Chapter 80: Counting Down the Days

November, 1985, Chicago, Illinois

Wednesday was quiet, and the couple of times I left my office I saw Jorge and Stephanie together. I smiled at her and nodded my approval, and she stuck her tongue out at me for the first time in years. It was all that I could to keep from giving my standard response, but if I had done that, it would create no end of problems.

On Thursday, Kara and Jessica helped me make the Thanksgiving dinner. The football games weren't very interesting, with the early game being the Jets at the Lions and the late game being the Cardinals at the Cowboys. Detroit beat New York and Dallas beat St. Louis, and neither game was really close. All of us were excited for the Bears, who were 12-0 and were cruising towards an undefeated season.

After everyone had stuffed themselves with dinner, they still managed to have room for pecan or apple pie and Oberweis ice cream. We sat around the table drinking coffee, eating our pie, and enjoying each other's company.

"I'd say we all need a sauna!" Jennifer said.

"Weekend rules, Jen," I said.

She groaned, "You take a vow of celibacy and the rest of us suffer!"

"Don't be a bitch, Jenny," Josie said. "He's actually handling it pretty well. It's not like he's acting like a jackass or going stir-crazy!"

"T minus 20 and counting!" Kara said.

"I'm still a bit confused by the interlocking relationships here," Nick said.

"That's my brother!" Stephanie laughed. "You need a scorecard to keep track of his relationships. And that's true even now that he's getting married!"

"Bethany, you dated Steve for a very long time, right?" he asked.

"I did," she acknowledged.

"That must have been completely crazy!"

"Nick, it may have been crazy, but Steve is one of the most important people in my life. I love him dearly, and we're always going to be friends. So if you hang around with us, you'll need to adapt to what Jorge dubbed Cirque du Steve."

"Well, the UCMJ would find him guilty of half-a-dozen violations, but if my friend Agent Carston of the NIS can call Steve a friend, so can I."

Bethany beamed. She'd led Nick through a gate that none of her previous boyfriends could enter. I wouldn't call Nick her boyfriend just yet, but his stock went up mightily.

"Thanks, Lieutenant; I appreciate it," I said with a smile. "I'll be glad to have you as a friend."

"Steve, next year, you should invite some recruits from RTC for Thanksgiving. Kids who don't live close can't go home, and the Navy loves to have families take them in for a nice home-cooked meal."

"That's a grand idea, Nick!" I said. "I'll talk to you about it next Summer, or whenever the plans need to be made."

"It's still hard to believe it's only twenty days away," Jessica said.

"T minus 20 and counting!" Kara repeated.

December, 1985, Chicago, Illinois

"Well, that just flat-out sucked," I sighed, disgustedly turning off the TV after watching the Miami Dolphins ruin the Chicago Bears' undefeated season on Monday Night Football.

"I don't know what happened to them," Jorge said. "They should have won this game quite easily!"

"I agree," Dave said. "I don't get it!"

"Well, I'm going to head back to IIT," Jorge said.

"Do you need a ride?" I asked.

"Thanks, but not this time; I bought a car! The money I made from IITRI plus what you guys are throwing my way gave me enough money to get a used Fiat wagon. It's a Mirafiori. I picked it up on Saturday morning. I figured a used car suited me better."

"Great! That'll make it easier for you to get here, and you won't have to rely on my sister to drive on your dates!" I teased.

"I wanted to thank you," he said as we walked to the front door. "For standing up for me when Bethany's little brother showed up."

"My sister needs to get her head screwed on straight," I said. "I had to learn those lessons the hard way. Hopefully, she can learn quickly."

Jorge nodded and smiled. We shook hands, and he left to head back to campus. I went to my study to spend some time writing in my journal. Jessica had left late the previous afternoon, and we wouldn't see her again until the day before the wedding. The next two weeks would be crazy for both her and Kara, with studying for finals, Jessica's evaluation from her OB/GYN Clerkship, and the final preparations for the wedding.

I had taken over nearly all the final planning because I could be flexible with the hours I worked. What that appeared to mean was that I would spend at least half of each day dealing with some aspect of the wedding and the honeymoon, or talking to Elyse, Jennifer, and Josie about the combined bachelor party and bridal shower. We were only twelve days away from the wedding, and it seemed as if every single person who we'd contracted with needed to have their hands held.

"What the fuck?" I sighed to Elyse after hanging up with the catering service. "This is their business! You would think they could do this without involving me in every single little detail!"

Elyse laughed, "Steve, think about this for a minute. Who do they usually deal with in situations like this? The bride and her mother. Can you imagine the kind of insanity that would ensue if the caterer decided to use a slightly different color napkin if they didn't ask in advance?"

"Are brides and their mothers ALL like that?"

"No, but surprisingly, many of them seem to be," she said.

I chuckled, "I suppose, but none of us are like that."

"No, you aren't," she agreed. "But wedding planners have to assume that you are. My mom has a friend who does this for a living and she's had a bride completely flip out and lose control because the shade of the tablecloths was a fraction off from what they wanted. She's had mothers of brides threaten to sue her because they found a water spot on a single wine glass. The absolute worst one was when she actually was sued because the florist had to substitute flowers at the last minute because whatever it was that the bride requested wasn't available, or there was some problem with how they looked. She eventually won, but it cost her a fortune in time and effort to win."

"People are that insane?"

Elyse laughed, "You have no corner on the market for being nuts! It's just that you're completely rational when it comes to business decisions, and that's how you view all these contracts."

"Any concerns I need to know about for the party?" I asked.

"No. The house is going to be jammed full of people, though. I heard from Tatyana that she will be here, and that the Anisimovs are coming as well."

"I'll need a bodyguard to protect me from Lyudmila!" I chuckled. "She was supposed to visit in the Spring and she was sure she was going to get her wish."

"Maybe I should call Aimee's dad and arrange security!" Elyse grinned. "Though Cleveland is going to be here, and he's pretty intimidating."

"Yeah, 6′2″ tall, 220lb black men in uniform tend to be! Like Bart said, if the Russians saw him, they'd run! That guy is all muscles!"

"Anyway, it looks like almost all of your friends will be here, including Mary and Josh, Marty and Tracey, and Larry from back home. Did you hear from Red?"

I sighed, "I did. Stephie is in pretty bad shape from the chemo, but she is insisting that they come. Red doesn't think it's a good idea."

"Then it's time for you to man-up, Mr. Adams. Call your Georgia Peach and tell her to listen to her fiancé."

"But I want her here!" I protested.

"I'm sure you do," Elyse replied, trying to soothe my aching heart. "But you also want her here in five years, and ten years, and long after that. What's best for her?"

"You know," I sighed, "I hate it when you, Jackie, Bethany, and Kara are right about stuff I don't like."

"Call her right now and talk to her," Elyse insisted, handing me the phone.

I dialed Stephie's number and asked her mom if I could speak to her. When Stephie came on the line, she sounded tired and weak.

"Hey, Peaches," I said.

"Hey yourself, Yankee."

"How are you doing?" I asked.

"Shitty," she said. "I feel like I got run over by one of Bill's cars at 200MPH."

"You make sure you follow your doctor's orders and do exactly what they say, Peaches. I'm looking forward to going to races with you and Red for years to come!"

"Red and I had an argument about your weddin'," she said.

"I know," I said gently. "And I think you need to listen to him. I know you want to be here and I want you to be here, but it's more important that you beat this thing. That's what I want. That's what Red wants. We both love you, Peaches. You should listen to him."

"This sucks, Yankee. It's your happy day and I want to see it."

"I know you do, but we're going to have the ceremony videotaped, so that's an option. I want you around for a long time. Talk it over with your man, and you two decide. My opinion is that he's right. But I know you'll keep your own counsel on this one."

"You're dern right I will!" she said.

"Call me if you need anything," I said. "I mean that."

"I know you do," she said quietly.

"Bye, Peaches," I said.

"Bye, Yankee."

I replaced the handset in the cradle and let out a long, deep sigh.

"Not good?" Elyse asked.

"No. She sounds like crap. Hopefully, she'll listen to Jason. I need to get back to work now; I've lost most of the morning!"

Elyse left and Dany pushed her chair close to me and put her hand on my arm, and leaned over and kissed my cheek.

"Sorry," she said, and then scooted back to her keyboard.

I got up and went to the kitchen to make some tea, totally bummed about the situation with Stephie. I wished there was something that I could do, but as Doctor Barton and others had pointed out, it was up to her doctors and the Fates, or gods, or whatever, plus her will to survive. Bethany had pulled through on sheer determination to live, according to Doctor Barton, which was confirmed in Bethany's mind by her supernatural experience. When the tea was ready, I took the pot back to my office and got to work, because it was the best way to keep from obsessing about a situation that was, as so many people pointed out, completely out of my control.

That evening, I called Tatyana to invite her to visit in January for her birthday and Russian Christmas. It would be the last one that we could spend together for quite some time, and perhaps the last one, ever.

"And this is OK with Kara and Jessica?" she asked.

"Yes, of course. I made sure that it was OK with them. Of course, it will be a bit different."

Tatyana laughed, "Yes, of course! I am not «некультурный»! I would not love with a married man!"

"No, of course not! Just how upset is Lyusya with me?"

Tatyana laughed again, "She is, how do you say it, fit to be tied? But even she is not «некультурный» enough to have a married man in her bed."

"Good. She'll find a fine young man when she goes to college, I'm sure."

"Yes, I'm sure she will. I will see you in two weeks, Stepa!"

"See you then, Tanya!"

Just after I hung up, the phone rang. It was Jeremiah Brown. I hadn't seen him in a few weeks, but before that, he'd been coming fairly regularly on Saturdays, and he and Jackie were still fast friends.

"I just wanted to apologize for not being able to attend the party. Sharice and I will be at the wedding, but her daddy doesn't want her at the party."

"No apology necessary," I replied. "I totally understand. I'm just glad he's letting her come to the wedding. I can't imagine he approves."

Jeremiah laughed, "She didn't tell him the details, if you know what I mean. It's just you marrying Jessica as far as he knows."

"That makes sense. But don't get in any trouble with that man. He's going to be your father-in-law as soon as you have your first job in two-and-a-half years or so."

"I know! I'm sure he'll find out later, but it'll be OK. He'll be upset about your baby with Jennifer, too, but it's not like he hasn't seen girls in the church get pregnant before. He'd lecture you, but if you take responsibility for the kid, that goes a long way in his book to make up for your sin."

"I'll see you at the wedding, then. Or are you coming this weekend to study with Jackie?"

"No studying. For architecture, it's a project that I've already completed. It's my math and stuff I need to really hit the books on."

"OK."

The week flew by, with Kara and I talking to Jessica every evening, and Kara spending a lot of time studying, especially for organic chemistry. I spent my evenings working, reading, or playing video games, though I was careful to limit how much I let those suck me in. I also took a trip to the furniture store to order the new king-size bed for my room. Jackie and Jamie came by one evening, and Katy and Kenneth on another one. It was good to talk to them, and it helped me take my mind off Stephie, who I was truly worried about. She and Red hadn't reached a final decision about the wedding, but I hoped that she would listen to him in the end, even though I really wanted to see her.

The last weekend before my wedding was mostly spent with Dave and Julia and Kathy and Kurt. All of my other housemates and most of my friends were studying for final exams. It felt a bit odd to not be doing that for the first time in four years, but I was also relieved that I didn't have to do it. On Saturday evening, the six of us went to see Spies Like Us starring Chevy Chase and Dan Aykroyd. It was a funny spoof of spy movies, and we all laughed hard quite a few times.

"Ready to take the plunge?" Kurt asked as we left the theatre.

"Steve's been ready for that since he first decided to propose to Kara," Kathy interjected. "It was just a matter of sorting out a few things."

Julia laughed, "A FEW things? I remember meeting him in August1982 and discovering just how crazy his life was. That said, I can't imagine how things might have gone if I hadn't met him. He's more or less responsible for me and Dave being together. And he's certainly responsible for me having a great job!"

"I met him in seventh grade!" Kathy said. "And to think I could have headed off all of this insanity."

"Nothing personal, Steve," Kurt said. "But I'm glad she didn't."

I chuckled, "I totally understand the sentiment, and I dare say that Jessica and Kara agree with you!"

Kurt and Kathy headed back to their apartment and Dave, Julia, and I headed back to the house. They decided on a sauna and said that they were going to put up the 'Privacy Please' sign, so I went to my study to write in my journal, and then play some Ultima IV. I was close to the end, though I had a few more quests to complete before I could enter the Stygian Abyss and achieve the status of Avatar. It would take longer because I was rationing my time.

"Hey, Snuggle Bear," Kara said, coming into my study.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Just checking on you. Neither Jess nor I have had much time for you the past week, and I just wanted to make sure that you were OK."

"I'm fine, Honey. I had a good time with the Kallases and Jaegers tonight, and I'm just playing a game right now. I spent some time with Jennifer and Josie this past week as well. Are you worried?"

She smiled, "No, not really. But I just want to make sure that you're OK."