Chapter 11 #2
“Okay.” He had one more question, and it was a big one. “Can I be in the band again?”
She scrutinized him silently. Hoping against hope, he waited tensely for her reply.
“As long as you don’t act like you run stuff.”
“I won’t. I promise.”
She acknowledged his pledge with another tight nod. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
After her exit, he thought back to his conversation with Reverend Paula when he’d been laid up with his black eye. Forgiveness is a choice, as is kindness. The Zoey we know is capable of both. Reverend Paula had been right, and he was glad.
That night, before going to bed, Devon got down on his knees to say his prayers.
He thanked God for making things good with Zoey and asked for blessings for his family, friends, and his new friend Ellis.
As always, he asked that his mom Rosalie stayed safe, and that God continued to wrap his arms around the nurses where his mom lived.
After telling God to say hello to his grandma, and to bless her best friend Ms. Myrtle, he got into bed, turned out his nightstand lamp, and slept his first untroubled sleep in weeks.
In the days that followed, his life returned to normal.
At school, his crew thanked him for his letters of apology, as did Ms. Nori, and he was allowed to weigh in and enjoy the conversations at lunch.
They accepted Ellis as a member of their crew, and he liked that.
Devon was also invited to do backup vocals on Zoey’s latest demo, and not once did he try to take over or act like he was running things.
BY MIDWEEK, BERNADINE was still missing Crystal.
The feeling of loss wasn’t as sharp as it had been initially, but it still plagued her.
Rather than showing how desperate she was by calling Crys every day, she settled for sending her a good-morning text.
She was also missing Mal. The cell phone coverage in the area where he and Aaron were fishing was spotty at best. On Wednesday morning, she received a text from him saying he was on his way home and had had a great time fishing with Aaron.
Reading it put a smile on her face, and when he appeared at her door that evening, she embraced him like he was returning from war.
“Oh, I’ve missed you,” she said, hugging him tightly.
“Missed you, too, Ms. Lady. How are things?”
He came in and took a seat on her sofa.
“Things are good.”
“Anything jump off while I was away?”
She told him about Devon’s letters and his being back with the band, which made him smile and say, “Our buckaroo’s going to be okay.”
“Looks like it. Did you catch anything?”
“Got a cooler full. How about we invite a few people over this weekend and throw a fish fry?”
“I’d love that. Do you want to have it here?”
“If that works for you?”
“That works.”
“Good. What else did I miss? Marie told me she had a come-to-Jesus talk with Tamar.”
“She told me the same thing. Hopefully, she’ll stop hassling you about Aaron.”
“We’ll see.”
Bernadine noticed a sadness cross his face, but it disappeared so quickly she thought she might have imagined it. “You and Tamar okay, babe?”
He shrugged. “As okay as we’ve ever been, I suppose. She and I had a come-to-Jesus talk too. The truth is painful sometimes, but it can also set you free.”
“Meaning?”
“Do you really want to hear this?”
“In sickness and in health. In good times and sad times, so yes.”
He gave her a soft smile then told her about the conversation with his mother.
Bernadine was heartbroken for him. “She wouldn’t let you call her Mom?”
“No. And now I know why.”
“Oh, Mal.”
“Only took her sixty-plus years to admit it, but as I told her—I loved her back then, and still love her now.”
“Lord,” Bernadine whispered emotionally.
He eased her closer and placed a kiss on her brow. “It’s okay, baby doll.”
“I know better than to judge someone else’s pain, but . . . ?”
“It’s okay,” he echoed. “We can’t change the past, all we can do is go forward, so that’s what I plan to do.
That and keep loving her, if only for all the love she poured into Trent.
He’d not be the outstanding man he is today were it not for her.
Rita Lynn’s people returned him to us like a pair of two left shoes, and she stepped up, big-time.
I owe both her and him the world, because I was absolutely useless back then.
Between them they kept me alive long enough to get sober.
Had she not raised Trent to be such a caring and responsible person, I’d probably be still useless to this day, or dead. ”
She recalled the stories of the teenage Trent spending his Friday and Saturday nights driving all over the county looking for Mal to take his keys and bring him home, to keep him from killing someone or maybe himself while driving drunk.
She was grateful for Trent too. Mal wouldn’t be the man she’d come to love had it not been for him.
“Enough about me,” he said. “How’s Crystal?”
“Enjoying her new place and loving Denver.”
“And her mama?”
Amusement lit her eyes. “Mama is okay. I’m still adjusting but okay.”
“Good. Do you know what your sister ended up doing? Did she go back to Topeka after showing her behind at the Dog?”
“I got a call yesterday from my nephew in Hawaii. Bless his heart. He and his partner flew her down so she’d have a place to stay while she figured things out.” She shook her head with disbelief at the rest of the story.
“What happened? No good deed goes unpunished?”
“Pretty much. As I told you before, she’s never accepted the fact that he’s gay. So, she meets a young woman at a restaurant and invites her over to her son’s place to meet him.”
“What?”
“In her mind, he’s gay only because he’s never met the right woman. Never mind the fact that he and his partner have been together over a decade and have adopted two kids.”
“Lord,” Mal said.
“So, when the woman arrives and figures out what’s going on, she apologizes to my nephew and leaves his house quick and in a hurry. Nephew is furious and done. Puts Diane on a plane to Detroit the very next day to go stay with my banana-pants cousin Connie.”
“I’ve never met her, right?”
“No. And probably never will if I have anything to say about it.”
Seeing his confusion, she explained, “Connie’s a self-appointed evangelist who preaches out of a church that used to be a liquor store on the city’s west side. Never met a conspiracy theory she didn’t lap up. She’s a mess. Diane’s a mess. I hope they live happily ever after. Amen.”
He chuckled. “That’s a lot.”
“No kidding. My nephew was so angry.”
“Had good reason. At least the woman Diane brought over read the room and got the heck out of there.”
“I know. Too bad Diane doesn’t know reading is fundamental. It might save folks from wanting to throw her in a trash bag and bury her in a landfill.” They were both smiling as she gazed into the eyes of the man she loved. “Missed you.”
“Same,” he said, and slid a finger down her cheek. “A lot.” He leaned in and kissed her. “How about we go upstairs, and I show you just how much?”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
He stood and she followed.
He grinned. “Race you!” And he took off for the stairs.
“Cheater!” she screamed, laughing.
“Say my name!” he called back.
Still laughing and vowing to love him forever, she ran to the stairs to join him.
The next morning, Bernadine awakened to see Mal, already dressed, moving soundlessly around the dark room aided by the soft light from the partially opened door of the adjoining bathroom.
“Hey, doll,” he called quietly, his voice filled with the affection that always made her heart do flip-flops.
She sat up, dragging the bedding with her. “Hey,” she replied sleepily. “Are you headed out?” The illuminated face on the nightstand clock read 4:30.
“Yes. My turn to open today.” He sat in one of the chairs to pull on his boots. “Dinner at my place tonight?”
“Yes.” She’d missed him while he’d been away in Oklahoma and looked forward to making up for lost time. Last night had been a great start.
He stood and walked over to the bed. He bent down, and she took in the light scents of his shower and aftershave as he placed a kiss on her forehead. “I’ll see you later. Be good.”
“You too.”
A second later, he was gone.
Setting the alarm on her phone for six, she settled back beneath the covers and closed her eyes.
Later, enjoying her usual summertime breakfast of Cheerios loaded with walnuts, raisins, and pecans, her thoughts strayed back to the situation with Mal and Tamar.
She wondered how many people knew about his upbringing besides Marie.
Everyone worshipped the town’s matriarch, and Bernadine was among them.
Tamar was ofttimes testy and tough but could always be counted upon to be both truthful and straightforward in her interactions.
And now? Bernadine supposed it was normal to be caught off guard upon learning that someone you’d placed on a pedestal had feet of clay, and honestly, she was a bit blown away by that, even as she reminded herself that everyone on the planet had baggage in their life, so why not Tamar.
According to Mal, she’d been hurting a long time, and yet, so had he.
That he’d been a little boy forbidden to call his mother Mom due to circumstances beyond his control was equal parts angering and heartbreaking.
She wondered how Tamar dealt with him when he came home from Vietnam and turned to alcohol to fight the demons and horrors the experience left inside.
Had she been supportive or distanced herself even more?
She had no answers and no idea if it was her place to ask him.
She supposed she should go with his plan to leave the past alone and concentrate on the future.
She’d continue to adore and honor Tamar, but thinking about the man she loved as that little boy would be a shadow on her heart for some time to come.
HER FIRST VISITOR at work that morning was Sheila. “We need to have the August First meeting.”