Shadows of the Past
Chapter 19
"To give you a bit of privacy; I figured you would sleep in here, and I'll sleep in with Katie and Hannah. I just need to get a few things." Christine said, indicating her bedroom to Mike. It was the same bedroom he had been in as a kid, and they had shared in the past. Christine had replaced the curtains and bedspread the year before, making the room more feminine.
"Thank you but I don't want to put you out." Mike said.
"You're not. I know you're exhausted." Christine assured him.
"It was a long trip." Mike remarked as he adjusted the pillows to work for him.
"But worth it, I hope?" Christine asked.
"It went better than I thought, but you had probably forewarned them." Mike remarked.
"I did but I do think they are genuinely excited. They've missed you deeply." Christine said.
"I missed them too, more than I wanted to admit. I just didn't think there was a road home." Mike commented.
"All you ever had to do was pick the phone up or show up. Even if we were over; you never lost your parents or kids." Christine said.
"I know that now." Mike remarked. Christine took the last of the clothes out of the dresser and smiled at Mike.
"If you need anything, don't hesitate to wake me up. And Mike; if you decide to leave in the middle of the night again, please wake someone up." Christine said.
"Yes, ma'am." Mike agreed. Christine patted his arm as she walked past him and out of the bedroom. She knew she was taking a chance, that he would leave again, but she hoped otherwise. Maybe Mike was seeing the light at the end of the tunnel? She could only hope and pray.
It was a bit tough for her to get settled and it was cramped in the older girl's bedroom but Mike needed privacy and the bedroom afforded him that. On one of her trips to the bathroom; she looked in on Mike, and smiled when she saw that he was sleeping soundly. Something he hadn't done since Christine had gotten to Norfolk. The bedroom door was even being kept open, as almost an invitation to their younger kids to go in a cuddle with Mike. She hoped one of them would.
When the family all woke up that morning, Christine found Jacob sleeping with Mike. They were both turned on their sides, like they'd been in deep conversation and Mike's good arm was around Jacob. Christine shut the door, hoping that Mike would get his sleep out.
It was breakfast before Mike and Jacob came downstairs and Mike looked much better rested. He seemed to interact better with the younger kids, than the older girls. After breakfast, he helped the younger kids with their chores and let them draw all over his cast. For the first time in the week that Christine had been around him; she heard him laugh. It was music to her ears and it made Katie and Hannah smile. After roughhousing with Rebecca, Molly and Jacob, Mike came back inside for a drink of water and was out of breath.
"They wore me out!" Mike commented to Christine as he got his water.
"They are loving having you here." Christine said.
"The girls are wanting me to fix that old playhouse." Mike told her.
"If you feel up to it; it would be a good project, but don't push." Christine warned.
"I may have Dad look at it to see what it needs. He built it when Katie, Hannah and Lucas were little." Mike remarked.
"I remember. They loved it. So, not to push, but are you wanting to stick around now?" Christine asked.
"I…didn't think I would, but now that I'm here, I don't know how to leave. Just have to figure some commonality with Katie and Hannah. I was going to spend the afternoon with them, but then they went to work." Mike said.
"Yeah. I have to go pretty soon. To the diner." Christine told him.
"What about your job at the factory?" Mike asked.
"I lost that since I was gone more than three days." Christine said.
"I'm…sorry. Is there anything I can do?" Mike asked.
"I don't know. Now that the drought is over; hopefully I can make it on just the waitressing, but I don't know." Christine told him.
"I can help. I should have been all along. You shouldn't have been working two jobs to get by. Maddie was always mad that I didn't send money." Mike admitted.
"Can I ask why you stopped?" Christine asked.
"I honestly don't know. I came back from a deployment and just never bothered to send anymore. By three months, it just become a habit." Mike answered.
"And Maddie was mad about it? I guess I'm just confused by her." Christine asked.
"If you had met her, you'd understand better. She was one of a kind. She wanted me to reconnect with the kids, and give you…a better ending to our relationship; that's what she called it anyways." Mike explained.
"Would you have?" Christine questioned.
"She wouldn't marry me until I did. Legally, I could have found a way to divorce you, but I was scared; I guess. Scared of the kid's reactions. I deserved a lot worse than I got." Mike admitted. It was hard for Christine to hear, because despite everything; the word 'divorce' filled her with dread.
"Mike; you might deserve bad reactions, but the kids deserve to have good relationships with you, so I asked them to welcome you with open arms. I felt it would be better for you and them. Was I wrong?" Christine asked.
"No. It is much easier. If it had been bad; I would have probably left. Now I don't want to go." Mike told her.
"So, stay. Your parents want you here. The kids want you here. I even want you here. Tom and all of your friends know you're here and safe. You've retired so you don't have hardly any commitments as far as I know." Christine said.
"I do have some consulting work that I do. Just to stay busy. I brought my laptop but wasn't sure about internet." Mike said.
"The girls insisted on it a year or so ago. I'll give you the wifi password." Christine told him with a smile.
"Good. That'll help." Mike commented before putting the glass down and going outside, back with the kids. It made Christine smile as she watched him.
"Just be patient with him, Christine. My boy is hurting bad, but he is in the best place he can be in to heal. There are going to be painful moments yet, but patience is best." Mary Alice said. She had came into the kitchen and looked out the window over Christine's shoulder.
"Its so hard. He wanted a divorce." Christine remarked.
"But does he still?" Mary Alice asked.
"I have no idea and its not appropriate to ask now." Christine said.
"No, definitely not, so you will just continue doing what you're doing and what will be, will be. I think Mike's heart will find it's way back to you." Mary Alice said.
"As funny as it is, I hope so." Christine remarked.
"Not funny at all. Its love." Mary Alice said, before leaving her alone and to think alone, watching Mike playing with Rebecca, Molly and Jacob.