There are many different types of people in this world but when you ask a child they are apt to break them up into two different categories; good people and bad people. There are good people who look for the good things in life, are kind, and are always willing to lend a helping hand. Then there are bad people who spend their lives hurting those around them and are on a lifelong search for self gratification. How you ask, do you determine between the two? You subconsciously jump into a friendship head first and hope for the best. As Evelyn Scavo prepared to close her parent's pizzeria she didn't notice the last guest that lingered outside of the door. Little did she know this person would change her life forever.
Setting down the last two plates of manicotti, Evelyn immediately felt relieved. Between the fight with Tom and dealing with the kids all morning, she was emotionally drained and ready to collapse. She began cleaning the marble counter in front of her when she looked up to find someone entering the restaurant.
John Hathaway walked in feeling tired and worn down. His band had been on the road for six months and it had taken its toll on him. When the band's drummer got a phone call that his ex wife and daughter had been in a car accident they were on the first highway to Fairview. He had been sitting in his small hotel room for the last eight hours and all he wanted now was a cup of coffee. When he walked into Scavo's pizzeria he didn't notice the art work on the walls, the game room in the back, or the two people that we sitting close to the door, he first noticed the tall thin redhead that stood behind the counter.
When Evelyn first saw him walk in she merely glanced up and smiled and continued to work. It wasn't until he sat down at the bar that she got a good look at him. He was slightly taller than she was and came in wearing tight jeans and a grey t-shirt. He wore leather bracelets on his right arm and she smiled thinking he was a little too old for the Bon Jovi look. He had short brown hair and his blue eyes looked up at hers with a slight hint of desperation. "How are you?" she asked smiling slightly uncomfortable from his focus on her.
" I am good thanks how are you?"
She slightly fidgeted with the cloth she had in her hand. "I am fine thanks. Can I get you something to drink?"
"Just some coffee would be good".
Evelyn looked at him suspiciously. "Are you sure you aren't hungry?"
John laughed and smiled up at her. "I am sure" he said as he folded his arms in front of him.
"Because you look like a hungry guy, we have spaghetti; the special today is a margharita pizza". She leaned over the counter closer to him. "You honestly can't say you walked into this fine establishment and are not the least bit hungry". John looked at her for a minute; she looked tired as if life had taken the same toll on her as it had on him. He long red hair was flipped back into a clip but her green eyes radiated an energy he couldn't quite put his finger on. "
Okay you convinced me the pizza sounds good". Evelyn smiled.
"Sorry I just turned off the oven". They both turned to find Andrew standing behind him with a sly smirk on his face.
Evelyn turned back towards John, "I'm sorry".
"It's okay" he nodded to Andrew.
"No don't worry I will find you something to eat, hold on". Evelyn walked back in the back and Andrew followed.
"Some body has a crush" Andrew said the minute the door closed behind him.
"I most certainly do not, I don't even know the guy" she said as she leaned over the serving counter. "What do we have left back there?"
A tall robust man shouted from the back, "I got enough pasta to make a plate of Cannelloni".
"Sounds good, throw it together and you all are finished". As the cooks behind the counter made the last plate of the night Evelyn turned back towards Andrew who was quick to continue his rant.
"You were flirting. I know you. You were smiling, you offered him food, and you did that little thing where you lean over the counter".
"Andrew you have lost your mind? He could be a serial killer for all we know". A plate appeared on the counter behind her. "Thanks guys, shut it down" She turned towards him and walked back out. She wasn't sure what had come over her. Why was she being so nice to this guy? She never was one to flirt, but she couldn't help it. As she set the plate down in front of him she noticed just how good looking he was. "That's all we had left in the kitchen".
John picked up a fork. "Is it safe to eat?"
"Its fine I promise" she said laughing. "So what brings you to Fairview?"
He took a bite out of Canolli and gently set his fork at the top of his plate. "My friend's wife and daughter got into a car accident so we drove out here from Houston".
Evelyn's demeanor quickly changed. "I am sorry"
"No its okay."
"Well, it was nice of you to come all the way out here with him".
John wiped his face and leaned back in his chair. "We are all in a band together, so it's a "where one goes the others follow" kind of thing"
"What kind of music?" Evelyn said as she looked at him coyly
"Rock mostly, and I can tell by look on your face that you think we are a bunch of old men having a mid-life crisis but it's not like that".
"I didn't say a word" Evelyn said as she took another sip of wine. "I think that's neat you guys all travel together, life gets boring if you let things get to normal and stale, you know?" She looked up at him with a hint of sadness and he wanted know why she seemed so disconnected.
They talked a while about their taste in film and music until John finished. "Well I better get the restaurant closed before my parent's wonder where I am at."
"Oh of course" John jumped up from his chair and pulled out his wallet.
"No, no, no, it's on me, it was the only thing left" John smiled and folded his wallet back in his jeans.
"Okay, thank you…." Evelyn quickly put her glass down and wiped her hands on her apron.
"Evelyn" she said offering him her hand.
"John" he said as he took it.
"It was nice meeting you John"
"You too, and thank you for dinner".
"No problem, if you get hungry while you are in town, you know where we are". He slowly walked towards the door and took one last glance at her before walking out.
As Evelyn scrubbed the floor and cleaned the glasses she couldn't help think about the man she just met. She really wasn't one to flirt, in fact she hadn't dated in a very long time but something about John kind of hung with her. Once she was done she took her apron off and grabbed her purse. "You ready?" Andrew asked as he pushed a chair into place.
"Yeah" Andrew held the door open for and they both walked out. As they locked the door and walked up the stairs they found John leaning against a lamp post.
Evelyn stepped back thrown off by his presence outside of the restaurant. Andrew protectively put his arm out in front of her and stepped forward. "I didn't mean to scare you; I just wanted to see if you wanted to go for a walk" John asked with his hands in his pockets.
Evelyn smiled. "At 11:30 at night you want to go for a walk?" Andrew asked.
There was a moment of awkward silence and finally Evelyn spoke up.
"It really is kind of late I better be getting home". John halfheartedly smiled and nodded and turned around to walk off. Andrew and Evelyn looked at each other and Andrew turned around but as if a sudden ball of energy had hit she suddenly turned around and before she could think the words escaped her mouth, "Actually some fresh air might do me some good".Andrew looked at her surprised and John even more so. "Let me go get my coat out of my car".
Evelyn grabbed her jacket out of the car and put her cell phone in her pocket. "How do you know this guy the next Charles Manson?" Andrew said as she closed her car door and turned around to face him.
"Because he isn't you worry wart. If you don't hear from me in half an hour give me a call okay? It's just a walk" She leaned forward, kissed Andrew on the cheek, and walked up to John, heading towards the hardware store up the road. After a small silent moment Evelyn kicked off the conversation. "So where does your family live?" Evelyn said turning towards him and walking backwards.
"Well my mom passed away when I was younger".
Evelyn turned back around and stopped on the street. "I am so sorry" John smiled at her and continued to walk.
"It's okay it was a long time ago and I am not sure where my dad is, he left before my mom died".
"What a horrible thing to grow up with no parents" she said as she stuck her hands tight in her jacket pockets.
"How about you?" he asked.
"Well my dad left after I was born, I saw him once when I was about four but that's it, he sends me a birthday card every year though."
"You have never wanted to see him at all?"
" Well my mom hates him for one, I mean you ask her anything about him and she just freezes up, she never wants to talk about it and when he sends me a birthday card he never puts a return address on it so I just figured he doesn't want to see me you know? At least he cares enough to send the card, there are kids out there that get a lot less".
"What about your mom?" John asked as they turned the street corner.
"I live with my mom and my step-dad now; they got married when I was eight. He is the one that owns the pizzeria. He has a daughter from a woman he met before my mom and they have four kids together…I am sorry I am sure you didn't want the lengthened version."
"No, I love to hear about big families".
" Well mine is nuts" John laughed as she got more and more enthusiastic telling him all about the antics her and her brothers had gotten into and how her step dad had been the only father she had ever known.
"My mom and I used to be really close but she got really sick and things have kind of fallen apart".
They continued walking for another couple of blocks in silence until John stopped. "This is where I am staying" Evelyn looked up and recognized the small hotel. She had been there once before while the house was being renovated.
Her attention though was quickly shifted to a large bus that sat out front. "Is that your bus?" she couldn't help but laugh as she said it.
"Yeah that's it, it's no 5 star hotel but it works, you want to see it?"
"Sure" she replied as they walked up and he unlatched the door. "Is the rest of your band in here?"
"No" he replied. "Tom is probably at the hospital and the rest of the guys are in the room I am sure". He opened the door and she climbed the stairs into a good sized living room which also appeared to be a makeshift bedroom. "Well this is the living room, and back here we have the kitchen". They walked past the tiny kitchen with a table, and into a hall with two bunks on each side. "All the guys sleep here and in the living room and my room is back here" John opened the door to reveal a small room with a full sized bed off to the side, a television on the wall, and a night stand and a small chair off to the right.
"Well how come they gave you the biggest room?" Evelyn asked nudging him in the side.
"Because I paid for the bus"
"Well that sounds like a pretty good reason". She looked around noticing how clean everything looked. When he said he was in a band full of thirty year old men she never imagined the bus would be the cleanest place but she was genuinely surprised.
"Do you want a cup of coffee?" John asked and flashed her that smile that got her in this whole mess to begin with.
"Sure" and John left her to go start the coffee pot. What the heck was she doing? She didn't know this guy, he could kidnap her and take her to Utah for all she knew but there was something warm and inviting that told her he wasn't the type and she instantly felt comfortable with him. The silence was broken by ringing of her cell phone. "Hello?"
"Evelyn, where are you?"
"He didn't kidnap me if that's what you're asking Andrew". She pulled her jacket off and threw it over the chair; John listened to her conversation from the other room. "No I am fine, I am just going to have a cup of coffee and head home. Don't worry. Okay I will see you tomorrow, Bye". Upon hanging up the phone John walked in and handed her a cup. "Thank you" she said and she took a sip.
John walked over and sat on the bed backing himself up against the wall as if he was settling in for a long conversation. "So tell me about your mom". He could hear the sadness in her voice earlier and didn't want to push her but wanted to know what happened. "When people get sick isn't that supposed to bring family together?"
Evelyn set her coffee down as if she was contemplating her answer. "I suppose, I don't know what happened" she shifted in her chair. "I mean we were so close, I guess things really started changing long before she got sick, back when the twins were born, I mean don't get me wrong I love those kids more than life, it's just the transition you know? I wasn't her baby anymore. Then when the cancer hit, even though I wasn't even the one that got sick it felt like a part of me died. Isn't that a selfish thing to say?" John moved to the edge of the bed and looked at her.
"That's not selfish, she is your mother, it's only natural that it would have affected you the way that it did".
She picked her cup of coffee up and took a sip. "I haven't spoken to her in a week, a whole week. I mean we have said good morning and goodnight and that's about it. I don't know what's the matter with me, I mean I should be there for her now more than ever I know I should" she let a tear fall as she turned away and rubbed her forehead with her forefingers. "I am sorry I really should go" Evelyn got up and as she went to walk out the door she felt John's hand grab hers.
"No, stay it's okay I am sorry I never should have pushed you, I am sorry". John finally got her back through the door and she took a deep breath.
"I don't mean to be so emotional, it must have been that glass of wine I drank, when I get the tiniest bit of alcohol in my system I get expressive and tend to talk in circles and"…before she could get another word out John placed one hand on her face and the other in the small of her back and kissed her.
Evelyn tried to ignore her phone the first time it rang by putting the pillow over her head. John wrapped his arm around her waist pulling her closer. The second time it rang she reached out from under the covers and scoured the bed side table without even looking. Finding her phone she flipped the blanket back and picked it up. "Hello" she said wearily rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
"Evelyn where have been?" She sat up and looked at the bedside clock. "Jo, its seven thirty".
"Who cares have you seen the paper this morning?"
"No, again its seven thirty in the morning". John kissed her on the shoulder before getting up and heading for the bathroom.
"You had better find one, the review for Ricks restaurant is in the taste section". Without even thinking Evelyn jumped out of bed, throwing on John's jacket as she ran out the door. The concrete was freezing on her bare feet but it didn't stop her as she ran down the bus stairs and towards the office. She stopped at a newspaper vendor and frantically searched the pockets of the jacket for some change. She shoved two quarters in and pulled out the paper pulling out sections and dropping them on the ground. She opened the paper to find the review on the very front page of the taste section, with four and a half stars printed right next to Rick's restaurant logo. "Damn It" she screamed, when she looked up to see an old woman and a young child staring at her. "I'm sorry" they didn't budge and she looked down realizing the jacket had fallen open. Out of all the places for her to be at that very moment she was standing in front of the local hotel in the fall weather, in front of an old woman and a young girl in nothing but her under garments. She didn't say another word, she quickly wrapped the jacket around her and ran back to the room as fast as humanly possible. Nearly busting open the door, she quickly shut it behind her.
"Hold on she is back" John said as he handed her the phone. She snatched it out of his hand without even looking up".
"Who the heck was that? And did you read it?" Jo's voice echo'd from the other end of the line. Sitting down on the bed, the words on the page made her stomach churn. "Rick's proves to be a little piece of Italy right here in the small town of Fairview. With the statue of David standing proud, and the Italian art adorning the walls…"
"No keep going down". She felt John's hand on her back. "But more notable than the decorations or the food was the wait staff that made the restaurant come to life… oh shit"
"Oh it gets worse keep on going"
"I was waited on by a young red head with a knowledge of food wine more extensive than my own, with her suggestion I obtained the perfect dish with the perfect glass of wine which concluded the perfect meal at Ricks". As she set the paper down on the bed an impending feeling of dread fell over her. "I'll call you back in a minute".
"What's going on Evelyn?" John asked as she looked up at him with tear filled eyes. "I screwed up big time, my step dad is going to murder me" John got up and walked around the bed kneeling down and laying his arms in her lap.
"Whatever happened he is not going to kill you".
"Yes he is, once he reads the paper…" Then like flicking on a light bulb an idea suddenly hit her. "Its almost eight. If I get there and grab the paper before it comes he won't find out" Evelyn immediately threw on her jeans, grabbed her things and ran out the door.
Before John could blink she was gone and he jumped up to run after her. "Evelyn! Wait! Am I going to be able to see you again".
Evelyn stopped in her tracks and turned around realizing she almost left without saying goodbye. She ran back towards him and quickly kissed him before turning back around. "Wisteria Lane!" she yelled as she ran back down the road.
A confused look came over his face. "What?"
"Wisteria Lane! If you want to see me that's where I'll be" and he smiled as he watched her turn the street corner.
Driving home she couldn't help but think about what she had just done. She wasn't the type of girl to sleep around at all, in fact her past sexual history had been somewhat non existent for some time. But when John kissed her it was like every muscle in her body collapsed and one thing lead to another. She just kept telling herself that he caught her at a weak point and that was it. She wasn't like those other girls her age in Fairveiw who saw sex and dating as a fox hunt.
When she pulled up to her house it was dark on the inside, the kids were still asleep and it appeared that Tom and her mother were as well. She stepped out of the car and searched around the yard for a newspaper but couldn't find one. She focused her attention on the other yards on Wisteria Lane and didn't see a sign of a paper there either. Maybe it hadn't come yet she thought to herself. So all she could do was waiting.
She walked up to the house and unlocked the door slowly pushing it open and softly closing it behind her, she walked over and started the coffee pot as she had each morning. She quietly climbed the stairs, jumping in the shower and throwing some jeans on as she made her way back down. Turning the corner she nearly tripped upon finding Tom sitting at the kitchen table with the newspaper curled up and set off to the side. She immediately froze, she didn't know whether to sit down or follow her gut and bolt out the front door. His arms were crossed and his lips were pursed with a strong five o'clock shadow still lingering on his face. Evelyn as scared as she was decided to make the first move, "Listen Tom…I can explain." She moved closer towards the table and backed herself up against the kitchen sink. " It didn't start out as some deviant plot to go behind your back, Jo and I really wanted to go see the competition. We just walked in and grabbed a table and that's when Rick came as offered us money to help him. It was a total lapse in judgment and I am really really sorry."
Tom fidgeted with the paper some more and unfolded his arms and set them on the table. He wasn't saying anything and it made Evelyn extremely nervous. "I should be the one apologizing" Tom said as he looked up at her. She was almost in shock from the words the escaped his mouth. She could not believe it. She never thought she would live to see the day when Tom admitted he was wrong. " I never should have gotten that upset at you knowing you didn't fully understand what was going on". Evelyn moved towards the table, pulling out a chair and sitting down. "I mean I know you saw what was going on between your mom and Rick but I don't think you realized how much it hurt me. I was an idiot, I threw my back out and couldn't run the business that I had started and I took all of that anger out on her". He ran his fingers down his chin as he spoke. "I pushed her so far away instead of trying to talk it out like I should have. I blame myself for what happened but it doesn't mean I hate Rick any less. He already stole one of my girls, I didn't want him to get a hold the other one". At that moment Tom looked into the eyes of his daughter, not his step daughter…his daughter like she had been from the day he and Lynette married.
Evelyn laid her hand on the top of his arm. " I am sorry Tom, I should have known what I was doing, I just thought we were earning a quick buck I never thought about how much it was going to hurt you." Tom sat back up in his chair and relaxed his posture just a bit.
"So what about the review?" Evelyn asked. Tom smiled and balled up the paper and threw it in the trash can.
"What review?" Sitting at the top of the stairs still in her pajamas Lynette listened to the rest of their conversation. As they talked about the two of them taking the boys finishing she couldn't figure out what she was doing wrong. Evelyn could confide in Bree and be honest with Tom what was the matter with her?
People…good or bad are all around us. They bribe us to go up against our families, watch out for us even when we don't watch out for ourselves and reassure of us of our place in their lives. We try so hard to surround ourselves with good people but what happens when those bad people we have tried so hard to keep away…suddenly return.