The Crying Bridge

The Crying Bridge--Chapter 5

 Evan was coming in from the swimming pool at the youth center. He was working with a group of ten-year-olds on their swimming skills. He was still surprised at how many of these inner city kids couldn't swim. He'd practically grown up in the water. The kids were suddenly running past him laughing and snapping their wet towels at each other. Evan smiled. He really loved working with the kids. He made room for them, avoiding a few snapping towels himself. In the locker room, he got into the shower to rinse off the chlorine, then dressed in a pair of shorts and a blue t-shirt. As he was lacing up his sneakers, Dan Moyer came in. Dan worked at the center, too, and he and Evan had become good friends.

"Hey, Evan," Dan said. "Did you brown-bag it today?"

"Actually, no. I had a rough time getting to sleep last night and overslept a little this morning, so I didn't get a chance to pack anything. What about you?"

"You know me, I never take the time to pack lunch. I was going to head out for a sandwich, if you want to come."

"Yeah, I will."

The two men left the center and walked down the city street. While most of the kids came from pretty rough neighborhoods, the youth center was located in a fairly decent area. They decided on a sandwich shop around the corner and sat down to eat.

"So why'd you have trouble sleeping last night?" Dan asked. "Storms?"

"Uh...no, not really. Storms usually help me sleep. I guess I've just had some stuff on my mind."

"Yeah?" Dan said. "So, what's her name?"

"Huh?"

"Look, Evan, you're about the most laid back guy I know. You never worry or stress yourself about anything. So what's her name?"

Evan smiled and was aware that it had to be the goofiest looking grin ever. "Her name is Del. Del Granger, and I just met her a couple of days ago."

"And?"

"And nothing. I like her. A lot. We've had dinner a couple of times."

"You just met her and have managed to have dinner with her more than once already?" Dan asked. "She must be something else."

Evan tried dodging that a little. "I did some work for her, so she bought me dinner to repay me. Then she invited me for dinner at her place last night."

"Still," Dan said. "Two dates in two days, that's something. She must be pretty."

"Oh, man, she is fucking beautiful. I mean, I've never known a woman so unbelievably attractive," Evan admitted. "And she's smart and funny, too."

"You realize you sound like a chick, right?" Dan asked.

"Screw you, Dan," Evan said laughing. "Look, all kidding aside, she is amazing. I don't really know her yet, obviously, but I'm gonna do whatever I can to get to know her. She's the type you wanna think about keeping around, you know?"

Dan nodded emphatically. "Yeah, man, I know. If you'd hook me up with your friend Jenny, I might have someone to think about keeping around."

Evan sighed. "Dan, I've told you before, Jenny's still not ready. Just give it a little more time, and I promise, I will give you her number."

"Cool," Dan said. "So tell me more about this woman of yours."

"Well," Evan started, "she came to town from Chicago, she's divorced, a teacher-she'll be working at the high school in town-she's short, but perfectly proportioned, really fit, incredibly sexy. You can tell she's really independent and stubborn, but there's something soft and vulnerable about her, too. She can cook, makes a mean cocktail, and when I kiss her, I feel like a kid again."

"Damn," Dan said, with real appreciation.

"I know."

"Sounds like you've got it pretty bad, man."

"Hell, I don't want to...it's just happening so fast...but, you know, it just feels like it's right. It feels natural," Evan said as he drained his cup of soda and rose to refill it.

Dan followed him, and they headed back to the youth center. "It's cool, man. When you gonna bring her to happy hour so we can all meet her?"

Most of the staff at the youth center gathered for happy hour about once a month, and often, some of the significant others joined them. Over the years since he had been working at the center, Evan had only brought a date once and that had been some time ago. He couldn't remember Dan ever bringing anyone. "I don't know...we'll have to see how things go."

They got back to the center to finish their day. Afterwards, they headed to happy hour at a local bar with many of the other staff. Evan always enjoyed the monthly happy hour ritual. He wasn't really a huge drinker, but liked having a beer or two every now and then with people he liked both personally and professionally. And the bar had fabulous food so he usually took take-out home for dinner. All in all, it made for a nice relaxing time, and helped avoid rush hour.

Tonight, things were different, though. He couldn't keep his thoughts from Del. He was really starting to regret not seeing her today. He was more quiet than usual, and Dan picked up on it quickly.

"What's up, man? Thinking of your girl?" he asked.

Evan smiled. "Maybe a little."

"So go," Dan suggested. "Go see her. It's still early."

"Oh, she knew I would be away this evening. We didn't make plans for tonight. It's not a big deal."

"So are you saying you wouldn't want to see her if she was up for it?"

"Of course not," Evan said, "but I don't want to just drop in on her. She has a life that doesn't involve me."

"You said she was new to town, right?" Dan asked. "So she probably has nothing going on. She might actually want to see you, too."

"I don't know," Evan said.

"Evan, just go, man," Dan told him. "I know you want to."

Evan sighed, giving in. "Yeah, you're right. Maybe I'll give her a call when I get home."

"That's my boy!" Dan applauded. "I'll see you next week."

Evan got his take-out and started the hour-long trip home. Once there, he stuck his dinner in the microwave to warm while he searched for the list of all the teachers in the town school system along with their home numbers. It was designed for emergencies, and he'd never used it before. He located the most recent list and was happy to find Del's number there. He couldn't remember a time in his life when he'd been so glad to be a substitute teacher. He picked up the phone and dialed the number before he could lose his nerve.

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