Chapter 28

The telephone shrilled that evening, breaking the silence that reigned in the apartment. Lou rose from the sofa and picked up the wireless receiver. Before pressing the green answer button, she threw a casual glimpse at the small screen, and as she noticed 'Mom' flashing, Lou stopped and called, "Kid! Telephone!"

"Coming!" Kid shouted from his office where he had been working. Seconds later he appeared in the living room, and took the phone from Lou. "Thanks, honey." His smile brightened instantly when he realized who was on the other end of the line.

Lou returned to the couch, and turned down the volume of the television. She picked up the magazine she had been reading, and continued filling in the crossword while she could hear Kid's voice behind her. "Of course. Where else could I possibly spend Thanksgiving's, Mom?"

On hearing him, Lou puckered up her lips in disappointment. Kid was going to his parents' for Thanksgiving's, which was natural, as he had said himself. Being so busy lately, Lou had not really noticed that the holiday was so close by, but she had foolishly thought she and Kid would spend the festivity together. Of course, he wanted to be with his family like everybody else in the country, and if she could, she would also have her dear ones with her. So this year she would probably be on her own once again.

Lou hardly heard anything else from the phone conversation, which she noticed was over when Kid was saying goodbye. He then approached the sofa, and said, "It was my Mom."

"Yes, I noticed," Lou replied unenthusiastically.

"She called to make sure we're going over for Thanksgiving."

Lou was taken aback by his comment, and looked at him with a frown. "We?"

"Yes… us, you know, you and me, me and you," he replied lightheartedly, resting his folding arms on the sofa backrest.

"Hold on a moment, Kid. I… I don't think that's a good idea," she managed to say awkwardly.

"Wh… why?" he asked in confusion, sinking down on the couch next to him.

Louise shifted her body, sitting at an angle so that they could talk face to face. "Kid, Thanksgiving is a family thing… you know that."

"What does that mean, Lou? Are you saying you don't think we're family? We share everything, and right now you're the most important person in my life. I consider you part of my family… actually, a huge part, and I would like you to feel the same way."

"Of course I feel the same. What I'm saying is that I imagine your parents will want to have you around just for themselves, you know, without any interference," Lou replied. "They don't get to see you very often, and it's understandable."

"They need to get used to the idea that I'm not alone anymore and that you are part of my life. Besides, they already know all that. My mother doesn't doubt you'll be coming along."

Lou sighed tiredly. This time it would not be so easy to get away from this family situation. She shook her head and added, "I still think it's not a good idea.

Kid stared at her for a few seconds uncomprehendingly. Then he folded his arms, and leaned his back on the sofa, showing he was not happy. "All right. If that's what you want, we won't go. We'll stay here."

Louise sighed again. "Kid, your parents count on having you there. You can't let them down."

"If you don't go, I won't either," he stated stubbornly.

"But why?"

"I'm not leaving you here alone. I can't let you spend Thanksgiving's on your own! What kind of boyfriend do you take me for?"

"Kid, it's just another day, nothing special. And who knows? Maybe my sister will turn up," Lou said, not really believing the last part of her speech. Theresa had called her last week, and told her she had left the last theatrical company, and she was spending a couple of weeks in Mexico.

"Lou, I want to be with you, and that's final. So it's your call. We can stay here, or go to Buffalo. You decide."

Louise made an unhappy face. She felt a very strong temptation to accept his conditions, and say they could spend the holiday together in their cozy apartment. Actually, the idea sounded enticing and romantic. Just alone with Kid on Thanksgiving… she really wanted that. She did not even need to have a special dinner… just a sandwich would do, but she would sure show Kid in a very meaningful way how grateful she was for having him in her life. That would be a great Thanksgiving's Day to remember. However, Lou knew she could not give in to her own desires. She could not become an obstacle between Kid and his parents. If she was the cause why he did not spend Thanksgiving in Buffalo, and therefore, with his folks, that would be another reason for Mrs. Cain to dislike her even more. Lou knew she had to swallow her pride for Kid's sake. His parents would always be part of his life, and if she wanted to be an element in Kid's universe, she had to make some concessions, and forget about certain events in the past.

"Okay, you win. I'll go," Lou finally relented.

"We'll go," Kid corrected her, emphasizing he pronoun pointedly.

"Yeah… we will go," Lou repeated, sticking her tongue out at him, and grinning at the same time.

Kid mocked her gesture teasingly and after kissing her quickly on the lips, he jumped to his feet. "I'll let my Mom know."

He picked up the wireless phone again, and dialed his mother's number as he walked out of the living room towards his studio. Louise remained on the sofa, thinking that in two weeks' time she would be facing the Cains, an encounter she had dreaded from the moment she had started dating Kid. There was no way back now, and she knew the next fourteen days would be a torture. She had a single hope, a ridiculous hope: she might be sick that day. There was a bout of flu going around, and she might be lucky and catch it. After all, she worked with children, and kids carried all kinds of bacterial. Actually, in these two months, she had already had two colds and suffered from a stomach bug. Now she needed to go down with something that prevented her from going to Buffalo. So there she remained, in his own company, foolishly wishing over and over again that flu found its way in her body, and saved her from facing her most dreaded fear.


Lou's hopes remained what they were, just hopes. Days went by, and Thanksgiving was closer and closer until only two days were left for the festivity, which turned Louise into a total nervous wreck. This evening she and Kid would be on their way to Buffalo to spend four days there… four long days. They were not there yet, and Louise already felt tired and apathetic. She had no idea how the Cains would welcome her, or how the whole episode would end.

Maybe there was nothing to fear. Too much time had gone by, and she was not the same silly teenager that she used to be and she imagined that Emma Cain had also changed. Lou really wished she could have a civil relationship with Kid's mother. They might not become best friends, but they could not be enemies. Otherwise, she was sure something similar to what had happened years ago would take place, and she would be on the losing end. Mrs. Cain was Kid's mother, and Lou would never force him to choose. Losing her own mother, Lou knew how important family was, especially a mother, and making him choose would not be fair for him.

That day Lou was in the school staff room, reading her notes before leaving. She was so engrossed in her own thoughts that she never heard a knock at the door, and only when a little voice called her did she snap out of her reverie.

"Miss McCloud, can I talk to you for a second?"

Louise plastered a tense smile on her lips when she saw the boy. "Albert, you know you're supposed to speak in French on the premises."

The boy ignored the comment, and dared to take a few steps inside as he asked, "Miss McCloud, are… are you angry with me?"

At his words, Lou stiffened. She knew where his question came from. Since she had returned to the school after the summer break, she had purposefully ignored Albert at all costs. However, she faked ignorance when she asked, "Why do…why do you say that?"

Albert lowered his eyes in shyness, and kept them focused on his fingers, which he kept spinning around in intricate ways that showed his nervous mood. "Now you never talk to me, and if you do, you always look so serious."

Lou did not reply straightaway, and took her time to think of an answer to give the boy. She was not sure what to tell him. It was true that she avoided him, and when she came across him, she adopted a very awkward attitude. Louise knew that it was not fair of her to treat Albert in such a cold way. The boy could not be blamed for his parents' actions. Yet, Lou could not help herself. It was beyond her will-power. "I'm not angry. Things have changed a bit. I don't go to your class anymore, and that's why I don't have much of a chance to talk to you."

Albert was not convinced by Lou's explanation. He had seen her talk to other boys in his class, especially Lucas, and she always looked cheerful and kind like all other times. Albert did not voice his objections, and said instead, "I think you're the nicest teacher here. I like you."

Lou could not remain indifferent to the boy's comment. She was really moved, and this time she gave Albert a genuine smile, feeling her eyes sting with emotion. "That's very sweet of you. I'm sorry I haven't talked to you more lately. I'll try to change that, all right?" Lou said truthfully, even though she was not sure she would be able to fulfill her promise.

The boy nodded, and she stared at him for a few seconds, her eyes studying him intently. His straight, chestnut hair, his big, brown eyes, his thin lips, his small nose… For the first time, Louise realized that Albert looked so much like her. It was like seeing a strange reflection of herself in a mirror, and that realization brought about a deep sensation of awkwardness. She started feeling suffocated in the same way as when she had first learned she was related to the boy. She needed to go, to run, to escape… now.

"Albert, I have to go," she muttered, clumsily collecting all her things and shoving them roughly in her bag. "Have a nice Thanksgiving."

Lou did not even wait for his answer, and dashed out of the room. Walking diligently along the corridors, she noticed at the far end a group of people in the hall, and she remember that since today the boys went home for Thanksgiving's weekend, there was a small reception for those parents who came to pick up their children. Naturally, Lou did not want to favor a possible encounter with her father, so she reversed her steps and tried to take a detour.

Lou had not taken more than a few steps in the opposite direction when she was intercepted. "Lou!" Mabel exclaimed when she saw her former roommate, and came to give her a quick hug.

"You have to excuse me, Mabel. I have to go…"

"Why the hurry?" the blonde woman asked, interrupting Louise, as she hooked her arm around Lou's neck. She had a glass of red wine in his free hand, and sounded as if this was not her first drink today.

"I'm on my way home."

"But you surely can spare a few minutes and share a drink with your old mate," Mabel continued. "Buck sent me to pick up Lucas. We three are spending Thanksgiving at my parents'."

"That's great, but I really need to be on my way," Lou replied. "Kid's waiting for me. As soon as I get home, we'll be heading for Buffalo."

"Please just a toast. That won't take you long," Mabel insisted, and Lou could not protest as her friend dragged her back to the hall where the other parents were. Lou reluctantly accepted the glass of wine that Mabel grabbed. Louise sipped her wine apathetically while Mabel chattered on and on in her usual loquacious way. Yet, suddenly the blonde woman stopped her long speech, and let out an unexpected shriek when she recognized somebody behind Lou. "Oh John! How nice to see you again!"

Curious, Lou turned around to see who Mabel was greeting in such an effusive way. Instantly, Louise blanched and a sharp coldness coursed all over her body when she realized it was her own father. The encounter she had dreaded with all her heart was going to take place, and she knew there was no way she could hide. In those few seconds everything seemed to slow down, and as Boggs approached them, Lou told herself that she could handle the situation, and there was no reason to freak out.

"Louise, this is John Boggs," Mabel said when the man finally reached them. "He's Albert's father, you know, little Lucas's friend, but since you work in this school, I imagine you already met him."

Lou did not reply, and simply stared at her father, who looked back at her with a serious expression. Mabel kept talking, but her words hardly registered in Lou's mind. They became part of the environment like the background music that softly sounded in the hall, or the other voices. She knew they were there, but there was no real recognition from her part. Louise's every sense was focused on her father as she studied him in silence. Apart from the quick glimpse she got from him before the summer vacation, this was the first time she saw him for real in over ten years. She had last seen him at her mother's funeral, but, of course, upset as she was back then, the last thing she had wanted was to lay eyes on the person who had caused her mother so much pain.

In silence Lou eyed him. He looked older, but in a very distinguished way. A few streaks of grey hair flanked both sides of his head, and his face was now marred by a few lines, but he still had the same good looks. After a while, Lou realized that Mabel's voice had quietened, and when she turned to her side, she came to the realization that her friend was gone. She was alone with her father in the crowd, and after a few seconds Boggs asked, "How are you, Louise?"

Lou stared at him with a serious expression, and in a stiff tone, she replied, "I'm fine. Life's good."

"I'm glad for you," Boggs added, and without pausing, he continued, "Louise, too many years have gone by, and it saddens me terribly to think that my eldest child is a stranger to me. Don't you think it's high time we had a conversation?"

Lou crossed her arms, lifted her chin in a proud pose, and said, "I have nothing to talk to you about. I just can't forget the past. When I was little, I worshipped you, but you hurt me real bad when I realized you didn't love me. It was very hard to accept I didn't have a real father."

"Louise, you're wrong. How can you believe I don't love my children? I care for you… honestly, and…"

Boggs speech was cut short when a cheerful voice calling him 'Dad' interrupted him. Albert ran to him with a big smile on his face, and when he reached him, the boy said, "I didn't know you were here, Daddy."

"I just came," Boggs replied.

"Where's Mom?" the boy asked again.

"She couldn't come," Boggs answered without shifting his eyes from Lou, who kept looking at him with the same miffed expression.

Albert looked up and gladly realized that his father was talking to the nicest teacher in the school. "Oh! You've finally met Miss McCloud, Dad!"

Boggs lifted his eyebrows in surprise. When Albert was at home last summer, he kept babbling about Miss McCloud continually, and Boggs had wanted to meet the teacher who had changed his son's bleak mood, but he had never had the chance to do so. "So you're the teacher my Albie never stops praising?" Lou did not reply, feeling more and more uncomfortable by the moment. She wanted to leave, to flee from this situation, but for some strange reason her feet were glued to the floor, and she was unable to move. "Son," Boggs continued, shifting his eyes to the boy, "it turns out that Miss McCloud is more than just a teacher. She's your big sister."

Albert stared at Lou with big eyes in confusion, and turning to his father again, he asked, "Miss McCloud is my sister Louise?"

Boggs just nodded, and feeling totally suffocating, Lou reacted this time. "I have to go… now."

Louise tried to walk away, but Boggs stopped her. "We really need to talk, Louise. It's Thanksgiving, a special time for family. We're flying to California to spend the holiday with Jeremiah and his family."

Lou stared at him in astonishment. "Jeremiah?" she let out in a low voice. She knew her siblings had a relationship with their father, but she did not know it was still close.

"Yes, the last time we talked on the phone, we agreed to spend these days together. It's been a while," Boggs explained. "Louise, I know you're very fond of little Mark. Why don't you come with us? I'll pay for the travel expenses for you, and, of course, your partner… what's his name?"

His words snapped her out of her bewilderment, and removing his hand from her shoulder roughly, she said, "That's the most ridiculous idea I've ever heard! I told you. I have nothing to say to you, and I have my own plans."

As she started off, her eyes met Albert's. He was looking at her with a strange expression, but she could not tell if it was sadness, anger or disappointment that she found in his eyes. Lou wished she could tell him that her relationship with their father had nothing to do with him. Her problems started way before Albert was born, and the boy was just an innocent part. Lou knew he was a lovely child, and under other circumstances she would be glad to have him as a brother, but the past hurt too much, and Albert was part of that pain. Her eyes met the boy's, and she did the only thing she could do. She gave him a half-smile, and then almost ran away, wishing with all her heart to leave behind the searing pain coursing all over her, but fully aware that would be impossible.