Chapter 5

For the second night in a row, I went to sleep alone and not too late at night. Sunday I was up early and started to read ahead for school. There was a knock on my door around 10:30. It was Andy wanting to know if I wanted to go to breakfast. He saw the book in my hand. “You were serious about getting ahead and staying ahead. I was going to get some food and then go find a rugby game. Do you want to come along?”

I put my book on the cold war and a towel in my bag. We had some breakfast downstairs before walking out to some of the fields around campus. Andy had a ball with him and when he saw some other guys they started to toss the ball back and forth. I was offered a chance to play but I didn’t know the rules, the strategy or how to do that underhanded pass thing. I found a place out of the way to sit and watch. There were a couple girls out and they were going to watch as well. I had a big towel and offered to let them sit on it while I read my book.

The guys got hot and sweaty and had to stop a few times for people getting hurt. The girls seemed to talk more than they watched but their guys were out on the field and they were being supportive. After the match, Andy ruined my towel wiping blood off of his leg where someone had stepped on him with their cleats.

The afternoon was spent watching Shelly type a paper and then letting her give me a massage. When she was done, she was sitting on my stomach like usual but instead of sitting back and putting her hands on my chest, she leaned forward and laid on me. I wrapped her in a hug and just held her. She never said anything but I rubbed her back and let her cuddle. We lay there for about ten minutes before she kissed my cheek, sat up, thanked me and then got her paper and left the room.

The following weeks things stayed on track with my schedule. Shelly acted a little funny when she had to give me a massage but kept up her end of the bargain. We did have a Chemistry lab that I was going to miss. Shelly volunteered to do the lab with me early, on the Wednesday before we flew out. Sandra was willing to supervise after the coach asked. We did well and Sandra made some hints and suggestions to make sure we were doing it correctly.

The only problem with the weeks leading up to the trip was Ian. He didn’t understand why Julie would go away with me for just a couple days. She told him to buy a ticket and come with us but that wasn’t on his approved spending list.

Sara had fun and teased Julie about her baby boy. Ethan and I didn’t pay much attention. We got a ride to the airport Thursday and landed in Boston on the direct flight. I hadn’t splurged on first class but they still took pretty good care of us on the international flight. Julie’s mom was there to pick up the girls but made sure to give me a big hug as well. Ethan and I caught a cab to Adam’s place.

He was still on the river but had moved up to the top floor and taken over the entire top floor. When the elevator opened, it was a foyer and one door. He opened it when I rang and welcomed us in. Ethan was looking around and was looking at Adam, a college aged kid with a nice place to call home. The home office was huge and had a few computers running. I walked over and looked out on the river.

“Are you going to watch us win from up here or did you plan to come down and cheer for us?”

“Will it make a difference?”

“No, we’ll win either way.”

“I should find a bookie. You haven’t raced in a couple years.”

“If you do, bet some for me.”

“So what’s the plan while you’re in town?”

“Tomorrow is Friday. The race is Saturday and we fly back Sunday at 2pm. We should try out the boat tomorrow for an hour or two. I need to go over some work stuff with you while Ethan explores the city. Saturday is the race and finish up on any loose ends. Sunday we bask in the glory of our victory and then fly home. Did I tell you that you have a nice place here? I live in a dorm and share a bathroom.”

“Shut up, you should still be in high school. I can’t believe that you moved to Russia just because they didn’t have a senior year and you could graduate early.”

“Okay, done whining? Where do you want us to crash?”

“I have three guest rooms so take your pick, dorm boy.”

The next morning we went over to the MIT boathouse and we were given a boat to use. Each of us had on Cambridge t-shirts and hats. We put it in and pushed out from shore. There were a few boats that were out practicing. I saw my old team paddling up river to take their turn at a practice run. I saw Todd in the stroke seat and that made me happy. I mentioned it to Ethan and he said that we should start with them and kick some high school ass. We were upriver as they turned towards the starting line. They would gradually gain speed and try to be at full speed at the start.

We picked up speed and came beside them right at the starting line. They were all focused on the cox and Ethan called over. “Get out of the way you fucking pussies.” He wasn’t sure if he should use that language but I told him it would be fine. His English accent made us sound like complete strangers and we were past before they could focus on who said it.

Sue went into beast mode and started yelling at them to get moving and catch the fucking British assholes so they could kick their asses again just like the revolutionary war. We weren’t pulling all out but just enough to stay ahead of them. When we came around the last turn and it was a straight shot to the finish, I heard Sue yell for a hard twenty to finish strong. I told Ethan to do the same and we pulled away and coasted across the finish line.

Thirty seconds later, the Emerson boat came alongside us. I took off my hat and said, “Not too bad for some high school pussies.”

Sue screamed, “Nick, I should have known it was you or some other jerk. Who is your funny talking friend?”

“This is Ethan. We go to school together in England.”

“I thought you were in Russia.”

“Russia only has eleven years of high school so they sent me to college.”

“We need to get this boat out of the way and out of the water. Come by the tent and say, Hi.”

“We have to row back up to the boathouse. I’ll stop by tomorrow to see everyone.”

Ethan asked, “Who was that?”

As we turned back up river to put the boat away, I said, “That’s Sue, she is known for her language on the water as she encourages her crew. Fucking Pussies is one of her more common terms when she is in a good mood.”

We put the boat away and then after a shower and change of clothes at Adam’s, Ethan said, “I know you have some work to do. I will call around dinner time to see if you’re done or if I need to have dinner on my own.”

For the next five hours I walked Adam through the program. He would ask questions, take notes, talk about alternative methods or designs. When the phone rang he answered it and said, “Ethan, go see the Red Sox play. They’re in town tonight and it will be worth it. Buy the most expensive ticket you can and I’ll pay you back.”

When he hung up he said, “I just miss hanging out with you, Nick. I told Tiffany that we’d see her tomorrow. I think I have the ideas that you are trying to achieve. I can already see the base program that can be modified for the bar, the restaurant, the retail store, and others. A few subroutines and a bolt on for each specialty and it should work well. I will get with IBM about the hardware for the implementation. If not I will get with NCR. Give me a week to get my team coding and another three months to put it all together. I will work with Roy, the head product manager. I will brief him tomorrow and if he has any questions I will bring him by on Sunday morning.”

“Does he just jump when you tell him to?”

“He would if you or I told him to but I told him that you would be in town and we would be talking about a new product. He was planning to spend the weekend in the office. He took today off because I wanted to hear it and your vision before they started to redesign everything. I like what I hear and it should make us a lot of money.”

He took me out to a very high-end seafood place. We ate and talked about old times. He told me that he was going to ask Tiffany to marry him. He wasn’t sure when the date would be. If she wanted to finish school it might be another two to four years.

“Adam, she is a wonderful girl. If I weren’t so young and rudderless I would have gobbled her up in a heartbeat. You are a lucky guy and she is lucky to have you. I know you are just doing this to gain a controlling interest in the company but I will still give you my blessing, grasshopper.”

“I thought you would have forgotten about that. I already sold you a share so we are still even. If Tiffany ever leaves me, I want to buy it back.”

“Why would she ever leave?. You should have a prenup but I don’t see you ever having to use it.”

“Mike told me the same thing and he is her father.”

“It’s the right thing to do. As much as it sounds crazy, it’s the right thing to do.”

We were back at his place when we talked about Hakim and my time in England. He said that they had the machines made. They all looked alike but the two with the blue fragile stickers were for Hakim and William. The red fragile stickers were for everyone else.

After that we just talked about school and life. He had dropped out but was given an honorary degree since he could teach all the classes that he missed. I mentioned my thoughts about builders versus designers and used the architect and builder example. He sat back and said, “You’re right. I may talk to the computer department about some specialty classes. Both should know and understand what the other is doing but you have more vision and less coding experience. I can take your ideas and make them work. We work well together. I’m thankful everyday that you moved into my room. You changed my outlook on life, my relationship with girls and created my career.”

“Don’t get too sentimental, we are too young for that but I will have some good stories to tell at your wedding.”

“Keep those to yourself.”

Just then there was a knock at the door and Ethan came in. “They won. I had a great time. Thanks.”

Adam offered to reimburse him for his ticket but he said, “I haven’t spent money on a plane, a hotel or most of my meals. I can splurge for a little entertainment.”

We all went to bed since we all had a busy day the next day. The time change had me up early as I watched the sunrise from his living room. Ethan was up not long after and Adam was up by 7:30. He brought in a copy of the Boston Globe from the foyer and dropped it on the coffee table, “Anyone want coffee? We can go out for breakfast or I can try to fix something. I normally have cereal or heat up a bagel.”

“Our race is one of the last to go and is scheduled for 3pm. I’d like to go get some breakfast and then walk over to the team tents to see some of the people from school and find Tiffany. I could use a hug.”

“Leave her alone. I’m sure she will be hugging all over you but don’t get any ideas.”

We all went casual with shorts and t-shirts. We even gave one to Adam so he could be our fan for the day. I had on flip flops as we were in no hurry. A diner supplied a hearty breakfast and I did have a cup of Boston coffee, regular. That means more sugar and cream than should be legal. The eggs, bacon and toast filled me up. The early races were just getting started as we crossed the river and walked towards the starting line. We were looking for the Emerson tent, the Boston college tent where Tiffany ended up and the Phillips tent where Julie and or Katherine may be. We found Tiffany first and Adam had to clear his throat a couple times to get her to back off of the hug. Her mom and dad were there and it was nice to see them. I got a good handshake from her father as he congratulated me on the success of the software programs both inside and outside of his company. Tiffany had a small percent and he knew what it was worth.

Tiffany walked with us and we found Katherine first. She jumped into my arms and held on with her head on my shoulder. “I miss you, Nick. I’m not sure if I should come to Cambridge to be with you or you will graduate and come back here. Let me know your plans. I don’t want to be a world apart.”

She had tears in her eyes. We held hands as we walked over to the Emerson tent. The two schools were rivals but they were so close that many kids knew each other and were friends when not competing. Todd came over and gave me a handshake and man hug. Coach and others that I’d rowed with came over to say hello including Sue. Ethan was along for the ride and said hello to a lot of people that I introduced him to.

We didn’t stay all day but spent an hour catching up until they started to warm up and get ready for the high school races. We told them that we would be watching and cheering for them. They all promised to stay around and watch us in the afternoon.

The rowing community was a friendly one and as the men’s team went to start preparing the boat, we did the slow reversal saying goodbye to the Emerson people, dropping Katherine at her tent and then Tiffany. We went back to the bridge and gave encouragement as the teams rowed up to the start and then again as they raced back down some time later. They looked good and they looked stronger than those they were competing with. I didn’t know the start or ending times so I wasn’t sure.

We did the same for the girls, Tiffany, Katherine and the Emerson boat. We shouted encouragement on the way up river and cheered as they raced down. They all looked good but all raced for good schools. It was fun to watch Adam run from one side of the bridge to the other to keep cheering for Tiffany. I don’t remember ever seeing him run before. We went to change at Adams place and then walked up to the boathouse. We were different in that we had a place to put in and take out upriver from the start line. That also meant that after the race we would have to row back up the race route to take out.

We were in the water at 2:30 and checked the equipment, did some warm ups and checked with the starter for our time and how long that was. Ethan was in the stroke, not because he was better at it but my pull was a little stronger and I could adjust and steer some with my pulls. In our division there were quite a few schools. Harvard, Yale, Princeton and UPenn all had boats entered in the two-man. We hadn’t raced together so we didn’t have an official time. We were first in our division. No other boats passed us the entire race but we passed quite a few in the women’s division right in front of us. It was still a timed event so we would have to see how we finished as the times were tallied.

When the times were announced, we had beaten Harvard for first place by five seconds. Yale was in third but thirty seconds back. Julie and Sara were there for the awards ceremony and took some pictures of us on top of the podium with our medals. It was late by the time the awards were given and we rowed back to the boathouse, cleaned it up and put away the boat.

When we got back to Adam’s he had a man in his office and they were talking and pointing to papers pinned to the wall. I assumed that it was Roy. I was introduced while Ethan said hello and then went to shower and change. Roy liked the idea and asked some good questions. He wanted to understand the why as much as the what. It was easy to do what you were told but if you understood why you were doing it that way, you could make better decisions. I liked that and we all felt comfortable when he left later that night.

Ethan had slipped out to get some dinner but I was still dirty and hungry. I showered and Adam took me a block away for some dinner. It was a burger place that was really good. I had a beer with mine and we toasted our next success. It was kind of strange thinking that I could have and should have been in the Emerson boat but I had skipped ahead and was winning at the next level.

Sunday was a lazy morning. We took Ethan with us to breakfast. Adam said, “Ethan, I’m glad you came with Nick and congratulations on the win. I’m sorry that this was as much of a work trip for Nick as it was a race trip. He has been a big part of the company but hasn’t been around much so we had to cram a lot of work into a short visit. I’m sorry to not be a welcoming host. You are always welcome back even if Nick isn’t with you.”

“Thanks Adam, I understand and Nick explained that before he offered to let me stay with you. With the school not paying for travel, you were a huge help to both of us. I would hear you guys talking and could tell it was some serious stuff and not just goofing off. I hope that whatever you were working on is successful.”

There was a knock at the door after we got back and it was Sara, Julie and Katherine. Adam let them in. Julie said, “This is like old times. I used to think that you and Nick had all the luck with your old room but this place rocks. What does a girl have to do to get a drink and a smoke around here?”

“I’m not Tess but I might be able to scrounge a joint or two.” They walked into the living room.

Looking at Katherine but not leaving the foyer, I asked, “Did you want to go party with them or see the view of the river from my room?”

Without answering, she took my hand and led me to the bedrooms. I had to tell her which one I was sleeping in but she was almost naked by the time I closed the door and locked it. She was still stunning. Her breasts had filled in some more and her body had gotten harder. It was raw and animalistic. We went from licking to fucking and back. We did here some banging on the door at some point and Julie saying something about leaving but Katherine shouted. “I will get a ride home tomorrow. Leave us alone!”

We did get up and leave the room a couple times for food and water and maybe two or three showers. Adam was surely going to have to toss the sheets in the trash but we had a great time. We fell asleep before the sun came up and Adam knocked on the door at 11am. “Nick, your flight leaves in three hours. Get up, get dressed and you can eat at the airport.”

Adam took us all to the airport and Katherine must have called her mom because when she dropped off Sara and Julie, Katherine got in the car and drove off after a few more hugs and kisses. The flight home was less crowded and I paid to upgrade us all to first class. I had a glass of Champagne before we took off and slept the rest of the way back to school. When we were dropped off on campus, they were all tired but I was fresh and ready to go. There was a slip in my door about some packages at the mail center. I would get them after class. I hung up my medal and unpacked what little I’d brought.

Julie did complain a little about Katherine spending the night but Sara got in a dig and told her that she was just jealous. I later found out that since it was so early that we got home, Julie was going to slip in and surprise Ian. The surprise was on her when she found out that he had company with him in bed. Julie dumped him and the other girl was pissed about being the girl that was being used to cheat on her. It wasn’t a good day to be Ian.

The paper that was due in creative writing was already written before I left and my Calculus work was done and ready to be turned in as well. I was supposed to talk to the computer class. Dr. Zurcher invited me up and I had the word processor with me. He said, “Nick has been in your class but before he even came to college had written or designed a few software programs that are currently being used in different businesses. I’ve asked him to talk about his experiences.”

I spoke for about forty minutes, I explained the word processor, the stock stuff was too detailed to get into but the math game was a good example. I summed it up by saying, “People used to work the fields by hand. Then they found that a horse could pull a plow, the horse was replaced with the steam tractor and then the combustion engine. It’s called progress. The same electric motor that was designed to run factories now runs everything from refrigerators, wash machines, electric saws and drills.