Almost There

- 39 -

When Tess's phone rang, it startled her so badly she nearly dropped it. She picked it up at once. "Daddy?"

"Hey, punkin—is everything all right? You sounded upset in your message. Mom and I went to dinner and I didn't notice my phone vibrating. We're just getting home now. You okay?"

Just hearing the strain in her father's voice caused tears to well in Tess's eyes again. She closed her eyes and tried to keep her voice from shaking, but it was too much. Halfway through her response, she started to sob. "I need you to come get me, Daddy."

There was a rustle on the other end of the phone. "Where are you?"

"I'm at the SuperMart on the east side of town."

"Clarette! I'm going to pick up Tess!" he called. Then a door slammed shut. "Tess, what are you doing there? Where's Isaac?"

"We came after the movie because his dad wanted him to buy milk." It seemed so stupid now—such a small, innocent errand turning into something so upsetting. "He left."

"He left you? I'm putting you on speaker. I'm buckling my seatbelt. I'll be there in 10 minutes."

"Don't speed, Daddy. Don't speed."

"I'll try not to speed, but you have to tell me what happened, Tess. You have me very worried."

"We just had a fight." Tess wiped her eyes on the sleeve of her sweater. "It was stupid and I just didn't want to ride home with him."

"Did he hurt you?"

"No. Nothing like that."

"I'll be there soon. Just stay on the line with me."

A moment of passed while neither of them spoke; Tess heard the sound of traffic on the other side of the line. "Where did you and Mom go for dinner?" she asked, just for something to say.

"Sushi."

"Oh." Just the thought of sushi made Tess's stomach turn, and she was sorry she had asked.

"I can't believe he left you there," Robert said. His tone was tight. "I can't believe he left you there in the middle of the night."

"It's not even 10 yet," Tess said. "And I asked him to."

"It must have been some fight." There was a silence, but Tess didn't break it—she didn't know what to say. Her dad continued, "We don't have to talk about it now. Where are you at? Inside the store?"

"Yes, but I think they're closing." Tess could see someone going down the main aisle with a wide-headed broom.

"I don't care. Tell them they'll have to wait until I can get there. I'll only be a few more minutes."

"Maybe I should go outside—"

"No. Stay right where you are. I won't have you waiting in a parking lot at night in the freezing cold, young lady."

Tess sniffed. The cold was the least of her concerns. "All right."

One of the store staff had noticed Tess out in the vestibule. He started toward her with a businesslike gait, but then seemed to notice that she was upset, because he slowed his pace and an expression of concern crossed his face. "Are you okay, ma'am?"

She nodded. As soon as she started to speak, the tears began again in earnest. "I'm really sorry but I have to wait for my dad to come get me—he's on his way and it'll only be like five minutes." She wiped her eyes, trying to get a hold of herself. "I'm s-sorry."

The man, whose name badge read FREDERICK, held up a hand and smiled reassuringly. "Hey now, that's all right. You tell your daddy to take his time. Let me know if you need anything 'til he gets here. I'm gonna lock the doors up, and you just call me when he's here to come let him in. I'll be inside finishing some things up."

"Are they kicking you out?" Robert demanded through the phone.

"No, Daddy. He says I can wait inside. He says take your time."

Frederick winked at Tess and turned away, going to lock the big, sliding doors. Once he had done so, he went back inside. Tess saw him stop at one of the registers, where he began typing in some information and making notes on a clip board.

"I'm turning into the area now. Should only be a few more minutes. Your mother has called me twice now. She's probably worried sick."

"I'll text her," said Tess.

"No, don't hang up. You can call her in the car."

"I can text her and talk at the same time, Dad." Despite the situation, Tess smiled. "I'm still here, just give me two seconds." She tapped out of the call on her phone and into her messages, and from there she sent her mother a brief text.

[TESS] Everything's okay mom. Isaac and I had a fight, I just wanted dad to pick me up

[TESS] he's almost here and everything is fine I promise

She put the phone back to her ear. "Dad?"

"Still here. It's on the left if I'm coming from home, right?"

Tess tried to think, but her mind felt fuzzy. "I think so. It's by the Best Buy."

"Ah. I see the sign. There we are." There was another silence. "Okie-dokie. Here's the parking lot. I'm coming right up to the door."

Tess stood up and went to the sliding glass doors. Outside, she saw the dark outline and bright headlights of her father's SUV rolling through the parking lot. "I see you. I have to get the man to unlock the door for me."

She turned to head in to the store. She had only taken a few steps when Frederick glanced up and saw her. He smiled and nodded, setting down his clip board, and came her way. By the time he got to the doors, Tess's father was getting out of the SUV.

"I see you, punkin. I'll hang up now," he said, waving at her with his free hand.

Tess waved back. She ended the call and slid her phone into her coat pocket.

"There you go, ma'am," said Frederick, sliding the door open. "You have a better night now."

"Thank you." Tess rushed out of the store toward her dad. He opened his arms and she fell right into his embrace. "Daddy, thank you."

He hugged her tightly, kissing the top of her head and then resting his chin there. "Pretty silly to thank me for being a dad, Tess. I just wish I could teleport. It would be faster."

She giggled half-heartedly, pulling away from him. "You were actually really fast."

"I might have sped a little." He led her to the car and opened her door for her. "Let's get you home." As Tess climbed into the SUV, Robert touched her hand. "I'm sorry you had a fight with your boyfriend. I'm sure everything is going to be fine. The first fight always feels like the end of the world."

Tess's heart sank. She wanted to tell her father the truth about how Isaac had made her feel, about how scared she'd been, but she couldn't. She was already wondering if she'd overreacted. "It really did feel like the end of the world," she said.

"It's good you called. You can both have a night to think it over and start fresh in the morning." Robert closed Tess's door. As she buckled in, he came around to the driver's side, and then they were on their way home.

As soon as Tess saw their house, its front porch light glowing, she reached for her phone. She didn't want to give Isaac any more reason to be upset with her; she would text him, just as she'd promised, and pretend for the moment that everything really would be okay, just like her dad had said.

[TESS] I'm home. Good night. ♥