The Tudor

“There is a lot to be said for staying put,” he said. Jason didn’t want to move. His wife Maria did. 

“Jason this house is too small for us. Bella is almost 3 and she really needs a back yard to play in.”

He shook his head and adjusted his glasses. “Maria, Cherry Blossom Park, all 98 acres of it, is a block away. Way better than a backyard, no?”

She looked at him in disbelief. “Excellent point, Jason. We’ll get Bella a cell phone and let her walk to the park and play while I do the laundry.” It was Sunday morning. They were eating breakfast. Hoping to loosen her up, Jason had, strategically prepared a special breakfast for Maria of French Toast, link sausages and mimosas. 

“Baby, my commute to work is only 5 minutes away. Our mortgage payment is low. Our interest rate is 2.7%. It would take another pandemic to get a rate that low again.” He stroked his goatee for emphasis. “We can afford a babysitter to take her to the park.”

Maria took a bite of sausage, chewing carefully, trying to avoid a molar that had a Kimberley Diamond Mine sized cavity. “What have we been trying to do for the last six months?” She asked. Her pale blue eyes frightened Jason a little. 

“Avoid a trip to Ft Myers to visit your mother?” Nothing, not even a blink. “Get rid of the contents of your booth at Meredith’s antique store?”

“Damn it!” Her eyes watered from the pain she felt when she chewed toast on the wrong side of her mouth. 

Jason misunderstood. “I’m sorry! What have we been trying to do for the last 6 months?”

Maria pushed her plate away and sipped some lukewarm coffee. “Trying to have a baby, Jason.” She cut up a piece of sausage and fed it to Bella. “It was easy with Bella. Do you know why it’s been so hard this time?” 

Jason was afraid to guess. “No, why?” He was sure of one thing. It was his fault.

“I think it’s because I’m really worried about how impossible it will be to fit four of us in this tiny house. What do we have 500 square feet?”

Jason focused his attention on his plate. He was pretty sure that conception didn’t depend on square footage, but he realized that arguing the point wouldn’t be a winning strategy. “The house is 1,160 square feet. It’s not too small for another child.”

Maria ran her fingers through her hair, grabbed a hairband and made a ponytail. “I want to move, Jason. I love you but I hate living here.”

He took one more shot at it. “We could probably add a nice room on the back of the house.”

Maria stood and took him to the kitchen window. Sensing something wasn’t quite right, Bella followed her parents. She tugged at her father’s pants. She wanted to be held. Jason was happy to comply. A light but steady rain falling. The window offered a view of the backyard. They surveyed the space in silence. Gesturing toward the yard that abutted theirs, she said, “Maybe we can ask the Smith’s if Bella can play in their back yard,” She smiled and kissed his cheek. 

“I’ll make you a deal,” he said. “I’m up for a promotion. I should know next week. If I get it, we’ll look for a bigger house.”

“You never mentioned you might be up for promotion. When did that happen?”

“Didn’t I tell you about it?” Jason asked. A micro smile graced his lips. 

Maria caught it. “I think you just made that up, this instant. Anyway, we can afford a bigger house if you don’t get a promotion.” She squeezed his hand. “I’ll make you a deal. We’ll look at houses this afternoon. If you see one you love, we’ll buy it.” 

“I don’t know.” He sensed a trap. “How many houses? I need some time to prep for a meeting tomorrow.”

“Fair enough. One house, okay?”

“Wait, you have one in mind?”

“There’s an open house on Craig Place this afternoon. You know the one. It’s only two miles from here. We’ve driven by it a thousand times.”

“The Tudor that looks like a miniature version of the one we saw in that La La Land movie?”

“Right. You said you love that house.”

“It’s for sale?”

“I have two words for you. Open house.”

He laughed. “It’s raining. They’ll probably cancel it.” He put his dish and cup in the sink. “What are they asking?” 

“We can afford it. Deal?”

“I guess.” Jason said. He was out of ammunition. “It’s your turn to do the dishes.”