Meeting Destiny (12 page)

“
How clear were you?” I could tell Max was not convinced.

“
I was very clear, and if you don’t mind I’d rather not talk about Seth, other than to say I’m very sorry for the comment he made to you this morning and our abrupt departure. I was just so thrown I didn’t know what to say…so, like a coward, I didn’t say anything at all. Are you mad?”

“
Not mad, just…I wasn’t sure what I should have said. I wasn’t expecting to have your boyfriend tell me he was all set for the next fifty years because you were okay.”

“
Well, you said to call you when I was single. So…I’m single and I’ve officially called.” I was clueless as to what to say after that. Maybe something to the effect of you rocked my world and I wanted to see if you could do it a second time? Or you are the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen?

A stiff laugh came back on the line. “Well, I’m glad you are single. I’m a little worn out from last night. Do you mind if I call you later before I go to work? Maybe about 6 o’clock?”

Excitement zipped through me. He wasn’t holding my inability to speak at the hospital against me. “I’ll be waiting, do you have my number?”

“
You just called me, remember? It’s in my phone. I’m glad you called. I’ll talk to you soon.”

“
Okay, bye.” I set the receiver down and looked at the clock. Five more hours, what would I say? I guess I had plenty of time to figure it out.

About two o’clock my mom came upstairs with another bag of mail, a snack and a drink. “How are you doing?”

“
I’m good. Holy crap, I haven’t finished the thank-you cards from this morning yet! How many are in there?”

My mom smiled, “I stopped counting after one hundred. It is really amazing that so many people are sending you cards.”

“
Mom, most of the cards have money in them, a lot of money.”

“
Really? Well, that’s nice Dear. Make sure you send a note to everyone.” She said this almost dismissively, and I wondered to myself if I should really tell her how much. She would find out eventually. If I tell her right away, maybe she wouldn’t make me give it back. “So far I’ve gotten nearly twenty-five thousand dollars.”

The astonishment was evident and all she was able to get out was, “What?”

“
Yeah, I can’t believe this! So if you get to the store, I’m definitely going to need more cards.”

She picked up the pile of opened cards and read a few of the messages, then flipped through all the cash and checks. Wow, wait until your dad hears about this. By the way, Gwen stopped by a few minutes ago. She told me you and Seth had some sort of fight?”

Oh brother, here we go – I should have expected Seth to send his mom. “No, not really a fight, I just told him I didn’t want to be his girlfriend anymore and thought it was time we dated other people.”

“
Oh Lauren, you two are so close. Did something happen?” I so very much wanted to blurt out, “Well yes, I happened to meet a man that made me feel like I was holding a live electric wire.” Obviously, I thought better than to use that approach. There was no way she would understand.

“
No, nothing happened. I just had a lot of time to think at the hospital and thought it would be good if we saw other people.” Knowing this was not going to go over well, I looked away pretending to be preoccupied with the new stack of cards.

“
When you say other people, do you have anyone in mind?” Her tone was accusatory, and I knew I would have to either lie or confess. I am such a horrible liar, I decided it would be better to share some real information with her.

“
Well, kind of. There is this guy, Max Meyers, that I would like to go out with.”

“
How do you know him?”

“
He’s the paramedic who came to the restaurant. He stopped by to check on me, and we just really hit it off.”

“
You and Seth have been close for so long, I think you should really think this through before you make any rash decisions. Gwen told me he’s really upset.”

“
Mom, I don’t want to date Seth anymore. I never really wanted to date him in the first place. The longer I drag this on, the harder it’s going to be on him. He is just a really good friend, and I don’t want to keep pretending that he’s my boyfriend.”

“
Lauren, you need to talk this through with Seth. I’ll invite him over, and you two can talk for a little while.”

“
Mom, I would really rather you not do that. If you call him now, he’ll think I changed my mind, which will just make it harder on him later. I care about Seth, but not romantically.”

My mom nodded and walked out my door. Wow, two for two. I was worried that either Seth or my mom would be hysterical when I told them. Maybe they’re scared of getting me angry because of my leg? Or maybe kicking them both out of my hospital room? Whatever the reason, I’m glad.

Rachael came by mid-afternoon. She looked like she was digging for information, so I was sure Seth had asked her to come investigate.

“
So, how are you feeling?”

“
I’m okay. I’m going to have to go back to school tomorrow and am dreading trying to hobble through the hallways.”

“
Look on the bright side. You’ve got a built-in reason for being late to class.”

“
Yeah, I guess so.”

“
I talked to Seth today.” I was right; she was digging. “He said you broke up with him this morning. Why? And don’t tell me it’s complicated!”

“
No, not complicated. I just think we should date other people, that’s all.”

“
Other people? Are you crazy? You two are perfect for each other. If you let him go, another girl is going to snatch him up.”

It would be in bad taste to say that I was pretty sure I had already found a replacement. “If you’re volunteering, I say go for it.”

“
Be serious, Lauren.”

“
I am serious. You have a great personality, you’re beautiful, Seth and you are already close. I think you two would be a great couple.”

“
Lauren, I’m serious, you need to work this out before somebody realizes he’s available. I’m not one of them, but there are hundreds of girls who would kill to be dating Seth.”

“
Well then, that’s good news. No one will have to kill anyone. He’s available now. Maybe you could help convince him to put himself out there? I know he won’t listen to me, but he may listen to you.”

Rachael stayed a little longer but was taken by surprise that I had no interest in keeping things going with Seth. I guessed that she felt the need to go brief him on everything I’d told her.

After dinner I caught myself watching the clock. I knew Max told me he would call me, but I couldn’t wait any longer. I went up to my room and dialed his number, half expecting him not to answer.

Max picked up on the first ring, “Lauren, is that you?”

I was surprised at his greeting, half jokingly, “Yes, Max is that you?”

“
I’m glad you called. I’ve been staring at the clock watching the minutes tick by. How’re you feeling?”

“
I’m fine now that I hear your voice. I was a little worried that you might think me a bit of a stalker but decided I’d roll the dice. You could always not answer if you didn’t want to talk to me.”

Max howled at me, “Well, that’s dumb! When can I see you?”

“
You can come over right now if you want.”

I was elated with the idea but was brought quickly back down to earth when he replied, “Geeze, I wish…I’m on my way to work. I can stop by in the morning.”

“
Actually, I have to go to school tomorrow.”

“
School tomorrow? How’re you going to get around?”

“
I have these handy-dandy crutches. It should be a hoot. I could meet you in the afternoon if you want?”

“
Great, when and where?”

“
I guess I’m a little limited in mobility, so maybe just here at the house?”

“
How about five o’clock?”

I gave him my address and we hung up. I felt like I was floating on air the rest of the night and didn’t even care that I had a miserable day at school tomorrow to plan for. I had considered withdrawing from the semester, but there was no way I was going to sit through summer school and not graduate with all my friends in May.

*****

My alarm blared at six a.m., a full hour earlier than normal, but I knew I needed the extra time to get ready. At seven-thirty I made my way down the stairs, surprised by how quickly I had learned to navigate the stairs. My mom was nowhere to be seen, and my dad had already left for work. I grabbed a bowl of cereal, then it hit me. How was I going to get to school?

I couldn’t drive myself with this stupid leg. I couldn’t expect Seth to take me. The city bus stop was six blocks away. I looked in the driveway and saw Seth’s car was still out front. I was sure he was expecting me to call like I did every morning. Not today. I looked at my watch and realized that Max was probably off work by now, but I didn’t want to ask him for a ride.

I dug through the cabinet under the telephone and found the phone book. After rattling off my address to the cab company, the lady told me they would pick me up by eight o’clock. It would be tight, but I should still make it to my first class on time. I gathered my books and book bag, and sat on the couch waiting in silence. I heard a rap on the door and looked out to the curb thinking the cab company must have gotten here early.

I struggled to balance the book bag on my shoulder while pushing my weight up from the couch. Before I could take a step, the door opened and there was Seth smiling at me. “C’mon Lauren, we’re going to be late.”

I was apprehensive of his offer, as I replayed our exchange in his car Saturday morning. Had he really accepted that I was no longer his girlfriend? Was he being considerate, or was this his way of inserting himself back into my daily routine? Not wanting to believe that he had an ulterior motive, but not wanting him to believe that there was a chance for reconciliation either, “Seth, you don’t have to take me to school. I called a cab.”

His brow furrowed and his voice didn’t hide his surprise. “You what? Are you nuts? Come on, let’s get going or we’ll be late.”

I needed to be as diplomatic as possible. I couldn’t afford to keep knifing him in the heart because I did love him. But I knew in my heart that his feelings for me were not at all the same kind of love I had for him. When there was more distance between us, I hoped we could revert back to the easy friendship that we’d shared for so many years. “Seth, I don’t feel right asking you for a ride, I mean, given the circumstances.”

“
The circumstances? You mean like you dumping me? Don’t be an idiot, let’s go.”

What was that? I think it was humor. Had he really accepted the fact that we weren’t a couple anymore, and he was really just offering a friend a ride to school? Two days was nowhere near enough time for it to be out of his system. He couldn’t possibly have a sense of humor about my breaking up with him, could he? Uncertain if he thought I was not serious about the break up or if he knew I was serious and had accepted it, I found my legs weren’t cooperating while my brain was trying to process.

A strange smirk appeared on his face, not humor like before but more like frustration. “Lauren, we’re still friends, right? Friends can give friends rides, right?”

Maybe not confident, but willful belief that this ride seemed to be offered with no strings attached, my legs finally cooperated and I started hobbling in his direction. Seth took me by the elbow, guiding me ever so slightly toward the door. He threw my book bag over his shoulder and walked my snail’s pace out the door, down the steps and to his driveway. Seth helped me into the car, then closed my door and walked around to the driver’s side. He put the key in the ignition and started to back out of the driveway, then stopped and looked at me. “As long as you brought it up, have you had a chance to reconsider your breaking up with me?”

My heart plummeted. I should have known. I’m sure this was some scheme that our mothers thought up. Why else would my mom mysteriously disappear the morning her daughter had to get to school after major surgery? I should have seen this one coming. Knowing I didn’t cancel the cab that was due any minute, I opened my door and started to get out.