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Back to Chapter 26
Chapter 27 - The Final Summer
At the end of May Burnside was in a rare upbeat mood when she returned
from Europe with Wendy. She had met with the directors of several
economics institutes and obtained what she wanted, scholarship slots for
several of her students to study in different locations in France,
Belgium, and Great Britain. Burnside already had picked the students.
Now they were on their way to Europe, for stints ranging from six months
to a year.
Burnside's way of operating was to make the scholarship arrangements
first, then tell the student in question. There was always a backup
student in her mind in case her first pick could not, or did not want
to, go. Burnside hated making promises and raising people's hopes unless
she was absolutely sure that she could deliver. The only thing that
Burnside hated more than a person who made undelivered promises was one
who cheated. Burnside was a good judge of character as far as picking
promising students for the overseas scholarships program. Only once in
her career did her first pick turn down one of Burnside's scholarship
arrangements.
Two weeks after Burnside returned from Europe she sent an e-mail to Amy.
The wording was typical.
See me in my office at 9:00 am tomorrow. Confirm receipt of this
message. - Burnside -
Amy showed up at Burnside's office the next day. Typically, she did not
know what to expect. Typically, Burnside got right to the point. She
asked Amy to sit down, a good sign.
"Amy, you know that this department has student exchange programs with
the EU. I was in Europe making arrangements for students from here to
represent our economics department at institutes in Brussels, Paris,
London, and Edinburgh. You are the pick for London. You're going to
London for the next academic year."
Amy stared at Burnside in shock. She had known Burnside for almost two
years, and yet the professor never seemed to run out of ways to confound
her student. London. A year in London.
Burnside continued. "Sorry about not giving you prior warning, but I
don't like promising things to students and then have them fall through.
Anyhow here is your packet." Burnside handed several thick envelopes to
Amy. "Do you have a passport?"
Amy shook her head.
"Well, you'll need to get one. Here's a passport application"
Amy still did not know how to respond. She never would have guessed that
she was a candidate in the department's Europe exchange program.
Burnside, looking at her stunned student, prodded her to speak.
"Well, Amy, do you have any thoughts about this?"
"I...I...don't know what to say. I'm...honored. I never guessed
that...you wanted me."
"Well, I have my reasons. You'll make a good representative of this
university and of the US in Europe. I can guarantee you will have a
tough time over there. Over there they hate Americans and they think we
are a bunch of idiots. The bad thing about it is that the Europeans are
right. We are a bunch of idiots. We're a nation of fluff. You'll need to
convince the people you come across otherwise."
"But why me?"
"Real simple. You can handle Europe. People there won't like you because
of where you're from, and you will be able to overcome it. You'll
acquire knowledge over there that you can bring back with you. Your work
is excellent and you will be able to make a contribution here when you
get home."
Burnside's sharp eyes scanned her student. She continued.
"Amy, you're smart. You have character. You proved to me that you can
learn under any circumstances. You're tough. What I like about you is
that you don't look tough, which makes people underestimate you. But you
are. You survived the streets. You screwed up twice under me and got
past it. You can make mistakes and recover from them. I'd rather have
that than a student who never made a mistake and then falls flat on her
face when hit with a real crisis for the first time. I've seen that and
I can tell you it isn't pretty to watch."
"Get that passport application turned in ASAP. Read over your papers and
write down your questions. Some of this stuff is complicated so it will
fill up some time. Be back here tomorrow with everything filled out. You
can e-mail me if you need any help with the paperwork."
With that Amy was dismissed.
At first Amy was elated. London! She was going to London!
----------
It was not until Amy saw Paul later that morning that she began to
realize the huge sacrifices that she would have to make to go to Europe.
They previously had agreed to meet for late morning breakfast and then
spend the rest of the day together. Amy's mood suddenly went from
elation to an overwhelming feeling of impending loss. She realized that
she would go a year without seeing Paul. She would not see Suzanne, or
Wendy, or Robert. She would be on her own, in a somewhat hostile
environment. Suddenly she no longer wanted to go. The personal
sacrifices would simply be too much.
Amy still had her oversized folders in her backpack. She sat down with
Paul. He had no trouble figuring out that something was wrong with Amy;
it was all over her face. He did not say anything until they had their
breakfast ordered. The server left them with their coffee, giving them a
few minutes before their meal would be ready.
"Amy, you might as well tell me what's up."
Amy sighed. She could not say anything. She simply pulled out the cover
letter from her packet and handed it to Paul. At once she saw, in his
face, his happiness at her upcoming opportunity, and then his concern
that she would be gone over the next year.
"Well, congratulations. I'm jealous. Do you know how hard it is to get
one of these scholarships?"
"They're competitive, I know that. I never guessed that I was a
candidate. Burnside hit me with this when I went to her office this
morning."
"So when do you leave?"
Amy thumbed through her papers. Finally she found one that described an
orientation that started August 15.
"According to this I have to be there by the middle of August. I guess
that has me leaving here sometime during the first or second week of
August."
Paul studied Amy's face. She did not look happy at all.
Paul asked to see the folders. He thumbed through the ones that were
open and was impressed by the range of material that Amy would be
studying in just a year. There was no question this would be a rough
year for her. She was not going to Europe for a vacation. As he reviewed
the projects he suspected that she would be kept busy even between terms
with reports, seminars, and extra coursework. There were seminars on the
Continent she would be going to as well as ones around Great Britain.
Paul was excited for her. Upon getting back Amy would be able to get
into any graduate program in the US, or even go back to Europe if she
wanted. He looked up from the papers into her face. He did not like her
expression.
"Amy, why the sad look? Don't you realize how lucky you are?"
"I don't know, Paul. I don't know if I want to go."
"What are you talking about? This is your big chance. Remember what I
told you about Burnside last fall when she made you her student aide?
That she had something in mind for you? This must have been it. She must
have been thinking about sending you to Europe since last summer."
"I don't get it. Why me?"
"You'll never understand Burnside. She has her own logic. But I'm
telling you that I had her figured out last fall. Now I'm sure she
wanted to get you ready to send to Europe. Did she tell you why she
picked you?"
"She said that she liked me because she thought I was tough. She said
that I always got past my mistakes. She told me that I could handle
Europe and the anti-American feelings over there."
"Well, she's right about the anti-American bit. You don't live in France
as an American for a year without dealing with it on a daily basis. I've
heard the Brits are almost as bad. I also think she's right about you
being able to handle it and to get something out of this program."
The breakfast came and the conversation was interrupted while they ate.
Amy thought about her future. Suddenly she realized her future was not
in Europe. Her future was in Chicago with the people she loved. She had
spent too much time alone. She needed Paul. She needed Suzanne, Robert,
and Wendy. She needed to start her family and her life.
"Paul, this is not my big chance. This is nothing but a chance to spend
a miserable year, by myself, 4,000 miles from here. My big chance is
you. I'm not going anywhere. I'll turn the papers back to Burnside
tomorrow. She can send someone else."
Paul was not surprised by Amy's announcement, but he opposed her
decision. He knew Amy well enough to know that if he argued with her,
she only would be more determined to stay. As painful as it would be for
him, he had to force her to go.
"Amy, promise me you will think about this some more before saying
anything to Burnside."
"I made my decision, Paul. I'm not going. I'm staying with you."
"Amy, just don't say anything to Burnside till tomorrow. Promise?"
"Alright, I won't say anything to her till tomorrow. I'll give it some
more thought, but my decision is made."
----------
Paul made an excuse to break away from Amy. He had to think quickly to
force her to change her mind. Paul was forced into making the most
painful decision he would ever have to make, but ultimately his most
important one.
Amy had to go to Europe. Paul realized that if she did not go, they
would enjoy each other's company over the fall and into the winter. Amy
would finish her BA and they would enjoy Christmas together. She would
enter graduate school, probably in Chicago. They would have a lovely
year with each other.
Paul realized that if Amy's life followed that route, she would be
happy, for a while. They would be happy together, for a while. Then,
over time, Amy would start to wonder, "What if?" What if she had gone to
London? What if she had come back after spending her year abroad? What
lost opportunities would there have been for her? Then, very slowly, the
question of "What if?" would begin to poison her relationship with Paul.
Paul saw that happen with his parents. He saw it happen with his sister
and her boyfriend.
There was no point in talking to Amy now. She had made up her mind and
only later would she regret her decision, when it was too late. Paul
realized that there was only one way he could force Amy to change her
mind. He would have to change his own life, to make himself unavailable
to Amy over the next year. He would be gone, and that would force Amy to
leave as well. Paul knew what he had to do.
He drove to a military recruiting office. He talked to both an Air Force
Reserve recruiter and an Army Reserve recruiter. Paul decided to go with
the Army Reserves. He signed a contract for a military intelligence
position and training as a linguist. He would be in training over the
next 11 months, starting in August. He negotiated payment of his college
expenses through the GI bill. That resolved one problem in Paul's life,
his increasing debt. The recruiter asked Paul if he wanted any time to
think over his contract. Paul said no. He took a series of tests, then
went downtown with the recruiter to have the contract finalized, swore
in, and worked with the recruiter past closing time to set up his
training dates. The recruiter was surprised. Paul was a quality recruit,
and there was no doubt in his mind that he wanted this, and wanted it
fast. By 7:00 p.m. Paul was locked into a commitment with the US Army
for the next 6 years as an active reservist, 2 years as an inactive
reservist. With a copy of his contract in his hand Paul went to see Amy
at her apartment.
Amy's folders were on the dining room table, with several unopened
envelopes full of forms. She planned to turn them back over to Burnside
first thing tomorrow morning. The only reason that she had not given
them back to Burnside in the afternoon was because she had promised Paul
to think about it until tomorrow. Some other lucky student could go to
London, not her.
As soon as she saw Paul at her door, Amy could tell that he had made a
difficult decision. It was all over his face. She saw a folder in his
hand. Immediately she knew that whatever was in that folder was what he
needed to talk to her about. They threw their arms around each other in
the doorway.
"Amy, let's sit down."
They sat together on Suzanne's living room sofa. Amy increasingly
worried about the papers in Paul's hand. Obviously they were
significant.
"Amy, I'm...not going to be here next year. I'm going to be in Missouri
in the fall for Basic Training, then I'll be in California over the
winter and spring. I'll be back in July, about the time you get back."
Paul handed Amy the folder. Amy gasped when she opened it and saw his
military contract. Paul sighed, and continued.
"I'd been thinking about this anyway, because I'm worried about my
student loans. It makes sense that I'll be in California...while you're
in London." Paul could not look at Amy for a few moments. His eyes were
moist and his hands shook.
Amy had to absorb the shock. She had been trying to get a hold of Paul
all afternoon. So this is where he had been, getting his Army contract
set up. She started to cry. She grabbed hold of him and he put his arms
around her.
"Paul, no! Please!"
"It's done. I'm going to California. You're going to London. My contract
is signed. I swore in today. I insisted on getting it done today so you
couldn't talk me out of it. Now you have to go as well. Even if you
don't...I won't be here. I'll be gone."
Tears ran down Paul's cheeks. Amy cried into his shoulder. He put his
hand on her head and pressed his face into her hair. Amy was devastated.
How could she be separated from him for a year? For a long time they sat
on the sofa, crying and not saying anything.
Finally Paul managed to speak again.
"Amy, if you don't go to London, later you'll always wish you had. I
can't have that hanging over my head. I can't be the reason you didn't
reach your full potential. I'd rather you not see me again than for you
to wreck your career because you love me. This is your big chance. You
can't blow it because of me. And it's not like I'm making such a big
sacrifice in my own career to get out of Chicago for a year. I need to
get some money from somewhere or I'll have the collection agencies down
my throat."
Slowly Amy began to realize that Paul was right. He was looking out for
himself as well as for her. She had been somewhat aware of his financial
problems. By now she easily had the money necessary to pay his college
expenses, but she also knew that there was no way he would accept an
offer from her to help him financially. Now he had found his own way to
solve his financial situation. Amy respected him for that. Whatever else
might happen in their futures, Amy had the assurance that Paul would
never try to live off her.
For a long time Paul and Amy sat quietly, holding on to each other.
Finally they calmed down enough to deal with their immediate problem,
filling out Amy's scholarship packet. Paul got a butter knife out of the
kitchen, held it to the flap of one of Amy's envelopes with paperwork,
and cut it open. He passed the open envelope to Amy and cut open the
others. With the envelopes opened Amy now was committed. She was going
to London, no matter what. Paul felt a huge sense of relief, mixed with
huge sadness, as he watched Amy pull the papers out of the first
envelope he had cut open for her. He passed her a pen.
----------
The next day Amy was in Burnside's office. For some reason she felt the
urge to confide her doubts with her professor, even though the paperwork
was filled out and back in Burnside's file cabinet. Amy told Burnside
about her doubts, the fact she initially decided not to go, and the fact
that Paul had forced her to change her mind by joining the Army
Reserves. Burnside looked at Amy intently and listened with interest,
but not with her usual fierce expression. She had suspected that Amy
would have a hard time accepting the offer because of Paul.
Burnside thought about Amy's boyfriend. He loved Amy enough to worry
about what was good for her. He loved her enough to sacrifice a year
from his own life to assure that Amy could reach her full potential.
Burnside already had a favorable opinion of Paul prior to this morning.
For a political science student he was respectable, even if he was
committed to majoring in a field of fluff. Now Burnside saw Paul's true
inner strength. He really would do anything for Amy, including let her
go. Burnside hoped that the relationship between Paul and Amy could
weather this year of separation. If Paul and Amy could get back together
after a year of separate experiences, their relationship would something
special indeed.
Burnside was relieved that it was Paul, not Amy, who settled the
situation. Amy would be forced to complete her year in Britain, because
until next July, she would not have Paul to go back to. More
importantly, Amy had faced and overcome her doubts here, instead of
confronting them in London. Amy truly was ready to go.
----------
Wendy spent June and July repairing the relationship with her parents.
At first her father seemed more willing to treat her normally than her
mother. Wendy's mother still was convinced that the best thing for Wendy
would be for her to return to Taipei and find a husband through her
uncle. To the surprise of both Wendy and her mother, Wendy's father
disagreed. Her father insisted that Wendy needed to begin training to
take over the family business immediately. Wendy was shocked when,
within a week of her return from Europe, her father asked her to
accompany him to work. He opened his books to her, tried to figure out
what Wendy already had picked up in her classes, and began to explain
the day-to-day operations of his business transactions.
Wendy spent 14-hour days with her father throughout the first half of
the summer. They worked together seven days per week as Wendy's
knowledge of business quickly surpassed anything she could have picked
up in her classes. There was urgency in her father's behavior as her
pushed her to learn what she would need to know to take over. There was
no hint of his reluctance to have a woman run his business, no comments
about women's incompetence about money. There was no mention of Wendy's
foray into gambling the previous year.
What Wendy did not know was that her father had visited her great
grandmother's fortune teller while she was in Europe. The fortune teller
told Wendy's father that an unnamed disaster was about to strike down
the family.
Wendy finally broke away from her father on the last day of June to
spend an afternoon with Amy. Wendy's first task was to turn in the final
set of her comic strip drawings to Suzanne for publication. After having
lunch with Suzanne and Robert they went to Robert's office to get
Wendy's jewelry back. With her pendent around her neck and her ring and
earrings back on, Wendy knew that her crisis had passed. Amy was happy
to sign the paperwork ending her power of attorney arrangement over
Wendy's finances. Wendy looked with surprise at her balance when Amy
handed her checkbook back. Amy had done an excellent job in managing the
paychecks from Wendy's book and her art. "I need to talk to my father to
see what he thinks I should do with this." There was no indication that
Wendy would squander her latest income. She truly had recovered from her
gambling addiction enough that she could now control her urges.
After lunch, Amy and Wendy went for a walk along the lakeshore downtown
. Amy noticed how much Wendy had changed from last year as they walked
next to the shore, enjoying the breeze from the water. Wendy seemed
happy, but also driven and determined. She had changed, and with Amy
headed to Europe, they would be going their separate ways. Both Wendy
and Amy felt a sense of regret that the paths of their lives would soon
separate them, but each held a special place in her heart and her
memories for the other. They stopped on the sidewalk in a spot where
they had a rail to lean on, and for a long time looked out over the lake
and the boats clustered along the shore. Wendy finally spoke, her voice
full of emotion.
"I want to thank you for everything you've done for me. I suppose I've
been a difficult friend to you. I haven't done anything to make your
life easier, I'm afraid."
"You're forgetting about all the help you gave me with my math. I
couldn't have gotten as far as I did without you helping me. You were
there for me more than you realize." Amy paused, searching for the right
words to express her feelings towards Wendy. Finally she added, "Maybe
you didn't make my life any easier, but you've made my life much fuller,
and that's what matters."
----------
Two weeks later Wendy took another break from her father and his
business tutoring to spend a day with Amy and Suzanne for their final
photo shoot together. Suzanne had three cameras with her. Suzanne knew
of a small isolated beach in southern Wisconsin to do a photo shoot next
to Lake Michigan. Amy and Wendy undressed and ran though the shallow
water together. They laughed and splashed at each other like small
children. They hugged each other while standing on a rock. A short
distance away there was an abandoned dock, and the two models spent a
long time walking up and down the dock and sitting together, dipping
their toes in the water. After nearly three hours of shooting in the
warm sunlight, they went back to the isolated cove for lunch. Suzanne
had brought a blanket and a picnic basket. Neither Amy nor Wendy had a
desire to get dressed; they were enjoying the feel of the warm sun on
their bodies too much. However, Wendy was not ready to eat. She had a
surprise for Suzanne.
"Suzanne, I want you to take off your clothes."
"What?"
"I want your clothes off and I want you to put film in your cameras for
me. It's your turn to pose."
Suzanne got undressed. She was not modest about her body, but she never
spent time undressed outside. Her skin was white, contrasting with Amy's
deep tan and Wendy's natural brown color. Suzanne loaded film in her
cameras, handed them to Wendy, and stepped towards the water. She stood
at the water-line, quietly contemplating the lake and the boats way off
in the distance. Wendy handed two of the cameras to Amy, and started
photographing Suzanne with the camera she still had in her hands. Amy
realized that Wendy had a clear idea of what she wanted from the photos.
"Suzanne, kneel."
Surprised at the commanding tone in Wendy's voice, Suzanne sank to her
knees on the sand. Wendy got on one knee to bring the camera even with
Suzanne's face. Suddenly Amy put one of the cameras in her hand to her
own face and started taking pictures of Wendy photographing Suzanne. The
contrast between Wendy's dark skin and Suzanne's white skin would make
the picture special, Amy thought. Wendy spoke again.
"OK, Suzanne, lie flat on your stomach. I want you to look out at the
water, then back to me."
Suzanne complied, still a bit disoriented at the sudden role-reversal
between herself and Wendy. Wendy captured the uncertainty in Suzanne's
eyes. Suzanne then walked into the water to rinse off the sand, and
Wendy photographed her as she came out. Wendy passed the camera back to
Amy to reload while Suzanne dried off. Wendy then asked Suzanne to walk
out to the dock. Suzanne complied as Wendy took several pictures
standing on the end looking over the water.
They ate a quiet, peaceful lunch. None of them had any desire to get
dressed. Suzanne stood up and took a picture of Amy and Wendy on the
blanket, then Amy asked for the camera and took one of Suzanne and
Wendy. It was with huge sadness that the three women folded up the
blanket, for they realized this was it, the final photo shoot.
Before they got dressed and left, Suzanne asked her models to pose one
last time on the beach. Their eyes were full of emotion and sadness. Amy
and Wendy threw their arms around each other and Suzanne snapped the
picture. Then Amy and Wendy, holding hands, separated a little and
turned to face Suzanne. All of their emotion came out in their
expressions. They were not crying, but the deep sadness of their
impending separation was clearly visible in their faces. Suzanne snapped
three more pictures and ran out of film. That was the end. Amy and Wendy
had finished posing for Suzanne for the last time.
The week before Amy was due to leave for London, Wendy's family was hit
with the crisis foreseen by her father's fortune teller, a crisis that
took her to Taiwan and out of Amy's life for good. Wendy's oldest cousin
had bought a new sports car and started racing it along the coast south
of Taipei. While driving with Wendy's other cousin he miscalculated a
curve and smashed straight into a truck. Wendy was now the only member
of her family's younger generation still alive to take over both the
Taiwan and US parts of the business. Her uncle and father discussed what
to do with Wendy and their operations. Finally Wendy herself decided to
go to Taiwan and take over from her uncle. After talking to him and her
father, she realized that her uncle was so distraught over the loss of
his sons he seemed not to be able to think straight. Wendy ended up
going back to Taiwan as her mother wanted, but on her own terms. There
was no arranged marriage waiting for her. She immediately took over from
her uncle until he could recover from the loss of her cousins. She
worked 16 hours per day, seven days per week, as she learned what she
needed to do to handle the Asian portion of her family's operations. Her
drawing came to an abrupt stop; she no longer had time to do anything
other than work and sleep.
Wendy never finished her degree. It would be many years before she would
be able to return to the US. She never saw Amy or Suzanne again.
----------
Amy's impending departure and the loss of Wendy as her model forced
Suzanne to reconsider her own life. It no longer made any sense for her
to keep an apartment near the university. She was having to commute to
both her studio and her publishing house and was getting tired of
dealing with Chicago traffic. The apartment had too many memories anyway
and Suzanne had no desire to stay in it after Amy left. She would miss
Amy tremendously and could not bear the thought of looking at her empty
room.
Suzanne decided that it was time for Robert and her to get married. She
wanted to do it so that Amy could be her maid-of-honor, which meant the
wedding would have to take place sometime before the second week of
August. Just after the final photo-shoot with Wendy and Amy, Suzanne,
with her heart pounding, slipped Robert's old wedding ring out of his
jewelry box to measure his ring size for a new one. She took it to a
jeweler and had a new one made, a simple gold band, and a matching one
for herself. That night she slipped the old wedding ring back in its
box. She nerved herself for the next task in her life, proposing to
Robert.
Two nights later, on a hot summer's evening, Suzanne and Robert walked
along the shore close to his office. Suzanne was wearing a short skirt
due to the heat. The change made her look strange to Robert, who was
used to seeing his girlfriend in her loose ankle-length skirts. It was
too hot, however, for Suzanne's usual attire. With this heat even
Suzanne was forced to dress for the weather.
She was trying to figure out how to begin. Finally she said. "Robert, I
have something to tell you. A couple of days ago I borrowed your old
wedding ring to get your ring measurements for a new one. I put it back
without you knowing. But I have a set of wedding rings in my pocket."
Robert paused. Wedding rings. In Suzanne's pocket. He looked at Suzanne.
That was the strangest proposal he had ever heard, but he could tell
that Suzanne was very nervous. He took her hands and looked into her
eyes. He had wanted to propose to her for a while. She beat him to it.
"Suzanne, I would be very happy to put my ring on...and to see yours on
your finger as well."
Suzanne looked at Robert happily but with a lot of anxiety. Her hands
shook as she dug into her skirt pocket to get the rings out. She put
Robert's ring on him, then he took hers and put it on her finger. They
threw their arms around each other, on a busy sidewalk in plain view of
one of the busiest city streets in the US.
----------
They were married only four days before Amy had to leave for London.
Neither Robert nor Suzanne had the sort of personality to tolerate a
large elaborate wedding, even though they had the money for it. In the
end only the people closest to Robert and Suzanne were invited, a total
of about 40. The staff from Robert's office were there, as were
Suzanne's closest friends from the art department and a couple of
physical therapists. Her editor was present. Suzanne's stepmother also
was there. Paul took the pictures. The only important person from
Suzanne's life missing from her wedding was Wendy; she already had left
for Taiwan. Suzanne gladly gave up her maiden name. She did not even
want it as part of her name at all after she married. She wanted nothing
to associate her with her father. For the rest of her life she would be
Suzanne Johnson.
Amy was Suzanne's maid of honor. They married in the same church that
Amy's parents were married in, many years ago when Robert, still in law
school, had been best man for Amy's father. The ceremony was simple, to
the point, and full of emotion. Robert's law partner, the one who had
defended Amy in court over two years ago, caught the bouquet.
The wedding party was small enough that the entire group could fit in
Robert's apartment for the reception. The only thing Robert did spend
money on was top quality food and drinks for his guests. The mix of law
firm employees and art students was a strange one, but made for an
interesting evening. Amy saw one thing that evening that shocked her. A
hippyish male art professor of Suzanne spent the entire evening talking
to Robert's law partner, the sharp-witted female attorney. They seemed
to be attracted to each other, something confirmed to Amy when they
slipped out together without saying goodbye to anyone other than Robert.
Amy shook her head. I guess opposites do attract, she thought to
herself.
The wedding did earn a footnote in the Chicago celebrity pages. Suzanne
was just famous enough that the art press was interested in the fact
that she had married, to the point that she provided reporters with a
couple of Paul's pictures of the wedding for publication. The art
critics speculated about Suzanne's future, now that she was the wife of
a lawyer. Suzanne's editor assured the press that her work continued and
discussed a couple of her recently finished projects.
Robert would continue to have his law practice and be successful in his
own field, but as his wife's career took off, over time he had to get
used to being known as, and being referred to as, "Suzanne's husband".
----------
The day after the wedding the movers came to take Suzanne's furniture to
Robert's apartment and Amy's things back into storage with her father's
furniture. Their apartment was emptied in a few hours. Amy went back to
Robert's apartment with Suzanne to oversee the delivery of her
furniture. Robert had given Suzanne to go-ahead to re-arrange the
apartment as she saw fit, asking only that she not touch his books or
anything in the room he used as an office. Suzanne moved her furniture
in and banished some of Robert's pieces to the storage facility where
Amy had her things and her father's furniture. Amy agreed that the
apartment looked considerably nicer with Suzanne's furniture. She had
good taste in both furniture and decorating. Robert had no taste at all,
good or bad, so he simply deferred to what Suzanne wanted.
Suzanne did not touch Tricia's things, but Robert had packed up her
clothes and most of her memorabilia before the wedding, leaving only a
couple of pictures in his office. He finally was over her. Tricia's
infamous strap and cuffs went into one of the boxes with her other
belongings. There was no way that strap would ever be used on Suzanne's
bottom while she was married to Robert.
Paul and Amy then went back to her empty apartment to clean up and
collect the few things overlooked by the movers. Amy walked through the
rooms one last time, closed the door to each one, and sadly walked out
the front door. She was scared about not being able to live with Suzanne
upon coming back from London.
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Paul and Amy stayed the next two nights with Robert and Suzanne. Amy and
Paul slept in the guest bedroom, the same room Amy had slept when she
first stayed with Robert nearly three years ago. Amy was glad that in
this room at least, Suzanne had not objected to the furniture and had
left everything in place. The memories were still there, the memories of
the month she spent in this room pulling herself out of the abyss she
had fallen into with Courtney. As they lay in her bed Amy tried to
explain to Paul her time at Robert's apartment and what it meant to just
live in peace for a few weeks after the turmoil she had just endured.
The day before her departure Amy asked Paul to take her back to her
father's grave. Paul left her alone for a while as Amy contemplated what
had happened between herself and her father. She could not undo what she
had done. She could not bring him back. She could not cancel out the
pain that she had caused him during the final months of his life. She
could, however, live her life to the fullest, and be what every parent
should want for their child, a happy, successful person. Amy finally was
ready to forgive herself for her father's death. If she could make a
success out of herself, he would live on through her.
The Wanderings of Amy - Chapter 28
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