Episode 176

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Episode 176

Scene 1:

Honey finished her make-up surveying herself in the mirror. Not too much lipstick or eye shadow to look incompetent. In all her waitressing jobs, Honey had always found the girls who wore too much make-up more interested in chatting up the customers than working. On her first day of work, the last thing she wanted to be was one of those girls. Satisfied with her appearance, she left the bathroom and headed downstairs to the kitchen where Josh sat sullenly drinking a cup of coffee. She smiled and leaved over him, kissing the top of his head.

"Well good morning Sunshine," she said with a grin. Josh made a throaty noise in response. He was in a bad mood, she decided. She had learned long ago to leave him alone if he was like this. It usually ended by the end of the night if left alone. If she couldn't leave him be, it ended in an argument or with Josh leaving for a time to come back with apologies. Not wanting to argue, she poured herself a thermos of coffee and left for Connie's.

She walked to work not wanting to ask for a ride and not wanting to bother Josh in his mood. The day was beautiful with fall colors and cool breezes. The townhouse Josh had bought for them was several blocks from the diner allowing her a chance to look at the town. She liked Conlan's Glen. It was a far cry from the dirty streets of New Orleans. There was more of a feeling of home and family here. Her own family was scattered across the country but she could build a new one. She wanted to with Josh Manning but he remained stubborn about children. Still, he had agreed to marriage at last. Perhaps children wouldn't be too far behind.

Connie's loomed after a bit and she dropped all thoughts of the family she wanted in favor of what her day would be like. She stepped inside the restaurant and looked around. It was in-between breakfast and lunch. The dining room wasn't crowded at all but the bar was filled with coffee drinkers and people who seemed to know the owner quite well. She approached the bar but was intercepted by Gina Corelli, the woman who had hired her.

"Hello Honey! My but you're prompt," she said glancing at the clock on the wall. "That's always good to see on the first day. How are you today? Nervous?"

"Oh not at all," Honey replied smiling.

"Really? Well that's good then. Come on, I'll show you where you can put your things." Gina led her to the break room and pointed to the lockers. "If you want a padlock, I can get you one." Honey hung her coat and purse on the hook inside the locker obediently before following Gina on a guided tour of the restaurant. At the end, she handed her an apron and leather folder for her receipts. "So, would you like to shadow another waitress?" Gina asked.

"I don't need to. Unless you think I should," Honey replied honestly. She'd been waiting tables since high school. This was just another restaurant as far as Honey was concerned. Her body knew what to do.

Gina offered her a genuine smile and shook her head. "No, I don't think you do need one. Well, you can take tables 12 through 20 today. How does that sound?"

"Sounds fine," Honey smiled back. She headed out to the dining area surveying the room. She introduced herself to the hostess, a sour looking girl named Joanie, who promptly seated a young man in work overalls at one of her tables. With a deep breath, Honey plunged herself into her first day at Connie's.

Scene 2

Piper wrapped Lucy Reynolds in her hot pink cashmere scarf and matching mittens, before the small girl burst from her hands, and hurried to the playground to join her fellow playmates in celebrating the first snow of the winter season. A smile tugged at her lips. The kids bounded and squealed in a state of sheer delight. The first couple snows always brought a smile to even the most dull faces.

"Ya know, I was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, I never saw snow till I moved to Virginia and I still never tire of it," Jordan, one of Piper’s co-workers at Hopeful Days Daycare, where Conlan Glen’s richest and finest attended, remarked.

"Surprisingly, nor have I, and I’ve lived here all my life. Seen it every winter," Piper responded.

Welcome to Piper Conlan's new life. The fall semester had begun for her housemates, but not for Piper. After her first semester at Hope University, Piper began slowly taking fewer and fewer classes as her finances dwindled, her grades failed to meet scholarship requirements, and her mental state become more effulged in paranoia. By the second fall semester, Piper had quit college in order to make a living. Born with a stubborn-streak and hard head, Piper refused to turn back to her father for emotional and financial comfort. He dug his grave, and as far as she was concerned, he could now lie in it. Sure, she had changed her major to teaching, which he would certainly approve of, but that did not matter to her. It was the principal of the matter that she could not forget. He had refused to support her ambitions. So now Piper’s days were filled with trying to get by on a day care worker’s salary. She managed, if just barely. No one had to know what else her days were filled with: bitterness, loneliness, and constant doubt as to if she would ever make it over this mountain.

"Miss Piper!" someone cried. "Will you help us build a snowman?"

Piper smiled and joined the children in their play, "sure will. Lucy why don’t you see if Miss Jordan can find us a carrot and some other things for a snowman, okay?" Lucy nodded and ran off in the direction of Jordan who topped off the snowman with a carrot nose.

"Look everyone, he’s finished!" Jordan cried to their group of second graders. The children cheered in delight.

"Okay, guys, story time, let’s go inside," Piper said as Mrs. Cantini rang the bell. The children began to run back towards the school building, some falling in the snow, but quickly leaping back to their feet, smiling with glee on their rosy cheeks. Piper smiled at the idyllic scene.

"Miss Piper!" someone cried. Piper looked over her shoulder to find a single-mittened Lucy Reynolds. "I lost one of my pink mittens!" Her voice trembled on the verge of tears.

Piper smiled and cupped the little blonde‘s cherub face. "Don’t you worry, Luce, I will find it, why don’t you go inside with everyone else and I will look for it, kay?"

With a little sniffle, Lucy nodded and hurried to catch up with the other children. It didn’t take Piper long to find the bright pink mitten, looking lonely by itself on the white snow. Piper snatched it up and trotted back towards the school building, but something caused her to slow. A lone figure stood off in the distance. Shadowed and fairly indistinguishable, but Piper felt it in her gut. A raw instinct that transcended to the time of cavemen seized her sense. She ran, she did not look back, until she was in the safety of the school building, surrounded by the sweet angelic faces that so joyed her and panged her at the same time. Chase was back.

Scene 3

Ian McCormick paced nervously around the waiting room of the Executive Floor of St. Joe's hospital. Across the room, Josh Manning leaned comfortably in a chair watching him with a look of disdain. He hated that guy, Ian thought throwing him a cross look. Almost as much as he hated Jamie Mason, his brand new brother-in-law. Together they had tormented him in college, ruining his chances of getting into the right fraternity and spreading vicious lies about him.

He'd had his revenge though. When Ellen Mason had joined them in college, he had seen a way to get back at Jamie for all the damage he had caused. He swept Ellen off her feet, not realizing that she could be just as conniving as Jamie. Learning his lesson, Ian had simply given up and left them behind for Medical school never thinking that his past would come back to haunt him as it was doing now.

He wanted the job of Chief of Staff at St. Joe's. It was his to lose. He had done everything expected of him as far as the board was concerned and even given himself some insurance by marrying Ellen. Jamie had to ruin it all by bringing his frat boy buddy in to make a play for the job. Well, he wasn't going to let Josh have it. Nor would he let the Masons win this one.

He stopped his pacing and glared at Josh. "This is my position, Josh," he said his voice tense with anger. "I don't intend to let you have it."

Josh's eyebrow raised in amusement. "I don't see how it's your call, Ian. But you go right ahead with your threats. I always did think they were funny."

Ian gave him a narrow look. "I'm still a joke to you am I? Well let's look at ourselves for a minute, shall we? You've been fired from two hospitals in the past five years, haven't you? Once for physical violence and the other for drunkenness. Isn't that right?" The amusement faded from Josh's eyes. "Hit a nerve, haven't I? Shall I go on?"

"Whatever makes you happy," Josh muttered.

"Oh counting back your faults does make me happy," Ian replied with a wry smile. "You're married now, I hear. What's her name? Its' something sweet...oh that's right. Honey. How old is she, Josh? Nineteen?" Josh's hands curled into fists at his side. Oh, so he was hitting a nerve. Apparently, his drinking problem wasn't embarrassing but the little wifey was. "What's the matter, Josh? Something wrong with your wife?"

"Don't you ever talk about my wife," Josh said through clenched teeth.

"Does she know you're embarrassed of her? I'll bet she doesn't. I wonder how she would feel if she knew that..."

Josh leapt from his chair and crossed the room to where Ian stood, looking like he would hit Ian if another word was said. "Don't you talk about my wife again, Ian," Josh warned in a low voice.

"Have it your way," Ian said casually. "But really Josh, you should learn to control yourself. You look like you could do some damage right now." He took a step backwards and found himself against the wall. "I suppose we'll just have to agree to leave our personal lives at home when we backstab each other. What do you say?"

"Fair enough. I won't say a word about how you married Ellen Mason just for her money and her influence," Josh replied relaxing slightly. Ian smiled despite himself. Josh always did have a way of coming back right when you least expected it.

He offered his hand to Josh to seal the deal. "I agree. But professional life is fair game?"

Josh hesitated slightly knowing he was on shakier ground there but finally slipped his hand into Ian's and gave it a quick pump. "Agreed."

Scene 4

Noah missed Connie's. Life was simpler when he worked here with Maura and Piper. Now though, everything seemed wrong. His job at the hospital was fine, but it wasn't medicine. All he did was file things. What kind of job was that for a young man who only wanted to help people? Not much of one, he answered himself bitterly. He was of course, thankful to Maura and Jude for helping him get the job. It was good to be in at the hospital. Knowing the administrators would help him once he began his residency. That, however, was still a ways off into the distance.

His life wasn't bad though. He had a good job that paid well. Tyler was planning on staying with him now that his time in jail was over. He and Dinah had managed to heal old wounds from their short relationship and breakup. The only fly in the ointment was his girlfriend who, at the moment, wasn't behaving like much of a girlfriend.

Piper was sullen and moody most of the time, preferring to stay at home and watch movies. He didn't see her when he wanted, only when she was in the mood. It was almost as if the last six months since the fire at Mason Enterprises and Chase Garrett's unhinged attempt to kidnap her had broken her somehow. Chase had definitely changed her and not for the better, either.

Noah wanted to talk to her, try to get her to open up to him about her feelings. But she would have none of it. She had even quit going to her therapist. Not that she had admitted as much to him. He had found out simply by waiting for her one afternoon outside Tavish McCormick's office until Dr. McCormick had come out and told him that Piper no longer came for their weekly sessions. That had been three months ago. Noah didn't say anything for fear of upsetting Piper.

In retrospect, he should have said something right away. Instead, he stood by pretending she was all right while she went ahead and tore herself apart. He let her distance herself from him and build a wall between them. As things stood now, he wasn't sure if they were still together, let alone in love. He loved her, that much he knew. But as to Piper's feelings for him... He couldn't say.