This is the Time

{ Kayla, 1985 }

(Back to the lame format of Love's Got Me Doin' Time with random things that I think are cute and deserve to be written about.)

Tom was enjoying his last day of Memorial weekend by doing some tanning on a fold out chair in the backyard. 

At least I didn't walk in to find Ren standing over him in one of her little bikinis, which would have been a real kicker to a day from hell. Apparently he heard my car, or Puck tipped him off to my arrival, because he was coming into the house just as I opened the door.

"Hi, honey, I'm home!" I called out. "Possibly forever."

There was a brief silence while he processed that, then he said, "Fired or laid off?"

I laughed. A little too hard, but I laughed. "They're shutting the whole place down. I would have preferred fired."

"Oh, Kay," he said and opened his strong, sun-kissed arms. I went right into them, not caring if I got oil on my work clothes. What the hell did it matter? Are they work clothes if you're out of work?

After a while, he said, "You'll be okay, you know."

"Yeah," I said quietly. "I know Ren will take care of things until things get better for me."

"No, don't worry about that. I'll find a way to do it."

"The universe is expanding."

"I'll take your word for it.'

"No, it's something Fred says to me. God. Poor Freddie. What's going to happen to him? He loves that job."

"Do you serious doubt he'll land on his feet?"

"No... I just hope he doesn't get too bruised on the way down."

He smiled. It was one of those you-are-crazy-but-that's-what-I-love-about-you smiles. I'll take one anytime.

"It's all right," he said, pulling me closer. "My real point was, go easy on yourself. You'll find what it is you're going to do next. Or it will find you."

"Aren't you afraid I'm going to sit here eating bonbons all day?"

"I'm more afraid you'll run yourself into the ground. Or decide to redecorate."

That made me back up. "You know, I do want to paint the kitchen."

He sighed dramatically and flipped his bangs away from his eyes with one seductive swoop.

"What? I'm just talking about painting."

"It's never - never - just painting."

He was right, of course.