After Before and After

Conclusion: Chapter 12

It was a wake up call, really, one that pushed Jeffery and Laurie Langley to finally make good on their promise to sign Ralph up for therapy.

The last time Jack came to them bearing the bad news of Ralph's poor judgment with alcohol, they could barely bring themselves to be rational about it. Jack had never seen Jeffery so mad at Ralph, and for the longest time, Laurie could barely looked at her son at all.

But this time was different, and Jack wasn't entirely sure he understood why.

Jeffery and Laurie weren't angry with Ralph, not even a little bit. Their response to the news from both Jack and Paige was rooted entirely in concern. When Ralph finally made it home to the Langley house late in the evening the day after the party, Jeffery and Laurie smothered him in love and hugs and promised him that they'd get through whatever this was together.

To Jack's surprise, Jeffery and Laurie's relationship seemed to be improve with the added distraction of Ralph's alcohol problem. They were on the same page about the dire need to get Ralph into therapy, and the whole thing brought them together with concern for him. As Jack watched them stand as a united front, he felt stupid for thinking that this little thing had any chance of leading to divorce.

They were Jeffery and Laurie Langley, after all, not Evan Merridew and Rebecka Brenner.

In the midst of all the post party drama, Paige finally heard back from the Fulton County Superior Courthouse with the date of the final hearing. It was surprisingly soon. Next week, to be exact. Tuesday, April 12th 1994 was marked on the calendar in the cozy little kitchen of theirs.

Jack wondered if it was marked on Evan's calendar too. He tried not to imagine the joy his father must be experiencing over finally being free of the child who was responsible for the destruction of the life he loved. Paige continued to remind Jack to think of it as the start of their grownup lives; ones Evan Merridew's bad temper would have no place in.

The weekend before the final hearing, and the first weekend after Jack's disastrous birthday party, he and Ralph found themselves sleeping outside in the Merridew kids' backyard. Underneath them was nothing but a big fuzzy blanket and the clothes on their backs. It was chilly now that the sun had gone down, but the warmth of their bodies kept them from needing anything more.

"I'm glad this is finally gonna be over" Ralph thought out loud as he stared up at the stars.

"Yeah, it will be" Jack strategically agreed as his eyes shifted from Ralph to the black night sky.

"I can't tell you how many days I worried about you living in that house" Ralph continued to ponder, the limitless sky making his mind feel limitless too.

"I know" Jack replied. "I could always take care of myself though. You worried more than you needed to, but then again, that's just you being you."

"That's not the point, Jack" Ralph sighed heavily as he searched for constellations in the background of their conversation. "You shouldn't have had to take care of yourself. It was never your job, it was his."

"Well then good for me for doing it anyway" Jack tried to shrug off the rising tension.

"I don't think it was good for you" Ralph objected. "I don't think it was good for you at all."

"You don't know" Jack shook his head.

"I know more than he ever wanted anyone to know. I wasn't always there, but I was there enough" Ralph calmly argued. "You deserve more than he ever had to offer you, Jack."

Jack felt Ralph turn his head to look at him. It was a reflex when Jack turned to meet his eyes, the intensity of the moment and their long lasting love weighing heavily on them both.