(This is a continuation of a recent Freewrite Friday)
He missed Grace more than Sam. Grace was one of those people you meet, hear their name, and think, that is exactly what you should’ve been named. They used to go out for monthly lunches before she married Sam. He thought of her as big sister as much as Sam–perhaps even more, because Grace actually gave sisterly advice. The problem was Grace didn’t like his wife terribly much. She’d say, “she’s a great girl!” or, “it is so wonderful what she’s been doing with herself.” These were the telltale signs of female dislike. He’d cultivated an understanding of such things over the years of watching one girlfriend after another be skewered by his sisters. All of his brothers understood the language. This made it especially odd when he’d decided to marry Elizabeth anyway.
Elizabeth Stapley-Moss was the most engaging woman Adrian had ever met. From that first date on through the year and a half of courtship he’d been excited about every moment they spent together. He knew these things didn’t last. People get older. The new wears off. He had to wonder when the new wore off him. How long was it until she was looking at him the way people look at a car after its first dent.
The car was another one. His father was a car enthusiast. He did everything in his power to make sure his kids followed the same way of thinking. For High School graduation he bought each kid a partially constructed classic car. The kind of car never came as a surprise. Dad felt like cars were people’s real spirit animals. Every question, every conversation, every choice he and his siblings made growing up led them down a path towards the unfinished heap of metal that would be sitting in the driveway graduation night. His was an AMG Hammer circa 1987–the best of the three model years, according to his dad. It needed a lot of work. German engineering might be the gold standard but finding parts in Iowa was like finding a herd of Unicorns. They worked together for months to get the base set and new tires to match the classic silver rims. All in all it took him and his dad three years to finish the car. Adrian couldn’t remember the last time he drove it.
Adrian couldn’t remember the last time she’d let it sit in the driveway.