Gifted a Second Chance at Life

Chapter 5

John was sitting in his favorite chair with his injured ankle on the footstool and his cat on his lap, watching his son try to untangle the Christmas lights. Jimmy had brought all the decorations he could find into the living room and sorted them, deciding which ones they should use. John chuckled as Jimmy struggled with the string of lights and ended up with it wrapped around him. He chuckled as Jimmy sighed and dropped his arms to his sides, still wrapped in the strand of lights.

“Dad? Do you think anyone would notice if we didn’t have any light anywhere in the house?” Jimmy asked, utterly defeated by the Christmas lights.

“Maya would notice, and so would your mother,” John chuckled. “Why don’t you give me the lights to deal with while you sort out the rest of the ornaments? Remember, we need to find all the pink and purple ornaments.”

That response made Jimmy sigh. John laughed at his son as his phone beeped from the end table beside him. He picked it up to see a photo of Mark and Maya holding up strands of purple lights.

“Hold on, son. I think we have a reprieve from the light nightmare. They found purple lights for the tree,” John said as he held the phone so Jimmy could see the screen. “And from the looks of that display, they found all the pink and purple ornaments that Maya could want.”

“So, do you want me to put all this stuff back?” Jimmy asked as he looked at the many boxes.

“Not yet. We need to look through it to see what we can find that might go with the pink and purple color scheme.”

“Gotcha,” Jimmy nodded as he wiggled his way out of the lights and dropped the strand into a box. He placed a box of ornaments on the coffee table and asked, “Hey, Dad? What really happened between her and Mitch? She was so in love with him, and he always wanted her to be happy. I can’t figure out why they would split up.”

John leaned back in his chair and sighed, “If I tell you, you have to promise not to do anything dumb.”

“If he hurt her, I will…” Jimmy began before his father cut him off.

“And that is why you don’t know everything. Instead of focusing on what you want to do to get even with Mitch, focus on ways to help Callie and Maya. Understand?” John asked.

“I understand. Now, will you please tell me what happened?” Jimmy pleaded.

“The city changed, Mitch. He went from being the nice guy we all knew and loved to being cold and distant. When Callie found out she was pregnant with Maya, he left it all on her. Everything. Every additional expense, every bout of morning sickness, everything. He almost missed Maya’s birth because he was busy. He started drinking on his twenty-first birthday and never stopped. That was when he started being violent. It wasn’t until Maya asked about one of Callie’s bruises that she understood she had to leave,” John explained.

Jimmy dropped into the chair behind him and asked, “Why didn’t Callie say anything? We would have helped her leave sooner.”

John shook his head, saying, “I don’t know. Pride? Embarrassment? Fear? It could have been any number of reasons. But that doesn’t matter. What matters is that she and Maya are safe and away from him. We need to do our best to make them happy to go with it. Can you do that?”

“Yeah! Of course, I can!” Jimmy exclaimed, nodding emphatically. “I just wish someone would have told me this before now. Does anyone else know? What about Mark?”

“Jimmy, she barely told me and your mom about it. The only other person who might know it is Ruthie, the woman who owns that little diner in Boise that Callie worked at. Callie mentioned she stayed there when she left Mitch and had to wait for the divorce to go through.”

So, I should…?” Jimmy asked his father, trailing off.

“You should not go blabbing to everyone about what has happened in your sister’s life. She will tell people when she is ready to tell them. Until then, try to keep your mouth shut about it. I know you have a problem with keeping secrets, but this is one you need to keep,” John told him in a serious tone.

“Got it,” Jimmy said. He paused and asked, “But if Mark asks about what’s bothering Callie, what do I tell him?”

“Tell him you have been threatened with banishment and sworn to secrecy. He will need to ask Callie about it,” John said, grinning at his son. “Mark will understand and respect that.”

“Yeah,” Jimmy nodded. “Mark has always had a crush on Callie. I’ve always wondered what would have happened if Mark would have asked Callie out before she married Mitch. Maybe she would have married him instead.”

“That’s true. But Callie had always planned on attending school and becoming a teacher. If she had married Mark, she might have stayed here with him and not done that. I believe things worked out the way they were supposed to do. If Callie and Mark are meant to be together, being apart the way they were will make it even more special,” John said as the corner of his mouth ticked up. “Do not meddle and try to set them up.”

“I would never do that,” Jimmy said, placing his hand on his chest and pretending to be offended. “I only want the best for my little sister and my niece. Is there anything wrong with that?”

“No. Not at all,” John said as his phone beeped again. He looked at the message and opened the attached pictures. He laughed and handed his cell phone to Jimmy as he said, “We had better get to work, get the tree set up, and figure out where everything is going because, from the looks of things, they are buying out the store.”