Chapter 52: More Parties

May 16, 1987, Chicago, Illinois

"Should I wake her for breakfast?" Kara asked.

"She's still sleeping?" I asked.

"If you were your usual self, is that a surprise?" Jessica teased. "But yes, Kara, go wake her."

Kara left the room.

"And how do you know about my 'usual self'?" I asked.

"We girls do talk, Tiger! I've spent lots of time with Bethany, talked with Kathy quite a bit, and Jennifer, too."

"Of course you have!" I chuckled. "You're OK?"

"I'm fine, Tiger. It's not just that I gave my word, but that Kara and Elyse are right about you finding balance in your life. And I'm not just talking about your odd dalliance. Are you going to start skydiving again?"

"I talked to Wally, and I was thinking of going out to Ottawa tomorrow, but it's a heck of a drive — about 90 minutes each way. I think I'll wait until later in the Summer after you're here and settled. I wanted to spend tomorrow morning with you before you go back to Indianapolis."

"As long as you find some things to do to have fun. Wasn't today supposed to be your Men's Breakfast?"

"It was, but with graduation ceremonies and some other stuff going on for Karl, we decided to take a weekend off. We'll do breakfast next week, and then Guys' and Gals' Nights the following week."

Kara came back to the kitchen.

"Shari is going to take a quick shower," she said. "I haven't seen her this happy or relaxed since I've known her!"

I started making bacon, eggs, and waffles, while Kara made coffee and Jessica set out plates and utensils.

"I meant to ask, how were your Lamaze classes?" Jessica asked.

"Fine. I was in the room with Jennifer and Josie, so I was pretty much aware of how things went. I'm still in awe of Jennifer."

"So, is it old hat now?" Elyse asked, waddling into the kitchen.

"Morning!" I chuckled. "No, it's not 'old hat'! How are you?"

"Ready to have this baby! I talked to Kathy last night. She said the same thing!"

"Did you change your mind about your commencement ceremony?" I asked.

"No. I don't want to sit in the Sun, on a metal chair, wearing a tent for two hours! Does anyone else graduate today?"

"Jorge. Stephanie's going to his commencement. Did you want breakfast?"

"Yes, please!" she said, sitting down at the table. "Did I miss anything by going to bed early?"

"Not really," I said.

"Snuggle Bear, would you mind if I went to Indianapolis with Jessica for the week? I'd go see my mom and Paul, too."

"That's fine with me," I said.

"Kara and Jessica, if Steve doesn't mind sleeping next to a beached whale, would you object?" Elyse giggled.

"No. It'll keep him out of trouble!" Jessica laughed.

Shari came into the kitchen and flashed me a big smile.

"Good morning!" she said to everyone.

"Grab a chair. Breakfast is almost ready," I said.

Elyse looked at Shari, looked at me, smirked, and rolled her eyes. I should have known that she'd guess, even though she didn't have any direct knowledge of what had happened the night before.

"What time are your parents picking you up, Shari?" Kara asked.

"About 9:30am," she answered. "We wanted to be gone before commencement."

"OK. I'll drive you back to campus right after breakfast," Kara said.

I served all four girls breakfast, and ate standing at the island in the kitchen, because there were only four chairs at the table in the breakfast nook. When Shari and Kara finished, Kara kissed me goodbye. Shari looked at Kara, who smiled and nodded. Shari came over, gave me a tight hug and kiss on the cheek, and whispered, "Thanks."

"I thought you said I didn't miss anything last night," Elyse teased when Kara and Shari had left.

"Shush!" I chuckled, pouring myself some coffee and then sitting down.

"I'm glad you're taking my advice," Elyse said. "And Jess, giving him a bit of freedom in this area will be good for all of you."

"Just a bit," Jessica agreed. "He can't go crazy the way he did before we met."

"He won't. He's mostly dealt with the demons that were plaguing him since he was fourteen. I am concerned about one thing, though."

"Stephie?" Jessica asked.

"Yes. He's going to take it really, really hard." Elyse said.

"You know," I said, "I am sitting right here, drinking coffee."

"We always talk about you in front of you, and it's for your own good."

I sighed, "I know. But I'll be fine. I've had a lot of time to process. It's not like it was with Birgit."

"No, but it's still going to hit you hard when she's really gone. Jess needs to be aware of that."

"What about you?" I asked. "You two were really close when we were living in the apartment."

"Yes, we were. But I'm not you. I want Jessica to be aware that you're going to break down."

"Bethany and I have talked about it," Jessica said. "And I spent quite a bit of time talking to Jennifer about what happened when Birgit died."

"Good. I didn't know him then, but he was pretty much a basket case for quite some time. It took years before he could listen to a couple of ABBA songs without breaking down."

"We'll take good care of him," Jessica said. "Tiger, when are Alejandra and Leila heading home?"

"Tomorrow. They both have early flights out of O'Hare. I planned a 'family' dinner as a farewell."

"Sofia's not going home?"

"No. This is home for her. She is flying to California to meet her family for a vacation later this Summer. But otherwise, she's here for the duration. She plans to apply for citizenship as soon as she starts her Residency."

"She wants Loyola?" Jessica asked.

"Anywhere in Chicago. Last we talked about it, she was going to put down every teaching hospital in the city and the suburbs. But that's still five years away."

"And she's going to Loyola for med school?"

"That's her first choice, and she should get in, but she'll apply to UofC and Northwestern as backups."

Kara arrived back home just in time to get ready for karate, and we met Sofia in the foyer and then walked together to the dojo. Jessica had said that she'd join us in July, once she was settled in her Residency, and I looked forward to that. The girls were advancing, and both Kara and Sofia had recently received their brown belts; and my sister, who was at Jorge's commencement, would soon test for her blue belt.

Later that evening, after the 'family' dinner, all the housemates were sitting together in the sauna, including Josie, Jennifer, and Jesse.

"That kid is going to be so nonplussed the first time he sees his girlfriend naked," my sister teased.

"No way, Squirt!" I said. "This is non-sexual. It's a VERY different thing when sex is involved. Ask your boyfriend. Speaking of which, what's up with him not being here?"

"We had a minor miscommunication. He's all uptight about not having a job yet."

"I wish I could hire him, but I don't have a spot for any electrical engineer or even a documentation writer. He did an awesome job on the manuals, but it's really only part-time work at this point, and I don't see needing someone full time for that for years, if ever."

"I think he'll be OK. I think he's just wound a bit too tight on the job issue. He's smart, speaks two languages fluently, and has a degree from a good school. He just needs to relax."

"I hope so. He hasn't talked to me about it," I said. "I have a lot of contacts. I'm sure Scott Bannerman has even more."

"I think he wanted to do this himself, Big Brother."

"I did, too, but Don Joseph taught me the wisdom of making friends and developing relationships that could help in both business and private life. Like Doctor Barton and Doctor Bauer; like Jamie Ferguson; like Karl Schumacher. Not to mention people like Alderman Bloom, Mr. King, the union president, and Gerald Brown. Seriously, tell Jorge to talk to me and not miss out because he let his ego get in the way."

"And if anyone knows about ego, it's your brother!" Bethany said with a laugh.

"Where's your soon-to-be-husband, Bethany?" I asked. "I know he and Karl couldn't make it today."

"They're at some big meeting at JAG headquarters. They were personally requested by Rear Admiral Campbell, the Navy JAG."

"Interesting. Any idea what it's about?" I asked.

"No. Both Nick and Karl said that they weren't allowed to tell us. Ginny asked as well."

"I'm sorry I'm going to miss your wedding," Leila said. "Sounds like it's going to be fun!"

"Me, too!" Alejandra said. "I wanted to stay in Chicago for the Summer, but my mom wouldn't let me. When I get into medical school, there aren't really any long enough breaks to let me go home to Argentina, so even my mom can't interfere!"

"I thought you planned to practice at home," I said.

"I do! I just don't want to live with my mom! When I get my medical degree, I'll be able to afford my own place as soon as I get a job in Buenos Aires. After having all this freedom, I can't stand the idea of having her watch me like a hawk every second! It's going to be a long Summer. Well, Winter, but you know what I mean."

"It's the opposite for me," Leila said. "My parents give me a lot of freedom. I'm going to visit my favorite uncle for a week!"

I laughed, "Have fun!"

When we left the sauna, my wives and I went up to our room to shower. I was just getting into the shower when the phone rang. I turned and went back into the bedroom to answer it.

"Hi!" Joyce said.

"Joyce? What's up? It's nearly 11:00pm!"

"I thought you might want to know that I have a new last name!" she laughed.

"You nut! You got married today?"

"This morning. The chaplain at King's Bay married us. I didn't tell anyone except Nancy. Jake only told a couple very close friends. It was over in about five minutes!"

"I'm sorry," I teased. "You should have found a guy who could last longer!"

Joyce laughed, "The CEREMONY, you jerk! Not the wedding night!"

"Uhm, isn't THIS your wedding night?"

"Jake's making us a late-night snack. He said it was OK to call you."

"Tell him congratulations. And I hope he enjoys 'Bad Joyce'!"

"He has. And he will!" she laughed. "I need to go. I just wanted to let you know."

"OK. Did you tell your family yet?"

"No. Not until I get home."

"OK. Have fun and I'll talk to you soon!" I said.

We hung up, and I went back to the shower with my wives.

"That was Joyce. I guess you could say she eloped!"

"She married Jake?" Kara asked.

"Yes. They told almost nobody. She told me that she might do it this way. She wasn't thrilled with the idea of a huge Italian wedding. Knowing her mom, though, there's going to be hell to pay! She did tell your mom, Kara."

"I suspect she had to, because my mom makes all the travel plans and has to know where Joyce is."

"Did they have a civil ceremony?" Jessica asked.

"They used the base chaplain, and it was a lot like Nancy and Paul's or even your and my legal marriage — just a quick ceremony."

"As long as she's happy," Jessica said.

"I'm sure she is," I replied.

May 17, 1987, Chicago, Illinois

The phone rang, and I knew who it was before I even picked it up. In fact, I was so sure, I greeted the caller by name.

"Hi, Stephie!" I chuckled.

"Yankee, I could spit nails! That asshole Earnhardt!"

"Peaches, I saw the same thing you did. Now I'm not quite as big a fan of Bill Elliott as you are, but I'm close. And to me, it looked like Bill ran Earnhardt into the infield and was pissed because Earnhardt came back onto the track in front of him. Then they rubbed and Bill got a flat. Finally, Bill hit him at the end of the race after he had his flat and was out of competition."

"That ain't how I see it! Nor how Bill saw it. You should have heard what they said in the pits! Bill's brother Ernie told Richard Childress that what his driver did was chickenshit! And Bill was fit to be tied. He said, and I'm doin' my best to quote him here: 'If a man has to run over you to beat you, it's time for this stuff to stop. What he did wasn't right. When a man pulls over and lets you by and then tries to run you into the wall, I'd say that was done deliberately. If somebody doesn't do something about this, we're coming back next week and we'll see what happens.'"

"Sounds like Ironhead got under Bill's skin," I said. "They ran each other rough, and you know that Earnhardt does that all the time."

"Yeah, because he can't run with Bill if he runs clean! I hate Dirty Dale!"

"I know," I chuckled. "But you have to admit that the man can drive. How are you doing?"

"I'm tired and my insides hurt," she sighed. "Dover is absolutely goin' to be the last race I go to."

There really wasn't anything to say to that. It was the next step on a short journey that had only one possible destination.

"Just remember that I love you, Peaches."

"I know, Yankee. We can still talk. I ain't gone yet."

"I know."

"I'm going to take my pain pills and get some sleep."

"OK. I'll talk to you next weekend," I said.

We said our goodbyes, and I hung up, feeling empty inside. Kara and Jessica came into my study a few minutes later.

"She's not doing well?" Jessica asked.

"She's in pain, despite the pills, and she's tired all the time. In a couple of weeks, she'll go to her last race and she'll start on more serious drugs."

"She's at the six-month point, isn't she?"

"Yeah," I sighed. "I suppose every extra day right now is a blessing for her. At least until the pain gets too bad."

We went back to the great room where Kara and I had been watching The Winston All-Star race that Stephie and I had just discussed. We turned to CNN just in time to hear a report that the frigate USS Stark had been struck by a missile and that there were casualties. They didn't have more details, though it was speculated that the missile was fired by an Iraqi aircraft.

"Are any of your friends serving on that ship?" Jessica asked.

"I don't think so. It's too early for Summer cruises for ROTC or the Academy, and the guys who graduated mostly went for subs, aircraft carriers, or desk jobs."

"Have you heard from Aimee?" Kara asked.

"She's hoping to visit during the Summer. Things didn't work out at Christmas. Her Summer cruise starts in June, so it'll have to be in August right before she reports back to Annapolis."

"I wonder if we'll strike back against Iraq," Kara asked.

"I doubt it," I said. "Even though Saddam Hussein is a jackass, he's better than Ayatollah Khomeini by a longshot. The Shah was a bad dude, but the religious nut jobs in Iran are a menace. Iraq is a fairly modern, moderate country. Iran is trying to take everyone back to the seventh century, complete with stoning and child brides. That sad part is that Iran was a very Westernized country until the revolution. I just hope we don't do something stupid and get involved there.

"As much as the Democrats complained that Reagan was a warmonger, we haven't had any big wars. The Middle East is a mess, and we invaded Grenada, but nothing big has happened. Even with all the bluster, things with the Soviets have calmed down a lot. They're getting their asses handed to them in Afghanistan by the Mujahideen."

"Funded and armed by us, I bet," Jessica said.

"Sure. That seems reasonable to me — helping them defend their own country. Stinger missiles are a great equalizer!"