That Was Then

43-Now

I am leaning over the counter Sunday morning with a gigantic cup of steaming hot coffee clutched in my hands. I take a sip and stare out the window. We have a decent view, the yard itself with an expansive patio, the pool that has been covered until next summer, two huge Elm trees that are beginning to change colors and drop their leaves. Beyond that are the mountains. But, if I lean forward just enough I can also see right into the gym where Caleb and Aiden are lifting weights. Shirtless.

"Buenos dias, mija," Abuela appears out of nowhere behind me and I stand up so fast that I spill coffee down my sweatshirt. Or maybe she'd been standing there for awhile but I had just been too distracted to notice. She chuckles and shakes her head while I wipe uselessly at the setting stain. "Do you want to come with me to the flooring store? I have to make a decision on the carpet they're putting in tomorrow. Your mama was going to come but had to go deal with some emergency wedding dress issue."

"Sure, just let me go change," I spare one last glance in the direction of the window but can't see into the gym without leaning over the counter.

"Unless you have something better to do..." Abuela teases and I feel my face get hot. I take my coffee up to my room with me and change into a chunky white sweater with olive green leggings. I pull my hair back into a pony tail and don't bother with makeup or contacts. I've been wearing my glasses more often since Seth's offputting compliment. 

The store is large, samples of carpet on one side with wood and tile floor samples on the other. Abuela weaves through the store and heads toward the back. She rubs her hand over a sample of thick cream carpet. "I can't decide on the color," she tells me, flipping through the samples until she arrives at a light tan color of the same carpet. The colors are hardly distinguishable and I know that Mama would have been a much better candidate for this job.

"Ummm..." I say looking back and forth between the two.

"You're about as helpful as Caleb," Abuela laughs and swats at me.

"This one," I point to the darker of the two. She raises an eyebrow questioningly and I just grin, "it'll hide dirt better." Not that Abuela lets dirt accumulate in her house. 

Abuela laughs and shrugs. "This one it is," she turns to look around for someone working in the vast store. "Miss!" She calls to a petite blond woman in a pant suit with a golden name tag pinned to her chest. I do a double take as the woman approaches us and have to read the name tag to be sure. She is much thinner than the last time I saw her but sure enough, in bold letters the name tag reads "Tia". What is Kya's mom doing working at a flooring store?!

"How can I-" Tia stops mid sentence and gapes at me. "Blakely? Is that you?!" Tia pulls me up against her small frame. She actually seems happy to see me and I wonder just how much she actually knows about what happened between her daughter and me.

"Hi..." I finally manage to say. 

"How are you? I didn't even know you were back, Kya didn't tell me! Does she know? You look so grown up! What a surprise to see you here," Tia babbles. 

"I- thank you, I'm great. I'm surprised to see you, too," I ignore the question regarding Kya. Tia gives me a patronizing smile, one I recognize so well from the matching one her daughter frequently wears. 

"I know. Me working?" She makes a face as if she smells something bad and then pouts. "I suppose you've heard about Mitch," I haven't, but she doesn't seem to notice the look of bewilderment Abuela and I exchange. She's not even looking at us really, but over our heads. "He's left me for someone half my age," she emits a bitter little laugh and it appears to me that she has rehearsed these lines, she plays the victim role well. "She's barely older than Kya and he wants to marry her! Our divorce isn't even final yet!" She looks at us now, lips twisted in despair as she waits for us to shower sympathy upon her. Abuela gives me a look that clearly says she's only here for the carpet. Tia was never very nice to Abuela, she always treated her like she is just the help. 

"Oh... how awful," I force myself to say, remembering the toxicity that was Tia and Mitch's relationship, from his cheating to her drinking. The only part of this story that amazes me is that he didn't leave her sooner. 

"Isn't it?!" Tia exclaims clutching my hand. "He's trying to sell the house! The house where Kya grew up! Can you believe he is doing that to me? To her?" I shake my head and try to withdraw my hand from hers but she holds tight. That would explain Kya's cancelled party. "I have my lawyers working on the prenup he tricked me into signing, I gave that man the best years of my life and he is trying to leave me with nothing!" Tia prattles on sharing details that most would be hesitant to share with their closest friends, let alone their teenage daughter's ex best friend. I look desperately at Abuela, she's the adult here, she needs to rescue me from Tia. Abuela presses her lips together and shrugs helplessly. There is a German word I learned last year that means being embarrassed for someone else by their behavior: fremdschamen. I am definitely feeling it for Tia as she clearly does not have the sense to feel embarrassed herself. She wants to be the narrator of her own story, she wants to make Mitch look  like the bad guy and she wants sympathy. But she is only making herself look bad. Finally a man in a pair of khakis that are a few inches too short approaches us. He must be Tia's supervisor because she finally releases my hand and turns her attention to Abuela.

"Are you ladies finding everything you need?" He asks Abuela. Tia smiles tightly at him and assures the man that she is taking good care of us. She helps Abuela with her order and it does not escape me that Tia is now waiting on Abuela after treating her like she is above her for years. At least karma is taking care of one of the Dillard ladies. I smile to myself and am exceedingly happy that we escape the store with no more sordid details of Tia's messy divorce.