Susan was none too pleased with the invitation, which she made quite evident after he left, complaining about having an almost total stranger to dinner after a brief first meeting. I knew this wasn't the real reason, but I chose to ignore that. "Well, he's not a total stranger, and he's just helped us out of a real jam. And he's a neighbor, and it's about time we started to get to know some of them. We've hardly interacted with anyone since we moved in."
She had no good argument against any of this, and with a weary but acquiescent nod she agreed to help me prepare for our dinner get together with our newly met neighbor. I am only a little bit more than a passable cook, although leagues above Sue. So, she set about straightening up our place, to make it reasonably presentable, as we both worked full time and generally hated housework, so it was most frequently in a state of disarray. I made a simple dish of cod baked with white wine, fresh tomato, and thyme. And sauteed some fresh spinach with a touch of garlic.
Jack arrived promptly at seven bearing two primo bottles of wine, an Italian red Barolo, and a vintage white French Bordeaux. He also brought a chilled bottle of champagne to celebrate, he said, the newest addition to our home, our loveseat. We popped and imbibed that one first, which helped ease some of the early awkwardness. Jack was a very good looking guy, with a fit appearing physique, if one was inclined to be drawn in that direction, which of course neither Sue or I were. But he also exuded a good natured confidence and, for lack of a better word, likeability. And as we came to know him better, a real sense that he was someone who could be counted upon.
The two bottles of wine during dinner helped us loosen up even more in our light, get to know you conversation. Jack, it was revealed, was an essayist and columnist, who wrote for several prominent print and online publications. I offered in return, when he made sure to ask, that I was a grammar school teacher, and I then volunteered the information for Sue, that she was an instructor in psychology at the local university, currently working towards her PhD.
Despite the enjoyable and convivial time we seemed to be having, Susan remained mostly quiet and reserved, noticeably keeping herself at arms length. It wasn't that she was a man-hater, or even that she disliked men. It was just that she always had the suspicion and belief, that outside of any professional or work connection, the only interest that men ever had in her was for a potential sexual aspect, romantic or otherwise, for which she would never have any reciprocal desire. So, she always maintained a protective shield for herself around men. She is by far the more attractive one of the two of us, a true beauty when she wants to be, but she usually affects an austere, sometimes even stern appearance for the outside world, saving her soft and alluringly lovely side for me alone.
I am more of a plain Jane, although I hope not unappealing, but I make up for it by being naturally outgoing and vivacious, and it is this that drew Sue to me, as I am always able to break through her shell, which she greatly appreciates from me. But as this evening wore on, and Jack and I engaged in increasingly enjoyable banter, and even revealing conversation, Susan remained wary, and began dropping some not so subtle hints, so that it would be very clear, that she and I were exclusively Lez, and strictly monogamous. It soon became apparent though that none of that mattered to Jack. His only interest was in becoming friends, and by the end of the night, and in the many days to come, we did so, even including to some extent, Sue. Very good friends.
It was not that we saw or got together every day. Sometimes a week or more would go by without us having any contact. But he might call us out of the blue to ask if we wanted to try out for dinner the new Thai restaurant which had just opened in the neighborhood. Or he might suggest that we all go to a movie together, and he convinced us one Saturday afternoon to go to a summer performance of Shakespeare in the Park. Sue was initially hesitant to do these things with him, but I was usually able to convince her that it was good for us to get out, which we hardly otherwise ever did, and she came to admit that they actually ended up being fun times. And when he was able to procure three, almost impossible to get, Paul McCartney concert tickets, after she had once let slip that she was a huge Beatles fan, she no longer offered much resistance to our outings or times together.
But as our friendship with him grew, I began to observe her often watch him, unobtrusively, but intently. I don't think he was ever even aware, but I knew her too well for it to be hidden from me. It was as if she was trying to figure him out, that he was in some important way a mystery to her. I just wrote it off that it was the psychologist in her, trying to understand for herself what she thought he was all about. To me, it was simple. He was a great guy, who had become a truly great friend, and we continued, the three of us, to have good times together.
And then the accident happened that led us all in a different way.
It was an especially nice day out, and Sue decided to walk the somewhat longish distance from work to home. Crossing one of the busy one-way streets, she was very careful to be sure that none of the traffic was coming towards her. She neglected, though, to look the other way as she crossed the bicycle lane, and was run into at full speed by a bicyclist, and was thrown a goodly distance before hitting the very hard ground. Very fortunately she didn't hit her head, but did suffer severe fractures of both her upper and lower right leg, as well as a fracture of her pelvis.
She was hospitalized of course, and placed in a long leg cast, which would have to remain on for at least eight weeks, during most of which time she would essentially be in a bed to chair existence, requiring a great deal of help transferring between the two. And with all the other activities of daily living. It was clear that she was going to need someone available to her, 24/7. I had just started a new school year at my dream school, and was on probationary status, and it would be a real setback to my job to have to take the necessary time off on medical care leave. Our health insurance would only pay for an inpatient rehab stay for the required amount of time, which neither of us wanted for her, but would not cover full daytime outpatient home care, which we couldn't afford on our own. We were in a very depressed quandary, with me arguing that I would take the leave from work to care for her, and she refusing to allow me to do so, saying she would rather stay in a rehab facility than have me jeopardize my career.
It was Jack who made the offer that changed it all. He essentially worked full time from home, and he could write from his computer just as easily from our apartment during the day as he could from his own. And he would then be around for all of the needs that Sue would have until I got home each evening. We were both very reluctant to accept this at first. It just seemed far too much to ask of anyone. But Jack was adamant. What good were friends, he stated firmly, if they weren't there for you when you needed them the most. And we certainly had a great need then. He also informed us that he had some experience in the area, having worked as an orderly in a nursing home as a summer job during his years of college. I had to leave the decision up to Sue, as she would be the one spending all that time with him, in what she would certainly feel was in such a compromising way. But she didn't want me to leave my job, and she dreaded the idea of two months in a rehab hospital, so she finally agreed, and tried her best to appear grateful when we accepted Jack's offer.
I don't think anyone could have been more unsettled by the situation when she came home, than Sue and I were as it began. But Jack's quiet confidence and can-do, no-nonsense attitude quickly won us over. Because of the pain of her pelvic fracture and with her full leg cast, she was essentially bed bound for the first two weeks, and needed total care. I took care of most of her personal needs when I came home at night, like her daily sponge baths and changing her clothes. But bedpan usage during the day couldn't be avoided, and shifting her to prevent bedsores, and making sure that she received all of her necessary meds and meals, fell to Jack in the daytime, and he handled it all with alacrity as if he were a true professional. I would make her breakfast in the morning, but he would make and serve her lunch, and then dinner for us all, which I insisted he eat with us at Sue's bedside before he would leave for the night.
Without being asked, he began doing many other things around the apartment, straightening up, vacuuming, cleaning and putting away dishes, even, shockingly, doing our laundry several times a week. When I sheepishly lamented that he was doing far too much for us, he laughed and said that he had more than enough time on his hands, and that I already had more than enough on my plate. And he claimed that he always enjoyed doing house chores, as they helped him to focus and compose his essays in his mind as he worked. I was very skeptical of this explanation, but when I mentioned it to Sue, she only nodded somewhat knowingly, saying there was probably some truth to it.
Jack also transported her to all her follow-up medical appointments, and after two weeks she was able, with his assistance, to be transferred from bed to chair, where she was then able to spend much of the day. He always helped her back to bed before leaving for the night. After five weeks she was allowed to begin to weight bear, and was placed in a walking cast, so she could begin to get around carefully with a walker. She started physical therapy at home, and Jack made sure that she did her exercises in-between the formal three times a week sessions. As she became more independent, he was able to spend more time in his own home, catching up, I was sure, with his own necessities. But as he assured us both, he was always just a cell phone call or text away.
When at eight weeks the time came for her cast to finally be removed, I wanted to be the one to take her, so a late afternoon appointment was made so we could go after my workday. But at noontime that day she called me to tell me that the doctor had a late day emergency operation, and that her appointment had been moved up to 1 PM. I had my end of term evaluation with my principal at that same time, and I fretted having to postpone it at the last moment.
"Don't do that, my Love. I'll get Jack to take me."
"Oh Sue, we can't keep imposing on him like this."
"I don't think Jack ever minds being imposed upon" she replied.
"Don't be ridiculous, nobody likes that."
"I wouldn't be so sure" she answered. "Let me give him a call and ask, and I'll get right back to you."
Not five minutes later she called back to say that Jack was only too happy to take her. Disappointed that I couldn't be the one to take her for this special occasion, I told her that I would be joyously awaiting her at home to celebrate the resumption of her cast free existence.
