What are Friends For?

Travis had no idea where he was going when the left the gates of Glenridge Station, he sped down the road thinking of where Jan could have gone the only close friend she had made was Toni Roberts, he turned around and drove to the Roberts place, if he saw her car in the drive he’d stop if not he had no idea in hell what to do.

He pulled up in the drive behind Jan’s car and sat for a minute; this was an awkward situation, Travis was a very private man. He gripped the steering wheel, he should have handled it better he knew that and would have given time…if she hadn’t run off.

He rang the bell and the door was opened by Richie.

“Hey Rich, Jan’s here?”

“Uh yeah, she’s upstairs with Toni come on in.”

“Sorry about this, Jan and I had a little…”

“Yeah I know about them…wanna drink?”

“I’d like to have my wife.”

“So would I…not yours…mine.”

“Well do you think you might go up and tell her I’m here.”

Richie blinked a couple of times, “yeah I can do that.”

Richie knocked on the bedroom door, “Toni would you open the door?”

“Go away.”

“Travis is downstairs and wants to see Jan.”

“That’s too bad she doesn’t want to see him right now we’re talking.”

He tried the door and it was locked as he suspected. Running his hand through his hair he went back down stairs.

“They’re talking…door is locked.” Richie went to the liquor cabinet and poured himself a drink, “sure you won’t have one.”

Travis thought Richie looked like hell, “yeah might as well. Sorry to bring this to your door tonight Richie, she told me something tonight and I didn’t react very well, probably said some things I shouldn’t have.”

Richie flopped down in a chair, “must be something in the air,” he took a long swallow of his drink.

“We’ve uh been trying to have a baby, only Jan can’t get pregnant because of a past botched job, she didn’t tell me and has been going around to some quack doctors trying to get herself fixed I only found out tonight.” Travis took a drink.

Richie stared at him knocked his drink back and got up and poured another.

Travis looked around the room and back to Richie, “maybe Toni can talk some sense into her.”

Richie met his eyes.

“What’s going on Richie?” Travis had a feeling Richie was about to come apart.

Richie stared into his drink, “Toni wants to have a baby, I had a vasectomy several years before I met her…I never told her. I was going to get it reversed after we married but…I didn’t. I had to tell her that tonight.”

Travis stared at him and got up pacing back and forth, “You’re a class one shit Rich.”

“I know.”

Travis finished his drink and poured another, “You’ve got a fine woman up there mate, you’re about to fuck around and lose her. So I guess she’s in the right frame of mind to talk to Jan…we’re both fucked.”

“I’m just…I don’t know what to do…I told her I’d get it reversed this week…she’s pissed and has every right to be, she’s not talking to me…told me to get out.”

“What the hell were you thinking didn’t you think she’d wonder why she wasn’t getting pregnant?”

“She was uh on the pill.”

“Somebody ought to beat the shit out of you, I’d do it myself but I got my own set of problems to work out.”

“What are you gonna do?”

“Take her to the best in that field and find out if something can be done, if it can’t then there won’t be any children. I can live with that. It was the fact that she lied to me and didn’t tell me about going to see these quacks that set me off. I’ll do whatever it takes to fix my problem but you…damn man you better pony up and get your shit straight.”

“Kinda hard to do when she won’t talk to me.”

“What the hell Rich did they cut your damn balls off? You’d better gather up whatever you got left and go up there and fix it. Locked doors ain’t shit man, you have to look her in the eye and talk sense. “

“Like you’re doing right now eh Travis?”

“You want the damn door opened?” Travis set his drink down.”This is not my house but I’d be glad to oblige.”

Richie stood up so many emotions running through him, guilt, anger at himself, remorse and although he knew Travis was probably right he wanted to punch his lights out. “You leave my fuckin’ doors alone.”

Travis eyed him and took a breath, “I think we both need to calm down…we got a similar problem only it’s reversed, I can understand where Toni’s coming from she’s hurt.”

“I imagine Jan is awfully sorry Travis, in my case sorry doesn’t seem to be enough.”

“You want me to talk to her?”

“You…what makes you think she’ll talk to you?”

“We’ve got common ground and we both think you’re an asshole.” Travis grinned.

Richie ran his hand over his face, “yeah go ahead if she’ll speak to you.”

“If I’m not back in fifteen minutes…”

“Yeah…rescue..”