Chapter 6

Is Drew really any different from his father? Julie confides to Peter.

Later, Friday, May 4, 2001

 

“Surprise!”

Mom walked into the sitting room and pretended to faint; Drew fake-caught her and stood her upright. “Oh my goodness, thank you everyone! You didn’t need to go to all this trouble.”

We had another cake, a smaller one with fruit on the top and no candles, and streamers and party hats littered the room. Lucy had gotten possession of one of those party blowers, and she blew away without hesitation.

We each presented Mom with our gifts. Julie had gotten her a beautiful box of See’s chocolates, the sight at which Mom nearly did faint (she adores chocolate). Drew had somehow gotten possession of an ancient Chinese vase, which Mom loved �" she collects Asian pottery. Even Lucy had thoughtfully drawn a picture of herself and “Granma.”

I presented her with the Michael Kors watch, and she gasped. “Oh, it’s lovely, Peter. Thank you.” She hugged me tightly, and as she let me go, I caught my father’s disapproving glance at the silver watch. He said nothing, though, and presented Mom with his gift. The moment I saw the baby blue packaging and the silver embossed Tiffany label, I winced. Mom opened the box expectantly; it was a vintage pair of diamond earrings with platinum backing. Julie and my mother oohed and aahed over the beautiful earrings.

I left as they marveled over the quality of the diamonds. I wandered into the kitchen, but Nelly wasn’t in there, so I poured myself a glass of wine and sat at the small kitchen table. Drew joined me shortly, saw the wine, and didn’t hesitate to pout himself a glass. “Great gift from Dad, huh?”

I nodded as I sipped the wine. “He really knows how to overdo it, doesn’t he? How much did he pay for those earrings?”

Drew sighed. “It doesn’t matter; it’s the thought that counts. The watch you gave her was just as nice as those earrings.” He paused to take a swig of wine.

“That watch cost me two hundred dollars. I saved up my money so I could buy that watch for her. And he goes off and spends five hundred thousand dollars in the blink of an eye for a pair of earrings she’ll never wear. Does he even know that her piercings have closed up?”

“Probably not. But still. The thought, remember?” I shook my head, sick and tired of my father.

“Why isn’t he back at his office? That’s where he belongs, anyway.”

Drew took the wine from me and tossed the rest down the drain. “Stop drinking, Pete. You never did have much of a stomach for alcohol.” I began to protest, but Drew pushed the cork firmly back into the bottle and put it away. He threw out the rest of his wine as well.

Drew turned to me. “I promised I would talk to you today, so I will. Last night, Dad came into my room and tried to convince me to divorce Julie.”

My mouth fell open. “What?”

Drew nodded. “Yeah. He said he had a coworker who had a successful daughter. Brilliant, just got a business degree from Wharton. Incredibly clever, according to him, and with looks and wealth to go along.” I shook my head, disbelieving. That my father would go so far…

Drew sighed. “I know I keep telling you to cool off, let him be, accept him, but I feel like such a hypocrite. I mean, it’s getting to the point where I can’t stand to be in the same room with him.”

I nodded, remembering last night. “I know what you mean. But Drew, he still favors you. You’re still his model son: the one that got into an Ivy League, the one who’s CEO of a company that’s making you millions. Look at me. If he disapproves of you, he detests me.”

Drew chuckled ironically. “Well, there is that. But honestly, don’t even bother to try to get his approval with Rachael. Even though you’ve broken off from him, you’re still his son, and he’s not going to let another son marry down.”

I nodded. Lucy ran into the kitchen with frosting on her fingers, saying, “Cake! Cake! Mommy wants Daddy to eat cake!”

Drew smiled and picked Lucy up. “I’m going back in; can’t let Julie fend for herself. You ready?” I nodded.

We went back to the sitting room. Julie was passing out cake, since it was Nelly’s day off, and Mom was sitting alone in her husband’s chair. My father was nowhere to be seen.

Drew looked puzzled. “Hey, honey, did my father leave?”

Julie looked up from the cake. “Yeah, he got a telephone call and said it was urgent, and he just bolted out of the door. Didn’t even stay for cake.” She carefully cut a thin slice and offered it to me; I took it, nodding my thanks.

Drew set Lucy down next to Mom, who was absently eating a slice of cake and staring off in the distance. Suddenly, she burst into tears. Lucy yelped, startled so much that she started crying too. Julie picked her up and tried to comfort her while Drew and I hurried to Mom.

“Mom? Mom?” I said urgently. I took her hands, and Drew grabbed some tissues and gently wiped her face.

“Mom, what is it?”

She choked back a few sobs, then whimpered, “He didn’t even know I don’t wear earrings.”

Drew and I exchanged a look, and I felt a sudden wave of rage rip through me. Fine, if he wanted to insult me and tell me I wasn’t good enough. Fine if he was so pig-headed that he thought Drew needed a better girl than Julie. But for his insensitivity to hurt Mom like this…well, that wasn’t okay.

One look at Drew’s face told me that he was thinking the exact same thing. His expression was a mask of rage, and he muttered under his breath just loud enough for me to hear, “I’ll kill him.”

We rubbed Mom’s back and comforted her, and eventually her sobs began to subside. She wiped the remaining tears from her cheeks and said, “I’m sorry boys, for getting all worked up about this. Is there anymore Pinot Noir in the kitchen, sweetheart?”

I glanced at Drew and we both shook our heads. “Nope,” we said in unison.

“Come on Mom, let’s get you to your room, okay? It’s been a long day, and we could all use the rest.” I took her hand and helped her up, and slowly, Drew and I walked her to her bedroom and set her down. We tucked her in and put a bottle of water at her bedside, then closed the door quietly and made our way back to Julie. She had calmed down Lucy enough so that she had fallen sound asleep in Julie’s arms. Julie motioned for us to be quiet as she gently patted Lucy, bobbing her up and down.

Drew walked over to Julie and kissed her softly, then planted a kiss on Lucy’s head. He walked back to me and motioned that we go outside.

Once outside, Drew spoke quietly and sparingly. “I guess that’s that.”

I nodded. There wasn’t anything else to say. I was tired of getting angry at my father, tired of being disappointed and tired of waiting, and I suspected Drew felt the same way. After all the nagging about Julie, I was impressed that Drew had held out and been so patient for so long. Drew sighed and dug around in his pocket. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes and flashed me a guilty smile. “I promised Julie I would quit, but it’s difficult. They help with stress.” I watched him as he shook one out and lit it carefully, his hand cupped around the flame. I didn’t even know he smoked.

“When did you start?”

Drew took a long drag on the cigarette and let the smoke out through his nostrils. He laid his head back against the wall of the house. “I guess a few years ago. Honestly, I didn’t want to, but you know caffeine doesn’t work for me, and smoking was the only other way to keep me awake.” I didn’t respond. Drew worked too hard, like his father. But he would never turn out the same way. At least he takes care of Julie and Lucy.

Drew’s cell phone rang, cutting into the silent night air. He sighed, stubbed out his cigarette, and glanced at the caller ID. “It’s the office. I better take this.” I nodded, and Drew walked back inside, leaving me out on the porch alone. I picked up Drew’s cigarette stub thoughtfully. He’s always hated his father, but he understands him, I thought. I guess that was my problem; I never understood what it was like to be a workaholic.

The front door swung open with a soft creak, and Julie stepped outside, holding a sleeping Lucy. I threw Drew’s cigarette away quickly. As Julie turned to close the door, she remarked, “I saw that.” I froze, unsure of what to say. Julie sat down next to me on the porch steps gently, careful not to wake Lucy. “I asked him to quit, but I knew it would take a while. Sit down, will you?” She patted the step next to her. I sat down, my long legs unfolding and stretching out over the steps.

Julie let out a soft sigh. I noticed her shivering, so I removed my coat and draped it over her shoulders. “Thanks,” she said, holding Lucy close to her chest.

“Yeah, no problem.” I wasn’t sure what to say to her. “I’m sorry for all the…um…family drama. But I guess you’re kind of used to it by now.”

Julie shrugged. “It’s fine.” She hugged her knees to her chest, curling up for warmth and to keep Lucy warm. Her shoulder-length brown hair swung in front of her face, and she pushed it behind her ear with a slender hand. Her breath was visible in the cold night air. “I should have known what I was getting into, marrying Drew.”

I looked at her, alarmed. “You’re not regretting it, are you?” I said urgently. She laughed, a puff of white smoke escaping her mouth.

“No, of course not. Gosh, calm down, worrywart.” I breathed a sigh of relief and watched my breath drift away. Julie paused for a moment, then said, “Sometimes, though, I wish he’d be home more often. He’s wonderful when he is, but…Lucy misses him.”

I noticed how she didn’t mention that she might miss him. “He’s an important man,” I said diplomatically.

Julie nodded in agreement. “I know. I just wish…I don’t know. Sometimes I just want him not to go to work, just for one day, so he can take Lucy to the zoo, or the aquarium, or something, and we could have a picnic and watch a movie and eat somewhere and go home again. Like normal families.” She stopped. “I’m rambling, aren’t I? Sorry.”

I shook my head. “It’s fine. I know what you mean.”

Julie looked at me, as if she were going to pursue it, but decided against it. “Is Drew like your father, do you think? You know them both better than I do.”

I thought about this. They were both workaholics, yes. Intelligent, hard-working, and ambitious. And never spending enough time with their families. But at least Drew tried, right?

I chose my words carefully. “They’re…similar. But different. Drew cares about you and Lucy, and he makes time for his family, as much as he can. My father never did. He just worked, and even when he was with us, he was working.” I stopped, afraid to say too much. “I don’t know. I’m probably not the best person to ask, since I’ve got a biased opinion.”

Julie laughed again. Her warm brown eyes twinkled, and by the porch light, there seemed to be flecks of gold in them. I suddenly realized that she was incredibly beautiful. “Yeah, I’ll say you’re biased. But I was just wondering.” Her arm brushed against mine as she shifted Lucy in her arms.

I wanted to say something to her, to comfort her. But I wasn’t sure what to say, and I didn’t want to say anything that could hurt her or Drew. So I sat in silence, listening to the sound of Lucy’s steady breathing. Julie soon matched her breath for breath, and as she drifted to sleep, her head rested against my shoulder. I pulled the coat around her, careful not to wake her, and soon all three of us were asleep.