YOU'RE ALL MINE - ch 21

YOU’RE ALL MINE - ch 21

(the magic of Midnight)

^ ^

With her father’s nod of approval, Mia drove her friends to the airport. She’d never driven that far before without one of her parents with her so, that meant, that she was excited about her new adventure, thrilled that her parents trusted her enough to make the hour’s drive, and a bit nervous – all at the same time.

Midnight meowed, “Mia, I can feel your tension. Relax. You’ll be fine. You’re a good driver who takes all the necessary precautions. Smile and enjoy your new-found freedom.”

Mia opened her mind so only her familiar heard her. “Midnight, it’s one thing to jump the lines alone. You and I are the only ones I need to look out for, but here in the car, I need to watch for other drivers and worry about my friends. And don’t forget, we still need to watch for Kevin O’Leary. You just never know when he’s bent his elbow a bit too much.”

The three girls heard a loud noise coming from Midnight’s throat. “OMG, Mia, is Midnight alright?” Julie asked.

Mia luaghed and replied, “Yes, she’s laughing at something I thought.”

“Hmm, what to share?”

“Sure, why not!” Then she began to tell them about the escapade in the O’Dowd bakery when Kevin O’Leary and his truck plowed through the front window.

“You know, Mia, I don’t know if I shoiuld laugh at the image you just planted in my brain or worry. Does he always do that?”

“Only when he has a reason, like, waking up? Finding he’d put gas in his truck a few days before – that’s another good reason. Finding that his sister washed and dried his clothes. There’s aother one.”

Charlotte laughed. “Wll, I guess every town has someone like Mr. O’Leary. Do you remember Stan Bizinski? The town mortician?”

Mia laughed. “Omh! Charlotte! I haven’t thought about him in years. Does he still own the S&J Funeral Parlor?”

“Sadly, he passed away a number of years ago but his brother, Jozef has it now. Josepf and his wife, Maria sprused the building up and now, it seems when there’s a need for a funeral home, people go there. They’re also very generous as for as giving to the community. Seems when Stan died, Jozef inherited whatever Stan had plus whatever Stad had inherited from their dad that end up getting passed on to Jozef.”

Mia heard something change in Charlotte’s voice. “Oh, Char, spill it. I can feel the other shoe about to drop.”

For a second, Charlotte didn’t say anything, then finally spoke, “Okay, this is something I haven’t yet told anyone! Maria and Jozef have an eighteen year old son. His name is Alex. He’s tall, blond hair, deep brown eyes that remind me of melted chocolate, and a smile that can light up the darkest room.”

“Wow! Char, from the sound of your voice, it’s clear that you’ve a major crush going on here. Can I assume you’ve already dated him?”

Charlotte laughed. “You assume correctly but, I’m not sure if you can actually call it a date. We were supposed to meet up with a group of friends and for whatever reason, only Alex and showed up. Rather than go home early, we decided to see a movie. So, it wasn’t really a planned date but he did walk me home and kiss me goodnight. OMG, Mia! That boy sure can kiss!”

Julie gave Charlotte’s shoulder a slight squeeze and asked, “So, I guess it’s safe to say that Mia’s potential boyfriend isn’t even on your radar?”

Charlotte sighed. “Look, Francis is cute but he’s here and I’m there. Alex isn’t here; he’s there. And besides, did you see the way Francis looked at Mia? Honestly, even if I gave him a second thought, he’d never even notice me. He only has eyes for Mia.”

“Aw, come on, guys!” Mia protested. “I hardly know him. And the only reason I do is because he almost ran me over several times.” She almost held her breath and asked, “Do you really think he might be interested in me?”

They heard Midnight screech but only Mia understood. “Mia, for heaven’s sake, the boy couldn’t take his eyes off you. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was waiting at your house for you when he get back.”

^ ^

With her friends at the airport, Mia and Midnight headed home. Midnight knew the somber mood was because Mia would miss her friends. The distance between them makes visits few and far between. To lighten the mood that swam around them, Midnight offered one of her insights. “Mia, I think you better begin putting more of the money you make from your gardening away. I have a gut feeling that by next year, you’ll be invited to a wedding.”

“Midnight, not a chance. Charlotte said Alex is only eighteen. She’s only seventeen. There is no way her parents would allow her to marry at such a young age besides, Charlotte wants to become a pediatric physician’s assistant. That’s quite a specialty that requires a lot of schooling. After chasing that dream for all these years, I can’ see her giving it up now.”

“Char, I wasn’t speaking about Charlotte. I meant Julie.”

Mia almost choked on the air she was breathing. “Julie? The Julie we just dropped off at the airport? She doesn’t even have a boyfriend!”

The cat smiled and meowed, “Not yet, but she will!”

Midnight settled in her small bed that Mia kept in the back of the car and said mischievously, “Okay, now that her proverbial cat is out of the bag, let’s stop at the fish market. I could use a tub of haddock.”

Mia smiled as she pulled over to the side of the road, took her phone from her purse, and pushed a few buttons.

“Mom? I’m going to stop at the fish market. Would you like me to pick up some thing for supper?”