Helena
Joanna gave a big smile as I handed her a sticker, praising how well she'd done with the math problems I'd assigned her. School was out for summer, but the tutoring continued year-round. I had high hopes for her. Despite her learning disability, she was a diligent worker and still enjoyed the challenges that I gave her.
Joanna got up and I followed her to the driveway, where her mother's car was parked and waiting. Sybil waved when she saw me, slowly climbing out of the small vehicle with great care and difficulty.
"It's okay," I called to Sybil, walking over to her quickly—but of course, by that point it was too late. She gave me a long and heartfelt hug, leaning forward a little so that her large pregnant belly didn't get in the way.
"Happy early birthday!" Sybil said happily. "Do you have any plans?"
I shook my head. "Not really. You know I've never really been that into my own birthday."
"I'll say," Sybil agreed. "You were so quiet about it back when we were young! It wasn't until you showed up to one of mine for the second time that I realized I had never been to one of yours. You really ought to do something, you know."
"I was thinking a quiet day at home," I explained. "Nothing fancy."
"You should let me take you out shopping or something," Sybil argued. "Call it a thank-you if you need to. You and your dad help Joanna out so much. She doesn't like school but loves coming here, you know. I don't even understand how that works. Not to mention how big of a relief it is to have someone who can watch her sometimes in the summer. With the baby coming soon, Dan and I have been really busy lately."
"Well, if you're busy, then you shouldn't waste time taking me shopping," I said, and Sybil made the kind of mocking face that only an old friend could get away with.
"I guess I'll just have to drag you out of the house, kicking and screaming," Sybil said playfully. Before I had a chance to respond, her husband Dan appeared down by the corner of the street. He was carrying a bag from a nearby convenience store with one hand, waving at us with the other.
"Hey, Helena!" he called as I waved back. I'd known the couple since high school, although they hadn't been a couple then. They were just two of the precious few people that were friends with me, and while even I could pick up on their mutual interest in each other, somehow they hadn't.
Not until years later, anyway.
And they're making up for lost time, I thought, watching Sybil as she rubbed her belly absentmindedly. This was her fifth pregnancy, and while I might've expected her to be exhausted with four-coming-on-five kids, she seemed to do a great job of keeping up with everything.
Dan finally caught up to us, and I couldn't help but chuckle as he reached into the bag and handed Sybil a large jar of pickles. She didn't waste any time before opening it up and grabbing one, devouring the entire thing in two big bites.
"What, you're not having it with ice cream?" I joked.
Sybil shook her head, and Dan laughed. "No, but the pickles have to be from that convenience store. Not even that chain, but that one specific location down the street. None of the others get it right, apparently."
"I think it's something in the brine they use," Sybil added. "Maybe they change it more often…or maybe they don't change it at all. I don't know. In any case, I can't get enough of them, and I can't wait to I have this baby so I never have to look at one of them again."
"Until next time, anyway," Dan teased.
"Oh hush, you!" Sybil teased back, playfully pressing her wet fingers on Dan's chest and leaving salty impressions onto his shirt. "If we have any more, people are going to start asking us when we're getting our own reality TV show."
"Or what the name of our militia is going to be," Dan added, placing a loving arm around his wife as he spoke. "I got that one at work the other day."
"That seems a bit rude…what did you say?" I asked.
"I played along. I acted really enthusiastic about the idea, and then offered to start paying him in scrip instead of—what did I call it?—'the currency of statist lies,'" Dan said with a chuckle. "You should've seen the look on his face. Abject terror."
"Well, that's what he gets for teasing the owner," Sybil laughed. "Just be careful not to take it too far, hon. I don't want us to get on any kind of watch-list."
I smiled, enjoying the back-and-forth between Dan and his wife. The look of adoration on Sybil's face said everything, as did the way Dan clearly went out of his way to help out every way he could. If Sybil managed to maintain her sanity with four kids, I had no doubt that a lot of it was due to her husband's endless love and support.
The three of us continued to exchange pleasantries for a few more minutes, before the happy couple got back into their car—Dan carefully making sure that Sybil didn't hurt herself as she climbed inside—and they were off. I stood on the curb, pondering my own situation.
Despite knowing them for years, it wasn't until recently that I had realized just how much they relied on each other. It seemed that Dan-and-Sybil, the couple, were much stronger than my friends Sybil and Dan. They built off each other, working together to create something that was more than the sum of its parts.
Of course, it had taken me a long time to see that. It wasn't until I'd met Dominick that I finally began to recognize their relationship for what it was, which had in turn made me question my own choices.
I'd always been so sure that I was better off alone, that I didn't need any help raising a child. For years, it had seemed I was right. Ali turned out great, after all…but just how much easier would it have been with someone who loved and supported me? How much more could I—we—have gotten done together, if I'd had someone to help like Sybil did?
Someone like Dominick.
Despite all my plans, I'd never counted on a man like him bursting into my life or being the donor to my children. Now he was here, bringing us all happiness, and I couldn't help but wonder how I was repaying him. Things needed to change soon, I knew, because I couldn't keep him in the dark forever.