Chapter 6

"Got anything?" asked Eric, returning from class.

"Not really. A lot of stuff about how cute some of the guys are and who would just love to go out with who... Well, there is that redhead over in Copic Hall... Julie something or other. She fessed up to giving away some answers on a biology quiz."

"Come on, you've gotta do better than that. What girl is gonna put out over a quiz that, at worse, might lower her grade a letter?"

"I know, I know," replied Mark. "I've listened to four straight hours and even with skipping through the really mundane stuff, I still haven't covered half of the tracks."

"Well, keep at it. You never know. I'll be back at five to give you a break."

"Rhonda?"

The lovely Black was ready to leave for the library, when Wendy stopped her.

"Want to come along?" asked Rhonda.

"Nope, not tonight, but after you told us what happened with you and Professor Terrance..."

"I really don't think I want to talk about it."

"Look, I know it's none of my business, but when you described how you felt about him right up to the moment he told you he was married, and that he seemed to feel the same way... well, I sort of did some checking."

"What kind of checking?" asked Rhonda.

"Rhonda, he's NOT married, at least not any more. He was divorced seven years ago."

"Divorced? Are you sure? Then why would he... ?"

"I don't know why he told you he was married. Maybe that's what he wanted to explain. All I know is that I asked one of the graduate students and she told me she was here as an undergrad when the divorce was finalized. Apparently it was all sort of hushed up because his wife was in some kind of institution."

"His wife was in an institution and he divorced her?"

"That's not the way the grad student told it. She said the wife divorced him. And get this, he still goes to see her once a week."

"How strange," mused Rhonda.

"Anyway, I don't know whether it changes anything, but I thought you might want to know."

"Uh, yeah, thanks Wendy."

She waited until the classroom had emptied after class before approaching him. He looked up from straightening some papers which had just been handed in.

"I want to apologize," he said, "I never meant to..."

"You told me you are married," she said. "I was told you were divorced seven years ago."

"Please, meet me tonight. I'll explain everything."

She was torn. She had felt betrayed the other evening, yet she wanted more than anything to again believe in this man.

"No more lies?"

"I didn't lie to you the other evening... not really. I don't ever want to lie to you Rhonda."

"Then why did you say... ?"

"Give me this one evening, a chance to explain. Then, if you wish, outside of class, we won't ever see each other again. I promise... Please!"

Confused, yet longing to somehow reestablish what they had both felt, she slowly nodded in the affirmative.

"Thank you for agreeing to see me again. I admit I handled that very poorly the other night," he said as they slowly strolled around the small lake not far from the campus. The sun was setting and the shadows lengthening. Nightfall would not be far behind.

"Paul, I want to understand, but it's all so confusing. You tell me one thing, I find out another."

"Rhonda, my wife, Jane and I were married twenty-eight years. Twelve years ago she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's."