SATURDAY STORY - JUNE 26, 2021
So, I get to try my fiction writing again. Yeehaw!!
Allison Walsh was in LOVE - head over heels in LOVE - floating on the clouds in LOVE. The petite brunette college student had a boyfriend.
***
But, the apple of her eye was not totally in love with Allison. Tim had good looks and a good job, but Tim had an ego that was a million miles wide. Tim thought he was “God’s gift to women”. Yeah, Allison was nice - and he sure could manipulate her - like Play Doh in his hands. Yeah - free rent. Free meals. All he needed to do is throw some compliments in her direction occasionally. And, for a ‘stud-muffin’ like Tim, free sex.
***
Allison danced around her apartment that morning after Tim left for work. Her hugs and touches woke him up and he squeezed her tightly. “I love you”, she crooned. “You are so strong and amazing”. Tim lapped up the comments like a kitten laps up milk. ‘Yes, he thought, I AM so strong and handsome, Yes, I am so amazing, Yes, I’ve wrapped her around my little finger.’
That afternoon in the biology lab she coordinated as a senior at the University of Austin, visions of hugs, babies, family, danced in her brain. Although not a deeply religious girl, she pictured a glorious church wedding followed by a reception, dinner, and dance at The Oaks. Not this year, but next summer for the wedding. She had a prestigious summer internship at Wood’s Hole National Oceanic Institute on Cape Cod at full graduate assistant pay. And, next year, she would be a graduate assistant and also get a 3/4th scholarship at the University of Austin. She could go to graduate school almost for free!! Professor Myers had discussed some academic papers they could do together. Associate director Melody Saulnier at Wood’s Hole had been a former student of Sheila Myers and the three of them had all kinds of ideas for research, papers, and maybe even dissertation ideas. And, the prize of Tim McDermott waiting in the wings to claim her hand in marriage.
***
Tim got to the apartment an hour before Allison was done at the biology lab. For her senior thesis, she organized and analyzed data on algae from Forker’s Pond near Burnet over twenty years. Was global warming changing the algae? Today was a writing and analysis day. The data was a bit sketchy, so she couldn’t quite prove her theories, but she could lay out a good case for continued study.
But, Tim played video games with his friends, and drank three beers in that hour. He also texted a couple of girls he knew. He thought he might like some backup while Allison was in Massachusetts this summer.
*****
Allison called Tim to indicate she was on her way. Tim lied and said he just got home and asked if she could pick up some Panda Express Chinese food on her way home. Of course, he could have run out and gotten it, or could have cooked something for them, but hey - she was his sweet provider. (And, she was Play Doh in this hands, and he could make good things out of Play Doh with his talent and looks)
***
Allison got Kung Fu Chicken and Sweetfire Chicken at Panda Express. She liked the veggie mix for her side and got brown rice for Tim’s side. Five minutes later, she tugged the door open, while holding the Panda Express bag, her school laptop, and her purse. Tim was in the front room with the evening news on - and didn’t get up to help until a commercial came on. Israel was cracking down on Palestinian areas again (or the Palestinians were lobbing grenades into Jerusalem) - whatever.
He wrapped his arms around Allison from the back and kissed her cheek sensually. “How was school today, Honey?” he asked.
Unfortunately, he startled Allison who dropped a white carton of brown rice - Tim’s brown rice - on the floor. Tim got the broom and swept up the rice - he could be helpful when he wanted to.
He said “I’m sorry”, and the words did sound real and meaningful. He hugged her again, and the moment of brown rice on the floor passed.
*****
During dinner Allison talked about the lab work, her interest in global warming, and what she was doing for her senior research project. Tim had turned his phone and the TV off so he could listen.
She asked about his day. Sometimes Tim’s work at an analysis for the geek squad at Best Buy was hilarious. Today he talked of a senior lady who had spilled a jar of Rago sauce into her keyboard. Fortunately for the lady, her computer was under warranty and the keyboard could be opened up. He laughed when he said it would probably smell like pasta forever.
Then, the kid whose $150 Skull Candy headphones had broken with the right earphone totally cracked off. Tim has seen that one before. Skull Candy would replace it, but he would have to send it in. The kid cried that he couldn’t just switch them out at the store. Tim did get the kid a box and an address label - postage paid - to send the broken headphones back to the company. He commented, “The kid will get refurbished headphones that might last a month”, and shook his head.
Tim excused himself to use the bathroom. A text came to his phone while he was gone - from Erika (Allison looked). “Ah, so he is doing things behind my back.” The quiet ‘pang’ hit her heart. Allison looked at the good things in life and knew that Tim wasn’t perfect, nobody was. She also was philosophical enough to know that time would tell.
The evening passed quietly. Allison did her homework and spent time doing research on other studies similar to hers. Tim played some video games. The day had been warm for a mid-March day, and about eight o’clock, Tim suggested a walk around the block.
*****
Like a runaway train, the school year was flying down the last days of its existence. Papers to write, student labs to grade, oceanography club trip to Port Aransas, and elections as Allison could not be involved as a graduate student. Plus a few unplanned trips. Grandma Miller was having a hip replacement after a fall, and Allison wanted to spend some quality time with her. Plus order her cap and gown, get some paperwork done for the summer, book her trip to Boston (where somebody from Wood’s Hole would pick her up). But, Tim was on her mind.
*****
On the other hand, Tim’s life was almost predictable. Go to work, diagnose and fix computers, phones, and other technology, come home, sweet talk Allison into things, play video games online, and drink beer. With an academic career ahead of her, Allison was planning her future, even some thoughts about academic papers. She was going to get the prize. Tim was going to get the paycheck and not much else.
Allison worried a little about Tim. He had been an information technology major at Waco Community College and he excelled at hardware and networking issues. Fixing the tough problem was Tim’s forte. But, his horizon was pretty low. Work for Best Buy as a Geek Squad member for forty-five years? Allison didn’t know if he wanted to go into management, or get additional schooling? Getting by was his mantra.
*****
“Getting by” stopped being his mantra on the very next day.
On that Thursday morning going to work, weaving in and out on his motorcycle, and reaching speeds of 85 miles per hour in the 65 mph zone, Tim cut across in front of a car, hit a patch of uneven paving, and crashed into the Jersey Barrier on the right side. When the EMTs arrived, he was bleeding and unconscious. At a quick glance, Mike Barnes, the lead EMT figured Tim had a broken arm, and at least one broken leg. His face was scratched and scarred. Tim wore a helmet and Mike thought that helmet might have saved his life. The EMTs took him to St. David’s Hospital on 38th Street, and into immediate surgery to stop the blood flow from his right leg and to set the bones.
Two staff people in the Emergency Room searched his belongings for identification. (Note, all was done under camera surveillance). They found a Best Buy Geek Squad ID indicating he worked at the Best Buy at Mueller Shopping Center. They found a driver’s license that had an address in Taylor. With their databases they found an address in an apartment building off of Rio Grande - which was his address when he voted last fall.
Assigned to check it out, two uniformed cops stopped by Allison’s apartment, but she had gone to campus. Connecting with the renting office, they found Allison Walsh was a student at the University (like pretty much all of the apartments in that West Campus neighborhood).
Next the cops contacted the campus police and found that Allison Walsh was an oceanography major and, if all was well, she would be in a microbiology lab until noon.
So, not ‘business as unusual’ as the two cops interrupted Professor Fremling and asked to speak with Allison Walsh. Allison came out in the hall as Sgt. Sara Wilson gave her the news that Tim had been in an accident and was in surgery at St. David’s hospital. He probably would be back in a hospital room by noon. She went back into the lab, but the lab work was not on her mind.
Allison had the lab she ran that afternoon. She texted Professor Myers and Jose Perez (a graduate assistant who could cover the lab), explaining why she needed to be gone.
Almost immediately Sheryl Myers got back to her and said “Go - you are needed at the hospital. We’ll find some way to cover your lab.”
Allison quickly finished most of the lab work, packed up her things and told the graduate assistant what was going on, and left. Using her CapMetro app on her phone, she found she could catch a bus at 12:10 that would go by St. Davids, and off she went.
*****
Tim was still out when they wheeled him into a room. He had a dripline with some morphine for the pain, and antibiotics for potential infections. Meanwhile, Alison was fighting with a clerk about being allowed to see Tim. She wasn’t a relative, a parent, or a spouse. Were they engaged, no; had they lived together for a year or longer, no; so, why was she here?
Allison appealed to get a supervisor and explaining the situation again, managed to get approval to be in Tim’s room. She had planned ahead and had her campus laptop as well as her iPhone and quietly took a chair in Tim’s room. Staff came in and out - checking his vital signs, a doctor and an intern came to look at the broken limbs and the dressings. Most nodded at Allison and some spoke words of encouragement to her. One nurse asked her to press the call button when he awoke.
The frequency of visitors slowed as other patients needed immediate help. About 2:30 Tim opened his eyes, but seemed not to realize where he was. Allison grabbed his good hand and tried to reassure him, and then she pressed the call button.
*****
Friday was a challenging day as the staff got Tim up and took more xrays and MRI images. The right leg was broken in two places. The left arm sustained a break. He hadn’t broken any bones on his face, but scraping your face on pavement can really mess a person’s looks. Friday afternoon, Tim’s parents came from Denton. Mom left her elementary school in charge of the assistant principal; Dad cancelled his financial planning sessions (and his golf game for Saturday). Allison greeted them with hugs and filled them in what she knew.
*****
The next few days were good. Tim had gotten up and around, using crutches. It was hard to walk with a broken leg and a broken arm. He had gotten a leave of absence from Best Buy, and had arrangements made at a Rehab center.
*****
Meanwhile, Tim healed; Allison headed down the last lap of school; the sun rose and set; the baseball season went on. And, Tim was changing. Allison started to see this. Tim asked questions about healing, about physical therapy, about caring for people.
One night, a week before Allison left for Wood’s Hole, Tim confided to Allison - on the verge of tears. “Allison, I’ve been a jerk. I was too self-centered. I was getting by. I was just going with the flow.” He paused and looked at the wall for a minute, and barely audible said, “And, I was using you.” Then the tears slowly started. “I was so wrong, I was such a phony”.
Allison was both shocked and amazed by Tim’s revelations. He continued quietly “I’m sensing something beyond me, call it love, call it God. I’ve been watching health care for three weeks. I think I’m ready to explore other options for my life. Computing makes a life for me, but I’m just good at it. It’s not a field of growth or caring for my fellow man.”
Tim talked for about seven minutes straight - about considering going back to school for health care, maybe to be a physical therapist, or a nurse. Allison was challenged by Tim’s candor. The man who used her confessed to her.
*****
Epilogue
That summer was profound for Allison. Her work at Wood’s Hole pushed her into the mainstream of oceanography. Followed by her master’s and doctorate and eventually her appointment to the Associate Director of Oceanography in the National Science Foundation.
It might have been even more significant of a summer for Tim as he started part time working weekends at a rehab center. He kept his Best Buy position to fund his direction towards health care. In August, he resigned from Best Buy, and went full time at the University of Austin in health care. Eventually, he also got a doctorate in physical therapy.
The two did find parallel paths, but also built a new relationship with each other - now based on trust, honesty, and faith.
*****
So, another Pollyanna story. Not all ends were tied up neatly. This story is loosely based on a former student many years ago that also was in a motorcycle accident and found a career in health care.
LOVE WINS!!!
HUGS!!
Karen
