Carrington Kitchen
Searcy, Arkansas
November 27, 2023
"That week sounds like it was a lot. You went from expecting to drive with Bennett to New York to get settled and learn the city together to shipping your things and flying there alone. In addition, it must have been tough to see Bennett deal with his friends and his parents' tragic deaths. That was a lot to place on him so young,especially going to Scotland to break the news to Taylor," said Harvey Cox as he put down the pen he had been making notes with and gave Poppy a sincere look.
"Yes, it was. Thinking about those days brings back such sadness. Watching Bennett mourning the loss of his best friend was so hard. I am not going to lie. There were so many times I wanted to throw the fit he suggested I might. I never did, though. He had more than he could carry emotionally. I did not want to be the one to add to that," replied Poppy. "Plus, I was still processing what I learned about my father. It was all too much. I did not get to discuss that situation with anyone for weeks. I needed to come to terms with the fact that my dad had been married and had never made any effort to see me or support me, even though he had claimed to love my mom. Also, during that time, my great-aunt continued to decline, so I was not able to see Gran or discuss it all with her. I never did bring it up to Bennett. I knew he had too much else on his mind.
“When we did talk, it was always hurried and very surface. He would always ask about the apartment and my classes. He would ask how I was doing and if I was okay. I realized that my answer was supposed to be ‘fine’ even if I wasn't. Another answer, and he would have felt the need to try and fix it. He had enough he was trying to fix dealing with Taylor.
It took over two weeks to get her home and help her get her family properly buried. I felt bad for her. I really did. She was only a few years older than me. I was an orphan my whole life. I understood the rules of the road regarding life without parents. Thank goodness I had Gran and Papa growing up to help me. Taylor had it all thrust upon her at twenty-two with no one but Bennett and his dad to help her. So, I tried to kill the ugly, green monster when she would rear her ugly head. But, being in New York alone was hard when I knew Bennett and Taylor spent every day andnight together in Searcy. I was happy to be in school and learning, but I missed Bennett like mad." Poppy got up and went to the counter to make herself a cup of coffee. Jestering to the coffee maker, she asked, "Would you like a cup?"
Harvey shook his head and said, "I am really more of a soda guy. Any chance I could get a soda?"
As Poppy fixed his drink, Harvey asked, "What was it like in New York once you got there? Did you love it? Was art school everything you expected it to be?"
She handed him the drink and said, "The short answer, yes, no, and it depended on the day."
Picking his pen back up, Harvey said, "If that is the short answer, I can't wait to hear the long version."
Sitting back at the kitchen counter, Poppy took a deep breath and said, “Well, here it goes.”
Chapter 10
Poppy’s Apartment
New York City, New York
September – November 2000
Poppy had been in school for eight weeks. She loved everything about her art classes. Watercolors continued to be her favorite course, but she also loved her abstract class. It was taught by a very up-and-coming artist, Thomas Thompson. He already had several successful shows, and Poppy felt so lucky to be able to learn under him.
The hardest part of the first few weeks had been learning how to navigate the city. Having not grown up using a subway system, it took some getting used to. Poppy lived alone and didn't know anyone else in the city. This gave her so much time to pour into her craft. Every night, she would come home from class and repeatedly practice what she learned. She was ahead on all her required readings and was so focused on school that there had been little time for anything except for the weekly calls with Bennett. During the first few weeks, the calls felt like check-in calls rather than conversations between lovers.
Bennett called her the day he cleaned out Tatum’s office, and she could hear the sorrow and heartache in his voice. She hatedthat she was not there to hold him and comfort him. Finally, life for Bennett began a return to normalcy after the funerals, even though Poppy could tell that Bennett was really missing his friend. However, slowly but surely, it felt like things between them were beginning to return to how they had been before the accident.
Their conversations focused more on them and their respective days. It also got way steamier. It had been several weeks since they had been together physically, and that was taking a toll on each of them. Bennett promised to come up for a visit the last weekend of September and Poppy was living for that visit. She could not wait to see him and show him all the pieces she was working on. She also wanted to show him the little Indian restaurant she had fallen in love with around the corner from their apartment.
The Friday Bennett was to fly up to New York, he called her on her cellphone, “Babe, please don’t be mad.”
Poppy had been with Bennett long enough to know that conversations that started that way never ended well. “Do not tell me you are not coming.” Poppy could sense what he was going to say before the words came out.
For a second, Bennett said nothing. When he did speak, he said, “I am so sorry, but I am not coming. Something has come up with Taylor, and I can’t leave her. She needs me.”
“She needs you? She needs you?” Poppy’s voice got louder with time as she said it. “Trust me, Bennett Carrington the Fourth, I need you. I need you badly. Please get your butt on that plane now.”
Sighing loudly and sounding defeated, Bennett said, “I know, babe. No one needed this weekend more than me. Trust me. I am halfway to carpal tunnel syndrome without you. But babe, it is bad here. I did not realize how bad it was until earlier today. A pipe burst at the Stroupe house. I called a plumber to go fix it.”
Poppy interrupted him and said, “Great, if the pipe is fixed, problem solved.”
Sighing again, this time exasperatedly, Bennett said, “If you stop interrupting me, I will tell you. Anyway, I sent over a plumber. You are right. He fixed the pipe but called me afterward to say he was worried about Taylor. He said something was not right. She was acting weird. He kept telling me I had to go over and check on things. So, as I was headed out of town to Little Rock, I swung by Taylor’s house. Babe, you would not believe what it was like. The whole place was a mess. Pizza boxes were everywhere. Soda cans and empty fast food bags. I don’t think she had even unpacked her suitcase from Scotland. And it gets worse. Taylor has always been the cleanest, sharpest-dressed person I have known. I don’t think until today I have ever seen her with a hair out of place. Red, she was so nasty. I don’t think she has showered or washed her hair in weeks. I am really worried about her.”
“Fine,” said Poppy. “Make her take a shower and call her friend, who is always around, to come be with her. But don’t cancel our weekend. Please. I need you, too. If you don’t come, I may stop taking showers and washing my hair if that is what it takes to get your attention.”
Bennett did not say anything for a moment. When he did, his tone was abrupt and frustrated. “Poppy. That is not even funny. This poor girl has been through so much. How can you make jokes about her situation when you, of all people, know what it is like to be left orphaned and alone? At least you still have your Gran. Taylor has no one but me.”
Poppy wanted to snap back that she had been all alone for months, too. Gran was busy in Tennessee; she knew no one in New York, and he was always busy with Taylor. But, she had been chastised enough for one call. Instead, she said, “Okay, so this weekend is out? No chance you might fly up tomorrow if she is doing better?”
