CHAPTER 2: CATCHING UP WITH THE LUCAS'
Sparkyville, USA 1:00 PM, 1 day before the funeral, Location: The Lucas household
Charlie and Violet were at the home of their friend Patty and her husband, Mark. They finally were able to see their two twin boys, Zachary and Jacob, and catch up with everything that had been going on in town. Charlie had always came back home to visit his folks for the holidays and other events, but Violet had never came back since moving away all those years ago. And, aside from keeping in contact with Patty, she had been out of the loop with her old friends. She was determined to end that.
"Your boys are growing fast, Patty," said Charlie.
"Yeah, it's hard to keep up with them," agreed Patty.
"They are so cute, Patty!" said Violet, who doted on the boys.
"They wanted to meet their Aunt Violet for a long time," Patty said with a smile.
"And I them," Violet responded.
"So, are you two staying for a bit after the funeral?" asked Mark.
"We will be flying back to California on Saturday," said Charlie, "but we will be staying for a couple of days afterwards."
"That's good," said Patty. "Then we can possibly do a double date before you go."
"That sounds nice," said Violet. "My next project isn't until next week Thursday anyway."
"And my head manager is familiar with the restaurant workings," added Charlie. And they continued to play with the twins and chat about everything.
Around that same time, Marcie walked into Lightning Fitness where Tricia worked. She spotted her old bestie working with a client doing some Pilates. She decided to wait until they were done before making her presence known. After Tricia was done she walked up to where Marcie was sitting.
"Marcie!" she said, shocked to see her there. "How long have you been here?"
"A few minutes," Marcie responded. "Do you have time to get some coffee?"
"Sure, just let me get changed. My shift is done, anyways."
After changing out of her workout clothes, Tricia went with Marcie to the nearest coffee shop. Marcie ordered a caramel latte, while Tricia ordered a green tea with honey. They found a secluded area to sit and chat.
"You may be wondering why I came to see you after all this time since our falling out," said Marcie.
"The thought has come to my mind, Marcie," said Tricia, cautiously.
"I think it's time we cleared the air once and for all," Marcie responded.
"Yeah, about that," Tricia began. "I tried to get a hold of you after I got my GED, to tell you I went back to school. I even did a couple of years at community college to get certified to be a trainer. But you never answered my calls, never answered my messages, didn't even invite me to your wedding, or tell me about when you had the boys both times you were pregnant. I had to hear it second hand from Chuck and others who did go to those events! I know I upset you when I quit school before, but I realized I made a mistake and went back, and even did better than I did when I was in school before. And when I tried to tell you that you were right, YOU NEVER RESPONDED! All I want to know is why couldn't you forgive me for quitting?! All I wanted was my best friend back! While I didn't go back because I upset you, I did for myself because I wanted to be better and have an education, I wanted to share with you that I did do it AND got my GED.
"But what hurt me the most is that you never sent me an invite to yours and Franklin's wedding. I even talked to Franklin and told him to give you my address. And I never got to meet your boys. Did I hurt you THAT MUCH that you couldn't have me around your boys?! So, Marcie Carlin-Armstrong, why did you lock me out for all this time?!" Tricia was in tears by that point. While she was ready to hear that it was because she quit and let Marcie down, she wasn't prepared for the answer she did get.
"It because I felt that I failed you, Tricia," said Marcie, who was now crying herself. "I figured if I ended our friendship, I didn't have to deal with the guilt feeling I had because I failed to keep you on the right track. I was more upset with myself than you. I didn't respond to your messages because I didn't want the guilty feelings that I played a part in messing you up. Even after I found out that you went back to school, I still felt like I failed you before, especially after I learned that you did better without my help! I thought that if I made you hate me, then I wouldn't feel so guilty, that I deserved your hatred. That's also why I didn't send an invite to my wedding or let you know about the boys being born." Marcie was sobbing hard.
"Marcie, I never hated you, nor did you let me down," assured Tricia. "If anything, I thought I let you down. Marcie, you are my best friend, and I love you."
Marcie looked at Tricia. She knew she was being sincere. As long as she known her, she was always straight with her. Marcie thought to herself "Screw it" and opened the floodgates. As the two friends hugged and cried, all was forgiven on both sides.
"I missed you, Marcie," Tricia whispered to her, through sniffles. "I missed you so much."
Marcie responded, "I missed you too… …sir." It was when Tricia heard Marcie call her "sir" that she knew their friendship was completely restored. They had a lot of catching up to do and a lot of healing to go through, but at least they made the first step that day to repairing their friendship.
NEXT CHAPTER: REQUIEM FOR A FUSSBUDGET & SEVERED TIES