Too Equal For My Taste

Chapter 3: The Begging Father

Sarah happened to be looking out the window at the time. She was very tired and pretty bored. As Jake and Elliot appeared in her sights, she closed her eyes at the window without noticing.

She didn't realize until five seconds later when her eyes flew open, and she peered down the driveway from her window. There was Elliot. He was skateboarding with Jake and Mike. For a moment, she thought she fell asleep, and it was still the beginning of the summer and the Murtaugh's were still there. But then she remembered them clearly leaving.

She looked up at the sight of Elliot. He was skateboarding with Jake and Mike, her completely forgotten. But what was Elliot doing here? While Sarah was jumping up from her seat with a mixture of excitement and anger, Tom arrived back home to talk to Kate. Serina had not arrived yet. She was overseeing a departing family from the Boulders, so Kate was still at home.

She could guess quite correctly how it all went between Tom and Jimmy. Like all the other meetings, they were once again going to compete. But how cold they compete as the summer was drawing to a close and the school year looming around the corner? But when thinking of Tom and Jimmy, of all people, they could think something up.

She looked up as Tom entered the room, looking happy and euphoric. It could only mean one thing. Competition was on. Well, it would've been. Nothing would be on if she had anything to say about it.

"So, let me guess," Kate said, looking up at Tom. "You two started arguing again."

"Well"-

"But it's great we settled our rivalry," Tom said happily.

"Well, technically it was not settled," Jimmy said honestly. "Your daughter had a baby and we have yet to find out which of our families is better."

"Jimmy, we're even, we both agreed on that," Tom said warningly.

"Well, yes, in terms of what we did at the lake," Jimmy nodded. "We still don't know in terms of what my family happens to excel at."

Tom looked over questioningly at him. Jimmy stopped walking, and they stared at each other. It was difficult to comprehend the others' face. Jimmy's face was looking firm, but for what? Tom's face was looking with a mixture of question and an unfathomable daring look.

Jimmy offered his hand, "I'll tell you what. We have another competition, but this time, we play it fairly, and at our area?"

"And what would your area happen to be?" Tom asked.

"Sports, Tom, sports," Jimmy said happily.

Tom laughed, "Hah, sports! That's our best game."

We shall soon see, won't we?" Jimmy said, still offering his hand. "Deal?"

Tom took it, "You're on."

Tom looked up at Kate, "Not exactly arguing."

"I'm gonna take a wild guess based on absolutely nothing at all," Kate said sarcastically in a half-angry tone. "We're gonna have another competition. You and Jimmy are going to get into arguments about who wins, and hold of the score counting indefinitely, and then you and Jimmy appear to all of us and apologize deeply and promise to always listen to your wives from now on."

Tom then started speaking eagerly and excitedly. "Honey, it will be so much fun," he said excitedly. Kate shook her head, and got up to pace the room. Tom started speaking quickly, still with the eager tone. "You don't understand. Jimmy fell right into a trap, and he doesn't know it. He thinks he can play us in sports? Honey, you know we excel at that!"

"Sports?" Kate laughed. "You turn everything with Jimmy into a competition."

"No, Katie, I don't," Tom said quickly. "This is just a perfect opportunity. At the same, you see how good Jake is with the skateboard. I picture a race between Jake and Elliot. You know how Charlie is with football- wait- he left- but Mike with base"-

"Tom, take this far, and me and Serina will stop this game you and Jimmy have going," Kate warned. "And we will do it. And if we have to do it, you won't want us to do it."

"Baseball!" Tom cried happily, as if he did not listen to a word Kate said. It was like he was blinded with competition.

"Further- baseball?" Kate was looking interested now. Baseball?

She knew Mike had baseball camp that summer in a parental attempt to take his mind off that rough looking hockey camp. He wasn't really bad at it, and won his team most games before narrowly losing to another team in the last match of the summer.

"Yes! Honey, that's one of our best areas. All that training Mike had to do in that camp last summer. Remember that? He got great marks. If we had the rest of the kids train up- Kate, it will be great."

"Is that part of the agenda?"

"We can make it part of it," Tom said happily and excitedly. "Look, we settle this all out. First weekend, we do something. Second weekend, we do another thing. Third weekend and so on and so forth. I picture basketball, baseball, (Mike's good at that honey), football, soccer, bowling- so many things open. It will be real. This can actually decide everything once and for all."

"Then it will be over?"

"Promise."

"I'm holding you to that," Kate said, walking back over to the bed and back beside Tom. "But don't you dare take this far. This is against my better judgment, Tom."

"Gotcha," Tom jumped up. "Thank you, honey. I'm gonna go tell the kids the great news."

He ran out of the room. Kate shook her head. He forgot to kiss her. Disappointment didn't last long. He ran back in, gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, and left again. He was becoming wild again, and Kate regretted letting this go instantly.