Thicker than Water

Chapter 14 (Lauren)

Spending this time with Josh had been a godsend. It was exactly what Lauren had needed to get her head back on straight.

She had been so busy pinning after him the last four months, that she had neglected almost every other part of her life. Her friends had stopped inviting her places because they got sick of her half-hearted excuses. Her grades had begun slipping from A's to A minuses—which was a big deal for her.

The worst of all, though, had been her relationship with her mom. They had gone from being best friends to mere acquaintances. Her mom had made attempts to reconnect: movie night, spa day, shopping—all things they normally love doing together, but Lauren just wasn't able to get excited about anything.

She was going to sit down with her mom tonight—at the Christmas party if she had to--and sort through their issues. She missed her mom more than she could say.

Josh was scrambling eggs while Lauren looked through the window at the lake. Being December, there were no boats or people on the water. It looked so serene and peaceful, Lauren had a sudden urge to go skinny dipping. Josh really brings out the crazy in me.

Before she could suggest the idea to Josh, however, her phone rang. It was her mom. She wasn't ready for the real world yet, but since she had just made a vow to herself to work on their relationship, Lauren reluctantly answered.

"Lauren?" She sounded like she was crying.

"Yes! Mom, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" Her tone was panicked, and Josh came over from the kitchen to stand next to her.

"Lauren, it's your grandma. She's had a heart attack. She's in the hospital."

Lauren's heart sank. She immediately had visions of holding her dad's hand while he shakily took his last breath.

Although her grandparents only lived across town, she hadn't been to visit them in weeks. Her guilt was overpowering. She hated hospitals, but she had to go.

"Okay, Mom. I'll be there as soon as I can." She hung up and looked at Josh. He had a knowing look; he must have been able to hear her mom on the other end of the phone.

"Let's get going then," he said, sadly.

  "Okay," was all she could muster.

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After Josh dropped Lauren off at the hospital, she stayed there for a week. She left only to take the occasional shower.

Lauren and her mom had lived with her grandparents while they were waiting for their apartment to be available. Her grandma, whom she called affectionately referred to as Gran, had helped Lauren immensely through the transition of a new school and having a single, newly-working parent.

Until recently, Lauren had visited her grandparents at least once a week. With her Josh-angst clouding her vision, that was yet another way she had disappointed the people she loved.

There was no way she was going to leave Gran alone. Lauren's grandpa was not in his best health, either, so he had to return home more frequently to take his medications or to sleep. "I feel so much better knowing that you will stay here with her," he told her one evening while he was leaving to take a much needed rest.

Lauren's mom was there a lot too. They got the chance to talk, really talk, for the first time in months. Lauren's mom apologized for how she acted on the anniversary of Lauren's dad death, and Lauren filled her mom in on everything—well, almost everything—that had been happening in her life, which really wasn't much when you took Josh out of the equation.

During one short visit home to shower and grab some fresh clothes, Lauren spotted her macaroni picture frame on her bedside table. Her mom must have found it. It was glued back together like it had never been broken at all.

After a week, her grandmother was released to return home, and Lauren decided to stay with her until school was back in session. She didn't know what was going to happen with Josh when she saw him again and wasn't ready to find out. Staying at her grandparents' house was a win-win.