GRACE
PART FOUR
Ty found himself still at the table. His plate had gone, but he had no recollection if he had eaten anything from it. He didn't feel hungry, but neither did he feel he'd had a good meal.
Sully and his mother had left the table. Alex still sat to his right, head propped on her left hand, trying to avoid looking directly at the Boscorellis like they were some kind of personal eclipse and she didn't want to go blind.
Bosco and Faith were sitting astride the bench now. Bosco sat behind his wife, his arms wrapped around her, while Faith leant back against him, her arms laying over his. Gracie and a little friend were playing not far from them.
Bosco was looking at the house.
"How many rooms do you think that thing has?" he asked.
Faith shrugged. "Why?"
"Just wondering." He kissed her neck.
"No!" said Faith firmly. "God, can't you wait till we get home?"
"OK Gracie, time to go..."
Faith clamped her arms down to prevent Bosco from rising out of his seated position.
"Daddy's joking honey," she said to her daughter.
Alex's face was a picture.
"Wassup, Bosco? Having kids cramped your style?"
"The hell it has. Gracie knows not to disturb mom and dad time."
They heard Gracie giggle. "Mommy makes funny noises..."
Alex sputtered into her wineglass and Ty discovered he could still laugh quite well. How ironic, he thought. Nothing to laugh about and it's the one thing I can still do properly.
Faith was turning the brightest shade of red as she told her daughter to run off and play elsewhere. It only intensified when Bosco chuckled: "You do!"
"Bosco!"
"Oh God!" Alex exclaimed, holding her hand up for them to stop "too much information!"
"Do you ever wanna get some again - I mean ever?" Faith was saying in her best 'don't mess with me' NYPD voice. "Cos I can arrange it so's it'll shrivel up and drop off through lack of use."
"Yeah right," Alex drawled, "You left handed or right handed, Bosco?"
"Wassamatter Taylor? Not getting any?" Boscorelli shot back.
She sneered at him.
Ty felt himself beginning to fade out...
It was late afternoon. The crowd had dwindled to a small group of friends and relatives gathered on the lawn in front of the house. They sat around in a rough circle, talking, laughing, reminiscing, and enjoying the sun.
There was an easy familiarity about the group that made Ty wonder if these sort of events were a regular occurrence, but he had no recollection of them if they were.
Alex was just to his left, now looking much the worse for wear but still nursing a glass of wine. His mom and Sully were next to him on the roomy cushion covered garden seat, and across from them were the Boscorellis. Once more their togetherness fascinated Ty.
"Ty!" Alex's voice was a hoarse whisper. "You're doing it again."
He looked at her, his eyes querying the statement.
"All you've done all afternoon is watch them, and I think it's making them a little uncomfortable."
A small grunt escaped his throat. It's all right for you, he thought. You're obviously used to seeing them like that. Me...I can't even remember back five lousy damn minutes...
Alex regarded him carefully, which must have been something of a challenge through her half-lidded eyes.
"Do you remember anything, Ty? About what happened to you?"
His whole body rocked as he vigorously shook his head.
Sully had leaned forward and now sat with his elbows on his knees.
"He has days like this," he murmured. "He seems to phase in and out, gets confused...it's the brain injury thing."
Brain injury? He turned to Alex, who looked at Sully. Sully nodded mutely.
"You and Sully were involved in a car accident. A stolen van smashed into you as you were going through an intersection. We don't know how you survived...either of you."
Ty closed his eyes. Fleeting images skipped across the screen of his mind but were gone before he had the chance to observe them closely.
"I wish I'd never bought that lottery ticket," Sully rumbled.
"You'd give all this up?" Bosco asked, indicating their surroundings.
"In a minute."
"That ticket meant you could provide Ty with the best medical care possible," Faith said quietly.
"Yeah, but if I hadn't stopped to buy the ticket, we wouldn't have been anywhere near that intersection when the van ran the lights!" Sully's voice was filled with guilt.
"Don't do that to yourself Sul," said Faith.
"Faith, I can't help it. I'd give this all up in a second if it meant Ty could be the way he was before the accident. The money doesn't mean a damn thing!" He laughed but there was no humour in it. "You spend your whole damn life imagining that you could be happy if only you had enough money. Then you discover you'd rather have things the way they were before. God's got some sense of humour, hasn't he?"
There was an uncomfortable silence for some moments after Sully finished speaking and the feeling of quiet camaraderie that had pervaded earlier was shattered. As his eyes roamed the faces of those around him Ty began to feel himself slipping away once more...
******************
TBC - Ya still with me? Just tell Aunty Minn to naff off if you've had enough.
PART FOUR
Ty found himself still at the table. His plate had gone, but he had no recollection if he had eaten anything from it. He didn't feel hungry, but neither did he feel he'd had a good meal.
Sully and his mother had left the table. Alex still sat to his right, head propped on her left hand, trying to avoid looking directly at the Boscorellis like they were some kind of personal eclipse and she didn't want to go blind.
Bosco and Faith were sitting astride the bench now. Bosco sat behind his wife, his arms wrapped around her, while Faith leant back against him, her arms laying over his. Gracie and a little friend were playing not far from them.
Bosco was looking at the house.
"How many rooms do you think that thing has?" he asked.
Faith shrugged. "Why?"
"Just wondering." He kissed her neck.
"No!" said Faith firmly. "God, can't you wait till we get home?"
"OK Gracie, time to go..."
Faith clamped her arms down to prevent Bosco from rising out of his seated position.
"Daddy's joking honey," she said to her daughter.
Alex's face was a picture.
"Wassup, Bosco? Having kids cramped your style?"
"The hell it has. Gracie knows not to disturb mom and dad time."
They heard Gracie giggle. "Mommy makes funny noises..."
Alex sputtered into her wineglass and Ty discovered he could still laugh quite well. How ironic, he thought. Nothing to laugh about and it's the one thing I can still do properly.
Faith was turning the brightest shade of red as she told her daughter to run off and play elsewhere. It only intensified when Bosco chuckled: "You do!"
"Bosco!"
"Oh God!" Alex exclaimed, holding her hand up for them to stop "too much information!"
"Do you ever wanna get some again - I mean ever?" Faith was saying in her best 'don't mess with me' NYPD voice. "Cos I can arrange it so's it'll shrivel up and drop off through lack of use."
"Yeah right," Alex drawled, "You left handed or right handed, Bosco?"
"Wassamatter Taylor? Not getting any?" Boscorelli shot back.
She sneered at him.
Ty felt himself beginning to fade out...
It was late afternoon. The crowd had dwindled to a small group of friends and relatives gathered on the lawn in front of the house. They sat around in a rough circle, talking, laughing, reminiscing, and enjoying the sun.
There was an easy familiarity about the group that made Ty wonder if these sort of events were a regular occurrence, but he had no recollection of them if they were.
Alex was just to his left, now looking much the worse for wear but still nursing a glass of wine. His mom and Sully were next to him on the roomy cushion covered garden seat, and across from them were the Boscorellis. Once more their togetherness fascinated Ty.
"Ty!" Alex's voice was a hoarse whisper. "You're doing it again."
He looked at her, his eyes querying the statement.
"All you've done all afternoon is watch them, and I think it's making them a little uncomfortable."
A small grunt escaped his throat. It's all right for you, he thought. You're obviously used to seeing them like that. Me...I can't even remember back five lousy damn minutes...
Alex regarded him carefully, which must have been something of a challenge through her half-lidded eyes.
"Do you remember anything, Ty? About what happened to you?"
His whole body rocked as he vigorously shook his head.
Sully had leaned forward and now sat with his elbows on his knees.
"He has days like this," he murmured. "He seems to phase in and out, gets confused...it's the brain injury thing."
Brain injury? He turned to Alex, who looked at Sully. Sully nodded mutely.
"You and Sully were involved in a car accident. A stolen van smashed into you as you were going through an intersection. We don't know how you survived...either of you."
Ty closed his eyes. Fleeting images skipped across the screen of his mind but were gone before he had the chance to observe them closely.
"I wish I'd never bought that lottery ticket," Sully rumbled.
"You'd give all this up?" Bosco asked, indicating their surroundings.
"In a minute."
"That ticket meant you could provide Ty with the best medical care possible," Faith said quietly.
"Yeah, but if I hadn't stopped to buy the ticket, we wouldn't have been anywhere near that intersection when the van ran the lights!" Sully's voice was filled with guilt.
"Don't do that to yourself Sul," said Faith.
"Faith, I can't help it. I'd give this all up in a second if it meant Ty could be the way he was before the accident. The money doesn't mean a damn thing!" He laughed but there was no humour in it. "You spend your whole damn life imagining that you could be happy if only you had enough money. Then you discover you'd rather have things the way they were before. God's got some sense of humour, hasn't he?"
There was an uncomfortable silence for some moments after Sully finished speaking and the feeling of quiet camaraderie that had pervaded earlier was shattered. As his eyes roamed the faces of those around him Ty began to feel himself slipping away once more...
******************
TBC - Ya still with me? Just tell Aunty Minn to naff off if you've had enough.