Episode 101

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Episode 101

Scene 1:

"You have some explaining to do," John announced. Dinah looked up at her father, heart racing, trying to appear innocent. She had nearly been caught snooping in her parents' room and their sudden return had almost given her a heart attack. "I specifically told you to stay with Georgia Corelli. And what did you do? You took off with Galen. You disobeyed me, Dinah."

"I didn't mean to, Daddy," she answered earnestly, laying the book that she wasn't reading aside. "Galen said Mia missed me. I told him what you said..."

"I've already spoken to Galen. That is beside the point. I told you to stay at the hospital."

"I know." She scooted to the edge of the bed and smiled up at her father, giving him the best innocent look she could muster. "But you know how I feel about Mia. I couldn't just let her down after Galen told her I would be there. Besides, you and Mom don't see her as much as you should and Mia misses you too. Please don't be angry."

John's face softened a bit as she pleaded her case. He sat next to her after she finished, patting her knee affectionately. "I'm not angry. But you do see why I'm upset don't you? I did ask you to stay at the hospital and you ignored my request." Order, was more like it, she thought, trying desperately not to roll her eyes. "It's this whole Tyler Jones business, Dinah. I can't understand why you felt the need to help him. He's no good. Look at what he did to that girl."

"Dad, I'm not ten years old. I make my own decisions and form my own opinions these days. I chose to believe him when Tyler said he didn't do anything wrong. After all, innocent until proven guilty right? And so far, it's her word against his. Like it was when she said I stole her bracelet. Do you remember that?"

His brows furrowed, puzzling over the memory. "That's the girl?" Dinah nodded fervently. "Of course, I remember that. Practically had the whole town in an uproar over that. That was the last time Gwen Mason talked down to me as a matter of fact," he added, smiling suddenly at the memory. "When your mother told her to sit her white ass down during that School Board meeting, I thought I would die laughing. It wasn't as if Gwen cared at all but damn, it was amusing."

There was an opportunity here, Dinah realized. He wasn't treating her like a ten year old right now... Perhaps, she wondered, he might be willing to ease up on her if she told him what he wanted to hear. She leaned against John, laying her head against his shoulder.

"Daddy, I'm not a little girl anymore. I know Tyler could be dangerous but he's long gone. And he's not coming back. At least, if he's smart. I promise, I'm not trying to make you mad either. Won't you ease up just a little?"

"I wish that I could Dinah. But I don't know what's going on in that head of yours. I couldn't stand it if you were hurt. These restrictions are for your own good."

"So you're going to keep me from seeing Mia then?" She pouted.

"Of course not. You can see Mia, but you've got to ask me first. Okay? You can't run off like you did today." He squeezed her hand. "I promise as soon as you show me you're responsible and this Tyler Jones is behind bars where he belongs, you can do as you please. Agreed?" She bit back the words she really wanted to say, merely nodding in agreement. He stood, pausing to pat her head like she was ten. "All right, now go help your mother with dinner."

"I will. Let me mark my place," Dinah said, masking her real emotions carefully. She pulled the piece of paper she had written Kelly's number on out of her pocket and tucked it into her book. He could tell her it was all for her own good until he was blue in the face, she would never believe it. John Stafford wanted control and he wanted to be right. But this time, she intended to be the one who was right. All she had to do was prove Tyler was innocent.

Scene 2:

The two weeks solely spent decorating her new home had only briefly diverted her thought flow and now she had to do the dirty work; sorting through boxes of keepsakes and memories. The only memories she kept were pictures and even that was sometimes too much.

Reese Patricks kicked aside a box filled with skating medals and they clanged against each other interrupting the rabid silence of the house. Reese picked up the box she had been avoiding unpacking and she swallowed hard as she lifted the first item out of the box. A framed black and white wedding picture. Jay dressed casually in a button up white shirt and khakis and her in a summery white dress. Eloping in the south of France. That lasted...less than a year. It took her less than a year to screw up her marriage. How come she was finally able to get herself together and make it work when they lived together, but as soon as they married she messed it all up. Sometimes she wondered if it was unconsciously intentional.

Reese trailed her finger over Jay's face in the picture, memorizing the features she already knew. If she closed her eyes, the picture almost came to life and she was with Jay again and happy. She could still remember the texture of his hair, the fullness of his lips, the way Jay smelled.

The shrill ring of the phone pierced the air. Reese choked on her thoughts and swallowed her invisible tears. She sat there in shocked silence for a second before the phone rang again.

"I'm coming," Reese mumbled to no one in particular, moving up off the floor and over to the phone. "Hello," she breathed into the phone, in her unmistakable softly raspy voice.

"Reese? It's Georgie!" Georgie Corelli chirped through the phone line. They were still sisters-in-law even if Georgie's idiot brother blew it with Reese. "Mom gave me your number, I hope it's okay that I call," she added feeling like an idiot.

Reese smiled at the familiar accent. The smile was tinged with bitterness though at hearing her ex-sister-in-law's voice, but it warmed her nonetheless. "Oh, no, it's great. I gave it to her so everyone could keep in touch," Reese hurried in, not wanting Georgie to feel as though she were imposing.

"I can't believe you're here! When Mom told me you were moving home, I thought you were moving back to Jersey," Georgie explained. "But I forgot your parents lived here. You know what though? I'm so glad there's someone I know in this town now!"

It was true too. She was tired of making small talk with the nurses at the hospital who ignored her most of the time and the doctors who treated her like kitchen help. The only ones who had been remotely nice to her had been Dr. Stafford and Dr. Gennaro. But Dr. Stafford was about fifty and dull. And Galen Gennaro...well, he had an ego the size of Kansas.

"Yeah, I was born here. We left for Russia when I was five," Reese remarked, dragging a box in front of her to shift through it. "Gina said you got a nursing job at the local hospital, how's that working out?"

"So far, so good. Most of the time I baby-sit for the chief of staff. Would you believe the guy has an 18 year old daughter he treats like she's 4? Talk about a control freak!" Georgie laughed. It was good to be able to tell someone about her life at last. "But she's no picnic either. All in all though, I like it a lot."

"Babysitting an 18 year old? Want me to send my 17 year old sister over to play?" Reese asked with a laugh. "They sound like they might hit it off because is Kinsey certainly isn't a picnic, but since we moved back to Virginia and she quit skating she seems to be less...angst," Reese laughed. The sound of Georgie's laugh relaxed her. She fell back on the plush carpet, enjoying simply chatting with someone.

"What about you? Momma said you were coaching or something?"

"Yeah, coaching, ironic huh?" Reese said with a sigh. "An old friend asked me to at this small local rink and I needed a change so I said okay. I'm only coaching one girl right now, though. Kind of easing me into things, I guess," Reese explained.

"Local rink? You know, not to rain on your parade...but I heard somewhere that all that stuff where the rink is was being bought up for some renovation project," Georgie gossiped.

"The rink itself isn't, but yeah they're doing a huge renovation downtown and doing some renovations on the rink. I think they should just tear it down completely. There's only one rink and I don't think it's even Olympic sized, but hey I no longer participate in the elite skating scene," Reese stated, pulling a random picture out of Reese, Georgie, Lisa, Gina, and Jay.

"Momma always says things happen for a reason. Even if we think the reasons are pretty awful." She had meant the end of Reese's skating career and nothing else, but she couldn't help but think of Jay. "So, what else is new in your life?" She asked, trying not to get maudlin over her brother's recent idiocy in divorcing Reese.

Reese pondered the remark in silence. With a shake of her head she answered. "New?" Reese echoed. "Um...coaching, decorating my new house...that's really it."

"Well, at least you have someplace to live. I, on the other hand, am about to get kicked out of this apartment if I don't find a roommate. Too bad you have a house of your own."

"There is plenty of room here if you need to stay for a bit. Why are you about to get kicked out?" Reese asked, continuing to look through her pictures.

"Well, I had this roommate when I moved here and she was okay I guess, but she ran off with some doctor and left me with all her back rent due. And I love this place...well, it's okay, I'll find something. But I appreciate the offer anyway. Don't think it would work," she laughed, "but thank you!"

"Well, if you don't find a place by the time you have to move out, you can stay here while you search," Reese said nonchalantly. "I need to invest in a couple photo albums for all my pictures."

Reese heard the front door open and Kinsey burst through with one of her friends. "Reese, we still having dinner at Mom and Dad's?" she asked as her feet beat on the stairs.

"Sadly, yes," Reese answered, flipping her watch over on her wrist. "I have family duties Georgie." Reese rolled her eyes. "That's the bad thing about moving here. I have to see my parents."

"Ah and that would be the good thing for me...NO family duties," Georgie laughed. "Well go on then. And let's have lunch soon. I've been dying to get out and around in this town. And I think you're the perfect excuse."

"Lunch sounds like a plan," Reese agreed with a smile, tossing all the pictures back in the boxes. Those would probably go into storage before she actually got around to buying photo albums. "Take care, Georgie," Reese said and hung up. She sighed. Family duties. What a joke.

Scene 3:

"Do you believe in aliens?"

"Yeah, I was abducted by them as a child and the people who you think are my parents are actually aliens."

Catherine laughed and rolled over onto her side, the metal of the car hood slightly giving into her weight, but quickly popping back into place. "No, seriously," she insisted.

He casually rolled his head over to look at her. He smiled at how intently her eyes burned when she asked about something she considered a serious matter. Her dark hair fell into her face, shielding those intent eyes from his view. To most not looking into those intent eyes would be a relief, but he pushed her layered bangs from her face and placed it behind her ears where she preferred to keep them.

"It would be awfully narrow-minded of me to assume that we are the only life supporting planet in the entire, ever expanding universe."

"You can never deliver a simple, yes or no can you," she retorted with a playful smile.

"You would hate it if I did," he returned with a matching smile.

"What do you think these aliens would look like?" she asked with the same intentness as her first question.

"I can't say," he admitted with a casual shrug.

"Have you ever thought that these creatures from another planet, galaxy, whatever look nothing like what we humans can imagine because it's never been seen before by humans...so therefore there are no human words for it."

He grinned widely at Catherine, "so you're basically saying, you don't believe that something can come from nothing."

"Yeah, something like that. What about you?"

"I try not to assume or believe in anything at all."

Catherine sighed, absently twirling one of his curls in her fingers. "So you don't truly believe in anything? What about yourself, do you believe in yourself?"

One could always expect Catherine to find a hole in your well-laid plan or theological thought process. He released a heavy breath of air as he contemplated her question. "In a sense no, but in the usual way yes," he replied.

Catherine rolled her eyes again, "never a simple yes or no," she murmured.

"Why should everything be simple?" he asked.

"Using your theology, nothing is either simple nor complex."

A hearty laugh escaped his throat, "Oh, Catherine, as usual you got me." Tightening the muscles in his abdomen, he lifted himself into a sitting position on the red hood. The door of the garage was flung open as his sister strode into the room and set an AutoZone plastic bag on the floor.

"Jareth stop trying to feel my best friend up, it's not allowed in the sibling contract," she said as she ground her cigarette out in an ash tray as she dropped down into a chair. Jareth held up his hands in defense and slid off the hood of his car.

"Got oil for my baby?" he asked, plucking the bag up from the floor.

"Some of it's for mine." Darcy exhaled the cigarette smoke and it swirled up above her head. Jareth grabbed a bottle and popped the hood of the 1968 Camaro SS 396 as Catherine reluctantly slid off.

"Cat are we still going to go to the club in Richmond tonight?" Darcy demanded.

"I thought that was the plan," she remarked simply.

"Alright, cool, I'm gonna change, then we will stop by your house, kay?" Catherine nodded and Darcy turned and darted up the stairs to her overhead room.

"You coming?" she asked, turning towards Jareth.

Jareth shook his head and laughed, "I'd spoil your image of me if you ever caught me dancing."

A smile turned the corners of her mouth, "what makes you think I have you labeled? A little egotistical of you Jareth McCormick."

He shrugged and smiled, turning back to his car and his back to Catherine. "Whatever you say Catherine Fairchild. Whatever you say."

Scene 4:

Georgie hung up from her all too brief phone call with Reese and immediately dialed her mother's number in Richmond. Reese had always been the perfect girl for Georgie's brother, Jay, even if he was too stubborn to realize it. When Gina had learned that Reese would be nearby, she had kicked into overdrive trying to figure out a way to get Reese and Jay back together. Georgie wanted nothing to do with it, but she was no match for the will of Gina Corelli.

"Hi Momma. I just got off the phone with Reese," she said as soon as the phone was answered.

"Took you long enough Georgia Louise," Gina snapped. "How is she? Is she miserable? Don't tell me she has a boyfriend!"

Georgia sighed, getting comfortable on the couch. This would be a long one. "No, Momma. She isn't looking. But she says she has a beautiful house and is coaching. She sounded all right."

"All right? Well, that won't do us any good." Gina sighed. "But I'm glad she's all right."

"That's better. Honestly, Momma. Jay and Reese couldn't work things out...we should let it go." there was an audible sigh on the other end. "Momma, you and I both know how much they love each other. But let's face it, they had everything going against them. Their age...Reese's family...us...Jay's history. Maybe it's best that they aren't together."

"I know you're right. But Jay is miserable. And I have to do something about it. I can't watch him like this...it's tearing me apart."

"But it's his life..."

"I have an idea!" Gina interrupted suddenly. "We'll come visit you and you can arrange for Reese and Jay to meet. If we can just get them together in a room perhaps they'll start to talk. Yes, that is what we'll do. Jay and I will come...how about next week? Wonderful! Now, I have shopping to do. Can't have your little Southern town think I am fashion don't. See you next week Sweetie!"

"Perfect," Georgie muttered hanging up the phone. Reese was not going to like being tricked. And neither would Jay for that matter. Well, she could always head it off at the pass and let them know what Gina planned. But then again, Reese and Jay together again would be nice and Gina Corelli was not nice when you went behind her back. She sighed and threw herself down on the couch. So much for being neutral.