Log: Since the roof fell in, I'll lean on what matters.
Who: The Cohen-Chang and the Changs
When: Sunday, October 17, 2018
Where: Tommy’s house
What: Baring the bad news
Tina hadn’t seen Tommy, Liz, and Lily in two years. It hadn’t set in just how long it had been until Liz had answered the door. With Liz's hormones involved, to say it was an emotional reunion might be an understatement.
Mike let Tina drive his car from Cincinnati to Lima early that morning. He was now asleep in the guest bedroom. She knew when Tommy came home from running errands he’d want an immediate explanation of what happened, but she wanted to let Mike nap. Until last night, she’d never seen Mike so upset and drained and she knew that if anyone deserved to rest right now, it was him.
Liz was now in the kitchen, insisting on making them brunch, and Tina sat on the sofa with Lily curled up in her lap, a picture book propped up in front of them. She heard the front door unlock and glanced up from the pages.
Tina smiled when she saw Tommy walk in.
Tommy entered the kitchen with several bags in his arms as well as some food Liz had asked him to pick up. He set everything down so he could give his wife a proper hug and a kiss.
With a few quick steps he was standing behind her, “Hi, babe. I got everything on the list you asked for. How are you and the kids doing?”
He put one arm around her as he playfully rubbed her belly. After a few kisses she pulled back so she could answer his earlier question.
Tina watched Tommy and Liz with a serene smile on her face. She saw Liz murmur something excitedly and point in her direction. As Tommy turned in her direction and did a double-take, her smile stretched into a grin.
“Hey, stranger,” she laughed lightly. She gave him a casual wave at his startled expression, like her popping into his living room was a normal occurrence.
“No one is stranger than you,T!” he winked, “At least nobody I know. I missed you being around because of that. Everybody I know is so normal, minus Migs of course.”
Tommy looked around the living room for his brother but didn’t see any sign that he was there. He smiled at Tina as he waited for her explanation, hopefully devoid of hand puppets like the last big deal she had to talk to him about.
Tina grinned as Lily crawled from her lap. She carefully got up and kissed the top of her head before making her way to Tommy. She let out a little noise akin to a squeal that she’ll be sure to deny later as she launched at Tommy, enveloping him into a warm hug.
“Missed you too, TomTom,” she whispered.
He laughed as she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him closer. “How I have missed your hugs, T! They are about ten on the Richter scale at least. Lily is learning but she’d only up to about a three. Do my parents know you’re in town? Nay is going to want to drown you in food, you know.”
Tina pulled back, flashing him a little guilty look. She hadn’t let his parents, or hers for that matter, know she was headed back for the weekend. At least the gap between the last time she saw them wasn't as great as with her and Tommy; she had been over to visit them a lot in the summertime. “No, I forgot to let them know. I kind of got caught in the make-sure-Migs-is-okay mindset I had going on. I can call them. We can have dinner. Although I think Liz has got the drowning in food thing covered for now.” She smiled as Liz was already rummaging through the bags Tommy had brought in.
“I will refrain from rolling my eyes as loudly as you know I’m prone to since you were on a Goodwill mission this time,” Tommy smiled, “Did you want me some calls for you while my wife treats you to her drool-worthy lumpia that she made especially for you? I’d be more than happy to if you need me to run interference.”
“That’s alright. I’ll call them later. I can probably have breakfast or lunch with them tomorrow or something. I don’t leave until Tuesday,” she shrugged, before a playful smile grew on her face. “How do you feel about being my pin lady? I was thinking of doing some adjustments on Lily’s costume and could use a hand.”
Tommy batted his eyes, “Of course I’ll be your pin lady, bunso. We have to get Lily’s costume finished in time don’t we?”
He stroked the little girl’s hair. How could he not try to make her childhood idyllic? Her beginnings were certainly difficult enough so he and Liz did their best to make it as pleasant as they could. The addition of a new family member would certainly shake things up but Tommy was optimistic that the new baby would go over well with Lily who had recently begun to ask about her twin.
“Of course.” Tommy followed Tina into the living room to set up a makeshift work station. “It’s the least I can do. I’m sorry I won’t be able to come for Halloween, but I’ll still make sure she’s the cutest purple ladybug Lima has seen.”
She had set aside enough money for holiday travels, so had used her Halloween savings for yesterday. Not that she minded. She’d hop a plane for her family in a heartbeat and they knew that. Plus, she knew someone would be there to take Lily out, and her plans with Quinn were dead, no explanation necessary...
Tina retrieved the costume from her bag and opened the sewing kit Liz had lent her. She looked up a little hesitantly towards Tommy as she took out the measuring tape.
“He’s sleeping in the guest room right now,” she murmured. “Just so you know.”
He nodded as he looked down the hallway, “Okay. So how about we have brunch first, T. I’m starving after all that shopping and I know Liz made a ton of food. Lily baby? Let’s go eat some of Mama’s delicious breakfast. You can sit by Auntie T.”
Tina carefully watched Tommy’s expression, waiting for the questions to come and was surprised when they didn’t. She merely nodded and picked up Lily before following him to the table. “This looks great, Liz.” She smiled at the spread in front of them. “You didn’t have to go all out just for me,” she laughed lightly.
Liz arched an eyebrow as she waved her spatula to the table to let Tina know she’d better start eating.
“How could I not go all out for you?” Liz laughed, “It’s ingrained in us an early age you know that! I need to take care of family to the best of my abilities so I’ve made a boatload of lumpia for you to enjoy. Dig in! I also did some fried rice for brunch and a few other of your favorites.”
Tina just stared for a moment. “Did I ever tell you how much I love you?”
Her grin faltered a little when Lily asked why ‘Unca Mike’ wasn’t eating with them. “It’s okay, Lilybug. He’s tired. We’re just going to let him sleep for a little while, okay?”
She spooned some food on her plate and, as Liz insisted, dug in.
“Speaking of love,” Liz smiled, “So how is Eli? How is it possible I know so little about this young man that you’re dating?”
Tina did her best to not choke mid-bite. She let out a little laugh as her cheeks instantly warmed. She had told Liz about Eli during their last phone call, but hadn’t gone into much detail. She could sense by the look in Liz’s eyes, though, that she intended to steer the conversation away from Mike more than anything.
She smiled. “Sorry. I don’t know where to begin. What do you want to know?”
Lily thought for a moment before she answered, “Is he cute? Is he a doctor like Lola said he should be?”
Liz clapped her hand over her mouth as Tommy’s jaw dropped at their daughter’s questions. It was also pretty evident that her Filipino grandmother had instilled the necessity of a good husband to the toddler. Both parents made a mental note to speak to her the next time she babysat.
Tina stared with wide eyes for a moment before bursting into laughter. “I see Mama Chang has been babysitting again?” She shook her head, taking a sip of water to clear her throat. “I...wow. Well, Lily, he’s a chef.” Tina laughed again. “And yes, he’s cute. Very cute.”
She smirked at both Liz and Tommy. They were going to have their hands full for sure. “Any other questions?” She knew Liz would probably throw her fork at her for encouraging her daughter, but she was too amused not to.
“Does he kiss like Prince Charming?” Lily asked, “Cos he has to be a good kisser to be a good daddy.”
Again, Tommy hung his head and slowly hit it on the table. Maybe all those princess movies were giving his daughter crazy expectations and with the help of his mother making his daughter a little too mature for her age.
“Baby?” Liz chuckled, “Talking about kissing someone is a private question. Remember how we talked about public and private things? I don’t think Auntie T wants to talk about kissing. Do you?”
Tina bit her lip and shook her head. She shared an amused look with Liz that meant they’d be having a private conversation later. They managed to get through dinner with only a few more minor outbursts from Lily and soon they were clearing the table and the dishes.
Tommy tugged on Tina’s shirt sleeve as she was trying the last of the dishes, “Hey, we need to talk. How about we go for a walk then come back and have some dessert?”
Liz patted both of them on the back, “Lily and I will get some strawberry shortcake together while you two get things out of the way. Right, Lily?”
Tina nodded, knowing it wasn’t really a question. It’s not that she didn’t want to clue Tommy in, it was that she didn’t know if Mike wanted her to. Brothers or not, she was sworn to unspoken secrecy as a best friend. She knew she had to tell Tommy something though; she had promised he wouldn’t be out of the loop anymore and she knew she'd be saving Mike from having to recount the story again.
As they made their way out the door and down to the sidewalk, she looked over at him, waiting for him to ask what he wanted to know.
“So all I know is that Quinn said no to his proposal,” he started. “So are they waiting to get married or are they, um, broken up?”
He knew they weren’t always on the same page and seemed to be able to spend less time together but he still hoped they were going to work on their relationship. He hoped.
Tina frowned before taking a deep breath. The way Mike had looked when he told her last night...
How do you put that kind of heartbreak into words?
“No, they’re...they’re broken up.” She was silent for a moment as they crossed the street. She didn’t exactly know how to phrase this.
She looked at him for a moment to gauge his reaction. Deep down she knew Mike and Quinn weren’t working, but she couldn’t stop the quiet anger she felt. That was no excuse to cheat. Her mouth felt dry as she spoke. “But, um...that’s not just it.” She bit her lip a little, hating that she had to say this, hating it was true. “There’s someone else, Tommy. She loves someone else.”
Tommy sputtered as he struggled to find words, “I...I don't...what? Quinn cheated on Mike? But that...that doesn’t make any sense. The only person Quinn has been spending any time with is Rachel Berry. When did she have time to find someone else to cheat with? I don’t get it.”
Tina pursed her lips, trying to breathe steady through her nose. She now just noticed they had both stopped walking. She turned so she standing directly in front of him and held his gaze.
“She didn’t, Tommy. The person she was cheating with...is Rachel.”
He froze for a moment with his jaw dropped before he sat down on the curb. He tried to go over every moment he had seen Rachel and Quinn together over the last few months. There had to be signs that they were cheating! He was so focused on the fact that Rachel was back in town again and in a situation where she needed friends, friends like Quinn. He shook his head at all the things he had done to push them together.
“R-R-Rachel as in Berry?” he whispered, “My brain can’t even process this information, T. I can’t see Quinn as a cheater and I also can’t see Rachel in love with Quinn.”
Tina’s frowned deepened as she sat down next to him. “I know. I mean, the last I’ve really seen them interacting was fighting over Finn in high school. I can’t even imagine what Mike must be going through right now.”
Tina was wary about Tommy labeling Quinn a ‘cheater’. She did, in fact, cheat, but that implied Quinn went on some serial adultery rampage for the hell of it or something crazy like that. Truth be told, Tina knew what it was like to fall in love. You couldn’t help who you fell for, but the way Quinn had chosen to go about it, the way she lied and hurt Mike even more in the process...
Tina let out another sigh and watched as the wind blew a pile of leaves around in circle. “I’m sorry I didn’t keep you completely updated yesterday. It took him awhile to open up about it and when he did I just wanted to make sure he was okay. And then he wanted to make sure I didn’t come into town on some killing spree to avenge him.”
Tommy didn’t seem to hear this, though. He was staring intently at the asphalt, a frown etched on his face. His voice was this conflicted kind of quiet when he spoke.
“There had been questions about safe sex. She told me that she had a new partner that was pretty inexperienced, Tina!” he growled, “I helped ‘the other woman’ in my brother’s relationship. How am I going to be able to face her at her appointments? I love Quinn and she ripped my brother’s heart out when she cheated on him and I helped her do it.”
Tommy put his face in his hands. He’d have to come clean with his brother when they talked.
Tina turned to Tommy in surprise. She watched him for a moment, before putting a hand on his shoulder.
“Tommy.” Her voice was full of emotion, but she did her best to keep it steady. “Tommy, look at me.” She waited until he’d done so. “This isn’t your fault. I know you can’t go into detail because of your oath, but whatever you told her, you were just being her doctor and you didn’t know.” She inhaled a ragged breath. She’s sure there were signs that Tommy could’ve picked up on, but it wasn’t his responsibility and he couldn’t be blamed for doing his job.
“The way Migs looked last night when he finally told me...that pain I saw in his face? You didn’t put that there, okay? That’s on Quinn and Rachel. I liked Quinn, too. I mean, I thought we might actually become friends again... but the way she does the things she does, just...” Tina trailed off, practically hissing in frustration at this whole situation.
The Quinn and Rachel Tina had known in high school had each been infamous for their unapologetic actions, but hadn’t it been six years? Wasn’t that enough time to grow out of that mindset?
Tina shook her head firmly. “The way Quinn handled this is not okay. The way she just broke him... God, it just reminded me of high school all over again, you know? Of her lying about who was really Abby’s father. She can’t go around refusing to own up to her decisions and not deal with the consequences. I don’t care if she didn’t mean to hurt anyone. I know she probably didn’t, but...”
Tina’s mind flashed with the way Mike had sounded so sure when he had told her he was going to propose...to standing in the middle of nowhere with him, watching him shout at the stars. “It hurts all the same.”
She exhaled an angry breath. “Mike deserves so much more than this. I can’t even...” She trailed off, and they were quiet for a moment.
“You know, Mike made me promise I wouldn’t go run them down with his car.” Tina crossed her arms, leaning forward to rest her elbows on her thighs. She glared at a stop sign and swiped angrily at the tears that had trickled down her face. “I swear Rachel is lucky she’s pregnant and that I’m too old to go egging both their houses.”
“I shouldn’t have told you that,” he mumbled, “We can’t tell my parents, T. Ever.”
“I know,” she sighed again, and letting her head rest against his shoulder. “...but that doesn’t mean that I don’t want to. I don’t like keeping them in the dark. Plus, you know Nay would totally go on that killing spree with me.” Tommy gave her a look. “Kidding. Except not really,” she murmured.
A few cars went passed them as Tommy stood up with the help of Tina’s outstretched arm. He held onto her hand for a few more seconds as he pulled her into a hug, “Thank you for telling me. I appreciate it more than I can say.”
Tina laid her chin atop his shoulder, her arms around him in return. “I know. I just wish there wasn’t anything to tell in the first place.” She pulled back and looked at him for a moment. “Tommy...are we going to be okay?”
“We’ll be okay as long as you’re my little sister and Migs is my brother and I am your kuya who loves you.” he smiled, “Do you believe me?”
Amid her tears, Tina nodded, swatting them away with her fingertips as if they were personally offending her. She kissed Tommy’s cheek before pulling him into another hug. The three of them had survived a lot together, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t still afraid for them. Afraid that this was just the beginning of what they had to deal with.
She let go of Tommy and sighed. She might be scared, but chose to believe him. She refused to let these flashes come true without a fight.
Tina sniffled. “Okay. Now where’s that dessert you promised me?”
“Let’s get back there before Liz and Lily eat it all,” he chuckled, “Liz has been craving strawberries lately so we might want to walk quickly but it’s Lily eating all the whipped topping that I’m most concerned about. C’mon.”
Tina released a shaky laugh. “I won’t fight Liz. I’ve learned to never get in the way of pregnant women and their cravings.” She took his hand in hers and they walked back towards the house. “At least it’s something normal this time. Remember when she made you buy cocktail shrimp and Nutella?”
“Ew. Yes, but that wasn’t as bad as those fried plantain sandwiches she insisted had to be smothered in masala sauce.” He choked back a gag, “Let’s not think of what the next few months will be culinarily speaking. Yeah, I know it’s not a word smarty but I said it. Dessert time. Now!”
“So gross.” Tina wrinkled her nose in disgust before smiling and nodding. “I can’t wait until Thanksgiving. She might serve us those pickle and jelly sandwiches again. Only Migs was brave enough.”
She laughed as Tommy paled at the memory.
Yeah. They’d be okay.
When: Sunday, October 17, 2018
Where: Tommy’s house
What: Baring the bad news
Tina hadn’t seen Tommy, Liz, and Lily in two years. It hadn’t set in just how long it had been until Liz had answered the door. With Liz's hormones involved, to say it was an emotional reunion might be an understatement.
Mike let Tina drive his car from Cincinnati to Lima early that morning. He was now asleep in the guest bedroom. She knew when Tommy came home from running errands he’d want an immediate explanation of what happened, but she wanted to let Mike nap. Until last night, she’d never seen Mike so upset and drained and she knew that if anyone deserved to rest right now, it was him.
Liz was now in the kitchen, insisting on making them brunch, and Tina sat on the sofa with Lily curled up in her lap, a picture book propped up in front of them. She heard the front door unlock and glanced up from the pages.
Tina smiled when she saw Tommy walk in.
Tommy entered the kitchen with several bags in his arms as well as some food Liz had asked him to pick up. He set everything down so he could give his wife a proper hug and a kiss.
With a few quick steps he was standing behind her, “Hi, babe. I got everything on the list you asked for. How are you and the kids doing?”
He put one arm around her as he playfully rubbed her belly. After a few kisses she pulled back so she could answer his earlier question.
Tina watched Tommy and Liz with a serene smile on her face. She saw Liz murmur something excitedly and point in her direction. As Tommy turned in her direction and did a double-take, her smile stretched into a grin.
“Hey, stranger,” she laughed lightly. She gave him a casual wave at his startled expression, like her popping into his living room was a normal occurrence.
“No one is stranger than you,T!” he winked, “At least nobody I know. I missed you being around because of that. Everybody I know is so normal, minus Migs of course.”
Tommy looked around the living room for his brother but didn’t see any sign that he was there. He smiled at Tina as he waited for her explanation, hopefully devoid of hand puppets like the last big deal she had to talk to him about.
Tina grinned as Lily crawled from her lap. She carefully got up and kissed the top of her head before making her way to Tommy. She let out a little noise akin to a squeal that she’ll be sure to deny later as she launched at Tommy, enveloping him into a warm hug.
“Missed you too, TomTom,” she whispered.
He laughed as she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him closer. “How I have missed your hugs, T! They are about ten on the Richter scale at least. Lily is learning but she’d only up to about a three. Do my parents know you’re in town? Nay is going to want to drown you in food, you know.”
Tina pulled back, flashing him a little guilty look. She hadn’t let his parents, or hers for that matter, know she was headed back for the weekend. At least the gap between the last time she saw them wasn't as great as with her and Tommy; she had been over to visit them a lot in the summertime. “No, I forgot to let them know. I kind of got caught in the make-sure-Migs-is-okay mindset I had going on. I can call them. We can have dinner. Although I think Liz has got the drowning in food thing covered for now.” She smiled as Liz was already rummaging through the bags Tommy had brought in.
“I will refrain from rolling my eyes as loudly as you know I’m prone to since you were on a Goodwill mission this time,” Tommy smiled, “Did you want me some calls for you while my wife treats you to her drool-worthy lumpia that she made especially for you? I’d be more than happy to if you need me to run interference.”
“That’s alright. I’ll call them later. I can probably have breakfast or lunch with them tomorrow or something. I don’t leave until Tuesday,” she shrugged, before a playful smile grew on her face. “How do you feel about being my pin lady? I was thinking of doing some adjustments on Lily’s costume and could use a hand.”
Tommy batted his eyes, “Of course I’ll be your pin lady, bunso. We have to get Lily’s costume finished in time don’t we?”
He stroked the little girl’s hair. How could he not try to make her childhood idyllic? Her beginnings were certainly difficult enough so he and Liz did their best to make it as pleasant as they could. The addition of a new family member would certainly shake things up but Tommy was optimistic that the new baby would go over well with Lily who had recently begun to ask about her twin.
“Of course.” Tommy followed Tina into the living room to set up a makeshift work station. “It’s the least I can do. I’m sorry I won’t be able to come for Halloween, but I’ll still make sure she’s the cutest purple ladybug Lima has seen.”
She had set aside enough money for holiday travels, so had used her Halloween savings for yesterday. Not that she minded. She’d hop a plane for her family in a heartbeat and they knew that. Plus, she knew someone would be there to take Lily out, and her plans with Quinn were dead, no explanation necessary...
Tina retrieved the costume from her bag and opened the sewing kit Liz had lent her. She looked up a little hesitantly towards Tommy as she took out the measuring tape.
“He’s sleeping in the guest room right now,” she murmured. “Just so you know.”
He nodded as he looked down the hallway, “Okay. So how about we have brunch first, T. I’m starving after all that shopping and I know Liz made a ton of food. Lily baby? Let’s go eat some of Mama’s delicious breakfast. You can sit by Auntie T.”
Tina carefully watched Tommy’s expression, waiting for the questions to come and was surprised when they didn’t. She merely nodded and picked up Lily before following him to the table. “This looks great, Liz.” She smiled at the spread in front of them. “You didn’t have to go all out just for me,” she laughed lightly.
Liz arched an eyebrow as she waved her spatula to the table to let Tina know she’d better start eating.
“How could I not go all out for you?” Liz laughed, “It’s ingrained in us an early age you know that! I need to take care of family to the best of my abilities so I’ve made a boatload of lumpia for you to enjoy. Dig in! I also did some fried rice for brunch and a few other of your favorites.”
Tina just stared for a moment. “Did I ever tell you how much I love you?”
Her grin faltered a little when Lily asked why ‘Unca Mike’ wasn’t eating with them. “It’s okay, Lilybug. He’s tired. We’re just going to let him sleep for a little while, okay?”
She spooned some food on her plate and, as Liz insisted, dug in.
“Speaking of love,” Liz smiled, “So how is Eli? How is it possible I know so little about this young man that you’re dating?”
Tina did her best to not choke mid-bite. She let out a little laugh as her cheeks instantly warmed. She had told Liz about Eli during their last phone call, but hadn’t gone into much detail. She could sense by the look in Liz’s eyes, though, that she intended to steer the conversation away from Mike more than anything.
She smiled. “Sorry. I don’t know where to begin. What do you want to know?”
Lily thought for a moment before she answered, “Is he cute? Is he a doctor like Lola said he should be?”
Liz clapped her hand over her mouth as Tommy’s jaw dropped at their daughter’s questions. It was also pretty evident that her Filipino grandmother had instilled the necessity of a good husband to the toddler. Both parents made a mental note to speak to her the next time she babysat.
Tina stared with wide eyes for a moment before bursting into laughter. “I see Mama Chang has been babysitting again?” She shook her head, taking a sip of water to clear her throat. “I...wow. Well, Lily, he’s a chef.” Tina laughed again. “And yes, he’s cute. Very cute.”
She smirked at both Liz and Tommy. They were going to have their hands full for sure. “Any other questions?” She knew Liz would probably throw her fork at her for encouraging her daughter, but she was too amused not to.
“Does he kiss like Prince Charming?” Lily asked, “Cos he has to be a good kisser to be a good daddy.”
Again, Tommy hung his head and slowly hit it on the table. Maybe all those princess movies were giving his daughter crazy expectations and with the help of his mother making his daughter a little too mature for her age.
“Baby?” Liz chuckled, “Talking about kissing someone is a private question. Remember how we talked about public and private things? I don’t think Auntie T wants to talk about kissing. Do you?”
Tina bit her lip and shook her head. She shared an amused look with Liz that meant they’d be having a private conversation later. They managed to get through dinner with only a few more minor outbursts from Lily and soon they were clearing the table and the dishes.
Tommy tugged on Tina’s shirt sleeve as she was trying the last of the dishes, “Hey, we need to talk. How about we go for a walk then come back and have some dessert?”
Liz patted both of them on the back, “Lily and I will get some strawberry shortcake together while you two get things out of the way. Right, Lily?”
Tina nodded, knowing it wasn’t really a question. It’s not that she didn’t want to clue Tommy in, it was that she didn’t know if Mike wanted her to. Brothers or not, she was sworn to unspoken secrecy as a best friend. She knew she had to tell Tommy something though; she had promised he wouldn’t be out of the loop anymore and she knew she'd be saving Mike from having to recount the story again.
As they made their way out the door and down to the sidewalk, she looked over at him, waiting for him to ask what he wanted to know.
“So all I know is that Quinn said no to his proposal,” he started. “So are they waiting to get married or are they, um, broken up?”
He knew they weren’t always on the same page and seemed to be able to spend less time together but he still hoped they were going to work on their relationship. He hoped.
Tina frowned before taking a deep breath. The way Mike had looked when he told her last night...
How do you put that kind of heartbreak into words?
“No, they’re...they’re broken up.” She was silent for a moment as they crossed the street. She didn’t exactly know how to phrase this.
She looked at him for a moment to gauge his reaction. Deep down she knew Mike and Quinn weren’t working, but she couldn’t stop the quiet anger she felt. That was no excuse to cheat. Her mouth felt dry as she spoke. “But, um...that’s not just it.” She bit her lip a little, hating that she had to say this, hating it was true. “There’s someone else, Tommy. She loves someone else.”
Tommy sputtered as he struggled to find words, “I...I don't...what? Quinn cheated on Mike? But that...that doesn’t make any sense. The only person Quinn has been spending any time with is Rachel Berry. When did she have time to find someone else to cheat with? I don’t get it.”
Tina pursed her lips, trying to breathe steady through her nose. She now just noticed they had both stopped walking. She turned so she standing directly in front of him and held his gaze.
“She didn’t, Tommy. The person she was cheating with...is Rachel.”
He froze for a moment with his jaw dropped before he sat down on the curb. He tried to go over every moment he had seen Rachel and Quinn together over the last few months. There had to be signs that they were cheating! He was so focused on the fact that Rachel was back in town again and in a situation where she needed friends, friends like Quinn. He shook his head at all the things he had done to push them together.
“R-R-Rachel as in Berry?” he whispered, “My brain can’t even process this information, T. I can’t see Quinn as a cheater and I also can’t see Rachel in love with Quinn.”
Tina’s frowned deepened as she sat down next to him. “I know. I mean, the last I’ve really seen them interacting was fighting over Finn in high school. I can’t even imagine what Mike must be going through right now.”
Tina was wary about Tommy labeling Quinn a ‘cheater’. She did, in fact, cheat, but that implied Quinn went on some serial adultery rampage for the hell of it or something crazy like that. Truth be told, Tina knew what it was like to fall in love. You couldn’t help who you fell for, but the way Quinn had chosen to go about it, the way she lied and hurt Mike even more in the process...
Tina let out another sigh and watched as the wind blew a pile of leaves around in circle. “I’m sorry I didn’t keep you completely updated yesterday. It took him awhile to open up about it and when he did I just wanted to make sure he was okay. And then he wanted to make sure I didn’t come into town on some killing spree to avenge him.”
Tommy didn’t seem to hear this, though. He was staring intently at the asphalt, a frown etched on his face. His voice was this conflicted kind of quiet when he spoke.
“There had been questions about safe sex. She told me that she had a new partner that was pretty inexperienced, Tina!” he growled, “I helped ‘the other woman’ in my brother’s relationship. How am I going to be able to face her at her appointments? I love Quinn and she ripped my brother’s heart out when she cheated on him and I helped her do it.”
Tommy put his face in his hands. He’d have to come clean with his brother when they talked.
Tina turned to Tommy in surprise. She watched him for a moment, before putting a hand on his shoulder.
“Tommy.” Her voice was full of emotion, but she did her best to keep it steady. “Tommy, look at me.” She waited until he’d done so. “This isn’t your fault. I know you can’t go into detail because of your oath, but whatever you told her, you were just being her doctor and you didn’t know.” She inhaled a ragged breath. She’s sure there were signs that Tommy could’ve picked up on, but it wasn’t his responsibility and he couldn’t be blamed for doing his job.
“The way Migs looked last night when he finally told me...that pain I saw in his face? You didn’t put that there, okay? That’s on Quinn and Rachel. I liked Quinn, too. I mean, I thought we might actually become friends again... but the way she does the things she does, just...” Tina trailed off, practically hissing in frustration at this whole situation.
The Quinn and Rachel Tina had known in high school had each been infamous for their unapologetic actions, but hadn’t it been six years? Wasn’t that enough time to grow out of that mindset?
Tina shook her head firmly. “The way Quinn handled this is not okay. The way she just broke him... God, it just reminded me of high school all over again, you know? Of her lying about who was really Abby’s father. She can’t go around refusing to own up to her decisions and not deal with the consequences. I don’t care if she didn’t mean to hurt anyone. I know she probably didn’t, but...”
Tina’s mind flashed with the way Mike had sounded so sure when he had told her he was going to propose...to standing in the middle of nowhere with him, watching him shout at the stars. “It hurts all the same.”
She exhaled an angry breath. “Mike deserves so much more than this. I can’t even...” She trailed off, and they were quiet for a moment.
“You know, Mike made me promise I wouldn’t go run them down with his car.” Tina crossed her arms, leaning forward to rest her elbows on her thighs. She glared at a stop sign and swiped angrily at the tears that had trickled down her face. “I swear Rachel is lucky she’s pregnant and that I’m too old to go egging both their houses.”
“I shouldn’t have told you that,” he mumbled, “We can’t tell my parents, T. Ever.”
“I know,” she sighed again, and letting her head rest against his shoulder. “...but that doesn’t mean that I don’t want to. I don’t like keeping them in the dark. Plus, you know Nay would totally go on that killing spree with me.” Tommy gave her a look. “Kidding. Except not really,” she murmured.
A few cars went passed them as Tommy stood up with the help of Tina’s outstretched arm. He held onto her hand for a few more seconds as he pulled her into a hug, “Thank you for telling me. I appreciate it more than I can say.”
Tina laid her chin atop his shoulder, her arms around him in return. “I know. I just wish there wasn’t anything to tell in the first place.” She pulled back and looked at him for a moment. “Tommy...are we going to be okay?”
“We’ll be okay as long as you’re my little sister and Migs is my brother and I am your kuya who loves you.” he smiled, “Do you believe me?”
Amid her tears, Tina nodded, swatting them away with her fingertips as if they were personally offending her. She kissed Tommy’s cheek before pulling him into another hug. The three of them had survived a lot together, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t still afraid for them. Afraid that this was just the beginning of what they had to deal with.
She let go of Tommy and sighed. She might be scared, but chose to believe him. She refused to let these flashes come true without a fight.
Tina sniffled. “Okay. Now where’s that dessert you promised me?”
“Let’s get back there before Liz and Lily eat it all,” he chuckled, “Liz has been craving strawberries lately so we might want to walk quickly but it’s Lily eating all the whipped topping that I’m most concerned about. C’mon.”
Tina released a shaky laugh. “I won’t fight Liz. I’ve learned to never get in the way of pregnant women and their cravings.” She took his hand in hers and they walked back towards the house. “At least it’s something normal this time. Remember when she made you buy cocktail shrimp and Nutella?”
“Ew. Yes, but that wasn’t as bad as those fried plantain sandwiches she insisted had to be smothered in masala sauce.” He choked back a gag, “Let’s not think of what the next few months will be culinarily speaking. Yeah, I know it’s not a word smarty but I said it. Dessert time. Now!”
“So gross.” Tina wrinkled her nose in disgust before smiling and nodding. “I can’t wait until Thanksgiving. She might serve us those pickle and jelly sandwiches again. Only Migs was brave enough.”
She laughed as Tommy paled at the memory.
Yeah. They’d be okay.