“Jim, Isaac is coming over for dinner tonight,” Sarah said, walking into the living room where Jim sat watching television. “I invited him. Try to wear something besides your bath robe.”
“Ha! He only gets to be a guest once,” Jim laughed, eyes still fixed on the baseball game he was watching. “This time he gets the full Schultz welcome. You should wear curlers in your hair.”
“Jim!” Sarah was annoyed and amused at the same time.
“What? Tell me you don’t want to embarrass the girl a little… lighten things up around here. It’s been a rough week.” Jim stood up and put his hands on his hips, an impish grin on his face.
“All the more reason to act like humans when her boyfriend comes over,” Sarah told him, coming over to put her arms around his waist.
“Did she call him that? Boyfriend? Is he her boyfriend?” Jim asked, embracing her.
“I don’t know, Jim,” she replied. “I don’t even know if they know, but I know he kissed her on the porch the other night when he brought her home from the movie.”
“Kissed her? Wow. In my book, that makes him the boyfriend. At least he better be!” Sarah felt his chest tighten under her grip.
“Well, it’s really not our business. He’s a nice kid. Let them work it out.” She held him tighter, trying to tame the beast.
“Uh-huh.” Jim replied.
“Jim.”
“Yeah, I got you. Let them work it out. I won’t say anything.”
It wasn’t long before Isaac was knocking on the door. Jim let go of Sarah and went to answer it. “Hey, Isaac, come on in,” Jim said. “I’ll go get Carissa.”
“Thank you, sir.” Isaac stepped through the door. “Nice to see you again.”
* * *
Jim went to get Carissa for dinner, and Isaac went into the kitchen to greet Sarah and see if she needed any help finishing dinner. “Can I do anything, Mrs. S?” he asked.
“Sure, Isaac, so nice of you to ask.” She handed him a tomato and a knife. “You can slice this while I finish up these onion rings.”
“Sounds like a plan!” Isaac got to cutting. “So how’s Carissa doing with all of this? Is she okay? It took her a long time to call me today after her appointment.”
“She’s all right, Isaac,” Sarah said, adding seasoning to the onions in her bowl. “She just has her process. She gets depressed when something comes up then, before long, she’s back on the horse. It has nothing to do with you. Please know that. She really likes you. She’s just not used to having a boy around who cares so much.”
“Oh, I care,” he said. “I care a lot. She’s really special. I just want her to be okay.”
“She will be. Her father and I will be there for her through the whole thing, and I know it would mean a lot if you showed up some, too, just to take her mind off things.” She patted him on the back.
“I’ll be around as much as you and Mr. S will allow, ma’am.” He smiled at her.
“That’s good. She’ll need a friend. Recovery from surgery is long and boring. I’ll buy plenty of popcorn for you guys to eat while you watch movies on the couch. It’s not a date, and you won’t get to kiss her if her dad has anything to say about it, but it’s something.” She gave him a knowing eye.
Isaac could feel his cheeks get hot. Had she seen them the other night on the porch? “Well, something with Carissa, even if it’s not a date, is better than anything without Carissa. I’ll take it.”
“Good man,” Sarah said.
Just then, Carissa and Jim came into the kitchen.
“Hey, Isaac!”
Isaac greeted Carissa with a hug―a “friend” hug. “Hey, are you doing okay? Your mom says we can have popcorn fights on the couch after your surgery.”
“Well, hearing that, I’m about seventy-five percent better!” Carissa grinned.
“Good!” Isaac looked pleased at himself. “That’s what I’m here for.”
“Well, that and delicious turkey burgers, right?” Sarah piped in.
“Yes, ma’am. Those, too!”
“Everybody sit down,” she said. “I’ll bring them out.”
Sarah went back into the kitchen, and the sounds of a drawer opening and silverware clinking were followed by her returning with a platter full of burgers on buns and a bowl of onion rings that smelled delicious. She put the food in the center of the table.
Everyone sat, and Jim said the blessing. When he was done, Isaac asked, “So, surgery on Friday. I was wondering, if you guys don’t mind, could I come? I don’t want to impose, or place myself where I don’t belong, but I’d really like to be there for Carissa if that’s okay with you, Mr. and Mrs. Schultz.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Carissa responded.
“I want to,” he insisted. “This is not a thing I feel like I have to do. I want to be there for you.”
“Okay, but it’s boring.” She shrugged, looking at him with surprise.
“I like boring,” Isaac told her. “Mr. Schultz, is it okay if I come and hang around?”
“Sure, Isaac. That’s fine. We’ll pick you up that morning. It’ll be early, probably around 5:30 a.m.” Jim replied.
“Works for me. As long as I’m not sitting around waiting for a phone call all day. I don’t think I could handle not knowing what was up.”
They passed around the food and began to eat, talking about Carissa’s upcoming surgery and Isaac’s classes. Dinner was finished quickly.
“It must have been good, huh?” Sarah started to collect dishes from the table. “I didn’t hear a peep out of anyone the whole meal!”
“Yes, ma’am, it was outstanding,” Isaac replied, wiping his face with a napkin.
“It was great, hon,” Jim paid a compliment to his wife.
“So good, Mom,” chimed Carissa.
“Well, everybody help me clean up, and maybe we’ll play a board game in the living room. Hey, we have four. Maybe teams!”
Everyone agreed, and got to cleaning up. Sarah rinsed the dishes, then handed them to Carissa, who placed them in the dishwasher. Jim and Isaac cleared the rest of the table of condiments and minimal leftovers.
Team charades, guys against girls, was a hit. At one point, Isaac impersonated a chicken with its head cut off by running around in circles, hacking at his own neck. He had everyone laughing hysterically, but Jim didn’t get it and they lost that round. Carissa managed to win a round for the girls by pretending her wheelchair was a horse for “Horse and Rider.” Sarah and Carissa won by two points in the end.
“Team Lady Schultz for life. Yeah, baby!” Sarah yelled, jumping up and down in victory.
“She’s not competitive at all,” Carissa said, throwing a pillow that Sarah deftly caught.
“I can tell,” replied Isaac, grinning.
“Yeah, these girls are the reigning champs of just about every guys-on-girls game ever played here in the Schultz house. Of course, it doesn’t help that I’m usually the only guy,” Jim admitted.
“Well, it looks like all I did was contribute to their winning streak,” replied Isaac.
Carissa’s dad laughed out loud. “They’re tough competition. The guys will prevail someday.”
“Yes, sir!” And Isaac hoped Carissa would keep him around for that day. He was starting to like her family as much as he liked her. He looked at the clock and rose from his seat. “Well, I have to get home and take care of my mom. She’ll be waiting up for me, and I need to see how her new nurse is working out. Carissa, do you want to walk me out?”
Carissa looked up at him with a smile. “Sure!”
Once they were alone, Isaac leaned down and kissed her, without asking this time. He lingered on her lips for a moment without moving. Then he straightened and said, “Goodnight, Carissa. I didn’t want to do that in front of your dad, and this may be the last chance I get to do it for a while without him watching. I won’t do it with him watching. I’m not trying to get punched.”
“Goodnight, Isaac,” she giggled, wrapping her arms around his neck for a quick hug. “I’ll see you Friday, if not before.”
* * *
Carissa sat on the front porch for a bit, just taking everything in. Here she was, about to have this huge surgery and, for the first time since Kayla died, she would have someone besides her parents in her corner. It felt good. Isaac felt good in general.
Kissing Isaac wasn’t so bad, either.
She went back inside to find her parents snuggling on the couch watching a movie. She turned down the hall and went to do her nighttime routine. “I’m headed to bed, lovebirds. Goodnight.”
“Lovebirds? Look who’s talking!” Sarah replied.
“Goodnight, Carissa,” Jim said. “Tell that boy I know what he’s up to on that porch. I was a boy once, too.”
Carissa felt her cheeks heat up as she headed to her room.
Sarah’s voice followed her. “Go to bed, Carissa. I’ll handle Dad.”
She left before Sarah could change her mind.