Chapter 9 #2
“That there is the poster boy for homophobia if I’ve ever seen one before.” Laz volunteers.
“He’s just from a small town."
“Well, honey, I hope for both of our sakes, that they’re not all like that."
Darla sniffs the air. “Have you been cooking all day?”
“I was doing it to impress my man, but I can see that turned to hell.”
“More for us.” Laz says.
The girls come into the living room and spread out all the snacks that they both brought in bags.
I bring out the food in the casserole dish and some plates and cutlery.
None of us drink. We’re more into the food.
We did all the drinking that we needed to do years ago.
The music gets turned up, and we do the usual dancing in the living room, turning my house into a nightclub.
As we eat and catch up, Darla turns to me and asks. “So, I saw Gary last week."
“My brother Gary or my ex?" I clarify.
“Your brother.”
I am unimpressed. “What did he want."
“Nothing. He looked like shit though. Worse than the last time I ran into him."
“Am I supposed to care?" My question is rhetorical.
“Not really. No more than the last time I told you about running into him. Should I save my breath next time?”
“I’ve got nothing to say to him. And nothing to say to my ex, Gary, either.”
Laz lifts a finger. “Did you finally do what I've been telling you to do all this time? Since the last time we had this conversation?"
“Yes."
“And how much did you get?" Laz asks, in an 'I told you so' tone.
“Actually, more than you said I would.”
Laz sits up higher on the couch, suddenly much more interested. “Like, how much more?”
“Let’s just say that I won’t be taking a part-time job like I did last year.”
Darla’s eyes widen. “Really. You sure know how to pick them.”
Laz switches back to unimpressed. “Please. Honey, if that boy is living on a ranch, struggling through college, then he is not going to have a bank account like Gary does. Hell, for all we know, that truck could be on payments until he retires."
“He spent five figures on a picture. Paid it in cash. Saw it with my own two eyes."
Both girls’ eyes dart to me. Gasps come out of both of their mouths. “You’re fucking kidding me.” Darla states.
I shake my head. “Nope.”
“And he’s in school, too?"
“That’s right.”
I’m dying to tell them about my latest plan. The mother of all plans. But the looks on their faces are just too delicious.
I’ll save that for another day.
Levi
As I pull away from that fucking circus, I rake a hand through my hair.
What the hell am I gonna do now? Sure, we’ve made an agreement to not bring up the baby or anything else until she’s gone to the doctor, but still.
I’m worried. For someone who was so distraught that they couldn’t speak about our issues, she sure seemed awfully loose with her friends.
Now, I don’t know a thing about what a woman’s body or mind goes through when they’re pregnant, and before I judge, I should really figure that one out first.
The only way to do that, of course, is to talk to someone who is pregnant.
I know it’s late, but as I drive by Cassidy and Crystal‘s house, I see that the light is still on. Knowing them, they’re still up working.
Crystal answers the door five seconds after I knock on it.
Her swollen belly is obvious under her T-shirt.
“Levi. What a nice surprise. Come on in. “
“I hope it’s not too late. I saw your light on.“
She waves. “Please. I can’t eat during the day, so I eat at night. You hungry?”
“Actually, yes. I haven’t eaten dinner yet.”
“Well, sit down. Take a load off.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it.”
I hear footsteps coming down the hallway. “Hey, Levi. I thought I heard someone coming in.” Cassidy says.
“I was just saying to Crystal here, I hope it’s not too late."
Cassidy walks over to the pot where Crystal is cooking something, and he kisses her quickly on the cheek. “Our hours are all over the place with junior here. Some days we’re up until midnight, while others were in bed by eight o’clock.”
Crystal sets a plate in front of me. I have no idea what it is, but it smells amazing, so I eat up.
“Were you just in the neighborhood, or did you have something on your mind?” Cassidy asks.
I clear my throat. “I’m sure you’ve all heard the news."
Crystal lets out a deep breath. "Is there anything we can do?”
“Maybe you can help me understand something. Does your brain do all kinds of weird and crazy things when you’re pregnant?”
Crystal and Cassidy exchange a look. Crystal nods. “Well, sure, yeah. I mean, your body goes through all sorts of different things. But why don’t you give me an example?”
I tip my chair back slightly and clasp my fingers behind my head. “She doesn’t want to talk about the baby. She keeps changing the subject. She wants to go to the doctor first before we discuss anything.”
Cassidy frowns. “This wasn’t expected. The lady is caught off guard, I’m guessing."
“Your baby was unexpected, too, wasn’t it?"
Unconsciously, Crystal places a hand on her belly.
“True, but some women don’t take it as well.
She’s probably scared, Levi. And as far as her blurting it out to the entire restaurant, she probably didn’t mean to, and she’s probably embarrassed.
It could be a pain point for her. I don’t know if that helps or not. "
“She seemed pretty aloof when her friends came to visit earlier. Maybe it’s just that she’s crazy in my company."
“Her girlfriends are important to her. Just like mine are important to me, too. Your girlfriends are what get you through the tough times. I think if you give her some space, Levi, she’ll come around."
Cassidy leans back in his chair and rests his boots on the chair on the other side. “How’s school going? I understand that you met her at school."
“School is great. I set up a drafting table at the ranch, and I’m working on designing my dream house. It looks more like a Lego house at the moment, but it’ll come. Billy’s been saying that he wants to build a bunk house. He wants me to help him design it when he’s ready."
Crystal smiles. “Well, gosh, Levi. Your face just lit up like a Christmas tree.”
I can’t help but return the smile.
“That’s a beautiful picture you put up in your room there, my friend. Where did you get that?”
I can feel my cheeks heat. Just mentioning Lennie makes my heart skip a beat. “From that studio downtown. Didn’t Billy tell you?"
That’s a true testament to how trustworthy Billy is.
Cassidy shakes his head. “He just said it belongs to you when I asked. I figured Piper had picked it up for the resort of something. I had no idea it was yours until Billy said so. You got it from that studio next to the antique store? The one where Buddy runs the place, right?"
"Yes. Have you been inside?"
"To the antique store, a couple of times, but I never bought anything." Cassidy explains. "The photography studio I've never gone into though. Word in town is that it's something else. I suppose it must be if y'all bought something from there."
"It is something else. Nash thinks I'm nuts for buying the picture."
Cassidy changes legs, crossing the opposite leg over. "Well, he's just looking out for you is all. That's what big brothers do."
Crystal changes the subject. "Your daddy off to rehab yet?"
I shrug. "No idea. Don't care, neither. Far as I'm concerned, he can drop dead. I've got no interest in seeing him, so long as he doesn't try to kill anyone else."
Cassidy and Crystal exchange another look.
"Yeah, I know that he didn't try to kill Braylynn, but it comes close.
She was a fool for letting him go like that.
Daddy ain't fool enough to push me around anymore.
I'll throw the book at him. Nash still lets him have his way with him when he's ploughed but not me.
Maybe now that daddy almost took out Nash's girl, he'll grow a pair. "
Crystal places her hand on mine. "Levi, what's going on? This isn't like you. I've never heard you have an ill word towards anyone before."
I look at her. "Maybe that's because I never met anyone that mattered before."
I don't add the part where that person I'm talking about isn't Shelly.