Chapter 48: I Won't Let You Down

May 20, 1983, Chicago, Illinois

"You're sure?" I asked Keiko when she insisted I go out with Jack, Kristy, and Meg.

"Positive," Keiko replied. "I'm going to drive home — I mean our house — have something to eat, then go to bed. I'm still very tired, and I want to go with you to the nursery tomorrow."

I'd been surprised, not just by the fact that there was a Shinto priest within a few minutes of my house, but also a nursery that sold bonsai trees that was even closer.

"OK. We'll do that after the estimator from Brown Construction finishes looking at the backyard. I rescheduled my plans with Marcia to lunch on Tuesday, so I have all day with you tomorrow."

"And you should keep your date with Teri on Sunday afternoon. I have homework, and I'm studying for finals because I may take them early."

"I was also considering delaying the trip to Saint Martin," I said. "If you're going through chemo, you won't be able to go, and I don't want to leave you for eight days."

"Would you lose the trip?"

"Probably not, but you're more important."

Keiko smiled, "Thank you. But you did promise the other girls."

"I know, but I think they'll understand. I won't request any changes until we speak to Doctor Morrison."

"Then I'll see you in the morning. I'm positive I won't be awake when you get home. And it's OK to bring Meg home with you. You and I aren't a couple."

I took a deep breath and let it out, though doing my best not to make it obvious.

"Did you want to be?"

Keiko smiled, "Yes, but let's not make decisions at the moment. There are far too many unknowns. As I said the other day, we don't know where this will lead."

"OK," I agreed. "I'm here for you, and I'll do whatever you need."

We hugged, she got into her car, and once she'd driven off, I got into my car. I checked my watch and realized I could get back to the parking garage just before 5:00pm, which meant I wouldn't have to pay any fees, so I drove the quickest route at the best speed I could and pulled in with six minutes to spare, saving myself the $15 flat fee for overnight parking, which was charged for entering the garage after 5:00pm.

"How is Keiko?" Jack asked when he, Kristy, Meg, and I met in the lobby.

"They ran more tests today," I said. "We'll know on Monday. The positive news is that with Keiko's initial symptoms, her prognosis is better than the typical person with the specific type of leukemia she has. According to the doctor, the biggest threat is what he called 'opportunistic infections'. I'm hopeful after hearing from the oncologist. What's the scoop for tonight?"

"Are you two OK with seeing Blue Thunder?" Jack asked.

"Sounds good to me; Meg?"

"Sure."

"Anything particular you guys want for dinner?" Kristy asked.

"Meg?"

"Italian?"

"Italian it is!" Kristy declared.

We headed for Italian Village, had a great meal, then saw Blue Thunder, and, as we walked towards my car, I invited Meg to come to the house, and she happily agreed. As I'd expected, Keiko was in bed, and the other girls were out. Meg and I said 'good night' to Kristy and Jack and then went to my room.

"Any requests?" I asked.

"I want to do something I've never done before," Meg said.

"What's that?"

"Fuck all night! Start with sixty-nine until we both cum, then we sixty-nine until you're hard and fuck again. Repeat until morning!"

"At some point, physiology will intervene," I said.

"Then we go until you can't get it up again, sleep, and then before we shower, another thing I've never done — a tit fuck."

"Good thing I don't have plans for tomorrow evening," I chuckled.

We both quickly stripped off our clothes, and I pulled the bubbly, voluptuous blonde into my arms for a searing French kiss.

May 21, 1983, Chicago, Illinois

I'd cum seven times before nature refused to coöperate, but after three hours of sleep, I came twice more — once on Meg's face from a tit fuck, and once in her pussy from a long, slow, gentle screw.

"Satisfied?" I asked with a grin as we got into the shower

"If I say 'no', will you do it again?" Meg asked impishly.

"You'd risk damaging my fragile male ego by saying you weren't?"

"First of all, you do NOT have a fragile ego! Second of all, I want you to ask me out again next semester! Third, it was totally awesome!"

"Where's home?" I asked as I soaped her gorgeous breasts.

"SoCal," she replied. "Sierra Madre, which is in the foothills of the San Gabriel Valley. Population about 10,000."

"That's about the same as Goshen Township, where I'm from. Goshen itself has less than a thousand."

I finished soaping Meg, and she moved under the shower to rinse off.

"When do you go home?" I asked as Meg began soaping my body.

"June 12th. I'll be at Ellie's end-of-the-semester party. That should be fun, too, but I really liked having you all to myself."

"I enjoyed being with you as well."

She finished lathering me, we rinsed off, and went downstairs to have breakfast, finishing just before the estimator from Brown Construction arrived. When I opened the door, I was surprised and happy to see Marcus Washington.

"Hi, Jonathan," he said.

We shook hands.

"Hi, Marcus! I didn't realize you did estimates."

"On Saturday mornings. Hot tub and fire pit, right?"

"Correct. Let me take you to the backyard."

We walked through the house to the backyard, and Marcus walked the perimeter.

"Any thoughts about where you want to situate the tub or fire pit?"

"I was thinking the tub close to the house, with a wooden deck around it and the fire pit more or less central to the yard."

He took some measurements, then checked the location of electrical and water supplies.

"I think that will work," he said. "I suggest removing the cement steps, creating a wooden deck the width of the house, with the hot tub to the right of the door as you face the house. That provides privacy on two sides, and we could add a privacy screen on the side open to your neighbor's house. Electrical and water are right there; extending water would add considerable cost. The size of the hot tub would dictate how far that part of the deck would extend. How many people?"

"I'd say six. I suspect any bigger would be both expensive and take up too much space."

"I think that's right. For the fire pit — centrally located, three-foot diameter, fire-rated brick base, with a copper hood — sound good?"

"Yes."

"I should be able to have an estimate for you on Monday. How soon do you want to do this?"

"Yesterday," I replied. "I'll pay a premium to jump to the front of your schedule."

"OK. Let me speak to Mr. Brown once I work up the numbers for the job. Is there some specific completion date you need?"

"No, just as soon as reasonably possible."

"Permits will be the real deciding factor. Someone will be in touch on Monday afternoon."

"Thanks."

We shook hands; I walked him back through the house to the front door, where we again shook hands. Once he left, I went upstairs to see if Keiko was ready to go to the nursery. She was visibly tired, and after discussing what to do, we agreed that we'd drop Meg at Loyola, then head to Gethsemane Garden Center. The three of us left the house, and after our stop at Loyola, Keiko and I drove to the nursery.

"I'm Kate," a woman who I guessed was about my mom's age said. "How may I help you?"

"We'd like to create flower beds along all four sides of our house," I said. "We'd also like four Bonsai trees for inside. I don't know much about flowers, but we'd like them to be in bloom from Spring to Fall, and be colorful. For the Bonsai, my girlfriend will have to give an opinion because I know next to nothing about them."

"Let's start with the Bonsai," Kate said.

She led us to a greenhouse, and I saw about three dozen Bonsai, along with a display of miniature tools. The miniature trees were pricey, but I didn't want that to interfere with what Keiko needed.

"Don't worry about the cost," I said quietly. "Pick the four you like and whatever tools you need."

It took about twenty minutes for Keiko to select a Chinese elm, a pomegranate, and two junipers. She also discussed lighting with Kate, and the discussion made it clear the plants needed to be by the picture window in the front room or by the smaller windows in my room and Keiko's room, which fortunately faced east and south. Kate suggested additional lights we could mount and added those to our order.

That accomplished, we spent nearly an hour discussing options for planting flower beds, and as the conversation progressed, I recalled something Jeri had said — do the things you're good at and pay others to do the things they're good at. I inquired about having someone perform the landscaping tasks, and Kate said they could arrange it. Keiko and I decided on a mix of flowers, and I paid for our purchases and scheduled the landscaping crew who would create stone-bordered flowerbeds on May 31st.

We carefully loaded the bonsai, stands, and lights into the car, and took them home. I decided to completely re-make the front room into a Japanese motif, which meant we could move that furniture into the great room. That eliminated the need for more couches or chairs but meant I needed a trip to Pier 1 Imports. We ate lunch, and Keiko elected to stay home to nap while Bianca, Deanna, and I went out to run our errands.

"What all do we need?" Bianca asked.

"A low table, cushions, and other things that fit the Japanese style."

"I think they sell Papasan chairs, which are rattan frames with cushions shaped like a bowl and similar to my futon cushion," Deanna interjected. "I think three of those would be perfect. I don't know if they sell a double-version, a Mamasan, but one of those would be cool, too."

"That sounds like a great idea!" I said.

At Pier 1, we found exactly what Deanna had suggested, as well as the low table and cushion chairs with backs that the clerk who helped us called «zaisu» chairs. We also found some rectangular Japanese-print hanging tapestries, along with a pair of floor lamps that were not Japanese but fit the decor. I also bought an area rug that had a pattern Deanna pointed out matched the decor I'd selected.

It wouldn't all fit in my car, even in the large trunk, and I couldn't guarantee anyone would be home to accept delivery during the week, so after consulting with the store manager, the girls and I drove a short distance to a U-Haul store and rented a small truck for an hour. Bianca drove my car, and I drove the truck, and after taking everything to the house, we returned the truck, then went to Jewel and the dry cleaners before heading home.

At the house, we put away the groceries, then moved the furniture from the front room. Once it was empty, we dry-mopped the floor, then moved in the area rug, the lamps, and all the furniture. Keiko joined us and gave some suggestions, and when everything was in place, Deanna and I hung the tapestries.

"I think all that's left is the Spirit Shelf," I said.

"My grandfather called while you were out and said that he had ordered the things we need," Keiko replied.

"Please find out how much he spent, and I'll reimburse him."

"There's no need; he said it's a gift. It will take about ten days."

"OK. How are you feeling?" I asked.

"Tired, but naps help. I think part of it is the emotional strain."

"What can I do for you?"

"You're doing it," Keiko said. "This room, the flowers and plants, coming to my appointments with me and taking care of me."

"Make sure you let us know if you need anything at all," Bianca offered.

"I will; thanks," Keiko replied. "I need to do homework, and I'll take a short nap before dinner."

She hugged me, then went upstairs, and the three of us sat down in the new chairs.

"Bianca, I should have said something earlier, but you should call Mrs. Mandy Peterson at Spurgeon on Monday to arrange for an interview."

"Who conducts the interviews?" she asked.

"Mr. Matheson; Rich, the overnight trader; Tony, the equities analyst; Mrs. Peterson; and me."

"You?"

"That is what Mr. Matheson said!"

"Any advice?"

"Be yourself. You know the environment. You'll be the second female analyst; the first one didn't pass her probationary period."

"OK to ask why?"

"She had a very bad attitude. You know the concerns I have about Spurgeon, right? Well, she was vocal about them in the office."

"If they were paying her anything even close to what they pay you, she's an idiot!"

"She also bitched, publicly, about me buying a house and saying that I was the teacher's pet and was compensated better than she was for no good reason. And insisted that was true even though she knew I had securities licenses and had brought in significant business."

"Stupid. I do have a question — what if someone hits on me?"

"Politely refuse. That's worked fine for Anna, even though people knew she was seeing me."

"I'll have to work around class for the interviews."

"Obviously, and we can accommodate. It'll take four hours, roughly, so with your schedule, probably Tuesday or Thursday, right?"

"Those afternoons are best, yes."

"Just let Mrs. Peterson know that."

"Will do!" Bianca declared happily. "What are you doing tonight?"

"Just hanging out here," I replied. "I was supposed to have dinner with Marcia, but I switched it to lunch on Tuesday. I think I should stay here in case Keiko needs me."

Deanna stood up and said she had to get ready for work, leaving Bianca and me alone in the front room.

"I had planned to go out with some of the girls tonight," Bianca said. "We could order pizza and rent a movie if you want some company."

"That would be OK, but you should check with Keiko."

"Let me do that now so I can call the girls. Be right back."

Bianca went upstairs, Deanna came down to say goodbye, and a minute later, Bianca returned to say that Keiko was amenable, then went to call the girls.

"Keiko said she plans to go to bed by 9:00pm," Bianca said. "She also said she needs to do homework after dinner."

"OK. Who all is coming here?"

"Juliette, Kasey, Josie, and Meg. The other girls have dates."

That didn't surprise me, and I expected more of the 'baseball' girls to begin dating and drop out.

"I take it Shelly is with Perry?"

"Yes. He graduated yesterday and has off until June 1st."

"That's cool. Do you know what day Shelly plans to move out?"

"She said Perry's lease is for June 1st. He found a place on South Oakley that's about a ten-minute walk to Cook County. They'll move in when his schedule allows."

"It's weird thinking about a doctor living in a garage apartment," I observed.

"Interns don't make a lot of money, especially at a county hospital. Shelly didn't say exactly, but he'll make less than you do and work something like ninety hours a week."

"Allyson explained that when we had dinner at Jeri's house, but that doesn't make it any less strange. She also said the money improves pretty dramatically once you become what she called an 'Attending', which is a designation for a doctor with more training and experience. How long that takes depends on the specialty you choose. All that came up in the context of discussing investments. And speaking of that, when you start at Spurgeon, assuming you accept the job offer, you should put the maximum permitted into the retirement fund and the main fund."

"When? Not if?"

"It's a lock because I'm vouching for you. That is what led Mr. Matheson to say that you become my responsibility, and it's my butt in the sling if you don't work out."

"Hang on! If they don't like me or whatever, it hurts you?"

"Yes. Not in the sense that I'll be fired or anything like that, but it does mean my recommendations for hiring will carry less weight and more than one problem, and my recommendations would carry zero weight. That's what I did with Jack when I moved up. I'm as confident in you as I am in Jack."

"So," Bianca said with a smirk, "if there's another staff reduction like the one eighteen months ago, you'll have to decide whether to lay me or Jack off?"

I laughed so hard my sides hurt, and tears formed in my eyes.

"Did you just think of that?" I asked about a minute later when I'd regained some semblance of composure.

"No. I heard my dad tell that joke about a manager at an auto plant to some friends years ago."

"I'm going to have to remember that one!"

"You're going to need to teach me a lot more about the stock market."

"I will, along with foreign exchange, precious metals, and fixed income. Tony and Joel will help bring you up to speed because they'll need analysis as well. Tony is the equities, or stock, analyst, and Joel is the fixed income, or bond, analyst. I handle currencies, precious metals, and commodities, as well as related things such as interest rates, government securities, central banking, and so on.

"Your job will be to create spreadsheets and computer programs to help us analyze historical trends and use them to try to predict the future. A perfect example is the spreadsheet formulas you helped me to create that compare the precious metal price spreads and volumes. There are more complicated things we do by hand, and some things we basically have to go with our guts because we don't have any tools that would let us complete analysis in a reasonable time."