Part 10

By the time Mom came in to tell us it was ready, the lot of us were more than ready. When we got into the dining room, we saw that they'd prepared what looked like grilled chicken strips, an assortment of vegetables, and a large bowl of rice. Just looking at it, it didn't appear all that special - but the aroma of it! Also of note was the fact that none of the settings had Western silverware - every one of us had a pair of chopsticks, instead.

We all took our seats, and Susan let us know that the moms were the main cooks - that all she'd done was get them started by showing them how to use the wok. Diane's dad said a brief prayer, and when he was done, the five of us that had been in the family room each grabbed one of the dishes. I got the bowl of rice, and was surprised to discover how heavy it was - and when I went to scoop some onto my plate, that it was sticky, too. I didn't want to embarrass Susan, so I didn't say anything, and just handed the bowl off to Diane - who gave me a look after SHE had dished a portion of it onto her plate.

When all of us had a little bit of everything on our plates, Susan spoke up again, telling us "I think you have all discovered that the rice tonight is different than you are used to. In Vietnam, and most of Asia, rice is often the MAIN part of the meal. By cooking the rice the way it is tonight, it is not only easier to eat with chopsticks, but the part of the rice that makes it sticky also adds to its nutritional value. Remember that most Asian countries are not very rich, so anything that can be done to make what food there is more filling and nutritional is a good thing. I think you will find that if you put a little soy sauce" - she indicated the bottle - "on it, and take bites of rice between bites of the other things, you will enjoy it a little more."

We watched to see how much soy sauce Susan used on what, then followed her example as it was passed around the table. The next adventure was the seven of us trying to figure out how to us chopsticks - all the times we'd been to China Garden, we'd always used the forks they'd provided. Susan saw our predicament, and patiently demonstrated how to manipulate chopsticks so that we could get the food from our plates and into our mouths. There were a number of drops, spills, and other accidents at first, but the food smelled so good that we had plenty of motivation to learn - and we did.

And the food was as good as it smelled. The vegetables were all hot enough for our taste, but still crisp. The chicken was moist and delicious, having a slight 'tang' to it. When Diane's dad commented on it, Susan told him that it had been stir-fried in oil with a small hot pepper in it to give it a little extra flavor. As Susan had promised, having the rice sticky DID help make it easier to pick up with the chopsticks; and the touch of soy sauce we'd all put on it was a nice counterpoint to the flavor of the chicken and vegetables. The pride and embarrassment were plain on her face when all of us repeatedly complimented her on how delicious everything was. She just told us that she really hadn't cooked much of it, that it had been the moms that had done all the work.

When she said that, Mom told us "Work, my foot! I was amazed at how fast and easy it was to cook all this. Believe me, our - my! - wok is going to be seeing plenty of use."

Dad just laughed, and said "As long as what you cook with it tastes as good as this, I won't complain!" - a sentiment that Holly quickly seconded. I was too busy stuffing my face to say anything - but I nodded in agreement.

Diane's dad turned to her mom and asked "What was it the two of you were talking about last night, right before we left?"

Diane's mom smiled, and said "She just asked me to make sure the vegetables were fresh, and asked if I had chopsticks. I told her I would, and that we'd have some. Then she said that if I could find an oriental store, that would be the best place to get the right rice. It sounded strange, but since she was going to be the teacher, I did it - and she was right, of course; that instant stuff in the store never would have worked. I got the chopsticks in the same place, and I was surprised at how inexpensive they were."

By the time supper was over, the only thing left was a few lonely grains in the rice bowl - everything else was gone. The funny part for me was that even though I knew I'd eaten plenty, and was full, I didn't feel heavy or TOO full. In fact, when we finally got up from the table, I didn't have any trouble moving around to help Diane and Holly put things away and get the dishes loaded into the dishwasher. None of us had a clue what to do about the wok, though, and Diane finally went in to ask Susan what the best way to clean it was - and coming back to tell us that a quick rinse with hot water and drying it out was all it needed.

We'd been in the family room for several minutes when Diane's mom suddenly exclaimed "Oh! I almost forgot!" before hurrying toward the kitchen. We all looked at each other, wondering what was going on, when she came back in with a plate. On it was an assortment of what looked like really thick cookies; when Susan saw them, her eyes lit up and she smiled. Diane's mom saw her, and said "They said I might want these at the oriental grocery, so I got some. Do you want to tell everyone what they are, Susan?"

Susan nodded, and told us "Those are sweetened rice cakes. They aren't as sweet as most American treats, but they are still very good - I think you will like them."

Diane's mom passed the plate around, starting with Susan, and each of us took a couple of them. Susan was right, they weren't as sweet as we were used to - definitely not sugary-sweet - but they were still good, and made for a nice dessert after the meal we'd just had.

After we'd finished our rice cakes, Diane's dad asked if anyone wanted to watch a video he'd rented - a comedy that had just been released. None of us had seen it, so we all agreed.

After it was over, Mom and Dad got up, saying that they thought it was time to go home. As they and Diane's folks said their goodbyes, Diane went back to her room, reappearing with a knapsack and joining the rest of us as we put our coats on. Susan and I were scheduled to head back to school the day after next, and Diane wanted to spend as much time with me as possible before we left. Both sets of parents knew it, and neither minded in the slightest.

Once back at our house, we all had a cup of hot chocolate and some of the leftover Christmas dessert as we talked for a little while before heading up to bed. Once we were alone, Diane and I made gentle love with each other.

Diane and I spent the next day just being with each other - talking a little, listening to music, holding hands, and so on. Susan and Holly both left us to ourselves as much as possible, preferring to go off and do their own thing. Mom spent half the day on her volunteer stuff, and Dad was obliged to go back to work.

After we'd all gone to bed that night, Diane and I made love, then again a bit later. The next morning, we all sat down to one of Mom's delicious breakfasts, then Susan and I went upstairs to pack for the trip back to school before all of us idled most of the morning away. When that was out of the way, Diane went with me when I went out to fill up the gas tank on my truck, and generally make sure it was ready for the drive back to school. While we were out, we stopped at a fast-food place for lunch and played 'footsies' under the table.

Once back at home, Susan and I decided that it was probably time to start back - it was a drive of only a few hours, but we wanted to make sure that we got back in plenty of time.

After we'd gotten our bags in the truck and I'd covered and secured them, we were ready to go. Mom came out to tell us to be careful, and kissed both of us before going back inside. Diane distracted Susan long enough for Holly to give me the kind of goodbye kiss and hug she wanted to, then Diane and I did the same before Susan and I got in the truck. I backed out of the driveway, waved to Diane and Holly, and we were on our way.

As we were getting on the highway that would take us back to school, I looked over and saw that Susan was quietly crying. I waited until I had the truck up to speed and wouldn't have to shift any more before quickly scanning her, and discovering that her tears were a mixture of happiness and sadness: she was happy that my and Diane's families had taken her in as part of our own families and been so friendly and thoughtful, and sad that she had to leave them so soon.

I reached over and took her hand, and pretended I didn't know what she was thinking by asking "What's the matter, Susan?"

She tried to tell me that it wasn't anything, but I gave her hand a little squeeze, and said "Those tears don't look like it's not anything. Come on, talk to me."

With that, she broke down, and the tears really began to flow. She squeezed my hand back, and began telling me how she felt about the time she'd spent with us.

When she was done, I made sure she saw me smiling at her, and said "Then it sounds like you had a good time. So why the tears?"

"Because I'm so happy and so sad!" she replied.

"Okay, the happy part I got - believe me, we had as much fun with you as you did with us; and I know that all of them like you as much as I do. So why are you sad?"

"Because now I won't see them again."

That one threw me for a few moments before I finally asked her "What do you mean, you won't see them again?"

"We are going back to school now, and they are staying there. What chance will I have to visit them again?"

"Susan, I go home several times a year, and I don't think they would mind if you wanted to come back with me. I promise - they really do like you. Some of them have even come up to visit me at school at times; if they do that, then you could see them then, too. And if nothing else, we all go to my aunt and uncles farm to celebrate Easter, and I know that my aunt and uncle would be just as happy to meet you."

She sniffled a little, and looked at me uncertainly as she asked "You think so?"

I smiled, and assured her "I'm sure of it. The only way you won't get the chance to see them again is if YOU choose not to."

"Really?"

"Really" I told her.

She didn't seem entirely sure, but a scan of her told me that she wanted to believe it. She was looking at me, and I nodded to her to confirm what I'd just said before checking her again to see if it helped. It did, but what really got my attention was her thought that she not only liked having me hold her hand like that, but she was wondering what it would be like if I touched her even more - and on other places on her body. Probing deeper, it became clearer to me: she wasn't actively considering letting our physical contact grow; rather, she was starting to become aware of her own sensuality, and her wonderings were prompted more by curiosity than desire.

To cover my surprise at what I'd learned, I managed to get some confidence in my voice as I told her "You'll see", before releasing her hand so that I could pat it before putting my hand back on the steering wheel.

Even as I was doing it, I recognized the opportunity, and reaching into her mind and gradually brought up a sense of trust and confidence in her, figuring that those would help her feel reassured and thus ease her out of her sadness.

A minute later, she smiled at me and said "Thank you, Michael. I feel much better, now."

With that, she rummaged around in her knapsack and brought out the book I'd gotten her - she was fascinated with it, and had already been through it once, that I KNEW of.

I welcomed the opportunity to do some deep thinking - I was absolutely confident that she'd have more than one opportunity to visit with at least SOME of my family, and almost certainly Diane, and possibly one or both of Diane's parents. What occupied my mind was trying to figure out what I was going to do - she was becoming more and more comfortable with casual physical contact with me, and the patterns of her thoughts seemed to confirm Diane's opinion that Susan had some measure of a crush on me.

During the rest of the drive back to school, I reached into Susan's mind several times, carefully prodding her thoughts in a direction that would get me information that I felt I had to have. A few times, she would turn to look at me, and when I looked back, she'd give me a shy smile before returning to her book.

Once we were back at school, my first stop was to her dorm, where I unloaded her bags and helped her get them inside. When we'd set them down, she turned to face me and said "Thank you again, Michael. I am very happy that I got to meet your family and Diane and her family; and I am very proud that they would welcome me as a part of your family". Having said that, she got up on her toes to kiss me again - but only on the cheek - before letting herself down again.

"I'm glad to know that they were able to help you feel that way" I replied.

The two of us stood there for a few seconds, awkwardly, before I said "If you agree, I would like to be able to study with you again next semester. Would you like to meet me for lunch at the diner tomorrow, so we can see if there are any classes we can take together?"

She smiled, and said "Yes, I would like that very much. Would one o'clock be too late?"

I smiled back and said "That would be fine. I'll see you then" before turning around and going out to my truck and going to the house I shared with two other students.

Susan and I teamed up to go through class registration together; both to make sure we had the same classes for the subjects we were taking together, and to keep each other company.

Classes had been in session a couple of weeks, and we were heading for our Chemistry 202 class when we ran across Sam, one of the guys I'd played baseball with in High School, accompanied by another guy in a team jacket.

"Hey, Mike, I heard you were going to school here, but I didn't see you at any of the team tryouts, so I figured I got it wrong."

"How's it going, Sam? Nah, I got a scholarship, so I have to pay attention to that - I really can't afford to be trying out for any of the teams. Besides, I was only okay in high school; I don't figure I'm good enough for college - except maybe keeping the bench warm." I replied.

"You're not going out for anything? Not even basketball? You did pretty good in that..."

"I'm gonna pass. Like I said, I've got to spend too much time hitting the books."

About then, the guy with Sam spoke up, asking "Who's the gook?"

Something about the casual way he said it, and the tone of his voice, kind of set me off. A quick scan of Susan told me that she was ashamed, embarrassed, and hurt by his comment. I made a show of looking around carefully before answering "Gook? I don't see any gooks around here."

He made a face, and said "Her, the chink standing next to you, dumbass."

Sam made a face like he didn't really want to be associated with Mister Mouth, but with both of them wearing Letter jackets, it was hard NOT to. He told me "That's Gus Meyers; he's on the wrestling team with me - different weight class, of course." Gus was a good hundred pounds heavier than Sam, who was definitely on the lean side.

I looked at Gus and said "The lady with me is Susan Nguyen. She's Vietnamese; I think that would make her a 'dink' or 'zip' or 'zipperhead'. The term 'gook' is from the Korean work 'guk', or 'people'; they use Han to mean Korea. So a Korean person is Han-guk; their language is Han-gul, and so on. Chink comes from Chin, the old word for China, and usually refers to a Chinese person. Nip is from Nippon, or Japan. If you're going to be a dim-witted Redneck moron, at least be a GOOD dimwitted Redneck moron, and get your ethnic slurs right."

As I was talking to Gus, I saw Sam's face go from shock to amusement - particularly at the end of my little spiel.

It took Gus a few seconds to realize he'd been insulted - which tended to confirm the dim-witted part of it. Gus took a step toward me, with the fairly obvious intention of pounding me into the ground when Sam spoke up, telling him "I wouldn't try it, Gus!"

Gus paused a moment, and looked at Sam to ask "Why not? He know kung-fu or some of that other shit? Don't he know how to fight like an American?"

Sam got a pained expression on his face, and said "No, that's not it. Mike doesn't HAVE to fight. At least, not after what me and some other guys saw him do to the guy that tried to rape his sister. Mike never hit him; didn't even TOUCH him. He just took the guy over by a tree and talked to him. Nobody knows what they said, but whatever it was Mike told him, it scared the guy so bad he pissed himself - right there at school, in front of God and everybody."

Gus looked a little uncertain, but got his bravado back and said "That ain't nothin'. Guys used to piss themselves in fights all the time back in grade school!"

Sam shook his head and answered "This wasn't grade school, Gus. This was Senior year of high school - just a couple of years ago. The guy was bigger than you are, too."

That seemed to get Gus' attention, and he turned to give me another look. The time was right, and I slipped into his so-called mind to reinforce what Sam had just told him. It wasn't hard to plant the thought that if I'd scared somebody else bad enough to piss their pants in High School, then there might just be more to me than there appeared. And on the heels of that thought, the idea that it wouldn't be a good idea to find out.

When Gus looked in my eyes, I gave him one last nudge: I let him 'see' that if he started anything with me, 'things' were going to happen that would be MOST unpleasant for him. Exactly what those things would be, I left to the dark place in his mind, where his fear lived. When his eyes left mine, I knew that I wouldn't have any more trouble with him - he'd see to it that he stayed away from me to avoid it.

To give him some cover so he could leave - and he wanted to, desperately - I said "Gus, I don't want any trouble - but I don't want to be around people that insult my friends, either."

He seized on the chance I'd given him and declared "Fine. You and the... girl do what you want; I'm heading for the gym" before turning and walking away.

Sam seemed surprised that Gus had backed down so readily, but let it go so he could look at Susan and say "I'm sorry if he made you feel bad... Susan?" She nodded, and he went on "Gus isn't real smart, but he's a good wrestler - here on a scholarship, in fact. Anyway, I apologize for him, and hope you won't think all Americans are like him."

Susan gave him a smile, and said "I understand. When my family first got here, many people called us unpleasant names. Not very smart people, as you say. And I already know that not all Americans are like that", the last part with a look at me.

Sam smiled back - hard NOT to, and lovely as Susan was - and answered "I'm glad you understand. I'd like to talk, but I have to get to wrestling practice, too. It was nice meeting you."

Both of us wished him well, and we parted company. As we were walking to class, Susan told me "That was very kind - and very brave! - of you to talk to him like that."

"I don't think it was either one, Susan. He has a big mouth and no brains; somebody had to teach him some manners, and I just got lucky. I guess he never learned that everybody in this country - well, except for the Indians; I mean, Native Americans - came here from somewhere else, somewhere back in our family's history. You and your family just got here a little later than the rest of us, is all."

She thought that one over for a bit, and tentatively asked "Did someone really try to rape Holly?"

I knew she could see the answer on my face, but I went ahead and told her "Yeah, he did. A big, dumb, bully kind of guy named Charlie. Come to think of it, he wasn't really all that much different than Gus, back there - thought his muscles gave him the right to do whatever he wanted to anybody weaker than him."

A few moments later, she asked "Did you really frighten him enough that he wet himself? Without fighting him?"

I smiled, and said "No, we didn't fight. And he wet himself, yeah. I don't know that I had that much to do with it, though."