Page 89 of Collision

“Chase didn’t exactly give me a choice.”

“Right.”

I sat quietly, remembering all the times Chase showed up with food, and insisted on driving me places.

“Don’t let him isolate himself. That will only make things worse. Go over there and take care of him.”

“Even if he doesn’t want me there?”

“If he listened to you every time you told him to go away, you wouldn’t be where you are right now.”

“You’re right.”

“I always am! Now, go!”

“Thanks, Shell.”

“Oh! I have a candy striper costume, if you want to borrow it. That would definitely help him out of his funk.”

“I don’t really think that would go over too well, with him living with his mother and four-year old sister.”

“Oh, yeah. Forgot about that part.”

“Bye, Shell.”

I sat on my couch, unsure. I thought about all the casseroles, pies, and fruit baskets people sent me the first few days following my father’s death; I thought about all the arrangements I had to make for his funeral, and the phone calls to let people know about his service; I thought about Beverly, knowing all too well that she would not ask her sons for help. I began making a mental list of all the things that needed to be done, and before I could talk myself out of it, I was out the door.

19

My Turn

Irang the bell with my elbow, both hands full.

“Merritt, what is all this?”

“These bags need to be refrigerated. Careful, this is the one that has the eggs.” I ran back out to my car to grab the remaining bags.

Beverly and Khloe were standing in the doorway of their house.

“Merry brought pizza!” Khloe exclaimed as I walked back up their driveway.

Tanner appeared in the entryway, ready to take the box out of my hands. “Sweet. I’m starving.”

“Merritt,” Beverly followed me into the kitchen. “You didn’t have to do all of this. This is too much.”

Without stopping, I began loading the groceries onto the island in the middle of her kitchen. “Don’t worry about it. It was nothing.”

“This is not nothing. What was the total? I will give you the money for everything.”

“I refuse to take your money. Sit and have a slice with your kids. I bet you haven’t eaten anything all day.”

“It does smell good.” She glanced at Khloe and Tanner in the dining room.

“After you’re done, I have all the numbers we need to start making the arrangements. The place that did my father’s service was very reasonably priced – well, you were there, you saw it. I can call, and you can call any of your family members and friends that need to be notified once we have the dates and times. Divide and conquer, and we’ll have it all done in no time.”

Beverly gently took the gallon of milk out of my hands, and placed it down on the island beside us. Silent tears were streaming down her cheeks, as she pulled me into her embrace. I knew she would not want her kids to know that she was crying, so I said nothing.

“Chase, Look! Merry brought pizza!” Khloe yelled from the dining room.

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