Synchronicity for Six Pt. 11

Once everyone had a look‑see around the place, they agreed it was time to get going. Tom and Julie had the longest drive to return to school and needed to get on the road before 3:00. Alan bemoaned his anxiety about seeing the insides which caused him to forget to bring both the flashlight and tape measure as he had intended.

"It's all right, Alan," Susan assured him. "I've got the keys and we can come back earlier in the day, maybe next Saturday, and see the rest of the space and take the measurements you want."

"We need to get an inspection completed as well. Gil, may I have a half‑day off whenever we can get the inspection scheduled? I'd like to be around for that, and I could take my measurements at that time and save Susan the extra trip on the weekend," Alan suggested.

Gil looked thoughtful and replied, "Let's talk about it in the morning, Alan. Susan has the contact numbers for most of the inspectors in the area. We need to review your projects' statuses. Then we can talk about a little time away from the office for you. After all, I wouldn't want to negatively impact any of the projects you are responsible for in your absence. Then you can get your inspection scheduled." Alan gave a twisted smile as his response to Gil's attempt at humor.

Susan made sure everything was locked up and Rose promised to share her impressions with the ladies on Tuesday morning. Everyone then departed for their respective homes. Tom, Julie, and David needed to retrieve their things before heading back to their respective schools.

On their drive back to State, Julie was practically gushing about everything she saw in the house and in the apartment. Tom just smiled, nodded at the appropriate times, and kept his opinions to himself. But he felt he had to speak up when Julie started in on how that apartment would be practically perfect for them for at least the summer and possibly through Christmas.

"Jules, my jewel, my love. We still don't know where I'm going to need to live. What if my first assignment is up in Centreville? There's no way I can make a 100‑mile commute, each way, on a daily basis." Julie got quiet with finally hearing his words as he continued. "Don't get me wrong. I love it that you can envision something so vividly. Your passion and excitement are obvious and very contagious. I'm not trying to squash them, but we need to be realistic, too. Right now, we just have so many unknowns affecting our future." He reached for her hand, which she lovingly placed in his.

Before he left, David and Maggie had some quiet time together; most of it was spent in a lip‑locked tongue battle. "Happy Valentine's Day, Magpie," he whispered. "I love you so very, very much."

"I love you too, Davey, my Boy Scout. We'll talk tonight, right?"

"Absolutely! I'll call you at 8:00," he promised. Starting a new tradition, he reached for her right hand and spun her ring completely around on her finger. He kissed it and held out his hand for her to reciprocate. Neither one said anything while doing this, but it bonded them just a little bit more.

David got in his Jeep and by fortune the radio station was playing "Wrapped Around Your Finger" by the Police. He smiled at the synchronicity, and drove away with a light heart.

Katie stood back and watched David taking his leave of Maggie. A small part of her still pined for him. She thought back and realized that his friendship with her nominal brother had inhibited her from doing anything more than gaze fondly at him. She resolved to become less hesitant and more outgoing in her relations with others, especially guys.

She perked up when she realized it was Sunday. She and Maggie would have a Trig tutoring session with Joy that evening. Oh, how she enjoyed those joint sessions! She scampered up to her room to gather her schoolwork.

Rose called Alan and the girls to supper. It was to be a 'Clean the Refrigerator' night, reheating some leftovers that had accumulated. There was enough for everybody to be fed. Afterward, Alan helped with the clean up while the girls headed off to the media room for their Zoom session with Joy.

That night Rose did not feel like using the dishwasher, and Alan sensed that she wanted to talk. So, he picked up the kitchen towel and began drying after she had washed and rinsed.

"Alan, are you good with everything that has happened?" Rose asked as they were side by side, washing and drying.

"Everything? No, Rose. To be painfully honest, I'm not," he answered, and the smile on her face disappeared like snow in a springtime shower.

"Go on," she prompted.

"I'm still not good with Laura being ripped from my life; I may never be." Alan paused for a moment to collect himself and continued. "However, I'm quite happy and content with everything that has happened since Tom brought Julie home for the Thanksgiving holiday." He turned and gently pulled her into his chest. "Happy Valentine's Day, my love."

He launched into a song that she had never heard before. It showed off his baritone voice in a way that was totally unexpected:

You are my nights,

You are my days,

You are my miracle in so many ways.

You give me hope,

You carry on,

You are my miracle for you make me strong.

"Alan, what song is that and who sings it?" she asked.

"'You Are My Miracle' by Roger Whittaker. This was a favorite of my parents from back in the day."

"I've never heard of him," Rose commented.

"He was fairly popular in England and Europe, as I understand it. He had a few songs do well here in America in the late 70's. That's when my folks got turned onto his music. I'm not sure why his song came to my mind about you, though."

"I don't care why, Alan. After you just sang so beautifully, I have a favor to ask of you."

"Oh?"

"Please come with me to choir rehearsal on Wednesday night? I know your talent would be appreciated and it's something I would love to do with you, just for us." She pulled his mouth to hers and kissed him quite soundly. "Please?"

"Since when are you going to choir rehearsal on Wednesday night?" he asked.

"Ruth and Marlene sort of ambushed me on my way out of the worship space this morning. It seems that some people have not forgotten my singing one Christmas Eve. They want me to join in time to learn the Easter cantata by Palm Sunday."

"And was I part of a package deal?" Alan asked.

"Nope. You are just my surprise addition, for them, and for us. Can we please do this together?" she pleaded, looking at him with puppy dog eyes.

He pulled her close again and laid his cheek on the top of her head as she turned her head. She felt him inhale deeply then let it out before he answered.

"How long are you committing to be part of the choir?"

"Initially, just for the cantata. Marlene and Ruth are probably hoping it will turn into a long‑term thing. However, I've only promised to sing the cantata."

Alan stood there, holding Rose close, breathing in her scent. Then he began to sway slightly as he began to hum the tune again. She leaned back and wrapped her arms around his neck, planting her lips on his once more.

"Yes, we'll go, together, Wednesday night," he said. "For now, I suggest we go, together, to bed."

"I like where your head is at, Alan. Lead on, good sir."

= = =

Helen was practically bouncing on the bed with her joy. Until a week or so ago, she never would have believed she could get $390,000 for the property in Middleburg.

"Honey, you need to calm down a bit," Steve advised. "Not that you need any more 'beauty sleep', but you need to be well rested before taking on those Sixth Graders tomorrow."

"I can't, Steve. I'm just too wound up! Can you believe it? 390 for that house?"

"Like you said, it would be too big for us and it has too many memories for you to be comfortable living there. They sound like really nice people. They deserve the chance to be happy there."

"What will we do with that money, Steve?" Helen asked.

"Firstly, it's not in our hands yet. It's going to take a little time for all of their financing to get lined up. Please don't go spending money we don't have, yet. Secondly, we still need to pay off that loan that you inherited from your parents. That's going to eat a sizable chunk out of that pot of gold."

"I've got to ask you this, Steve. Would you be willing to move to Middleburg once the school year ends? You didn't grow up there and you don't know anybody, either."

"I didn't grow up in Blacksburg, either, and I can't say that I really know many people here. I can deliver pizzas there as well as I can here."

"No! Don't you see? I'm sure there is a need for your expertise there. A need that obviously is not present here. We can get a house! One in town, with a yard and a sidewalk." Helen went on and Steve could see that she just needed to get it out so she could tire down and get some rest. Helen continued to spew forth words and ideas for two more hours before she finally fell silent with the words, "So, Steve, what do you think?"

"I think we should get this school year over with. We can consider alternatives until the cows come home. But I'm not pulling Peter and Daphne out of their classes this far into the school year. Let's just sleep on this and start making lists tomorrow night, okay?" He kissed her lovingly then rolled over and turned off his light.

Helen turned off her light as well, but she lay there in the dark with her mind going a million miles per hour until she fell asleep.

= = =

Monday, February 15, 2021

'Good Day Sunshine' by the Beatles greeted Rose and Alan that Monday morning. They rolled together, face to face, morning breath be damned. Lips were kissed, noses rubbed, and other sensitive areas were caressed. The day got off to a very pleasant beginning for both of them.

They had talked some the night before, agreeing that two loans were probably the best route forward. A bridging loan of $200,000 with a 120‑day payback period until they could sell the current house, and a standard loan for the remaining $190,000 with a 20‑year term. Given Rose's position with the AgCU and Alan's credit score coupled with his income, they did not believe there would be many difficulties.

Alan and Rose washed each other but kept the monkey business to a minimum. As they were drying off, Alan raised a question.

"Rose, have you noticed a slight change to our activities lately?"

"What do you mean, Alan, my love?"

"Just that we're not 'banging like bunnies' like we were."

"To be honest, I hadn't taken note of that. I guess you're right though. Maybe we just got all the pent‑up energy out and we're settling into a medium‑heat relationship. I mean, it's not like you could get me pregnant, however much you may have wanted to. Aside from the 'banging like bunnies', as you put it, every one of our loving gestures do not seem to have changed or diminished. You still take the initiative with me, which I love. You rock my world, Alan Harrison. I love where we're at; don't you?"

"I do, Rosalie Lawson. There is no place I would rather be than in your arms. We will have to break in the new house properly, you know."

"Oh, yeah! One of us must orgasm in each room, and there are more rooms in that place than we have here. Better eat your Wheaties, my love!"

Alan's eyes followed her swaying backside as she sauntered to the dresser and closet to dress for the day. 'Thank you, Laura, my great love, for this new love,' he thought, then followed suit.

They were drinking their coffee and eating toast when an idea occurred to Alan.

"Rose, do you think Helen and Steve would allow us to move into the house before we actually close on the sale?"

She thought about that for a couple of minutes and answered, "I've never heard of such a thing. I guess we could ask about a one month 'rental' while we get everything set up for the closing. I think that could work. We'd have to get all the utilities changed over and working. What has prompted this, Alan?"

"I was just thinking that our presence here impedes us listing this house and getting it sold. Sure, we could list the house as‑is, but I think it could sell faster if it was empty. To do that, we need a place to land our stuff first. Be sure to ask Susan what she thinks about showing our house as‑is versus an empty one."

"I'll see Susan tomorrow morning, if it can wait until then. Remember, we have that meeting with Brendan and Michelle O'Shea this evening in Pastor John's office."

"Right." Alan blew out his breath from between pursed lips. "Well, my love, I hope you have a good day at work." He stood, kissed her, and headed for his car parked in the garage.

That day, Rose set the wheels in motion for two loans for the property on Millersville Road.

= = =

For Maggie, Mondays was probably the most difficult day of the week. She was bored and lonely until her 'sister' came home from school. The jewelry store was not open for business and the rest of her 'posse' was occupied with school. She knew she needed the freedom of the downtime, but she steadfastly refused to succumb to the habit of sleeping late into the day. Her agile and active mind required stimulation and distraction.

With everyone gone from the house by 7:30, she wandered around from room to room. She even went so far as to start a load of laundry in the basement. She went over to David's art studio corner and saw where he had started on a sign for Tom and Julie's apartment. It was just a sketch on butcher's paper, but the outlined words of 'Welcome to the Bunny Hutch' caused a smile to cross her face. She marveled for a moment at his artistic talent; something she felt she lacked. She felt close to him, down in his studio. Then she twisted the ring around on her finger and thought of how well they complemented each other. She fondly recalled the new leave‑taking tradition they had begun yesterday.

After moving the first load of clothes from the washer to the dryer and starting a second washer load, she returned to her room. She always enjoyed the hour or so that she and Katie had on Mondays of driving lessons in the church parking lot. She wanted to do more than just practice in an empty parking lot. So, she opened up the webpage to the DMV, downloaded a couple of documents regarding Learners' permits, and dove in.

At first, studying was a little difficult for her. She had been out of the habit for two months ever since she took the last of her final exams at Centreville High School. That now seemed ages and a million miles ago. But, much like riding a bicycle, she easily resumed the study habits that enabled her to not attend classes for her final semester of high school. She remembered to stop and eat lunch, and she finished with her chosen tasks by 2:30. Then, as she waited for Katie to come home, she thought about the house they had visited the day before.

Katie's day started off typically. She greeted a couple of girls pleasantly as she passed their lockers. A smile twitched at her lips as she considered her improved living situation. She was both loved and wanted in her home. She had a wonderful family there as well; 'sister', 'momma', and 'poppa'. They would be moving to a larger house with more and larger bedrooms. She would have one that she could decorate to her tastes. 'Things just can't get any better', she thought. Then she walked into her Trigonometry class. The words on the whiteboard struck terror into her heart: "Pop Quiz Today".

Katie thought it had been a good tutoring session the evening prior. Both she and Joy were showing marked improvements in their coursework and the one quiz they each had taken. Maggie's instruction style was a little dry, Katie thought, but so was the material. But she wasn't expecting a pop quiz on Monday morning.

Mr. Matthews had seen her come through the door, so she couldn't turn around and pretend she wasn't in school that day. Somebody behind her bumped her as they walked past only to stop as they saw the writing on the wall. Sighing deeply, Katie took her assigned seat and agonized mentally. She pulled out her textbook and her notebook in preparation for Mr. Matthews' torture session. Then she saw a bright pink corner sticking out of her notebook.

It was a Post-It note from Maggie. It read, "You've got this, Kat. I love you. Magpie". Katie gave a half‑hearted smile at Maggie's words as she placed the book and notebook under her desk, ready for her high school version of electroshock therapy. A minute after the late bell rang, the quiz was handed out. "You've got 25 minutes for these five questions, class. You know the honor code rules. Do your best. Begin."

Katie looked at the first question. It looked oddly familiar. She started on it and quickly realized it was the same question as they had worked on last night, just with some slightly different numbers. She did have it. And the second question and the third as well. The other two questions made her think, but she was able to apply other tutoring sessions' learning to these and lay her pencil down with four minutes to spare.

Mr. Matthews collected all the quizzes and then proceeded to go over what the quiz just covered. He explained that everything used in the quiz had already been presented to them, just perhaps not in that format. He explained that he was trying to be an educator, not just a teacher. He wanted them to think about how the ideas he was instructing them in could be applied. As the dismissal bell rang, he announced that he'd have their quizzes back to them the next day. Katie sagely held her tongue and allowed others to grumble about 'not fair' and 'sadistic teachers'.

When Katie pulled into the driveway, she saw the curtains move in the media room and knew that Maggie had been watching for her. When the front door opened as she reached for the handle, Katie was quick with, "I've gotta pee, Mags. We can talk when I'm done. Have a seat on the stairs and I'll be out as soon as I can." Returning with a look of relief and a big smile on her face, Katie addressed Maggie.

"Ok, Magpie, let's go do this."

As they belted into the Civic, Maggie looked at Katie with puzzlement.

"Magpie?"

"That's how you signed your note, Mags."

"Ah, so you found it." Maggie looked quite satisfied with herself.

"I would not believe it if it hadn't happened to me. We had a pop quiz in Trig this morning over most of the stuff we did last night! One of the questions looked almost identical to one you posed us last night."

"So, how did you do?" Maggie inquired.

"I'm not sure, but things felt good and I finished a few minutes early to boot. The quiz won't be returned until tomorrow. But you were right. I had this. Now, let's see how much you have this," Katie said, tapping her steering wheel.

When they got to the church parking lot, Maggie got out to switch places. When Katie didn't get into the passenger seat, Maggie looked at her quizzically.

"It's time for you to solo in the safe confines of the parking lot," Katie explained. "Go ahead, start it up and drive around. Practice parking in the spaces. But keep your window down a bit. I'll call out 'STOP!' at random times and I want you to envision a ball rolling out in front of you with a small child chasing it. Go on. You've got this."

Katie let Maggie drive around past her a couple of times, but on the third pass, Katie screamed, "STOP!" Maggie was surprised and a little flustered but managed to stop the car. Katie walked up to the window and Maggie lowered it further.

"You'd have squashed the kid, Mags. It's okay, though. That's why we practice and practice. You've got this. Go again," Katie directed. Every other time Katie shouted, "STOP!", Maggie quickly had the car halted. After 20 minutes of standing out in the cold, Katie got in the passenger seat and had Maggie shut the windows and turn up the heat so they could warm up while Maggie practiced parallel parking. After another ten minutes, Maggie parked and admitted that her nerves were still jangled a bit.