Amicus Curiae

As Mickey turned the corner and onto her street, and spotted Tyler’s car parked in front of her house, and glanced at her dashboard clock, and realized that she was near thirty minutes late. As she parked in her driveway and exited, Reagan was already dashing up the driveway to greet her, and they embraced.

“Mom!”

“What, honey?”

“You smell like cigarette smoke. You said you quit!”

Mickey continued her embrace and said, “I have quit, but I just … it’s well … kinda complicated, dear.” When Mickey opened her eyes, she could see Tyler approaching over Reagan’s shoulder with a less than charitable expression.

“Well, better late than never,” Tyler said, repeating a phrase often used against him for episodes of tardiness. Tyler was a goodhearted and patient man but on rare instances could be pushed into a contentiousness, especially when it came to their post-divorce relations. Tyler had thick, wavy, blond hair, blue eyes and a remarkable naturally brown skin, a tone that most in the area could only sustain in the summer or by frequenting tanning booths in the winter. He had handsome, chiseled facial features, including deep, pleasant dimples on each cheek. An all state fullback in high school, Tyler remained very athletic and physically fit.

Mickey looked at him with exasperation as she opened her defense. “I’m sorry, Tyler, but time got away from me. You see, I was in court today, and I had to go back to the office and …” She stopped midsentence, realizing that the career-demands excuse was not persuading this one-person jury. Tyler had her on the ropes, but when he looked at Reagan’s pained expression, he relented.

“Sometime things happen. Right, Mick?”

“Yes, Tyler, sometimes they do,” she conceded.

“And these things can happen to me sometimes too, right?” Mickey nodded with a conciliatory smile as the relieved Reagan realized her parents had averted a greater confrontation. Reagan had long since given up the notion of her parents reconciling but remained a steadfast ambassador for their peaceful coexistence.

Tyler stepped back and looked at Mickey as she locked her car. “You look good, Mick. Have you lost some weight?”

“Why? Did I need to?”

“No, silly. It’s just that you look—you know—really fit.”

“Thank you! There’s no diet like the trial preparation regimen.”

“How did your case go?”

“It went well … I screwed around and won the damn thing.”

He congratulated her, and appreciating the gesture, Mickey invited him to dinner.

“That’s nice of you, but I have some errands to run.”

“Dad’s gonna to look for a car for me, Mom!” Reagan said with elation.

Tyler saw Mickey’s expression change and said, “You don’t know that, and—”

“Is that the errand you need to run?” Mickey asked with agitation. “I mean, isn’t this something you and I ought to discuss?”

“Under the terms of the divorce decree, I get to—”

“Don’t give me that decree crap! I’m f fully aware of what it says, but I just think we should talk about things like this.”

“You’re right, Mick,” he said, raising his hands in surrender. “We’ll discuss it.”

“Fine … sorry I snapped at you.”

“So where are y’all going to eat?” he asked.

“I’ve made dinner,” Mickey responded.

“Oh, my God, your mom’s cooking? Now, there’s a Christmas miracle!” Tyler said, perpetuating a longstanding joke that Mickey rarely cooked for them while they were married.

“Dad, she cooks sometimes, and I think those frozen dinners are actually pretty good,” Reagan added, giggling.

“Oh, ganging up on me, eh?” Mickey said popping Reagan on her bottom. They all laughed, and she and Reagan began walking arm-in-arm toward the front porch.

Before getting into his car, Tyler shouted for Mickey and waited for her to walk halfway back across the yard. “I guess you heard about the latest abduction?” he asked out of earshot of Reagan. Mickey nodded, and he added, “Let’s be real careful, okay?”

“I will. Believe me, this abduction crap is very scary,” she said.