Our Heart (18 page)

The only thing that could potentially go wrong with my plan was the weather. But getting caught in a summer rain shower might well be worth remembering. I knew the best time to have the picnic would be a Sunday afternoon. Next week might be too soon and, as I thought it over, I felt that the following Sunday would be a better choice. It would give me two weeks to plan and two weeks to keep Allison occupied with other activities. The little fantasy outing, developing full tilt in my mind, made for a perfectly devilish grin.

Grandma came in the front door while I was standing at the sink lost in thought. She made her way into the kitchen and stood next to me, looking out the window, trying to discern what it was that had me so engrossed. I must have still been wearing my mischievous grin, because she wanted to know what evil thought I was lost in. I responded with a traditional, “nothing; just thinking.”

Grandma gave me her best, “uh huh…I see,” and headed over to the refrigerator to get a glass of iced sun tea. She asked if I wanted one, which was really her way of waylaying me and hopefully corralling me into sharing the highlights from the remainder of my night.

My Grandma wasn’t just a good gossip, she was the queen, and it came naturally to her. She never had to pry or twist anyone to get her information. People were literally standing in line to share what they knew with her. For me, it had been a huge dilemma growing up these last few years. I couldn’t get away with anything. Grandma Sarah would know all about it before I’d even left the crime scene. I resigned myself to the fact that, if I didn’t offer something up, she would get parts of the story from somewhere else. She was already pouring my iced tea before I had even given her my response. I smiled in spite of myself. If there was ever a grandma worth loving it was surely mine.

She came over and set my iced tea in front of me. Sitting down at the kitchen table she took a sip from her glass. I didn’t waste much time with fluff and filled my grandma in on the activities of yesterday. Some of it she had briefly heard during my short stop at home yesterday, and a lot more I’m guessing on her “Walk and Talk” this morning. This time, I went into more detail on the dunking booth and the baggy war, making sure to let her know what a hero I was and how I had offered my body to protect the fair maiden. We both laughed, and she wanted to know if we had done anything else of noteworthiness. That’s when I knew for certain that Grandma could probably have told me what I’d been up to yesterday. I saw it register in her eyes and at the corners of her mouth, as she began to smile her knowing smile. Grandma Sarah had a heart as big as the Grand Canyon, and she couldn’t sit through a Hallmark movie without a box of Kleenex close by. You can call it intuition or being in tune with the world around you; whatever it was, my grandma’s senses were always honed razor sharp.

Her eyes softened as she continued to look at me. I couldn’t hold her gaze and looked off towards the back door, hoping desperately that Grandpa would make an appearance. I stammered a little then found my voice and told her about the three-legged race, leaving out the finer points.

When I hesitated just a little too long or moved through the story too quickly, Grandma would just nod, smile at me and say, “I see.” It was her way of prodding me on and reminding me not to leave out any of the good stuff.

I finished the race story with my integrity still pretty much intact, but Grandma Sarah was never one to let the drama slip away when she was in control. Out of the blue, she asked me what I thought about Allison and her parents, Stacy and Larry.

I didn’t even think. I just smiled and said, “She’s great!” This time my grandma’s entire face lit up, and all I could do was smile a silly smile.

Of course, Grandma Sarah followed up my comment with, “I see.”

I managed to make it through a discussion on the Dittmers and the rest of my day without slipping up again. It might have been more like Grandma took it easy on me. She let me know how wonderful she thought I did singing and shared all of the great comments her friends had shared with her. I tried not to let my head swell, but I knew my life was never going to be the same. The pull of the music was sweeping throughout my entire body, and the desire to express myself through singing was now firmly entrenched. I wondered about what possible opportunities might be open to me for the rest of the summer. It would be great to sing with the “Thoroughbreds” or any other band that might need someone. With as good as I had done the night before, I was sure it would be a snap to find a band to perform with.

I also had Allison on my mind and, somehow, I knew the two would need to be connected. My life was definitely on the upswing…I couldn’t wait. I smiled knowingly to myself as Grandma continued to talk about the street dance and how proud she was of me. I couldn’t help myself and, when she took a moment’s pause, I looked her straight in the eyes and said, “I see.”

Grandpa was better late than never as he walked in the back door. He glanced over at the coffee pot and saw that it was empty and made a small sigh. It didn’t matter what time of day it was, Grandpa Jake liked a cup of Joe if there was one to be had. We all exchanged “hellos,” and Grandma Sarah ran Grandpa through the normal progression of questions from “Where’ve you been? What have you been up to? What do you have planned for the rest of the day?” I took this moment to exit silently out of the kitchen and into the living room.

I was nearly free and clear when Grandma yelled after me, “Got any plans for lunch?”

I stopped dead in my tracks, as the first thought in my mind was, “how the heck does she know about my picnic plans?” I shut my open mouth as I realized it was nearly noon and her question had nothing suspicious in it. I was also hungry so I said, “I could eat.”

“Great!” Grandma replied. “We were all invited next door to the Dittmers for a barbeque. I told them we would be over around one o’clock.” I was starting to wonder if my grandma and Mrs. Dittmer already had the wedding planned too.

I scampered back upstairs to grab a different shirt and to give myself the once over, yet again. Allison definitely had me running in circles. It wasn’t a bad thing I had to admit. The thought of spending time and getting close to her brought an instant smile. It hit me pretty quick, and I began to feel that tingly anticipation of seeing Allison again. Satisfied with my look, I headed back downstairs and into the kitchen. I even offered my help to Grandma Sarah, if she needed it. This time it was her turn to smile.

To say that I was antsy would be an understatement. I trudged from room to room waiting for Grandma to give the signal that it was time to leave. Grandpa was sitting in his recliner, reading one of his ever-growing collections of magazines. He would glance up at me, squint his eyes in reflection, and then return to his reading. To his credit, he never said a word, but I had the feeling he was in on it too. Finally, Grandma called from the kitchen and she was ready if we were. We could head over at any time. I practically flew through the dining room and into the kitchen, nearly knocking Grandma over as she turned away from the sink in my direction. She smiled that knowing smile again and I could feel my face starting to flush.

Grandpa wasn’t too far behind me, so the two of us gathered up the basket of goodies Grandma had magically put together in such a short period of time. Knowing her, the barbeque had been in the works for longer than just today. Grandma Sarah was one who definitely planned ahead. I glanced in the big basket and recognized what she was taking to the barbeque. It was a large bowl of her ultimate potato salad. Her potato salad was well known around town. Anyone who had the pleasure to try it fell in love with it after the first bite. When people would ask my grandma how she made it so good, she would only tell them that it was a two-day process to make it just right. This time, I gave her the sideways look and she returned my stare with her sweetest smile…got to love her.

We headed out the backdoor and across our yard. We wiggled between a pair of tall lilac bushes into the Dittmer’s backyard. The Dittmer’s big gas grill was going strong with plenty of smoke pouring out the back. I could smell the grilled scent of hamburgers and felt the hunger pangs erupt in my stomach. I looked towards the back of the house to see if Allison was around and was astounded when, instead, I locked eyes with Nick. After the initial moment of bewilderment, I also saw his parents Peggy and Gene Anderson. Gene was standing at the grill with Larry Dittmer, and each of them had a beer in one hand. The two of them were deep in conversation. Larry was trying to make a point to Gene, but he was having trouble explaining it without the use of his hands. In one, he held the beer can and, in the other, a spatula. Gene was quick on his feet as he sidestepped the spatula as Larry drove home his point.

I didn’t see Allison or her mom, Stacy. Nick was sitting next to his mom at the table, greedily grabbing chips and dipping them in the large bowl of salsa. He stuffed a large chip in his mouth, a half of second before the salsa could drip off and fall on his shirt. As he chomped another chip, he gave me a half wave. It shouldn’t have been a surprise they were all here, Peggy was one of my grandma’s best friends, and I’m sure she wanted to make Allison’s mom feel even more welcome by introducing them to each other. I had been hoping for Allison’s undivided attention, but plans rarely go as envisioned.

Grandma called out a hello to Peggy and headed toward her. I followed behind and set the picnic basket down on the table next to her. Nick nodded at me and stuffed another chip in his mouth. Larry informed Grandpa Jake and me that there was beer in the green cooler and pop in the blue one, by the back door and, with a smile at me, told me not to get them mixed up. Grandpa headed towards the green cooler. I looked at Nick and, like friends can do, he read the question on my face and shrugged a responsive, yes. I went to the blue cooler and grabbed each of us a Pepsi. I looked into the Dittmer’s kitchen, as I closed the cooler, but still didn’t see Allison. I thought about shaking up Nick’s can of pop, but knew I wouldn’t be able to get away with it. I handed the pop to Nick and sat down in the chair across from him. I reached for a chip and loaded it up with salsa. I had to spread my legs quick as a large glop fell from the chip before I could get it in my mouth. The salsa landed unceremoniously on the patio bricks with a splat.

A very familiar voice from behind me shouted, “Way to go klutzy!” I turned around and looked into one of the most beautiful smiles I could ever have imagined. Allison was standing behind me in a pair of jean shorts and light-pink colored tank top. She was gorgeous, but it was her smile that captivated me most. I grinned from ear to ear and didn’t even reply. If I had managed to spit out a word or two, I’m sure it would have come out backwards or in some garbled form that no one could understand. If I thought my feelings were strong yesterday, today they were soaring over the mountaintops. Just seeing her standing there made my heart race and caused my stomach to do flip-flops.

Nick’s younger sister, Kara was hanging onto Allison’s hand. It was evident to me that Allison drew people to her and would always make friends wherever she went. She had the kind of personality that others gravitated towards. Allison made it so easy to like her, and I greatly admired her for that quality. From out of nowhere, a thought crossed my mind. I knew without a doubt Allison would be a great mother someday.

From behind me, Nick spoke to Allison, “You sure look great today, Allison! Can I get you a pop?”

I wasn’t sure what Nick was up to. I assumed that, after yesterday, he knew Allison and I were together, so I let his comment slide. Allison gave me a combative smile and told Nick she’d love a pop. I wasn’t happy with this game at all, but I held my smile and said hello to Kara, with the hope of changing the direction things were headed. I know it was all in fun for Allison, and I didn’t blame her for her actions. She wasn’t aware of the comment Nick had made to me the other day or the look I’d seen in his eyes while he watched her.

Nick got up and went to the cooler, bringing Allison a diet Pepsi. Kara looked miffed and wanted to know why he hadn’t gotten her one too. Nick completely ignored his sister, and I could see Kara wasn’t going to let it go. I used the opportunity to shake off the anger building inside of me. I got up, telling Kara I’d be happy to get her a pop of her own, and started off towards the cooler.

She beamed and looked over at her brother. “See! I got somebody to wait on me too!” Nick and Allison laughed at her and she turned bright red to match her top.

There were always times when Nick could be a real jerk, and it looked like it was heading that way today. He liked to talk a good story, but he was more than slow when it came to the actual effort. Kara was only eleven, full of optimism and the belief she could do anything. She was a real sweetheart too ,and I didn’t mind playing up to her. “Here you go, my lady…Anything else I can do to be of service?” I asked in my best knightly voice and even added a formal bow to punctuate the moment.

The smile returned to her face. “No thank you, kind Sir, you’ve done enough for now.” With a giggle she was off and headed back inside where all the women had clustered in the kitchen. The princess wanted to share her knightly story with the queen and her court, no doubt.

Nick didn’t say a word, and I saw agitation in his face. He reached for his pop and drank the rest of it in one noisy swallow. Allison came over to me and looped her arm through mine. With playfulness, she held the unopened diet Pepsi to the side of my neck. She laughed as I jumped backwards and caught my leg on the side of the picnic table. She took off running towards the rear of the backyard. I was hot on her trail and caught her…almost too easily. She took a moment to look back towards the men, busy at the grill, and especially Nick, sitting at the table watching us. Standing on her toes, Allison kissed me full on the lips in a tantalizingly, sassy display. In the next instant, she was running back to the table.