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- As Things Change
- Part XXIX
Two days later…
Nora and Rachel are sitting in the kitchen enjoying a cup of
coffee. “So, give me all the juicy details of the will reading.
Any major surprises?”
-
- Nora shakes her head. “Not
really. He left all of his properties to Renee. Of course, the
Palace was already hers from one of their divorce settlements.
Not sure what she’s going to do with a ranch and a lodge,
but she’s happy to keep the mansion. I get the impression
she’ll keep all of the land for the family to use.”
-
- “What about BE?”
-
- “Everyone gets a seat
on the board and they’ll obviously have to choose a new
CEO. I think it will probably be Cord since he’s been the
most active in the business all these years. Clint doesn’t
want the hassle and Bo has never been interested in running BE.”
-
- “Bo’s having too
much fun giving Rex grief at the PI office.”
-
- Nora smiles. “Yeah,
he does seem to enjoy that.”
-
- “What did Matthew say
when you told him about the trust Asa left him?”
-
- Nora sighs. “He wanted
no part of the will reading. When we told him, he just shrugged.”
-
- Rachel chuckles. “Well,
if he doesn’t want the money, I’d be glad to take it
off his hands…”
-
- “I don’t think
it works that way. Besides, he doesn’t get the trust until
he turns 21, so he’ll have to rely on us until then.”
-
- Rachel shakes her head. “I
still can’t believe Asa left you a million dollars!”
-
- “I was more than a little
surprised myself.”
-
- "What are you going
to do with all that money?”
-
- “I have no idea. The
note he left just said he knew I would put it to good use.”
-
- “You could go on a really
long vacation.”
-
- Nora smiles. “That’s
tempting but I think I’d rather do something closer to home.”
The doorbell rings and she gets up from the table. “Let
me go get that.”
-
- Nora pulls open the door
to find Stevie on the other side. “Hi, Mrs. Buchanan. Matt’s
home, isn’t he?”
-
- Nora nods, motioning to the
stairs. “You know the way...”
-
- “Thanks.” Stevie
makes his way upstairs and opens Matt’s door, not bothering
to knock. “Hey, Buchanan. What’s with you not answering
my calls?”
-
- Matt looks up from his computer.
“Who let you in?”
-
- Stevie flops on the bed.
“Your mom. I figured if I can’t get you on the phone,
I know where you live.”
-
- “I’m kinda busy.”
-
- Stevie looks around. “Doin’
what?”
-
- “Don’t you know
it’s rude to just barge into someone’s house?”
-
- “Not any more rude than
ignoring my calls. We need to talk strategy for ski camp.”
-
- “Yeah, about that…
I’m not going.”
-
- “What the hell do you
mean you’re not going?”
-
- Matt shrugs. “Just don’t
want to, that’s all.”
-
- “What about all those
girls in bikinis?”
-
- “That was always your
thing more than mine.”
-
- “Oh, right. Because
you’ve got Kallie. I hear you’re not calling her back
either. What gives?”
-
- “Kallie and I are not
a couple, remember?”
-
- “So why are you bailing
on camp?”
-
- “I just don’t want
to go.”
-
- “Dude! You are giving
up the chance to spend an entire week with dozens of age-appropriate
girls in skimpy bikinis? And you’re telling me you’re
not with Kallie either? Are you high?”
-
- “Just let it go, Stevie.
If I’m not there, it’s more bikini babes for you.”
-
- “But it won’t be
the same without you, man. Come on. I know you’re bummed
about your grandpa but this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. Do
you remember how hard it was to talk your mom into this?”
-
- Nora is walking by Matt’s
room and hears Stevie’s last words. She pokes her head in
the door. “Talk his mom into what? Are you boys going out
this afternoon?”
-
- Stevie looks at Matt. “Tell
her, dude.”
-
- Matt glares at him. “It’s
no big deal.”
-
- Nora walks into the room.
“Tell me what?”
-
- Matt shrugs. “I’m
not going to camp, that’s all.”
-
- Nora is surprised. “You’re
not? When did you decide this?”
-
- “Just did.”
-
- “Why wouldn’t you
want to go?”
-
- “I just don’t.
I’d think you’d be thrilled I won’t be spending
the summer chasing girls in bikinis.”
-
- Nora takes a breath, calming
herself before she answers. “No one said anything about
girls in bikinis. You wanted to go to this camp to ski, so we
made arrangements. If you’ve changed your mind, you owe
us an explanation. We can discuss this when your father gets
home.”
-
- Nora walks out of the room
as Stevie turns to Matt. “What’s with you, Buchanan?”
-
- Matt turns back to his computer.
“Just go home, Stevie.”
-
- He leans back on the bed.
“I’m not going anywhere until you start talking.”
-
- Matt frowns at him. “Suit
yourself.”
-
- Rachel is sitting at the
table, reading a magazine when Nora walks into the kitchen. “Rachel,
has Matthew mentioned not going to camp to you?”
-
- Rachel shakes her head. “The
ski camp? I thought he was excited about it?”
-
- “Well, Matt just informed
me he’s not going.”
-
- “He hasn’t said
anything to me about it. Shouldn’t you be happy he doesn’t
want to go to a camp filled with girls in bikinis?”
-
- Nora sits at the table with
a sigh. “Ordinarily I’d be thrilled, but not this time.
He needs to snap out of this. The camp is a good opportunity
for him to get back out there and start being a teenager again.
I need to find out if Bo knew about this.”
-
- Marcie is sitting in a circle
with the kids at the Center – including Miki – when
Lauren approaches. “Hi. Mind if I join you?”
-
- Marcie slides back. “Come
on in. We’re just finishing up.” Lauren takes a seat
as Marcie leads them through the last sing-along song. “Okay,
you can have free time now. Remember to use inside voices.”
-
- The kids scamper away as
Miki climbs onto Marcie’s lap. She hugs the little girl
close as she turns to Lauren. “What brings you by?”
-
- Lauren smiles at Miki. “Hi,
cutie. I just thought I’d pop in. I have the day off and
I’m out running errands. We’re bringing dinner to the
Buchanans tonight.”
-
- “Have you told them
about the baby yet?”
-
- “Not yet. We didn’t
think it was the right time at the airport and I didn’t
make it to the reception at the mansion. I’m just so tired
these days. Besides, that probably wasn’t the best time
either. We thought they would enjoy a home-cooked meal at their
house and we could tell them then. Rex is about to burst with
the news. Luckily Bo hasn’t been by the office yet or the
cat would be out of the bag. He can’t wait to brag about
the baby.”
-
- Miki looks up. “Where’s
the baby?”
-
- Lauren smiles at her. “Not
yet, little one. Soon the baby will be here and you can be friends.”
-
- Miki grins. “I like
babies!” She gets up off Marcie’s lap and heads off
to find a doll.
-
- Lauren watches her leave.
“She’s so adorable. Any word on when you get to take
her home permanently?”
-
- Marcie watches Miki playing
with another little girl. “The home visit came out fine,
so the social worker said we should be able to get on the family
court docket in a couple weeks. But they’re notoriously
backed up, so it could take longer.”
-
- “I guess you’ll
have to be patient.”
-
- “I know. Michael and
I can’t wait – we’ve been busy putting together
a bedroom for her. I’ve decided to give up my job at the
high school for the time being so I can spend more time with
Miki during the adjustment.”
-
- “That’s probably
a good idea.”
-
- “I’m going to keep
her in the daycare here, just to maintain her routine. The social
worker recommended keeping as much of her usual schedule as possible.”
-
- “That makes sense. I’m
sure she loves being here with the other kids.”
-
- “So do I. I’ll
be volunteering here so I can help Andrew and keep an eye on
my little girl.”
-
- Lauren smiles. “Your
little girl.”
-
- “Yeah, it has a great
ring to it, doesn’t it?”
-
- “Yes, it does.”
She rubs her belly. “If this one is a girl, they can be
friends.”
-
- “Oh, won’t that
be the best? Miki can be the big sister. I can’t wait to
see them together.”
-
- “Not anytime soon, I
hope. This one has some growing to do before she’s allowed
out.”
-
- Marcie laughs. “I’m
sure she’ll take her time. Speaking of time, any news on
dates for a wedding? Should I be putting my list together?”
-
- Lauren shakes her head slowly.
“We haven’t talked about it again. Rex is preoccupied
with what’s going on with the Buchanans. I haven’t
wanted to bring it up.”
-
- “He is very close to
them.”
-
- “Yes, he is. I’ll
try to bring it up this weekend and see what he thinks.”
-
- “Have you decided before
or after the baby?” Lauren shakes her head with a sheepish
grin. Marcie chuckles. “Then he’s not the only one
who’s got some thinking to do.”
-
- Rex looks up from his desk
when the door to the PI office opens. “Hey, Bo. What are
you doing here?”
-
- “I just stopped in to
check my messages.”
-
- “I told you I have it
all under control.”
-
- Bo sits behind his desk.
“I believe you, Balsom. I was just out and about so I thought
I would drop by…”
-
- Rex grins. “Nora’s
driving you crazy?”
-
- Bo frowns at him. “No…”
-
- “How’s Matt doing?”
-
- Bo sighs. “Not well.
He’s not dealing with Asa’s death. He’s barely
speaking to anyone at the moment. Although Rachel did get him
to talk briefly the night of Asa’s service. Since then,
it’s back to the silent treatment.”
-
- “He’s a teenager,
everything is magnified. He’ll snap out of it.”
-
- “I hope so. I just remembered
that envelope Nigel gave me the night of Asa’s service.
He said it might help with Matthew.”
-
- “What was it?”
-
- “I don’t know.
I stuck it in my suit pocket and forgot about it.” He gets
up from his desk. “I’m going to check it out. You’re
still bringing dinner?”
-
- Rex nods. “Lauren is
probably slaving over the stove as we speak.”
- “She’s feeling
up to it today?”
-
- “Sure. She’s much
better.”
-
- “Okay then, I’ll
see you tonight.”
-
- Matt and Stevie are staring
each other down. “I got all day to do this, Buchanan.”
-
- Matt sighs. “I don’t.
Can’t you just go home?”
-
- “Not until I get an
answer why you don’t wanna go to camp. I can’t believe
you would wimp out on me. I’ve been looking forward to this
all summer. While you were off playing cowboy in Texas, I’ve
been stuck in summer school with the rest of the low-lifes at
Llanview High.”
-
- Matt can’t help but
grin. “Whose fault is that?”
-
- “Never mind whose fault
it is. The point is, I NEED this camp.”
-
- “I didn’t say you
shouldn’t go.”
-
- Stevie is frustrated. “Come
on, Buchanan! We were going together. It’s not fair you
just bail at the last minute.”
-
- Matt gets up, glaring at
Stevie. “Life isn’t fair. Get used to it.” He
walks out of the room.
-
- Stevie jumps off the bed.
“Hey! We’re not finished…” He follows Matt
down the stairs and out the front door. Matt grabs his bike off
the porch. “Where are you going?”
-
- “Just leave me alone,
Stevie. I said I don’t want to go to your stupid camp, okay?”
-
- He rides off as Stevie flips
him the bird. “You’re a jerk, Buchanan!”
-
- Bo pulls into the driveway
and sees Stevie standing in the yard. He parks the car and approaches
him. “Hi, Stevie. Are you here to see Matt?”
-
- “I was. He just took
off.”
-
- Bo looks down the street.
“What happened?”
-
- Stevie shrugs. “No idea.
We were talking and he just ran out of his room, hopped on his
bike and rode off.”
-
- “What were you talking
about?”
-
- “Matt’s not going
to camp.”
-
- “Ski camp?” Stevie
nods. “When did this happen?”
-
- “He just told me today.
Mrs. Buchanan didn’t know either. She said she was going
to talk to you about it. I’m really sorry. I don’t
know what I said wrong.”
-
- Bo smiles. “It’s
not your fault, Stevie. Matt’s having a rough time with
his grandpa’s death.”
-
- “I have to go. Tell
Matt I’ll be back tomorrow.”
-
- “I will. Say hi to your
parents for me.”
-
- Stevie heads toward his car.
“I will. Bye.”
-
- Bo walks into the house,
making his way to the kitchen. Nora and Rachel are sitting at
the table. “Know where Matt went?”
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