Jack and Teri -- Part 2 - Chapter 1
As Jack got out of bed Sunday morning he felt great. Last night went really well, he thought. He thought Teri'd had as good a time as he had. He'd know later, when he called her. He didn't care if he was rushing things, he had to be sure, and her voice would tell him.
They'd gone to the American Café after the movie, a small restaurant just off campus decorated with school banners, where they'd had burgers. Their knees touched as they sat at a small table for two. Jack loved the feeling, and he looked a Teri for a reaction that didn't happen. At least she didn't jerk her leg away he told himself. Jack was pleased to get any contact with her.
They thought it was funny when they both ordered sauteed onions and cheddar cheese. But Jack used more ketchup than Teri, which she had laughingly commented on. "You really drown your burger in that stuff!" she said. "You kill the whole taste of it!"
Jack felt himself starting to feel defensive, but then he realized there was no need. It felt good to be teased by Teri. They were both relaxed. Any tension they'd felt at the beginning of the evening had dissipated. They'd laughed at the same parts of the movie, and groaned together at some of the awful puns. She has a great sense of humor, Jack thought, just one of the many things about her that he so enjoyed.
They found that they had lots to talk about, but the Café wasn't the place. Too noisy, and too crowded. They took a walk after they ate, and Jack had to resist taking Teri's hand. He instinctively knew that wasn't appropriate, at least not yet. So although they were headed for Teri's dorm, they meandered down different walkways that took them around campus. Neither was in a rush to bring the evening to an end.
The awkwardness they'd felt at their first meeting was forgotten as they found they could talk easily with each other. They shared a love of tennis, and Teri was impressed that Jack had made the varsity team. He has an athlete's build, she thought, certainly not right for football, too slight for a contact sport, but great for tennis. She was sure he was quick at the net. So she was surprised to learn that he played hockey, although he hadn't made the school team. He played in a pick-up game on Sunday nights. Whoever showed up got to play, and Jack was there most weeks. He was a right wing, he told her, too small to be a defenseman, and he didn't have the reflexes to be a goalie. So much for thinking he can't play contact sports, she told herself. What other false conclusions have I jumped to?
He found that he could talk about himself with her, something he'd never been able to do with a woman before. Not that he'd had all that much practice. There'd been a girl, once, a very special girl on the verge of becoming a woman, but she was gone. He was still adjusting to it, but he had gotten to the point where he agreed that his life wasn't over. He was naturally shy, and he knew he wasn't exactly brimming with confidence, socially. That was why he was so glad he'd worked up the nerve to talk to Teri, to invite her to have coffee with him.
At the end of the evening they'd reached her dorm, and Jack kissed her gently on the cheek. "Can we do this again?" he asked. "Yes," Teri said. "I want to."
"How's next Saturday? And can we meet for coffee after class?."
"Yes to both," she'd said, laughing. He was so earnest! But she was definitely interested, and she wanted to see him again. There was just something about him that made her want to spend time with him.
"I'll call you," he said. "And I'll see you tomorrow in class."
She said good night, and entered her dorm. Jack walked to his car, with a good feeling. She wanted to see him again.
Jack did his laundry the next afternoon, as he and his roommates watched the UCLA Bruins game. He did it only when he ran out of underwear, and his mother had bought him lots, correctly guessing, because she knew her son so well, that doing a wash wouldn't be high on his list of things to do.
The off-campus apartment, which consisted of three bedrooms, a common area, and a kitchen in name only, looked like what it was: inhabited by six fraternity brothers, barely a step above being condemned by the Health Department. It hadn't been painted or cleaned in years, so the remnants of cigarette smoke clung to the walls and the furniture, which was well-used, to put it charitably. The floor was swept and the carpet vacuumed only when Jack's roommate Donnie's allergies reached the point where he couldn't breathe. That was when his sympathetic roommates pitched in, and gave what could only be described as a half-assed attempt at cleaning. Once Donnie could breathe freely all attempts at cleaning stopped. None of them had their parents come to see their living quarters. If somebody's folks were visiting, he met them off-campus, or at one of the restaurants in the Student Union. No way would anyone let a responsible adult into that apartment.
It had been Jack's turn to get the beer, and he liked the more exotic, micro-brewery types, so two of the guys were grousing because there was no Budweiser. "Plebeians!" he said to them. "Philistines! No class!"
That provoked Jeff McDermott, a senior, to lob a pillow at him. Jack ducked, and the pillow clipped Mark Davidson, who roomed with Jeff. That set off a round of pillows flying, with all six of them participating. Some popcorn-tossing followed, and that degenerated further, until all six boys were sitting on the floor, laughing so hard they ached.
"You know," Mark said, "have we ever managed to watch an entire game?" That set off more laughter. They all knew that the game was only an excuse to drink beer, hang out, and let off steam. The six of them got along fine, and they watched all of the UCLA games together. They decided after going to the stadium to watch the Bruins a few times that they had more fun back at the apartment. There was one rule, though: no girls. Girls were welcomed at any other time, day or night, the more the better, but Sunday afternoons were for male bonding, as one of the guys had sarcastically said. They weren't even supposed to talk about girls on Sundays. That rule, though, was often broken, as they told each other about their 'hot' dates the night before.
Jack didn't know which of his friends' claimed conquests were true, or even whether any of them were, but he didn't participate in that part of their discussions. He had taken to heart what his father had told him when he first started dating: a gentleman doesn't kiss and tell. After giving him a lecture about safe sex, which had embarrassed them both, his father had passed that additional advice to his son. Jack, for once listened, really listened, to what his father said.
"Hey, Bauer," Jeff yelled. "I told you that you didn't get enough. Get some now. We're running dry!"
"I bought what we always get," Jack said. "Are you telling me we went through all of the six packs already?"
"That's what I'm telling you, son. So go get more!"
Jack scrounged for his keys, and finally found them under his not-yet-folded laundry. "I'll be right back," he mumbled, not happy that he would have to miss even some of the fun. "Hold your horses."
There was a 7-11 not far away, so he really wasn't gone long. But in the short time he'd been out getting the beer someone had apparently said the funniest thing any of them had ever heard, for when he returned he found his roommates on the floor, laughing so hard they were gasping for breath. Donnie Hutton had laughed so hard he'd barely made it to the bathroom. They heard gagging.
"What's so funny, guys?" Jack asked as he carried the cold beer in. "What'd I miss?"
"Oh, Jack," Cliff was trying to get out the words, but he couldn't stop laughing. "Mark just told us about—"
"Mark told us the funniest story, Bauer, and you missed it!" Jeff taunted him.
"C'mon, guys, what was it?" he wheedled. It sounded too good.
Cliff Wexler, who shared a bedroom with Jack and was his best friend, took pity on him. "C'mere, Jack," he beckoned. As Jack walked over Cliff headed for the kitchen, where they could hear over the TV and the rather vulgar sounds coming from the living room. "Mark told us about some girl he saw at the library the other night. Do you know a guy named Bill Evans?" The name was familiar to Jack, but he couldn't quite place him, so he just looked at Cliff. "Anyway, this girl just broke up with him, so he's pissed. When he saw her in the stacks, he put a post-it on her back that said, "I'm Teri. Call me. I'm hot. And her phone number was on there."
Cliff started laughing again, paroxysms making him bend almost in half. He didn't see the look on Jack's face. Jack remembered immediately who Bill Evans was. Dammit! he thought. Jack didn't think he'd ever been that furious.
"Did she see the post-it?" Jack asked. "Who? Oh, this Teri chick? I don't know," Cliff responded. Jack wanted to throttle Cliff, but he knew it wasn't his fault. No, the fault was clearly with Evans.
Jack saw Teri the next day in Western Civ, and again he waited for her by the door as the class broke. "Hi," he said as he saw her. "Hi, yourself," Teri replied. A couple of boys sniggered as they passed, but Teri didn't associate it with her. Jack had considered whether he should say anything to Teri about the library episode, but he decided not to. He felt that if Teri knew about it she would deal with it herself. If she didn't know, why hurt her? Jack thought she'd be embarrassed either way.
"Coffee?" Jack asked. "At the café?" "Sure," Teri replied. "I can use some caffeine after this lecture. I always thought of history as being about interesting people, but with this guy, Professor what's-his-name, I've changed my mind."
As they walked along Jack thought of carrying Teri's books for her, but he thought that was too sappy. He wasn't Wally Cleaver, and he was afraid he'd be insulting Teri if he gave her the idea that he thought of her as somehow fragile, or weaker. He didn't know it, but he was right.
This time Teri joined Jack on the coffee line. She was only a couple of inches shorter than he, at most, and Jack knew she was also an athlete. In addition to tennis she loved to swim, and she made good use of the on-campus pool. No wonder she's got such a great body, Jack thought. God, she is beautiful.
Teri turned to him, and Jack could feel his face redden. Dammit! he thought. She can see everything I'm thinking!
That wasn't quite true, but it was close enough. Teri had noticed Jack's heightened color, and surmised that it had something to do with her. Precisely what, she didn't know. But she could guess. The thought made her smile, just a little.
"Do you have any more classes today, Jack?" He liked how she said his name. Not clipped, they way some pronounced it.
"No, I'm finished now. But I'm due at work at 2."
"I didn't know you work. Where?" she asked.
"At the cleaners on Wentworth. I work at the counter on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays."
"How'd you wind up there?" Teri wanted to know.
"I started delivering pizzas for the place next to the cleaners, but I wasn't making that much. The tips weren't great. The cleaners was looking for somebody, and I earn a lot more there. The hours aren't bad, and when it's quiet I can study. It's really not bad," he said, wondering why he felt he had to explain himself to her. For once, he realized, he felt comfortable talking about himself, and he wanted Teri to know everything about him. Even more, he wanted her to think well of him. And still more, he wanted to know absolutely everything about her.
They were so deep in conversation that they were almost late. Teri had another class, and Jack had to get to his job. They agreed to meet for coffee the next day.
Although the store was quiet, Jack didn't get any work done. He sat and daydreamed about Teri. A word came to him that he had heard his mother use. Smitten. That's what I am, Jack thought. Smitten. I sound like one of the characters in my literature books. He hoped he didn't look as goofy as it sounded.
When he got back to his apartment he knew he really had to concentrate, but there was a sock on the doorknob of the room he shared with Cliff. The sock was a sign of one thing in colleges across the country: sex. It was how a roommate was alerted not to enter, as two people were inside who didn't want to be disturbed. Caitlyn was with Cliff, and she'd probably be in there for a while. Dammit! Jack thought. That paper's due tomorrow. I need to get to my computer.
He resigned himself to working in the living room, but that posed its own problems. His other roommates were back, and none of them, himself included, ever gave a damn if someone was trying to study there. Serious things, of every kind, were supposed to be done in the bedrooms. If you were locked out for awhile, tough.
Jack tried to concentrate, but Steve Goldman had turned on the TV, and Jack finally gave up. He was about to pound on his bedroom door when it opened, and Caitlyn and Cliff emerged. "Hi, guys," Caitlyn said. She and Cliff had been going out for two years, so they all knew each other.
"Hi," they all mumbled in response, Jeff and Steve busy with their pizza. Cliff and Caitlyn left the apartment, and Jack went into his room.
He sat down at his computer and was just booting it when Cliff walked back in. "Jack, he said," you've really gotta find yourself a woman. You need to get laid!"
"I'm sure Caitlyn will be thrilled to know that's how you think of her, Cliff," Jack said, his sarcasm unmistakable. "Very romantic. I don't think she knows you'll nail anything that moves."
Cliff feigned insult. "You know that's not true, Jack. At least not any more. My days as a wild man are over."
"You mean you're making a commitment? Or that you need to be committed?" Jack taunted.
"Very funny," Cliff said, still acting hurt. "Get yourself a girlfriend, and you'll see."
Jack couldn't tell his roommate about Teri, even though Cliff was his best friend. Cliff knew about the post-it incident, in fact he had laughed uproariously about it when he'd told Jack, and Jack didn't want to expose Teri to the sniggers and smirks he was sure his roommates would make. It didn't change his determination to see her; it just made things a little awkward.
.
Jack and Teri -- Part 2 - Chapter 2
Jack managed to do his assignments during the week, for he wanted his weekends to be free for Teri. They met for coffee as often as they could, and it confirmed his feeling that smitten was definitely the right word. He thought it was one of the best feelings in the world. He had only felt like this once before, with his high school girlfriend, Suzie, but that had been more. He'd loved her, truly loved her, but he was learning to live with his knowledge that she was gone. Still, he didn't like to think of her. It hurt too much.
The more he and Teri continued to go out, to the movies, to a jazz club, or just out for burgers or pizza, the more he found he resented the times he couldn't be with her, but they were both busy with their schoolwork, and he with his job. He had a lot of reading to do, and Teri had to spend a lot of time in the graphic arts computer lab. Despite what she'd said to Jack she was becoming a real whiz at it. Like Jack, there was nothing she couldn't accomplish when she set her mind to it. That was just another thing they had in common, but it was an important part of their personalities. They were both strong-willed, and that occasionally led to sparks, but they were never really mad at each other. Their infatuation was too strong to permit that.
Jack found that daydreaming about Teri at work wasn't a good idea, because it interfered with his opportunity to study when the store was quiet, so he determined not to think about her when he was there. It was hard, but he managed to concentrate more on his assignments. He just wasn't always successful.
He looked forward to the days when they had the chance to go for coffee. They didn't have a lot of time, because Teri had her design class an hour after Western Civ and Jack on some days had to head for work, but they made the most of it.
Jack had held Teri's hand on their second date, and by the third he had his arm around her whenever they went to the movies. He loved it as she snuggled against his shoulder. He didn't mind that his arm was numb by the time the film was over. He wanted to be close to her, and he took every opportunity to do so, tingling fingers be damned.
Jack was still hesitant to bring Teri back to his apartment. He hoped his roommates had forgotten about the post-it incident, but he wasn't sure about it, and he didn't want to risk embarrassing her. He'd considered going after Evans, but he instinctively knew that Teri wouldn't approve. Holding back was against his nature; he'd had more than his share of fights growing up. His growing maturity was helping him rein in his propensity for physical retribution, but he doubted whether that was something he'd ever totally overcome. It was a test of his willpower, he knew, but that also came with maturity, and Jack was determined to be a grown-up as fast as he could. His experience with Suzie had been a long step towards adulthood, and he hoped it would carry over in the rest of his life.
On nights that her roommate Lainie was out, Teri and Jack went to her dorm room. They kissed and they became bolder in touching each other. They both found that they wanted more, but natural shyness, coupled with uncertainty about when Lainie would return held them back.
One night when Teri was sure that Lainie would be out late with her boyfriend she put a sock on the doorknob when she and Jack entered. She was sending Jack the message he'd been hoping for.
Jack had been prepared for this moment. As he and Teri hurriedly undressed each other, Jack took what he needed from his pocket.
It was as wonderful as he had hoped it would be. It was Teri's first time, and she had given a little gasp, but she'd then settled into a rhythm with him that felt like the most natural thing in the world. They were both sufficiently aroused that it didn't take long.
Neither spoke as they lay in each other's arms, for words weren't necessary. Jack knew that his infatuation with Teri was the real thing. He loved her. They suspected, hoped, that they would share a future together. They didn't see why that wouldn't happen.
Jack and Teri -- Part 2 - Chapter 3
Barbara's roommate had broken up with her boyfriend, so she rarely went out, and Jack and Teri couldn't use Teri's dorm room anymore. Over coffee, she asked Jack why he never took her to his apartment. Jack was uncomfortable, but he knew he had to answer her. He was pretty sure that Teri didn't know about the library incident. He felt sure that she would have said something about it. She and Jack told each other almost everything now.
"I'm not sure how to tell you this," he started, "because I don't want you to be upset." Teri looked at him in surprise. "Why should I be upset, Jack? What happened?"
Gently Jack told her what Bill Evans had done. Teri became furious. "That bstard!" she said. "I'm not going to let him get away with this!"
"Teri, I'm sure everyone's forgotten about it by now," he tried to calm her, but he wasn't sure it was true. Even though UCLA had thousands of students, an incident like this made the rounds quickly, and there weren't that many girls named Teri on campus. Jack shared her outrage, but he hadn't been able to think of any way to get back at Evans. Seeing Teri's reaction he wasn't sure that his decision not to go after Evans had been right. He began to think that he'd let her down.
"Why don't we go to my apartment tonight? I think Cliff's going to the movies with Caitlyn, so we should be able to use my room."
"Why didn't you tell me about this sooner, Jack? Why did you let me go around campus all this time with people making fun of me?" Teri wasn't distracted. She was mad at Jack now, too.
"Because I knew you'd be hurt, and there's nothing you, or I, can do about it." Again he wondered if he should have taken Evans on, but he thought it was too late for that. He hoped Teri would calm down. He couldn't stand for her to be angry with him.
Teri wasn't having any part of it. "That's why you've never taken me to your apartment. All your roommates know! You say you love me, yet you let me by humiliated by this?"
"There was nothing I could do, Teri. I'm sorry."
Teri got up, grabbed her books, and fled the room, tears in her eyes. Jack didn't know whether to follow her, but he decided to give her some time alone. He didn't know that was the last thing he should have done.
As Teri walked to her dorm she hoped that Jack would come after her. When he didn't she started to cry. She felt like everyone she passed was laughing at her, and that even Jack had abandoned her. She didn't think she could stay at the school. She decided to transfer somewhere, anywhere far away, so she'd never have to see the people at UCLA again. And that included Jack.
Jack and Teri -- Part 2 - Chapter 4
Jack was miserable. Teri refused to take his calls, and she walked right by him as she left Western Civ and whenever they saw each other on campus, times Jack tried hard to make happen. It was close to finals, so she had decided to stick it out for the rest of the semester before transferring to another school, but she wanted nothing more to do with Jack. She felt he'd betrayed her by letting her walk around campus, without knowing that people were smirking behind her back.
Jack decided he had to find a way to get back at Bill Evans. Maybe that would end Teri's feeling of humiliation. Maybe she'd be willing to see him again. He wanted this as much as he'd ever wanted anything. Unbidden thoughts of Suzie momentarily surfaced, and he tried to stow them in the corner of his mind where he tried to lock them away. His father's words that sometime he would find someone else to love were what he relied on. Nevertheless there were times when thoughts of Suzie seemed to take over his consciousness, and they left him overwhelmed, and despondent. When that happened he questioned whether he could ever love again. Then he thought of Teri, and he knew the answer.
He hadn't yet told her about Suzie. He knew he still couldn't talk about her without breaking down, and Jack realized that would hurt Teri. He knew he'd have to tell her someday, but he couldn't do it yet. He still needed time to heal. He just hoped it wouldn't take too long. He knew he couldn't live with a ghost. His love for Teri showed him that.
Jack was beginning to obsess about helping Teri get even with Evans. He was surfing the web one night, and an idea came to him. The best revenge would not be a physical beating, but to turn the tables on Evans, to humiliate him publicly.
One of Jack's friends, Andrew, was a computer science major, and a real whiz at hacking. Because he was a self-described nerd who didn't have much contact with non-computer geeks, Jack being one of the few the exceptions, he hadn't heard about the incident with Evans and Teri. After Jack told him what had happened, and his plan to get even, Andrew was intrigued by the challenge. Jack knew that what he wanted to do was wrong, but Andrew was gung-ho about it. Jack just hoped they wouldn't get caught. He was willing to take the risk, but he was reluctant to get Andrew involved. Andrew reassured Jack that he was over 21, and capable of making his own decisions. He said he wanted to do this. He was pumped.
Jack sat next to Andrew as his fingers nimbly worked the keyboard. "We're in," Andrew said after only a few minutes. "Now I just have to...Got it!"
On the screen was Bill Evans' transcript. Jack and Andrew read it, and started laughing. Evans had been expelled! He was still going around the campus, even pretending to study in the library, making everyone think he was still a BMOC - Big Man on Campus - but he'd been thrown out! He'd never gotten a grade higher than a 'C,' but most of his grades were 'F's,' with a lot of 'D's' liberally sprinkled in. The guy who considered himself the Biggest Man on Campus had flunked out!
Evans was so smug that he had his own website, full of pictures of himself with gorgeous girls at UCLA. He was constantly updating it, identifying his new 'conquests' at every opportunity. Jack saw one of Evans with Teri, and it made him only more determined to get revenge.
Jack knew that he was compromising his values, and he realized that doing that just once made it easier to do it a second time, and then a third. But his determination to do to Evans what he'd done to Teri overcame his judgment, and he told Andrew to go ahead. It took Andrew only a minute to post the transcript on Evans' website. They would just have to wait to see what happened.
Jack and Teri -- Part 2 - Chapter 5
They didn't have to wait long. By the next day Jack saw people looking at Evans and laughing. Teri had heard that Evans' grades had been posted on his website, and she had a good idea who was behind it. For the first time since Jack had told her about what Evans had done to her, Teri felt comfortable on campus.
Two days later Teri called Jack. She asked if they could meet that night. He saw her already seated at the American Café when he got there. She had wanted to meet Jack in a public place, because she thought she wasn't as likely to cry as she would have been with him in private.
Teri was dressed in jeans and an oversized UCLA sweatshirt with workboots. Jack knew that she took painting classes along with her work in graphics, but he'd never seen a speck of paint on her. She always looked as if she was about to go to class, never like she'd just left it. How does she do that? he marveled. How does she always look so good?
She didn't say anything when he walked to the table. Jack murmured a soft "hi" as he sat down. He still didn't know if she had forgiven him; he'd tried to convince himself that there was no other reason for her to want to meet him, but he was smart enough to know that he couldn't possibly predict what a woman would do. He'd discovered that it was a secret few men, if any, could master.
Teri didn't say anything until the waitress had asked what they wanted to drink. They both ordered a beer, and then Teri spoke to him. "Jack, I'm sorry. I blamed you for something that wasn't your fault. I just felt so humiliated, and I took it out on you. Will you forgive me?" Despite herself, Teri was near tears. Being apart from Jack had been the most painful time in her life. She didn't know what she would do if he didn't accept her apology.
Jack didn't make her wait for his answer. "Of course I forgive you, although there's really nothing to forgive. I'm sorry I put you in that position. Teri, I love you. I can't stand not being with you." He felt tremendous relief. The emptiness he'd felt was gone. Teri would still be a part of his life.
Afterwards they went back to his apartment, where Jack introduced Teri to all of his roommates. They behaved themselves, for once, and introduced themselves to her. They all realized that this girl was the Teri they'd once laughed about, but they could see that she was very important to Jack. They also knew about Evans' humiliation, and correctly guessed who was behind it.
After she'd met everyone, Teri told Jack to get a sock.