Storms

Without You

"You know, it's funny you should ask..." Jenna said.

"Does he ask about me?" Stevie asked, sitting on the high backed chair that sat at her counter. "I mean..." She messes with her tea cup, trying not to sound too eager. "Not like a care or anything"

"He's miserable without you" Jenna tells her.

"Oh thank god! What a relief!" Stevie says, throwing her upper body over the counter dramatically and Jenna giggles. She pops her head up to look at her. "I'm not trying to say I'm happy he's miserable but it's good to know he misses me too."

"Too?" Jenna asks with a smirk.

"Yes, terribly!" Stevie admits.

"Hmm..."

"What?"

"Nothing."

"But he can't know!"

"Why not?"

"He just can't."

"You guys are so stubborn! You've waited all your lives for each other."

"Well, he hurt me. I don't want him to just think that everything he's done is fine."

"He doesn't. He knows that."

"And I know he just found out about you...I was just shocked. It opened an old wound."

"I'm sorry." Jenna said, knowing she was the cause of her former boss's pain.

"No, no. I didn't mean it that way. You are lovely and I don't regret him being with your mother because they got you and in turn, I got you." Jenna smiled a little. "We were together for years before he met your mother and I don't know I guess I'm being...petty."

"No, I get it. If the love of my life had a secret child, believe me I would be a lot worse than you are being."

"I really don't have the right to be upset." Stevie said, sinking back into her chair.

"But you love him."

"Yes I do"

"And he loves you." Jenna tells her and Stevie visibly changes posture. It's almost as if she couldn't believe it was still true after all these years.

"I know that."

"You know, even if you're still on the fence about seeing Dad, you can still hang out with me."

"Are you sure? I don't want him to feel like...well, I don't know. I don't want to get between the two of you."

"You won't. Come on, Stevie. You deserve a girls' night! How about we go to this really cool place downtown this weekend? Saturday, and have a few drinks, we can have dinner. You'll get to dress up and cut loose a little since tour ended."

"Hmm...it does sound fun."

"It will be. What do you say?"

"Okay, sure."

"Alright! How about 9-ish?"

"Sounds good to me."

"Perfect. I'll pick you up." Jenna checks her phone. "Hey, I have to go but I will call you soon."

"Thanks Jenna. And don't worry about your stuff here. Consider that your permanent room."

"Really?"

"Of course, sweetheart." Jenna smiled at the affection, it reminding her of her dad.

"Thank you for everything." Jenna said, giving her a quick hug and kiss on the cheek goodbye.

Jenna hopped back in her car and went to her dad's apartment, deciding instead to order in. When she walked in, she was shocked to see progress.

"Wow, dad, it's starting to look like someone actually lives here now"

"Yeah, I needed something to occupy my mind"

"Besides Stevie?" She asked and he smiled up at her as he continued to unpack.

"Yeah, Jen, besides Stevie"

"So...I talked to her" Jenna said, playing with the bracelet she wore in order to see nonchalant.

"And?" He stood up to full height, staring at her expectantly.

"I told her you were miserable without her"

"Why Jenna? Now she's going to think I'm a loser!"

"You sound like a little boy wth a crush!" Jenna said giggling.

"Hush, now get on with it! What did she say?"

"She said she missed you too. 'Terribly', in fact."

"Really?"

"Yep and she said that she loves you."

"Did you tell her I love her?"

"So you don't want me to tell her you miss her but you want me to somehow slip it in that you love her? You're too much, dad!"

"Well, did you?" he asked and she nodded.

"Yes I did"

"And?"

"She said she knows. Jeez, you're such a Libra!"

"What does that mean?" He gave her a bizarre look and she couldn't stop herself from giggling again. He was really so entertaining to watch.

"You're interrogating me!"

"Sorry" he says. "God, you're so much like Stevie. It trips me out."

"I just think you're smoking too much"

"You're not even related! It's just...weird"

"Gee, thanks"

"No, like, good weird"

"Yeah, okay" she says, rolling her eyes for comic effect and it does the trick. Lindsey laughs, going back to unpacking. "So anyway, we we thinking about meeting up soon."

"You and Stevie?"

"Yep" Jenna said and he stopped what he was doing again. "If you stop working every time I mention her, you will never got this all in order"

"Hush."

"Why do you want to know, anyway? Do you think we'll be talking about you or something?"

"No, no reason"

"I mean, you and I can go out to dinner too, sometime. You don't have to get all jealous because I'm spending more time with your girlfriend than you are"

"Hey, low blow!" Lindsey says jokingly.

"Okay, I'm sorry."

"But yeah, it would be cool to hang out with you out in public sometime"

"Yeah, it would. Hey, maybe we can go to dinner this weekend! Do you have plans?"

He gives her a deadpan look and opens his arms, motioning to the partially unpacked nothingness of his apartment. "You see it, Jen"

"Okay, so you're free. How about Saturday, 9-ish? Dress up for me just a little bit. I know this really great place downtown."

"Yeah, that sounds great."

"And bring me flowers! I love flowers!"

"You're demanding, kid"

"Hm" she says with a shrug. "Am I worth it?"

"Yeah, I guess so" he says and she sways at him playfully.

"Alright, well Saturday at 9...ish, it is. Now let's order some food, I'm starving."

"How does pizza sound?"

"Girl after my own heart!" he says, giving her a loving squeeze.