Date: Mon, 18 Mar 2002 01:56:40 EST
From: JimAcrew@aol.com
Subject: Chapter 2  We Were Meant to Be

We Were Meant to Be
Chapter 2
By J.Crew
March 17, 2002

**********************************

This is my first time writing and all the usual stuff applies.  You
shouldn't be here unless you're legal and know what you're doing.  Of
course I won't know, and certainly won't tell whether you are, or whether
you should be here.  This story is about two people who find each other and
fall hopelessly in love.  Oh, did I mention the two people are both male?
Well they are, as a matter of fact one is only a teenager, and the other is
older.  But you'll have to read the story to find out all about them.

If you'd like to write me and share your thoughts or comments, my e-mail
address is JimACrew@aol.com

**********************************

About two hours later I found myself in a project meeting at the
Philadelphia field office.  My company, World Construction Corporation
(WCC) had the renovation contract for the former Philadelphia Stock
Exchange building's final conversion of The Sofitel Philadelphia.  The
Sofitel was the newest hotel in the city of brotherly love.  It had been a
twelve million-dollar contract, I was the Project Manager, I was glad we
were winding down.

All I could think about was Kip and his family.  I worried about the twins;
they seemed so young, too young to have cancer.  I thought about all he had
told me on the airplane.  For sixteen he had his act together, he was on
the Lacrosse team, belonged to the National Honor Society, and delivered
newspapers papers seven days a week. I pictured Kip sitting at a table
doing his homework at four in the morning; I shook my head as I did.

"Something wrong Jarrod?"  Jim Parsons asked, bringing me out of my
daydream.

"Um, no.  I'm sorry Jim."

I sat up in my chair, and quickly took the computer report in front of me
on the table and began checking the figures.  At least if I wasn't going to
pay attention, I could act interested.  I glanced up more than once to see
Jim looking at me.

Jim is my boss; he's the Regional VP.  Our region is the entire East Coast
of the Continental US.  WCC's East Coast stretches from Ohio south to the
Gulf Coast, and east to the Atlantic, it's one of the largest regions in
the company.  Jim and I have known each other since my college days.  He
hired me as an intern while I was at Penn State getting my Civil
Engineering degree, and took me on full time when I graduated some four
years ago.

I watched Jim as he stood up from his chair and walked to the window behind
him.  He slowly turned to the window, then back around to face the table.
I could tell he was getting frustrated with the way things were going in
the meeting.  I wished I had paid more attention.  I couldn't figure out
why this kid was taking up all my thoughts.  Instead of the change order we
were negotiating with the HVAC contractor I was thinking about this sweet
teenager I had just met.

Jim crossed his left arm across his belly and rested his folded right arm
on it, so his right hand held his chin in it.  He began stroking his chin,
I knew he was frustrated, I just hadn't paid enough attention to the
meeting and felt that was why.  It wasn't like me to be preoccupied; I was
the guy always on top of things.  I stared at the numbers on the proposal
in front of me.  Suddenly it jumped out at me; they were looking for thirty
five percent more.  I knew the budget for the item was already within ten
of what was estimated.  I might have been late, but I could see why Jim was
upset now.  I knew I'd have to get the sub contractor out to lunch to do
some more negotiating, this was not going to be an easy sell, and certainly
not with the stale bagels we were serving there in the office.

I looked at Joe Swenson, the HVAC company's number cruncher, then to Jim.
I winked at Jim; he shot me a faint smile.  I picked up my pencil and
started tapping it on the report in front me.  I waited for Joe to look me
in the eye, I hoped my distraction would cause him to look up.

"Joe, what's say you and I do lunch?  We're not getting anywhere here, and
we're miles apart."  I said when he finally did look up.

"Yeah, miles."  Jim closed with, leaving Joe no room to misunderstand.

The two of us went to lunch.

Later that evening I found myself alone in my hotel room.  Sometimes I
really hate traveling and living out of my suitcase.  I get back to the
rooms in the hotels after dinner wishing I had somewhere to go, and someone
to go with.  Instead, I usually find myself curled up on one of the beds
with a good book.  It's not that I don't enjoy reading, it's just that I'd
really rather be sharing my time with someone.

That evening was different though, I found myself thinking about Kip.
Hell, I couldn't seem to get his picture out of my mind.  I found myself
wondering what he'd look like naked.  I hadn't had thoughts like that since
I was his age, some ten years before.  Oh, don't get me wrong, I fantasized
about different guys from time to time, but with Kip it was different.  I
couldn't get him out of my mind; everything about him seemed to wake
something deep inside me.

I couldn't wait until Friday, when I'd see him again.  I began to think
about when we got back home to Springfield.  Shit, I had it all thought out
in my head how we'd become good friends and I would help him with his math,
just so I could be near him.  I couldn't ever remember being so obsessed
with another person, as I seemed to be with this seemingly delightful
teenager, Kip.

I finally fell asleep.

The next two days flew by, and I'd find myself constantly thinking about
Kip.  I wondered about his little cousins, and pictured his aunt all
frazzled and worn.  Jim mentioned more than once that I seemed distracted,
and asked me several times if everything was all right.  I told him it was,
and he asked me the last time I had had a vacation.  I couldn't remember;
it hadn't been since Sherry and I broke up though.

As I left the office on Friday to catch my flight, Jim told me to take a
few weeks off.  He told me he was happy I had re-negotiated the change
order with the HVAC contractor and got him to a number within our budget
and that I deserved a bonus, but take a few weeks off, paid, instead.  Just
like him, take a few weeks off with pay. Hell, I'm a salaried employee I
get paid whether I work or not.

I found myself waiting in the terminal anxiously awaiting Kip's arrival.  I
could feel my heart racing, and my stomach doing flips.  Every time I
caught the movement of someone new in the area out of the corner of my
eyes, I'd look up hoping it would be Kip and his family.

I heard them call the flight, and still no Kip.  I began to worry about his
little cousins.  I hoped everything was OK with them. I kept checking over
my shoulder to see if Kip was behind me as I walked to the plane.  I slowly
boarded the plane and took my seat in the first class cabin. Every time
someone new boarded the plane I would bend around the seat back in front of
me to see if it was Kip.  I was a nervous wreck worrying about a kid and
his family I barely knew.  I heard the flight attendants close the door,
and make the safety announcements.  He never got on the plane.

The flight back to Bradley was rough; we hit turbulence almost as soon as
we left the runway it seemed.  I tried to sleep, but my mind raced with
fears about Kip's cousins.  I tried to picture his bright white smile.  I
thought about his dark complexion, and his soft voice.  I poked at the
dinner they brought me; I didn't have an appetite.  The only thing that I
was thankful for was the fact Kip was my paper-boy.  After all, I had the
next two weeks off, surely I'd see him at some point. I'd wait at my door
for the paper I figured.  Then I remembered giving him my phone number, and
wished I had gotten his.  I prayed that he'd call if something happened.

I got home about ten that night, I was exhausted.  I left my bag by the
door to my condo, right where I dropped it as soon as I walked in.  Every
muscle in my back ached, and I could feel a migraine coming on.  I dragged
my ass into the bathroom and looked in the medicine cabinet for some Advil.
Even my fingers seemed to ache as I tried to open the bottle.  I popped two
of the pinkish pills into my mouth and took a swig of water to wash them
down.  I hated the taste of the water that came out of my tap, too much
chlorine, but I was too tired to walk into the kitchen for the bottled
water.

I thought about the walk up the stairs to my bedroom, and decided the couch
looked mighty comfortable.  I kicked off my shoes, unbuttoned my shirt and
took it off, and dropped my body onto the over stuffed sofa I had just
bought two months earlier.  I pulled the blanket I had folded and draped
over the back of the couch and threw it over me.  Within minutes I was fast
asleep.

I woke to the telephone ringing, at first I was in a dream like state and
thought it was the office phone ringing, and then I realized it was my home
phone.  I jumped off my couch, my legs got tangled up in the blanket and I
nearly fell over as I grabbed the phone off the table next to my recliner.
I hoped it was Kip calling to tell me everything was fine.

"Hello."

"Hi, is this Mr. Turner?  This is Jessica from Verizon Wireless; we have an
ideal plan for you Mr. Turner.  Do you have a few minutes you can spare?"
A very overly friendly voice rattled off into my ear.

I looked quickly at the clock on top of my television; it was only 9:00
AM. What were these people at Verizon thinking?  I mean who in their right
mind gets up at this hour on a Saturday, and hopes to get this kind of
telephone call.  Let alone, being woken up and having some simply
delightful chipper woman ramble on.  Who makes these kinds of marketing
decisions?  I wondered to myself.

"Gee, thanks.  What was your name again...Jessica?  Well you have a nice
day, but I think I like the plan I have now.

"Did you know Mr. Turner that we can save you a buck or two on all your
calls?  That's a lot of money Mr. Turner.  Why don't I review our new plan
with you Mr. Turner?"

If she called me Mr. Turner one more time I was going to scream.

"Like I said Jessica, I'm not interested.  Have a nice day."

"Mr. Turner, did you know that Verizon is the nations number one long
distance carrier?"

"LOOK JESSICA, I'M NOT INTERESTED!"  I yelled into the phone and slammed it
down.

I had thoughts of calling Verizon and complaining, but I knew I'd be
rebuffed with some automated voice and computerized answering device.
Instead, I shook the sleep from my head and walked to my bathroom.  I hate
it when I get upset like that with people.  Someone really should do
something about those kinds of phone calls, I told myself in an attempt to
calm down.

Maybe a good morning run would make me feel better I decided, as I splashed
some of the foul smelling water from my bathroom sink onto my face.  That's
what I'd do, I'd change my clothes and go for a healthy run in Forest Park.
I looked out the bathroom window and noticed the sun was shining, there is
nothing like a jog through the park with the warmth of a morning sun
enveloping my body.  So many things in my life had changed since I became
divorced, exercise and taking care of my body was only one of the changes I
had made.

I guess at some point after we separated, and I found myself alone, I
decided I would do things for me.  For the few years we were together, I
did everything for Sherry, my whole world seemed to revolve around her and
her needs.  When I finally realized I no longer had to worry about her, and
could focus on me, I found some happiness.  That was about the time I
figured out I really never loved her.  Our marriage had been for comfort
and born of expectations.  The entire time we were together there never
seemed to be these selfless acts of unconditional love I often heard about.
No, our union was based on what we expected of each other, and neither of
us ever seemed to meet the marks.

I caught myself thinking about Kip again as I changed into my jogging suit.
I hoped everything was all right, I wished he would call, and had no idea
when I'd see him again.  I kept convincing myself I'd see him soon, as he
had to deliver my newspaper and found some relief in knowing that.

I watched myself in the full length mirror hanging on my bedroom wall.  My
body wasn't that bad I thought to myself.  I looked at the small patch of
brown hair that nestled itself in the center of my 40-inch chest.  I
studied the way my boxers seemed to be slipping down my 32-inch waist and
wondered if I'd lost some weight.  I looked at my wavy brown hair and
wondered how long it would be before I began going gray.  I was twenty-six,
feeling like I was going on thirty-six.  I noticed my brown eyes seemed to
be distant as I looked at their reflection, it was almost like I was
someone else staring at me.  I felt so alone.

A little while later I found myself jogging through the park, alone in my
thoughts about Kip.

**********************************

To be continued.