Chapter
One
Matthew Joplin was busy
typing an article for, the daily newspaper of Lubbock, Texas. His cubicle was small and he kept dreaming of
the day when he would have a room of his own. He’d been an employee of the
newspaper for the past four years, working part-time while attending college at
Texas Tech. Matt was thinking, here it is December 1955. Although he’d
graduated from college in May and he now worked full time, he hadn’t been given
a steady assignment.
“Matt, this is Grant. I want to see you in my
office immediately.”
“I’ll be right there, sir,” Matt
said.
“Bring the article you’re working on
with you,” growled Grant as he hung up the receiver.
Matt took the sheet of paper from
his typewriter and went to Mr. Walker’s office. He knocked on the door and Mr.
Walker said, “Come in and close the door behind you.”
Matt entered the room and closed the
door as he had been instructed. Mr. Walker took the paper from him and motioned
for Matt to sit down.
Mr. Walker read the paragraph on the paper
then lay the paper down on his desk. “Matt, you’ve been a dedicated employee
for several years. I’ve come to regard your abilities as well as your loyalties
highly. I feel you could come to me with any problem, either work or personal
and I’d do my best to help you. I need to feel you’d do the same for me. I
don’t mean to be cruel but please take a look at yourself in the mirror. Lorraine Duffy has suddenly quit her job and
I’ll be making changes in this office. You’ll be moving into the room next to
mine and you need to change your appearance. You’re a good-looking kid; use it
to your advantage. Lorraine’s leaving has left me in a bind. Her Dear Elvira column hasn’t been finished
and we need it now. There’s only one unanswered letter. I want you to read the
letter and write a reply to it immediately. Put it on my desk as soon as it’s
finished and call it a day. I want to see you as soon as you come in tomorrow.
I’m making changes in the assignments and you’ll be affected by the changes.”
“Yes,
sir, this article is as good as written,” Matthew bragged, wondering how the
changes would affect him. Matthew went back to his cubicle, sat down, opened
the envelope and read:
Dear
Elvira,
I am desperately in need of advice. I am an attractive girl with a good
figure, red hair and green eyes. My problem is that once I go out on a date, I
am not asked out for a second date.
Please give me suggestions.
Lonely Lou.
Matt thought for a moment, put a
sheet of paper in his typewriter and began to type:
Dear Lonely Lou,
With red hair and green eyes,
perhaps your dates do not know if they should stop or go. It may be a good idea
to try to see yourself as others see you. Do
you have good personal hygiene habits? Are you a good conversationalist, or do
you talk too much? Do you have enough interest in your date’s hobbies to carry
on a conversation? Do you have a silly giggle that turns men off? Lonely Lou, I
hope you determine why you are lonely, life is too short to be wasted, and it
should be enjoyed. Keep me posted.
Elvira
Matt knew the feeling of loneliness. He had no
real friends. He’d been hurt once and he never wanted to feel like that again.
Matt was careless with his appearance, leaving the appearance of low
self-esteem. Matt reread his letter and satisfied with it; put the letter on
Mr. Grant’s desk and walked into the restroom before leaving the building.
After flushing the urinal, he washed his hands and looked at himself in the
mirror. His reflection showed a twenty four year old man with the appearance of
a teenager. His hair was sandy brown, which got lighter in the summer time, and
it was too long. His big blue eyes were filled with sadness. Matt forced a smile which showed perfect
white teeth. He had never had a cavity. His muscular torso was hidden by a
shirt that was too large for him. Matt went to the gym on a regular basis. His
mother had taught him his body was his temple. Take good care of it.
After taking a good look at himself
as he had been told to do, Matt walked directly to the parking lot. Jack
Delaney was parked next to Matt’s 1951 Ford deluxe convertible. Jack was
talking to a gentleman Matt did not know.
As Matt got into his car he heard Jack ask,
“Is beating the hell out of him the answer? It could backfire on you. You could
be charged with assault and battery. Why not just have Lorraine call his wife
and explain the situation to her. His wife is the one who should know Walker can’t
keep his hands to himself.”
So that’s why Lorraine quit, thought
Matt. This may turn into an interesting bit of news. He started his car, which
he had named Betsy, backed out of his parking space and started driving down
the road. He was listening to the radio and the song Shame, Shame on You was playing. He turned off the radio as driving
was getting tricky. A snow squall had suddenly struck and the people in this
area aren’t used to driving in this type weather, Matt was thinking to himself.
He inched along the road, glad he only had to drive one more block to be home.
He finally pulled into his parking space at the apartment building. Matt got
out of his car, locked the door and walked carefully up the walk to his
apartment. He considered himself lucky. He had a downstairs apartment in a good
section of town near his work. He unlocked the door, stomped the snow off his
shoes, took his mail from the mailbox and went indoors, locking the door behind
him.
Matt
sorted his mail, his normal monthly bills, and a letter from his mother,
Darlene, and the junk mail. One of these days I will write an article about the
tremendous amount of junk mail circulating through the mail, he vowed to
himself. He opened and read a letter from his mother. She had moved to Clovis,
New Mexico after her divorce from his father. He felt his father had treated
his mother unfairly. After twenty three years of marriage, he divorced her and
married a girl the same age as his son. His mother was a strong woman and had
told him, “Matt, women are hard to understand. When women hook on to a man,
some look for a father figure, some hope to spend their entire lives with the
same man, and then there are older women called cougars who look for young,
virile men, called cubs. Your father gave me the best thing he could ever give
me, he gave me you.”
Matt
knew that statement came from her heart, and knew he would never forget it. His
goal in life was to make her proud of him. She had worked two jobs to put him
through Texas Tech. On his graduation day, his mother had told him she was
getting remarried. The man she was going to marry was Peter Reedy, a real
estate developer from Clovis, New Mexico.
They were married a few days later and Matt had only had one visit from
his mother in that time. He opened the letter and read it. She was happy and
the two of them had just returned from Jamaica. She was looking forward to
seeing him at Christmas. Matt refolded the letter putting it back into the
envelope. He was feeling melancholy. He looked out the window and the snow had
stopped falling. There was only a dusting of snow on the ground. He decided to
go to the steak house for dinner, and then he would buy his mother’s Christmas
gift. Matt put on his coat, cap, and
gloves and went outside, locking the door behind him. As he started for his
car, a taxi pulled up in front of the apartment.
Grace Scott emerged from the taxi. She lived
in the apartment above Matt and worked in the copy room of The Star Journal.
“Hello Matt, wait up a minute, I
need to ask a favor of you,” Grace called.
Matt stopped in his tracks and said,
“Certainly Grace. Did you have car trouble?”
“No, when the snow started, I left
my car in the parking lot. I decided I’d rather pay for a taxi than risk
wrecking my new car,” Grace explained. “What I wanted to ask you is will you
give me a ride to work tomorrow morning?”
“Of course I will. I will need to go
in a little early. The boss wants to talk with me about something,” Matt
explained.
“That will be fine. I imagine
several people will be affected by the changes he plans to make,” replied
Grace.
Matt sensed she knew more about the
situation than he did so he said, “Grace, I am on my way to the steak house for
dinner. I hate to eat alone, why don’t you join me?”
“That sounds like a wonderful idea.
I will need to be at the bowling alley by eight.
Our
team is bowling tonight. Will you wait until I change my clothes, and then drop
me off after dinner?” Grace asked.
“Of course I will. If you don’t
mind, perhaps I could hang around and watch,” answered Matt as he followed
Grace into her apartment.
“That may be a good idea. Lorraine
was on our team. Since she no longer works with us, I would imagine she will
leave the team. Perhaps you could take her place,” Grace suggested. “Do you
bowl?”
“I was on our bowling team in
college. It’s been sometime since I’ve bowled, but I am sure, if needed, it
will come back to me,” Matt bragged.
“If you’d like to play a record, my
collection is on the table by the record player. It will only take me a few
minutes to get dressed,” Grace said.
Matt walked over to the records and
started to look through them. She had quite a collection, even Mitch Miller’s Sing Along With Mitch. She seemed to
prefer the big band sound, but did have many country western songs. Just as he
had made his selection he noticed Grace had a yearbook, The Growl, just like
the one he had from the year he graduated high school. Grace came out of the
bedroom and announced, “I am ready whenever you are.”
“You certainly have a great record
collection. Do you also dance?” Matt asked.
“I have been known to give it a
whirl. Are you inviting me out?” Grace teased.
“I would need dancing lessons first.
I could be coaxed into taking them,” Matt answered as they were walking toward
his car.
“This will be my first ride in a
convertible. Too bad it is so cold we can’t put the top down. I would love to
ride out in the country with the top down and let the wind blow my hair,”
confided Grace.
“When I go home tonight, I will put
that on my calendar for the first day of June. You won’t stand me up, will
you,” teased Matt.
Grace smiled and said, “Only if you
get married by then. I have high morals. I don’t date married men.”
Matt knew she was fishing for information
about him so he responded, “I haven’t met any female that reminds me of my mom.
She was from the old school. She didn’t smoke nor drink. She was a fantastic
cook, kept a clean house and has a knack for maintaining her composure at all
times. I want my children to have all the fond memories of their mom as I do
mine.”
“Get used to bachelorhood. I don’t
imagine there are many of that type of females still available,” surmised Grace
as they arrived at the steakhouse.
Matt opened the car door for Grace,
and the two walked to the door of The Steakhouse together. Once inside they
were waiting in line for the hostess to seat them. The hostess smiled and
asked, “Smoking, or non-smoking?”
Matt answered, “Non-smoking please.”
Once they were seated Matt said, “Grace, I must apologize. I didn’t think to
ask if you smoked. Since I don’t smoke, I don’t want the odor of smoke in my
food.”
“That’s okay Matt. I don’t smoke,
and I don’t drink anything stronger than coke, and no, I’m not after your
body,” Grace told him.
“If you don’t mind, I have a
personal question to ask you,” Matt said.
“Ask anything you like, and I will
give you some kind of answer,” Grace teased.
“While looking through your record
collection, I noticed a yearbook on the shelf. It was The Growl. Where did you
get it?” Matt asked. “I have one just like it.”
“My younger sister graduated from
Amherst High. It is the only thing I have to remind me of her,” Grace answered.
“Her name was Lavonne Price. Did you know her?”
“As a matter of fact I did. She was
prom queen and I was prom king. That is one night I will never forget. I picked
her up, gave her a corsage and her mother took pictures. We had a wonderful
time. It was the first time I had been out with her. As the evening progressed,
Lavonne told me she had an eleven o’clock curfew. On the way to taking her
home, the road was closed due to a car accident. Lavonne was very nervous. I
was thirty minutes late getting her home and her father was waiting on the
front porch. As I opened my car door, he walked out to the car, opened the car
door, and drug Lavonne out of the car. I tried to explain to him about the
accident, but he wouldn’t listen. He told me to get the hell out of there, and
if he ever caught me even talking to Lavonne again he would break every bone in
my body. After that she avoided me like I had the plague,” Matt explained.
“Yes, Father was overly strict with
me. That is why I ran away from home the day after I graduated. By my doing
that, Father was probably stricter with Lavonne. The parents of my best
girlfriend had made arrangements for her to move to Lubbock and attend the
business school here. They suggested I come along and be a roommate for my
friend Kate. I used my graduation money to attended business school, and then
got my job at the newspaper. Kate’s sister gave me that yearbook, so I would
have a memory of Lavonne. Father wouldn’t let us meet. When Kate got married,
her husband moved into the apartment, and that’s when I moved into the
apartment building we live in now. You are the only person I have ever told
that story to. I trust you will never repeat it. Matt, perhaps we were destined
to be good friends. What do you think?”
Matt laughed and said, “Grace, it
would be an honor to be your friend. I have a feeling you will make a great
friend. I was an only child, and always wanted a sister. Having you for a
friend would make up for the sister I have never had.”
Grace laughed and said, “Okay, it’s
a deal. You are very easy to talk to. We must promise each other anything we
say to each other will be in the strictest confidence.”
“I’m a loner, so that’s an easy
promise to make,” answered Matt. “Here comes our waitress. Please order
anything you like. Don’t forget, it’s my treat.”
After the waitress had taken their
order, Grace said, “If we are going to be friends, I should pay for my meal.”
“I invited you. I was feeling down
in the mouth, and you’ve cheered me up. You can pay for breakfast in the
morning,” Matt said.
“I make a
good pot of coffee. Why don’t you come to my apartment for breakfast tomorrow
morning? Be there at seven-thirty then you can give me a ride to work,”
suggested Grace.
“Shall I
give you my order now? I always eat a big breakfast. Growing up I was taught
breakfast is the most important meal of the day,” admitted Matt.
The waitress served their meals, and
after she left Grace said, “I will need to know how you like your eggs, and do
you prefer waffles or pancakes?”
“Just eggs over easy, sausage or
bacon, and a plate of home fries will be fine,” Matt answered. “I always drink
two cups of coffee.”
“I can handle that. Work may be
quite interesting tomorrow,” Grace predicted.
“I can’t imagine why the boss asked
me to see him first thing. Are there any rumors floating around?” Matt asked.
“The only rumors I heard are about
Lorraine quitting,” admitted Grace. “I do hope the rumors I heard aren’t true.
It will be hard working for someone you no longer respect.”
“That is something we will never
know for sure. As long as it doesn’t involve us, we shouldn’t let it worry
us. Our worlds should not be turned
upside down because of something that doesn’t concern us.” theorized Matt.
“You are absolutely right, oh wise
one. We should be leaving for the bowling alley soon,” suggested Grace.
Once back in the car and on their
way to the bowling alley Matt asked, “Grace, who are the other people on the
bowling team?”
Grace answered, “I think you
probably know them, Jack Delaney, Dominick Kennedy, and Millie Decker.”
“Jack has the parking space next to
mine and Dominick parks next to Jack. Millie is the middle aged receptionist
with the big smile and booming voice isn’t she?” Matt asked.
“I am not sure you would be
considered a friend if she knew you thought she was middle-aged,” Grace
laughed.
“People older than me are just
atomically classified as middle-aged,” Matt confided.
“I
wonder how they will feel about me dropping in.”
“Matt, you need more
self-confidence. You are good looking, have a good job, nice car and fun to be
with. Loosen up and just enjoy yourself,” advised Grace.
“Most people aren’t as easy to talk
with as you, thanks for being my friend,” Matt answered.
“People will like you if you give
them the opportunity. Just relax and be yourself,” Grace directed.
Matt parked in the bowling alley
parking lot. The lot was full, but Matt was lucky enough to get a parking space
near the door. Matt opened the car door for Grace and carried her bowling bag
inside for her.
Grace led Matt over to the Lanes
where her team was getting ready to bowl and said, “I needed a ride to the
lanes tonight so Matt very obligingly came to my aid,” Grace explained.
Jack and Dominick looked at each
other and Jack said, “Thanks for coming in Matt. We are one person short
tonight. Do you think you could fill in for us? Lorraine’s average was only one
forty-eight. If you have good concentration, perhaps you can equal that.”
“Thanks, Jack. I haven’t bowled in
some time, I’ll try my best,” Matt said, looking at Grace and shaking his head
no to her.
Dominick said, “Sorry we don’t have
time to let you warm up, but we must get started.”
“That is fine. Start and I will be
ready as soon as I rent shoes and find a ball,” Matt grinned at him.
Matt was all set to bowl, and was
waiting his turn. Jack had missed his spare and said, “Guess I am a little off
my game tonight, I will do better next time, Matt, you’re up.”
Matt stood up, picked up his ball
and winked at Grace. His first ball was a strike.
“Guess
I got lucky,” he said as he sat down.
Dominick took his turn, bowled a
strike and told Matt, “My strike wasn’t luck, it was skill. I’ll bet you five
bucks you won’t bowl a turkey.”
Matt looked him in the eye and said,
“If you want to bet, make it worthwhile winning. The kid games are on the other
side of the alley.”
“Hey
Jack, get this. The kid bowls a strike, and he thinks he’s good,” laughed
Dominick.
Jack
rolled a strike and said, “Okay kid, show us what you’ve got.”
Matt picked up his ball and rolled
another strike.
Jack
remarked to Dominick, “He has a lot of experience under his belt. His form is
too good to be a flash in the pan.”
Dominick
said, “All right Matt, level with us. How long have you been bowling?”
“I
started bowling at an early age. My father is a professional bowler,” Matt
admitted.
“Are
you telling us Paul Joplin is your father?” Jack asked.
“Yes,
he and my mother divorced about five years ago. I haven’t been in touch with
him since the divorce,” Matt admitted. “Bowling isn’t among my favorite past
times, however, I do know win or lose, I will enjoy tonight.”
“I
have an appointment to do an exclusive interview with Paul Joplin in Portales
Tuesday afternoon. He is going to be the guest speaker at The Chamber of
Commerce dinner. Would you like to tag along?” Jack asked.
“No
not at this time. Although he and my mother are still on friendly terms, I
can’t forget he divorced my mother and married a girl younger than I am. My
mother is a wonderful woman who worked two jobs to put me through college. I
suppose after all those years, I have too many bitter memories,” Matt revealed.
“That’s
too bad. If you were there, I could probably get a real story,” admitted Jack.
“Just
tell him I said there’s no fool, like an old fool. That should do the trick for
you,” commented Matt.
“Well
Matt, you certainly helped us pull off a big win tonight. This win will put us
in line for the championship playoffs. Let’s celebrate, my treat,” offered
Jack.
“Not
tonight, the boss wants me in early tomorrow morning. I have no idea what it is
going to be about, so I will need to be bright eyed for our meeting,” declined
Matt.
“After
our big win next week, the treat is on me. You are bowling with us next week,
aren’t you Matt?” Dominick asked.
Jack
put his arm around Matt’s shoulders and said, “Kid, I’ll make a deal with you.
If you join our team, I won’t even mention your name to Paul, what do you say?”
Dominick
said, “I have an extra bowling shirt you can have. I had no idea you had such a
nice build. You keep it covered with shirts that are too large.
“Thanks
Dominick. If you are sure I will be an asset to your team, I would love to bowl
with you again. However, if for any reason you change your mind, don’t be shy
about telling me,” Matt said.
“Matt,
if I had known you had such a nice butt, I would have patted it when you pass
me in the morning,” Millie laughed. “Grace, I don’t blame you for trying to
keep him for yourself.”
“Oh,
we’re just good friends. I am not ready for another romance at this time,”
Grace announced.
Millie
had a sad look on her face and said, “I am sorry Grace. That was a stupid thing
to say.”
Grace smiled and said, “Millie, don’t
worry about it. I do need a jolt every once in a while. Life does still go on.
Matt, I am ready to leave whenever you are.”
Matt
picked up Grace’s bowling bag, held the door for her and said, “Let’s hit the
road. We’ll see you guys tomorrow.”
Once
they were outside Matt asked, “Grace, will you do a big favor for me. If you
want to refuse, just say no.”
“It
is according to what the favor is,” Grace replied.
“This
is one of those things I want kept secret, even if you refuse, okay,” Matt
asked nervously. “Would you consider going shopping with me and help pick out
some new clothes. Perhaps if I were better dressed, I would have more
confidence in myself. You seem to have a gift of style.”
“I
would really enjoy that. I will need to go through your closet to see what you
keep and what gets tossed. Will my coming to your apartment embarrass you?”
Grace asked.
“I
will say no, but you know I will be lying. When can we go shopping?” Matt
asked.
“If
you are not working Saturday, we can go then. I’m not really tired. We could go
up to your apartment now if you like then you can walk me home, what do you
say?” Grace asked.
Paul
parked his car in his parking spot and said, “Well, this is another first for
me.”
Grace
said, “Relax, I told you I wasn’t after your body.”
The
telephone started to ring as he opened the door. Grace said, “Answer your
phone, I will find my way to your closet.”
Matt
picked up the receiver and said, “Hello. Oh, hello, Mother. No I just got in. I
went bowling with the team from the newspaper tonight. I haven’t bowled in such
a long time, I really enjoyed it. We won and our team will be in the playoffs
next week. Yes, I heard tonight he was going to be in Portales. I’m sorry
mother, but not yet. I suppose I don’t have the compassion you have. How’s
Peter? If the two of you could spend Christmas with me, it would make me a
happy guy. When you make your plane reservations for your return flight, fly
into the airport at Lubbock. I will pick you up, and after your visit with me,
I will drive Peter and you home. Mother,
I am so glad you are happy. It will be the best Christmas ever. Love you, Bye.”
Matt
walked into his bedroom smiling. Grace looked up at him and asked, “Matt when
is the last time you went shopping? I picked out this pair of trousers for you
to wear to work tomorrow. Wear this shirt and vest with it. That is the only
outfit I see that is becoming.”
“I
will bag all this stuff up and drop it off at the goodwill box tomorrow. Guess
I had better visit the bank tomorrow and make a withdrawal,” Matt said.
“I
couldn’t but help overhear your phone conversation. If you like, I will help
you get the apartment ready for Christmas. If you need me to, I can help you
cook your meal also. I am a good cook,” Grace offered.
“I
don’t know how I will ever repay you,” Matt stated.
“Matt,
if you will let me help you, you will be doing me a big favor,” Grace said, “My
husband was killed last Christmas Eve by a drunk driver. By helping you, I will
be so busy I won’t have time to remember.”
“Thanks
for confiding in me. Now I can understand your feelings so much better. I think
I should be walking you home. I am so glad you decided to ask me for a ride. I
finally have a true friend. One that was a friend before she found out my
father was a celebrity, and my stepfather a millionaire. One who likes me for
me? Golly, I had a great day.”
“Yes,
Matt, I feel very comfortable in your presence. I, also, am happy to have a
true friend.”
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