Chapter 27
Paul had gone back to his apartment later that evening to rest up himself after Sandy had ordered dinner for the three of them. After she had cleaned up, she joined Tyler in the living room, where he had been finishing up his homework.
"Feeling a little better since your nap, Mom?" he asked.
"Come to think of it, I am, at least for now, but I didn't want to go too long or I won't sleep tonight," she replied.
"You should really take it easy once in awhile," Tyler said. "You work too hard with your job and the wedding stuff. Of course, I haven't been much help," he added, gesturing at his leg, "but that's what I get for being an asshole. Not exactly a barrel of laughs having Janice help me on and off the bus every day."
"Well, you won't have to worry about that tomorrow; I have a doctor's appointment, so I can drop you off at school on the way there."
"Doctor appointment?" Tyler asked with a touch of concern. "Something wrong?"
"Just a routine check up, honey; it's no big deal. I have one every year."
"Oh….okay. I was just wondering, especially since you were barfing last week."
"That was just a bug, Tyler. I've been fine since."
"Speaking of doctor appointments, you see Paul's foot? That thing is nasty. I can't believe he actually worked like that."
"Me neither, but I'm a nag if I keep on him about it. Still, he needs to get his act together and focus on getting healed properly. I know there are fans that love him and are demanding to see him again, but what Paul doesn't realize that those same faithful fans can still easily lose him permanently if he doesn't take care of himself."
"I can't argue with that," Tyler agreed
"I also think that he doesn't realize that outside of his family and longtime friends that there are other people that truly care about him, which is one reason I want to marry him. I never thought about remarrying after your dad died until now. Now if I can get him think with that organ between his ears, I may accomplish something. He just needs to do the right thing for his health and stop bowing down to the pressures his job throws at him. I'd like to think he has more sense than that….at least I hope so."
"Me too, Mom. But remember, you got to take care of you too. You worry about other people too much."
"Oh, don't you start, young man!" Sandy scolded him teasingly. "And remember, you have the orthopedist on Friday after school."
"Yeah, got it in my planner with my schoolwork and stuff. Hey, you think he might see Paul too?"
"I'm sure Paul has his own people, honey, but thanks for the thought."
"I hope I'm healed up by the time you guys get married," Tyler said. "Did you even set a date yet?"
"Not yet, but I'm nudging your stepfather to be as much as I can. Your grandmother's been asking too."
"So what's the problem? He's not dragging his ass on that, is he?"
"I don't think so. I think Paul's looking to see when the best time to take off would be."
"Well, duh, there's no time like the present."
"Tyler! Do you have any idea how much rushing we'd have to do if we wanted to do it now?"
"Still, he's going to be off for awhile anyway. And you guys said it wasn't going to be anything big and fancy. What's the problem?"
"You've been discussing this with him, haven't you?" Sandy asked, giving her son a suspicious look.
"A little. But it's worth thinking about."
"Right. In the meantime, I need both of you to be 100 percent and for me to get my blood test and checkup so I can be ship shape myself."
"Don't worry," Tyler grinned. "Unlike we gimps, you'll pass with flying colors."