What May Come Part 5

The next morning, the day greeted them with the snow falling, but the wind had ceased its relentless roar. It was just after 10:00 a.m. when Thad emerged from his temporary bedroom. The day before had been taxing, so he decided to let sleep claim him for as long as it desired.....no alarm to answer today.

His nose led him to the kitchen where he found Jenny stirring a pitcher of orange juice. The muffins that were baking filled the apartment with an extraordinary aroma. It had been the motivation that Thad required to be coaxed to leave his bed. That was Jenny's specific intention, however she would never tell him. Now, he had his head in the oven; "Oh, blueberry muffins.....love 'em."

As Jenny stood, continuing to stir the lumps out of the orange juice, Thad moved close, slipping his arm around her waist and ever so gently kissing her cheek. "Good morning," he whispered in her ear. "Good morning."  Pausing, she took a deep breath to steady her heart, willing it not to leave her chest. "Did you sleep well, Thad?" "I did, in fact, I'm not sure if I've ever slept better in my life."  "That good, huh? Well, I'm glad."

"And yourself?" Thad wondered aloud. "Me? Yes, after yesterday, I probably would have slept soundly on a cement floor, but I had the privilege of sleeping in my own bed, unlike you, so yes, I slept great."  "What can I do to help?"  "Um, I was about to make omelettes."  Thad said, "Okay, I'm on it."  As he opened the door to the fridge, she handed him the pitcher of orange juice and he placed it on the shelf.  He began collecting the ingredients he needed; eggs, cheese, avocado, tomato, green onion, and bacon.

Jenny lifted the muffins from the oven, setting them on the back of the stove. A woman known for being well ordered and in control, though she was undeniably a world class weeper, she gladly relinquished her kitchen. Pulling up a bar stool, she sat back and watched as Thad masterfully chopped, whipped, and mixed all the extras into phenomenal omelettes. 

As they sat at the table eating and enjoying every bite in comfortable silence, Thad broke into it with, "What should we do today? I thought maybe a picnic or a little kite flying."  Jenny fained disappointment, "To tell you the truth, I had my heart set on a day at the beach."  "Okay, that could work, I'm flexible."  Jenny generously offered, "I even have a bikini you can wear." "Yeah, well, not that flexible." Their little game took their thoughts and then themselves to the sliding glass door in the living room. Thad pulled back the curtain.

An eerie stillness cloaked the scene before them. Not a car 
or a living soul moved. Perfect silence, perfect emptiness. 
Everything in sight was heavy laden under several feet of snow. 

Thad released the linen from his fingers and the curtain dropped back into place as they returned to their breakfast. They finished wordlessly and then did the dishes together in the same fashion.

Thad turned to hang the dish towel; when he turned back, Jenny slid herself into his arms. She nestled her head into his chest as a tear slowly fell from her cheek. Thad wrapped his arms around her, then rested his chin on her head. He did not dislike holding her close; it was a magnificent feeling. However, after twenty minutes, he decided to address her concern. He understood what she was feeling, it had hit him as well, but it was a new day and they were both there to see it.

In a soft voice Thad spoke "Jenny, you were there and I am perfectly fine, completely safe, because of you!"  Jenny lifted her face toward Thad's. Her cheeks were wet with tears, eyes red, and mascara smudged, giving her a raccoon like appearance. Her nose was running. Thad scooped her up like a child and set her on the couch as he grabbed a nearby tissue box so she could blow her nose.

"I see right now that I will benefit greatly from investing in this company."  He tapped his finger on the box. "You are a crier...all your feelings seem to leak out your eyes." 

She was beginning to pull herself together. "I can't deny it, I cry when I am happy or sad, and sometimes when I'm angry."  Thad's expression told her he was puzzled..."What?" Jenny asked. "Well, how am I supposed to know which is which?"  To this she laughed a laugh that filled the air with music. "Believe me, Thad, you will know. I'm sorry, but it struck me that if I hadn't gone for my mail you might be...."

"Oh, my sweet, sweet, brown eyed girl, as it turns out, you did and here I am. Listen carefully, darlin', it's of no use crying over what might have been, bad or good. Be present, live in the moment you are in. Don't let the past rob you of anything."

"Wise man Thaddeus, you are right, here you are, here we are, together. Silly of me to let tears flow when a smile and a grateful heart are the order of the day.

"Now, Jenny, let's make a plan together. We are seriously not going anywhere for a while, so let's use our time well."  "What do you have in mind?"  "Isn't there a story that needs illustrated around here somewhere?"  A smile nearly bigger than her lips could contain, broke free and completely excused the tears from her face. "We can work, yes, we can work! Let's see, where did we leave off?"

Thad thought momentarily, "The pond. Hey, do you have some paper I can put some rough sketches on?" Jenny went to the spare bedroom and returned quickly with two large sketch pads and a handful of sketching pencils. "Will this work for you?" Thad's eyes questioned.... how....why?  "I told you Scott is an architect, he has always drawn. Both my brothers have stuff here and I am so glad they do." Thad smiled as he reached to take the offered items.

He patted the couch, by way of invitation. "Sit down girl, let's get to it."  Jenny was clearly enthused; it was with this contagious energy they worked.

The day turned to night without the focused pair noticing. When they did, at last, they put their work aside. Jenny put a salad together, while chicken pies cooked in the oven. They ate on the couch watching "The Quiet Man". For a second night they said goodnight sweetly and parted for a good nights' sleep.

Thad and Jenny worked together seamlessly. 
They were discovering that they were a natural team.
After a few days of working from morning until night, they
had the layout completed.

The uninterrupted togetherness accelerated their rate of productivity enormously. They talked at length and decided they wanted to, from this time forward, work as a team. 

On the fifth day of their unplanned seclusion, Jenny got up to find Thad making breakfast, "Good morning, he smiled, 
welcome to your holiday."  "My what?" Jenny questioned.
"Well, we have been working non-stop with a terrific result, 
if I do say so myself." 

"Time to give us a break, so sit down, my lady, and relax. Your breakfast is served." She obeyed, eating the beautiful and delectable french toast he had prepared to perfection. Jenny said, under her breath, "Is there anything he can't do?"  "What was that?" Leaning forward to listen to what he had missed. "I said, what can't you do?" "Sit still, I struggle with doing nothing.....family trait." He flashed a smile and winked at her.

"I would like to meet them; they sound".....Thad laughed. "They sound loud when we are all together. Jenny, have you looked out the window today?" "No, why?"  "They are cleaning the street."

Jenny ran to the window, throwing the curtains open. Sure enough, they were cleaning the street. It hadn't snowed for two days and the thermometer was rising. It appeared that their cocoon like existence was coming to an end. 

Thad came to the window, slid his hands around her waist and spoke gently in her ear, "We got into this situation out of an emergency. We are coming out of it with each other. Is that not true?" Jenny put her hands on top of his, "Yes, that is wonderfully true. It's strange, I'm used to you being here; I like it. It's going to empty without you."  "You aren't going to be without me. I'm just not going to be sleeping over. To be honest, I am relieved that we will not be under the same roof, because I am having a dickens of a time behaving myself."  Jenny giggled, "I'm so glad! Let's just concentrate on getting the book out, spending time with other people and living a full life. Let's test what we think we have, then we will truly know."  Jenny spun around in his arms and declared, "To life!" She kissed him, hugged him and said with a joyful lilt, "I suppose it would be reasonable to have our first date. If you don't mind, I would prefer something outside."  "Agreed!"

The next morning the streets were cleared. People began the process of returning to their routines and business as usual; slowly, but it had begun. Thad was now free to go home. It was with reluctance that the two of them prepared to part company. "Now, you have my address and both my numbers. You already had my e-mail." As he put his coat on, he reminded her,"I will call you when I get home and don't forget, we have that meeting day after tomorrow with the editor." Jenny answered, "Yes, yes, yes, okay, and yes. I will miss you." She kissed Thad in a manner that caused him to wish he didn't have to go. But go he did. Back to his apartment. Back to his routine. Only nothing was routine anymore.