Sometime Soon - By Debra Doxer Page 0,29
row. I picture him alone by the window, in the dark, his sad green eyes watching and waiting for me to come home. Although, he is most likely sleeping, dreaming of those black-capped chickadees he likes to meow at through the window, not even realizing that I’m not at home.
I’m looking forward to spending the evening with Laura and Jonathan. That is, if Jonathan is able to extricate himself from the office. With the wedding plans occupying so much of her time, I feel like I’ve hardly spoken to Laura lately. We’ve always been close, and we are very much alike. Besides frustrating hair, we both have similar temperaments and views on life. Once Laura met Jonathan though, she went MIA for a time, which disappointed me, but I try not to begrudge her that time. They had a whirlwind romance, completely caught up in each other during that first year. I knew that Jonathan was different right away. Laura had lots of boyfriends in high school and college, but she had never gotten swept away the way she did when she met Jonathan. My parents and I like him very much. Most importantly, he really appears to love Laura.
When Laura began dating Jonathan and got engaged to him a year later, I was surprised at how it made me feel. I figured Laura would always have the same dismal relationship luck we’d both had up until that point. I even pictured us growing old together, two spinster sisters making our way through life together. Besides, as the older sister, I’ve always done everything first, but not this time. Her ability to fall into a healthy, loving relationship both impresses and astounds me, as though there is some secret to it that everyone but me has discovered. I’m afraid I haven’t a hope of gaining membership into this club.
Laura opens the door dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, but with her lawyerly makeup, hair, and jewelry all still neatly in place. I’m dressed much the same. I follow her through the living room and into the small dining room which holds a round wooden table for four. One character trait that I possess and she does not is compulsive neatness. Laura isn’t much bothered by dust and clutter. She moves some piles of paper from the table to the floor and then sits down.
Laura and Jonathan have a two bedroom apartment in the town next to mine. Jonathan commutes to his law firm in Boston every day, and Laura drives south to her law office. Their apartment is situated exactly in the middle of both their workplaces. They plan to begin house hunting after the wedding.
“I sent Jonathan out for pizza. Hope that’s okay,” Laura tells me. She looks tired. I now feel badly for intruding, and I say as much.
She smiles wistfully. “Don’t be silly. I’m glad you came. We never get to talk anymore.”
“Are you and Mom okay?”
Laura nods. “We’re fine. I’m tabling my opinions and just agreeing with hers. It’s giving me insomnia and an ulcer, but Mom and I are great friends now.”
I chuckle at her. “It’s a Pyrrhic victory then.”
“Yeah. I guess so.” Laura reaches up and pulls a clip out of her hair. Her dark locks tumble down, and the stretched curls rest stiffly on her shoulders. “But tell me what’s going on with you. Any more news on the buyout?”
The family grapevine has gotten the news to Laura. I called my mother the day we got the word. In her usual fashion, her reaction was extreme. Worrying about my being laid off, she advised me to cut back on all my expenses and to begin looking for another job. In fact, she has already begun researching the want ads and leaving me messages about them. Through her friends, she has compiled a list of contacts that I am now supposed to call. I completely understand Laura’s ulcer.
“No more news there. But there is news on other fronts,” I reply.
“What news is that?”
I shake my head. “I’d rather wait for Jonathan. That way I don’t have to repeat it when he gets here, and I can get a guy’s perspective on things.”
“So, it’s dating news?”
“Yes and no.” Reasonable and considerate with a dry sense of humor, Jonathan is a good sounding board when it comes to guys and the strange ways in which they behave.
“Well, he should be back any minute. How about a drink?”
I follow Laura into the kitchen, watching as she withdraws