"Here ya go." Chris put a tray of food on the table in front on Nicole. "We have two extra thick chocolate milkshakes, two double deluxe greasy burgers, and of course the meal wouldn't be complete with out the basket 'o fatty dripping fries. Anytime your ready, dig in."
"Thanks," Nicole smiled from across the table, "you make it sound so appetizing."
"I try." He grinned, but then his face drew itself in to a more serious look. "Are you sure you're ready for this? I mean you don't have to tell me if you're not ready. I'll wait as long as I have to for you."
"Yeah, I am. I've kept this too myself for two long. I need to share it." Nicole reached out and put her hand on his, "I really like you Chris, but I know I wouldn't be able to have a meaningful relationship with you, or anyone really, until I work through this. Just keep the Kleenex on standby all right?"
"You got it." Chris put his hand on top of hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Whenever you're ready."
Nicole picked up a french fry and looked at it a moment before finally popping it in her mouth. Then she looked at the table and took a deep breath. "About 3 years ago I was engaged to be married to a man I loved dearly. Jason and I had been high school sweet hearts and were inseparable. I considered him my soul mate. The week before the wedding I was going crazy with the wedding preparations and dealing with all the relatives, so I talked him into taking me away for the weekend to a cabin at the lake. Just so we could get some peace and quiet, ya know?
"At first things went beautifully, the sun was shining and the water at the lake was crystal clear and serene. Jason brought some bottles of wine to our room and we started drinking and laughing and having fun. But, as all lovers do, we got into an argument over something really stupid. What is was, I can't remember, but we exchanged some horrible words. I yelled at him to get out and that the engagement was over. I didn't mean it of course, but I wanted to hurt him."
Tears started to well up in Nicole's eyes as she remembered the rest of the story. Chris squeezed her hand tightly and she continued. "He went out and tried to get in the car. I knew he had been drinking too much, and I tried to get the keys away, but he was stronger than me and he got into the car and started it up anyway. I was so mad that I kicked the tire and yelled at him saying that I hoped I would never see him again. He tore off down the road in a blur. I stormed back into the cabin to get my things and call a cab when I heard a loud crash and a deafening explosion."
The tears were freely flowing now but she just took another deep breath and finished. "My heart sank and I ran as fast as I could down the road. When I reached the source to the explosion, I found that his car had collided with a truck and careened off an embankment. His car had caught on fire. I tried to run down to him, but the driver of the truck, who thank God was okay, grabbed hold of me and stopped me. All I could do was stand there and watch as his car went up in flames.
"When the ambulance arrived, they found his broken body, unconscous and laying some distance from the burnt out shell of his car. I was relieved at that, but when they took him to the hospital, they told me there was nothing they could do for him. I sat with him night and day for a week talking to him and trying to say I was sorry, but," her voice choked and turned into a shaky whisper, "on the very day of our wedding, he died."
Chris rose up out of his side of the booth and slid next to Nicole on the other side and put his arms around her and held her as she continued to sob. "It wasn't fair. It was all my fault that we were at the lake in the first place. It was my fault that I said those hateful words to him that made him leave and it's my fault that I didn't try hard enough to get those keys away from him even though I knew he shouldn't have been driving."
"It's okay Nicole." Chris rocked her back and forth and stroked her hair trying to comfort her.
"No it's not." She cried and she raised a fist and hit him on the chest. "You want to hear the worst part?" She looked him in the eyes "I never even got a chance to say I was sorry for the things I said. I never got to tell him that I loved him."
"I think he knew, Nicole." Chris spoke gently, "I think he knew."
Scene 2:
"Madam," Alfalfa poked his head in the kitchen where Lilith was banging pots and pans around, "Madam, are you all right?"
"Of course I'm not all right." She opened up another cabinet and started searching for something. "Does it look like I'm all right? God, where is it?"
"Madam, perhaps if you are looking for something I can help you find it." Then he added under his breath, "Before you mess up my nice, clean kitchen completely."
"What was that Alfalfa?" she turned from the cabinet where she stood to face him and gave him a disapproving look.
"Uh," he stammered, "I just said let me help you find whatever it is you are looking for before you drop something on your nice, clean, bitchin feetsies."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"I mean, you wouldn't want to drop a big, heavy pot on one of your well manicured toes, now would you?"
"Alfalfa," she gave him a confused look, "sometimes I wonder about you."
"Uh, me too." He mumbled. "Now would you mind telling me what is going on here?"
"You know I had that little meeting with Bruce." She paused long enough for Alfalfa to nod his head, "Well, you remember what happened five years ago? Well, it's come back to haunt him and I have to bail him out again. He needs me to sneak onto the hospital database and change some information for him."
"Information?" Alfalfa inquired. "What kind of information, Madam?"
"The kind of information he can't get to…or won't try to get to." She mused. "He doesn't want to put his precious little butt on the line, so he volunteered mine instead."
"So what does this have to do with you banging around in the kitchen?" He asked as he scurried over to where Lilith had thrown some of the pots and gingerly started to put them away.
"Inside one of these cabinets is a secret compartment that is just large enough to hold some papers. I can never remember which cabinet it is. Anyway, those papers are my ticket out of this mess. They can prove what a slimeball that Bruce is and…"
"Looking for these, Lilith?" Bruce was standing at the kitchen door laughing and holding up a stack of papers in his left hand. "You really should be nicer to me you know."
"How dare you! You give those back!" She rushed over to him, nearly tripping over poor Alfalfa who was still bent over on the ground cleaning up the mess of pots. She made a grab for the papers, but Bruce moved them up and out of the way of her grasp.
"Uh, uh, uh!" Bruce said as he kept the papers just out of her reach. "I think these are better left in my hands."
"But how did know where they were? How did you even know I had them?"
"You never change Lilith. I figured you might have kept a little insurance, but you are so pathetically predictable. You are still using the same hiding places that you used when we were together. Last night while we were eating dinner and your houseboy here was out running errands, I sent someone over to peruse the premises. I needed to be sure I could count on your support. And now that I have these, I'll be leaving now."
"Alfalfa! Do something?" She screamed as she turned to face him, tears of frustration forming in her eyes.
"And what exactly do you propose I do?" He looked at her, "Hit him over the head with a frying pan?"
"That's better than just standing there with that stupid look on your face, isn't it!?" She answered.
Alfalfa sighed, picked up a pot and looked at Bruce who shook his head at him. Bruce started to laugh and turned to walk out of the kitchen. "You just can't find good help these days, can you Lilith?"
Lilith, in all her fury, turned and grabbed a frying pan from the floor and with an ear piercing scream ran the length of the distance separating her from Bruce and hit him square on the back of the head right as he reached the front door. Bruce, stunned and in shock, turned back around to face Lilith who was standing there holding a frying pan with a huge, Bruce sized dent in it. As he looked at her his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he slumped to the floor.
"Not my good frying pan!" Cried Alfalfa as he rushed over and took the frying pan from Lilith's hand. "This was my best frying pan you know, and now you've ruined it!"
"Oh, put a sock in it. I stopped him, didn't I? That's a lot more than you did, you worthless coward." She retorted. "Now stop worrying about your stupid frying pan and help me tie him up."
Scene 3:
Chris continued to Nicole in his arms for a long time as she sobbed. Finally her sobs became weaker and a then stopped. Nicole pulled back from his arms and looked at him. A smile formed on her face, which was red from crying. She pointed to a wet spot on Chris' shirt where her tears had fallen, "I sure hope that shirt wasn't dry clean only."
Chris smiled back at her. "Are you going to be okay?"
"Yeah, I think so. But I could really use some fresh air." She replied.
"Okay, let's get out of here." Chris stood up and offered his hand to Nicole. She took it and he helped her out of the booth. They headed for the door and walked out into the crisp, cool, night air. They walked silently hand in hand away from the cafe and towards the park.
When they reached the park Chris stopped next to a large oak tree. He stooped towards the ground and when he stood back up he held out a flower and offered it to Nicole. "A flower for you."
Nicole smiled at him as he reached out and put it in her hair. "Did anyone ever tell you how beautiful you look in the moonlight?" He grinned at her.
Nicole shook her head. "Chris, I...uh," She stammered, "I just wanted to say thank you. You know, for being there for me."
Chris wrapped his arms around her waist. "Nicole, I will be there for you anytime you need me. I know you probably aren't ready for a new relationship yet, but when you are, please know that I will still be here for you."
Nicole reached up and put her arms around his neck and gave him a big smile. "You are such a special man, Chris. I know that it will be difficult at first to be in a relationship again, but I'd like to try, as long as it's with you."
He smiled back at her as their lips neared and he embraced her in a passionate kiss.
