This is one of my favorite chapters. I think you'll see why.
Chapter 21
Joe found the downtown steakhouse without much problem, but felt apprehensive upon entering. The place was a lot fancier than he expected, and most of the patrons were professionally dressed. He stood out in his jeans and uncollared shirt, not to mention being the only young black kid in the place, and was afraid someone would ask him to leave before he spotted the man he had come to meet.
Fortunately, a tall black man soon approached him. "Are you Joe?" asked the man, who was in his late twenties or early thirties and wearing a business suit. When Joe nodded, the man smiled and held out his hand. "I'm Billy Darcy."
Joe shook his hand firmly. "I know I'm not dressed right…"
The man waved his hand, unconcerned. "Don't even worry about it. Most of these people are folks that work around here and are on their lunch break."
"You work near here, too?"
"Yes, I'm an attorney at a law firm a few blocks away."
They were soon seated by a waiter who brought them menus and took their order for beverages. Joe looked over the menu with some dismay. The entrees were way out of his price range, so he decided on a side dish that he could afford. When the waiter returned with their soft drinks, Billy ordered a sirloin steak, baked potato and salad. Joe requested an order of fries.
"Will that be all?" the waiter asked.
When Joe said yes, Billy motioned to the waiter to remain. He then leaned toward Joe and spoke softly. "Joe, this is on me."
"Naw, you don't have to do that."
"It's not a problem. Get what you want."
Joe looked at him warily, wondering what he might want in return. Billy seemed to read his mind. "Joe, after today, you'll probably never see me again. But someday, some young man is going to need advice from you about what he wants to do with his life. You can pay me back for this by helping him out."
Joe nodded and looked up at the waiter. "I guess I'll have what he's getting then, but with the fries."
"Very good," the waiter answered, before taking their menus and walking away.
Billy smiled. "OK, let's get the important stuff out of the way. Indians or Reds?"
Joe grinned back. "Are you kidding? Indians."
"So I guess it's Browns rather than Bengals, too?"
Joe started laughing. "Of course. Why is that even a question?"
Billy shook his head, still smiling. "I had to know where you stood, man. Otherwise, I'd have to take back my offer to pay for lunch."
Joe wanted to turn to the purpose of their meeting. "How do you know Mr. Hunter?"
"My mom teaches in the Meryton schools, too, so they got to know each other through different teachers' groups. He and his wife and my parents have been friends for years."
"What did he tell you about me?"
"He said you and he had argued because you were all set to go to Kenyon, and then you changed your mind. I think he's expecting me to change it back, but I'd like to hear what you have to say. Oh, and congratulations, by the way. Kenyon's a really good school."
Joe nodded his thanks. "Did he tell you why I changed my mind?"
"He said you have a baby now, and that your mother's ill."
"Yeah. I can't see being so far from home, and I don't have a car. And even if I did, it still feels like too far."
"I think Mr. Hunter is concerned that you're giving up a really good opportunity, and he wants you to give it more thought."
"No, he's concerned about his own ass!" Joe snapped back, and then stared wide-eyed, startled at his outburst.
"Why do you say that?" Billy replied calmly.
Joe didn't want to answer. He didn't want to criticize Mr. Hunter to the son of his good friends. He felt so ungrateful, after everything Mr. Hunter had done for him, but he couldn't shake his anger.
"Look, Joe, everybody gets upset sometimes with people they care about. That's okay. It doesn't make you a bad person. Tell me what Mr. Hunter did that's bothering you so much."
Was this guy a mind-reader? Joe looked around for a few seconds and then turned back to Billy. "It's not that he did something. It's just… I feel like he doesn't want me to go to Kenyon for me, but for him. Like it'll show that everything he invested in me paid off. He's disappointed in me because my girlfriend got pregnant. No, even before that, when we first started going out, because he thought she'd bring me down. When she had the baby, it was like it proved him right. And now it's like I have to make it up to him, or something. He's not thinking about what's best for me."
The waiter arrived with their lunches, and the two men halted their conversation in order to begin eating. After a few minutes, Billy sat back. "Why don't we talk about what is best for you, Joe. If you don't go to Kenyon, what are you thinking about instead?"
Joe put down his fork. "I don't know. I got into the University of Meryton, too, but even though it's cheaper, I didn't get as much financial aid, so it would actually cost more for me to go there. Plus, I already told them no back when I thought I was going to Kenyon. I could've paid for Meryton State but I didn't get into because of a stupid mistake I made. I had almost two thousand saved for college, but I used a lot of it to pay for a hospital stay and doctor's visits for my daughter, and I've been buying her diapers, and…"
"So you really want to contribute to your daughter's support."
"Yeah, and it's…" Joe exhaled, overwhelmed by the issues he was facing, and then it all came tumbling out. "I have to do more. My girlfriend applied for welfare and Medicaid so she can afford to take our baby to the doctor, and I feel like she shouldn't have to do that, because I should be here taking care of them. My mother fell back in May and broke her hip and she's coming out of rehab in a few weeks, and since she can't really walk anymore, my sister put in an application for her with handicap housing. But only one of us can move with her, as her aide, and that'll be my sister. So I need to find a place to live, and if I move it makes sense for me to bring my girlfriend and daughter with me. But I need to be able to afford an apartment, so I need to work more, and I think that means…" Joe paused, afraid to say out loud the conclusion he had been coming to. "It means I won't be able to go to college at all."
"Have you told Mr. Hunter this?"
"No." Joe shook his head. "If he was mad at me about Kenyon, he'll really be mad about this."
Billy was quiet for a while. "You'll have so much more earning power if you finish college than you do as a high school graduate."
"Yeah, but what do I do in the meantime?" Joe's voice filled with emotion. "What do Ellie and Janelle do?"
"That's your girlfriend and daughter?"
"Yeah."
"If you get your degree, you can really support them."
"But they need me now! Did you grow up with your father?"
"I did."
"Well, I didn't. My father left when I was five. I grew up hating what my Pop did to us, and I always swore I would never do that to my kids!"
Billy looked at him with compassion. "You have a lot on your plate, Joe. That's a lot for an eighteen-year-old to handle, and I respect you for wanting to deal with it in a responsible way."
Joe looked down at his food.
"Have you thought about going to school part-time, while you work full-time?"
"Yeah, I thought about it. I was thinking about taking classes at Meryton Community College, because they don't cost much."
"I think that's a good idea. I don't think you should put off your education all together. Where are you currently working?"
"Kmart."
"Full time?"
"Yes."
"I imagine you're getting minimum wage, or not much more. You might want to look into a job that pays better, and that provides you with some benefits."
"What are benefits?"
"Stuff like health insurance, paid sick time. Right now, if you miss any days of work, do you get paid?"
"No."
"Well, you don't want that to happen if you're trying to support a family. And uh…" Billy hesitated. "I'm not sure it's my place to bring this up, but I really think you and your girlfriend need to think about getting married."
Joe was a little startled. He had never considered getting married at this age. Then again, he wasn't planning to be a father this young, either. "Why?"
"Because you can cover your wife and daughter under your health insurance if you're married. You can probably cover your daughter if she's living with you, but if you want to take care of Ellie, she needs to be your wife."
Joe furrowed his brow. He knew he'd always be there for Janelle, and he loved Ellie. But given what had happened with both their parents, marriage didn't have a good track record in their families.
"Look, Joe, I feel like I've told you a lot of things you should do, and I didn't really want to do that. Any decision you make, you're the one who has to live with it. What I think, or what Mr. Hunter thinks, or anybody else, really doesn't matter. What counts are you and this little family that you now have. Like you said, you need to do what's best for you and for them. All I can do is advise you and tell you the pros and cons of different options."
Joe nodded.
"Here's what I think you should do." Billy suddenly laughed. "I know I just said I wouldn't tell you what to do, but I'm doing it anyway. I want you to think about where you want to be in twenty or thirty years, what you want your life to be like. At that time, if you look back, what would you regret doing or not doing? That might help you to make these decisions."
Regret. That's what Pop had talked about, how many regrets he had. Joe nodded again. "Thanks, Billy."
The other man smiled. "So how do you like being a dad?"
A broad grin stretched across Joe's face. "I love it! There are days when Janelle smiles at me, and it feels like everything in the world is good."
"That's great to hear. My wife and I are expecting our first child in February, and I can't wait." Billy nodded, his expression warm and encouraging. "You're a good man, Joe. Whatever you decide, you're going to do all right."
Joe sat on the bus back to Longbourn City mulling over his conversation with Billy. His father had so many regrets; would his son have the same regrets in twenty years?
He thought about Pop getting his degree and doing something impressive with the Annabelle Hutchins House. Joe grudgingly acknowledged he was proud of him. But still, would he trade those accomplishments for his father's presence in his life the last thirteen years?
Yeah, he would, he admitted. He absolutely would.
He disembarked at the stop closest to his home, absently taking in the sounds of someone's radio playing from an open window.
"This is DJ Smooth bringing you the best R&B of the '70s and '80s, right here on WMRN, the rhythm of Meryton!"
As Joe started walking toward his apartment, a song came on that he remembered vaguely from elementary school. When he heard the first line, his jaw dropped. The words could have been written for him and Ellie. His feet came to a sudden halt as he stopped to listen.
At seventeen we fell in love
High school sweethearts
Love was so brand new
We took the vows of man and wife
Forever, for life
I remember how we made our way
A little patience, the times we prayed
Can't imagine that this love is through
Feeling the pain, girl
When you lose
Oh, it's too hot (too hot)
Too hot, lady (too hot)
Gotta run for shelter
Gotta run for shade
It's too hot (too hot)
Too hot, lady (too hot)
Gotta cool this anger
What a mess we made
So long ago
You were my love
Oh, my love
Joe sat on a nearby stoop, his heart beating quickly. His parents, Ellie's parents, and the couple in this song. None of them made it. He and Ellie had lived with the pain of broken marriages and love crushed by circumstances for most of their lives. Why should they expect to be any different? Would they put Janelle through what they had been through?
As the song drifted to an end, the DJ's voice spoke over it. "That was 'Too Hot' by Kool and the Gang from 1979. Yeah, losing love is hard, but DJ Smooth's not going to let that depress you. So here's Kool and the Gang again, this time from 1985."
Let's take a walk together near the ocean shore
Hand in hand you and I
Let's cherish every moment we have been given
The time is passing by
I often pray before I lay down by your side
If you receive your calling before I awake
Could I make it through the night?
...
The world is always changing
Nothing stays the same
But love will stand the test of time
The next life that we live in
Remains to be seen
Will you be by my side?
...
Cherish the love we have
We should cherish the life we live
Cherish the love
Cherish the life
Cherish the love
Joe thought back on his last year with Ellie. Their first date and first kiss. Talking about their parents on the swing set. Slow dancing and realizing he was in love. Fooling around together and learning how to please each other sexually. Ellie becoming close to his mother. Their painful conflicts and misunderstandings, and yet how they were always drawn back together. And the most precious of memories, such as the Valentine's Day dance and the birth of their daughter.
Can't imagine that this love is through
Or
Love will stand the test of time
Which one would it be?
Author's Note: Billy's words were prophetic: he and Joe would never see each other again. Billy dies tragically almost two years before the Bennet and Darcy families cross paths once more. However, the son Billy's wife was expecting in this chapter and the second daughter born to Joe and Ellie will one day fall in love. But you already know that story!
* "Too Hot." Kool and the Gang, DeLite Records, 1979. You can listen to it here: www. youtube. com/watch?v=ryRgOU76VP8 (remove spaces after dots)
* "Cherish." Kool and the Gang, Mercury, 1985. IMO, the original is so much better than the one from the 17 Again soundtrack, and the video on Youtube is very appropriate for this story: www. youtube. com/watch?v=aUb_3Ynz_tk (remove spaces after dots)
Any comments? I would love some!