Abby went to Lucy’s dining table where John had left his laptop and started the program while Merri pulled out chairs for the twins. Abby set the date and began to search for the time she wanted to show the twins. “I just love the World Wide Web,” Beulah said.
“Me to,” Eulah said.
“What’s up, Abby?” Merri asked.
“Well, I got to thinking about something John and I talked about—how with Reuben and the fire we didn’t know the truth until we saw it from a different perspective. So this afternoon I decided to…well, I may have sort of broken our rule about not time-surfing in this house.”
“Yeah, and what about the part about not doing it alone? You know, all for one and one for all.”
“Sorry, Merri, but I had an idea that I thought I should check out before I showed it to anyone.” Abby studied the computer monitor where a young woman was playing the piano. Then she stopped the action and turned to look at Beulah and Eulah.
“That’s me!” Beulah said.
“Abby! What are you doing?” Merri said, darting glances from her to the Old Dears. “Are you insane?”
“Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.” Abby turned and looked closely at Eulah. “This is Beulah. Back in 1943. Remember how she liked to come over and play your piano?”
“Oh,” Beulah sighed wistfully. “I was so pretty. And so young.”
“And so foolish,” Eulah said, frowning.
“Just watch,” Abby said. “Watch carefully.”
Of course, Beulah loved her parents, and got along with them just fine too. But when she thought about having to live with them forever she got a little panicky feeling in her stomach. Everyone had assumed she would marry too and there had been boys, after her father had decided she and Eulah were old enough to receive callers. But none of them worked out, for one reason or another. Now, almost all the men of marrying age were gone, off fighting in the War. All gone and she was twenty and had never been kissed.
She heard the front door shut, and then her sister’s husband was standing motionless in the dimness, holding his duffel bag.
“You look so beautiful in the light,” he said almost reverently. “Don’t stop playing.”
“Carl, you’re home. We thought—”
“I only found out two days ago. I wanted to surprise you.” He dropped the duffel where he stood, and taking off his cap, started eagerly toward her. That was when Beulah realized his mistake. She stood quickly, shoving the piano bench away. There would have been enough time while he walked from the doorway to the piano for her to say “Welcome home, Carl. Eulah will be here soon,” but the words somehow didn’t come out. She could have stayed in the light so that he could see her more clearly, but somehow she found herself walking toward him into the darkness. In three steps it was forever too late to correct the error, because then she had allowed him to take her into his arms and rain kisses over her brow and cheeks. She closed her eyes and inhaled his scent, savored the feel of having a masculine body crushed to hers. And pretended. A part of her brain knew that there would be a steep penalty to pay when he realized his error, but another louder voice said, take the kiss while you can.
Eulah stood unseen in the dim parlor doorway, her face ravaged with the pain of betrayal—double betrayal. She gasped and held her hands to her chest, as if she could somehow hug her heart and stop it from hurting. She turned and stumbled back out to the kitchen. She had to get out. How could she stay one more minute to watch what was inevitably coming next? She would go somewhere. She’d drive somewhere…anywhere. “Oh, God,” she cried. “The pain.”
Tears were streaming down their cheeks, but the sisters sat there unmoving and silent. At last Beulah turned to her twin. “All this time…You knew all this time. Oh, Eulah, I’m so sorry. I wanted to undo it, but I couldn’t. There was no way.” “But that’s not all, is it, Beulah?” Abby sniffed and wiped her eyes with the back of her hands.
Eulah looked up sharply. “You don’t have to show us anymore.”
“I think you need to see this,” Abby said. “Trust me.” She un-paused the action and let the story play out.
Beulah pulled away and stumbled over the piano’s leg. She would have fallen, but Carl reached out and grabbed her flailing arm. He spun her toward the light streaming down from the chandelier hanging in the stairway and studied her face. Once again she pulled away and then, saying nothing, turned and raced out the front door, while he stood there staring after her. After a moment, he went and closed the door she’d left open to the cold night air.
The room faded and was gone. The screen filled with colorful images of random houses scrolling by.
Merri clicked frantically on the controls. “It’s gone again,” Merri said in disgust. “It’s not here anymore.”
Abby put a hand on her shoulder to quiet her and then looked into Beulah’s face.
“He hated me for a long time after that,” Beulah said. “And I don’t blame him. I wanted so badly to make time rewind, so I could fix it. Just that one minute, when I could have said…”
Eulah sat in shock, staring straight ahead. Then, a smile slowly spread across her face. “You didn’t do it? You and Carl didn’t…? All this time I thought…You didn’t go through with it.”
“Oh, Eulah, I could never betray you. But I thought about it for just a minute. Can you ever forgive me?”
Eulah reached a wrinkled hand up and gently stroked Beulah’s wrinkled cheek. “I forgave you over sixty years ago, Beulah Mae.”
Merri stared at the twins. Abby smiled a little at the look of surprise on her face.
“If Jesus could forgive all my sins,” Eulah said, “I can forgive my sister and husband. After all, we’re family.”
A smile of amazement lit up Beulah’s face and she squeezed her sister tight. “Oh, Yoo.”
“Don’t call me that,” Eulah said. A whizzing sound followed by a loud bang came from outside and then light streaked into the dim room where they sat. “Come on. They’ve started now,” she said and pulled herself and then her sister to their feet.
John and Doug helped the twins up all the stairs and through the little door onto the widow’s walk. “Ooh, look… at that… one!” Beulah said. “It’s like a… purple and orange… flower.”
“You’d better…watch your feet…instead of the sky,” Eulah said, trying to get her breath back. She was holding onto Beulah’s arm, but Abby wasn’t sure who was actually supporting whom.
Michael didn’t seem to notice their arrival. He was watching the pyrotechnical display in the sky with rapt joy, as if he had never seen such a sight before. But then, maybe he never had. Abby nudged John and they smiled together at the little boy’s happiness.
The fireworks were some of the best Abby had ever seen, and she’d never had such a perfect spot to view them from, but she was enjoying watching everyone’s smiling faces almost more than the light show overhead. How had they all become so important to her in such a short time?
Then she saw that John was watching her and she felt her pulse leap. Above the sizzles, whizzes, and shrieks of the fireworks and the oohs and aahs of the spectators he said, “Come on.”
He took her by the hand and led her along the walk around to the other side of the chimney. And at last, just as a red chrysanthemum of light bloomed over Alton, he pulled her into his arms.
It felt wonderful and Abby thought she could stay there forever. But then, with Herculean effort she took charge of her scrambled brains, pulled herself together, and glared up at him. “You’re touching me, John.”
“Well, I don’t want to,” he said grumpily.
“Well, thank you very much,” she said, and tried to pull away.
John wouldn’t let her. “Because I’m tired of calculating square roots,” he mumbled into her hair, “and running through baseball stats, and redesigning the engine on my—”
“Uh, John?” she said. “I’d like to point out that you’re still holding me.”
“That’s because we’ve got something we need to straighten out,” he whispered almost angrily. “I figured this would be a safe enough place with everyone around.”
“What did I do?” Abby said.
“Nothing. I just want you to know I’m happy to be Merri’s big brother. Who wouldn’t want to be? She’s a neat kid. But just so you know, I’m not signing on to be yours.” He looked into her eyes and pushed a curly lock of hair away from her forehead. “Because I’m definitely not thinking of you like a sister.”
Heat started rising from her neck and she knew her blasted blush was back. At least it was dark this time and he wouldn’t see it. Not-Like-A-Sister still reverberated in her head, bouncing off the goo that had been her brain. Not-Like-A-Sister was good, she thought, but there must be a caveat.
“Maybe a friend or a cousin then?” she said, laughing nervously.
“Only if it’s a really, really distant cousin. A kissing cousin,” he said solemnly, pulling her even closer.
Anytime, she thought and swallowed hard. Like right now. “Then you’re not gay?” she blurted and immediately felt her face flame hotter. “I mean…er…Pat thinks you are, but I said just because you’re nice and like the theater doesn’t mean… It’s just that…I thought you weren’t attracted to me. I’ll stop babbling now.”
John closed his eyes for a second and groaned. “You think…I’m not… attracted to you?”
“Well,” she said crossly, “You’re always backing off like I have cooties.”
“I’m trying to treat you with respect,” he said just as crossly. “I knew if I touched you—”
“I trust you, John.” She put her hand on his cheek and smiled into his eyes, while mentally adding a star for self-control to his chart. “I trust us.”
John snorted a laugh. “I’m glad you do, Abby…because…just so you won’t be confused…” He lowered his mouth to within an inch of hers. “Or… have any more doubts….”
When his lips touched hers, Abby saw fireworks through her closed eyelids and thought, wow! She imagined another star on John’s chart, and just this one time it wouldn’t be for his sterling character. Another burst of light bloomed, and on the other side of the chimney everyone oohed and ahhed their delight. My sentiments exactly, she thought. And then Abby put her arms around his neck and kissed him back.