A Life in Pictures

A Life in Pictures

September in Bangor, Maine

"Summer. Pssst. Summer!"

"What? What's going on?"

"Look!"

"At?"

"Ah! You just missed him. He's in the waiting area."

"Who? Who's in the waiting area?"

"The guy I told you about. You know, the hot guy who's sooo nice."

"Oh. Right," Summer said before going back into her little hideaway where she adjusted frames and kept track of the inventory of glasses and prescription sunglasses coming in and going out.

Summer Davidson was on optician who loved her job. She'd gone through the required training shortly after her divorce, and she looked at it as being emblematic of one door closing and another opening. She hadn't worked since getting married when she was just 20 years old, and loved having a job. Especially this job.

Her former husband had been her college teaching assistant or TA and was five years older than her. She fell head over heels for the handsome, intelligent, older man and dropped out after her sophomore year to become Mrs. Ted Johnson.

A year later she was a mother at 21 and as happy as a young woman could be. That remained true for roughly the next ten years, and then she and Ted slowly began to drift apart. They stayed together for the sake of their son, Keith, until he graduated from high school, who was now starting his junior year at Michigan State.

His father, who was a tenured professor at MSU was taking care of the tuition, and Summer was working to pay her bills. Things weren't easy, but having been on her own for the last three years, she'd been careful with her money and was doing reasonably well for a divorced woman who was nearly 42.

Her training involved getting an Associate's degree then passing the state exam to be an optician and was fortunate enough to be hired within two weeks after getting her exam results. She worked for a female optometrist who was also divorced and who understood what it was like being 40 and single. While she was the boss both women shared several common bonds, and Summer found coming to work each day a true pleasure.

Her fellow optician, Sherri McKay, was a bubbly, single, 32-year old woman who was very cute, and at times, very flirty. So when this 'super hot' guy came in, it was no surprise he drew her full, undivided attention. Even at the expense of her job.

Sherri got up and followed her into their little 'cave'.

"Summer. Go take a look. He is SO fine. He's a few years younger than me, but uh, let's just say I wouldn't kick him out of bed for that. Or for eating crackers. Or...for anything. Go on. I promise you won't regret it!" she whispered.

"That's okay. I'm good," she replied politely trying not to sound annoyed.

Summer occasionally dated, but it just wasn't a priority for her. She was still quite attractive and could date as often as she liked, but knowing her husband had cheated on her with a TA who was barely 19 had soured her on men. Not all men. But she wasn't about to spend time with, let alone hop in the sack with just anyone, and getting serious was out of the question for the time being. No, for now at least, she had everything she needed, and a man was just an unwanted complication she didn't need.

"Fine. Suit yourself. But when he comes out to be fitted for new glasses, he's mine."

Summer didn't even look up. She just said, "You got it. He's all yours."

It was about 25 minutes later when she heard the optometrist laughing and talking with a male voice, and she rightly assumed it was Sherri's 'hottie'.

"You, too, Micah! Sherri will get you all taken care of, and we'll see you in a year!"

"Thanks, doc," he said as Sherri smiled and asked him to have a seat.

Summer heard every word and felt sorry for the guy who was clearly polite but not taking the bait anytime her colleague dropped a hint. Out of curiosity, Summer slid her wheeled chair across the room then took an oblique look at the customer Sherri was fawning over.

"Wow. She wasn't kidding," Summer said as she snuck two short glances.

He was extremely good looking, and had a smile to die for. But Sherri was also right about him being younger than her, and Sherri was nine years younger than Summer.

"Eye candy," she said to herself before forgetting about him and going back to what she'd been doing. "A male TA. No thanks."

As Micah Wells drove back to his apartment, his mom called.

"Mom. Hey."

"Are you done with your appointment?" she asked, not wanting to bother him if he hadn't seen the optometrist.

"I am. What's up?"

"Just checking to see if you want to come to dinner on Sunday."

"Definitely."

"Oh. Did you remember to tell the doctor not to take away power?"

Micah sighed loudly then said, "I rehearsed that a couple of times, but when she got in the room we started talking, and I left without saying a word. And, of course, the optician looks at the new prescription and tells me it looks like I needed less power in both eyes this time."

"Uh-oh," his mother said in a concerned tone.

"I know. I bet I end up needing a recheck. I told her last year and she thanked me for it because most people prefer less power. I can't believe I forgot."

"I know. You don't like it when you're on the edge and the eye doctor goes the other way. You've always been like that."

"I know, Mom. I still can't believe I forgot."

Ten days later Sherri called Micah and let him know his new glasses and sunglasses were in. He made an appointment to pick them up at noon the next day during his lunch break.

Sure enough, the moment he put them on, he knew they wouldn't work. He also knew the optician would plead with him to try them for 'a couple of days.' This had happened three years ago, and once when he was 16. Both required a recheck and a reorder.

Micah dutifully agreed, but by the time he got back to work he was getting a headache from trying to make things come into focus. That was true for the sunglasses, as well. Traffic signs were blurry, the computer screen was fuzzy, and everything was just...off.

The next day he called and asked for Sherri to schedule the recheck.

"I'm sorry. Sherri's with someone else. May I help you?"

Micah explained the problem, and the woman said she could get him in the next day at 9am.

"Um...I can make that work," he told her.

"Okay. Then we'll see you at 9 tomorrow morning."

He didn't catch her name, but she seemed...businesslike. Or least much less enthusiastic than Sherri. It was almost a relief not to have to deal with her, however, and he hoped this other person would be helping him when he gave the frames back. Helping and not...hitting on him.

The eye doctor was very upbeat about the recheck, and when he explained how he'd forgotten to mention his preference, she laughed.

"Okay. I'm making a note in your file to 'push the plus'."

He knew exactly what she meant by that. Most patients favored less power when they were on the cusp of going either way, and optometrists preferred prescribing less power. They called that 'pushing the minus'. But a percentage of patients couldn't deal with it and just couldn't make the adjustment. Micah Wells was one of them.

She took him back to the fitting area and called for someone named Summer.

A very attractive woman, older woman came out and said, "Yes?"

"Can you help Mr. Wells? I just rechecked him, and we'll need to reorder both."

"Sure. I'd be happy to!"

Micah had always liked older women. He'd never dated one, but he thought women from about 30-50 were hot. Well, attractive women that age, and this woman was very attractive.

"Okay. So...glasses and sunglasses," she said. "Did you bring those with you?"

"Right here," Micah told her as he set them down in front of her.

"Thanks. Okay, so...more power in both. Got it," she said after comparing the two prescriptions.

He kind of leaned toward her a little then said, "I'm...."

Micah whispered the rest when he said, "One of those people."

Summer knew exactly what he meant and laughed, and told him he was definitely in the minority.

"I do tend to follow to the beat of my own drummer," he told her, smiling as he did.

"That makes two of us," she replied with a little laugh. "Since my divorce, anyway."

Not sure how to respond, Micah chose not to as she rechecked the pupil distance before typing in the new numbers and checking then rechecking them.

"All right, Mr. Wells. You're all set!" she announced, sporting a smile that was nothing short of spectacular. "We'll give you a call in another 7-10 days, and I'm really sorry for the inconvenience."

"No problem. It was actually more pleasant than I'd hoped."

Summer initially assumed he meant the recheck itself, but the way he looked at her told her that she was a part of that.

"Oh, um...I'm glad it was a positive experience," she told him, unable to look at him for reasons she couldn't explain but chocked up to annoyance at another hot guy who was full of himself.

"And I'll look forward to your call," he told her in a way that confirmed he wasn't referring strictly to the process.

Just as he was getting up to leave, Sherri came in and saw him. She'd called Summer to let her know there'd been an accident and that traffic was horrible. She was even more upset when she saw Micah on his way out.

Before he made it to the door Sherri stopped him to warn him about the traffic.

"How bad is it?" he asked as she perked up thanks to the opportunity to talk to him.

"Two lanes are closed and the other one is barely moving, so be prepared."

Summer was watching as she finished his order and heard him say, "I am like a hollow reed."

He held his hands out and made a circle with his fingers like he was meditating.

Sherri laughed but didn't know why even when he explained.

"That's from the old TV show Perfect Strangers`. You know, Cousin Balki and Cousin Larry."

He said 'Cousin Balki' in the same voice as Bronson Pinchot's character, but Sherri was clueless and just shrugged.

However, Summer was smiling, and Micah nodded her way and told Sherri, "She knows."

Summer, who was listening and who did know looked their way and said, "I even remember that episode. The 'hollow reed' thing."

"I guess that was before my time," Sherri said, not liking the attention Summer was getting. "Way before my time."

"Come on. I'm pretty sure I'm younger than you, and I've watched the show. It's actually pretty funny. You should check it out."

"Is that an invitation?" Sherri asked as she smiled and batted her eyes, her voice going from snide to flirty in an instant.

Micah smiled back politely then told her, "More of a suggestion I suppose."

"Too bad," the younger, older woman said. "I might be able to enjoy watching it if I had someone to watch it with."

Knowing where that was going, Micah excused himself, and as he did he noticed Summer shaking her head in disgust. She glanced up just then and he smiled at her. She smiled back, so he winked, and when he did, she laughed. Sherri immediately turned to ask what was so funny.

"Oh, nothing," Summer told her as Micah gave her an even bigger smile and another wink before leaving.

As he left the parking lot Summer found herself thinking about just how attractive he was, and how he wasn't just in the minority with regard to more or less power in a prescription. He was also in the minority of people who looked better with glasses than without.

"He's definitely a cutie," she said to herself just as Sherri came over and started complaining about how Summer stole her time with Micah.

Unfazed, Summer informed her as nicely as she could that he'd been handed off to her immediately after the recheck, and that she couldn't very well ask him to sit and wait. She apologized even though she'd done nothing wrong just to ensure there wasn't any friction between them.

"He's just SO gorgeous!" Sherri said, forgetting about the perceived slight.

"He is attractive," Summer agreed.

"He wears glasses, but he's not blind...Summer."

The way Sherri said her name told her she was still upset and definitely jealous, even though there was nothing to be jealous about.

Again, to keep things on an even keel, Summer said, "Point taken. I am definitely too old for him. Way too old. And I'm not looking."

As she walked out of their 'cubby' Sherri mumbled, "You got the 'too old' part right."

Summer shrugged that off, too, and filed it away. She loved her job too much to let anyone get under her skin and make coming to work something she dreaded. Micah was indeed a very good looking young man, but no man of any age was worth fighting over.

The day Micah's glasses came back in Sherri was there. Normally, Summer would have called him immediately to set up a fitting appointment, but she'd thought about him so many times since she last saw him that she felt like she needed to see him again. To shake off the feelings that made no sense to her.

So she waited until Sherri left, and as she did she asked if Summer was leaving, too.

"In a minute. I just want to take care of one other thing real quick."

They'd been fine since her jealousy snit, and Summer didn't want to rekindle it, but the moment Sherri walked out she dialed Micah's number.

"Mr. Wells. Hi, this is Summer from Doctor...."

"Yes. The beautiful woman who helped me with the recheck."

His words surprised her and actually had an effect on her, but she pretended they didn't and said, "Oh, you must mean my co-worker, Sherri."

"No. I'm sure I don't," he said with a little laugh. "She's kind of...snooty."

Summer's eyes opened wide, and she laughed out loud then immediately felt terrible.

"She's actually very...."

"Odd?" Micah suggested.

This time she didn't laugh even though she wanted to.

"She's a very nice girl, and she might just think you're rather...attractive."

"How about you?" he asked in such a polite way it, too, caught her off guard.

"Excuse me?"

"Sorry. That was unprofessional. I do apologize."

She told him that was okay, but she was a bit rattled after hearing him say that. She looked at the table in front of her and remembered why she was calling.

"I...your new glasses and suns are in," she told him, using her favorite abbreviation for sunglasses.

"Great! When can I come in to see you?"

Again, Summer felt something she couldn't explain when the other meaning of 'see you' hit her.

"I...what works best for you?"

"Will you be there tomorrow?"

Summer had been flirted with her whole life. She was a pretty girl, a beautiful teenager, and a gorgeous woman. Now 41, the flirting was more sporadic, but it still happened fairly often, just nowhere near as relentlessly as it had ing 20s and 30s.

"Yes, and so will Sherri, and one of us will be glad to...."

"I'd like to have you help me. If that's possible."

She sat there in silence for a few seconds then said, "I don't think that's a good idea, Mr. Wells. We sort of just take our patients as they come in and whoever is available to help takes care of them."

"That's disappointing."

Again, Summer felt...discombobulated and needed a few seconds.

"Um...what time works best for you?"

"Whatever time works best for you," he said in a way that wasn't crude or even flirty.

"I...I'm here from 8:30 until 5, but...."

"Is 9am okay?"

She looked at the schedule then told him it was.

"I'll be there by nine then."

"Okay. I'll...we'll see you then."

He hung up without saying another word, and when she set the receiver down she couldn't understand why she felt so out of sorts. Even if he was outright flirting she just didn't get all worked up about it, so why was she so...confused now?

The following morning she let Sherri know that Micah was coming in at 9 o'clock, and her eyes lit up.

"I had no idea!" she said, suddenly all smiles.

"I had to call him last night. That's why I stayed."

Sherri looked at her then said, "If you were my age, I'd be very jealous."

Summer knew she was jealous anyway, but took the time to again reassure her she had no interest in him.

"Do I look okay?" Sherri asked, ignoring everything Summer had said.

"Yes. You look nice," Summer told her as she took a look at her hair, makeup, and clothes.

Sherri was a pretty girl with short blonde hair and a very nice figure. Her only flaw, if it even was one, was that she had a bit of a bulbous nose, but with makeup it wasn't really noticeable. And had Sherri not made such a fuss about this one particular customer, Summer wouldn't have ever noticed or even looked.

"I wish I'd worn a different blouse," Sherri said, touching the top of the one she had on that went all the way to her lower neck.

"It's fine, Sherri. You're fine."

Summer was almost always cold and she'd worn a long-sleeved, powder-blue sweater with a black skirt, most of which was covered with a white lab coat. She had dark, shoulder-length hair and beautiful blue eyes and an amazing smile.

Nature had also blessed her with a pair of size C breasts that filled out a form-fitting sweater quite nicely but that weren't so big they looked fake. Hers were very real, and had drawn countless looks and stares since they reached their full size some 25 years earlier. Her figure was every bit as good as Sherri's, and she had long, shapely legs that Sherri envied and had mentioned more than once. But with a knee-length skirt there wasn't a whole lot to see.

When Summer saw Micah pull into the parking lot she went to the 'cubby' and stayed out of sight. She heard Sherri's overly perky, "Well, hello there!" greeting and shook her head.

"Hi. How are you," Micah replied as she asked him to sit down.

"I have your glasses right here," Sherri told him, a huge smile on her face.

"You're working alone today?" he asked very casually.

"Um, no. Summer's here. She's just really busy."

"Busy. Right. Okay."

Sherri didn't pick up on what Micah was feeling but Summer did, and now she was even more curious about why he seemed to be so interested in her. Even so, she stayed in the little room and never said a word as Sherri had him try on both pairs and look around.

"Oh, yeah. These are perfect!" he said within two seconds of trying of them on.

"They really look good on you," Sherri told him just before flirting a little by adding, "then again, you'd look good in anything. Any glasses."

Micah barely heard her as he switched to the sunglasses. He walked over to the glass door and looked outside. It was cold and sunny, and everything was so sharp and crystal clear that he laughed.

He came back to the table then asked if he could see the doctor for a quick second just to thank her. Her truly appreciated the gift of perfect vision, albeit corrected vision. He had a cousin who was blind, and he'd never taken his sight for granted. When an eye doctor nailed the prescription, he was always grateful and made it a point to personally thank him or her.

"Oh, sure. Just gimme a sec to see if she's with a patient, okay?" Sherri said in that cheerful voice that said she was in a good mood. Currently, anyway.

The moment she disappeared down the hall, he got up and went behind the counter and toward the little room.

"You're avoiding me," he said, scaring Summer so badly that she flinched.

"Mr. Wells, you can't be back here!"

He glanced into the little 8 x 10 room then said, "I see why."

Summer wanted to scold him but he was smiling so happily she couldn't.

"I was hoping to have the chance to talk to you," he quietly told her.

"Mr. Wells...."

"Micah. I know she'll be right back, but could we talk?"

Summer turned her swivel chair his way then looked right at him.

"Why?"

It was a polite question, but even if it had been nasty, Micah was determined to ask her out.

"I feel like we have a connection."