Circle Of Three: Making The Saint Part 18

Mr. Rivers nodded. Cooper put down the pillow and got up. She walked to her father, leaned down, and kissed him. I love you, Daddy, she said.

Mr. Rivers looked up at her, surprised. Cooper knew that it was because she hadnt called him Daddy since she was a little girl. I love you, too, sweetie, he said, his voice choking.

Cooper turned to her mother. And I love you, too, she said, bending and giving her a hug. Remember that the next time we have some big fight.

I will, her mother said. And you do the same.

Okay then, Cooper said. I think my work is done here. Ill be back later.

She left her parents sitting in the living room and went upstairs to her bedroom. There she grabbed her guitar case, backpack, and keys, and left again. She went downstairs and out the front door, not looking to see if her parents were still sitting in stony silence in the other room. She knew that they would have to work out whatever their issues were without her.

She got into her Nash Metropolitan convertible and drove to T.J.s house. When she went to the door and rang the bell, the McAllisters big Irish setter, Mac, started to bark happily. A moment later Mrs.

McAllister opened the door.

What are you doing still ringing the bell? she asked when she saw Cooper standing there. Just come in next time.

Hey, Mrs. M., Cooper said, going inside.

And for the love of Mary, call me Mom, Mrs. McAllister said as she shut the door. Youre *

practically one of mine anyway now that youve got two of my boys smitten with you.

Two? Cooper asked as she set her guitar case down and took off her jacket.

T.J. and Dylan, Mrs. McAllister replied. He hasnt stopped talking about you since he was here.

Cooper smiled. It was Dylan who had talked sense into both T.J. and Cooper when they had been thinking of splitting up. How is he? asked Cooper.

Fine, T.J.s mother said. He and his special friend are about to celebrate their anniversary, so hes all excited about the party.

Cooper laughed. She knew that no matter how many times they asked her to, Mrs. McAllister still couldnt call Dylans partner his boyfriend. Once, when T.J. had teased her about it, her pale Irish skin had flared up almost to the color of her fiery hair and shed said fiercely, Im not going to call the grown man my son is living with his boyfriend. For the love of Mike, the two of them have been together longer than most married couples I know. He stopped being a boyfriend a long time ago. So until they come up with a better word, hes Dylans special friend and thats that.

T.J.! Mrs. McAllister called. Get your lazy self down here and greet your girlfriend properly. Then she turned to Cooper. I know what youre thinking, but you are his girlfriend, special or not.

Cooper laughed, and Mrs. McAllister returned to the kitchen, where from the smell of things she was making her famous corned beef and cabbage. Cooper, a staunch vegetarian, had been afraid of refusing to eat T.J.s mothers signature dish when invited to her first Sunday dinner there. But Mrs. McAllister had made her a separate batch prepared with tofu instead and served it without a word. That had been the moment when Cooper knew shed been accepted into the tight-knit McAllister clan.

Hey there, T.J. said, coming into the room.

Ready to make some music? asked Cooper.

Sure thing, replied T.J.

The two of them walked through the kitchen, where Mrs. McAllister was standing over the stove and watching the various pots she had going like some kind of mad scientist working up an experiment.

Dont be too long in there, she told them. Dinner will be ready in an hour or so.

Well be back, T.J. said.

And not too much kissing, his mother added as they were opening the door to the garage.

T.J. and Cooper turned and looked at her. I was sixteen once, too, you know, Mrs. McAllister said.

And my family had a garage, too. Just ask your father.

T.J. and Cooper laughed and went through the door.

Can you believe her? T.J. asked as they plugged in their guitars and tuned up.

Shes an original, agreed Cooper. I wish my mother had half of her spark.

How are things with your parents anyway? T.J. said.

About what you would expect, answered Cooper. Sometimes I wish they would throw things or at least yell. But theyll be fine.

T.J. nodded. What do you want to work on? he asked.

Cooper loved that T.J. had asked about her parents and then dropped the subject when she indicated that she didnt really have anything to say about it. He always knew when to leave her alone and when to push her a little bit.

Lets play Follow the Leader tonight, Cooper said. I dont feel like thinking too much.

Sounds good to me, T.J. replied. You go first.

Follow the Leader was a game she and T.J. had invented when they first started playing together.

Whoever went first played the opening notes of a famous song. The other person had to recognize it and see if she or he could play the whole song as well. Then it was that persons turn to pick a song, but to make the game even harder, whoever was choosing the next song had to go right into it from the old one.

There was no stopping or starting.

Cooper loved the game. Not only did it force her to learn a lot of cool music, but it taught her to think on her feet. She and T.J. both loved to try to stump each other with difficult or obscure songs. But they both listened to a lot of music, so they knew all kinds of stuff.

Cooper thought for a minute, trying to pick something good to start with. Then she began playing some chords. When he heard them, T.J. laughed. Wild Thing, he said. How easy.

He joined in with Cooper, his ba.s.s line chugging along beneath her guitar work. They played for a couple of minutes and then suddenly T.J. started playing something new. Cooper listened to it and knew it instantly"the Rolling Stones Brown Sugar.

Youll have to do better than that, she teased as she played the song along with him. The Stones were one of her favorite bands, even if they were older than her parents were. She had learned a lot about playing guitar from listening to their records, and this song was one she really enjoyed.

For her next choice Cooper tried to fool T.J. by playing something relatively new. And for a moment she thought she had him when he looked at her blankly. But just as their one-minute time limit for the other person to start playing was about to run out, he called out, Matchbox Twenty! and joined in. Cooper bared her teeth at him in pretend anger and kept playing.

They went back and forth for the better part of an hour, each of them trying to trip the other one up.

They played songs by old groups and new ones, rock bands and country bands, hits and songs that only people who really listened to everything on an alb.u.m would know.

Finally, T.J. started playing something that Cooper didnt immediately recognize. He stood there, playing and grinning like a fool, taunting her by glancing at his watch every few seconds. Cooper racked her brain, trying to figure out where she might have heard the song. But nothing about it was jogging any memories. Finally, T.J. made a sound like a buzzer going off.

Times up! he crowed. You lose.

Aaahhhh! Cooper said. What was it?

ABBA! T.J. replied. Does Your Mother Know?

ABBA? repeated Cooper. Since when have you ever owned an ABBA CD?

I dont, T.J. admitted. But Mike does, and he was playing it all weekend while he was home from college. I decided to learn something just for this kind of occasion.

Unfair! Cooper said. You used a bad Swedish pop song on purpose. Evil, evil man.

Alls fair in Follow the Leader, T.J. said.

You just wait, Cooper told him. Im going to brush up on my Cher songs and kick your b.u.t.t next time.

T.J. replied by starting to play the opening notes of the old Sonny and Cher song Ive Got You, Babe.

Cooper rolled her eyes and unslung her guitar. Youre a freak, she said.

T.J. put down his guitar as well, and the two of them went back inside. Mrs. McAllister was just dis.h.i.+ng up dinner when they arrived.

That was some racket the two of you were making in there, she said. Why cant you learn some nice songs?

Because nice songs arent fun to play, T.J. told her, reaching for a piece of corned beef that was on the platter by the stove.

Mrs. McAllister slapped his hand with her wooden spoon. You wash those, she said. Then go sit down.

T.J. and Cooper laughed and went to do as shed told them. Minutes later they were seated at the McAllisters big dining room table. Cooper and T.J. sat on one side, with T.J.s brother Mike on the other and Mr. and Mrs. McAllister at either end. As the dishes were pa.s.sed around the table, Mac ran from seat to seat, sticking his big nose into laps and onto the table and sniffing.

That dog is worse than any of you boys ever were, Mrs. McAllister said, shooing Mac away.

But he doesnt talk , remarked Mr. McAllister. And that is a blessing.

How long are you home for, Mike? asked Cooper as she spooned food onto her plate.

I have to drive back to school after dinner, T.J.s brother answered. He was practically shoveling food into his mouth as he spoke, and his mother looked at him disapprovingly.

Is that how they teach you to eat at that place? she asked. Youre giving McAllisters everywhere a bad name.

There are ten billion of us, Mike shot back. One of us is bound to give the others a bad name, so it might as well be me.

Do you hear your son? Mrs. McAllister asked her husband.

Mr. McAllister shrugged and put a piece of carrot in his mouth. Youre half responsible for him, he said. How do you know your half isnt the bad half?

Everyone laughed at his joke, especially Cooper. It had taken her a while to get used to the way the McAllisters spoke to one another, mainly because it was so different from the formal way her family usually interacted. But once she had realized that they were able to joke like that because they all really loved and respected one another, she had thoroughly enjoyed it. It made her feel like she was with a real family, one where she was welcome and n.o.body expected anything from her.

You dont see Cooper eating like a wild hog, now, do you? Mrs. McAllister said.

Thats because shes eating that tofu stuff, Mike protested. Who would want to eat that?

It gives her horrible gas, remarked T.J.

Cooper smacked him on the arm. You are so full of it! she said. And at least I dont down a whole can of c.o.ke and then pretend Im making moose calls.

They continued the good-natured bickering all through dinner, in between laughing at one anothers jokes and complimenting Mrs. McAllister on her cooking. When it was all over, Cooper and T.J. helped clear the table. Then Cooper volunteered to help Mrs. McAllister wash up. You go talk to Mike before he leaves, she told T.J.

When they were alone and Cooper was drying the dishes as Mrs. McAllister handed them to her, Cooper suddenly found it hard to talk as easily as she had at dinner. Finally, Mrs. McAllister said, T.J.

told me about your parents. Im sorry to hear about it.

Thanks, Cooper said, realizing suddenly that shed wanted to help T.Js mother for that very reason. It made her feel normal again. They continued was.h.i.+ng and drying in silence for a minute. Then Cooper asked, This isnt any of my business, but have you and Mr. McAllister ever thought about splitting up?

Mrs. McAllister laughed. Of course we have, she said. But were Irish, dear. We never divorce.

Then we wouldnt have anything to complain about.

Cooper snorted as Mrs. McAllister laughed at her own joke. Then T.J.s mother turned serious and sighed. Weve had our rough patches, she said. But every marriage does. Every relations.h.i.+p does, whether youre friends or siblings or what have you. There are days when Im sure all of my boys wish they were orphans, and there are days when I wish I was one of those skinny supermodels with lots of rich men after me instead of that husband of mine asking where his clean underpants are for the third time in an hour. But I love them all, and I wouldnt trade them for anything.

I guess thats the difference between you and my parents, Cooper remarked.

Dont be so hard on them, Mrs. McAllister said. People can love each other without being in love with each other. Even married people. It takes brave people to recognize that.

I know, Cooper said. Im really not mad at them. I just get scared sometimes that Ill be like them.

Only if you let yourself, Mrs. McAllister said, handing her the last dish to dry.

When they were done, Cooper surprised herself by giving T.J.s mother a hug and a kiss on the cheek, just as she had her own parents. But this time it was for a different reason. Thank you for making me feel at home, she said.

Please, girl, Mrs. McAllister said. I need someone to help me stand up to these awful men.

Cooper left the kitchen and found Mike getting ready to leave. He was carrying his bags to his car, and T.J. was helping him.

I should get home, too, Cooper said. Ive got some stuff to do before school starts up again tomorrow.

T.J. nodded. You mean you have to look through your CDs and find something Ill never recognize, he said, grinning.

Cooper smiled. Come here, she said, opening her arms.

Is this a trick? asked T.J. suspiciously.

Just come here, said Cooper again.

T.J. went to her, and she put her arms around him. Theres something I want to tell you, she said.