Mending Broken Flowers

Carmen was saddened when Gabriel told her what Reynold had to say.

"So, you go to see her?" Carmen quietly asked.

"No; pulled this shit on me before," Gabriel reminded her.

"Gabriel, she's your mother," Carmen said.

"And? Oh, and by the way, how's YOUR mother, huh? Talk to her lately?" Gabriel asked.

"That is different and you know it!" Carmen hissed.

"Uh huh," Gabriel said and slammed out of the living room.

There was an icy silence between the two for the entire week; Gabriel was happy to be back on the road, even if it was a short one to Pennsylvania.

----

"Hello, um, is Gabriel there?" a female voice quietly asked.

"Nope, sorry, he's out on the road, help you?" Carmen said into the telephone.

"Um, you know when, um, when is he getting back?" the voice asked.

"Sunday, I think, is there anything I can help you with?" Carmen asked.

"Please, please, just tell him that his momma's getting real bad and she keeps begging for him," the voice choked out. "Tell him, please tell him this ain't a joke, this ain't a trick this time; she's really bad."

Carmen slowly put the phone down.

"I know what you said, Gabriel, but that woman was crying for real," she said aloud.

Carmen picked the phone up and called the warehouse.

"Pops, this is Carmen, no, no, I'm not going to leave Gabriel and run off to Tahiti with you," Carmen smiled. "Listen, there any way you can send Gabriel down to Bender? Or some place near there?" Carmen asked the dispatcher.

----

Gabriel stared at the dispatcher for a long moment.

"No," he finally said.

"Um, no?" the dispatcher asked, eyes wide with surprise.

"You heard me, no, I will not run down to Baggett's; find another driver," Gabriel said.

"Son, what? I mean, really? They're offering a bonus get this down there before Wednesday; you're going right by there, what the fuck, huh?" the dispatcher asked.

"What part of 'NO' do you not understand?" Gabriel asked, turned and hoisted himself up into his truck.

"Son, I don't know what got your panties and a wad but we need that shit down in what the fuck is the name of that piss ass town? Bender, and we need it there on or before Wednesday; you are sitting right there, next truck I can get up there won't be until Monday, just do the fucking job," Pops screamed into the phone.

After a not very thinly veiled threat of never giving him another run, and making sure that no other trucking company would ever give him another run Gabriel agreed to let the warehouse load the trailer.

"Address is..." the dispatcher said.

"I know the fucking address; my father and grandfather worked there," Gabriel snarled.

----

Gabriel pulled into the lot and looked around.

The building had changed, and then he remembered the fire. It had destroyed the old building.

Thankfully, though, the loading docks were in the same place. He had no difficulty in backing the trailer to the gate and swung his legs down and stretched.

"Any problems?" Ed Baggett asked, smiling.

"No sir," Gabriel said, looking at the tall man.

"Um, you're um, you're Ed Baggett, right?" Gabriel asked.

"Yes sir," Ed agreed.

"Used to work with my Paw-paw, John? John Young?" Gabriel smiled.

"Holy shit!" Ed laughed and grabbed the man in a bear hug. "You? You're Gabie? Little Gabriel Young? Well, Gabriel Florez after Little Eddie adopted you, you? Oh my God!"

Ed laughed happily.

"Well, damn, if ever I needed proof I'm getting old, this is it!" Ed laughed. "How are you, boy?"

"I'm good, I'm good," Gabriel smiled happily, lost in memories of his loving Paw-paw.

"Come on in, don't know how much you remember of the old place; it's changed quite a bit since your Paw-paw and me worked the midnight shift together, oh my God, son! I remember when you were in diapers!" Ed said and ushered Gabriel in through a side the place had changed considerably, but the noise hadn't, the controlled chaos hadn't.

"Hey, Daphne, come see," Ed happily called out. "Want you to meet my wife, Daphne, hear?"

Gabriel was about to comment that he remembered Ed's wife's name as Jamie, but bit down on that remark as a stunning six foot tall red head came over to greet them.

Even though it was the first time she met him, Daphne greeted Gabriel with a warm hug.

"So, your Paw-paw taught Big Eddie the ropes here, huh?" Daphne smiled playfully, snuggling against Ed Baggett.

"Big Eddie?" Gabriel smiled.

"Damn it woman!" Ed smiled as she laughed happily.

Daphne was the one that brought Gabriel the signed docket and smiled.

"Really wasn't expecting this until next Monday, but that's fine, ain't like it'll go to waste," she said.

"Um, so this stuff about it HAD to be here by Wednesday?" Gabriel asked, looking at the paperwork.

"No," Daphne looked puzzled.

"Never mind; I think I'll be killing my roommate when I get home," Gabriel smiled tightly.

"I'm sure his intentions were good," Daphne smiled. "Probably thought it'd do your heart good to see the old home town. Sure did Big Eddie some good seeing you.

"Her. And yeah, and Mr. Jake and Mr. Bill, too," Gabriel agreed, nodding toward two middle aged men. "They remembered my Paw-paw too."

"So, take it easy on her, huh?" Daphne smiled, gave him another hug and sent him on his way.

----

"So, have any idea where my mother is?" Gabriel asked when Carmen answered the telephone.

"No, how would I know?" Carmen asked, guardedly.

"Because you set this whole thing up," Gabriel accused. "You knew ain't a damned thing Pops won't do for you; you had him send me down here for no damned good reason."

"No, but I can find out," Carmen said and hung up.

"Three minutes later, she called him back.

"Pine Grove, in..." Carmen said.

"Ellgee, Highway fifty four," Gabriel said tiredly.

"Well you knew that, why'd you ask?" Carmen said.

"Uh huh; you and me going to have some talking to do when I get back, you hear?" Gabriel said.

"Hey, listen," she snapped. I did it because someone needed to, all right? Someone needed to pull your head out of your ass, all right?"

"Uh huh," he sighed and hung up.

"Oh, she'll be so excited!" the cheerful nurse bubbled as she rang the desk in the third wing.

"Yes?" a metallic voice crackled.

"Um, Mrs. Florez? Her son is here to see her," the nurse cheerfully called out.

"Visiting hours are... Oh! Her son? Oh, okay, I'll send Rodriguez to get him; thank you," the metallic voice crackled.

"Like I don't know when visiting hours are, huh?" the nurse giggled at Gabriel.

They heard a voice page for Benny Rodriguez.

"Man, the minute I go outside to smoke, huh?" a small man came bustling in. "Hey I need to use your phone, okay?"

"No, this guy here's why they're paging you," the nurse said, pointing to Gabriel.

"Come on, Benny," Gabriel smiled. "I saw a coffee pot over here; you go finish your smoke and I'll have a cup of coffee, all right?"

"You all right," Benny smiled and turned around. "I'll be back in a minute, huh?"

"Found him," the nurse informed the intercom speaker.

"Good, let me guess, outside smoking?" the metallic voice crackled.

Gabriel was throwing the cup of coffee away (it was horrible) when Benny came up.

"Um, you do know smoking's going to stunt your growth," Gabriel said as the small man led him down a maze of corridors.

"Yeah and I really don't need yet another thing to suck on," Benny agreed.

"Thanks for that mental image, Amigo," Gabriel smiled.

"So how long you been a trucker?" Benny asked. "That is your rig outside, huh?"

"Going on four years," Gabriel nodded.

"Oh? Ever been to San Diego?" Benny asked and paused in front of a door.

"Nope, can't say that I have," Gabriel smiled and took a deep breath, counted to ten, then knocked.

The woman that lay in the bed shocked Gabriel, even though he had prepared himself for it. Her skin, where it wasn't gray, was criss-crossed by visible veins. Her blue eyes were flat, lifeless. Her long blonde hair had been cut close to her head. And was more gray than blonde

Her face was hideously swollen, as were her arms and hands, legs and feet.

"Fluid build up, the nurse cheerfully said, took some more vital signs, then left.

"Hey, I'm here," Gabriel quietly said.

She mumbled something unintelligible.

"What?" he asked, still standing close to her bed?

She made a great effort, swinging her right arm and finally managed to pull herself up slightly."

Again, she mumbled the unintelligible message and grew angry when he didn't responded.

She slapped the table next to her several times, angrily.

Benny stuck his head in.

"Everything okay? She does that when she's upset," Benny said.

"No, she's trying to say something but I have no idea what she's saying," Gabriel admitted, tears in his eyes.

"Mrs. Florez, can I help you?" Benny asked, approaching the bed.

Again she mumbled, louder, but no more clearly.

"Oh, okay," Benny nodded.

"You understood that?" Gabriel asked.

"A little; you work here long enough, you get to where you pick up bits and pieces," Benny agreed.

----

Finally, Gabriel left the nursing home, drained.

Through Benny, Gabriel had understood that Annie was begging for forgiveness and begging that Gabriel forgive Lily as well.

"She says 'please, it is very important you go see Lily; she is at the shop,' you know where the shop is?" Benny translated.

"Yeah, I know where the fucking shop is," Gabriel growled.

"She says..." Benny listened then shook his head no. "Some lawyer, I don't understand his name, but some lawyer; he has all the papers for you."

"Mr. Johnson?" Gabriel asked and Annie feebly grunted and wobbled her head up and down.

Benny listened as she grunted some more.

"She's leaving everything to you. You were a good son and she never took the time to tell you, you were a good boy and she was always very proud of you and she is sorry she never told you," Benny said.

"Would have been nice to hear every now and then, instead of 'you're just like your father,'" Gabriel snapped.

Annie hung her head in shame.

"I mean, damn it Mom, yeah, I might have been just like him, but I was also just like you, you know? Too God damned pig headed for my own fucking well, just like you," Gabriel said loudly."

Hey, hey, we got people, like their peace and quiet, okay?" Benny said.

"Sorry," Gabriel apologized.

Annie grunted some more.

"She says that's why you need to go to the shop and see Lily; you don't need keep making same mistake," Benny said.

"No, Mom, seeing Lily would be a mistake," Gabriel snapped.

"No, no, no, not seeing Lily is bigger mistake," Annie grunted and Benny translated.

"Okay, its dinner time," an immensely large woman cheerfully called out as she entered the room.

Gabriel climbed up into his truck and wearily pushed the number 2 on his cell phone.

"Hello?" Carmen cautiously answered.

"I just want you to know I fucking hate you," Gabriel sighed into the phone a he started the powerful diesel engine.

"You'll get over it," Carmen said. "Everything all right?"

"Are you fucking listening to me?" Gabriel yelled. "No, everything's not all right!"

He backed the truck up, and then wheeled out of the parking lot.

"And to top it all off, I'm on my way to see Lily," Gabriel yelled. "Are you happy now?"

"Uh no," Carmen said and hung up.

----

Lily stared as a large eighteen wheeler pulled in front of the shop, trailer entirely blocking off her parking lot. For a moment, it looked as if the truck were about to smash through the front of the store.

"Hey, you can't park..." she said as the tall, good looking truck driver ambled into the shop.

Gabriel smirked; the door chimed when he opened it. He had tried and tried to get his mother to invest in the electronic door chime, rather than the little bell she'd looped on the door handle.

"We don't need to waste all kind of money on that; that bell works just fine," Annie had snarled.

On the counter, in front of the angry looking woman, where the old cash register used to be, sat a computer monitor.

"Cash register works just fine; we don't need one of them fancy ass computers," Annie had scoffed. "Why? Then when we have one of them crashes we can lose everything?"

"You back up the data, Mom, you put the data onto these discs, leave them at the house; that way you'll always have a back up," Gabriel had explained.

It got vetoed down; to Annie it just sounded like extra work.

"Looking for Lily," Gabriel said.

"Oh my God," Lily whispered.

"Lily?" Gabriel asked.

The face was the same, even down to the angry scowl she gave him when he first entered the shop.

But her hair was a soft red color. She'd always had reddish streaks in her hair before, but this woman's hair was entirely red; even her thin eyebrows were reddish.

Her breasts were a nice handful; Lily's chest was barely more than swells on her chest. Her nipples had been the only reason Lily had needed a bra; they were easily excited and would push out, announcing their presence to whomever looked.

Her waist was a small one; Lily's waist had been as wide as her hips.

And the hips this short woman sported looked very well proportioned.

"Gabriel?" the woman whispered again, slowly walking toward him. "Please, please, don't run away, please, just let me..."

Lily reached the tall man and slowly put her arms around him.

"Oh my God, oh, Gabriel," she sighed and nestled her head against his chest.

It was Lily; Lily had felt exactly like that when she and Gabriel would hold each other. Gabriel slowly put his ms around her and held her.

He felt her shaking, and then could feel the wetness against his skin.

"I know it's too late to say it, but Gabriel, I am so sorry," Lily finally choked out. "I was such a stupid, stupid bitch; Gabriel, you were the best, the most loving and I just, Baby, I am so sorry."

He couldn't think of anything to say; his mind was a complete fog.

"Um, so, um, when'd you dye your hair?" he finally asked.

That's it?" she giggled. "Five years and that's all you got? When did you dye your hair?"

"Um, sorry," Gabriel mumbled.

"Didn't; pregnancy," Lily smiled and wiped her nose with the back of her hand.

"My hormones went nuts; I always had a lot of red in it, but at about six, seven months, it just got darker and darker and, oh, and I'm sure you noticed..." she said and backed up slightly and pointed at her chest.

"Um, yeah, noticed them," Gabriel admitted.

"Yeah, when I saw them beginning to blow up, I was like, 'Damn, should have gotten knocked up years ago!'" Lily smiled and pulled herself closer to Gabriel again

"Oh, come on there's some, you got to see them, I want you to meet two of the sweetest little girls in the world," Lily said and grabbed his hand...

Gabriel dug his heels in and did not budge.

"Two?" he asked, bitterness oozing out.

Bad enough she ran out that one night and got pregnant, but now she had another kid.

"Come on," she quietly ordered.

He set his jaw tightly but allowed her to drag him into the back of the shop.

Two blonde haired girls looked up when their mother entered the back, pulling a tall man with her.

"Gabrielle, Daisy, this is your daddy," Lily said.

She turned and glared up into Gabriel's astonished face.

"Yes, I said 'daddy,' you can get a DNA test you want, but they are your daughters," Lily said. "Gabriel, only one man has ever touched me and only one man ever will."

"I um, I don't need a DNA test," Gabriel muttered as two four year old girls regarded him warily.

They were twins, and they looked exactly like he had when he was four, except with longer hair.

"Girls, I said, this is your daddy. What do you say?" Lily said.

"Hello," the two girls mumbled.

"Gabrielle and Daisy?" Gabriel asked Lily.

"Yes sir," the two girls answered.

Gabrielle Anita Florez and Daisy Anita Florez," Lily said.

"That's terrible!" Gabriel smiled. "Their initials are Gaf and Daf!"

"They are not!" Gabrielle yelled.

"Don't tease them," Lily said, mother instinct ramping up quickly.

"I'm not teasing them, Gabriel said, getting down onto his knees so that he could look closer at the two girls.

"So, which one of you likes big trucks?" he asked.

"Me, me, me," they both said, jumping up and down.

"Which one of you has ever been in a big truck?" Gabriel asked.

"Um," both girls hesitated.

"Neither one of you," Lily smiled.

Um, Mommy says we haven't," Gabrielle said.

"Seems I named the wrong one Gabrielle and the wrong one Daisy," Lily smiled. "You remember? You never said a word and Daisy never shut up."

"Nope, I think you named them just right," Gabriel smiled.

"Hey Lily, there's some big old truck blocking the..." Jeanette said, bustling into the back room.

"Oh my God," she whispered when Gabriel peered at her over his shoulder.

"Hey," he said.

"Is it really..." Jeanette stuttered.

"Come on," Lily ushered Jeanette out into the front of the shop.

"Um, I um, I really don't know what to say to you; I didn't even know anything about you," Gabriel admitted.

"Well, that's okay; we know all about you, Mommy and Maw-maw told us," Gabrielle said solemnly.

"They said you're the most wonderful man in the world," Daisy chimed in.

"And they said you're real smart too," Gabrielle said.

"Can't be that smart I didn't know about you," Gabriel said.

"I tried to tell you," Lily said quietly. "But you were too angry."

"Let's not bring that up right now, huh?" Gabriel said forcefully.

His heart actually hurt when both girls backed away from him.

"No, no, Daddy's not mad at you; he's mad at something your mommy did a long time ago," Lily encouraged.

"Don't be mad at Mommy; she loves you very much," Gabrielle said, rubbing Gabriel's face with her tiny hand.

Gabriel burst into deep racking sobs and hugged the two girls tightly.

----

"I even kept the same apartment, kept hoping you'd come home," Lily said as she unlocked the door.

"God da...bless, I don't remember it being this small!" Gabriel said, looking around.

"When'd you grow the beard?" Lily asked.

"When I started trucking; sometimes go two or three days without shaving, tears your face up when you finally get around to shaving it," Gabriel said, rubbing it. "Why? Like it?"

"No; hate it," Lily admitted.

"Well, boo hoo ain't your face," Gabriel said.

"Nope, sure isn't," Lily agreed. "That's not the face I've been dreaming about, that's for sure."

"Well, um, listen, um, I'm sure y'all got stuff y'all need to be doing..." Gabriel said, backing out of the tiny apartment.

"Oh, no, no, you can't leave now!" Lily cried out.

"No, Daddy, you can't leave now!" Gabrielle said, echoing her mother.

"Yeah, you have to play with us!" Daisy concurred.

Lily whipped together a quick meal while Gabriel did his best to lose at Chutes and Ladders.

After a kid-friendly dinner, he and Lily teamed up to lose at Candy land, and Lily ordered both girls to take their bath.

She got out a can of beer and gave it to Gabriel, fixing herself a cup of chamomile tea. Then, while the girls giggled and splashed in the tub, she and Gabriel sat on the small couch.

"Anita?" Gabriel asked. "Why'd you name them both Anita? I mean their middle names?"

"I never did meet her, but I knew you never forgot her," Lily said. "I remembered your valedictorian speech, God what a beautiful speech! I don't think there was a dry eye in that place when you was talking about your baby sister's first steps, or her first words, or her crying because you were going to school and she couldn't go with you."

"They're beautiful, absolutely beautiful," Gabriel said sadly.

"Yes, yes they are," Lily smiled proudly.

He took a sip of beer while she toyed with the teaspoon.