Chapter 5
CHAPTER 5
Jack continued to hold Lizzie’s hand until they were safely in a shoveled area of the lot.
“So, we meet again. Are you okay? That was a hard fall, on your–”
Lizzie interrupts him, “Oh, that? Nah, I’m fine. No biggie.” She’s aware of how awkward she seems. ‘No biggie?’ What am I, twelve? “Thank you for the assistance though, I really appreciate it.” She doesn’t want to think about it, she’d ignored it yesterday, but she can’t help noticing how good he looks. California seems to have a way of making people look younger, less pale and wan. Must be all the avocados and sunshine.
Gabby, who hadn’t seen the mishap as it happened because she’d been retrieving her reusable shopping bags from the back of the car, comes running over. “Honey, are you okay? Those dumb shoes! Right after this we are getting you some proper footwear.”
“I’m fine Mom, really.”
“Hey, Dr. Martin, I haven’t seen you in forever.” Jack gives her a hug, and Gabby looks to Lizzie to see if this is allowed or not.
The three of them stand there, rather awkwardly while it continues to snow, like figures in a really strange snow globe.
“So nice to see you, Jack, how are your folks?” she asks trying to get a read from Lizzie on whether she wants to scoot into the store or chat for a minute.
“They’re very well, thank you. They sure miss you though, they say they like the doctor who took over your practice, but that there’s no one like you. Heck, you saved my dad’s life.”
Gabby always gets embarrassed when she hears compliments. “It’s what I do, or rather did. I’m so glad they’re doing well. Please give them my best, will you?” Still not sure what to do, Gabby turns to head into the store. “I’m going to start shopping honey, I’ll see you in there. No hurry. So nice to see you, Jack,” she calls as she walks to the doors, glancing back at the two of them as she enters the store.
“You know you could probably sue Tim Bradford if you wanted to for not having shoveled and salted the lot,” Jack jokes.
“Yeah, that would be perfect, I can see the headline in the Gazette now, ‘Visiting Local Woman Falls in Bradford Parking Lot, Sues For Bruises...To Her Ego.’” There’s a silence. The uncomfortable kind. “Well, I should go help my Mom, she’s making cookies for I think every man, woman and child in this town. Thank you for helping me up, that was very kind of you–”
Jack interrupts her and steps closer, “Look, I know you probably hate me, and with good reason, but,” he hesitates. “... but, you are and always have been one of my favorite people. I miss you.”
Lizzie crosses her arms across her chest. If she wasn’t so afraid of falling again she might have tapped her foot too. “You have a strange way of showing it, Jack.”
“I know, I did not leave well.”
“Wow, that’s an understatement.”
“I’d really like to be...friends? Maybe we could meet at Sea Coast while we’re both here and talk? I owe you that.”
“You owe me a latte?”
“You know what I mean,” he smiles at her. “A latte is the very least that I owe you. What do you say? I’ve missed talking to you so much.”
Lizzie didn’t know what to do. In a perfect world, a couple breaks up, some time passes and they are able to be friends. Well, sometimes. Other times your heart is so crushed, your dreams for the future so dashed, it’s impossible to be friends. But they hadn’t talked since Jack had broken their engagement and moved to California, and she did have some things she wanted to say to him, and not in a parking lot having just fallen on her butt. She takes a deep breath, “Okay. I’ll meet you, but you might not like what I have to say.”
He nods. “I deserve to hear it, and you deserve to say whatever you need to.” They stand there awkwardly for at least thirty seconds. “Your number still the same?”
“Yes it is,” she says, wondering if this is a good idea. “I’m going to be pretty busy the next couple of days helping Mom bake cookies, but I’m sure I can fit you in somewhere. How long are you here?”
“I’m not sure. It’s kind of open ended,” he says. “You?”
“Two weeks. Can’t wait to head back to Boston,” she says, saying this to convince herself as much as she’s telling him to cement her departure date with no wiggle room. Wanting him to get the message about the wonderful life she wasn’t necessarily having.
“I’ll text you in the next couple of days,” he says, turning to head to his car. “Don’t fall! Okay?” he calls out to her as he gets into his car.
Lizzie shakes her head, looks over to the picture-perfect snow-covered Christmas trees and walks towards the door to the store. “This is all your fault you know, if it wasn’t for you I never would have let down my guard,” she calls out quietly to the trees and goes to find her mom.
She finally finds her mom who is looking perplexed in the baking aisle.
“That is a very serious face, Dr. Martin, can I help you make a decision?” Lizzie stands next to her mom and stares at the bags of chocolate chip morsels along with her.
Gabby laughs. “I was planning on semi-sweet, but then I saw the dark chocolate, and well, dark chocolate is healthier, and in my opinion, tastier, but lots of people like semi-sweet, and what if people don’t like the dark chocolate and–”
“Mom,” Lizzie stops her mid-meltdown. “How many bags were you getting?”
“Ten.”
Lizzie grabs five semi-sweet and five dark. “We will combine them and everyone will be happy. Okay?” She starts to push the cart. “Next?”
“I think I was preoccupied,” Gabby says as they turn down another aisle. “The chocolate chip dilemma - I’m not losing my mind or anything.”
Lizzie laughs. “I wasn’t worried. I know you’re fine.”
“It was just so surprising to see you standing there talking to Jack. Are you alright?”
Lizzie throws a bag of cheddar Goldfish crackers into the basket and keeps moving. She turns around, goes back and picks up another one and puts that in too. “Yeah, it was just super embarrassing to fall on my butt and have him of all people see me. You always have a fantasy about when you run into your ex, you know? Now twice in less than 24 hours he’s seen me being a total klutz and that’s not the impression I want to give, you know?”
Gabby nods, placing dozens of eggs and several boxes of butter into the cart.
“I always imagined when I’d run into him, not that I think about it all the time or anything, but that I’d be in a perfect outfit, holding a book I’d written, and I’d be with Brad Pitt or something.”
“No,” says Gabby.
“No book? No perfect outfit?”
“No Brad Pitt, he’s too old for you.” Gabby pauses at the display of holiday cookie decorations at the end of an aisle.
“Fine, then just someone that good looking.”
“Are you writing a book?” her mother asks as she puts several containers of red and green sprinkles into the cart.
Lizzie looks confused and then realizes her mom is responding to her fantasy. “Um, no, it’s a dream, Mom, no I’m not writing a book.”
“Why not? You’re as good as anyone else out there.”
As they traverse the store Lizzie is growing frustrated, and hungry. She tears open the bag of the Goldfish crackers and begins eating them.“Mom,” she says, her mouth full of tiny fish crackers, “It’s a fantasy. And when would I have the time to write a book anyway? I work full time at the Sentinel.” She shoves more crackers into her mouth and gives her mom the universal look for, “Duh!” You know, like a fully realized woman in her thirties does, in the middle of a store while shopping with her highly accomplished mother.
“Let me just look through my list one more time,” Gabby says, ignoring Lizzie. “I think we have everything.” She’s quiet for a moment as she checks off all the items on her typed list. “Okay, I think we’re good.” She steers the cart to the checkout lane with the shortest line. “And as far as finding the time to write the book you’ve always wanted to write? Just remember that I had you and Matt, I also managed to run a solo family practice.” She shrugs her shoulders. “When something is important to us we find the time one way or another,” she says as she starts to unload the cart onto the belt. “Anything else you want, honey?”
Lizzie quietly shakes her head, puts the crackers back in the basket and realizes her mom just very nicely put her very whiny self in her place.