Chapter 11 - we're almost there.
Please read and review, just let me know what you think. This story has been so much fun for me. (even with my break in between). Please let me know if you like it, even if you don't.
Thanks so much to all of you!
She sat up from the couch. It sounded like someone had knocked. She quickly grabbed a tissue and dried her eyes. Knock, knock, knock. Yes there was definitely someone at the door. Sam? Luke? Sam was with George and Luke…he wouldn't be dumb enough to come back here.
She couldn't get over the relief she felt when Luke said he didn't think they should see each other anymore. She had been waiting for that, she always knew if she tried to break off the relationship Luke would immediately suspect Sam had something to do with it. For some reason, she just never wanted to go through that argument with Luke. She never wanted to lie and say it wasn't true.
Knock, knock, knock. This time the knock was more insistent. "Okay!" she called out. "I'm coming." She got up and ran over to her hallway mirror. She looked awful, stepping up to the door she looked through the peephole.
There was a man there she had never seen before. Not thinking to ask through the door who it was, she just pulled the door open and stared at the man.
"Andy?" he asked.
He was about the same height was her, she thought while looking him over. Brown hair and deep dark blue eyes… "Yes? Can I help you?"
"My name is Marc Fletcher and…"
"I suspected as much, you better get in here." she said with a sniff turning back into the apartment. She left the door open and expected him to follow. She didn't stop until she reached her couch and flopped down.
She heard her apartment door close after some hesitation and then she heard him walk into the living room. He looked around, confusedly. "Ah…Andy…is George here by chance?" It was very apparent that she had been crying so there seemed to be a careful edge in his voice.
"She out right now." Andy said taking a tissue and blowing her nose. Normally she would have been a little more self-aware but right now she couldn't care less.
"Ah…do you know when she'll be back?"
She thought about the story that George told her. What this guy did to her. Men and their problems…she couldn't stop herself. "So what's your problem anyway and what are you doing here?"
"I…ah…came to talk to George. I work with her at the magazine, well actually I'm her boss and…"
"Yeah I know all that already…you want a beer?" she asked.
He relaxed a bit, "Ah…yeah I would like one. Thank you."
She went into the kitchen and grabbed two beers out of her refrigerator. She handed Marc his and returned to her place on the couch. Folding her legs under her, she sat down. Well he must be that much of a creep if he came here. Then again…
"Ah…are you okay?" he skittishly asked her.
"Yeah, why?"
"Well…I mean George told Bernie her cousin in Canada needed her. I was just inquiring to see if you were better…or what."
She thought about how she had been acting since his arrival, her appearance. Oh god, she thought. Laughter came out of nowhere and spilled over. She laughed for a moment while he stared at her like she was a little off her rocker.
"I'm sorry," she said trying to calm down. "I'm not usually like this, really I'm not. It's just that today just happened to be the worst day of my life. I was just sitting here, well crying here, feeling sorry for myself, when you showed up."
"Oh I'm so sorry, want to talk about it?" He asked. Andy understood why George cared so much for him. He really did seem like he was genuinely sorry and interested in hearing what was bothering her.
"I think we better talk about you instead Marc. Why did you run away?"
"I didn't…well I left but I did not runaway. I don't know how much she has told you but…"
"Everything." She said plainly. "She told me everything."
"Oh even about the last night?"
"Yep…so what happened?" She crossed her legs and settled down to listen. This was much better than focusing on Sam's lack of feelings for her.
"I went to see George and you know what happened," he said turning slightly red. Andy liked that about him. He swallowed a sip of beer and continued, "So I woke up because my cell phone rang. I looked at it, it was my mother; I ignored it. I thought she was calling me about another matter that I…well I don't want to get into that. But after the third call, she left a message."
Andy just sat watching him.
"I listened to the voice mail, she was at their beach condo and she was hysterical. My dad had collapsed and she had to call an ambulance. She was at the hospital emergency room and they wouldn't tell her anything. She thought he had passed away."
"Oh my goodness."
"So I heard the message and freaked out. I grabbed my stuff and I ran back and kissed George. I told her that I had an emergency with my dad, she just mumbled 'okay'. I thought she heard me but I found out not long ago that she must have not. I just jumped in my car and drove straight to North Carolina. I figured I could drive faster then if I waited around for a flight."
"I can imagine." She said after sipping her beer.
"Well I made it in just under ten hours. My dad had a heart attack. It was awful, he was in the coronary ICU and they said he needed a triple bypass right away. He had another heart attack before they could get in him and he almost died on the table when they finally thought he was stabilized enough for surgery."
He stopped talking for a moment; you could plainly see that this ordeal had taken a toll on him. He took a breath and began again. "Everything happened so fast yet it felt like it took forever. He was in surgery for five hours when they said it should have been three. My mother was beside herself; I'm the only child so it was just us, trying to hold it together for each other."
"Why didn't you call George? She would have come immediately, you must know that."
"I couldn't think straight enough, besides after I burst in on her in the middle of the night. Then I take off without leaving much information, do you really think I could call and say 'hey, come on down to North Carolina'? My phone was dead; I was at the hospital for three days before I could pick up a charger. Then…Kathy showed up."
"Kathy? The fiancé I take it?"
"Ex! Ex-fiance." He corrected.
I wondered if George knows this, she thought.
"She just made a bad situation worse. By time I got her out of my hair and my dad got over the biggest hurdle and we knew he was going to pull through; a week had past. I tried to call her numerous times. I always got voice mail and soon her voice mailbox was full, probably all my messages. I didn't know what to think. I called the magazine and they said she left for Canada. Do you know how big this country is?"
Andy smiled. He wasn't so bad after all.
"I felt like a scene right out of 'Sex in the City' taking Denise and Lisa out to lunch and try to pry out of them just where in Canada she was. And before you ask, George loves that show and made me watch her collection of all six seasons and take her to the movie version." He smiled for the first time since he arrived, thinking about George she assumed.
He just sat there for a moment, lost in thought. He looked again at her and then said. "I would be lying if I didn't say that I waited to her call. I was scared." He seemed like he was talking to himself rather than Andy. "I just showed up at her door, I couldn't take it anymore. I got so sick of pretending that Kathy and I had a wonderful relationship. I was stuck, I didn't even know I was stuck. The years had just passed and we just stayed together, I thought it was suppose to be like that."
He stopped to take a bigger swig of beer. "Then I met George and well…you know she can be a bit overwhelming when you first meet her. But never, never underestimate her, that woman is smart…very smart."
Andy nodded, giggled and then added. "Oh she's a pistol."
He joined her in laughter. "Yeah that about sums her up. But seriously, I just realized one day that even though we were just good friends, I spent more time with her then I did Kathy. Kathy is all about her law career, she's determined to make partner. She got it into her head that if she were married she'd stand a better chance with the partners. So she enlisted the help of our parents, they were all relentless…married. We had to get married. Hell, so as usual I just gave in, I mean this is what we were suppose to do right?"
Andy didn't know; some of what he was saying started to sound very familiar to her.
Since she remained quiet he continued. "The closer we got to the wedding date the more and more realized I didn't want this. I didn't know what to do; all I knew was that I wanted to be with George more than anything else in the world and I did not want to marry Kathy." He paused for a second. "That's why I didn't want to take my mother's call, I thought she was calling me because she spoke to Kathy. I broke up with her that night and went straight to George."
"Oh." Andy said. Yes this was all too familiar.
"Where is George, by the way?" he asked.
"She's on a date with…"
"What?" he barked standing up. "She's on a date?"
"It's not what you think, she's on a date with my…ah…actually I don't know what he is right now but she'll be back soon." He was pacing her living room nervously so she had to continue. "Marc? Really it's not what you think, she's out with my partner Sam to make me jealous…well it started out to try to make me jealous and now…"
"So was that why you were crying?"
"Yeah, I guess you could say were both in it up to our necks right now. We were on a double date, Sam and George and Luke and I."
"Luke?" he asked.
"My ex-boyfriend…well he wasn't my ex at the time. He just broke up with me."
"So that's why you were crying?" He was still trying to figure out what she was talking about.
"No, it's complicated okay?"
"Sounds like, so George is out with Luke and Sam is your partner?" He sat back down.
"No, Luke and I went out with George and Sam because she was trying to make me see that I had feelings for Sam. She wanted me to dump Luke but he dumped me first as soon as we got back here. I told Sam tonight that I love him."
"While on the date with Luke?" he asked bewilderedly.
"Listen here, Kathy…"
"Point taken…so where is George?"
"She's out with Sam at Luigi's having dinner."
He stood up again. "Well then, lets go."
"Where?" Andy asked.
"Where else, Luigi's."
"Marc, look at me? I'm in no shape to show up at Luigi's." she gestured at her face and clothes all rumpled from crying on the couch.
"You don't look so bad now that you've stopped crying. Go splash some cold water on your face and change your shirt. Andy I haven't seen George in almost two weeks, you've got to help me." She couldn't say no, he just seemed so honest and so in love.
"Okay," she said as she nervously glanced around. "let me try to put myself back together here." She ran into the bathroom and pulled her hair into a ponytail. Securing it, she washed her face and then lightly reapplied some makeup. She then headed into her bedroom and put on a fresh button up shirt. She walked out ready to go.
"Do you have a car? Because I don't."
"Yeah I have a rental. Let's go." He said while he followed her out of the apartment and down the stairs. Once they reached the bottom of the stairs they almost ran right into Sam and George coming inside the entry door of the apartment building.
All right...who's situation should be resolved first? Andy's or George's? Let me know.
