The chilly night air wisps through Denis’ hair while reading her novel on the front porch. By this time of night, everyone has settled into their designated rooms preparing to sleep.
Lewis sits on the messy bed with the doodle pad stationed between his lap. He should be studying but has an itch to draw instead, so he chooses to satisfy that itch.
Penny had a long and emotionally draining day. After having a couple of whiskeys that afternoon, she was peacefully snoring into the night.
The Home stood proudly for everyone to see. It was dark outside and the streets remained quiet but The Home buzzed with the night energy.
Denis always made the habit of sitting on the front porch, patiently waiting for her beloved to return from work. This was her favorite time of day. It was just her, a good book and the outdoor air allowing her to surrender the day, reassuring that tomorrow would be a fresh start. For now, she would enjoy the emptiness of the air and darkening sky speckled with bright stars. The dew filters through her nostrils while inhailing deeply. She turns the page and a beam of headlights temporarily blinds her while the patrol car pulls into the driveway.
Edmund shouts, “Hey good looking! Have you seen my wife?”
“Oh, you have a wife? I haven’t seen such a person. Are you looking for a good time, officer?” Denis asks teasingly while wrapping her arms around the handsome uniformed man standing in front of her. With one swift movement, he pulls Denis into a loving embrace and kisses her passionately. Excited, relieved, and overall happy to be reunited once again.
“What’s for dinner?” Edmund asks while releasing her.
“Your favorite, pepperoni pizza,” Denis replies.
“Bummer. I was kinda hoping for a pot roast, would’ve been perfect for tonight.”
Denis teasingly punches his gut, “well excuse me but I was called away from work which means my whole evening was canceled. And grocery shopping just so happened to be on my to-do list.”
“I tease you, my love. Thank you for comforting mom on short notice. Now lead me to the home-cooked meal that awaits me.”
Once the pizza was eaten, the dishwasher was started and lights were all turned off, they walked upstairs to sleep away the day.
Denis and Edmund always had a teasing relationship from the start. They met one another through mutual friends at a downtown Denver bar. Denis’s roommate, at the time, wanted to go and have a few drinks. Even though she was reluctant to join, she will agree that it was the best decision of her life. Once at the bar, her roommate, Rachel, was drinking, flirting, and having a grand time when she suddenly ran across the restaurant and wrapped her arms around a man. Bewildered by this behavior, Denis trailed behind her intoxicated friend to a table packed full of guys. Rachel was giggling and pushing her way into the conversation, like literally pushing herself onto the booth to make room for her petite body. Incidentally, there wasn’t enough room for everyone, and the last man on the end was booted and stumbled directly into Denis while she approached. Edmund and Denis locked eyes and as the saying goes, it truly was love at first sight. He was there drinking with some buddies from the police academy and Denis was babysitting her roommate. They separated from the group of friends and sat alone at a different table. By the end of the night, they both knew they could not live another day without the other person.
It’s been fifteen years since that beautiful night and they still are madly in love. Yes, their marriage has ebbed and flowed over the years but they found that humor and love always brought them back together.
They now lay in each other’s arms while in bed, talking about their day.
“Yeah, I saw BillBo again today. And guess what?” Edmund asks.
“He was drunk?” Denis responds.
“Well yeah, that but he also spat on me.”
“What the,” a long pause from Denis then asks, “please tell me you showered at the end of your shift? I am not really in the mood to share bodily fluids with your best buddy, BillBo.”
A laugh escapes from Edmund. “Yes dear, I know you all too well. You should just be glad that it was only spitting. He almost threw up on me.”
“Gross! I could never do your job.”
A pause.
“So was that before or after you found Clyde at home?” Denis asks timidly, not fully ready to breach the subject but knew it needed to happen.
Another uncomfortable pause.
“It was after I dropped BillBo off at the drunk tank. I headed directly back to the station to write up the report but chose to come home instead for lunch. Probably best that I listened to my stomach at that very moment.”
“So what exactly happened?”
“I am not sure. When I pulled up to the house, I saw a dark figure standing in the doorway and mom standing in the hallway. At the time, I thought it was some neighbor saying hello or something but then I heard the yelling. I only realized it was Clyde once I fully exited my vehicle. That’s also the time when I saw mom with the shotgun.”
“Would she have shot him?”
“Can’t say for sure but I do know that it was about to escalate rather quickly.”
They both lay in silence knowing full well that their whole family could’ve been front-page news. Denis shivers at the thought. Neither of them likes being in the spotlight, especially when the story is centered around the family.
“You should’ve seen his face. He looked like a wound caged animal. Like he would attack but also escape if he had the moment. It was kinda…”
“Heartbreaking?” Denis asks, feeling the same emotion swell inside.
“Yeah, something like that.”
“Why don’t you just forgive him? It’s been so long since everything happened. He’s the only sibling you’ll ever have, so why not mend your relationship?”
Now Edmund looked like a wounded animal. “It’s not that easy. If it was something as simple as saying ‘I’m sorry’ I would’ve done it already but those few words will never change the past. He was the one who chose to leave. When we needed each other’s support the most, he was the one who walked away. Family is blood and when the going gets tough, you come together. Not turn your tail to run away.”
She knows this is a very sensitive topic to discuss and it usually makes Edmund grouchy but tonight was different. There was a touch of resolution and sadness to the conversation. Like seeing his brother today, re-opened the wound he worked so hard to heal. Time can never heal the hurt, only forgiveness can do that.
“I’m beat, let’s go to bed. I love you,” Edmund says while rolling over in bed.
“I love you more,” Denis whispers back. Tonight she will be the one to hold the person whom she cares about the most.
