-- 06 --
Brock was all over Reba during breakfast, and she couldn't brush him off because her mom was there. Her dad was looking at him with a disapproving glance, but that didn't stop him.
"Brock, son, I have to go to the town to pick up worm medicine for the cows, mind come and help me?" JV asked, but his tone was more demanding than asking. Reba smirked, yeah that served him right. She was just hoping that her daddy would just warn him to keep his hands off her, not actually harm the guy. Brock swallowed hard. When he was walking to JV's pickup truck, he turned around and looked at Reba as if to say good-bye, just in case he didn't make it back alive. "What in the heck do you think you are doing?" JV didn't waste his time. He fired the question.
"I uh... I still love her JV."
"I know you do. But you're married to someone else!" JV sighed and shook his head "Son, I never asked you this because what happened between you two, only you know. But I'm curious; did my daughter do something so terrible that you felt the need to leave her?"
"No JV, Reba was a wonderful wife, and she's a great mother to my children. I had a midlife crisis. I was wrapped up in my own world. I felt like I didn't accomplish anything. When I was weak, Reba had to step up and be strong. The stronger she became, the weaker I felt. It hurt me knowing that I can't be the one she could lean on. She didn't need me. She could live without me. Then Barbra Jean came along; she needed me. She made me feel strong again."
"Geeze, if I had known that, I'd have given you a cape for Christmas." JV quipped. "So you just want to be a hero. What if the woman across the street needs you? Are you gonna marry her too?"
"What do you mean?"
"You left the woman that loved you to the one that needed you. So many people could say they need you now, well of course, you are a dentist. But when you're done your job, they won't need you anymore. So are you moving on to search for someone else so you could feel like a hero again?" JV sighed, he usually was a man of few words, but today he felt like talking. "When people need you, it's because you have a purpose for them. But when someone loves you, you could be the most useless man in the world, but she still loves you anyway. They stop needing you when you're no longer useful to them, but she'll never stop loving you because it's not something that could easily come to an end."
"If I only knew that six years ago" Brock mumbled. JV glanced at him and continued his lecture.
"You know, Reba and Helene; like mother, like daughter. You think Helene and I are married for fifty odd years because she needs me? Nha, she could survive without me. She could fish, she could hunt, and she can do everything I can. I need her more than she needs me. I don't know which button to push when you put your dirty clothes in the machine to make it come out clean. I don't know how to cook. But all those I can hire someone to do. We stick around for these many years not because we need each other. It's because we want to." Brock pondered every word the old man said.
"Just because Reba didn't need you, didn't mean she didn't love you. You broke her heart when you walked away. I know my little girl. She only appears to be strong when people are looking. I could see it in her eyes, she never feel complete ever since you left. You took a piece of her soul with you when you walked away. And I'm not going to let you do that to her again. You are married to someone else, leave my daughter alone!"
"No JV, I signed the divorce papers before I came here."
"Why she ain't good enough for you no more?"
"No JV, I'm not good enough for either of them." Brock took the blame. JV glanced at him and sighed. "I know I really don't deserve Reba. But for my selfish reason, I'm asking for your blessing. I'm going to try and win her back."
"Son, I've known you for almost thirty years. I liked you the first time I met you, and I still like you now. If you could make my daughter's life complete again, you've got my blessing. I can only hope that you're not going to make my little carrot top cry again."
"I'm not going to make the same stupid mistake twice, I swear." Brock grinned, now that he got her father's blessing. He now had one less obstacle. Reba thought her dad would threaten Brock to keep away, but she was dazed when Brock came back from going in town with her dad, he became even more forward toward her.
"Daddy, what's going on?" Reba confronted her father.
"He asked for my blessing, and I gave him"
"Daddy! He's married to someone else!"
"He said he signed the divorce papers."
"The divorce isn't final, he's still legally married to Barbra Jean, and I'm not going to be the other woman to the other woman. That's just wrong, and weird!"
"Who's Barbra Jean?" The conversation was cut short by the presence of Helene.
"She's my friend mama."
"That name rang the bell, is she a friend from your high school?"
"No mama, she wasn't born then."
"Hmm... Sounds like someone I know." Helene was once again humming 'R-E-S-P-E-C-T' while walking away.
"Daddy, how could she not remember any of her grandchildren and seems to remember Barbra Jean?"
"How would I know, I'm not a doctor!" JV followed his wife, someone had to keep an eye on her.
"Honey."
"Don't you honey me!" Reba gritted through her teeth, now even her dad took his side.
"Sorry, sweetheart..."
"Brock!"
"Okay darling, I want to take you out to a movie."
"NO!"
"Dinner?"
"NO!"
"Mini putt?"
"NO! NO! NO!" Reba stomped off, leaving Brock standing there thinking. He followed her a short while later, oh good she was sitting with Helene.
"Hun... Darling." He wrapped his arms around her. Reba discreetly pinched him. Brock held in the pain. "I really want to take you to a movie." He said it loud enough to get Helene's attention.
"You're going to see a show?"
"No mama, I'm not going?"
"Helene, look at your daughter, and her moods swing. I want to take her to a movie so she could relax, but she won't go."
"Go, go! You're too tense, and that's not good for the baby."
"Oh for crying out loud! I'm not-"
"Reba, can you get me a pack of gum when you're out?" JV cut her off.
"Daddy!"
"Get me a carton of milk too." Helene demanded. Reba groaned in frustration walking out of the house while Brock was holding her hand. The moment she got in the car, she pounded his shoulder.
"Ouch! I just want to take you out to a movie."
"But I don't want to go!"
"Sure you do. You loved it when we went to see movies together. Sharing drinks, popcorn. And after the movie was over, we always went to an ice cream shop, and shared a sundae."
"See how cheap you are? We have to share everything."
"It's kinda romantic don't you think?"
"Romantic time is over. We'll have our own popcorn, and drinks. And no ice cream after the movie! We'll pick up a pack of gum for daddy, and we'll go home."
"What about a carton of milk for your mom?"
"We already have 2 cartons of milk at home. She sent Liza out and later she sent me out. I should have checked." Reba sighed.
"Your mom, she's doing fine Reba. It's your dad that we should worried about. But he seems to handle it well. I envy them, the way they love and look after each other, care for one another in their old age."
"How do you think I should feel? I'm growing old alone."
"I'll be with you."
"What about Barbra Jean?"
"She'll be growing old with someone that loves her. I'm letting her go. She's young and beautiful, she'll find someone."
"You're saying I'm old and ugly that's why I didn't find anyone?" Reba fumed up.
"Noooooo noo no no" Brock quickly denied her statement "You're as beautiful as you were 26 years ago hun... darling. I don't know, maybe you're waiting for me?"
"Pfft... Dream on!" Brock chuckled. He went and bought two tickets for the movie and a tub of popcorn and a drink. Reba went and got her own. By the time the movie was over, they still had plenty of popcorn and drink left.
"See I wasn't cheap, it's tasted better when we shared," commented Brock.
"Yeah yeah!" Reba didn't like when she was proven wrong.
"Ice cream?" Brock suggested with puppy dog's eyes.
"Fine!" Brock took her to the ice cream shop, and they ended up splitting a sundae while discussing about the movie. It looked like he manage to get one step closer to her. It's still a long road ahead, but he would take all the time and patience he had, making his way back to her, hoping she will eventually accept him with her open arms.