the kick she knew would come soon.
She wondered if it was a bad sign that the baby seemed to be on a totally
different schedule than she was. The
moment she sat down to rest, he or she seemed to become very active.
Or maybe it was the only time she noticed it.
Her feet hurt and her ankles were swelling.
She wasn’t sure how she’d get through the next couple of months.
Thank heavens when Isaac had gone back home, she’d managed
to snag his job, just downstairs. If
she’d have had to wait on a bus every morning and afternoon, she’d have just
had to kill Taylor.
At some point, her wandering mind had shut down because the squeak of the
front door woke her. “Hey,
baby.” Taylor said, softly.
He sat his guitar case down and stepped over to sit on the edge of the
couch.
“You look cold.” She
said, unwrapping the scarf from his neck.
“It is cold.”
He said back. “And
the heater in the stupid car seems to have died.”
He leaned down to lay next to her. “Hope
she holds out a while longer…” He
said, closing his eyes.
“Me too.” She said.
“It’s too cold for you to be riding your bike to work anymore.”
“Mmmhmmm…” He
murmured.
“Did you get to eat on your break?”
She asked, pushing his bangs out of his face.
“Um…I think so.” He
answered.
“Taylor, you have to eat. You
work 23 hours a day. You’re gonna
collapse one of these days.” She
scolded him. “Do you want me to
fix you something?” She said,
sitting up.
“No. I just want you to
lay here with me.” He said,
placing his hand over his unborn child. “Is
she awake?” He whispered.
Maggie smiled then, “Yes. As
usual. And how do you know it’s a
girl?”
“I
just do.” He said.
“Maybe
I don’t want a stupid old girl.” She
replied. “They’re such
bitches.”
“I
like girls.” He said, a grin
moving over his lips.
“I’m
sure you do. Speaking of which, did
any of your fans leave big tips tonight?”
She asked.
“I
don’t have fans, I have customers, who I give very good service to in order to
earn large gratuities.”
“Mmhmm.
Those blue eyes and long eyelashes have nothing to do with it.”
She snorted. “How much did
you make? Cough it up.”
She said, pushing herself fully upright.
With
a sigh, Taylor opened his eyes. He
rolled off the couch and stood up on his knees and began to empty his pockets
onto the coffee table. Wadded up
bills and coins trickled through his fingers until there was a sizeable pile
there.
“That’s it. Oh,
and I put in forty five minutes at the coffee shop so Alan gave me fifteen
bucks. And a cup of Café
Americano.”
"Right
before bedtime.” She said,
unwrinkling the bills and placing them in piles of like denominations.
“Well,
it won’t keep you awake anyway, obviously.”
She said, glancing at him. “Go
to bed. And tomorrow morning, I’m
fixing you breakfast before I leave here and you’re gonna eat it.
Got it?”
"Yeah…” She watched
him lean back against the couch and close his eyes.
“Don’t fall asleep there. I
can’t pull you up anymore or little Taylor Sue might fall out on the floor.”
She said, pulling herself up and standing.
She nudged him with her foot. “Taylor,
come on, go to bed.” She leaned
in close, “I washed the sheets today…”
She coo’ed. “They might
even still be warm from the dryer.”
“Oh God, that sounds heavenly.”
He sighed, and he reluctantly pulled himself up.
“Hey Maggie, will you marry me?”
He asked.
“No, you jerk.” She
said. He smiled and staggered into
their bedroom.
Maggie watched him, then went back to counting and thanking God that
Taylor was so good looking. She
didn’t mind women looking at him all day, as long as they paid him ridiculous
tips for it. $62.48 was a pretty
good haul, she thought as she grabbed her bag and placed the money in her
wallet. The rent was due the next
day, and she knew she needed to go to the grocery.
On nights that Taylor played at the coffee shop, he didn’t bring home
food from the restaurant, which was a bad thing…Christmas was in a week and
she had a plane ticket to buy.
~~~~~
“Who sang that song…that “Joy to the World” song?”
A man stood in front of Taylor, his brow furrowed.
“Three Dog Night.” Taylor
answered. “If we don’t have it
on something by them, you might see if we have the soundtrack to “The Big
Chill”—it’s on there too.” He
said. He looked down at his watch.
It was noon. He was supposed
to be off because the restaurant was closed, but Maggie had been sick, so he’d
told Danny he’d cover for her. His mind wandered to his folks.
Christmas Eve was always a big thing, with so much food they couldn’t
begin to eat it all and music and laughter and presents under the tree.
This would be his second Christmas away from home, but the last one, at
least he’d had his brothers with him. He
smiled as he thought of them and of the small tree he’d put up a few days ago.
Maggie had said they couldn’t afford one, but there was no way he was
going to not have a Christmas tree, even if it was a little Charlie Brown one.
He reached into his pocket and felt the ring that lay there.
It was silver with a smooth garnet in a celtic love knot.
It wasn’t a diamond, but Maggie wasn’t a diamond kind of
girl, anyway. He just hoped she
wouldn’t throw it at him. He’d
asked her to marry him repeatedly, and every time, she’d turned him down.
It had actually become a joke to them and he’d ask her every night now,
before he went to sleep. This time,
he hoped she’d say yes. Their
child would be born soon and the thought of it not having his last name was
something that just wasn’t acceptable. But,
as Maggie’d said, plenty of people had babies without being married.
Still, in his family, it just wasn’t done.
He’d fucked up his own life, but he didn’t want to do it to his baby.
They’d made it work so far, they could make it forever…
~~~~~
The airport was a madhouse. Last
minute travelers were coming and going and Maggie’s swollen ankles weren’t
helping her maneuver around them and their heavy carry-ons.
She didn’t want to be late.
Taylor’s car had given her fits. It
wanted to die at every stoplight and as he’d told her, the heater blew cold
air, so she’d finally just turned it off and zipped her jacket up over her
face. Well, technically, it was
Taylor’s jacket. Her own no
longer fit her and she was actually surprised that his did, being as he was so
thin. Luckily for her, he always
wore six shirts and three sweaters so his coat was a bit bigger than it actually
needed to be for his small frame. She
got to the gate and looked up: the
plane was on time. She looked at
the clock on the wall, two minutes…
~~~~~
Taylor locked the door behind the last customer and leaned against it,
letting out a long breath. “Finally!
My gosh, why does everyone wait ‘til the last minute?”
Danny, the owner of the store walked up beside him, “Because most of
our customers are male. Women shop
early, men wait ‘til the last minute.”
Taylor smiled, remembering Maggie buying gifts for his family back in
October. She’d said she knew she
wouldn’t feel like it in December, and he guessed she was right.
“Yeah, you hit the nail on the head.”
He said as he straightened the rows of records in front of him.
“Speaking of which…” Danny
started, “how’s Maggie? I was
surprised this morning when you showed up instead of her.”
“Her feet have been hurting a lot and stuff.
I think she was just really tired, nothing to worry about.”
Taylor replied.
He smiled, “She’s pretty big, huh?”
Danny smiled back, “Yeah, but don’t tell her I said so.
That girl can get pissed off quicker than anybody I’ve ever
seen.”
Taylor raised an eyebrow, “Tell me about it.
The other day, she wouldn’t let me out of my chair ‘til I finished my
bowl of oatmeal. I don’t even like
oatmeal!”
Danny laughed, “Well, she’ll make a great mother.”
“Yeah, she will.” Taylor
grinned. “I keep trying to make
her a wife, and she ain’t having it.” He
said, pulling out a John Lennon album and checking out the back cover.
Danny looked at him, “Well, I don’t want this to sound bad, but maybe
she doesn’t love you. Or—maybe
she’s not in love with you.
Know what I mean?”
Taylor sighed, “Yeah. She
probably wanted to marry some lawyer or something.
She had a scholarship and stuff.”
He looked at him sadly, “I hope she can still get that when the baby
gets here and we get things settled. I
mean, I guess I could work enough to get her through…but then, there’s
daycare I guess. Maybe I could
watch the baby in the daytime and just work at night and stuff…”
He mused, all the while placing albums in their rightful place.
Danny shook his head, “Taylor, go home.
Enjoy the holiday.” He
said, walking over and unlocking the door.
Suddenly, Taylor looked very young to him.
“Things will work out, you’ll see.”
Taylor looked down at the floor, “What if they don’t?
What if she never wants to marry me?
She could end up finding that lawyer and taking my baby with her.”
“Maggie doesn’t want a lawyer, Taylor.
If she didn’t want to be with you, she wouldn’t be.
You know that. When have you
ever been able to make her do something she didn’t want to do?”
Now, his blue eyes turned skyward, “Uh, never, I don’t think.”
“Well then, there you have it. Someday,
the two of you will look back at this and have a laugh.
You can come visit and do a signing on your first million
seller.” Danny said brightly.
Taylor’s face lit up, “God, wouldn’t that be amazing?
No more pizzas, no more marinara or specials of the day—just us and our
fans and our music. It would be so
amazing.”
“Merry Christmas, Taylor.” Danny
said. “Go be amazing.
I’ll see ya later.”
“Night, man. You have a
great Christmas, too. And wish me
luck with the old lady.”
“You got it.” Danny
replied, smiling, and he shut the door behind Taylor and locked it with a click.
~~~~~
As Taylor climbed the stairs from the store to his apartment, the smell
became enchanting. If he wasn’t
mistaken, he was smelling Turkey. His
feet moved faster and his stomach growled.
He’d skipped lunch because he’d run out of the house without his
wallet, which didn’t have much in it anyway.
When he’d called Maggie, the answering machine had picked up.
He opened the door to see the little Christmas tree lit up in the corner,
a few extra presents under it. “Maggie?”
He called. The living room
was empty so he made his way to the kitchen where she stood at the stove
stirring a pan of gravy. “Oh my
gosh, when did you do all this?” He
asked, gazing at the table where an array of food sat, steaming in little bowls.
Four plates sat, waiting for their
owners to fill them. “What’s
going on? Who’s coming to
dinner?”
At that moment, he was tackled by his younger brother.
At sixteen, he was changing so quickly that Taylor had to
look twice to recognize him. He’d
cut his hair and seemed to be a couple inches taller than when he’d last seen
him two months ago. “Zac?!
Oh my god! What did you do
to your hair!?” Taylor said,
throwing his arms around the boy.
“I cut it! What do you
think I did?” He said, slapping
him on the back.
“It looks good! You’re
not so blond now, though…” Taylor
said, stepping back to look at him. He
looked behind him then, to see his older brother, Isaac.
“Ike—“ He said, now
putting his arms around him.
Isaac smiled and the room lit up. “Tay!
I think you got taller and skinnier!
I didn’t think it was possible!”
He said, hugging his little brother back.
“When did you guys get here?! You
shoulda come down to the store!” Taylor
cried.
“Naw, I think we were your Christmas present, dude.”
Zac said, dipping his finger in the mashed potatoes and getting a whack
on the hand from Maggie.
“That’s right.” She
said. “Besides, I needed help
with this stuff. You know I’m not
much of a cook.” She smiled.
“They’re not either!” Taylor
laughed.
“Well, we called Mom a couple times…”
Isaac admitted.
Taylor’s eyes glassed over, “How is everybody?”
He asked.
“They’re good. Same as
always.” Isaac answered.
“They’re missing you, of course.
Wondering why you never call.”
Taylor looked down and shuffled his foot across the old linoleum floor,
“Did you tell her?” He asked.
“No, you asked me not to. But
the reason I didn’t is because I thought you
would. You’ve gotta tell’em,
Tay.”
“I will. I just…everytime
I talk to her or Dad, I chicken out.” He
said softly.
Maggie stepped up to Taylor and kissed his cheek, “I’m gonna go
change, you guys chat, okay?” She
turned to Zac, “And DON’T be eating anything ‘til I get back.”
Zac bowed to her, “Yes, Madame.”
He said.
“I mean it, I’ll know if you did.”
She said, pointing at him, and then she walked into the hall and into the
bedroom.
Isaac had crossed his arms over his chest which let Taylor know it was
lecture time. “Tay, it’s their
grandchild. It’s coming, whether
you’re ready or not.”
“I know. She just…she
won’t marry me, Ike. I’ve
asked. I swear it.
I just thought…when I went back home, I could say, this is my wife,
y’know?” Taylor hissed.
Zac stepped up, “It won’t make any difference Tay.
They’re gonna be all disappointed no matter what.
And then, when the baby gets here, they’ll forget about it and just
deal. It’s their problem, not
yours.” He said, grabbing a piece
of turkey off the platter.
“It is my problem.
I don’t want my baby to be named Robertson, I want it to be named
Hanson.” Taylor spat.
“You can’t force her, dude.” Zac
answered, licking his fingers.
“Oh, I know.” Taylor
said, picking up the bowl of sweet potatoes and smelling them.
“Damn, what’s in these, they smell like heaven.”
“Cinnamon and nutmeg, some stuff like that.”
Zac said. He smiled, “I
got the recipe off the internet.”
Taylor smiled back, “So, when does school start?”
He asked.
Isaac dropped his fatherly demeanor, “January 7th.”
He said, dipping a finger in the golden goo.
“Mmm, damn Zac, why don’t you make stuff like this at home?”
Zac shrugged his shoulders, “I don’t know.
You never asked me to.”
Taylor sat down across from him, “Well, it would have been nice to know
you could cook while you were living here!”
Maggie stepped in, wearing an oversized sweater and a broomstick skirt.
It was some of the only things she could still wear from her
pre-pregnancy wardrobe. “He
can’t cook.” She said, “He
got lucky.” She said, smacking
his shoulder. “You weren’t
supposed to eat anything!”
“We couldn’t help it! It
just looks so good!” Zac defended
himself.
“Well, we may as well eat, then. It’s
just gonna get cold if we wait.” She
said, placing the gravy on the table.
Taylor helped her get closer to the table and sat down next to her.
The four of them held hands, then Zac said grace.
As they filled their plates, they asked each other about school, and
music and their friends both there and in Tulsa.
Maggie watched and listened to them, in awe that they’d just picked up
where they’d left off. Zac
reported to Taylor all the latest video games he’d missed out on playing, and
Taylor told them about his gigs at the coffee shop and his little group of fans
who seldom missed a performance. He
told them how much he missed playing with them and they told him they felt the
same. Slowly, the food disappeared
and three stuffed boys made their way to the living room.
“I know you guys are gonna play for me.”
Maggie said, kissing Taylor’s hand.
“What do you think, guys? It’s
Christmas Eve.” He said, walking
over to the window and looking out. “The
stars are out, how about “O Holy Night”?”
Zac and Isaac agreed it was a good choice, and soon their three voices
became one and tears came to Maggie’s eyes as she watched and listened to
them. She’d wanted to wait to
give them their gift, but at that moment, she just couldn’t.
She got up off the couch and went to the tree, taking a red velvet
stocking out from under it where it lay hidden under a box with a new pair of
jeans in it for Taylor. His old
ones were so thread bare, she was afraid his wallet would work its way through
the thin fabric someday. As soon as
they finished their song, she handed it to Taylor, “Merry Christmas, baby.”
She said.
He furrowed his brow, “I thought we were gonna wait ‘til tomorrow.”
“I know. But, I just think it’s a good time for this one.
I spent a lot on it—well, you and me both did.”
She said. “But, I hope
it’ll mean a lot to you. It does
to me.”
“What is it?” He asked.
“For crying out loud, Tay! Open
it!” Zac said, leaning in close
to see.
“It’s really for all of you.”
Maggie said. She sat
Indian-style on the floor and guided them all to sit on the couch.
Taylor looked at his brothers on either side of him and shrugged his
shoulders, “Alright.” He said,
reaching into the bag. He pulled
out a CD case, it’s artwork a perfect rendition of them.
“Oh…” Taylor gasped.
“This is awesome!”
“That is amazing.” Isaac
gushed.
“It’s a DVD of that gig you guys had down at Headliners.
Remember that?” She
asked. “Lily did the art.
I knew she would.
So you make sure you thank her.”
Taylor hugged her then, one arm around her neck and one around the baby,
“I will, I will. Thanks, baby.”
She pushed him away and took in a deep breath.
“I want you to use that for a demo, there’s a separate track of the
audio. There’s more in there.”
She urged.
Isaac reached in and pulled out a Delta Airlines folder.
Inside were three tickets to Los Angeles, dated December 25th,
for a 6:15 p.m. flight. “Maggie—“
He started.
“No. Don’t say you
can’t do it.” She said,
sternly.
“My friend has an uncle.
He works out there at a studio. There’s
a band that’s got studio time, already paid for, but they’ve gone home for
Christmas and it’s just sitting there for a few days.
He told me if you come out right away, he won’t charge anything for the
time. Now, if you need equipment or
anything like that, you gotta foot the bill for that yourself, but he’ll help
you produce a real demo. Good
quality.
And he’ll give it to his contacts out there.”
She looked at all three, their faces awash in disbelief.
“Maggie, I can’t leave right now.”
Taylor said. “I have work
and you’re pregnant and—“
“Taylor, you drive me crazy, do you know that?”
She stopped him. “You keep
asking me to marry you, but I never see
you! You used to talk my ear off.
Now, you’re too tired. I
never thought I’d miss that, but I do.”
She looked at Isaac, “He used to want sex all the time, now
he’s too tired!”
Isaac raised his eyebrows, knowing all too well how much his younger
brother loved women and everything about them.
She looked at Zac then, “The only thing he likes better than sex is
music!”
Zac blushed and looked at Taylor, “That’s true, dude.”
“Maggie—“
“Taylor, hush.” She
said. “Now, I’ve paid the rent
up through March. I can afford food
and the utilities myself. I’m
gonna work up until the baby’s born.”
He was shaking his head, “But you were sick today.”
She rolled her eyes, “I wasn’t sick, I needed to go to the airport
and pick up Frick and Frack!” She
looked again at Zac and Isaac, “Come on, guys—you know this is what you need
to do. If you have to be back in
time for school, fine. That still
gives you almost two weeks!” The
two looked at each other, but didn’t say anything.
Taylor stood, “Maggie, we can’t afford this.”
“We already have.” She
said, stiffening. “It’s paid
for and it’s non-refundable. If
you don’t go, you waste our money.”
Zac and Isaac looked at each other, wondering if they were going to see
another legendary Taylor-Maggie fight. They’d
had some whoppers in the past. Taylor
spoke again, “I can’t just leave tomorrow!
The restaurant—“
“I already talked to Mr. Moreschi.
He’s giving you a leave of absence and his best wishes for your
continued success, asshole.” Tears
had formed in her eyes now. She
stood up to face him. “If you
don’t go, I will. I’m not gonna
be tied to a zombie, Taylor. I love
you and I won’t be the reason you kill yourself.
We fucked up, okay? But it
happens all the time, and people make it without giving up everything they care
about.”
Taylor smiled now, “You love me?”
He said.
She looked away as the tear tumbled down her cheek, “Yes, you dick, I
love you. At least, I love the boy
that knocked me up.” She wiped
her arm across her face and looked up at him.
“I miss that boy and I want him back.
Do this. Do it for me.”
Taylor looked down at her and put his hand in his pocket.
Pulling out the ring, he placed it on her finger, “Marry
me.” He said.
Isaac and Zac were silent, waiting to see what would happen.
For a moment, she just looked at the ring, then back at Taylor, “You go
to L.A. Stay as long as you need to
to get this thing done. When you
come back, ask me again.” She
placed her arms around his neck and kissed him, long and deep.
“Maybe we should leave…” Isaac
mouthed to Zac.
“Where we gonna go?” He
replied.
Isaac pointed down, “The store?”
Zac’s shoulders fell. He’d
wanted to spend Christmas with Taylor, not a bunch of musty old records.
He looked back at Taylor and Maggie, still attached at the lips.
He stood and he and Isaac tip toed toward the door.
“Where the hell do you think you’re going?”
Maggie stopped them.
“Um…” Isaac started,
“well, we thought we’d just, you know, leave you guys alone.”
She let go of Taylor, “We’re always alone.
It’s Christmas Eve and I think you all have some planning to do.”
Her face brightened, “Hey! You
two are even packed already, it’s perfect!”
She clapped her hands together, “I guess that means they’re going,
Taylor.”
She pushed him toward the bedroom, “Now, make sure you
bring plenty of underwear, you don’t know how long you’re gonna be there.
And, bring a scarf, I don’t want you getting a sore throat.
It might be warmer out there than it is here, but you never know…”
Their voices faded as they got farther away and into the bedroom.
“Good grief, I guess we’re going to California.”
Isaac said.
“Aw, man! We need to cover
that song! I’m sure Tay could
pull off a good Robert Plant if he really tried.”
Zac said. He giggled then
and leaned in towards his brother, “Of course, he’d have to skip all that
underwear she’s packing for him if he really
wants to do Robert Plant.”
“Don’t encourage him, Zac. The
girls already go for him and he’s just a little guy from Tulsa.”
Isaac smiled and plopped back down on the sofa.
“God,” He whispered,
“I hope she marries him so he’ll tell Mom and Dad about the baby soon.”
“She will.” Zac said,
picking up the remote. “Even
Maggie can’t resist the Hanson charm.”
“What the heck are we gonna do out in L.A.?”
Isaac questioned.
Zac went from channel to channel until he saw the familiar face of Jimmy
Stewart finding out he was “the richest man in town”.
“We’ll record the songs we wrote and if somebody likes them, we’ll
become rock stars.”
“This is crazy. Taylor’s
gonna be a father in less than two months.”
Isaac reasoned.
“So? John Lennon had a
kid. Sting’s got kids.
Bono’s got kids. He’ll
make it. Either way, he’ll make
it.”
Isaac shook his head, “How old are you?”
“Old enough to know Maggie’s right.
If we don’t do this, we’ll regret it forever.
School’s not going anywhere and neither are waiters, or clerks at
record stores. If we fail, we go
with plan B and have lives like Mom and Dad.
If we succeed?” He smiled
his wide smile, “We’re rockstars!”
Isaac rolled his eyes, “How did I get stuck with you two?”
“God didn’t want you to be boring, so he sent Tay and me to put a
little excitement in your life. And
it worked!!” He then reached up
to mess up his brothers carefully styled hair, “Merry Christmas, dude.
In L.A.!” He crowed.
