Potions of Love
Chapter 3
Wednesday, September 14, 2022
Rick wakes up well before his alarm goes off. Neddie, sleeping at the end of his bed, raises her head to glare at Rick as if she is saying, "You've got to be kidding me." Rick looks down at the cat and rubs her head between her ears, which she usually enjoys, saying, "Sorry, girl. It's Wednesday, and you know what that means!" The cat continues to glare at her owner, stands up, marches over to the edge of the bed, and jumps down, looking for a quieter location to continue her morning snoozing.
Rick laughs and jumps out of bed to prepare for his Wednesday classes, specifically his morning lab with Kate. Monday's lab had turned out to be more than he had imagined on several fronts, and he is looking forward to seeing what takes place today.
Rick showers, feeds Neddie and has his breakfast before heading out in hopes he can beat Kate to class. He knows she prefers a lab table toward the front of the room, so he wants to get an early start and try to stake claim to the table they had on Monday.
Kate wakes up a little more rested than she had been the day before. Thoughts from Tuesday evening and her talk with Lanie are still running through her mind, especially Lanie's advice about doing what is best for herself. That wasn't a revelation that she hadn't already thought about; it just seemed to have more of an impact on her when it came from her best friend.
Kate lays in bed for a few more minutes, with her thoughts transitioning to the present and her Wednesday lab with Rick. She finds herself smiling and looking forward to the time they'll have together in class. Whether or not Kate should be feeling this way seems irrelevant at the moment. Monday's lab had gone well, and she is looking forward to working with Rick again today.
Best laid plans, as the adage goes. Rick and Kate arrive at their class at the same time. They smile at one another, and Rick does a slight bow and waves his arm, prompting Kate to walk in ahead of him. Kate chuckles and proceeds into the room before Rick, making a beeline for 'their lab table.'
Both set their books down and take a seat as they greet one another. "Good morning, Rick. You certainly are here early," says Kate.
Rick smiles back at Kate, casually saying, "Yeah, I guess I am. I woke up early and thought I might as well head into class," hoping she buys his line.
Kate tilts her head, looking directly at Rick as if assessing if his statement is true, then decides to give him some slack and says, "That's great, and it's good to see you." Kate says shyly.
Her comment throws Rick off for a couple of seconds, but he regroups and says, "It's good to see you too. I wonder what Professor Andrews has in store for us today?" And just like that, they both drop into lab partner mode.
Professor Andrews passes out assignments and begins his lecture on the primary components and possible side effects of the first medication they will be researching for the current project. Rick and Kate take notes as they follow his presentation, but both find their thoughts drifting to one another. Kate seems to be having a little more luck keeping on task, but Rick is having problems focusing on the Professor's statements.
Eventually, both Rick and Kate pull their thoughts back to what is happening in the lab and continue listening to Professor Andrews' lecture. At the end of his lecture, Professor Andrews approaches Kate and Rick's table, requesting a moment of their time before they leave for lunch.
"I wanted to explain further the special notation I added to the assignment for the two of you. I was hoping you could work together and present a joint paper on your findings regarding the possible side effects of this first medication and how it could impact individuals in your respective areas of study. I feel you both can bring unique perspectives to this review that goes beyond the scope of some others in our class."
Kate and Rick agree to do the joint assignment as requested.
After Professor Andrews leaves their table, Rick stands first, puts on his coat, and grabs his books with plans to try and talk to Kate for a few minutes before she leaves. He would love to invite her to lunch, but he doesn't want to put himself through that disappointment again after being turned down twice before.
At the same time, Kate is gathering her books and organizing her notes when she sees that Rick is about ready to leave. She stuns Rick by saying, "Hey, would you like to go over to the Gonda Building and grab some lunch?"
Rick stops in his tracks and stares at Kate, thinking he must be dreaming. She invited him to lunch! It seems like he stands there forever, but it's only a few seconds, and he responds, "Sure, that sounds great."
When Rick agrees, Kate realizes what she just did and is shocked by her actions. She tries to clarify the invitation by saying, "Um, I thought we could use the extra time to review our notes on this current assignment." At the same time, she is mentally asking herself, "Why did I invite Rick to lunch?"
Rick is watching Kate, trying to determine if she wants to back out of her invitation, but he sees no indication of that, but she seems nervous. Rick smiles and says, "Yea, that is a great idea. It looks like Professor Andrews added a twist to the assignment, so we should figure out our next steps."
Rick's demeanor relaxes Kate somewhat, and she says, "Give me a second, and we'll head over for lunch and see what we can work out."
Kate has her books and papers in order as they head out of the lab and across the street to the Gonda Building. They find a table by a window, put their things down and head over to the cafe line to place their orders.
Once they return to the table with their lunch, they eat in silence for a few minutes. Things begin to feel uncomfortable, so Kate asks Rick, "Do you have a specific area you plan to focus on for your research paper?"
Rick thinks for a minute, then says, "Possibly. The twist Andrew's added about us finding commonalities in our research, then doing a joint paper, adds another dimension to my thinking."
"I know, I didn't see that one coming," replies Kate. "If you have time after class sometime next week, maybe we could get together and try to plan out how to do a joint paper."
Rick again is surprised that she suggested getting together, as he was thinking of asking Kate the same question. "Sure, I agree. That would be a good idea," he says.
Rick and Kate continue eating their lunch, both engrossed in their thoughts.
As they finish their sandwiches, Rick doesn't want to part ways yet, so he asks, "Hey did you see that poster about the Friday night concert at the Civic Center? It's going to feature an acoustic guitarist from Minneapolis; I think his name is Sammy Rose." After he says the musician's name, he sees Kate's eyes light up.
"No, I hadn't seen the poster, but I love that guy. He is incredible and plays a harp guitar," says Kate.
Since Rick heard Kate play at the recent talent night, he hoped she would be interested in the concert. He waits to see if Kate says anything else, then blurts out, "Do you wanna go?"
Kate's startled by Rick's invitation and looks at him for a few seconds, and without thinking further, agrees. "Yes, I think it sounds like it would be a great concert."
They both sit silently, trying to figure out what just took place. Rick doesn't want to lose the moment, so he asks, "Can I pick you up?"
Kate thinks about Rick's offer but decides to meet him at the center. So she asks, "What time does the concert start?"
Rick tells Kate, "The doors open at 7:00 pm, and the concert starts at 8:00 pm."
Kate nods and replies, "I have a late class Friday afternoon, and I can meet you at the main door of the Center at 7:15 pm."
Rick quickly agrees, and they wrap up their lunch. They cordially bid each other goodbye, confirming their Friday night meeting time and exchanging telephone numbers in case something would come up. Rick and Kate part at the cafeteria entrance and head to their afternoon classes.
Neither Rick nor Kate realize that two of his buddies, Tom and LT, have been watching them from across the room during their lunch. As Rick and Kate stand up to leave, Tom shares a fist bump with LT saying, "Now we know why our guy got so upset the other night. She is a knock-out." They grin at each other and finish their lunch.
Rick gets home after his classes and is much happier than usual and cheerfully feeds Neddie, then settles down to tackle his classwork for the next day. He has difficulty concentrating, as he is excited and thrilled to meet Kate Friday night. Rick even begins telling Neddie about his " quasi-date" with Kate. Neddie turns her head like she's listening, then hops up on the couch and goes to sleep. Rick shrugs and finishes his studies before calling it a night.
Kate's also home for the evening working on her lab notes. But she isn't quite as excited about the upcoming Friday night event as earlier and is asking herself why she agreed to meet Rick, especially when she is still with Josh.
She's trying to concentrate on her classwork, but she can't turn her thoughts off about Friday night. She doesn't have a personal relationship with Rick, he is a classmate, but their conversations, even though coursework-related, have been enjoyable. She again reminds herself he is a colleague, and you could even say a friend from school. But nothing more. Kate tells herself, "I am going to meet him Friday night and enjoy the concert."
Josh is doing a week-long, on-site rotation at Hennipen Hospital in Minneapolis. Kate is still upset that Josh hadn't told her about the trip earlier but shrugged it off as she recalls their conversation from the other evening. She knew he had not told her about the rotation earlier, but she wasn't up to arguing with him at the time.
He'll be returning Saturday afternoon, and they'll be having dinner that evening, and Kate plans to tell him about the concert at that time. Friday night is the only night the guitarist will be performing on Campus. And yes, she'll be meeting a classmate, but it's no big deal. Why would Josh get upset?
Kate's thoughts seem to settle down, and she wraps up her coursework for the next day and heads to bed, feeling better about Friday night.
Sadly, Kate is unaware that Josh has seen a young nurse he met on his first shift at Hennipen Hospital in Minneapolis.
Thursday and Friday are regular class days for Rick and Kate. This week, they both have lecture classes on their respective curriculum areas, so they don't cross paths. But each is looking forward to the concert.
It's Friday evening. Just a few hours until the concert. Both Rick and Kate are wrapping up their lecture sessions, and both have had difficulty concentrating on their last classes.
Rick is very excited, knowing he will be spending some quality time with Kate. Kate is still a little apprehensive but tells herself that Rick is just a college friend, and this will be a fun evening and an enjoyable concert.
Rick was home by 3:30 pm and found himself with nothing to do for the next couple of hours. He hops in the shower and then spends 45 minutes figuring out what to wear.
He's standing in front of his closet, with Neddie sitting on his bed, asking himself, "What's going on?"
It shouldn't be this hard to pick out a shirt and a pair of pants! Tonight isn't an actual date. I'm just going to hang out with a classmate." He finally decides on a blue button-down shirt and gray slacks, thinking, "Geez, I'm acting like a girl!"
Rick walks into the kitchen to feed Neddie. Then he makes a quick sandwich, downs a bottle of water and decides to head down to the Center. His mind is spinning, and it feels like his heart is racing. He continues talking to himself, asking, "Why am I so nervous?" as he heads out to his Jeep.
Just as he gets ready to start his Jeep, his phone rings, and the screen shows Tom is calling. Rick sighs and answers the phone. "Hey, Tom."
Tom laughs and says, "Hey, Ricky, what's happening? LT and I were talking and decided to try and get the guys together for a poker game later tonight. You in?"
Rick hears voices and more laughing in the background and wonders what's going on with his friends. He says, "Nope, that doesn't work for me tonight." He hopes Tom will drop it, but he has his doubts.
"Ricky, we haven't seen you since, um, Tuesday night." Tom doesn't want to bring up the debacle with the pink sweater girl at the bar, so he says, "We just wanted to hang for a while and have a few beers." Laughing continues in the background, and Tom glares at LT, trying to get him to quiet down.
Hearing the continued laughing, Rick knows Tom, and one of the other guys is up to something, so he answers. "Tom, tonight won't work for me. I have to run. But let's meet at the Screaming Fox tomorrow night, and the first round will be on me." Tom knows something is up with Rick because he sounds happier than he has been in a long time, but he agrees, and they disconnect the call, and Rick puts his phone on silent mode.
Rick starts his Jeep and heads toward the Civic Center, hoping he can find a close place to park.
Meanwhile, across Campus, Kate doesn't get home until 5:30 pm, realizing she has just a little over an hour to get ready before heading out to meet Rick at the Civic Center. She is very thankful that she had taken the time to pick out her outfit for the evening before leaving for class this morning.
Kate takes a shower, then does her hair and make-up, knowing she takes extra time with both. She looks at herself in the mirror and smiles. Kate has thought about the concert and seeing Rick off all day and now admits to being excited. She puts on her dark green sweater with black slacks and her 4" boots, checking herself out one final time before she grabs her keys and phone and heads out the door.
As she reaches for the door handle, her phone rings, and she sees it's Lanie and thinks, "Lanie, your timing is terrible." She answers the call knowing she has to cut it short or she'll be late.
"Hi, Lanie, what's up?" Kate says as she answers her phone.
"Hey, girlfriend. The girls and I are going out for a few drinks and wanted to know if you want to join us?" Lanie replies.
Kate quickly replies as she is pulling her door shut, "No, sorry, I can't get together tonight."
The other end of the call is silent for a few seconds before Lanie asks, "Why, what are you up to that's so important? I know you said earlier that Josh doesn't get back until Saturday."
Now it's Kate's turn to be quiet.
"Kate, are you still there?" questions Lanie.
Kate responds, "Yes, I am still here. But tonight doesn't work for me." She doesn't have time to keep up this back and forth, so she says, "Sorry, maybe we can all get together sometime next week?"
Lanie knows something is up but can tell by Kate's tone she's not going to get any more details from her tonight. Maybe Josh is coming back; she doesn't know. So Lanie says, "Ok, Kate, I'll tell the girls, and we'll look forward to hanging out next week. Take care."
They wish each other a good night and disconnect their call.
Rick arrives first at the Civic Center main entrance and doesn't see Kate, but it's only 7:00 pm. He looks around and realizes he doesn't know where Kate lives, so he isn't sure which direction he should be watching for her. He scans the crowd again and begins pacing back and forth in front of the building.
Kate only lives eight blocks from the Civic Center, so she decides to walk and let the fresh air calm her nerves. She is comfortable meeting Rick at the concert and feels excited about attending it.
As Kate nears the Center, she looks for Rick. It doesn't take long to spot him in the crowd as his height stands out above many students. When she gets near the entrance, Rick has his back to her, so she reaches out to touch his shoulder and says, "Hi, Rick."
Rick jumps and spins around, flustered that he didn't see her come up to him. He is freaking out some as his eyes roam over her form. She is stunning. Finally, he pulls himself together and says, "Hi. I didn't see you walk up." Duh, he thinks to himself, that was a pretty dumb comment. Rick's eyes meet Kate's, and she smiles at him in a way that makes it feel like his heart could burst.
He smiles back and says, "Shall we?" and moves toward the entrance. He would love to reach for Kate's hand, but he knows that would be wrong, and it would blow the entire evening if he tried, so he doesn't. Tonight is a night where "two…two," he doesn't know how to describe them. She's not his girlfriend, and the word friend even seems too intimate at this point. He drops that line of thinking and walks with her through the entrance of the Civic Center.
The crowd looks to be growing, and since seats are not reserved, they want to make their way into the performance arena as soon as possible. They luck out and find two seats in the center of row 6 and sit down with huge smiles on their faces, thrilled at their view of the stage.
They are both scanning the crowd, and their silence becomes a little awkward again. Rick takes the first crack at breaking the quiet and asks Kate how the rest of her week went? They share stories about their last two days of classes and comment that the professors seem to be piling on the study materials right before the end of the study block. They both comment that their time will be busy between study materials and lab work.
The concert is excellent, and Kate is wholly absorbed in the rhythms and beats of the guitarist. Rick knows she enjoys the guitar but had no idea the depth of her love for this type of music. Kate is beautiful, even more so when she's relaxed and into the moment. Rick sits back and smiles, thanking the gods for giving him the courage to invite her to this event.
The concert ends, and it's a bit difficult to get to the exit because of the large crowd. People push by them a couple of times, and their shoulders bump as they get closer to the door. Once outside, they both take a deep breath relishing the fresh air and begin speaking simultaneously. They both laugh, and Rick prompts Kate to go first.
Kate laughs and says, "Thanks so much for inviting me. Sammy was awesome. I have several of his songs saved on my YouTube account, but they don't do him justice. Could you believe how he can bring so many emotions into his music?" She is still excited about the concert, and Rick loves watching her expressions as she shares her feelings about the show.
Rick smiles and replies, "You are very welcome. I have never been to a concert like that before, and that guy blew me away. I am happy you enjoyed it too." He pauses, then asks, "Would you like to get a coffee before you head home?"
Kate waits for a few seconds, then nods her head and says, "Sure, that does sound good."
Rick leads the way to the Generose Express coffee hut, a couple of blocks from the Center. Rick and Kate have a very relaxed conversation, again talking about how enjoyable the concert turned out to be and the uniqueness of the music when played on the harp guitar. And a big plus for Rick was that he learned about Kate's favorite coffee. He plans to surprise her next week and bring one to their lab.
Kate checks her phone and sees that it's almost 11:00 pm. "Wow, I didn't realize it was getting so late. Thanks for the coffee and again for inviting me tonight. I had a great time." She is smiling from ear to ear, and Rick is overwhelmed again by her beauty and the gratitude and sincerity that she is sharing.
Rick asks, "Can I give you a ride home?"
Kate smiles and says, "No, thank you, I think I'll walk back home since it's such a nice evening."
Rick seriously says, "I will walk you home. It's late and dark, and a gentleman doesn't let his friend walk alone."
Both Rick and Kate pause at Rick's use of the word 'friend,' but Kate feels so happy after the concert that she simply says, "OK, thanks, Rick."
They throw their coffee cups and napkins in the trash, and Rick says, "Lead the way."
Kate chuckles, and they head toward her apartment. It is a calm evening, and the temperature is relatively warm for this time of the year. They enjoy their casual conversation and joke about some of the lecture classes they share. It's been a busy study block, and it's been good for both of them to have some time to relax.
They arrive at Kate's apartment, and Rick walks her up to her door. As Kate turns to thank Rick again for the lovely evening, her front door flies open, and Josh is standing there glaring at both Kate and Rick, almost yelling, "What in the hell is going on here?"
Kate returns his glare but turns again to Rick and says, "Thank you again for the invitation to the concert."
Rick nods his head and quietly says, "You are very welcome.' Then turns and walks back down the sidewalk feeling a little disheartened.
A/N #1 - Sorry for ending this chapter with a somewhat cliffhanger. But I had to cut it off as a lot will happen in the next chapter.
A/N #2 - The guitarist referenced in this chapter is patterned after the work of Dan Schwartz, who is an acoustic guitarist from Minneapolis, and he does play a harp guitar. If interested, you can check out some of his music on YouTube.