A Slice Of Life
Chapter 35
Thanksgiving morning has come and Helga is dying to know how things are going in California. Throwing her arms up in the air, she brings up the topic once again.
"Come on, Arnoldo, aren't you even the least bit curious as to how things are going?"
Arnold sits feeding Phillip a bottle as Helga paces the floor. "Yes, of course I am, but we need to give them their space. I'm sure one of them will get in touch with us when they're ready. Now calm down."
Plopping down on the couch she throws her feet up on the coffee table. "Ugh, sometimes your calmness drives me crazy."
"Well someone has to be the voice of reason between us. Besides, think of it as no news is good news. Maybe they're too busy getting busy to call us, if you catch my drift." He raises his eyebrows a few times on the last part of his sentence.
"God, you're such a cornball. Well, if we're going to make it to Olga's in time I'd better get dressed." She gets up from the couch and heads out of the room.
Arnold holds Phillip up to his shoulder to burp him, softly patting his back.
"You don't think your daddy's a cornball, do you Phillip?"
Phillip gives a loud burp which Arnold takes as a no. "That's my boy!" He says, kissing the top of his son's head.
Twenty minutes later Helga bounces down the stairs, fully loaded diaper bag in tow.
"Hey Arnoldo!" She yells as she heads towards the kitchen, "You want to strap Phillip into his carrier while I grab the food from the kitchen?"
Although this was Olga's traditional Thanksgiving feast they were going to, Helga still wanted to contribute something to the meal so she offered one of the few items she knew she could pull off. Walking to the fridge she pulls out a large bowl filled with a salad, and three different bottles of dressing. She also grabbed two bags of dinner rolls.
With food in hand and Phillip secure in his carrier they head to the car. Strapping Phillip in, they head over to Olga's, the conversation turning once again to Gerald and Phoebe.
"I really hope they can work things out." Helga says.
"Yeah, it would be really sad if they break up over this. I mean, I know Gerald, he's been my best friend for years. I know how full of regret he is."
Helga pulls out her phone. "Can't I just send her a really quick text? Just to see how things are going?"
"No." Arnold is adamant. "Give them their space. They really need to work this out without anyone sticking their nose into it."
"But…."
"No buts. Once Gerald is back on the plane, then you can call Phoebe. I'm sure she's going to need a shoulder to lean on."
"That damn Gerald, why'd he have to go and do something so stupid?" Helga thinks out loud, trying to gain some understanding of the situation.
"Who knows?" Arnold answers. "You never know what goes on in people's minds when they're lonely."
"I wonder if she had any clue that something was up, I mean, he pulled away from you. I wonder if he started pulling away from Phoebe too. Damn, I wish I had talked to her more often after having Phillip."
"Quit beating yourself up over this, you can't change the past. The both of you were busy with your own stuff. All you can do is be there to support her when she needs it."
Finally reaching the Dunsmuir residence, Arnold parks in the large, circular driveway. Big Bob's Hummer is already there, letting them know that they are, as usual, late. Helga gets out, bringing the food with her as Arnold grabs Phillip's carrier. Walking to the door they ring the bell and are immediately greeted by Big Bob as he swings the door open.
"It's about time you three showed up!" Bob says as he pulls Helga inside. He greets Arnold with a hearty handshake.
"Arnold, my boy, glad to see you. Now where's that grandson of mine?"
Taking the carrier from Arnold, Bob disappears into the formal living room where Miriam sits talking to Olga. Seeing that Bob has Phillip, Miriam claps her hands in front of her chest and busts out a huge smile.
"Well there's our little man." She says as she unclips Phillip from his carrier. She picks him up and with being passed around from one family member to another, that's the last time Phillip has to sit in his carrier until nap time.
The change that has come over both Big Bob and Miriam after Phillip was born is just short of a miracle. The day Little Phil was born and Miriam held him in her arms for the first time she doubled up on her vow to herself that she would no longer spend her days in an alcoholic haze. She swore she'd be the best grandmother she could be. Although it was rough at first and she found herself taking a step backwards more than once, for the last month she's been true to her word. Helga still isn't convinced 100%, and watches Miriam's eyes very carefully before leaving the child with her. If there's not a clarity there she won't leave him, regardless of whether Bob is there or not. Miriam understands Helga's reluctance and doesn't blame her one bit.
For Bob it was more of finally accepting Arnold as a member of the family. He's even gone so far as to hold him in almost as high of esteem as he does Samuel. Helga wonders if Bob's affections towards Arnold would still be as high if they had given birth to a girl instead of a boy, but she guesses that they'll never really know.
The topper, though, on this whole new family dynamic, is mostly due to the vow that Helga made before having Phillip. She vowed that her children would not grow up in the dysfunction that she did and she is doing what she can to see it through. She's gotten to know Olga better and in doing so now has the type of sister she's always wanted.
She gets along better with her parents now too, and with her and Bob not spending so much time fighting they are slowly building a stronger father/daughter relationship.
Helga's even gone so far as to give Samuel a chance and he is turning out not to be the pompous douchebag she first pegged him for. She's learning that it's really quite amazing the types of relationships you can build with people if you just give them a chance.
Of course, Arnold has had a big hand in this too with his constant urgings of Helga to lighten up. This isn't something that just started with Phillip too. From the moment the two became a couple his easygoing demeanor and overall kindness towards others has slowly rubbed off on her, dulling her sharp edges. Yes, she could still be headstrong and a bit harsh at times, but he has somehow developed some sort of a hold over her throughout the years. There's a saying by the author William Congreve that goes, "Music hath charms to soothe the savage beast". In this case, Arnold is the music to Helga's beast.
It may have taken a full 25 years, but, slowly, Helga is finally getting the life she's always deserved. She sits now among those she calls her family, wine glass in hand, finally having something to be thankful for on this Thanksgiving.
Calling everyone to dinner, Samuel leads them into the dining room. What stands before them is something that looks like it came straight from the pages of Home and Garden Magazine. The large table is set with sparkling crystal and china. The handmade tablecloth and runner match perfectly with the chair backs Olga made. There is a beautiful centerpiece of fall flowers flanked on either side with tall candles. Sitting at the head of the table is a large, perfectly roasted turkey. Along with the turkey Olga has baked a delicious looking holiday ham. There are three different types of potato dishes, corn, green beans and peas. Helga's salad and dinner rolls also adorn the table. There is stuffing and cranberry sauce and gravy. Stashed away in the kitchen for later are three kinds of pie and two types of cake.
Helga can never figure out just how Olga is able to pull something like this off every year. As they sit down to eat Miriam makes everyone take turns saying what they are thankful for. It's no coincidence that Phillip is the unanimous choice of everyone this year as they all raise a glass in toast.
"To Phillip!" Samuel toasts.
"To Phillip!" Come shouts from the rest of the family.
xxxxx
By the end of the meal everyone gathers in the living room, stuffed and barely able to move. Helga sits on the couch, close to Arnold, leaning against him. Samuel sits in a large overstuffed chair as Olga sits on the arm rest with her arm draped across the back of the chair. Miriam and Bob sit close together on the loveseat, Phillip stretched out on his back across Miriam's lap. The two grandparents coo and coddle their grandson as he coos back.
The hour starts to grow late and Helga thinks it about time to get Phillip home and in his own bed. Olga rushes to fix them some leftovers to take back to the boarding house as they say their good-byes to Miriam and Bob. Arnold shakes Samuel's hand, thanking him for such a nice time. As Olga hands Helga a large bag of leftovers they give each other a big hug, making plans to get together again real soon.
Phillip falls asleep in the car on the way home, his breathing steady and peaceful. Helga is glad that she thought ahead and put him in jammies and a clean diaper before leaving Olga's. Once home Arnold takes Phillip upstairs, while Helga puts away the food. Walking into the bedroom she looks for Little Phil in his bassinet and is surprised to see he is not there.
"Arnold, why is Phillip in his crib again and not in his bassinet?"
"Well, I figured that he did so well the other night in his crib, that there's no reason he can't start sleeping in it every night."
He walks up to her and wraps his arms around her waist. "Besides, now that "things" between us are back to normal, I'd feel too weird shagging my wife in front of our kid."
He bites her neck as she lets out a giggle.
"Oh? And you think there's going to be some shagging going on tonight?"
He gives her a nod of his head. "Oh most definitely, we still have three months to make up for, you know."
He kisses her as his hands slip under her top. Sliding them up, he removes her top, dropping it to the floor. She gives him a quizzical look.
"Just how long do you think it's going to take to make up those lost three months?"
He starts covering her face in kisses. Between each kiss he says, "Oh, - you never know,- it could take - years."
"Well," She says as she unbuttons his shirt, "Then I guess we'd better get started."
xxxxx
Sunday comes, signaling the end of the long holiday break. Arnold drives out to the airport to pick up Gerald. He circles the terminal a few times before seeing his friend as he comes out of the building. Gerald wears a blank expression on his face as he works his way through the crowd, and it's hard for Arnold to tell what kind of mood he's in.
Gerald spots Arnold's Packard and walks over to the car as Arnold reaches over and unlocks the passenger side door. As Gerald slips into his seat they greet each other with a bump of their knuckles.
"Hey," Arnold says, wondering how much Gerald is going to feel like talking. "How was your flight?"
"Eh, uneventful." Gerald says with a shrug of his shoulders.
It's quiet for a while, the elephant in the room growing larger by the minute. Finally Arnold speaks up.
"So, how'd it go?"
Gerald looks out the window, giving a second shrug of his shoulders.
"Not too good, but not too horrible either. She didn't throw me out on my ass at least."
"Well, that's hopeful, right?"
"Yeah, I guess."
Arnold decides to press a little further.
"So are you still together?"
Through a sigh Gerald gives the best answer to the question as he can.
"Yes, sort of. We're not officially broken up, but she says she needs time to think. I broke her trust, Arnold, and I have to earn it back. She says until she can come to a place where she feels she can trust me again she thinks it best if we take a little break."
Arnold feels bad for his friend, but doesn't blame Phoebe for her decision.
"That's rough, Bro, but maybe it's for the best. It will give you both time to think."
"That's the problem, Arnold, I already have too much time to myself to 'think'."
Arnold does his best to be supportive. "You know, you're welcome at our place any time you start to feel alone or anything. Helga and I are both here for you."
"I know, man, and I appreciate it."
"So what are you going to do?"
"What can I do but keep my distance and wait for her to contact me."
Struggling for something profound to say, all Arnold can come up with is a lame, "Yeah, I guess so."
xxxx
As soon as she's dropped Gerald off at the airport, Phoebe decides to give Helga a call. Having just put Phillip down for a nap, Helga sits in the living room awaiting Arnold's return when her phone goes off. Seeing its Phoebe, she quickly answers it.
"Phoebe! I've been dying to hear from you, I wanted to call but Arnold insisted it'd be better to wait for you to call me. How are you doing? Are you okay?"
There's a brief moment of silence on the other end as Phoebe calms herself as she fights back the tears.
"I guess I'm doing okay, considering. The situation just totally hit me from behind. I was a mess at first but I'm doing better."
"I'm just so sorry, Pheebs, I feel like I let you down. I told you I would keep an eye on things while you were away and I totally blew it."
"It's not your fault, Helga. Gerald deceived everyone. You had no way of knowing."
"Yeah, but still. Well you can be sure as hell that I'll be watching him like a hawk from now on. So, did he tell you everything?"
"Well, he said he did, but you tell me what you know."
Helga takes the next few minutes filling Phoebe in on everything she knows, starting with Arnold's first mention of Amanda and ending with Gerald's visit to their home.
"Yeah," Phoebe finally says, "That's everything he told me. So I guess he was telling the truth there."
"So what are you going to do now?" Helga asks her friend.
"I'm going to think very long and hard on the situation before making up my mind. I do still love him, Helga."
"I know, and he loves you too, very much so. You know, and I'm not condoning Gerald's actions, but, he is only human, and everyone makes mistakes and deserves a second chance. And in Gerald's case I'm truly certain that he's sorry and I doubt he'll ever do anything like that again."
Phoebe can't help but chuckle. "Ha, it sounds like a little bit of Arnold's rubbed off on you over the years."
"Ha, ha, yeah, maybe, but I do mean what I say. Are you still coming up for Christmas?"
"Yeah. I was going to stay at Gerald's apartment, but I may just stay at my parent's place instead. But I am still coming."
"That's great, I'm dying to see you. You know, you can always stay at the boarding house too if you want."
"Thanks for the offer, I just may take you up on it for a night or two. I'd love to spend some quality time with that adorable baby of yours. Well, I'm home now, I'll talk to you again soon. Bye, Helga, and thanks for the support."
"Okay, bye Pheebs, and don't mention it, that's what friends are for."
Hanging up Helga can't help but feel a bit of sorrow for her friend. Phoebe has a hard decision to make. As she sits running their conversation through her mind she hears the front door open. Getting up she runs to great her husband, throwing her arms around him.
Looking him in the eye she says, "Have I ever told you how truly thankful I am for you?"
Smiling down at her he says, "That's funny, I was just thinking the same thing about you."