Chapter 9: A New Semester and a New Job, Part IV

January, 1984, Chicago, Illinois

After karate, I headed back to the house, took a quick shower and went to the kitchen to make some lunch, where I found Katy and Cindi eating together. I made myself a sandwich, grabbed some chips and a pickle, and sat down at the table with them.

"Is Jorge coming today, Cindi?" I asked.

"He could, if he plays his cards right," she giggled.

"Too much information!" I chuckled.

"Seriously, I hope so. He said he would, but I'm not sure if he was just trying to placate me or if he meant it. He's kind of out of sorts because of the stuff I shared with you guys the other night, not to mention the fact that he still has the inferiority complex around us, and especially around you, Steve."

"He's a smart, decent-looking guy," I said. "A bit of self-confidence would do him a world of good."

"And I really made that problem worse, didn't I?" Katy said.

"Yes, but we'll get through it," I replied.

"Should I apologize to him?" she asked.

"It might not be a bad idea to talk to him," Cindi said.

"I agree," I said. "But Katy, you have to be supportive and not make him feel like you think he's a little kid."

"I can do that," she said.

"Well, take the cues from Cindi if he shows up."

We finished our lunch, and I went to my room to get my books. I looked over my homework sheet and realized that I was going to need to find some time for the computer lab. With working on Tuesdays and Thursdays, that meant either afternoons after class or I'd have to go in on the weekends. I wondered if I could connect remotely into the Prime via a modem. I'd stop in Doctor Bauer's office and ask, rather than try to go through the computer lab where I'd probably just get told to go away as an undergraduate student.

I took my books down to the Indian room and sat in one of the comfortable basket chairs to read. About two hours later, I gathered my books and went to my study to use my Apple IIe to write a paper for my history class. When I walked through the great room, I noticed Jorge and Cindi sitting together on one of the loveseats, each engrossed in what appeared to be textbooks. I finished my paper just in time to start working on dinner. I was in the kitchen when Pete walked in.

"Hey, Pete! How's the Navy treating you?"

"Technically, I'm not in the Navy, but pretty good so far. Investigating a couple of offenses for potential courts martial. Can't talk about any details, obviously. How are things here?"

"Pretty good. It's the usual stuff with classes having just started this week. I'm working a couple of days a week out in Downers Grove doing an internship that I get college credit for."

"That sounds cool."

"How's Melanie?" I asked.

"Stir-crazy, as I'm sure you can imagine. She's trying to finish school and plan a wedding while I'm 300 miles away. Mary seems to be keeping Melanie on the straight and narrow, though."

"That's a sentence I would never expect to hear! Mary Harrison is not exactly the epitome of calm and conventional!"

"She's changed quite a bit, actually. Josh has been a very good influence on her."

"You would say that, Pete!" I chuckled. "Grab yourself a drink. The bar's in the basement, in the far corner."

"Don't mind if I do. I'm guessing you're well stocked with bourbon and haven't got a single beer."

"Julia bought some beer the last time she shopped. There are some bottles in the fridge down there. A couple of the guys drink beer."

"Thanks. I'll be right back."

He left the kitchen, and I continued preparing dinner. He was back a few minutes later with a bottle of Old Style. We talked while I finished making dinner and then he joined us at the table. Charlie sat to my left. I'd more or less forgotten about her because I'd been holed up in my study and hadn't seen her arrive. After we ate, I took Charlie aside, and we walked to my study.

"What's up?" she asked.

"I've been thinking about us," I said.

"And this is where you tell me you don't want to sleep with me anymore, isn't it?" she asked.

She didn't seem upset or sad, just matter of fact.

"Well, that was the gist of what I wanted to talk to you about," I said.

"I knew when this started it was just a thing to do for fun. Can I ask why?"

"A lot happened over break, and I need to get my head on straight. I've been in this on-again, off-again relationship with a girl since Junior High. She's out at Stanford, but she visited over the holidays. And the girl back home I was seeing for a couple of years called me when I was in Ohio to see if we could maybe work things out. And you remember that my friend from Sweden is moving here in August, right?"

She nodded.

"Then," I continued, "if you add in the fact that I'm working out in Downers Grove two days a week, plus taking four classes, and I think you can see that things are more than a little busy and complicated in my life."

"I guess I don't see how that affects us being together on Saturday nights unless you're planning on being steady with one of those girls."

"I'm not, but for right now, I'd rather just be friends. I hope that you're OK with that. We have plenty of room here for you and George to stay the night if you guys want to."

"I like hanging out here, so yeah, I want to. Having all the CS majors here, being able to use your computers, have dinner, and hang out afterwards and on Sunday? I don't want to lose that. And if you ever need someone to keep you warm, I'm available!"

"Thanks for understanding," I said.

Charlie smiled, "I knew it wouldn't last. Don't sweat it. On the other hand, if you end up with space here in the Fall, I'm still interested in moving in."

"I'll let you know if that happens."

I noticed that the light on my answering machine was flashing, so I let Charlie head up to the attic and pressed the button to play the message.

I erased the message and looked up her number in my address book. I dialed the number, and she answered on the first ring.

"Hi, Carla, it's Steve Adams," I said.

"Oh, hi! Thanks for calling back. Are you free next Saturday? I'd like you to come to dinner."

"Yes, I am. I suppose that I could do that. What time?"

"Come by at 6:00pm. See you then."

I hung up and left my study, and then headed up to the attic to join my housemates and friends. Jorge was putting on another dancing exhibition and he and Cindi were whirling around the floor like Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Julia and Dave were dancing as well. I went over to Kurt and Kathy, who were standing by Pete. I hadn't really talked to them since before Christmas break. Kathy and I hugged and exchanged a quick peck on the lips and I shook hands with Kurt.

"How are things going?" I asked.

"Well, I talked to my professor about the job at Abbott Labs and I'm going for an interview around March 15th. He thinks it's more or less a lock, and given he's the hiring manager, I guess as long as I don't make a fool of myself in the interviews, I have the job."

"That's cool! Where do you plan to live?"

"I asked Kathy to move in with me, so probably something on the train line that goes to Evanston. Abbott is not too far from where Pete's office is at Great Lakes."

"I've been looking for a place for Mel and me," Pete said, "probably along a train line because she has to come into the Loop to get to John Marshall, though she could always drive."

"I can drive as well," Kathy said. "The Volvo still runs great. It's built like a tank!"

"When are you guys getting married?" Pete asked.

"June or July of '85, after Kathy graduates. We've debated where to have the wedding. We talked about having it in Chicago because so many of our friends are here, but in the end, her mom prevailed on us to do it in Milford. Would you be willing to be my best man?"

I chuckled, "Which means I have to marry Kathy if something happens to you? Perfect! Who's your maid of honor, Kathy?"

"Who do you think?! Bethany, of course! So if something happens to me, Kurt has to marry her!"

"Oops," I grinned. "I didn't quite calculate that out, did I?"

"Nope!" Kathy smiled.

"You know," Kurt said seriously. "Considering that Steve's already been with both the bride and the maid of honor, I think maybe I should get a chance with the maid of honor as well!"

I stepped back quickly as Kathy's face clouded.

"Just kidding, Dear, just kidding!" Kurt said, quickly pulling her into a tight hug.

Kathy smirked, "Hmmmmm..."

I shook my head and went to the bar and poured myself some bourbon and then asked if anyone objected to me lighting the pipe that Stephie had given me. Nobody did, so I pulled it out, filled it with tobacco from the pouch she'd given me, then lit it with a match I took from the box on the bar. I puffed a few times and decided that I liked it, but it was something that I'd only do rarely. Smoking wasn't exactly at the top of my list of things to do, and I knew it would impact my breathing if I did it too often.

I puffed my pipe and watched my friends dance and drink and enjoy themselves. Despite my troubles with Joyce and the confusion that Anala had caused with her questions the day before, I was happy with how things were right now. The future would have to take care of itself. I could only take things one day at a time. I finished my pipe and set it down on the bar, then went to Katy and asked her to dance. She accepted, and we found a spot where we wouldn't be in the way of the dancing exhibition that Jorge and Cindi were continuing to give. The song was slow, and we danced with my hands on her hips and hers on my shoulders.

"How are things going?" I asked. "I haven't really talked to you."

"It's only the first week of class, but so far, so good. I noticed Charlie isn't hanging on you like she did last semester."

"I decided that I didn't want to keep up our casual relationship."

"Why?"

"Honestly? It wasn't something I was really interested in. I almost ended it after one time, but I decided to give it a chance. Now, with everything that's going on, and with how busy I am, I just need a few less complications."

"So you give up a regular Saturday night fuck because you're busy?"

I chuckled, "Not just that, Katy. As I said, I wasn't really that interested. I should have ended it sooner. Of course, if YOU were looking for a regular Saturday night fuck, I could accommodate! That's something that would definitely interest me!"

"And how the hell would I ever explain that? I'd never live it down with Cindi or Jackie!"

"I know. I was teasing, but not, if you get my drift."

"I do," she said.

The song finished, and we split up. I danced with Charlie, George, Jackie, and Elyse, then headed to the kitchen and made some tea. I took the pot into my study and set it on the side of the desk. I sat down, turned on the computer, and started writing in my journal. I had so much to write about from my conversation with Anala that I'd either have to stay up quite late or only get part of it down. I wrote for a couple of hours, sipping tea the entire time. Just after midnight, Elyse knocked, opened the door, and came in without being invited.

"You don't mind, do you?" she asked.

"I told you and Stephie that no rooms were off limits to you, and this one was specifically mentioned. So, no, I don't mind. What's up?"

"I just came to check on you. You kind of disappeared from the attic."

"I just wanted to write in my journal. Anala gave me a lot to think about. She's always challenging my thinking, and she did a real number on me last night."

"What was it this time?"

"Becky, Kara, Joyce, Karin, Birgit, Connie, Penny, you, Jennifer, Bethany, and Sofia," I chuckled.

"Did she analyze every relationship you've ever had?"

"More or less. Mainly it was Becky. She also made me call Joyce."

"Joyce? You two have really been through the wringer over Kara."

"True, but this was over Connie, her little sister. Anala insisted that I call Joyce to try to repair our relationship and Joyce spent the entire call attacking me. I was a bit harsh at times, but I really tried."

"Does that cause problems with her grandfather?"

"Surprisingly, no. I told Joyce to talk to Connie and work out their problems between them and leave me out of it. I don't know that she will," I sighed.

"Well, if you want my advice, I'd say stay away from both of them until this is sorted out."

"Not an unreasonable point. Shouldn't you be with Eduardo?"

"He's waiting for me in my room. I told him I'd be along soon enough. I just needed to check on you."

"Thanks, Elyse. I'm fine. As I said, I just wanted to work on my journal."

"You ended things with Charlie? How did she take it?"

"Fine. It was never anything serious. She made it clear that if there was a room available, she'd like to move in. But given that Sofia is going to be here in August and my little sister a year after that, I'm not sure that's going to happen. We'll see what everyone does when they graduate in eighteen months."

"It's getting closer, isn't it? Of course, I have two more years after that. Have you heard from Stephie?"

"We spoke after Christmas. I'm sure we'll talk occasionally, at least, and I'm planning to go down for the race this Summer."

"OK. I'm going to head to bed. I'll see you in the morning."

She got up, kissed me on the cheek, and slipped quietly out of the room. I went back to typing and finally saved everything and shut the computer down about 1:00am. I took the teapot and my cup to the kitchen, then headed up to my room. I brushed my teeth, shut off the lights and got into bed. No sooner than my head had touched the pillow, I heard the door open and close.