Chapter 15

Oscar looked at his bank statement while Georgia smiled at the expression on his face. She said, “You have a year of military pay and two years of consulting fees in there. My sister negotiated a six-figure salary for you. I think you are still on the payroll. Didn’t you fill out your income taxes?”

“Yeah, but...”

“You didn’t think about the fact that you haven’t spent a dime of your own money in over three years,” Georgia said.

“There’s over two hundred thousand dollars in here,” said Oscar waving the statement around as if it was in error.

“So I take it that you’re going to buy us nice birthday presents this year,” suggested Debbie with a wink at Georgia.

“Of course,” Oscar said absently. He thought about it for a minute and then asked, “When are your birthdays?”

Debbie stared at Georgia in shock. She asked, “Do you mean to tell me that you two have been going together for more than two years and he doesn’t know your birthday?”

“Uh, yeah,” Georgia answered. She hadn’t given it much thought. Her first birthday had passed while they were in Afghanistan. They were busy and she hadn’t even known the day of the week, much less the date, most of the time she spent there. The last birthday they were still getting settled into the college. She shrugged and said, “I don’t know when his birthday is either.”

Looking from Georgia to Oscar, Debbie shook her head. In a tone of voice that would not allow argument, she said, “My birthday is October third. You will remember it and you will buy me presents. I also insist on cake. I will remind you daily starting two weeks prior to that date. Do I make myself clear?”

Smiling, Oscar turned to Georgia and asked, “Did she say it was the Fourth of July?”

“I thought she said Labor Day.”

“Oh! You two are impossible!” screamed Debbie. She couldn’t believe that the two of them had been together for two years and hadn’t celebrated their birthdays. “What day did you two become a couple?”

“Huh?” asked Oscar. He tried to put a date to it and failed.

“It was summer,” said Georgia looking to Oscar for confirmation. To save her life, she couldn’t put a beginning date to their relationship.

“Definitely. I’d almost say it was near the end of summer. August, maybe,” said Oscar.

“Sounds about right,” said Georgia. She looked over at Debbie and saw the expression on her face. She burst out laughing and asked, “So what date did our relationship start?”

“Well, it kind of got off to a rocky start and we’ve never really had an official date, so you can’t use that as the beginning of our relationship. I suppose if you consider the day he returned from...” Debbie’s voice trailed off as she tried to select a date.

Trying to be helpful, Oscar asked, “So why don’t we just select the first of September as our official start of relationship date?”

Georgia looked over at Debbie and said, “I’d rather the use the first of February. That’s about the time when Oscar returned from the Middle East the last time. You might say that was the real beginning for the three of us.”

Debbie nodded and said, “Yes. That sounds good to me.”

“Fine,” said Oscar wondering to what he had just agreed. Looking at Georgia, he asked, “What’s the importance of having a start of relationship date?”

Georgia shrugged and looked over at Debbie for an answer. The young woman tossed her red hair in exasperation and said, “You two have to be the most unromantic people on this planet. You have an anniversary date to celebrate when you met.”

“I celebrate having met you every day,” answered Oscar honestly puzzled. He looked at Debbie and asked, “Don’t you?”

“Well, yeah ... but ... I don’t know,” she declared feeling confused by the question. She decided that it was time to change the topic and asked, “So when are your birthdays?”

“January forth,” Georgia answered.

“May first,” Oscar answered, “but I don’t really like to celebrate it.”

“January fourth and May first,” repeated Debbie committing the dates to memory.

“So I guess we have more than enough money to fly all of us out to my parents,” said Oscar looking down at the bank statement in his hand. He read the balance one more time and shook his head. He decided they could fly first class.

“Where are we going?” asked Georgia.

Feeling uneasy about Oscar paying for her ticket, Debbie said, “I’ll pay my own way.”

“Kansas City, Missouri,” answered Oscar, “and I’ll pay for the tickets. I don’t have any other use for the money.”

“What about a house?”

“If I remember correctly, my contract is for three more years. By then, you’ll be working as a Chemist and earning more than Georgia and I combined,” answered Oscar with a wink at Georgia.

“True,” Debbie said with a grin. She knew better than to argue about that. She’d heard the kinds of salaries earned by previous graduates of the Druid College and Oscar would definitely have to get a considerable raise to meet her expected salary.

“I’m just a boy toy for a red haired woman!”

A week after that conversation, the trio strode down the concourse at the Kansas City International Airport. They had flown first class. It was the first time for each of them to sit at the front of the plane. The reintroduction of first class by a number of airlines had not constituted an improvement in service or comfort.

They made quite an impact walking through the airport. Oscar’s red robe attracted immediate attention from other passengers, but the attention quickly shifted to Debbie in her blue robe with a single white stripe on the sleeve. Georgia, walking next to Oscar, received her fair share of attention because of her beauty.

Although Oscar had only been through the airport once, he directed them towards the luggage claim area where his parents were supposed to be waiting. When they stepped out, he relaxed when he saw his dad.

Upon spotting his son, the elder Meyers waved his arms while jumping up and down. In a voice that carried across the entire area, he shouted, “Hey, Oscar! Over here!”

The man was an older version of Oscar, but just a little taller and with a little more weight around the middle. His hair was trimmed in a buzz cut. The Druid smiled and said, “That’s my dad.”

Georgia giggled realizing where Oscar had inherited his looks and grabbed his arm. She liked his father even though she hadn’t even met him yet. In a voice that was just loud enough for the three of them to hear, she said, “He looks just like you.”

“Only better,” teased Debbie. Her comment was followed by a laugh provoked by the look on Oscar’s face.

His father rushed up and took a look at the three of them. Excited by the red robe, he said, “I’m so glad you could come here for a visit. Is that all your luggage?”

Oscar held up his small carry-on bag while he answered, “I’ve got two robes and some underwear in here. Most of this is Georgia’s.”

Looking demure with wide-eyed innocence, Debbie said, “You brought underwear? I wish I had thought of that.”

A red blush spread over his Dad’s face as Oscar laughed. He knew Debbie was joking, but her comment had definitely embarrassed his father. Oscar leaned over and whispered, “Do you want me to climb under your robe and check it out?”

Debbie laughed and said, “Not until we get someplace more private.”

“Allow me to introduce you to Jacob Meyers, my father. Dad, this lovely red head who just turned your face the same color as her hair is Debbie Bond. The lovely lady on my other arm is Georgia,” said Oscar proudly.

Looking from one attractive woman to the other, Jacob said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you both. If I understand it correctly, both of you are his girlfriends?”

“You understood correctly,” answered Georgia still hanging onto Oscar’s arm.

“Damn boy. I don’t know how you do it. I’ve got one woman in my life and can’t handle it. I’ve even got twenty three years of experience trying,” said Jacob with a wink.

Glancing to his left and right, Oscar replied, “Who said I was handling it?”

“Just remember that buddy. We control your life,” growled Georgia realizing that she was slipping into her George persona as a result of her nervousness at meeting his family.

“Let me get you to the house. You’re mother is cooking up a storm. She figures that you’ve been eating nothing but horrible college food,” Jacob said pointing towards the airport exit.

As the three fell in beside the elder Meyers, Oscar said, “Actually, our food is pretty good at the college. Last night, I had a T-bone steak that was cooked to perfection.”

“T-Bone Steak? At College?” asked Jacob nearly tripping as he turned to look at Oscar while walking. He’d gone to the University of Missouri and couldn’t recall ever having steak on campus. He recalled the food as being mainly hamburgers, pizza, fried chicken, and several varieties of mystery meat.

“Yeah. They actually have very good food. I had grilled swordfish last night,” said Debbie.

“Really? College must have changed a lot from when I went there.”

“The Druid College is rather different from most colleges,” said Georgia. She felt a lot of pride at being affiliated with the school, even if all she did was work there.

“You aren’t a student there, are you?”

“No. I work in administration. I already have a college degree and couldn’t attend with Oscar when we returned from Afghanistan. Rather than separate for six years, I took a job there.”

“That’s right. You served with him in the Army,” recalled Jacob. Oscar had never told him much about what he did in Afghanistan. As far as he knew, he’d been part of some top-secret anti-terrorist company. Where Georgia had fit into the whole picture was rather confusing.

“We weren’t in the Army. We were consultants for the Army,” Georgia said.

They reached Jacob’s car, a simple sedan, after a short walk through the parking lot. After a lot of discussion, Oscar ended up in the front seat with his father while the two women sat in the back. As Jacob pulled out of the parking lot, he said, “We’re in Missouri just northwest of downtown Kansas City. Across the river is Kansas, but we won’t be crossing the river today. We’ll be driving on the 495 and get off on 35 to Liberty. That’s where we live, Liberty.”

It only took half an hour to reach the Meyers’ home. The house was a typical three-bedroom ranch located in a nice middle class neighborhood. It looked like every other house on the street. When they pulled into the driveway, Debbie said, “What a lovely neighborhood.”

“Thanks, we like it,” Jacob said.

Oscar grabbed all three of their bags and followed behind his girlfriends. They entered the house behind Jacob who bellowed out their arrival. A second later there was a loud screech from the kitchen and Oscar’s mother, June, came running out. She stopped upon seeing the two women and wiped her hands on her apron. Having watched Oscar grow up without having a girlfriend, she was stunned at the appearance of the two women. She said, “You are so beautiful. My Oscar is such a lucky boy.”

Oscar blushed and, pointing to the individuals as he identified them, said, “Mom, I’d like you to meet Georgia and Debbie. Ladies, this wonderful woman is my mother, June.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” said Georgia.

Taking June’s hand in hers, Debbie said, “It is such a pleasure to finally meet Oscar’s mother. I have to admit that Georgia and I are very curious about what Oscar was like as a child. He must have been a really cute little boy.”