Chapter 85

Tabby descended the series of six steps leading down to the livings area, and proceeded to make her way towards the coffee table. After placing the shoe box in the center, she briskly walked towards the front door and, after a slight hesitation, took hold of the silver handle and opened it.

As the wooden panel swung to the open position, the momentum caused a decorative wreath (hung on the outside and adorned with jingle bells) to shake, emitting a slight ping. As the door reached the end of it's travel, Tabby's eyes widened at the sight of the individual standing on the other side. Standing on the small stoop was a man of below average height, around 5'5" tall, with an above average muscular build. His dark blonde hair was neatly parted on the side using gel, and his large bushy mustache was neatly waxed as if he were a historical figure from the late 19th century. He donned his usual plaid button down shirt, neatly tucked into a pair of pressed blue jeans; on his feet were a pair of brown shoes. The man had also donned a brown hounds tooth coat over top of his plaid shirt, in an effort to keep out the bone-chilling cold.

Both man and woman stared at each other in what seemed like surprise for a few moments, at which point Tabby finally decided to and break the silence while adopting a sly grin.

"Chucky Stat," said Tabby as she shook her head from side to side playfully, "What the hell is that thing on your face?"

"Hey Tabby," said Chuck, "I see that wit of yours hasn't change a bit."

Tabby giggled

"Nope," said Tabby as she moved to the side, freeing up the entryway, "C'mon in, I got some of that instant coffee crap ya always liked brewin' for ya!"

"Thanks," said Chuck, "I'll definitely take you up on that offer."

Chuck proceeded to make his way through the door, at which point Tabby closed it behind him. After removing his coat, Chuck and Tabby made their way over to the couch. As the two adults took their place on opposite ends, Tabby lit a cigarette and took a draw while crossing her legs; Chuck simply sat with both of his feet planted on the ground, placing his wrists on his knees and nervously twirling his thumbs.

"So," said Chuck, "What fascinating things have happened to you over the last fourteen years?"

Tabby took another draw of her cigarette, blowing the exhaust on the opposite direction of Chuck prior to answering.

"Well," said Tabby, "I finally got married!"

"Really?" asked Chuck, "Who's the guy, anyone we knew from the neighborhood?"

"Maybe," said Tabby in a somewhat sly manner.

Tabby stood up and turned towards the wall behind the couch. Mounted on the wall was a large professional family portrait of Tabby, Rod and their three daughters standing together, all displaying smiles.

"This is my husband," said Tabby as she pointed to Rod. She then proceeded to slide her finger to Lee's position.

"Ah," said Chuck, gazing toward Tabby with a sly grin. Tabby simply giggled prior to continuing.

"I know you know who this is from last night," said Tabby, "She's grown up since the last time you saw her, huh?"

"You're not kidding!" said Chuck, "I had to double take when she told me her name was Annalee Kanker. I only remember her as that little happy 11-month old, not a teenager a few inches taller than me. She looks just like a taller and slimmer version of you back in high school Tabb."

"She does," said Tabby, "It's amazing. She inherited my fathers height and his personality. You know, how he always came off intelligent and compassionate, yet had that hot headed and opinionated side that would come out if someone messed with him."

"Yep," said Chuck, "In the few moments I talked with her so far I could tell. She has a lot of respect and intelligence, just like he did. Even those thick black-framed glasses, they're just like the ones her used to wear."

Tabby smiled at Chuck's observation, at which point she slid her finger to Marie's position.

"This is my second daughter," said Tabby, "Her name is Annemarie, and she was born two weeks after Little Tiffany...a day after we lost touch..."

"Interesting," said Chuck as he giggled, "I don't remember you even being pregnant during that time."

"It was a surprise," said Tabby in a somewhat stern manner, prompting a bought of silence. After a few moments, Tabby decided to continue.

"Tiff's middle name was Marie, what a coincidence!" said Chuck "But with that "E", you broke your promise you had since you were a teenager to name any girls with had after Anna Pavlova!"

"Yeah," said Tabby, "Her name was going to be Annabelle, but I decided to change it in honor of my bestie. As you know, St. Anne is the patron saint of women in labor, so I decided to use it as the prefix, in honor of God taking Tiff into his loving arms earlier than expected."

The two adults stood in silence for a few moments, both displaying somber expressions.

"Anyway," said Tabby, "Personality wise she is me to the T. Stubborn as a mule, and hot headed with a quick wit. She even sounds just like me, I can't tell you how many times people thought it was me talking when she has answers the phone."

Tabby took another quick draw of her cigarette as she slid her finger over the portion of the photograph containing May.

"And believe it or not," said Tabby, "This is my third daughter, Annamae. She's Rod's biological daughter, and if you can't tell from the picture she takes after him WAY more than the Kankers appearance wise. And Chuck, I may sound crazy for saying this, but if she ain't Kate reincarnated on this earth nobody is! She's got all of her personality quirks, her ability to inhale hotdogs, drink barbecue sauce, and a carefree eccentric nature. The only difference is that she's shy, in contrast to Kate who would talk to anyone and their mother, that goofball...but Annamae's been coming out of her shell over the last few months. Even crazier is the fact that boy she's dating kind of looks like Zack, you know tall and skinny. The only difference is that while Zack was a wild daredevil, Annamae's boyfriend is kind of a male version of her."

Tabby paused prior to continuing.

"It's a shame that went down the tubes," said Tabby, "They were perfect for each other, but Zack had to do what he had to do...as much as I love Kate, I can't blame him for leaving her once she got involved with...well, you know. He did everything he could to try to save her, but she was too far gone. By that time she was completely at the mercy of Edy...addiction..."

There was another slight pause, after which Chuck decided to continue the conversation.

"Zack...," said Chuck, "It's been a few months since I've talked to him, but the last time I did he was doing very well."

"He still in the service?" asked Tabby.

"Yep, he's a Commander," said Chuck, "He's currently deployed as the commanding officer on USS Kentucky. It's pretty difficult to get in touch with someone on board of a vessel continuously operating hundreds of feet below the surface of the ocean for six months."

Chuck giggled slightly as Tabby took a draw of her cigarette.

"Well it's great to hear you two haven't lost touch completely," said Tabby, "Youse two did everything together, from fixing up your bikes when you were kids to upgrading your cars as young adults...what do they call that kind of thing, a 'bro-mance'?"

Tabby cackled heavily at her own joke as Chuck cracked a smile.

"Hey, we were best friends and treated each other like brothers," said Chuck, "Just like you and Tiff were..."

There was another pause as both adults turned away from each other, glancing towards the red carpeted floor for a few moments. As Tabby placed her cigarette into the glass ash tray, Chuck turned towards her with a smile.

"Well Tabb," said Chuck, "You certainly have yourself a beautiful home and a wonderful family!"

"Thanks," said Tabby, "And you certainly have raised a beautiful young lady! I never thought a tough little boy like you would be able to handle a little girl by yourself, but you've done an excellent job with her. She was very respectful to me, and spoke very eloquently. She's so pretty Chuck, if she needed glasses, she'd look just like Tiff. I have to admit that I was taken aback when I opened the door and had to tilt my head almost vertical to make eye contact with her. It was like looking back in time, she has her hair, body proportions, and even that slight arch she got in her back as she walked. On top of that, she even sounds just like her, just a little bit of a higher pitch and without that little rasp."

Tabby turned towards Chuck.

"I see you gave her that fur coat you bought Tiff for Christmas back in eleventh grade." said Tabby.

"Yep," said Chuck, "Tiffany was unfortunately never able to meet her, but she has a very deep admiration and love for her mother, a fact that makes me very proud. Ever since I first explained the situation to her when she was three, she's been very curious about Tiff's life. I gave her all of her pictures, her basketball trophies, all of our home movies and the videos of Tiffs interviews when she was the CEO of our company. Even though she never knew her, I still sense a lot of sadness from Little Tiffany on occasion with regards to Tiff. When we moved, she asked me to take down our wedding portrait and give it to her for storage in her room because it made her upset..."

Chuck's voice wavered slightly as he completed his statement, as if he was attempting to hold back his emotions while in front of his friend. Nevertheless, he regained his composure and turned towards Tabby with a serious expression.

"Tabb, I can't thank you enough for everything you did for us after the tragedy," said Chuck, "It was so hard for me, I didn't know what to do! My wife, my best friend, the love of my life was suddenly taken away from me, and simultaneously I was given a beautiful baby girl. I remember thinking how it could be possible that the best day in my life was also the worst. I was so depressed, I couldn't even think for the few days between the time I brought Little Tiffany home until Tiffs funeral."

Chuck paused.

"I had no idea how to take care of a baby," said Chuck, "Looking back on those few days, I believe that I was beginning to suffer from paternal postpartum depression. I cringe every time I think about those times, and how my depression made me reject little Tiffany. I can't thank you enough for understanding and helping me through those hard times, coming over every day with Annalee to council me, not to mention feed, change and sooth Little Tiffany."

"Hey," said Tabby, "We were like family, and families always help each other during hard times. Anything I could do to help you, Tiff and Tiffany was time well spent...besides, our girls got a head start on becoming besties themselves! It's hilarious, they both think they met for the first time in Kindergarten, but they used to nap together all of the time as infants!"

Chuck and Tabby shared a quick laugh, at which point Tabby read opted a serious expression.

"Chuck, I do have to ask," said Tabby, "Why did you suddenly pick up and move away without telling anybody? I mean I came to your house one day, and when I knocked on the door there was no answer. I found it odd, but I just figured that you and Little Tiffany made a run to the grocery store or something. But after I found out your cell phone and house phone were disconnected, I knew something was up. It's like you two just vanished without a trace."

Chuck sighed.

"A few days before we left, Tiffany had a fussy night with sleep," said Chuck, "Around two in the morning, she started crying so I got up and did everything I could to try to help, still afraid to pick her up. I began to reach for the phone to call you, but then I had a revelation. Tiffany was my daughter, I loved her more than anything and I had the responsibility to raise her. I decided to finally pick her up and rock her in my arms, and what happened was amazing. She gradually ceased crying, opened her little blue eyes and stared up at me. I then lifted my hand up towards her cheek and extended my index finger, at which point she grabbed my finger, squeezing it with her little hand as she stared up at me. Even though she couldn't speak, and didn't yet have the cognitive abilities to properly express herself, it was as if she was saying 'I love you Daddy, everything is going to be okay!'. I sat in the rocking chair, holding her in my arms until she went to sleep, smiling...completely at peace. From that point on, I knew my only goal in life was to love, protect, and nurture Tiffany, and be the best damn father I could be."

Chuck paused.

"I know you," said Chuck, "You have such a big heart that you would have never quit trying to help us. You had Annalee to take care of, not to mention a second baby on the way within the coming weeks, and there was no way I was going to allow you to keep spending your time helping Tiffany and I, as much as we appreciated it...I did what I had to do."

A few moments passed as both adults stared across the room in silence. Eventually, Tabby rose from the couch, dusting her jeans off as she did so.

"Well I'm glad we finally got back in touch," said Tabby, "And even happier that our girls found each other as best friends."

"Yep," said Chuck, "It's beautiful thing."

"I'll go get us some coffee," said Tabby as she began walking towards the kitchen, "I dug out all of the old pictures of us and the old gang from the neighborhood. We can take a trip down memory lane over some joe if you'd like."

"You bet," said Chuck, " Thanks Tabb!"

Tabby made her way through the dining room and out in the kitchen, as Chuck sat in silence, observing his surroundings with a smile.