Chapter 31—
A/N: I know that many of you are not sure where this story is going, and no I do not have any intentions of finishing it any time soon. However, I need to start bringing some of the other Army Wives back into this story… i.e. Roland. So please do not get upset at this chapter! I do have plans for this story, but it is going to take a couple of chapters to get this story line out. Please review and make comments.
As Stephanie and Jeremy walked through the door, Denise greeted them.
"I thought you two would never get here! What took you two so long?" Denise was curious as to what took Jeremy and Stephanie so long to get back to the house. Denise had the understanding that they were friends, but she thought that their friendship might blossom into something special. However, Denise realized that this was the wrong time in Jeremy's life to develop a serious relationship with anyone.
"Well… someone was having a mid-life crisis here…" Stephanie said jabbing Jeremy with her elbow into his rib.
"STEPHANIE!" Jeremy said, hoping that she would not tell his mother what their conversation had been about. He did not want to have to explain what he was thinking or feeling to his mother; as h did not think that she would understand.
"I am just kidding… Jeremy and I started talking about… my Dad, and we lost track of time… sorry." Stephanie said trying to avoid talking about Jeremy's feelings. She realized that after she said that, it was the wrong thing to say. Stephanie had agreed when she first met Jeremy that almost anything that was said between the two of them would be confidential, but that was before they had become friends.
"Ok… So how is your Dad doing?" Denise asked, getting the point that she needed to change the subject. She was sure that Stephanie would tell her later what the conversation between her and Jeremy was really about.
"When I talked to Dad last night, he said that the divorce was finalized, and he was officially a bachelor, again… but he was not sure what that meant. He had mentioned that Mom was doing well. Which at this point in time, I really do not care about Mom. Dad did not give any details as to how they separated the assets. He is talking about taking a vacation, and he asked me to go with him. He said that he wants to go on a cruise, and maybe take Sarah, Alan and me with him." Stephanie said with some excitement, as it had been awhile since she had been on a real vacation.
"That sounds like fun… did he say where he wanted to go?" Denise was happy for Stephanie as it would do her some good to have some time with her father.
"I do not know… it is just something that he is talking about." Stephanie said. She looked around, and she wondered where Jeremy had gone.
"Where's Jeremy?" Stephanie continued.
"I think he went upstairs. Sometimes, especially, lately he likes to spend some time alone. I have been trying to give him some space, as I get the feeling that he is a little overwhelmed." Denise said not being concerned that Jeremy had retreated to his room.
"Yeah… I think you are right! So what are we having for dinner?" Stephanie said trying not to divulge too much of Jeremy's and her conversation.
"Well… I did not think that Jeremy really wanted to cook… and I did not think that you would like macaroni and cheese, as that is Jeremy's specialty. I ordered Chinese, from Pong's Garden." Denise said.
"That sounds very good… thanks for inviting me over this evening… I think that I needed a break from studying." Stephanie sighed.
"You are welcome… you know that you are always welcomed here, you do not have to have an invitation." Denise said. She liked having Stephanie around; as much as she loved Frank and Jeremy, sometimes that much testosterone mixed with Army was a bit much, even for a lifetime Army Wife.
"Thank you. I will remember that." Stephanie said.
Jeremy was up in his room. He was attempting to read a book in Braille, but he was not comprehending it,,, his mind was somewhere else. He sat at his desk, and wondered what life would be like if he was not here. Everyone thought he was doing fine, his mood was stable, and his knee was getting better (perhaps not as fast as he would like.). He could deal with his knee being a problem, he could deal with the headaches he had been having, but he hated not being able to see anything. He hated that he had to use the cane to get around, he hated having to count steps when he was going somewhere, he hated the fact that someone had to guide him, and he hated that everything had to be put in the same place every time. Finally, he hated that no one seemed to understand him, with the possible exception of Stephanie. She understood what it was like to lose the ability to do something… but she could at least function, he did not feel like he was functioning. He had dreams of going to college, but what would he do? He was struggling with uncertainty, and he was very depressed. He had tried to confide in Stephanie, but he could not articulate the depression he was feeling. He felt very alone, especially with his father gone. Frank had only been gone a few hours, but Jeremy missed his Dad. It had taken a great deal of effort for both Jeremy and Frank; but Frank had turned into more than a Dad, but a fellow soldier.
Jeremy could talk to his Dad about anything, especially what he saw in Iraq. Jeremy had never expected to be witness to the destruction and the fear that he experienced. He could not to anyone but his Dad about it. His mom would not understand; and Stephanie had her own emotional wounds from her experiences in Afghanistan. She rarely spoke of her tour, and when she did it was more about the wounded soldiers, or even her own injury. Also, Stephanie had been a medic of sorts, so she was part of the clean up team of the battles on the ground. Granted her injuries had been caused by ground fire, but that too was different in Jeremy's mind.
Jeremy heard the doorbell ring, and he assumed it was the take out guy. Jeremy was not sure as to where is Mom had ordered from, but he was confident that it was not pizza. He heard Denise yell upstairs to Jeremy that dinner was there. He replied that he would be down in a minute. He took a deep breath, and tried to put a smile on his face, as that is what he thought Stephanie and Denise wanted to see: A happy Jeremy.
He slowly walked down the steps, and walked into the kitchen, where he smelled Chinese food. He and his Dad were not big fans of Chinese food, but they could always find something to eat.
"Smells like Chinese." Jeremy said.
"It is… it looks like we have a bit of everything: Moo Shoo Pork, Fried Rice, Egg Rolls, Mongolian Beef, Egg Foo Young and something else…I am not sure as to what it is." Stephanie said.
"Well… that is Beef and Mushrooms." Denise replied.
Stephanie took a plate and filled it with a little of every entrée. Jeremy just sat there thinking: I hate this, I do not even like most of this stuff and I cannot even see what I am eating. As all of these thoughts were going through his head the phone rang. Denise answered it,
"Hello, Sherwood residence." Denise answered.
"Claudia Joy, how are you?" Denise had not spoken to Claudia Joy in a couple of days.
"Oh… tonight… I do not know, as Stephanie and Jeremy are here… and we were planning on having dinner, and movie… oh, um… let me see what I can do" Denise said. Neither Jeremy nor Stephanie could figure out what Denise was talking about.
"Ok, I will talk to you later." Denise said hanging up the phone.
"Mom, what was that all about?" Jeremy asked curiously.
"That was Claudia Joy, asking if I would meet her, Roxy, Pamela, and Roland at the Hump Bar this evening." Denise said calmly.
"Why don't you go? Actually you and Stephanie can go!" Jeremy suggested.
"I do not know… I was going to help Stephanie study for the exams, and I do not really want to leave you alone." Denise said, seeing Jeremy's demeanor change and not for the good either.
"Denise, you should go… have fun. Jeremy and I can stay here and entertain ourselves." Stephanie said trying to smooth over the eruption that could happen in just a few seconds. Then all of a sudden Jeremy took a deep breath and said:
"Look, I do not need a babysitter. I am more than capable to take care of myself, please both of you go, and have a good time. Besides, I really do not feel like being a party to a night of chick flicks. So please go… I can take care of myself." Jeremy said really wanting to get rid of Stephanie and his mother for the evening.
"I would feel better if you came with us." Stephanie said.
"Besides there are other nights that we can go out." Denise replied.
"Stephanie, I am not 21, and I have some reading that I would like to do. Besides I have both of your cell phone numbers if I need anything… PLEASE GO!" Jeremy was serious. He really wanted some time to himself.
"If you are sure… that you are going to be ok without us…" Stephanie and Denise said in unison.
"YES… GO!!" Jeremy was insistent.
"If you are sure." Stephanie reiterated.
"YES… GO HAVE A GOOD TIME." Jeremy could not wait to get rid of both of them for a few hours. It had not been alone in the house at all since he had been home from the hospital. He needed some time to execute his plan, and he did not want anyone to be around when he did it.
The girls finished dinner and left to go to the Hump Bar. Jeremy went upstairs to his room. He opened his top desk drawer, and in the back corner was a bottle of pills. They were muscle relaxants that Dr. Bartley had prescribed for his knee. There were about twenty pills in the bottle, he dumped the pills on his desk and counted them.