The Best Friend (20 page)

Leila turned her head with a kind smile. “Please call me Leila, Olivia. Nice to meet you. I’m sorry you’re not feeling well. Perhaps a glass of milk and some cookies would help your stomach?”

She giggled. “You’re supposed to give me chicken soup when I’m sick, not cookies!”

As Leila backed up the car, she shook her head. “Nope. Those people all heard it wrong… it’s cookies when you have a stomach ache.”

Olivia came home with them, and soon ran all over the house. She spent an hour checking out Tony’s basement, asking questions about everything, even though none of it was very interesting. Leila gave her the promised cookies and milk; and low and behold. She was feeling much better in no time at all.

“Will you play hoops with me? Please? I saw your hoop out front,” she asked Tony, her eyes growing big and eager, as she finished her last bite of cookie, and the crumbs fell from her mouth as she spoke. He smiled at her guile, and at the cookie dust clinging to her chin and the excitement in her eyes. He hadn’t shot hoops for years. He and Donny used to play one-on-one almost every night when they were younger. Will and he nearly killed themselves at times, trying to figure out who was better. Drenched in sweat, they were as wet as if they’d just showered. Tony’s only advantage was being taller than Will, and basketball was the only sport where he managed to give Will a run for his money.

“Sure. I suppose we could do that, since you’re feeling better and all.”

She grinned and wiped her mouth on her sleeve as she hopped up. “Thank you! I love to shoot hoops! We have one at our apartment complex, but Grandma can’t do it, and she won’t let me go there alone… so I don’t get to very often.”

It seemed like there were a lot of things Olivia couldn’t do. Often in their conversations, she would mention the things she would like to do. She rarely complained, however, and it was just a fact she chose to tell him. She was a remarkably positive kid, although it was quite apparent she was lonely. She spent a lot of time alone in Gretchen’s office and her waiting room. There weren’t many other little kids to play with. Perhaps that’s why she found Tony so exciting. He had to admit it was a little bit flattering, as no one of late found him exciting anymore. Most people considered him unpleasant, awkward to be around, and downright negative. But Olivia genuinely liked him and chose to be near him. And yes, he suspected she was triply intrigued with him, not entirely because of the missing arm, but because he was a man, about her father’s age, and as near as he could tell, Olivia had no one else in her life that came close to that description. She might have been transferring some of her natural longing for a father figure to him.

That was okay. What could it hurt? It’s not like he saw her anymore than the one Thursday every week. Her girlish fantasies about him were okay because there would never be any reality to them. He could be nice to her, and let her know what being around a grown man was like, without making it into a big deal. Now, if he sought her out for more than that, of course, it would be wrong. It would be leading her on and developing a relationship with her that he could never sustain or fulfill. But once in awhile, just to hang out with him seemed okay enough.

He bounced the basketball and tossed it to her in a soft arc so as not to hurt her. He was shocked when she grabbed it before dribbling and running, then stopping under the hoop to shoot and making it. She fisted her hand and pumped it in the air. He ran and grabbed the ball, holding it, he grinned, “You tried to tell me you’re good at this, didn’t you? I don’t have to go easy, huh?”

She grinned right back. “Well, maybe a little easy at first.”

He mirrored her smile and they started shooting back and forth. She was surprisingly coordinated and dunked quite a few baskets for her short stature. Tony was mildly shocked when he realized that over two hours had gone by. They might have been the most pleasant and fun two hours he’d passed in two years. She was funny and quick, zipping all around the court with endless energy. He had no chance to just stand there, and think or feel awkward while imagining how much easier it would be if he had another arm. Olivia didn’t give a damn that he was one-armed and acted completely natural around him. He totally appreciated that about her.

He stopped the ball when Gretchen’s car pulled into the driveway. It was close to five o’clock. She got out of her car, wearing dressy pants, low heels and a sweater. Her hair swung around her face and shone, a rich honey blond in the sunlight. She shoved her sunglasses up onto her head, feathering her hair back.

Olivia ran towards her and gave her a hug. “Gretchen! Wanna play?”

She patted Olivia’s head, and her gaze locked onto Tony. “Sorry, hon, not the right shoes. Why don’t you run inside to get your backpack? I promised your grandma I’d have you home by five-thirty.”

Olivia obediently ran inside.

Gretchen straightened up and eyed Tony. “So, I guess Helen must’ve called the school after the assembly and added your name to the contact information in Olivia’s file. I had no idea she’d done so. I didn’t get the voicemail from the school until late. I was with patients all afternoon.”

Well, sure, she had a job and real responsibilities.
“It’s fine. She had stomach ache, which Mom cured in about five minutes with cookies. Thinking she might have been faking a little. Maybe she just needed a personal day.”

Gretchen’s mouth tightened. “Yes. Sometimes she does. Her grandmother is ill. It takes a toll on her.”

He glanced up. “I didn’t know that. She never mentioned it.”

“She doesn’t like to talk about it. Even with me. She pretends everything is fine. Helen tires easily nowadays, and that’s why I have Olivia so much. I’m beginning to think Olivia knew your name was added to her contacts, because I told her I’d be busy all day today and unavailable. I’m thinking she got ‘sick’ just so you’d get called. I think… she has a bit of a crush on you. She talks about you all the time. She even quotes you, for God’s sake.”

Tony bounced the ball to distract himself from staring into Gretchen’s green eyes. “Well that’s a first. Not many people do that.”

“Do you want me to have your name removed? Tracy is listed, along with my parents, so there is no reason you should be.”

He shrugged. “Seems like Olivia thought so. No, it’s fine. I’ll just make sure to explain to her she can’t call me again unless she’s really sick. Next time, I won’t let her stay home.”

Gretchen nodded, her expression appearing satisfied. “Glad you see that,” she said, her head tilted in consideration. She was, no doubt, wondering if Tony thought Olivia should do what was expected of her, why didn’t he? He ignored her look.

“Tony?”

He had to look up at her tentative tone. She leaned back against her car, folding her arms over her chest. Nothing showed, no tops of her breasts, no midriff, or inches of waist. Yet Tony’s heart raced as he gazed at her, looking so cool, professional and put together.

“Yeah?”

“Thank you for doing this today. You probably did her more good in one afternoon than a few sessions of therapy. She sometimes just needs an outlet.”

He shrugged, embarrassed by her praise. “Yeah, don’t we all? Besides, she’s a nice kid. It’s no big deal.”

“Well, actually it is. You didn’t have to. Especially, since you don’t usually. But I appreciate it. You mean a lot to her… just don’t let her become too much.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, don’t let her get so attached she makes a relationship in her head that you can’t sustain. You don’t want entanglements; you’ve been very clear on that. Olivia is a huge entanglement. She’s needy and lonely and easily swayed. Especially by a man who likes playing with her, like a father should. You get what I’m saying?”

“Yeah, be nice, but not too nice.”

The side of her mouth tilted up. “Yeah, something like that. Again, thank you for today.”

He shrugged and shot the ball, which swished in the net without touching the rim. He was aware, way too aware, she was watching him.

“You still do that pretty well. I used to think you and Will would wind up killing one or the other, just from trying to outdo each other.”

“That’s ‘cause it was the only thing I could remotely give Will a run at.”

“That’s not true. You were the only one who always thought that.”

He glanced up at her. What? He gave Will too much credit? Is that what she was getting at?

Olivia came bounding back. “Look at what Tony’s mom gave me!” She had a baggie full of homemade cookies. No doubt, Leila was already practicing for Donny and Vickie, in happy anticipation of her first grandchild. He was pretty sure she thought it was going to happen, and soon. Unfortunately, he knew it was. The crisis he saw clearly, the mess Donny was galloping into, which thankfully, his mother didn’t.

Olivia ran over to him. “Bye, Tony; thanks for the game.” She threw her arms around him and he patted her head. “Yeah, you can come back and try to beat me again… but only after school, when you’ve stayed all day. No more skipping out, okay?”

She grinned shyly. “Okay, I promise, Tony. But can I come back soon?”

He shrugged with a glance at Gretchen. “Sure, just get Gretchen’s permission. But remember; after school only.”

She nodded. “After school only. Got it! How about next Tuesday?”

Tony nodded. “Okay, next Tuesday. If Gretchen says it’s okay.”

Gretchen shuffled off to the side of her car. “Yes. We can plan on it.” She mouthed,
thank you
, to Tony with a soft, sweet smile. It made his heart ping in his chest.
Damn.
Why did he let that little bit of encouragement, and friendliness cause him to nearly swoon over her? He became a freakin’ girl where she was involved.

As Gretchen and Olivia pulled out, he continued to shoot hoops. He nearly forgot how much he liked to do it. When his dad pulled in and saw him, he got out of his truck and stood there, almost in shock. Then, coming forward, he motioned for Tony to throw him the ball.

The next hour they spent shooting, talking, and giving each other shit over nothing of importance. It was the most normal they felt together since he returned home. Maybe he should have been doing a few more things like he used to enjoy. Wasn’t the worst idea in the world. And feeling his dad’s warm hand on his shoulder released the most overwhelming sense of pride that Tony felt in a long time.

****

The website was a complete and utter surprise. From the time Donny launched it for Tony, the response almost doubled by the day. A lot of it was stirred by the personal videos that were shot by audience members, who also posted Tony’s speeches. Donny managed to collect them all somehow and they stood as testimonials to Tony’s effectiveness and integrity.

The next thing he knew, he was getting booked for other things, like luncheons and conferences. Pretty soon, even the VA took notice. He was contacted by them and asked to make a few appearances. He was being hailed as an unsung hero and the Army did all it could to encourage him to continue as such.

What surprised him even more was the outpouring of emails and comments his website got. Some were generic, going on and on about thanking him for his service and major sacrifice. Some came from other veterans, some of whom were hurt, and some who were not. And many asked him for help. So many, he was stunned by the ceaseless requests. Some were like him, either injured or with skills that didn’t translate to civilian work. Some didn’t have the nice, middle-class parents like he did, who could give them a place to crash. Some were homeless, and some nearly so. Most were as miserable as he. It struck a deep chord in him. But what the hell could he do for them? He could barely help himself. Up until about a month ago, he didn’t even want to help himself. Just because he found a reason to get out of bed during the last few weeks didn’t mean he was ready to help anyone beyond himself. It was a damn miracle that he might want to do something that could improve his life.

Tony didn’t believe, not for a second, that the little bit of public admiration and attention would continue on end. But he managed to engage with it while it went on. And it really did make the days go by faster as well as a hell of a lot more interesting.

Chapter Twelve

“You did all this for him, Gretchen.”

Closing her eyes, Gretchen expelled a deep breath of satisfaction.
Yeah, maybe she’d done something for him after all
. Her heart could have literally burst with pride for him. He had accomplished so much in the few weeks since the Veterans’ Day assembly. It should have been no more than a touching, lovely moment for all who attended, and was really never expected to mushroom into anything beyond that assembly. It changed everything, at least for Tony. He was
doing
something. She checked his website daily, sometimes, multiple times a day. Donny had a scroll across the top that asked:
What makes a hero?
It was the title of one of Tony’s now famous speeches, of which there were now ten. She clicked on each one of them and nearly had them all memorized by now. They were so shockingly elegant, polite, contrite, funny, sweet, and yes, very heroic. They weren’t about him, although his entire personality emerged when he spoke. Or rather, the Tony of old emerged, whom she had not encountered since their reacquaintance.

The website was inundated with comments, and he had a following. In no time, Tony was running a blog. One that Gretchen read religiously. She found him shockingly honest and brutal there. It wasn’t directed toward kids. He included pictures he’d either taken or found on line, as well as personal stories about his experiences. He told what it was like being a soldier, then a soldier in combat, and finally, a soldier retired from war, who was trying to live at home again.

Gretchen finally started to understand Tony in a way she couldn’t until now. He truly didn’t care about all the mundane, ordinary things that she and most people around her cared about. The brooding bitterness that seemed to permeate his entire attitude was due to his entire perception of life and society, which critically changed for him being at war; while most Americans didn’t even realize a war was being fought. It humbled and horrified her.