Widow's Christmas

CHAPTER 4

TARA

"Water expands when it freezes, which can put pressure on pipes and cause them to break."

I was watching a tutorial video on how to work on the pipes.

My works so far has led to nothing but disaster, and I don't want to end up spending so much money buying another pipe.

The tutorial opened my eyes to some things I didn't know of, helping me work on my mistakes.

When I fixed the pipe in the kitchen and turned it on, the sink gave a choking sound and... BAM!

"Christ!" I sparked in fear, watching the pipes fall down to the floor.

The sound scared my mother in-law. She came running into the kitchen and discovered it was another epic failure from me.

Her eyes fell at the sink then at me. She calmly took a deep breathe and asked, "How long are you going to keep up with this?"

"Mom, I'm getting a hang on it."

"Tara, you are not a plumber for heavens sake! Leave this job for the real professional." She groaned out, getting frustrated.

I refused to do that and reminded her of the tap I got working outside the house. "That's a sign that I'm getting somewhere."

"Tara."

"We are not calling Theodore and that's it," I stood my ground, going down on my knees to fix the sink.

"Alright, I've heard you," She said, stepping out of the kitchen.

When I heard that from mother, I immediately suspected her.

Quickly, I rushed out of the Kitchen and found Mom taking out her phone to call Theodore!

With speed, I grabbed it out of her hands, stunning her.

"Tara, give me that phone!"

"No, you want to call him!"

"That's not true. I only want to... Call my friend," She lied, taking me for a fool.

This isn't the first time she'll be pulling this stunt on me. She has done this back in the city, more than ten times!

The moment she says I've heard you, know she's lying.

"You think I'm just being childish. Do you know what that grumpy man said? He called me a f*****g City girl! He said we'll only accuse him of stealing just because I followed him around to see what he was doing. He said a lot of rude things just because I'm from the city!" I shared with her, so she'd understand how angry I was.

But instead of support, my mother in-law laughed at me.

She thinks it's funny!

"Yeah, that's Theodore indeed. But it doesn't mean you should get all cranky about it. It's just his nature."

"And you're fine with it?" I stared at her in surprise.

No wonder she didn't react much when I called him rude. She's used to his stubbornness!

She told me to ignore his character and do what is right, but I objected to her request, standing on what I felt was right.

"It's a no. I'll fix everything myself."

"Tara, please."

I went back to the kitchen to proceed with my work.

.

That evening, I had to run into town to get a missing part for the pipes. I only discovered that through the videos I've been watching all day and came down to the plumbing store to get it.

When I entered the store, the young lady in charge named Beatrice, came over to start with her meddling.

She did this yesterday and I couldn't shake her off, until I was done shopping. Now that I'm back, she's trying to suck me dry with her questions.

"You didn't answer me yesterday, sweetheart. I asked for your name and you just walked away like I'm a nobody," She assumed, following me to the back shelf that had the missing parts I came for.

Not to portray myself as rude, I replied, "My name is Tara."

"Wawu, that's a pretty city name. I'm Beatrice," she reintroduced herself, extending her hand to me.

I just took it that way and shook back, resuming with my assignment.

"You came over to get some pipes yesterday. I presume you have a problem with your pipes, right?" She asked, following me to the front.

Why else will I be here if my pipes aren't functioning?

"And here you are again, looking like one who's on her way to war. Is that hunky man troubling you, Missy?" She asked, smirking at me.

Hearing her mention that word hunky, only one person came to mind, and that was Theodore.

I felt my body give this vibration when flashes of his face came to my mind.

Why did she have to talk about him?

"I'm surprised he allowed you to come down here and get the equipments yourself. He always does that alone, " She shared, sitting on the counter where I had planned on dropping my money.

Goodness, seems I'm not leaving this place anytime soon.

"I think you might need an extra hand with your work, Tara. Theodore and I are close. I'm sure he'd appreciate my help when he sees me at your..."

"Sorry, but he's not at my place nor is he doing any work for me," I interrupted, popping Beatrice's bubble.

"Like for real?" She lifted her brow in surprise, getting off the counter.

"Then if he's not fixing your pipes, who is? Do we have another plumber here in Green Hills?" She questioned, interfering in my personal matter.

Just to get her to stop talking about Theodore, I told her that I was the one fixing my tubes myself.

On hearing this, Beatrice bursted into laughter and asked, "Are you crazy or what? Tell me you're joking please."

"I'm not," I responded, finding her reaction offensive.

But that didn't matter to Beatrice one bit. She suddenly stopped laughing and hovered her eyes at me, making me uncomfortable.

"I think you really are stupid, Tara." She tilted her head, insulting me.

"A woman doing a man's job? What makes you think you're any better than Theodore?" She spoke harshly, leaving me unease.

I swayed my head with a smile and said, "I didn't say I was better than him, I only told you that..."

"Stop wasting your time, pretty girl. You can't prove anything by making yourself a female plumber here in this town. That work belongs to one man alone and that's Theodore."

"Geez, I didn't say I was going to take his job. I'm only fixing my house pipes and no one else!" I corrected, stunned by this psycho fan.

She's acting like a freak.

Beatrice smiled and said, " Word of advice from a fellow lady. It's best you call the big dog to handle the work. You're only get wounded."

Astonished by her action, I carefully placed the money on the counter and asked for my change.

Beatrice chuckled and walked over to the other side to get it.

Now I didn't feel comfortable here. I felt like running away.

Suddenly, I heard the entrance door opening. When Beatrice turned to look, there was a glow in her eyes which showed how excited she was to see whoever it was that was behind me.

When she mentioned the name, "Theodore!" My whole body quivered!

I turned around and found the plumber running his hand in his hair to dust the little snow away. When his attention fell on me, he stared in surprise.

"You?" He uttered, looking into my eyes.

I couldn't respond. I just turned away, feeling my heart racing.

"Damn it! Why did he have to show up?" I grumbled, waiting for Beatrice to give me my change so I'd leave.

But Miss Psycho Fan ran over to Theodore and jumped right into his arms, welcoming him to the store.

"I've missed you so much! You won't believe the gist I have for you," She said, simpering at me.

Getting uncomfortable, I decided to leave when Beatrice suddenly exposed my plans to Theodore, making fun of me.

"Can you imagine that joke? She says she's going to fix her pipes herself! She's now a plumber," She laughed out annoyingly.

"Fix it herself, huh?" Theodore gazed at me, with a smile creepy to the side.

Not ready for his drama, I left my change with Beatrice and took the parts with me.

Just as I was heading out of the store, Theodore reminded me of the time left. "It's okay to feel ashamed and accept defeat. I can still consider you for the sake of Mrs Amelia just give up." He chuckled.

I didn't allow his words to get to me. I angrily left that place and drove back home to continue with my work.

In anger, I almost ruined the sink tubes but maintained myself. I could feel my eyes welling with tears. My heart was aching with sadness.

I... I felt so helpless and lonely from within.

"Fred," I called my late husband's name, missing that man so much.

If only he was alive, I wouldn't be here spending my Christmas around people like Theodore and Beatrice.

If only my Fred was with me, he'd have solved this mess on his own.

"Tara?" My mother in-law called.

I lifted my teary eyes at her and she fell weak on seeing them.

She came up to me and pulled me in for an embrace.