Spring Showers
Chapter Twelve: Revelations
"Hey Heather!" RJ greeted her as he walked into her little place. "So what have you been up to?" RJ looked around, noticing a few little things that seemed to have changed since the last time he was here earlier in the afternoon.
"Oh, I just wanted to tidy things up a bit." She replied, noting RJ scanning her little place, his eyes eventually coming to rest on her.
"You look really nice." He noted with a smile.
"Thanks." Heather returned the smile, happy that he had noticed the care that she had put in brushing down her fur.
"Oh, I brought something for us to eat." RJ shook his head, remembering that he had brought with himself something for the two of them to eat. It wasn't much, one of those prepackaged lunch packs that the younger humans seemed to like taking with them somewhere. "I hope you don't mind mini-hotdogs."
"I'm sure that they are good." She replied. "I've also found some more music that we can listen to." She added.
"Cool." He approached her gave her a quick hug before the two of them sat down together. RJ pulled off the plastic cover off of the container, offering Heather some of the food first. "Ladies first." He said to her.
"Thank you RJ." Heather blushed. "You're such a gentleman." Heather complimented him as she took one of the mini-hotdogs.
"You're welcome." RJ added.
"Here's some music I think you'll like." She told him as she loaded a CD into the player. Closing the lid, she handed an earbud to RJ and put hers on before she pressed the PLAY button.
"Hmm, this is nice." RJ thought to himself as the song played. A lot slower, understandable lyrics, and a nice beat. He turned and watched Heather as she nodded her head to the tune and softly sang the lyrics.
RJ made himself comfortable, popping in a hotdog into his mouth and just immersing himself into the music. He could imagine the notes playing in his head, his tail seeming to dance to the beat of the music.
"So what do you think RJ?" Heather asked, moving next to him and settling down next to him, whispering into his open ear.
"This is really nice." RJ replied to her, taking her hand into his, smiling to her. "Thanks for the company."
"You're welcome RJ." Heather moved up to him and hugged him, resting her head on his shoulder. RJ looked down at her for a second before he rested his head back and returned to listening to the music. He liked hanging around with Heather, being able to unwind and forget about everything else. He'd have to make it a point to do this more often. Maybe he could do this again tomorrow. "Hey Hea…"
As he opened his eyes to ask Heather, he found that his mouth was currently preoccupied with something else. He knew what was happening, what he and Heather were doing. He knew the feeling on his lips quite well, having kissed others before now.
Feeling Heather's lips move across his, licking tenderly and pushing gently against his, he could only hold still as he felt the sensations of the kiss move through him. His mind knew what was going on, but his body did not respond. It did not wish to. As Heather pulled back, giving his lips one more lick, she looked to him with eyes filled with love and tenderness.
"Ha…" RJ stopped himself and blinked. Something about the situation… her kiss… RJ licked his lips, trying to figure out the feeling that was there. It felt familiar, the tingling on his lips just like the sensations he had before, from the many kisses he had with other females from before. But that was it. It felt like any other kiss. It was no different. It was the same, old thing.
"Heather." RJ said before biting his lip. Heather's happy smile slowly melted away as she saw that RJ did not react to her gesture of affection as she had hoped.
"Is something wrong, RJ?" Heather looked to him, a little frantic. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…"
"No, it's okay." RJ took her hands and shook his head. "You didn't do anything wrong."
"RJ, I really like you." Heather admitted to him. "I really respect you for all that you've done for me and the family." She added.
"Thanks, Heather." RJ smiled, but sighed afterwards. "But…"
"But you don't feel the same about me." Heather took him by surprise and said the very words he was about to say.
"Yeah." RJ lowered his head. "I like you too Heather, but not in that way." RJ confessed. "You mean a lot to me, but I think you should look for someone better than me."
"But…" Heather was about to interject, but RJ placed his hand over her mouth, keeping her from responding.
"Heather, there is someone out there better for you, better than I can ever be." RJ spoke to her. "There are too many things about me that you wouldn't like. There are many things that I regret doing in my life. You deserve more than I can ever give you. You deserve better than me, understand?" There, RJ removed his hand.
"Yeah." Heather nodded.
"One day, you'll make someone the happiest guy in the world." RJ assured her.
"But it's just not going to be you." Heather sighed.
"Sucks to be me, huh?" RJ chuckled.
"Yeah, especially giving up on a girl like me." Heather cracked a smile. RJ cracked a smile of his own, but it soon faded away as he lowered his head.
"I should go now." RJ spoke up. Picking up his head, he could see Heather looking back at him, this time with a much different face. She looked worried.
"Got some things to think about?" Heather asked.
"Yeah." RJ nodded. "A lot of things to think about."
"Can I walk you home?" She offered. RJ looked back up to her, a bit surprised at her offer of help. At this point, RJ thought that she would want him out of her face for rejecting her affections for him. Looking straight to her eyes for any signs of her emotions, he did not see any sign of spite or hate.
He only saw respect and admiration.
"Okay." RJ nodded, accepting her offer. They smiled to one another, a sort of understanding now between them. They pulled the buds out of their ears, the music having finished long ago. Standing up, she offered her hand to RJ to help him up. RJ gratefully took her hand and stood up.
Walking back to RJ's pad, they stayed silent. Heather glanced over to RJ several times, seeing him with a lost look in his eyes, deep into thoughts that she knew she would not understand no matter how well he could explain them to her.
And it was best that he didn't. She understood that she had no right to rifle into things that she knew didn't concern herself. This was to be his struggle, his decision.
Coming to his pad, they looked to one another once more. Gazing into one another's eyes, they came to a realization.
"Good night RJ." Heather sighed.
"Good night to you, too, Heather." RJ smiled. "Thanks." He pulled her into a hug. "For everything."
"Anytime, RJ." Heather hugged him back tightly. They stayed together for a little while before they parted.
"Hey Heather?" RJ spoke up.
"Yeah RJ?" Heather wondered what he was going to say.
"Do you mind if I come by, I don't know, tomorrow night to listen to some music with you?" He asked kindly. Heather smiled genuinely.
"Sure." She giggled. "Anytime, RJ." She calmed herself, but the smile held on her lips. "Anytime."
"Thanks, Heather." RJ smiled back and let go of her hand. With a simple nod, they left one another.
Heather took a deep breath and allowed herself to reflect on everything that had just happened in the past hour or so. She couldn't understand exactly what she was thinking, but she need to. So she sought out someone she believed that could help her.
She needed her father now more than ever.
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"Jade." Ozzie held a small wooden heart in his paws, turning it over, inspecting the grain and smoothness of the small token. He closed his eyes, remembering his late wife, of the joy that she had brought into his life. He could remember every detail about her better than any picture ever could, from her warm and loving blue eyes, her soft white fur, that unmistakable, enrapturing scent that always made him feel weak.
"God, I miss you." Ozzie held the heart to his own, wishing that he could see her, be with her once more. But he thanked her for being with him for that short time they were together, by allowing him the great privilege of being her husband, and for loving him with all her heart. He knew in his heart that she loved him just as much as he loves her, even now.
"Dad?"
"Heather?" Ozzie turned around and found his daughter walking to him, stopping short of a few steps.
"Are you busy, Dad?" She asked softly.
"No, Heather." Ozzie stood up and walked over to her, capturing her in his arms into a hug. "You know that you are first and foremost the most important person in my life." Ozzie hugged her tight, in his heart the memory of Jade. He thanked her from the bottom of his heart for the greatest gift she could ever give him: Heather.
"Thanks Dad." Heather rested her head on her father's shoulder, seeking solace in his warm and comforting embrace. "I really do miss doing this." She admitted.
"Then we should do this more often." Ozzie replied with a smile.
"Dad, is that mom's heart token?" She asked, noticing the familiar wooden object in her father's hand.
"Yes, Heather, it is." Ozzie brought up the token to Heather, letting her hold and examine it.
"You were thinking about mom again, weren't you?" She examined the token. Granted, to her, the token didn't seem like much, but she could understand the value that her father placed on the simple object.
"Yeah, I was." Ozzie sighed.
"Dad, can I ask you something?" Heather asked, leaning up to him. Ozzie took the action as a sign that all was not well with her.
"Go ahead, honey." He replied, placing his hand over her back and massaging her gently.
"Was mom the first girl you fell in love with?" She wondered.
"No, she wasn't." Ozzie answered. "I had a few other relationships with other girls before your mom."
"How come those relationships didn't work out?" She continued.
"First," Ozzie shifted, moving until she looked to him eye to eye. "I want to know how come you are asking me these questions."
"I…" Heather stopped. She took a deep breath before continuing. "I thought that I liked RJ and I…" Heather stopped, feeling a blush come over her face. "I told him how I felt about him."
"And what happened?" Ozzie sighed to himself, already figuring what had conspired considering her actions.
"He told me that he liked me too." Heather said, her breath getting heavier. "But not in the same way."
"I'm sorry, Heather." Ozzie held her tight, hoping to comfort her in her moment of sadness. "You must be taking this really hard." He reasoned.
"Actually, Dad…" She spoke. "It's not as bad as I thought it would be."
"Really?" Ozzie looked to her, reading her face, trying to see if she was lying or not. "Are you sure?"
"That's why I asked you why your first relationships didn't work out." She explained. "I wanted to know if it's normal to feel this way after finding out…"
"You really didn't feel that way for him." Ozzie interjected. "I guess you are realizing that the feelings you had for him weren't as deep as you thought they would be.
"So you mean…" She started, but was interrupted once more.
"Heather, I'm going to tell you something about love and relationships, something that I have learned through the many relationships I have had in my life." Ozzie informed her, hoping to help her get through this time. "And in time, I know you will come understand my words." However, he also understood the meaning of actually having the experience to understand what he was to tell her.
"What is it, Dad?" Heather asked, desiring to know what words of wisdom he had to impart to her.
"Love has been, is now, and will always never be easy." Ozzie told her sincerely. "Some people say love is all about give and take, or love is about great sacrifices for one another. Some say that two people are meant for each other if they share the same interests, and even some people say that opposites attract." Ozzie explained to her. Looking at Heather, he could see that his words did somewhat confuse her, but she was at least getting the general idea of his message. "Love will never be about protecting or dying, saving or surviving. Love is never about the physical attraction or the emotional binds. It's much more than that, but oh so simple."
"So what is love?" She asked, trying to get to the point.
"Love is looking into your partner's eyes and being able to understand everything about them and yet still be intrigued by them. Love is holding onto your partner's hand and knowing that they will never let you go. Love is getting into a fight, knowing that, though you may disagree with their opinion, you respect their opinion nonetheless." Ozzie continued, his words firm in their meaning but gentle in their truth.
"Love is just…" Heather tried to figure his message out.
"Life." Ozzie completed. "True love takes a life of its own. It's the realization of the truth that, just knowing each other, understanding one another, for all their talents and quirks, for all their successes and failings, your partner has made you a better person, just by being there, and you have done the same for them."
"Oh." Heather came to understand what her father's meaning of love was. Though she may not completely understand it all now, she knew that one day it will all sink it. She hugged her father tight, thankful for his wisdom. Just hearing his words brought order to the confusion in her mind. "Thanks, Dad." She looked to him and kissed him on the cheek.
"And Heather." Ozzie wanted to finish up his speech. "True love is also learning how to let go when the time comes." Ozzie sighed, clutching her tight. "When your mother died, I didn't know what to do. I had lost the one person in my life that made me a better person." He sighed. "But after all the tears and heartache, I came to realize that she wouldn't want me to do what I was doing, just grieving for her all the time."
"What happened?" Heather asked.
"You did." He smiled down to her. "It took me to realize that though I did not have your mother, I had you."
"Me?" She asked.
"I realized that, as your father, I had to take care of you." He told her. "You are the greatest gift your mother ever gave me." He said proudly. "I thought that I was a better person for being a good husband to your mom, but I realized that, in her eyes, I could be an even better person by being a good, no great father to you."
"You are a great father to me, Dad." Heather affirmed.
"And that was the promise I made to your mother." He confessed. "I would be the best father I can for you so you can grow up to be a happy, healthy person that your mother would be proud of."
"I'm sure she is proud of me." She smiled, comforting her father.
"Just as proud as I am of you." He added, chuckling. "I love you Heather." Ozzie sighed and looked to her proudly.
"I love you too, Dad." Heather once more threw herself into her father's arms into another hug. "Thanks, Dad, for everything."
"Are you going to be okay?" He asked her, stroking her back.
"Yeah, Dad, I will be." She smiled. "Though I don't understand some of the things you say or some of the things you do sometimes, you really do help me make a lot of sense of a lot of things." She chuckled. "Thanks again, Dad." She smiled.
"You're welcome, Heather." Ozzie replied happily. "I think." Ozzie chuckled, happy that he had done his job as a father well, but even happier knowing that she was going to be okay.
Holding her and comforting her, he thought about all that was coming to pass. In his mind, he could somewhat see what will happen, but he was cautious, still unsure how everything will play out. All he could do is watch, hoping that it will work out for the best for everyone.
"And so the final act begins. What has destiny prepared for us?"
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