Friends Don't

by Kerry M Kelly

CHAPTER 10

  It did not take Paul long to let her know why he was angry. He did not offer to eat first, fight later. After the waitress took their orders, he started.

  “So, you were unable to find a sitter for the weekend?” The venom in his voice made her shudder.

  “No,” she answered.

  “Funny. I almost get the feeling you’re backing out on our deal.”

  “Our deal did NOT include Oregon,” Katryn reminded him. “Please be fair.”

  “Fair has nothing to do with it. We had a deal. It included doing what the team does, and pretending to enjoy it.” That was true. It WAS what she had agreed to.

  “But I have a business to run, kids to take care of.”

  “Did you even try to work anything out?” he wanted to know.

  “Yes, of course I tried,” she knew she did not lie well, but she had to try.

  “Who’d you talk to, Katryn?” he asked. She waited till the waitress served their salads and left before answering.

  “I asked...”

  “Stop it,” he ordered. “I don’t want to hear any more of your lies. The truth is, you did NOT ask Audrey or Dottie or Joe. We worked it out last Tuesday when Dottie had lunch with me. You didn’t know she’d had lunch with me, did you?”

  Her mind was racing a mile a minute. Worked it out? Without asking her? What exactly had he told Dottie? Even worse, what had Dottie told him? And who ran the store? He saw the surprise in her eyes, saw when she knew she had been caught.

  “By the way,” he added nonchalantly, “Joe took care of the store. Now, just so you know, Dottie worked it out with Audrey. Audrey will stay with the boys Friday after school until Saturday evening. Dottie and Joe will take the boys Saturday evening through Sunday evening. If you get in late, they’ll keep the boys till Monday morning.

  “There’s no school next week, and Audrey said she was watching them during spring break anyway, so she’ll go to your house when Dottie calls to say she’s bringing the boys home Monday morning. Dottie will stay at work in the afternoon so you can take Ryan for his doctor’s appointment.”

  Katryn was angry at herself for lying. She was even angrier at Paul for going behind her back to set it up.

  “Who do you think you are, planning ...”

  “I’ll tell you who I am,” he said coldly. “I’m the guy who’ll ruin everything for you if you back out of our deal. You made a promise. I intend to see you keep it or I’ll go to Julie.”

  “Go ahead,” she challenged. “Go ahead and tell Julie. She wouldn’t believe you. And if she did, well then I’ll just explain ...”

  “Explain who the special friend is who gave you that necklace? And if she had any doubts, maybe Timmy could tell her about Pizza dinner at your house. Oh, she’ll believe me, Katryn, I assure you. And you’ll lose her for a friend for sure. And what’ll happen to your team, do you suppose? I’ve seen the looks Anne gives you. If she and Julie talk ... Of course Tom would probably ...”

  “Leave Tom out of it!” she demanded. “All right. All right, damn you, you win. I’ll go.”

  “And pretend you’re enjoying yourself?” he goaded her.

  “Oh, I’ll more than pretend. Larry asked to go, or did you tell him no?” She did not know why that scored such a big point, but the fury in his eyes proved it did, so she continued. “Of course you probably told him he couldn’t go. You’d hate to see me having a good time. What did you tell him?” she asked waspishly.

  “I told Larry he was welcome to go,” Paul said icily.

  “How nice for me,” she answered.

  Nothing else was said during the course of the meal. Paul would never have let her know he now had misgivings about what he had done. And not for reasons she would suspect. First Bill had come to Paul to ask exactly whom Paul was interested in. Paul had said no-one.

  “Then it’s free sailing if I date someone on the team?” Bill persisted. “I don’t want to step on toes.” Paul had happily assured Bill he had free sailing.

  Larry showed up next with the same question. Unable to tell Larry that he was interested in Katryn, Paul repeated what he had told Bill. Then he told Larry he was welcome to join them for the weekend. With Katryn hating him right now, and he had no doubts she hated him, he did not like the idea that he might be pushing Katryn into Larry’s arms. He was too bull-headed to back down, though.

  “We’ll be meeting at the Safeway on third and Maple,” he told her when lunch was finished. “I’m borrowing a minivan, and you’ll ride with me. Julie is riding with me, too, so it’ll work out ok. Be there by 5:30, Katryn. Dottie said she’d close the store for you so you can go home early and pack.”

  “Thank you very much for arranging this for me.” Sarcasm oozed with every word. “I will see you Friday. May I go back to work now, Master?”

  He would have smiled, but he was afraid she would throw something at him. Instead he nodded.

  She left him at the door to her shop, never once looking back to see if he were watching. She hated him. Hated how stupid she was to think he could be kind. Hated how much she had liked him. Her only solace was in knowing that she would only see him one more week for volleyball. League play was the 31st, and then her team quit for the summer.

  Most of them were on the same softball team. But Paul had not been invited to play on that team. Since Katryn was the captain, she knew he would not be.

  Dottie came up to Katryn after her lunch.

  “Did Paul tell you we fixed it so you could go to Rockaway Beach?”

  “He did,” Katryn admitted. She would not hurt her friend’s feelings for the world. “And, thanks a lot, Dottie. I owe you and Joe so much already...”

  “Don’t be silly. The boys are like our own grandsons, anyway. You wouldn’t want to deny us one weekend alone with them, would you?”

  “And you don’t mind running the store Saturday, all alone?” Katryn asked, praying for an out.

  “Joe’s going to help. I won’t be alone. And listen, we plan to open Monday, so if you’re late...” Darn.

  “Dottie, you’ll spoil me! But I doubt I’ll be that late anyway.”

  “Never can tell,” Dottie warned her, winking.

  If you only knew, Katryn thought. She realized, though, that Dottie was into everything romantic because of Joe, and she obviously liked Paul. It did not make it any easier for Katryn to know that Dottie thought she was doing her a big favor.

  ‘Oh Dottie, I do love you. But you’ve no idea what you’re doing,’ Katryn mused.

  Friday rolled around much quicker than Katryn had wanted. And it was not bad enough that she would hate the weekend, but she had had to hear over and over from Dottie, Joe, and especially her sons, how much they were all looking forward to it.

  No miracle had happened that would save her, so at 5:00 Katryn drove to Safeway. She arrived early, and was not surprised to see Paul was already there. She gave him her suitcase and overnight bag, and got on the minivan way in the back. Tom showed up next.

  “Katryn, Julie called and said she can’t come. Something came up. She’ll explain later. By the way, I spoke to a friend at the police department. Seems John will be locked up for quite some time. Once his face hit the paper, a few more women showed up to press charges. Seems one of them even had to go to the hospital. She’d have pressed charges sooner, but she’d not known what his name was. Met him at a bar, and he attacked her when he walked her out to her car. I’m told you won’t have to worry about him being out for a long, long time.”

  “Larry may not be able to make it,” Paul remembered when Katryn said Julie was not coming. “He said he’d try, but if he’s not here by 5:30, we’re to leave without him. He said he’ll drive down later if he misses us,” he added. Then Paul said, “I had nothing to do with it, honest.”

  Though surprised Paul had felt the need to add that last bit, Katryn merely nodded and then got back on the van. Katryn was actually relieved Julie was not comin
g. It did not bother her that Larry might not make it. Though she had told Paul she would have a good time with Larry, the truth was, he made her a little uncomfortable. She never had believed in using one guy to make another guy jealous. And, besides, she was afraid Larry might like her. She hated having to tell someone she was not interested.

  Bob and Mary showed up, and Katryn was sorry to hear they were driving down in their own car. They planned to follow Paul. Katryn wished they would ride with the others in the van. Not only because she liked Mary, but because she was afraid it might be very uncomfortable spending hours in the van when the only other woman in it hated her.

  Bob and Mary’s minds were made up, however, and Katryn did not dare ask to ride with them. Paul would probable kill all three of them, she decided. Ed and Ken arrived last.

  Paul checked all the tires again, and then started to fiddle with the van. It was after 5:30 when Katryn realized what he was doing. Getting out of the van, she headed over to where Paul was checking the rear tire. She gently touched his arm.

  “You don’t need to wait for Larry,” she told Paul when he turned around. “He’s a big boy. Let’s get this show on the road.” He nodded and followed her back to the van closing the door behind her. While Paul never actually admitted to waiting for Larry, he immediately got in the driver’s seat and they headed out.

  Though she teased Ken and Ed about not bringing their girl friends, and about how uneven the odds were, she was really glad that they had not brought dates. Had everyone been paired up, that would have left her with Paul and she could not have handled that.

  As it was, the seating worked out well. Tom and Anne sat in two of the three back seats, Ed and Katryn sat in the middle two, and Ken sat up front with Paul. One cooler was placed on the third back seat, and one was on the floor beside Ed. They were quite comfortable, and everything was handy. Katryn had to admit that space-wise, it was better that Bob and Mary had taken their own car.

  The trip down was long, but a lot of fun. They talked volleyball, at first, but eventually they got into telling jokes. Clean jokes, not-so-clean jokes, sick jokes, things that were only funny because they had been laughing too long.

  Katryn had never realized how much fun Ed could be. She should have figured a disc jockey could be entertaining, she supposed, but Ed had never been so funny before. And she was discovering what a great sense of humor Ken had. She was a little sorry she had not gotten to know her team better before this. Sitting next to Tom, Anne actually was more like her old self, and she told jokes, too.

  When they finally pulled into Rockaway Beach, they were all exhausted both from the laughing, and from the late hour. Anne was too tired to be angry with Katryn.

  Paul went to the office and got the keys. The women packed their gear into one huge room, and the men took the room next door. The men teased about how unfair it was. After all, there were only three women in the one room while five men had to share the other. Ed offered to make the odds even, but the women quickly, and resolutely, booted him out.

  Their rooms were on the second floor, and Katryn could hear and smell the ocean from the porch. Anne was too tired, so Katryn talked Mary into taking a quick walk to the ocean. They were a block away, and Katryn had to go see it up close. Mary was as anxious as she was, so they headed off.

  It was dark. A full moon shone off to their right, and there was a mist rolling in from the ocean. Street lamps lighted their way. When they got to the beach, they saw numerous campfires dotting the beach. The tide was coming in, and even this late at night a few brave souls ran to and from the water as each wave reached inland.

  The sound of the waves crashing around them all but drowned out any other sounds. Katryn and Mary stood mesmerized on a little knoll above the sandy beach.

  Katryn had no idea how long they had been there, nor when the men had joined them. She sensed, though, that she and Mary were no longer alone. Turning, she acknowledged the presence of Bob and Paul.

  After awhile Bob asked Mary if she were warm enough. He rubbed her shoulders for her, and Katryn felt a sudden sense of loss. To share something as beautiful as the ocean with someone you love must be the nearest thing to heaven, she bet. Anyway, she knew that not being able to share it with Paul was heart breaking.

  Katryn shivered a little, and Paul mentioned it was a bit chilly. They headed back to the motel for hot chocolate. Everyone crashed shortly thereafter. They all seemed eager to see the ocean early the next morning.

  Katryn slowly became aware of the low roar of the ocean rushing to shore. Betting she was the only one awake, she quietly slipped into the bathroom and changed into a sweat suit. She grabbed her jacket on her way out, and silently headed for the shore.

  It was still fairly dark. The sun had barely cleared the horizon, and the mist hung heavy around her. Still, it was beautiful. She knew there were most likely many other visitors on the beach, but she could not see anyone else through the heavy mist that shrouded her.

  She found a large log on the shore and was glad she had a long, waterproof jacket to sit on. The log was damp, but otherwise it was comfortable. Katryn watched the waves rushing towards her, racing each other, crashing over each other, and was hypnotized by the watching and the listening. She had been told about the roar of the waves, but until now she had never heard it. It was loud - almost deafening - but not noisy. Not abrasive. It was calming.

  She watched the ocean slowly receding. It was deceiving watching each wave rush to shore, buckling over the wave that preceded it. Though the waves were pushing to shore, it slowly became obvious that each must be breaking faintly short of the wave before it. The beach grew slowly while the ocean receded.

  Katryn had time to think about Paul, and Julie. While she started out a bit angry at how Paul had arranged the weekend, how he had forced her to be here, she no longer could remain upset with him. The ocean was fantastic. The trip down had been a lot of fun, and after all, it was not his fault how she felt about him. Nor was it fair to blame him for how the situation had ended up.

  It had warmed up a little. The mist had lifted considerably and the sun was quite visible off to her left when Paul joined her.

  “Been here long?” he asked, sitting down on the log beside her.

  “I don’t really know,” she admitted, surprised to see how high the sun now was. “It’s so beautiful, so calming, that I’ve lost all sense of time.” They sat silently for a while before Paul spoke.

  “Katryn, I’m sorry for what I said ...”

  “No, don’t apologize. Please. I don’t blame you. It’s just the situation. It’s not easy. Sometimes I forget it’s no easier for you than it is for ...”

  “Mind if I join you?” Ed asked, not realizing he was interrupting anything important.

  “Of course not. There’s plenty of room.” Katryn offered moving away from Paul to make more room. Tom joined them soon afterward, and the four of them sat quietly watching the waves. It was the closest Katryn had felt to anyone in a long time, sitting silently sharing the ocean.

  Eventually Ken came and broke the spell. He told them breakfast was on. He, Anne, Mary and Bob had bacon eggs, toast and hotcakes ready. Katryn was happy to see that none of them appeared to be in a big hurry to leave. They did, eventually, follow Ken back to their motel.

  After a delicious breakfast, Katryn, Ed, Tom, and Paul did dishes. They also had to promise to cook supper. Everyone agreed to fix their own lunches whenever they were hungry.

  After breakfast they split up into groups to do some sight-seeing. Mary and Bob wanted to look at antiques. Katryn talked Ken and Ed into going to look for kites with her. Anne and Tom decided to do a little souvenir hunting, and Paul was invited to join them.

  The morning went quickly. Katryn bought a box kite while Ken got a huge one shaped like a bird. Ed eventually settled on a conventional kite with a beautiful hot air balloon design. The three of them assembled, and then spent the morning flying, their kites. It s
eemed to be quite a fad, and there were hundreds of colorful kites dotting the skies above the ocean. The winds took the kites up quickly, and Katryn was having a wonderful time with hers. It had been years since she had flown a kite. She vowed she would bring the boys for a week in the summer. She had never taken a week off before, but she knew she could now, with Dottie and Joe to help.

  Tom, Anne, and Paul took a turn with the kites next. Katryn could not decide if watching the kites, or the waves, was more intoxicating.

  She tried to imagine flying with the kites, feeling the wind in her face, hearing the waves splash to shore, watching the ocean as it undulated out of sight. She felt light as a feather, unrestrained by cares, as free as the gulls that winged their noisy way above her.

  In fact, she imagined their squawks of enjoyment to be similar to raucous noises children made when set free on the playground after a few hours of orderly classes. She felt she could understand the gulls, even answer them back.

  Tom tapped her shoulder, and the feeling was gone. Regretfully she turned to her friend. When she looked she saw that the kites had been brought back down to earth, and everyone was ready to head to the motel for lunch. Katryn glanced once more towards the gulls before turning to join the others.

  She caught Paul’s eye. For just a split second she was sure she could see gulls flying there. She wondered if he felt the wind, too. Disappointed because she dare not ask, she fell in behind the others.

  Paul touched her shoulder lightly, and before she could turn he whispered quietly in her ear.

  “I hope you’ll teach me how to do that someday.” Then he walked past her and began to talk to Tom.

  It should not surprise her; she told herself, that he seemed to know what she was thinking. He was more thoughtful than any man she had ever dated. He was the kind of man who would think to bring a nerf ball to a soccer player with a broken arm, who would serve punch for hours at a birthday party for a store, who would at least try to be friends when they both wanted so much more.

  They ate sandwiches, munched a few veggies and dips, and then hurried back to the ocean. Katryn was relieved that the others seemed in a hurry to return to the ocean, too.

  Katryn let Tom and Anne have her kite for the afternoon, and she headed out towards the waves. The sand stretched for miles to either side, and it seemed at least a mile out to the waves. With the tide out, Katryn could enjoy the feel of the firm damp sand beneath her feet. She took off her shoes and headed towards the water.

  “Isn’t it a little cold for that? March isn’t known for its heat!” Paul asked pointing at the shoes slung over her shoulder.

  “Not really. The sun’s warmed the sand. Give it a try.”

  Paul removed has shoes and was surprised by how warm the sand was for this time of year. Ken and Ed joined them, though they preferred wearing shoes. Katryn reached the edge of the water and let a wave splash over her feet. Startled, she jumped back quickly.

  “Wow. Not at all warm!” she laughed.

  Paul was not foolish enough to try the water and when Katryn teased all three of them about being afraid of the nice warm water, Ken and Ed beat a hasty retreat to the very dry land. When they were out of range, Katryn took a quick minute to talk to Paul.

  “You know I wouldn’t have come if you hadn’t forced me.” He nodded, and she continued. “Well, I’m glad you did. This is ... beautiful ... awesome ... it’s beyond words. I never knew what I was missing before. Now I’d like to stay forever. I’m going to bring the boys this summer.”

  “They’ll like that,” he agreed. “I can see them chasing the waves.” Katryn nodded.

  “There are no words that can describe how this makes me feel. Happy? Contented? At peace? None of them fit THIS.” She stretched her arm out to encompass everything. They were silent for awhile before she asked. “You like it here, too don’t you?” He nodded. “It’s another world here on the beach. All new sights and sounds and smells. Like being in Never Land, I suspect. It makes me feel like I’m in a place where the past doesn’t matter and the future won’t come crashing through. Suspended in time, where rules don’t count. Where the tide rolls in and erases every yesterday, starting every today with a clean slate.”

  “A place where love can live hidden from the real world? A place where I can say out loud that I love you?” Paul asked, understanding what she meant.

  “A place where I can say I love you and it won’t hurt,” she agreed. And while they were not free to show they loved each other in any other way, it was quite visible to each in the other’s eyes. Wanting the day to never end, she asked, “Do you suppose we could have a campfire tonight?”

  “We’d better look for some wood before it gets dark, then,” Paul suggested. They went back to where Ken and Ed stood, and the four of them walked along the beach for at least a mile picking up pieces of driftwood. They ended up back at the log they’d sat on that morning and dropped what wood they had collected.

  Bob and Mary found them on the beach, and regaled them with stories of all the great antiques they had found. Eventually everyone headed back to the motel, taking their driftwood with them. Katryn was amazed to realize it was time to fix supper. Food was on the table when Tom and Anne finally joined them.

  “Anne had this great idea that we should have a fire on the beach,” Tom started to explain, chuckling. “So we bought a few presto logs. Imagine our surprise to see all the driftwood outside our doors!”

  Paul teased Katryn and Anne about how great minds think alike, and everyone hurried through a very enjoyable meal. They ate quickly in spite of how good the food, and company was. They were all looking forward to a campfire on the beach.

  While the others were doing dishes, Katryn helped Paul, Tom and Ed carry the wood down to the beach. Paul had the fire burning brightly before the others showed. Anne, Mary, Bob and Ken had hurried, too, making quick work of the dishes.

  With the fire blazing, Katryn found herself between Tom and Ed, on the same log she had claimed earlier that morning. Everyone watched Paul add another piece of driftwood to the fire.

  “Cozy?” Anne asked cattily, walking past Katryn.

  “The fire is warm,” Katryn admitted, ignoring Anne’s tone. “And this team is a pretty nice group to share it with.” Mary, probably the only other person who understood what had just transpired, winked at Katryn before she agreed.

  “They are a pretty nice group of guys, and I’m glad we got this chance to get to know each other better.”

  Bob was being especially quiet while the guys kidded about what a good bunch they were. Katryn wondered if he felt a little left out because he was not a member of their team.

  “And, Mary, Bob’s not at all what I expected. I mean, after all you’ve said... well I’m surprised how NICE he is!” Bob smiled at Katryn, and Mary gave her another wink before she pretended to defend herself.

  “Wait a minute. What do you mean...”

  “Nice goin’,” Tom whispered in Katryn’s ear, elbowing her lightly and nodding his head toward Bob. Bob was having quite a time listening to the team tease Mary. Katryn got a quick glimpse of Anne’s face and wished Anne could understand she and Tom were just friends. Mary, hoping to help alleviate that problem, started talking about how sports had brought her together with some of her closest friends.

  “Is that how you met Bob?” Tom asked.

  “As a matter of fact, yes. A softball team. 10, no 12 years ago.”

  “Alright Katryn, that does it!” Ed teased. “I want more single YOUNG women on the softball team.”

  “Thanks, ED, makes me feel about 100,” Katryn said, and Mary threw an imaginary rock at him.

  “Yeah, Ed. How old DO you think we are?”

  “Do you guys play softball?” Paul quickly jumped in to save his teammate.

  “Yep,” Tom answered. “That’s why we don’t play another season of volleyball; they overlap. Do you play softball?” he wanted to know.

 
; “I do. It’s been a couple years, but I’ve played. Are there any openings?”

  “I don’t ...” Katryn started, but got no further.

  “Katryn, didn’t Steve and Neta move to California? And I think we all agreed not to include Brian this year, so we do have a few openings. Heck, Paul, if you know a couple YOUNG single women to bring with you, we could even keep Ed happy.” The women booed and hissed Tom.

  “Now you’re talking,” Ed added.

  “Only if you share,” Ken argued.

  The campfire was very cozy. Katryn left the log and was immediately replaced by Anne. Bob and Mary sat together with Bob massaging Mary’s shoulders for awhile. Ed started teasing about having no-one to give him a massage, so Katryn knelt behind him and started to massage his neck.

  “Not too bad for an older lady, I hope,” she kidded.

  “No, the arthritis doesn’t seem to be affecting your fingers much at all,” he countered.

  “You’re really cruel, you know. I don’t know why I’m doing this for a young pup who can’t appreciate it.”

  “Because all the old dogs are taken?” he teased, not knowing he was hitting a raw nerve.

  “All right, who’s next?” Katryn asked teasing and lightly pushing Ed away.

  “Me.” Ken volunteered, moving in front of her.

  “Not fair,” Bob told Ken. “It’s Katryn’s turn, next.” Paul quickly took advantage of the situation by moving behind Katryn.

  “I’ll do hers, Ken, but your arms shouldn’t be idle either. Come on, Anne, put Ken to work on your back,” he instructed. Soon all eight of them were in a circle massaging the shoulders of the person in front of them. They laughed and joked, and once or twice the ladies slapped the men’s backs over the worst jokes.

  Katryn had a hard time concentrating on Ken. It felt so good having Paul so close, feeling his touch even through her jacket.

  When Mary told everyone to switch, Katryn was only slightly disappointed. She massaged Paul’s shoulders, feeling his muscles through the thick knit sweater he wore. She could feel how tight they were when she began and how they slowly began to relax.

  When everyone’s’ hands were worn out, Bob called halt. The fire was nearly out, and they spent the last few minutes enjoying the warmth from the embers as well as the closeness of teammates who seemed much more like friends now. Katryn stood up first and got the bucket Paul had brought.

  “I’ll get the water while you guys scatter the logs,” she explained, heading towards the ocean. She took her time. Only Tom and Paul were there when she got back. Paul took the bucket from her and dumped the water on the embers.

  “One more bucket should do it.” Katryn told him, taking the bucket again and heading back towards the ocean.

  “It’s fine, Katryn, we don’t need any more water. The tides coming in anyway, and there’s nothing that could catch on fire, here.” Paul called to her. She kept walking.

  “No sense arguing, Paul. You know how she is. I’ll wait for her, if you’d like,” Tom offered.

  “No. I’ll go help her. She’ll be sopping wet and freezing cold if she spends too much time trying to fill the bucket from the waves.” He turned and followed Katryn. Tom smiled and headed back towards the motel.

  Paul caught up with Katryn as she got to the edge of the water. The moon was high above her, and her silhouette was black against the moon-sprinkled ocean. He watched her as she stood still, looking out to sea. Slowly he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. It was a long time before either of them spoke.

  “It’s so lovely here,” Katryn told him. “And there’s so much magic. Everything, everyone is so different. For a while even Anne was a part of it. Can’t you feel it?”

  “Yes I can,” he said, turning her to him. She looked into his eyes and saw how the moon shone in them. She saw the sparkle from deep within. He said nothing as he lowered his lips to hers. It was soft and gentle, this kiss, and it conveyed all he felt for her. He pulled her close into his arms and bent his head so he could whisper in her ear.

  “How can this be wrong?” he asked. “How can what we feel be wrong?” She could not answer him. She had no answer. It felt so ... right. Finally he pulled away “They’ll be waiting for us in the motel,” he told her. “Tom’s making hot cocoa.” They walked back, hand in hand.

  Tom had a few presto logs burning, and everyone was enjoying hot chocolate when Paul and Katryn arrived. Bob headed out to the kitchen to fix them some, and Katryn stopped inside the door to remove her wet shoes.

  “You must be frozen!” Mary exclaimed, seeing her wet pant legs as well. “I’ll go grab a pair of your sweats. You get in the bathroom and get those wet clothes off.” Paul was surprised to see Katryn was wet up to her knees.

  “Anne, grab a dry towel, will you?” Tom asked. He pulled the recliner in front of the fire place. In just a couple of minutes, Katryn was in dry sweats on the recliner in front of the fire, with her feet wrapped in a towel. She shivered a little, and saw the scowl on Paul’s face.

  ‘Knowing him, he blames himself!’ she thought, amused by the implication she was not big enough to take care of herself. The chair was comfortable and the fire was warm. She was soon lost in memories of being held by Paul. She was staring at the fire, not paying attention to the conversation.

  “What do you think, Katryn? Do you agree with Paul or Anne?” Mary asked.

  “I wasn’t listening,” she admitted. “Agree with what?”

  “Anne says it isn’t possible for a man and a woman to be good friends...”

  “Unless they’re married. The sex issue interferes,” Anne interrupted.

  “Paul says it is possible, and maybe even better than same sex friends since there’s no competition,” Mary finished.

  “I guess I’d agree it’s quite possible with opposite sex friends. I’m not sure if it’s a better friendship than with same same-sex friends, though. I think it depends on the friend,” Katryn explained.

  “Oh, come now,” Paul goaded. “Don’t you think that, for instance, two men who were good friends would end up enemies if they found they were both attracted to the same woman?”

  “No,” Katryn defended her position. “Sure you’d want to set up a few rules. For instance, Julie and I never date the same guy. The first one who’s interested gets him. We’ve been best friends for over 10 years and it’s worked for us.”

  “And it’s always worked out perfectly! Well, how nice. But Katryn, just suppose, for the sake of arguing of course, that Julie was dating a guy she only sort of liked. Then say maybe Julie brings the guy to meet you and the minute you two look into each other’s eyes, lights flash...”

  “Surely you aren’t saying you believe in love at first sight?” Katryn interrupted.

  “Do you?” he asked. Katryn felt everyone’s eyes on her. She glanced at Mary and saw that Mary was beginning to understand. Coming to Katryn’s rescue, Mary answered.

  “I don’t know about love at first sight, but it definitely didn’t take long for Bob and me.”

  “I believe in love at first sight,” Tom admitted. “Do you Paul?” Katryn felt she owed Mary and Tom the world. She listened intently when Paul answered.

  “I do. I not only believe in love at first sight, I believe certain people are destined to be together. But back to my premise, Katryn. What would happen if you fell in love with a guy Julie was dating?” Pretending to be casual about Paul’s ‘imaginary’ situation, Katryn answered.

  “I guess I’d never tell her...”

  “But surely...”

  “No, let me finish. I wouldn’t tell her because knowing would hurt her. And either way, whether she knew or not, I wouldn’t date a guy she liked...”

  “It would be that easy for you to walk away?”

  “Easy? No. But then, isn’t part of being a friend, a good friend, being willing to make some sacrifices for your friend? And Julie and I have been friends for ten years.
She’s been there for me whenever I needed it. She’s made sacrifices for me. Doesn’t a friendship, a relationship, necessarily mean giving as well as taking?”

  Ed, a little surprised at how vehement Katryn was becoming, changed the direction slightly.

  “You and Julie have been best friends for a long time. Do you have any male friends you’re that close to? And who do you think makes the better friend?”

  “I consider Tom a very close friend, to answer your first question. Who’s the better friend? I have to admit that that’s a tough one. There’s pro’s to each. For instance, Julie has a better understanding of things I’ve been through because she’s been there, too. But if I want to see the other side of a problem, I go to a male friend. Tom’s listened to my problems, and given me some pretty good advice, for a long time now. I’d hate to think of what it would’ve been like if I hadn’t had him to go to. And another thing, sometimes, especially when you’re dating and things aren’t going well, you can really get down on the opposite sex. Having Tom to talk to reminds me that not all guys are... well, whatever.”

  Anne was getting angrier by the second.

  “Do you become friends with all the men on your teams?” she blurted out.

  “No,” Katryn answered, taken aback but not allowing herself to get upset. “Not everyone makes a good friend no matter what sex they are.”

  “By the way, why exactly did you quit the other team you were on? Couldn’t find enough friends?” The emphasis Anne placed on friends left no doubt in anyone’s mind what she meant. Everyone held their breath waiting for Katryn’s reply. Tom, without the others seeing, nodded slightly to Katryn. She shook her head so slightly, only he saw.

  “I quit the team, Anne, because it was not a fun team...”

  “I’ll bet,” Anne said nastily. Katryn ignored her and continued.

  “I’d played against that team before and had noticed it wasn’t always friendly. Once I got on the team, I saw how bad it was. Every season the team seemed to pick out one player they didn’t like. It didn’t matter, as far as I could make out, how well or how poorly this person played. In fact, in this case the person was the best player on the team. There was neither rhyme nor reason why they chose this player to pick on. But once the person was chosen, they made life hell for him or her. Every point lost was that person’s fault. His or her sets weren’t high enough, hits weren’t good enough. They belittled this person in front of other teams, and made comments about this person during every game. I play sports for the fun. I saw no reason for the abuse this team heaped on the person they chose to hate, and it definitely was not fun for me, so, at the end of the season, I left.”

  “Do you think we don’t know the person was you? ’Best player on the team!” she mimicked cruelly. “You think you’re so good, don’t you...”

  “Anne!” Tom cut her off.

  “It’s ok Tom, let her finish,” Katryn told him, not allowing it to bother her.

  “That’s right, Tom, let her finish,” Anne mocked, rushing on. “Well maybe they didn’t like you because you’re not really as good as you think. Or maybe they got tired of you chasing all the men...”

  “That’s enough!” Paul commanded.

  “Sure, you’ll defend her, too. You’re both so blind.” Turning towards Katryn she added, “Why do you need defended, Katryn, are you afraid of the truth?” Katryn raised her hand to stop Tom and Paul. Anne continued. “Has it ever dawned on you that YOU could be the problem and NOT everybody else? You quit that team, because you couldn’t get along with your teammates. John was dumped because you couldn’t get along with him...”

  “That’s not true, Anne. We all wanted him out,” Mary interrupted the tirade.

  “I never wanted him out. The rest of you talked me into it because you all went along with Katryn. And now Brian won’t be invited back for softball. Katryn only wants men who’ll fawn all over her like Tom and Paul. Well I’m sick of it.” Anne rushed out of the motel room.

  “I’ll go talk to her,” Tom offered, starting to the door, but Katryn was there first.

  “Her problem is with me, Tom. I’m the one she needs to talk to. Please let me see if the two of us can work it out.” Katryn headed out the door after Anne. When she was gone, Tom turned to talk to the others.

  “I want to set the record straight on one thing.” He walked over to the fire and warmed his hands for a minute. No one spoke, or moved. “The person who was belittled on that team six years ago wasn’t Katryn. In fact, she was the fair-haired athlete who could do no wrong. I know because I joined the team that same season she did. I hadn’t played in over a year, but Katryn kept assuring me I was doing fine. Who knows how well I was really doing, though. Anyway, it was me they picked on. Katryn defended me the entire season. I was surprised, at first. She was the top player and well liked, but the rest of the team obviously did not appreciate her coming to my defense. After I got to know Katryn I realized it was just the way she was.

  “At the end of the season, I wasn’t even surprised to find they wanted her to stay in spite of how she’d defended me. I was ready to quit sports altogether. Of course, Katryn wouldn’t allow it. She called the parks department for names of people who wanted to join a team, and built a new one from scratch. That’s how the EVER READYs came about.”

  “Tom, did you ever know why they picked on you?” Mary asked. He surprised them by answering,

  “Yes, I knew. Katryn never asked why, though, and I doubt she ever found out. The captain, a woman named Marge, really liked me. At first I was flattered. Except, I wasn’t interested. She wasn’t very subtle about how she felt, and in fact became pretty persistent about our having a relationship. She got drunk after one practice and asked me to walk her to her car. She invited me home with her, and was pretty explicit about what she’d do when we got there. I was polite, but I made it plain I wasn’t interested, and I walked away. She never forgave me. She started the abuse; the rest of the team joined her. They were probably glad she hadn’t picked any of them to abuse.”

  Paul knew, without having to ask, why Tom had not been interested in Marge, and why he had never told Katryn. He wondered, again why Tom seemed to like him.

  “Do you think Anne will quit the team?” Ed wondered aloud.

  “She’s pretty upset,” Mary agreed. “But don’t count her out yet. Let’s see what Katryn can do.”

  “Do you think Katryn wants her to stay, after this ... after all she said?”

  “Yeah, I do,” Mary admitted. “Anne just got a little upset. She’s still a darn good player, and really a pretty decent person. And if I know Katryn, she’ll give Anne a break.” The conversation changed, and Katryn would have been embarrassed, yet pleased, to hear how highly her teammates thought of her.

  Katryn caught up with Anne on the beach.

  “Anne, please listen to me.”

  “To your lies? Leave me alone.” Katryn took hold of Anne’s arm and turned the angry woman towards her.

  “Anne, think for a minute. I’ve known Tom for five long years. If I’d wanted him, I could have gone for him a long time ago.”

  “Instead you just string him along, right?” Anne accused.

  “String him along?”

  “Don’t play stupid, Katryn. Don’t pretend you don’t know he’s been in love with you for years. Don’t think for a minute I’m stupid enough to believe that.”

  Katryn felt like she had taken a blow to the stomach. The wind whooshed out of her and she felt she would double over with the pain. What had Paul said? Something about getting in line behind Tom. The pain would not let up. Anne continued.

  “You never let him go completely, did you? You just tug on his string and he yo-yo’s back to you. I thought when Paul showed up you’d fall for him and finally let Tom go. But no, you kept Tom hanging on. You wanted both of them. Or maybe Paul doesn’t want you, is that it Katryn?” Anne seemed surprised by that thought. “What’s the matter, Kat
ryn, are you afraid to let Tom go in case Paul doesn’t work out? And when this team starts giving you what you deserve, do you really think Tom will go with you to start another one?” She stopped to consider before she added, “Well, if he’s that blind, he deserves you,” she spat the words at Katryn.

  Katryn had heard nothing Anne said after the part about Tom being in love with her. She did not notice Anne had stopped yelling. Nor did she notice that Anne had pulled loose from her grip and had torn off down the beach.