After hanging up with his brother, telling him that they’d wait for him at the restaurant, he nearly forgot that they were having dinner at his all-time favorite place.Their steaks were great, and he loved their blooming onions.He could eat an entire one of them by himself.He might be a little sick afterwards, but he’d enjoy it while eating it.
Getting ready for dinner, Jack had already left by then, and he decided that he was going to talk them into the trip.It would be fun to get together as a family.It had been a while since they’d done anything like that, and he wanted to spend as much time with them as he could.You never knew what tomorrow was going to bring, and he wanted to have as many memories as he could with his family as he could get.
Smiling to himself, he wondered why he was getting to be sounding so gloom and doom and decided to change things around.He had a great family, and they’d be around for a good long time.As soon as he was out the door, he realized something else.How lucky they’d been in their lives since leaving home, and he couldn’t wait until they got together tonight.It was fun to be with his brothers, and he was glad that they did it every week like clockwork.
He rolled down his window and enjoyed the breeze coming in through it.Once he was at the restaurant, he was excited to see his brothers.As soon as he was in the place they reserved for themselves, he hugged them all and told them how much he loved them.They were a little shocked but told him that they loved him as well.It was going to be a great dinner, and he couldn’t wait for it to begin.
Since they all had families, they didn’t drink at these things.He was glad about that.He liked a beer with his steak dinner and didn’t miss it at all when they were all together.As soon as Zander joined them, he hugged him too and told him how much he loved it.Zander hugged him tightly back and told him that he needed that.Just as they were being seated, his cell phone rang, and it wasn’t a number that he knew, so he let it go to voicemail.They didn’t leave a message, which he was happy about.
As soon as they ordered, their salads were brought to them.He really enjoyed the house dressing and was surprised when it was different.Not putting up a fuss about it, he ate his salad with the rest of them just before their dinners were brought to them.Trading around bites of food with each other, something that they always did, he got to taste Demi’s chicken dish along with Dusty’s mushroom sauce over his steak.It was all good, and he was happy that he’d gotten the pasta dish with his steak, as it was one of his favorite things on the menu.
“ I was just talking to August about the find that they found in the walls of the courthouse.It’s supposed to be from fifty years ago.”They speculated on that for a while as they ate, and just like him, they wanted to read over the reports that had been found to see what things were like back then.“ I’mgoing to see if I can get with the attorneys who are going to be a part of the files just to see if I can get a first-hand look at things.There is no telling what sort of stuff they find in those files.I wonder if some of the people from around here will be in them?I know that we won’t, as we’ve not been here that long, but I’d love to see if anyone has skeletons in the boxes.”
“ I wonder how they got into that area in the first place.Makes me think of foul play.I have no idea why, but that’s the first thing that popped into my head.”The rest of the table agreed with him on that speculation.“ It could be nothing more than just some old paperwork about the renovations that were going on at that time, but it’s fun to think about.”
They talked about their week they’d had too.When he brought up that he’d finished his book, the others were happy for him.August had written another book so far, and since he was loving it so much, he decided that he could make a career out of it.Not that he needed to work, but sometimes it was good to have something to do that filled out your days.And his days at times needed filling out.
After dinner, they sat around and talked about what had been going on in their lives.Mostly, it was the same thing.They loved being fathers, and they had been working hard.As they were settling back in their seats, he watched them all talking.It was something that he liked doing and was happy that he could see them at their best.It was Zander that he enjoyed watching the most.He was quiet today, and he wondered what was going on with him.Asking him about it, he said that he’d been thinking about retiring as well for a while anyway, and didn’t know how to bring it up to the family.
“ You just tell them.They’ll understand.”He nodded as if he knew that and said how he’d been working nonstop since he’d gotten out of college.“ I think that we all have done that, and it’s beginning to show on us.I’m just happy that I can do something different once in a while to stave off the boredom.Writing gives me an outlet that I didn’t know that I needed until I started doing it.”
“ I don’t want to write, I’ll leave that up to you, but I do want to do something that takes me out of my head.As I said, I’ve been working nonstop since college, and while I enjoy my job, I’m feeling the pinch of being bored with it too.Like I’ve seen it all and done it all.While I know that’s not even possible, my head and heart tell me that I’ve had enough.I just want to be able to sleep late and not have to worry about who is calling me for something.I don’t think I’ve even had a day off in years.I’m forever on call for the family, and I need to be getting out of the office more.”
“ Tell them like that.I’m positive they’ll understand.Hell, they’ve all about quit their jobs.Demi only does the school thing now, and he seems to be happy.I know that Locke just retired, and that’s good for him.We’re all getting burnt out on what we do and need a break.Look at Knox.He’s decided that he wants to get into the courtroom more and has taken on some cases for the family so that you don’t have to do it all.”He asked him if he was trying to convince him to do it.“ Now is as good a time as ever, I think.We’re all together.I mean, you’ve talked to Olivia about it, right?”
“ She’s been trying to get me to step down for a month now.She misses me.”He laughed.“ I don’t know how she misses me.I work from home most days, and when I’m at the office, it’s only for a couple of hours.It’s more than likely she misses me just being there for her and the kids.That’s another thing that I’m missing.My kids growing up.”He said that he’d be better off retiring while they were still young.That way, he can go to plays and stuff while they’re in school.“ I think you’re right.I’m going to do it.Starting next week.I have to finish the things that I have started for all of us.I might just make sure that I have time off in the meantime.Like an entire day without anyone needing me.That would be good to start off with, don’t you think?”
“ I think you should make a clean break of it and just stop.No one is going to blame you for it.As you’ve said several times now, you’ve been working since you got out of college, and it’s time for you to lay some of the work aside so that you can have a good life.”He nodded and put out his hand.Shaking it, he was glad that he could be there for him when he needed someone to bounce ideas off of.“ Tell them now before dessert comes, or you won’t get the chance.They’ll want to get back to their homes soon after that.I know that I do.”
Once he made the announcement, the room was silent.He looked around at his family, wondering what they’d been thinking when Locke stood up and congratulated him.The others did the same thing.While hugging him, telling him that they’d all take up the slack of needing him all the time, Zander looked relieved.Like a huge burden had been lifted from his shoulders and put away for good.
After ordering their dessert, they sat around talking about what Zander was doing, and he could tell that the rest of them were wondering why they were working so hard, too.He wanted to tell them that none of them had to work, not really, and that they all should take some time off.It was the perfect time to bring up the vacation to DC for the summer, and it went over as well as he thought it would.They were thrilled to have something to look forward to in the coming months, and so was he.
As they were leaving the restaurant, he saw that there was about five hundred dollars in tips around the table.Locke usually picked up the bill, and he was glad to be able to help the waitstaff out by making it worth their while in taking care of them for the evening.They weren’t demanding by any means, but they certainly could take up a lot of time from the staff that usually took care of them.
He was glad to be home that night and was happy that Jack had also had a good time.He told her about Zander, and she said that they’d talked to Olivia about it too.She really did miss him when he was working so much, and this was going to be good for their family.
~*~
Demi was thinking about what his brother had said at dinner about retiring, and he thought that he was ready for a change, too.His boys no longer went to the grade school; both of them were in middle school now, but his other two sons were there.He didn’t want to slight them the time to spend with him, too, so he decided that until they were out of elementary school, he’d continue doing the breakfast.
That would be another six years of making breakfast for the kids at the school, and he thought that he could handle it.It wasn’t like it was that hard on him to get up and get it going.He had enough help now that he barely had to do much more than supervise.Still, it was fun seeing his children as they went from their home to the school where he worked.
“ I’ve been thinking of you working.”He told Mandy that he’d been doing the same thing.“ I was wondering about that.With the others quitting their jobs, it might be a good time for me to quit too.I’ve been thinking about it for a while now, and the classes are getting smaller all the time.Most of the classes are now only one or two people, and that’s kind of boring for me.I love teaching them how to use the computer, but I think that with you home in the afternoons now all the time, I’d like to be here with you.It’s something to think about.”
“ I’m not saying that you shouldn’t quit, but couldn’t they make the classes larger by waiting until they had more in the class to take them?I mean, that might be a solution.”She told him why that wouldn’t work.“ Okay, I can see that.People want to learn quickly so that they can get a job in the market better.I never thought of the demand of you working all the time.You would be welcome here with me while the kids are in school.”He wiggled his brows at her, and they both laughed.
“ But seriously, I’ve had enough.I’ve been doing it for nearly ten years, and I need to either teach something else or stop altogether.I think there are enough people working there who can do the classes without me around.I just want a break like the others are doing.”He asked if the women were thinking about retiring as well.“ I think that pretty much all of them have decided that it’s the way to go.Even if it’s only a temporary thing, it would be nice to have a break.I know that I could use one.”
“ Then you should do it.Neither one of us has to work.It might be nice to have some time during the day to hang out with each other.I know there are times when I miss you.”She said that she missed him a great deal.“ Then you really should do it.Just tell Alex that you want to take a break from it all, and I’m sure that she’ll understand.I know that Shipley has been voted in as medical examiner again, so she’ll have a term for four years, but it happens so seldom around here that someone needs a post mortem that she could only go in a few days a month to keep up with things going on.”
“ Elanie said that she was thinking of no longer being a nurse.She’s been at it longer than the rest of us have been, and she said that she wants to be home with her family, too.I don’t blame her.She and Knox have the youngest kids, and that can’t be easy, leaving them for work every day.And she has to work a twelve-hour shift on top of the post-mortem job.Like you said, that’s not an everyday thing, but with working full-time as a nurse, it must be hard on her.Her baby is only two, and I don’t knowwhat I’d do if I weren’t around to see the milestones of our kids when they were that little.”
Knowing that she was right, he did wonder what they were all going to do with their lives if they weren’t working all the time.Become lazy rich people?He didn’t see that happening for very long.In fact, he was thinking that if he didn’t have his books to write, he’d be bored out of his mind about now.He was always at his happiest when he was working and didn’t think that his family was going to be any different.They’d been working since before coming here, and he didn’t know how they’d do it without a job every day.
But he kept his mouth shut.He wasn’t going to comment on anything just yet.They might well really be ready for this mass retirement, and he was barking up the wrong tree.Time would tell, he supposed, and he was looking forward to what new thing was going to bring his family together again.
Demi was going to make dinner tonight as it was their cook’s night off.They were going to have homemade corn dogs and French fries.One of his favorite things to make for his family.As he began prepping for dinner, Mandy came in to help him.She didn’t do much, but she was good to have around as company.He asked her what her plan was now that she’d decided to retire, too.
