Chapter Ten
Chapter Ten
Cheyenne watched intently as Barbara Jean argued with her father over the phone. It wasn't going very well.
"Brock, I will tell her….don't you believe me?…Okay, fine! Watch me! And guess what, you can't watch me because you can't see me!…oh that's mature of you, you know, I was hoping that you'd bend to my will now that we're not married! " she hung up the phone, somewhere between triumphant and angry.
Cheyenne sighed in disappointment. "It didn't work?"
"Yes, it did! I got the best of him – and the last word!"
"Yeah but we don't have the truth about the shed yet?"
Barbara Jean opened her mouth and froze, finger in the air like she was about to say something smart, then slumped. "Craap. Now what?"
Cheyenne rolled her eyes. "Lets do what we said we'd do; tell Mom!"
Cheyenne peeked in on her mother making dinner, then beckoned for Barbara Jean to follow her in casually. "Hey, Mom, what's for dinner?"
"You're talking to me?" Reba raised her eyebrows, turning the burner to low and setting a lid on the soup.
"Why wouldn't we talk to you?" Barbara Jean said, overly-innocent. "What could you do wrong?"
Reba chuckled suspiciously, turning to face them with her arms folded. "What's goin' on?"
The blondes across from her exchanged a shrug. "Well…we just thought that we'd tell you a little something…about Brock."
"Look, if its something repulsive, embarrassing or shocking, I know it. Thanks, though."
"Oh?" Cheyenne raised her eyebrows smugly. "Well, okay. I mean, he'll probably tell you when he's ready about getting his vasectomy reversed."
Rebas eyes bugged out and she leaned forward across the counter. "You are kidding me."
"No, she's not." Barbara Jean grinned mischievously. "And yeah, he's getting it reversed."
Reba blinked twice, hoping she hadn't woken up in the wrong universe. "Barbara Jean, don't joke about this – is it true?"
"Oh, yeah!" her friend nodded rapidly, not a hint of a lie there to give her away. "He told me over the phone last night when I called and interrogated him. Yeah, he says that when you two get back together he'd like to try for a baby. He wanted to tell you himself, but c'mon, serves him right for not filling us in."
At first Reba glowed at the news; then, after a moment of considering what her friend said, felt lousy. "Oh, guys, c'mon – just because you were mad at him for not telling didn't mean you had to tell something like that to me! Gosh, how do you think I'd feel if you told him something that personal about me?"
Neither one of them came up with anything to say, because they didn't want Reba to know that that's what they had done. They both looked in different directions, throwing up their shoulders.
"Hmmm." Cheyenne agreed.
"Psh, whatever!" Barbara Jean muttered.
Reba noticed their guilty behavior. Her eyebrows shot up as she covered her mouth in horror. She closed her eyes, counted to ten, then opened them. "What did you tell him?" she asked with her hand still over her mouth.
"Hmm?" Cheyenne couldn't seem to open her mouth.
"What did you tell him – about me?" Reba repeated angrily, folding her arms across her chest.
Realizing she was onto them, Barbara Jean put her lying face in place. "What. Are you talking about?"
Reba mocked her expression. "What. Did you tell him?"
Cheyenne bit her lip, and was about to give in out of fear when she picked up her false hope again. "If you tell us about the shed we'll tell you what we told him!"
Mistake. Reba was officially angry and pointed her finger out towards the living room. "You two have exactly six seconds. One…two…three…"
They didn't need telling twice. Cheyenne and Barbara Jean were out of there like cats running away from a vacuum.
Reba, heart pounding, picked up the phone and dialed Brocks work. She got the receptionist.
"He's not in, Mrs. Hart, he's on his way home. Actually, he said he was going to your place," she corrected herself. "I'm just here to finish some filing, then I'm on my way, too."
Almost hanging up in shock, Reba recovered, thanked the receptionist and hung up. She wasn't sure if she wanted to see Brock face to face, knowing that they both knew something they weren't supposed to know about the other. Brock had the advantage of knowing what was said about him, however, and she felt that very unfair.
She jolted out of her thoughts by the door opening and Kyra and Van walked in together. That wasn't something she usually saw, then she noticed that Van had Kyra's iPod.
"Van, your turn is up. Gimmie!" Kyra demanded.
"No, way, please! I love Van Halen!"
"Put it on Cheyenne's iPod," Kyra suggested. "Now give me the damn thing!"
"Ahem," Reba glared at her daughters language. Kyra blushed but otherwise stayed firm with her hand out expectantly.
Van huffed. "Fine," he huffed, handing it back. "But I can't put rock n roll on Cheyenne's iPod, all she likes is Rihanna and Beyonce and…"
"I feel your pain, boy," Kyra sympathized. She cast a look over at her mom and rolled her eyes. "Sorry for swearing; must have been from hanging out with Dad earlier."
"You were hanging out with your father?" Reba couldn't make sense of the sentence. First Van, now Kyra was hanging out with Brock? "Why?"
"Oh, we were all hanging out," Van blabbed casually, peeping underneath the lid at the soup, his mouth watering. "Yeah, Cheyenne, Barbara Jean, us, yeah, at lunch. We went to the Outback."
Putting two and two together, Reba spun to face her daughter. "What did your sister and Barbara Jean tell your father about me?"
"How'd you find out about that?"
"What did they say?" she repeated, desperate.
"Something about you talking to Dad in your sleep, I wasn't paying much attention," Kyra admitted.
"What – why would they do that, it's just mean!"
"So that Dad would tell them what happened in the shed."
Rebas mouth fell open. "He told him? He just gave in like that?"
"Not exactly. See, he said that he'd answer three questions, then they didn't believe him because you sounded so boring. Don't worry, Mom, all we know is that you freaked out at first, you talked, and you didn't vodee-oh-do. Happy? Like I said, Cheyenne and Barbara Jean don't even believe it."
Reba wasn't sure whether or not to be glad. On one hand, he'd made sure he couldn't tell them too much; on the other, he knew that she talked to him to herself. She hadn't even known Cheyenne knew that!
"Hey, Reba."
She jumped and turned as Brock walked in, smiling a little nervously. She felt her face getting red and her heart skipping beats through its panicky rhythm.
"Hello, Brock…"
"Okay, let's go, Van." Kyra, sensing the situation tensing up, grabbing him by the arm and pulled him out to the living room.
"But…dinner!"
"GO!!"
Once alone, then tension was killing Reba. "So…" She cleared her throat.
"Yeah." Another awkward silence. Then Brock asked, looking at his nails, "So, you talk to me in your sleep?"
"You're getting your vasectomy reversed?"
"Is it true?"
"UGH, fine it is!" Reba admitted, burying her face in her hands. A moment later she felt Brock pulling her in for a hug.
"Don't be embarrassed," he pleaded. "I swear I dream about you all the time, and I'm not ashamed."
Reba felt her heart swell over and rise like a balloon, and momentarily forgot that he had betrayed her…again. "So, you're really getting your vasectomy reversed?"
"Wouldn't you like me to?" Brock asked. "I know you love children, and you're not too old. I know how much it would mean to you if we could have a little one." He read the unsure expression on her face and his heart sank; he would rather have a child with her than anyone, but... "If you would rather I didn't-"
"No, I'd love it!" Reba assured him. "You're right, I love children…and I'm definitely not too old," she added with a hint of dignity. "I'm just not sure…its what you want, too, right? Don't just try to make me happy – I'm only happy if you'd be."
Now his heart swelled like a balloon. "I would be!" he pulled her in for another hug. "So, it's settled. I'm just upset I couldn't tell you myself."
"About that…" Reba pulled away and looked him in the eye. "Did you really tell them everything about the shed?"
His stomach came to his throat, and his first thought was to defend himself. "No, I made sure I couldn't tell them too much- but I figured they may as well know sooner or later! And you told me this morning you would tell them sometime."
She sighed and glared a little. "You shouldn't have given in – or you should have at least told me. Now they pretty much know everything."
"Yeah, but…" Brock really didn't want to argue, and she was right; he should have consulted her, or none of this would be going on. He sighed, defeated. "You're right, I'm sorry. I really wish I could change that, I should have thought it out more."
Reba was impressed with the sincere apology, and hugged him again. "Now, how are we gonna get even with them?" she asked, suddenly excited and businesslike.
After dinner, when they were all sitting around with pie and ice cream, Reba asked, "Jake, is the Monopoly game still in the shed where you were playing with it earlier?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Go get it after this, I don't want a bunch of bugs getting into it."
"Um…" Jake slid down in his chair. "I can't."
"Jake, you got it out, you bring it back."
"He's scared of the dark," Kyra ratted him out.
"Am not!" he protested.
Sympathetic, Barbara Jean said, "I'll get it for you, Jakey, don't worry."
"Well, okay, but someone has to go with you – I've seen how you organize the money," Reba insisted.
Cheyenne raised her hand voluntarily. "I will, c'mon, let's go now, Barbara Jean." She dragged her step-mom outside, ignoring the latter's cry of, "Wait – my pie!"
Reba raised her eyebrows in the silence. "That was easier than I thought. C'mon, just in case they get away!" she directed them and everyone hurried out the door, just in time to see Cheyenne and Barbara Jean close the door to the shed.
Inside the shed, Cheyenne asked, "Okay, what was going on in there – Mom didn't bawl us out, and Dad is overly friendly."
"I don't know, okay, maybe they decided to let it go."
It was then they heard a latch being slid into place, and footsteps hurrying back across the lawn.
Cheyenne's mouth fell open indignantly. "Hey, that's not cool!" she shouted, banging on the door.
"Yeah, look at the mess they made last night!" Barbara Jean, totally oblivious to the fact that they were trapped. "I don't remember giving them a Monopoly game, do you?"
At the house, everyone was rather triumphant. "Nice work, Jake!" Reba slapped him a high five. "They're in there with nothing but Monopoly and junk food. I gave them all the chips in the house."
"Yeah, but now everyone thinks I'm scared of the dark," he pouted.
"Keep complaining. We can prove it." Kyra smiled wickedly then nudged Van, who was staring out the window a little sadly. "Van?"
"Did you really give them all the chips?" he whimpered.
Brock rolled his eyes. "Isn't it worth it?"
"For you, maybe, but for those of us who weren't trying to get revenge it's a little unfair!" he pouted. "I'm gonna go get the chips, be right back."
"Van, no, they could get out!" but he went right past his mother-in-law and outside. She glowered at him, muttering, "He is gonna get it."
"Allow me." Kyra followed Van outside, and came back a few moments later.
Reba raised her eyebrows. "Where's Van?"
"The shed, with the rest of the hostages."
"You locked him in there?" Kyra nodded. Reba beamed proudly. "That's my girl!"
"Thanks. Now I think I'll go torture them with my guitar." She disappeared toward the living room.
Jake looked from one parent to another. "Are you two gonna get all mushy and cuddly now?"
His parents had to laugh, and his father answered, "Yes, we are."
"Whoa, is it seven thirty? It's WAY past my bedtime!" Jake exclaimed, and scrambled out of the room.
Enjoying a chuckle, Reba turned and threw her arms around Brock. Their lips were about to touch when they heard, "Whoa, hold it until I'm out of here!" and turned to see Kyra with her guitar in hand, hurrying out the door. They watched as she leaned against the shed, got situated, and started strumming.
"Let's see, what's Cheyenne's FAVORITE song?" she said loudly, still strumming.
"Kyra, don't you dare!" they heard her sister attempt to sound threatening.
Kyra let out a laugh, similar to her mother's signature one, then strummed a little faster. "This was never the way I planned, not my intention…"
"Oh, c'mon, no!" Cheyenne yelled.
"I wanna hear it!" Van egged her on.
"Cheyenne, it's your turn, will you please take your hands off your ears and roll the dice?"
"I kissed a girl, and I liked it…"
"KEEER-UH!!"
"Cheyenne, if you don't go now, I get the car!" Van threatened. "And YOU get the iron."
"…I hope my boyfriend don't mind it…"
Reba closed the backdoor on the crazy family and sighed, pulling Brock by the waist to walk with her to the living room.
"I gotta admit, that was a good plan. But seriously, that song?"
"She learned it just to annoy Cheyenne." Reba rolled her eyes. They sat down, enjoying the silence and each others company. Brock stroked her arm from around her shoulder, and she drew little circles on his knee.
"What a day," Reba finally sighed. "Can you believe that twenty-four hours ago it was you and me in that shed?"
"And twenty-five hours ago you weren't talking to me," Brock added. "You know, when they get out of there we should thank them for doing that for us."
Reba shrugged. "Maybe. After they apologize."
"Yeah, it'll be nice to talk to them next winter," he said sarcastically.
"Look, let's not worry about them now, they'll be fine. They're playing Monopoly and pigging out, what are they missing?"
"This." Brock pulled her in for a passionate kiss, setting off uncontrollable wildfire. She pulled him by the collar a little closer; why had she just pecked him before? This kind of kiss was the only one she'd settle for now. Because she could; Reba knew that Brock would never leave her. It was completely obvious now – they could try to stop loving each other as much as they wanted, but it wouldn't change anything. Every kiss would set off those fireworks, every day they would save each other.
Outside, Kyra had stopped annoying Cheyenne and, thinking about the family she would soon have back, found her eyes a little misty. She couldn't believe how screwy things could be, but still be good. She knew it couldn't happen to any other family; everything they'd gone through had just made this easier. She started strumming a sweeter song.
There's nothing I could say to you
Nothing I could ever do
To make you see
What you mean to me
All the pain, the tears I cried
Still you never said goodbye
And now I know
How far you'd go
I know I let you down
But its not like that now
This time I'll never let you go
I will be all that you want
And get myself together
Because you from falling apart
All my life
I'll be with you forever
To get you through the day
And make everything okay
I thought that I had everything
I didn't know what life could bring
But know I see honestly
You're the one thing I got right
The only one I let inside
Now I can breath
Cause you're here with me
And if I let you down
I'll turn it all around
Cause I would never let you go
I will be, all that you want
And get myself together
Cause you keep me from falling apart
All my life,
I'll be with you forever
To get you through the day
And make everything okay
Cause without you I can't sleep
I'm not gonna ever, ever let you leave
You're all I've got, you're all I want
Yeah
And without you I don't know what I'd do
I can never, ever live a day without you
Here with me, do you see,
You're all I need
I will be all that you want
And get myself together
Cause you keep me from falling apart
All my life
I'll be with you forever
To get you through the day
And make everything okay"
Upon finishing the song, she heard sniffs coming from inside, then Cheyenne snapping:
"Van, are you crying?"
"I am NOT crying!"
Shaking her head, with a smile, Kyra walked inside. She still had something to say to her parents, and it wouldn't be easy. She supposed the quicker the better.
"Hey, Mom? Dad?" she said, entering the living room. Luckily, they had broken apart when they heard her come in, so there was no need for her to shield her eyes.
"Yeah, sweetie?"
Kyra took a deep breath. She knew this would be a blow to them, but that it was the right thing to do. She'd feel a hell of a lot better after it was said. "I've made my decision as to where I'm going to live."
Reba was suspicious. "Wait – honey, your father and I are getting back together, you'll just live here again."
"That's what I thought at first, too," Kyra admitted, then stared at her knees. "Until she was crying."
Reba understood perfectly who Kyra was talking about, and bit her lip nervously. Brock, being a man, asked, "Whose crying?"
Kyra sighed and faced them again. "I know this has been hard on Barbara Jean. She doesn't love you, Dad, but this makes her feel out of the family. She's scared to death – when she came up and told me you were divorced, she told me that she was afraid that she'd suddenly lose all of us. Then…she cried. Not that freaky hyperventilating cry – that one where you're trying not to but you can't help it."
Reba and Brock exchanged a slightly ashamed look. They'd acted so happy and in love, right in front of Barbara Jean, thinking that she was perfectly fine. Just like Reba had acted like she wasn't hurt, maybe Barbara Jean was, too.
"Like I said, she doesn't love Dad or anything, but this is…really hard, and…to a point, painful. I'd like to be there for her, so I want to stay with her," Kyra finished. She had that glint in her eye that meant nothing could change her mind; both Reba and Brock recognized it, and where she got it from. Her face was set, as was her mind. For once, a sensitive issue was hitting home with Kyra.
"What do you think?" Reba finally asked Brock, turning to face him. He sighed, running a hand through his hair.
"I guess…if you think that's the right thing to do, you should do it." He placed a hand on his daughters knee. "But I'm really going to miss you, honey."
She nodded, staring back at her knees. "I do think it's the right thing to do. But I'm going to be around as much as I possibly can…she's not moving, or anything, so I'll always be close by."
Reba nodded, a lump in her throat preventing much speech. On one hand she was glad that her daughters conscience was so alert and caring; on the other hand she was so set on having her daughter back and had to fight a little bit. "Couldn't you just…visit her a lot?"
"Mom, that wouldn't be a very consistent setting for her, and she would still be alone most of the time."
Reba sighed. "All right, you win. Go ahead."
Kyra smiled. "Good. Thank you." She stood and kissed them both on the head. "Think I'll go practice at home – see you." She disappeared out the door, leaving Reba and Brock in silence again, but a much more intense one.
"You know," Brock finally broke it. "I really will miss her, but after all that's happened I'm just so glad that Barbara Jean's not gonna be alone."
Reba nodded in agreement. "I am, too. I can't believe it, though…Brock, will Kyra ever move back?"
"You really miss her, huh?" Reba nodded. "Well, I know she missed you – misses you. She was always talking about you when I lived there."
"Really?"
"Sure, it was mostly complaining, but you were very important to her. You are. As long as that's true than you two will always be close. And one day, you know, when Barbara Jean gets remarried she'll want to move back. And maybe by then we'll have a new child."
Reba smiled and cuddled against his chest again. "I love you, Brock."
He kissed her temple. "I love you."
And if I let you down
I'll turn it all around
Cause I would never let you go
The End
Well, guess that's all, folks!! I really hope you enjoyed it. If the title doesn't make sense yet, well I had been thinking of putting that line in somewhere but decided it would be too cheesy. But its a signature phrase for Reba so I decided the title stays. This one took a long time, so thanks to everyone who stuck with me and reviewed! Again, thanks to coffeeiv for ideas on this and the last chapter and stay tuned for possibly a sequel, everyone!
Songs: I Kissed a Girl - Katey Perry
I Will Be - Avril Lavigne