While I’d been trapped in the basement, I realized I wanted to make changes in my life. I needed to look out for myself. I also had to set my priorities. Was Tami lying to me a big deal? Was it worth getting upset about? The simple answer was ‘yes,’ it was a big deal.
Also lurking in the back of my mind was that I considered Tami to be mine. She told me she wouldn’t date me until I grew up. The promise we made each other was that we would eventually get married. I knew it was stupid to think that two teenagers could make such a declaration and have it work out. But I felt the jealousy over someone else dating my Tami. I stuffed it down because they no longer dated, but it was there.
I ran home, feeling a little better. I already knew that I would forgive Tami. I had to believe in her. The alternative was unthinkable. She’d proved that no one was perfect. We would discuss it, though. I went to my apartment and showered. I came downstairs and went to the kitchen to find Angie fixing breakfast.
“Hey, Sexy, come here and give me a kiss,” she purred.
This was a perfect example: Angie teasing me in inappropriate ways. She was going to be my sister-in-law, for cripes sake. I steeled myself and decided that she would be a good starting point for my change.
“Angie, we need to talk. I love you, Kyle and Greg too much to be playing these games. Frankly, it makes me uncomfortable. I want us to be close, but never in that way. I honestly couldn’t live with myself if anything ever did happen.”
She came over to me and gave me a kiss on the cheek.
“I’m sorry. I never realized that was how you felt. Well, I guess you’ve been trying to tell me, but I wasn’t listening. Even Greg told me. Thank you for cluing me in. The last thing I ever want to do is to hurt you,” she assured me. “But I may slip up from time to time. You’re cute and fun to tease.”
“I’m okay with that as long as we know that it’ll never happen. I sometimes like to have a little fun, too.”
Greg came into the kitchen with Kyle, who was growing like a weed. He was able to sit up now. It wouldn’t be too long before he’d start to crawl. I noticed Uncle John wasn’t here.
“Did Uncle John go home?”
“Yeah, he had to get back to the farm,” Greg told me.
I noticed my brother had a little mouse under his left eye.
“I hear you took care of business with Tommy. I hope he looks worse than you do.”
“It felt pretty good to kick his butt,” Greg said with a smile.
“My stud. I’m not sorry Greg beat him up. I’m just glad the security men were there to make sure it didn’t get out of hand. I think they’re the reason Greg wasn’t arrested. That, and I think his dad wanted a piece of him too,” Angie said.
“So, what’s next?” I asked.
“We agreed to let Mr. and Mrs. Cox handle Tommy. Uncle John had a long talk with them. He was able to help them understand the danger signs in his behavior. They’re going to get him some help. He was put on notice that if there was any further harassment, we would take legal action,” Angie said.
“Good. I’m glad that’s over with,” I said, then turned to Greg. “Can I get a ride? It’s freezing out.”
Angie and Greg both looked at me and then smiled.
“You poor ‘stupid boy!’ Today’s a holiday. It’s Martin Luther King Day,” Angie told me.
Oh, wow, a gift. It was a day that I could do whatever I wanted. I went back to my apartment and decided it was time to talk to Tami.
AS SOON AS WE GOT ONTO the video chat, I could tell that Tami was pissed.
“You broke the rules. We promised each other that we wouldn’t get mad. I can’t believe you’re upset I went out with Bert. It’s not like we did anything. I told you that to clear the air. I’ve felt guilty about that from the first time I went out with him, so I had to tell you.
“Hell, we weren’t even friends at the time. I don’t know why it even matters what I did then. You left me for the summer. What was I supposed to do?”
I felt myself getting mad. I took a deep breath, trying to control my emotions.
“Tami, I told you, I’m not mad about you dating Bert.” She flinched when she saw the fire in my eyes. “I’m mad because you lied to me. I never thought I’d see the day when it was okay for us to lie to each other, even if we were upset with each other. I never lied to you. I might not tell you everything, but I’ve never actually lied to you.
“You can get off your high horse. Right now, I could care less about who you dated. What I care about is the girl I thought I was going to marry someday, my soul mate, feels that it’s perfectly fine to lie if it suits her. I misjudged our friendship. I’m sure it’s all my fault. So go ahead. I know you think I’m not smart enough to understand why it was okay to lie to me. Just use small words and explain it to me.”
There was stunned silence. In the past, I would have curled up in a little ball and let her run over me. I honestly don’t think that Tami ever considered that I might push back.
“Wow, you’ve changed,” she finally said.
She saw I was waiting for an explanation. She took a deep breath.
“I was trying to protect you. I didn’t want to hurt you. And in addition, it never came to anything. We figured out that we were better as friends.”
“Okay, so it’s alright to lie to me if you think it might hurt me. I just want to be clear that we no longer have to be honest with one another, that we have to lie if we think we might hurt the other’s feelings,” I said. “I’m sorry I expected more from you. In my mind, I had certain expectations. I have to say that this hurts way more than finding out you went out with Bert.”
“I’m sorry. Don’t you dare not be my best friend. I couldn’t handle that. Please forgive me. I don’t know why I felt I had to lie about that. I guess I didn’t want to add to me going away and I should have come clean sooner. David, I’ll really try to never let you down again.”
I had a choice at that moment: throw away my best friend of eight years and move on, or forgive her. I think it was an easy choice.
“I forgive you. You’re right, I’ve changed. I’m trying to stand up for myself and be more honest about how I feel.”
“I see that,” Tami said with a smile. “Now someone dropped a bombshell on me last night with no explanation.”
I told her about California and the cancer girl. We chatted about other stuff and we seemed to come to an easy resolution to our problems.
After I got off the video chat with Tami, I called April to see if she wanted to go see a movie or something. She told me that they had family plans for the day. I decided to just goof off and be a kid.
Tuesday January 21
AFTER SCHOOL, WE HAD our first training session with Cassidy. I was surprised when Coach Hope was in workout clothes and joined us. About forty boys and five girls showed up. I noticed that some of the juniors had shown up. I was pleased to see Bill Callaway, my primary receiver last season, was one of the juniors.
The person that surprised me was Ed Pine. He was the little freshman tailback that had attacked me in the parking lot after the season. Maybe this would be a first step in repairing that relationship. With Luke graduating, he was the most likely to start next year. He needed to bulk up some or he’d be killed next year.
Cassidy went to the front and got us started. Coach Hope stepped up beside me, and it was clear he was going to work out with us. April, Jim and Wolf were on my other side. Mike, Tim, Bert and Jake from the freshman team were all behind us in the next row.