Page 11 of When We Were More
“I’ll see you at your house.” I grab my things and leave, not missing that Lester’s cheeks are now pink with embarrassment.
I make a quick stop at the small grocery store on the way to Lester’s house, picking up the things I need for dinner and some supplies for Gram’s house. When Gram died, to say I was devastated is putting it mildly. She was my anchor and the last person I willingly let myself need. She was the only one who really saw all of me and loved me for who I am, not in spite of it.
Gram was my person. While being in her home is comforting now, when she first died, I couldn’t function living there. Everything with her illness progressed rapidly, and I didn’t get enough time with her. Everywhere I turned in the house, there was a memory that broke my heart more.
One day, Ruthie came to check on me after Gram died, since I had taken more bereavement leave than was typical. Let’s be honest, three to five days off when you’ve lost someone that integral to your heart isn’t enough. Ruthie found me broken, lying in my bed, my eyes swollen from crying, and in desperate need of a shower. I hadn’t eaten in several days, and my face was gaunt, my mouth dry from lack of hydration. It didn’t takelong for her to rally the troops. Faster than I could comprehend what was happening, Ruthie and Sally packed up a week or two’s worth of clothes, toiletries, and anything I might need, and Lester had temporarily moved me into the studio apartment attached to his duplex.
I suspect their intent was to get me out of the house to keep an eye on me, so that I wouldn’t be alone out on that old county road. The nearest neighbor to Gram’s farmhouse is well over half a mile away.
What their actions did was help me reset without the constant flood of memories overwhelming me. Don’t get me wrong, those memories are dear to my heart, and I don’t want to forget a single one, but at the time, I couldn’t handle them. I had lost the only person who loved me. The only person I believed it was truly safe to love back.
Them moving me into Lester’s apartment showed me I wasn’t alone. I might not have regular contact with most of my blood family—except for my dad, but that isn’t a relationship as it’s completely one-sided—I sure as hell have people here in Aron Falls who care about me. What’s the big deal if the large majority of my friends are in their late sixties and seventies? They’re collectively my people, even more so now that Gram is gone.
As much as Ruthie makes me crazy, and we bicker back and forth, I love her. I rarely tell her that—and I definitely don’t show it at our mutual workplace—but behind that velour sweatsuit-wearing, blue-haired old gossip is a woman Gram valued enough to count among her best friends. And she stepped in when Gram could no longer be here.
I stayed with Lester for almost a month, and his place was my safe haven during a time I desperately needed it. I’ll never forget what those three did for me. Even after being back in the farmhouse for the last couple of months, I left some stuff atLester’s. It was a good excuse to come back once every week or two.
An hour later, I’m at Lester’s, and I have dinner ready. I carry the food over to the picnic table on Lester’s back deck, covering it to keep the bugs away and the heat in. As if the aroma of cheeseburgers and corn on the cob summons him, Lester steps onto the back porch with a tray of lemonade and three cookies from Ella’s Bakery in town.
“Smells delicious, young lady. I swear I’ve put on ten pounds since the day you started staying here.”
While his expression is neutral, there’s a smile in his eyes. We spend the next half hour leisurely eating and sipping our lemonade.
“Tillie girl, isn’t it that Aron Falls Builders company who is doing your remodel?”
“Yes. We had a rough start, but it’s going pretty well now. Why?”
“Nothing major. After you left today, one of the kids who owns it came in. Said he was downtown to get some treats from Ella’s and thought he’d stop by and check out the store. Tried to talk to me, too. But I ain’t one for small talk.”
“You’ve not met them before now?” That surprises me. For a man who doesn’t talk much, Lester knows everyone.
“Nah, they don’t show their faces too much around town. Their place is right on the border of Aron Falls and Meadow Creek. The family has owned lots of acreage over there for generations. Ruthie told me that one of them bought it all, maybe twenty-plus years ago, from an uncle living out of state. When the company moved production into town from Meadow Creek last year, they built a huge shop and offices there.”
I’m surprised I didn’t realize Aron Family Builders and Restoration were new to the area. Though I never had a need for a construction company until Gram and I started imaginingwhat the remodel would look like. We were in the dreaming stages when Gram first got diagnosed with heart failure. Everything went on hold until her health was better controlled. Then, right when it seemed things were improving for her medically, and she had chosen a contractor, she was gone. It was sudden, and she never got to see the renovation to completion. But I’ll see this through for her. I’ll make sure the house is exactly like she envisioned.
“Weird that I’ve never met them.”
“Not weird, Tillie girl. It’s as close as you can get to the edge of Meadow Creek. In fact, I believe some of that acreage extends into Meadow Creek. It’s way out there—you’ve had no reason to go that way. But now they’ll be building a new log home for the Andersons, and we’ll start seeing them around more. Doesn’t really seem like they’re part of the town yet.”
We chat for a little longer, then move to his rocking chairs when done eating to finish our drinks.
After a few minutes, I clear my throat. “Lester?” He turns and smiles sadly at me. His eyes tell me he knows what I’m going to say. “I picked up the last of my things tonight.”
His smile is sad. “I figured, Tillie girl. I’m gonna miss having you around here.” He adjusts his head to take in his property, and I suspect he’s as choked up as I am. I reach over and take his hand while my eyes burn as they fill with tears. Tears of gratitude for all he’s done for me and some of sadness because I’ll miss seeing him as often as well.
“I’m aware you’re not one for big emotional talks, but I want to thank you for taking me in and looking out for me after… after Gram was gone. I might never have gotten out of bed if it wasn’t for you, Sally, and Ruthie. I… I never realized I could experience the kind of pain I did when Gram died and, without you?—”
“You woulda been fine, in time, Tillie girl.” Lester’s voice is thick, and he stares straight ahead. “You know, Mari always usedto say how you were so much stronger than you gave yourself credit for, and she was right. You just needed a safe place to draw on some of that strength to deal with the loss. Your Gram, she was one helluva woman, and you don’t heal from a loss like that overnight.”
I squeeze Lester’s hand, and something tells me he’s not only talking about me…
CHAPTER 7
Tillie
“Wow, you guys. It’s stunning… I mean it.” I stare at the refinished hardwood floor and can’t believe it’s the same one from before. The guys have sanded it to perfection, somehow kept all the dust controlled, and resealed the wide, wooden planks.
“Thanks, Tillie. Jay and I were hoping you’d love it,” Tommy says. He and Jay have been the primary guys on the project since Henry changed out workers after the pee incident. They’ve done fantastic work and have been pleasant to work with. “You didn’t peek while we let it dry, did you?”
