Chapter 23: The Summer of 2012

Sunday, June 17, 2012 1:50pm Queens Park, New Westminster

Jesse had almost forgotten about Norm Carson until he spotted him in the sparse crowd near the Blue’s dugout. He’d finished the warm-ups and was heading back to the dugout when he spotted him. Unfortunately, he also spotted Candice sitting almost directly beside him. This was not good. He’d warned Norm to not tell anyone about his past, but he could only hope that his former team mate would remember not to say anything.

“Hi Norm,” he said. “Good to see you again.”

“Hi Jesse. It’s a great day for a ballgame. Why don’t you play two?” he chuckled.

“I think I’ve heard that somewhere before,” Jesse grinned. “I’d like you to meet my friend Candice Tanner. Candice, this is my friend Norm Carson. He used to play baseball a long time ago.”

“Hello, Candice. Jesse’s right. It was a very long time ago.”

“Hi Norm. How did you two meet?” she wondered.

Jesse saw Norm hesitate. “We met at the book store. He was interested in a particular book and we got to talking,” he said simply.

“And how did you meet Jesse?” Norm wondered.

“In school. We both take night school classes together. I’m still going to university, but I’m trying to test out early if I can. In the summer, I have a job, so that’s what I’m doing now.”

“Wow, that’s ambitious,” Norm said. “I take it you have a career goal in mind.”

“Yes ... entering the family business,” she said simply.

“Play ball,” came the call from the umpire and Jesse turned with a “see you later” and headed to the dugout. The Blues would be first to bat.

Jesse was distracted by Norm’s presence with Candice. They seemed to hit it off and sat beside each other. He hoped Norm would remember not to reveal his secret. But the distraction led to problems on the field. He struck out the first time at bat, very uncharacteristic of him. Then, in the third inning, a hard-hit ground ball directly at him bounced off the heel of his glove over his shoulder and into the outfield. The batter was safe. That was another first, and not a pleasant one.

The “Luckies” were intent on evening up the score after their loss the previous week, but a last inning home run by Chunky Castellano sealed the issue and the “Blues” escaped with a 5-4 win.

Jesse sighed in relief as he headed for the dugout. Norm and Candice were waiting for him. It was Norm who commented on the game.

“You know, that’s the first time I can ever remember you not handling the ball on that grounder in the third,” he said

Candice looked at him strangely. “I thought you two just met,” she said with a questioning look.

“We did,” Norm quickly recovered, realizing his mistake. “My grandson played on the same team as Jesse and I was able to see a few of the games. Jesse was as sure-handed as any infielder in the pros,” he said, glancing at Jesse for confirmation.

“Yeah ... Kit, his grandson, played third base. He had a hell of an arm and a pretty good bat too.”

“Oh,” was all Candice managed. She still looked a little confused.

Jesse breathed a silent sigh of relief. Their hastily conceived story appeared to pass inspection, but only just. A glance at Norm reminded him they would have to be careful in future. He was getting frustrated with all the subterfuge he had to practice. It was untruthful and still having to remember the lie in future. How would he ever come to terms with this life he led?

Wednesday, August 29, 2012 6:45pm

It was the second to last ballgame of the season, with a final game on Sunday, the day before Labour Day. It had been a glorious summer for Jesse, both with wonderful weather and the companionship of Candice Tanner. There was no doubt in Jesse’s mind that he had found a young woman that he could easily fall in love with. From the very first time they had made love, he felt they had something to share.

However, over the summer, with both he and Candice having explored their hopes and dreams, Jesse began to sense that Candice still had feelings for her brother’s best friend, Pete Giesbrecht. He sensed that when she went back to Cranbrook and joined her parents’ business that he could lose the connection to Candice and Pete would be his replacement. He spent many an hour thinking about how he would handle that.

It would hurt, that was a certainty, but he knew that he couldn’t deny her feelings if they were genuine. Once again, he was forced to concede that their relationship was one of “friends with benefits.” Not what he might have hoped for, but it was better to be realistic than dream of what could never be. For a change, he wasn’t depressed or disheartened. It simply meant that when the time came, he would be looking for another replacement. The main problem would be to find someone who could ever compare to Candice.

“I’m sorry I’m going to miss your final ballgame, Jesse,” Candice said as he prepared to take the field.

“Yeah, me too. I know you want to see your parents, so a couple of days off over the long weekend before school starts again is your last chance until Christmas. Just be careful driving. It’s a long way from here to Cranbrook,” he warned.

“Don’t worry, Jesse,” she chided. “I’ve driven it several times. At this time of the year there’s no danger of snow in the mountain passes and August is always a dry, warm month.”

“I know. It’s not you I worry about, it’s other drivers. Just be careful, please,” he said, holding her hand.

She smiled at him and was about to give him a kiss when she heard the umpire’s “Play ball” call. The kiss could wait until afterwards.

Candice left early on Thursday morning. She had spent the previous night and into the morning hours in Jesse’s arms. They wouldn’t see each other for almost a week, but it would seem longer. It was usually an eight hour drive, including stops for lunch and/or gas. She would have Friday thru Monday with her parents and was looking forward to the break.

Jesse was missing her already as he went through his usual morning workout. He was no longer surprised at how comfortable they were together. From the very first time they had made love, it was never any less perfect. He put the idea of losing her out of his mind. After all, she had three more years of university ahead of her, and she was single-minded about her future. They still had at least that much time together.

Wednesday, September 5, 2012 12:55pm

Jesse entered the book store and immediately noticed a customer talking to Grant. He nodded to Grant in acknowledgement and began to get ready for the afternoon’s work. He didn’t get very far.

“Jesse, there’s someone here to see you,” Grant announced.

Jesse looked at Grant and noticed the serious look on his face, then toward the visitor, immediately tensing and wondering if this was another person from his past. No, he was too young.

“Yes, Sir. What can I do for you?” he asked politely.

“Jesse, my name is Dave Tanner. I’m Candice’s brother,” he said with his hand extended to shake. “I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news. She had an accident on her way back to Vancouver yesterday. She’s in hospital in Cranbrook with a number of injuries.”

“Oh no!” Jesse said immediately. “Is she going to be alright?”

“Yes ... she’ll recover and probably be back close to normal. Most of her injuries are broken bones and bruises, but she does have some internal injuries. Luckily, the airbags and seat belt kept her from even more serious consequences.”

Jesse breathed a slight sigh of relief. “What happened?”

“It had been raining in the mountains and there was a rockslide that happened just before she got to the site. She wasn’t able to avoid it and smashed into it. Luckily, she didn’t go over the side of the highway and down into the tree line. Someone saw the accident and contacted the RCMP. The ambulance and rescue crew were there within minutes. They took her by helicopter to the Cranbrook hospital and went to work on her right away.”

“Is she conscious? Can I talk to her?”

“Not yet. She badly bruised and in quite a bit of pain. They’ve got her on medication and it makes her pretty drowsy. I’d suggest waiting until I hear from my parents. I can’t get away, so I’m like you, just waiting to hear how she is. My buddy, Pete, is keeping me informed. He’s in residence at the regional hospital so we can get almost hour-by-hour updates. I knew you’d want to know why she wasn’t back here when she planned. It looks like we’re going to have to make some adjustments in her life for a while. We’re not yet sure about either where she’s going to be or what we can do about her university courses, but I suspect we’ll work all that out in the next few days. I’ll keep you informed.”

“Thanks, Dave. I really appreciated your letting me know. I’d be worried to death, wondering what happened to her. How did you find me?”

He chuckled. “Candice has told me quite a bit about you, so I knew where you worked and I came here as soon as I had some information. Now, we have to wait and see what happens next.”

Jesse took a deep breath and looked over at Grant. He’d been listening intently to their conversation.

“Pete won’t be the attending physician, but he will be involved as an official family member. I’m sure Mom and Dad will be constantly visiting her as well. She’s in good hands, Jesse. She’s going to be okay, it’s just going to take some time.”

“Yeah,” Jesse nodded. “Well, if you hear from her before I do, give her my love and wish her the best. I do want to see her and talk to her when I get the chance.”

“Of course. Don’t worry, Jesse, she’s getting the best of care. She’ll be back to her usual self in time.”

“Thanks again, Dave. I really appreciate your coming here. I hate that this happened, but if you feel she’ll be okay soon, I guess we should consider her lucky. It could have been a lot worse.”

“Take care, Jesse. I’ll be in touch as soon as I hear something,” he promised.

When Dave left, Jesse turned to Grant. “I might want a couple of days off to go visit her when she’s better, Grant. I hope that’s okay with you.”

“Of course it is. I know you and she were close, so I’m sure this is very upsetting for you. I guess the only good thing about it is that she’ll recover and be okay in future.”

Jesse nodded sombrely. “Yeah ... if that’s what we can call good news,” he said sadly.

“So that’s what happened, Eve. She’s going to be in hospital for a while, and her recovery is going to be even longer by the sound of it. Dave is going to keep me informed, but I want to talk to her. I may want your permission to go see her when she’s out of hospital, if that’s okay with you.”

“Of course it is,” she said. “I suggest you fly up there. It’s only an hour or so by plane and you won’t have to worry about the weather as much.”

“That would be quicker. I wouldn’t have to worry about being away from the store as long either,” he suggested.

“I don’t think Grant will be worried about that, Jesse. You know he will support you for whatever time you need. He’s a friend, not just your boss.”

Jesse nodded agreement. “It’s a surprise to me how many new friends I have, Eve. I hadn’t stopped to think about them ... always dwelling on the ones I’d lost. It’s over a year now since I’ve been here ... here in the twenty-first century. I’ve resigned myself that this is where I am and where I will be. It still hurts to lose my family and all my friends, but now ... with new friends ... I’m hoping I can make a good life for myself.’’

Eve was pleased to see Jesse progressing each day toward accepting his fate and moving forward toward a normal life. She couldn’t conceive of how she would react in his situation. She could only imagine that it would be stressful in the extreme. He was clearly upset with the accident Candice had suffered, frustrated that he couldn’t go to her immediately. Whether he was in love with her was difficult to tell, but it was obvious he felt something more than friendship for her.

Jesse had retreated to his room, closing the door behind him. He wasn’t in a very good mood after the news of Candice’s injuries. He kept wondering what the long term consequences for her were. Dave was being vague about what injuries she had and whether there might be lasting affects. He couldn’t concentrate, deciding to play some games on his computer to occupy his mind. At length, he decided he needed to get his thoughts on today’s events down in his diary and began to type. It kept him busy until Eve called him for his dinner.

“I had some interesting news today too,” Eve commented as they did the dinner dishes. “An ex-boy friend of mine contacted me. I hadn’t heard from him in almost two years. His name is Kent Younger and he’s a helicopter ambulance pilot. He’s been transferred down to the lower mainland and says it’s probably permanent.”