Chapter 12

We soon learned that college is vastly different than high school. The atmosphere is easy-going, and there was a lot of free time between and after classes. However, unlike high school, you never asked a teacher to repeat a sentence. We had to pay attention in class, because if you didn't get it the first time you got left behind. Most classes were lecture-style and we took copious notes. The books we needed were expensive, and the tuition - although cheaper than a regular college - made a big dent in my savings account.

About thirty-five people had signed up for Nursing, and we all had the same curriculum. They included four guys, one of whom was an ex-Green Beret. The Introduction to Nursing came first, and covered basic skills such as taking vital signs. We practiced on each other and we had to buy our own stethoscopes. There was Health Assessment, Drug Calculations, Basic Concepts and Pharmacology. I never knew there were so many drugs!

There were also classes for Maternal Nursing and Psychological Aspects. Part of the patient's care was mental, making sure he or she understood what was happening. And the hardest of all was Physiology and Anatomy, where we re-discovered bodies. Every tiny piece, in minute detail.

Later in the year, there would be a class to help us pass the National Exam, which was necessary for our licenses. Contrary to what Nollie had first thought, school would only take one year instead of two. We'd have to go elsewhere for our continuing education, but we were on our way.

There were frequent breaks, often of two and three days, or sometimes a week. We lived in the library after class and got home too late for supper on many occasions. The back seat and floorboards of the car became littered with fast-food wrappers and empty cans.

Mom became our rock, leaving notes on the fridge and meals we could warm in the microwave. Mom did the cooking and we helped with the cleaning. It was not uncommon for us to come home and find our laundry done and folded on our bed, or a new outfit hanging in our closet. We didn't see much of her, and we assumed she was at work.

The only trouble we experienced was from a girl named Mary Kuhn. She was very pleasant and inquisitive the first few days, then suddenly stopped talking to us. Her face would become a mask if either of us spoke to her, and she would walk away. She was older; about twenty-four, and married. We saw her husband a few times as she got into their car, and their little boy in his car seat was cute. We never saw her again after Thanksgiving break and the episode came to an end.

Other classmates were supportive or envious, depending on their gender and age. Art Rogers was the ex-Green Beret, and he was very fatherly in his dealings with us. One day in the Student Union, he told us of some of the medical training he'd received in the Army. He was going to be a nurse so he could become a part of Doctors Without Borders and travel around the world. Nollie got that faraway look in her eyes I knew so well, and she sighed. Art had a wicked sense of humor; he reminded me a lot of Sean. His blue eyes twinkled when he grinned and he would walk us to the car after dark.

We had about three weeks off for Christmas break; we used most of it studying and compiling our notes. The re-writes took the most time, and I wished I had learned to type.

We spent a half-hour at Michelle's grave again and I talked with her once more. The pain wasn't so sharp as before and I didn't cry. I told her what I knew of Sue and Sean and the twins, told her I loved her, then we left.

Our biggest surprise of the year occurred when we returned from the library one evening. We were rushing to get into the house because of the cold and we barged through the door. There in the kitchen, we saw Mom and Ann backing away from each other with a guilty look. Mom's ears turned a light pink.

Nollie screamed, "MOM!" and ran to hug her. I followed at a more leisurely pace, with a large grin on my face.

Nollie was standing with her arms around both of them and said, "Pardon my language, but it's about fuckin' time!"

Ann and Mom both stuttered their denials, but Ann stayed the night. I'd never thought of Mom as a sexual being, or considered she might have her own needs and preferences. We'd never seen her with a date or a companion, and we hadn't wondered why. It came to me that we'd been selfish and unthinking. Mom later said that she had made sure we were launched on our careers before she made her move. From then on, Ann was a frequent visitor and part-time resident in the house. We were glad to have her.

Spring break came and went, and we talked about our plans. Softball was good exercise, and the classes on Wednesday were short. Saturdays we could do homework after the game, so we decided to try to fit it into our schedule.

I longed for the lake and the sun. I hadn't heard from Eddie or Sean in the longest time, and I wanted an update on Tony. In my occasional phone calls to Eddie, he'd said he hadn't seen Sean since school began. Plus we hadn't gone to the retreat the previous year, and Ann had never been. Depending on when the Board Exam was going to be held, we figured on going if we could.

We saw Shelly and Linda at the mall twice; Shelly told us Belinda had moved away. One of the Cheevers sisters, Alice I think, was working at Arby's in the mall, and we stopped to say hello a few times. The past was rapidly receding and our future beckoned. We tried to be confident. I think Nollie succeeded a bit better than I did.

Ann and Mom took us out for dinner at the Chinese place for Nollie's birthday, and I gave Nollie a locket. Mom gave her a fat check and a warm smile.

Our last classes in May concentrated on preparing us for the National Board Exam. I knew how to take vital signs and prevent an infection from spreading, and I was really good at putting the square corners on the sheets of a bed. I could adjust flow rates for IV's, and I knew what type of drugs would ease pain. There was one thing I knew that was rather frightening and Nollie confessed to the same thought: the more we learned, the more we would need to know.

We applied to take the test and our applications came back approved. There was a small ceremony at the school and we were finished until the Board sat, sometime in mid-July. The retreat was definite; we would go. This would be our last summer off, though. If we decided to continue, our education would be a year-round thing.

We decided against playing softball this year, but we went to a lot of the games and cheered. My 19th birthday was noted in passing, and we made love at the lake for the first time. The worry about doing it in public and getting caught enhanced our orgasms quite a bit.

Studying for the Boards was an obsession for both of us. The kitchen table became our desk and Ann helped immensely by drilling us on the questions we could expect to see on the test. She also was able to correct our thinking on a couple of points. There was what you learned from a book and what was actually done in practice.

The retreat was a go for us this year and Mom rented a motor home. It was Ann's first time and she fit right in with the rest of us. The motor home allowed us to shower in privacy and sleep on clean sheets. No more tents! We didn't see Sue or Billie.

The four of us spent a lot of time in the pool, floating on air mattresses, and we started getting tan. Ann said she'd never felt so free, and Mom opened up and showed her affection for Ann. Nollie and I showed Ann and Mom where to go to see the moon in the evenings, and we all spent a lot of time in the beds.

There were two fights between some other campers; apparently disagreements over bed partners, but they ended without severe damage. I ate hot dogs and other junk food and clapped along with the 1,500 other women at the sing-along. On the way back, Ann asked if we could make the retreat a yearly vacation for the four of us. We all agreed it would be a good thing.

We were notified the Boards would be given in Minneapolis on August 12th and we drove down a day early. We checked into a cheap motel and started going over our notes.

After fifteen minutes, Nollie threw her notebook across the room and said, "Fuck this! If I don't know it now, I'll never know it!"

I dropped my notebook on the floor and said, "Me too. There isn't anything else we can do."

She smiled her quirky little smile and said, "Oh yeah there is!" She stood and started stripping out of her jeans, then wiggled out of her shirt. Her bra fell off, and she stepped out of her panties. She rubbed her belly and advanced on me with a devilish grin and said, "I'm full of cc's and liver functions. I'm tired of blood pressure, disease and pain. I want something to let me know I'm still alive. Fuck me."

Those last two words excited me, and I was already half out of my clothes. When I was naked, she put her knees on the arms of my chair, lowered her pussy near my face, then said, "Eat me."

I slouched down in the chair, and eventually ended up sitting on the floor. Her pussy was very wet and I didn't lose a drop. When she came, her legs were trembling and she squatted lower, pressing her clit on my tongue. I pinched her nipples and held them, and she gushed. No dribble, no squirt: she gushed like opening the tap on the sink.

I heard, "oooh oooh oooooh oooooooooh Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh!"

It took a few minutes for her to calm down and we giggled our way to the shower. I was soaked from my eyebrows to my knees and we began soaping up.

"You think the neighbors will call the cops?" she asked.

"I don't care. Do you?" I replied.

"Not really, "she said.

The rest of the night was spent somewhat quieter in the squeaky bed, and finally we slept.

Ann had said we needed to get one hundred of the two hundred fifty questions right to guarantee passing. There were more than two hundred fifty total on the multiple-choice test; we used all but ten minutes of the allowed five hours. As we drove toward home, we gave each other a high-five. It would take a month or more to hear back, and we had done the best we could. We dumped our notebooks and anything else that had to do with school in the storage room closet and tried to enjoy the rest of our summer.

We resumed our duties around the house, but being in school had sharpened our ability to concentrate. Cleaning and laundry took far less time than before, so we went to the lake almost every day. I called Eddie and told him our plans, and he said he would be there when he could.

One Sunday afternoon he showed up with a car full and we hugged. We were so glad to see him!

Beth had brought her new boyfriend, a cute kid named Mark Larson. Myron's Kelly was visiting her grandparents in Germany, and Sean had brought a smiling Tony. We helped unpack the convertible and settled in for an afternoon of renewing friendships.

Eddie's language skills had earned him a nice reputation, and he was flying to various cities around the country doing translations. He said it paid fairly well, and kept his father from bugging him too much.

Tony's back was completely healed, with only tiny scars remaining. She said her father had voluntarily entered a treatment program, and hadn't had a drink in over two months. Sean whispered to me that she was the girl he was going to marry and Tony blushed. They had talked it over and we were the first to know. They were going to wait until after graduation when he would be working part-time at the newspaper. He wanted to be a journalist and she was considering nursing.

When all the catching-up and plans had been discussed, the kids went for the water and we opened the coolers.

We were munching on some chicken when Nollie said, "Eddie, you're a very nice guy, but there's one thing about you that troubles me."

"What would that be?" he asked sincerely.

"I've never seen you with a girl, "Nollie replied.

He chuckled and said, "I date all the time. I just never get serious about any one girl."

"Why not?" Nollie asked.

He put down his piece of chicken, wiped his mouth and took a sip from the wine bottle. He leaned forward, put his elbows on his knees and said, "Nora, I'm being careful. My family has money. We're not Rockefeller or anything, but my father warned me against decisions made in the haste of passion. I think he was talking about himself."

"You don't want the responsibility of kids?" she asked dubiously.

"Oh yes!" he replied. "I love kids, and I look forward to having several of my own someday."

Nollie laughed and said, "Eddie, I hate to tell you this, but half the girls in town - hell more than half! - would give their eye teeth to get in your pants."

He chuckled and got a bit red around his ears, then said, "I've had offers, I know. But a real loving relationship is about more than sex, isn't it?"

"Mmmm-hmmm," she murmured.

"And I know what a beautiful loving relationship is all about; I've seen one," he said.

"Where?" she giggled.

He pointed at me, then at Nollie, and didn't say a word. Nollie's face grew blank, then slowly formed into a small smile.