Chapter 53: “Eight ball in the side pocket”

December 20, 1983, West Monroe, Ohio

"What do you think my dad would say if he saw us like this?" Tasha asked.

We were lying naked on her small twin bed, snuggled together, after having done our best to wear each other out for about ninety minutes.

"I do believe the heart attack would kill him before he could open his mouth!"

"It was fun fooling around my bed," she said. "Though it's a bit small for that purpose!"

"Is the apartment over the Quick Mart furnished?"

"Yes. And it has a full-size bed, so there's plenty of room for you to sleep over if you want!"

"I can't do that too often because I have my obligations as RA, but there are no rules against you sleeping over if you want."

"What about Kimiko?"

"She'll visit sometimes, I'm sure, but she'll be at home most of the Summer. She has a delicate balancing act with her parents and me."

"They don't approve?"

"They're concerned about her losing her Japanese culture and having grandkids who are Americans, not Japanese. She's not too worried about it, but she also doesn't want to create unnecessary conflict."

"So, in some ways, similar to my dad and his objection to our 'modern' American ways?"

"Something like that. As was pointed out to me, both sets of parents, mine and yours, would have similar concerns if we walked away from the Church."

"I think my dad would have less of a fit about us being here like this than if I told him I was going to marry a Protestant and start going to my husband's church."

"That's a tough call," I said. "Both would cause heart attacks."

"Speaking of which, how is Deacon Grigory?"

"I called yesterday and spoke to Father Nicholas, and he said they're optimistic that Deacon Grigory will be out of the hospital at the end of the week. But he'll be severely restricted in what he's allowed to do until his chest heals properly, and then he'll have to begin his rehabilitation, plus quit smoking and drinking."

"Do you think he'll be able to serve again?"

"I suspect not, and I think that's what Vladyka wants to talk to me about at Theophany."

"But you have years before you could marry Kimiko, and quite some time before you could marry one of the other non-Orthodox girls."

"I know. Which is something I'll discuss with him, along with my concerns about my medical training. I don't think I can wait any longer if the impression I have is correct."

"You're very young to be a deacon if you aren't going to be made a priest soon."

"True, but our parish needs a deacon, and there is such a need for priests that the seminarians are all going to be assigned to parishes. Vladyka's main concern there is finding suitable wives for the seminarians so he can ordain them! Not too many young men will sign up for being monks!"

"Could you imagine not being able to do this?! I could NEVER be a nun!"

"No kidding," I teased.

"And you have room to talk?" she asked, sitting up, putting her hands on her hips, and giving me a wonderful view of her lovely breasts.

"None at all! We should probably shower and make the bed before your mom and sister come home."

"Unfortunately," she sighed. "I don't think there will be another chance until after Nativity, and then you will be on your ski trip."

"Did you arrange a place to sleep for New Year's?"

"Yes. Mrs. Sokolov offered a room at their house, and my dad was absolutely fine with that."

"Good!"

We reluctantly got out of bed and walked across the hall to the bathroom, where Tasha turned on the shower. We got into the tub and stood close together under the spray, her wonderful breasts pushing lightly against my chest. We exchanged a kiss which threatened to reignite the fire which had burned so hotly not long before we got out of bed, but we didn't have the time, so we settled for washing each other, being careful not to rub the wrong, or right, places too much.

When we finished, we dried each other with fluffy towels, then went back to Tasha's room to dress. I helped her change the sheets, gather the towels, and ensure there was no evidence I'd been in the house before carrying everything to the basement so she could wash anything which might give us away.

"It's not out of the ordinary for me to do laundry, so she won't know," Tasha said in response to my unasked question. "And I keep that apple blossom air freshener in my room all the time."

"You've thought of everything," I chuckled.

"Most importantly, birth control pills!"

"No kidding," I said. "That's a complication we do NOT need."

"You won't be at church this weekend, will you?"

"No. I have to be in McKinley. It'll make our family Christmas celebration a bit tricky, and my mom isn't happy we won't all be at church together, but she knew this was a risk when I was ordained a subdeacon."

"And you leave for Michigan the day after Christmas?"

"That's right, and I'll be back late on the 30th. Do you want to ride with Clarissa and me to McKinley or take your own car?"

"If you can walk me to Mr. Sokolov's house, which is only about six blocks from Doctor Blahnik's house, then I'll ride with you."

"We can do that," I said. "Do the Sokolovs know you're going to be late?"

"Yes. They'll give me a key so I can let myself in."

"Good."

"You should go."

I held out my arms, and we hugged and exchanged a soft kiss. Tasha opened the door, and I quickly walked to my car, got in, started it, lowered the window so I could wave, then quickly pulled out of the driveway, turning in the opposite direction from which Tasha's mom would come back, just in case she and Sasha were early. It took me an extra five minutes to get home, but I felt it was worth it to protect our secret.

"Hi, Mikey!" Liz said when I walked into the house.

"Hi, Mike," Clarissa said, hopping up to get a hug.

I went to sit on the couch with Clarissa while Liz was curled up in my dad's easy chair.

"Any plans for today?" Liz asked.

"No. The only confirmed plans for the rest of the week are dinner and a movie tomorrow night with Jocelyn and Clarissa. We're going to see Sudden Impact. You're welcome to join us."

"Dirty Harry? No thanks!"

"I'm going out with Jocelyn and Tasha tomorrow, and we'll be gone most of the day," Clarissa said. "We'll be back in time for Vespers, obviously."

"That will give me a chance to finish the last of my Christmas shopping," I said."

The phone rang, and Liz jumped up to answer it. I heard her speaking, and she was back almost right away.

"Can you see Maggie on Thursday morning at 9:00am at Hannah's house? Her dad will be working, and her mom has a meeting at church for about two hours."

"Sure," I said. "Just tell them to be careful."

Liz went back to the kitchen and finished her call then came back.

"Just go to Mindy's house a bit before. Mindy did say her parents both leave for work at 7:30am!"

"Of course she did!" I chuckled. "Are you doing anything today?"

"Emmy, Valerie, Violet, and I are going to hang out at Valerie's house; I'm leaving in a few minutes. I'm spending the night. I'm going to go get ready."

"OK."

Liz went upstairs and was back down less than five minutes later. She said 'goodbye' and went out the door.

"How are things with Jocelyn?" Clarissa asked.

"Just fine. It's her mom who is the problem. Jos is going to take a Summer class at Taft so she doesn't have to live at home."

"Mommy doesn't think her little baby should be screwing her best friend?"

"That's about the size of it."

"I still don't know the answer to THAT question!" Clarissa teased.

"Obsessed, are we?" I asked with a silly grin.

"I guess now that it's totally up to me, some fears are creeping in. I remember, back in eighth grade, when girls were talking about it, that everyone was afraid, at least in some way."

"Nervous?"

"Some, but some of it was fear. And it makes sense if you think about it. At fourteen, thinking about a guy putting it inside you is a combination of exhilarating and frightening. Well, assuming you're straight. For me, I was curious, but in a kind of indifferent way, because I knew I liked girls. In other words, I wondered what it was like, but the idea didn't make me have the kind of feeling I got when I thought about girls. But I was never grossed out about the idea of being penetrated in that way. Glenda is. And she feels pretty much the same way you do about kissing guys!"

"And you don't, which is what leads you to think it might work because you think you might be bisexual."

"Petrov-sexual, remember?!"

I chuckled, "Is it really just me, or is it just you would need the right kind of guy? The one who was, as Melody put it — in complete touch with his feminine side?"

"I don't know, and I have no intention of testing that theory except with you, even though she might well be right. Where Glenda would have to go with artificial insemination, I would be OK with, and would actually prefer, doing it the usual biological way. You haven't experienced a girl who was scared?"

I shook my head, "Nervous, but not scared. In every case, it was either working our way up to it or I was, if you will, the prey."

Clarissa laughed, "You are absolutely not the hunter! I'm curious, and you don't have to share more than you feel comfortable, but were there any which worked their way to the destination through the 'bases', if you will?"

"Katy," I replied. "For the others, it basically was singles and then a home run, though all the other stuff happened. And a couple of them, the first hit was the home run, so to speak."

"First French and first fuck the same day?" Clarissa teased.

"You can be just as bad as I can!" I teased.

"But can I be as good?" she asked quietly.

"You're worried about being able to satisfy me?" I asked.

"I have exactly zero experience in that area beyond the few kisses we exchanged."

I put my arm around Lissa, but she moved to sit in my lap with her arms around my neck. I put my arms around her, and she curled up, her head on my chest.

"You do realize that this is where I get the most emotional satisfaction, right?" I asked.

"Your feminine side, needing to be close with someone. Like with Milena."

"Exactly."

"But wasn't that after having sex?"

"Yes. Making love, because that's what we did, slaked the physical desire, but the real desire was just to be close, to talk, to bare our souls, and really join — not physically, but if I can use this term, spiritually, though not in a religious sense. And you and I have that, Lissa. It's the most difficult part. It's what I am working on with Kimiko. And I know she's told you about how we make love."

"The reason she referred to you as 'my octopus' when I talked to her right before finals?"

I chuckled, "Yes. And then we almost always make love with her on top; well, she makes love to me, if that makes sense."

"She told me. She's totally not shy about talking about sex with me. Her openness about it is refreshing."

"Because her spirituality tells her that sex is a good thing when handled with proper respect for your partner, and there are no taboos on pre-marital sex, or even in some cases, extra-marital sex, so long as the wife does not object and the husband does not elevate his mistress over his wife. Not all Japanese women agree with that, and I wouldn't venture to say it's even the majority, but from her very traditional upbringing, it's something that, in the right circumstances, is acceptable."

"Making her the sole girl who would even begin to think about allowing us to have a baby together after marriage."

"Yes."

"Mike," Clarissa said softly, "is THAT why she's your primary candidate? If that's true, please don't do that for me. That could turn out very badly."

"As best I can discern my own motives, I don't think so," I said. "But it certainly checks a box which no other girl I've met, or think I would meet, would accept. Sharing is not an option!"

Clarissa laughed softly, "Which has been made quite clear to you by every other girl!"

"Exactly. Maggie, who has given me what amounts to a time-limited free pass, made that abundantly clear. And so have the other girls — if I ask them to go steady or get engaged, I risk my life by making that kind of suggestion! You heard what Tasha said!"

"That she'd be OK with doing it medically but not doing it!"

"Precisely. In the end, that was why Katy broke up with me after we made love the first time. She and I both knew that having crossed that threshold, we had to be exclusive or break up."

"But it happened again later, right?"

"Yes, but that felt a bit like she was trying to save her place, if you will, or, alternatively, she was just horny, and given we'd already done it, doing it again with me wouldn't create any difficulties in her mind."

"Has she been dating?"

"Yes, but she's been circumspect about it, which I think makes sense. I know more about her new friend than I do her boyfriend or boyfriends."

"New friend?"

"The girl in the next room is named Jennifer and is from Milford."

"Two-thousand miles, and your next-door neighbor is basically your next-door neighbor!"

"We're not THAT close to Milford, but it is one of those strange coincidences. And interestingly, Katy says that her friend likes girls, not boys. And in what has to be the weirdest coïncidence, this girl, Jennifer, used to date a girl named Jocelyn. I guess they broke up, but it was strange hearing that name."

"It's not exactly a common name, is it?"

"No, it's not."

"Anyway, Katy got to know her because she needed help in an electrical engineering class, and this girl is finishing her third year."

"So, like, we help the Freshmen with their core courses."

"Exactly. I guess Stanford has some kind of official mentoring program, which seems to work a lot like the study groups we formed when we first came to Taft. I suspect Dean Anderson would be receptive to that kind of idea."

"If Katy's going to graduate school, Stanford Medical School would be a great choice, if you were interested."

"I've come full circle on that," I said. "I want to practice here, and by that, I mean in either Harding or Hayes County. I'm looking forward to our trip to Europe after we graduate, but I don't want to live anywhere but here. The world is out there for me to see when I want to see it, but I'm as much part of this area as it is part of me. And my real goal would be to help turn Rutherford Hospital into a proper 'Tier 1' trauma center."

"Got $25 million? Because it's going to take that kind of money, at least. I read something about trying to do that at the regional hospital near Sylvania, and that was the cost estimate. And the state doesn't have any extra money to give."

"It's years away," I said. "And we have a new governor, so maybe that will change."

"You think Celeste will find money that Rhodes couldn't?"

"Democrats tend not to be afraid to raise taxes for public services," I replied. "The new governor was director of the Peace Corps for a couple of years under President Carter, so I think we might see some money moved towards health care."

"Do you think we should implement a system like in England or Sweden?"

"I don't want to be forced to work for the government, but I think everyone should have access to basic health care, and lack of money shouldn't prevent you from getting it. I'm not sure what the solution is, but one which lets doctors treat everyone who needs their help without any concern about their ability to pay seems like the right thing to do. If we had some sort of system which allowed doctors to practice independently but ensured everyone could get the care they needed, I'd sign up. But I'm not a politician nor an actuary nor a financial whiz, so I have no clue what that would look like."

"Medicaid seems to be pretty bad at solving the problem from everything I read," Clarissa observed.

"I hear the same thing, but Medicare seems to be working reasonably well for senior citizens. I think that might be at least partly because Medicare is a national program funded by the taxes we pay on the money we earn. And honestly, that number is tiny. It's just under 1.5%. And that covers everyone who is 65 and older. I can't believe we couldn't implement something to ensure basic health care if that number doubled, for example. 3% of your income for health care doesn't seem radical to me."

"Nor to me, though I wonder if that would be enough."

"If nobody had to pay insurance premiums? My dad has full health care from Harding County, but it goes through an insurance company called Blue Cross. My dad's contribution is tiny, not even 1% of his salary, and Harding County pays the rest. Why not cut out the middleman? The government is already paying for it, after all, in our family's case."

"I hadn't thought of it quite that way. But wouldn't that end up cutting salaries?"

"The only reason I need a salary, which would be four or five times what my dad makes, is to pay back the loans we're going to have to take to get our medical degrees! To me, that's just as silly. I have to be paid more, so the hospital has to charge more, which means the patient has to pay more. A small tax could solve that problem, and the money would still come from the same source — the taxpayer, whether it's a company or a person. In the end, it's either taxes or printing money, and I learned in High School what happens when governments simply print money."

"Hyperinflation and devaluation, wrecking the economy."

"So, taxes it is," I grinned. "I mean, I hate paying taxes as much as the next patriotic American, but I like roads, police, clean water, sewers, public schools, and other things that taxes pay for. So, again, like all patriotic Americans, I bitch about how much money the government takes, but I also realize there is no reasonable alternative. And honestly, Lissa, you and I are going to make a ton of money, even working in Harding County. It's hardly fair to make six or seven times what the average person makes and not pay more in taxes."