The Experiment

by Grant C. Holland

  With a heavy sigh, Jamie said, “It’s not something like that, Aaron. It’s something unethical. I’m being asked to lie, plain and simple.”

  A look of shock replaced Aaron’s easygoing, gentle smile. “You what? Lie?”

  Jamie spoke in a robotic monotone. He said, “Yeah, you know that I’ve been working on combing through records to make sure there aren’t any mistakes. Well, I’ve finished that but my boss said they want to adjust things a bit. They want it to make the company look just a little rosier for the permanent record.”

  “That’s shit,” said Aaron. Jamie listened as Aaron’s voice took on a sharp tone. “Did you tell them no?”

  “Ultimately, I didn’t say anything. I just stared at him as he walked out the door to my office.”

  “You aren’t going to do it, are you?” asked Aaron.

  Jamie reached out for the beer and said, “I don’t know. I just don’t know. I’ve got all weekend now to forget about it. Can we just forget about it, Aaron? Are you here for the weekend?”

  Aaron wouldn’t let it go. He asked, “Is it really worth it, Jamie? I mean…that’s about personal integrity. Surely you can get a job somewhere else, or it’s a big company. You can ask to be moved to a different department.”

  “Aaron!” shouted Jamie. “Let’s just drop it for now. I can’t think it through. I can’t sort it out. My head hurts, and my gut is sick. Please, just sit here with me.”

  After he started to open his mouth again, Aaron caught himself. He leaned his head against Jamie’s chest in silence. He said, “Derek is in town both today and tomorrow. My plan was to ride back to the Cove with him on Sunday morning unless we come up with other plans.”

  “That sounds good. I’m really happy you’re here. Honestly, I am. Is everything good down in the Cove, Aaron? Have you seen the lake lately?”

  Aaron said, “I took Christy and Sylvia out to dinner at the Point on Wednesday night. Sylvia walked out on the dock and stared down at the minnows. She’s growing so fast. Christy is worried about the custody hearings, but I don’t see any way that Ethan can win. Christy is a fantastic mother.”

  Jamie groaned and whispered, “I almost forgot about all of that. I’ll be down there when they need me.” He was silent for a moment and then he rubbed at Aaron’s chest with his right hand. “You feel so good, Aaron.” Jamie nestled his head on Aaron’s chest, and he said a few more words that Aaron couldn’t quite make out.

  As he ran his fingertips through Jamie’s hair, Aaron felt Jamie relax. The breathing slowed and a few short minutes later Jamie was asleep.

  21

  Jamie

  Life settled into some new kind of normal, but Jamie sensed that he was living on a different planet from the one that he ever expected to inhabit. Suddenly, he was being courted by the executives at work. He was invited out to dinner with the elder VPs and their wives. The middle-aged men shared stories with Jamie about their yachts and vacations to Paris. They talked about the old days in college before the Internet and cell phones. Their wives were dripping in jewels, and they even expressed the desire to meet Aaron and bring him into the circle. In an oblique reference to their sexual orientation, Rupert Sheaves’ wife said, “We would never even consider excluding any particular type of person.”

  Jamie’s golf game was brought back from dormancy. He previously learned to play golf with Caleb, ,and they occasionally hit the course with other eager young ladder climbers. Soon, they got bored with golf, and Jamie’s set of clubs drifted far into the rear of his coat closet. When Jamie shared details of his new good fortune with Caleb, he was met with little more than jealous stares.

  When Caleb did finally say something out loud, it was snarky comments like, “Hope you have fun with the warped and wrinkled set,” or “How many of the old ladies pinched your rosy little cheeks today?”

  Jamie decided that he could put up with Caleb’s teasing and occasional outright scorn. He could see in his friend’s eyes that it was all rooted in a wish that they were sharing the same praise and attention. When he had a few moments in his office to himself, Jamie hoped that he could sort out ways to leverage his new status to bring Caleb along, too. After all, Caleb was even more devoted to the company’s future success.

  On his nightly video chats with Aaron, Jamie talked very little about work. Instead, Aaron shared stories about antics with the Purple Pack in high school while Jamie talked about being out on the town with Caleb when they first met each other and hanging around together on their corporate trips to Europe. He said, “Caleb will love hanging out with both of us once you’ve moved up here.”

  One evening Aaron asked the question that Jamie dreaded to answer. “So did you do what the bosses asked you to do?”

  Jamie tried to play dumb. He knew it wouldn’t work, but he thought maybe it would buy him just a few precious minutes to think. He said, “I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

  Aaron sighed and said, “I think you know exactly what I’m talking about. A week and a half ago when I was up there visiting, and you came home so upset, you said they asked you to do something that you didn’t want to do.”

  Jamie spoke softly and said, “Well, yeah, but it was not nearly as big of a deal as I thought. Now everything is just smooth sailing Aaron.”

  That was the last conversation about Jamie’s work before Aaron arrived in the city for the next planned weekend together. Jamie thought that Aaron seemed a little bit distant when they met in the lobby of Jamie’s building, but he knew that he had the entire weekend to smooth things over. Two nights in bed together with Aaron could cure any ills.

  By Saturday at noon, Aaron was back to his normal cheerful self. He was excitedly talking about taking Sylvia to the bookstore to see Yale when he got back to Catlett’s Cove, and he reminded Jamie that the custody hearing was on Monday in the late afternoon.

  Aaron explained that Christy’s lawyer originally said they might need three separate hearings before the case could be decided, but their opponent’s situation had taken a turn for the worse. Ethan was cited for a misdemeanor charge of disturbing the peace after starting a fistfight in a bar.

  Christy’s lawyer was certain they had the case won, but they still needed to go through the formality of presenting the evidence in front of a judge. She suggested the presence of both Aaron and Jamie would be a positive one. The judge would see that Sylvia was surrounded by loving and nurturing adults of both genders.

  Jamie said, “I’ll definitely be there. I’ll spend the night in the Cove, and we can go out to dinner to celebrate on Monday if everything is quick or do it Tuesday night before I head home.”

  “That sounds perfect!” said Aaron. “Sylvia will be so excited, and I can’t wait to see Christy finally really relax again.”

  What Jamie didn’t expect was the phone call he received right after lunch. It was Rupert Sheaves, and he was calling to invite Jamie for a golf outing on Sunday. “Tomorrow?” asked Jamie.

  Aaron watched with his head cocked to the right as the conversation continued. He heard Jamie say, “Yes, Sir,” and, “I understand how important it is.” Then he said, “Sir, I did have plans.” That comment was followed by a frown and finally Jamie said, “I will be there. You can count on me, Sir.”

  Jamie took a deep, heavy breath when he slipped the phone back into his pocket and looked up at Aaron. “What was that all about?” asked Aaron.

  Jamie said, “I’m going golfing tomorrow.”

  Aaron shook his head and said, “No, you aren’t. We’re going to the baseball game. We’re seeing the Vultures play the Muskrats. I’ve got the tickets. Remember?”

  “Of course I remember,” said Jamie. “I’m really, really sorry. I was looking forward to it just as much as you, but it’s my boss. He’s leaning really hard on me. I couldn’t say no.”

  “Well, what am I supposed to do, Jamie? Go to the game by myself? It’s not like I’m down in the Cove and can just give Thomas a ring and ask if he wa
nts to come with me and use the other ticket.”

  Jamie curled his hands up at his sides. He said, “I told you I’m sorry. I’m doing this for us. It’s so we can have a great future here in the city. I’m the golden boy, Aaron. I’m putting it all together so we can do whatever we want...forever.”

  Aaron spat back, “I don’t know if I want it if it’s all built on fraud.” He turned his back and crossed his arms over his chest. Jamie watched as Aaron’s shoulders heaved. Then Aaron turned back around and in a low voice said, “Just go do what you need to do tomorrow, Jamie. At least we’ve got the rest of today together, and I don’t want to ruin it. I promise that I won’t be an ass.”

  The rest of the evening was peaceful, but Aaron was distant again. Jamie let it go. He understood how disappointing it was for their plans to be continually disrupted by work. He even swallowed hard and accepted Aaron passing on any sex before going to sleep that night. They kissed and Jamie said, “I love you, Aaron.”

  Aaron responded with a whispered, “Love you, too,” before he rolled over in bed and faced the wall.

  The next morning Jamie stared at the alarm clock and tried to will Aaron to wake up. He didn’t want to leave for the golfing date before Aaron even got out of bed, but sleeping late on Sundays was one of Aaron’s most treasured pastimes.

  Jamie tried a gentle little push on Aaron’s shoulder, but that only resulted in Aaron rolling over and pulling his knees a little further up toward his chest. Jamie spooned up behind and wrapped his arm around Aaron’s chest before drifting off himself for a few more minutes.

  Waking up with a start, Jamie realized he couldn’t wait any longer. He kissed Aaron’s cheek and whispered, “I love you” before heading for the shower and getting dressed for several hours of roaming the golf course.

  While standing on the twelfth green in the second game of the day, Jamie received a text from Aaron. It was a photo of the minor league baseball stadium and a simple note reading:

  Wish you were here.

  Jamie typed back:

  I’ll be seeing you soon.

  Unfortunately, Jamie’s statement didn’t come true. When he was finally released from the long, drawn out day of golf with the company bosses, he hurried home as fast as he could. He nearly leaped out of the elevator and flung open the door to the apartment. Jamie called, “Aaron, I’m back finally!”

  His words echoed back off the walls of the living room, and there was no response. Jamie darted throughout the apartment. The bed was made, and Aaron’s suitcase was gone.

  Jamie found a note lying on the island in the kitchen. It read:

  I’m sorry. I had to go. I want to take Christy and Sylvia out to dinner tonight to keep their minds on better things before tomorrow. Aaron.

  Jamie kicked at the island, but he understood. Aaron was being as patient as possible, and he was providing the best support possible to Christy and Sylvia. Jamie called Caleb instead, and they shared a meal at the sports bar. Caleb was more cheerful than Jamie had seen him in the last couple of weeks. After several minutes of chit chat, he heard the reason why.

  Caleb said, “Your boss invited me on a golf date next weekend, Jamie! Good work! Thanks for putting in a good word!”

  * * *

  Monday at work was another strange day. It fit right in with recent patterns, but Jamie imagined that he was on some strange work carnival ride, and he was hoping it would slow down soon.

  Rupert Sheaves stopped in at 10:00 a.m. to let Jamie know that he was getting a new office. It would be in a similar location to his current space, but it was one floor above with the more senior executives. Jamie asked, “Will I be bringing my secretary along with me?”

  Rupert Sheaves shook his head no. He said, “You will be just two doors away from me, Jamie. Lori will work for you, and she has two girls that work for her, so you will have a great little team up there to help out.”

  Before he left Jamie’s office, the boss said, “And by the way, Jamie. Why don’t you leave work a little early today on me. Maybe call it a day at three or so. You’ve been working hard lately. You deserve a little break. We’ll start moving you upstairs tomorrow.”

  Jamie’s head was flooded with half-formed thoughts and ideas for the rest of the shortened day. He knew that he needed to go for a walk to try and sort things through. For some reason, physical activity always helped out. Sometimes Jamie even played little mental games and attached specific ideas to objects on his path. Then he consider the ideas individually as he passed by.

  It was a beautiful late summer afternoon for a walk. Jamie parked the car in his building’s garage and headed for the massive downtown park anchored by a granite war memorial. It was buzzing with tourists, but Jamie was still able to feel alone with his thoughts.

  Jamie started to think about his priorities. He matched the work opportunities with the massive granite statue. In a sharp comparison, he identified Aaron with the cheerful throngs of people that darted this way and that along idiosyncratic pathways. It didn’t take long for Jamie to figure out that life would be much more fun as part of the teeming crowd instead of locking himself to a granite statue no matter how large and impressive.

  Turning back toward home, Jamie stopped and admired a classically structured fountain with a statue of the god Neptune on top with his three-pronged pitchfork. Then his phone rang.

  Jamie pulled out the phone and answered it quickly when he saw Aaron was calling. Aaron yelled into the phone, “Where the hell are you?”

  “What do you mean?” asked Jamie.

  Aaron’s voice grew even louder. “I can’t believe it. What do I mean? What the fuck, Jamie? You are supposed to be here with me, Christy, and Sylvia. Remember what’s going on?”

  “Oh damn! The hearing! I’ll be right there as quick as I can, Aaron. Tell Christy I’m on the way right now.”

  Aaron yelled, “It’s the future of your niece, and you can’t even be here! Way to go, Jamie! Way to…”

  Jamie couldn’t listen to any more of it. He cut the call off and stuffed the phone in his pants pocket. Jamie broke out into a jog and ran in his work clothes all the way back to his building’s parking garage.

  22

  Aaron

  Aaron paced back and forth in the foyer of the courthouse. He looked at the large painted portraits on the walls of past judges and tried not to think about Jamie. Instead his thoughts were focused on Christy and Sylvia.

  Christy sat on a bench with Sylvia and let her play with a computer game on the kids’ tablet that Aaron bought for Sylvia’s birthday. When they were in the courtroom, Sylvia was quiet and well behaved while the judge asked a series of questions.

  Aaron thought the hearing went well. Ethan was immediately put on the defensive being forced to try to explain his past criminal record and his ignorance about basic child care principles. Multiple times the judge frowned and called on the lawyer to quiet his client down.

  The judge looked like she was actually having fun when she talked to Sylvia. They briefly shared titles of some of their favorite children’s books, and the judge smiled when, after complimenting Sylvia’s red shoes, Sylvia insisted on telling a long involved story about her mommy Christy taking her shopping for the shoes at the far away mall in Mitchell.

  The break was lasting longer than Aaron expected, but the judge told them it could take as much as two hours. She said not to expect that a long break necessarily meant anything. She explained that there was a lot of paperwork to sort through and plans to develop for Sylvia’s well-being.

  As they walked out of the courtroom, Aaron whispered to Christy that he thought the judge’s long commentary on not worrying was a very good sign. He said it all amounted to, “Don’t worry. I’m on your side.”

  Christy did her best to smile and said, “I hope so.”

  Jamie said on the phone that he was on his way, but Aaron didn’t know whether he could completely trust that to be the case. Part of his gut was tensed up waiting to hear Jam
ie call back and say a last minute fake report needed his attention at work.

  Aaron looked up at another portrait. It was a distinguished-looking judge with a long, handsome face. He read the name, Theophilus Rogers. Then he turned toward Christy and nearly shouted across the foyer. “Hey, this is Hadley’s great-grandfather! You know, Thomas’ boyfriend. Thomas told me once that Hadley’s family helped found Catlett’s Cove. That’s why everybody knows his Aunt Mae.”

  Christy held a finger up to her lips. She said, “Don’t be quite so loud, Aaron.”

  He chuckled softly and walked across the foyer to sit on the bench with Sylvia in the middle. She was dressed in a blue lace summery dress, and Aaron thought she looked adorable. He wiggled his hips to sandwich her even tighter against Christy.

  Sylvia said, “Hey, you’re squeezing me.”

  Aaron whispered, “That’s because I like you.”

  Sylvia giggled in response.

  Aaron said, “I can see Hadley in the old guy over there. I love the sideburns, and he has some serious cheekbones. Trim those bushy eyebrows and run a comb through the old man’s hair, and he would be one handsome devil.”

  Christy turned her head and asked, “You’re falling for portraits on the wall?”

  Aaron tangled his fingers together and said, “I’m doing anything to try and not be nervous. It has been almost an hour and a half now.”

  Christy said, “Remember, she told us it could take as much as two hours, and you are supposed to be here to keep me calm, Aaron.”

  He said, “I’m doing my best, but you know me. Those butterflies start to take flight in my gut.”

  Sylvia looked up and asked, “Butterflies, Mr. Austin?”

  Aaron smiled down at her. “It’s just a saying, but my tummy feels a little funny. That’s when we say we’ve got butterflies in our stomach.”