Rating: PG

Summary: Ally and Michael get a break from the routines of life.

Spoilers: None.
 

ALLY:

December 15, 2000

It's ten days till Christmas.

Do you think I've done a lick of shopping?

Not a chance.

Even with Dana out of the lab, without having to interpret, it's been pretty hellacious.

And I just finished finals last week.

Fortunately, I got A's on each one of them.

Now all I have to do is get A's on each one next semester, and I'm in.

I'm not going to work today. There are a number of reasons.

One is that Michael has a doctor's appointment, and I offered to lend him my car.  Frohike said he was going to take him, but he's been very busy and tired, and I offered to let Michael use mine.

I think Michael has more than a touch of cabin fever, because he said yes before I even got the sentence completed.

The other, more pressing reason, is that I have a lunch date with Shelby's sister, Mary.

Mary has been living in Los Angeles, trying to work in the music business, but things seemed to go sour for her; the guy she was living with decided he didn't want to be involved, her job went poorly, and she missed her little sister. Apparently, she considered it a sign that she should change directions in her life. She obtained a position with a PR firm in DC, and she and Shelby have had a number of conversations regarding this.

Shelby seemed to be almost ashamed when she told us that she had talked to her sister about moving in with her.

We were almost ashamed at how relieved we were.

Much as we love Shelby-and we'd have cared for her forever, if necessary-it's a strain. She and Miranda have a lot of tension between them, and while there's a lot of love and companionship there, it's very difficult with them never getting a break from one another. I think it would do their friendship a world of good if they weren't together 24/7.

It would do Langly and me good not to be dealing with two teenagers. One would be plenty at this point, thank you very much.

Mary's been to an attorney regarding this, and we've talked to ours. The shift in custody should be a formality. We'll continue to share some legal responsibility, such as authorizing medical care and conducting school business.

And it's not like we will have Shelby out of our lives all that much. Mary's position does involve at least a week of travel each month. She'll still be with us when Mary's away.

And Shelby knows she's always welcome here, whatever, whenever.

I have a feeling we won't be seeing a lot less of her than we do now. But knowing she can leave sometimes takes a load off my heels.

First things first. Get Michael.

And he's driving. I don't think I'll need to twist his arm about that.
 

MICHAEL:

You know your life has gotten really boring when you don't mind having a doctor's appointment because it will get you the hell out of the house.

Ally's gotta meet somebody, Shelby's sister, I think she said. So I get to drop her off and then she says to meet her later.

Cool. I've got the car for a while.

Maybe I'll head out to Warrenton and see Kelly for a few minutes. We've talked a couple times on the phone, but she's been working and it's been snowing like a motherfucker for a few days.

I miss her.

I gotta figure out what to get her for Christmas.
 

I get to Bergman's office, and I think half of the DC metro area is there, being sick. The place is SRO and coughing like I am.

I'm still coughing.

But I do feel a lot better. I ought to. About all I do is sleep. Dad actually let me stay up till 9:00 last night. Whoa. Well, hey, it's an improvement over 7:30, which is when I had to turn in the two nights before that.

And I did call my mom. We didn't say much. I just said I was home and I was better, and she said that was good, to call her again soon. That was about it.

Which was cool. And about all I could deal with right now.
 

Time's wasting, and I've read every issue of Cosmo this guy keeps in the waiting room. He doesn't see kids, so there's no MAD magazine or comic books.

I've done the sex quizzes, the perfect mate quizzes, the body type quizzes...you name it.

Finally I get called. Then I wait some more.

I'm kind of annoyed when I get told I've still got a temp. Okay, it's only 99.2, but I'm pissed. I figured I ought to be over that by now. And I figure I lost about 8 pounds during this gig.

Bergman finally comes in, and he's like, I figure he's gonna rush around, he's got this office full of people waiting to come in, but he's like totally mellow.

Guy is obviously immune to stress.

This is a good quality in a guy that has to every now and then deal with Langly, who, according to Ally, was referred to by his hospital doctor as 'the patient from hell.'

He says I'm okay, but still not all the way there. So I've got to stay on meds for two more weeks, which sucks but oh well. And I've got to come back next week.

Jesus. This drill is never gonna end.

He also says Kelly needs to call him. He's got an interview for her next week at GWU, with one of his friends who's an OB/GYN and works in the infertility labs there. She'd get a chance to do some DNA stuff, some cellular work.

I've gotta go see her.

I've got an hour. I should be able to do it.
 

ALLY:

Seeing Mary is delightful. I can't believe how much she's matured since last year. Instead of talking to a flighty teenager, it's like one on one with another adult.

I figured that she'd be in rough shape, considering what she'd been through, but she looks fabulous. She's smiling and relaxed and calm and happy.

I was nervous about this lunch, but apparently my fears were unfounded. We both love Shelby, and we're looking to do right by her.

We'll have to do all the court papers, but it should go smoothly.

Mary doesn't want to uproot Shelby from the area, and what's truly ironic is that she's found a place nearby-in my old complex. I have to laugh; Mary doesn't know that I used to live here. It's not walking distance, but it's close.

I know Shelby's excited to be with her sister again. Mary's going to pick her up tomorrow, and they're going to spend the weekend together.

It's weird, though-as relieved as I am to not have sole responsibility for her anymore, I feel rather sad. I've gotten accustomed to Shelby being there, and in a way, this is a loss.

Then again, maybe not. Mary will be traveling next Wednesday through Friday, and she'll be with us.

This should be just enough time for Miranda to miss her totally.

We talk about Los Angeles, and I feel strangely homesick. I wonder if I'll ever get used to the snow. It's so cold here in the winter. It can get nippy in LA, but here, it's just COLD.

Mary liked LA, and she hopes to go back there someday, when time and circumstances are right. She asks me if I'd go back.

I have to think about it, but honestly, the answer is no.

LA is another lifetime. I want to remember that lifetime, the goodness that it was.

But life is so different now. I don't know that I'm different, but things have changed so much, I don't believe there's any way I could have remained totally static.

I'm happy to see this change in Mary. I'm going to be having a lot of contact with her, and it's good to know I'll be dealing with the person she has become, not the person she used to be. Mary was always kind, but now she's developed an incredible maturity.

I see this in Michael. It's slower, more tentative, but I think of him, inching towards adulthood, and I'm heartened. He won't be a child forever, not in the sense of being irresponsible and inconsiderate. I'm seeing  little glimpses of the adult he's on his way to becoming, and I'm heartened. Seeing Mary confirms in my heart that it will indeed come to pass.

I feel as if I've received an early Christmas present.
 

MICHAEL:

I've only been to Warrenton once, in the dead of night.

It looked better in the dark.

It's only about 20 miles from Alexandria, but it's another planet.

Alexandria is strictly DC bedroom-big suburban houses, condos, strip malls. It's a fairly expensive city to live in, and it's not real colorful or anything, but it looks, well, you know, respectable.

Warrenton is something else.

Being in Warrenton reminds me, I'm in the South now. And poor South at that. Not tar-paper shack poor, but it's definitely trailersville. And lots of rundown old houses with cars in the yard, on blocks.

I have entered redneck hell.

I know where Kelly lives-well, I know where I dropped her off, anyway-and there's the Warrenton Diner right nearby, and I'm guessing this is where she works. I don't see her car, but then again, it's close enough she could walk, and she probably does.

Being in this place makes me long for the joys of Newark, Trenton and Paterson.

I'm kind of nervous, I put all my earrings and my nose ring back in, and although my hair's shorter, I don't look like the locals in the diner. And I'm not very big, and my lungs are still full of crud, so I'm not gonna be able to run like hell if I need to.

What the fuck. I need to see her. I mean, I actually need to see her. I have a message for her.

And I need to see her for other reasons.

There's a small blonde at the register, who at first glance looks real young, but then I see her face and the phrase 'run hard and put away wet' comes to mind. I ask if Kelly's there, and she asks, "who're you?"

Friendly, they are. Not.

I tell her I'm a friend of Kelly's from school, and I have to tell her something, and I won't take long.

I'm just about pleading.

She shakes her head. "Kelly didn't tell me about no friends from school."

"Well, I tutored her in calc."

"Oh. You. Okay. Hold on. But don't be takin' long. She's workin'."

Duh.

Kelly works with this crowd?

No wonder she's dying to get the fuck out.

I'm waiting a few minutes, and finally, Kelly comes over to me. I think she looks real happy I'm there. At least relieved.

"Kelly, you got tables," the blonde woman tells her.

"I know, Mom, I know. Jesus." She shakes her ponytail and rolls her eyes.

She's so damn cute.

She looks real frazzled, but she looks good enough to nibble on. "Hi."

"Hi yourself."

"Looks like your dad let you out."

"Only 'cause I had a doctor's appointment."

"How'd you get here?"

"Ally let me use her car. I don't have to pick her up yet."

"So how'd it go?"

"I'm getting there."

"Good. Listen, I'd love to talk, but Mom is going nuts right now. One of the servers called in this morning, and my mom, well, she doesn't cope well with stress. You met her, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I did."

"I called last night, but I didn't get off till 10, and your dad said you were asleep."

"That's me, I'm always asleep."

"Well, it's good for you right now. Listen, you going to be around later? I'd really like to get out of town for a while, and I know you can't do anything, so would your dad mind if I came over and we could just maybe play cards and talk or something? I just really need to get out of here."

I'm ecstatic. She wants to come see me?!

"Sure, it's cool. What time you get off?"

"I'm supposed to be out of here at 7, but I might run over, so I'll try to get there as soon as I can."

"By the way, Bergman says he got you an interview."

She looks like she doesn't believe it at first. Then she looks like a drowning swimmer who's just been thrown a lifeline.

"Oh, God, this is fantastic. I've gotta call him. If I ever get on break, I'm gonna call him right away. Oh Michael, this is so great, I appreciate it so much!" She looks real excited.

"Kelly!" Mom's calling at her.

"Listen, gotta run, but I'll see you tonight? I need to talk to someone with an IQ in the triple digits or my brain's going to disintegrate."

"Okay, cool." I bail out and I'm hearing her mom telling her something, and she's not sounding real happy.

Kelly deserves better than this.

What am I gonna get her for Christmas?
 

ALLY:

Michael's late, but not horribly so. I even got a little bit of Christmas shopping done.

I'm not buying that many gifts for Christmas. It's not my holiday, and I tend to go nuts at Hanukkah, but I want to give everybody something they really want and need this year, and now, I can afford it.

Thank you, Mother. Wherever you are.

He's still coughing when he comes to get me, but he looks happy. He must be getting better.

I've seen a few glimpses lately of Michael being happy. It's a new experience for all of us. He's still pretty surly and obnoxious-and I don't know what I'd do if he ever did a 180 turn from that-but sometimes I see him smiling and the Latin phrase 'lux mundi'-'light of the world'-comes to mind.

When he smiles, he's a really good looking guy.

I should tell him this. I know it'll embarrass the hell out of him, but it might please him, too. And maybe encourage him to do it more often.

But I need to get home. I've got a kid to help pack up and send on to the next phase in her life.

And one of my own that I need some serious one on one with.

I know that having Michael is tiring and difficult at times for Frohike, but at the same time, I know how much he loves it that his son is part of his life now. And they've had a lot of time now together.

I've lost some of that with my daughter. Time to get it back.
 

MICHAEL:

I'm exhausted when I get home. I mean, really tired. I hit the sofa, curl up under the red fuzzy blanket which I still haven't given back to Ally and Langly, and I'm down for the count.

I need to be somewhat functional later on. Kelly's coming. But I've got a long time to sleep, so I'll be fine.

I hope Dad plays cards or something tonight or goes out with Jo to the flicks or to dinner. Anything. I just need him out of the house for a while. It's Friday. Maybe it'll happen.

Then again, he could be a real pain in the ass and decide he's gonna stay in and veg tonight. Send me to bed so he can watch his videos.

I'm not gonna worry about it now. I need a nap. Big time.
 

I'm still asleep when I hear somebody pounding on the door. I grope for my glasses and I discover I feel asleep on them, and now they're all bent and everything.

Shit.

I'm yelling just a minute while I try to bend my glasses back into shape. That's the problem with wire frames, and the good part.

They need work, but I got to answer the door.

I look through the spyhole, and it's Kelly.

I check my watch. 6:44. Was I asleep that long?

Guess so.

But she's early, too.

And I look like shit. But at least I shaved this morning. Which probably doesn't matter now.

She's in the doorway and she looks like she's been crying.

Oh fuck.

I have NO idea what you do with crying women.

I want to take her in my arms and tell her everything's gonna be okay, but that would be a lie, wouldn't it? Because I don't know that. I don't know anything.

But I let her in, ask her if she's okay, can I get her something. I've seen my dad do this drill enough times I know how it works.

She says she'd like some coffee. She's sniffing, and I hand her some Kleenex, which I've been using in copious quantities for I don't know how long now.

I ask her what's wrong, and she says she got in a fight with her mom.

Figures. Mom's probably pissed off that I interrupted her at work. I tell her I'm sorry and she says it's not that.

It's her interview. She called Dr. Shalad, the person Dr. Bergman is trying to hook her up with, and Dr. Shalad wants to see her on Tuesday. Kelly's all excited, and she wants this job and besides, Dr. Shalad pays 10 bucks an hour, which is a lot of times more than she makes in her mom's diner. And she'd only have to work like 15 hours a week, which means she could have more time to study. She's been doing like 30 hours a week during school at her mom's and it's hard for her, she says most nights she's not in bed before 2.

She does look tired.

But she's so pretty.

She took the ponytail out of her hair, and it's just loose now. It's a pretty color, like wheat.

I bet her hair smells good. It looks real soft to touch.

"So I tell my mom, and I know she's not gonna be really happy about this, but I didn't expect her to go off on me. She knows how much I want to be a doctor, and I figured she might understand that I have a chance to do some work in my field and not have to work so many hours, and I'd still be bringing in money. But she gets really upset, more than I thought she would. And she tells me she's tired of me acting like I'm better than everybody else and why don't I do something sensible like that doesn't take so much time and I don't care about my family or anything like that."

She sniffs and takes a huge breath. She's trying real hard not to cry.

"I do care about my mom and my sister. I care about them a lot. But I don't want to work for my mom anymore. I've been doing it since I was fourteen, and I've had it. And I'd still bring in money. It's not like I'm asking her to give me anything. I sort of lost my temper then, and I told her I'm tired of idiot guys pinching my ass and grabbing at my boobs and making rude comments and telling me what I really need is a good lay. I've complained about this before, but she tells me I'm being a snot when I do, that I should be nice to the customers. And I am nice, most of the time. But I was so mad at her when I went back on the floor that there was this
table of guys who went to my school, and they started hassling me, and I got fed up and I dumped a Coke on one of them, the one who was really bugging me. And my mom just went off."

She wipes her nose and her eyes. "I know, I shouldn't do that. I lose my temper sometimes and I shouldn't, but I'm just so tired of these people. I hate my life when I'm there. About the only time I feel good is when I'm at school. Most of the people there are okay, they at least say hi and stuff, and some of them aren't too stupid to live."

I just listen, let her get it out.

"So you gonna do the interview?" I ask her.

Her pretty blue eyes are on fire. "You bet I am. I don't care how mad my mom gets, or how much she says she needs me in her diner. I'm getting out of that."

"How come your mom couldn't just hire somebody else?"

"She could. But she doesn't have to pay payroll taxes on me, and it's like now she and my uncle are all upset because they might actually have to do something legal."

I'm just listening. It seems like this is what she needs right now, so I'll do whatever she needs.

Whenever she needs me to do it.

I just hope that someday, she needs me to do more than listen.

END OF PART 27