Our date at the Library Cafe went well. She dressed casually, and wore very little makeup, but to me she looked phenomenal. I was afraid that we would be awkward together, but Christina was completely natural. We talked about books, our college days, and the best and worst professors we had had. I steered clear of a few topics: sex, old boyfriends or old girlfriends, and bridge.
I found myself repeatedly looking deeply into her dark brown eyes. Christina caught me. She just smiled. "Looking for something?"
- "I'm sorry." I said. "I can't help it. You have beautiful eyes."
Christina shook her head. "You use that line on all the girls?" But she was still smiling.
After that, I carefully avoided anything that sounded even remotely like a pickup line, or a come-on. I wanted Christina to know that I was there to enjoy her company - and nothing more.
A week later, she let me take her to a movie. It was not your average Hollywood fare. Instead, it was an experimental European film, shot in a museum, with actors, but no dialogue. It was being shown in an exclusive art house, where the patrons sat in reclining chairs, with a small table beside them for drinks and a plate of food. We ordered a bottle of wine and a cheese tray, ensconced ourselves in those comfortable recliners, and watched one of the weirdest films I have ever seen.
Afterwards, we went for coffee. "What did you think?" I asked.
- "You first." she insisted.
- "It was pretty bizarre. I'm not sure that I understood any of it." I admitted.
- "That's a relief! I was afraid you were going to explain it to me - at length!" she laughed.
- "It
was
pretty bad, wasn't it? I'm sorry I picked such a lemon."
- "Don't be." she said. "That was an awesome way to watch a film. Big screen, bottle of wine, cheese - and those seats were wonderful."
We laughed together, and set to work compiling our list of the worst films we had ever seen. It was a bit late when I finally took her home.
Over the next few weeks, I took her kayaking, which she enjoyed, and bowling, which she did not. I also took her to a nice restaurant. For that occasion, she dressed up a bit, in a turquoise dress, with high heels and a bit more makeup. She looked spectacular. We got extra attention from our waiter, the busboy, the sommelier, and some random guy who wanted her autograph because he said she
had
to be a model or a movie star.
Christina fended them all off with good grace. I was tempted to go after the last idiot - who (other than Massimo) tries to pick up a girl when she's on a date with someone else? But she put her hand on my arm to dissuade me. She changed the subject very quickly.
"Ask me something." she said. "Something you've wanted to know about me."
- "Hmmm." I thought about it for a moment. "Anything?"
She nodded.
"Your sister. You've dropped out of Bridge Club a few times because she needed something. Beth said you take good care of her. But you've never mentioned her otherwise. What's the story?"
For a moment there I thought I had made a major mistake. Christina looked ... sad.
"I'm sorry, Christina. Forget I asked. We can talk about something else."
- "No." she said. "It's not a secret. The girls all know. And ... I know it may sound funny, but I
do
trust you, Norm. It's just that I wasn't expecting to be telling you this particular story so soon."
"Reem is three years older. And better looking - " Christina shushed me when I tried to dispute that point. "Maybe not now. But when I was a skinny thirteen year-old, Reem had tits and ass. The boys were always buzzing around her. Nobody paid me the least attention.
That was probably a good thing. I got to watch, and listen, as they flirted with her, and tried out their phony flattery and their outrageous pick-up lines. Reem fell for most of them. She would let them kiss her, or feel her up. I tried telling her that these guys were losers, but she just accused me of being jealous.
She gave her virginity to some asshole who bragged about it to his friends, and then dumped her shortly afterwards. Now the boys were swarming around her. They all expected her to put out. I think she would have, too, but my parents expected me to be her chaperone, so I had to pull her out of some potentially sticky situations."
- "That must have been difficult." I said. "Did she hate you for getting in the way?"
- "Sure she did. Reem accused me of interfering in her life, of spoiling her chance for happiness. As if she really believed that one of these guys was going to ask her to marry him. She started actively trying to 'lose' me. One guy brought a friend along, and this friend spent the whole time distracting me, trying to get into my pants while his buddy worked on my sister.
They didn't succeed, but the next one did. Reem ditched me at the movies, and went home with this guy. My parents were incensed when she came home at 2 a.m.. They were furious with me, too. I didn't rat her out, but Reem was pretty upset with me because I didn't lie to protect her.
My parents started watching her much more closely after that. It didn't take long for them to find out what she was. So they married her off, to the son of a family they barely knew. It was all done very quickly, before Reem could have another chance to shame the family."
- "What about you?" I asked.
- "They watched me like a hawk. Picked me up right after school, no more going out unsupervised ... that sort of thing."
- "It must have been tough."
- "It was." she admitted. "But not so bad as what Reem got. Her new husband was abusive. He beat her. She got pregnant, and delivered a girl. That was 'unsatisfactory'. He beat her more often."
- "Did your parents know?" I asked.
- "It wasn't their place to interfere, even if they'd wanted to. And they didn't. I moved out on my own as soon as I got a job. It took me two years to get Reem away from that prick. She had a miscarriage after one bad beating ..." Christina shook her head, as if to clear it.
"But you don't need to know all of that. To make a long story short, Reem came to stay with me. Her husband got to keep their daughter, because
she
left
him
. I found her a job."
- "When did all this happen?"
- "Three years ago." said Christina.
- "It must have changed your whole relationship." I said.
Christina smiled sadly. "No, Norm. It didn't. Reem blames me. If I had let her do what she wanted, our parents wouldn't have caught her. She would never have been forced to marry that asshole, and ... and so on. All my fault.
To make matters worse, Reem still has no common sense where men are concerned. She'll fuck anyone who pays her a compliment. Not at my house - because I won't let her bring men home. But she goes out, and stays out late, disappears for weekends ...
In her mind, she's still the attractive one, and I'm her jealous little sister. That's what she's told all of my friends. And when I was dating Jake, that's what she told him. In fact, that's why I dumped him. Reem was coming on to him, and Jake didn't tell me about it. I
knew
she was doing it, because she tried it with every single guy I dated.
Maybe he thought he could 'do' both sisters. I don't know. Reem lost interest immediately, once he was no longer my boyfriend."
- "Damn." I said. "Does Beth know any of this?"
