Thanks to the Right Rev. Rumple Foreskin for very helpful editorial suggestions. Thanks to fcdc for assistance in navigating the Notre Dame campus. Absolutely no disrespect is intended to the University of Notre Dame or its mission, or to persons who suffer from kyphosis.
*
"...but we only call her that —
behind her back!
" Todd delivered the predictable snark.
Appalled, Jason watched as his roommate howled with laughter. "Don't you think that's immature?"
"Sure, man, but who cares!"
"Leave me out of it," said Jason. "She's a human being. How would you like it?"
Todd shrugged. Word had spread like wildfire on the Notre Dame campus that one of the new freshmen had the condition commonly known as "dowager's hump." Not surprisingly, the gossip fiends had promptly dubbed her "the hunchback of Notre Dame."
A few buildings away, the young lady in question was feeling some trepidation about the first day of class. Unlike Jason, Josie enjoyed a single room with a private bath to herself. It had not been difficult to convince the administration that the young lady needed privacy due to her condition. Personal hygiene, in particular, was a matter best kept from prying eyes.
Now as she brushed her teeth, she studied her petite reflection in the mirror. Would college be much different from high school? Maybe when people turned nineteen or twenty, they had a bit more in the way of social graces. Or maybe this particular locale, this school, was a nicer place to be. Josie turned sideways, eying her slender figure, studying the curved profile of her back. She very much hoped so.
***
French class began about as Josie expected. A few of her peers murmured things like "Oh!" at the sight of her. Only one person openly stared, but looked away when Josie looked her in the eye. The freshman took a seat in the last row. At least there, no one would face her spine.
Just as the professor began speaking, someone came skidding through the door and dove for the nearest desk, the one beside her. Jason caught his breath, looked over and said, "Hello." In so doing, he became the first student on campus to offer her that courtesy.
"Hi." The smile Josie spared him was genuine, but brief; her feelings of self-defense held her back from saying more. She made an obvious display of concentrating on the professor's words. She didn't look at her new classmate as the syllabus was passed around.
Had she seen his face, she might have realized the effect she had on him. Jason thought to himself that he would remember that cute smile forever. Her pixie-like features were permanently etched in his mind. A few freckles dashed their way across her cheeks and tiny nose. Her eyes were blue as a summer sky. Her hair was a cap of dark red, the lowest wisps barely grazing the nape of her neck. Jason was utterly captivated.
"We must begin right away," Mme. Alexandre honked like a goose. "Who here does not have the textbook?"
A few kids raised their hands, Jason among them. Most of them blushed at their lack of preparation.
Madame was clearly displeased. "Okay, you, you and you. Share with the person next to you."
Dismayed, Josie opened her book and gave it a half-hearted little push in Jason's direction. Past social experiences had made her wary, and she would rather have kept to herself.
To her relief, the guy next to her seemed to be a gentleman. Or, she mused, maybe even a scholar. At least he must be a serious student, for he actually seemed to be paying attention to the class. Not once did he appear to even notice her back. Josie offered up a silent prayer of thanks for that.
They went through the verbal drills. Madame honked out the lead and directed her charges to follow. By the end of the class, every student had recited a few simple sentences and conjugated the basic verbs.
Jason thanked Josie for sharing her text and packed up his notebook. He noticed that she didn't carry a backpack. He wondered if it was too painful for her to carry one, but didn't dare ask.
He left the class reflecting on how pretty she was, and started thinking up a way to ask her out.
***
Back in Keenan Hall, Jason dug up as much information as he could about the condition known as dowager's hump. He found out that the clinical term was kyphosis, or if the condition was severe, hyperkyphosis. He studied the various causes. It was silly to think he might somehow help her. She probably knew all of this stuff already, and more. Nonetheless ... maybe there was something he could do. He just didn't know what, yet.
Of course! Jason slapped his forehead. How could he be such an idiot? Josie didn't need clinical help. She needed a friend. He smiled and reached for the phone. His mom would be glad to hear that one of her lessons had sunk in.
The next morning Jason took his place beside Josie in French class. "Brought my own book this time," he showed it to her.
Josie gave him the same small smile, and again, only the briefest of glances. "Congratulations."
He wanted her attention. "I'm Jason." He stuck out his hand, making it impossible for her to ignore him further.
She shook his hand and appeared to take him a bit more seriously. "Josie."
He knew what she saw: a ruddy-cheeked fellow with brown hair, blue eyes a few shades darker than hers. He was rather ordinary-looking. Jason knew this about himself, and built on it. He tried to make himself look as non-threatening as possible. Putting on his best friendly smile, he offered, "Nice to meet you."
To his delight, her eyes twinkled a little bit. "You, too," she replied. Then, with a nod, she turned her attention to the front of the class.
The drills that day were similar, except Madame directed the students to break into pairs to practice conversation. The couple in the back recited the foreign words to one another, along with everyone else. Fifty people speaking out loud at the same time made quite a hubbub. Jason leaned close to hear Josie's soprano.
He complimented her. "Your pronunciation is really good."
"My grandparents were French. My last name is Baptiste."
"So you're Joey the Baptist?" he joked. "That'd be a great name for a mafia hit man."
Josie laughed. "Yeah, I'll play youse a tune on my violin." She mimicked a south side Chicago accent.
Jason took his cue. "Hey, how about studying with me? I could really use the help."
Josie's giggling faded and she hesitated. But then she smiled and said, "Okay."
"Great!" He gave her his number.
Josie thought,
I hope he's not making fun of me
. But she felt like she had to take a chance, sooner or later, on rubbing elbows with the human race.
He was not making fun of her, and he did not stand her up, as she half-suspected he might. And she did help Jason with his pronunciation. The two fell into a regular pattern of meeting to study on Sunday afternoons and Wednesday evenings.
"
Formidable!
" she enthused. "You're really getting the hang of it!"
Jason grinned. "I just wish there was something I could help you with." He was thinking about her kyphosis.
"Know anything about calculus? I suck at it." Josie wrinkled her nose.
Jason laughed. "Oh, yeah, that's easy. Where are you stuck?" It turned out that he was three levels ahead of her in the subject. Jason was delighted. More studying meant more Josie.
He developed quite a crush on his fellow freshman. He was pleased to discover she could hold up her end of a conversation. Jason loved unraveling the mysteries of human nature, and it seemed that Josie did, too. In addition, once you got to know her, she had a terrific sense of humour.
He wanted so badly to ask her out, but labored under the impression that she needed time to get to know him better. Who could blame her? Undoubtedly she had put up with a lot of crap because of her deformity. So Jason bided his time, paying attention to French and calculus.
He made it through the third week of September, but finally, it was like having to pee. As they packed up their books, Jason drew a deep breath.
"Josie," he said, and stopped.
"Yes?"
"I wonder if you would -- I mean -- are you seeing anyone?"
"Why do you ask?" Her tone was cautious.
"Would you like to go see a movie," he blurted.
"Sure. I thought you'd never ask. Whaddya want to go see?"
Jason laughed. He rubbed a hand over his face. "I don't know," and a big goofy grin spread across his features. "I didn't think of that."
She giggled and squeezed his hand with her small one. Laughing, they went in search of the movie listings.
***
A lovers' moon shone down as they walked home from the theater. In the dark, the autumn leaves seemed to have a stronger scent. Jason wanted to take Josie by the hand, but after what had happened during the film, he hesitated.
At one point he had settled his arm around her petite shoulders. Josie froze. She leaned forward, turned toward him, and lifted his arm away. She didn't say anything. In the dim light, Jason could not interpret the look on her face, but he got the message. Her response was clearly a negative one.
Now he tried to make small talk about the actors, but the words died on his lips. He was kicking himself for trying to touch her. Obviously this was a sensitive part of her life. Maybe there was physical pain, too. Maybe he should have asked first, or waited longer...
Josie detected his silent funk, and swallowed. "Hey," she touched his sleeve. "Want to have a seat?" She gestured at a nearby bench.
Jason's eyebrows lifted. "Ah, sure."
He sat down, and Josie circled around, placing herself as if they were sitting in an old-fashioned loveseat. She twisted a little to face him.
"I wanted to explain."
He waved a hand of dismissal. "You don't owe me anything, Josie."
