Chapter 11: One Condition

June 30, 1984, McKinley, Ohio

"I was right!" I said when I arrived at Doctor Blahnik's house after lunch with Mr. Kozlov.

"No way!"

"He asked me to take responsibility for the distribution of charity to individuals and families in need. He's been doing it temporarily because of Deacon Grigory's heart attack. As he said, it does belong with clergy and typically falls to the deacon."

"Good call, Petrovich."

"He did have a second matter to discuss," I grinned, "so, actually, we were both right."

"I knew it!" Clarissa declared triumphantly. "So?"

"He offered a significant dowry," I grinned.

"If you considered that for even a half-second, you're a bigger pig than I could ever have imagined!"

"Actually, it wasn't anything more than what Katy's parents offered when we discussed living together. And it simply confirmed what Elizaveta implied when she mentioned the cottage at her parents' house."

"And?"

"He invited me to dinner, but I put him off until after the MCAT. That gives me a chance to talk with Lara and see what she thinks."

"Does he know about her?"

I grinned, "Small world, as usual. Elizaveta's grandfather and Lara's grandfather are friends. Mr. Kozlov didn't say, but I'm sure he knows Lara's dad, even if they aren't friends."

"Open warfare!" Clarissa exclaimed giddily. "One bowl of popcorn won't be enough!"

"Don't get your hopes up, Lissa! I'm expecting to see Lara before I have dinner with the Kozlovs, so I'll have a better idea how to handle things."

"It's interesting — two girls who are very much the same but with one very important difference."

"The career woman versus the homemaker?" I asked.

"Which side of Mike Loucks controls the situation — his traditional, conservative Russian self or his modern, American self?"

"I'm not sure that's exactly right," I replied. "Lara is traditionally Russian and conservative. Being a school teacher is an extremely common career for clergy wives. Remember, too, my traditional, conservative Russian mom went back to work when Liz started kindergarten, and my grandmother watched us during the afternoon."

"Then I suppose it's outgoing versus demure."

I chuckled, "Because Elizaveta accosting me about not asking her out and making a good case for herself is not aggressive or anything like that! Including offering sex in a round-about way."

Clarissa smirked, "'Figuring out how to make babies' being the euphemism for wanting you to ravish her?"

"In that sense, she's demure, but if you compare her with the way the other women at church present themselves, she fits right in."

"I'm curious. If Lara tells you she's ready to make a commitment, does that put an end to everything else?"

I nodded, "I believe it would, yes. I would say she is in control at the moment."

"And you're OK with that?"

"Very much so."

July 4, 1984, McKinley, Ohio

On Wednesday morning, Dona stretched and yawned when I got out of bed.

"Mind if I stay?" she asked.

"Not at all. There's nothing planned for today until we head to Milton Lake around 1:00pm."

I didn't have to work, as the Quick Mart was only open a half-day, and Nancy had offered to work my usual shift. I knew she needed the money, so I agreed because it meant I could spend the entire day with my friends.

I pulled on my running clothes, gave Dona a quick kiss, and then headed out of the dorm. As I began my run, I thought about how the Summer had developed. Despite my angst over the situation with Maggie, everything else was going smoothly. Jocelyn, Clarissa, and I were growing even closer, Dona and I were getting along great, Grace and I worked together and played chess, and there was no drama with my sister, at least so far.

Lara was supposed to arrive home in the next day or so, and I expected her to call. I hoped I could see her before my dinner with the Kozlovs, as then I'd have a much better idea where things stood. It was entirely possible I'd cancel the dinner if things went a certain way. That development would also mean an end to Dona sharing my bed, but that was going to happen sometime in August, no matter what happened with Lara.

I finished my run and headed back into the dorm. Dona was lying in bed with the comforter pulled up to her waist and her lovely breasts on display. I walked over to her, gave her a kiss, then stripped off my running clothes so I could take a shower.

"I don't mind you being sweaty, and you'd only have to take one shower," Dona said as I turned on the spray.

I quickly turned off the spray, walked over to the bed, got a rubber from the nightstand, and got into bed next to her. After a bit of foreplay, I rolled on the condom, moved on top of Dona, and slid slowly into her.

"Fuck me?" she requested breathlessly.

I nodded, and fifteen minutes later, she was sweaty as well, and we both were satisfied. After carefully pulling out and disposing of the rubber, I got into the shower. Once I was clean, Dona got in, and after I dried and dressed, I said my morning prayers while Dona showered. When I had completed my prayers, Dona and I left the room to join Jocelyn and Clarissa at Tasha's apartment for breakfast, as the cafeteria was closed. Abby was waiting outside the Quick Mart and climbed the stairs with us. Tasha greeted us and invited us inside.

She'd set up a card table and folding chairs to accommodate us, as her dinette table could only seat four, and even that was tight. She poured coffee or tea for everyone, then took plates of waffles, scrambled eggs, and toast from the oven, and a bowl of mixed fruit from the fridge and set them on the table. She asked me to pray, and once I had, we began serving ourselves.

"Is Nikolas going to join us today?" Clarissa asked Tasha.

"Yes," Tasha replied. "He'll meet us at the park at 1:00pm. Mischa, what about Grace?"

"She'll be there," I replied. "She's bringing her friend Jim. And she took pains to say 'friend'."

"Is there church tonight?" Dona asked.

"No," I replied. "Father Nicholas canceled services because so many people are celebrating Independence Day. He and his family will be at Milton Lake tonight."

"Does he wear his cassock to things like that?"

"The OCA wants all its priests to wear their cassocks at all times when they're out of the house unless their work precludes doing so. For deacons, it's a bit more lax, though they wear them if they're visiting Orthodox households. Some deacons choose to wear their cassocks at all times, but neither Deacon Vasily nor Deacon Grigory wore their cassocks when they were working. Father Herman usually wears his cassock when he's out, but not always."

"What do they do for work?" Dona asked. "Or did, for the deacon from your current church."

"Tasha's dad is a pharmacist, Father Herman is a property inspector, and Deacon Grigory was an insurance adjuster. Father Nicholas doesn't work because Saint Michael the Archangel is large enough to pay him a reasonable salary. Holy Transfiguration is too small to do that. They pay a tax-free housing allowance and a small monthly salary. He earns the rest via his work. And that's not uncommon for smaller parishes."

"What about deacons? Are they paid?"

"As a rule, no," I replied. "There are instances where they receive a small stipend from the parish, but that's usually only in the largest parishes. The one exception is the protodeacon at the Cathedral, who is the bishop's main assistant. The bishop also has a subdeacon who volunteered to travel with him, but that subdeacon is going to seminary next month."

"I'm curious," Dona asked, "but how does that work with you being a doctor and needing to be at church?"

"In my first year of Residency, it's going to be whenever I can be there for services. After that, I'll arrange my shifts to accommodate church as best I can. That'll probably mean taking some less desirable shifts so I can have Saturday evening and Sunday morning free. I'll likely use a week of vacation for Holy Week. For other services, I'd have to trade shifts. Once I'm an Attending, it'll be easier, but that's years down the road."

"That sounds less than ideal."

I shrugged, "Given that I'd try to arrange my shifts so I could go to church, it really isn't any different from what I'd do anyway. But I think you're getting an idea of why Tasha felt she wouldn't be happy."

"Not to be negative," Dona said, "but will ANY girl be happy with that situation?"

"A very special one," Tasha interjected. "And from what I've seen of Lara and what I know of Elizaveta, they'll be able to deal with it."

"I think Angie could have," Clarissa said. "But because of her condition, I can't say positively."

"She could have," I replied. "She basically became Orthodox and conformed to the praxis overnight. And her belief has remained intensely strong even though all her problems."

"You're going to see her in about a week, right?" Jocelyn asked.

"Yes. We'll go to Cincinnati Thursday of next week after work and take the MCAT on Friday. We'll visit Angie on Friday evening, and then on Saturday morning, I'm going to see Doctor Mercer. We'll have dinner with my sister and Paul on Saturday evening."

"When does the bovine excrement hit the rotating air circulation device?" Jocelyn asked.

Tasha laughed, "You can ask 'When does the shit hit the fan?' in front of me when it's just this group!"

"A week from Sunday," I said. "Liz and I will go to dinner at my parents' house."

"That's going to be interesting," Jocelyn said.

"The way being, say, near Shima Surgical Clinic at 8:15am on August 6, 1945, was interesting," I replied.

"From the date, I'm guessing that was an atomic bomb?" Clarissa asked.

"Hiroshima," I replied. "That clinic wasn't the primary target, but the wind caused the bomb to drift before it detonated."

"That bad?" Dona asked. "Why?"

"I haven't told you the story because it's long and ugly, but the short version is this is about a guy my sister had an affair with, for which he pled guilty to statutory rape. He's out now, and she's getting back together with him. My parents will not be happy."

"He referenced the atomic bombing for a reason," Jocelyn said. "His dad, specifically, will lose his mind. His mom will be extremely upset, too, but will calm down fairly quickly, or so we hope."

"My job is to keep my dad from going nuclear," I said. "And to quickly bring my mom back to earth."

"How?" Dona asked.

"Using my mom's own tactics against her!" I replied. "Basically, talking to her until she sees my point of view. Lord knows she did that often enough to me growing up!"

"Most of Mike's personality traits come from his mom," Jocelyn said. "Though with a Y chromosome, the usual 'boy' limitations apply!"

All the girls laughed.

"I love you, too, Jos!" I said with a grin.

"What are we doing after breakfast?" Clarissa asked.

"Me and five girls?" I smirked. "I can think of a few things!"

"PIG!" Tasha, Clarissa, and Jocelyn exclaimed simultaneously.

"Who? Me?" I asked innocently. "I was thinking mini golf or bowling!"

"You were NOT!" Jocelyn retorted.

"Is this normal?" Abby asked.

"This is tame," Clarissa replied. "He's behaving because you're here. And it's all teasing because Petrovich would never try to interfere with any of our relationships."

"I take it you clued her in on all the possible names for me?"

"Including «говнюк» (govnyuk)!" Clarissa replied with a smirk. "Yep!"

Tasha and I both laughed, but Dona looked confused, and Jocelyn just rolled her eyes.

"Shithead," I said.

"Though not so much now as before," Clarissa said.

"Thanks, I think," I deadpanned.

We finished breakfast, and I helped Tasha clean up while the other girls began preparing the coolers with our food for the afternoon and evening. Clarissa had a cooler of soft drinks at Doctor Blahnik's house, and we'd pick that up on our way to the lake. When everything was ready, we decided to head to Milton Lake early.

We took my car and Tasha's car, stopping at Doctor Blahnik's house as planned, and then drove to the lake. We were early enough that we had our pick of spots and chose an area which would be shaded by a small stand of trees but which also provided a clear view over the lake where the fireworks would be displayed. Nikolas, Bill, Grace, and Jim all arrived as planned, and we made introductions for those who didn't know each other.

"Jim taught me to work on cars," Grace said. "I needed to change the oil, and he taught me, and we took it from there."

"So you got to play with his dipstick?" I teased.

Grace laughed, "It was MY car."

I saw Nikolas tense and heard him whisper something to Tasha and realized that I'd just screwed up big time. I could make jokes like that in private, but not in public, where the congregation might hear me and take offense.

"Actually, I need to apologize for the coarse jesting," I said.

"Oh, please!" Grace said with a laugh. "It was a good joke!"

"But inappropriate for Subdeacon Michael," Tasha said firmly.

I nodded my agreement and saw Nikolas visibly relax. I knew that I'd need to raise what had just happened with Father Nicholas in confession, and soon, so that it didn't come back to him from Nikolas beforehand. I suspected Tasha would be able to keep Nikolas 'onside', but I couldn't take the chance. And I had to remind myself to be very careful.

I decided the best thing to do was go wade in the lake and let Tasha talk to Nikolas if necessary. I stripped off my T-shirt, shorts, shoes, and socks, leaving only my bathing trunks. Dona did the same, revealing a pink bikini that showed off her wonderful figure. We went down to the water and waded in.

"What was that about?" she asked. "That was totally tame!"

"I know," I replied. "But you know my role at church, and I have to behave a certain way in public."

"Is he going to have a cow about my bikini?"

I shook my head, "No. If you were my wife, then I'd have suggested a modest one-piece, but it wouldn't be required."

Dona laughed and shook her head, "As good as the sex is, there is no way I could put up with all that religious stuff. Are you going to get in trouble?"

"No. I'll talk to the priest about it. So long as I acknowledge that I messed up, the fact that I apologized immediately will be the end of it. A repeat incident would be a problem, though."

"But this morning..."

"I've known Tasha for a long time, and she can be just as «некультурный» (nekulturny) as I can, but only in private."

"What's that word?"

"It means uncouth or uncultured, and it's a normal Russian way to say someone is deviating from social norms."

"So you have to be a totally different person in public?"

"We all do that, to an extent," I replied. "How you talk to your best friend versus how you talk to your mom and dad or how you talk to your sister or how you talk to teachers."

"I hadn't thought about it that way, but that does make sense. There are things I can't say around my mom that I'd say to Shelly or Trish. Those are two of the girls I hung around with the most back home. Will he flip out if I kiss you?"

"No, because I'm not in my cassock. If I were, it would be completely inappropriate."

"And you're OK with that?"

I shrugged, "It's what I've known since I was little, so it's basically second nature. It's like knowing what to do at each point during the church service. I've lived it from birth, and it's effectively automatic at this point."

"You're the first really religious person I ever got to know very well, so this is all new to me."

"Most people aren't as hardcore as I am!"

"You didn't say what you thought of the bikini."

"I'd say every single guy who sees you in it is going to be jealous of me and want to get your phone number!"

She smiled, "Thanks. Do you think there's any way I could get on your floor this year?"

"We can ask Clarissa. She works in the Bursar's office and would know who to talk to in Student Housing. For next year, talk to Jocelyn because Clarissa and I are graduating, and she'll need a new roommate."

"Already done!"

"Cool. Then ask Clarissa to see what she can find out for you."

"Will do!"

We waded out of the water, dried off, and laid on our towels to get some sun, which would darken Dona's tan and make the contrast with the areas covered by her bikini even starker, something I found incredibly sexy. When we'd been in the Sun long enough, we moved to the blankets in the shade and got a couple of Cokes from the cooler.

We had a great afternoon, playing Frisbee, wading in the lake, eating, and hanging out. At one point, when just Clarissa, Abby, Dona, and I were together, Abby asked about what had happened.

"It's really a matter of decorum," I said.

"He reacted like it was a sin," Abby said. "And to be honest, I agree with Lazarus Long on that one — 'Sin lies only in hurting other people unnecessarily. All other 'sins' are invented nonsense. (Hurting yourself is not sinful — just stupid)'."

"I could actually agree with that," I said, "with the caveat that hurt can be physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual. All of those can injure someone."

"And earlier?"

"'Coarse jesting' is considered a sin because it's offensive," I replied. "But you've heard me talk that way in private. As I explained to Dona earlier, it's a matter of behaving differently based on context."

"I suppose. And my situation?"

I shrugged, "I am in no position to judge."

"I told you," Clarissa said gently. "He's not going to say a negative word. He loves me, and that's the end of the discussion."

"But his church teaches that it's sinful, right?"

I smiled, "My church teaches a lot of things that are sinful. When I achieve sinless perfection, I'll worry about other people. I don't expect that to occur in my lifetime."