A Life Less Ordinary (33 page)

Like
they had never been.

The
world was back on its axis, Zeke thought smugly, and Manny was firmly back in
the place he’d put her.

He
glanced at Daisy, who was still stubbornly hiding beneath the blankets, and
then at Rebecca, who had just returned from the bathroom and was now standing
with her hands on her hips, mock-glaring at him.

Rebecca
looked stunningly beautiful in her silk pajamas, her red hair framing her
heart-shaped face.  Zeke grinned appreciatively at her.

“Don’t
give me that come hither look, young man,” Rebecca snapped.  “I could use
another couple hours of beauty sleep.”

“Oh,
please,” Manny groaned, laughing, “like you’re not beautiful enough already!”

“Well,”
Rebecca pouted, “the extra sleep doesn’t hurt.”

Manny
laughed again, threw back the covers and stood with another groan.  She closed
her eyes, put her hands in the small of her back and arched backwards,
stretching, before she straightened the t-shirt and boxer shorts she used as
pajamas and sleepily shuffled past Zeke to the bathroom.

“We’ll
just make Zeke pay for lunch as punishment,” she said and grinned at him as she
closed the door.

Zeke
barely heard her; he was too busy trying to catch his breath and desperately
trying not to think how her legs seemed even more beautiful than they had in
those shoes; how her ass seemed even curvier and sexier than the way it had
looked in that blue dress.

But
she was still
just Manny
, he told himself, stunned.  She was still a bit
too plump, a bit too plain, a bit too dull – Zeke couldn’t figure out where
these
moments
were coming from – or why.

The
only thing he knew for sure was that these moments had to stop.  And stop
now
.

She
was his Auntie Em – and by God, his Auntie Em she would stay.

* * * * *

Manny
watched Zeke with a puzzled frown.  She wasn’t sure what, exactly, was going on
in his head.  He seemed to flip-flop more quickly between his normal, teasing,
slightly aloof self, to darkly brooding, his black eyebrows lowered
thunderously over his hazel eyes as he scowled at – as far as she could tell –
nothing at all.

It
worried her, and as Daisy and Rebecca’s week sped to an end, Manny was
beginning to wonder if Zeke was going to go back with them.  She wondered if
his mood changes were because he didn’t know how to tell her he wanted to cut
his trip short.  They were having fun, joking and laughing, but Manny could
still feel a lingering tension between her and Zeke, and she didn’t like it. 
She wanted their easy-going relationship back; she didn’t want to believe it
could be gone forever simply because she’d cut her hair.

If
she’d known he’d react like this...

Oh,
what?  You wouldn’t have cut your hair?  Really?

Well...I
might have waited until I got home.

Seriously.

...maybe.

Harvey
huffed a sigh and shook his head.  Manny heaved a sigh as well, then looked at
him in the bathroom mirror as she finished buttoning her shirt.

It
doesn’t matter what I might or might not have done; I didn’t know, and I did
cut my hair.  I just...he’s been so moody – and tonight’s the premiere.  I just
want all of us to have fun.

And
we will.  Zeke’s moods aren’t your responsibility.

...I
know.

And
you didn’t do anything wrong.  Even if you were lovers, he’d have no right to
dictate what you do or don’t do.

I
know.  I know!  I just wish I knew what was bothering him...

Well,
when Daisy and Rebecca go back, you can ask him. 

If
he’s still here.

He’ll
be here.

“Hey
– what the hell are you doing in there?” Daisy yelled, pounding on the bathroom
door.  “There’s a red carpet to watch, and Robert Downey Jr. to see!  Let’s
move it!”

Harvey
grinned at Manny, his eyes warm. 
You heard the lady – get a move on!

She
grinned back.

“Hold
your horses – I’m coming!” she called, and opened the bathroom door.

* * * * *

“We
made eye contact,” Daisy insisted, “there was a connection.”

“Daisy,”
Rebecca said, laughing, “there were at least three rows of people in front of
us.  We barely saw him!”

“But
what we saw...” she sighed dreamily.

“Down,
girl,” Manny grinned, “I think you’re actually drooling.”

Daisy
made a show of wiping her chin.  “I think you’re right.”

Zeke
watched them, fascinated.

“All
this because you caught a glimpse of Robert Downey Jr.?  Really?”  he asked
skeptically.

“If
you were gay, you’d understand,” Rebecca sighed dreamily.

Zeke
snorted a laugh.  “No doubt.”

“I
never thought I’d ever even be in the same general area as him,” Daisy
explained, “so, yes, I’m still very excited.  I don’t care that I had to look
over four rows of heads, and all I really saw was a quarter of his profile – it
was
still
awesome!  I’m so,
so
glad you met Lionel in Vegas,
Manny.”

Manny
nodded fervently.  “Me, too.”

Zeke
ruefully shook his head as the three women began again to chatter excitedly
about the red carpet event and the subsequent movie, sounding more like
twenty-somethings than forty-somethings.  He couldn’t wait to write his blog
about
this
.

~~~~~

TJ
and Leah looked up as the doctor walked into TJ’s the office.

“Hey,
doc,” TJ greeted cheerfully.

“Hi,
TJ.  How are you feeling today?”

TJ
shrugged.  “Just fine.  If you weren’t so sure there’s something wrong with me,
I’d think I was perfectly healthy.”

The
doctor smiled thinly.  “Well, hopefully that means we’ve caught it early.”

“Caught
it early?” Leah pounced.  “I thought you weren’t sure what it was.  That makes
it sound like – like you
do
know.  For sure.”

The
doctor’s smile faded and his face softened sympathetically as he looked from
Leah’s wide, accusing eyes to TJ’s worried ones.

“There’s
a chance the tumor is benign – but it’s a very slim chance.  All the test
results show me it’s cancerous – the only real question is how far along it
is.  There’s no evidence it’s anywhere other than the colon – which is a good
sign.  A very good sign.  But – it’s still most likely cancer.  And that means
you may have a tough fight ahead of you.”

The
doctor hesitated.

“I’m
sorry,” he said.  “I didn’t intend to give you false hope.”

TJ
shook his head, his face drawn and white.  “Any false hope was my own fault,
doc,” TJ said, “not yours.”

The
doctor pulled up a chair beside the bed.  “Well, let me tell you what’s going
to happen between now and the day after tomorrow, when you’ll have your
surgery.”

TJ
tightly gripped Leah’s hand and focused his attention on what the doctor was
saying.

* * * * *

Leah
nervously drummed her fingers on her desk.  She reached for the phone, then
hesitated and pulled back.  She drummed her fingers even harder.  Faster.

Finally
she slapped her palm onto her desk, and grabbed the phone.  She hit speed dial
and waited.

“Zeke?”
she said.  “Sorry to wake you – but there’s something I have to tell you.”

~~~~~

Manny
stared at Zeke, sitting beside her on the couch.  He leaned forward, his
forearms resting on his legs, his hands clasped tightly in front of him.

“When’s
the surgery?” she asked, her eyes soft with sympathy.

“Tomorrow,”
he said quietly, staring at his hands.

Manny
put a tentative hand on his shoulder, and felt him tense beneath her touch. 
She swallowed.  “Go home.”

His
head shot up and he blinked at her.  “What?”

“Go
home,” Manny repeated firmly.  “Be with your friends; it’s where you’re most
needed.  Once you know more, you can always meet me at one of my stops.  If you
want, of course.  And if...if...Well.  You know.”

“If
TJ’s okay, you mean.”

“Yes.”

Zeke
stared at her, an unreadable expression on his face.  “I think I’ll take you up
on that,” he said slowly.

She
frowned, slightly puzzled even as she nodded.  “Good.”

A
faint smile curved his lips.  “Thank you.”

Manny
waved away his thanks.  “I just...really hope your friend will be okay.”

Zeke’s
faint smile deepened.  He rose to his feet and headed towards the door.  “Thank
you.  I hope so, too.”

Manny
watched him go, her puzzled frown deepening.

“Zeke!”

He
paused and turned, his hand on the door handle.  He raised his eyebrow in
question.

“You
– something’s been bothering you the last few days.  Maybe...maybe this is a
chance to take care of whatever it is?”

Zeke’s
expression didn’t change as he considered her words, then he slowly nodded.

“Maybe
it is,” he agreed.  “Maybe it is.”

~~~~~

Manny
hugged Daisy, then Rebecca.

“This
was fun,” she said.

“It
was,” Daisy agreed.

“Call
as soon as you get home, no matter the time.”

“We
will,” Rebecca assured her.

They
paused, all of them blinking back tears, then they hugged again before Manny
turned to Zeke, standing tall, anxious and silent beside them, frowning
furiously.

“Take
care, Zeke,” Manny said quietly.  “I’ll be hoping for your friend.”

He
blinked and scowled, then his face softened.  “Thank you,” he said. 
“That...means a lot to me.”

She
smiled hesitantly, then held out her hand.  He stared at it unblinkingly for a
long moment before he slowly, almost cautiously, reached out and gently grasped
it.

“I’ll
call you,” he said, his voice thick with emotion, before he abruptly dropped
her hand and walked away to stand in line to go through the security gates.

Daisy
and Rebecca raised their eyebrows, said good-bye once more to Manny, and left
to take their own places in line.

Once
through security, and with almost two hours to fill, the three of them wandered
into one of the licensed restaurants and took their places at the bar.

Zeke
ordered whiskey, on the rocks, and ignored the looks Daisy and Rebecca
exchanged across him.

“This
seems to be more than just worry about your friend,” Daisy said carefully once
they had their drinks.  “Do you have a fear of flying?”

Zeke
drained his glass, then shook his head as he viciously crunched an ice cube
between his teeth.

“Flying?”
he muttered, and called for another drink.  “No.  But I do have a fear of
falling.”

Zeke
sat in the darkened hospital room, Leah sleeping in the chair beside him, her
head resting on his shoulder.  He couldn’t sleep.  He watched the man in the
bed; watched his chest rise and fall in a steady rhythm.

TJ’d
had his surgery first thing in the morning, and had come through with flying
colours.  He’d still been in surgery when Zeke arrived, had been woken briefly
by the hospital staff once he was in his room, and had promptly gone back to
sleep after seeing and speaking groggily to Leah.  He was still sleeping peacefully
as evening fell and Zeke and Leah waited.

Zeke
sat still, his shoulder and arm numb under the weight of Leah’s head.  He
deliberately kept his mind blank, shying away from any thought of cancer and
what that meant for the man sleeping so peacefully on the bed.  He deliberately
refused to think about what it meant for the woman sleeping on his shoulder. 
He deliberately refused to think about what it told him about his own
mortality.  He was here, and TJ had come through the surgery without any issues,
and that was enough.  For now.

A
distant part of his mind wondered where Manny was right now and what she was
doing.  He reluctantly grinned.  Considering her penchant for picking up misfit
toys wherever she went, she was probably already knee deep in people, wherever
she was.

His
smile faded as he once more focused on watching TJ breathe and waited for the
dawn.

* * * * *

A
nurse quietly bustled into the hospital room and Leah startled awake, sitting
up with a snuffling gasp.  She blinked hazily at Zeke, frowning, before memory
returned and she quickly turned her attention to TJ.