Same Old Truths (2 page)

So now it was “not gonna happen” for Dave. Kay had tried to persuade Cory to change her mind, if only to keep Mariah, her younger daughter, from having to go to her dad’s by herself. Cory would not be moved.

As if he was reading her mind, Dave quickly changed the subject. “How is Mariah doing with you-know-what?” he asked, pointing downward to his butt.

You’ve got to be kidding.

Kay wanted to lean in close to him and say in her best kindergarten teacher voice, “Come on, Dave. Use your words.”

In this case the word was encopresis. That was the official medical term for “pooping in your pants.” The pediatrician told Kay it was an involuntary reaction to stress and she saw it quite commonly in children of divorced parents. Of course, when Kay tried to explain this to Dave, his angry response was,“That doctor’s only telling you what you want to hear.”

“Interestingly enough, she hasn’t had a single episode since she got back from her summer visit with you,” Kay responded, trying to keep the smugness out of her voice.

“It doesn’t happen at school?” Dave asked.

“Not so far,” Kay happily reported.

“She doesn’t have problems when she’s here at home?” Dave said, his voice getting louder.

“My laundry indicates she doesn’t.” Kay was beginning to feel a little defensive.

“So she can control it when she wants to,” he said. He sounded like a prosecuting attorney.

“Dave, if you’re implying she does it on purpose, you’re dead wrong. Why would she purposely humiliate herself?”

“I don’t know. I just find it interesting that the only time it seems to happen is when she’s with me.”

Wow, Sherlock
.
You find it interesting too
?

To avoid the heated confrontation threatening to erupt, Kay thought she’d better wind things up.

“Well, the good news is the doctor says it’s likely she’ll outgrow it. As for Cory, I wouldn’t worry. She’ll come around. You know her. She can’t stand being left out.”

Dave took the hint and took one last sip of coffee before getting up and making his way toward the door. “I hope you’re right,” he said. “I’m going to give her a call. I think I can change her mind.”

Knock yourself out.
Kay knew it was going to be a wasted effort.

“If it’s ok with you, I’ll pick them up Friday evening, right after I get off work. Is Sunday at noon an ok time to bring them back?”

“Sure,” Kay said, resisting an urge to put her foot on his ass and launch him out the door. “I know the girls are happy to have you home,” Kay lied.

Kay stood in the doorway and watched as he made his way back to his truck. He stopped unexpectedly and turned back to Kay with a concerned expression on his face. “Do you have someone to help you with the yard?”

Kay leaned slightly forward. “No. Not really.”

“Bummer,” he said. And with that he turned and went on his way. “I’ll call you next week with the arrangements for the child support,” he called over his shoulder.

Kay shut the door and let out a long, exasperated sigh. She realized moving forward might prove to be more difficult than she’d first thought. But she wasn’t about to let those nagging doubts creep back in. All she needed was a big piece of banana bread to keep them at bay…at least for the mean time.

2

D.U.I.

(Driving Under Iffiness)

“Why are you such a pushover?” Kay’s sister, Leslie, shouted at her over the phone. “You mean to tell me you just accepted what he said without any questions?” Kay could feel the sting of Leslie’s disapproval. “Don’t you think you should run it past an attorney?”

Kay’s skepticism was just as strong as her sister’s, but she, nevertheless, felt compelled to defend herself for giving in to Dave so easily. “I really don’t think there’s any need to involve an attorney. It’s a friendly agreement between the two of us,” Kay said, aware of how pathetic she sounded.

“Look. He’s promised to help me with all the extra-curriculars. You know how much I complain about spending most of my life with a car stuck to my butt. Anyway, he doesn’t have the same problem getting away from work that I do. That in itself is worth what he’s deducting from my support.”

“Bullshit!” Leslie responded, never being one to hold back what she was really thinking…especially when it came to Dave. “You need that money. Anyway, I don’t trust him. He’s always known how to push your buttons to get what he wants.”

“C’mon, Les,” Kay said, trying to appeal to Leslie’s levelheaded side. “Think about it. He’s been gone for seven years. He’s only been able to see the girls for eight weeks a summer and they’re growing up without him. For Dave to be willing to take a big cut in pay just so he can move back home, tells me he really wants to be in their lives.” Kay hoped Leslie would buy the logic of her explanation. Hell, she was trying to believe it herself.

Leslie scoffed. “They’ve moved back for Sandy and Sandy alone. You told me yourself her mother is sick and she wants to be near her and her brother.”

“I know,” Kay said. She was embarrassed to have her words thrown back at her. “But if it means the girls are going to have their dad back, who cares what the reason is?”

“Well, I just hope it turns out the way you want it to. Anyway, that’s not why I called. I wanted to remind you not to forget the networking luncheon this Friday. I hope you’re planning to come. The guest speaker is going to give a presentation on social networking.”

Crap.

Kay tried to quickly come up with a valid excuse for begging off. “Oh, I meant to call you about that. We’re going to be short-staffed on Friday and I have to cover the phones over lunch.” This was partially true. Ruth, the receptionist where Kay worked had asked her to fill in while she ran an errand; it wasn’t during the lunch hour. “But, I have every intention of making it next month.”

“Aw, that’s too bad,” Leslie said, not really that disappointed. “I just thought you’d get a lot out of the presentation. Didn’t you tell me Ed is looking to take his marketing in a new direction?”

“Yeah. But I’m not sure if Twitter and Facebook are a good fit. Anyway, if you think about it, save me some handouts. I’d better get going. I’ll talk to you soon.” Kay ended the phone call, wondering why she’d been born with the “weenie gene” while Leslie got the “take-no-prisoners gene.”

“Was that Aunt Les?” Cory asked, bounding down the stairs, almost knocking Kay over at the bottom. “I wanted to say hi.”

“Yes it was. She’s really excited that your dad is back.” Kay hoped telling these little lies wasn’t going to become a habit.

“Gimme a break, Mom,” Cory said, clearly not buying what Kay was trying to sell. “She can’t stand Dad. Never has…never will.”

“Cory, this isn’t about your Dad. It’s about you girls. You know Aunt Leslie only wants the best for you.”

“Whatever.” Cory said in the universal snarky teenage refrain. “Anyway, the best thing for me is to not have to spend weekends at Dad’s house.” Kay could sense the power Cory felt speaking those words. It made Kay feel proud and sad at the same time.

She really is maturing.

“Why do you have to be so mean?” Mariah asked, following her sister into the room. “Aren’t you glad we’re going to get to see Dad more often?

“Shut up, Stupid,” Cory barked at her little sister.

“Cory!” Kay snapped backed.“
Ok, maybe I’ve overestimated the maturity thing.
Cory truly fit the definition of “Tween.”

“She bugs, Mom,” Cory whined. “Anyway, if it was just Dad, it would be great. But we have to see
her
, too,” she said. “Mom, it’s hard to believe, but Sandy’s gotten even meaner since Little Dave was born. And Dad never does anything about it”

“Oh, Honey. Sandy is a new mom. It’s only natural she’s a little over-protective.” The instant the words left her mouth, she knew she’d probably insulted Cory’s intelligence.

“Over-protective of Dad you mean,” Cory said. “She thinks she owns him. You know she’s always hated sharing him with us. And now that Dave Jr. is in the picture she’s ten times worse. Believe me, I’ll never be missed.”

“Well, I told Dad about your decision and he wasn’t happy about it at all. I’m sure he’s going to want to talk to you before this weekend. Are you ready to have that conversation?”

“Can’t you talk to him for me?” Cory said. She sounded like a five year old.

“Absolutely not! If you really believe you’re old enough to make the decision not to see him, then you’re old enough to discuss it with him like an adult.”

Cory’s back straightened into a defiant posture. “Fine! I will. But you know he’s going to try to lay a big guilt trip on me.”

“Well, then you’re going to have to decide if you’d rather spend the weekend here feeling guilty, or feeling miserable at your Dad’s house,” Kay said, falling back on the tried and true parenting technique of presenting the girls with choices. Not only was it a great little teaching tool, it had the bonus of letting her off the hook for making unpopular decisions. Sometimes watching Dr. Phil actually paid off.

“I wanna go,” Mariah said, with sincere enthusiasm. “I haven’t seen Little Dave in a long time, and I’ve really missed him.”

“Yeah…he’s about your speed,” Cory said. The jealousy in her voice wasn’t completely disguised.

“That’s enough,” Kay said. “You girls have gotta get a move on. You’re going to miss the bus. And I have to get to work.”

* * *

Kay had a 40-minute commute to work which she never minded. Her route took her in the opposite direction of rush-hour traffic and the low-stress drive gave her an opportunity to relax and prepare herself for the day. The return trip was the same, only in reverse. She had time to unwind before she had to take on the excitement/disappointment/frustration or whatever else the girls were anxious to report about what went on in school that day.

This morning, Kay was trying to get her head together before her 9:30 a.m. pre-arrangement appointment. Of all of her duties as an apprentice funeral director, “making arrangements” was probably her favorite.The process could be tedious and complicated and Kay took great pride in making it as stress-free as possible for “her families.”

But rather than focusing on her meeting, her train of thought kept being derailed with concerns about how her and the girls’ lives were going to change now that Dave was back in town.

No doubt, the cut in child support was going to have an impact on her finances. Kay had to admit she was spoiled by the cushion the extra $850 a month provided. But when it came to the well-being of her girls, no amount of money could compensate for Dave’s absence. It certainly didn’t ease the weight of responsibility that came with being a single parent. His willingness to play an active role meant some of this weight would be lifted off her shoulders. She wasn’t lying when she told her sister his hands-on help was worth the deduction.

Then there was Cory. Her decision to remain behind on Dave’s visiting weekends
had stirred up a real hornets’ nest. Kay
still wasn’t sure which side of the issue she was on.

On the one hand, she was proud (and a little envious) Cory was exercising her power to say no. Up to this point, Dave had had his way in practically everything, which included saying “no” to what she regarded as reasonable requests.

On the other hand, she hadn’t had a free weekend in as long as she could remember. Having both girls at their dad’s meant she could plan something fun in the company of adults. She loved her girls, but often longed for conversations that were above an 8
th
grade level.

And dare she allow herself to entertain thoughts about dating in earnest? This could only add more confusion to the mix. Up to now, she had strictly confined her dating activities to the summers when the girls were gone.

Kay thought about her divorced friends who had immediately returned to the dating scene with unbridled enthusiasm. She admired their courage to get back in the game, but she had never felt comfortable playing the “single gal” in front of the girls.

If Cory changed her mind, she might finally be able to attend a meeting of the singles group she’d impulsively signed up for three months prior. Kay had always looked at these groups as being kind of “loser-ey” and swore she’d never sink to such an artificial level to meet men. In this instance, though, her curiosity had been piqued by a newspaper article describing a new social group recruiting and screening for “professional” singles.

Kay had pored over the article with a mix of curiosity and horror wanting to know who these professionally-single people were. It was only after reading past the first few paragraphs she realized her misunderstanding. They weren’t looking for professional singles but people who had college degrees and worked at a professional level.

To her surprise, she found herself calling the number mentioned in the article and was the very first person to be interviewed and invited into the group. But that’s as far as it had gone. Unfortunately, scheduling conflicts due to the girls’ activities had prevented her from attending.

Why, I haven’t gone to a
single meeting.
She chuckled at her silly pun.