Ring in Mine 3: Nephi & Jerome Chapter 7
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Nephi & Jerome: Chapter 7
An hour before school Maria called Nephi's number; a sleepy Jerome answered the phone.
"Get showered and dressed you have school today." Maria reminded her grandson. "I left clean clothes for you on the table."
Jerome looked around the room and wondered how he ended up in Paula's house.
Jerome showered, dressed and made the bed. He hugged the pillow one last time breathing in the scent. Jerome drove to school alone; Jared had other plans.
Jerome was walking down the hall toward his first class. A young kid yelled, "Hi, Jerome!"
"Hi, Chris!", Jerome called back.
Jerome stopped. How did he know this kid? Chris must be his name; he was coming over to talk."
"How's it going?" Jerome asked hoping for a clue to unlock this missing memory.
"I've missed you in church the last couple of weeks. I convinced my mom to get me a black shirt. Where did you and Nephi get yours?" Chris asked.
Again, the answer came out before Jerome could think about it.
At lunch, Jared insisted that Jerome sit with Drake and Hope. Jerome noticed right away how the two boys looked at each other. They had known each other, not even, two full days and they were already friends that would take a bullet for each other. Hope was talking to Jerome, he wasn't paying attention.
Jerome was thinking had he ever had a friend that close. He had girlfriends. They were great to hang with, but were they best friends. Hope put her hand on Jerome's thigh. He looked at her and apologized for not paying attention. Hope was good looking. Her hand felt good on his thigh.
"Had he ever had an emotional bond with any of his girlfriends or had it all been about sex?" Jerome thought. Every time a girl wanted any kind of real commitment Jerome found it easiest to switch to a new girlfriend.
He was in a daze the rest of the day. After dinner Jerome cornered Jared.
"It's none of my business, but have you and Drake ... you know ... done it?" Jerome asked.
"It isn't any of your business. We've kissed and a little groping through our jeans. I hope the time will come when we take it to the next step." Jared's eye's sparkled.
"I am glad you found a really close friend." Jerome answered.
Jerome wondered. Had he ever had a really close friend. His girlfriends had been convenient but not really close friends."
"I wish I had someone that cared for me like Drake cares for you." Jerome was a little jealous.
"Sometimes you are so dumb. I saw how Nephi looked at you. That wasn't sex that was love." Jared replied. Grab your stuff, your coat, and go sleep in Nephi's apartment."
Jerome hugged his brother and followed his advice. He kissed his grandmother goodnight.
"Go through the front door and let Paula know you are downstairs. We've already talked." Maria instructed.
Paula welcomed Jerome with open arms. She hoped this was a good sign. Jerome felt a little self-conscious as he got ready for bed in Nephi's apartment. Jerome turned back the covers and switched off the lights. He dropped all of his clothes and climbed under the covers naked. He snuggled up to the big pillow and fell asleep.
Jerome dreamed not of walking in the snow, but pushing it out of the way. In his sleep he pulled the pillow closer.
Jerome woke early. Sitting at the table eating cold cereal he remembered sitting at this table with other teens playing a card game. Younger kids were watching Disney movies on the TV. That's where he had first met Chris.
Jerome hugged Paula and stopped to say good morning to his grandmother before leaving for school. Jerome called out greetings to kids he had remembered that morning. He smiled when they said, "Hello." He smiled a lot that day.
Jerome ate lunch with the trio. Hope had ramped up the flirting. It was disturbing until he realized she was just playing around. He didn't want a girlfriend as much as he wanted what his brother had a close relationship.
Friday night he watched the snowfall. Snow was important but he couldn't remember why.
"...Jerome wandered lost in the snow. He was cold and alone. Someone picked him up out of the snow, hugged him, and handed him a shovel. Jerome pushed the snow out of his way. Shoveling snow IS hard work. This is the slow way to do this. ...the shovel turned into a snowblower."
Jerome woke up from the dream. "That was bizarre," he thought.
Nephi watched the snowfall. Tomorrow would be a full day of moving snow. Nephi realized that, even though, he had enjoyed his time in the woods it was time to go home. He missed Paula. He had thought of Jerome a lot and had decided he was glad he had waited for Jerome to decide what he wanted. Maybe they could still be friends.
Nephi filled old milk jugs with water and turned the well pump off. He opened the drains and the taps. Soon all the water was drained out of the cabin's pipes. He closed the wooden shutters over the windows and padlocked them in place. He wouldn't turn the propane off until the next morning when he left. With the cabin clean and ready to wait out the rest of the winter, Nephi went to bed.
The next morning with the snow still falling Nephi shut down the pilot lights and turned off the gas at the propane tank. He used the last flush in the toilet tank and filled the bowl with pink antifreeze solution. Nephi plowed his way down the hill with a final detour to the ranger station. He would grab a fritter and cocoa from Bertram's for breakfast.
Jerome woke when the first grey light of dawn filtered through the French doors. He jumped up thinking he was late for school. He ate and then remembered it was Saturday. Jerome looked out the window at the foot of snow. Hanging in the closet was Jerome's cold weather work clothes. Clad for the weather Jerome entered the garage He didn't think twice about picking up the door remote; he opened the center bay door. The lawn tractor was there and the smallest of the snowblowers.
Jerome hit the electric start. With the motor rumbling beneath him he activated the blower attachment and plowed to the street. Jerome did as much as he could with the big tractor. He would come back and finish the bits and pieces with the little blower. Halfway around the block it hit him he didn't know how to start the tractor. The doctor had said, "Sometimes our bodies remembered things without having to think about them." That would mean he had done this before.
Jerome had made it around the block and was clearing Maria's driveway when Jared appeared wearing whatever cold weather gear Maria and Paula had found. Jerome powered up the smaller snowblower and showed Jared how to use it.
Leaving Jared cleaning up, Jerome headed to the church clearing sidewalks as he went. With the church done, Jerome drove back down the other side of the street.
Jared wanted to do Drake's and Hope's driveways. Clearing the sidewalks, Jerome led the way. Jerome did the major areas and Jared finished up. Drake joined Jared. They took turns pushing the snowblower and throwing snowballs. Jared gave Jerome the directions to Hope's house. Hope was out front with a snow shovel. Jerome was her gallant knight on a John Deere. It earned Jerome a kiss on the nose.
Jerome parked the snowblower in the garage. The snow was still falling. Jerome knew he would have to do the major work again later. Paula invited Jerome in for lunch.
"Just hang your coveralls on the peg in the mud room to dry. I don't want the snow in the house." She noticed that Jerome had a-deer-in-the-headlights look. "Don't worry boy. With your thermals on you are dressed more than most people."
Jerome joined Jared, Drake, Maria and Paula at the table for tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. The boys enjoyed the warm lunch after pushing snow all morning.
Jared and Drake were wrestling in front of the gas fireplace. They settled down with Drake sitting between Jared's legs, his head lying back onto Jared's chest. There was a lot of whispering going on with the occasional giggle. Jerome was more than a little jealous.
"Jerome, come sit in front of the fire. It's nice and warm." Jared offered.
Drake and Jared had separated leaving a place between them. Jerome took the offered spot. The younger boys attacked, Jerome was on the floor laughing, begging, for the tickling to stop.
Nephi preferred snowstorms that dropped everything and then moved on. He knew that his clients open for business on Saturday would have to be plowed throughout the day and maybe Sunday morning. Businesses that wouldn't be open until Monday would be put off until Sunday or maybe even Monday morning early.
Nephi started with Bertram's. Bertram provided breakfast. Nephi loaded the snowblower back on the truck with a dozen fritters to share with Paula and Maria.
Around 11:30, just before opening, Nephi cleared the walks of Marco's Italian Restaurant. Marco Junior knew his mother would have his hide if he didn't feed Nephi. Nephi wasn't dressed for the dining room, so he ate in the employee break room.
When he finished his clients for the day he made the rounds again. Clearing the snow was harder with cars in the parking lot. It was late when he plowed the church lot. The neighborhood walks were cleared. The path of cleared walks led back to Paula's.
Paula sat in her kitchen. He tried to sneak up on his adopted grandmother.
"You know, baby bear, I can hear the garage door." Paula stood and hugged her grandson. "The jacuzzi tub is hot and full of bubbles. Your terry robe is on the hook. Now go! You smell as if you've been plowing snow all day. Where are your dirty clothes?"
"Why did you call me baby bear?" Nephi hollered from the bathroom. No answer was forthcoming.
His fingers looked like prunes when he finally showered. He wanted to ask about the "baby bear" comment but Paula was in bed sleeping. He was sure he heard giggling coming from under her covers.
Nephi was struggling to keep his eyes open. He had left the hide-a-bed pulled out when he left, so he didn't worry about turning on the lights. He dropped his robe too tired to pull on any clothes and slid under the covers naked. Then he understood the "baby bear" comment.
"Someone is sleeping in my bed and here he is," thought Nephi.
Nephi didn't understand what Jerome was doing in his bed wrapped around Nephi's pillow. He was too tired to worry about it tonight. Jerome woke first and found Nephi's pillow had been replaced with the real thing. It was Jerome's hand wrapped around Nephi's package, not the other way around. Jerome told himself he shouldn't move it for fear of waking Nephi. Secretly, it felt sort of right.
Nephi woke next finding a sleeping Jerome drooling on his chest and holding his stuff. Nephi feared it would end as soon as Jerome woke so he lay motionless enjoying the warm body next to him.
Jerome woke again. He looked up into Nephi's deep brown eyes. A small part of him wanted to jerk away. Instead, he pulled himself closer to this breathing good-smelling "pillow".
"So, is your memory back?" Nephi asked. Jerome shook his head and told Nephi about finding himself wrapped around Nephi's pillow every night.
"Nephi, for now, can we be friends and let me learn all about you again?" Jerome asked. Nephi's smile was all the answer he needed.