Chapter 24: “Just when I thought I was out...”

March, 1985, Chicago, Illinois

On Saturday morning, Penny arrived to work on her latest computer program. We'd long passed the point where she needed regular help, so I did homework while she worked. About ten minutes before she was supposed to leave, she saved her work and asked if we could talk.

"What's up, Pretty Penny?" I asked.

"Is Jackie going to be here today? I wanted to talk to someone, and she's the one I like to talk to."

"She should be. She and Jeremiah have been working on something together. Do you want me to have her come over to see you?"

"I can come here. Mom and Bart are cool with me coming over this afternoon, so long as you're OK with it. I told mom I want to talk to Jackie."

"I'm fine with that. Is it something I could help with?"

"I just need some advice; from a girl."

"Then come over any time after lunch. She usually gets here around 12:30pm."

"Thanks!" she exclaimed, giving me a quick kiss.

I walked her to the door and watched her scamper home. I went upstairs to get ready for karate and then met Kara and Sofia in the foyer. It would be an interesting day, because Sensei Jim would decide if I was ready to test for my brown belt. I'd been working on it, off and on, for nearly two years. Stephie had earned her purple belt in Georgia and was close to testing for her brown, because she hadn't skipped classes the way I had.

"Adams!" Sensei Jim said when we'd lined up at attention.

"Yes, Sensei?" I said in a strong, firm voice.

"Lead!" he commanded.

"Yes, Sensei!" I replied, moving to the front of the class to lead the exercises.

As I took my place, I quickly ran down a mental checklist of the various stretches and exercises that made up our warm up routine. Normally, the highest ranking student would lead the exercises, but this was part of my test to see if I was ready. I led the class through the routines using the same sharp, barked commands that the black belts used when they led the class, watching to make sure that everyone was performing the moves properly.

"Gleason!" I barked at a teenaged female yellow belt. "Those are not proper situps! Do ten more!"

"Yes, Sensei!" she said firmly and did the additional exercises correctly.

When we finished, I bowed to Sensei Jim and retook my place in the second rank with a brown belt and purple belt to my right, and three black belts in front of me. Sensei Jim clapped his hands sharply and everyone moved to their assigned spots along the wall to wait for instructions. I expected to be called on to demonstrate kata for the lower belts and was not disappointed in my expectation.

"Adams! Demonstrate Taikyoku Yondan."

"Yes, Sensei!" I said.

I moved smartly to the center of the dojo, bowed to Sensei Jim, and then quickly and smoothly executed the Fourth Level of the Taikyoku series of kata. On command, I ran through it a second time, and then was instructed to teach three students the moves I'd just demonstrated. After Sensei Jim had given out other assignments, he watched as I led the lower belts through the kata, trying to remember how they'd been shown to me.

When class was finished, I was asked to stay behind.

"You're ready," Sensei Jim said. "That said, I do not award the brown belt lightly. You must take the class seriously and make every effort to be here regularly. I know your friend is recovering from a terrible injury, but if you wish to train for a black belt, that is no casual matter. You'll need to set aside time each day to practice, even when you are not here. You will also need to set aside time for meditation or prayer, whichever you prefer."

"I'm not particularly religious, but I do have quite a bit of knowledge of Buddhist practice. Meditation is a much better choice for me."

"As it was for me. I actually became Buddhist, though that's not necessary for me to award a black belt. Inner peace is. What are my rules about the use of the skills?"

"Evade. Block. Warn. Hurt. Injure. Kill."

"You had an incident in Wisconsin where you used your skills. Have you thought about anything you might have done differently?"

"I have, but in the end, I was defending the honor of my best friend and I was attacked. I defended myself and I would do the same thing again."

"Honor is important. But so is discipline. You know the moves. You have the requisite form. You have not acquired the proper mindset, though. Learning every technique to perfection will not get you the black belt. Discipline will."

"Yes, Sensei!" I agreed.

"This applies to every facet of your life, Steve. Be mindful and disciplined in everything you do. Do not act rashly. Do not allow yourself to be provoked. Do not strike out in anger. Act honorably. Do not give your word lightly, but keep it when you do. If you commit to what I've just said, then I will test you next month for your brown belt."

"I will do as you say, Sensei!" I said.

"Good. See you on Monday night."

I left to find Sofia and Kara waiting for me at the door. We walked home together, and I told them about the conversation and their test that was coming up next Saturday. Both of them were going to receive their yellow belts in a few weeks, when they tested for promotion.

After a quick shower and lunch, I settled down in my office to do homework. Jackie stopped in to say hello when she arrived, and I let her know that Penny was going to come over to talk to her. She smiled and then went to work with Jeremiah in the study room at the drafting table. That reminded me that I'd need to find a place for that table, so I got up and went to talk to them.

"I'd say the sunroom," Jeremiah said. "That way, we can use natural light. I think there's enough room in there."

"More than enough; I haven't bought all the furniture that I had planned to put in there. I meant to ask, isn't your girlfriend going to be eighteen soon?"

"Yes, but given that her daddy's the pastor, I won't be bringing her here because of the alcohol."

"Your church is totally alcohol free?"

"It's supposed to be, but I know some men who drink beer occasionally, like at the ballpark. I don't drink."

"But you hang out with us."

"Sure. But if somebody saw the pastor's daughter at a place where there was drinking, they could cause him all kinds of problems. It's no big deal. I see her on Friday nights and Sunday evenings for dinner at her house. We're getting married as soon as I graduate and get a job."

"Cool! At your church?"

"Yes! Have you seen the Blues Brothers?" he asked with a smile.

I chuckled, "Triple Rock Baptist Church!"

He grinned, "So, you know it. Well, it's noting like that!"

Jackie and I both laughed. As I was leaving, Penny came in and said 'hello'. She and Jackie went off to talk, and I went back to my office. About thirty minutes later, Jackie came in and I heard the front door open and close. Jackie shut the door to my office.

"And?" I asked.

Jackie just shook her head, "She's trying to figure out how to deal with you and your women. I've never heard her sound more mature and thoughtful at any time since she first started coming here. Heck, even the conversation she and I had before you guys had your birthday celebration wasn't even close."

"Me and my women?" I asked.

"I guess you told her that you most likely were going to end up with some arrangement with Jennifer, Elyse, and Kara, no matter what else happened in your life."

"I did. I don't want her to have any blinders on about what it means to be with me both now and in the future."

"That's what she's trying to sort out. She's fifteen and trying to figure out if she can handle a group relationship! Do you know how crazy that is?"

"Just like everything else in my life. It just gets crazier by the second!"

"Now what?" Jackie said with a laugh.

"This girl I met in Indianapolis," I said. "She's a Second Year medical student."

"Sounds serious. I suppose I should get something to drink first."

I nodded, "Sure. If you don't mind, I'll take tea or coffee, whichever you're making."

Jackie was back ten minutes later with tea, and she poured a cup for each of us. I described meeting Jessica and the phone calls and dinner dates that we'd had so far. As usual, she mostly listened, just asking a couple of questions for clarification.

"That is very different from what you're used to. First, nobody knows about it. Second, if a girl is after you, it's usually to get you into bed. This one seems to want something entirely different. Well, you know what I mean by that."

"I do. It's just strange for me."

"And how do you feel about her?"

"'Intrigued' is the word that keeps coming to mind."

"You're sure it's not just you wanting to get past what appear to be some very firm defenses?"

"Why?" I asked. "To prove a point? And what point would I prove? Even if I was inclined to look for notches in my belt, it could go horribly wrong, like with Annie in Sweden. It wouldn't be worth that risk. So no. It's not about trying to get into her panties."

"I didn't think so, but I had to ask," Jackie said. "What are you going to do?"

"Go out with her in two weeks. She asked, and I accepted."

"Does anyone else know about this girl? At all?"

"No, as you surmised from what I said. I thought it was just about being friends. Jessica seems to think it might go beyond that."

"And she knows about your other girls?"

"Yes, but not the specifics or details. She knows I have a large number of female friends whom I'm intimate with and that I'm thinking that monogamy might not be my strong suit. She hasn't given up."

"Remember an important maxim — Men marry women hoping that they will never change. Women marry men hoping that they will."

I chuckled, "Interesting. I suppose I can see the point. I'm not going to dwell on it too much. I have lots to do with school, work, karate, the new business, and Bethany. Not to mention Kara and Sofia and the rest of my friends. And Penny, who I guess is thinking I might be husband material."

"She is, but she's also smart enough to understand that it probably won't happen. On the other hand, she's not going to simply give up until you tell her to."

"She's not even sixteen yet!" I protested.

"True. You were ready to marry Birgit at fourteen, so what's your point?"

She had me there. Of course, that was different because it really had been a fantasy. But what if Birgit hadn't died? What if I'd lived with her for a year in Sweden? Then I might well have married her as I'd planned back then. And if I'd done things slightly differently, I'd be married to Becky by now, or at least planning a wedding.

I sighed, "True. So what do you think?"

"I have no idea. I'm almost twenty-three and I don't know for sure if I could handle the kind of relationship that she's contemplating. Sofia's nineteen and doesn't know. Penny's not even sixteen. My concern for her is that she'll think she can handle it and years down the road, she won't be able to."

"Couldn't the same thing happen with Bethany or Kara?" I asked.

"Sure, but both of them are quite a bit older than Penny. Kara's going to be twenty-one later this month. Bethany is twenty-two next month, just before you turn twenty-two. Five or six years is a huge gap at our ages."

"Does she think I'm going to ask her to marry me if she decides she can deal with my crazy lifestyle?"

"No. She's fairly confident that you're going to marry 'that Bethany girl'," Jackie laughed.

"Care to give odds?" I chuckled.

"Bethany is easily the odds-on favorite. Nobody should bet against her, if they really want to bet. It'd say she's at 75% now, with Penny at 20% and everyone else at 5%. And I think they all know it. Of course, Kara took herself out of the running by saying she'd live with you forever without being married, so I don't count her. Now this new girl, Jessica, I don't know, so maybe she cuts into Bethany's 75%. My money is firmly in my pocket, despite setting those odds."

"You gave Bethany 50% and Penny 30% about a year ago."

"Bethany got 10% from Penny and all of Kara's points, plus some of Sofia's."

"I have noticed that everyone is pretty much assuming it's going to be Bethany. I suppose that does make a lot of sense."

"You could do a lot worse than Bethany, that's for sure. She's pretty much agreed to your plan. The only monkey wrench is your little blonde bombshell. If she were three years older, I'd reverse the odds."

I nodded, pausing a moment. What she was saying, as always, made sense.

"How are things with Jamie?" I asked.

"Great! He was wondering if you're going to need a lawyer for your new company and if you would consider using his firm."

"I have one recommended by one of my investors to set things up. But I think we could move things to Jamie once we get past the initial setup. I need to clear that with Joyce and her grandfather first. You're all set with your job?"

"Yep! I signed the offer letter and I start on June 3rd! I am totally psyched!"

"Someday I'll have you and Jeremiah design an office building for me!"

"And your corner office will have a private bathroom as well as a bed!" she teased.

"Dave obliquely suggested that mixing business and pleasure is a really bad idea!"

"True. Anyhow, I need to get back to Jeremiah. We can talk later if you want."

"Thanks, Jackie. I appreciate it."

She left, and I went back to working on my homework. I didn't get much done before Wen appeared at my door and asked if I was ready to work on our assignment for the microcomputer/microprocessor class. I invited her in and took out the worksheet that we had to complete. We discussed the questions and then worked together to write out the assembly language code that would produce the desired result. For me, this was trivial work because I was paid to write programs in assembly language and had taught Penny how to do it, and having taught myself before I went to Sweden.

"I really prefer higher-level languages like C," Wen said, sounding slightly frustrated.

"I love BASIC, myself, but this is so much more powerful than BASIC. C is closer to the machine than BASIC, but assembler is right down in the guts. Look at this snippet of code. In C, you'd just write something like a = b + c; and you would be all set. Here we have to retrieve the values from memory with a LOAD, perform the math, check for overflow and then write it back to memory with a STORE."