Page 74 of Besties
The tension drained from me. He was serious, I could tell. He didn’t care that I wasn’t like Josh or even like him. “I’d like that.”
“Then it’s settled. Do me a favor, though. If you ever doubt your place in my life, talk to me. I promise to do the same. I don’t want little problems to get bigger because we won’t communicate.”
That was something no one else had ever done with me. I would try to talk to them, but the answers were always noncommittal or, worse, I was ignored or told to shut up. They’d beaten me down even lower than when Dad left us. In fact, the only people who’d ever tried to build me up were Richie, his folks, my Mom, and Walter. Yet, somehow, I always let everyone else’s words drive me.
“I’m an idiot.”
“You’re just figuring that out? I could have told you that years ago.” Richie teased, but then reached out and patted my shoulder. “You’re not, Max. Not at all. We all need reassurance at times. We crave the knowledge that the people we allow into our lives will have our backs and not walk away when things get hard.”
That’s what had happened to me. Every time things hit a rough patch, they bailed. Mom told me it wasn’t in me to leave, because I wasn’t my father. And she was right. I would have done everything to make them happy and for them to not leave. How many times had I debased myself by begging, pleading for them to stay? Promising I could change, I could be what they wanted? I was the classic abused spouse, because that’s the person my father made me.
“I’m not my father,” I growled.
“No, you are most definitely not. And you know what? You never will be. You keep a tight grip on what’s yours. And I’m glad that includes me. The fact that you hang on and won’t let go? That gives me the courage to believe you’re going to stick with me and not cast me aside.”
“I will never let you go,” I vowed. “You’re stuck with me forever.”
“And you know what? I believe you. No one, not the smartest people in the world, could convince me of something like you can. You settle my brain and my heart, because I know they’re safe with you. Just like they always have been.”
“And they always will be.”
That earned me a luminous smile. “Do you believe I’m keeping you, Max?”
For more than two decades we’d been friends. Never once that I was aware of had Richie ever lied to me.
“Have you ever lied to me?”
He scowled. “Of course I have! When you got that haircut that you said was like Justin Timberlake’s and asked me if I liked it, I told you I did, even though I wanted to tell you it looked like a sheep had taken up residence on your head. But you loved it, and I wanted to support you.”
I actually hated that haircut. “I didn’t like it,” I admitted. “I….” God, this was embarrassing. “I wanted you to notice me.”
“Dude, how could I not notice you?” Then it clicked. “Oh, like that. I’m sorry I was too scared to admit how I felt. Maybe if I had—”
“No. There was nothing you could have done differently, I promise.”
We’d danced this particular tango for years. Back then, I thought that it was unrequited love and that I had to move on with my life. If I had known or even had an inkling that Richie liked me, I probably would have scared him away by pushing too hard.
“We were each on our own journey, and finally got on the road that brought us back together like it should have.” I touched a finger to the screen, wishing I could have the real thing here. “I love you.”
His expression went all soft and gooey. “I will never get tired of hearing you say that.”
I stared at him for several long moments.
“Oh! I love you too.”
Then I laughed, because I knew he did, and even if at times I got bogged down in my own thoughts, Richie would be by my side and hold me until I remembered how much I was loved. Not just by him, but by the family I would never take for granted.
We ranourselves ragged for the weeks before the alleged “grand unveiling” of this new and supposedly innovative software Midland Program Solutions was bringing to market. Thankfully, Yelp and the other sites that hosted the poor reviews of Teaching Time suspended adding new ones. I was grateful for that, because it gave us a chance to find out what was going on.
Richie had the whole central team involved, but also included Sheila, the woman who had rented us the apartment back in Milwaukee. When we were on break, I pulled her aside and, after a deep, bracing breath, apologized to her for messing up the plans she had with Richie.
“That’s fine,” she said, a big smile on her face. “I hadn’t spoken to my husband about the interview, and I should have, because it would impact us both. After we talked, he was more excited than me, because he knew how badly I wanted to teach.”
So I got into a snit because I was jealous of a married woman. Glad that was behind me. Now I just needed to get through this whole mess and get Teaching Time in the clear again.
“Hello, Max.”
I turned and found Josh standing next to me, smiling wide. Behind him stood Dixon, who definitely wasn’t smiling.
