At five fifteen she cleared her books and papers from the table and carried them to the hall table and placed them neatly there where she would find t...em in the morning on her way to school. She would now prepare supper for her father and herself, she got a couple of potatoes and peeled them and put them on to boil. Then she got the chicken thighs from the fridge and coated them with the seasoned Shake ‘n Bake and put them on a shallow pan and placed them in the oven. Soon her dad arrived home. The next morning, Nina’s parents and Fred were at breakfast. They looked agitated. Nina’s seat was empty. I wondered if she was still asleep by the pool and went to the big picture window and saw that the lounge chair was empty. The blanket was still there.Larry, the assistant manager, called me over to his table in the corner where he ate breakfast with the owner and his wife. He handed me an envelope. He looked at me as if he knew something I didn’t know but didn’t say anything.It was a. "Before she realized what she was doing, she grabbed him and hugged him. "He didn't do anything; the phone rang just in time. I was going to do something stupid, that I really didn't want to do, but I just got tired of waiting..." her voice trailed off as she realized what she had almost said."'Waiting, ' Kathy?" he questioned, then his face changed as he began to get an inkling of her meaning. "Oh, shit," he whispered.Hugging her tight, he then pushed her back at arms' length, his hands still. I thought he had gotten past the wound of his mother's infidelity and I was glad somebody had.Nicole asked me the same question, more genteelly."Are you happy Dad? Is there anybody, special?" Yes and no. I have friends, I go out. I'm not alone. I've got my work, the people at the bank, a job that takes up about 60 hours of my week. It's not a bad life."Honestly?" Honestly. It's not as good as the life I had with your mother, but it's as good as a life can be without her. Really, I'm looking at.