Nightly Confusion

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Dad helped me move mom to the sofa. He bent down and called her name. “Linda wake up.” He nudged her shoulder but no change. After a few more tries she woke up. “What happened?” she asked.

“You fainted when Grandma asked Sam about work.” Erin answered, her brown eyes wide with shock and fear. Mom was never the weak of the bunch.  

“Oh.” Mom sat up and smoothed down her hair. “I guess it was just the stress of the day, I’m fine now.” She left the sofa and headed back to the kitchen. Everyone shrugged it off and went back to sitting at the table and dad went back to the sofa.

I didn’t know how to just shrug and go on like nothing happened. I was too curious by nature. I opened the back door and leaned out. “Oh no Mami all your flowers are messed up.” I said with a gasp to add dramatic effect.

She moved past me and stepped outside. “Everything looks fine.”

“Yeah but I wanted to talk to you alone.” I said after shutting the door. “You fainted after you heard Art De Luca was killed in his jail cell, did you know him?” I couldn’t shake the feeling something was going on here and mom didn’t want anyone to know about it. But that didn’t make sense because Art and my mother were two different people that led very different lives.

“No, I just know the name.” She answered. “It took me by surprise to hear he was killed and like I said the stress of the day, I fainted. But its ok now.” She added then headed inside.

Again I felt like I was in crazy land. I heard a car pull up so I walked around the house to the front. The Myers lived a few hours down, about a three minute walk but it was hot so I’d use a car too.

“Sam!” Zack’s mother, Rachel, beamed when she saw me. During the whole mess between Erin and Theo and the baby, Rachel and I became close. She hugged me hello. “You look upset is something wrong?”

“Not upset just confused. But I’ll figure it out.” I said. Frank, Zack’s father and I shook hands then the pair headed inside leaving their sons with me.

I looked at Theo, poor boy looked terrified. “Don’t be so scared, they’re not that bad.”

“Do you remember the wedding?” Theo asked.

“Yeah but it wont’ be that bad.” I really hoped that was true. I looked to Zack; he was smiling at mine and Theo’s pain. “It’s not funny, you’ll see gathering our families is hell.”

We all headed inside after that and sat at the table. Theo and Erin sat side by side; I sat between Zack and Alissa. My dad sat at the head of the table and mom sat all the way across from him. “Well this is nice.” She said.

Everyone mumbled in agreement. Awkward but not bad. “Alissa how’s the paper?” Rachael asked. She was such a nice woman; you could really see she was trying to make the best out of this.

“It’s great and we’re selling a lot more.” Alissa answered; there was a period of time Liss thought she was going to lose the paper. “Sam’s been a big help.” That would make me feel good if I didn’t know better. She just took the conversation off her.

“Oh I love reading your work Sam.” Rachel said. “You work sometimes with Zack right?”

“Right.” I said and then Grandma Loupe looked at me, oh no. It was like she could sometimes read your mind, she knew too much. “What?” I asked her when I got sick of her staring at me.

She shrugged. “Nothing.” She forked some rice in her mouth, I thought ok dodged that bullet. “Just you and Zack are doing it.”

I nearly chocked. “No we aren’t.” Now everyone at the table was looking at me, not Zack but me and I was starting to lose it. “Alissa’s been dating this guy named Jimmy for months and she’s been lying about it.” I was desperate so I hung my sister out there.

Alissa looked at me and pinched my shoulder. “Grandma Loupe is right, Sam and Zack are sleeping together they have been since Zack’s name was cleared of murder, maybe before then.” She said.

“Bitch!” I yelled slapping her arm.

“Enough!” My mom yelled and we grew silent. “Sam and Alissa I don’t see why you felt the need to lie about your relationships.” She was very mellow and that was very unlike her, I could tell something else was on her mind. “Alissa are you and Jimmy serious?”

“Yes.” Alissa said as a smile appeared on her face. “I didn’t say anything because I wanted us to get to know each other and make sure it was real before involving the family.” She explained, ever the nice daughter.

“Sam,” my mother looked at me, oh no. “What about you and Zack?”

I shrugged and decided to be a bitch. “Ask Zack.” He had to suffer too damn it.

I looked at him and he looked at me. “Oh yeah it’s serious, we’ve talked marriage.” I felt my mouth fall open. This bastard was making it worse for me, I saw in his eyes that was the plan.

A huge smile formed on my mother’s face. “Marriage?”

I kicked Zack under the table. “Zack’s smelled too much gun powder. We’re not getting married we just talked about the fact we don’t want to get married. We just started dating it isn’t serious yet. Now this food is really good, you out did yourself Ma.” I think I was dying because I really couldn’t breathe.

“I think it’s great, you and Zack.” Rachel said as her husband and my father kept their heads down and ate dinner. I wish I could just zone everyone out like that. “I always knew you’d two would be together.

“What do you mean?” I wanted to know, maybe there was some hope left to have for this evening.

“The way Zack use to talk about you.” Rachel said.

“Mom---” Zack tried to say.

“In high school he used to talk about you, even after the accident and he broke his wrist Zack said he couldn’t blame you for that. He always liked you.” Rachel explained.

“Really?” I looked at Zack and now it was his turn to be uncomfortable.

“You knew that.” Zack said.

I knew he slept with me ten years ago because he liked me, he told me that months ago but I never knew he told his mom about me. I forgave him for causing my mom to think we were getting married but I wasn’t going to tell him that.

Dinner went ok after that, not much talking that was always the key. The Myers thanked my mom for a great meal then headed home; Erin and Theo did the same, they looked happy to see no fighting happened over them. Alissa, Zack, and I left together after saying goodbye to my parents and grandma.

“I’ll see you at work tomorrow.” Alissa said to me before driving off.

Zack wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me to him. “What do we do now?”

I saw what he was thinking and it was so tempting! “I have to work, there’s someone I have to question before I give the article to Liss.”

He kissed me and if he didn’t have his arm around me I would’ve fallen because my knees were so weak. “Call me when you have some free time.” He got in his car and drove away.

I still had to talk with Carry Green’s sister Melinda about the shooting then I had to help Joey, the sun was completely gone but I still had work to do. When I went to Melinda’s house her mother told me she was working but she’d be home all day tomorrow since it was her day off.  I decided to talk to her tomorrow then rather than show up at her job where she’d be distracted.

I headed home for a nap before Joey showed up.