Chapter 18

I was sleeping soundly among the fresh sheets of our bed. I went to bed late after sorting the kids Halloween candy. I had to be extra careful with Bryan's. The amount of sugar intake is something we just have to keep track of. As I lied there in bed. I heard our bedroom door open. I expected to see the kids, but it was Charlie; back home from his long weekend working. He pulled his shirt off and slipped off his shoes before lying down next to me.

"Hey babe." I said softly. "You missed all the excitement."

"I think I've had all the excitement I can stand." He replied.

"Hm?" I began rubbing and scratching his back softly with my nails.

"You know our station got bought out by Sports Media...they gave us a truck to carry our equipment in..."

"Yeah?"

"It didn't have tags...and I drove that thing for 2 hours before I was stopped by a cop."

"Oh no...sweetheart I'm sorry."

"They thought the truck was unregistered. They didn't know if I was the owner of the truck. I had all this equipment in the back. They thought maybe I had stolen property."

"Char..."

"Anyway I called my office, had Taylor...you know she has an office next to mine...told her to call my new boss's boss. Get him on the phone...I had to sort out everything with the police by myself. They were really no help. Finally, we got it straightened out and I was free to go...I get into Brightsburg halfway between the college and the red light and another cop stops me."

"Well Charlie..."

"I had a tail light out...I wasn't about to pay the ticket or the fee for it...so I called Taylor to call the corporate office again...I didn't want to talk to them...so I told her to tell them about it; so they can pay it... This was just Thursday afternoon...Friday was the big game...well you know we go in there. I setup everything. I'm broadcasting for my station, there are a few other stations there to broadcast for their own stations. They told us at halftime we weren't allowed to leave our equipment unattended...I'm with Matt right? He's been doing our imaging for the station for a few months...we decided we would take turns. Well...I had to get me something to eat. I hadn't eaten all day...He goes first. He was meeting with some friends. Said he'd be back...He returned at like the middle of the 3rd quarter...so here I am...I can feel my sugar dropping. I'm popping my tablets one right after another just to stay awake...I finally catch a moment to go get some food and he jumps on me because he's working too hard and I'm slacking off! Stupid!"

I began to massage Charlie's shoulders.

"He said I had two or three breaks before he left...I got up twice to go to the bathroom! Those were the only two times I moved. He'll probably get paid more by Friday saying he did most of the work last Friday. He'll tell everyone about me slacking off at the office tomorrow."

"Aww baby...my poor Charlie..."

He rolled over on his back. I messaged his chest.

"Matt's dumb sweetie...he's a user, a mooch...just over look him."

"I try...but sometimes it's not that easy. Ahh..."

He grimaced his face and grunted.

"Something wrong Char?"

"I have had really bad abdominal pain since I left the hotel yesterday morning."

I rubbed his abs and his stomach. I then rubbed his side.

"Dr. Payton said you'd experience a few to no side effects from the new medication you're on...I think he said abdominal pain would be one of those effects."

"I know..." Charlie breathed. "I'll be alright...anything happen while I was gone?"

"You didn't miss much...Bryan learned how to control his visions."

"He did?!" Charlie exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah...yesterday."

"Aww...and I missed it...damn."

"He was very proud of himself...oh but don't let him know I told you...he wanted to tell you himself."

"Gotcha...man...that is so great...he's brilliant isn't he? All five of you are."

I smiled. I then leaned down and kissed him.

"You're brilliant too you know, Charlie?...you always have been."

He smiled and kissed me back.

"I'm so glad to be home." He sighed. He then rolled over on top of me. I just held his head and stroked the side of it. He went to sleep. I blushed and kissed his head and fell back asleep myself.

About eight that morning, I got up to get the kids ready for Sunday school.

"Bry, Anna, Isa, Mira, get up please."

I flicked their bedroom light on. Isa wiped the sleep from her eyes and got out of bed by crawling over her sisters.

"Ow!" Anna shouted.

"Hey!" Mira shouted after.

Isabelle was going through a certain phase. She was a Princess on Halloween because she loved the dress. On Sunday's she wanted to be first to pick out her own clothes and brush her own hair. She suddenly had an interest with wanting to be the prettiest of my three girls. They were all three already beautiful, but Isabelle wanted to be the more fashionable one. Mira was my tough tomboy and hated getting dressed for church. Anna was my bubbly little girl that didn't seem to care either way. Bryan got up and pulled the covers back. He came into the kitchen where I was making breakfast.

"I'll make you some cereal just as soon as I'm done with the eggs okay Bry?"

"That's okay mommy...I can get it."

Bryan turned more and more independent each day. Although I always helped him pour his milk even when he didn't want me too.

"It's too heavy for you Bry...that's why..."

Isabelle then screamed. She ran into the kitchen crying. She had a rip in her dress.

"Mommy! Mommy! My dress is-"

"Don't yell Isa, thats not nice."

"But Mommy my dress is-"

"Then go find another pretty dress to put on Isabelle!"

She sat in the floor and cried. I scoffed.

"Charlie!"

No answer.

"Charles!" I hollered. Charlie came running into the kitchen.

"Take Isabelle and see if you can't find her another dress to wear."

"Alright..."

Charlie picked her up off the floor.

"Quit crying baby...Daddy will help you find a new dress."

"But I wanted to wear this one!"

"Charlie!"

"What?!"

"Don't baby her...put her down, take her by the hand and calmly go find her something to wear please."

"Okay...okay..."

He did as I said. I returned to the breakfast prep and burnt the toast. I had to start again. Bryan finished his breakfast and started to leave to brush his teeth.

"Mommy do I have to wear a tie or can I just wear my dress shirt?"

"You can just wear your dress shirt...go ahead."

I put his bowl and spoon in the sink. I turned to grab a dish towel and Bryan stopped by the doorway.

"Bry?"

He held his head.

I put the dish towel down and got on my knees near him. He had his eyes shut.

"Hey? Is it another vision?"

He nodded and whimpered.

I grabbed his hand and held it to my heart. He slowly opened his eyes.

"Bryan?"

He stayed quiet.

"Bryan, what did you see?"

"I...I...Daddy..."

"What about your Daddy?"

He shook his head.

"I...something was wrong with him I...I don't know."

"Go brush your teeth baby."

I kissed his head. I watched him go down the hall into our bathroom. When I entered the kids room Charlie appeared to be fine. He had the girls all dressed, and was buckling Anna's dress shoes. Anna had her foot propped up on Charlie's knee.

"Charlie?"

"Yeah?"

"Are...are you okay?"

"Yeah? Why something going on?"

"Bry...he just had a vision about you in the hallway."

"Yeah? Well I wish he had a vision about that truck I had to drive...that would have saved me a lot of headache. How come you and your mother can't have visions like that?"

"Well we can...but over time we learned to create passages and mental blocks to our brains...I can only see the future if I wish it... and looking ahead isn't something I want to go around doing...you'll never live in the present that way...Bryan will learn to do the same..."

"Hm...I wonder what he saw this time? Are all the visions normally bad?"

"No...I used them to figure out what my Christmas presents were once..."

Charlie stared at me.

"Once! And I predicted the birth of Genesis but I was so little I didn't tell anyone...well I mean I knew Gwen was having a girl way before she did...and anyway sometimes the visions are only 99% possible...things can happen to change the vision in a second..."

"And the other 1% is the slight change it could be wrong or different?"

"Yeah."

"Then don't worry about it...that's still 1%. I'm fine...let's get some breakfast and go to church huh?"

We all try to go to church on Sunday if we can. My kids went to Sunday school and stayed in the playroom during the service. After church my family I would go to lunch.

"And John describes that he would not doubt the faith nor the word of God." The pastor preached.

As we were sitting in a pew I noticed Charlie fanning himself with our church bulletin.

"Charlie? Are you hot?" I whispered.

"Yeah...is it not hot in here to you?"

I shook my head. He sighed. The service contiued. As we sat there Charlie was getting more and more uncomfortable. He pulled at his tie. He was sweating.

"Charlie, you want to leave?" I whispered.

"Huh? No...no I'm fine."

We met at the alter for communion. Charlie never ate the bread. It was too much for his sugar to handle. But the juice was fine. When it was our turn, Charlie didn't want anything. He stood there in pain through prayer. When we got up to sing hymns it hurt him to stand up and sit down again.