This Time Tomorrow

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

The first thing I do, when Mom pulls into Mickee's driveway, is look for Jesse's car. I immediately want to face palm myself. It's been ten years, how would I know what car he's driving? Surely, he isn't still driving the old Fiat Spider his dad got him so long ago.

She marches right into the house without knocking as if she runs the place. It's always been this way. There's a painful ball of nerves in the pit of my stomach as I cross the threshold of the house that was always like a second home to me.

When we round the corner, I'm taken aback by the scene in front of me. There's a lot going on, and even that feels like an under statement. Mickee's standing at the counter, back towards us, with a kitchen knife in hand as she appears to be chopping fruits. Over her shoulder she's calling out orders to a group of guys who are arranging chairs out on the patio.

I take this opportunity to soak her in for the first time in ten years. It feels an awful lot like those Youtube videos where the dogs react to their owners returning from the military. My entire being tenses as I wait for her acknowledgment.

"Mickee." Fran snags her attention.

Mickee turns our way but freezes when her eyes land on me. A beat of silence and my heart sinks. Then, "Oh, Vera." she coos, dropping the knife as she makes her way to me. Tears swell up in her eyes, and for the first time since I got the news, sadness bubbles up within. I push it back down and meet her embrace halfway. Those frail arms of hers' squeezing me tight, and I'm matching her grip, realizing just how much I missed this woman.

Almost scared to breach the topic, I force the words out. "How are you doing?"

A sigh gushes out of her and she leans away from me, keeping me in her grasp. "This grief is just a byproduct of my love for Roland. I was lucky to have found him and spent so much of my life with him."

That's so Mickee. To be swallowed with grief yet still seek out the bright side. It only goes to make me sadder. On top of that, her words make me feel guilty. All of this time Roland was fading away and I wasn't here for them.

"How long are you in town?" Mickee asks.

"I leave the day after tomorrow."

My Mother interrupts then, questioning Mickee about the group of men setting up chairs and tables out back, as well as the array of foods crowding her refrigerator. Mickee explains the details of Roland's funeral reception that will be taking place tonight. As they fall into conversation about the details, I sneak away. It's been a long time since I've been in Mickee's home and unlike my Mother's, it's changed a lot.

If I'm being honest, I beeline for Jesse's room. The door is closed and I stand outside of it for a moment. Preparing myself? Everything is exactly the same, like a time capsule. It's just how I remember it, down to the washed out hunter green bed sheets. Even the smell is the same.

Suddenly I'm Marty McFly, traveling back in time. I'm in high school again and countless memories are playing out right in front of me. And just as I'm realizing that the nostalgia is slightly too much to bear, someone clears their throat from behind me.

"Almost creepy isn't it?"

My entire body reacts to that voice, in one jolt-like shiver. Ten years or no, he's certainly always had an effect on me. This moment was bound to happen, Vera. I turn to face him, working to keep my composure. "Jesse." My voice comes out as a hoarse whisper. How embarrassing. He's leaned against the doorframe and his presence seems so huge that I take a step back even though he's not even close to me.