Chapter 5
Sage
After typing the last of my notes, I tidy up the kitchen table, placing my laptop and textbooks on the shelf nearby. I built the shelf shortly after starting my Master of Physical Therapy program.
I’m having no difficulty with the anatomy and kinesiology courses, but the biophysics class is killing me. I’ll have to review the last chapter when I return from Jane’s place.
I promised Jane and Austin that I would join them for Sunday dinner even though Jane invited Casey, too. I wanted to say no, but she begged me to come since I haven’t been over in a while.
It’s not that I’m trying to avoid Casey necessarily. But yesterday, shaving his father at the hospital brought back memories of my own dad, and it’s been hard today.
It’s raining outside and I can’t go for a walk to clear my mind.
Instead, I pick up my ceramic bowl and set a match to a pile of Cedar leaves.
I inhale the scent and close my eyes, allowing my mind to dwell on the stress of completing my Masters, after nearly six years of putting it off, the loneliness of a still house, and the anxiousness that I’m missing something that I don’t know how to get.
Then, I imagine letting that all go, and breathe in the white smoke and exhale the pressure on my shoulders.
The thoughts are still there, but they’re lighter now.
Inhale. Exhale.
Inhale. Exhale.
After a few minutes, I pick up a bronze snuffer to extinguish the flames and close my eyes again, assessing my body. My shoulders fall; the tension in my muscles is nearly gone. My head is clearer and my heart beats steadily.
Ready, I pick up my knit bag and walk out the door.
It’s only a five-minute drive to Jane and Austin’s house. I would walk but I don’t want to show up on her doorstep like a wet gutter rat.
There’s a car in the driveway, but there’s still space, so I park my car behind it.
A silhouette of a man in the driver’s seat tells me it must be Casey. Pulling my hood over my head, I open the car door, grab my bag, and make a run for it.
I only make it a few feet when Casey opens his car door and rams it into my hip.
Pain ricochets through my bones and into my spine, making it hard to breathe for a second.
“Shit, I’m sorry. Are you okay?”
With a hand on my hip, gripping the painful spot, I hunch over to catch my breath. A pair of strong hands grips my shoulders and pulls me under an umbrella. Suddenly, I’m no longer pelted by the rainfall and only hear the pitter-patter above me.
My hip still hurts like a freaking wrecking ball crashed into me, but at least I can breathe and stand up straight now.
“Yeah. I’m okay.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t see you until I opened the door.”
“It’s fine. I’m fine. Let’s just forget about it.”
He follows me to the door, holding the umbrella between us. I ring the bell as soon as we reach it and Jane opens the front door immediately.
“Come in, come in.” She moves out of the way quickly. The beige carpet already has a wet spot from our shoes and dripping coats and I don’t dare to walk in just yet.
Jane hands me a pair of furry slippers and I couldn’t be more grateful for the warm comfort. “Thanks.”
“Do you have an icepack?” asks Casey.
“An icepack?”
“Yeah. There was a little accident on the way here.”
“You mean you hit another car?”
“No. His car hit me.”
“What?!”
I realize how terrible that sounds, and I wave her off as I’m sure she’s about to pounce on Casey. “Just with the car door. Not the car itself.”
“Oh, well… that’s a little better. I think.”
“Just marginally.”
Casey isn’t laughing and I feel sort of bad for teasing him, but my hip still hurts like the devil stomped on it so I’m not that worried about his feelings.
“Dinner’s almost ready. I need to check the roast. Austin’s downstairs with Anthony, but he’ll be up in a minute.”
When Jane leaves us, Casey turns to me. His brow furrows. “Are you sure you don’t want an ice pack or something?”
I toss my hair back. “It’s fine. I’ll just rub some eucalyptus oil on it later. It’ll help with the pain.”
“Eucalyptus oil? That’s what you’re suggesting?”
“Yeah. Have you tried it?”
His eyebrows lift, as though wondering if I’m serious. “Uh, no. Can’t say that I have. Usually stick with the usual Ibuprofen or Acetaminophen for pain.”
I shrug. “Well, I guess to each their own.”
He blinks rapidly. “No. Those are the go-tos for pain meds. So, it’s not really to each their own.”
“Well, I don’t ‘go-to’ them.”
“But that’s what doctors prescribe.”
“Are you a doctor?”
“No.”
“Then I don’t think you’re the best person to make recommendations for my health.”
He shakes his head, puts his hands on his hips and judging from his demeanor, I realize Jane walking in and inviting us to sit down may have saved us from a full-on argument.
“Casey!” Austin calls from the back of the house when he sees his brother.
“Hey, Austin.”
“Have you seen Dad today?”
“Yeah, I went to the hospital a little earlier. I cut his hair and talked to him for a bit, but he’s still the same.”
Casey’s answer surprises me. The way he takes care of his father is different than I imagined. He usually brushes everyone off, and I almost expected him to return to L.A. right away.
“I had a busy day with work and then coached Anthony’s baseball team, and I didn’t get a chance to go.”
“Uncle Casey!” Anthony barrels into him from behind and nearly knocks him off his feet. “Can you run the next baseball practice for us? That would be so awesome. You could throw your ninety-nine-mile-an-hour pitch, and everyone would freak out. Can you? Huh?”
“Anthony,” Jane admonishes. “I don’t think Uncle Casey has time for that.”
“Why? What’s he got to do?” Anthony asks and I laugh out loud. I can’t help it. I smother my laughter with the back of my hand when I realize no one else found his question funny.
“How about I pitch to you right now on the back porch? I’m not sure if I’ll be here next week for your next practice.”
Austin’s face falls just as dramatically as Anthony’s, but the child shrugs his shoulders and says, “Sure.”
Content with the compromise, Anthony runs outside to toss the ball around with his dad and uncle.
“Can I help you with anything?” I ask Jane as she cuts into the roast. The juices drip clear and it looks done to me.
“Can you put plates on the table? I forgot those.”
“Sure.” I walk over to the center cabinet, the one next to the sink and grab the plates. I know my way around Jane’s kitchen just as well as my own. It’s not a new kitchen, but the maple cabinets and white laminate countertops are always spotless.
As I set the plates down on the table, I catch a glimpse of the boys through the back window. Austin drops into a catcher’s stance while Casey throws him the ball. He does this a couple of times until Anthony frowns and crosses his arms. “That wasn’t even sixty miles, Uncle Casey.”
Austin smiles but Casey closes his eyes. He stretches his shoulder and a grimace of pain crosses over his face. I step closer to the window and watch intently.
Casey wipes his brow and sets up to pitch. He exhales, his chest falling before he lifts his leg and launches the ball into Austin’s glove.
“Woohoo! That’s it!” shouts Anthony. “That was definitely close to ninety!”
Casey smiles but it doesn’t reach his eyes. Austin hands Anthony the ball and tells him he should try next.
But he doesn’t get a chance as Jane calls everyone in for dinner.
“Go wash your hands,” she says. “You too, Casey.” She winks at the man as he walks past her.
He’s still smiling but I notice his right arm tucked closed to his side, not hanging loosely like the left one.
I follow the boys to the powder room and after Austin and Anthony wash their hands, I stand behind Casey.
Looking at me through the mirror, he says. “I’ll just be a second, if you need to use the restroom.”
“No. I’m good,” I say.
He shakes the water from his hands before grabbing a towel. Again, he’s favoring his right arm, keeping it close to his chest.
“Did you hurt yourself?”
“Pardon?”
“Outside. Just now. Did you hurt your arm?”
He clears his throat and avoids my eyes. “No.”
He’s lying. I can tell. But he walks past me and into the kitchen. “What’s for dinner?” he asks eagerly, and I shake off my concern. He doesn’t seem worried about it, so why should I be?
Austin and Anthony grab drinks and condiments from the fridge and Cassandra comes down from her room to join us.
“Where have you been?” asks Jane.
“In my room,” she says without looking up from her phone. Jane rolls her eyes.
Casey pulls Jane’s chair out for her. “Why, thank you, Casey.”
“It’s the least I can do for all the work you’ve done.”
“Yes. And the bottle of my favorite wine is a nice touch, too.”
“Are Charlotte and Caleb joining us?” I ask, realizing Jane’s set two more place settings.
“No. They’re still in the city. But Frankie and Billy may stop by later.”
“Oh,” says Austin, as though just remembering. “Sage, how was your trip to Vegas with Frankie?”
“Um… It was nice.”
“Nice, huh?” says Austin, narrowing his eyes and smiling. “Oh, I get it. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, am I right?”
“What happens in Vegas?” asks Anthony, looking between his parents.
“Nothing,” says Jane. “Eat your peas.” She stares at her husband and he clears his throat, putting an end to that conversation, thankfully.
“You’re staying until the weekend, right? The town’s been decorating the fountain and the park, getting ready for the homecoming parade.”
Casey smiles. “Yeah. I can stick around for that.”
I refrain from rolling my eyes. I understand that the town’s excited about a big-league athlete coming back, but the reason he’s here is no cause for celebration.
I don’t think it’s appropriate due to the circumstances, but when I mentioned it to Jane, she said Austin was happy about it. So, who am I to judge?
“Sage, do you mind driving Jane there?” asks Austin. “I might head over earlier to check on things.”