. 06

Almost Famous – Mother Visits – Meeting Winnie – Double Date

Donnie called Nikita in a panic, and told her about Ruth and her penchant for numerous unprotected sexual partners. She calmed him down and told him to get over to her place as soon as possible.

On arriving, Donnie found a strange man waiting for him along with Nikita.

"This is Lars Lundie, a close friend of mine, Donald. Lars, this is Donald Stevenson Clark, another good friend. Donald, I've told Lars about your problem because he is a medical become infected with doctor and can provide you with some excellent advice on your situation.

"I'm pleased to meet you, Mr. Clark. May I call you Donald?"

"Yes, by all means. And might I add that it's certainly gratifying to meet a doctor like you for I know next to nothing about STD's other than I don't want them, especially HIV."

Both Dr. Lundie and Nikita laughed at this, and Donnie flushed, not certain if they weren't taking his plight seriously of not.

He soon realized that Dr. Lundie was the perfect person to be consulting with for his problem.

"Mr. Clark," Dr. Lundie said, "Normally for one having had unprotected sexual contact it is recommended the patient wait about three weeks before being tested."

Donnie gasped out loud at this news.

Dr. Lundie held up a large hand stopping any outburst on Donnie's part and continued, saying: "This is the best way to ensure you test at the right time because different sexually transmitted infections become detectable at different times. However, there is another series of tests that can provide many of the results in a couple days. I highly recommend both tests for you.

"The quick test or tests can eliminate or confirm whether you have contracted Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, Herpes I or Herpes II. HIV I and HIV II, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and Syphilis all take somewhat longer to detect. I can arrange for you to be tested first thing tomorrow morning ... say 7 AM?"

Donnie was already nodding his head in acceptance.

"Good, here's my card, be there ten minutes early. Other than that I strongly recommend---no, I insist that any sexual activity you have for the foreseeable future involve the use of reliable condoms. Don't use the thinnest type, they're susceptible to breaking and that's the last thing you'll want at this point.

In addition, and this may sound foolish, but believe me it will add to your sense of well being---check the rubber after using it for any defects---holes, tears or the like. If you find any, than you owe it to your partner to tell her or him of your pending problem and advise them to get tested as well. If you find, and believe me, most people do find themselves clear of the worst types of STD's---please continue using protection for your own and your partner's safety.

"By the way, I'll take a check for $500.00 if you don't want this on your medical records. Of course if you do have a form of STD I'm obligated to notify the Health department by law, so ...."

Donnie waved him off, saying, "Tomorrow at 7. Your address is on the card?"

"Yes it is."

"I appreciate this Doctor Lundie, I really do. I've made a very serious mistake and I hope to God it doesn't plague me for the rest of my life."

"Don't worry, Donald," Nikita said in an attempt to off-set his disillusionment, "I'm sure you'll be all right, but please do take precautions from now on."

"I've learned my lesson, Nikita. I really have."

And with no further words on anyone's part, Donnie left the house to return to his own, empty abode where he had a fitful night's sleep.

The following morning Donnie underwent the varied tests in determining if he had contracted any of the dreaded STD's.

He left the doctor's office not knowing the answer and went to several classes before returning home to get ready for the next day and the Georgia Invitational Meet with the swimming and diving teams from California, Florida State, Harvard, Kansas State, Penn State, and Virginia Universities.

The meet was arranged so that Saturday's events would be televised on NBC nationwide, and the teams coaches had stressed that several of the participants were considered frontrunners for the forthcoming Olympic Games.

As Donnie made his way to the Meet, he realized that he didn't feel all that great. His first thought was that he was coming down with a cold. Then he thought about Ruth and the STD tests and a feeling of dread swept over him. Did one feel like this as the initial stages of HIV entered into ones bloodstream? He shook himself and told himself that it was too soon, much too soon for that. But what if he'd caught it from an earlier partner? Not too soon for that, was it?

Fortunately his sensibilities returned and he thought of other possibilities such as the common cold, and he left it there, refusing to dwell on the potentially far worse STD's.

On arriving at the Ramsey Center, Donnie was intercepted by one of the assistant coaches, Seth Cutler, who said: "Hey, Don, walk with me to the Natatorium, will ya?"

Donnie sensed something unusual as Coach Cutler spent almost all his time with the upperclassmen and virtually none with the freshmen.

"Yeah, sure, Coach," he replied.

It only took several steps before the coach revealed his purpose in intercepting him.

"We've been blindsided, Don."

"What? I don't understand, Coach."

"As far as I know, at least eleven of the men swimmers and four divers ate at Foster's Grill last night."

Donnie turned quizzical eyes upon Coach Cutler.

"They all came down with some type of food poisoning. They won't be active for today's meet." A nervous tick suddenly appeared over Cutler's left eye. "You ... umm, you feel okay don'cha?"

"Actually Coach ...."

"You too?"

"No ...I think I'm coming down with a cold. But I know I can swim. In fact I'm certain I can."

Neither one of them uttered another word until they arrived at the Natatorium. Coach Cutler patted Donnie on the shoulder and headed straight to the coaches office where he huddled with the other coaches, including Head Coach Flippen.

Donnie was in the locker room, sitting in a chair in front of his locker and talking to a swimmer from Virginia named Nick Abicca, who he had swum against in high school.

After catching up on a couple of other swimmers they knew, talk turned to Hugo Mangum, the Florida State Olympic hopeful, who had recently shattered the U.S. record for the 200 Meter freestyle, which both Nick and Donnie were entered in.

Donnie confessed that he would only be expected to finish at the bottom of the event as he had not performed as well as expected. Nick was frank in stating that he had thoughts of beating Mangum and mentioned his recent times for the event, leaving Donnie very impressed.

"Well I wish you luck, Nick," he said, "here comes my coach, you better make yourself scarce for a while."

"Yeah, man. See you around and good luck today."

"You too, man; lots of luck to you too."

"Clark!" Coach Flippen barked, "Got a minute?"

Donnie jumped to attention. "Yes sir!" he responded.

"At ease, Clark, this ain't the military," Coach Flippen said caustically. "What I want to know is how you feel. Coach Cutler told me you were out of sorts. Is that true?"

"Umm, actually coach I feel okay. I mentioned that it feels like I might have a cold coming on. You know, a little achy, but it could be anything, even pre-meet jitters."

"I'm guessing you heard the bad news, Clark."

"Sir?" Donnie managed.

"Half the team is down with food poisoning or some shit. That means you've been moved up to first team. I think you can do a hell of a lot better than you have been. The potential is there. We need a good effort from you today."

"Yes sir. Umm, which events am I in, coach?"

"You'll kick things off with the first event the 200 Freestyle." Coach Flippen paused and seemed to be studying the Natatorium's rafters before continuing. "Gotta play things as they come, Clark. We'll see how you do there before finding another event. Do the best you can. That's all we can ask. Right?"

"Yes sir, coach!" Donnie responded while wondering how badly he was going to finish in the event.

Minutes later Donnie was attired in swimming briefs, cap and carrying his goggles as he headed toward the Olympic sized pool in the Natatorium. Even though he knew how few teammates would be participating, he was still stunned to see the meager grouping of Georgia Bulldogs gathered around coach Flippen a few minutes before the first event was to take place.

Dolph was there, but was not involved in the 200. It appeared that he and Dolph were not going to swim against one another as they usually did. Today, with the shortage of personnel, they would be in separate events so that the depleted Georgia Bulldogs might have at least one representative in each event.

As Donnie left the locker room and headed toward the pool he saw Darci and Olivia waving to him. He smiled as he waved back. Both girls started to giggle and talk animatedly to each other. Behind them Donnie saw the Women's Diving Coach glaring at him, and he quickly turned his attention elsewhere.

It was his custom to dive into the pool and swim a lap or two just to warm his muscles up for the forthcoming event, which happened to be the 200 Meter Freestyle. During the warm-up, Donnie realized that he didn't feel quite right, but decided to keep it to himself as the coaches had enough problems at the moment with his food poisoned teammates.

Coach Flippen gave Donnie some last minute instructions including the fact that the two-time national champion was going to be in his preliminary heat. Donnie glanced over at Florida State's Hugo Mangum, a lanky six-footer with long arms, certainly the longest arms Donnie had ever seen on a swimmer. A second swimmer in the same preliminary was Carl Williams, from the University of California. Williams, a Black athlete, had been mentioned in a recent Sports Illustrated article as a strong Olympic hopeful, and according to the article had a good chance of upsetting Mangum for the top position since his times in the 200 had been outstanding of late.

Jeez, Donnie thought, here I am feeling like crap, and facing two of the fastest guys in the country. Well, maybe I can manage a third place and get some points for the team. But the way I feel ... I just don't know.

A minute or two slipped by and suddenly Donnie found himself at the pool's edge, readying himself for the start of the 200.

Apparently Mangun and Williams, very much aware of one another and wanting to beat the other for the status it would bring them as well as the points they would acquire for their respective teams were nervous, high like high strung thoroughbreds before a race. And as a direct consequence, Mangum false started, giving all the others a vital practice dive. The false start also caused Mangum to hesitate for a vital fraction of a second on the actual start of the race to ensure that he didn't disqualify himself.

Although Donnie didn't realize it at the time, he took full advantage of Mangum's brief pause and was half the length of the pool before risking a quick look at the opposition. Donnie was in lane 4, Williams in lane 3 and Mangum in lane 1. He noted that Williams was almost exactly abreast of him and that Mangum a half length behind him.

On making his first turn, Donnie noted that while Williams was marginally ahead of him, Mangum was not and took heart from the fact that it seemed he had the edge on the national champion, and didn't even consider Williams a threat.

We're all in the water together, Donnie thought; it's the same for all of us. He heard the crowd then, screaming with excitement, and realized that being primarily a Georgia crowd, they were cheering him on. That knowledge helped his adrenaline to soar and his strokes were suddenly crisper and stronger as his body strove to provide him with the effort required to win the race.

At the ¾ mark, he found himself a half length ahead of Williams and a full length ahead of Mangum.

He's (meaning Mangum) a great finisher, Donnie told himself, I'd better find a way to keep this pace up. I can't afford to sap my energy ... got to find reserves to see me through. Donnie would later realize that he had not thought about the STD tests during the entire meet. But for the moment he concentrated on holding Williams off.

Mangum didn't become the national champion by acclaim; he had defeated almost every opponent handily since his senior year in high school. He had represented the United States in the Olympics his senior year and finished fourth in two events, almost assuring that he would be back to seek the gold four years later.

And so as Donnie fought off the last second surge by Carl Williams, Hugo Mangum managed to eke out the victory, touching the electronic plate at the side of the pool's edge to win the preliminary 1:35.00 to Donnie's 1:35.06. William's finished third at a very respectable 35:00.12.

Coach Flippen was ecstatic, throwing his arms around the soaking wet Donnie and embracing him while the student body in the stands cheered wildly.

"That was quite a performance, Clark. It's your personal best—by far. I'm stunned by that time. Was it the competition that made you so fast?"

It was a genuine question, even Donnie was already wondering where his performance had come from. But before he could formulate an answer, his teammates swarmed him and began clapping him on the shoulders and back.

Then he was whisked off to plan a strategy for the final race which would mean his facing Williams and Mangum again, although this time they would be ready for him.

Waiting for his next turn, Donnie watched Dolph finis 8th or to put it bluntly, dead last in the preliminary of his event. He also watched Kimmie, her face sparkling somehow absent any red blemishes and he wondered if his sperm was really responsible or was it more a psychological problem resolved.

At any rate he admired her form as well as her creamy complexion as she dived and scored in the mid-range, which was better than usual for her.

Before he knew it it was time for the finals of the 200 Freesyle and Donnie once again found himself on the edge of the pool readying for the start of the race.

This time he was in lane 2, sandwiched between Mangum in lane 1 and Williams in lane 3.

"They'll be no false starts this time, Clark," Mangum said out of the side of his mouth so that only Donnie could hear.

"Good luck to you too, Mangum," Donnie replied, managing to infuriate the Olympic hopeful.

The gun sounded and all three hit the water at the same time. There were eight contestants in the 200 Freestyle, but only three of them counted insofar as the swimmers themselves cared.

The spectators and coaches were screaming for their favorites as they reached the halfway mark. It was difficult to tell exactly who led, for they were scant inches apart, with the lead changing from one to the other with every other stroke.

Donnie thought his lungs were going to burst, but kept going, having told himself that if that happened it would happen, but he wasn't going to concede a millimeter to Mangum or Williams for that matter.

The three of them appeared to hit the finish plate together.

Coach Flippen had never seen a finish this close and although priding himself on calling the winner in many a close race, but was already thinking there might be a winner, but in all likelihood it was a two-way tie with a very close third.

All eyes went to the electronic scoreboard hanging from the rafters of the Natatorium as the names and times of the swimmers were revealed to the coaches, athletes and crowd.

Donnie had placed second, losing to Mangum by a tenth of a second. Williams finished third two tenths of a second behind Donnie. Coach Flippen and the rest of the swimming team were incredulous, and showered Donnie with praise.

Both Mangum and Williams shook Donnie's hand and told him he'd swum a great race and they looked forward to competing against him again. Coach Flippen waited for the swimmers to part and when they did, he wished both Magnum and Williams good luck in their future meets and hoped they would bring home the Gold and Silver from the Olympics the following year.

Then he embraced Donnie and told him he'd had a magnificent day. "Your personal times were off the chart!" he bellowed.

"What about the other events?" Donnie inquired as he donned his team jacket.

"We're going to get creamed, but under the circumstances it's understandable. It's a damned shame we're in such sad shape for the big meet at home this year, but that's the way the cookie crumbles."

Donnie accepted congratulations from the other coaches and the rest of his teammates, including Dolph who seemed to bask in Donnie's accomplishment.

"Man, you never seem to do things normally. Everything you do is ... super-sized, you know?"

Donnie could only laugh and give his friend a hug. Moments later he looked for the girls, Olivia and Darci were nowhere to be seen, and Kimmie was preparing to climb the diving platform for her next dive. He rummaged through his backpack, found his laptop and sent his mother an email telling her of his remarkable success that day knowing it would certainly cheer her up.

His sister, Ashley promptly replied, telling him that she and his mother had watched him on NBC and were "beyond proud of his accomplishment." Seconds later a second message declared" Mom and me will be in Athens Friday afternoon. Hope to watch you swim on Saturday!"

As it happened Don had a meet that Saturday against the University of Alabama, he called home to formally invite his mother and sister to the campus, with the proviso that they stay with him at his new home and not at a hotel.

They arrived Friday evening, along with a nurse who was caring for his mother, now undergoing chemo treatments for the cancer that had invaded her body. They referred to it as Breast Cancer, but apparently it had spread to other parts of her body as well. Ashley informed Donnie that the doctors did not think his mother would last much longer and had predicted she might last until shortly after the New Year.

Donnie was shaken when he saw what kind of shape his mother was in. Ashley surprised him, taking him aside and comforting him. It was then that it occurred to Don that he had left his little sister to care for their mother's needs---taking her to the cancer center for treatment and testing, which on the face of it were almost never-ending, while completing her senior year of high school. Apparently, Ashley had handled it in stride; becoming an adult while still only seventeen.

Donnie also noted the way Ashley's breasts strained against her blouse, and that she was obviously posing in front of him to see if he would respond in typical male fashion. He did that and more, when the opportunity presented itself; he took her to one side and told her that she had become a stunning woman since he had last seen her.

"You've really blossomed, Ashley," he said and watched as the blush rose from her lower neck to her forehead.

"Oh don't tease me, Donald, I get enough of that from the kids at school," she said, obviously hoping for more compliments from her brother.

"I know it must be the boys teasing you. They're probably too shy to ask you out so they resort to teasing you."

"Mmmm, I guess you're right," she said, touching him on the arm and then the hand."The girls keep asking me what I'm going to wear to a dance or almost any occasion. None of the boys have asked me to the prom---which I missed---but that had more to do with Mother's condition that the Prom itself."

"You didn't go?" Donnie blurted out in surprise. "I can't imagine ...."

"I did get asked," she admitted, "but Mother was in such dire straits at the time that I decided against it."