Chapter 2
Two
JOE
I ’m surprised to see Jackie Moretti here, of all places. “I haven’t seen you in years,” I say.
Jackie nods, her head bobbing up and down rhythmically. She seems nervous, which is odd. Growing up, we were the best of friends. She was my ‘kid sister’ that I looked out for and confided in all the time. True, I’ve been away from Cranberry Creek for years now, but that shouldn’t matter. When you have a friendship like we had, you can pick up right where you left off. Or at least that’s the lie I’ve been telling myself since I went away.
“That is true,” she says.
“We should catch up sometime,” I say, a little too eagerly.
“We could go down to the cafeteria and… get some coffee,” she says, hesitantly. She seems startled at the suggestion, even though she’s the one who made it. “I mean, if you have time. I was supposed to hang out and catch up with Sabina, so I already blocked off the time. Sorry, I’m rambling.”
“No, yeah, it’s fine,” I say, hoping to put her at ease. “We should totally go down now. Are you still meeting up with Sabina? How’s she doing?”
“Uh… no, she ended up making other plans. She’s doing… okay. Here, follow me and we can go grab that coffee,” she says.
I follow behind her, as we make our way to the elevators. Even though Jackie seems nervous to be around me, there’s also something self-assured in the way she walks, like she belongs here. It occurs to me that maybe she does.
“Hey,” I say. “Do you work here?”
Jackie glances over her shoulder at me, and nods. “Yep,” she says. “I’m mainly an OB nurse on the maternity floor, but I also float wherever I’m needed. The hospital is pretty short-staffed these days.”
“That’s too bad,” I say. “About being short-staffed. I think it’s great that you became a nurse.”
“Uh, yeah… thanks,” she says.
The air is still jolted with awkwardness. I know it’s my fault. But I’m believing it will eventually go back to the way it used to be; back during the good ol’ days.
We get on the elevator, and an awkward silence fills the void between us again. I keep sneaking glances over at her, and I can’t help but notice how pretty Jackie has become. I mean, she was always a cute kid, and I can still see some of that in her, like in the way she keeps tucking her chin length dark hair behind her ears. She did that all the time when she was a kid. But I can also see what a beauty she has become as an adult. She has a trim figure, and her face is still heart shaped; her most striking feature, though, is her chocolate brown doe eyes, which always had a way of disarming me, and pulling me in. They were wise, honest eyes, that exuded warmth and trust at the same time. I honestly could never really lie to Jackie if she was looking at me with those soulful eyes.
Jackie leads the way to the cashier when we get down to the hospital cafeteria. I’m surprised to see it so busy at this time of day. There are people milling about at tables, and the line is actually pretty long.
“Seems like there’s a lot going on around here today,” I say.
Again, I get a look from Jackie that I can’t read, but seems to border on amused. “It’s a shift change,” she says. “Most people are just getting off or getting ready to start their shift, so… food.”
I nod. "It’s the same way at the firehouse. Food is massively important to all of us. We just don’t have a swanky cafeteria where the food is served to us. There are a few guys on every shift who do most of the cooking.”
We order our coffees, and when we get to cashier to pay, I fumble my wallet out before Jackie has a chance to reach for hers. “I’ve got this,” I say, handing my card to the cashier. “It’s the least I can do…since we haven’t seen each other in so long.”
“Oh, thanks,” Jackie says, like she isn’t quite sure she wants to be accepting anything from me.
I try not to take offense at this, reminding myself that we haven’t seen each other in years, and she was really still just a kid when I left. Even though I had every intention of staying in touch with the Moretti family, I didn’t do such a good job of that. I realize now that getting reacquainted will take some time. With that mindset, I sit down across from Jackie with a smile on my face.
“So how long have you worked here?” I ask, taking a sip of the scalding hot coffee that tastes like it was made yesterday.
“Since I graduated from college, so about seven years,” she says. Jackie still hasn’t touched the coffee, so I have to suspect that she knows better. Her hands are wrapped around the cup, as if it’s a security blanket. Her jaw is clenched… I still remember that was the tell-tale sign that she was uncomfortable, back when she was a kid. I wish I knew what I could do to put her at ease.
“What about you?” she asks.
“What about me?” I repeat.
“What are you doing these days? You mentioned the firehouse?” Jackie asks.
“Oh, you know,” I say with a slow, easy grin. “Just a little of this and that.”
She raises her eyebrows at me and gives me a frown. “Really, Joe? I haven’t seen you in over ten years, and that’s the best you’ve got for me?”
“Okay, fair enough,” I say, with a slight chuckle. “Short version is that I did my stint in the Air Force, fought wildfires in the West, and then came back here and got a job with the Cranberry Creek Fire Department.”
“Wow, that’s incredible,” Jackie says, wide-eyed. “And are you here today for the Wounded Vet program?”
“Oh, no, I’m actually volunteering to mentor other soldiers,” I say.
“Okay, now that’s even more incredible,” Jackie says. “You asked about Sabina earlier. Well, she’s actually in the program.”
‘Wait, did Sabina serve overseas?” I ask.
“Yeah, she did two tours of duty actually,” Jackie says. Her eyes flicker down to the table, and I can tell she’s trying to collect herself. “She was, um, injured in an explosion and detained as a POW for a time, before she was rescued and brought back home. She has a TBI, and some days are really hard for her. She’s struggling with depression and C-PTSD. I’m really hopeful that the program will help her. I honestly have no idea what all actually happened to her. She doesn’t open up with any of us… at least, she hasn’t yet.”
“I’m so sorry that she’s dealing with all that,” I say, letting out my breath. I didn’t realize I had been holding it while Jackie was filling me in about sweet Sabina. “I was extremely fortunate and blessed not to have any injuries, but I saw plenty. That’s why I want to volunteer with the program.”
“Well, I think that’s great,” Jackie says, and she reaches across the table to squeeze my hand. The touch is brief, but it hits me with a jolt. Jackie must feel the sensation, too, because she pulls her hand away quickly and looks down at her hand with a subtle look of surprise. But it’s gone as quickly as it came.
I clear my throat. “So, uh, how is Maia doing?”
“Unbelievable,” Jackie mutters. “I should have known we’d get there eventually.”
I feel the shift, but I’m not sure what causes it. All I did was ask about her sister, Maia. I just want to know how she’s doing. I’m about to ask for some sort of clarification for the whiplash that I just experienced, but the next thing I know, Jackie is standing up.
“Thanks for the coffee,” she says, her tone flat, but her eyes snapping with anger. “I’m sure I’ll see you around. Good luck with the program, Joe.”
And with that, she’s gone, leaving me to wonder what the heck just happened.