Breath Of Life

“Soon.”

“Yeah, Mom. I’ll do it soon,” I reply quietly.

“Hey, it’ll work out. Look at all you two have been through,” Riley says.

“I hope. I think part of me is always waiting for the final straw to be pulled,” I admit honestly.

Mom squeezes my shoulder. “You’ve been through a lot, I’m not surprised you’re wondering what will come next.”

“How did you know that Daddy was the one?” I ask.

“Because I couldn’t imagine life without him. He made me angrier than anyone I’d ever known, but he made my life more, too. It’s a balance. We’re day and night but we complement one another, and he’s always been there for me when I need him. I can’t say I had a defining moment. One day I knew I was willing to take the risk of giving him my heart, and my hand in marriage and try to make it for the long haul.”

Her words resonate. This is how I feel about Ollie. Walking away isn’t an option.

OLLIE

It’s an off sight, all of my family members under my father’s roof along with my mother and her beau. Beau. It’s weird to think of the dapper gentleman in crisp khaki pants, and a light blue button down. He has a full head of white hair he parts on one side and slicks back. His face is kind, freckled, and rounded. He’s taller than my mother and spry. I like the look and sound of Mike Rhodes. I’m seated beside my mother on her left, and he’s on her right. The steak is well-seasoned and cooked to perfection, along with the twice baked potatoes and baked beans. We’re having a BBQ on the large back patio.

“Did you get enough to eat, son?” my father asks.

“I did. Thank you, all of you, for being here. I can’t express how good it is to see your faces.”

“We’re happy to have you back,” my mom says.

“Why didn’t Quinn come?” Harry asks.

“She’s meeting up with her family, and I think she was nervous about her reception.”

“What? Why?” Karen asks.

“After what happened with Allie, she’s worried you might think the same way.”

“No. Absolutely not. What happened was no one’s fault but those men. Allison is a woman who’s hurt to the bone and has nowhere to place her blame. She laid it unjustly at Quinn’s feet.”

“Heard your girl lit her up with one hell of a right hook,” Patrick says.

I chuckle. “I don’t call her sassy for nothing.”

“So you going to make her a Hemingway, or what?” Harry asks, chiming in.

“I’m planning on it.”

“Don’t wait,” my father adds.

“Dad?”

“Women need to know they’re loved, and the one you got is a diamond in the rough. She’s stood beside you on many occasions when a lesser person would’ve run. That’s rare.”

“The fact that she’s gorgeous, kind, and talented, doesn’t hurt either,” Mom says.

I laugh. “No, it doesn’t.”

We continue to eat and make small talk as I soak up their affection and support. I needed this time. The kids finish up their food and begin to kick a soccer ball around the yard. The sound of laughter pierces me like an arrow to the heart. Excusing myself, I make my way inside to grapple with the sorrow breaking over me. I walk to the bathroom, splash water on my face, and bow my head as Rolly’s memory comes front and center. He should be here right now, chasing his cousins with his too short legs, and laughing. I miss his laughter and his smell.

Sinking down on the toilet, I place my head in my hands as I let the memories play like a movie in my mind.

A tap comes at the door.