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“I helped get you into costume, helped with the sets, that sort of thing. You were a great mentor to the other drama students. You just always seemed so put together. Never anxious about anything.”
“That was my best acting job because I was dying inside from nerves. Same on the basketball court.”
Francine shook her head. “Well, it never showed.” She paused. “And…you saved me once on campus.”
“What?”
“Some asshole attacked me late one night. Stupidly, I was there late by myself. The guy jumped me. He had my blouse halfway off when—”
“Oh my God. I drilled him in the face with a basketball. I was coming back from practicing three-pointers by myself in the gym. That was you? You ran off. And so did he.”
“I was scared and embarrassed and, I don’t know, just messed up. I left Temple right after that and reinvented myself, put those walls up, like you said. The intervening years sort of raced by.”
“Until you came back into my life.”
“Hardly in a way you wanted. I’m sorry for all that I did. I’m sorry for all that I said and thought about you. It was…I was…so wrong about everything.”
Gibson gripped her hand. “Francine, after all that you went through, the fact that you’re even functioning is a damn miracle.”
Francine glanced away, watching the children again. Tommy was running in circles, and Darby was doing awkward forward rolls and coming up laughing after each one.
Perhaps reading her mind, Gibson said, “You know, you can adopt. You’ll be a rich single mom, the world at your feet.”
Francine shook her head. “You’re clearly mother material. I don’t think I am.”
“I never thought I would be. You sort of grow into it.” She glanced at Tommy, who was now seeing how loudly he could burp while Darby egged him on by laughing uproariously. “And here I am raising two Einsteins of my very own.”
Francine gave Gibson a mischievous look. “They’re going to end up ruling the world and you know it.”
“With an aunt like you teaching them, they probably will.”
Francine gaped. “Aunt?”
“I have two brothers who can’t even dress themselves. You think I’m letting them be role models? It’s all yours if you want it.”
“Mickey, I don’t know what kind of a role model I would be to anyone, much less your kids.”
“First of all, it’s high time you called me Mick, which is what the people I care about call me. And second, you don’t have to decide right now. And last but not least, I think you’d be a great example to them. I don’t really care about the stuff you did back then.” She looked over at Francine’s mother and brother. “What I care about is that you have a heart, a big one. And in the end, you did the right thing.”
“We did make a pretty good team,” noted Francine.
“I think the term you’re looking for isworld class. And there is a lot to be said for doing something interesting and worthwhile with your life.”
Francine said, “I have always doneinterestingthings, but I don’t know how worthwhile they’ve been.”
“Life is but a series of second chances.”
“Do you really think so?”
“It’s just a matter of whether the will is there.” She paused. “So do we perform our next act together?”
In answer, Francine held out her hand, which Gibson shook.
“I think that we do,Mick.”
