The Modern Love Waltz - 2. Chapter 2

2: Condolences from the Bar

I awoke the next morning. It took a few moments for my mind to catch up with my body. I felt a sort of displacement. The room was unfamiliar. After a few seconds of this delusion I remembered that this was Ms. Woods's rental home.

Then another realization struck me, my grandmother was dead. This had happened the previous morning as well. I wondered if I could ever stop coming to that sick realization every morning.

Thirty minutes later I stepped out of the shower and examined myself in the mirror. I still looked tired; I figured this was just the fact that sadness had been commanding my emotions for the past two days. My usually glowing face seemed dull. I ran my hand through the buzzed blonde hair on my head. Having had numerous girlfriends in the past, I knew that I was good-looking. My teammates always seemed to pick on me the most about it. I guess I never truly cared about my looks; however my passion for soccer led me to work out vigorously every day. The looks were just a fortunate byproduct.

I changed into jeans and a collared shirt to make myself more presentable for my parents who were no doubt at my Pop's house by now. As I stuck my cell phone and wallet in my pockets and grabbed my keys, I left the rental home.

*~*~*

This time, as I drove up to Pops' home, my parents and Pops stood on the front porch to greet me. My mother looked so sad, as well she should, Nana was her mother. As I got out of the SUV, she stepped down the porch's three steep steps and held her arms out to me. I hugged her tight, "Hey mom."

She sniffled before replying, "Hi Sam." Then she barely choked out "How are you doing?"

"I'm all right mom, how are you holding up?"

"Oh you know... I'm fine, I'm fine," she replied.

She and I climbed the steps of the porch, once on the porch my father hugged me. "I'm sorry we couldn't be there son."

"Don't worry about it dad. I'm fine." I hadn't realized how much I had missed my parents. In this incredibly sad new experience I had no one to talk to. No shoulder to cry on. But I did fine. It seemed that I felt more sadness and worry for my mom rather than for myself. I can't imagine how she must feel.

I spent the entire day with my parents and Pops. I hadn't realized the incredible amount of things that were necessary to prepare for a funeral. The obituary, the funeral home, the flowers... It was all so overwhelming for Mom, so my Dad and I took care of most of it. It was also incredible how many people in Heathsville brought food over, and all different kinds of food for every time of day. Pops wouldn't have to cook for at least a week.

At around nine o'clock my parents and Pops decided to go to bed. My parents had always gone to bed very early. I wasn't tired so I decided to head over to Teeny and Joe's. It was a bar on the edge of the town. I had been going there since I was eighteen. They wouldn't serve me because I'm underage, but they would always let me hang around.

It was a pretty popular place every night. It was seemingly the only thing to do in the entire town. I pushed the door open and stepped inside. The warmth flooded my face. The whole bar fell silent as they peered to see who had entered.

When they saw it was me there were cheers, I was popular and everyone knew me. I smiled and waved back. Almost everybody left their tables and drinks to shake my hand and welcome me back (and most tagged on an "even under such regrettable circumstances).

I was the reason most of these people even knew how soccer was played because once I turned the TV to a soccer match instead of a football game and made them watch it. They loved it and ever since they had been hooked on the sport. They called it "my legacy in Heathsville."

A mid the crowd of people that slowly dispersed back to their tables and conversations, I saw Zach. Zach Kress had always been a good friend of mine. For as long as I can remember I had always played with him when we visited my grandparents, which was pretty often. He was more like family than a friend. In fact my grandparents were his godparents.

"Hey Sam," Zach said, his deep voice a mixture of regret and happiness. I held my hand out for a handshake; however he pushed it aside and hugged me tightly. I timidly hugged back, afraid of letting my emotions show to my closest friend here.

I tried to say hi back, but initially no sound came out.

"Come sit with me at the bar," Zach said placing his hand on my shoulder he led me to an empty stool next to the one he had been occupying earlier. "So how are you holding up?"

It was so unusual for Zach to maintain a sullen expression, and it made it harder for me to keep my composure.

"I'm doing fine," I whispered. "She was a big part of your life too. How are you doing?"

"She was an amazing woman. I'll miss her," Zach replied. "Hey Bill!"

The bartender turned around and saw me sitting next to Zach, "Well look at that! Sam! How you doing? Let me get you a glass!" Bill (who was now at least sixty) had inherited the bar from his parents a long time ago from his parents and named it after them. No one really knows what the bar used to be called.

He began to fill a glass with beer. I did enjoy the occasional drink even though I was underage; however I had never been served here before. "Bill, I'm still underage," I said.

"Oh, you could use it!" Bill said as he placed it in front of me. "I'll let you two get back to talking. It's great to see you Sam, and I'm so sorry to hear about Jane."

"Thanks Bill," I replied.

Zach held his drink in the air (he had been twenty-one for a few months now), "To an amazing woman," he was speaking loud enough for the entire bar to hear. "Jane Gardner was a staple of this town. Without her Heathsville would have been a different place, in my opinion, a more boring place. She will be remembered. To Jane!"

"To Jane!" The bar replied with one voice, them to raising their glasses and drinking.

"To Jane," I managed to whisper a second later and raised my glass to my mouth and sipped the amber liquid.

"So how long are you in town?" Zach asked. I was thankful that the subject was being changed. I didn't know how much more discussion of my grandmother I could take.

"Well then funeral is Saturday, so probably just for Friday, Saturday and maybe Sunday. It's all kind of up in the air," I replied.

"Yeah I understand. You need a place to stay? I got my own house down Hawkes Lane. The old Lloyd house, he moved out a while ago."

"Wow! Your own house. Naw, I'm staying in Ms. Woods' rental home."

"Aw, that's a great little place. I always loved it when you stayed there and we watched the random sports channel she gets," Zach said chuckling.

I had forgotten about the obscure sports channel that Ms. Woods' home had that played soccer all the time. The channel had appeared on the TV when I was fourteen, which was when I was becoming very serious with my soccer playing. "Yeah, I think she may have ordered that channel specifically for me."

"No question," Zach replied.

"Well you can always come by if you want to."

"I just may take you up on that offer tomorrow night. I'm gonna have to turn in soon. I have work tomorrow."

"Oh yeah, what are you doing these days?"

"I'm working for Ted. I'm the only mechanic now that he's gotten too old to do the work himself. He just manages the shop now," Zach replied with pride. Zach had always had a magic touch with cars and engineering. He could have gone to Virginia Tech, the leading engineering school in Virginia, but he couldn't afford it. If soccer was my passion, his was cars.

"That sounds like the perfect job for you!" I replied smiling. "There must be a lot of work around here since most of the cars were built in the seventies!"

"Oh you bet. I wonder when the people of Heathsville are going to realize that it is inevitably cheaper to invest in a new car, rather than keep running to me to fix it," Zach joked.

An old man behind me replied, "Oh but you do such a good job, Zach!"

I turned and saw Mr. Smith, an old friend of my grandfather's. "Hey Mr. Smith," I said.

"I'm just leaving for the night and wanted to say that it's great to see you Sam!"

"Thanks Mr. Smith!"

"See you folks later," Mr. Smith said as he made his way out the bar.

"Well that's my cue, I better get going. We'll meet up here around eight-ish tomorrow night?" Zach asked standing from his stool.

"Sounds good," I said pulling my wallet out to pay for my drink.

"Forget it Sam!" Bill said as he spotted what I was planning on doing.

"Thanks Bill!" I replied as me and Zach turned and left the bar.

"See you tomorrow!" Zach said as he climbed into his red truck.

"See ya!" Driving back to the rental home I thought about how great it was to see Zach. I missed him when I was home, we just were such great friends, it was a pity we lived so far apart.