MORE THAN A FRIEND- PART 4

Nov 20, 2007 - 16:07 PM PST



On Sunday morning, Cindy and her family went to church. They were eager to see Andre’s parents and hear what news the seasoned missionaries had for their local congregation. Timothy and Doreen Wells always had plenty of stories to share about how God delivered them out of all kinds of frightening situations and protected them from all kinds of menacing people.

Timothy Sr. was a very handsome man with gray side burns against his smooth mocha skin. Looking at him gave Cindy a clear vision of how Andre and his brother Tim Jr. would look in twenty years since they both looked a lot like their father. Although they didn’t favour their mother very much, Andre and Tim did have her kind eyes.

Doreen Wells had bronze skin, caring ebony eyes, salt and pepper hair, and a face that exuded compassion. It was no wonder that she and her equally compassionate husband excelled on the mission field. In fact, they were both highly esteemed people in the impoverished countries they ministered in.

As Timothy continued to stand at the microphone with his wife beside him, he brought his uplifting speech to a satisfactory end. “In conclusion, whether you’re out on the mission field or not, it’s so important to have someone that you love and that loves you back at your side and on your side.” Then he smiled over at his wife and added, “Thanks for being with me all the way, beautiful lady.”

When Timothy hugged a tearful Doreen, the audience broke into encouraging applause, some stood to their feet in honour of the couple that had blessed them so much this morning with their inspirational words and genuine display of true partnership. As Timothy released his wife, he instinctively scanned the crowd for the rest of his family. It pleased him to see his two sons in attendance today. However, only one of them was standing. The other remained in his seat, looking like he was in a daze.

I wonder what’s on his mind today, Timothy mused, noticing the expression of pure elation on his youngest son’s face. Then as he followed Andre’s gaze, the wise older man quickly found his answer.



Andre and Cindy didn’t clap or stand as their eyes searched for and found each other across the crowded congregation. For a moment they seemed to be lost in their own little world. His eyes caressing her face, her eyes caressing his.

Suddenly, the connection was broken when Ashley tugged on Cindy’s red dress sleeve and rose up in her seat to whisper in her aunt’s ear. “Auntie Cindy, I need to go to the little girls’ room.”

Cindy blinked rapidly to refocus herself, then she quietly got up and slipped away with her niece to the restroom right before the pastor returned to the mike and concluded today’s program.



After church, Cindy and her family went out to eat at the upscale restaurant that Andre privately owned. Incidentally, through this establishment he serviced a completely different clientele from the ones he encountered while working at his parents’ fast-food barbecue chain. Although Andre loved working in the food service business period, he preferred the more relaxed atmosphere that fine dining offered.

Wilma and Doreen, who were the best of friends, spent much of their meal time catching up on each other’s lives. Michael and Timothy did the same while Andre went to check on things in the kitchen. That left Tim Jr, his dimpled-faced girlfriend of two years - Neisha Sage, Mavis, Cindy and the kids to occupy themselves. Cindy’s group really didn’t mind being left to themselves though. The Wells and Bloom children have always gotten along well together.

Some time after the strawberry shortcake was served; Timothy made a trip to the back to see his missing-in-action son. Andre was seated at his desk with a half-eaten plate of steak and a vegetable medley in front of him. He was going through some paperwork.

“Son, enough of that. You’re neglecting your family,” the older man said as he sat down in the black leather chair across from his son.

Andre looked up and smiled. “I’m sorry, Dad. It’s kind of hard to just be a customer in your own place.” He closed the blue notebook and picked up his fork. After a generous helping of steak and vegetables, he moaned in pleasure. “This is really good. I’ll have to tell Chef Raymond that he did an excellent job on this today.” Andre looked at his father. “How was your meal?”

Timothy smiled. “Fine. All of our meals were fine. But I didn’t come in here to talk about food. I came to talk about you and Cindy. It just occurred to me today at church what I’ve actually known for many years. You two are meant to be together. I really believe that Cindy’s supposed to be your wife, son.”

Andre stopped chewing mid-bite. “Dad, Cindy’s not ready for another relationship right now. She just got divorced, remember?” Besides she’s my little sister, he reminded himself as the very thought of Cindy being his wife sent delicious shivers through him. What Andre was feeling now was better than any meal he could have ever eaten.

Timothy leaned back in his chair and laughed. “You’re right. But when she is ready, you need to be first in line to take her hand and show her what true love is all about. You two have always been good together. And you’re Mom and I think that you’ll be even better together in marriage.”

Andre swallowed the food in his mouth and smiled. “How long have you and Mom been playing matchmaker?”

Timothy smiled. “Since you became a man.” Then he pointed at Andre, his tone suddenly very serious. “But, son, remember that you must only have Cindy in marriage. Anything else is going to cause you a whole lot of trouble. Besides, you and that wonderful girl out there deserve something much better than sex outside of marriage anyway.”

“I hear you,” Andre said, quietly pondering his father’s words.

Timothy leaned forward in his chair as his smile returned, wider this time. He was glad that Andre hadn’t rejected the idea of being married to Cindy, just the timing. He just hoped that his son took his advice about the other things he’d said.



That night Andre stopped by to take Cindy and the kids to a movie. As planned, Mavis and Eric wanted to be alone. After putting the finishing touches on Ashley’s silky curls, Cindy and her happy brood rolled out to the theatre in Andre’s vehicle.

On the ride to the movies, Cindy noticed that Andre wore a green polo t-shirt with a pair of matching Levi jeans. Looking down, she saw that he’d also donned a pair of white sneakers tonight. She couldn’t resist teasing him. “Since when did you start wearing sneakers? I thought you were Mr. GQ. Only dress shoes for you.”

“There you go again. I’m a versatile man. Surely you know this by now,” Andre said, pretending to scold her as he guided the car into an open parking space at the theatre.

“I guess I don’t know as much about you as I thought I did. Perhaps you can fill me in on what I’ve missed,” Cindy countered, giving him a playful poke in the side.

“Ouch!” Andre said, faking his pain. “I’ll be glad to fill you in on everything you ever wanted to know about me.” If you do the same, he added to himself as a huge smile rested on his face.



After the movie, Andre went to get the car while Cindy and the kids waited at the curb. Just as he pulled the vehicle up to them, an elderly couple came walking out of the theatre, holding hands and looking just as happy as they probably did on their wedding day.

Walking by the car, the curious elderly woman made inquiry to the handsome man getting out of the driver’s side. “Is that your wife and kids, young man?”

“No, Ma’am,” Andre answered politely, shutting the driver’s door.

“Well, they should be, young blood,” the elderly man responded with a wink.

Andre winked back and nodded in agreement. A watching Cindy was stunned into silence at their exchange. She didn’t even notice that a smiling Andre had come around the car and held the door open for her so she and the kids could get settled inside.

Back at the wheel, Andre couldn’t stop smiling, especially after seeing the surprised look on Cindy’s face. The elderly couple’s words had shocked her so much that her mouth was still hanging open and her eyes were still wide minutes after the couple had gone. And after noticing that Cindy still hadn’t blinked yet, Andre started laughing so hard that he couldn’t crank up the car.

“Stop laughing, Dre. It isn’t that funny,” Cindy scolded. She wasn’t in a daze now as she playfully poked him in the side, which only made him laugh that much more.

“Auntie Cindy, are you tickling Dre? I want a tickle, too,” Ashley chimed in from the backseat.

“Me, too! Me, too,” Eric added eager to join in on the fun.

“Oh you do, do you?” Then Cindy undid her seatbelt and proceeded to tickle her niece and nephew in the backseat.

With Cindy preoccupied, Andre unfastened his seatbelt and started tickling her. The car bounced lightly as the four people inside had a laughing frenzy, producing multiple laffy-taffy tears down happy cheeks.

After a few more minutes of fun, Cindy came up for air with aching sides and a heart that was rapidly emerging from heartbreak. “Woo…I can’t take no more,” she said, wiping her damp eyes and taking a deep breath to calm herself. When she was able to speak without laughing, she continued. “Okay, you guys, it’s time to go get something to eat. Who wants McDonald’s?”

“I do, I do,” sang the kids in unison.

“Then Mickey D’s it is,” Andre said as he and Cindy readjusted the youngsters in their seatbelts.



Over hamburgers and fries, Ashley wowed them with her extensive knowledge of Illinois history. She talked about the first Europeans arriving in the region in 1673, even pronouncing the French explorers’ names correctly - Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette.

When asked if she knew how the state got its name, the smart eight-year-old told them how the French settlers who came after Jolliet and Marquette named the region for the Illinois (or Illini) Indians that lived in the area. She even went so far as to disclose that those same Indians had formed a group of united tribes and called themselves Iliniwek (meaning: superior men). And that the name Illinois came from the French settlers' spelling and pronunciation of that Indian name.

Impressed by the intelligent child, Andre and Cindy rewarded Ashley and a well-behaved Little Eric with ice cream sundaes afterward. And since they were such good babysitters, the two adults rewarded themselves with sundaes, too.