Cherie was a thirty-year-old single mom. Until two years ago she had enjoyed an idyllic life. She met her ex-husband Hank after graduating high school and had fallen in love immediately. They made a deal that Hank would go to college while Cherie worked and once he graduated, she could go to college. And the plan was working.
Hank had been a good student in high school and had AP credits towards a college degree and along with summer school and taking a full course load, he graduated in three years. Hank found a job and then they had to make new plans. Cherie got pregnant and college was put on hold.
When their son, Nicky, was born, both Cherie and Hank were ecstatic about being parents. For the next few years, everything went well for the young couple. Then suddenly everything changed. The economy started to tank and Hank lost his job. Cherie knew Hank was smart and a hard worker and figured he’d find another job quickly.
But that didn’t happen. And when it didn’t, Hank got down on himself and stopped looking. Then Hank started sleeping in, lazing around their apartment and drinking. He only drank a little at first but over time he drank more and got lazier and meaner.
He never hit Cherie but she hadn’t signed up to be a young mother and also take care of an alcoholic husband. Finally, she told him to either dry out, straighten up, and get a job or she was going to leave. Hank’s response was simple, he flipped her the bird. The next day Cherie left and moved back in with her mother. Her mother loaned her money to get a lawyer and six months later Cherie and Hank were divorced.
Cherie’s life became a routine – home, work, home – and not much else. Cherie tried dating a few times but wasn’t interested in a long-term relationship and wasn’t a one-night stand type of woman.
Cherie had a good office job and also worked Friday and Saturday evenings delivering food for a local restaurant. The owner of the restaurant, Mama to the employees, liked Cherie and Nicky and made her a deal. If she was the last delivery person on Friday, she could take the order and text her when she finished the delivery. Mama would clock her out and collect the money on Saturday. That way Cherie could get home a little earlier to spend time with Nicky.
Cherie’s mom took care of Nicky after school and when Cherie was delivering food. Cherie did her best to spend as much time with Nicky as possible but she needed to save enough money to get her own apartment and start taking college classes. Rarely did she get any time to herself.
Cherie finished working at the office, changed into her uniform and took off for the restaurant. Cherie worked her deliveries and a late order came in. Cherie was the last driver in the restaurant and Mama told her to text when she made the delivery. She gave Cherie a hug and told her she’d see her on Saturday.
Cherie took the food and drove to the address on the ticket. She arrived at a large, beautiful home not that far from where she lived, but in another world to her. She took the food to the door, rang the bell and waited. Soon a frazzled looking woman opened the door dressed in an old robe.
Cherie gave her the ticket and the woman excused herself to get money to pay the bill. She returned quickly and seemed even more flustered. She told Cherie she was embarrassed and only had a little more than the order cost so couldn’t tip her much. Cherie smiled, took the money, thanked the woman and walked back to her car, very disappointed. She texted Mama and then headed to her mom’s house to get Nicky and head home.
The working week went by like most other weeks, except this weekend Nicky was going to a sleepover at a friend’s on Friday night and then on Saturday Cherie’s mother was taking him to the zoo and was keeping him overnight. Cherie was going to pick Nicky up Sunday morning and they’d spend the day doing whatever he wanted to do with her. When the time came to head to the restaurant, Cherie finished up, changed clothes and got to Mama’s place on time.
The night was a mess. It had started drizzling early on and now it was pouring. Cherie was again the last driver for the last order. She hugged Mama and ran to her car. When she looked at the ticket, she saw it was the same big house as the week before. Her initial reaction was she was going to get stiffed again. But she drove to the house, grabbed the food and ran to the front door. By the time the door was answered, she was soaked.
Tonight, the woman was dressed neatly in a colorful blouse and yoga pants. When she saw Cherie, she was surprised. And when she realized how wet Cherie was, she immediately invited her inside. She asked Cherie to wait while she got the payment. She was back quickly with the money for the food and a twenty-dollar tip. She apologized again for last week and then handed Cherie a second twenty. Cherie was shocked but very appreciative and told her thanks at least ten times.
Leigh introduced herself, as did Cherie. Then Leigh told Cherie that she’d just opened a bottle of wine and that there was more than enough food to share and asked her to stay for dinner. At first, Cherie thought that didn’t seem to be a good idea and that she needed to get home. Then she realized Nicky was at his friend's and she really didn’t have anything else to do that evening, so she told Leigh she’d like that.
Leigh said, “You’re soaked and I’m sure I can find you some clothes to change into while we dry yours.”
Cherie replied, “That would be wonderful. I’m soaked all the way to my skin.”
Leigh told her to follow her down a hall and they wound up in what seemed to be a guest bedroom. Leigh opened the closet and rummaged around a bit and came out with some sweatpants and a sweatshirt. They looked a little large but they were dry, while hers were wet. Leigh told her she could change in the bedroom and that she’d be in the kitchen getting things ready. She also handed her a laundry basket to put the wet ones in.
“Once you’re changed just come to the kitchen and I’ll show you where the dryer is.”
Leigh left and Cherie pulled her wet clothes off and dropped them in the basket. The sweat clothes were large, but also warm and dry. She left the bedroom and headed back down the hall awed by the number of rooms she passed and the size of the rooms. She was sure her whole apartment would have fit into the formal living room.
It took her a couple of tries to find the kitchen but finally heard the sound of chopping and headed that way. Leigh was just finishing up a salad but stopped and walked Cherie to the laundry room, put her clothes in the dryer – blouse, pants, bra, panties and socks. And then they returned to the kitchen.
Cherie asked if she could help and Leigh gave her plates, silverware and wine glasses and pointed her to a casual dining area. Soon Leigh joined her with the salad and wine, returned to the kitchen and brought out the reheated ravioli. Cherie poured them each a glass of wine and they sat down, passed the salad and pasta and enjoyed a relaxed meal together.
Cherie told Leigh it had been a few years since she’d had dinner with another adult with no kid around and was really enjoying herself. Soon the meal was finished. They cleaned up the table together, grabbed their glasses and the remaining wine and Cherie followed Leigh into a comfortable sitting room. They sat down on either end of the sofa and set the bottle on the coffee table.
They started talking, the wine was probably having some effect on them both, and soon Leigh was asking Cherie questions. First, she asked about Nicky and Cherie told her what a great kid he was and that the last few years had been tough on him. Then Leigh asked, “why?” Cherie had never talked with a stranger about her last years with Hank or the divorce.
But after another couple of sips of wine, she opened up and told Leigh about her marriage and the way it fell apart. Leigh was a good listener and provided the appropriate comments when Cherie seemed to be getting emotional about the drinking and divorce. She even reached over and patted her arm a couple of times.
Then it was Cherie’s turn to ask questions.
“What did you do for a living?’
“I was a pharmaceutical sales rep for many years.”
“Are you married?”
Leigh started to answer but then she choked up. Cherie said she was sorry but Leigh told her it was okay and she’d tell her the sad story.
“I was married for almost thirty years to a wonderful guy, Dave. He was a financial advisor. He came home from work about a year ago and after changing clothes sat in his favorite chair. I was making dinner and when it was ready, I called him. I put the food on the table but Dave wasn’t there. I figured he’d gone to the bathroom so I waited for him. When he didn’t show up after ten minutes, I called him again but didn’t get an answer. I got up and walked down the hall to our bedroom but the master bath door was open and the room was empty."