Kaleidoscope

Chapter Fifty-Seven

The dog days of summer were drawing to a close. Jen packed up her things, and Brad drove her up to Chicago to start her new job. She had found an apartment close to work, and he helped drive the U-Haul with all her furniture from her old apartment. There was a quietness between them. They knew that this meant separation. All the talk in the world did not help this moment in time.

Jen turned the key in the lock of her new place. Brad followed behind her, amazed at how well the apartment suited her. There was light streaming in from the windows in the kitchen and bedroom dispelling the gloom of their upcoming separation. Luckily, a neighbor came out and offered to help Brad with the furniture, saving them from hiring someone to lug in the heavy stuff.

Jen glanced around, mentally surveying where to put things and orchestrated its placement. She envisioned living here with her new husband if only he were able to get a job here in the Chicago area. But, for now, this place was hers and hers alone. She invited her new neighbor, Bill to join her and Brad for lunch as a thanks for all the hard work. Bill quickly surveyed the situation having learned that Brad was the fiancé, and gracefully declined.

Brad stayed for a couple of days to help Jen settle in and then he flew home. He promised to come back up the first free weekend he had. Jen dissolved into a mess of tears when he boarded the plane until she looked down at her finger and saw the commitment they had made to each other. She wiped away her tears as she thought about their wedding next summer. Somehow, it would all work out.

When it was time for Danny to go back to school, the whole family, except for Jen, accompanied him. This was the first time any of them had gotten a look at the beautiful campus. He blended into the crowd of incoming Freshmen and their parents as though it were the most natural thing to do. This time, his parents were here, and Kim was waiting at her apartment for him to arrive. His welcome was complete. He met his new roommate, Mike, and they seemed to hit it off right away. They had Skyped a few times but it was nice to meet in person.

As soon as Danny was settled, he invited Kim and her parents to go out to dinner with them. It was the first time the Fosters would meet the McNallys, and it would be quite a learning curve for them to meet Theresa as well. They chose a restaurant and met up at 6 o'clock. Kim was a bit nervous, wondering how her parents were going to react to seeing Theresa, her double. They had been prepared and were still shocked at the resemblance when they walked into the restaurant and saw her. Ryan nearly freaked out seeing two of his sister (one was enough, he thought) but he covered his tracks and genuinly enjoyed Theresa's company.

When dinner was over, Kim went back to her apartment with her parents and Ryan to show them around, and Danny went up to the dorm with his folks and Theresa to help get settled. He was in a different dorm this time, but setting up his things with the help of his parents was so much easier this time. This time he had his mom to give it the home touch and she eagerly jumped in to do a little "decorating," helping him fix his bed and hang up his clothes. This was the first time in a long time that she felt like a real mom to him and the feeling was not lost on Danny.

After all the families had gone back to their hotels, Danny walked over to Kim's place. One day, he thought, Kim and I might share a place like this. He rang the bell, and she came out on the porch.

"Well, how do you think that went?" Danny asked Kim.

"I think once my family had a chance to adjust to the resemblance I have to your sister, they all got along famously.

They talked for a while, sitting out on the swing in the cool night air. Then Danny asked Kim a serious question.

"Are we together now? I mean can I call you my girlfriend?"