My Life in a Year Ch. 03

Note to readers:

If anyone is interested, take a look at the chain story Paperback Romance: in which you can find chapter 3.5 of My Life in a Year. It is Stephanie's day of this day below (make sense?).

Enjoy and keep the feedback coming.

*

January 7th, 2005

Dylan was sitting in the breakfast room the following morning, going over the menu, even though he already knew what he wanted. He glanced around a few times looking for Stephanie, but he hadn't seen her yet. He choose the same place he sat several days before, and he hoped that she was working.

As he placed the menu back on the table, he saw her come from the kitchen, laughing with one of the other waitresses. He smiled to himself and he caught her eye. She smiled back and grabbed the silver pot of coffee and headed his way.

"So," she said, pouring. "How was the rest of your night?" She tried to keep the laughter from her voice.

"Well, it wasn't a pleasant one," he said joking.

"Yeah, well, it wasn't much better for me either." She pulled the tab and pen from her pocket. "What do you want this morning?"

"Will you go to dinner with me tonight?" Dylan asked.

"Sure," she replied, a smile playing on her lips.

"In that case, I will have pancakes and sausage."

"Good choice," she said, writing the order down. "I'll be back in a few."

Dylan watched as she walked away and smiled to himself. He had made reservations at a highly recommended restaurant for that night, and he was relieved she had said yes.

When Stephanie returned with his food she asked, "So, where are we going?"

"Does it matter?"

"Well, it does matter because I need to know what to wear."

"Hmm. Good point. Well, I am wearing a tie, so you should wear what you think might be appropriate."

"Well, that leaves me a lot of answers," she said laughing. "Don't worry, I wont disappoint you."

"There is one condition though," Dylan said.

"Oh yeah, what's that?"

"I will have to pick you up and I will be driving."

Stephanie put a hand on her hip and pretended to think about it. "Oh, okay," she said. "If you insist."

"Get back to work before I do kidnap you," Dylan said playfully. She giggled and went back to the kitchen, talking with the other girls. He knew it wouldn't be long before the rest of the wait staff knew about their night in Baltimore, and he just hoped that the hotel wouldn't have a problem with him taking one of their staff out on dates or otherwise entertaining them in his room. He smiled at that thought.

After breakfast Dylan took his car and did some driving. He got lost trying to get to the National Cemetery and almost got shot when he took a wrong turn into the Pentagon parking lot. He managed to get stuck on 395 traffic around rush hour, but found his way back to the hotel in time to shower and change before picking up Stephanie.

Before he left the hotel for the second time that day, he called her to get directions. "Hey," he said, when she answered.

"Hey you," she sounded out of breath. "Are you on your way?"

"I am getting ready to get in the car. Will you send out the search party if I don't get there in thirty minutes?"

"I don't think its that hard to find," she said. "Are you sure you don't want me to come and get you?"

"No, no. I am a man. I am quite capable of picking up my date." He adjusted his tie in the review mirror.

"Oh, you Tarzan, me Jane," Stephanie said, laughing. "Although, that could be fun."

"Hey," Dylan said. "No dirty talk until after dinner."

"Yes sir," she replied, mock in her voice. "Okay, well, I am still getting dressed so I will see you in like, what, 20 minutes?"

"As long as I don't get lost I'll be there. See you in a bit."

They hung up and Dylan pulled onto the side street. He glanced at the roses in the front seat and he hoped that she wouldn't think him too old fashion for bringing flowers, but his father used to bring home flowers for his mother every Friday. Each Friday was a different flower, and his mother looked forward to those days. The Friday after his dad had died, his mother was sitting in the kitchen, staring at the bouquet that was left over from the Friday before.

"Mom?" Dylan had asked.

"Hey Dill Pickle," she had said, opening her arms to him.

"I brought you something."

"What is it honey?" She had asked through red puffy eyes. Dylan pulled a bouquet daisies and dandelions from behind his back and handed them to his mother. Her eyes welled with tears again. "Oh, honey..."

Since that day, Dylan made sure to always have flowers in the house for his mother because he knew how happy they made her. Obviously he wasn't able to buy them at that young age, but he often found wild flowers in the woods that he walked to get to school.

He glanced at the roses again and smiled. He hoped Stephanie would like them. He was lost in thought and he looked up just as a light turned red and Dylan stomped on the breaks. His heart pounding, he decided it was best to concentrate on driving and not on thinking about his father. He wanted to think about Stephanie.

He did finally mange to find her house; a brown, non-descript townhouse with the porch light on. He circled the block trying to find a place to park, but there wasn't much in the way of space. He called her phone.

"Hey, I found the place, but there is no place to park."

"Oh, just double park. I'll meet you in the foyer."

Against his better judgment, he parked next to a Honda Civic, and turned on his flashers. He jumped out of the car and walked up the steps to her door as it was flung open by a girl Dylan didn't recognize.

"So, you're Dylan, huh?"

"Um, yeah." He held the roses awkwardly. "Is Stephanie ready?"

"Almost, but come on up," The girl held open the door. "I'm Mary by the way. Steph and I are roommates."

"Oh, okay," Dylan said, looking backwards out the door as he went up the stairs. "Um, my car - will it be okay there?"

"Yeah, shouldn't be a problem. I mean, even if you get a ticket, they don't mean much here." By now Mary had led Dylan to a door that had Apt. 3B in gold letters on in. She pushed it open and Dylan followed. "You can sit down if you want," she said.

Dylan waited almost 5 minutes for Stephanie to come out of her room (Mary had gone in to help her, Dylan supposed) but when she came out he knew it was totally worth the wait.

Stephanie was wearing a black cocktail dress; a fitted sheath with a low back, stopping only a few inches above her ass, and black strappy heels. Her hair was up, piled on top of her head, ringlets of curls escaping and framing her eyes and cheekbones.

Dylan took a deep breath in as their eyes locked. Stephanie arched an eyebrow, taking in his dark suit and silk tie. "So, do I pass the test?" she asked.

"Wh- what test?" Dylan stammered.

"Knowing what was appropriate to wear when only told that the person taking you out is wearing a tie. I hope its not too much."

"You look fantastic, Steph," Dylan said, still staring.

"Are those for me?" She asked, pointing to the roses in his hand.

"Oh, yeah. Duh." Dylan mentally slapped himself. Real smooth.

"I'll grab a vase for these," Mary said, enjoying the sparks flying around the room. "I'll see you when you get back."

Stephanie smiled gratefully at Mary and let Dylan help her into her long black coat. On the way out the door Dylan heard her whispered to her Mary, "Don't wait up."

Once outside, Dylan escorted her down the stairs and to the car. He held open the passenger side and she gracefully slid in. Dylan walked around the front of the car to the drivers side. As he came around, a white piece of paper caught his eye.

"Fuck!" He yelled, reading the slip. Sighing he got into the car. Stephanie was laughing.

"Looks like you got a ticket there for double parking," she said.

"Hm, you think?" Dylan started laughing too. "I guess this means the rest of the night has to go pretty smooth."

"I hope so," Stephanie said smoothing her skirt. "So, do I get to find out where we are going yet?"

"Nope," he smiled sideways at her. "It's a secret." They made small talk to the restaurant and Dylan saw her arch her eye when the pulled up. He was glad she was impressed. That was the goal after all.

The valet came around and opened the door for Stephanie and then for him. He took her arm and escorted her into the restaurant where a candle lit table for two was waiting in a dark corner. The waiter brought the menus and Dylan ordered a bottle of wine.

"So, what should we talk about tonight?" Stephanie asked, sipping on her glass.

"Well, I already know that you are a waitress, you know how to get to Baltimore and you live on a street with no parking. What else do I possibly need to know?"

She smiled. "Okay, then. Lets talk about you."

"What about me?"

"For starters, the other day when we were in Baltimore, you talked about your mom, but not much about your dad."

"Not much to tell really."

"Let me guess," Stephanie said, refilling her wine glass. "He ran away with a women he met in the produce department while picking up dinner after a soccer game?"

"My father is dead."

"Oh my God, I am such an asshole," she said, leaning forward to take his hands. "Open mouth, insert foot."

"Yeah, well, it happened a long time ago, and I'm over it." Dylan pulled his hands from hers, and she recoiled, sucking in a sharp breath.

"Dylan, I am so, so, so sorry." Not knowing what else to do, she placed her hands in her lap, twisting her fingers around each other. "This is not a great way to start of a date."

"I didn't mean to snap," he said, trying to recoup from the fleeting passing of memories. "It's just that recently, I've been thinking about him lately and..." He trailed of.

"Look, if you don't want to talk about it, I understand. I am truly sorry."

"No, no. I can talk about it, I can, just for some reason, everything around me lately has been reminding me of him."

"Well, without sounding like a bigger asshole or choking on my foot, can I ask what happened?"

Dylan took a deep breath and told her the story of that fateful day when his fathers race car burst into flames. "So, my mom pretty much raised me, my uncles looked after the racing name, fame and fortune that my father had acquired through his years as a driver."

"Wow," she said, sitting back. "Heavy conversation for a first date."

"Well, technically, this is a second date." Dylan smiled and poured more wine. During his story of his late father, the meal had arrived, as had a second bottle. After pouring, he asked, "So, let me guess about you."

"Oh, I look forward to this," Stephanie said, a smile on her lips.

"Where to start? Well, I'll first say that you didn't grow up here. I think someplace Midwest like Montana or Oklahoma."

"Close. Wisconsin."

"Ahhh. See, I got your number."

"And what else?"

"Um, your mother was dairy queen, being Wisconsin, your father is a farmer and you in pigtails and those cute overalls."

"While that sounds so gag-me-with-a-spoon disgusting, it is so far from the truth."

"Really? Well, please enlighten me with your life story." Dylan leaned in.

"Well, you got the farmer part right, but not the type you are thinking, like with John Deere tractors and all that. My Biological father -"

"Biological?"

"Wait, I'm getting there," she said laughing at his interruption. "My biological father was a farmer, but he raised horses."

"So you can ride then?" A smiled played on the edges of Dylan's mouth.

"I ride very well." Stephanie responded in a husky voice. She cleared her throat and went on. "Anyway, my father raised horses. My other father -"

"Other?"

"Will you please stop interrupting me?" Stephanie said playfully.

"Sorry, sorry. Go on."

"My other father was a jockey. He raced my fathers horses, and then went on to train and sell several horses that won the Triple Crown."

"Let me guess again," Dylan said, his glass poised at his lips. "Your mother fell in love and married your "other" daddy?"

"They are both my father's because they were gay."

Dylan choked on his wine, and had to cover his mouth with his napkin in order to keep from spraying Stephanie's dress. He cleared his throat.

"Well, that wasn't an expected twist."

"Yeah, well, not often you hear about a gay couple raising a baby in the middle of Wisconsin."

"And how exactly did that happen?"

My mother I never knew. My biological father and her had a summer fling. It was all very hush hush for the sake of gossip, but he got a letter from her mother, my grandmother, sometime in the fall, saying that he had knocked her up."

"So, what, she came back, popped you out and went on her merry way?"

"Not so in that way." Now it was Stephanie turn to dig into a hurting past. "When my mother went into labor with me, there was some sort of complication. They didn't know it at the time, but it was suspected years later, that it was a brain aneurysm. She died giving birth to me."

"Oh, now its my turn to be sorry," Dylan said, rubbing her hand gently.

"No, don't be. I didn't know her, so I cant really say I miss her or anything like that."

"So, where does daddy number two come in?"

"My father was suddenly, well, a father. Frank, my other father, had been raised in a very large family with a lot of sisters and brothers. He knew babies very well and helped my dad out during the first year."

"So, not to sound like a jerk, where does the gay part come in?"

Stephanie laughed, and poured another glass of vine. She looked at the now empty bottle. "Should be order another?"

"Why don't we try dessert first?" Dylan asked, waving the waiter over. After they each ordered a slice of Cheesecake, he prompted her on again. "So, the gay part?"

"Oh, okay, so, my dad and Frank, I called him Baba, cared for me together through the first year. Sometime in that year, they became close, and well, fell in love."

"But, I don't understand," Dylan said. "If he had sex with a woman -"

"I know, but back in that time, being gay wasn't the "cool" thing to be." She laughed. "He always was attracted to men, but knew he shouldn't be. So he knocked up some rich family's daughter."

"And Frank, he was gay?"

"Yes, but he didn't come out until many many years later."

"Well, how did you grow up with them both, thinking that both were your fathers?"

"It wasn't as simple as that really. I mean, I lived on a farm. I didn't go into town very often, and because everyone knew Frank as my fathers employee, no one questioned them being together or my fondness or attachment to him."

"But I am assuming that they are both out now?"

"Oh, yes," Stephanie said, biting into her dessert. "When I was about 12 I think was when people really knew. Maybe it was the day that I called Frank Baba when we were in the feed store. And by then, the gay movement had started and Frank wasn't racing anymore, so the lash back wasn't as bad as I supposed it could have been."

"Well, all I can say, is that this has been one interesting date." Dylan smiled. "Shall we call it a night?"

"Does it have to end?" She asked, pouting her lips.

"Well, that's up to you."

Stephanie glanced around for the waiter and waved him over. "Lets get the check." She smiled knowingly at Dylan. "I don't think you noticed, but I did bring an overnight bag."

"Oh really?" He raised an eyebrow. "I think you might be trying to take advantage of me."

"That you can count on," Stephanie said, pushing back her chair. "I'm going to the ladies room to freshen up, but I will be waiting for you at the door. Do try and hurry."

Dylan was left at the table, jaw ajar. Once she sauntered away and he could tear his eyes from her ass and bare back, he signed the credit card receipt, he practically skipped to the entrance.