Chapter 98

"What do you want to do today?" Sarah asked as she sat up in bed next to her husband, still enjoying that time before Daniel called them.
Richie looked up at her. "I've got some errands to do for mom."
"Oh?" Sarah asked curiously.
"Just want to make sure everything's good for her. Take her car for an oil change, get that contractor in to look at the foundation of the house like she asked. That kind of stuff."
"The helpful son kind of stuff." Sarah clarified with it.
He smiled at that. "Yeah, I guess. You can join me baby but it'll probably be boring."
She reached down to kiss him quick. "Being with you is never boring."
"I don't know, oil changes and tire rotations aren't exactly the pinnacle of fun."
"But I'd be with you, which is fun." Sarah reached in for another kiss. "I also think Daniel would love some time with grandma."
"Yeah?"
"Or grandma would love some time with Daniel."
He chuckled softly. "You're probably right about that."

They had breakfast with Joan and Daniel leisurely, sitting around the kitchen table talking about the last few months and the prospects of the next few months. Thanksgiving would be soon and Joan would simple have to join them in California for a few weeks. Richie would be home for a short while before leaving for Australia and it'd be the perfect time to visit, he'd suggest it later. The only person missing would be Caleb, who would be stuck in Canada, not celebrating Thanksgiving at the same time the rest of the family was but that's where the kid wanted to be.

After breakfast, Richie insisted on cleaning up the kitchen while Sarah got Daniel ready for his day. He knew it wouldn't take long to do either. He hadn't planned much for the day but he did want to get all his errands done before they had to leave tomorrow. There was no way he wouldn't make sure his mother had everything she needed before he left. Taking care of those kind of things was his responsibility now.

"I love doing the simple things with you." Sarah said as they waited in the car in a line to get the car's oil changed.
"Yeah?" Richie asked.
Sarah simply nodded. "Shows that you're a regular guy just like anyone else."
"Did you think I was unusual then?"
"You know what I mean." Sarah said. "Lots of people just see you as a rock star, sadly they forget that you do the same things every day as they do."
Richie disagreed on that. "I don't go to a 9 to 5 job every day."
"Neither do all of them." Sarah pointed out quickly. "Maybe some of them have fancy jobs too."
"Maybe they do. What kind of fancy jobs do they have?"
She gave him a little push. "You know what I mean. They're waving you over." Sarah pointed at the person waving at them.
"But I like bugging you." He looked over to the person waving at him and directed the car towards the empty bay. "I do it out of love."

Sarah enjoyed their day spent together, any time she got to spend with her husband was a good time according to her. She didn't need much else than that to be happy. Surely he had finished all the errands he had to take care of before they'd leave tomorrow.

"One more stop?" Richie asked Sarah as they got in the car again. "Maybe two." He said as he sat down in the car, looking over at her.
"Sure."
"It'll be quick and then we can head home for lunch." He assured her as he started driving.

His first stop had indeed been quick, he'd stopped at a flower shop and had only been inside for a few minutes before he returned to the car. Sarah hadn't bothered to go with him as he assured her it would only take him two minutes, even though she was curious, she trusted he wouldn't be long.

"That was quick." Sarah said as he passed the flowers over to her.
"I'm a quick one."
Sarah raised an eyebrow at him in question. "Are you?"
He frowned for a second before catching on. "Not in that way." He said quickly as he started the car again. "In that way I take very long."
"You have a dirty mind."
"Sure, just me." He said.

Their drive took them to the other side of the town, Sarah started to recognize where they were going and clued in when she noticed one of the direction signs. She looked down at the flowers in her lap, knowing where he was going now, she felt a little sad but was sure he did too. He didn't have the opportunity often so she understood what he wanted to do.

Richie pulled into a small parking lot, surrounded by trees. There was only one other car in the small lot, a family walking up to the car as he and Sarah walked away from their own car. He opened the gate for her before taking the flowers from her and walking into the cemetery. The gravel path underneath their feet was dusty as they walked down the main path before turning onto a smaller path. He knew where he was going, it was one right turn, then the sixth row.

He found it easily and stood silently for a moment when they reached the grave.

He was aware visiting wasn't the same for everyone. For him, it was quiet. He reached down to place the flowers in the middle, making sure it looked neat and tidy, brushing away some dead leaves from the surrounding trees. It was all internal when he arrived here. It gave him some time to think and remember.

Sarah watched him, they hadn't known each other's fathers but the few times she had come to visit Richie's father always made her think of her own who she didn't get to visit. She didn't feel the same emotional need that Richie did. Her father was buried in a different state before they moved to California and she was okay with that. She knew Richie liked to come here to reminisce in the peace and quiet. Quietly, she respected his needs, watching him to make sure he was alright.

After he brushed off the dried up leaves and made sure again that the flowers were nicely in the middle, he stood up and grabbed Sarah's hand, giving it a short squeeze.

Sarah looked up at him, not needing to ask a question as Richie nodded and they both turned around back to the path.

They didn't speak until they were back in the car and the music from the radio broke their silence.

"Okay?" Sarah asked quickly, making sure he was but he nodded his answer instead of answering. "We could stay longer if you wanted to."
"It's alright." He said. "I just like making sure it looks nice. I've got him with me."
Sarah nodded in return, that's how she always thought about her own father.

The drive back to his mom's house didn't take them long at all. By now Daniel would surely be hungry enough for lunch and if he wasn't, Richie sure was.

Joan happily greeted them when they walked into the living room, Daniel playing with his new toys as she watched him from her chair. "Did you get everything done?" She asked her son.
"You're all set to go. Just the contractor stopping by later to check out the foundation before they start on that next month. You'll just have to come stay with us while they work on it."
"Next month?"
"Yeah." Richie said, unsure if his mom would be alright with it or not, he hadn't exactly asked.
"Then I may as well stay for Thanksgiving."
He smiled at that. "Sounds like a plan."

As always when on a short tour break, it went by much too fast. He was glad he had gotten to see his mom but was sad he would have to leave again. At least the tour wouldn't be much longer and soon enough it would be time for Thanksgiving, and soon enough after that, they'd be celebrating Christmas.

The next day they went back to New York and joined the band on the plane to Toronto, ready for another few shows before their Thanksgiving break. He looked forward to it already.