Chapter 33: New Friends

September 1982, Chicago Illinois

By the time Kara left, she seemed to be in a much better mood. We had eaten lunch, made love again, and after a long shower together, she’d packed up her weekend bag and I’d walked her to her car. After we exchanged a long, soft kiss, she got into the car and drove away, promising to call as soon as she arrived home, which she did about 8:15pm. I had spent the afternoon working on technical documentation for the vet software, something that had to be completed before the sale finalized so that Jack could understand everything that Beth and I had done.

Late in the afternoon, I’d called Tatyana, keeping my promise to talk to her more often and to keep her updated on what was going on. Later, Elyse and I had a quiet dinner together, and after Kara’s call, we took a walk. When we got back to the apartment, she surprised me by asking me to make love to her.

“What’s up with you wanting gentle lovemaking, Elyse?” I asked when we were cuddling together afterwards.

“I needed to feel close to you. When we’re wild, it’s pleasure that’s out of this world, but this was emotionally fulfilling. I’m starting to understand why you think the way you do about Kara. I’ve never really approached intimacy this way. I guess that’s Sean’s fault, really. He was interested in maximum pleasure and wanted no emotional attachment. I think maybe that’s part of why he dumped me; well, in addition to wanting an even younger girl.”

“Does this mean you’re retiring your toys?” I smirked.

“Oh, you wish!” she laughed. “But for now, when I have this kind of chance with you, I just want to make love. I promise I’ll bring them out again. And remember, I did say I was going to find something new!”

“That you did,” I chuckled. “I still wonder if I should be afraid!”

A bit later, after some more quiet cuddling, we showered together and then made some tea. We sat in the bay window in the living room to drink and talk.

“We need to move Stephie’s things back to your room,” Elyse said. “I noticed Kara was really uncomfortable with Stephie here.”

“Yes, I know. It was a mistake, I guess, but I hated the idea of keeping Stephie away and Kara did want to meet her.”

“Did you know Kara looked through your things when you were showering? I saw her when I came down the hall to talk to her.”

“No, but that doesn’t really bother me. It’s going to be her room, too.”

“I think she was looking for evidence that Stephie had moved in. She has, you know.”

I sighed, “She has, hasn’t she? The dorm room is pretty much a fiction at this point.”

“Steve, I know I’ve brought this up before, but if you ask Stephie about a poly relationship, she’s going to say yes. And if you ask them, so will Bethany and Jennifer, even if they’re a ways away. Hell, your friend Jackie would accept it as well. I’m not saying all of them would accept it permanently, but it would be a fluid thing — girls come and go as their needs and desires change. But I think that Bethany and Jennifer would stay with you forever.”

“Elyse, please! We’ve been down this road. I don’t think it’s the right thing to do.”

“Are you sure about that? It’s what you’re doing, even though you say you’re committed to Kara. What I’ve said is true and you know it. Why change things that are working so well for you? And for everyone involved, well, except Kara, I guess.”

“Because I love her more than anyone I’ve ever loved. And that includes Birgit.”

“I’m sure you do, but I don’t know if that’s enough. If it is, why don’t you just give up Stephie, Tatyana, Karin, me, and whoever else right now? You don’t have to answer. Just think about why you’re doing what you’re doing. Don’t get me wrong, I am NOT criticizing what you’re doing at all — hell, fuck anyone and everyone you want. We’re young, have fun! I’m just saying that you’re happiest when you have a small group of girls you’re intimate with. You struggle to be with just one.”

I sighed again, “I hear you, Elyse. Just let it go, OK?”

“I will. For now. Just be careful that you don’t hurt yourself or Kara.”

After we finished our tea, I rinsed the cups and straightened up the kitchen area. I went to Elyse’s room and climbed naked into bed with her. Once again, we made gentle love and then fell asleep, spooned together.

On Tuesday, when I arrived at IIT, Stephie was sitting on a bench near the parking lot. She walked over to the car and handed me her bag. I put it in the Trans Am, then hugged her, gave her a quick kiss, and then we walked to our Philosophy class. We took our seats in the front just as the professor came in. He started the lecture right away and after about fifteen minutes, the usual class discussion started.

We were discussing Socrates and the ‘Socratic Method’. I became annoyed quickly when it was clear that the professor was claiming to use the method but was asking leading questions, trying to force students to agree to things he was certain they didn’t believe. While I had played ‘devil’s advocate’ in arguments before, it seemed to me that he was picking on one of the girls who sat in the back of the room. She was clearly Roman Catholic, probably Irish, by her Boston accent, and he was pushing hard on her about religious faith, and it seemed like his goal was to destroy her beliefs rather than to understand them.

I was the last person to object to breaking down Roman Catholic theology, but he wasn’t doing what he had said he was going to do — investigate her beliefs. I was about to raise my hand when Stephie’s hand shot up. From the look on her face, I could see she was upset. The professor smiled and acknowledged Stephie. She called him out for asking unfair questions that could only be answered the way he wanted, rather than as part of exploration. Her cute Georgia accent only made it better as she pointed out all the things he did and said.

“Very good, Miss Grant. You’ve identified exactly how I was misusing the method. Miss O’Connor, you have my apologies for doing that to you, but you were a good sport about it. Now, Miss Grant, would you care to show us the right way to do this?”

The cute Georgia accent almost completely disappeared as Stephie asked Katy a series of exploration questions that helped reveal what Katy actually thought about things, rather than trying to force her to agree to things she didn’t believe. When Stephie finished, she got a nod and approval from the professor.

“That, my friends, is the right way to do this. You ask questions designed to draw out what the person thinks, not get them to agree with you. While it may be that your questions lead people to change their minds, that’s not your goal. Your goal is to get them to identify what they believe and investigate the validity of those beliefs. Do they hold up under scrutiny?”

The rest of the class was a discussion of Socrates’ ideas on knowledge, virtue, and ‘Socratic paradoxes’. I very much enjoyed the lively class discussion and made several points that had the professor nodding in agreement as we debated the material. I was actually disappointed when class ended because I felt there was so much more to discuss. Next week we’d be moving on to other topics and later time periods.

As we filed out of the classroom, the girl from the back of the class sidled up to us.

“Hi, I’m Katy O’Connor,” she said to Stephie.

“Hi! I’m Stephie Grant and this is my friend Steve Adams.”

“Hi, Katy,” I said. “He was pretty rough on you there.”

“He had me boxed into a corner. I’m not exactly the model Catholic even if I’m Irish, from Boston, and have a cop for a dad!”

Stephie and I both laughed.

“We’re both Catholic and certainly not model!” Stephie replied, accompanied by a soft laugh. “The Damnyankee here is an agnostic and I ain’t been to church in ages.”

“Katy, I was born in California. Do you think I’m a Yankee?”

“Hell no! Californians are not Yankees! Now, you come to Boston, I’ll show you what Northerners are all about! Of course, I’m a Red Sox fan, so I can’t stand the Yankees. But either way you use that word, Steve isn’t one. Hell, Reds fans hate the Yankees almost as much as they hate the Dodgers!”

“Well, shit, ANOTHER Yankee,” Stephie teased.

“What did you expect, Peaches?” I asked. “You’re in Chicago, Illinois. Abraham Lincoln was from Illinois! Most of the people around you are from the North.”

“I should have gone to Georgia Tech!” she grumped, unconvincingly.

“Oh, yeah, you and Daryl,” I smirked. “That would have been LOTS of fun!”

“Watch it, Yankee!” she threatened, but with a smile.

“Are you two a couple?” Katy asked.

“It’s complicated,” Stephie shrugged. “We sort of are, but it’s kinda temporary because he’s sweet on some other Yankee girl in Ohio.”

“Interesting,” Katy said, pausing a moment. “Say, do you guys want to get some lunch?”

We agreed and decided to go to a diner in Bridgeport rather than eat at The Bog. On the way, Katy told us more about herself, including that she was pretty bummed over having just broken up with her boyfriend.

“You’re putting on a pretty happy face,” I said.

“I’m pretty damned upset, really. I cried all last night. He dumped me out of the blue. And by telephone! He’s at the University of Chicago and couldn’t even be bothered to come see me. The philosophy class was exciting and interesting, so I guess that helped me mask it,” she said, a quiver in her voice. “Don’t be surprised if I start crying at some point.”

“Steve’s apartment-mate had the same thing happen to her over the Summer. And Steve had something kind of similar about a year ago. I, on the other hand, dumped my boyfriend back home. But I did it face-to-face with him on break.”

“You live off campus?” Katy asked as we walked into the diner and sat down. “And have a female roommate?”

“I moved here from Milford, Ohio, which is just east of Cincinnati, the Summer before I started at IIT. I had serious problems with my mom, so I moved out, but gave IIT my apartment as my home address so I could avoid the requirement to live on campus.”

“And the female roommate?” she asked.

“My friend Elyse. I met her when I was at her aunt’s wedding when I was a Sophomore. We kept in touch, never really dated or anything. When my High School girlfriend changed plans and broke things off with me, Elyse offered to share an apartment. We have a nice two-bedroom place down in Hyde Park, which works well for her because she’s at UofC.”

The waitress appeared and took our order.

“What are your majors?” Katy asked.

“Chemical Engineering for me, Computer Science for Steve. What’s yours?”

“Electrical Engineering,” Katy said, “with a minor in computers. And your accent and your comments tell me you’re not from here. Where are you from?”

“Dawsonville, Georgia. You can tell more if you listen to me talk with Steve, because I play up the accent with him because he likes it so much. But in class, you’ll hear just a bit of it. You’re really from Boston?”

“Irish Catholic, Red Sox and Celtics fan, my dad’s a cop, and my mom works for the Boston Globe. And I have the accent! So yeah. I have the family to prove it, too — an older sister and a younger sister and brother. Four kids. Mom and dad clearly didn’t believe in birth control.”

“I’m an only kid,” Stephie said, “but Steve’s got a younger brother and sister.”

Our food arrived, and we started eating.

“Did you notice how cute that waitress is, Steve?” Katy asked. “She was eyeing you.”

Stephie laughed, “Oh, that’s all he needs — MORE girls.”

“Do I detect a story there? And should I be worried?” Katy asked, the corners of her mouth upturned.

“Ignore my Confederate friend, please,” I said, smiling.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” Katy replied. “I’m taking a course in human sexuality as an elective. I think I might want to interview you if what Stephie is hinting at is true!”

“Interview?” Stephie tittered. “Or do you mean hands-on research?”

“Just an Interview,” Katy replied with a small laugh and a twinkle in her eye. “I’m not interested in sharing a guy in any way, shape, or form.”

“I suppose I could do that,” I said. “Even for a Red Sox fan. That said, I have to say game six of that series was the greatest game of baseball I’ve ever seen.”

“Don’t remind me about ‘75!” Katy complained. “I thought finally the Red Sox were going to break the curse!”

“It’ll never happen! Trading Babe Ruth was insane, and the BoSox deserved what they got. Boston and the Cubs are both cursed! Forever!”

She sighed, “At least the Celtics are looking like they’ll have a good year.”

“I don’t follow basketball at all. Cincinnati had a team, but they moved in ‘72, right about the time I moved there.”

“They play in Kansas City now,” Katy said. “I’m a huge basketball fan — I go to every IIT home game and as many away games as possible.”

“We have a basketball team?” Stephie asked. “Who knew?”

“I guess you two aren’t big sports fans?”

“Baseball, ice hockey, and NASCAR for me,” I said.

“NASCAR and football for me,” Stephie said.

“NASCAR? A bunch of redneck hicks driving in circles for a few hours? A sport?” Katy asked with another twinkle in her eye.

“Them’s fightin’ words, Boston!” Stephie said with an unconvincing growl.

We laughed and chatted as we ate. When we finished our meal, we walked back towards IIT.

“Steve, I was serious about the interview. Would you be willing to do it?”

“I suppose. I’m pretty open about stuff like that.”

“Do you have time to stop by the dorms? I’ll give you the intake questionnaire.”

“Intake?”

“Sorry. That’s a standard term in psychology for when you have a new patient or subject.”

“Stephie? Are you in a hurry?”

“Nope. Let’s go. I still got time before class.”

We walked back to the dorms and waited in the lobby while Katy went upstairs. She was back a few minutes later with a four-page questionnaire.

“If you could have that to me next week Tuesday, that’s fine. Then we’ll set aside some time to talk,” Katy said.

“Will do!”

Stephie and I bid her goodbye, and I walked Stephie to class. After we parted, I went and made my rounds at the fraternity houses. I ran into Dave Kallas at the Sig Eps house. He was sitting on the couch with a buxom young brunette with curves in all the right places.

“Hey, Steve! Come meet Cindi, my girlfriend.”

“Hi, Cindi!” I said, getting the same greeting in return.

“She’s a CS major like us, though she’s in the C and assembly language classes. You’re a semester ahead, right?”

“Yes. I took both of those last semester. Are you both in those classes?”

“Yes.”

“You know, Dave, I never asked you where you were from.”