Unexpected Happenings, Chapter 9
 

Kay Bennett knew that her parents would get back together, but a little insurance never hurt. So, she put on her prettiest dress, and grabbed a handful of the freshly made blueberry muffins, and some of her mother's preserves, and made a fresh fruit salad, and wound up at the Harmony Police Department early that morning.

" Morning, Daddy.", Kay said, as she came to his desk.

" Kay! How are you?", Sam said, getting up to kiss his daughter.

" I thought we could have breakfast together." Kay lifted the napkin on the basket to show Sam the goodies.

" Kay, I really have work."

" Daddy, we can and sit on the bench right over there.", Kay said, pointing to the bench not 100 feet from the entrance to the police station.  " Please?"

When Kay batted her eyes like that, Sam was a goner.

" Ok."

Sam and Kay went to the bench. Kay pulled out the freshly squeezed orange juice, and handed Sam a cup.

" You pulled out all the stops."

" Nothing's too good for you, Daddy."

Sam smiled, and they began to eat.

" Daddy….when are you coming home?"

Sam knew that this conversation was coming, but, he didn't know how to get through it.

" Kay…"

" Don't you love Mom anymore?"

" Of course I do!", Sam exclaimed. " But, it's complicated."

" Complicated…..you mean Ivy Crane complicated."

Sam looked at his daughter. The contempt in her eyes as she spit out Ivy's name was obvious.

" Yes, Ivy complicated."

" I can't believe you, Daddy. I can't believe that you would risk our family on that WHORE!"

" Katherine Bennett, watch your mouth!"

" The hell I will, Daddy. You are willing to throw away your family. Our family, for some woman who didn't remotely love you enough to fight for you, way back when? When you LOVE someone, Daddy, you don't give in. You fight for them. When everyone else tells you to give up, you FIGHT. You don't let anything stand in your way. THAT is how I see love. And, since Ivy didn't fight for you, it's obvious that she didn't love you."

" Kay…this isn't your concern."

" Not my concern? My father's sleeping in the police station. My mother's not sleeping, and Jessica's so scared, she's sleeping in the other bed in my room, just like she did when we were kids. "

" She is?", Sam said, thinking about his youngest child.

" Yes! So, pardon me, if I DO think this is MY concern! I'm warning you, Daddy. Mom may seem like a modern day version of Carol Brady, but, she's not going to sit around and let you make a fool out of her, day after day. Vows or no vows. If you don't appreciate her, she'll find someone who will. Daddy, how could you do this to us?", Kay says, breaking into huge sobs, some for effect, but, a lot because of the pain and fear that she has about losing her family.

Sam pulls Kay into his arms, " I'm sorry, Kay. I'm so sorry. You are right. I'm going to get myself together."

Kay looks at her father with hopeful eyes.

" Promise?"

" Promise."

Kay rested her head on Sam's shoulder, and had a sly smile. She'd get her parents back together in no time.

Jessica found her mother making the bed in one of the rooms in the B&B.

" Hi Mom."

" Jessica, how are you?"

" Fine. I told you that I'd help you."

" Oh, Sweetie, that's ok. I had the spare time."

" Yeah……….Uh, Mom?"

" Yes?"

" Can we talk?"

" Sure, honey, about what?"

" About Daddy."

Grace stopped making the bed and looked up at Jessica.

" What about your father?"

" Are the two of you getting a divorce?"

Grace noticed that Jessica could barely get the last word out of her mouth, and her heart broke for Jessica.

" Honey, I don't know. I don't know at all. Things are very up in the air between your father and me."

" But, Daddy loves you. I know he does!"

" Honey, your father also has deep feelings for Ivy."

" Those are in the past."

" No, they are not."

" Mom, I know she's Ethan's mother, but, that's all she is."

" Jessica, there are things that you don't know about. But, Ivy Crane is anything BUT a part of your father's past."

It was the way that Grace said it, and the fact that she didn't look into Jessica's eyes when she said, that made Jessica aware, for the first time, the depth of her parent's woes. The look of hurt that Jessica saw on her mother's face right before she turned it away meant only one thing: her father had slept with Ivy Crane. He had broken  his marriage vows.

Jessica felt like someone had punched her in the gut. She had come all prepared with her little prep speech for her mother, and instead, her world had come crashing down. Her family truly was in danger, and she couldn't do a damn thing about it. The tears welled up in Jessica's eyes and she bolted out of the room, hearing Grace call after her.
 

" Hi Reese.", Simone said, walking up to him in the hallway at Harmony High.

" Hey Simone."

Simone was carrying a big Plexiglas dish with a cover, in one of those insulated carriers.

" Um, Simone, what is that?", Reese asks.

" It's for you. It's blackberry cobbler."

" Cobbler? Here at school?"

" I thought you'd like it for lunch."

" Um…Ok.  Thanks."

" Besides, we can have a great snack this afternoon at our tutoring session."

Reese nodded.  " That would be nice."

" Well, I have to go to class. See you later, Reese."

" Bye Simone. " Reese watched her walk away. He had to get certain thoughts out of his head, as he watched all the curves in her snug jeans, go rhythmically back and forth as she walked.

Reese opened up the insulating package, and smelled the cobbler. Simone had even provided two spoons for him. But, on top of the cobbler, there seemed to be something else. A book. Reese pulled it out, and it was a beautifully hand-decorated book, with the title " My Journal - Simone Russell", and it had the dates on it.

Reese put the cobbler into his locker, and held Simone’s journal in his hand. He knew that he shouldn’t read it, and told himself so. But, he took it with him to study hall anyway. He put it in his bookbag, but, it was like a siren, calling him. He admonished himself as he picked it out of the bag, and opened it. It was full of poems and short stories, it seemed to him. He read one, then, two, and before he knew it, he had spent the entire period reading it. Some were good, some were outstanding. He knew that he should feel bad about it,but, he didn’t. He felt good that he had gotten the chance to read them.

When he got to their study spot, he saw that Simone had pulled out everything in her bookbag, and the contents were strewn all over the table.

" Looking for this?", Reese said, pulling out the journal.

" YES! Thank God. I didn’t know what I would do if I had lost it."

Simone put her stuff back into her bookbag, with the exception of the books for the tutorial.

" Why don’t we have some cobbler?", Reese asked.

Simone nodded, and Reese came back with plates and silverware and drinks.

They were eating their cobbler, when Simone looked over to him, and asked,

" Did you read my journal?"

Reese thought about lying to her, but, decided against it.

" Yes."

Simone’s eyes widened with shock, and he could sense the temperature rise in the room.

" WHAT? You had no right! Those were my private thoughts. What do you have to say about violating my privacy like that?"

" I’m sorry that I offended you, but, I’m not sorry that I read it. I really enjoyed it. It meant a great deal to me. "

" Reese."

" Simone, some of those pieces were true art. You have so much talent, but, then, I guess I should have realized it, reading your pieces in the school newspaper and magazine."

Simone looked at him, and was furious that he had read it. She never shows anyone her writings. They were private. But, on the other hand, she knew that her heart had soared, when he complimented her on her work. She loved writing for the school newspaper, magazine and yearbook.

" You could have asked me.", she said, wanting to stress that it wasn’t OK for him to violate her privacy.

" You would have only said no, thus depriving me of that terrific writing. ", he replied, with a sly little smile on his face.

She caught that smile, and responded with one of her own. They finished the rest of their cobbler in silence, and went right into the tutoring session.

Unlike the other day, Reese was mindful of the time. He  didn’t want to push his luck with TC and Eve Russell, and made sure that Simone was in front of her house, five minutes before the Russell dinnertime.

" Thanks, Reese. For everything."

" No problem. The cobbler is delicious. I’m sure it’ll be gone by tomorrow in my house."

" Food is to be enjoyed. I’ll tell my mother you liked it. It’s her recipe."

" It was delicious." Reese got out of the car, and went around to open the door for Simone. He walked her up to the front door.

" Thanks again."

" You’re welcome." Simone was turning the key in the lock when Reese spoke up,

" Did you ever think about publishing?"

" What?", she said, with confusion on her face.

" Publishing yourself. Your writings."

" Me? Publish? Come on. Get serious."

" I am serious. You should think about it. You should enter those contests in the teen magazines."

" I……I’ve thought about it.", Simone said, revealing yet another fact about herself that she had shared with no one else. So, why Reese?

" Stop thinking about it. You have as much talent as anyone I’ve read in the magazines."

" What are you doing reading teen magazines?", Simone teases.

" Don’t you know? I’m just a happening dude.", Reese replies back.

They both laugh, and Simone speaks up. " I’ll think about it, Reese. Thanks."

" No problem. Bye."

Simone went into her house. She was ready for family dinner, and was smiling…thanks to Reese Durke.
 

" Yes, I want 25 dozen roses, all around the room.", Rebecca explained to the florist, as they entered the Crane Living Room.

" Mrs. Hotchkiss, you don’t think that’s a ‘bit much’ for a room of this size?", the man asked meekly.

" No, I don’t. Twenty-five dozen is just right, don’t you think, Gwen?"

Gwen looked up from the book she was reading, and said, " Huh? Um, sure, Mother."

" See. My daughter knows that it’s just fine. You get my 25 dozen, or I’ll find someone who can."

" No need to react that way, Mrs. Hotchkiss. Your wish is my command.", the man said, choking on the word. He couldn’t stand Rebecca Hotchkiss. The woman had no taste, and was difficult when she was just Mrs. Jonathan Hotchkiss. Once she becomes Mrs. Julian Crane, she will be completely unbearable.

" I’m glad you’re with the program. Now, I didn’t like the chairs you sent over. They seemed to clash with the paint in this room. I thought we could…", Rebecca prattled on as they left the living room, to go out to the terrace, where there would be a big tent set up for the reception.

Gwen exhaled. She couldn’t believe that her mother was finally going to become Mrs. Julian Crane. She would get her wish, while Gwen was going to get nothing. Ethan had found out about Theresa and her lies on their wedding day, but, it hadn’t mattered to him. They’d had a spat, he forgave her, and he and Theresa wed in a civil ceremony in Castleton. They were on a honeymoon that Sheridan gave them. She had lost Ethan. Gwen was getting more depressed by the day, but, nobody was seeing it. She didn’t expect anyone too, because nobody but her mother had ever paid any attention to her feelings, and now, not even her mother cared, because she was in the ‘marry Julian Crane’ zone.

Gwen would be happy when her mother was finally married to Julian. Theresa was less than a couple of weeks to go. Once she was Mrs. Julian Crane, then Gwen wouldn’t have to hear anymore about the wedding.
 

Julian was walking through the park to clear his head, when he saw a woman stumble and fall. He went over to her.

" May I help you, Miss?", Julian said, reaching out his hand to her.

The woman turned around, and he saw her.

" Eve?"

" Yes, Julian."

" Let me help you. I don’t bite."

" I don’t know about that."

Julian had to smile. Eve always knew how to turn a phrase, and that double entendre was very much there.

" Get the smile off of your face, Julian. Get your mind out of the gutter."

" Why, Dear Eve, whatever do you mean?"

" Can it, Julian." Eve got up with Julian’s help. " Thank you.", she said, mumbling.

" You’re welcome."

" I…I see that you and Rebecca are coming in for blood tests."

" Next week."

" So, you’re going to go through with it? Marrying her?"

" Yes. Why shouldn’t I? Are you jealous my dear?"

" Jealous? Hardly. I would think, though, that you would have learned your lesson after being married to Ivy all those years. Why would you enter into yet another loveless marriage?"

" How do you know that it’s loveless?"

" Are you going to try and tell me that you love her? Cause she doesn’t love you."

" Rebecca….she…understands me."

" Oh, really. She understands your bank account, and what it can do for you. But, understand you? Hardly."

" Eve, I didn’t know that you had thought about this so much."

" I…..I haven’t. I just think that it’s horrible to think that you would enter another marriage without love, Julian."

" Who would ever love me?"

Eve almost grunts. " Ain’t that the truth. The man you are today probably deserves nothing better than Rebecca Hotchkiss. But, you don’t even realize that you can be a better man."

" Are you offering me salvation, Dr. Russell?", Julian says, with an edge of sarcasm in his voice.

" No, Julian. My only prayer for you is that maybe, one day, you can find the man that I knew so many years ago. He was a coward, but, he had heart. Now….you’re just a coward. "

" So astute, coming from a woman who has been lying to her HUSBAND from the day that they met."

" My relationship with TC has nothing to do with this."

" Ah, but, I disagree. I think it has everything to do with this. I think that it’s ridiculous for you to sit here and lecture me about Rebecca, when you are in a marriage based on lies."

" I don’t have to hear this.", Eve says and begins to walk away. Julian grabs her arm.

" Not so fast. The truth HURT, Dr. Russell. People pontificate all the time on those inane talkshows that the foundation of a good marriage is trust. How can there be trust, if one partner lies about who they fundamentally are."

" Oh no. I’m not lying about who I am."

" You have given the performance of a lifetime. You picked out a role for yourself, and done it magnificently, Dr. Russell. But, don’t you get tired, playing the role? What happens if you slip up? Forget your lines?"

" I’m not going to listen to this from you."

" No, you  run, Dr. Russell. Run, because it would be hard to face that you’re no different than me. You’re just the coward that I am. I hide in booze and women. You hide…well, I don’t know what your release is. I guess the façade that you wrap yourself in. I wonder….if either one of us will ever get the courage to face ourselves as we really are?"

Eve stared at Julian as he walked away.