Like Butter on a Summer Day Pt. 01

Each morning found me in Lonnie's office planning for the day. Each evening found me in his office reviewing what we had accomplished during the day. By Thursday afternoon, it was looking good for the results to be Level 4. However, by the time everything was recorded, we found that they had just missed Level 4 by one critical configuration management factor. Lonnie and I commiserated about it before we started planning for the next evaluation in six months.

While I hadn't gotten the coveted CMM Level 4 rating for Robins SDC, they had shown a significant improvement since the last CMM evaluation. When I got back to the office, I wrote up my report for Col. Rogers before heading out for the weekend.

Christmas was lonely again this year. I did call Mom and Dad to wish them a Merry Christmas. I covered the office while most of my subordinates had taken off the week for Christmas. I kept myself busy planning for the New Year. Budget fights and evaluations that needed scheduling would make it a busy year. "The busier, the better," I thought to myself. I didn't want to mope and feel sorry for myself, but it was hard. God, I wanted to have someone by my side so I wouldn't ever be lonely again.

April 1995

I was in my living room, just finishing up a report I would submit to the budget committee tomorrow when the phone rang. On the third ring, I picked it up and said, "Hello?"

A sultry voice that always made my heart clench said, "Alex, this is Virginia."

I said, "Virginia! It's good to hear from you. What's the occasion?"

"I have some news I wanted to share with you," Virginia said.

From the tone of her voice, I figured that I wasn't going to be happy to hear the news she was going to share with me. My breath caught before I cautiously asked, "Good news, I hope?"

I heard Virginia sigh before she said, "Good news for me, maybe not so good news for you."

"I see," I said softly, sure now what I was going to hear would confirm my suspicions.

I heard Virginia pull in a breath before she said, "I'm going to ask Judy to wear my ring tomorrow night. I love her, and I want to spend the rest of my life with her."

Even though I had thought I was prepared to hear that, a little sob escaped me before I said, "That's great, Virginia. I'm happy for you."

I could hear the raw emotion in her voice when Virginia said, "I'm sorry, Alex. I know we always hoped that the day would come when we could be together, but I guess we were never meant to be."

After hearing that, all I could do was heave a sigh. Accepting that I've lost Virginia for good, I said, "I guess. I still love you, Virginia. That will never change, no matter what."

"I still love you, too, Alex," Virginia said. I could hear the sincerity in her voice.

Making the best of the situation, I said, "I'm glad that it's Judy you're going to be with. She's a real sweet person, and I wish you all the happiness you can find with each other."

"Thank you, Alex. That means a lot to Judy and to me," Virginia said.

"Tell Judy I wish her happiness, will you?" I asked.

"I will, Alex," Virginia said. "Thank you. Well, I'd better let you go. I have a lot to do tonight. Goodbye, Alex."

"Goodbye, Virginia," I said before I hung up.

I cried.

I knew it was stupid. Virginia and I were never going to be, and it was time that I accepted that. Nevertheless, I wept. I was so alone. I had pursued my career to my personal life's detriment. I now had no one in my life. That's what I was really crying about.

As I cried, I vowed that I would not live out my life, denying who I was. I would find someone, and if it was going to work out, I would give up my career. My career had an end date on it anyway. After that, I would have nothing but memories to show for giving my best years to the Air Force. I wanted more than that.

June 1995

I was walking out of the kitchen into the living room when I heard the phone ring. I picked it up and said, "Hello?"

Then, I heard a voice that still made thrills run along my spine say, "Alex, this is Virginia and Judy. I have you on speaker."

I was taken aback that they were both on the phone together. Still, after the epiphany I had the last time I talked to Virginia, I was ready for anything. I rallied and said, "Hello Virginia. Hello Judy."

"Hello, Alex," Judy said. "It's good to hear your voice again."

My heart fluttered when I heard her voice. I said, "It's good to hear from you again, Judy. So, what's the occasion?"

"We're planning to visit Dayton, and we wanted to see if you would be available to meet us while we were there," Virginia said. I could hear the happiness in her voice.

I was thrilled to hear that. Even though we would no longer be lovers, I still wanted to be friends with them. I said, "I'd love to see you two. When do you plan to be here?"

Judy spoke up and said, "How's next week work for you."

Reviewing what I had going next week, I realized that except for the meeting I had on Monday, I could move around anything else to be available. I said, "Other than Monday, I'm here all week."

"That's great," Virginia said. "We're thinking that we'll be there on Wednesday evening and leaving Saturday morning."

"That works for me. When do you want to get together?" I asked.

"How about we do dinner Wednesday evening?" Judy asked. "We're bringing the kids with us, so it'll be a crowd."

"That sounds great. I've always wanted to meet your girls and Virginia's boys," I said. Both Judy and Virginia have regaled me with tales of their children, so I was looking forward to meeting them.

"Okay," Virginia said. "We'll call you when we get in. Then we can meet up for dinner."

"Call me at home," I said. "I'll be taking the day off."

"We will," Virginia said. Then my breath caught when I heard Virginia say, "Goodbye, Alex. I still love you."

I couldn't believe it. Apparently, Virginia and Judy are so sure of their relationship that a profession of Virginia's love for me was okay. Taking in a deep breath, I replied, "Goodbye, Virginia. I still love you, too."

I got verification that Judy was okay with that when she said, "Goodbye, Alex. See you next week."

"Goodbye, Judy," I said. With that, I hung up the phone. I had a lot to do to get ready to see them. I also had a lot to think about, starting with how I would interact with them when they get here.

***

Today was the day I had dreaded/welcomed since the call from Virginia and Judy. I was sitting on my couch, trying not to get too excited about seeing Virginia and Judy. I had run multiple scenarios through my head on how I would greet them when I see them. Would I just hug them? Or would I dare to kiss each of them to let them know that I was alright with this?

Since Virginia's call when she told me she would ask Judy to wear her ring, I had thought long and hard about whether I was okay with it. In the end, I had decided that I really was good with it. It was time to put Virginia aside and concentrate on finding the one who would be by my side for the rest of my life. As I had thought about that, I realized that the one person, other than Virginia, that I would really love to spend the rest of my life with would be Megan McNeil. However, I had no idea where she was, other than teaching somewhere, or even if she was still available if I did find her.

I was so far into my head that when the phone rang, it startled me. I grabbed the receiver and picked it up. "Hello?" I said breathlessly.

"Hello, Alex. This is Virginia," I heard, the sound of her voice still giving me thrills. In the background, I heard Judy say, "... and Judy. Don't forget about me," she went on in a happy voice that made me smile.

"And Judy," Virginia continued, the happiness in her voice evident. "We're here at the Red Roof Inn on Miller Lane. We're settled in and thought we'd call now and make dinner plans."

"It's so good to hear your voices," I said, my voice nearly catching from the emotions swirling through my head. "Why don't we go to the Olive Garden, which is just down the road from you? We could meet there at 7 PM?"

"That sounds great," Judy said. "We can't wait to see you," Judy finished as I heard Virginia giggling. Judy must have taken the receiver from Virginia to say that. I listened to the sound of them struggling over who would hold onto the phone as both of them said, in unison, "See you at 7:00!"

"Okay," I said, thrilled that they were so happy with each other. "Goodbye!" I finished.

"Goodbye!" Virginia/Judy said together as I heard both of them giggling as the phone hung up.

I was smiling like a fool as I sat there gathering myself. Virginia and Judy sounded so happy, and I was so thrilled for both of them. I went to perform my toilet and don the outfit I had thought so hard about all day. I was going to enjoy the evening. As I stood in front of the mirror, braiding my hair, I appraised my appearance. "Not bad looking for coming up on your fortieth birthday," I thought to myself.

I finished getting ready and headed out. As I drove up I-75, I thought about how much has transpired in my life since I first saw Judy nearly 22 years ago. "Over half of my lifetime," I mused. I got off at the 8 Mile exit and wended my way down Miller Lane until I pulled into the Olive Garden parking lot.

I heaved a sigh and got out of the car, and headed into the restaurant. As I walked in, my eyes went straight to Virginia and Judy. They both jumped up and headed for me. Virginia looked so lovely in jeans and a button-up shirt. Judy was similarly dressed and looked fabulous. I was smiling widely as Virginia got to me first and drew me into a hug. She whispered, "I love you, Alex. Thanks for coming."

After a moment's hesitation, as I reacted to Virginia's proclamation, I wrapped my arms around Virginia and pulled her in for a hug. I whispered back, "I love you too, Virginia."

As Judy came up to us, a big smile on her face, Virginia stepped back, and Judy took her place. As we hugged, Judy said, "It's so good to see you again, Alex." I thrilled at the happiness in her greeting.

I smiled as I said, "It's good to see you too, Judy."

When we parted, Judy introduced me to her daughters, Amy and Emily. I was amazed that they were both as tall as I was as I hugged them, telling them how happy I was to meet them. Once they stepped back, Virginia introduced me to Matthew and Mark. I shook hands with each of them, having to look up to look them in the eyes. They were both handsome young men, and I could see the pride in Virginia's eyes as she introduced them to me.

Just as the introductions ended, the hostess called Virginia's name and led us to our table. Judy had me sit at the end of the table next to her and Virginia. Amy and Emily sat on Judy's side of the table while Matthew and Mark sat on Virginia's side. After we ordered and were waiting for our food, I took turns asking the boys and girls what they were doing in school. Both Judy and Virginia sat and smiled while Amy and Emily told me about their swimming exploits. Matthew and Mark regaled me about their soccer exploits.

Once our food arrived, Amy and Emily talked with Matthew and Mark while Judy, Virginia, and I chatted. I spoke about my career and plans for the future while Judy and Virginia told me about their work at Raytheon and their future plans. The conversation came around to the topic of things we all had in common.

When I snarked, "Well, you both have me in common," both Judy and Virginia laughed and exchanged a look that made my heart clench, wishing I had someone I could trade a look like that with. When their gazes turned back to me, I could see the smiles on both of their faces, which told me they were totally okay with that. I was so relieved that I wasn't going to be a sticking point in their relationship.

Then, out of the blue, Virginia mentioned that she and Judy had both known Megan McNeil. I was gobsmacked when I heard that. I quickly asked, "You both knew Megan?"

"Yes," Virginia replied, smiling. I noticed that Judy was smiling too when Virginia said, "Judy and I both knew Megan before she went off to MIT for a tenured teaching position."

Like a lightning bolt out of the blue, a shock went through my body. I had wondered what had happened to Megan, and now, just like that, I not only find out where she is, but that Virginia and Judy both knew her. "Oh?" I said. I couldn't help but smile in reaction. I explained, "I knew Megan before she went on sabbatical to teach. I was working in the Medium Launch Vehicles SPO at LAAFB."

When I said that, Judy turned to me with a look of amazement on her face. She said, "So, you were the Major that Megan cried over when she left to go teach. Megan was totally in love with you, but she said she had to pursue her dream of teaching."

I was stunned to find out that Megan and Judy were close enough that Megan felt comfortable enough to share that with her. Tearing up, I asked Judy, "Megan really said that to you?"

"Yes," Judy replied, reaching out and taking my hand. "Megan and I were very close friends. If I hadn't been married, I think we would have had a relationship." Judy then looked over to Virginia, and again I saw that shared look between them that I had seen earlier. Judy went on and said, "I can't believe that we've all loved the same women. First, it was you, Alex, and now, Megan. What a small world."

Virginia reached over and took my free hand in hers, and at the same time, reached across to take Judy's free hand. Virginia teared up and said, "Yes, it is a small world."

"Megan and I never did more than kiss the one time, but I really loved her," I said. Virginia squeezed my hand when I said that, and we all sat there quietly, in reflection.

Before the silence went on too long, Amy must have noticed the quiet from our end of the table. She decided to break the silence and asked, "Alex, what are your plans for your next assignment?"

As one, Virginia, Judy, and I let go of each other's hands and sat back. Thankful for Amy's intervention, I quickly answered, "I plan to work an assignment to become commander of one of the Air Force's Software Development Centers. Hopefully, it will be in a couple of more years if an opening comes up."

"That sounds wonderful," Amy said. Judy and Virginia both nodded in agreement.

Thanks to Amy, the somber mood was broken. We went back to talking on lighter topics, discussing the new programming language Java that was just released last month. We all agreed that an object-oriented programming language that was machine independent would significantly change the programming world. Virginia and Judy also discussed their plans for their trip here. We talked about maybe getting together again before they left.

We quickly finished dinner, bypassing dessert. When it came time to take care of the bill, I insisted on covering it. After all, we were celebrating their "marriage." They all thanked me for my generosity, making me feel that they all cared for me.

As we left the restaurant, Virginia turned to me and pulled me in for a hug. I returned her hug, loving the feel of her body against mine. Then I felt her hand on the back of my neck as she tilted her head up. I looked over at Judy questioningly and saw her nod and smile before I tilted my head down and met Virginia's lips. I lost myself in the feel of her lips on mine as the kiss deepened. Before it got too intense, we broke, and as we gazed into each other's eyes, Virginia said, "I still love you, Alex."

"I still love you, Virginia," I said. Our declarations made, we let go of each other.

As Virginia turned away, Judy stepped in and took her place. She took me in her arms and pulled me in for a kiss. Again I loved the feel of Judy's lips on mine as our kiss went on. Before it got awkward, we broke our kiss, and Judy said, "Take care, Alex. Goodbye."

I let go of her, and as we parted, I replied, "You, too, Judy. Goodbye."

I turned and headed to my car. As I walked away, I quickly thought back to when both Judy and Virginia had walked away from me. Now it was my turn to walk away from them. The symmetry of the situation comforted me as I drove away and headed home. I had a lot to think about ... and now I knew where Megan was.

***

Author's Note: The OSI sting operation alluded to in this story is representative of the type of things the military would do to try to root out homosexuals. I have no actual knowledge if one was ever done at Robins AFB. If you are interested in an actual incident, just Google "parris island sting lesbians marines" to see the story of one egregious example of what the Marines did to root out lesbians.