It was this very thing that resulted in Sam acting much quieter than usual after lunch one day. Mackie (who’s studio they were using to record) noticed this and sat down next to him.
“Something wrong?” he asked.
“Yes and no,” Sam replied.
Mackie nodded. There was silence for a moment.
“I was… I was just speaking to Loretta.”
“Your girlfriend, right?”
“Yeah. Well, kinda. We just broke up.”
“Oh, I see.”
“It was a mutual thing - we never see each other,” Sam gave an exasperated sigh. “Man, I am crying, and I… man…”
“You miss her already, huh?”
“Yeah, I do,” he sighed again, woefully. “Well, it’s probably better, right? We’re young and we probably should date other people instead of trying to keep a long distance relationship going like this, huh?”
“That’s not for me to say,” Mackie answered. “It depends on the relationship.”
“Suppose. Hey, what’s happening with you and Aunt Sandy?”
Mackie shrugged.
“She won’t talk to me. Well, sometimes she does. It usually involves the word ‘divorce’.”
“Whoa… you gotta try harder then,” Sam advised. “You gotta find out where she is and then sweep her off her feet all over again. Fill her room with flowers.”
Mackie laughed.
“I mean it. Write her a song. Send her chocolates - she’s pregnant you know, she’d probably seriously appreciate them, especially if that’s what she’s got a craving for. Or does she get cravings for other stuff when she’s pregnant? Oh, the point is, if you want her back, you have to fight to redeem yourself.”
Mackie regarding Sam for a long moment.
“I can’t believe I’m taking advice from someone two-thirds my age.”
Sam laughed.
“Who cares where the advice comes from as long as it’s sound?”
“I’ll pay that,” Mackie smiled. “So what do you say we round up some boys and get back to recording?”
Sam grinned.
“I say lets get started.”
**********
After the boys left that afternoon, Mackie was thinking about what Sam suggested. After a few minutes of consideration, he made a few phones calls.
When Sandy got back to Casey’s place (she had since moved from Isaac and Babsie’s to her friend’s), she saw Casey arranging a bunch of flowers on the table. It wasn’t the only bunch in the room.
“Where’d all these flowers come from?” Sandy asked, stunned.
“About three different florists!” Casey replied incredulously. “And I have messages from all three. For you.”
“Me?” Sandy repeated, taking the cards.
The first said “I miss you”, the second “I love you”, And the third ‘Forgive me’. She stared at them for a good few minutes.
“Mackie,” was all she could say.