Disclaimer: I don't own anything here (except for Al) and am just doing this for fun and to pass the long months until Season 4.
Tim wanted to take George for a walk before he and Tyra went over to Billy's for the day, so Tyra agreed to go with him. The day was chilly and crisp, the sun out but not providing much in the way of warmth. Tyra walked with her hands jammed in the pockets of her coat.
"So....how's Landry?" asked Tim as they walked along the edge of the lake, watching George snuffle through piles of leaves.
"I don't know. You'd have to ask him yourself," replied Tyra with a shrug.
"You don't see him much anymore?"
"No. In fact, if his dad hadn't sent him over after the accident, who knows when I would've seen him next."
"Don't you get lonely up there in Austin?" asked Tim.
Tyra laughed. "I do have friends, Tim. You know, it's not like all your friends are handed out where you're born and if you move away then you're out of luck."
Tim kicked at a rock.
"And...well....I've been seeing someone on and off for about two years now and it's finally getting serious."
"Two years and you're only just telling me now?" asked Tim, nudging her with his elbow.
"I wanted to wait until I was sure it would stick. No point telling y'all about all the dates I go on that end up as nothing."
"But two years? And you've been on and off. Sounds like how we were. Are you sure this is a good idea?"
"It's nothing like us. These off periods have nothing to do with rally girls. He just traveled a lot for his job, so we didn't get to see each other very much."
Tim nodded.
"Anyway, he was in France when Mindy died and couldn't get back. I guess he felt bad about it because he took a job in Austin that has almost no travel and we're talking about moving in together."
"Wow....moving in....big step. So, does he make you happy?"
Tyra smiled and looked down. "Very. I don't know how I'd've gotten through the last two months without him."
"So, this guy have a name or do I have to make one up?"
"He has a name – Jean-Luc."
"Sounds foreign," said Tim.
"Great observation, genius. He's French. And, as long as I'm telling you all my secrets today – he's taking me to France to meet his family at Christmas."
"For real? You don't even speak French."
Tyra rolled her eyes and rattled off a string of foreign words that all ran together.
"That was French?"
"Oui."
Tim shook his head. "Where did you learn that"
"High school, college, you know the normal places where people go to learn things."
"I thought you took Spanish In fact, I could've sworn you were in my freshman Spanish class," said Tim, his forehead wrinkled in confusion.
"Nope. I took French."
Tim ran his hand through his hair. "High school....That seems like another lifetime."
"That's because it was," said Tyra with simple certainty. The followed the path in silence for a few minutes.
"Why did you put up with my shit for so long?" Tim finally asked. It was a question that had puzzled him for years.
"Because you were good in bed," said Tyra with a smirk.
"Seriously? That was the only reason?" Tim didn't know whether to be proud or offended.
"No, that's not the only reason....I don't know all the reasons, Tim. I guess mostly, it was just easy. Comfortable. I always knew what I was going to get from you, the good and the bad. Why'd you keep coming back?"
"Because you were one of the few people who'd always tell me the truth, and usually in the harshest possible way.
Tyra laughed. "And you considered this a good thing?"
"Definitely. You remember that time I was complaining about Mrs. Taylor busting me for having the rally girls do my homework? You called me an ungrateful, ignorant jackass."
"Yeah, I remember that. I think you called me more when we were finally broken up for good than you had in the whole nearly two years we were together."
"You and Billy were the only people who ever talked to me that way. And I needed it."
"And now you have my cousin to do that for you."
"Well, except for the harsh part, yeah."
Tyra looked at him sideways, an appraising look on her face. "Look at you....all grown-up now. Everyone figured you'd have a kid but not the right way, not like this."
"I know," said Tim with a small smile.
When they reached the second boat dock, they turned and walked up the road toward Lyla and Jason's house, which was now finished but empty.
"So Lyla Garrity is really going to be your neighbor?"
"Yeah." Tim shrugged.
"And Al is okay with this?"
"Why wouldn't she be?"
"She's a better woman than I am."
Tim smiled. "I am so not touching that statement."
"Seriously though," said Tyra. "You don't think it's weird to live next door to your ex-girlfriend?"
Tim considered the question and then shook his head. "I don't think of it that way. It's living next door to my best friend and his wife."
"Just like you always wanted," said Tyra, her voice soft and wistful.
"Yeah.....even though it didn't happen exactly the way I expected."
Tyra was quiet for a minute, watching George lope around between the trees. "You know, I never expected to be part of this, even when you talked about it back then, I knew there was no place for me.....But I'm glad you found someone who could fit into your plans."
Tim didn't quite know what to say to that, so he smiled at Tyra to let her know that he'd heard her. When his house was in sight, Tim looked at his watch. "We can probably head over to Billy's now. You ready for it?"
Tyra smiled. "As ready as I'm ever going to be."
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Thanksgiving at Billy's went smoothly, better than Tim could have hoped for. Tyra was somewhat distant with Billy and he was equally uncomfortable with her. Tim suspected that Tyra's anger was rooted deep in her and, of course, you could read the guilt on Billy's face.
The kids filled in the space between them, especially Amber, who was thrilled to have another girl around. When Tim had pointed out that Al was also a girl, Amber had considered it and then said "Yeah, sort of. But how much of a girl can you really be if you have a boy's name?"
On Friday, Tyra took Amber out, since the girl had been complaining about TJ's outings with Uncle Timmy. (To which TJ had rolled his eyes and said "You don't even like fishing, so why are you crying about not getting to go?") Tyra went back to Austin on Saturday and Tim was sad to see her go. Hanging out with Tyra was comfortable and relaxing. She was nearly like a sister, at this point.
Where Lyla sometimes felt like a mistake he could end up making again, Tyra felt like a dream he couldn't quite remember. His history with Lyla seemed to float on top of his conscience, like an oil slick on a river. Lyla was complicated, all tangled up with Six and Tim's best and worst memories. Tyra, though, Tyra was simple and simple was good.
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Six came over on Sunday to check on the new house. Tim met him out front and walked through the place with him, all wide hallways, hardwood floors and fresh paint.
"Lyla wasn't sure about that color, but I really liked it," said Jay when they paused in the bright yellow guestroom.
"It's gonna wake up your guests, that's for sure," said Tim, blinking.
"Well, with any luck, we'll be repainting it when Lyla's done with school."
Tim raised an eyebrow and waited for Jay to continue.
"You know...Changing it into a nursery. I hope. What about you guys? Planning to have any more kids?"
Tim shrugged. "We haven't talked about it. After what happened when Nicky was born, I don't really know if Al should try to have another."
"What did the doctor say?" asked Jay as he wheeled out of the room, Tim trailing behind him.
"I don't know. We haven't really talked about that either. I was so happy she was alive and then, you know, Mindy...And then things were sort of crazy with Billy and the kids living in the house, so I didn't get a chance to ask about her doctor's appointments."
"Yeah, still, Timmy, you gotta talk about this stuff. Everything okay with you guys?"
"Yeah, it's great," said Tim, standing in the empty living room and looking up at the cathedral ceilings. "Well, maybe not great, but it's as good as it's gonna be right now."
"Why didn't you go with Al to Minnesota?"
"You know....work, Billy....that sort of thing."
"You must feel like you're getting pulled in two different directions. Taking care of your wife and kid but then there's your brother and his kids."
Tim ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "It hasn't been easy, but there's nothing I can do about it."
"Don't be afraid to ask for help, Timmy."
"I won't."
"I mean it," said Jason, as he headed toward the front door.
"I got it, Six. I got it. God, have you always been so damn bossy?" said Tim as he pulled open the front door.
"No," said Jason with a crooked grin. "I used to be worse."
Tim shook his head and followed Jay out the door. He was looking forward to spending a relaxing afternoon with his best friend, drinking beer and watching football, and he hoped the heart-to-heart talks were done for awhile. There'd been too many of them in the last few days and he was tired of talking.