East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet.” I couldn’t help but think of that old saying as I waved good-bye from the window of my bus as it pulled away from the terminal.
They stood there, waving back at me from opposite sides of the station. They were like boxers, each in his separate corner, waiting for the bell to ring so they could come out and attack each other again.
In one corner stood my parents, who had loved me, cared for me, brought me up to the best of their ability, and tried to instill what they thought were good values in me for the entire sixteen years of my life.
In the other corner stood Lenny Lipoff, the boy I loved. Almost six feet tall now that he was approaching his eighteenth birthday, and reed-thin, Lenny was more cute than handsome. He had big brown eyes and brown hair that curled around an adorable, innocent-looking baby face. But Lenny was far from innocent. He was the prime wise guy, joker, and mischief-maker in Washington Heights, the part of New York City where we lived. If trouble was to be found, the chances were that Lenny had something to do with it.
Lenny had a scar on the right side of his face that he liked to claim he received in a knife fight. He was only kidding about that, but the fact remained that Lenny was entirely capable of getting someone mad enough to want to stab him.
Especially my parents. They had been against my relationship with Lenny from the day, almost two years ago now, that he and I had discovered we had special feelings for each other. We had had a stormy relationship since then. All the breakups and make-ups, all the emotional ups and downs I had gone through, served to make my parents dislike him more. Then, during this past school year, Lenny had been kicked out of high school, and that had been the last straw for my parents. I don’t think there was anything that could please them more than getting me to end it with Lenny once and for all.
As I was thinking this, Lenny suddenly took off chasing after my bus, which had begun to slow down for a red light. “Linda, Linda!” he called as he approached.
I pushed my window open and hung out so I could hear what he had to say.
“Linda! I just thought of something! It’s going to be pure torture if we have to wait until you come into the city to see each other. Maybe you could arrange a ride for me with Cesca’s parents when they come to the country to see her?”
“Great idea!” I looked into his deep brown eyes fringed with lashes that were long and straight, and my heart filled with love for him. My parents never got to see the other side of Lenny, a side he usually kept hidden, but a side I had come to know so well. Lenny could be sweet and sensitive and feeling, with more depth than I had found in any other boy. I could listen to his powerful, mesmerizing voice for hours. The two of us could talk about anything, and sometimes Lenny made so much sense he could make me understand more about myself than anyone else could.
I loved Lenny so much that I was willing to forgive all the times he had broken up with me and hurt me in the past. I was willing to overlook the fact that his dropping out of school could have a devastating effect on his future. I loved him so much that I was willing to wait in the hope that someday it would all work out for us.
“Cesca told me her parents might be coming up next weekend,” I said as I reached out the window for a last touch of his outstretched hand. “I’ll ask her to call her father as soon as I get up to Holiday Camp!”
Cesca was my closest friend at school. She had gotten me the summer job I was leaving for today. She was to be a mother’s helper for the children of the director, and I was to be a waitress for the campers at a camp for blind adults. I had accepted the job while I was broken up with Lenny during the last difficult period of our relationship because I had figured it would be best for me to be as far away from him as possible. But now that we had gotten together again, the thought of being without him all summer was overwhelmingly awful. Nothing would make me happier than knowing he could come and visit me on the weekend.
“Remember I love you!” He squeezed my hand and grinned his marvelously mischievous grin. “Especially when you’re meeting all those new boys up in the country!”
“Oh, Lenny, you don’t have to worry about that,” I promised. “I’m completely dedicated to you!”
“And I to you!” he solemnly swore. The light changed to green, and the bus started moving. He ran alongside it for a few steps, still gripping my hand, until he was forced to let go.
“Bye! I love you!” I called to him one last time. It was only then that I noticed my parents, wearing expressions of great distaste, walking on the sidewalk not far from Lenny. They must have caught up to him while the bus was stopped for the light.
How much of our conversation could they have overheard? I knew they would be furious if they thought Lenny was planning to come up to camp next weekend.
Well, I wasn’t going to worry about it, I told myself as the bus drove over the George Washington Bridge, taking me out of the city. One thing I did have to look forward to this summer was a relaxation of the tensions that existed between my parents, Lenny, and me. Besides, my parents couldn’t do anything to stop him from visiting me, anyhow.
I was wrong about that, of course, but I didn’t realize it then.
* * *
“Is that your boyfriend?” a questioning voice broke into my thoughts. I turned to look at the girl who had sat down next to me in the bus. She appeared to be about my age. She had a slightly off-balance, sloping nose, short, dark, curly hair, and small dark eyes that stared at me with frank curiosity.
“Yes, he is,” I said cautiously. “Why do you ask?”
“Well, uh—it’s just that he’s so cute and all that,” she bubbled. “And he must really care about you—the way he ran after the bus and grabbed your hand! Are you lucky! You know, I always wanted to have a boyfriend who treated me like that. But here I had no one to take me to the station but my father—not that I have anything against him … he’s really a great guy. But let’s face it, having your father see you off to a summer working away in a camp in the country doesn’t compare to having your boyfriend practically extract you from your bus window, does it? I mean, no matter where you’re going, you’ve got to feel great after a send-off like that, don’t you? And where are you off to, anyhow?”
The girl finally stopped talking long enough for me to try to reply to her questions. “I’m going to work in a camp for the summer, too. I’m a waitress at a camp for blind adults.”
“No! I don’t believe it!” Dramatically she clasped her hand to her forehead. “That wouldn’t be at a place called Holiday Camp, would it?”
“Uh-huh. But how did you know?”
“Because that’s the very same place I’m working at this summer! What a coincidence! Boy, am I glad I sat down next to you! Would you believe that from the moment I entered the bus, I picked you out as the person I most wanted to sit next to? Not that there was any great choice,” she said, giggling. “It was either you or that fat lady who takes up three quarters of the seat next to her, or that old lady in the back who doesn’t look as if she has the strength to make it through the trip!”
“Well, thanks for the compliment,” I said sarcastically. I turned to look out the window. The last of the New York City skyline was just fading from sight. Just my luck to be stuck sitting next to this motor-mouth the whole trip! At this rate I was sure to have a headache before I even got to camp. Not only that, but I was going to have to put up with her all summer!
“Aw, I was only kidding!” the girl said with a laugh. “I sat next to you because I thought it would be nice to be near someone my own age. I’m Natalie Green, but you can call me Nat—all the kids in school do.”
“Hi, Nat. I’m Linda, Linda Berman.” I managed to get out that bit of information before Nat launched into another monologue. She told me she was seventeen and about to be a senior in high school, in Great Neck, the town on Long Island where she lived, and that this was her first summer job and first time away from home.
“My dad got this job for me because the director’s wife is one of his patients,” she told me. “Dad is the best podiatrist in all of Great Neck, but he’s got some weird ideas. He thinks I meet too many spoiled rotten rich kids in Great Neck and wants me to see what life is like for those less fortunate.” She sighed deeply. “Less fortunate is one thing, but blind is another. Truthfully, I don’t know how I’m going to deal with being around blind people. I’ve never done anything like that before, have you?”
“Uh-huh. When I was in junior high. Our class did volunteer work at a school for blind kids. I felt like you do at first. I wasn’t sure about how to act around them or what to say to them. I was even afraid to use expressions like I see.”
“Really? So what happened?”
“I got to know them as people. Once that happens, you hardly ever think about the fact that they’re blind. I even got to be close friends with some of the blind kids, and I learned a lot from them. That’s why I wanted to take this job.”
“Oh. I wanted to take this job because I heard there were going to be some cute boys working at Holiday Camp.” Nat giggled. “After all, we can’t all be as lucky as you are and have a boyfriend waiting for us at home! By the way, what’s his name?”
“Lenny.”
“And where does he go to school?”
There it was. The question I dreaded the most when anyone asked me about my boyfriend—where did he go to school? And it was a legitimate question. Most girls my age who were planning to go on to college had boyfriends who were already in college. They were on their way to becoming doctors or lawyers or accountants or businessmen or teachers. Lenny was as smart as any of the boys I knew and twice as clever. He loved to read almanacs and encyclopedias and newspapers, and was a vast storehouse of knowledge and common sense. Still, it was hard for me to deal with the fact that he was a high school dropout. I never knew how to handle that question.
“He’s in the school of life.” I tried to sound light and casual, despite the lump in my throat. “Trying to make his way in the business world. He’s working on finishing high school now, and I’m hoping he’ll go on to college someday.”
“Oh.” You could tell my rating had taken a huge drop in Nat’s opinion poll. I told myself I didn’t care. What did it matter what someone like Nat thought of me anyhow? She and I had nothing in common. My parents were struggling to make ends meet; her father was a doctor. She was probably spoiled as rotten as those kids he was worried about her associating with. I couldn’t expect her to understand the problems Lenny had which led to his having so much difficulty in school.
Lenny had a terrible home life. His parents never got along, and in the past few years their relationship had deteriorated to the point where they had violent fights with each other. His father had moved out of the house, but he still showed up now and then, which usually meant more trouble. When Lenny’s father wasn’t around, Lenny’s mother would often fight with him. The turmoil that resulted made it difficult for Lenny to discipline himself to sit in class, study, and pay attention to what the teacher was saying.
Lenny had done well in school when he was younger and could get by through brains alone, but all that had changed when he entered high school, where the work was so much harder. His grades started slipping, and he began cutting classes and getting into trouble. Last term the situation got so bad that he was asked to permanently leave school. He had been trying to get his life back together ever since, and, of course, I had been trying to help him. It was a situation so complicated that sometimes I had difficulty understanding it myself.
I sighed to myself and settled back in my seat, half-listening to Nat’s continuing chatter as the bus headed out to the country.
* * *
We were met at the bus stop by the Holiday Camp van, driven by Ian Glass, staff supervisor. “Think of me as your substitute parent while you’re away from home,” Ian said when he introduced himself to us. He had thinning blond hair that made him look older, but Ian told us he had just graduated college. He had taken this job for the summer to earn some money for law school, which he was entering in the fall.
“Isn’t he cute?” Nat whispered to me as Ian locked our luggage into the back of the van. “The fact that he’s going bald makes him look quite distinguished.”
“Maybe. But he’s too old for you,” I pointed out.
“Not really. One more year and I’ll be in college myself.” Nat sat up front next to Ian and chattered away to him the entire ride out to Holiday Camp. I was grateful to sit quietly behind them, tune out their conversation, and watch the scenery go by.
Although I was born a city girl, in a neighborhood of concrete and brick apartment buildings that were five and six stories high, I had always loved the country. Just put me where there are trees and flowers and mountains, and I instantly come alive. And there was nothing like the country to bring out the romantic in me. I couldn’t wait until Lenny came out to visit me and we would walk off together hand in hand through the woods, and—
“Here we are—Holiday Camp!” Ian announced. I hopped out of the van and looked around. I had to catch my breath—the place was gorgeous! Tucked into a little valley, fringed with mountains, Holiday Camp was set on the edge of a large, clear lake. There was a grassy field of green dotted with white buildings peaked by cheery red roofs.
“Those are the campers’ bunkhouses,” Ian told us. “And that’s the arts and crafts building right next to the dining room, where you girls will be serving. And that”—he pointed to the large white house closest to us—“is the staff headquarters, where you’ll be living.”
“We’ll be living—here?” I couldn’t believe it. I was used to the cramped quarters of our small Manhattan apartment that had only two bedrooms. One was for my parents, and one was shared by my twin brothers, Ira and Joey, so I didn’t even have a room of my own. The only space I had that belonged to me was a high-riser bed and a dresser stuck in one end of the living room.
“That’s right,” Ian grinned. “And here’s Cesca Ondell, just in time. Hey, Cesca, since you’ve already been here a day and know where everything is, how about showing the girls where they’ll be sleeping? This is Natalie Green, Cesca, and I believe you already know Linda?”
“Sure I do!” Cesca came bounding up to give me a hug. “We’ve been sitting next to each other during math and lunch for two years now!”
Cesca was tall, with waist-length straight black hair and an Oriental cast to her features. In school she often looked awkward and out-of-place, but here in the country, dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, she actually seemed pretty.
“You’re going to love it here,” she promised Nat and me as she led us up the stairs. “Everyone who works here is nice, and we have a great view from our room—see?” She led us into a dormered room papered in a pale blue print. “I hope you don’t mind—I’ve taken the bed by the north window, but there’s still the east window free.”
“I don’t mind, Cesca. This is fine.” I went over and parted the white, lacy curtains. The view of the trees and the mountains was beautiful.
“What about me?” Nat’s voice broke into my thoughts. I turned to see her standing in the doorway, holding her suitcase and looking like a little lost waif.
“I guess you get the bed without the window— unless you and Linda want to fight it out,” said Cesca.
“No. I don’t care about a window.” Nat plopped her suitcase down on the third bed in our room. That’s when it hit me—three beds, three people. Was motor-mouth Natalie going to be sharing this room with us all summer long?
“Don’t tell me she’s our roommate, too!” I blurted out to Cesca. “I thought it was going to be just you and me!”
“I did, too, at first, but there are too many girls working here this year,” explained Cesca. “Someone had to triple up, and since this is the biggest bedroom, Nat was put in here with us.”
“Oh, great!” I said irritably. Then I looked over and saw Nat’s face. Her usual smile was gone now, and in its place was this embarrassed and uncomfortable expression that came from the realization she was not wanted.
Immediately I felt sorry for my harsh and unthinking words.
“I mean—it’s a little crowded here for three, but I’m sure we can manage,” I said quickly, in what I hoped was a reassuring voice. “In fact, I bet it’ll be fun!”
I was rewarded by seeing a look of relief sweep over Nat’s face. She began to unpack her suitcase, but I still had matters that needed to be taken care of first, like arranging to see Lenny as soon as possible.
“Cesca,” I said, turning to her. “Do you think you could do me a favor that would have me beholden and grateful to you for the rest of my life?”
She laughed. “I don’t know, Linda. That sounds awfully heavy. What is this favor?”
“Asking your parents if they would bring Lenny up here with them if they come to visit you next weekend. If they go over the George Washington Bridge to get here, it won’t even be out of their way.”
“Sure, Linda. That doesn’t seem like a problem. In fact, I had told my dad I would call this afternoon to let him know how I’m doing. I’ll call and ask him now, if you like.”
Cesca went downstairs to use the staff telephone, and Nat and I started putting our things away in our dresser. I went out of my way to be extra friendly to Nat to try to make up for how callous I had been over the room.
We were just finishing our unpacking when Cesca returned. I could tell by her face that all had not gone as smoothly as she had expected.
“Cesca, what happened?” I asked. “Is everything okay at home?”
“Oh, everything’s fine at my home,” she replied. “But I’m not so sure about yours. Your parents must be pretty down on you to pull a trick like that!”
“A trick like what? What do you mean, Cesca?”
“Well, no sooner did they come home from seeing you off on the bus than your mother called my father,” Cesca reported. “She said she overheard your telling Lenny you would see if you could arrange a ride up for him with my parents. And she wanted to make sure that under no circumstances would they agree to take him. So they won’t, Linda. They’re not going to go against your parents’ wishes. They won’t bring Lenny up here next weekend.”
I heard the words, but I didn’t believe them. How could my parents? They didn’t like Lenny, but they knew how much seeing him meant to me. How could they try to sabotage my happiness that way?