Chapter 16

[Monday, June 23nd, 1986]

I got to Kim’s house right after 7 am, as requested. She had made french toast for all of us. Her mom was still in a nice comfortable robe, but her dad was dressed in a suit for the office where he worked. We all enjoyed the food, and Kim and I left for the mall right after her dad headed out for the day.

Our day of shopping went very similarly to the first time, with a couple of notable changes. Kim modeled almost a dozen dresses for me. After she decided on the one dress she liked best, I talked her into getting the next two in her top three as well. She didn’t want to let me pay for them, but I insisted.

I also asked for her help in picking out a sport coat and a couple of polo shirts for Sam. She wondered about his sizes, and the closest example I could think of was that he had a similar physique to her father, perhaps a bit thinner. They were about the same height. She had helped her mom shopping for her dad before, so she had a clue about the right sizes.

Kim settled on a navy colored one for Sam. While we were there, I went ahead and got a grey one for myself. We picked an assortment of three polos for Sam that would go well with the coat and the jeans he would likely wear. I had several polos on Kim’s shopping list already. She had made an actual list that we worked from of everything she was having me buy this time. I kissed her on the cheek when I saw it, thanking her for putting so much effort into helping me.

We spent all morning shopping and started back to my house a little before 1 pm. I didn’t count this time, but it seemed like we made a few extra stops to drop bags off at my car. We had grabbed a bite to eat in the food court around noon. I was happy with a soft pretzel, but Kim wanted a corndog from Hot Dog on a Stick. I decided to get a large drink for myself from them too. Their lemonade is one of my all-time favorites.

We got to my house well before 2 pm, and Kim helped me unload the car and haul bags upstairs. Michael and Anne helped out too. Kim and Anne seemed to hit it off incredibly nicely. They chatted almost non-stop while we made the many trips up to the hot-box of an attic. We left the sport coats and Sam’s polos down in the kitchen. We hung the jackets over the backs of a couple of the chairs.

I talked to Kim about wanting to give Sam a heads up about what to expect tonight and asked her input on the best way to go about it. She gave it some thought and asked me how I felt about inviting Sam over here to use the shower and get changed. I told her I was okay with it and considered Sam a friend, even if I hadn’t known him long.

I asked Kim if she wanted to come with me or hang out here while I went to get Sam. She chose to go along. We told Michael and Anne our plans, and that we would be back soon. They were planning on heading over to the Hummel’s for dinner tonight anyway, and probably wouldn’t be here when we got back. The Hummel crew was planning to go out to dinner and go-cart racing that night, and they were taking the kids along. A sleepover was a distinct possibility.

I wished them all a good time. I grabbed my backpack and filled it with the last two cans of Sprite from the fridge. Kim and I headed to the park. We parked and looked around and didn’t see Sam right away, so I grabbed my backpack, then Kim and I started walking the trails while holding hands.

A few side trails take you out of view from the central park area, and we explored them too. There was no sign of Sam. After a little debate, we decided to settle near where Sam and I had agreed to meet. I broke out the blanket, and Kim and I spent some time laying out and chatting. Soon a little kissing got thrown in, and before you knew it, on one of our come up for air moments, we saw Sam walking along the other end of the park.

I should have thought of that sooner. Every time things get interesting, we get interrupted. That always seems to be how it goes. With only perfunctory grumbles, I packed up the blanket, and Kim and I headed toward Sam. When he looked in our direction, we were still about 30 yards away. I waved to him, and he started moving to meet us.

When we got close, I held my hand out to shake his and said, “Hi Sam, good to see you again. This is my girlfriend, Kim.” Sam shook my hand, then Kim’s. He said, “Hello, Kim. Nice to meet you.”

Kim said, “I’m glad to meet you too. John told me about yesterday and your plans for tonight. We’ve added to them a bit, I’m afraid, and John and I wanted to give you a heads-up about the changes.”

I told Sam, “We should grab a seat and talk. Let’s use that bench over there.”

We did. I started with, “Okay, so the plan is that the three of us, along with Kim’s parents and a nice older lady who I haven’t met yet, are going to use one of those VIP booths at the track tonight.”

Sam asked, “Alright, are we still going to be placing bets like last time?”

“Yes, in fact, I hope we are going to do even better tonight. We’ll have to see how it goes. One of the things I wanted to talk to you about is the image we present while using the VIP area. I want to blend into that environment a little better, especially tonight, with Amanda being there.”

Sam asked, “Who is she again?”

I said, “She is a very prominent lady that is involved in a lot of high-class functions in this state. I want to ask for her help with another project I am working on. Now, I don’t want you to worry. This evening is just a chance for her to have some fun and an excuse for us to meet.”

I said, “I don’t expect you to get burdened with buying special clothes just for doing this work for me. I bought a sport coat and a couple of polo shirts today, and I would like it if you would wear them when we go to the track to gamble. Think of it as a uniform for the task. Will that work for you?”

Sam gave it a moment’s thought and said, “Sure, that’s fine with me.”

I said, “If you like, we can head over to my place, and you can try them on and see what works best from the shirt options. We have time to do laundry if we need to as well. Do you have clothes you want to get washed? You’re welcome to use our washer and dryer at the house.”

Sam said, “Actually, that would be helpful. I’ve got more than a few things stashed with my camping gear that I would like to get washed. Would you mind if I grabbed those?”

I told him, “No, that’s fine. I parked over near where we met last time. Is there a more convenient place I should use to meet you?”

Sam told me, “No, that location works as well as anywhere else. I’ll meet you there in 10 or 15 minutes.”

He left to do that, and Kim and I made our way back to the car. There was a picnic table right by it, and we sat across from each other at it. Kim and I held hands, and she said, “So I’m your girlfriend, huh. That’s nice to hear.”

I said, “I hope that wasn’t too presumptuous of me. It’s how I feel about us, so I felt comfortable saying it.”

She smiled and said, “No, it’s exactly how I feel about us too. We haven’t talked about it, but I want to assure you that you will never have to worry about me being unfaithful to you like you had to deal with in your last relationship. I can’t tell what will happen in the future, but I will promise to never go behind your back about something like that. I respect both of us way too much to allow something like that to happen.”

I stood up and walked around to her side of the table.

I said, “Kim, you have no idea how much it means to me that you would say that. I will also promise you the same thing,” and I kissed her.

I had an idea, and when I leaned back from the kiss, I jumped into the tunnel.

I spent a moment considering how best to word what I wanted to say. Deciding a touch of humor would be the best bet, I jumped back into my body.

I grinned and said, “Of course, if you ever decide you want to bring a girlfriend into bed with us, I would be willing to make that sacrifice.”

Kim laughed and slapped at me while saying, “Of course you would, you pig. Too bad I don’t have any girlfriends, nor am I likely to with my track record.”

She got a bit more serious and said, “Speaking openly on the topic, however, I have to say that it is something I might one day consider. Don’t get your hopes up too high, though. I would have to be a whole lot more confident in our relationship before I would be ready for that.”

I asked, “So you find women attractive too then?”

She nodded and said, “I’m much more attracted to men, but yes, I am also curious about women. I’ve never experimented, but I won’t deny that there have been a few steamy thoughts in that direction over the years. Having a good relationship between the two of us is way more important to me than experimenting would be.”

I told her, “I agree, I’ll admit that the idea is exciting, but if given a 30% chance of losing you because of a threesome, I’d pick skipping the wild night every time. I don’t like those odds. If we were both 95% confident that our relationship could handle it, I might have a different answer.”

She told me, “It sounds like we are on the same page there.”

“Kim, I’m thrilled that we are speaking so openly about this. I don’t mean talking about another woman specifically. I mean, it’s great that we can talk about topics like this at all. Too many relationships turn to crap because people are afraid to share their thoughts and ideas with their partner. I want our relationship to be much better than that. I promise to try and have an open mind about anything.”

Kim admitted, “I was kind of worried about what you would think when I said that I find girls attractive too, but I figured that being honest about it was the best way to go. I’m glad I did. I think you are right about the importance of being open and honest in a relationship. I’m happy that’s the way we are handling this.”

I said, “If I’m ever stupid enough to make a comment that is not supportive of the kind of relationship we are talking about, please remind me of this conversation. It is not unheard of for me to open my mouth and speak before fully engaging my mind first. I would hate to hurt us in that way, but I could see it happening.”

She smiled and said, “I’ll just tell you that you’re stupid and thoughtless.”

I smiled back and said, “I’ll have deserved it,” and kissed her again.

Sam came back carrying a large duffle bag as well as the one he usually had with him. We loaded all our bags into the trunk, Kim opted to get in back, and we headed to my house. We grabbed the bags and headed inside. I gave Sam a tour of the ground floor. When we got to the basement stairs, I mentioned that the washer and dryer were in the basement.

I said, “I’ll be happy to run the clothes down there to get them started and save you the unpleasantness of dealing with the depressing space.”

Sam asked Kim, “So I take it he told you a bit about my issues?”

She said, “Yeah, he explained it to me last night. Is this kitchen alright for you?”

Sam said, “Yeah, it’s well lit, is painted light colors, and has lots of windows. I feel comfortable enough here. I probably wouldn’t enjoy the living room as much for very long, for example, but I’m fine here for now.”

I asked Sam if the clothes in the duffle bag were all of it, and he added a few items from his backpack. I took the lot down and started the first load. I came upstairs again just in time for my mom to get home from work.

“Hi Mom, you’ve met Kim already, this is my friend Sam. He’s been helping me with a project I’m working on.”

Sam stood up and went to shake her hand and said, “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Turner.”

Mom said, “Hello, Sam, nice to meet you too. Please call me Irene. What are your plans tonight, honey? Will you and your friends be here for dinner?”

I said, “I hadn’t thought about it. Would it be a hassle to include everyone? We could do pizza instead if it made it easier.”

Mom said, “You know what? Pizza sounds wonderful to me. I wasn’t looking forward to cooking tonight anyway. I’ll chip in for it.”

I told her, “Don’t worry about it. I’ve got dinner covered tonight.”

Mom said, “If you’re set on buying, I won’t try to talk you out of it. See you guys in a minute,” as she headed upstairs to change out of her work clothes.

I told Sam, “You are welcome to use the shower if you like. I can hook you up with shaving gear and whatever else you need to clean up. Or, if you are uncomfortable in the bathroom for that, I can grab you a bag, and you can use that river we passed over on the way here.”

Sam thought about it and said, “I think I’ll use the river if it’s all the same to you. Typical shower stalls are too confining for me. I need something like a gym shower to feel comfortable these days.”

I got a grocery bag and packed shampoo, soap, and shaving gear into it. I even put a little hand mirror in there. I told Sam, “If I were you, I would just continue straight into the trees from where the end of our road meets Pond St. You will find the river, with some decent boulders for cover, just down the hillside there,” as I handed him a towel and the bag.

Sam tucked the grocery bag and towel into his backpack, thanked me, and left to take care of that. Mom came downstairs shortly after he left and asked where he went. I told her and then gave Mom the rundown on Sam’s issues and his homeless status. I also told her I thought he was a good person.

She squinted at me and said, “You care about him, what are you planning to do for him.”

She knows me too well, I guess. I jumped into the tunnel to think.

Damn it. Well, I guess I was always going to tell Mom about this eventually. I’d just been successful in avoiding it so far. I suppose now is as good a time as any other. I jumped back into my body.

I told her, “Mom, for right now, we are just helping each other by making a little money, but eventually, I want to hire Sam to help other people in bad situations.”

Mom asked, “Hire him, how exactly are you going to do that?”

I held up a finger in a wait gesture, then I grabbed my backpack and dug out the right notebook.

“Mom, I need you to promise to keep what I am about to tell you a secret. I don’t want you to tell anyone, and I mean anyone at all, until I tell you otherwise. Will you do that for me?”

She said, “Okay, I promise.”

I opened the notebook and dug out the lottery tickets. I showed Mom the winning one and explained that I had won last Friday’s drawing. She got out of her chair and hugged me and started jumping up and down. Kim laughed and joined in. We had a good time.

After a bit, I got Mom to settle down and explained, “Mom, the reason we need to keep quiet about this is that everybody and their brother will be lined up outside that door asking for money 24/7 if word gets out. I don’t want that. You don’t want that. Nobody in this house wants that.” She nodded her understanding.

I said, “This is what I want to do with it,” as I slid the opened notebook over to her to read. She read it for a few minutes, then looked up with tears in her eyes and said, “You are such a good boy. I am so very proud of having you as my son. I always have been, but this ... this is something else.”

She hugged me again, and she wasn’t the only one with wet eyes before we finished. I don’t care who you are or how old you get. Nobody gets through hearing something like that from their parents without getting a little choked up. I was no exception, and apparently, Kim was going through some sympathy pains, as she was wiping her eyes too.

I told Mom, “I’m going to try and find a way to do this anonymously, preferably with a little set aside to help me get started in life. My plan at the moment is to make a living off of making that charity work, I don’t have it all worked out yet, but I think I can make it happen. I’m probably going to try and get some college under my belt, and I’m imagining that Kim and I will be attending UConn together in the fall.”

This time it was Kim who started jumping up and down and hugging me. Mom laughed and hugged us both again.

I said, “I take it that the idea is okay with you?”

Kim smiled and said, “Yes, that sounds amazing to me.” Then she kissed me.

After a bit, Mom cleared her throat, but she was smiling too. She said, “We probably ought to order those pizzas soon.”

I told her, “Let’s wait for Sam to get back and get his preference too before we order. I’ll bet the clothes I put in the washer are ready to get moved over to the dryer now. I’ll go check.”

They were, and I got the wet clothes working in the dryer and then started the next load into the wash. That was all of them. I probably could have crammed them all in one load, but I hate to overcrowd the machines.

When I got back upstairs, I found Sam sitting with the ladies at the table. I asked Kim and Sam if they wanted to hang out here or run with me to get the pizza. Kim said, “Sam, why don’t we stay here. If Irene has a pair of scissors, I can give you a little trim and maybe style things a bit. What do you say?”

Sam said, “Alright, we can do that.”

I said, “Cool, I’ll head out to Pizzarama, Mom, you’ll place the order?”

She nodded, and I added, “I think I want sausage and mushroom tonight.”

She said, “We’ll work out the rest before I place the order.”

I double-checked my wallet as I headed to the car and verified I had enough on me. There was still almost $100 in there. There was also quite a bit of cash in my backpack’s front compartment too, but I left that in the house. I made it to the pizza place in good time, but that just meant that the order wasn’t ready when I got there. About 10 minutes later, I headed home with three large pizzas: one sausage and mushroom, one pepperoni, and one ham and pineapple. There would probably be a lot of leftovers, but that’s fine.

When I got home, I was surprised to find both David and Marybeth were also in the kitchen, and everyone was complimenting Sam on how good he looked. He was wearing a light blue polo under the sportcoat. Kim had done an excellent job on his hair. His skin was still very weathered, but it worked for him. He would fit in fine in the VIP area.

I said, “Hey, man, you look great,” as I set the pizzas on the table. Mom brought over some paper plates, and we all dug in, sitting around the table.

In between bites, I said, “I didn’t know you two would be here. We would have gotten another pizza if we’d known.”

Marybeth told me, “My plans with Tom changed. He had to help his brother with doing something on his truck. We gave David a lift home, as he and Christy were fighting.”

I shook my head, “Already? What did you say this time?”

David said, “Hey, what makes you think it was something I said?”

I told him, “Lucky guess. Come on, give it up.”

“She asked me if the pants she was wearing made her butt look big. I asked her why she was blaming the pants.” He shook his head and finished with, “She didn’t find my question nearly as amusing as I did.”

I laughed along with everyone else and said, “Better luck next time.”

He replied, “I think I can talk her down tomorrow, but I was happy to get out of there. She was pretty steamed at me.”

Marybeth chimed in with, “We picked him up on the way. He looked so sad. We couldn’t pass him by, even though it’s not that long of a walk.”

I was sitting on Kim’s right, and we held hands under the table while we ate. It had been a long time since I had been in a large gathering like this. Everybody was laughing and having a good time. It felt pretty nice, especially sharing it with someone special like Kim.

After we had all eaten our fill, there actually were some leftovers, most of it being Hawaiian pizza. It all got consolidated into one box and put in the fridge. I asked Kim if she wanted to get ready here or if I should take her home. She considered and asked if she could use the phone. I told her to go ahead.

She called her house and asked her mom to bring a pair of her shoes to the track. I guess the ones she was wearing didn’t go well enough with the dress she had just purchased. With that little emergency covered, she felt she could get ready here if Marybeth would be kind enough to help her. Maybeth was all over it, and the girls went up to commandeer the upstairs bathroom.

I headed upstairs to get some clothes to wear for myself. Kim caught sight of me and asked me to wear a nice pair of jeans, with that pink pinstripe Oxford shirt we bought today. I said, “Yes, Ma’am,” and she gave me a kiss and a smile. I gathered my things and headed back down to the first floor to use the bathroom there.

When I finished getting ready, I grabbed the rest of the cash from my bag. While nobody else was looking, I gave $200 to Sam for tonight’s bankroll. I took the notebook out to the car and put it in the glove box. Kim joined Sam and me in the kitchen about 30 minutes after I got done. I might have made a snarky comment about the delay, but the results more than justified the time investment.