KP – One Oh One : Part XXIII – The Perfect Storm
A thoroughly embarrassed and defeated Kim went to change while Gram finished up her creations for her. She had come so close to pulling it off. She actually had a bowl full of pierogi ready for the frying pan and she had every confidence she could do that. Just let them sit in the hot butter until they turned golden, then she would have passed what was none other than a test of her suitability to marry the family's youngest son.
Ron and Jean came running into the kitchen, expecting the worst after he head the crash. He helped her up under the withering glare of his Aunts, not caring that he wasn't even supposed to be in there. Not a word was spoken, but the expressions on everyone's face told her she had not only failed, but failed miserably. There was no doubt in her mind that any one of the women would have had the dough ready inside of fifteen minutes, instead of her taking three times that long and having to figure out what she was doing wrong by experimentation.
Jean helped her out of the wet, slightly torn dress. The zipper had failed when she landed on her backside. "Guess I'm thankful that I've got a tough butt." She muttered as she got out of her partially soaked slip. It was a little strange to be changing in front of Ron's Mom, but really no different than changing in the locker room.
The older woman just shook her head sadly. "This was a mistake."
Kim slipped on the black slacks she brought to wear the next day. "No, Jean. The accident was my fault. I was getting cocky."
"No, I meant bringing you here in the first place. I just thought it was necessary for you to meet my family. It's not about that. You did pretty well considering your track record in the kitchen. Really, it wouldn't have mattered one bit if you'd finished everything, they would still find some reason to criticize you. I guess I should be thankful they haven't come right out and said it."
"That I'm not a Jew?" Kim finished for her as she pulled her teal top over her head, pulling her ponytail out and trying to straighten her hair.
Jean nodded, looking at the floor. "Not a Jew, not Polish. Even if you were, even if you came here wearing a dowdy dress and weighing twice what you so with a babushka tied around your head, they would find something wrong with you. It's Gene all over again, and I had no right to drag you through this."
Kim sat down beside her. "Jean, you felt it was your duty to your family. Tradition is important. So I don't meet their expectations. Does that change the way you and Gene feel about me?"
Jean just shook her head. Kim wrapped her arms around her shoulders and gave her a squeeze. "Then all the people who really matter have accepted me. Let's just get through this night and we can go back to Middleton tomorrow."
She returned the hug, sniffing slightly. "I mean it, Kim. You were doing really well."
"It was okay. I just got stupid there, that's all." She smiled, chuckling slightly. "Maybe the cooking thing skips a generation. Maybe I'll have a daughter some day who can cook. Besides, like you and Ron were saying, these people are going to be my family anyway. There's going to be our wedding and God willing some day Ron and I will be the ones bringing a new baby down for them to meet."
Jean let out a long breath. "Ron's really lucky to have you. I'd probably have stormed out of this house by now if I was you, or just walled it all up inside me like Gene does."
Kim got up and pulled on Jean's hands. "Come on, we've got a visit to get through. We'd better get back in there before they find some reason to gripe about how long it's taking me to change."
Despite her surge in confidence, dinner was a study in mutual discomfort. Ida and Freda kept whispering in Polish, despite Gram's repeated insistence they were being rude. Kim didn't know a word of the language, but she could tell just the way they glanced at her what they must have been talking about. She could just hear what they must have been saying. She was too young, too gentile, too tiny to bear offspring, let alone the fact any children they would have would technically not be Jewish since she wasn't. Not to mention she was a disaster in the kitchen waiting to happen. What kind of quality girl had no idea how to cook? She could just imagine how they would feel if they knew the extent of her shortcomings when it came to what was traditionally considered 'woman's work.'
Besides the whispers, the meal progressed almost in silence, save for the occasional gurgle or laugh from CJ, who was sitting in a high chair that looked older than any person sitting in the room.
Kim frowned at the fact that so far, only Rufus had sampled the pierogi. He seemed happy enough to eat it, though the Aunts glared hatefully at the little creature while he did so. She could only hope that since they were filled with sweets, they were intended for desert.
Finally, Aunt Ida spoke up. "In my day, no one would get engaged to be married without first meeting the family's approval. That is what is wrong with children today, they care only about themselves. We know nothing about this girl's history except what we have seen on the television." She turned a sharp eye on Kim. "And what I have seen there is a young woman wearing tight tops and boy's pants running around doing things that only a man should properly do."
Kim swallowed hard, biting her lip almost to the point of drawing blood. She could feel Ron's foot touch hers under the table.
"So, Miss Possible, tell us about yourself. Why is it you feel it's your place to play the hero all the time? Why is it if Ronald is your partner in all of this that we never see anything about him?"
She tried desperately to keep her voice even. "I've always attempted to get him the kind of recognition he deserves. After all, he's the one Bueno Nacho is using in their advertising."
"Feh. If he knew what was good for him he would have nothing to do with that traife. He should be the one heralded as the hero. If you were a proper mate for him you would understand this and step aside from the limelight. It is your job to support him, not the other way around."
"Ron doesn't just support me. We've got each other's backs. I can't help that the media chooses to focus on me the way they do."
Aunt Freda finally broke in. "You are Christian, aren't you?"
"Yes ma'am."
"KP's been going to Temple with us." Ron said, touching Kim's waist in a show of support.
"Oh really." Aunt Ida replied. "So, when are you going to convert? Will it be before this…wedding? For that matter, when do the two of you plan on going through with this?"
"Convert? I…I really hadn't considered it. Why should I…"
"How on Earth do you think it will be possible for you two to marry? You have to convert."
"Now wait a minute. I may not be the most religious person on this planet, but I do have my faith."
Ida crossed her arms. "Then the two of you cannot get married."
"What? You have no right…"
"I have every right. You may think the whole world revolves around just you, but that does mean you don't have to respect your elders, or your betters."
Kim found herself on her feet, her hands balling into fists. "What makes you think you're any better than me?"
"Simple. I am the elder of this family. I have been before you were even born and I am not going to allow you or any other Goyim to trample over our traditions and our religion. The very idea you would mingle your Gentile blood with us is repugnant. The fact you throw the fact you don't even respect your own faith back at us makes it all the more clear. I've held my tongue long enough. You're not Jewish. You're not one of us. You claim to love Ronald, that is beside the point. That just proves that he is thinking with his loins instead of his head and his heart.
"I know what is best for him, even if he does not."
Kim glared at the older woman, her eye starting to twitch. She held up her index finger and started to speak. The Stoppables just sat there in utter shock at what was happening, though Ron was starting to rise out of his chair. With a growl, Kim turned and stormed out. The kitchen door slammed and they could hear her footsteps out on the deck, heading for the dock.
"How dare you." Ron growled through clenched teeth.
"How dare I. Perhaps you forget, I am the head of this family. I am have the final say on who you may or may not marry. It had been that way since the beginning of time. In my day, you would not have had the chance to bring this…" She called Kim a word in Polish he didn't know, though he caught the drift. "…into this house."
"Don't you dare call Kim a, whatever it was you called her. I've been with her since I was four years old, and I'll be the one who decides if she's right for me. I'm the one who asked her to marry me. I'm the one who's had her back for the last six years. When we graduate college, we're getting married, and that's all I have to say about the matter."
"No, I absolutely forbid it. That girl is not suitable for you."
"But…" Ron pleaded.
"No buts. Your first duty is to your family, not that red-haired tramp who thinks she is some kind of superhero."
Ron suddenly threw his fork down and stood up. "Okay, that's it. You know what, you talk about my duty to my family, well what about the real family I've know almost constantly for over fourteen years? You think I don't know Kim's not Jewish? So what? If she said some of the things you did, I'm willing to bet you'd be on the phone with the anti-defamation league inside of five minutes, calling her an anti-Semite. In fact, since the moment we got here, you've been insulting and belittling her. You made her do something she can't just because you have this stupid, stuck up tradition that only the women can cook. Guess what? Kim can't cook, I can, so I'm the one who will when we get married.
"Maybe you can't accept the fact I'm marrying a non-Jew. Tough. All the people I think are the most important already have. That includes my Mom and Dad, that includes Gram R. That includes all my friends and it even includes my Rabbi. That's right, Rabbi Katz was one of the first people to congratulate us after I proposed, and I think he knows a doggone sight more about what it takes for folks to be a real married couple than an old, bitter woman who only dares to show up when she's got some grand pronouncement to make about what she feels is right for a family she doesn't even see for half a decade or more at a time.
"I've got a real family, one that was there whenever I needed them. I've been damned lucky. The man upstairs saw fit to not only give me one set of parents, but two. You want to talk about duty? Well, right there is where my duty lay. If that means I'm going to be disowned by you, then so be it. It's not like I had much in that department anyway, considering the way you've treated my father ever since I've known you. Don't think I don't hear you, talking behind his back. Even when you do it in Polish, I can hear the tone of your voice."
He turned to face his mother. "Mom, I'm sorry, but it was a mistake to bring Kim here with us. I knew this was going to happen the moment you asked me to bring her." With that he stormed out of the dining room and out the front door, slamming it behind him.
Ron didn't know how long or how far he walked, only that he was seething in anger at both his great Aunt and at himself. Only in that moment did he finally realize he should have stood up for Kim before things had spiraled out of control. He was supposed to have her back just as he said, instead he just sat there, hoping everything would blow over and they could go home.
He shook in rage, replaying all the hateful things Aunt Ida said back there, replaying the looks on his parent's faces as they did exactly the same thing he did. For years they had been cowed by that woman. Outside of the platitude of 'respect your elders' did it say the eldest had to be in charge of the family? The Ten Commandments said to honor his parents. That didn't say anything about a great aunt who lived in Boca after a near lifetime of New York City. All that honor stuff was well fine and good, but what ever happened to making up his own mind.
Just thinking about it was making him physically ill. All of that was no different than if he went up to Felix and told him he couldn't be with Monique because she was black. In fact, the whole time he had known her, the only mention there ever was about her race was when that bastard Carrion brought it up. He didn't care about that and really, Kim wasn't even a different race. Sure, there would be problems being of differing faiths, but they had the support they needed to get by all of that. There was his parents, Kim's parents, Rabbi Katz and most of all, there was his love for Kim. Wasn't that what mattered?
He reached a wooden bridge spanning a creek that fed the lake. Stopping at the rail, he looked down at the starlight reflecting on the water. The moon was still dark, only having been new the night before. Then he did something he usually only did on Saturday mornings or on the High Holy Days. He started praying, starting out in Hebrew saying prayers he knew by rote, then he switched to English.
An answer came to him. He didn't know if it was the true, right, final answer, but he knew it was right for him. He started the long walk back to his Grandmother's home. It took him longer than he was expecting, having walked further in his funk than he thought he had, but the clear skies allowed enough starlight wasn't hard to see the road. Finally he could see the lights in the house.
He didn't go inside, but skirted the edge of the manicured lawn. He needed to set things right and that meant there was only one person he needed to talk to at that moment. There was only one person who really needed him.
Ron walked out onto the dock, looking out over the lake. The dining room was in the front of the house, so only the kitchen lights shown toward the water. He seemed so utterly alone out there. He expected Kim to be out there, where they had once spent that lazy week in summer, out in the water more than they were on dry land. For an awful moment he considered the possibility Kim had done something drastic. Then he heard a tiny sniff.
Kim rarely cried. She was such an in-charge person it even carried over to herself. That meant keeping a lot of what she felt bottled up inside of her, even to her detriment. The fact she was out there softly crying almost broke his heart, though at the same time he was glad she was letting it out.
He followed the sound to the boat house off to the side of the dock. She was sitting in the back of the motorboat with her knees drawn up to her chest.
She didn't hear him approach and didn't even know he was there until he stepped into the boat, causing it to rock very slightly. She sobbed a little louder as she let her legs down, leaning into his embrace as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders, pulling her close.
In his arms, the remains of her 'Kimness' spilled away and she let it out, crying loudly as he rocked her silently in the back of the boat.
"I thought I could handle this." She said quietly once she settled down a little.
"Shhhhh, KP. It's my fault. I should have never let it get to this."
"No, Ron. These are your people. You were acting the way they've made you think you're supposed to act. I'm the one who couldn't stand up to them."
He took her chin in his fingertips. "Don't ever think you have to. Aunt Ida doesn't matter. She's not the boss of me. Tomorrow morning we'll all go home and things will be back the way they're supposed to be. You'll see."
"But Ronnie, that woman, she hates me."
"Aunt Ida hates everyone. I wouldn't let it bother you."
"But Ron, she's your family."
"No, Kim, she's my kin. There's a difference. You know, you can pick your friends, you can pick your nose. Waitaminute, that's not right."
"Ron." She smiled punched him in the arm.
He pulled his arms tight around her again. "KP, I've got family. I've got more family than a guy like me has any right to have. That's what I told them when I told Aunt Ida off back there."
"You did what?"
"Yeah." He pulled at the collar of his shirt. "I sorta, well, called her a bigot and said stuff about her not being the boss of me. You know, all the stuff I should have said before you got so upset you had to leave."
"Ron, I can't believe you did that."
"Kim, it had to be said. The only reason that old battleaxe has any power is because nobody's ever stood up to her before."
She buried her head in her hands. "Oh, I am so not looking forward to our ride home tomorrow. I get your Mom and Dad are so tweaked at me now."
He put his hand on the middle of her back. "No, KP. Well, yeah, I bet they're mad, but I bet they're just as mad at Aunt Ida. You'll be okay, I promise."
They both looked up as the door creaked open. "I thought I heard somebody in here." Gram carefully stepped into the boat, carrying a large serving bowl. "Sure would have been a shame to let these go to waste." She sat down beside her grandson, passing the bowl to him. It was full of the pierogi Kim made earlier.
"You sure they're edible?" Kim asked weakly.
The old woman responded by taking one from the bowl and biting down on it, chewing vigorously. "A bit on the doughy side, but pretty good for a first timer. Could have stood to roll it out a little thinner, but you'll learn. Oh, by the way, there's a reason I wear the sneaks." She held up her foot. It was usually hidden under her long skirt, but there was indeed a white tennis shoe on there.
Ron took a pierogi and nibbled on it. Then he took a huge bite, then another, finishing the traditional treat in three. "Kim actually made this?"
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Naco boy." She punched his arm again, a little harder this time.
"I finished them up while she changed, but yes, she did everything but the frying pan."
Kim took one and sampled it. "Maybe that was the hand of God. There's no telling how long it would take the fire department to get out here if I started a grease fire."
"Phooey, child. Everybody knows all you have to do is put a lid on the pan if it catches. Besides, it was just butter."
"Gram, Kim was once dragged down the hall by an out of control mixer." Ron added.
"Bah, who needs those new fangled things. If it wasn't for Saul, I'd still have a nice hot gas stove, but no, he had to get the electric one. Now, why don't the two of you come back inside. It's supposed to get down below freezing tonight."
Kim shrunk back down a little. "I don't really think I want to go back in there, if it's all the same."
"What, you're going to sleep out here in the boat house? No on my watch, you're not. Anyway, not two minutes after Ron stomped out of there, Ida grabbed Freda and Morty and dragged them out of the house. They drove into town to get themselves a room before they fly back to Boca tomorrow."
"They…left?" Ron asked, surprise in his voice.
"Of course they did. I lit into her for causing such a ruckus in my house. It is my place, after all. Oh, Ida can get on her high horse about being the matriarch and all that, but this isn't the old country. Sure, I'd bet the old Rabbis we had growing up would probably side with her, but hey, if you're Rabbi Katz is okay with this, then so am I. Now come inside before you end up sick. I may be able to cook a little, but my chicken soup leaves a lot to be desired. That's the reason little Jean never gets sick. She doesn't want me to come up there to Middleton and make her some."
Ron stood up first, helping both women from the boat, then stuffed another pierogi into his mouth. Kim took another as well, thinking again about getting Ron to make some with Naco filling. They actually were pretty good, though, like Gram said, they were a tad doughy.
It was later than they figured. Neither had thought to look at their watches while they were out there, but the clock over the fireplace read a quarter past ten.
"I think Jean and her good-for-nothing husband have already gone to bed. She put Little Catherine down a while ago." Kim looked up sharply when the older woman used that term for Gene, but she realized it was much more a term of endearment to her, probably a way to keep on some sort of good terms with her older sisters.
"Gram, if you don't mind, I think Kim and I will stay up for a little while."
She eyed her grandson with a wry smile. "Why? The two of you thinking of sneaking off and going skinny dipping again? I tell you, if you do, I'll make up a batch of that soup just to head it off right at the pass, and don't give me any of that Fortress-of-immunity garbage you and your father talk about."
"I just think Ron wants to talk." Kim said. Somehow a pall had been lifted off the house, making her feel like a thirteen year old girl again. She was among family now, people who cared about her.
Gram raised an eyebrow, looking for an instant just like her daughter. "Seems to me I remember a girl and a boy who spent almost the whole night talking instead of sleeping, camped out in front of the fire in their sleeping bags. Bet those two had to sleep for a week when they got home. Unless the two of you have something else in mind." She winked at Kim, causing the younger woman to blush crimson.
She led them into the den. The floor in front of the fireplace had been obscured by the couch until the got around it. There were two sleeping bags and a pile of pillows there, just like they had slept five years before. "I think this will be a little more comfortable than that old stiff bed in the guest room, unless the two of you need some privacy." She nudged Kim a little this time.
"No, Gram, this is spankin." She said, almost missing the fact the elder Rokowski apparently intended for them to share a room anyway. She had come to figure that they were going to have to choose between the one remaining guest room and the couch, the thought that, being an unmarried couple, there was no way they were going to share a bed like they did back home. That aside, the prospect of spending the night in front of the fire, pretending they were just kids again was too good to pass up.
"You kids be good. It's time for me to go rest these old bones." She gave Kim one more wink then headed off to her room.
They did indeed spend the greater part of the night just talking, putting what had happened earlier that evening behind them, and doing more than a little kissing once the firelight died down.
Thanks to MrDrP for suggesting the title to this chapter!
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