- Helen extended an olive branch to Kirsten.
- Gail and Adrian found out they were having a child.
- Natalie’s father left her without an income.
- Cassie and Mac started to bond...
[.....]
[.....]
Scene One:
341 Wallow St., Stone Creek. “Schmidt Home”
David, Helen, Gail & Dizzy’s Home.
Slipping his hands over the coffee mug, David Schmidt watched as his wife ran through her morning routines without looking at him. He felt it for the last couple days. Their movements haven’t been the same. When at one time they did everything together it seemed now they were doing everything to avoid one another.
“Are we just going to do this for the rest of our lives?” David asked, the words seemed to freeze his wife. The moment was satisfying. “Helen, are we really going to avoid what is bothering you?”
Helen Schmidt turned to David. “Well it depends, are you happy?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” He scoffed.
She shook her head, not wanting to argue today. But then something in her just couldn’t keep quiet. “I don’t want this to be a fight about us. This has everything to do with Gail and how she is living her life. She’s not even married to Adrian and already having his child!”
“You’re right.” David gritted his teeth. “This isn’t a fight about us. Helen do you not understand that every fight we’ve had has not been about us? It’s been about Gail or your children! When was the last time that we fought for us Helen? Do you remember?”
“Why would we need to fight about us?” Helen scolded, she looked around the room. “We have everything that we have always wanted. This life that we have David is good enough for me. I’m happy that Gail and Adrian are happy, but don’t you think they’re making mistakes?”
He put down his coffee and got from his seat. “They’re supposed to make mistakes. It’s called life, you learn from your mistakes and you move on. You don’t sit here moping around and hoping that someone else will correct them for you. Yes Gail has screwed up in the past but the woman that came back! I’m proud of her.”
David grabbed his coat and turned to his wife. “You keep saying that we need to watch over Gail. Have you taken a look at your children lately Helen? No because you have always been too selfish to worry about anybody except yourself.”
“I went to visit Kirsten the other day.” She proudly stood.
“That’s great Helen, that’s just amazing.” He knew this wasn’t the way to end the conversation but he couldn’t be around his wife any longer. “You went to visit Kirsten. What about Marina and Emmet? Can you keep it up, focusing on your children? How long until you start messing up again?”
“Get out of my house!” Helen snapped.
“This is my house too!” He shouted. David turned on his heel and exited the kitchen.
Folding her arms, Helen was too angry to focus her attention on anything else. She shuttered when the front door slammed shut.
[.....]
Scene Two:
Stone Creek Memorial Hospital
Gail’s Hospital Room.
This was still bringing back horrible memories for Gail Schmidt. Even though she had come to the hospital for a couple check-ups already. All she remembered was being pregnant with her first child and then the miscarriage she had afterwards.
She was just happy that she had Adrian here this time; Gail squeezed his hand.
“What’s the matter?” He asked concerned, looking at his girlfriend.
Gail smiled anxiously. “I’m just glad that you’re here with me. I keep thinking back to when I was pregnant the first time and how scary it was. How even though I had Dizzy to talk me through things, I regretted not telling you about it when I found out.”
He brushed her hair out of her face, kissing her forehead. “Gail, don’t worry about that. We have both gotten passed that. I’m here now and I wont leave your side ever again, alright?”
“Alright.”
They both looked at the nurse when she entered the room, she had a folder in her hands and smiled sweetly at the two people in the room. “I’m so sorry for the wait, we had trouble getting a hold of your normal doctor as he had an emergency c-section today.”
“Oh my god!” Gail covered her mouth as the reality of how precious their child’s life actually was. She flashed back to when she lost their child at the pharmacy she was working at in Arizona. “I hope everything is alright with the delivery.”
“From what I know, everything will be just fine.” The nurse smiled. “But the bad news is that Dr. Stevens is unavailable for your check-up, we can re-schedule you for another time but I have to warn you Dr. Stevens will be going on Vacation soon.”
“So what does that mean?” Adrian asked, confused.
The nurse sighed. “We wouldn’t be able to get you in here until after he comes back unless you want to change doctors. We just got a new one in, she’s interning mostly right now but she graduated from a top school in Arizona and comes highly recommended from your current doctor.”
The two looked at each other, Gail shrugged. “Well, pushing off my child’s health isn’t what I want to do. If the doctor is good at her job then I don’t mind having her resume.”
Gail tried to think back to when this doctor could have been hired. Although she only worked in the pharmacy, which was in the basement, she usually was aware of any firing or hirings the hospital had done. She frowned. “Can we see her now?”
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Adrian asked.
Gail nodded. “I just want to know if our child is healthy.”
“Alright.” He replied, looking at the nurse. “I'll bring her in.”
The nurse excused herself from the room.
“I wanted to talk about the house.” Adrian spoke, trying to re-route the worry in his mind to another topic. “Gail I’m not too sure if we can afford it and although it’s nice that your father wants to help. I just don’t know if we should go through with it.”
She looked away, he could tell Gail was trying to hide her anger. “My dad is trying to make an effort.”
“Ten years too late.”
“If this is about your ego being hurt, I’m not having it!” Gail cried. “We are having a child Adrian and I think we need to have our own place. Granted it will be with the help of my father but quite frankly he is the only family I have left! So please, just let him help!”
Before Adrian even had the chance to reply their doctor walked through the door. Cause both to lose sight of their fight and drop their jaws in surprise. Adrian was a little uneasy at the presence of Dizzy Roberts when she first came into town, so to see her standing there in scrubs and a doctor’s coat his stomach dropped.
“You’re our new doctor?” Gail asked in excitement.
Dizzy smiled, bit her lip and curtsied. “The one and only, darling.”
[.....]
Scene Three:
2634 W. Parker St., Stone Creek. Callahan Condo’s #15
Marina, Cassie & Lucian’s Condo.
“Marina is going to be so excited when she finds out that you fixed our sink!” Cassie Lakhani spoke as she watched her newest friend tinkering with the pipes. She didn’t know how she got by without having Mac Kern around to help her with things.
“Well you can pay me in cookies.” Mac chuckled. “How is Marina doing with the whole Ian thing?”
Cassie shrugged. “I think she is just playing it safe right now and waiting. But don’t mention any of this conversation around her, I doubt she wanted me to tell anybody else about her relationship problems.” She wondered why she even told Mac.
But then she realized that she liked talking to him. “So when did you learn how to fix sinks?”
Mac looked up at her. “My older brother did a lot of the maintenance in our house after our father left. But before he went off to college he showed me a thing or two to help our mother out while I was still there.”
“So maybe I should thank your brother?” Cassie flirted.
He frowned. “If you can find him.”
Cassie immediately felt bad for what she sad, hoping that she didn’t overstep any boundaries. “I’m so sorry!”
“No, it’s fine.” Mac replied, recovering. “After college he sort of went MIA. He always had this way of leaving when you least expected it and was always around when you needed him the most. But I haven’t heard from him in a couple of years.”
“Then I would say you’ve out grown needing him.” Cassie spoke, carefully. “You seem like the two of you were close. I’m sure he would be proud of the person you are becoming Mac. I would be if I were him.”
Mac smiled, his face grew red and Cassie could tell she had said the right thing to ease the tension in the conversation. She leaned against the counter sweetly, her eyes locked with Mac’s for a second. Then she tore them away. “I can’t believe Lucian is sleeping through all of this.”
“You’re a good mother.” Mac offered.
“Thanks.” Cassie accepted. “I’ve given up so much to take care of him, but thinking back to what we have been through. It never seems like I’ve given up enough for him. Lucian is my entire life now and I don’t think I could complain. He is my reason to keep going.”
“That’s a really good thing.” Mac said, thinking back to when he had first met Isobel Cortez. He always saddened him to think back to their few moments together before the accident. There was a life inside of her that hadn’t matched anybody else he had met.
“Are you alright?” Cassie asked, noticing that Mac was zoning out.
He tore his attention to her. “I’m fine. I was just thinking back to when I had first met Isobel Cortez. I know it’s not similar to what you feel for your son and how he inspires you to keep moving forward. But there was just something about her that made me want more from life.”
It was in that moment that Cassie knew there was much more to Mac then his geeky outer layer. She smiled. “That’s sweet.”
But the doorbell wrung before he was able to elaborate and after excusing herself from the kitchen Cassie went to open it. Freezing when she found that it was Clifton Briggs on the other end.
---
Our love. Our fights. Our friendships.
On Concrete Shelves.
Forever, they shall be remembered.
---
Scene Four:
980 Cutler St., Stone Creek. Faustino Cottages # 10
Natalie & Amanda’s Home.
Pushing passed everything that her parents talked about. Natalie Marlowe didn’t want to deal with all of her problems at one time, although she knew it would have to be dealt with. Looking at herself in the mirror, she begrudgingly covered her burns.
“I can get rid of that if you want, Cinderella.” Amanda Tucker quipped, entering the Living Room.
Natalie scowled. “That was Snow White.”
She didn’t even know why she had a roommate, especially one that always referenced the wrong movies. As of now, Amanda was the closest thing she had to as a friend. Even if the girl had taken over as the featured model at HEAT Magazine and had a tangent for watching cheesy slasher films late at night.
“Oh.” Amanda replied, uninterested in the conversation already. Looking at Natalie with a forced smile she sprawled out on one of the couches. “So what’s the 4-1-1 with the rents? Are they letting up on the payments of this nice little shin-dig of ours?”
Natalie nodded. “With everything that is going on, my father has decided to leave town and find work somewhere else other than Stone Creek. My mother is staying here, she has to stay close to her boutique. But for the most part we will be on our own.”
“I guess that means we need second jobs!” Amanda chimed. “We won’t be able to afford this place any other way. Although it was nice to be partying it up with the extra money I had on the side.”
Natalie Marlowe tried to remember the last time she was ‘partying it up’ with Amanda. But the accident in which she burned her body was the only thing that came to mind. She was still angry that Amanda walked away without a scratch. “Yes, we need second jobs.”
“That means you need to get two.” Amanda replied, frivolously.
Natalie sighed, how was she going to maintain working and living with the dim-witted Amanda? All she wanted to do was focus on Ryan and how nice their relationship had been going. although they have yet to define what they were doing as a relationship.
[.....]
Scene Five:
505 Auburn Rd., Stone Creek “Thurlow Cottage”
James & Caitlyn’s Home.
Caitlyn Thurlow dabbed her finger into her mouth and tasted the batter. It had felt like ages since she last cooked pancakes for a full house and although it was only herself, Aidan and Megan eating it felt like the perfect time to get her cranberry pancakes recipe out.
“I have never had these before.” Aidan Jurado spoke, entering the kitchen.
She looked back at the younger man and smiled. “Well take a seat at the dining room table and get ready for the best pancakes you’ve tasted yet! It was my grandmother’s old recipe, she used to make them for me when I was a child all those years ago.”
Opening the fridge and grabbing some milk, Caitlyn poured a spoonful into the mix and then stirred it together one last time before she began making the breakfast. “On second thought, I think I hear Kirsten’s car outside maybe you should give her a hand with Megan?”
“I’ll do just that.” Aidan agreed exiting the kitchen and heading for the door.
Caitlyn sighed, it was good to have Aidan there. It gave her someone to look after while James was busy at work and it also made her feel safer at night, especially after the visit from Damien.
“That smells amazing.” Kirsten spoke, placing a box on the counter. “I really do wish I could stay, but I have to get to the Cafe and get some paperwork done. I brought that box of things you wanted for the Charity drive. It’s just a couple of Megan’s old toys that she wants to donate.”
“That’s alright!” Caitlyn greeted, hugging her step-daughter. “Anything helps, I’m just glad that Megan was able to part with some of her toys.”
Megan Sutton hopped into the room with Aidan following close behind. “She insisted that she come give you a hug before you left.” Aidan chimed in, peering into the box. “Are all these toys for me?”
“No silly!” Megan giggled. “We’re giving them away.”
“That’s right!” Caitlyn spoke, giving Megan a kiss on the cheek. “We are having a Charity event and collecting anything and everything we can give to the less fortunate. Today since you are giving away some of your old toys I have a special treat for you.”
Megan’s eyes grew big with anticipation. “What is it?”
“Cranberry pancakes!” Caitlyn squealed in excitement.
But the little girls face fell in confusion. “Oh.”
“You can’t win them all.” Kirsten told Caitlyn, giving her a hug before she was to leave. “Be good for Caitlyn, alright Megan? I’m so glad that you could watch her for a little bit while I head to the Cafe. After the year we have had, I’m so sorry for accusing you of purposely losing her.”
Caitlyn sighed. “I love that little girl as if she were my own Kirsten, I wouldn’t let anybody harm a hair on her head.”
“Kirsten!” Aidan called out before she left the house. He jogged over to the front door. “I just wanted to thank you for helping me realize that a fresh start is exactly what I needed. Without your help I don’t think I could have gotten passed what happened.”
Kirsten gave her cousin a hug, and wished his day well before leaving the house. Aidan turned to the kitchen, he didn’t know what he did to deserve this but for the first time in a long time he felt like he was home. That was the only thing that Aidan could be thankful for.
[.....]
Scene Six:
2634 W. Parker St., Stone Creek. Callahan Condos #15
Marina, Cassie & Lucian’s Condo.
“I better head out.” Mac Kern proposed, he checked the sink to make sure that it was working and packed up his tools. Leaving both Cassie and Clifton to sit in awkward silence. “Your sink is all fixed and I don’t want to take too much of your time.”
Clifton eye’d Cassie. “Mac, don’t leave on my account.”
He smiled half-heartedly. “I actually am late for work.” This caught Cassie off-guard as they never discussed where he was working before. A conversation that she felt awful about not having. “You’re looking at one of the newest employees at Alice’s Haven Cafe.”
“Well I’m sure they’re happy to have you there.” Clifton snipped, watching Mac hug Cassie goodbye and leave the Condo all together. He turned his attention to Cassie and tried to put a smile on. “How have you been since I last saw you at the club?”
Cassie flashes back to when they talked briefly. “I’m doing just fine Clifton. It’s just a surprise to see you here, I hadn’t expected you to stop by today. I would have timed Lucian’s nap time accordingly if you would have told me. So that you could have time with him.”
“Did you just put him down for a nap?” He asked, looking towards Cassie’s bedroom.
“Not too long ago.”
Clifton sighed. “I know that we have had this conversation over and over again. It’s just that there was a situation at work that I have been dealing with lately. A business opportunity if you will and I have been honing the specifics of the contract.”
“Oh?” Cassie asked, slightly interested. She walked over to the sink and checked it just to make sure. She could feel Clifton’s eyes wander over to the sink. “We were just having plumbing problems.”
“You could have asked me, I could have helped.” Clifton offered.
She smiled. “Mac came by and offered, I was going to call a plumber but I just hadn’t had the time. But anyways, what were you saying about this contract that you had going on?”
In that moment Clifton realized that there was so much more going on between Cassie and Mac. His eyes dimly lit up at the change of topic, with a quick hesitation he asked. “Would you like to go to dinner with me Cassie, just the two of us?”
Lucian’s cries could be heard in the background of their conversation, she excused herself to go get him leaving Clifton alone with his thoughts. “Saved by the baby.” He whispered to himself.
[.....]
Scene Seven:
507 Auburn Rd., Stone Creek. “Wilkinson Cottage”
Gideon, Daphne & Penelope’s Home.
Checking-up on Penelope Wilkinson was one of the things that helped David Schmidt keep his mind off his problems at home. He also felt better knowing that the woman was recovery very well from her surgery and her chemo sessions. Sometimes when he came to check on Penelope, she would look so exhausted.
“How are we feeling?” He asked, slipping the cold-end of the stethoscope into her blouse and asked her to take a deep breath.
“I’d like you to never ask me that question again.” She scoffed, taking a deep breath and letting it out when David instructed. They repeated the process three more times before he scribbled down his findings in his notepad and smiled at the woman.
“The good news is that you’re recovering at an accelerated rate.” David informed her, packing the stethoscope away in his bag.
Penelope frowned. “You should start giving me the bad news first doctor, I nearly have a heart attack waiting to hear you tell me I’m going to croak to this damned cancer!” She coughed.
“You’re not going to die anytime soon Penelope.” David assured her. “To tell you the truth I am a little worried that your recovery is going a little too smoothly. After the surgery Daphne managed to get rid of most of the cancer cells in your brain. With the chemo we are hoping the rest can be taken care of.”
“Well then what’s to worry?”
He sighed. “I don’t want you to get overwhelmed by the recovery. Sometimes when a patient starts to feel better they forget that they’re sick and they start to do things that could jeopardize their long-term recovery. I want to keep monitoring you even after your chemo is done.”
“To tell you the truth I just want all of this to be over with already.” Penelope spoke, she looked at David with solemn eyes. “I feel like everyday is the same damn thing, over and over again. Everyone treats me as if I’m going to die tomorrow, do you know how depressing that is?”
“I can only imagine.”
Penelope huffed. “I’m not imagining this, it’s a darn reality!”
[.....]
Scene Eight:
Loft Above Alice’s Haven Cafe.
Adrian’s Loft.
Placing their things on the table, Adrian Stone slumped into a chair and watched as his girlfriend made her way around the Kitchen. “I just can’t wrap my head around the fact that neither of us knew that Dizzy was getting her degree as a doctor. Let alone your OB/GYN. I don’t know if this is such a good idea.”
Gail looked at Adrian. “I feel safer with Dizzy being there.”
“She should have told us something before hand.” Adrian quipped, there was a part of him that only trusted Dizzy as far as he could throw her. Which wasn’t very far. “Instead of sneaking around and laying this big secret on the table like that.”
She shrugged, closing the fridge after pulling out the necessary items to make a sandwich. “Maybe she just didn’t want to say anything until she was sure that she got hired at Stone Creek Memorial. Just in case we weren’t able to have her. The nurse said it herself, Dizzy comes fully recommended.”
“We’re her first patients, I’d rather have experience taking care of our child than what some piece of paper says about Dizzy.” Adrian barked. “We have been through this before, Dizzy has always been nothing but trouble. I just don’t want this to come at our child’s expense.”
Adrian watched as his girlfriend moved closer to him.
“I don’t want to fight about this.” Gail spoke, placing her hands on Adrian’s cheeks and pulling his face towards hers. “I just want the two of us to enjoy the fact that we have a healthy baby growing inside of my stomach. Adrian, we have everything that we could ever wish for, right here.”
He touched her stomach. “Fine.”
“Do you want me to make you a sandwich as well?” Gail asked, pouting.
Adrian pulled her arm to sneak another kiss from her. “I just want to be with you, forever.” He then watched as she went back to making them lunch. “There’s another thing that is bothering me Gail.”
“Please don’t tell me another thing you don’t like about Dizzy right now Adrian, I can’t take this much bashing against my best friend.”
He realized that he was being hard on Dizzy, it’s just that he wanted their child to be born healthy and without any complications. They didn’t even know if Gail could carry a baby full-term, especially after what happened with the miscarriage.
“Why aren’t we talking about the house anymore?”
She shrugged. “I just don’t want to fight.”
“This is what you do Gail, once something bad happens or when you think I’ll have a bad reaction to something you just ignore it as if it’s not happening.” Adrian spoke up. “I just wanted to ask you if you really wanted this house. We have been making no progress with the decision lately.”
“I thought we were talking about it at the hospital earlier.”
Adrian rolled his eyes. “Then Dizzy walked into the room.” He noticed Gail stop cutting the tomatoes and trying desperately to refrain from coming back with an argument. “Do you want the house, or not Gail?”
Her eyes lit-up. “I really do!”
“Alright,” He started, watching as she put the knife down and jumped up in excitement, clapping her hands at the realization that they could be starting their lives together. “On one condition.”
“Anything.”
He took a deep breath. “Once we have the money to pay your father back, we must do that first before we do anything else Gail. I can’t have anymore bad blood between the two of us. Not if I am going to be raising a family with the woman that I love.”
Gail looked over at him with tears in her eyes. “That sounds like the perfect plan!”
[.....]
Scene Nine:
Now Town.
HEAT Magazine Building
“Well look what we have here!” Oliver Cuthbert exclaimed as he watched the brunette walk into the building. “I didn’t know princess Natalie was back in the building, I would have wore a clean shirt. Should I tell Amanda to give you back your crown?”
Natalie Marlowe snarled at the sight of the photographer. If there was one person she did not want to see again it was definitely Oliver Cuthbert. He wasn’t even a real photographer, he was just someone that Helen Schmidt had hired as a back-up in case the real photographer got caught up.
“Are you just going to ignore me?”
“Pretty much.” Natalie snapped, passing by him and entering the elevator. She didn’t have time to try to make nice with Oliver. Especially since she no longer had to try to get extra film shoots out of the poor scum. Natalie hated to remind herself that she slept with Oliver before.
But the ding of the elevator caused her to forget about the memory and focus on the task at hand. A decision that she was happy for. After her conversation with Amanda, she knew that going to Helen for the job offer was the only thing that she could do.
It wasn’t the luxurious job that Natalie had wanted. But it would have to do, after saying her hello’s to Helen’s secretary she was invited into Helen’s office where the woman looked out of sorts. Something that Natalie made sure not to mention.
“What can I do for you today?” Helen asked, peering up from her test shots of the front of the next magazine. “I’ve got a busy schedule today Natalie, so I would hope that you’d make this quick.”
Natalie cleared her throat. “Right! Well there’s not sense in dragging this one out. I need a job Helen and I was wondering if you still had that job available that you offered me a while back.”
Helen smirked. “What if I did? Could you handle working behind the lens?”
“I can handle anything that you throw at me Helen, I’m sure you know that already from experience in dealing with me.” Natalie bit back, appalled that Helen was treating her this way. Then again she did fire her after Natalie revealed the extent of her burns.
“I recall what a pompous pain in the ass you were to work with.” Helen eye’d the younger woman, a girl who reminded her of herself once upon a time. “I hope you’d know that this type of attitude isn’t tolerated behind the scenes and if my employees had any problems with you, they’d fire you on the spot.”
Natalie gulped. “I understand.”
“Good.” Helen smirked. “Now I will give you a job, this is the only one I have left available.” She looked around her desk and then handed a piece of paper to Natalie. Who stepped forward and took it. “I need you to be the assistant of one of our photographers.”
Her face dropped as soon as she saw the name. “But he’s not even an actual photographer.”
“He is.” Helen growled. “I need you to be the assistant to our newest head photographer; Oliver Cuthbert. I’m pretty sure the two of you have been acquainted on a couple of photo-shoots, yes?”
Natalie snarled. “Oh, we have.”
[.....]
Scene Ten:
Lakeside Inn-Cuttlebone Lake
Charlie’s Office.
After Aidan Jurado got acquainted with the facilities around the Inn, he made his way to see Charlie Sutton. The two spent little time talking while going over the basics of the Inn. It wasn’t a job that Aidan was used to, but he felt that he could be of some use.
“How are you doing?” Aidan asked, knocking on the open door.
Charlie peered up at him, a grin on his face. “Not too bad, I’m sorry I haven’t been around much to help you navigate the place. I’ve just been really busy mapping out our finances. We couldn’t afford to have the Annual Founder’s Ball here like last year.”
Aidan snickered. “That might have been a good thing, I heard about how last years turned out.” Dropping off the keys to one of the carts, Aidan stepped into the room. “I didn’t want you to think I was taking the cart for any joy spins. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me.”
“Don’t worry about it Aidan.” Charlie spoke, he pointed towards the keys. “How about you take that one? It’ll be your way around the premises. I have my own cart anyways.”
The younger man’s eyes lit up. “Thanks!”
“Actually, I have something I need help with.” Aidan gulped, trying to keep his composure. “We have been financially unstable lately. We are getting guests, it’s not necessarily that the rooms aren’t being checked into. It’s just that we have been having trouble bringing business to the Party Rooms.”
Aidan frowned. “Is there anything coming up?”
Charlie shrugged.
“We used to hold fundraisers that doubled as events for politicians in some of our office space.” Aidan admitted, he peered out the window and saw the smooth lawns of the Inn. It was the perfect place to host a political debate. “What about your father?”
“What do you mean?”
Aidan turned to Charlie. “From what I hear, he is running for Mayor. I think this would be the perfect place to hold a fundraiser and have him speak about what he wants to do for Stone Creek. We can hype-up the event and bring a lot of business into the Inn.”
“That idea sounds possible, but how do we get Patrick Sutton to volunteer his services?” Charlie scoffed.
“He seems reasonable when it comes to his public image.” Aidan hinted. “All you have to tell him as that people are interested in what he has to say. The funny thing about public reputation when it comes to high society is that they will do anything to save face.”
“No offense.” Aidan added.
Charlie smirked. “None taken.”
[.....]
Scene Eleven:
980 Cutler St., Stone Creek. Faustino Cottages #7
Charlie, Kirsten & Megan’s Home.
“She’s asleep.” Kirsten spoke, walking into the Kitchen to find her mother doing the dishes. It was yet another thing about her mother that surprised her today. “I can’t believe there was a time when all Megan wanted to do was sleep. Now it’s running and jumping and singing.”
Helen chuckled, listening as Kirsten shared private parts of her life with her mother. For the first time in awhile, it felt right and she knew this was where she was meant to be. It pained her knowing that it took her this long. “It’s so good to be around for this.”
Her daughter looked up at her, unsure.
“I mean what I’ve said Kirsten.” Helen spoke, knowingly. “I can’t be here everyday because of work. But whenever I have time off and you need someone to be there for Megan. Kirsten I’ve made some terrible mistakes in the past. I understand that. I just want to make up for them.”
Kirsten Sutton smiled, those were words she had heard before. Before Helen cheated on James and then left him for another man. Words that were spoken before her mother stole her trust fund to finance HEAT Magazine. “She’s smart, you know?”
“Excuse me?”
“Megan.” Kirsten smirked, she couldn’t help but think about how wise her daughter was. “If this is all an act Helen, Megan will know. The things you’ve done to this family cannot be forgiven. But that is the past and I’ve done my fair share of dwelling on the past.”
Helen sighed. “What does that mean?”
“Okay.” Kirsten nodded. “With Charlie being at work more and me having to run the Cafe, we don’t have much time to devote to Megan. We can start with a couple of hours if we need to. That will give Caitlyn some time off. If you can prove to Megan that you will be there for her, then this can work.”
“Thank you Kirsten!” Helen smiled, she dried her hands and then hugged her daughter. “I won’t let you down, alright? Just you watch! You will be so proud of me.”
Then her face fell when Kirsten didn’t seem as excited. “This isn’t about me Helen. I don’t know if I can exactly trust you again. This is the only way I know how you can gain my trust back. If you disappoint that little girl, she will be devastated.”
“I won’t!” Helen barked.
“Good. Because at this point, Caitlyn is being a better grandmother to her than you have been.” Kirsten spit, she looked awkwardly around the Kitchen. Trying to keep herself from crying. She knew that in order for Megan to have a better bond with her grandparents, Kirsten needed to put aside her differences with Helen.
She just hoped that she could. “You should go now.”
[.....]
Scene Twelve:
341 Wallow St., Stone Creek. “Schmidt Home”
David, Helen, Gail & Dizzy’s Home.
Sitting out on the porch, Gail Schmidt stared up at the stars. It had been a gorgeous day in Stone Creek and one with many possibilities. Once she got home she knew that she needed to enjoy the evening sky as a occupant of her childhood home at least one more time.
She watched as her father stepped up to the porch and sat next to her. “I thought that was you Gail, what’s going on? You didn’t get into another fight with Helen did you?” He asked, putting his keys on the step next to them. “Or does this have to do with Adrian?”
Gail nodded. “I’m happy daddy.”
“That’s the one thing I’ve always wanted for you.” David Schmidt smirked.
The two of them sat there, watching the stars for a couple of minutes. It was as if the house had returned to the quiet, peacefulness that Gail remembered when she was a child after her mother died but before Helen moved in. There was a calmness.
Something familiar was in the air. “I’ve been so far away from home.”
“I’m just glad to have you back.”
Gail looked at him. “Thank you for helping us with the house. Adrian agreed to the offer and we will find out if we get the house soon. I just want you to know that I love you and that will never change daddy. I just want to be able to make my own decisions.”
“Gail. You’ve made your own decisions ever since you were a little girl, even if I didn’t agree with it.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “You are my daughter and I will always love you as well. All I have ever wanted was for you to be happy.”
She leaned against her father. “I just want you to be proud of me.”
“Don’t ever worry about that.” He spoke, looking up at the stars and remembering a time when everything was so simple for the two of them. How they had always had each other to rely on after his wife’s passing. He closed his eyes, wondering if his marriage to Helen was the right move.
[.....]
Next Time, On Concrete Shelves
- Caitlyn contemplates her conversation with Damien.
- Greta starts to fight for her dreams.
- Marina and Ian had a tender moment.
- Charlene makes a new friend...
