Fire Always Burns

chapter 3

First some grass, then a bush, jumping to a twig, to old pine needles, then winding up the base of the dying pine, feasting on the dry fuel. The flames danced and played, gleefully jumping from grass to bush, feeding and consuming without end. The light grew brighter the more it fed, gray smoke beginning to cloud the stars.

“It is a shame to hear about that whole West divorce nonsense,” Mrs. Thatcher told me as she put her groceries up on the conveyer belt. It was a slow enough day that I was grateful to have her in my line. Mrs. Thatcher was the local busybody. She knew the gossip about almost everyone almost as soon as it happened. She had lived in Conifer for as long as anyone could remember, and had been airing everyone's laundry for just as long.

“I never liked that Barbara,” she confided in me as she put corn flakes up onto the belt. “Always too high and mighty for her own good. I never really understood why Ray married her, especially after he mooned after Audrey for so long. Barbara was never any good for him. In fact the other day-”

“What? What do you mean, Ray and Audrey? Audrey Miller?” Groceries piled up as the conveyer belt skid to a stop. Mrs. Thatcher looked up at me, surprised by my sudden interest. She looked like an owl, her big glasses magnifying her eyes and the feathers in her old-fashioned hat tipping over her face.

“Well, she certainly wasn't Audrey Miller back then. Back then she was Audrey Oscars,” she said putting a bag of apples up.

“What did Ray West have to do with Audrey Oscars?” I questioned carefully, making sure I got the names right. I knew both of them had grown up in this town, but I never considered the idea that they might have known one another more than that.

“Ray West and Audrey Oscars were sweethearts. All through high school. The whole town thought they were going to get hitched. When Ray graduated high school, he got a job at the hardware store just so that he could wait for Audrey to graduate. I heard they were engaged, but they were waiting to get married because her daddy wouldn't consent until she was out of school,” Mrs. Thatcher bobbed her head, the feathers swaying gently above her. My conveyer belt was still frozen, her cereal box clenched in my hands as I listened to her, nodding her on for more. The old woman seemed almost flustered at the sudden attention, but she continued, whispering in a loud conspiratorial tone.

“They were so sweet together, everyone was sure they would be married that summer she graduated. Something happened though, never did find out exactly what. That Audrey could be a feisty one when she wanted to be. The summer Audrey graduated, she went on off to college right away and left Ray all alone,” she said as she leaned forward. I stood transfixed as she continued, enjoying having a rapt audience for once.

“Well, poor Ray was heartbroken. He had waited for her, and then she left him high and dry to go off and live the college life without him. That's when he got with Barb. I always thought it was his way of getting back at Audrey for leaving, but he married Barb that same year. Luke was born not long after that. Ray was never the same after Audrey left. I always thought they would get back together and work things out, but then Audrey came back to town carrying Charlie's child, so apparently neither one of them was too lonesome.”

Mrs. Thatcher sniffed, looking at the full conveyer belt as I stood there holding her cereal and absorbing the information. She sniffed a little louder, giving me a pointed look. I jumped and scanned the box, my body going through the motions as my brain worked through what I just heard. Something in the story called to me, something important, an answer that was just dangling out of my reach, a solution to a problem I had been working on all day without realizing it.

I nearly dropped a can of beans on my foot as it hit me. Audrey and Ray. Audrey needed someone in her life to help keep her stable; Ray needed someone to balance out his hectic work life and give him a stronger home presence. If they fell in love again, they could solve each other's problems. It was perfect.

“You all right, Holly? You look like someone just doused you with cold water,” Mrs. Thatcher said peering at me through her glasses. I grinned at her as I put the can of beans into her bag, feeling hope surge through me.

“I just had a great idea hit me, Mrs. Thatcher. Your total is $102.97.”

“Oh, I have coupons dear,” she said, digging into her purse, the feathers on her head bobbing up and down.

Audrey and Ray. It couldn't be too hard to get them back together, especially if they had been so close once. My fingers itched to pull out my phone and text Luke and Andrew my idea, but it still felt too new to share. I needed to have a plan before I told either one of them.

“Do you need any help out to your car today, Mrs. Thatcher?” I asked handing her the receipt.

“No dear, I'm fine. It was nice chatting with you,” she chirped as she pushed her cart out towards the door. The feathers in her hat floated gently above her, her words echoing in my head. I glanced around to see if anyone was watching, and then pulled out my phone. I didn't want to wait, I had to tell someone. The text message was as straightforward as it could be, but every word brought me new excitement.

I have an idea that could help Luke.

I hit send, electric excitement pouring through me. I knew Andrew would be at work, but just sending him the message made me feel intoxicated with hope. This was going to be great. I let my brain buzz through ideas, glad to have something to think about other than myself.

▪▪▪

This was not working.

I sat in a sea of crumpled paper, my chair a lone boat in an ocean of failed ideas. I had tried typing my ideas on how to get Audrey and Ray together on my computer, but it felt so impersonal. So, instead, I sat massaging my cramped fingers and staring at yet another blank page. I picked up the piece of paper and smashed it into a ball, tossing it towards the waste basket just to get it out of my face. I missed and it bounced off my dog's head. Shadow raised her head to smell it, her big brown eyes curious, but finding it nothing but frustrated ideas, resettled back into her nap.

It had seemed so easy at first glance. Audrey and Ray had fallen in love once, I knew they could do it again. I had buzzed through my shift, sprinted home and hopped on the computer for research. Fast forward two hours and I had no results. Everything I found was either too complex or too reminiscent of “The Parent Trap”. I had no idea how to get these two people to fall in love, let alone how to get them in the same room. My balloon of excited hope was quickly deflating, reality a slow leak sinking it. My phone chimed, the noise startling me.

Just got your message. You have an idea to help Luke?

I stared at the message for a good minute, trying to decide if I should even tell him my idea. It sounded stupid now, and the last thing I wanted was for him to associate me with stupid. I regretted sending him the first message, but I had been so excited. Future me wanted to take away past me's phone.

I thought I did, but I don't think it is going to work.

It was a couple of minutes before my phone chirped.

That's because you always over think things. On my way over.

I tossed my phone onto my desk, grimacing at the thunk as it landed. It had seemed so simple. So deceptively simple. Get two people to fall back in love. People fall in love everyday, it couldn't be that hard. Yet, somehow, I could not come up with a plan to save my life. Frustration boiled up in my core, I could feel it rising the longer I thought about it.

“Seriously, you should lock your door. If I were robbing the place, I would have all the fancy silver by now,” Andrew said walking nonchalantly into my room. I could tell he had just finished his workout at the gym. He had his dark blue sweats on over his gym shorts and t-shirt, the hair around his temples still damp with sweat. He knelt by Shadow and began rubbing her ears.

“Yeah, well my super smart guard dog would have ripped you to shreds,” I retorted as Shadow's foot began to twitch with pleasure. Andrew sat down next to her on the floor, and she put her big yellow head into his lap. Shadow had always loved Andrew. I always thought she had good taste in men.

“So, what's this idea for Luke?”

I sighed. “Well, it isn't really all that great of an idea. Why are you over here anyway?”

“Didn't want to go home. No changing the subject- what's the idea?” he countered.

“Fine,” I stuck my tongue out at him and took a deep breath. “I found out something at work today; Mrs. Thatcher was in my line. Did you know that your mom and Luke's dad were high school sweethearts?”

“Seriously?" he said. He thought about it, even going so far as to put his finger on his chin. "That explains some things. Remember that time in elementary school when Luke and I told everyone in school we were brothers. Now I finally get why Mom yelled at me. And all the weird looks from the neighbors. I guess it wasn't too far from the truth. If things had turned out differently, we would have been brothers,” he said with a laugh.

“I remember. We were just starting second grade and I was pissed because you two wouldn't let me be your sister. Luke said it wasn't believable. Like you two were anything close to believable,” I shook my head, smiling at the memory.

“So, they dated. How does this change anything?”

“From what I heard, it was more than just dating. Apparently they were engaged.” I paused watching him carefully. “What if we got them back together?”

Andrew's hand stopped petting Shadow. She whined and bumped her nose against his hand, asking him politely to continue. He moved his hand absentmindedly across her head, and she settled back into his lap, contentment radiating out her furry body.

“You mean, what if we had my mom date Luke's dad?” His head tilted slightly and his eyebrows knitted together above his blue eyes.

“Yeah, we get them back together. If it worked, it could solve a lot of problems.” I bit my lip, feeling stupid. His brows somehow pushed closer, so I continued. “If Ray had Audrey around, then that would make a better family life. Tyler could come back. If Audrey had Ray, then maybe she wouldn't need you so much, and you could go to school.” I said with a shrug, waving my hand dismissively before continuing.

“That was my idea. But who am I kidding? It's a long shot and a lot of what if's. The more I think about it, the less and less it sounds like a good idea," I said, trying to dissociate myself from the idea. "Besides, I can't even come up with a way to get them back together that doesn't sound like a sugar hyped thirteen-year-old made it up. I'm sorry, it's a dumb idea.”

He seemed to look past me, deep in thought. “You want to get Ray and my mom together,” he stated. It wasn't a question that time.

“It's a stupid idea, and it won't-,” I started, but he cut me off.

“No, it's not stupid. A little out of the box, but it would make a lot of things better. Besides, even if it fails miserably, what's the worst that can happen?” He paused, looking down. "The worst that can happen is that we're in exactly the same spot as we were before." He looked up at me, his blue eyes absorbing me. “Good idea, Holly.”

Elation soared through me. I grinned, blushing at his praise. “I still have no idea how to make it work though.”

“We'll come up with something. You and I are a good team. Luke may have some ideas too. You don't have to come up with all the answers every single time, Holly.” He smiled at me, and I couldn't help but smile back. “So, I think our first step is to figure out how to get Mom and Ray in the same room. Then we can go from there.”

“But what if we get them in the same room, but they don't talk? Or they do talk, but nothing happens? What if they-”

“What if they see each other and decide to run off to Vegas that very night and get married by Elvis? You are thinking way too hard about this. We get them in a room. We find a way to get them talking. Once that happens, then we can figure out what to do next; we can't make plans until we know what they are going to do. I honestly have no clue how Mom is going to react to seeing Ray. She still misses Dad a lot,” he sighed. Shadow groaned and nudged him with her head again. He smiled down at her and started rubbing her ears again.

“Okay. First things first then. How do we get them in a room?” I leaned back in my chair, playing with a pencil.

“Easy. How do you get anyone to go somewhere at a specific time? You invite them,” he said, smiling.

“You have an idea already, don't you?”

“Since you went off on your what if's. But I wanted to make you feel included.” Andrew smiled apologetically at me. I threw one of the crumpled papers at him. He caught it easily, laughing at my attempt.

“Fine. What's your plan then, Einstein?” I asked, swishing my chair back and forth.

“Easy. My mom and I are going to ask Luke and Ray to dinner. Or rather Luke and I will bring our parents to our dinner,” he said as he grinned mischievously up at me. I shook my head at him, grinning back.

“Do you mind if we get Britney and Eli involved too?” I asked, an idea forming.

“The more the merrier I guess. They might have some good ideas. Why?”

“If you take them to The Three Amigos, then Britney can be your waitress and Eli and I can sit nearby. That way we can listen in and see if we can come up with the next step.”

“You are brilliant,” he said as his eyes sparkled at me, somehow bluer than I had seen in a long time. I grinned, feeling the blush coming back. “Hey, Holly. Thank you.”

“For what? This is all just theoretical right now. I don't know if this is going to work. We all could just end up making fools of ourselves,” I said as I looked at him, but he just kept smiling at me.

“Holly, I have been dreading the next few months, knowing that I was going to have to give up my scholarship. Just knowing that I was going to be stuck here making sure that the heat stays on for my mom while my dreams passed me by was killing me. You just gave me something I didn't think I would get to have again: hope. Something I can do to fix this. I have tried everything I can think of, but this is the first time that it actually looks like things might get better,” he paused, his face lightening. He looked younger, less worn. “I have wanted to leave so badly. It hurts just thinking about it sometimes. This could be the solution.”

“I don't know if this will even work. I don't want to get your hopes up too much,” I said, sitting quietly for a moment, watching him pet my dog.

“It's something. Even if it doesn't work, it is something. A plan, a possibility. It is so much better than not having anything,” he said. His hand stopped petting Shadow's head and stayed still. “Thank you, Holly.”

I beamed. Andrew always made me feel special.

“You're welcome. How does tomorrow at six sound?” I asked opening my phone. He nodded, his hand resuming petting Shadow's soft fur. “I'll make reservations with Britney. Do you want to call Luke and invite him to dinner?”

Andrew grinned and picked up his phone.