Before The Sun Sets

Chapter 2

TWO

Linda sat Matthew down on the kitchen counter. She used a clean washcloth on his face and hands. He squirmed but let her clean him up.

“What do you want to do today?”

The boy shrugged, his eyes focused on his spread, clean, fingers. “Something fun,” he said.

“Something fun like what?”

He wiggled as he shook his head. “I don’t know.”

James told Linda to enjoy her day off. She worked in the emergency room as a registered nurse at Highland. She mostly worked the graveyard shift. A few twelve hours days on, a few off. It balanced to just over forty hours a week. The days she worked, she was able to get home before her husband left for work. This was important. Neither wanted Matthew in daycare if they could help it. Soon he would be in school. She hated wishing time away. However, the idea of getting home from a long shift at the hospital and climbing right into bed sounded wonderful.

Days off were no vacation. Things needed doing, especially laundry. The three of them created mounds and mounds. Thankfully, James did his share of the housework. They were a traditional couple. They both worked so they both pitched in. James loved cooking. He made most of the meals. She teased him often on how Pinterest was his go-to for creative recipes. He’d keep the tablet on a stand propped on the kitchen counter when cooking dinner. Between Pinterest and YouTube, he was becoming a master chef home cook. She threatened to film him working his kitchen magic and submitting the video as an audition tape for one of the competition shows on Food Network.

“Tell you what,” she said.

He stared right into his mother’s eyes. “What?”

“Let me throw some clothes into the washing machine, and wash these dishes, and then you and I can go to the mall.”

“Go to the mall?”

He didn’t sound enthusiastic about the outing. She couldn’t blame him. The truth was she wanted to get some steps in. She was on her feet all day at work. She averaged over 15,000 steps per shift. So, on her days off she felt somewhat compelled to keep it up. She dropped most of the weight from when she’d been pregnant. The nagging few remaining held on in places she couldn’t seem to work off.

Her figure was important to her. James kept himself in good shape. He didn’t have a baby though. She might have to work twice as hard at it, but letting herself go flabby was not in the cards. Not to mention she felt better when she exercised. “Tell you what,” she said again, but this time she was ready to sweeten the deal.

“What?” He looked over her shoulder. Something stole his interest. She was losing him.

“How about when we get to the mall we ride the merry-go-round?”

“Merry-go-round?” Matthew did not hide the awe in his tone of voice. It was as if the musical ride held some kind of magical properties he was anxious to explore. She knew it would recapture his attention.

“You can ride any of the animals you want. Which animal would you like to ride?”

“Giraffe!”

She picked him up and carried him with her into the basement. Most of the time he wouldn’t let her carry him anywhere. He preferred walking around on his own. The few chances he allowed it she cherished the opportunity. “The giraffe?”

“And, the horsey.”

“I like the horses.”

“And Mom? Can I ride the lion?”

“You can ride any animal you want. How does that sound?” She set him down. The finished basement had something of a play area. Carpeting and a sofa. There was an old flat-screen television. She put on cartoons and then sighed as she stared at the pile of dirty laundry. Without knowing for certain, she suspected there was clean clothing still in the dryer. That would need another cycle because she was certainly in no mood to iron anything. Fortunately, James took his dress shirts and suits to a dry cleaner.

Outside, and in the distance, she heard thunder rolling. “Well, Matthew, it looks like we might be in for a little storm.”

“Yeah,” he said. He was rocking himself on the small sofa, hands clasped together in his lap. “In for a little storm.”

Mentally, Linda rolled up her sleeves and went to work on sorting whites from colored.

Sorting the laundry took longer than expected, but once she got a load into the washer and the washer started, she relished the sense of accomplishment. Taking Matthew upstairs, she decided she would quickly wash the breakfast dishes. It would take two minutes, and when they got home from the mall she wouldn’t regret not having done them first.

When she finished the dishes the idea of running the vacuum around the living room quickly made sense. It was raining hard, she wasn’t thrilled about taking Matthew out in the rain. She would, but maybe it the downpour would die down in a half-hour. As long as Matthew was being good, she figured taking advantage of his patience was an ideal opportunity. If she was lucky, the rain might stop altogether.