Chapter 35
I got home from work and went to the mailbox after parking my car in the garage. In it was the daily handful of junk mail, and a small padded envelope with a lump in the middle. As I felt the outline of the object inside it my hands began to shake, and I had to lean against the mailbox post to steady myself. I had been preparing myself for this moment for almost four weeks, but I still couldn't accept that the day that I had been dreading had actually arrived.
My mind reeled backwards to the evening I opened the door to find my friend, Jamal, standing dejectedly on the step. Little did I know that his appearance was the first in a chain of events that would lead to my present situation. I stuffed the mail in my jacket pocket, and trudged to the front door while reviewing how fate had delivered me to my current, wretched state.
I remembered inviting Jamal in, and we talked about what happened between him and Alex. Jamal became angry when I told him that I spoke to Alex the day before she ended things with him. He wanted to know if I encouraged her to break up with him.
After I rehashed my conversation with her he was mollified, and agreed that what I said to her probably didn't push her to make a decision she had not already arrived at before we talked. I made dinner and invited Jamal to join me. We transitioned from his relationship problem to the issue of which quarterback State should start in their first regular season game, the freshman who had shown such promise in the preseason, or the junior who led them to the conference title last year.
Jamal left about an hour before Amy got home. He was feeling better about life and gave me a bro hug as he headed out. When Amy walked in during the late news, I relayed my discussion with Jamal to her.
Amy declined the plate that I set aside for her earlier and ate some fruit instead. She said, "I feel bad for Jamal and Alex. We had so much fun doing things with them as a couple. We need to let them both know we support them, but we have to do something to take Jamal's mind off of this."
"What are you thinking about?"
"I don't know..." she started to reply, "Hey, wait! What about a going away party for Marcus next Friday? He is headed back to school, and we should send him off in style."
"A going away party for Marcus to cheer his brother up?"
Amy gave me a grin, "Yeah, kill two birds with one stone."
It actually made a lot of sense. We really should do something for Marcus since we became close to him while he roomed with us over the summer, and Jamal loved parties.
"You should invite some of your single friends from work, maybe some girls that we could introduce Jamal to." Amy suggested.
"Ah, you want to play matchmaker again." I said. In retrospect, I guess I should have wondered why Amy was so willing to pair Jamal up with someone else, now that he was a free agent again.
"You know what they say, it's best to get right back on a horse after you have been thrown." Amy replied.
"What about the single girls from the hospital?" I asked.
"Well, that cowboy had ridden most of those fillies." Amy said, rolling her eyes and giggling.
"Good point. I can't invite just girls that I work with, though. That wouldn't look right. And what do we do about Alex."
"We should talk to Alex and explain this to her. She probably won't be too sad about missing the party, since Marcus was never one of her favorite people."
The next morning, Amy got to sleep in, having the day off due to her work shift transition. I called Alex during lunch and explained what we were planning. She was glad to hear that we were trying to cheer Jamal up. Despite their breakup, she was worried about him. I told her to let us know when we could take her out to dinner sometime, maybe as a double date with one of her fellow grad students. She promised to get back to me soon.
When I got home that night Amy told me she had gone out shopping earlier, and decided to stop by the bar where Marcus was working to let him know our plans for the weekend. She also called Jamal at work and both of them were available for Friday night, and enthusiastic about the idea of a party.
I was glad to hear that things were coming together, and told Amy she was brilliant.
"What?" she asked, having been lost in thought when I made my comment.
"I said you are brilliant!" And I gave her a hug. She gave me a quick squeeze, but didn't seem very excited about the party anymore.
"Are you having second thoughts about this?" I asked.
"No, I just have some things on my mind." She replied. "Work stuff."
We ate an improvised dinner, and I got on my laptop to finish some work related tasks. At 10 pm, Marcus came home from the bar and I chatted with him for a few minutes.
"I understand you are up for a party in your honor this weekend."
"You guys didn't have to do that, but yes, I am looking forward to it," he replied.
"Amy said she surprised you at the bar today with the invitation."
"Yeah, she came in at lunch time, and I had a chance to chat with her for a few minutes before she left."
"Invite your friends from the bar who are not working to come too," I suggested.
"Thanks, I'll do that." Marcus said with a smile before he turned in for the night.
The rest of the week was busy, as Amy and I divided up the tasks to get ready for the party. I had the job of securing beverages for the event, and decided to go with a selection of craft beers and assorted soft drinks, along with three bourbon cocktails that we would offer our guests.
I told Amy, and she said she hadn't figured out what to serve, but would keep my selections in mind when she did make a decision.
On the night of the party, I got home first, and began setting up. We told our guests to arrive at 7 pm. Amy was stopping on her way home at a local restaurant that she picked to cater heavy hors d'oeuvres for the event. At 6 o'clock, the caterer called the house to confirm that the food was ready. I told them Amy should be by shortly to pick it up.
At 7 o'clock, there was still no sign of Amy. Marcus had the day off, so he was helping me set up. At 7:15, Jamal arrived and also pitched in. By 7:30 we had about 10 guests, and Amy came rushing through the door with her arms loaded. Jamal went out to help her bring the rest of the food in, and I was busy playing host, so I just waved to her and continued mixing drinks.
Amy seemed frazzled and mentioned that she was late because the caterer had been finishing the food prep when she arrived. I was surprised to hear that based on my earlier call from them, but didn't have a chance to ask her about it as she rushed to the bedroom to change.
The party went well, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Amy had me make her a Boulevardier when she finished changing, and downed the first one quickly. She asked for another, and I raised an eyebrow as I handed it to her.