FicWad

3. COINCEDENCE OR A SIGN?

“Trixi! Get those last plates from table eight!” Cal, Catherine’s son called to me from the dishwasher.
I sighed and took my little basket over. I stacked all of the plates on top of one another and sprayed the table before I wiped it down.
My feet were throbbing and sore from being up all day and I longed for the denim couch back home.
Even though Sundays weren’t very busy, it was still hard work and my cheeks were also throbbing and sore from smiling all day.
“Five can’t come fast enough on days like these huh?” he said smiling at me when I came into the kitchen with my stack.
I nodded in agreement, “especially on a Sunday.”
I dumped the dishes then I leaned back on the bench, exhausted.
He nodded too, then rinsed and stacked the plates in the washer.
Cal was twenty, blond and tall. He had a handsome face and a cheeky smile. He was a fun guy to work with.
“Any plans for tonight?” he asked trying to be casual, wiping down the bench top and then leaning back on it next to me.
Cal asked this question every day, and everyday I had to reject him.
I screwed my apron around between my fingers and shook my head slowly.
Tonight, after I picked Ollie up from daycare, I would go home, make us some dinner, bathe Ollie, read him a story, put him to bed, clean up the kitchen, fold the washing and fall asleep on the couch watching the Bulls game, the re-run of course.
But I wasn’t going to tell him that.
The only person that I worked with that knew that I had a son was Catherine.
“Just a quiet night for me, I have to work again tomorrow.”
He screwed his face up in a funny way.
I laughed.
“Do you ever treat yourself to a night out? Or is that just your favorite excuse to use every time I ask that question?”
I snorted.
“I wish! Cal, no I’m serious. My apartment is a pigsty, and it’s autumn! My spring clean is six months late!”
He smiled and shrugged, “whatever makes you happy.” The tone of his voice annoyed me; I quickly wanted the conversation topic off me.
“Well, what about you then?” I asked almost defensively, “any glorious plans organized for once you leave here?”
He shook his head with a light cheeky smile on his face, “no, don’t think so, I have to work tomorrow.”
I laughed and nudged him with my hip, “stop it! No, really though, what are you doing tonight?”
“Are you asking me out?”
I was just about to answer his cheeky question with a whack on his arm (in a friendly way of course), when another voice answered for me.
“I sure hope not.”
Both Cal and I stopped laughing and playing around. And turned stunned toward the door way where he stood holding a single white orchid.
“William?” I asked in surprise.
Cal was standing with his mouth open in awe.
William smiled widely, “I was the last time I checked.” He walked into the kitchen, having to duck his head under the door frame the same way Cal had to.
He gave me the flower and kissed me on the forehead.
Cal nudged me painfully with his elbow.
Well, this is awkward.
I smiled despite the strange situation.
“Oh!” I half laughed when I realised what Cal meant. “Cal, this is William Beckett, William, this is Callum Harris.”
William put his hand forward to shake Cal's.
i laughed nervously when Cal didn’t react.
"Cal c’mon"
Still no movement or any sign of life form the guy.
"CAL!" i snapped him out of his trance. He outstretched his shaky hand and William shook it briefly before releasing it.
I let the awkward silence linger while i studied my flower.
I remember gardening with my mum when I was younger. Orchids were her favorite flower in the world. When we moved, every where we lived we had thirty pots of orchids sitting around the house. When they flowered she would smile and those were always happy times when my mum smiled.
I touched the purple veined base of my orchid flower gently and smiled myself.
When you move out of that apartment you can have all the orchids you want.
Remembering what i had left was hard and most times painful, but its the happy memories that make me wonder, what if...?
William cleared his throat.
"I’m glad you like the flower."
I smiled and nodded happily, "its absolutely gorgeous William, thank-you."
He came to stand next to me and wound a possessive arm around my waist.
Cal’s stare of awe was slowly disintegrating into something more of a frown.
"So," Cal started, "h-h-how do you two know each other?" he finished hesitantly.
William was about to answer when I elbowed him in the ribs.
"Mutual friends." I smiled convincingly.
William frowned down at me from his towering height, I pleaded to him silently using my eyes.
Cal only nodded. "Well, I suppose that I should go home now..." he said after a while.
"Yeah me too." I replied, slowly unwinding myself from William. Then I took off out of the kitchen and out the back door.
I was almost at my car but William reached me before I could get the door open.
"Trixi! wait! What the hell?"
I sighed heavily and halted my brisk walk/run.
"Do we have to do this again?" he asked stopping just behind me and spinning me by my wrist to face him.
I nodded.
“WHY! He spluttered, exasperated.
I shrugged, “because… because… because I’m too average for you William! You barely know anything about me except for the odd time that I show up at one of Suporta Parties.”
He nodded eyes wide.
“Whats wrong with that? So far, it’s just made me want to get to now you better!”
I shook my head and turned back to my car, I went to ruffle through my purse for my keys. The longer I stood there with William taking in the complete trashiness of my beaten up ford escort the worse I felt.
I didn’t feel bad for myself, or William, or Cal. I felt bad for Ollie.
There William stood; ready to accept me for me, even to be a potential “father” for my “fatherless” son.

One problem
William didn’t know about Oliver, at all.
I froze and then groaned.
My car keys were still on the key hook in the kitchen of the Café—and my cell phone was charging by the fridge.
I turned back to go and get them, but when I twisted the handle, I found that the door was locked.
“Oh Cal, please! C’mon!” I hammered on the door with my fist, knowing that it was pointless because I was too late.
“what’s happened?” William spoke softly form behind me.
”I left my keys and my phone in the kitchen!” I cried in frustration.
“CAL!!!!!” I was almost ready to knock the door down. I checked my watch; I had a set time to pick Ollie up at 5.15 from daycare. It was now 5.10 and I didn’t have my car keys!!
“Don’t stress!” said William trying to calm me down from my mild state of hysteria, “I’ll give you a ride.” He finished the sentence as if he had just won the lottery.
I rested my head on the face of the door and tried to concentrate on keeping my breathing even.
Cue the light bulb popping up over my head.
“William! Do you have your phone on you?”
“Sure thing, who do you need to call?” he pulled his phone out.
I bit my lip.
He might be busy, but it’s your only chance unless you wanna come clean.
“Would you mind if I called Pete?” I pleaded.
He looked confused for half a heartbeat but then something flashed in his dark eyes.
“Wentz?” he looked unsure and pretty much retracted his phone from my open palm but I begged.
”Please William! It’s not a trick I just really need him to pick some…thing up for me.”
He still looked unsure. I suppose I would too but right now was a time of necessity and you shouldn’t be worrying weather I was a plot crazy fan that would do anything to hear my hero’s voice.
“How do you know Pete?”
“That’s like asking ‘how do I know Suporta?’ I just do,” I softened my voice, “please William.” I even batted my eyelashes a bit.
He sighed. “…okay” and handed over the phone as if he had just handed over the keys to the money vault in a bank.
I scrolled the contacts list and found him under ‘Petey Wentzy’, I gave William a funny look, but then I touched the ‘dial’ icon on the iPhone’s screen.
I put the phone to my ear and I counted the rings.
Five… … Six … …
“Bill?”
Relief!
“Pete!” I exhaled my breath that I had been holding. “Pete, it’s me Trixi, look, where are you?”
His tone lightened, “Trixi? What the? Where’s your phone? And uhh…I’m just leaving the studio now, whats happened? Why are you calling from Beckett’s phone?”
I rolled my eyes.
“Long story, I’ll tell you later, but can you PLEASE—” I put obvious emphasis on the please, “—go to Junior Station for me? I can't get there on time right now and you know how she doesn’t like me and hates it how I’m late all the time.”
“Sure… you know I’m always happy to. But—”
“Please and thank-you Pete, I promise I will tell you everything later. Thank you a million times over. I’ll pay you back.”
He laughed “don’t worry about it, just call me tonight.”
I smiled widely and William smiled too.
“You’re a legend Pete! Thanks so much, yes OK sure thing … around ten. Thank you again. Bye.”
I hung up and handed the phone back to William.
“Thank you so much for that.”
“No problem, but does this mean that I get to give you a ride home?”
“I suppose it does.” I surrendered.
Some things, people just had to know. Like where I live for instance, he might be better off knowing how poor and lower class I really am, but it was going to be too hard to avoid.
He led me around the front to where he had parked his sleek black Mercedes. He opened up the passenger side door for me to climb in as gracefully as I could without damaging the vehicle, after removing my apron of course.
As soon a he put the key in the ignition the whole dash board lit up with a neon blue stereo system.
“Whoa…” my mouth fell open and I almost drooled it was that cool.
He smiled proudly, “pretty awesome huh?”
I nodded I agreement times fifty! His car probably cost more than my wardrobe and apartment combined!
The car took off smoothly and TBS started playing quietly through the speakers.
“So, what was so important that you needed Pete to pick up?” He asked, doing well at trying to seem casual.
I gave him a sideways look while I fought WWIII in my head.
I might as well just come out and tell him before either of us got too into this thing. If there was a thing, which I was kind of disappointed to think that there wouldn’t be once I had come clean. I mean like, who would want a girl with so much baggage? He wasn’t a complicated guy and this would just drown him. Then there would be the other half of explaining… but I would just tell him what we told everyone else, Pete just took me under his wing like any friend would. His only connection to Ollie is a ‘father figure’ in his life because I didn’t know who his real daddy was.
Lies made the story seem so much easier.
“William.” I was surprised at how small my voice had turned, William had to lower the already lo volume of the music to hear me.
“How much do you really want to know about me?”
He gave me a tender look for a moment and then turned his eyes back to the road.
“As much as you’re going to let me?”
Was he asking permission?
I stared out the heavily tinted window wishing that I had a normal life.
I decided to give it a shot.
I suppose I really don’t remember any of the previous meetings with William that well, but he had bee nothing but extremely kind and a complete gentleman to me. The least I could do was giving him the truth.
“Ok then William. Pull over and let me fill you in on the basic details. I don’t want you running off the road I shock when you hear this one. Then once you drop me off you can decide if you ever want to see me again.”
He looked hurt and confused that I thought him to be shallow like that, but the way I dealt with the dramas in my life seemed to affect everyone else worse than it did to me.
“Where do I start?” I muttered to myself once we were safely stopped in a car park
“What’s Pete picking up?” He suggested, definitely not prepared for the answer I was about to give.
“My four year old Son, Oliver.” I stated bluntly.
It was his turn for his mouth to drop open.
I grimaced, “surprise!”” I joked without humor.
He sat there with his mouth gaping open.
I laughed lightly but then stopped because his expression didn’t falter.
I sighed,
He blinked.
I held my breath.
“That’s uh… that’s kind of intense.” He said finally.
“Like camping.” I muttered under my breath.
--{Geddit! Intense? Like Camping! BOOMTISH! Bad timing? Sorry. Back to it Shall we?
“So… you’re…with… someone?” he choked out.
I shook my head. “Single mother.”
He nodded slowly in understanding.
There was silence in the car.
“Is that the worst of it?” he cringed
No way!
I shrugged. “It’ll do for today.”
He smiled and restarted the car.