I was seven at the time, with no brothers or sisters to commiserate with me. I was homesick. I missed my friends. From day one, I bawled and wailed at the top of my lungs until my tonsils yelled, “Stop! Give it a rest!” And I yelled back, “I want to go home!”
We had moved from 112 Fenton Street in Toledo, Ohio, to 26 Mount Vernon Avenue in Rogers Gap, Ohio. Dad had been promoted to president of the First Federal Savings and Trust Company of Rogers Gap.
I guess I was driving my parents crazy, and out of sheer exasperation, Dad left one Saturday afternoon, returning with a bicycle and a set of training wheels. When he took them out of the trunk of the car, my heart pounded with joy. Dad looked down at me, put his hands on my shoulders, gave me a very serious look and said, “Son, I know you miss your friends, but you have got to get used to your new home. Maybe this new bike will help you do that.”
Filled with boyish excitement at getting my first set of wheels, I gave him a wide grin, revealing the place where two front teeth had been. And in that moment, my friends in Toledo were forgotten entirely. I watched as Dad put on the training wheels. It took as long as waiting for Christmas morning (well, almost), and I felt I would squirm out of my skin. Finally, I got to sit on the seat of my new bike and immediately pedaled it up and down the driveway. At the age of seven, I didn’t know what word I could have been used to describe how I felt, but I still remember that experience, and as an adult, I can say unequivocally that what I felt was exhilarated. Dad had one of those cloth folding chairs. He sat in it, smoking his pipe, as he watched me happily ride back and forth, up and down the driveway.
He finally stood. “Jimmy, why don’t you ride your bike up to the end of the block and back? I’ll stand here at the edge of the driveway and watch.”
After my trial run, Dad left me to my adventures and went in the house. I felt almost grown up. I did this for a week, then asked Dad to take the training wheels off. It was an afternoon that ended up with bleeding, banged–up knees and elbows, a scraped chin and nose, and a knot on my forehead, but I had mastered the art of riding a two–wheeler. I could sit erect and felt confident that I would never tip over again in my whole life.
Dad had been sitting in his chair, smoking as usual, watching the abuse I was inflicting on myself while he puffed away without a word—although a couple of those spills did startle him enough to make him begin to rise out of his seat. Then he thought better of it and sat back down. When I rode that bike one more time without faltering, I looked at Dad and gave him my big, toothless grin.
He held out his hand and took mine. “I’m really proud of you, son. Let’s go in the house and tell your mother what you just did.”
I was greeted in the kitchen by a doting mother who was appalled at the sight of her bleeding son. The look she gave my father could have stripped wallpaper. But for the life of me, I didn’t know why. Dad shrugged and said, “He just learned to ride his bike, Margie.”
She took me under her wing, gave me a big hug, and said, “Oh, Jimmy, that’s wonderful!” She washed and kissed my boo boos, poured some really stingy stuff on them, and bandaged me up until I thought she was going to mummify me. When she was done, she gave me a Hershey bar.
The next time I walked out to the garage, Dad was waiting for me. He said, “Jimmy, now you’re on your own. Go out and find some friends.” Of course, that ultimatum came with a set of rules. I was given strict instructions that I was not to cross a street. I had to stay on the sidewalk at all times, and I could go around the block, which meant I could only turn right. As a seven–year–old, I had been taught to give my name and address if I ever got lost. My name was James Patrick Murray and I lived at 26 Mount Vernon Avenue. We were one house away from the corner, and if I always turned right at the corner, I would never get lost. I would always end up back home.
As I took off, the feeling was one of emancipation. Again, I was too young to know the meaning of that word, but I sure did know how it felt. As I think back, those wonderful memories are still stored up to reflect on from time to time.
Two days after my first dry run for complete independence, I was brave enough to turn the corner. So far in my endeavors, I had made no friends, but anticipation ran high. That night, I asked my dad the name of that side street I had been on. He told me it was Indiana Avenue. So the next day, I pedaled up to the corner, turned right on Indiana Avenue, and rode to the other end of that block. Looking down that very long stretch of street to the right was daunting. I wasn’t sure I should try to tackle it. Maybe I should just turn around and save it for another day. That road was not like the two I had been on. It was wider and had a strip down the middle filled with grass, shrubs, and small trees.
I sat there for a minute, my confidence waning by the second, and then I heard the laughter of children and instinctively turned right. I had no sooner made the turn than I saw two little girls in the driveway of the second house, giggling as they splashed each other while playing in a plastic swimming pool. I rang the chrome bell on the handlebar of my bike, and they both looked up and waved to me. I pulled up to the pool on my new set of wheels like a man of the world.
The oldest girl said, “Hi, what’s your name? I never saw you around here before.”
Oh my gosh, was that girl pretty. “Er, uh, Jimmy. What’s yours?”
“I’m Patty, and this is my sister, Frannie. She’s two years younger than me.”
Frannie gave me a big grin and said, “I’m five. I’m going to go to kindergarten when school starts. How old are you?”
The girl Patty said, “Do you live around here?”
“26 Mount Vernon Avenue. I’m seven.”
“When did you lose your teeth?” Patty asked and opened her own mouth to put her finger on her new bicuspids. “I got these new ones right before Thanksgiving last year, and boy, did I eat turkey.” Then she gave me a big grin.
“Dunno exactly. But my new ones are starting to come in. See?” I grinned and pointed to the two white strips of enamel just poking through.
“Did you get any money from the Tooth Fairy?”
“Sure did. I got a whole dollar. How about you?”
“Yep. But I only got quarters. My dad told me I should put them in my piggy bank.” She cocked her head, gave me a quizzical look, and put her index finger on her cheek as though in deep thought. “You know what, Jimmy, I think you’re really cute, and I’m going to call you Jimbo.” When she said that, she cupped her hand and splashed as much water as she could in my face saying, “I now dub you Jimbo!”
So far, I had been standing by the pool straddling my bike. But the bike went down. I walked over to the pool, cupped both of my hands, and got her back good. Then it became a free–for–all, and the three of us squealed with laughter until most of the water was in the driveway and I was soaked.
Their mother came out with towels and said, “Come on, girls, it’s time for lunch.” She wrapped them both up and said, “Well, now, and who might this handsome young man be?”
“He said his name is Jimmy, Mommy, but I like him a lot and I want to call him Jimbo.”
“Wherever did you get a name like that, Patty?”
“Oh, I don’t know, Mommy. Maybe because he’s bigger than me, ‘cause I was taller than all the boys in my first grade class. And I like that he’s taller than me, and I like the name Jimbo.”
Mrs. Carter looked at me. “Well, Jimbo, I think you just got yourself a new name.”
I guess I must have really liked that name at the time, because I sure did think that girl was pretty.
Mrs. Carter said, “I’ve never seen you around here before, Jimbo. Would your family happen to be the one that moved into the Faustino house on Mount Vernon, by any chance?”
I said, “I dunno, ma’am. I guess so.”
“Well, the girls have to go in for lunch now, Jimbo. Would you like to come in and have lunch with them?”
Oh, how I wanted to say yes. I hadn’t been around anyone my age for so long. But I was soaking wet. “Oh, thank you, ma’am, but I have to go. My mother wants me home for lunch. So I’ll just go now.”
As I got on my bike to leave, Patty said, “Come back this afternoon, Jimbo. Mommy always takes us for a walk over to the park.”
My heart felt like it was going to burst with happiness. I made sure I turned right out of the driveway and then right again at the corner of the block. Another right, and I was home. I had found a new friend. That friendship was all I needed. Patty and I entered the second grade together. I had such a wonderful seven–year–old summer.
My mother died at the age of thirty–two from breast cancer. I was eight at the time. Mr. and Mrs. Carter treated me like family. They also reached out to my dad, and Mr. Carter and Dad are still the best of friends today. Mrs. Carter actually took care of me, because Dad had to go to work. She held me and rocked me when I cried. She dried my tears, stroked my cheeks, made cookies for me, and sometimes, when I would just get tears in my eyes, she fed me ice cream. I was Jimbo to all of them.
Then when Patty and I entered high school, I became James to the teachers and Jim to my classmates. Patty became Pat, and she accepted all of this as though it was meant to be. We were still joined at the hip and had each other’s backs. But at the end of our senior year, something happened to change all that. Pat was elected prom queen. This came as no surprise to me. I had always thought she was beautiful. She had fine features and long, wavy black hair that fell around her shoulders. Her eyes were a deep blue, framed with dark lashes. She was quite tall and slender. But given that she was the quiet, bookish type, this turn of events took her by surprise, and being elected prom queen brought about a complete transformation of the Pat I knew.
Greg Toth, the star football player and most popular kid in our class, as well as the newly elected prom king, asked Pat to the prom the day she was elected. I hadn’t had a chance to gulp or cough, and I was already out of the loop. If there is something beyond jealousy, I felt it, but she was never to know this. Because she had always been so quiet and unassuming, it all seemed bizarre watching her walk down the hall with a group of giggling girls. Sometimes she was with Greg, his arm around her, with her looking like she was loving it.
Although she was out of my league, now, she still expected me to wait and walk home from school with her. I was miserable listening to her litany of Greg Toth’s virtues and what the in crowd was doing. But I knew I wasn’t totally lacking in appeal. I was tall, with curly brown hair and good teeth, now that they had all long since grown in. And I had a good head on my shoulders. At least that’s what my dad always told me.
So after a while, I approached June Carney, a sexy knockout. We had been in a couple of classes together and had always been friendly. I had simply never given a thought to ever asking her for a date. I had been stuck on Pat. But times change. The day I worked up enough nerve to ask her out, I played it real cool and made her an offer I hoped she couldn’t refuse.
“Hey, June, would you like to go to the prom with me?”
I didn’t even have to wonder what she would say.
With no hesitation, she batted her eyes and answered, “I’d love to go with you, Jim. I’ve been wondering when you were going to get around to asking me out. Call me!”
When I told Pat who I was taking to the prom, she became unreasonably furious with me. She said I had no business asking that girl out without talking to her about it first. She said my date was nothing but a slut and a snob. I told her to put a cork in it. It was none of her business, since she already had a date. She stopped speaking to me, then, and I think I was as lost as I was when my family moved from Toledo. We didn’t even speak at graduation, although I bumped into Mr. and Mrs. Carter at the graduation ceremony, and they said they were looking forward to seeing me at Patty’s graduation party. I guess they didn’t know I wasn’t invited.
I don’t know what Pat and Greg did all summer, but I do know they spent a lot of time together. I would see them in his convertible, going to the beach or to the park to play tennis. They were always laughing and seemed happy. And it killed me.
That was not my summer. I spent it trying to get June Carney off my back by convincing her she should join the local playhouse and try out for some of the parts. June was like a fly buzzing in my ear. It wasn’t her fault she got on my nerves, but she was smothering me. So I kept encouraging her, telling her she was beautiful and had so much talent that she should spread her wings and fly.
She worked as a cashier at Best Buy and spent the rest of her time bugging me, texting me, and trying to seduce me. She needed another hobby besides me. No matter what she and I did, I was still reeling from the prom fallout. I loved being with Pat. She and I had been buddies since the second grade. When I was with her, I was comfortable. I felt lost without her and had to try to come to terms with that. I didn’t just like her; I loved her. And now I was really hurting.
With all the diplomacy I could muster, I had to get June to leave me alone. So not only did I encourage her to go to the Silver Springs Playhouse, but I went with her, so she could get a taste for stardom. Little by little, she spent more and more time there, and after a while, she didn’t have any more time for me. It was sayonara to good old Jim. Hallelujah!
There was something else that helped me cope with my broken heart. That is, I had won a full scholarship to Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, only twenty–five miles away. My major would be business administration, with marketing as my minor. I entered in September 2001 and lived on campus. I got a part–time job working at the library, which helped pay for books and some personal needs.
Dad had been pretty lonely for a very long time, but at least he’d had me at home. But recently, he’d met a very pretty woman, Laura Bailey, and I could see they were becoming quite involved. I wanted to give him all the space he needed, and that’s why I chose to stay on campus instead of commuting. I continued to stay there through the summer, when I worked full–time at a construction site. I even took a few summer classes in the evenings. I went home very little.
Dad and Laura quietly married that summer, and they came to see me often. In my second year in college, on the holidays, they would have dinner with me at whatever hotel they were staying in at the time. I could see such a difference in my dad. Seeing him so happy lifted my spirits tremendously.
But there was an emptiness in my own life. It had been a year and a half, but I still missed Pat. Because we had been so close for so many years, I guess I’d thought it would always be that way. We had a unique relationship. I didn’t realize until our breakup just how much I really loved her. Now it was as though she had forgotten me. I had been told she was no longer dating Greg Toth, though. He had joined the service and married a girl from Germany.
It was the winter of 2003 that Dad had to have back surgery. He was scheduled for a Friday, and I was able to get home. I stayed the entire day. Laura was at his side constantly, wiping his face with a cold cloth, giving him ice chips, fluffing his pillow. I was there strictly for moral support. Just watching them interact with each other made me want to be with Pat.
Thinking back, I tried to remember the day I’d begun loving her. I finally decided there was no specific time, but I had probably started to fall in love with her that day when we were seven, when I saw her in that plastic swimming pool and she splashed water in my face. At least I don’t remember a time since then that I didn’t love her. So I guess you could say it was a back burner, simmering kind of love, rather than a hot to trot one.
My first year and a half of school have been very demanding of me academically, yet I sometimes think wistfully of Pat. I’m probably making myself sound like a monk. I am not. I have never lacked female companionship. There are plenty of women around campus who seek my attention. But Pat will always be my love.
Because of the way we parted, I wasn’t sure she wanted to see me ever again, but I found it difficult to believe that after we’d had such a close relationship for so many years, she would just dismiss me from her life entirely. I knew she didn’t love me the way I loved her, but I did want her back as my friend. On the other hand, I knew she could be married. I didn’t know.
So instead of driving myself crazy with all these thoughts, I decided I would go to Froggy’s. It was Friday, and I knew the Carters always went there for fish on Fridays. Dad’s surgery had been very successful; he had Laura, and I was free to go. Hopefully Pat would be with her parents. I wanted my friend back.
The minute I walked in, I saw the three of them sitting at a table by the far wall. I casually walked over with my heart in my throat.
“Well, looky here,” I said. “I can’t believe my good luck. It’s so nice to see you people.”
All three of them looked up, and all I could see were three smiling faces. Dan, Pat’s dad, stood up and shook my hand. “How ya doing, young fella? It’s really good to see you again.”
Maureen, Pat’s mom, smiled. “Jim Murray! How wonderful. Come sit down and join us. I was just asking about you the other day.” She looked at her husband. “Dan, get Jim a chair.” Then she looked back at me with a smile. “Someone took our fourth chair. You know how things work around here.”
Dan sat me directly across from Pat, and when she looked at me, I was glad I was wearing a sweater so she couldn’t see my heart pounding. She looked so beautiful. She said, “I can’t tell you how wonderful it is to see you, Jim. I hope you aren’t still mad at me.”
I was incredulous. “Don’t you have that a little backwards, Pat? I thought it was you that was mad at me!”
Maureen and Dan looked at each other. They picked up on that comment immediately. I had become a part of their family, and I’m positive that at the end of our senior year, my absence had to have been noticed. This occurred around the same time the complete transformation in their daughter’s personality had taken place and she had become interested in Greg. In their view, I guess it would follow that I would be the angry one. And Pat had allowed them to think that way.
Maureen and Dan dominated the conversation with me as Pat sat silently picking at a plate of food that didn’t seem to diminish very much. They were concerned about my dad, asked about my studies, and told me how much they’d missed my visits. I tried to make them understand how very little I got home and why, but I promised to make an effort to stop by if I did get home.
Because Pat was so quiet, I made it a point to include her in our conversation. “So, what have you been doing with your life, sweet stuff? You didn’t go and get married on me and not invite me to the wedding, did you?”
That’s when I learned she was going to Ohio State University. She told me she’d made graphic design her major and loved it.
Since they’d been eating when I came in, they sat and continued to talk to me while I caught up. Dan bought beers for himself and me, and we all continued to talk for another half hour or so. Then Dan got their coats. As he helped Maureen on with her coat, she said, “We’re so happy that you caught us here tonight, Jim. We’ve missed you. I wish you would stop in to see us once in a while. As a matter of fact, we would love to drive up to see what your life on campus is all about. Can I give you a call sometime?”
“I think that would be great. I would be honored to show the two of you around. And I promise I’ll be stopping in soon.”
Maureen looked at Pat, who hadn’t made a move to leave. “I take it you want to stay and visit some more, since the two of you haven’t seen each other for such a long time.” She leaned down and kissed me on the cheek. “Now don’t be a stranger, you hear?” Dan shook my hand again, and they left.
The minute her parents were out of earshot, Pat looked up at me with tears in her eyes and said, “It was all my fault, Jim. I know what I did to you was wrong. I’m so, so sorry.” The tears started flowing out of her like water over the Silver Lake dam. She kept on weeping softly as she talked through her tears. “You can’t possibly know how much I’ve missed your friendship. I don’t ever want to lose it again. I know I must have hurt you deeply. I should have called you, but I was so ashamed of myself, and I didn’t think you would ever forgive me, because I couldn’t even forgive myself.”
I sat there dumbfounded by this sudden rush of tears and words. Had I really heard her say she missed me and was sorry she hurt me? I wanted to take her in my arms and kiss her tears away. But I just sat there and took her hand, stroking it. “It’s all good, Pat. Nothing could ever destroy the friendship we’ve had. I hope you believe that.”
We had a couple of beers and talked some more. We had a lot to catch up on, but it wasn’t long before our friends started to gather at the table by the juke box and asked us to join them. I was the joke teller, so we all had a great time. My best buddy was back, and I wasn’t about to change that by telling her how I really felt about her. If she didn’t feel the same way, it would surely make her feel uncomfortable. We broke up the gathering around 1:00 a.m.
I was looking forward to driving Pat home, but it turned out she had been shopping that afternoon and had driven to Froggy’s to meet her parents there. I asked her if she wanted to do something the next day, since it was Saturday. Turned out she was going back to Ohio U. the next day. She had come home for her dad’s birthday on Thursday and had to get back for a very important test on Monday. The drive back was a good three and a half hours on Saturday, and she needed all day Sunday to study. We said our goodbyes, and I said I would appreciate it if we could stay in touch by text, since we were both so busy. She happily agreed, and I was on my way
We didn’t see each other until the following summer, but we texted constantly. Dad and Laura were still honeymooners, and the change in Dad was all for the better. Laura was good for him. I continued to work in construction and take a few classes in the summer. In order to see Pat, I would invite her to come with me and my new best friend, Hank Childers, when she was home for a day or two. She had also elected to stay on campus in the summers, taking more classes and working full–time for a printing firm. We would both graduate a year early and get on with our master’s degrees, and then glory hallelujah, get out of the world of academia.
I probably saw Pat maybe fifteen times through those years, and only in the summer. She would call or text when she would be in town. I would pick her up, and we would go back to my stomping grounds, the Squirrel’s Nest, where we would meet Hank. This was our local watering hole. We did this at least four or five times that first summer.
My friend Hank was pretty well known for his arm wrestling skills, and guys all over campus challenged him. All contests took place at the Squirrel’s Nest. It was not widely broadcast, yet pretty well known, that if you chose to place a little money on the table, it might or might not grow. Pat really liked Hank and all the excitement.
This was the summer Pat told me about a fella she’d been dating on and off for about a year. If I recall correctly, I think his name was Fred. She was concerned he was becoming too serious and wanted to know how to break up with him. She said she didn’t want to fight with him or hurt his feelings and wondered if there was a way to get rid of him without going through all the drama. She said she couldn’t bear confrontation. Later I was to find out that her sister Fran was the same way, only with a twist.
I was flattered that Pat chose to confide in me and relieved that she wanted to be rid of a boyfriend. So we talked at length about his strengths and weaknesses and came up with a strategy that would create a situation in which he could feel it necessary to bow out of their relationship and still be friends with her.
It turned out that he was a very good golfer, so she encouraged him to try to turn pro. He began spending a great deal of time playing both indoor and outdoor golf in order to improve his game. Soon he found her company boring, because she didn’t care for golf all that much; he told her he felt they didn’t have the same interests and thought they should move on. The strategy had worked like a charm.
Pat and I continued to see each other for two more summers. Then we both graduated and got jobs. Having Hank around when I was with Pat was so helpful. I loved her, but I couldn’t show it. That’s because she always had some guy she was dating, so I knew she didn’t love me. She and I had never been on a real date, and it seemed that just being with her had to be enough for me. I would visit Pat’s parents at least once a month; they had become very special to me. We were now on a first name basis, so we were now Dan, Maureen, and Jim.
Eventually, Pat and I both had our master’s degrees and were out of school and working. Pat was quite serious about her career as a graphics designer for a large architectural firm. She still had an occasional boyfriend that needed to be dumped. I couldn’t figure her out. But it was all fine with me as long as those boyfriends got dumped. I sometimes wondered if she was still carrying a torch for Greg Toth, the guy she went to senior prom with. She had really fallen hard for him.
If it wouldn’t embarrass her, I could sit and just stare at her. It isn’t just her looks; she is so intelligent and witty. She has a kind of presence about her that makes you want to know her. Of course, I ramble on because I love her so much.
On September 4, 2008, I attended the wedding of Francine Louise Carter to David Michael Kuspin. The wedding was at Saint Andrew’s Episcopal Church at eleven o’clock.
The altar flowers were outstanding, real works of art, and the church had the most wonderful fragrance. The two bridesmaids were followed by the maid of honor, Pat, and to me, she was the only person present. She was absolutely exquisite. I watched the bride as she walked down the aisle with her distinguished–looking father, and she was glowing. Even though I had always called her Squirt, today she looked like a beautiful, mature woman.
The reception at the Creekside Country Club was terrific. I got to spend some time with Pat, but a lot of her time was spent meeting and greeting people with her sister. When I left that reception, I didn’t realize I would be spending the next day with Pat. Something had gone terribly wrong between the bride and groom, and the marriage was over before it began. Unbelievable. One day! I was told some of the details, but I didn’t ask many questions. I felt very bad for Frannie. The day after her wedding, my good friend Hank Childers and I helped her by returning a stove to the store. We had a great afternoon together: Pat, Hank, Frannie, her friend Wanda, and me. It was all fun and laughs until later in the day, when Frannie fell apart. I understand she’s doing much better now.
I met my friend Hank when I was a freshman at Case Western Reserve University. He was a serious, high–achieving sophomore, but he sure was a lot of fun when we were together. We spent a lot of time on weekends at the Squirrel’s Nest. He sure did love to arm wrestle, and he soon became known as the guy to try to beat. We had many an exciting evening with him at the center of it all. After he finished his master’s, he went right up the corporate ladder at GE.
We didn’t see much of each other after that because he was always working, but one day about a year and a half ago, I bumped into him at Target. He had just bought a townhouse in my neck of the woods and was looking for some blinds. We’ve been out together maybe twice since then.
As a pharmaceutical rep, I cover a tri–state area and sometimes feel like I live in my car. The job pays very well— even better than well. Case Western Reserve is quite a prestigious school, but when I graduated in 2007, the job market was bleak, and in 2010, it still isn’t much better. However, I am one of five applicants in line for a peach of a job in administration at General Electric. My friend Hank put me on to it, and I’ll use him as a reference. If I get it, and that comes with a big if, I’ll have to move to Texas.
I can’t tell you what that job would mean to me. It’s everything I studied for, but even in my wildest dreams, I never thought I would be considered for a job as the administrator for a number of plants in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. My problem is, I’ve never resolved my relationship with Pat Carter. But lately, I’ve been giving it considerable thought, and I’ve come to the conclusion that I just have to tell her how I feel about her and let the chips fall where they may. If she doesn’t think of me in the same way, then I’ll just have to move on with my life and get over my pain.
It’s been a hellish couple of weeks, and I need some down time. It seems like I hit every doctor’s office in three states. Since I have a few days off, and Pat has been uppermost in my mind, I decided to call her and my friend Hank to see if they’d be up to hanging out tonight. Since Hank has never been to Froggy’s, and we both live on the same side of Cleveland, I figured I could swing by, pick him up, and show him where the best part of my youth was spent.
I called Pat first. “Hey there, sweet stuff. How are you?”
“Oh my gosh, Jim!” I could hear the surprise in her voice. “How the heck are you?”
“Doin’ great. How about you?”
“Can’t complain. Gosh, it’s good to hear from you. How long has it been? Seems like forever.”
“Gee, babe, I don’t know. At least four, maybe five months. This job has me running in circles. As a matter of fact, that’s why I’m calling. These last two weeks have been pretty rough, and I need a few laughs. Guess who I thought of first?” I didn’t wait for her to respond. “I know this is last minute, but I’m hoping you aren’t tied up tonight. You don’t have a date or anything, do you?”
She laughed. “No, Jim, I don’t have a date or anything.”
“That’s great, Pat. I know it is kind of late to ask, but like I said, I’ve been really busy. Anyway, I’ve also been thinking about you and how much fun we all used to have at Froggy’s. How would you like to go there tonight? What do you say?”
“I think that’s a great idea. Especially since I’m going there with my parents for fish. I’ll just save the table.”
I was happy to hear her response, but I detected a little resentment in her voice. Maybe it was because I had called her at the last minute. Truth be told, the reason I hadn’t called her is because I knew she’d been seeing a guy named Chuck, and I didn’t think she’d want me bothering her. Tonight, I was just taking my chances. I said, “Try to get a long table if you can. By the time we get together, we’ll probably have half the neighborhood sitting with us.”
“You’ve got that right. But as crowded as Froggy’s gets, all I can do is try.”
“Gee, I miss those days. Remember the fun we used to have?”
Pat sighed. “Do I ever. But since I went away to Ohio U. and you moved to the other side of the world, it’s been a rare occasion that we’ve gotten together.”
“Well, don’t blame me for that. I think you’ve gone through about four boyfriends since we graduated.”
Pat laughed. “Yeah, and you ended up rescuing me from three of them.”
“How about Chuck? I guess he’s still around. I haven’t received a 9–1–1 call for that guy yet.
“You’re not needed for that one. I can handle him myself. And I don’t care whether I hurt his feelings or not.”
When I heard that, my heart did a flip, but I made no comment.
Pat sighed again. “Oh, Jim, we did have a lot of good times at that Squirrel’s Nest while we were still in school. It was you, me, and Hank. What a nice guy he is. Do you ever hear from him?”
“They don’t come any better. I’m calling him next. I’m hoping he can join us. He’s gonna love Froggy’s.”
“Hank was a big man on campus there, wasn’t he? What was he? Champion arm wrestler? I remember teasing him about being the champion of the world. What’s so funny about Hank is, he’s so tall and lanky that he doesn’t look like he would have all those muscles under his shirt. How did he get so strong?”
“Well, he worked in a gym on weekends in the winter and then full time in the summer. I’ve eaten with him, and he’s no slouch when it comes to food. He eats twice as much as I do. He burns it as fast as he eats it. Now that he has his nice, cushy job, though, I’ve noticed he’s been putting on a few pounds. It’s all those executives’ wives inviting him to their dinner parties. He’s a great catch, and they’re all gung–ho to fix him up.”
“Yeah, what a guy. Hey, remember the time the two of you moved Fran’s stove? That day was a hoot until she fell apart.”
“Gosh, that day must have been a nightmare for her. You said she was doing better, and I’m so glad to hear it. I remember you saying how worried you and your parents were about her. It’s actually almost two years since I’ve seen little Squirt. She must have gone to hell and back getting over that mistake.”
“Oh, Jim, she was so broken after that wedding. It was so unfortunate that she couldn’t see David for what he was until the day she married him. I’m sure she had a nervous breakdown over it. Because she kept working, it wasn’t obvious to anyone but her family that she was suffering so much. She buried herself in her apartment and healed her wounds through sheer willpower. She was always such a fun–loving, giving person. It’s so good to have our Frannie back.”
“When I’d stop by to see your mom and dad, they would express those concerns to me. But the Squirt landed on her feet, so the story has a happy ending. Now I hope she finds someone worthy of the kind of love she has to give.”
“Yes, I can’t tell you what a relief it is to have my sister back.” Pat paused for a second. “By the way, Jim, what did you say Hank’s been doing since he graduated?”
“Oh my God, he’s got a great job working for General Electric. He’s done nothing but move up the corporate ladder. He’s such a brain.”
“Wouldn’t it be great if Frannie could get to meet him again? He sounds like he’s just what the doctor ordered.”
“Now, don’t go playing matchmaker on me. He’s got enough CEOs’ wives doing that.”
“And speaking of smart men, Jim Murray, you were no slouch yourself. Just remember, mister, I was in the same class as you were from the second grade up. I can’t tell you how much I’ve always admired you. And I should have told you that way back then. I’m so sorry I didn’t.”
“Give it a rest, Pat. That’s over, done, finished, kaput.”
“Okay, let’s get out of memory lane and talk about tonight. Dad made a reservation for 7:00, and I have to take a shower. I’ll ask Froggy for a long table, but I can’t guarantee I’ll get one. When am I to expect you and Hank?”
“Mmm, I suppose somewhere around 8:00. Now go take your shower. I always did like a woman who didn’t smell.”
She laughed. “And on that very sweet note, I’ll see you at 8:00.”
I looked forward to seeing her so much. And the news that she was ready to dump Chuck was the best. I could feel the weight of the day melting away as I took my own shower.
Hank was out the door the minute I pulled up. There was no question we both needed a little R&R. We arrived at Froggy’s about 8:10. Froggy met us at the door, and I introduced him to Hank. Hank was quite impressed with Froggy, who made sure I knew where the Carter family was. I explained to Hank that this was a family place, and pretty much everyone seemed to know everyone else. If they didn’t, they soon would. We walked up to Dan and Maureen’s table, but I didn’t see Pat. I introduced Hank to them and asked where she was.
Maureen was all apologies. “Oh, Jim, she told me to tell you how sorry she is, but she had completely forgotten that she had a date for tonight. When Chuck showed up at the door, she remembered that he’d bought tickets for the Jersey Boys. She was all dressed and ready to come here, so he never knew she wasn’t waiting for him. She won’t be here, of course, but please sit down. Dan and I will be leaving soon, and I’m quite confident that before long, you’ll be having people asking you if they can sit with you. We couldn’t get you the long table you wanted, but you know as well as I do that it won’t matter.”
I don’t know if my disappointment showed or not, but I quit listening after she said Chuck’s name. Trying to pull myself together, I introduced Hank to Maureen and Dan. “These wonderful people have always been there for me,” I told Hank. “If you ever have a need to adopt a family, choose them.”
“Whoa, Jim, I don’t know that we’re that good.” Dan looked at Hank. “Jim’s a little partial to us because he practically lived at our house since we first met, when he was seven—and also because Maureen here has been feeding him cookies since he was seven. She’s told me more than once that she thinks Jim walks on water.”
Maureen swatted him on the arm. “Don’t listen to him. I never said he walked on water. Anyway, how would I know? I’ve never been to the beach with him.” Everyone laughed. “It’s so nice to meet you, Hank.”
Hank seemed impressed with the Carters and immediately began bombarding them with all kinds of questions about their lives. I was glad. I’d just been punched in the gut with news I didn’t want to hear, and it was hurting.
Dan and Maureen had finished eating and had been sitting there waiting for us to arrive. We ordered while a number of couples came up to talk to them. They hadn’t quite left when we were served. That’s when they rose and Dan said, “If we don’t get out of here, Mar, these boys will never get to eat.” They said their goodbyes and left.
I remarked to Hank, “I meant what I said. They’re a wonderful couple. The Carters were always so good to me. Maureen took care of me after my mother died, and she really did bake me cookies. I was always welcome at their house.”
Those words had no sooner left my mouth than I looked up to see the face of another Carter.