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- As Things Change
- Part XIV
-
Matthew parks his bike and makes his way to the bandstand. Kallie
hasn’t arrived so he sits at the top of the steps to wait
for her. He looks around nervously, knowing his parents will
kill him if they see him, since he was supposed to head directly
home after school. He checks his cell phone to make sure they
haven’t called. He shuts off the phone just in case and
pockets it when he sees Kallie approach. He stands and meets
her as she walks up the steps. “How was the picnic?”
-
- She shrugs. “It would
have been more fun if you had been there. I hope you wanted to
meet so you could tell me what’s going on with you.”
-
- Matt follows her as she walks
over and takes a seat on the railing, leaning against a pillar.
“There’s not much to tell. I got in trouble…”
-
- “Does it have something
to do with Raven?”
-
- Matt nods. “How did
you know?”
-
- “Are you going out with
her?”
-
- He shakes his head quickly.
“No! Why would you think that?”
-
- Kallie shrugs. “Danielle
told me she heard a rumor you were sleeping with her.”
-
- “Oh, man. That is NOT
true.”
-
- “So you’re just
dating?”
-
- Matt puts his hands on Kallie’s
shoulder. “Listen to me. I’m not dating her and I’m
certainly not sleeping with her. Or anyone else, for that matter.”
-
- “Then what’s going
on with you? Every time I bring up her name or ask what’s
wrong, you blow me off. I thought we were friends.”
-
- He takes a deep breath, letting
go of her. “It’s a long story, Kal. I screwed up –
again. My mom is ‘disappointed’ and my dad thinks I’m
not fit to carry the Buchanan name.”
-
- She smiles. “I doubt
that. He’s always been proud of you.”
-
- “Until I quit the baseball
team. Then I got in a fight and now there’s the cheating
thing…”
-
- “Matt, slow down. Why
don’t you start from the beginning.”
-
- He walks away, staring out
at the playground filled with laughing kids. “Do you remember
the last meeting at the Center?”
-
- “Yeah, Raven showed
up. I saw you talking to her.”
-
- “Yeah. I thought she
might really need help since she came to the meeting.”
-
- “Of course you would
think that and want to help.”
-
- He shrugs. “Except Stevie
tried to tell me she was trouble.”
-
- Kallie walks up behind him.
“What did she do?” she asks quietly.
-
- “She's the reason I
got in the fight at the Putt Putt Park. Then she asked me to
help her cheat and I told her no. That’s when she threatened
to tell you that I was sleeping with her.”
-
- “Is that the day you
were so mad in class?” He nods. “Why didn’t you
say something?”
-
- Matt turns to face her. “I
didn’t think she would really do it. Obviously she’s
the source of the rumor Danielle heard. But I swear I never did
anything with her.”
-
- “Relax, Matt. I believe
you. Raven’s not exactly your type.”
-
- “No doubt. When I refused
to help her, she cheated off of me anyway. That’s why I
couldn’t go to the picnic. I had to retake the test this
afternoon. Mr. Winters believed that she cheated and I wasn’t
helping her. But my parents got involved and my dad thinks I’m
not ‘upholding the family honor’ because I didn’t
report it when she first asked me to cheat.”
-
- Kallie puts her hand on Matt’s
shoulder. “I’m sure it’s not as bad as that.”
-
- He shakes his head. “You
didn’t hear him. First I quit the baseball team, then the
fight and now this. He doesn’t even want to teach me to
drive.”
-
- “But he’s taking
you to Texas. The ranch sounds like a perfect place to learn.
He probably just needs time, Matt.”
-
- “I hope you’re
right.”
-
- “I am. Hey, if I believe
you, they will have no trouble. We’re all on your side.”
-
- He gives her a small smile.
“Thanks, Kallie. It means a lot to me that we’re still
friends.”
-
- She pulls him into a hug.
“Always.”
-
- He leans back, keeping his
arms around her. “I’m going to miss you this summer.
I’m excited about the ranch and the camp but I’ll be
gone almost all summer.”
-
- “Yeah, but we can still
talk on the phone. Unless there’s no cell service in Texas?”
-
- Matt grins. “I think
they’re advanced enough that the cell should work.”
- “Good. Then I can call
you whenever I want and there will be no excuse for you not calling
me.”
-
- “None at all.”
-
- “And we still have a
date for the Fourth, right?”
-
- He smiles. “Yeah, we
still have that. I’m so glad you didn’t believe Raven’s
lies. Because if I was ready for something like that – which
I’m not – she wouldn’t be the girl I’d want
to be with.”
-
- She looks deep in his eyes.
“I never thought she was.”
-
- He stares at her, trying
to think of what to say next but she steps back and glances at
her watch. “Shoot. I have to go pick up my sister. Are you
going to be okay with your parents?”
-
- He nods slowly. “Yeah.
We’ll work it out.”
-
- “Just remember they
love you – and everyone has parents who are disappointed.
It’s called being a teenager. Don’t beat yourself up.
Promise?”
-
- He nods. “I’ll
try.”
-
- “Good.” She leans
forward, giving him a kiss on the cheek. “Have fun in Texas
and send me lots of pictures!”
-
- He follows her down from
the bandstand and grabs his bike as she goes to her car, waving
as she disappears inside.
-
- Rex is surveying his handiwork.
He has spent the entire afternoon simmering his shrimp sauce
and putting together the rest of his meal. The wine is chilling
and he is setting the table, frowning as he tries to remember
which side to place the fork and where the knife goes. He finally
just plops them down, hoping they’re in the right spot.
He looks at the clock, knowing Lauren will be home soon.
-
- Rex makes his way into the
bedroom, grabbing his dress pants and shirt off the bed, heading
into the bathroom to change. He emerges 20 minutes later, checking
his hair in the mirror. Finding it satisfactory, he goes over
to his dresser, pulls open the bottom drawer, digging in the
back and extracting a ring box. He pops it open, making sure
it’s still there. He smiles, pleased with his choice –
hoping Lauren will agree and he won’t have to exchange it
like Bo did. He closes the lid and pockets the box as he heads
back out to the kitchen.
-
- He checks his sauce and the
bread in the oven. A quick glance at the clock and he knows Lauren
will be coming through the door any minute. He does a last check
of the table and lights the candles, stepping back with a satisfied
smile. “Perfect!” he declares. He nervously looks at
his watch, smiling when he hears her key in the door. He rushes
over and pulls the door open, surprising Lauren. “Rex! What
are you doing?”
-
- He takes her hand, leading
her into the room. “We have a date, remember?”
-
- Lauren sees the table. “Wow!
What’s all this?”
-
- Rex shrugs with a grin. “Just
a little something I whipped up.”
-
- She takes off her jacket.
“What’s the occasion?”
-
- “What? I need an occasion
to do something nice for my girl?”
-
- She looks at him suspiciously.
“No… But this is just… Omigosh, did Bo fire you?”
-
- Rex rolls his eyes. “He
can’t fire me. How many times do I have to tell you we’re
partners.” He takes her hand. “Have a seat. Dinner
is ready.”
-
- Lauren sits, eyeing him curiously.
“So this was your big ‘date’ you had to plan a
week in advance?”
-
- Rex sets a plate in front
of her. “Shrimp linguini. It’s your favorite, right?”
-
- She nods, feeling slightly
nauseous from the seafood smell. “It sure is...”
-
- He sets his own plate on
the table and retrieves the garlic bread from the oven. When
he goes to pour Lauren a glass of wine, she shakes her head.
“I’m not in the mood for wine tonight.”
-
- He looks at her curiously.
“I thought you said you liked this wine?”
-
- “I do. I just don’t
feel like drinking it tonight. How 'bout just some water?”
-
- “I have champagne chilling
in the fridge if you’d rather that?”
-
- She shakes her head. “Water
is fine.”
-
- He sighs, goes to the fridge
and pulls out a bottle of water, pours her a glass and sets it
in front of her. He takes his seat. “Dig in!”
-
- She gives him a small smile.
“It looks delicious, Rex. You shouldn’t have gone to
so much trouble.”
-
- “It’s no trouble.
I wanted to do something special for you.”
-
- “You’re so sweet.”
She picks up her fork, taking a tentative bite. “This is
really good, Rex. You’re going to spoil me.”
-
- He grins. “That’s
the plan. Try the bread. I got it at that new bakery near the
office. I busted the owner a while back. I didn’t even recognize
him when I went in the shop.”
-
- Lauren takes a small bite.
“It’s very good.” She takes a drink of water,
her nerves making her feel sick, knowing she has to tell Rex
about the baby. She decides to bite the bullet and changes the
subject. “So, I talked to Marcie yesterday. Did you know
she and Michael are thinking of adopting?”
-
- Rex stops with his fork in
mid-air. “Really? She’s never mentioned that to me.
Why aren’t they having them the old fashioned way?”
-
- Lauren shrugs. “I think
she’s having a hard time getting pregnant. I didn’t
want to pry. Don’t you think it would be great for them
to be parents?”
-
- “I guess so. Marcie
works with kids at the Center so it makes sense she would want
her own.”
-
- “I’m thinking of
volunteering with her.”
-
- “Why would you do something
like that?”
-
- Lauren puts down her fork.
“What do you mean?”
-
- He shrugs. “I mean you
stay pretty busy without caring for other people’s kids.”
-
- “What do you have against
children, Rex?”
-
- “Nothing. I just don’t
see why you would want to do something like that.”
-
- “Marcie does it and
you don’t seem to have a problem.”
-
- “Well, that’s Marcie.
She’s Michael’s problem.”
-
- “And I’m your problem?
Is that what you’re saying?”
-
- “No! I didn’t mean
it like that at all.” He sighs. This conversation was not
headed in the direction he was hoping for tonight. “Can
we talk about something else?”
-
- She shakes her head. “I
don’t think we can. You seem to have no interest in children.
I think we should talk about that.”
-
- “I never said I had
no interest in kids. I just don’t see why we have to talk
about it right now.” He feels the ring in his pocket. “Especially
not tonight. Can we just enjoy our dinner?” He gives her
a sly grin. “Wait until you see what I have for dessert.”
-
- Lauren pushes back her chair.
“I’m not really hungry. I’m still not feeling
well. I think I’m going to turn in early.”
-
- Rex jumps up. “Lauren
wait. What’s wrong?”
-
- She fights her tears as she
pushes past him. “Nothing. I just…” She goes into
the bedroom and closes the door. Rex looks at the table with
the half-eaten meal he worked so hard on all afternoon. He stares
back at the closed door before blowing out the candles. He takes
the ring out of his pocket and tosses it in a drawer.
-
- Rex is cleaning up the kitchen
when the door to the bedroom abruptly opens and Lauren walks
out, grabbing her coat. He stares at her. “Where are you
going?”
-
- “Out.”
-
- “I thought you weren’t
feeling well.” She heads to the door but he rushes over
and blocks her departure. “Lauren, what’s going on?”
-
- She grabs the door handle.
“I need some fresh air.”
-
- He can see that she’s
been crying. “Why are you crying? Stay and let’s talk
about this.”
-
- “I can’t.”
She pulls the door open. “Just let me go, Rex. And don’t
follow me.” She rushes out the door. He walks into the hallway.
“Lauren wait!” She hurries down the hall and disappears
around the corner. He makes a move to follow her and stops. He
walks back into the loft and closes the door, wondering what
just happened.
-
- Bo and Nora are curled up
in bed, watching a movie. Well, Nora is watching the movie. Bo
is watching her, waiting for the part where she bursts into tears.
He grins when he hears her start to sniffle and sees her wipe
at her eyes. “Some things never change, Red,” he whispers.
-
- “Hush, Buchanan. There’s
nothing wrong with a few tears at a sad movie.”
-
- He pulls her close. “But
that was supposed to be a happy ending. It’s supposed to
be uplifting.”
-
- She turns to face him. “You
will never understand.”
-
- He grins, grabbing the remote
and switching off the movie. “No, I never will. But I love
you anyway.”
-
- She kisses him. “You
better.”
-
- “Hey, I married you
twice, didn’t I?”
-
- “Yes, you did.”
She snuggles into his arms. “You think Rex and Lauren are
officially engaged by now?”
-
- “I’d say yes –
unless Balsom gets cold feet.”
-
- “You don’t think
he would do that after all the planning, do you?”
-
- He shrugs. “You never
know with him.”
-
- “I ran into Lauren at
the coffee shop this afternoon. She has no idea.”
-
- “I saw Rex in the grocery
store. He didn’t seem too nervous. I’m sure he did
fine.”
-
- Nora props herself up on
her arm. “Should we call them?”
-
- He frowns. “Honey, if
they just got engaged, I’m sure they’re otherwise occupied
at the moment.”
-
- “I guess. I’m just
so happy for them. They’re such a cute couple. Lauren is
good for him. He’s really matured the past couple years.”
-
- “Yeah, I’m surprised
it lasted. He’s turned out okay.”
-
- Nora smiles at him. “I
think you had something to do with that. You believed in him
when no one else did and you gave him a chance. It gave him the
confidence to turn his life around.”
-
- He sighs. “I wish I
had that kind of influence with my own son.”
-
- “What do you mean by
that?”
-
- He shakes his head. “It’s
just that I get so frustrated when Matthew screws up so repeatedly.
I don’t know what I did wrong with him.”
-
- Nora puts her hand on his
face, turning him to look at her. “Hey. You didn’t
do anything wrong with Matthew. He’s a teenager, Bo. He
makes teenage mistakes but he’s a good kid and he has a
good heart.”
-
- “He gets that from you.”
-
- She shakes her head. “No
way. He is a Buchanan through and through. I look at him and
listen to him and it’s almost scary how much he reminds
me of you – the Bo Buchanan I met all those years ago. He
has your sense of fun and free spirit and your belief in what’s
right and wrong.”
-
- “Then why can’t
I see that?”
-
- “Maybe because you have
such high expectations for him. He’s just going through
the usual growing pains. You have to cut him some slack –
and give yourself a break. I’m very proud of him.”
-
- “You think I’m
not?”
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