Wow, it's been a little while since a real chapter! I was experimenting with some different (for me) writing styles for this chapter though, coupled with the added stress and pressure from finals. I settled on the "flash" style (which is what I call it), where it sort of goes between characters and they all have their own story lines that all somehow interact with the big overall picture, kind of like on the tv shows where they go between characters with just music over. Because so much had happened in the last chapter, the first part of the chapter isn't really heavy with the dialog until later on. Lots of stuff coming out in this chapter! Yay!
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Zoe smiled up at Wade, the tiny brunette leaning up to brush her lips against his. "Morning."
"Good morning."
"I feel the heat wave finally broke." Wade chuckled.
"Didn't figure that out last night when I came in all wet from the rain, did you, Doc?" She laughed.
"Shut up, you... you jerk!" The two jumped up from bed and Wade chased her out of the house and into the lake.
Jack stared out the window where his cousin and Zoe were splashing in the lake together. He hate tried calling Rose at least a dozen times but she wouldn't answer. She wouldn't answer his texts either. He really hated himself and Magnolia right now. He had really been looking forward to wooing Rose and having a nice evening with her and instead... this happened.
He needed a way to fix it. He would fix this if it were the last thing he did.
Magnolia woke up feeling rather ill with herself. Unknown to her, her sister was feeling the same way. Both girls knew how much they had screwed up with the guys they liked, or in Lemon's case, loved.
Magnolia wasn't going to stress over it. She'd win Jack over... sooner or later. She'd have her way, even if it killed her.
Rose woke up and just laid in her bed. She had cried her eyes out. She had eaten containers of Ben & Jerry's ice cream. She'd watched Sex & the City reruns and laughed and cried and fell asleep. She'd woken to her phone ringing constantly with texts and missed calls, all from Jack.
Rose knew Jack probably wasn't to blame. It was all Magnolia. She wished that something awful would happen to her.
George woke up in the middle of a place he couldn't remember the name of. His head was pounding. He could remember being angry at Lemon. He could remember her telling him that she had cheated on him. She had cheated on him with Lavon. It hurt. It physically hurt.
He stood, exiting the room. "Hey, you're awake, I see," a woman with what sounded like a Georgia accent said with a smile.
"Do I know you?" She laughed.
"You did last night. I offered you a place to stay after you got so totally smashed you couldn't tell left from right." She smiled, sticking out her hand to him. "Eliza Carswell-Witt. How do you do, Mr. Tucker?"
George ran his hand through his hair, shaking her hand with the other one. "Not very well. Where am I?"
"Just north of Atlanta. I reckon you were trying to get a flight from the airport there, considering you were wavin' ticket around in your hand like you were when I found you and mutterin' 'bout being late."
His eyes widened, pulling out the ticket. A one way ticket to New York. Back to the city. Away from Lemon and Lavon. Far away from Lemon and Lavon. The ticket was for tomorrow afternoon and he was glad about that."
"So your husband or boyfriend or whoever you live with is alright with you bringing home random drunk guys?" Eliza laughed.
"I live with my two sisters. The one travels a lot though, you see, and so she don't mind when I bring home people. It's rare, but I knew you were a good guy. Had a feeling 'bout, y'know?"
He nodded and she smiled brightly at him, her blonde curls falling messily over her cheek. Most of it was up in a bun, or what looked like what was supposed to be a bun. She had hazel eyes and a sweet smile.
They walked down the stairs, him following her, into a kitchen. There was a second blonde girl there, much younger, probably about Magnolia's age. She was cooking an omelet, it seemed like, and pancakes beside it on a griddle on the counter. The whole kitchen smelt good, the scents filling the air. He could smell the bacon that sat behind the griddle on the counter, a large container of hash browns beside that, and several peaches behind the potatoes.
"You planning on feeding an army?" George asked them.
"Nah," the younger one said, "Just a few of our neighbors. Mr. Henderson don't get any home cooked meals othe'wise. Mrs. Scott lives all alone and her children only get up to see her on holidays. And across the street, Ms. Mae broke her hip and can't move around well in her kitchen. And then we take some over to the church folk and some to the homeless shelter."
"So you're feeding an amount of people just short of an army?" She shrugged, going back to putting ham on the omelet and chopping up scallions.
"Anythin' you'd like for breakfast, Mr. Tucker?" the girl asked.
"Anything you make," George told her. "Can I do anything to help?"
"You and 'Liza can take those on over to Mrs. Scott. She don't mind havin' visitors." George nodded, taking what the girl indicated.
"Tally likes to cook," Eliza told him on the way over to the older woman's house. "She wants to be a singer, but she likes to cook. I told her she should get a job at a bar that has live entertainment on weekends." George nodded.
"My friend, Wade, he's just opened a bar in Alabama. I know he'll have live entertainment sometimes." He flashed her a smile. "Maybe when she graduates, she could come work there."
Zoe walked into the Tuckers' house, placing the spare key back under its hiding place. George and Lemon hadn't been in George's office when she was supposed to drop off some rather disturbing results from Lemon's last set of blood work. She wouldn't have even thought to look for it, if Lemon hadn't mentioned stomachaches that she'd been having.
"Lemon? George? Anyone?"
"In here," she heard Lemon call, her voice muffed. She found the blonde leaning over the toilet, eyes shut in pain. "What's wrong?" the woman asked as she saw the brunette standing seriously in the doorway of the bathroom.
"Should I give you a few minutes to clean up?" Lemon nodded and Zoe left the bathroom.
Rose didn't feel good when she went out. There must have been something in the air today. She hadn't felt good since seeing Jack and Magnolia. There was an anxious, angry fluttering in her stomach that had refused to stop or let up.
Jack glanced over at Rose from across the square. He wanted to talk to her, but she was ignoring him for a reason. A very blonde reason. Sighing, he stood to try, just once, to get her to talk to him face to face. He saw her grasp her stomach before she collapsed on the steps of the gazebo where she had been sitting. He ran to her.
"Rose!" he called to her, shaking her arm gently before checking the side of her neck for a pulse. Closing his eyes and muttering a little prayer in relief, Jack pulled out his cell phone and dialed nine-one-one.
When Lemon came out of the bathroom, Zoe was in the living room on the phone, talking in hushed tones, almost like she was trying to soothe someone. She wasn't speaking in English, that much she was sure. She had overheard Wade and, she internally winced at the thought of her angry husband, George talking once about when Zoe had met his aunt and grandmother and how she had replied to them in German.
"Um... Zoe?" she asked softly, awkwardly. The brunette's head shot up.
She held up a finger and said her goodbyes to the person on the other end before she hung up the phone. "The test results came back and they're not good. It may be nothing and I'm just jumping to something. It's not like I'm a gastroenterologist or anything like that, but-"
"Zoe, what is it?" The blonde looked at her, eyes wide. "What's wrong with me?"
Zoe closed her eyes; looking like it caused her pain to think, not even say what was on her mind at the moment. "You have a stomach ulcer."
Lemon numbly walked over to the couch and sat down.
Wade looked up as Jack came running into the Rammer Jammer that was almost ready for the grand opening. Tonight, the thought made Wade smile. However, the panicked sight of his cousin made him frown.
"What's wrong?" Jack gasped for air, looking at Wade in a panic.
"I need... I need to get to the hospital in Mobile. Rose... she... she collapsed. Zoe's in a meeting, or else she would have, but can you drive me there?"
Wade placed his hands on his cousin's shoulders. "Sit down, relax for a moment. It's openin' night here, so I can't go, but maybe Lavon or George can. I'll call and see. Here," he said as he spotted Shelley, "Go help her fill the salt and pepper shakers and the ketchup bottles. It'll keep your mind busy."
Jack nodded, sitting down, relaxing for a moment.
George looked at Tally. "So what makes you do all this?" She shrugged.
"I just like to. Mama always used to do that, but then her and Daddy got into a car accident a few years ago, and so Audri would take care of us, but then 'Liza was old enough to take care of us and Audri started working, then 'Liza did too, but she stays and Audri sends home the money." She smiled back at the man. "It's been a long time since we've had a man around. It's nice."
"I really don't want to impose or anything." Tally rolled her eyes.
"You're not, Mr. Tucker."
"George," he corrected her.
"George," she repeated softly. "'Liza won't say, but she likes having you around." Uncertainly, he reached down, twisting his wedding ring on his finger. Deciding, he pulled it off, tucking it in his pocket. If Lemon could cheat on him, he could not wear his ring for a while. She was probably already seeking comfort in Lavon's arms anyways.
145 reviews to next chapter!
I know you guys are reading, so come on and just let me know what you think. It's kind of hard to know if you guys like it or not if you don't review and honestly, it really doesn't feel like anyone's reading anymore because no one's, other than you select few who have reviewed on like every chapter.
So anyone catch the connection between my OCs? All of my OCs? Not just Jack who's taken a main role in this. LOL