An Affair To Remember

Coffee: If You're Not Shaking, You Need Another Cup (Forty)

Finishing her second box of Bon Bons, Sonny placed the empty box on the slightly sticky floor, and delved into the large bucket of buttered popcorn sitting on her lap. Tossing a few puffed kernels into her mouth, she looked ahead two rows in the movie theater at her brother and best friend. They were making goo goo eyes as they took turns feeding each other from a bag of Gummy Bears. If she weren't in such a foul mood, she would have thought the scene to be adorable. Instead, she frowned deeply at the display of affection between Isaac and Sarah.

Grabbing another handful of popcorn, Sonny wondered why she had allowed herself to be coerced into coming along to the movies this evening with Jack, Isaac, and Sarah. The last thing she felt like doing was having fun. Swallowing, Sonny took a long sip from her soda and searched for another box of Bon Bons. When she failed to find one, she realized that she had eaten both boxes before the lights dimmed, and the previews started.

Sighing, she started to get up in order to make a trip to the concession stand when a soft warm palm landed on her arm. Turning to the left, she looked toward Jack questioningly. Face etched with concern, Jack asked if something was bothering her. During the last two hours the quartet had been out, Sonny was unusually quiet.

Announcing that she was fine, she attempted to get up again, however the hand on her arm had her in a firm grip, and wouldn't let go. Obviously irritated, she informed Jack none too gently to remove her hand, but merely received a shake of the head in reply.

"Talk to me, Sonny. Please." Glancing at her watch, Jack noticed that they had at least five more minutes until the previews started.

"About what?"

"About what's bothering you." Without even realizing it, she began to stroke Sonny's bare arm with her fingertips. "And don't say nothing, because I know something is wrong. I haven't seen you since Thursday. Has something happened during the last couple of days?"

Sonny wondered if she should tell Jack what happened Thursday evening. Within a few moments she had made up her mind. Settling back in her seat, she nodded. "Thursday night I called Blue, and spoke with her about us meeting." With a silent nod, Jack waited for her to continue. "She said that she would love to but she had a lot on her plate right now, which basically means no." Anxious green eyes searched blue ones as though they held all of the answers. "Do you think she might be pulling away from me?"

Jack's first thought was to offer a resounding yes. However, she figured that that wouldn't cause Sonny to feel any better. No, it was time for her to behave like a true friend. She glanced toward Sarah, wondering what she would say if presented with a question such as that one.

"Sonny girl, she would be crazy to want to do that, and I honestly don't think she is. She told you that she has a lot on her plate, and I'm quite sure that she's telling the truth. What you need to do is give her some time for things to settle down in her life, and then you two can set a date to meet." Lacing their fingers together, Jack gave Sonny's a gentle squeeze. "Please don't allow this to continue worrying you. It's needless to do so."

"Really?" She remained unsure of how Dixie might feel about her. Tears stung her eyes and she blinked rapidly, not wanting to break down in front of at least fifty people.

Bringing the hand she held to her lips, Jack tenderly kissed the back of it while keeping eye contact with her beloved friend. "Really."

Sonny began to smile for the first time that evening as she leaned over and kissed Jack's cheek, thanking her. She started to feel a little better after their brief talk. Perhaps Dixie really was just busy and did want to meet Sonny as much as she wanted to meet her. She just needed to stay positive. Settling back, she offered Jack some popcorn and both women began to eat from it as the lights dimmed. A commercial with animated hot dogs, popcorn, and candy showed up on the grand screen as Sonny leaned toward Jack.