Andy sat at the corner of the sofa and pulled her down next to him. When she was comfortably tucked in beside him, he pulled the blanket from the back of the sofa and covered them both up. With nothing left to say, she just held him and enjoyed being held by him. It didn’t take long before his breathing slowed and evened out as he drifted to sleep. She held him tight and hoped he would feel better after getting some much-needed rest.
***
Andy hadn’t been able to shake the chill he’d felt ever since his father passed away. The cold damp wind at the cemetery wasn’t helping, and his black wool overcoat wasn’t doing much to protect him from that wind. The service was short and sweet, like his father wanted. A few of their close family and friends milled around. Andy knew they were waiting around because they had already announced they would receive family and friends at his house after the service.
“Hey,” Samira said as she sat in the empty seat next to him. “Would you like me and my aunt to head over to the house? That way you guys can take all the time you need. We’ll take care of everything.”
“Thank you,” he answered simply.
“No need to thank me. I’ll see you in a bit,” she gave his hand a quick squeeze before she stood up to join her aunt.
He watched in silence as the last of the mourners headed to their cars. He didn’t blame them. It was a cold and miserable day. He was ready to go, but he gave his mom a few more minutes before he coaxed her to leave.
“Let’s get you warm, mom. I know you must be cold if I’m cold.”
She looked at him after a moment and nodded in agreement. He helped her up and together they made the slow trek back to his truck. She stared out the window at the cemetery until it was no longer in view.
“You okay, Mom?”
“I am. I’m just tired, dear. But I’m doing better now that it’s over,” she answered before turning to look at him. “How are you holding up?”
“I’m holding up. I’ve been worrying about you, though.”
“Well, there’s no need. I’ll get through this just like I always do. I wasn’t lying about being exhausted. Would it be rude if I went home instead of to your house? I want to climb into my warm bed now that I’m not worried about all the arrangements.”
Andy glanced at her and could clearly see the dark circles under eyes. She needed sleep. “I don’t think there are rules when you just lost a husband. Your friends will understand. I’ll take you home. Do you want me to stay with you?”
“No, honey, don’t you worry about me. I’m just going to go straight to bed. Samira will worry if you don’t get home. And then Mary will be here before I get to my second dream,” she said with a chuckle. “Speaking of Samira…”
“What about her?” Andy asked as he pulled into his mother’s driveway.
“Are you guys back together? It’s really sweet that she offered to handle everything at the house, so you don’t have to worry about it. I was listening.”
“Of course, you were listening. No, we aren’t together. We’re just friends. Here, I’ll walk you inside,” he said before climbing out his truck and walking around to open the door for his mom.
“I’m sad, not disabled. I’m capable of walking into the house,” she said as she swatted his hands away. “And call yourselves friends all you want to, but I can see the way you two still look at each other. I already told you to get your girl back. I’m not going to keep on about it. I was just wondering.”
Andy shook his head incredulously. “Get some sleep, Mom. I love you.”
“I love you, too,” she responded. “Now go get your girl back.”
He stared at the closed front door and shook his head once more before he turned and made his way back to his truck. He decided to take a detour and drive around a bit to clear his head before going home. Even though everyone at his house was there for him, he didn’t want to be around a lot of people. A short drive around the island wouldn’t hurt. He’d get to his house before everyone was gone.
His short drive turned into an hour before he knew it, and Samira was outside by the time he had his truck in park. She wrapped her arms around herself and stood on the front step waiting, worry etched across her features.
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly.
She closed the distance between them and pulled him into a hug. “I’m just glad you’re okay. Your mom called my aunt over an hour ago and said you dropped her off and to give everyone her apologies. I thought something happened to you.”
He knew they were just friends, but the realization that she was worried about him did something to thaw the never-ending chill. He hugged her tight and quickly kissed her cheek as they pulled apart. After straightening out her dress, she opened the door to go back inside.
As soon as he walked into the house, Mary made eye contact from across the room before making a beeline for him. She, too, pulled him into a hug, which took him by surprise.
“Good heavens, you had us worried. I’m glad you’re here. Let me get you something to eat. There’s macaroni and cheese, some spinach casserole that Miss Lettie from church dropped off, and I made up a big pot of chili,” Mary said as she directed him to the kitchen island. “What can I fix you?”
Andy wasn’t hungry, but he didn’t want to hurt any feelings. He picked up a bowl and scooped out some chili from the crock pot. He barely sat down when Eddy’s sister Sandy rushed over to serve him a piece of corn bread to go with his chili.
“Thank you, guys. I’m sorry I was MIA. I just needed some time to clear my head.”
