Chapter 61: Storm Clouds

September 2, 1985 (continued)

I looked at Inez, who was just sitting there, slack-jawed. I imagine I was no different. Then, I regarded Evie, who continued to grin at us both, her eyes dancing.

"Wow, Ev," I managed to get out. "You somehow managed to upstage Lightning in a Bottle's final show in our minds."

"Tell us what happened," Inez said, her own smile widening, and her voice scarcely more than a whisper.

Evie nodded. "You remember the fund-raiser last night," she said.

"The one that almost caused you to be late for the show," I mused. "Now we know why, I guess."

"Well, to be quite honest, it wasn't entirely because of Vince," Evie clarified. "I did get caught up in my duties. But I was sitting there at my table, and all of a sudden, this guy appears, and starts to strike up a casual conversation. I have to tell you both this, right up front. You know how picky I am about men. That's a fact, I accept it, and it's why I've had this long dry spell with dating. But I was strongly attracted to Vince, right away, before I even knew who he was."

"Wow," was once again my monosyllabic reply, duly spellbound by this development.

"He finally introduced himself as Vince Kirkland. Believe it or not, I didn't place the name right away. I started thinking, 'Where have I heard that name before?' Then, it hit me at once. 'That's the guy who Pat said I married in his other life!' And you were right, Pat ... it was hard for me to be myself at that point. It was a struggle, but I think I pulled it off. I decided to let him talk about himself for a while. He told me that he's a pharmaceutical sales rep from the Chicago area. He's here in New Jersey on business, and he heard about this fund-raiser. Several organizations in the health-care industry were there, and he decided to make an appearance, hoping to find some business contacts."

"Yes," I put in, as a light bulb went off in my head. "That's how you met Vince in the other life. I couldn't recall the details, but now that you describe it, that's definitely what happened last time. You met him at a work-related fund-raising event, and I'll bet dollars to donuts it was the same one."

"But ... I had a different job in the other life, didn't I?" queried Evie.

"Yes, you sure as hell did."

Evie paused to let that sink in. "That's quite a coincidence, wouldn't you say?"

"It's more than a coincidence, Ev," I smiled. "It's Fate. Fate brought you together again. How many organizations had reps at that event?"

"Well over a hundred."

"There you go. Your 'other employer' was surely represented as well. And you were there in that other life, and managed to run into Vince."

"Fate," echoed Evie dreamily. "What an incredible concept."

"Maybe it's Fate," commented Inez. "But if you'll allow me to bring religious beliefs into this discussion, maybe it's the work of a deity. Maybe it's the work of God."

"It's pretty obvious that there's a higher power of some kind at work here," I declared. "How else to explain what just happened? Evie starts down a different path in life, but manages to run into Vince anyway."

The three of us grew quiet for a moment. A thought began to emerge from my subconscious. This is the start. This is when Evie began to disappear from my life last time. It's about to happen again. I glanced over at my girlfriend; a vaguely crestfallen expression on her face informed me that she was mulling over the same possibility.

The ever-perceptive Evie picked right up on it. "Look, you two. We don't know what will happen with Vince this time. But if things do proceed from here, if I do end up moving out to Illinois and becoming a TV news reporter, it won't change anything with our friendship. I promise you that. I made a mistake in that other timeline," she said, winking at me, "and I'm not gonna do it again."

Inez and I took a collective deep breath, and smiled at each other; that was exactly what we both wanted to hear.

"One thing, though, Pat," Evie went on. "I'm sure you know a lot more of the details about how my relationship with Vince came about in the other life. You've already told me plenty. Don't tell me anything else, okay? If it's really meant to be, I'd like to savor the experience as much as possible."

"Not a problem, Ev. And you know what? I'm glad to hear you say that. It takes a lot of pressure off of me."

"So, tell us, Ev," smiled Inez. "What's coming up in the near term? Did Vince hint at anything?"

"I was getting to that," replied Evie, flashing the most brilliant smile we'd seen from her all evening. "He did, in fact, ask me out. He isn't flying back to Chicago until Friday. I told him I had plans to help my friends move on Tuesday and Wednesday, but I'd be free on Thursday. We set up a date."

Inez squealed happily. I just favored Evie with a smile. "Damn, Ev," I finally said, those words conveying nothing more than sincere incredulity. "Hot damn."

September 21, 1985

The transition between college and the "real world" is often overlooked as a challenging point in life. I'd gone through it once already; it had been difficult the first time around. But this time? It seemed as though change was battering me from every direction.

First, there was my new job (and my old job at the same time). I was putting in long hours, and just like last time, I was working twelve- or fourteen-hour days on a regular basis. I frequently didn't leave the office until nine or ten o'clock, which meant that the only real spare time I had was on weekends.

I'd moved into my new place the Wednesday after Labor Day; as had been the case with Paul's move, the entire gang helped out in getting me situated. After having lived there for a couple of weeks, I was quite pleased with my apartment. When I chose it, I reveled in the thought of sharing special moments with Inez in that dwelling. Of course, I was realistic enough to realize that we both would be busy. But exactly how busy ... I could never have imagined. That was the biggest single adjustment I had to make during this time of continued great change.

All of a sudden, I hardly ever saw my girlfriend.

For almost as long as we'd known each other, Inez and I had been involved in similar pursuits which brought us together. As fellow college students, even with different majors, we'd had a common bond. But the most critical uniting factor for us had been the band. It had played a major role in bringing us together in the first place. In a way, it had been our profession during the last two years of college, and it was something we'd done together. Now, the band was no more, and our new lives had left us with precious little in the way of mutual activities. On top of that, we were living farther apart; it was a thirty-minute drive from my place to hers. And that was if the traffic was extraordinarily cooperative.

We'd talked about this. "Let's be realistic here, and not emotional," Inez had told me. "You have your new job. It's a tough job that requires long hours. I know that it's not really what you want to do long-term, but it's what you have now, and you need to establish yourself. I want to get my degree as quickly as possible, which means I'll be taking the biggest course load I can handle."

"For me," I told her honestly, "your degree is the number one priority. I know how much it means to you."

She smiled at me appreciatively. "So, we'll just have to live for the weekends. You have your place, and I have mine, right?" A sly, suggestive look crossed her face.

Inez, of course, had her private on-campus efficiency unit. It was small – much smaller than my apartment – but it was cozy. It became apparent right away that her academic life would keep her every bit as busy as I was. Weeknights were pretty much out as far as getting together. We decided to alternate weekends, spending one at her place, and the next at mine. This allowed us to be together from late Friday evening until Sunday night. The rest of the week, we kept in contact via telephone, as our full schedules invariably prevented us from meeting up. It was far from optimal, but it would have to do for the time being.

"If we sacrifice a little now," Inez pointed out, "it will pay dividends for us down the road. Let's not ever lose sight of that."

Two weeks into this new way of life, it seemed as though the band had become a distant memory. I'd had little chance to touch base with Dave or Eileen. Eileen was starting her junior year, and Dave was beginning his fifth year in college due to his earlier change in major. They'd been quite wrapped up in school, as well as the new band they were putting together, which they'd decided to call Velvet Thunder. "Velvet" was a nod to Allie's old band, Velvet Frenzy, while "Thunder" was a subtle reminder of Lightning in a Bottle.

And then there was Evie. I really, really would have loved to have her stabilizing presence more available right now. However, it was becoming plain that she had veered directly onto the exact same path she'd followed in the other timeline. Her first date with Vince had been a smash success. Even though Vince had since returned to Illinois, the habitually cautious Evie had nonetheless fallen hard and fast for him. Like before, it was happening with blinding speed. Watching it occur all over again brought back unpleasant memories, in spite of my best efforts to suppress them.

"Remember what I said to you and Inez," she'd assured me over the phone, reinforcing those earlier words. "This time around, we're friends for life. No matter what happens. You can always call me." I'd taken her up on that, a few times. But I knew that she was going through a very special time in her life, and I didn't want to drag her down. The bottom line was, I was happy for her.

The one friend who was actually becoming a greater presence in my life was Paul, whose office was located within walking distance of mine. He and I had lunch together frequently, and began to establish the same type of friendship we'd had the first time around. This was one welcome development.

There was a special occasion on tap for this particular Saturday afternoon, and I was greatly looking forward to it. The Andrades, who loved to host big bashes like no family I'd ever seen, were having a big house party to celebrate Raul's fiftieth birthday. I'd stayed over Friday night at Inez's place. She, of course, was also excited about a welcome break in her routine.

The whole gang was invited, but not everyone showed up. Evie had to graciously decline the invitation, as she was flying out to Chicago, passing it off as some work-related traveling. I knew better, though; she was aiming to meet up with Vince. Like I said, things had gotten real serious, real fast. Paul had something to do with his parents, and wasn't able to attend. Dave and Eileen put in an appearance, albeit a brief one; they had to leave for band practice. When they split, it once again gave me pause to reflect on how the world around me was changing.

It was a beautiful day, and the weather was warm enough to allow the party to be held outside, in the Andrades' expansive back yard. Inez and I were hanging out with Dennis and Mayra. My girlfriend noticed my pensive mood, and aimed to distract me.

"Look over there at Seamus and Lisette," Inez giggled. "Aren't they cute?"

My brother and her cousin were sitting together in front of a picnic table, with about a three-foot gap between them. I was sure the gap was in deference to Lisette's very strict father, who Seamus was terrified of.

"Poor Seamus," I laughed. Then, turning to Mayra, I said, "He's scared to death of your dad."

"Hell, I'm scared shitless of her old man," guffawed Dennis. "And I'm a hell of a lot bigger than your brother." We all cracked up, as Mayra gave Dennis a playful swat.

Shortly thereafter, Raul came over to greet us, as we wished him a happy birthday. He was accompanied by a young guy I hadn't seen before. But Inez, it turned out, had. Before Raul could make the introductions, she spoke up.

"I know I've seen you recently," she said to the guy. "Aren't you in one of my classes?"

"Two, actually," he confirmed. "I had no idea you were a relative of Raul's."

Raul then spoke up. "This is Victor Dominguez. He's a relative of mine; his mother is my first cousin. Like Inez, he's a grad student in the psychology department at Rutgers."

"Are you related to Raul or Rosie?" Victor said to Inez.

"I'm on Tia Rosie's side," Inez offered. "She's my mom's sister."

Raul moved to complete the introductions. "You know Mayra and Inez. This is Dennis Hutchins, my daughter's boyfriend. And this is Inez's boyfriend, Pat O'Malley." We exchanged handshakes. Soon, Raul and Victor moved on, and eventually, so did Dennis and Mayra.

"I don't know what I think of Victor," Inez related when everyone was out of earshot. "He comes off as arrogant and cocky. He's like that in class, too."

"I agree. He kind of rubbed me the wrong way," I opined. Victor, to me, gave off a used-car salesman vibe. He was smooth talking, tall, good-looking, well-built, meticulously groomed, stylishly dressed, with a few too many buttons left open on the front of his shirt. In short, he was heavy on the style, and short on the substance. People like that always rubbed me the wrong way.

Inez and I got up and circulated among the guests, greeting those we knew, with Inez introducing me to a few who I didn't. While we were making the rounds, I happened to glance across the yard, where I noticed Victor conferring with Raul. They were looking straight over at Inez and me. I caught Victor gesturing in our direction, as Raul nodded in response.

I found myself feeling vaguely uneasy, and I wasn't sure why.

September 29, 1985

Today was Sunday, which given our current circumstances, was one of the two days in every week that I was able to share with my beloved. A few days earlier, it seemed that this particular weekend might turn out to be a washout, quite literally. Hurricane Gloria had taken aim at our neck of the woods, and for a while, it appeared that a direct hit was a distinct possibility. Luckily for us, the storm tracked a little further to the east, and slammed into Long Island instead. We did have a very windy and rainy Friday to deal with, although the weather improved markedly in the afternoon. Nonetheless, Inez's classes were canceled for the day. With a travel ban in place on Friday morning, I stayed home from work as well. The ban was lifted around noontime, and dedicated employee that I was, I went into work early in the afternoon. I was able to knock off around five-thirty, and proceeded to head right on down to my girlfriend's place, enjoying lighter-than-normal traffic on the way.

On Saturday afternoon, we'd made the time to go and watch Velvet Thunder practice. The new band was still in the process of finding their legs; they didn't have any gigs scheduled until mid-November. They had managed to persuade Holly and Annie to be their co-managers (and actually, that didn't require a lot of persuasion). The band featured Eileen on keyboard and vocals, Allie as lead guitarist and vocalist, Ben on rhythm guitar, Dave on the drums, Greg as bassist, and Sean on keyboard and vocals. Eileen switched off with Sean on the keyboard, just as she'd done with me.

Inez and I were now at her place; with our alternating weekend schedule, it was her turn to play hostess. The topic of discussion was Velvet Thunder.

"They've got more than enough flexibility," Inez opined. "Maybe not quite as much as we did, but they'll be fine. Eileen has pretty much the same skill set that Sean does. Your sister told me that when one is singing, the other will be keyboardist."

"What about when Allie sings lead?" I wondered.

"I asked Eileen about that. She'll probably be backup vocalist in that case. It's a nice problem to have."

"By the way," I said, "did you hear Sean hit those high notes? I think he's a better vocalist than I am."

Velvet Thunder – thus far a dedicated cover band, like Lightning in a Bottle – already had a couple of Journey songs in their repertoire, featuring Sean as vocalist: "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Separate Ways". Lightning in a Bottle almost never touched Journey songs, and I felt the reason was obvious. My voice just wouldn't go high enough to convincingly emulate Steve Perry's; our only attempt at covering a Journey song occurred in practice, with Inez singing lead on "Separate Ways". Hence my proclamation that Sean was superior to me as a vocalist, but my girlfriend soon set me straight.

"Sean is not better than you," declared Inez. "In fact, it's not even that close. His range goes a little higher than yours, that's all. You have a better overall range – you're much better than him on the lower notes. You can go well down into the baritone range. Plus you have better tone, better projection, and much better stage presence."

"You're just biased," I smiled, with exaggerated aw-shucks modesty.

"That I am," she agreed, "but I speak the truth."

I should point out that this conversation took place without any hint of wistfulness. Soon, we moved on to other topics.

"Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you. I had dinner with Eileen and Dave on Thursday night, right before it started raining," Inez related. "It was a really late dinner, though. We closed the place. I didn't finish studying till almost ten o'clock. Dave and your sister were starving."

I laughed. "That slave driver Victor has you working pretty hard, I guess."

A few days after Raul's birthday bash, Inez's uncle had had a little chat with her. It seemed that Victor, his relative and Inez's graduate school colleague, had mentioned to Raul that he needed a study partner. Raul had managed to persuade his niece that getting together with Victor on an ongoing basis would be quite beneficial to her.

"He's a slave driver, all right," said Inez, rolling her eyes. "Plus, he's arrogant as all hell. He thinks he's king of the world. But at the same time, he knows his stuff, and he stays focused on the material, so I guess I can't complain too much."

She and I had dinner at Margarita's, a habit that hadn't completely gone away, despite my northward move. Not long afterward, I had to head back up to my place. We said our tender goodbyes, and as I got into my car, I remembered something. I very likely would not see Inez until the following Friday night. I didn't like it, but getting together during the week was proving to be a hopeless endeavor. I'd actually reached the point where I'd stopped trying. With each week that went by, I was becoming more and more resigned to the fact that for the foreseeable future, this was how things would be.

October 5, 1985

And so, I'd followed my girlfriend's advice, and began to live for the weekends. This Saturday evening, a very welcome diversion popped up. Inez and I spent this weekend at my place, and we played host to a couple of visitors.

Evie ... and Vince. Another eastward business trip had brought Vince once again into our area. It was plenty obvious, however, that both of them were going to great lengths to see each other.

Again, the swiftness of which those two had fallen for each other was astounding. Of course, I was witnessing it for the second time. However, a fundamental change transpired on this evening. In the other timeline, I'd never had the pleasure of meeting Vince face to face. Evie, showing great consideration for our concerns about her dropping out of sight once again, pushed to schedule this introductory get-together as quickly as possible. And tonight, my worries were assuaged, once and for all.

The four of us just hung out in my apartment, first indulging in a dinner that Inez had prepared, and then moving to the living room where a bottle of wine made its way into our midst.

"Don't mind me, if I go easy on the wine," Vince laughed. "I need to get this lady home safely." They'd driven up in his rental car.