, which made you absolutely unbearable.”
Erica burst into laughter first. “That is completely fair,” she accepted.
“I was not unbearable,” Greg protested.
“You argued with me for nearly forty minutes over cellular regeneration pathways,” Janet shot back.
“Because the textbook was outdated,” Harry observed. “Greg’s magical photographic memory did not serve him well in that situation.”
“And you were fifteen years old!” Janet exclaimed, looking at Greg.
Harry started laughing hard enough he nearly choked on his drink. “She’s got you there, boss.” He lightly slapped the table. “That memory was tricky at that age.”
Greg pointed across the table toward Erica. “She was worse than I was,” he said, trying to divert attention from himself.
“That,” Janet admitted while pointing her fork toward Erica, “is absolutely true.”
Erica leaned back smiling now, genuinely relaxed for the first time since entering the restaurant. “I still remember the genetics project.” Janet perked up.
Greg groaned immediately, rolling his eyes upwards. “Please, God, No.”
“Oh yes,” Erica laughed. “You remember exactly what happened.”
Harry looked between them. “What’s the problem with the genetics project?”
Janet covered part of her face with one hand already anticipating the story. She looked at Greg carefully then over to Erica who was sitting opposite her near the wall. “You might as well tell the story, since Harry doesn’t seem to remember.”
“Greg became absolutely convinced he could improve plant growth rates using altered nutrient concentrations,” Erica explained, giving Greg a glance before looking back at her Chicken Lo Mein.
“AND,” he started emphatically. “I was correct,” Greg defended strongly.
“You nearly fumigated the entire science wing,” Erica replied, starting to laugh.
“I made one minor measurement error,” Greg protested loudly, drawing looks from the nearby tables. Everyone was quiet for just a moment until they were no longer the center of attention for the entire lobby.
“One?” Janet exclaimed quietly. “The greenhouse smelled like burnt ammonia for more than two weeks.”
Harry was laughing openly now. “Boss, seriously?”
Greg finally gave up and laughed with them. “Fine. Maybe it got slightly out of hand.”
“Slightly?” Erica replied with raised eyebrows. “The fire alarm triggered and we all got drenched by the fire suppression system spraying everything.”
“The experiment technically succeeded,” Greg tried to redirect to no avail. He could see they weren’t going to buy it. “Well, it should have anyways.”
Janet shook her head slowly. “That was the problem with both of you. Half the time you actually were correct.”
Erica’s smile softened as she looked across the table toward Janet.
“Those classes mattered more than you probably realized.” This caught her attention and Janet paused.
“You taught us to think instead of memorize,” Erica continued quietly.
“Most teachers never did that.” Greg glanced over toward Erica now, noticing the sincerity in her voice.
Janet smiled gently. “You were all exceptional students. I simply tried to prepare you for the world you were going to inherit.”
Erica lowered her eyes briefly toward the table. “Some of us took longer than others to understand what you meant and the lessons underneath the lessons you were imparting to us.” For a brief moment, the humor faded into something quieter. More reflective. Greg noticed it immediately. So did Janet.
Janet studied Erica quietly for several seconds across the table.
The older woman’s expression softened almost imperceptibly as she set her fork down beside the edge of her tray.
“The lessons underneath the lessons,” Janet repeated thoughtfully.
“You always were one of the few who noticed those existed at all.”
Erica gave a faint smile. “I noticed them. I just didn’t always understand them as well as I thought I had.”
“That comes with life experience,” Janet replied gently. “Wisdom usually arrives several years after intelligence convinces us we already know everything.”
Harry pointed toward Greg with his fork. “That explains the greenhouse incident perfectly.”
“Oh, stop,” Greg muttered while shaking his head. “I’m never going to live that down, am I?”
“No,” all three replied almost in unison.
The table erupted into laughter again. Greg leaned back slightly in his chair, looking between all of them.
For the first time since returning from Houston, he felt oddly settled.
There was no pressure or expectations. Just familiar voices, familiar faces and shared history stretching back decades.
Even Erica seemed different sitting there now.
Calmer somehow. Less guarded than she had been during their previous meetings.
Janet resumed eating for a few moments before glancing back toward Erica again. “You seem more centered now than I remember you being at the hospital.”
Harry quietly looked down at his plate, pretending not to notice the sudden shift in the conversation.
Greg looked intently at his egg roll, avoiding eye contact now.
Erica paused mid-motion with her fork before slowly lowering it back toward the edge of her plate.
“I’ve had to do a lot of self-examination lately. ”
Janet nodded once. “That can be painful, my child.” Greg and Harry looked up.
“It was,” Erica admitted softly. “More painful than I expected.” She glanced briefly toward Greg before looking back at Janet. “Leaving Greg this last time forced me to finally do exactly what you always instructed us to do when we were all back at Christian Academy Prep.”
Janet’s eyes narrowed slightly with curiosity. “And what exactly was that?”
Erica let out a slow breath. “Truly examine ourselves. To stand in front of the mirror and tell ourselves the truth about who we were, not who we wanted everyone else to think we were.” The table grew quiet. “To tell myself the truth about who I was, not who I thought others wanted me to be.”