She closed the apartment door and left Kelly to his dreams. Tugging at the band in her hair, she let the ponytail loose. It felt good to let her hair down. She scratched at her scalp with her fingernails. That felt even better. She untied her apron, rolled it into a ball, and tossed it into the basket for the laundering service.

Brad was at the counter. His brown eyes sparkled, and his mouth curved into a grin when he saw her. "Hi, Jackie."

"Hi, Brad." It left her mouth in a whisper. She was glad to see him. "I didn't know you were here."

"I just got here." 

"Can I get you anything?" she asked, starting to walk behind the bar. She glanced at the coffee machine to make sure there was still coffee left from lunch. There was. “Coffee?”

"No, not really," he answered. "I thought you might want to go for a drive. That is if you're able," he added.

She stared at him, her mind whirling. Of course, she wanted to go. Her eyes glanced longingly outside the windows. It seemed forever since she last ventured out. But she couldn't possibly leave Kelly alone.

"No," she finally said.

His face fell.

"I mean, well, I mean Kelly isn't feeling very well, and to be honest with you, he scared me so bad today I just can't leave him by himself." 

"Kelly's sick?" Brad asked, turning toward the apartment door. "What's wrong with him? Anything I can do to help?"

"I don't think so. I think he's finally asleep."

"But you're still worried about him."

"I'm always worried about him." She walked behind the counter and held up the coffee pot. This time Brad accepted, so she grabbed two cups, set them on the counter, and poured the steaming liquid into them. She replaced the carafe and joined Brad at the counter.

"Tell me what happened."

"He had chest pains. I thought I was going to lose him."

"They were that bad?"

"We were sitting here talking, and all of a sudden, his face turned gray. He couldn’t breathe. It was terrible. I've never seen anyone like that. I didn't know what to do."

"Maybe I should take a look at him?" 

"You don't have to. I'm sure he's fine now. But I don't want to leave the diner."

"I guess you're right," Brad agreed. "I wish he would see a doctor. It's just that phobia he has against them."

Jackie smiled. "I kind of guessed that. I'm not allowed to tell him what to eat or how much."

"Did he also tell you how stubborn he can be?"

"He didn't have to. I've been finding that out on my own."

"And those cigars," Brad shuddered.

Jackie giggled. "I've already gotten the lecture about cigars. He's made it clear that he is not changing for anyone."

"I guess I could stay with you, that is, if you don't mind the company?"

Jackie's heart lifted. "I wouldn't mind," she said.

Brad nodded as he sipped at his coffee.

"Kelly says he's known you for a long time?"

"Yeah, seems like forever. I used to come in here when I was a kid. Kelly would give me and my brother and sister free ice cream cones. We loved it when Mom and Dad came to town. We always came here for lunch."

Jackie watched his lips as he talked. They were full and looked very soft. They came together at a cupid's bow at the top of his mouth. His teeth were perfectly straight and very white, and he had a beautiful smile. She grew slightly warm, watching his mouth form the words. Her heart was picking up in rhythm, and her breathing grew shallow. She took a deep breath to slow her heart, then picked up her coffee cup.

". . . came in the diner."

"What?" Jackie's focus returned to the conversation, and she realized she had missed part of what Brad said.

He nodded, smiling at her startled expression. "I was at the counter with Kelly the night you came in the diner. We were getting ready to play chess, the big tiebreaker. You ruined our game."

"That was you?" she asked, burying her face in her hands. "Oh, I could just die."

Brad leaned closer to her and put one hand on her arm. The electric shock from his fingertips traveled through her at his touch.

"Jackie," he whispered. "I was just kidding about the game."

She looked directly at him. Her face a bright red. His expression was so profound it made her want to laugh. "I'm sorry," she giggled. "I wasn't talking about the game."

"Oh."

"I must have looked awful!"

Brad's eyes lit up. "Oh, no," he said. "You didn't look awful at all. I felt sorry for you. You looked so wet and cold and alone. And you had this picture in your hand. It shocked the bejesus out of Kelly."

"Kelly and my dad during the war," she told him. "Kelly had it framed, and it's on his dresser. I told him he could keep it."

Brad nodded silently, wanting her to go on, afraid if he spoke again, he would break the spell, and she would withdraw back into her shell.

When she did speak again, her voice was low, and Brad had to lean closer to hear her.

"They were in that terrible war together. There were eight men. A Japanese fighter pilot shot down their plane. They spent eighteen days floating on a life raft in the Pacific Ocean. Living off crackers and dead fish." Jackie shivered at the thought.

"That was your dad?" Brad couldn't help but interrupt.

"You've heard the story then?"

"Heard it a million times," he laughed. "Kelly loves to tell that story to anyone that will listen. He told me that one of the men saved his life when the plane went down. He was caught upside down in the water, and the chair strap wouldn't come undone. The guy worked the chair belt until it finally came loose, and he got Kelly to the surface. Sounded pretty scary. As a matter of fact, I remember Kelly saying the guy's name was Jack."

Jackie's eyes grew wide as she stared at him. Was this possible?

"Yep, the old gang, Kelly calls them. You know," Brad swiveled his chair around to face her. "They still all get together once a year, the ones that are left, that is. They all chip in and rent a condo or a cottage or something like that. Kelly lives for those days."

Jackie felt her heart skip a beat. "He leaves the diner?"

"Sure," Brad nodded. "They make a week of it. I guess they have a ball. You didn't know about that? I mean, with your dad and all?"

She lowered her eyes and stared at her hands holding the cup of coffee. "If my father ever went, I would have been too young to remember," she said quietly.

Brad silently kicked himself. He could almost see her shrinking back behind the safety of the shell she had built around herself. She had so much as admitted that her father was no longer alive. He wondered about her mother. He wondered again why she was with Kelly and why Kelly didn't know who she was. And why Kelly hadn't told her about the survivor’s reunion. He would want to prepare her. It was one of the most significant events of his life. Kelly never missed it. Brad had a million questions to ask her, but he said nothing.

"Brad?" 

He raised his dark eyebrows in question.

"When does he go?"

Brad shrugged. "I'm not sure, but sometime in the late fall, but always before Thanksgiving."

It dawned on him that they were sharing the same thought.

It was almost November.

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