Spirits in the Material World Pt. 12

"I am leaving my current employer for my reasons. Had my employer done more to value my contributions and continued presence over the past twelve years and had representatives of my current employer not informed me that it would be easier to replace one person, me, rather than a group of two or more, my loyalty would never have come into question. Had my employer demonstrated loyalty to me, my loyalty would never have been called into question. Had my compensation kept pace with the marketplace's value for my skills and abilities, the compensation would never have arisen as a consideration, sir. I was directed by my immediate supervisor to 'fix the problem'. As I have control only over my own actions, the simplest solution was to remove myself from the environment."

"Elliott," Martha interjected trying to de-escalate emotions, "I believe that is enough for tonight. We can talk again later and maybe arrange for some face-to-face time over the holidays. Thank you, Alan, for your time and sharing with us this evening." Martha was still trying to smooth the ruffled feathers of both of the gamecocks in the pit.

"Thank you both for your time and concern," Alan answered. "I would like to allay any fears or concerns you have about my relationship with Rose or my sons' relationships with your granddaughters. Maybe over another telephone discussion this weekend?" Alan proffered an olive branch to Elliott and Martha.

"Indeed!" Martha enthused. "Perhaps we could have a Zoom or a Skype video conference, to put faces to names and voices? We would love to include Rosie in our non-work discussions."

"I will raise the subject when she and I speak tonight," Alan promised.

"You- you- you two talk every night?" Elliott stammered.

"Yes, sir, almost every night since we met on Thanksgiving Day."

"Now THAT'S a story we simply MUST be told," Martha commanded. "Well, we don't wish to keep you any longer, Alan. Thank you again for talking with us this evening. Goodbye." And the call disconnected. Alan made sure to save the number in his phone book. He had a feeling he would be talking with Elliott and Martha again soon.

= = =

Allowing some time for his anger to dissipate, Alan called Rose at the scheduled time coordinates, 9 pm.

"So, how was your talk with my father?" Rose answered the call without any preamble.

"And your mother, too," Alan added. "I think you should talk with them more frequently than you have been lately." He paused for a couple of seconds. "And on that note, she would like us to have a video call this weekend. Do you have a preference between Zoom and Skype?"

Patently ignoring Alan's agenda with her mother, Rose redirected. "So, what did you and Daddy talk discuss?"

Rose's use of the word 'Daddy' caught Alan's attention, setting off some alarm bells in his head. Then he chose to file that away for later discussion and responded. "Well, Rosie," he began, using her parents' juvenile name for her, "he didn't seem too worried or focused on the non-work-related parts. He knows what at Eagle Scout should be, or at least what he thinks one should be, but he wouldn't let my resignation go, at least not without a fight. He basically accused me of running away. I suppose you could use that single crayon to color the entire picture, but I wouldn't. I was directed by my boss, Bob, to resolve the matter. If drama were to have continued in the workplace, he would have given me the bums' rush out the door, despite his hollow-sounding words of sympathy and understanding."

"So, did you challenge my father to pistols at dawn on the Common? Do we need to find you a 'second'?" she gently teased.

"No, sweetie, I did not. I simply asked him that if I was such a valuable and valued resource, why was I being compensated so poorly given current market conditions. Your mother pretty much broke up things then. I do want you to know that your father's position in the company will have no impact on my intended departure. He scheduled a formal exit interview for me on Friday afternoon. I fully expect to be walked to the door immediately following that call. In our company, an exit interview is usually one of the very last things done.

"So, how was your day, 'Rosie'?" Alan wrapped up.

"Please, please, please do not call me 'Rosie' again. I'm so grateful I never took up with Henry Palmer. Can you imagine me as 'Rosie Palmer'? My mother, and sometimes my father, calls me that. Please, Alan, not you."

"Wow! I had no idea that would be such a sensitive subject. Agreed. Never again will I call you that name. How was your day?"

"Thank you. Quiet and dull, to be honest. Exciting days in banks often have a violence factor, so quiet and dull are good things." She brightened up. "But I did get my 100%, totally clean bill of health from my doctor today! Not that we expected anything different, but there was always an off chance. Any word on your end?"

"Not yet, my love. I hope for an answer soon, though. I did notice, however, that you sidestepped the subject of a video call with your parents. Is that something we should talk about?"

"Not tonight, please. But I promise we will, soon. The abruptness with which my parents have snuck into my life with you will take a little bit to assimilate. Yes, there is a story there, a fairly long one in fact."

"Ok, Rose, my love. I'm a bit tired after tonight's calls. Can we talk tomorrow night, please? You call me when you are ready."

"Of course, my darling. I need to spend a little time thinking about how to explain things with my parents. I love you, Alan. Get some rest."

"I love and adore you, Rose. Rest well."

= = =

Tom and Julie took a break from studying after his shift in the Accounting Lab on Wednesday evening. They walked, hand in hand, fingers gently interlaced, delighting in that simple contact with the other, to the Student Center to check their mailboxes. Neither could recall the last time they had checked their campus mailbox; definitely not since before Thanksgiving. Both mailboxes had accumulated a selection of unimportant mailings. Said junk mail was quickly disposed of (did they really need a Discover card, an American Express card, and a Capital One Visa card?) Tom was walking to rejoin his girlfriend when a flyer on a bulletin board fluttered, catching his attention for just a second. The flyer was in black marker on a piece of plain white copy paper, boring and unattractive to look at for long. The hand-perforated tabs at the bottom of the page were all intact, so no one had been interested in taking one. The flyer read: "For Rent -- 2 Bedroom / 1 Bath basement apartment, all-electric appliances including washer and dryer. Available 1/1 for only 6 months. $600 per month. No pets allowed. Poor credit need not apply. Contact Bruce at (XXX) XXX-XXXX after 6 pm."

"Hey, Jules!" Tom called out. "Come here and look at this!" He was thinking very hard.

A minute later, Julie walked up and wrapped her arms around Tom's middle, pressing her body into his and rubbing her very nice breasts into his back. "Whatcha see, Tom?" She craned her head around his right side as he lifted his right arm to point at the flyer. "God, that's ugly!" she declared.

"Yeah, he doesn't appear to know or care much about Graphic Design. In this case, that could be a good thing. Read it." He waited a minute until he felt her tensing against him. "What would you say about sharing an apartment with me for the spring term?"

Julie let out a squeal of delight and nearly peed in her pants with her excitement. "Oh, yes, Tom! Can we call him now?" she asked, pulling her phone out of her back pocket. Quickly she entered the phone number from the flyer. Before she could activate the call, Tom stopped her.

"Let's go and talk about this before making any promises. We need to clear this with our parents as well. But we should get on any list of potential renters that Bruce is making. Please, go ahead and call him now."

While walking back to Julie's dormitory, as it was the closer of the two, she activated the call to Bruce. That call rolled to his voicemail, and Julie left a message inquiring about the 2/1 apartment for six months. She left her name and phone number and said that she hoped to hear from him soon.

Once again, Tom reached out his right hand for Julie's left, but she batted it aside and snuggled into his right side. Their opposite legs stepped together in perfect sync, as though competing in a three-legged race at a summertime company picnic. They had just reached Julie's residence hall when her phone rang with a call from a number not in her phone book. Handing her keys to Tom to let them into the building, Julie answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Hello. This is Bruce Parker. Am I speaking with Julie Lawson?" a smooth, basso voice asked. God, he had such a sexy voice!

"Yes, this is she. Thank you for returning my call, Mr. Parker. My boyfriend found your flyer in the Student Center this evening for a basement apartment on a 6-month lease. Is it still available, and if so, may we please get on the list to view it and be considered?"

"Well, Ms. Lawson, I had that flyer posted just this afternoon. You are the first person to call about it. When could you come to meet and view the apartment?"

"The occupants would be me and my boyfriend, so the two bedrooms would be just perfect. Can you please hold on for a few seconds and let me check his schedule?" Julie asked.

"Of course."

"Tom, come, let's sit on the sofa here in the lounge. Mr. Parker says we are the first people to call about the apartment and would like us to come to meet him and view the place. What is your schedule for tomorrow?"

"I have class from 10 to 12 and from 1 to 3. I have to be in the lab from 6:30 to 9 tomorrow evening."

"Mr. Parker, my boyfriend and I are available from 3:00 until 6:00 tomorrow afternoon, if that could work for your schedule."

"I can meet you here at 5 pm."

"Great. Where's 'here'?" she asked with a chuckle.

He gave her the address which was only about four blocks away in an area of townhomes. While Julie was talking with Bruce, Tom was pulling up the address on Google Maps.

"Five pm would be great for us, Mr. Parker. We look forward to meeting you tomorrow late afternoon!"

"Very good, Ms. Lawson. I will see you here at that time. Goodbye." And he disconnected the call.

= = =

Maggie was pretty much heads-down on her Brit Lit "Impact of the English Monarchy on British Literature" paper. Rather than focus specifically on one monarch's impact on the literature of the time, she opted for a lighter touch on each monarch and the authors and poets of that time and did more of a survey of British Literature going back to Geoffrey Chaucer and up through J.K. Rowling. She would pick one or two authors from the period and describe the monarchy's influence (or lack thereof) on the writings of that particular time.

This paper was going to be a bit longer than the minimum 10 pages. Her communications with David were much briefer that week than before and generally limited to texts.

Magpie: * Davey, how was your Wednesday? *

Davey: * Pretty calm. How's your paper coming? *

Magpie: * I may have bitten off more than I care to chew, but I'll get 'er done *

Davey: * Good luck, Kitsune girl. I L Y V M *

Magpie: * I L Y 2 *

Shortly after sending her last message to David, she lucked into a treasure trove of information, and inspiration struck her hard. And when she looked up, it was 11 pm and she had missed supper. Rose was already in bed, so Maggie went to the kitchen and made a sandwich. She knew better than to eat too much right before sleep, but she needed something in her belly to allow her to sleep. PB&J to the rescue. She was pleased with her progress. She was determined to go out with a bang.

= = =

It was later than usual, but Julie called Rose and Tom called Alan to have similar conversations.

Julie told Rose of Tom's finding the crappy flyer on the bulletin board and of them calling and getting an appointment to go view the apartment on Thursday afternoon. When Rose started to voice her objections, Julie came right back with logic.

"Mom, how much is my room and board here at State costing you, per semester?"

"I'd have to go back through the bills, Jules, so say for certain, but I'm gonna ballpark the number at $5,000."

"That's about what I thought. Ok, so here's what we've kinda worked out. My share of the rent would come to $1,800 for the six months. Half of the utilities shouldn't be more than $200 per month, so there's another $1,200. And then food. If we cook for ourselves, a) it will be much less carb-laden than what the food service provides, therefore healthier, and b) it has got to be cheaper than paying someone else to prepare, serve, and store. Leftovers make for great lunches. The place is four blocks from school, so not a lot further than living in the dorms, and we have control over who the roommate is. At least let us explore this, please, Mom."

For his part, Tom was facing similar headwinds while talking with Alan. Alan was not so concerned about who Tom would be rooming with, but why. Ultimately, Tom had to resort to the bare-bones truth, that his roommate Bill had increasingly been a cock blocker for Tom. It wasn't all about the sex, but it wasn't entirely not about that either. The wider bed, albeit shared, was another factor. Tom received a grudging go-ahead from Alan to examine the apartment and then report before signing any committing documents, no matter what "pressure" to decide might be brought. One thing Tom was able to get was Alan to look up how much was paid for the room and board. It was $5,950 for the fall semester and would be the same for the coming spring term.

Tom ended the call with the promise to call again on Friday night.

= = =

Thursday:

Today was the day! She had a good night's sleep, and she actually got up when her alarm sounded at 6 am. She felt really good, too! She stretched her arms and flexed her shoulders. Her nipples rubbed against the football jersey top she wore to sleep in, stiffening delightfully. She reached behind her to grab the pillow and held it to her nose, breathing in the fading, but still delightful, scent of her boyfriend. Today was the day!

Maggie flung back the covers and crossed the hall to brush and flush. As hoped, her 'Aunt Flo' had decided to move on and go visit other relatives. Today was the day! Today was the day she began to take her birth control pills. Today was a pivotal day in her journey to full-fledged womanhood. Maybe not as important as the day she got her first period or the day she noticed that 'the breast fairy had stopped by with her bicycle pump and gave her a few pumps', but still a pivotal day. Today was the day!

She got out the circular dispenser and carefully read all the instructions. Then she decided on an expert opinion. She practically skipped to the kitchen and turned on the coffeemaker which Rose had set up the night before. While waiting the ten minutes for the brew cycle to complete, she made four pieces of cinnamon sugar toast and prepared the two mugs with their requisite flavored creamer which rendered the crucial beverage acceptable. By 6:20, everything was ready, and she took breakfast down the hall to Rose's room. She was just about to knock on the door when she heard, "Come in, Maggie. We should talk." Pushing the door open with her foot, Maggie entered and saw Rose was sitting up in bed with her phone in her lap.

"And thank you once again for the coffee. And toast too! What a delightful daughter you are!"

"Mom! You are most welcome. About what should we dialogue?"

"Today's the day, right?"

"Damn! Are you suddenly psychic, or am I just thinking too loudly? Yes, today's the day."

They sat together on Rose's bed, comfortably, and discussed the major do's and don'ts for contraception. There wasn't much more to talk about taking the pill which was not covered in the directions, but Rose had some concerns to voice about other related matters.

"You are likely going to be ovulating right before Christmas this year, so that whole week is a dangerous time for you. The pill is only 90% effective, so I will ask you please to be sure to have David wear a condom during that week. I know next weekend is your dance and when you two plan to have fully penetrative sex. That is fine. Your first time can be bareback. But please track your cycle carefully and use pill and condom during your fertile times."

"Yes, Mom, I understand."

"And be sure to be very consistent with taking your pill, daily. Too many bad things have happened to girls who forgot to take their pill. Baby-type things, you know."

"I understand, Mom. Here, I'll take it now." Maggie downed the pill after working up some saliva. "There. All gone. I have to go get dressed now. As great as I feel this morning, I think I'm gonna tease the shit out of some boys today. Nothing that could cause trouble, but so they'll remember me when I'm gone."

Maggie danced out of Rose's room to get ready for her last week of high school. She opted for the green dress with stockings and low-cut boots, the same outfit she wore for Thanksgiving when she met David. That memory gave her big tingles in her sensitive areas, and her nipples hardened in sympathy.

Even before the bells rang for the first hour, Maggie was sharing her idea for her paper with the teacher. Mrs. Yost was a bit startled at Maggie's plan but approved it, saying that no one else had come up with that idea in quite a few years, and she was looking forward to reading the end product. Maggie's smile lit up the classroom, and she made her way to her desk to start the day.

= = =

Rose texted Alan after emerging from her shower.

Rose: * Maggie began her pills this morning. *

Alan: * Good news for David? 😊 *

Rose: * They have made their plans. Kept me apprised. I have no concerns. Do you? *

Alan: * They have earned our trust. I trust them. We have put the fear of parenthood in them. *

Rose: * What about Julie and Tom? *

Alan tired of the texting and called her.

"I think texting is overrated, Rose. Besides, I get hard when I hear your voice."

"Geez, Alan, you get me spun up so quickly and so easily. I am eager to share your bed on a regular basis, lover."

"As I am eager to have you in it, love. I looked and Tom's room and board was going to be $5,950 for the spring semester. Maybe part of that was the dorm he was assigned to. He ran some of the numbers for me last night. This could be a little cheaper, definitely healthier food for them, and it could be an excellent test if their relationship can endure. Two bedrooms would provide them with separate corners, if necessary, as well."

"All very good points, Alan. I guess I'm just not quite ready for her to be so independent from me."

"But hasn't she been independent for the last two-plus years? And what about high school? She related to me that she felt you had really been focused on Maggie for a very long time."

"Ouch. I did not know she had shared her feelings with you."

"We had a little bonding time while grocery shopping. She was very comfortable with me almost immediately, and, of course, with her resemblance to Laura, I was quickly at ease with her as well." Alan snickered.

"What? Why did you snicker, Alan?"

"Just reflecting on Tom's words when he first asked me if he could bring Julie home with him for Thanksgiving. 'You're gonna love her, Dad. She's perfect!' Well, perhaps perfect for him. I'm very grateful for almost everything that has happened since she set foot in my house. Especially for you."

"Alan..." Rose began.

"Rose, why don't you want to video conference with your parents this weekend?"

"Alan, I'm just not quite ready to expose you to my family's dynamics. Can we please talk about this tonight?"