Nothing Ever Changes

Part 14

Lindsey shifted his weight from one foot onto the other, wringing his hands as he waited. He considered ringing the bell again, but he didn't want to appear impatient. He heard a dog's bark becoming louder and he straightened up. The front door finally opened and Lily ran outside, before she approached and sniffed him. He paid no attention to the dog, his eyes fixed on Stevie. She looked the same as the last time he saw her, maybe even better. She seemed well rested, relaxed. She wore her usual so called uniform, just a touch of makeup on her already beautiful face, her hair in natural waves. He felt his eyes glaze over with tears and he closed them for a moment, hanging his head low. Get a grip, he told himself, breathing heavily. He was afraid, he was going to start crying if he looked at her again, so he remained rooted to the spot, trying to compose himself. The thing that broke him was when he felt her arms wrap around him, his circled her waist without a second thought, pulling her in closer. 

"Hey." Stevie whispered and he echoed her, his warm breath tickling the side of her neck. 

They stood embracing each other for a while, not another word shared between them. She was going to give him all the time in the world, she was going to let him hold her for as long as he needed to. Not that she was ready to let go either. 

"Would you, uh..." Stevie began, when Lindsey's grip on her eased slightly. "Would you like to come inside?" 

"Yeah." Lindsey nodded, quickly wiping under his eyes with the back of his hand, a weak smile on his face. 

"I sent Karen away, in case you were wondering." Stevie said, guiding him through her house and into a cozy looking room, the same one, where they sat together in front of the fire ten years ago, while she was recording her album.

"Good." Lindsey added. "Well, I mean, that's fine."

It was still early in the day, but the dark heavy curtains were already drawn, several candles lit around the room, an incense stick burning. A record was quietly playing, but Lindsey didn't care to try and figure out by which artist. He felt as if he had stepped into something very private and he was glad that she let him.

"Can I get you anything?" Stevie asked, unsure of where to start. "I was going to make myself a cup of tea."

"Uh, sure." Lindsey nodded. "Something that has a calming effect, please." 

She smiled, she needed that as well. "I'll be right back."

Left alone, Lindsey exhaled heavily, wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans. This was not a dream and he couldn't quite believe it yet. He was completely overcome with various emotions, but he knew for a fact that none of them were anger or hatred. He felt relieved, he felt as if a huge weight had been lifted of his chest.

"I added two spoons of sugars out of habit, but in case you've decided to stop killing yourself with it, I'll make another one." Stevie handed him the tea and waited for his response before she sat down.

"No, no. I still don't listen to my doctor's orders." Lindsey shook his head, hating the large gap she'd made between them, taking a seat across from him, a low dark brown wooden table separating them. "But I do take all of the pills I've been prescribed." He assured. 

"Good. You have to stay healthy. You gave me quite a scare, you know." Stevie admitted, picking up Lily. "How are you feeling now?"

"Well, it's not like the flu." Lindsey laughed lightly, shrugging his shoulders. "It happened, the doctors fixed my heart and I'm just moving on with my life."

"And how's that going?" Stevie didn't want to ask about his divorce, she didn't want to ask if maybe he and Kristen were working on fixing their marriage. She was going to take whatever answer she got. 

"One day at a time." He smiled sadly, taking a sip. "I've just never thought that at 71 I would have to go through this, you know."

"My God, we're so freaking old." Stevie laughed, shaking her head. "Honestly, I've never thought I'd make it to 73."

"I don't think any of us thought we'd make it this far." Lindsey agreed, placing the cup down on the table. 

His movements caught Lily's attention. The dog jumped off its owner's lap and cautiously approached their guest. Lindsey looked down and thought that Stevie had always picked her dogs after herself; small, but for whatever reason very scary. 

"Is she going to bite my finger off if I pet her?" Lindsey asked, carefully reaching down.

"There's only one way to find out, right?" Stevie smirked, looking at him over the rim of her cup. "I'm really happy that you're here, Lindsey." She said, when Lily made herself comfortable in his lap.