Counting On Forever

Chapter 10

~{Chapter 10}~

His brown eyes widen slightly when he sees me, and he nervously says, "I didn't mean to interrupt. I'll come by later."

He's addressing Violet, but I say, "No, please come in. I was just about to leave. I need to get back to work."

He hesitates. "Are you sure?"

I nod my head and stand up, grabbing a tissue to dab my eyes. I give Violet a soft hug. She squeezes me comfortingly and whispers a few encouraging words into my ear. I lean back and give her a smile of thanks for her time and kind words.

I turn to leave and almost walk out when I hear, "You must be my long lost nephew. You look exactly like your father when he was your age."

I turn back around and ask, "You're Mr. Parker's son?"

They both look at me while he's the one that answers. "Yes. You are?"

I walk towards him and hold my left hand out. "Kate Garner."

I can tell he recognizes the name. He shakes my hand. My ring pokes him softly, causing the kind look to fade slightly. He quickly recovers and smiles.

"It's nice to finally meet you. My dad has told me a lot about you," he says.

I pull my hand back and discreetly play with my ring; it's something I've begun to do when I'm nervous. I can tell he's searching for something to say, and Violet is also searching for something to say. I feel like I'm back in the awkward middle school stage.

"Well," I say slowly, "I should really get back to work, but it was really nice to meet you." I turn and look at Violet. "Thanks for your help."

She smiles at me before I turn and leave. I hurry to my office. I stay holed up in there for the rest of the day, only stopping a few times to go to the restroom and get water and some food.

By the time my other employees go home, I've worn myself out. I turn my chair to face the backyard of the office. The sun has almost set and twinkling stars are already beginning to scatter all across the sky. While in the city, I missed the big twinkling stars Texas has.

I close my eyes and just feel an overcoming sense of calm come over me. Although, I still feel a little disturbed about what happened to me in Violet's office.

All of a sudden, I hear, "I'm here."

I keep my eyes closed and try to ignore the voice.

"Call on me."

I fight the urge to answer.

"You know I love you. I want to help. Let me help you."

I keep fighting the urge to answer.

"You're not alone. I love you. You're  my child, remember that."

Tears fill my eyes as I give in to the voice. "I hear you, God."

For the next twenty minutes or so, I cry and call on God. It's the first time I've talked to Him in a long time. I've missed Him. I've been trying to do everything myself.

"God, I'm so sorry. I love you so much! Please, forgive me. I've forgotten about you. I've abandoned you. I've tried to do everything myself. I can't do it by myself. I realize that, now. I ask you to please come back and help me," I wipe tears out of my eyes and take deep breaths.