Casting Debbie

Chapter 35

Three weeks later, Debbie was packing when she heard a knock on the door. She brushed the dust off of her t-shirt and looked through the peephole. "Oh, god. You found me."

"May I come in?"

Debbie opened the door. "Knock yourself out." Linus looked different. His hair was longer. His year-round tan had faded. "What brings you to New York?"

Linus laid a garment bag over the back of the sofa and looked around. "Hello to you, too, Lace." He zeroed in on one of the family photos on the wall. "You're as beautiful as your mother."

Debbie continued packing books into a box. "Sucking up, Lin? What the hell do you need from me now?"

"Not at all." His voice was gentler than normal. "I'm just not sure what to say to you, standing here in your brother's apartment." He pointed at the box. "Can I help with that?"

Debbie's shoulders relaxed. Linus wasn't the enemy. In fact, he could be a good listener when he wanted to be. She set the books down and gave him her full attention. "I'm sorry. How are you, Lin?"

"I'm okay." Linus shoved his hands into his pockets. "Worried about you and Lou. Hoping I didn't ruin everyone's lives."

Debbie's already sad expression turned into one of pain as she frowned. "I think the verdict is still out." She couldn't look at him. She turned back to her box of books.

Linus stood next to her, wrapping an arm around her. "What can I do?"

Debbie gripped the book in her hand, trying to keep her emotions at bay. She didn't want to cry in front of Linus, but she'd never felt so alone in her whole life. Her brother was gone. Lou was...gone. She'd been all alone in that apartment, trying to decide what of her brother's things to keep and what to give away. Everything held a memory. Even Danny's ties were special - mostly because she'd picked them out for him. But what good would it do to pack everything up and store it away for years on end? No, it would be best to give most of it away, if she could just muster up the courage.

It surprised them both when Debbie buried her face in Linus's chest. She let go of the book and gripped onto the lapel of his jacket. Linus ran his hand over her long hair. "Shh...it's okay. It's going to be okay."

***

Linus took a swallow of the beer Debbie had found in the fridge for him. "It's a surprisingly nice view out here."

Debbie leaned on the metal balcony. "It gets the afternoon sun, and if you lean out and tilt your head just right, you can see the river."

Linus eyed Debbie closely for a moment. She had calmed down some. Even joked about how claustrophobic New York apartments felt to her now. She also apologized for the big, wet stain on his jacket, and followed that up with how ugly the jacket was anyway. Typical Debbie. Which is what he'd hoped to see. He took another sip of beer and said, "Lou's in town." He tried to look casual as he waited for a response.

Debbie stiffened. "Why?"

"She's going on The Not So Late Show tonight."

She turned away from him, looking out at the view. "Oh."

"She'll be promoting the season finale."

"Yeah. Of course. Makes sense."

"I'd like you to show up and surprise her. Johnny Falcon's always up for a good surprise. They wanted both of you anyway, and this makes it more fun."

Debbie squeezed the metal railing with both hands. "You haven't asked about Tammy."

"I assume you've done all you can, short of marrying her, of course." Linus grinned showing off his very white smile. Debbie reached over and whacked his shoulder. "Hey! What was that for?"