Mending Fences

"Well...um...goodnight. And thanks again," he said, as he looked at her hands as though he wasn't sure what to do.

Ella wasn't, either, but her hands—and her arms—seemed to have a will of their own as they raised up to give Chase a hug. He smiled, hesitated, then accepted the gesture and hugged her back. It was quick and polite but also very pleasant.

"Drive safe!" Ella said as she pulled away.

"I will. And thank you again," Chase promised as he opened the door and let himself out.

Ella's incredibly good mood lasted until she got to the kids' rooms to tuck them in, and once they were in bed she realized how ridiculous she was being. Chase was maybe 26, if he'd enlisted at 18 and gone straight to college, and she was 40 years old. And he was attractive enough that he almost certainly had a revolving door wherever he lived for the bevy of women who undoubtedly shared their...time with him.

"Or maybe he's found someone he didn't mention and on the verge of asking her to marry him," Ella told herself as she sat down. Alone. With her thoughts.

It was a little after eleven when she heard Steve pull into the garage.

"How bad was it?" she asked when he got inside.

"Well, no one died and no one was injured. But the jet is...FUBAR."

Knowing how serious this was, Ella didn't laugh at the acronym she knew meant 'f-d up beyond all recognition'. One could use 'fouled up' instead, but not many Marines were concerned with well...foul...language, so....

"The Group CO is pissed," Steve told her. "He was up my ass all evening."

"So...how bad is it?"

"He didn't fire me, so that's a good thing," Steve said with no small amount of disgust.

Like everything else that happened on his watch, it was his responsibility even when it wasn't his fault.

"The Wing will be doing an investigation as will the NTSB. The most preliminary estimate is well over the million dollar threshold to make this a Class A mishap, so we shall see."

Not one to blame others or feel sorry for himself, Steve looked at his sister then forced a smile and asked how things went.

"Oh, my goodness! I think Derek's got a serious man crush going on. Chase showed him how to wrestle, and he just ate it up."

"My son? Derek? He likes wrestling?" the Marine lieutenant colonel asked with no small amount of shock.

"Steve! You should have seen him! He listened so carefully and did everything Chase told him and had the best time I can remember."

"And Chloe told me she enjoyed the visit, too. Oh, and Chase said to tell you thanks for having him and he hopes he's...what did he say?"

Ella thought for a moment then laughed.

"Oh, right. He hopes he's 'mended fences'. With you and the Marine Corps."

Steve laughed and told her he had.

"I don't hold grudges, and with Chase, I never had one. He was definitely a bit of a challenge, but all in all he wasn't such a bad Marine. And the main thing is that he's turned things around."

"I agree," Ella said.

"So how about you, El? What did you think of him?"

"Oh. I...I thought...he seems like a very nice young man. And like you said, he's obviously very smart."

"Yeah. A degree in chemistry. And Summa Cum Laude, for crying out loud!"

Ella laughed but stopped when her brother said, "No other impressions?"

"Such as?" she replied, even as her brain swirled with questions about what her brother was asking and why.

He only smiled, shrugged then said, "I don't know. I guess he is pretty young, huh?"

Before she could respond, her brother said, "I'm beat. I'm gonna hit the rack," more Marine speak for 'going to bed'.

But before he left the room he thanked her for pinch hitting.

"It was my pleasure," she told him.

As she sat back down, now too wired to sleep, she wondered what had changed as she found herself asking, "Why not?" where Chase was concerned.

After all, she was single and so was he, and while there was a significant age gap, it wasn't like they were going to...get married. But why couldn't they be friends? Or maybe even friends...with benefits?

She dismissed the latter thought almost immediately for what seemed to be obvious reasons, but the former thought stayed with her during the following week. Although she never mentioned it to Steve, she found herself online one day looking at the home page for New Bern High School.

She learned their mascot was 'The Bears' and that in 2012 they were North Carolina's 4A state champions in wrestling. She also just happened to click on 'Teachers and Staff' then scrolled down until she found Chase's name and a school email address.

"No. No way," she told herself as she clicked out of the site and logged off the computer.

But by Monday of the next week, she convinced herself that it couldn't possibly do any harm to just drop him a quick note to let him know how much she enjoyed having him for dinner. The way that was worded made her laugh, and although she wasn't sure, she may have even blushed a little at the thought of 'having had him' at all.

"But...I can think of worse things," she said out loud to herself with a laugh as she clicked on his email address and watched him name appear in the 'To' line.

Ella sat there staring at the screen and almost closed the email because she felt a little silly for even wanting to write it. But she made the feeling go away by telling herself there was nothing wrong with letting someone know you enjoyed talking with them. And there was the added truth that the kids, and especially Derek, had really enjoyed his visit, so she made up her mind and started typing.

"Hi Chase. This isn't an angry parent. It's Ella. Steve's sister. From Havelock."

She erased 'from Havelock' then continued.

"I just wanted to let you know how much I..."

Again she made a correction changing 'I' to 'we'.

"We enjoyed your visit. Derek is still talking about wrestling and has been practicing the moves you taught him. He's asked me to be the other wrestler several times, but I'm afraid I'm not much help.

At any rate, it was a fun night for all of us, and...."

She thought about what might come next then wrote, "If you'd ever want to drop by again we'd love to have you."

She wrote her name, reread it, and then hit 'send'.

But within seconds of sending it she started feeling foolish again, something she should only feel if there was more to contacting him than a simple thank you. And yet she knew there was and told herself that as long as she didn't mention how she was feeling, Chase would only think it was a polite thank you note, even though he, as their guest, should be the one thanking them for hosting him.

Ella got up and tried to forget about the email—and Chase—but 30 minutes later she was back at the computer checking. And an hour later she checked again. By 5pm it was obvious Chase had gone home without responding, and that told Ella he'd read it but saw no reason to reply.

"Not that I blame him," a disappointed 40-year old woman said who comforted herself by saying it was probably a good thing.

When the phone rang about 7:45, Ella didn't give it any thought other than the absence of Chloe calling, "I'll get it!"

She picked it up and said, "Pratt residence. This is Ella."

"Ella. Hi. It's Chase. From...."

Before he could explain, Ella said, "Chase. Yes. Hi! How are you?"

"I'm fine. I read your email today, but I was crazy busy grading test papers during my planning period, then there was wrestling practice, and I never had a chance to reply. I hope I'm not disturbing dinner."

"No. We just finished. So this is...this is actually perfect."

"Oh, good. I was concerned about bothering you during family time, so I'm glad you all finished."

Chase didn't say 'y'all' the way most southerners did, but Ella didn't notice. Then again, he didn't have a southern accent, so it wasn't exactly unusual.

"So I uh, I was wondering if, well, we have a wrestling match this Friday, and I was thinking, you know, based on what you said in the email, that maybe Derek would like to see it."

Now Ella really felt foolish when she realized she was disappointed that the invitation was to Derek when that was the only thing that made any sense.

"Oh. Yes, I'm sure he'd enjoy that."

"It's a home match, so it'll be in our gym, and it starts at 7 o'clock. If you...or Steve...want to bring him."

"Let me talk to Steve and see, okay?"

She had no way of knowing that Chase was now the disappointed one as he was hoping Ella would have said something about wanting to take him herself or maybe even mention that she'd like to see him again. But he was a realist who understood that wrestling was about as interesting to people who didn't understand it as watching paint dry. And even more so, she was a beautiful, older woman who clearly didn't even think of him as a potential date.

So he hid his feelings and said, "Great. Yeah. Just let me know, okay? If you want to come I'll leave tickets for you at the booth out front."

"Oh. That's very nice of you, Chase. Thank you."

"My pleasure, Ella. And before I forget, I wanted to tell you I had a really great time. You know, visiting. And...talking with you."

A small ray of hope appeared as Ella said, "I'm so glad. I really enjoyed talking with you, too."

Chase wasn't lacking in confidence where women were concerned, but with Ella, he felt like he was in an impossible situation. She was a very attractive woman, but that wasn't the issue as he was also very good looking.

In his view, it was his age. She undoubtedly saw him as a young kid who'd stopped by to show a former authority figure he wasn't a total screwup, and that couldn't possibly have helped to bridge the already insurmountable age issue. Even so, he wanted to at least lay down a marker of sorts and decided to throw something out.

"You uh, you mentioned maybe getting together again or perhaps talking or...."

Feeling like he was rambling Chase stopped talking, collected his thoughts, took a deep breath, then said, "I just wanted to say that I would really like to do that."

Ella sat there...tingling...and not sure how to reply. But after a 'long second' of silence, said, "That...that would be very nice, Chase."

"I was kind of thinking that maybe it could just be...you and me. Talking."

Chase made a face to no one else indicating his awareness of how goofy that sounded, but again, he had no way of knowing that Ella didn't see it that way. She was experiencing something more than a tingling and smiled.

"I...I think that sounds...wonderful."

"Yeah?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Well, maybe we could talk about the what and when after the match?"

He immediately added, "If, of course, you were planning to watch."

"Yes. Definitely. I...I'd love to. And I know Derek will be thrilled."

"Great. I uh, I'll look forward to that then."

"Me, too," Ella said rather sweetly.

"So I'll uh, I'll see you on Friday?"

"Yes. Definitely."

"All right. Then I guess I'll let you go and say 'goodbye'."

"Okay. And Chase? I'm really glad you called."

"Me, too, Ella. Have a good night."

"You, too, Chase. Bye."

Both of them hung up amazed at how different they felt than when the conversation began. Still basking in the warmth of what was essentially an invitation for a date, Ella went to Derek's room and knocked.

"Hey, Aunt Ella," he said, looking up from the video game he was playing.

"You got a second?"

He paused the game then said, "Sure."

"I was wondering if you might like to go watch a wrestling match on Friday."

His eyes got big as he asked if it was Chase's match.

"Well, he's not wrestling, of course. He's the coach. But it is his team."

Derek flew off the bed and ran to his aunt and hugged her.

"That is SO awesome!"

"So is that a 'yes'?" his aunt teased.

Too excited to catch the playful sarcasm, Derek let go then said, "I'm only gonna watch wrestling videos until the match!"

Ella laughed in a way she hadn't in quite awhile then went to find Steve and let him know what was going on.

"That's fantastic! I'd love to see Derek get interested in sports. Any sport for that matter."

"Do you want to go with us?" she asked.

"Yes. Definitely. If Derek's excited about wrestling, I'm excited about wrestling. It's so funny. I played baseball, basketball, and football in high school, but never wrestled, and Derek doesn't like any of them. But anything that gets Derek off the couch is a good thing."

"Okay. It starts at seven, so I'll go let Chloe know."

"She may not be quite so excited," her brother said with a little laugh.

"No, but I bet if we mention ice cream before or after, she'll be happy to go."

"Good point!" Steve said with another laugh.

Chloe wasn't exactly thrilled, but she did want ice cream, and they didn't get out as a family all that much, so it was an opportunity to leave the house, and that was something she could look forward to, as well.

It was late Wednesday evening when Ella checked her email, and to her surprise there was a response from Chase to the email she'd sent him.

"Ella. Hi. I wanted to let you know that I have tickets for you and Steve. There's no charge for anyone under 14, so the kids are free. You can either pick them up ahead of time or just ask for them when you come in. They'll be in an envelope with your name on them at the ticket counter.

And I have to tell you I'm really looking forward to not only seeing you on Friday but to whatever we end up doing together after that."

She almost replied but then the thought occurred to her that she could stop by the school the next day and pick up the tickets in person during his planning period. It was possible she'd miss him, but she was willing to take the chance in the hope of being able to see him in person.

This time she didn't feel silly or embarrassed about wanting to see him. She just felt happy, and happy was something in short supply in her life, so she was going to enjoy it while it lasted.

She opened up Mozilla Firefox then typed in 'New Bern High School' and then got directions. She'd never been there, but it was a very easy drive from Havelock and would take maybe 20 minutes from Steve's house. And she could pick up both of the kids on her way home which made it seem even more reasonable.

By one o'clock the next day Ella was ready to go and took a quick look at herself in the mirror before leaving the house. It was very chilly outside, and what she was wearing would be mostly hidden under a coat, but she still wanted to look nice. And with only the top of her blouse showing, along with her jeans, she'd focused on her hair and makeup which both looked very nice.

When she arrived at the school, she went to the office to check in and ask where the teacher's lounge was located. The school secretary took her information then gave her a visitor's sticker which Ella place on her coat then followed the directions she was given.

Just as she was about to leave, the secretary said, "He's caused quite a stir around here."

Ella wasn't sure what to say when someone else, a young, female teacher who was doing some paperwork said, "You can say that again!"

She saw Ella then asked if she could show her to the lounge. Ella accepted and within seconds of leaving the office, the cute, much younger woman asked, "Are you Chase's mom by any chance?"

The happy mood not only vanished, Ella nearly bolted for her car. But her embarrassment turned to anger once she realized the question was a dig.

In a moment of weakness Ella smiled at the other woman then asked her, "Were you in the office getting a note to be excused for missing class?"

The 22-year teacher threw her head back a little just as they got to the lounge and didn't reply. She looked inside then said, "Oh look. I believe Chase is flirting. Again."

Ella also looked inside and saw Chase sitting at a table where another even cuter woman was also seated. She was laughing and Ella noticed her hand which reached out and landed on Chase's forearm.

The teacher who'd been snide stepped in front of Ella and walked in leaving the older woman standing outside. Ella went to push on the door when she noticed that Chase was laughing, too, and assumed he really was flirting with her. The butterflies in her tummy she'd been experiencing all day turned into a sour mash as she let go of the door and started to turn around.

Ella immediately starting chastising herself by asking what she thought she was doing. Chase was young, very good looking, fit, and able to have any girl he wanted. And yet, at 40, she'd let herself think he might want actually be interested in her. Guilt and even a little shame welled up inside her just as she heard someone call her name.

"Ella? Is that you?"

She stopped but didn't turn around.

"Ella? It's me. Chase," the voice said as it got closer.

He walked around her and stood in front of her and smiled.

"Hey. I thought that was you. You started to come into the lounge then turned around. Or at least that's what I was told."

"Oh. By the attractive girl you were with?" Ella replied, not with any kind of snideness but just a recognition that he was interested in someone else.

"With? No. I mean, yes, she was...with me...at the table. But she's not...we're not...together. Or anything close to it."

As Ella tried to understand Chase could tell what was going on.

"She's...."

Chase looked around then quietly said, "She's by far the biggest flirt on campus. And I'm not the only guy she flirts with."

Ella still didn't say anything so Chase said, "And I never flirt back."

Even after she understood, Ella was once again consumed by feelings of foolishness at the idea of ever being with Chase.

"I'm really not sure why I came here. I...I don't know what I was thinking," she said as she broke eye contact with him.

Chase kind of bent his head down indicating he wanted her to look at him and waited until she did. When she finally did he smiled at her.

"Ella, I was so happy to see you, and I was hoping that perhaps you came here because you felt the same way."

She was now looking at him but still silent.

"About me."

She looked down at the empty space between them and said, "I'm not sure what I was thinking, Chase."

She looked up then added, "Or why."

He moved a few inches closer then quietly asked if he could venture a guess.

Ella shrugged but didn't speak.

"I think maybe you were thinking that I might...like you. And perhaps you were even hoping that was true because maybe...maybe you kind of like me, too."

He inched closer still then asked, "Am I even close?"

Ella had glanced up at him once then looked back down, but the empty space between them was now all but gone. Chase gently reached out and touched her fingers then spoke again.

"I do like you, Ella. And I was hoping that maybe you like me, too."

"Like you?" she asked, as the sourness in her stomach began melting away.

"Well...yes. I know I probably come across as...."

Ella looked at him again and when he paused said, "As?"

"I know I'm younger than you. But I...I don't know. I just really enjoyed talking to you and...being around you so much that I...I think I let myself believe that you might be able to...overlook the age difference. At least long enough to give me a chance to let you see that I'm more than my age."

Chase was watching Ella's eyes, and they were fixated on his. They were zipping back and forth between his as he spoke, and when he finished, she finally touched his fingers back as she spoke.

"I know I'm...older than you, Chase. I'm, well, I'm...acutely aware of that. But I...I just assumed that because I'm, you know, so much older, that you wouldn't...that you couldn't...feel the way...."

"Mr. Reynolds! Whaddup?" a male student said as he walked by.