Rescue (Emily and Mason) (14 page)

I tell her about what can be done by ourselves in the house,
and she looks a little put out that I might have to hire some contractors to do
the rest. I imagine I have enough to make the house livable for now, but some
of the cosmetics will have to wait. The barn is what I really want to work on,
but first I need to know if Emily’s going to be on board with me for my idea.
I’m just too nervous to broach the subject, and yet I’d better do it tonight or
I might waste time and money.

“So listen, I’ve been thinking about the barn near the back
of the property.” Emily immediately stops eating her ice cream and puts her
spoon down. She waits patiently for me to go on. “I know you’re going to be
heading off to college in the fall, but I was wondering if you would like to
help me start up my own rescue. Mainly for dogs, cats, and a few small animals
because I don’t think I would have enough room for any barn animals.” I’m
rambling, but Emily is just staring at me. So I continue on.

“I was thinking maybe I could start by fostering some of the
animals from the Warren Rescue, and then we could move on to getting our own
facilities off property.” Oops, I said the word we. That’s the word that
usually scares most girls away. Because the word ‘we’ entails a commitment. In
this case, I’m asking her to partner up with me in fostering some animals and
starting our own shelter one day.

Emily just continues to stare at me as her ice cream starts
to melt, and I wonder if I’ve killed all chances of us ever having a
relationship, much less working together. Maybe it was too soon to spring this
idea on her. Perhaps I should have waited until we were seeing each other for
at least a month before I went babbling about creating my own rescue with her
involved. Then she picks up her spoon and shoves a large glob of ice cream into
her mouth, and I feel my heart freeze in anticipation.

Emily

I feel hot and tingly all over, and I’m hoping that this
mouthful of ice cream will cool me down. It just makes my head hurt instead.
What he’s asking is much more than just volunteering. Mason is asking
me
to help him with running his own business, and I’m not sure that this fragile
thing we have between us that
might
be considered a relationship will
work. And yet, I know my affinity to helping animals. My time at the Warren
Rescue is over because I was too forceful with my independence there. But if I
were to work with Mason, he would understand my need to help animals in dire
need of affection and training. I would be
free
to do what I pleased
there because I would be a business partner. My insight would be valued.

The ice cream has fully melted, and I swallow. I’m about to
put another scoop into my mouth so that I have more time to think, when Mason
gets this pained look on his face. He expected a response, and he thinks he’s
already gotten one from me. I put down the vanilla ice cream and dab at my lips
with a napkin. Then I feel that he’s waited long enough, and give him a lazy,
lopsided grin.

“You won’t yell at me for trying to tame an angry mastiff?”
I ask him quietly. Mason takes a long time to answer me.

“I can’t guarantee that. If it tries to rip your throat out,
I may have some ugly words for the mastiff.” I quirk an eyebrow at him, and he
smiles at me. “But I’ll try to contain myself, and I’ll trust your judgment.
However, there will  be no handling of the animals until they are cleared of
all diseases and had their injections. Which I will handle personally. Deal?”
This time I put the ice cream into my mouth and watch him sweat a little more
over my answer. He opens his mouth, probably about to revoke that deal, when I
swallow and reach a hand across the table as if I’m about to give him a
handshake. Mason takes it, but he doesn’t let it go.

“Deal,” I tell him. I’ll worry about the other kinks later,
like where I’m going to live when I graduate high school and where I’m going to
college. I’m not sure that college is really an option for me anymore, but I
could be wrong about that. I was wrong about not wanting a relationship.

“So what time are you going to pick me up tomorrow?” First
things first, that house has to be in working condition before any type of
foster home or rescue is set up there. Mason and I hash out the details while he
partakes in my ice cream, and then he drives me home. Laura stops me before I
manage to get up the stairs and asks me if she can speak with me.

“Why don’t you sit down and have a cup of tea with me?” I
reluctantly follow Laura into the kitchen and grab the tea while she pulls down
some coffee mugs. She starts some water on the stove, and I narrow my eyes when
I see her hands shake. Has she had a bad day at the ER?

“Laura, what is it?” I put a hand on her shoulder as she
stands at the stove, and watch her eyes start to brim. I know I haven’t been home
a lot lately, and when I am I’m busy with studying for finals. I can’t imagine
what’s making her this upset.

“Let’s have a few cookies with our tea, too.” She ignores my
question and struggles to get a package of chocolate chip cookies down from the
cupboard. I feel my heart sink. Whenever Laura eats chocolate chip cookies,
it’s bad, whatever it is.

When our tea is finally fixed, and we’re both sitting down
at the kitchen table, I hear Jim upstairs. I wonder if he’s being inconspicuous
for a reason. And then Laura starts in with a forlorn expression on her face.

“You’re going to be eighteen in two weeks, and graduated
from high school next Friday. Emily, Jim and I want you to know that you don’t
have to move in with someone else! You can stay here. You’re family to us.” She
stops on a sniffle, and I blink a few times as I try to comprehend what she’s
saying. She thinks I’m moving out?

“What gave you the idea I was moving out? I mean, if you
guys didn’t want me here I would leave, but I’m not going anywhere right now.”
I reach a hand across the table, and I’m reminded of when Mason took my hand at
the diner. Of course! That’s what this is about!

“You’ve been spending so much time with this boy, Mason. And
while Jim and I like him very much from what we’ve seen, we feel it’s too soon
for you to be thinking about moving in with him. You’re helping him with his
house, and I see the way that boy looks at you!” I feel a smile coming over my
face as I look Laura’s crow’s feet around her eyes. Her hand is warm in mine,
and she squeezes my fingers as she smiles back at me.

“I don’t know what I’ll say when I’m eighteen, but I can
tell you that today I’m not moving in with Mason. For all I know, tomorrow
we’ll break up and never see each other again.” I don’t feel like it’s a good
time to tell her about the fact that I just agreed to go into a business
venture with him this summer.

“Good, good.” There’s an air that seems to dissipate around
us as we move onto a lighter subject, at least it’s lighter for Laura. “I know
you’ve been saving up for college, but Jim and I would like to contribute to
your fund.” I’m never good at taking handouts, and this feels too much like
one.

“No, that’s alright. I have enough to get started, and the
rest of the expenses I can cover with student loans. I’ll be fine.” I tell her
this with a smile on my face, all the while thinking about the fact that I’ve
just agreed to go into business with Mason. My life is getting more hectic each
minute.

“No, we’ve been saving ever since you came to our home. And
we’ve agreed that we’ll double whatever you have saved up as long as you
promise to use the money for college.” I blow out my cheeks with air as I look
down at the table. Laura has withdrawn her hand and sips her tea. I put my
hands around my own mug as I stare at the tea.

“I’ve saved a lot,” I tell her hesitantly. Neither one of
them know how much is in the account I have. If they knew, I don’t think they
would be offering to double it.

“I know, you’re a very responsible young woman Emily. So how
much is it?” Laura bites into a cookie and I choose to tell her the number
after
she’s swallowed. I don’t know how to do the Heimlich maneuver, and I don’t feel
like learning now.

“A little over seventeen thousand.” I have to hand it to
her, Laura keeps a straight face as she takes that in. She even dips her cookie
back into her tea and chews thoughtfully.

“You earned all of that just from doing those gigs online
for programming?” I smile at her and keep my mouth shut. I’ve been up late into
the wee hours of the morning sometimes doing those gigs, and I’m sure that they
wouldn’t approve of me taking so much time to make money. I’m sure that Jim and
Laura would have tried to send me to college if I didn’t have any money. “So
are you going to college for programming then?” Oh no, here comes the college
discussions and the parenting time. As much as I don’t want it to, it hurts
that I’m having this talk with Laura and not my own mother.

“No, I think I’m going to try out for being a vet
technician.” A knowing look comes over Laura’s face.

“This isn’t about that boy, is it?” I shake my head. Even
though Mason has played a large part in my life for the past month, the choice
to be a veterinary technician came to me all on its own. “Then we’ll put the
money into your account on Monday.” We finish our tea and talk about more
mundane things, such as the fact that Mason had his home inspected and that
I’ll be helping him out this weekend with the project. Laura doesn’t put in her
two cents either way on that, and I can tell that she’s nervous I’m moving too
fast with Mason. I’m worried too.

Mason

It’s not the sound of my alarm clock that wakes me up. It’s
Baby stuffing her nose in my face to let me know that she has to go out and
pee. I roll over and pull a pillow over my head instinctually, and then when
she actually starts whining I rise out of bed like a zombie. I know my hair is a
disaster, but I stumble down the steps in my boxers anyway to let Baby out so
she can do her business. Mr. Yesim waves to me as he walks past my home and I
wave back to him. Soon I won’t be seeing anyone’s familiar face in the morning.
Perhaps in a few months I’ll get to see the only one that matters next to me in
the morning.

As I’m daydreaming about Emily’s face in the morning, Baby
brushes past me with dew on her feet and tracks mud through the house. I manage
to grab her before she does any damage to the living room carpet, and haul her
back out to the kitchen to wipe her paws. Then I spend the next ten minutes
scrubbing at the tile in the kitchen and the foyer.

My routine on a Saturday morning used to be waking up and
playing a video game just like my brother. Or it would entail studying for
college when I was attending. Now it includes me jumping into a cold shower to
wake me up, feeding Baby, and getting us both ready to go over and pick up
Emily.

She’s not in a sundress today, but there is still the same
effect as yesterday. I quirk an eyebrow at the rip in her jeans and wonder just
how long she’s had that pair. But I suppose after seeing the house a week ago,
she’s now prepared to get dirty today.

“So the hardware store first? I made a list last night.” She
pulls a piece of notebook paper from her back pocket, and I stare at the long
list. This is going to be more expensive and involved than I thought.

“Please tell me that’s for the
entire
restoration.”
She smiles at me and nudges my shoulder with her fist. My stomach does flip
flops, and I’m not sure how to feel.

Apparently the cashier at the hardware store outside of town
doesn’t know how to feel about our enormous purchase either. She gives me a
pitying look as I stand by and watch her ring up the paint, tape, cleaners,
rags, brushes, rolls, and numerous other things I’m not sure why we need them.
Then as the bill comes onto the little LCD display, I almost choke. I still
hand over my bank card and let her swipe it. The entire experience seems like
it’s happening to someone else as I float out to my car. It barely all fits.

That day we manage to get the floors, walls, and ceilings
all cleaned. Emily then starts in on the kitchen as I go down into the basement
to clean. It takes us ten hours of intense scrubbing to get those two areas
done, and Emily is complaining that she’s still not finished by the end of the
day. There’s no talk on the way to the diner, and we eat outside because quite
frankly, we both smell like mold, dirt, and grime.

On the way home, neither one of us talk. Emily keeps her
hand in mine until I need to shift, but her hand is always where it was left. I
pull up to her house, and she reaches for her door handle, but I keep my hand
in hers. When she turns, I untangle our fingers and put my hands on either side
of her face.

“Thank you,” I tell her before I kiss her deeply. I only
pull back when I see Laura pull one of the curtains aside in the living room.
Emily’s cheeks are thoroughly flushed by the time I let her go.

“You’re welcome. Same time tomorrow?”

“Yeah, same time. Maybe we’ll get the bathroom done tomorrow
so we can use it before we come home.” Her cheeks flush even brighter, and I
realize what that sounded like. But I don’t take it back. Emily gives Baby a
small smile goodbye before she gets out of the car and practically bounces up
the sidewalk. I’m glad I can put that lightness in her step with just a kiss. I
try not to imagine what it will be like after other things.

“I’m in deep shit,” I whisper to Baby as I watch Emily go
inside her home. Then I pull away from the curb and try not to think about the
fact that I’ve already given away my heart to a girl that could easily change
her mind.

That evening I play video games with my brother. He talks
about a new girl he meant in school, and I keep my mouth shut about Emily. When
I’m sure that she’s going to stick around, maybe I’ll introduce her to the rest
of my family. Until then, I’ll refrain from going any further than kissing with
her. She hasn’t mentioned past boyfriends, so I’m assuming that this is the
first time she’s been involved with a guy.

The next morning I follow the previous morning’s routine,
and smile when Emily walks down her sidewalk towards my car. She has her hair
up again and a bag in her hands. I can only assume it’s a change of clothes,
and I wonder if she really thinks what I may have implied yesterday will come
true. If I have anything to say about it, it won’t. Not today anyway.

We do manage to get the bathroom done, and everything seems
to be in working condition. So I let Emily take a shower first and settle
myself on the front porch as Baby flounces around with a ball in her mouth.
Occasionally she brings it to me so that I can throw it, but mostly she seems
content just chewing the thing to bits. I’m going to be spending a fortune on
tennis balls.

After I’m done showering, we stop in at the usual spot. Then
I take Emily home and tell her to text me about lunch or dinner tomorrow. Laura
waits by the front door, so I only give Emily a quick kiss before she goes. I
don’t want to embarrass her in front of Laura, and I have a feeling that woman
isn’t too fond of me hanging around so much lately.

That evening I go online and look up contractors that might
be willing to do some quick work on my mother’s old home before Emily’s
birthday. Then I fall into bed like I’ll never rise again, and wonder how work
is going to pan out tomorrow if I’m walking around with bags under my eyes. I
imagine it’ll be rough, but it’s worth it.

When I get up in the morning, there’s a text from Emily on
my phone.

Laura and Jim want to know if you’ll be joining us for
dinner Friday. It’s my graduation.

I grin to myself. I’m sure that Laura and Jim did not have
that idea in mind, but a certain someone did. I text her back that I’ll be
there, and for her to let me know where we’re going. I don’t want to show up at
a formal dinner with jeans and a t-shirt on.