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“Wow, we are all impressed,” he said. “So, what’s your secret?”
“There is no secret. We just happen to get along really well with each other.”
“And she started out as his nanny,” Gary pointed out. That bastard loved to mess with me sometimes. But fine. I could take some good natured ribbing. No problem. I wasn’t some little delicate flower that was going to shrivel up and die if I didn’t get the proper treatment.
The guys howled with laughter. “The nanny! Damn! That is hot!” “Way to go man!” “Respect.”
I rolled my eyes. Sometimes I couldn’t believe that I actually worked with these animals.
We played another round of basketball before I called it quits and headed home. I was tired. For some reason we had decided to get together to play ball at eight that morning, and I was already starting to get tired. I hadn’t slept well the past few nights and I wasn’t really sure why. I kept waking up at odd hours and then I had trouble getting back to sleep. It wasn’t like me. Usually I slept like a rock. Even Julie had noticed it. I was feeling stressed and I had no idea why. My life was going well for the first time in a few years and it had even been a relatively quiet time at work, but I had this sinking feeling deep down inside as if there was something that would take all of it away at any moment.
I’d come to the conclusion that I was scared to death of anything bad happening to Julie, of reliving the past pain. What if I lost her? I’d lost the love of my life once and I wasn’t sure I would ever actually get over it. What if this sort of thing happened again? Maybe I was cursed, doomed to spend the rest of my life alone. I wasn’t supposed to be totally happy. Happiness to a firefighter could be a dangerous thing. If you had too much to live for, it could make you timid and hesitant which could get you or someone else killed very quickly. This world, this life of a fireman, was no joke.
When I got home, Julie and Zoe were finger-painting in the kitchen. Zoe had paint on her apron and a bit on the sides of her sweet little face. Her eyes lit up with glee when she saw me come into the kitchen. She ran to hug me, being careful to not get paint on me, which I thought was pretty good for her. Normally, she never would have given a thought to how dirty she might actually make me. After hugging me, she went right back to her finger-painting. I laughed at how adorable she was.
Julie hugged me and gave me a kiss, ignoring the fact that I was still pretty sweaty. “Did you have fun?” she asked me.
“Yes,” I said. “It was fun, especially when the other guys started teasing me about dating a woman so much younger than me.”
Julie looked shocked and slightly offended. “What did they say?”
“Oh, just stupid guy stuff. Nothing bad. It’s their way of telling me that they actually think it’s awesome and when they are my age they hope they are cool enough to get a beautiful, younger woman who happens to be amazing at everything.”
“Ok, now I’m worried that you guys did a bunch of drugs instead of basketball,” Julie joked.
“That isn’t nice. You need to learn to accept compliments better, honey.”
She playfully stuck out her tongue at me.
I took a quick shower and changed my clothes while Julie got Zoe cleaned up so we could go get some ice cream and head to the park. I made sure to bring a few Frisbees along (Zoe’s favorite game in the world) and we headed off to the park. It was a warm, bright, sunny day and the park was packed with people. Luckily, it was early enough that we were still able to find a clearing and set ourselves up in a spot that was just shady enough for us to have some space alone. Julie and I played Frisbee with Zoe for a while. My daughter was a natural at the game. She could catch it behind her head, behind her back, and she was even trying to do trick throws such as overhand so that the Frisbee spun like a knife being thrown.
It was all beautiful. I loved spending time with my daughter and it was even more special now that Julie was there with us. It really did feel like we were a family again. No one would ever replace Amanda as Zoe’s mother, and I could see that my daughter had finally accepted that. But Julie was there and she loved Zoe. My daughter had a great friend in her and I knew in time that this friendship would only grow and blossom into something even stronger and more special. That meant everything to me. Zoe and I were a package deal and anyone who came into our lives had to understand that. Julie knew that from the start and she instantly bonded with my little girl.
As I watched the two of them playing together with the Frisbee, and the swings, and even having a monkey bar race, I knew that this was the most perfect thing I ever could have asked for and the timing had become absolutely ideal.
When we got home that night and tucked Zoe into bed, Julie and I went back downstairs to watch some television and just relax for a bit. I was putting some beers in the fridge to get cold when I noticed the drawings on Julie’s sketch pad. I took a few moments to leaf through them and I was amazed at how beautiful the drawings were. She was uniquely gifted. It was spectacular work. This was a level of talent that never should have been denied from public view.
Julie noticed me checking them out. “What do you think?”
The pictures she’d been drawing lately were a wide variety. There were a few landscapes, some more urban settings, and even some pictures of nature. It was almost as if she was putting together a comic book. I could actually envision a story here.
“It’s amazing,” I said. “The level of detail you have in your drawings… wow… I would love to see some of your paintings as well. I’d love to see any pieces of art that you want to show me. This is way better than anything I’ve seen in any galleries I can remember.”
Julie blushed. “You really mean that? Are you sure you aren’t just being biased?”
I smiled and put my arm around her. “Maybe I am being a little bit biased, but so what? It’s my prerogative. And no, I’m totally serious that this is some of the best work I’ve ever seen. Honey, you need to be putting this work out there as much as you can. You should be working around the clock to book showings, hit the internet, and build an audience. I can’t believe that art school ever rejected you.”
Julie nodded. “You really think so? It’s been several years. Maybe I'll apply again there. I’m not sure I can handle that rejection again, though.”
I shook my head. “Forget art school. They had their chance to recognize your talent. Do you really think you have to get that almighty degree?” I asked.
“I’ve thought about it, and no there isn’t anything that says I have to get a degree. It’s more of a prestige thing, but if I want most places like advertising firms to hire me for graphic design, or if I want to teach, then I would need that. There are other avenues I’d need it for as well.”
“But you are a creative artist. You do the art that you want to do. Why would you want to change that?”
She thought for a moment and I could see the wheels turning in her mind. I’d given her a few things to think about. “I guess you are right.”
I rubbed her shoulder gently. “Ultimately it is your decision, but I think you should do what is right in your heart. It won’t ever steer you in the wrong direction. As far as I can see, the world has opened up to allow real artists to broadcast their talents far and wide without any big institution behind them. With your talent, the world should be your oyster. I want that for you. You can do anything.”
