means a lot," Gary said just before hanging up.
Claire and Philip
Townsend held the small wedding in the back yard of their house on Bydding
Street. The sprawling house could have raised three or four children instead of
just Gary, but that had not been in the cards for Aunt Claire and Uncle Philip.
At Gary's request,
they kept the ceremony small, but his parents insisted on inviting more than a
hundred people from the Ann Arbor community for a reception immediately
afterwards.
Both Gary and Pamela
looked like models for the bride and groom wedding cake toppers except that
Pamela wore a short ivory lace gown with no veil, and Gary wore a good black
suit instead of a tuxedo. However, they both glowed from the excitement and
champagne.
I offered my
congratulations both privately to the couple and in a prepared toast in front
of all of the guests. I once again mentioned that I hoped they would be as
happy as Allison and I. When I went to kiss Pamela, she seemed very drunk and
stumbled as she reached out to embrace me.
"Thanks, Eddie,
you're a sweetheart. Are we kissing cousins now?" she asked seductively
while her hands traced the outline of my shoulders.
"Not quite. Take
care of Gary. He needs to be loved," I said while pulling away from her
embrace. I also felt the need to warn her about something, but I wasn't quite
sure about what.
"You'll be my
friend, too, won't you, Ed?" She asked.
"I am your
friend. Just don't hurt Gary, ever, OK?" I looked straight into her blue
eyes, and she glared back defiantly.
"Don't worry,
I'll take care of your precious Gary," she said before she staggered away.
After a honeymoon in
Las Vegas, Gary and Pamela settled back into life in Chicago, and I didn't hear
anything from them for a very long time. Aunt Claire kept me up to date on
their life, but usually she just told me what they had bought, how much it
cost, and how successful Gary was becoming as an advertising executive.
Gary finally found a way
to please both his parents by wearing the right wardrobe, acquiring the most
possessions, buying the perfect house, and marrying the proper wife.
I attempted to get
comfortable on the couch in New Orleans as I thought about the way both of our
marriages ended. Mine with little fanfare, Gary's with a huge explosion. I
finally fell asleep in the early morning hours with my mind back twenty years
ago.
We managed to spend
the next day showing Kristina the sights of New Orleans. She entranced both of
us as we took the cemetery tours, rode the riverboat, and ate crawfish pie at
Cafe Beignet. I had almost forgotten the feelings that Kristina had evoked in
me the previous night, almost but not quite. There were moments when Gary left
us alone to order food, go to the bathroom, or buy tickets that we would look
at one another, and I would remember. I fought to keep my hands away from her
hair, away from any part of her.
As soon as Gary
returned to us, the atmosphere changed, and Kristina became the doting
daughter. I had never seen Gary so happy and so eager to please anyone else. I
even noticed that he stopped bothering his thumb, maybe because he wore a band-aid
over the raw part he opened during the past few days. After a leisurely dinner
in the courtyard at the Court of Two Sisters, we headed back to the apartment.
We all decided it had been a full day, and we were all settled in our beds
before eleven. I fell asleep almost immediately.
Sometime around dawn,
I woke with a start. Raucous laughter made its way down the hallway of the
apartment. Suddenly, I realized that the rhythmic pounding came from whoever
was in the guest room.
Gary walked into the
living room still in his underwear rubbing his eyes and looking as if he was
still sleeping.
"What's going
on?" He motioned toward the guest room.
"Not sure. The
noise just woke me up, too. I guess I slept pretty soundly last night."
"Who'd she bring
here? Doesn't she realize how dangerous this town is?"
"I guess not.
Should we
Claire and Philip
Townsend held the small wedding in the back yard of their house on Bydding
Street. The sprawling house could have raised three or four children instead of
just Gary, but that had not been in the cards for Aunt Claire and Uncle Philip.
At Gary's request,
they kept the ceremony small, but his parents insisted on inviting more than a
hundred people from the Ann Arbor community for a reception immediately
afterwards.
Both Gary and Pamela
looked like models for the bride and groom wedding cake toppers except that
Pamela wore a short ivory lace gown with no veil, and Gary wore a good black
suit instead of a tuxedo. However, they both glowed from the excitement and
champagne.
I offered my
congratulations both privately to the couple and in a prepared toast in front
of all of the guests. I once again mentioned that I hoped they would be as
happy as Allison and I. When I went to kiss Pamela, she seemed very drunk and
stumbled as she reached out to embrace me.
"Thanks, Eddie,
you're a sweetheart. Are we kissing cousins now?" she asked seductively
while her hands traced the outline of my shoulders.
"Not quite. Take
care of Gary. He needs to be loved," I said while pulling away from her
embrace. I also felt the need to warn her about something, but I wasn't quite
sure about what.
"You'll be my
friend, too, won't you, Ed?" She asked.
"I am your
friend. Just don't hurt Gary, ever, OK?" I looked straight into her blue
eyes, and she glared back defiantly.
"Don't worry,
I'll take care of your precious Gary," she said before she staggered away.
After a honeymoon in
Las Vegas, Gary and Pamela settled back into life in Chicago, and I didn't hear
anything from them for a very long time. Aunt Claire kept me up to date on
their life, but usually she just told me what they had bought, how much it
cost, and how successful Gary was becoming as an advertising executive.
Gary finally found a way
to please both his parents by wearing the right wardrobe, acquiring the most
possessions, buying the perfect house, and marrying the proper wife.
I attempted to get
comfortable on the couch in New Orleans as I thought about the way both of our
marriages ended. Mine with little fanfare, Gary's with a huge explosion. I
finally fell asleep in the early morning hours with my mind back twenty years
ago.
We managed to spend
the next day showing Kristina the sights of New Orleans. She entranced both of
us as we took the cemetery tours, rode the riverboat, and ate crawfish pie at
Cafe Beignet. I had almost forgotten the feelings that Kristina had evoked in
me the previous night, almost but not quite. There were moments when Gary left
us alone to order food, go to the bathroom, or buy tickets that we would look
at one another, and I would remember. I fought to keep my hands away from her
hair, away from any part of her.
As soon as Gary
returned to us, the atmosphere changed, and Kristina became the doting
daughter. I had never seen Gary so happy and so eager to please anyone else. I
even noticed that he stopped bothering his thumb, maybe because he wore a band-aid
over the raw part he opened during the past few days. After a leisurely dinner
in the courtyard at the Court of Two Sisters, we headed back to the apartment.
We all decided it had been a full day, and we were all settled in our beds
before eleven. I fell asleep almost immediately.
Sometime around dawn,
I woke with a start. Raucous laughter made its way down the hallway of the
apartment. Suddenly, I realized that the rhythmic pounding came from whoever
was in the guest room.
Gary walked into the
living room still in his underwear rubbing his eyes and looking as if he was
still sleeping.
"What's going
on?" He motioned toward the guest room.
"Not sure. The
noise just woke me up, too. I guess I slept pretty soundly last night."
"Who'd she bring
here? Doesn't she realize how dangerous this town is?"
"I guess not.
Should we
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