Facile Arumnam Ferre Possunt Si Inde Abest Iniuria; Etiam Inuriam, Nisi Contra Constant Contumeliam
 

BYERS:

This afternoon has been something of a nightmare...I never knew small children were so much work.

But right now, with both little girls playing in front of me, being semi-quiet and not malodorous, they're rather adorable.

I can see how you get addicted to being around them. They're demanding and exhausting...and fun.

I want my own. It finally clobbers me with all the subtlety of a ton of bricks. I mean, I know Juliet wants them, and I felt that I would as well...in time.

That time, all of a sudden, is now.

Langly's outside, dealing with the pool contractor. Ally was handling this matter, but I suspect he is actually the better party to be dealing with in this. He's standing there, holding Patrick's hand, and talking. I see him ruffle the little boy's snowy hair.

I can't get over how much the little guy looks like him.

Patrick breaks free and starts to do what appears to be running up the side of the house. Langly runs after him, picks him up, and I see him smile at the little boy.

What will Juliet's and mine look like?

In the meantime, Sarah has crawled off again...this time, she's found a TV remote to gnaw on.

Somehow, I doubt that that remote has been washed anytime in the recent past.
 

LANGLY:

"Ally, since when does it take you three hours to go to the market?" I can't believe she was gone this long.

"Well, since you were here, I took advantage of the situation...and went to the market...and to Target...and the bank...and got my oil changed..."

She's sort of smirking, in a way, and this is annoying me.

"You left me with three kids!"

"You left me with three kids earlier," she retorts. "I managed. Obviously you did too."

"Yeah, well, if Byers hadn't of been here, I'd've been royally fucked!"

She laughs. "No, you wouldn't. You'd just have figured it out." She smiles. "You ready for a beer, babe?"

Oh Christ. Am I ever.
 

FROHIKE:

First thing I do when I get in to the offices, I check my e-mail. I'm hoping there's an answer from my daughter.

No such luck. My heart sinks.

I do have one from Jo, however. Not so unusual, really. She does send them once in a while, and they tend to be short and to the point.

This one, however, is short and rather cryptic.

"Melvin-dinner tonight? We need to talk. Jo."

I'm racking my brains thinking about what the hell it could be that we need to talk about...

No. It can't be that. We have a long standing agreement that we are friends, and that is all we will ever be. She can't have stepped over the line.

She wouldn't have.

And in the meantime, I think I've lost my heart to another woman.

I'm not ready to reveal this to Jo. Not yet. Nothing will most likely come of it, anyway. I will keep it for myself for now.

I dial her work number. She isn't there. I'm puzzled. Normally, she's still there at this time on Friday. Not much later than this, but this would be very early for her to be gone.

I dial the receptionist in her office...apparently Jo had an appointment, personal business, and left early this afternoon.

She must be home by now. I check the e-mail's time stamp. It was sent 15 minutes ago.

She is home. And I ask her if everything is all right. She says, yes.

Her voice is not very convincing. Something is wrong here.

I tell her to meet me at Yuan Min's in an hour.

We'll talk.
 

MICHAEL:

It's hot here at the beach. Cooler than at home, to be sure, but hot enough I ended up losing my shirt about an hour after we got here.

Actually, me and Kelly, we lost it all a while ago. The rocks are private enough, and nobody's around...

Just like on the shore when Dad took us to North Carolina. Awesomely good.

I'm still kind of wondering about our conversation earlier, though. I mean, I just figured, Kelly's got tons of school left, I still have to finish, I wonder what got her going on this.

It's weird. I mean, I always figured, sometime in the future, I'd have to sell her on the idea.

But that was somewhere down the line. When we were older. Had degrees. Could support ourselves.

None of which we can do right now.

I mean, it'd be nice if we could...I love her. I do want to stay with her.

I hope she'll stay with me.

So what should I do? Should I ask her now and say we'll do it later? Should I wait and ask her? Should I say fuck it, let's do it anyway?

Oh man.

I need to bounce this off somebody. Who?

Couldn't do it with Langly. Money and age and degrees were not a problem there. And I think he'd say one of two things. He'd either laugh his ass off and tell me what an idiot I was, or he'd say, sure, go for it, what are you waiting for.

I don't think either of those answers would work for me right now.

Dad? I even MENTION that Kelly and me talked about this, he's gonna hit the roof. I'm not ready to deal with one of his rants.

The prof? I mean, okay. Money and age and degrees weren't an issue for them. But they had other ones. Like the prof couldn't make up his mind what he wanted to do.

Maybe he'd hear me out.

I don't know. Juliet needs a lot of help right now, and he's probably busy...

Then again, he seems to be in the offices a lot. I hear his mother-in-law is still there.

No wonder he's been around a lot.

It's not like I feel weird about, is it Kelly or not Kelly? It's more like, I want to, but I think if we did it now, it'd be a disaster.

I don't want it to be a disaster. I've had enough disasters already in my life, thank you very much.

I don't even know why I think it would be a disaster...I mean, she's a great girl. I worship her. And she loves me totally. I really think she does.

But our situation sucks. And maybe that's not what should make the difference, but I'm sorry, I think it does.

Well, I think so, anyway. Maybe I'm wrong.

Should I talk to Ally? Get a girl's perspective on it? I mean, I know Ally'll listen. She always does. But she probably won't give me any advice. Usually I'm happy about this, but I could use like a little help here.

Mulder? This is a guy who took SIX YEARS just to figure out he was in love with the girl, dammit! I mean, he listens good and all, but as far as taking advice for the lovelorn? Somehow, I don't see myself having this conversation with Mulder. I think he'd be cool about it and all, but I just don't think he's the guy.

In the meantime, I'm starving, and I bet Kelly is, too.

We'll hit DC for cheesesteaks on the way back.

Nothing like soul food...and a bite to eat.
 

BYERS:

I get a call in the offices. It's Juliet. She says to hurry home, dinner is almost ready.

I hate to say it, but I miss the days when we didn't have to worry about this. Caroline has no doubt fixed dinner...

And I have managed to miss it every night this week.

I really should go.

I could beg off and say I have tons to do...which, in fact, is the truth...but it's Friday, and I haven't eaten dinner with them since Sunday.

It's time to let my guilt get the better of me.

Unfortunately.
 

I dread going home.

I'm dying to see Juliet...alone.

Having dinner as a threesome does not inspire me right now.

Even though it's chicken parmigiana and salad with butter lettuce and radicchio and homemade balsamic dressing...my appetite isn't perking up.

"You just made it," Caroline announces as she places a hot dish on the table. It's more like a reprimand than praise. "Sit down, I need to talk to you two."

Juliet looks at me and rolls her eyes. I just wince.

Please, God, if you exist, don't let her say she's moving in.

She sits down last, but I don't see her start to eat. She's kind of playing with her salad, in the sort of fashion that would have gotten me cuffed as a small child. My father didn't tolerate any sort of fooling around at the table.

"I thought...it might be best if I stay here for a while," she begins.

Oh God no. Don't make me do this. Don't make me chase her out of our home...

"...but that was at first."

My ears prick up. Did I hear this correctly?

"I thought, Jeffrey is gone, Juliet is injured, I can be most useful here. I figured I'd stay for at least the summer, and then see how you were doing then before I decided on the fall semester."

My stomach is crunching into hard little knots.

"But I've changed my mind."

I almost drop my fork.

"Mom, you don't have to-"

Caroline gives Juliet a firm look. "Yes, I do. Look, I know this is going to be hard for the two of you...but I think it's something you need to do for yourselves. And yes, Jeffrey is gone, but one thing I need to learn to do is live without him. I need to go home and get ready for fall, and figure out how to live life on my own."

I almost cry with relief.

She really is a wonderful woman.

She holds up her hand. "But...on one condition."

Juliet's trying not to look too eager, but she's not being very successful. "What's that?"

"I took the liberty of contacting a wedding planner today...her name is Nicole, and she sounds just lovely. You two need to set a date and get moving on this. Life isn't forever, you know, and it's got a habit of happening while you're planning other things. So do it."

A wedding planner. I hadn't thought of that...I just figured, when the time came, Juliet and I would put it together ourselves...

Maybe with some help from Caroline...

"I didn't have to plan my own wedding, my mother did it for me-and I'm sorry I let her take over," Caroline explains, as if reading my thoughts. "It was wonderful to be married to Jeffrey, but let's just say, had it been up to me, the wedding would have been something very different. I don't want you two saying that. But I think some professional help would be useful...you two are very busy. And Juliet, dear, you're not going to be laid up forever. You'll be back out working soon enough. I think you should at least talk to this person. And her fee is a gift from me."

Juliet and I are speechless.

"I'm doing this as much for myself as for the two of you," she explains. "I thought perhaps I should change my life...but it's been changed enough for me already. I realize that I miss my classes and my students and my books and the home that was Jeffrey's and mine. I'll have to shift gears, and I'm not happy about it, but I realized late last night that my place was not here..."

She heard us. I can feel myself turning bright pink.

"John, don't be embarrassed. We Italians are not embarrassed about love. Why should you be?"

Because I'm an uptight WASP?

"It just made me realize...you two need to deal with this together. Yourselves. I mean, you know if you need me, you can always call me...but this is your problem, I'm sorry to say. And you can deal with it. I know you can. I have faith in you two."

"Thank you," I whisper to her.

She waves her hand in an it's-no-bother gesture.

"A couple of requests, though."

Well, nothing is ever free.

"First, I can't make you do it, but I'd be a lot more comfortable if you two would have a Catholic wedding...with a Mass."

I think about that. I think I can do an hour painlessly.

Juliet looks over at me, somewhat expectant. I have a feeling she would have asked for this, anyway.

"That's fine," I agree.

It occurs to me in that moment that this is the second Catholic girl I'm marrying. Not that it was ever an issue with Susanne...

Maybe we'll have better luck this time.

"And John. Keep trying with your father. I still cannot believe that a parent would ever want to shut out a child like that. At least promise me you'll invite him to the wedding."

I wince, but I agree.

She finally digs into her salad. "That's all. Now, I have to pack after dinner...because I'm leaving tomorrow morning."

"So soon?" I mean, we needed to be alone, but I'm not certain we're quite ready yet...

"Yes. And now, if you'll excuse me."

Juliet and I just stare at each other for a long time.
 

I end up actually enjoying my mother-in-law's company this evening. I think of her that way already.

And she has shown us how much she cares for us.

She honors us and what we need. And knows herself, too.

If I could only be more like her.

We play gin for hours, and I beat them both soundly-I can play cards. Juliet grows tired around 10:30, and I tuck her in bed.

She asks her mom to come in and tell her a story, just like when she was little...which is a big surprise to me.

Caroline and Juliet say, it's okay if I sit with them and listen.

I sit on the bed with my shoes off, feet crossed under me. I feel about ten, and the sensation is wonderful.

Juliet wants to hear 'Princess and Frog.'

"Her favorite when she was little," Caroline tells me with a smile, and Juliet giggles by way of affirmation.

I'm barely listening to the story as I contemplate Caroline acting out the tale to her grown daughter, who is listening with the rapt fascination of an elementary school child.

I think about how Caroline is concerned with what we need, and not afraid to overlook her own.

I think about how Ally and Langly, argue though they may, are so in solidarity with one another, and so caring towards any kid that comes over their threshold.

I think about how much Caroline and Jeffrey were in love...and how horrible I feel about them having been robbed of their golden years together. And how brave Caroline really is about it.

I think about Scully and Mulder-how long it took to get there, and how utterly unbreakable their bond is. How imperfect, and yet how perfect, a union it is.

I look at how Frohike has worked to forge relationships with his alienated children-and succeeded wildly with one. I have no doubt that he will be able to eventually come to terms with the other.

How did this happen?

We are all, in our own way, damaged goods. Wounded souls.

Yet there is an overflow of love and goodwill all around us, that seems to supersede our frailties and irritations and disagreements. Commitments to one another, to children, to doing the right thing, even when we're not sure what that right thing is. The moral compass doesn't always point due north, and it's easy to lose direction.

Fortunately, even in my worst moments, I am not alone. I have others there to help clear the fog from the windows, open a streak of clarity, a thin strip of what may be on the other side.

Love isn't the whole answer...but it's not a bad place to start.
 

And Caroline and I talk. For hours. About my life. About her life. About Juliet when she was young.

I now am the proud owner of several blackmail stories, which, if need be, I will use to my advantage.

We talk about my father.

I haven't talked about him this much. Ever. To anyone.

And she listens with the critical ear of an academic and her warm heart.

"John. Let's face it. What you did, it wounded him to his very soul."

I'm ready to balk, but she holds up her hand in a truce gesture. "Hear me out. He is wrong, of course. He should forgive you. God knows, our children, they're our living legacy. But I'm saying, think about what he is like...how empty his life must be. How horrible it must be to have such a misplaced set of priorities." She is drinking grappa, which in my opinion, is even more horrible than the J&B that sets Frohike's tongue on fire. At least J&B is top-shelf liquor. Grappa...

The drink of peasants, she says. And she's got no shame in her peasant heritage. None.

I have more shame in mine, and she is curious about this.

"John. This is your chance to change history. You have many ways in which to change it. Starting with yourself. Don't be afraid. And don't be afraid to keep trying with your father. Sooner or later, you'll get through."

"I don't think so." And I don't. My father is just unbelievably cold.

"You will. And believe me, it will have been worth it. You think I got along every moment with my dear mother, God rest her soul? We fought like cats and dogs. But we were there for one another. We never stopped trying. And I'm glad I did. I would hate myself for not making the effort." She smiles, a bit wistfully. "Oh, she was horribly upset when I brought Jeffrey home...but she never tried to keep us apart. And when the grandchildren came, well, that opened up a new world for both of us...it was worth the misery and the trouble. Worth all the arguments and the sleepless nights. And you know what? We came to have more respect for one another than for anyone else except our husbands. I came to know what's important from her. I learned how to treat my husband from her-and I hope I did the same for Jeffrey."

"I'm sure you did."

"Wasn't always easy. But we tried. And I'd like to think in some way, we succeeded."

"You've got great kids."

She smiles. "That, to me, is evidence that we didn't do everything wrong."

"You didn't. Of that I'm sure."

She smiles, but I see her eyes grow moist. "Thank you. God, I miss Jeffrey so much...and now, I need to go home and miss him. You do understand, don't you?"

"Yes." And more than a little relieved, I'm ashamed to admit.

She tries to swallow back her tears with a big smile. "And I'd better have a standing invitation at holidays. Don't worry, I'll go home when it's over!"

I'm embarrassed...it's as if she's reading my thoughts.

"And I expect to be here when my granchildren are born. I don't think I'll have to wait too long for that." She smiles broadly, and I feel a blush creeping up from my chest to my forehead.

She laughs. "John, why are you blushing? I know you two want to be parents. And I hope you'll do it soon! I can't spoil you two-" she looks at me with her brown eyes full of mischief-"but as a grandmother, I am under obligation to spoil my second generation offspring at every turn, and I intend not to shirk my responsibilities in that area!"

I'm not sure what to say...I was having these thoughts when I was playing with Mulder's children.

"Now I have an early plane to catch, and you get some sleep!" She wags a finger in my face. Then she leans over and kisses my cheek.

"Thank you for making my Juliet happy."

I just hope I always can.

END OF PART 74