he felt inside her. He remembered very little after that moment, and he never tried to fill in the blanks. The only thing he carried with him from that night was an absolute certainty that it was possible to stop time.
Nigel was in his third year at Howard University the night timestaggered. He joined the Chi Alpha fraternity and moved into the frat house during his sophomore year. Nigel was twenty-one and still a virgin. Until that night, he managed to avoid the smorgasbord of sexual entrees dropped in his lap during the salacious house parties by telling his brothers he was in love with and faithful to his high school sweetheart. Some of the brothers became doubtful about this girlfriend at home who never called and whom he never called, but none pressed the issue.
Two of Nigelâs frat brothers saw her tiptoe out of his bedroom half-dressed early the next morning. They tried to peep inside at Nigel, but she closed the door before they could, which, as it turned out, was a good thing. If they had seen Nigel, the bewildered look of a drowning man just below the waterâs whitecaps would become part of their own catalog of unbidden memories.
They teased Nigel during lunch, but Nigel told them nothing happened between him and the girl. He said they sat up and talked the entire night. The brothers were nearly convinced until one of them asked, âWhatâs her name?â
And Nigel answered truthfully, âI didnât ask.â
He spent the rest of the day and the next few weeks wondering why he didnât ask her name or why didnât she tell him. The questions piled up. Why didnât either one of them say a word the next morning before she got dressed and rushed out the door? Did he say or do something he shouldnât have that night? Was heâ¦you know⦠okay? He knew size wasnât the problem because he was more than endowed. But, was he doing it right? Did she sense that it was his first time? Was she startled? Frightened? Amazed when time stopped?
Nigel saw her three times after that night. The first time was two weeks later in the campus bookstore. He was at the register buying a copy of The Associated Press Stylebook when she walked in. Their eyes met briefly but neither made an attempt at acknowledgment.She walked by the registerâclose enough to touch himâand continued to the back of the store. Nigel paid for his handbook and walked out of the store. The next time he saw her, he was leaving campus for a weekend trip home. He was waiting at a stoplight when she walked across the street. She turned and glanced at him as she passed in front of his Corolla. Once again, their eyes met before Nigel drove off and she disappeared in the mass of students scrambling to class. It was a year later, when their paths crossed again. He was on campus transferring his records to Richmond University, which was only twelve miles from the hospital where Caleb lay in a coma. After leaving the registrarâs office, Nigel stopped by the frat house to see his Chi Alpha brothers. One of the brothers was introducing him to the fraternityâs new pledges when he saw her playing pool in the den with two other young women. That time, he pretended not to see her, and she returned the favor. After that day, she became another indiscernible face in a graveyard of people he once knew.
It had been twelve years since heâd last seen her, but at four oâclock this morning, she opened the door without knocking, walked in, kicked off her glass-heel slingbacks, crawled over Nigel to get to her side of the bed, then snatched the pillow from under his head and started hogging the covers. She wasnât an unexpected or unwelcome guest though. She was there because Nigel summoned her. Later that morning, on the second Monday in October, Nigel would begin a new life as an assistant professor of journalism and he was terrified. He was not ready to start living again. He needed more time.
Nigel was in his third year at Howard University the night timestaggered. He joined the Chi Alpha fraternity and moved into the frat house during his sophomore year. Nigel was twenty-one and still a virgin. Until that night, he managed to avoid the smorgasbord of sexual entrees dropped in his lap during the salacious house parties by telling his brothers he was in love with and faithful to his high school sweetheart. Some of the brothers became doubtful about this girlfriend at home who never called and whom he never called, but none pressed the issue.
Two of Nigelâs frat brothers saw her tiptoe out of his bedroom half-dressed early the next morning. They tried to peep inside at Nigel, but she closed the door before they could, which, as it turned out, was a good thing. If they had seen Nigel, the bewildered look of a drowning man just below the waterâs whitecaps would become part of their own catalog of unbidden memories.
They teased Nigel during lunch, but Nigel told them nothing happened between him and the girl. He said they sat up and talked the entire night. The brothers were nearly convinced until one of them asked, âWhatâs her name?â
And Nigel answered truthfully, âI didnât ask.â
He spent the rest of the day and the next few weeks wondering why he didnât ask her name or why didnât she tell him. The questions piled up. Why didnât either one of them say a word the next morning before she got dressed and rushed out the door? Did he say or do something he shouldnât have that night? Was heâ¦you know⦠okay? He knew size wasnât the problem because he was more than endowed. But, was he doing it right? Did she sense that it was his first time? Was she startled? Frightened? Amazed when time stopped?
Nigel saw her three times after that night. The first time was two weeks later in the campus bookstore. He was at the register buying a copy of The Associated Press Stylebook when she walked in. Their eyes met briefly but neither made an attempt at acknowledgment.She walked by the registerâclose enough to touch himâand continued to the back of the store. Nigel paid for his handbook and walked out of the store. The next time he saw her, he was leaving campus for a weekend trip home. He was waiting at a stoplight when she walked across the street. She turned and glanced at him as she passed in front of his Corolla. Once again, their eyes met before Nigel drove off and she disappeared in the mass of students scrambling to class. It was a year later, when their paths crossed again. He was on campus transferring his records to Richmond University, which was only twelve miles from the hospital where Caleb lay in a coma. After leaving the registrarâs office, Nigel stopped by the frat house to see his Chi Alpha brothers. One of the brothers was introducing him to the fraternityâs new pledges when he saw her playing pool in the den with two other young women. That time, he pretended not to see her, and she returned the favor. After that day, she became another indiscernible face in a graveyard of people he once knew.
It had been twelve years since heâd last seen her, but at four oâclock this morning, she opened the door without knocking, walked in, kicked off her glass-heel slingbacks, crawled over Nigel to get to her side of the bed, then snatched the pillow from under his head and started hogging the covers. She wasnât an unexpected or unwelcome guest though. She was there because Nigel summoned her. Later that morning, on the second Monday in October, Nigel would begin a new life as an assistant professor of journalism and he was terrified. He was not ready to start living again. He needed more time.
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