CHANGES
Chapter Twenty-Nine
"You okay, man? You look like
hell," Fabrizio commented as Jack let him into the dark apartment.
Jack smiled ruefully. "I feel like hell,
to be honest."
Fabrizio's light-hearted expression faded at
his friend's tone. "Whats going on, Jack?"
"Rose left me," Jack admitted.
"God, I'm such an idiot..."
"She left? What happened?"
"I fucked up. I fucked up so bad, Fabri.
I got drunk and slept with someone else. And I didn't tell her. I lied to her.
I deserved to lose her and Mandy. Shit, I deserve to lose everything."
"You cheated on her?" Fabrizio
asked, unable to mask the surprise in his voice. Out of everyone, Jack was the
last one he'd ever expect to sleep with another woman.
Jack swept his now greasy hair back with his
hand. "And now the girl...she's claiming that I got her pregnant...I can't
have another child, not by anyone but Rose. I won't even be able to look at it,
knowing this is what came from the one night that made me lose Rose. I...I
can't."
Fabrizio watched as his heartbroken friend
hung his head, his shoulders shaking with sobs. There had to be some way to
bring Rose home. Some way...
*****
"You sure you don't wanna stay
here?" Frankie asked again as he helped Rose pack her bags into the car.
Rose shook her head. "No, we gotta get
going. I wanna get to Mom and Dad's before they get slammed with snow."
"All right," Frankie conceded,
hugging his little sister. "If you need anything, anything at all,
call."
"I will. Thanks for letting us stay
here...I appreciate it," Rose replied, hugging him back. It had been a
hard two days, but he had done his best to keep her smiling.
"Anytime. Drive safe."
*****
It was two days later, and a whole five days
since she had left Boston, when Rose finally pulled up in front of her parents'
home. With only three of the original seven children still living at home, the
house seemed a million times calmer. Unbuckling Amanda, she let her out of the
car and the child immediately ran up the steps, pounding on the front door.
Rose gently pulled her away from the door when Ruth appeared.
"Rose," she greeted, hugging her
daughter, before crouching down. "And there's my Mandy. Come give Grandma
a hug."
Amanda was more than happy to comply, running
straight into her arms. Rose smiled at the picture. "Thanks for letting us
stay here, Mom."
"No need to thank me, Rose," Ruth
said. "You're our daughter. Now, come on in. You've gotta be exhausted
from the drive. I'll have Eric bring in your stuff."
Rose followed her in, letting the familiar
surroundings calm her frazzled nerves. "Where is everyone?"
"Morgan's out with that Peter kid, Lord
help us. The other two are upstairs and your father's in his office," Ruth
informed her, setting Amanda down on one of the posh couches adorning the
living room.
Rose indicated towards the hall. "I'm
gonna go talk to Dad, then."
Ruth nodded and took her granddaughter into
the kitchen. Rose took a deep breath and headed towards her father's office.
The door was closed, but she could hear her father's booming voice chuckling
about something. Smoothing down her erratic curls, she knocked lightly.
"Come in."
Hesitantly, Rose pushed the door open to the
intimate interior of the office. Joseph himself sat at the desk, typing
something on the computer and talking on the phone. His face lit up when he saw
her and motioned that she come in.
"Listen, I'm going to have to let you
go. My daughter just got here. Yeah, the Harvard student. Oh, yes, we're very
proud. Okay Mel, I'll talk to you later. Bye." After hanging up, he
enveloped his pride and joy in his arms. "I was wondering when you'd get
here."
"We would've gotten here last night, but
we ran into some snow in Iowa," Rose said, relishing having her father's
comforting arms around her.
"How are you?" Joseph asked,
releasing her from his hold and sitting down on the loveseat.
Rose's eyes clouded over and she shrugged.
"I've been better...I'm kind of numb at this point, I guess."
Joseph, who had been informed of Jack's
indiscretion by Frankie the day before, nodded. "I understand. You know
you're welcome to stay here as long as you need to, Rose."
"I know, Daddy. I'm not sure how
long...but I'll help with the bills..."
"Nonsense," Joseph interrupted.
"You concentrate on pulling yourself together and making a life for you
and your daughter."
"Thank you," Rose murmured, her
gaze shifting shyly to the floor.
"Now, I want to see my baby girl. Shall
we?" Joseph said, standing up. Rose smiled, and together they exited the
room.
One Week Later
Dragging his nearly lifeless body from its
place on the couch, Jack forced himself to shower. It wasn't that he wanted to
go out, but there wasn't any food left in the house. He'd be calling his parents
soon, he knew that. His employer had called the day before to inform him he had
lost his job. The school would probably be contacting him soon as well, since
he hadn't been there since Rose had left, either. Stepping out from beneath the
water, Jack stared at his reflection in the mirror. He was empty, just a shell
of what he used to be. No longer did his blue eyes hold any sign of feeling, of
life, period. He needed to shave, he noticed, but decided against it. Why
bother? So instead he dressed and reluctantly left the apartment. The air was
cool, the promise of a white Thanksgiving hanging in the air, but Jack was
oblivious and opted to walk anyway. The store was only a few blocks away and he
was there in a matter of minutes. Going through the motions, Jack grabbed the
necessities and, as an afterthought, a pack of cigarettes. He had smoked as a
teen, but had given it up the moment he and Rose got together. She wasn't there
now and he could use an old friend, so why not? After receiving his change, he returned
home, sat back down on the couch and smoked the whole damn pack.
*****
"I can't, Daddy. I can't see him,"
Rose protested.
Joseph sighed. "He probably won't even
be there, Rose. Jessica said he hasn't called to confirm yet, and Thanksgiving
is tomorrow."
Rose shook her head. "I can't take that
chance, though. You go. Take Mandy. I'll stay here."
"Are you sure? There's no way to change
your mind?"
"I'm sure. I'm not in a festive holiday
mood, anyway."
Nodding in resignation, Joseph conceded and
left the room.
*****
Beep! "Hey, Jack, it's Jess. If you're
there, pick up, if not, give me a call when you get this. Bye."
Beep!
Jack stared at the answering machine blankly.
That was the third time his sister had called that morning. His parents too,
had called repeatedly the night before, but he hadn't answered. More than
likely they had heard about what had happened and at the moment, Jack wasn't
feeling up to going down that road again. They meant well, he knew, but he just
wanted to be left alone to wallow in self-hatred.
Sighing, he reached over and unplugged the
phone and went out to get more cigarettes.
Three Days Later
"This can't be happening," Rose
muttered, leaning her head against the cool tile of the bathroom wall. She made
a move to get up, but not before the last of last night's meal found a new home
in the toilet bowl. Groaning, she sank back down to the floor when there was a
knock on the door.
"Rose, sweetie, are you okay?"
Ruth's concerned voice asked from the other side.
Forcing herself to sound somewhat normal,
Rose said, "I'm fine, Mom."
"Are you sure? You've been in there for
nearly an hour now."
"I'm fine. I'll be out in a
minute," Rose called, flipping on the faucet so the flushing of the toilet
wouldn't be heard. After doing so, she stared at herself in the mirror, her
thoughts running amok. She couldn't be, could she?