Chapter 26
"You've Got Mail"
Grace woke up but she didn't want to get up. She felt that way every morning she woke up at her Dad's house. She couldn't believe she had been living there for two months. The hearing for her and Zoe's custody only confirmed the former decision. They would remain with Jake until Lily and Rick could prove they had conditions to take care of them full time.
"Life is hard." Soliloquy Grace sighs. "And a few months ago I thought no way it could get worse."
She checked the clock on her bed side. She didn't have to get up in half an hour, so she decided to check her e-mail in the meantime. As she opened her inbox, she had the biggest surprise the could have. Dimitri had sent her an e-mail. This was the best thing that happened to Grace in the past few months. Her eyes got filled with tears. The e-mail said:
"My Grace,
I know you probably wondered why I didn't e-mail you before. I only hope you didn't think I forgot you, because I didn't. You're still the owner of my heart.
I had my reasons, and I'm going to tell you. First, I thought it would be better if I waited things to cool off. I think that two months is enough. (no, actually it isn't but...). Second, and the better reason, and I was looking for a new place to live. And I have just found it, and it's the most beautiful and comfortable house I've ever seen. You're going to agree when you come here.
Yes, because that's the main reason I'm writing. I desperately need to see you. I'm waiting for you at any time, because I don't live the house. I've been so busy working on my book. To which you're the biggest inspiration.
My address is 1965, Gray Oaks Drive.
Yours always,
A. Dimitri"
The day took a whole new meaning to Grace. She thought about skipping school and going straight to his house, but them she thought it would be stupid.
When she got down to have breakfast, she tried as much as she could to hide her happiness from the others.
"So, Grace, do you still have that drama meeting today?" Jake asked as he poured orange juice in a glass.
"Oh, yes, Dad. And it's probably going to end late." Grace answered, even happier with that wonderful coincidence. "I think it's better for me to call you when it ends."
"OK, honey. But I want you at school, with your friends. No more trouble." Jake said, half-angry.
"Dad, don't worry. I think I've learned my lesson." She lied.
"Grace, I know you wanted to be with your mother. But she's got so many things on her mind right now. And she's sick, you know that."
"No, Dad. She's recovered. You saw it on the audience two weeks ago." Grace replied, starting to get upset.
"And she's looking so beautiful," Tiffany tried to lighten up things as she fed Maddie. "She looks even younger now that she's pregnant."
"And that's another thing. That baby is surely a font of worries for your Mom and Rick. Tiffany told me she saw them buying baby stuff at the mall last week." Jake said.
"Really?" Grace asked Tiffany, kind of sad.
"Yeah. She and Jessie apparently were picking up the baby's crib and the decoration for the nursery. But I don't think Rick was there."
Grace felt something in her heart. It was a mixture of jealousy and envy, and love.
Soliloquy Grace appears. "I admit I was never really fond of that baby. But I was the one supposed to be there buying baby stuff and choosing a crib. I would be complaining and I would wish I wasn't there, but that my place." She's fighting a tear. "Not Jessie's."
Jake drives Grace to school, and during the ride she's very quiet, more than usual.
"Something wrong, Grace?" Jake asks.
"No, nothing Dad." She answers, looking outside the window.
"This is not about him, is it?" Jake insists.
"No, Dad, this is not about him." Grace answers, with an angry voice. They're arriving at school and she's relieved for that.
"Bye, honey," Jake says, but Grace has already slammed the door and is now running to catch Jessie, who's also arriving.
"Jessie!" Grace yells. Jessie listens and turns her back, she stops to wait for Grace.
"Grace, how are you doing?" Jessie asks.
"I'm as OK as I can be," She replies. "So, I heard you and my Mom went shopping for baby stuff."
"Yeah, you should have seen all the nice things we bought for the baby." Jessie begins to tell very happily, but realizes she's hurting Grace. "Your Mom wanted to ask you to go, but she didn't find you or your father." "That's impossible." Grace replies, surprised.
"Well, she called you at house and your Dad at Booklovers, and you two where nowhere to be found." Jessie says, opening her locker and getting her books. Grace doesn't answer, because she has nothing to say. No, her Dad wouldn't do that.
"Jessie, can you do me a big favor?"
"Well, depends... what is it?"
"You're going to the drama meeting today, aren't you?"
"Yes."
"Can you miss it?"
"Why would I do that?" Jessie asks, and they begin to walk to their classes. She's afraid of where this conversation might be heading to.
"Because I need to go somewhere else and I need an alibi."
Jessie stopped and looked at Grace, thinking. "Oh, you're going to meet him, aren't you?" She finally asks. Grace nods. Jessie goes on, "I don't know, Grace, I don't want to get in the middle of this like my brother did, he and my Dad are still not talking to each other." Grace is shocked and sad to hear that.
*** Grace is now at the doorstep of Dimitri's house. Jessie agreed to skip the drama meeting and she was going to spend the afternoon in a library nearby, they would take a bus together afterwards.
She rings the bell, and as she does that her whole body shakes. The wait is killing her. When he finally opened the door, it seemed as if she had been waiting for a whole century.
"You're here." He says.
"I'm here." She replies.
They look at each other for a moment.
"What are we doing here? Come in." He finally says.
"You're house is so beautiful." Grace says. And it really is. The furniture, the decorations, everything makes the place feel comfortable and warming.
They talked for over four hours, and it seemed like they never said enough. All the memories from those months apart were shared. The feeling of each other's skin made the world stop.
Soliloquy Dimitri is writing on a notebooks. "The smell of her hair, the sadness of her eyes,..." He suddenly rips off the page and throws it away. "No, it's easier to make a list of what I don't love about her." He rips a blank page and shows it. "See, it's done." Nothing lasts forever though, and the lovebirds are brought back to reality by insistent knocks on the door. "Grace? This is the time you said we would be leaving." They heard Jessie saying from outside.
"It's Jessie. She came with me, to be my alibi." Grace explained to Dimitri as she got up to open the door.
"Hey, Jessie. Come in, have a couple of tea." Dimitri asks friendly.
"No thanks," Jessie replies. She's terrified with the whole situation.
"I really have to go." Grace says, turning to Dimitri. An awkward silence takes place.
"I'll just wait in the front yard." Jessie says, leaving the couple alone. She can't resist looking back, though. She sees Grace giving him a kiss and Dimitri caressing Grace's hair.
The girls finally leave. While they walk to the bus stop, Grace says, "Jessie, I can't say thank you enough to you. I never imagined you would do something like that to me."
"Well," Jessie says, smiling, "You've been through hard moments. I thought you deserved this. But don't get used to it. Please."
"Don't worry," Grace laughs. "And don't forget you can count on me for any help... well, you what I mean."
"Thanks." Jessie replies, glad she helped Grace.
Their conversation is interrupted by the bus. They get on it, and continue talking all the way home.
TO BE CONTINUED...
"You've Got Mail"
Grace woke up but she didn't want to get up. She felt that way every morning she woke up at her Dad's house. She couldn't believe she had been living there for two months. The hearing for her and Zoe's custody only confirmed the former decision. They would remain with Jake until Lily and Rick could prove they had conditions to take care of them full time.
"Life is hard." Soliloquy Grace sighs. "And a few months ago I thought no way it could get worse."
She checked the clock on her bed side. She didn't have to get up in half an hour, so she decided to check her e-mail in the meantime. As she opened her inbox, she had the biggest surprise the could have. Dimitri had sent her an e-mail. This was the best thing that happened to Grace in the past few months. Her eyes got filled with tears. The e-mail said:
"My Grace,
I know you probably wondered why I didn't e-mail you before. I only hope you didn't think I forgot you, because I didn't. You're still the owner of my heart.
I had my reasons, and I'm going to tell you. First, I thought it would be better if I waited things to cool off. I think that two months is enough. (no, actually it isn't but...). Second, and the better reason, and I was looking for a new place to live. And I have just found it, and it's the most beautiful and comfortable house I've ever seen. You're going to agree when you come here.
Yes, because that's the main reason I'm writing. I desperately need to see you. I'm waiting for you at any time, because I don't live the house. I've been so busy working on my book. To which you're the biggest inspiration.
My address is 1965, Gray Oaks Drive.
Yours always,
A. Dimitri"
The day took a whole new meaning to Grace. She thought about skipping school and going straight to his house, but them she thought it would be stupid.
When she got down to have breakfast, she tried as much as she could to hide her happiness from the others.
"So, Grace, do you still have that drama meeting today?" Jake asked as he poured orange juice in a glass.
"Oh, yes, Dad. And it's probably going to end late." Grace answered, even happier with that wonderful coincidence. "I think it's better for me to call you when it ends."
"OK, honey. But I want you at school, with your friends. No more trouble." Jake said, half-angry.
"Dad, don't worry. I think I've learned my lesson." She lied.
"Grace, I know you wanted to be with your mother. But she's got so many things on her mind right now. And she's sick, you know that."
"No, Dad. She's recovered. You saw it on the audience two weeks ago." Grace replied, starting to get upset.
"And she's looking so beautiful," Tiffany tried to lighten up things as she fed Maddie. "She looks even younger now that she's pregnant."
"And that's another thing. That baby is surely a font of worries for your Mom and Rick. Tiffany told me she saw them buying baby stuff at the mall last week." Jake said.
"Really?" Grace asked Tiffany, kind of sad.
"Yeah. She and Jessie apparently were picking up the baby's crib and the decoration for the nursery. But I don't think Rick was there."
Grace felt something in her heart. It was a mixture of jealousy and envy, and love.
Soliloquy Grace appears. "I admit I was never really fond of that baby. But I was the one supposed to be there buying baby stuff and choosing a crib. I would be complaining and I would wish I wasn't there, but that my place." She's fighting a tear. "Not Jessie's."
Jake drives Grace to school, and during the ride she's very quiet, more than usual.
"Something wrong, Grace?" Jake asks.
"No, nothing Dad." She answers, looking outside the window.
"This is not about him, is it?" Jake insists.
"No, Dad, this is not about him." Grace answers, with an angry voice. They're arriving at school and she's relieved for that.
"Bye, honey," Jake says, but Grace has already slammed the door and is now running to catch Jessie, who's also arriving.
"Jessie!" Grace yells. Jessie listens and turns her back, she stops to wait for Grace.
"Grace, how are you doing?" Jessie asks.
"I'm as OK as I can be," She replies. "So, I heard you and my Mom went shopping for baby stuff."
"Yeah, you should have seen all the nice things we bought for the baby." Jessie begins to tell very happily, but realizes she's hurting Grace. "Your Mom wanted to ask you to go, but she didn't find you or your father." "That's impossible." Grace replies, surprised.
"Well, she called you at house and your Dad at Booklovers, and you two where nowhere to be found." Jessie says, opening her locker and getting her books. Grace doesn't answer, because she has nothing to say. No, her Dad wouldn't do that.
"Jessie, can you do me a big favor?"
"Well, depends... what is it?"
"You're going to the drama meeting today, aren't you?"
"Yes."
"Can you miss it?"
"Why would I do that?" Jessie asks, and they begin to walk to their classes. She's afraid of where this conversation might be heading to.
"Because I need to go somewhere else and I need an alibi."
Jessie stopped and looked at Grace, thinking. "Oh, you're going to meet him, aren't you?" She finally asks. Grace nods. Jessie goes on, "I don't know, Grace, I don't want to get in the middle of this like my brother did, he and my Dad are still not talking to each other." Grace is shocked and sad to hear that.
*** Grace is now at the doorstep of Dimitri's house. Jessie agreed to skip the drama meeting and she was going to spend the afternoon in a library nearby, they would take a bus together afterwards.
She rings the bell, and as she does that her whole body shakes. The wait is killing her. When he finally opened the door, it seemed as if she had been waiting for a whole century.
"You're here." He says.
"I'm here." She replies.
They look at each other for a moment.
"What are we doing here? Come in." He finally says.
"You're house is so beautiful." Grace says. And it really is. The furniture, the decorations, everything makes the place feel comfortable and warming.
They talked for over four hours, and it seemed like they never said enough. All the memories from those months apart were shared. The feeling of each other's skin made the world stop.
Soliloquy Dimitri is writing on a notebooks. "The smell of her hair, the sadness of her eyes,..." He suddenly rips off the page and throws it away. "No, it's easier to make a list of what I don't love about her." He rips a blank page and shows it. "See, it's done." Nothing lasts forever though, and the lovebirds are brought back to reality by insistent knocks on the door. "Grace? This is the time you said we would be leaving." They heard Jessie saying from outside.
"It's Jessie. She came with me, to be my alibi." Grace explained to Dimitri as she got up to open the door.
"Hey, Jessie. Come in, have a couple of tea." Dimitri asks friendly.
"No thanks," Jessie replies. She's terrified with the whole situation.
"I really have to go." Grace says, turning to Dimitri. An awkward silence takes place.
"I'll just wait in the front yard." Jessie says, leaving the couple alone. She can't resist looking back, though. She sees Grace giving him a kiss and Dimitri caressing Grace's hair.
The girls finally leave. While they walk to the bus stop, Grace says, "Jessie, I can't say thank you enough to you. I never imagined you would do something like that to me."
"Well," Jessie says, smiling, "You've been through hard moments. I thought you deserved this. But don't get used to it. Please."
"Don't worry," Grace laughs. "And don't forget you can count on me for any help... well, you what I mean."
"Thanks." Jessie replies, glad she helped Grace.
Their conversation is interrupted by the bus. They get on it, and continue talking all the way home.
TO BE CONTINUED...