Finding Mrs.Joe Hill

Stuck

Sunday May 29th
Kelsey needed some time away from Joe for a couple days. She wanted to focus on her and her job, not his.

He walked into family dinner just as everyone was sitting down.

"Hey. Thought you were bringing company?" Frank asked.

"Yeah, not this week. Kinda taking a break right now." He told everyone and sat down.

"Uh oh." Eddie said.

"Now what?" Erin asked.

"I'll talk about it after Grace." He said and bowed his head to pray with everybody else.

Everyone was all ears as soon as it was over. He told the story about what happened a couple days ago, and how it freaked her out, that she wasn't sure if she could handle being with him.

"If my wife was still here, she would be the first to admit it doesn't get any easier." Danny told him.

"Both of us being on the job comes with a different feeling." Jamie added referring to him and Eddie.

"Well yeah, you get each other." Joe pointed out.

"Seeing one another on the job was how we met. We don't know much different. Our relationship grew around the job." Eddie said.

"My wife wasn't too fond of it, I came home with too many horror stories." Frank told him.

"So did you just stop sharing?" Joe wondered.

"To an extend, I tended to share more heroic stories or even funny stories. Kinda gave a different perspective." Frank replied.

"And sometimes you don't share unless they ask." Henry added in his wisdom making everyone laugh.

"But how will she react if you get hurt...will she be able to help you and support you?" Erin asked Joe.

"I don't know." He was at a loss.

"Cause if she needs space after this...I don't know if I'd wait around and see what kind of space she'll need after something more severe." Erin added. Everyone agreed, she was right.

"If she's meant to be...you guys will figure it out." Jamie told him after seeing Joe down on himself. He nodded in agreement.

They all got into talking about other things leaving Joe thinking to himself about what his next move was with Kelsey.

After dinner he was helping Danny do the dishes. They talked more one on one about relationships. Linda being a nurse served a different view of trauma and stress in itself. Kelsey couldn't even handle the sight of violence let alone blood.

"I just, I don't know about her, long term." Joe said drying up the last couple dishes.

"That's definitely something you two need to figure out." Danny said.

"How though?"

"Ask her if she's even thinking long term like you are?" He suggested.

"Well obviously. It just seems too quick, I figured in time I'd figure this stuff out." He said sighing.

"I don't know what to tell ya kid, no one likes hard conversations." Danny said.

"Makes me wonder if I chased the wrong girl." He said, Danny shrugged not knowing what else to say or what he really even meant by that.
———
Later when Joe got home him and Kelsey FaceTimed for a little and talked. She seemed better, which was good.

"I just wanna know if your looking to have a future with me or not." He told her.

"I was. I am. I just got a little freaked." She told him.

"I get it, I do, but your gonna have to realize stuff like that happens a lot to me. Granted I hope it never happens to you again but still."

"Well yeah. I know that, I just do better not knowing I guess." She said.

"Alright. I can try and work around that I guess if you wanna still give it a shot." He asked.

"I do still wanna give us a try, maybe tomorrow night you can come over, spent the night, I'll make dinner?" She offered.

"I'd love that." He smiled.

"It's a date then." She smiled back, they wrapped up their conversation and said goodbye.

Just as Joe was getting into bed his phone started ringing, he thought it was Kelsey but it was Taylor.

"Hello?" He answered with hesitation and curiosity, why was she calling?

"Hey. I'm sorry. I just wanted to ask if you'll be at the trial, it's in like 2 weeks, I just got notified about it." She asked.

"Of course, I planned on it already." He told her.

"Okay good, I'm really nervous for it, am I gonna have to testify?" She asked.

"Um yes." He said with a small laugh.

"Huh I don't wanna even see him, let alone speak in front of him, he's intimidating, what if he threatens me like he has in the past?"

"He won't be able to get to you Taylor, promise." Joe said sitting on the edge of the bed.

"I just should have never went back to him. You know he's the reason I took a self defense class, after our first breakup, which was a couple years ago. Like why am I such an idiot." She was being hard on herself.

"Guys like that are manipulating, I've seen it a dozen times. Don't blame yourself, he's the animal."

"I guess. Do you know when I can get my shit back? Like the stuff he stole before he left?"

"After he's booked and the deals done they'll return it."

"Ugh, I'd feel safer if I was armed." She sighed.

"Wait, you had a gun he took?"

"Yeah."

"Was that in the report?" He was concerned.

"Yes."

"Oh okay, I missed that part..." Joe was surprised, he didn't know this about Taylor.

"No yeah, it was my dads, so it's kinda sentimental. How long do you think he'll go away for?" 

"Hard to say. Tell you what, if you want I can talk to my aunt or uncle about it and they can help you kinda get prepared with what's maybe gonna be said and stuff."

"Like a practice run?" She asked.

"Sure, something like that."

"I'd appreciate that." She sounded sincere.

"Okay, I'll set it up and let you know, okay?" He asked.

"Okay, thanks. Talk to you then."

"Yup, bye." He said and they hung up.

Joe laid in bed thinking, he feels stuck. He's not as happy as he used to be with Kelsey, talking to Taylor tonight certainly didn't help either. But, he was holding onto the hope that tomorrow night would be good. Maybe she'd be better and they could work on everything from there on out.
——
Alright what do you all think he should do? After hearing from the family and Kelsey herself Joe is stuck again. Not to mention Taylor's still in his life as a friend and it's hard for him not to compare them!