Thunder and Lightening: Chapter 16Home « Thunder and Lightening Index « Previous

- Chapter 16

Posted: November 30, 2004 - 06:14:57 pm

Seating himself in the futon, Jerry shook his head trying to clear it. The

previous day his son was officially given into his custody and new support

arrangements were made in light of that fact. After the hearing, he had returned

home and gotten his son settled on the Futon before returning to work. After

work, he had bought a new bed and mattress for his son. The evening had been

spent with Henry assembling the bed frame and getting the mattress set up.

That morning had started early, as he had to make breakfast for his son and

himself before going into the office. Martin and Abe came over shortly after

they ate. Abe was planning to spend the morning with Bill. That was a major

relief for Jerry as he headed to work with Martin since it meant that his son

would not be alone his first day at home.

Work had been total chaos ending with them setting a sales record for a single

day of business. It had been so busy that he had Martin bring him tacos from

across the street for lunch. The food had sat heavy in his stomach and his feet

were sore by the end of the day. It was with a real relief that he had locked up

the store to go home.

Jerry had gone into his desk and counted his cash. He still had two thousand

dollars left from what he had taken from the savings account. He pulled out five

hundred hoping that it was enough to get his son some clothes figuring they

would go to the mall the next day. He left for home anticipating a nice evening

at home.

His musings over the day were interrupted when Bill asked, "Don't you have plans

for tonight?"

"Oh, shit! I forgot about Jenny. I'm supposed to be over to pick her up in an

hour," replied Jerry.

Bill grinned at his father and asked, "So where are you going?"

"I'm going to have to cancel it," answered Jerry. As much as he wanted to go out

with Jenny, he didn't think that he would be good company. In addition, he

didn't want to leave his son at home alone in the dark.

"I don't think that would be a good idea," replied Bill. Abe had told him about

how his father had been seeing this woman once a week for lunch, but that this

was going to be his first date with her. Abe and Martin had bets on how it would

go.

Surprised at getting dating advice from his fourteen-year-old son, Jerry asked,

"Why?"

"It's your first date with her," replied Bill as though that explained

everything.

Jerry got out his wallet and looked through it for her telephone number. Once he

had located it, he dialed her number. After four rings, she picked up and said,

"Hello."

"Hi. This is Jerry."

"Oh, what's up?"

There was an awkward pause while Jerry tried to decide what he wanted to do. On

one hand, he wanted to go out with her and, on the other hand, he didn't want to

leave his son at home alone. Finally, he blurted, "Could I bring my son on our

date?"

There was a long moment of silence on the other end of the phone. Finally, Jenny

said, "Sure, I guess that would be fine."

"Thanks a lot," said Jerry. Looking over at his son, he said, "We'll be there in

an hour."

"I'm looking forward to it," replied Jenny although the tone of her voice didn't

support her statement. She wasn't exactly looking forward to an evening with a

kid.

After hanging up, Jerry looked at Bill and asked, "Have you ever been on a

date?"

"No!"

"Neither have I," remarked the large man as he looked down at his massive hands.

He washed there was something he could do about the calluses, but knew it was

hopeless. He had forty minutes to get ready for the date. Looking up at the

surprised expression on his son's face, he said, "I didn't date your mother. I

went where she told me."

"Oh."

"So if I start to blow it tonight, kick me under the table."

Bill laughed and shook his head. Then he realized that he was coming with his

father on the date. To clarify that, he asked, "I'm coming?"

"Yes, so you better get dressed," replied Jerry.

"I don't have anything to wear," replied Bill. His blue jeans were filthy, but

were all that he had to wear. His shirt had been ripped to work on his arm.

Hitting his forehead, Jerry exclaimed, "I was going to take you by the house

tonight to get your stuff. I guess we'll have to stop and get you some clothes

on the way to her house."

This dating business was much more complicated than he had thought it would be.

Flustered, he said, "I'll get washed and dressed and then we'll go."

Without waiting for an answer, Jerry ran into the bathroom leaving an amused

Bill behind. After a very quick shower, he ran into the bedroom and changed into

clean clothes. It only took him fifteen minutes before he was ready to go.

Standing at the door, he asked, "Are you ready, Bill?"

"Sure, I guess so," replied Bill. He had taken the opportunity to wash a little

while his dad was getting into his clothes. He couldn't shower, but he had taken

a sponge bath earlier that day.

The pair went out into the yard and looked at the two vehicles parked there.

Turning to Bill, Jerry asked, "Which car?"

"Is she a nice lady?"

"Yes, she is," replied Jerry.

"The truck would be best," replied Bill. He had thought it would be better for

the three of them to ride in the truck rather than have to have her or him climb

into the back of the Camaro. He didn't think his ribs would enjoy trying to get

into the backseat.

"Okay," replied Jerry as he headed towards the truck. He held the door open for

his son knowing that it was difficult for him to open the door with a broken arm

and busted ribs.

They drove to the closest place that sold clothes and ran inside. It took them

fifteen minutes to pick out three pairs of blue jeans and a couple of shirts

with large enough sleeves to let him wear them over the cast. Socks and

underwear took almost no time to select. Jerry checked his watch feeling that

they could make it on time to Jenny's place.

The biggest time loss occurred when they went to pay for them. Even though they

were second in line, the woman ringing up the orders seemed to take a full

minute per item. He could feel the rage rising as the time dragged by. It

collapsed when Bill put a hand on his arm and, in a reasonable tone of voice,

suggested, "If she's nice, she'll understand if we're a little late."

The reminder came just in time. Turning to his son, he said, "Remind me to write

this down."

"Huh?"

"I'm going to an anger management specialist. We are keeping track of the things

that trigger my anger so I know what to avoid," answered Jerry.

"That's a good idea. In a way, that's what Sandy does for Larry and me. After we

get done losing our temper, she asks us questions about why we got mad. I'll

tell you, I find that I'm losing my temper a lot less now." Bill was silent for

a minute as he considered his friends at school and the way they supported him

even when he was down. Looking up at his father, he asked, "Will I have to

change schools?"

"Worried about moving away from your friends?"

"Yeah."

"We'll do the best we can to keep you there." Jerry knew that wasn't much of a

promise, but it was the best that he could do at the time.

By this time, the lady had finished with the person in front of them and went to

work on their purchases. She didn't speed up, but Jerry let it slide. Nodding as

he thought about it, he said, "I'll do what I can."

"Thanks, dad."

The sound of his son thanking him was like music in his ears. He replied,

"You're welcome, son."

The pair turned to watch the woman ringing up the orders. Jerry started laughing

as she took the time to fold each item of clothes before putting it into the

bag. He knew that as soon as they picked it up and let Bill rummage through it

to change his clothes, they would be a mangled mess. It took ten minutes for her

to ring up the few items that they had purchased. Jerry was glad that he had

cash, as he couldn't imagine how long it would take to pay with a check.

The two went out to the truck and got into it. Jerry and Bill looked at each

other when the flaw in their plan became obvious. Jerry gave voice to it when he

said, "How do we get you into those new clothes?"

Frowning, Bill said, "Maybe I can change at her house."

Deciding that was the best that he could do, Jerry started up the truck and

headed to Jenny's place. He glanced at his watch and realized that he would be

ten minutes late. Frowning, he said, "I never thought this dating business was

this tough."

"So what are you doing on this date?"

"Dinner and a movie," replied Jerry happy that Jenny and he had resolved that

over lunch.

"Oh, where are we going to eat?" asked Bill as his stomach rumbled.

"I don't know."

"Uh, what movie are you going to take her to?" asked Bill. Even he knew that the

man was supposed to do the planning for a date.

"No idea," answered Jerry as he licked his lips nervously.

"Dad, you better make some plans real quick. The least you can do is pick out a

restaurant and put off deciding on a movie until you arrive there. Use me as an

excuse for having to change your plans at the last minute," suggested Bill.

Palms sweating, Jerry's mind worked furiously trying to come up with a place for

dinner. He normally went to chain restaurants, fast food, and the Crimson Rose

Bistro. If she didn't own the Bistro, that's where he would have wanted to take

her. He asked, "How about Italian?"

Bill answered, "Sure, there's a good Italian place by the mall."

"How do you know?" asked Jerry surprised at his son's knowledge of restaurants.

"Mom never cooked once you left," answered Bill.

They arrived at the house and sat in the truck looking at the front door.

Shaking his head, Jerry said, "Maybe this is a mistake."

"Too late to back out now. She sees you sitting here," remarked Bill as he

looked at the house seeing the attractive woman standing at the window.

Jerry got out of the car and swore, "Damn, I should have gotten her flowers."

"Dad, admit it. You aren't ready for this date."

The assessment was too true to deny. It only took a moment for him to open the

door and help Bill out of the truck. He reached in and grabbed the bag of new

clothes so that his son could change into them before they went to a public

restaurant. There was no way he would dare predict what kind of impression he

was making on Jenny. Turning, he saw that Bill was already halfway to the front

door. He closed the door and rushed to catch up with his son.

The door opened before they reached it. Jenny stood at the door wearing a very

nice red dress that showed off her figure in a very spectacular manner. The

contrast between her attire and that of Bill's filthy clothes was shocking. Her

face fell as she looked at him and then at Jerry who was acting very nervous. He

had just really looked at her and was tongue-tied at the thought that this

beautiful woman was going on a date with him. Jerry said, "Jenny, this is my son

Bill. Bill, this is Jenny."

Jenny looked at the young man and only then realized that a fresh cast was on

his arm. She said, "Hello, Bill."

"Hi, Jenny. Sorry we are late. I'm afraid that we had to stop and get new

clothes for me." Bill could see that Jenny wasn't very impressed.

Jerry asked, "Could he change in your bathroom? I'm afraid that I messed

everything up today."

Jenny, wondering what she had gotten into on this date, backed into the house

and said, "Go ahead. I'll show you where it is."

Bill followed her into the house while Jerry stood outside holding the clothes.

He couldn't hear what was exchanged between Bill and Jenny, but he did hear her

giggle when Bill called back, "Dad, I need the clothes."

"Come in, Jerry. I don't bite."

Jerry stepped into the house and looked around finding no one there. Jenny came

out of the hallway and grabbed the bag from his hand before disappearing again.

It was a few minutes later when she reappeared. Frowning, she asked, "What

happened to him?"

"Thursday night his mother beat him with a baseball bat. She broke his arm and

two ribs. He showed up on my porch in the middle of that horrible storm after

having ridden his scooter most of the way to the house," answered Jerry. His

voice conveyed his concern for his son and his anger at his ex-wife.

"All that happened Thursday night?"

"Yeah. It's been a wild couple of days," answered Jerry.

"So what happened to his mother?"

Frowning, Jerry replied, "I had her arrested for assault with a deadly weapon.

Yesterday, we went to court and I got custody of him. We moved him in after the

hearing."

"Wow, it sounds like you had a busy day yesterday."

"I guess," replied Jerry. He looked at his hands as he said, "I'm sorry about

our date. I had to work today and had left him alone in the house all day. I

just couldn't do that to him all evening too."

"You worked today?"

"Yes. I'll admit that the date kind of slipped my mind, but we had to get him

some clothes and... Well, let's just say, I'm totally clueless about dating."

Jerry stared down at the floor feeling very uneasy.

Jenny looked at the big man realizing that although he was big and rough

looking, inside was a vulnerable little boy that was only now learning how to

make his way through adult relationships. She smiled at him and said, "Why don't

we have dinner and just relax? It sounds like you've had a rough day and can use

an easy night."

Unable to believe how nice she was being about everything, Jerry said, "That's

great. I'll make it up to you, I promise."

Bill came out of the hallway wearing his new clothes. The shirt was overlarge,

but that was necessary for the cast. In this good hand, he held the bag. His old

clothes were hung over his cast. Smiling he said, "This is the second new outfit

that I've had this year."

Jerry realized that he had bought two outfits for his son since he had left the

house. The only way to interpret that statement was that his wife hadn't bought

the kid any new clothes yet this year. The time would come when Bill and he

would have a long talk about the treatment they had suffered at the hands of his

ex-wife.

"You have a tag. Let me get it for you," said Jenny as looked over Bill's new

clothes. She bent down and removed a label from the shirt that was hanging under

the cast. Bill watched her with wide eyes. Seeing the expression on his face,

she asked, "What?"

"You're nice to me."

"What do you mean?"

"You're nice to me," replied Bill. He'd never had an adult woman make any kind

of fuss over him. His mother barely tolerated him and his grandmother totally

ignored him.

Jenny looked at Bill in shock realizing that he was starved for attention. Her

eyes flicked between Bill and Jerry. Both of them had suffered horribly from

women in the past and she could see that they needed a giving woman in their

lives. In a way, that realization took a tremendous pressure off of her. She ran

a hand over his short cropped hair and said, "I'm surprised that a big strong

guy like you doesn't have a ton of girls at school that like you a lot."

Bill stared at her, lip trembling at the praise that had come unsought. Slowly

he turned to his father and said, "Maybe we should get to the restaurant."

Jerry took the dirty clothes and the bag from Bill. With a wink at Jenny, he

said, "I think that would be a good idea. I've heard your stomach growling."

Almost on cue, Bill's stomach growled. As the three of them went to the car,

Bill said, "Dad was right, you are nice."

Jenny blushed as she followed them to the truck. Both of them had a very

disarming way of coming to a compliment that took her by surprise. Jerry was

embarrassed that his son had said that, but he couldn't help but agree. At the

truck, Bill asked, "Would you mind sitting in the middle? It hurts my ribs to

scoot along the seat."

"No problem," said Jenny as she climbed into the truck. Bill got in next to her

and Jerry closed the door.

Getting in the driver's seat, Jerry said, "I'm sorry to drive you in this truck,

but it was better than the Camaro for him. When I get the paint job done on the

truck, it'll look a whole lot better."

After a pause, he added, "I guess that doesn't help much now."

Jenny had seen the truck and the Camaro. Although she had expected him to show

up in the Camaro, she had realized that he could have arrived in this one. She

smiled and said, "I understand."

Bill looked out the window of the truck and broke out into a smile as an idea

came to him. He asked, "Dad, can I use your cell phone?"

Surprised by the request, Jerry fished the cell phone from his shirt pocket and

handed it to Jenny. She took it and handed it over to Bill with a puzzled

expression. Jerry tried to come up with something to say to Jenny, but his mind

kept coming up with a blank. Finally, he said, "I've never tried this place

before, but Bill recommended it."

Jenny replied, "That's okay. I remember the day that you came into my place the

first time."

The comment made Jerry break into laughter. He must have looked like an idiot

trying to figure out the menu. He said, "I remember that day very well. I kept

looking at the menu wondering what language it was."

Thinking back to that day, she asked, "So what item on the menu threw you for a

loop?"

"Everything."

Jenny laughed and shook her head. She wondered how long it would be before Jerry

would relax. Although she only knew him from her place, he was a usually a good

conversationalist.

It didn't take long for Bill to make a couple of calls. When he was done, he

handed the phone back to his father via Jenny. As the truck approached the mall,

Bill said, "Dad, could you drop me off at the mall? My friends are going to be

there and I thought I'd hang out around there with them while you are eating

dinner. I can get something to eat at the mall."

Jerry leaned forward and looked around Jenny at his son, realizing only after he

had done it that it looked like he was staring at her chest. His face colored at

the thought, but he wanted to make sure that he could see the expression on his

son's face. He asked, "Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Yeah. You don't need me on your date." Bill smiled and was about to tease his

father when he realized that he didn't know how his father would react. He was

going to drop it, but thought about what Abe would say in this situation. "It's

hard to kiss your date with your son watching."

Jenny laughed while Jerry blushed. He knew exactly how it was that Bill had come

up with that comment. He smiled as he growled, "You've been around Abe too

much."

Jenny knew about Abe from conversations during lunch. One of these days she was

going to have to meet this kid. He sounded like an interesting character. In

fact, most of the people that Jerry talked about were interesting characters.

Seeing that his father had reacted without getting angry, Bill replied, "Hey,

you introduced us."

"When I do something stupid, I really do something stupid."

Giving up, Jerry sat up straight and drove over to the mall. Stopping outside

one of the entrances, he noticed Larry leaning against a post as he waited for

Bill. Jerry got out and opened the door for his son. Moving slowly from the

pain, Bill climbed out as Larry approached the truck. The kids greeted each

other with minimal talk.

Reaching into his pocket, Jerry extracted his wallet to give a twenty to his

son. Handing the money to Bill, he said, "You kids have fun. I'll be by to pick

you up at nine. Is that okay?"

"Sure, Dad. Have fun!" called Bill while he walked with Larry to wait for the

other kids to show up for a Saturday night at the mall.

Jerry returned to the truck. As he pulled away from the curb, he said, "We've

got an hour and a half for dinner."

An uneasy silence descended in the truck as Jerry made his way to the Italian

Restaurant. As he pulled into the parking lot, he said, "You know. I didn't even

ask if you like Italian food."

Jenny replied, "I love Italian."

The restaurant was busy. It was always busy on Saturday nights and the pair had

to wait at the bar for a table. The bar was crowded and noisy. Poor acoustics

made it difficult to hold a conversation. Jenny drank a glass of wine while

Jerry drank a glass of iced tea. The conversation was forced and stilted as

Jerry struggled to find things to talk about. Finally, Jerry sat back and said,

"My favorite color is red."

Raising one eyebrow and looking at him wondering what he was saying. "Red is a

nice color."

Jerry laughed at the inane comment that he had made. "I meant to say that your

dress is pretty and that I like the color, but I guess I'm a little nervous.

Somehow, I can talk to you at the Crimson Rose, but my brain is shutting down

here. I guess the idea that this is a date makes me nervous."

The explanation was honest and came from the heart. She leaned forward and

fondled her hair. "The whole purpose of a date is to boast and brag about

yourself so that you impress the other. I take it that you aren't used to

boasting or bragging."

"I guess I'm not used to talking about me," replied Jerry as he thought about

it. He wondered what he had to boast or brag about. There was his strength and

big size, but he didn't view those as assets. "What would I boast about?"

She laughed at the raw honesty of the question. "I don't really want to hear

boasting or bragging. I'd rather hear about what all is going on in your life

and how you feel about them."

"My life is a real mess. The ex-wife has complicated things tremendously and I'm

still trying to figure out how to deal with all of it. The high points of my

life are that work is going well, I like where I'm living, I'm enjoying fixing

up my two old cars, I'm seeing you, and I'm getting closer to my son." Jerry was

quiet for a minute and then said, "You know, I guess things aren't as bad as I

sometimes think they are."

"I'm pleased that you include me in your list of high points."

Jerry hadn't even realized that he had said that, but it was true. He did look

forward to seeing her at lunch and had wanted to take her out on a date. He

replied, "One of the highest points. It's right up there with getting to know my

son."

Their name was called to let them know that their table was ready. After

grabbing their drinks, they followed the hostess to the table and were left with

menus in hand. The conversation took a back seat as they went through the

process of examining the menu and selecting their meal. A few minutes later the

waitress arrived and took their order.

When the waitress left, a moment of silence was left. Jenny said, "You were

telling me about getting to know your son."

"Well, when I lived at home I was isolated from the lives of my kids. Now, I'm

getting to know him and I'm really impressed with the kid."

"What impresses you the most?" asked Jenny.

"Well, he was battered two days ago. Yet, he takes it upon himself to get an

excuse so that we can be alone on the date. I can't imagine what we would talk

about with him here. I know that he took an Abe moment to tease me, but I would

have done the same thing to him on his first date." Jerry laughed as he pictured

the future when his son started dating.

He grinned, "I'll even get to drive him to the date."

Jenny giggled and said, "Well, don't be too hard on him."

The conversation flowed from there. They discussed what kinds of things they

were doing outside of work. When Jerry realized that he was dominating the

conversation, he backed off and allowed Jenny to tell more about her life. He

learned that she had a disastrous affair with a married man and was only now

getting over it.

The time passed too quickly. It was with real regret that the hour approached

nine and they had to leave to pick up Bill at the mall. As they walked to the

car, Jenny slipped her hand in his. Her first reaction was surprise at how hard

and rough his hands were, but that was replaced by the sense of strength that

his hands conveyed. His first reaction was complete shock that she would take

his hand and keep holding it. His stomach churned as he wondered about kissing

her at the end of the date. He commented, "I like this."

She knew that he was referring to holding hands with her. When he opened the

truck door for her, she turned and kissed him. He was very surprised at the

passion she managed to put into it. This wasn't a simple peck on the check type

of kiss and caused both his upper and lower head to swell. Breaking the kiss,

she said, "We can't have Bill's sacrifice be for nothing."

The lighthearted statement broke through the fog that had descended in Jerry's

mind. A great big smile of relief broke over his face as he said, "I really like

that."

She giggled as she climbed into the truck. He closed the door and went to the

driver's side. It was at that time that she did something that he had never seen

another woman do. In particular, she leaned across the seat and unlocked his

door for him. It was a considerate move that was as surprising as the kiss.

After picking up Bill, they took Jenny home. Summoning his courage, Jerry

actually made the move to kiss her when he walked her to the door. It was much

easier since she had already made the first move. It was a short kiss because

they had an audience in the car. Still, it was more than Jerry had expected for

the whole evening.

As the pair drove away, Jerry asked, "Did you have a good time with your

friends?"

"Yes," answered Bill. Looking over at his father, he asked, "Did you have a good

time with your girlfriend?"

"Yes, I did. Thanks."

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