Ben could talk but his injuries were so bad he couldn’t do much else. By the time Gennie had her baby on June 15, 1969, Ben was sitting up and feeding himself. Gennie had Michele Adelaide at the same hospital that Ben was in so he could see her soon after she was born. He remarked that she looked just like Gennie, except for her dark hair, which she must have inherited from Rory.
Gennie and Rory’s situation was far from ideal, but they handled it the best they could. Rory’s parents were a big help and Gennie was grateful for them. Gennie withdrew from school the same day the test results confirmed she was pregnant. It was for the best since she was so behind in her homework she would never be able to make it up. Rory was still attending school but he also had a part-time job at night as a salesperson for a furniture store. Gennie hardly ever saw him. Their money was tight, so Gennie decided to breastfeed. Though it was very hard and painful in the beginning, as time progressed it became easier and she did it for a full ten months. By that time, Rory had graduated from college. He wanted to move to Los Angeles so he could audition for roles, but they didn’t have the money to move yet. It seemed as if they were going to be permanently stuck at his parents’ house, until Gennie came up with an idea just before she fell asleep one night.
Once a month, Rory’s family had a meeting where they brought up anything that had been on their minds as of late. Gennie mentioned her idea at the meeting.
“You guys have been so great,” Gennie said, holding Michele in her arms. “I feel guilty about us living here, and I’ve been trying to think of a way to save up some more money so we can move to Los Angeles.”
“Don’t feel bad,” Carla said. “We love having you here.”
“I know but…we should be getting our own place soon, and I think I found a way.”
“I’d like to hear this,” Rory replied.
“Well…I’d like to go back to college and get my degree.”
“I thought you were going to stay at home with the baby,” Rory said.
“I was, but I’ve decided that the sooner I get a degree, the better. I remember the career counselor saying that the average starting salary for an engineer is ten thousand a year. We could put a down payment on a house with that.”
“But you going back to school is going to cost us more money,” Rory replied.
“Yeah, in the short run it is,” Gennie said, “but in the long run it’ll be worth it.”
“Who’s going to take care of the baby?” Rory asked.
“We’re going to have to figure that out.”
“I don’t know if you want an opinion from an old fogy like me,” Rory’s father, Eugene said, “but you should let Rory bring the money in. It’ll take longer to get on your feet, but I think it will be a lot easier for both of you.”
Gennie frowned, feeling frustrated that they weren’t supporting her idea. She sighed deeply.
“You know, I went to college for three years and I studied my butt off, and now I have nothing to show for it. I want to get my degree at least.”
“I just thought of something,” Carla stated. “If you really want your degree, you could take a few classes at a time. That way you can spend some time out of the house working on that, but you won’t be out all day and loaded down with homework all night. I can watch the baby the few hours you’re gone.”
“That’s a wonderful idea!” Gennie replied. “What do you think, Rory?”
“It’s okay with me,” he said. “I know how much you’ve missed school.”
Gennie was readmitted to Berkeley as a part-time student. She took only three classes, two on Tuesday and one on Wednesday, so most days she was home with the baby. On her days off, she would take Michele to Malcolm and Colleen’s house to visit Ben. He was at the same stage Michele was. He could walk but he was still unsteady on his feet. He went to physical therapy for three hours a day and outside of that, he spent his days watching TV or listening to his old albums. He was always thrilled to see his niece and today he was especially happy.
“I think I’m at the point that I can start looking for another job,” he told her.
Val had left town soon after Ben’s accident and locked up the restaurant, leaving all their employees, including Ben, out of work. Ben wasn’t well enough to run the restaurant by himself, and besides, he found out later that Val never bothered to pay taxes and was serving alcohol without a liquor license. Ben thought she might have left town with her new boyfriend, since the police wanted to question him about Ben’s accident and they couldn’t find him either. When Ben’s car was examined, they found his brake lines had been cut, and suspected it may have been one of them. Unbeknownst to Ben, Val had a two hundred thousand dollar life insurance policy taken out on him, so that may have been a motivation. Ben couldn’t remember a single thing about the accident, including why he was in Walnut Creek, so he wasn’t much help there. The whole situation was such a mess that Ben had no choice but to close the restaurant permanently. Luckily, he had Malcolm to help him out with the back taxes, but between that and his medical bills, he was drowning in debt and had to give up his apartment and declare bankruptcy.
“Are you going to start another restaurant?” Gennie asked him.
“Yeah, someday. When I get the money. It was fun having my own restaurant while it lasted.”
“You can do it again. I know it.”
Chapter 46: January 1, 1973
What They Left Behind Page 45