Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

 

     Claira answered the door. Behind her was a man with dark brown hair that went in a small wave on his head. He had gray-blue eyes that were now shining and his smile was more than handsome.

     "Hi, guys! I mean, girls," Claira said.

     Francie giggled. "Hi Claira."

     "Why hello again, Jody," Bill told Mrs. Peterson.

     "Hello, Bill," she replied.

     Claira led Francie into her room while Bill and Jody phoned the nearby pizza place to put in an order for the girls.

     "It's so cool that our parents are getting together!" Claira exclaimed, bouncing up and down on her double-sized bed.

     Francie joined her. "Yeah!"

     "Tonight's gonna be so fun! What type of pizza do you like?" Claira asked.

     "Cheese, pepperoni, or sausage. I think that mushrooms are disgusting," Francie answered.

     "Same here," Claira agreed. "We have so much in common. It's like we're sisters or something."

     A smile slowly spread across Francie's face and she stared dreamily at the wall. "Yeah. Sisters."

 

 

     Meanwhile, their parents had gotten into the car and were driving out to dinner.

     "So, where are we going?" Jody wondered.

     "To a nice little Italian restaurant, if that's fine," Bill said.

     "Of course. I love Italian," Jody assured him.

     "That was your daughter, huh?" Bill asked.

     "Yep, that's my Francie." Jody smiled. "That was Claira, I'm guessing?"

     "Yes, isn't she something else?" Bill said. "That girl's mouth runs and you can never catch up with it."

     Jody laughed. "Francie's shy, especially around people she's never met."

     The two of them talked about their daughters since they didn't want to talk about themselves. A few minutes later they arrived at the Italian restaurant. It was called "Mario's".

     Once they were inside and seated at a table, Bill said, "Enough about Claira and Francie. Let's talk about ourselves."

     Those were the words that Jody had been dreading the whole evening. But she tried to look calm. "Okay, um..."

     "Don't look so worried, Jody," Bill told her. "It's easier than you think. You don't have to go around being so selfless all the time. It gets boring." He smiled, showing her that he was joking.

     Jody fidgeted nervously in her seat. "Well, I have a question to ask...I hope you don't find it too hard to deal with."

     "Try me," Bill challenged.

     "What happened to your wife?"

     "Ah...Veronica...She left me when Claira was only three. We got into an argument about whether or not Claira should go to preschool." Bill's cheeks reddened. "I said that she didn't, because she was already smart enough to start Kindergarten. However, Veronica said that even if she was smart enough, she should still go. We kept arguing about it over and over, until one day, she got so fed up with my stubbornness that she yelled, 'I'm leaving', packed up, and just...well, left."

     "That's terrible," Jody said.

     "Yes. What happened to your husband anyway? If you don't mind me asking."

     "Well, when Francie was four and a half, Drew went to work, just like any ordinary day. But someone in the building that he worked at set something on fire on accident, and the fire spread quickly. The firefighters came and everything, but they were too late. The building was already up in flames, and Drew was left inside it." Jody's eyes filled up with tears. "I've never gotten over it. I still miss him."

     Bill gave Jody a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry," he said, as if it was his fault.

     "Ever since then there's been this hole stabbed through my heart," Jody continued. "And no matter what, I just can't fill it up again. I wish my Drew would come back." She started to sob.

     Bill didn't know what to do. Whenever Veronica cried, all he had to do was kiss her, and everything would be alright again. But he couldn't kiss Jody. Could he?

     Bill took Jody's hand and squeezed it. "I'll always be here for you, Jody. I'll try to help you with your struggles."

     Jody smiled gratefully at him through her tears. "Thank you," she said.

     The waitress came and stared. "Can I take your order?" she asked.

     If looks could kill, Jody would've been accused of murder.

     "Or..did I ruin something? I-I'm sorry..." The waitress started to back away.

     Bill, unaware of Jody's evil glances towards the waitress, said, "No, no, it's fine, I think we're ready."

     "Okay...," the waitress said, with a hint of doubt in her voice.

     "Let's see...I'll have the Mario's Traditional Spaghetti and Meatballs," Bill requested. "And you, Jody?"

     "I'll have what he's having," Jody replied. She wished that the stupid waitress hadn't ruined the moment. She also hoped that Francie and Claira were doing okay at Bill's house.

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[Veronica]

Wait..a sec...Veronica?!