Chapter Two:
Blast from the Past
"Um...hi, Greg. It's Norah. Give me a call. Please. Um...okay. Bye." Norah slammed the phone down. Hopefully the thirty-third message would be the charm. She had been calling for four days straight now.
Tears formed in her eyes. Why was he ignoring her? What had she done?
She knew he was home; it was only three in the afternoon and his shift wouldn't start for another four hours.
She wondered how many times you could call before the person could file a harassment charge as she picked up the phone again. "Greg. I know you're home. Please, please, pick up." She waited in silence until the answering machine hung up on her.
She buried her head in her arms, which were folded on her counter top. She let the tears flow. 'What am I doing wrong?' She asked herself.
She sat on a stool in her kitchen and sulked until she heard a knock on her door. Her face lit up as she rushed to it. She swung the door open and stared at who she saw.
"Um...hi." The blonde smiled.
Norah stared.
"Can I come in?"
Norah stared.
"Okay then, I'll stand here."
"What the hell are you doing here?" Norah asked Owen.
"Nice to see you, too." He walked past her inside the apartment.
"How did you find me?" Norah asked the tall Californian.
He shrugged. "Someone at this casino told me. It's been, what? Like, 4-and- a-half years? Aren't you happy to see me?" He smiled.
Norah rolled her eyes. "Don't flatter yourself."
Owen looked around, "I see you haven't lost your sass."
"Or my grade-A pitching arm," she curled her hand into a fist. "Get out of my house."
"No need for violence, I come with a peace offering," he held out a dozen red roses. He smiled at how charming he was.
"Get out!" She shouted.
He placed the flowers on her coffee table and grabbed a piece of paper that was laying down on it also. He quickly jotted down a number and gave Norah a seductive smile. "If you ever need me."
"Well, I guess you don't have to worry about me running up your phone bill then."
"Ouch."
"I'm getting married, you know," she lied. "My fiancée's a professional wrestler." She nodded.
He frowned but didn't leave. "You left this," he said pointing to himself, "for one of those big, ugly wrestlers?"
"I wouldn't call him that to his face. He eats guys like you for breakfast."
"Guys like me?"
"Yeah--Assholes."
"Burn after burn? Is that how it's going to be?" Owen smirked.
"Yes." Norah said raising her eyebrows.
"Where's the ring, liar?" Owen said, his eyes not leaving hers.
"Up your ass," she said trying to push him out.
"Seriously. You can't lie for shit. You're horrible at it."
She looked down at her hand, she was going to show him her Promise Ring and say it was an engagement ring. It looked nothing like an engagement ring but Owen, being the idiot he was, would believe anything. Her heart stopped when she saw that her ring finger had a white void where the ring had blocked the sun from tanning that spot on her hand. "Get out!" She pointed out the door.
Owen retreated back into the hall with his hands in the air. "Okay, okay." He turned back to her and opened his mouth to say something else.
She grabbed the flowers from the table and threw them at him. Closing the door as she walked back to her kitchen. "Oh shit, oh shit." She stared at her finger. She held her head. She tried to retrace her steps from New York to her apartment as she ran into her bedroom and tore the sheets off the bed. She shook out each layer of blankets carefully, listening for the ring to hit the floor.
She looked under the bed, behind the toilet, and in between the cushions of the couch. She couldn't find it anywhere.
She remembered having it on the plane but couldn't place it anywhere else after that.
She picked up the phone and dialed Nick and Lydia's number.
"Hello?" A male voice answered.
"Nicky! Why is Greg mad at me? Have you seen my ring? Oh my God. Where is it?" She shot question after question at him as she crawled on the floor.
Nick blinked a few times. "Um..." He didn't know which to answer first.
"Did Greg say anything to you? About me, you know."
"Not to me." He shrugged.
"Nick. He hates me and I don't know why," she whined. "But I lost his ring and I think it might have something to do with it."
"I'll go talk to him," Nick offered, like she hoped he would.
"Check in his car. I haven't left the house since I got home and that was the last place I was."
He nodded, even though she couldn't see him do it, said good-bye and hung up. He had a growing migraine that just got worse when he stepped outside with Abby on his hip.
Abby sang the Spider Song as Nick strapped her into her car seat.
"Down came the rain and washed the spider out!" Abby sang happily.
Nick rubbed his temples gently as he climbed into the driver's seat.
"Where are we going, daddy?" Abby asked from the backseat.
"To Greg's, baby." He answered her, pulling out of the driveway and into the street.
"Ooh! The guy with the funny hair?" She started to chant, "Hair Man! Hair Man! We're gonna see Hair Man!"
He couldn't help but let out a small chuckle.
"Do you think he'll let me do his hair in braids again, daddy?" Abby asked him, looking outside instead of at his eyes in the rearview mirror.
He licked his lips a bit as he hung a right. "Um...I don't think so honey." He laughed at the memory; it took Greg a week to get the knots out. "We're going on business today."
"Busy-ness?"
He nodded. "Yep, we're going to play hide-and- seek with Cousin Norah's ring."
Abby looked at him in the mirror. "I don't think I've never played that game with a ring before, daddy."
"That's what makes it fun." He smiled.
"Oh. I like fun things." She nodded. She started singing the Spider Song again as Nick pulled into Greg's apartment complex.
Nick parked the car and went around to the back seat to get Abby. He walked up to the glass door that separated them from inside the apartments. Nick buzzed Greg's apartment.
"Who is it?" A voice asked rather rudely.
"Sanders, open up," Nick answered.
"Sanders, open up," Abby repeated, putting her hand on her hip and glaring at the intercom.
"Why?"
"Because. We're here on busy-ness!" Abby nodded.
"Well, I don't exactly want to die today, so come back tomorrow." Greg answered back.
"Believe me, Sanders. If I were going to kill someone I wouldn't have brought Abby. Lydia would never forgive me. Now open." Nick said.
"Why?"
"We need to talk."
"We ARE talking, Nick." Greg said, getting annoyed.
"Where's Norah's ring?" Nick asked him.
Abby rolled her eyes. "We're supposed to find it, daddy! That's the whole point of hide-and-seek!"
"I know, babes, but Greg's going to give us a hint," Nick slicked back her blonde hair a bit.
She nodded. "Oh."
"I don't know where her ring is! Probably at some pawnshop in New York. Why don't you ask your niece? She's the whore who sold it."
"First of all, my niece is not a whore. You're a dick head for calling her one. She loves you, asshole. Second, she doesn't know where it is. She made me come look in your car, she's at her house looking for it right now." Nick shouted.
"Yeah," Abby backed him up.
Greg started outside instead of answering back to him. He was sorry he called her a whore but he still wasn't sure he believed she was looking for the ring. He had jumped to the conclusion she sold it and nothing was going to change his mind at this point. He picked up his car keys off his kitchen table and walked out to the front of the apartments. He walked past Nick and Abby without saying a word and unlocked the passenger side of his car.
Nick opened the door and slid his hand between the seats. After ten minutes of checking everywhere in the car they'd found six popcorn-flavored jellybeans, seven if you count the one Abby ate, one of Norah's hair ties, and 82¢ in pennies and dimes.
"I told you." Greg glared and walked through the glass door and down the hall to his apartment.
Abby and Nick got back into the Tahoe and left. "Asshole!" Nick shouted hitting his steering wheel for emphasis.
"Yeah! Asshole!" Abby repeated.
"Don't say that word in front of mommy, okay? And don't tell her daddy taught it to you."
"Kay!" She smiled and started singing London Bridges.
He sighed as he pulled out into the street, in the direction of Norah's house.
"Um...hi, Greg. It's Norah. Give me a call. Please. Um...okay. Bye." Norah slammed the phone down. Hopefully the thirty-third message would be the charm. She had been calling for four days straight now.
Tears formed in her eyes. Why was he ignoring her? What had she done?
She knew he was home; it was only three in the afternoon and his shift wouldn't start for another four hours.
She wondered how many times you could call before the person could file a harassment charge as she picked up the phone again. "Greg. I know you're home. Please, please, pick up." She waited in silence until the answering machine hung up on her.
She buried her head in her arms, which were folded on her counter top. She let the tears flow. 'What am I doing wrong?' She asked herself.
She sat on a stool in her kitchen and sulked until she heard a knock on her door. Her face lit up as she rushed to it. She swung the door open and stared at who she saw.
"Um...hi." The blonde smiled.
Norah stared.
"Can I come in?"
Norah stared.
"Okay then, I'll stand here."
"What the hell are you doing here?" Norah asked Owen.
"Nice to see you, too." He walked past her inside the apartment.
"How did you find me?" Norah asked the tall Californian.
He shrugged. "Someone at this casino told me. It's been, what? Like, 4-and- a-half years? Aren't you happy to see me?" He smiled.
Norah rolled her eyes. "Don't flatter yourself."
Owen looked around, "I see you haven't lost your sass."
"Or my grade-A pitching arm," she curled her hand into a fist. "Get out of my house."
"No need for violence, I come with a peace offering," he held out a dozen red roses. He smiled at how charming he was.
"Get out!" She shouted.
He placed the flowers on her coffee table and grabbed a piece of paper that was laying down on it also. He quickly jotted down a number and gave Norah a seductive smile. "If you ever need me."
"Well, I guess you don't have to worry about me running up your phone bill then."
"Ouch."
"I'm getting married, you know," she lied. "My fiancée's a professional wrestler." She nodded.
He frowned but didn't leave. "You left this," he said pointing to himself, "for one of those big, ugly wrestlers?"
"I wouldn't call him that to his face. He eats guys like you for breakfast."
"Guys like me?"
"Yeah--Assholes."
"Burn after burn? Is that how it's going to be?" Owen smirked.
"Yes." Norah said raising her eyebrows.
"Where's the ring, liar?" Owen said, his eyes not leaving hers.
"Up your ass," she said trying to push him out.
"Seriously. You can't lie for shit. You're horrible at it."
She looked down at her hand, she was going to show him her Promise Ring and say it was an engagement ring. It looked nothing like an engagement ring but Owen, being the idiot he was, would believe anything. Her heart stopped when she saw that her ring finger had a white void where the ring had blocked the sun from tanning that spot on her hand. "Get out!" She pointed out the door.
Owen retreated back into the hall with his hands in the air. "Okay, okay." He turned back to her and opened his mouth to say something else.
She grabbed the flowers from the table and threw them at him. Closing the door as she walked back to her kitchen. "Oh shit, oh shit." She stared at her finger. She held her head. She tried to retrace her steps from New York to her apartment as she ran into her bedroom and tore the sheets off the bed. She shook out each layer of blankets carefully, listening for the ring to hit the floor.
She looked under the bed, behind the toilet, and in between the cushions of the couch. She couldn't find it anywhere.
She remembered having it on the plane but couldn't place it anywhere else after that.
She picked up the phone and dialed Nick and Lydia's number.
"Hello?" A male voice answered.
"Nicky! Why is Greg mad at me? Have you seen my ring? Oh my God. Where is it?" She shot question after question at him as she crawled on the floor.
Nick blinked a few times. "Um..." He didn't know which to answer first.
"Did Greg say anything to you? About me, you know."
"Not to me." He shrugged.
"Nick. He hates me and I don't know why," she whined. "But I lost his ring and I think it might have something to do with it."
"I'll go talk to him," Nick offered, like she hoped he would.
"Check in his car. I haven't left the house since I got home and that was the last place I was."
He nodded, even though she couldn't see him do it, said good-bye and hung up. He had a growing migraine that just got worse when he stepped outside with Abby on his hip.
Abby sang the Spider Song as Nick strapped her into her car seat.
"Down came the rain and washed the spider out!" Abby sang happily.
Nick rubbed his temples gently as he climbed into the driver's seat.
"Where are we going, daddy?" Abby asked from the backseat.
"To Greg's, baby." He answered her, pulling out of the driveway and into the street.
"Ooh! The guy with the funny hair?" She started to chant, "Hair Man! Hair Man! We're gonna see Hair Man!"
He couldn't help but let out a small chuckle.
"Do you think he'll let me do his hair in braids again, daddy?" Abby asked him, looking outside instead of at his eyes in the rearview mirror.
He licked his lips a bit as he hung a right. "Um...I don't think so honey." He laughed at the memory; it took Greg a week to get the knots out. "We're going on business today."
"Busy-ness?"
He nodded. "Yep, we're going to play hide-and- seek with Cousin Norah's ring."
Abby looked at him in the mirror. "I don't think I've never played that game with a ring before, daddy."
"That's what makes it fun." He smiled.
"Oh. I like fun things." She nodded. She started singing the Spider Song again as Nick pulled into Greg's apartment complex.
Nick parked the car and went around to the back seat to get Abby. He walked up to the glass door that separated them from inside the apartments. Nick buzzed Greg's apartment.
"Who is it?" A voice asked rather rudely.
"Sanders, open up," Nick answered.
"Sanders, open up," Abby repeated, putting her hand on her hip and glaring at the intercom.
"Why?"
"Because. We're here on busy-ness!" Abby nodded.
"Well, I don't exactly want to die today, so come back tomorrow." Greg answered back.
"Believe me, Sanders. If I were going to kill someone I wouldn't have brought Abby. Lydia would never forgive me. Now open." Nick said.
"Why?"
"We need to talk."
"We ARE talking, Nick." Greg said, getting annoyed.
"Where's Norah's ring?" Nick asked him.
Abby rolled her eyes. "We're supposed to find it, daddy! That's the whole point of hide-and-seek!"
"I know, babes, but Greg's going to give us a hint," Nick slicked back her blonde hair a bit.
She nodded. "Oh."
"I don't know where her ring is! Probably at some pawnshop in New York. Why don't you ask your niece? She's the whore who sold it."
"First of all, my niece is not a whore. You're a dick head for calling her one. She loves you, asshole. Second, she doesn't know where it is. She made me come look in your car, she's at her house looking for it right now." Nick shouted.
"Yeah," Abby backed him up.
Greg started outside instead of answering back to him. He was sorry he called her a whore but he still wasn't sure he believed she was looking for the ring. He had jumped to the conclusion she sold it and nothing was going to change his mind at this point. He picked up his car keys off his kitchen table and walked out to the front of the apartments. He walked past Nick and Abby without saying a word and unlocked the passenger side of his car.
Nick opened the door and slid his hand between the seats. After ten minutes of checking everywhere in the car they'd found six popcorn-flavored jellybeans, seven if you count the one Abby ate, one of Norah's hair ties, and 82¢ in pennies and dimes.
"I told you." Greg glared and walked through the glass door and down the hall to his apartment.
Abby and Nick got back into the Tahoe and left. "Asshole!" Nick shouted hitting his steering wheel for emphasis.
"Yeah! Asshole!" Abby repeated.
"Don't say that word in front of mommy, okay? And don't tell her daddy taught it to you."
"Kay!" She smiled and started singing London Bridges.
He sighed as he pulled out into the street, in the direction of Norah's house.