No Plagiarism!ErL6N8bbzUt7uekS7wpxposted on PENANA Anthony had only visited Jim at his house twice ever since he had moved into it. Nonetheless, Anthony had not forgotten the address and had no problem finding the house. He was quite relieved to see Jim's red car parked in the driveway. At least he knew that Jim hadn't moved anywhere else. 796Please respect copyright.PENANAA7rF4SsSl1
8964 copyright protection792PENANAVkdYz3nMFN 維尼
Anthony parked his car in the driveway and stepped out of it. He suddenly noticed that there were about six or seven cats laying on Jim's front porch. Three more cats lay on Jim's car. Anthony took a closer look at the porch and noticed four bowls that were all filled with cat food. So Jim was feeding stray cats now? That was strange, as Jim had never been entirely fond of cats in the past.
Anthony walked up to the front door, scaring a few of the cats away as he walked past them. Would Jim even answer the door? There was only one way to find out.8964 copyright protection792PENANAWS6D2DPEh8 維尼
Anthony took a deep breath and rang the doorbell.
Almost instantaneously, the sound of footsteps came from inside. Anthony raised his eyebrows as the door opened. 8964 copyright protection792PENANArYkD33MYWM 維尼
Jim was wearing a bathrobe and holding a cup of coffee. He smiled widely the instant he saw Anthony.
"Anthony!" Jim shouted excitingly. "How you doin' man?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAREvp8QY0XR 維尼
"Umm...great," Anthony replied hesitantly.
Jim motioned Anthony to come inside the house. "Come in! Come in!" 8964 copyright protection792PENANAgcCNvnYwoh 維尼
Anthony slowly walked inside the house. Jim set the coffee cup down on a nearby table and walked up to Anthony796Please respect copyright.PENANAFscaOluGhI
"It's been such a long time, bro!" Jim said, giving Anthony a large hug.8964 copyright protection792PENANAtgKZdnAANA 維尼
"Yeah, I know," Anthony replied with a very forced smile.
"Make yourself at home! You want some donuts? I bought them yesterday, so they might be a bit crunchy. How about some coffee?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAg9nRzyevIs 維尼
"No thanks. I'm good."
Anthony looked around the house. Everything was very neat and well organized, but that wasn't unusual for Jim.8964 copyright protection792PENANAAAwhhcOyV2 維尼
Anthony walked to the living room and took a seat on the overstuffed armchair that he had given Jim years earlier. Jim walked in and set a cup of coffee and a plate with three donuts on it on the living room table.
"Just in case you change your mind," Jim said, sitting in another large chair that Anthony had given him.8964 copyright protection792PENANAQGk0xn1mPu 維尼
"Umm...thanks" was all Anthony could say.
"So, how's everything been at home?" Jim said, taking a drink from his coffee.8964 copyright protection792PENANA7n0s0Bo7kz 維尼
"Uhh...it's been alright," Anthony said. "Everything's pretty much been the same as before."
"Yep, everything has been the same around here as well. Or, almost the same. You've probably noticed already, but I got some buddies hanging out outside."8964 copyright protection792PENANAb4fwbkXBod 維尼
"Yeah, I was about to ask you about that. I thought you didn't like cats."
"No, I actually love them. I just hated all of Grandma's cats. But, you couldn't really blame me, right?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAKDf8Begiww 維尼
"Yeah, please don't remind me." Anthony started to smile for the first time since he arrived at Jim's house.
Jim took another drink from his coffee.8964 copyright protection792PENANA0izEYZWd9Y 維尼
"Yeah. Anyway, those little guys sure keep me company. Sometimes I'll be on the porch sitting in my chair and they'll all start walking up to me, rubbing up on my legs and hopping in my lap. Next thing you know, I start having a conversation with them as if they were a person. If you think I'm going insane, I really don't blame you. I think I'm going insane half the time."
Anthony chuckled.8964 copyright protection792PENANAbMD4sciiGG 維尼
"I do wish they would stop laying on my car, though. I'm getting tired of washing cat hair off of it every time I need to drive somewhere."
Anthony chuckled even harder. He was now smiling as widely as Jim.8964 copyright protection792PENANAPBBPPPwi1U 維尼
"Happy Belated Birthday, Jim," Anthony said, still chuckling a bit.8964 copyright protection792PENANAPRYQeTlApP 維尼
"Oh Gee, Thanks Bro!" Jim said. "Thanks for acknowledging that I'm one year closer to my death bed!"8964 copyright protection792PENANA22vcJpHGV3 維尼
Anthony chuckled once more.8964 copyright protection792PENANALMP3krNfdY 維尼
"Man, Forty-five. Five years away from the half-a-century mark. I'll be an old man before you know it. You'd better start saving up for my casket!"8964 copyright protection792PENANAFVhox1LVQk 維尼
"Jim, I'll probably be dead before you. So I should be the one telling you that!"8964 copyright protection792PENANAfYX4BrKg6V 維尼
Jim laughed and drank some more coffee.8964 copyright protection792PENANAzzZrby0EDK 維尼
"So, how'd your birthday go?" Anthony asked.8964 copyright protection792PENANATfRuskoHHJ 維尼
"It was alright," Jim replied. "Nothing special."8964 copyright protection792PENANAs791wRVnlt 維尼
"Well, what'd you do?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAKvOWCOnpXF 維尼
"Not really anything. Just stayed here at home and spent some time with my outside buddies."8964 copyright protection792PENANAJF9u05haKP 維尼
"Why didn't you answer my phone when I called you to wish you a happy birthday? Or better yet, why did you ignore all our phone calls that day?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAscTIopgrsm 維尼
Jim was silent for a moment. He then took another drink of his coffee and asked: "How's the family?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAVoSJsmdpDW 維尼
Anthony sighed. Yep, Jim was definitely hiding something.8964 copyright protection792PENANAbL9PqqABv9 維尼
"Uhh...Ellen's doing great," Anthony said, trying to keep a smile. "So are the kids."8964 copyright protection792PENANAu7JxT41Gtq 維尼
"Good. Doesn't Hannah have a birthday coming up?"
"Yep, in two weeks. She'll be ten."8964 copyright protection792PENANAwTimneiL7K 維尼
"Ten? Wow, it's hard to believe isn't it?"
"Yeah, I know right? Where did my baby go?"8964 copyright protection792PENANATyQ9LAtr6P 維尼
"It really is hard to believe they grow up so fast. One minute they're babies and the next thing you know, they've become grown adults. It goes by just way too fast. It really makes you wish you could go back and start all over again."
Jim's smile suddenly disappeared. He put his hand on his forehead and stared at the ground. The look on his face easily displayed the feeling of sorrow that Jim had suddenly developed.8964 copyright protection792PENANAH0VC3hahcE 維尼
"Yeah, we all sometimes wish that we could start over again."8964 copyright protection792PENANA1KEYgnfwmg 維尼
Anthony cringed inside. His smile was now gone as well.8964 copyright protection792PENANANhlZSk4WaY 維尼
Jim shook his head and took a large and very long drink from his coffee. His smile suddenly returned.
"So, as you can see, I'm off from work today," Jim said. "I started feeling sick yesterday and this morning I just felt ten times worse. I gave them a call and told them I couldn't make it today and Hallelujah, I get the day off. It sure has been relaxing. Just spending the day drinking coffee, watching the news, and spending some more time with my outside buddies."8964 copyright protection792PENANAKpkiDZuWad 維尼
"You don't seem that sick."
"Oh, believe me, I actually don't feel so good on the inside right now. It must have been that casserole I ate a few days ago. Note to self: don't save leftovers for more than three days."8964 copyright protection792PENANAsIEgfAJOTM 維尼
Anthony took a deep breath.
"So Jim, has everything been going alright?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAZYnuMLvEB9 維尼
"Yep, it's been fine. Other than me feeling sick, of course. I'll probably feel better after a day or so. Nothing more serious than that."
"Are you sure?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAdjFQ5mcBZ8 維尼
"You bet."
"Then why didn't you answer any of our calls on your birthday?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAH3ghzRKWUe 維尼
Jim said nothing. He took another large drink from his coffee.
"Or, here's an even better question, why haven't you answered any of our calls in the past six months?"8964 copyright protection792PENANACAFW7Kerll 維尼
Jim took another drink from his coffee cup despite there clearly not being any coffee left in the cup.
"Do you not think it worries me and the rest of our family when you don't speak to or see any of us for so long? Especially after all we've went through in the past?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAFI6moTGjnZ 維尼
Jim said nothing.
"I find it kind of funny how you asked me about Hannah's birthday a moment ago, yet you don't seem to care that much about your own birthday. Hell, you didn't even acknowledge that it happened until I mentioned it."8964 copyright protection792PENANAuhpgn3ozgM 維尼
Jim said nothing.
"Jim, you've had hardly any contact with the family in the past two years. I want to know right how you truly are feeling because I can almost guarantee that you are not feeling fine."8964 copyright protection792PENANA3BofUMderT 維尼
"I need more coffee," Jim said.
"If you've been feeling upset, please let me know right now. There has to be something we can do. We may not be able to fix everything completely, but we can at least remind you about how much we care for you. We're your family and nothing will ever change that."8964 copyright protection792PENANAiCbJ39p3ng 維尼
"You really should try a donut. They may be a bit crunchy, but they're still pretty good."
"Jim, I'm being serious. Have you been feeling upset again, yes or no?"8964 copyright protection792PENANALgZn0L8I15 維尼
"Have you ever put crackers in the fridge for few days and then microwave them? They get all soft and chewy. Melt some cheese on them and they are the greatest thing ever!"
"Jim!"8964 copyright protection792PENANAFusmzOXWt5 維尼
Jim leaned over and put his hand over his face. At least Anthony now had an answer.
"Jim, whenever you are having problems, you need to talk to somebody about it," Anthony said, very firmly. "Not keep it to yourself and isolate yourself from the family."8964 copyright protection792PENANA4jCbNjPV1n 維尼
"I don't need to talk to anybody about anything," Jim replied, not picking his head up.
"Yes, you do. If you feel upset about something and not tell anybody about it, it only makes you feel even worse."8964 copyright protection792PENANAZlpCnL3XXz 維尼
Jim said nothing.
"Did you know that Mom and Dad call me frequently to ask me how you are doing? To make sure you don't fall into depression again?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAUCKY3P7mPq 維尼
Jim said nothing.
"Can you imagine how they feel when I tell them that you're not answering our phone calls? Especially on your birthday?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAUKqvCcg9iO 維尼
Jim said nothing.
"We all worry about you, Jim. Very much. We love you and it would hurt us severely if we lost you. So Jim, please let me know right now. What can I do for you that would make you feel happy?"8964 copyright protection792PENANAI3jcplsK41 維尼
Jim lifted up his head and wiped his eyes. He reached over to the table and picked up a folded white paper. He handed it to Anthony.
"What's this?" Anthony asked, taking the paper.8964 copyright protection792PENANAGnCql1wL4p 維尼
"Read it," Jim said.
Anthony opened up the paper and took a look. He could not believe his eyes when he read the first sentence.8964 copyright protection792PENANACJ9EKw9xwC 維尼
"You're invited to the wedding reception for Chris Wheatley and Cassie Burleson (soon to be Cassie Burleson Wheatley)."
Anthony's mind was suddenly filled with so many questions. He didn't even know which one to start with.8964 copyright protection792PENANAVp1FYg3zyo 維尼
"When did she- why did she- I thought she- why- how- what-"
"I got that invitation eight months ago," Jim said, looking down again.8964 copyright protection792PENANAdMID9zQUcn 維尼
"W-w-why didn't you tell anybody?"
"I thought it would be better if I didn't."8964 copyright protection792PENANARmxuxvW03V 維尼
"Why?"
"Because...because..."8964 copyright protection792PENANAc7qPWi9I7l 維尼
Jim buried his face in his hands.
Anthony stood up and walked over to him.8964 copyright protection792PENANAegy7b5eKgw 維尼
"Start from the beginning. I want to know everything. Now."
Jim lifted up his head and wiped his eyes again. He took a deep breath before he spoke.8964 copyright protection792PENANAYsNxM3Ruai 維尼
"It's a long story. But, if you really want to know, I'll tell you. I'll tell you everything."
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