Vintage Rob

Chapter 26 - The Unsung Kindness of College Guys

The back of Rob's head slammed the pavement. "No hard feelings," Mark said. "I gave you a chance. Remember that." Struggling against darkness, Rob concentrated on Mark's voice, only to be swept away by a wobbly black silence. Finally, voices with scuffling feet closed in. Someone spoke close to his ear. "Vintage Rob, hey, Vintage Rob, can you hear me?"

A hand pressed his forehead. Another voice spoke. "Should we move him?"

"No, he's coming out of it."

Rob opened his eyes and touched the back of his head. Three college-aged men in jeans and unbuttoned coats crouched around him. A sneaker was close to Rob's face. Their attentiveness put him at ease. They appeared to be knowledgeable about first aid, maybe because of sports. Rob found blood on his palm. "How's my head?"

They helped him sit up.

A hand touched the back of his head. "Not bad. See any stars?"

"I blacked out. Did you see me go down?"

"Yeah, it was seconds ago." One of the men got up. He had a square jaw and pointed across the parking lot. "Guy went that way."

Rob knew something about what the kid was saying. Mark.

The three young men stared at him. One in a gray T-shirt, while crouching, moved behind him. "Let's get him on his feet," he said.

An earnest-looking kid wearing a Red Sox cap still crouched next to Rob. "Can you stand?"

One by one, they released him, and he stood on his own two feet. He began to feel like himself again. "You guys are great. You're the greatest generation, you know that?" Rob said. "To hell with the pundits."

***

When Rob returned to his apartment, the college guys had already cleaned the cut on the back of his head and administered painkillers, including beer at their apartment. After drinking with them in their living room, Rob returned to his own at about three in the morning.

Only Julian, Lynn, and Debbie remained. He told them briefly about his previous encounters with Mark but did not admit to catching up with him that evening. Whether out of embarrassment and shame or out of simple confusion, he had no idea, except that he had underestimated Mark and Boston, as if nothing dangerous happened outside war zones.

***

The next morning, everyone, including Lynn, was gone. Rob had to tell them about the punch, because a wise Julian would steer clear of Mark. Rob planned to bring his newspaper to the coffee shop later in case any of them was working, but first, he planted himself at the kitchen table for Makiko. In January, Fumiko and Naoko, the two young women who drove him to Tokyo from Nobu's shrine, had tracked down Makiko's stepfather's business number. At the time, Rob decided against using it. However, he was just about to move to Japan for a year or two, however long it took to get to know Makiko, so now was the time.

What did Yukiko's husband think anyway? If his marriage collapsed, the Japanese court system probably wouldn't grant custody of Sophia to Yukiko, but it would if Yukiko was her mother, and since Sophia was a minor, Mr. Lombardi would be arrested if he tried to see her. He had to understand that that was too vindictive. With luck, Mr. Lombardi would help. Either way, the call was worth a try.

Rob dialed the number. After hearing Rob's Japanese, the woman who answered the phone switched to English. She asked his name and put him on hold. A man picked up right away.

"Hello, Marco Lombardi speaking."

"Mr. Lombardi, this is Robert Pirone. Makiko's-"

"Father. Are you in Tokyo?"

"No, but I will be next week."

"I'll give you my private number. When will you be settled?"

"Next Friday. I can call you that morning, but to be honest, I'm more interested in Makiko. I'm not going to bug off until she tells me to, in person, a dozen times."

"You'll be persistent. That's great, if you mean it. I love Makiko. She's part of my family and always will be, and my family in Italy feels the same way."

"I'm not trying to take her away from anyone."

"Of course not, but her feelings are mixed. She's thinking, I can tell. She's curious, so I'll do what I can."

Relief, so much of it, shook Rob, like when he snuck back into his bedroom undetected at night as a teenager. "I appreciate it. I really do. And that's great news about Makiko, thanks."

"Are you really moving to Tokyo?"

"Yes, got a pen?" Rob reached for one of the papers he had arranged on the kitchen table. He read aloud the address of his new apartment in Roppongi, Tokyo.

"Impressive," Mr. Lombardi said. "Many Japanese celebrities live in that building."

At least Mr. Lombardi did not feel threatened. Yukiko still had great taste in men. "I have an assistant based in Tokyo," Rob said. "She works for an entertainment management company and arranged the apartment. Her name is Margot. I'll give you her number too."

"Sophia makes a point of telling Makiko over and over again about your upcoming photography exhibit. She's the difficult one. Makiko was perfect, almost too perfect. I'm an uncle more than a father to her."

"You're too kind, Marco, thank you." The brochure about Rob's Tokyo apartment was on the table. Photographs of sample rooms caught his eye. "I've got an entire apartment to furnish. If you import furniture, please let Margot know."

***

The next evening Rob spent time with Molly and George in an Allston bar. He arrived home before eleven and flicked on the living room light, disappointed that Lynn's crowd was elsewhere but relieved that Mark was too. Rob had been unable to tell them about Mark's punch, because he had not seen Lynn or Julian since that night.

From the living room, Rob saw that Lynn's door was ajar. That was unusual. When he peeked in, her bed was empty. Then, his open bedroom door caught his eye. Bumpy shadows there did not make sense. When he stood in the doorway, the bumpy shadows became an upturned bed covered with clothes. The contents of his drawers and shelves blanketed everything.

He clenched his teeth, then smiled a little. Was Lynn finally acting crazy about the sex they shared? He walked back to her doorway and peered into her undisturbed room. Unfamiliar with its exact contents, he noticed her stereo's green lights mindlessly blinking and returned to his own room.

His computer, cameras, and printed photographs were gone. Damn.

With Mr. Lombardi on Rob's side, what could possibly go wrong?

Lynn probably did not mess up Rob's room or steal his belongings. Don't you agree?

Thank you for reading and starring this chapter, if you did, I mean...