Laura recoiled and glanced over at Brian, desperate for some sort of reaction from him, but he was still looking down at his phone. She let go of the polo shirt and walked out of the room. She’d made it into the kitchen before her eyes began welling up with tears of frustration. So much for feeling like an adult, she thought.
Rob looked up from the copy of Garden & Gun he was flipping through at the kitchen table. “I was just gonna go outside. Join me, sweet girl.”
She knew her eyes were wet and her face was probably red, but she nodded and walked onto the porch with him.
“You did the right thing,” he said as the two of them settled into the padded porch chairs. “I know comin’ back here wasn’t in the plan, but life ain’t always perfectly mapped out, ya know?” Chewing tobacco was wedged under his lower lip and he spit into his infamous Styrofoam cup. “Twenty years ago, I thought for sure I’d be playing ball too at LSU, but instead I got Brian. Best thing that ever happened to me, don’t get me wrong, but definitely didn’t see that comin’.” His right cheek bulged from the wad of dip. He spit again. “Whatever happens, you’ll be all right.”
“I know,” Laura said, trying not to think about what was in that cup. “Thanks for taking us in.”
“Our pleasure, darlin’. Just be careful. Janet’s not gonna want to let y’all go.” Laura could feel the truth of that statement weighing down on her, suffocating her.
It’s only temporary, she reminded herself for the thousandth time.
“Babe,” Brian shouted from the back door. “Kenny’s here. We’re goin’ out. See ya later!”
The door slammed shut before she could even form words. Was he really going to leave her alone with his parents? Anger festered in her stomach.
She looked back over at her father-in-law. Spit.
? ? ?
“I JUST DON’T know if I can do this,” Laura whined to Madison, Claire, and Gabby as she dipped her greasy french fries in ketchup. The girls were at Meryl’s Diner, a small fifties-themed restaurant on the outskirts of Toulouse that made its waitresses dress like they were at a sock hop. “I mean, they’re so nice for letting us stay, but I’m already losing it. Janet hogged the TV all day to watch a Southern Kitchen marathon. And Rob. He’s so sweet, but oh my god—I picked up his dip cup thinking it was my tea, and wanted to die.”
“Oh, sweetie,” Claire said sympathetically. Claire, out of anyone, could most understand what Laura was going through, having to balance in-laws with her own family life. It was part of why Laura loved being around her. Getting advice from Claire was almost like getting advice from a future version of herself.
“I mean, what if you guys weren’t around tonight?” Laura pointed her fries at her friends. “Was he just gonna leave me alone with Dip and Doo Da?”
“Oh, please tell me you call them that to their faces,” Madison said with a wicked grin.
Laura rolled her eyes and dipped the soggy fries in ketchup again. “Did I make a mistake, y’all?”
“Hell no,” Gabby chimed in. “First off, we get you back, so there’s that. Second, this is something you needed to do. And girl, you know Brian is worth it.”
Laura nodded. Gabby was right—she and Brian had spent years fantasizing about their future together. They had to get that surgery for him. They just had to.
“So, did you get your old job back from Ricky?” Claire asked.
Laura sighed and pushed the empty fry basket away from her. “Yeah, he has me working four nights a week right now. Luckily he had just fired a waiter for giving free boudin balls to all his friends. I start on Friday.”
“You’ll still give us free food though, right?” Madison grinned.
“Ha.” Laura leaned her head back on the vinyl booth. When she worked at the Sea Shack in high school, she constantly gave her friends free appetizers and Cokes. How did I keep that job for a whole year? Regardless, she was gonna have to be more careful this time. As strange as it sounded, her future—and her husband’s—depended on it.
Madison nudged her arm. “So, what are you gonna do during the days? Doesn’t Janet stay at home?”
“Seriously, Mads, how is it that you always know the worst thing to say at any given time?” Laura joked, throwing her crumpled-up straw wrapper at her friend.
“Years of practice.” She smirked. “But for real, what are you gonna do?”
Laura shrugged. She liked Janet . . . in small doses. But the idea of hanging out with her on a regular basis filled her with overwhelming dread.
“You’ll find something to keep you busy. You know”—Claire paused, as if an idea was suddenly occurring to her—“you could always go back to school and finish your senior year.”
Laura sat up. In truth, the idea of going back to Toulouse High had crossed her mind, but she hadn’t entertained it seriously. After all, she couldn’t very well return to the school that she’d acted so high and mighty about leaving . . . could she? “That’d be weird, right?”
“Why?” Claire asked, her blue eyes focusing in on Laura’s face.
“I don’t know.” She squirmed in her seat. “It’d just be strange to be back there and not be with Brian.” All of her best high school memories were tied to Brian: cheering for him at the football games, walking together hand in hand down the halls, sneaking into closets in between classes to make out.
“You’re still with Brian,” Gabby reminded her.
Laura rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean.”
“Oh, I think it’d be fun!” Claire said with cheery excitement. “You never experienced high school without him right there next to you. It’d be good for you. Besides, don’t you want to finish? What if . . .” Her voice trailed off.
“What if what?” Laura’s skin prickled. Claire had always been the voice of reason, almost to a fault. Her honesty was sometimes as hurtful as it was helpful.
Claire took a deep breath. “All I’m saying is that Brian might not be able to support you the way you always thought. What if he can’t play football again?”
Heat rushed through Laura’s veins. “He’ll be able to play again,” she said coolly. “That’s why we’re here, so he can get the surgery.”
“I’m just sayin’ . . . nothing bad can come from getting your diploma.”
Claire’s tone reminded Laura of her mother’s, when she had tried to convince her not to marry Brian just yet. “I’m just sayin’ . . . nothing bad will happen if you wait,” she had said. But then Laura reminded her that Brian could meet someone new at college, break up with her, and live the dream life—the one she’d worked so hard to help him get—with some other girl on his arm.
Laura tapped her phone and saw that it was after ten. “I gotta go, you guys.”
“Look, I’m sorry. Forget what I said,” Claire begged.
“Seriously, I’m not mad at you.” She shook her head and pulled out her wallet, throwing some dollar bills on the table. “I’m fine. I just really need to go. Brian’s gonna be home soon.”
The girls all looked concerned as they watched her stand up and swing her bag over her shoulder.
“We love you,” Gabby said softly as Laura waved good-bye.
Laura paused and smiled tightly. “I love y’all, too.”