One major difference with my situation is that Ivy would never want to live here. I certainly can’t imagine her wanting to bum about too much. She loves her job and her small-town life.
“You seem lost in your thoughts. Please tell me you’re cooking up a plan to get your girl back.”
I smile. Grey really is a good friend. “I’m making alterations to a plan, yes.”
“How can I help?”
Mr. and Mrs. Parker are standing behind their restaurant counter, heads bent together, looking at a paper. Mr. Parker has his arm around his wife, and it makes me smile.
“Good morning,” I say as I approach.
“Ah, Alexander. Wonderful to see you,” Mr Parker says, and I try my best to store their warm smiles in a permanent space in my memory.
“I’m glad to see you both, as well. And I’d love it if youwould call me Alex. I’ve always preferred that name. I’m not sure why I’ve always given Alexander to people.” I don’t know why I ask this of them given what I’ve come here to tell them. I think I’ve got used to Ivy calling me Alex, and I miss it. Maybe that’s the name I want those I care for most to call me.
This request makes Mrs. Parker grin like she knows why I asked.
“What can we get you today, Alex?” she asks, and for a moment, I can see how mum-like she is, and it makes me miss having one. Mine was, in many ways, quite different from Mrs. Parker, but the tenderness and the urge to care for others are the same.
“I always love it when you surprise me.”
“I know just the thing. Have a seat and I’ll pop by with your tea and water in a minute.”
“Would you both have a moment to sit and talk with me?”
“Sure,” Mr. Parker says. “Maybe I’ll have some tea, too.”
“Have you tried the hot tea before?” I ask, wondering if I should confess and warn him off.
“I have. It’s a nice change from coffee sometimes.”
I nod. Maybe I’m a tea snob. I head to my usual booth and wait.
A couple of minutes later, they are seated across from me, each of us with a tea and a blueberry muffin.
“What’s going on, Alex, dear?” Mrs. Parker says withoutpreamble.
“I came in today because it’s been a while and I wanted to see you. And also because I wanted to let you know that I may not be around much anymore.”
“Got a big film to shoot somewhere far away?” Mr. Parker asks.
My eyes go wide, and they both laugh.
“Teddy and I may not watch television or films,” Mrs. Parker says with a smile, “but we’re not totally unaware. We just see you as a person, like anyone else, so that’s how we treated you at first. Then you became more than just a person to us. You slowly became like family. Family we don’t often get to see. But family, nonetheless.” She reaches across the table and pats my hand.
“Also,” Mr. Parker added. “We don’tusuallywatch TV or movies, but we went to seeThe Mark of Everlore.”
Mrs. Parker smiled. “We wanted to support you and see you at work.”
“You went to see it? Really?”
“Really. And we are so proud of you,” Mrs. Parker said. “It was wonderful.”
Mr. Parker nodded.
“I can’t tell you how much that means to me. And I’m sorry I never told you. At first, I really enjoyed being with people who didn’t know. Which apparently wasn’t the case.And then, as time went on, it felt like a weird thing to come out and say.”
“We understood why you never said anything. You were genuine in all the ways that matter, and that’s all we needed, to know you were special to us,” Mr. Parker said, clapping a hand on my shoulder from across the table.
