The wrong kind of serious

The door bell finished what their conversation had started, and Scott’s plan to have Jenn stirred up and dying for more while they ate went up in smoke.

He threw on pants and answered the door, tipped the delivery guy and when he turned to take the food to the kitchen table Jenn was there, wearing slippers and a nightgown. Not a sexy one, a nightgown you could eat dinner with your Dad in.

“I’ll get my dad.” Jenn said as she walked past.

Scott watched her walk past and sighed. The evening already wasn’t going to plan, but then, things involving he and Jenn rarely went according to plan.

Jenn returned, walking with her dad, keeping an eye on him.

“You guys finally getting together, eh?” Bob said.

Jenn looked unsure.

“Yeah, finally.” Scott answered.

“Well good, not many men can handle a woman like my Jenn, she takes after my side of the family, and Buzek women aren’t for the faint of heart.”

“Dad!” Jenn exclaimed.

“Oh don’t worry Jenn, Scott’s tough, he won’t break easily.”

Scott reached over and rubbed the back of his shoulder. “I was just telling her that.” He said with a wicked smile.

Bob laughed, “I bet. Anyways, I’ll take my food back to my room, let you kids have space.”

“No Dad, we need to talk.”

“Really?” He said, looking confused at Jenn, just as confused as Scott was.

“About the shop.”

“Oh don’t start on that again Jenn.”

“Scott’s here now, he and Julio did great together, your doctor said you need to cut back on hours, and you need to do your physical therapy.”

“Jenn, I’m a grown man and I can decide. . .”

“Bullshit dad.” Jenn was getting heated. “You’re not going to hem and haw and run away from this. You need to take care of yourself.”

“I’ve taken care of myself for fifty-seven years Jenn, I’m not going to start listening to some idiot doctor now.”

“You had a heart attack dad, this is serious, you can’t just go on like nothing happened.”

Bob Buzek’s face was starting to match his daughter’s shade of red. Scott had seen them argue, but he’d never seen Jenn push her dad like this.

“I’ve lived a good life, My way. And I’m going to keep living it my way until I die.”

Jenn stood up, “NO!” She screamed, slamming her hands down on the table, tears starting to run from her eyes. “You don’t just get to die and leave me, you don’t get to do that Dad.”

Scott was stunned, he knew how hard her mother’s **** hit Jenn, but she and her dad had never seemed very close, whatever was going on right now he didn’t feel right being here, but he definitely couldn’t leave.

“Jenn, I don’t intend. . .”

“No one intends to die Dad, Mom didn’t intend to die, but she didn’t wear her fucking helmet and that’s what you get. Now you’re getting told you need to change your ways or you’ll die and you can’t just not change and say you aren’t choosing to leave me.”

“It’s not like you need me hanging around Jenn, you can run the shop fine.”

“The shop doesn’t need you Dad, I need you. I need you to be my dad, walk me down the aisle, dance at my wedding, tell your grandkids all your stupid Buzek stories. I need you to be here Dad.”

Bob Buzek was crying.

Scott had never seen that, never imagined he would. And Scott had started it, trying his best to convince Jenn he was in it for the long run, and her brain went to this.

Scott watched as Jenn held her father, his shoulder shaking. He didn’t belong here, this wasn’t a moment for him.

He got up, Jenn looked at him and he signaled he was going to go outside.

“Don’t leave Scott.”

“I won’t, I’ll be just outside.”

The air outside was cold. The last rays of sun were fading behind the trees. Scott’s mind was racing. Jenn was serious, she couldn’t tell him, but that conversation. . . that was because of him. Jenn thinking about marriage, kids, she was serious.

They had known each other forever, and had bonded when their mothers died only months apart. They would occasionally be apart for a week or so, Scott always went to summer camps, Jenn’s cross-country motorcycle trips with her dad, but most of their lives they had been together every day. Spent most of their summers just the two of them until Doug showed up. Even then he had always been the third wheel, content to hang around and watch Jenn and Scott’s bizarre relationship.

It wasn’t like they were getting to know each other; it wasn’t like this was a first date or anything. The moment Scott had told Jenn he wanted to try a relationship it felt final, like accepting a plan fate had laid out for them almost twenty years ago. But this was still rough. Marriage, kids? He had been married; he had been ready to have kids. But this felt different, much more real.

“Hey Scott.” Jenn’s voice was soft.

“Hey Jenn.”

“I’m sorry about that, I don’t know what came over me.”

“I do.”

“Yeah. . . me too.” She paused, knowing the weight her words to her father had put on them.

“Look, if you don’t want to do this, you don’t. . .”

Scott turned. “No, Jenn, don’t give us an out. I don’t want it, I won’t take it, and you better not either.”

“It’s all so much, Scott. Half of me can’t believe this is real, that you are serious, that you even like me, and the other half feels like we’ve been a couple our entire lives, and is ready for. . . well, whatever.”

“You know what Jenn, if you want kids let’s do it.”

Jenn laughed.

“I’m serious, Jenn. What reason do we have to wait, we don’t need to go on dates and get a feel for each other, we don’t need to meet each other’s family and find out what they think. My whole life I’ve known you were the girl I wanted, if all this time hasn’t changed that, if going to the Army and getting married and divorced, if none of that changed it, then what will?”

“Okay, I’d like to get married first though, before the kids.” She said with a smile.

“You catholic girls start much too late.” He replied.

“Scott Williams, if you sing Billy Joel to me I’m going to stab you.”

“You may be right.”

“Scott, I’m serious.”

“I may be crazy.”

“You are crazy.”

“But it just might be a lunatic. . .”

She cut him off, grabbing him and kissing him hard.