The Yearbook

     He sat at a table for two in a fancy restaurant.  Two days ago, he got a call from her, inviting
him out for dinner one night so she could give him back his yearbook.  Wow, he thought.  How long
ago was it?  It's been almost eight years since his senior year in high school.  He got a yearbook that
year and asked her to sign it, but she never gave it back to him. They eventually just forgot about it. 
Now, it was popping back up in his life, along with her.
     He remembered the whole ordeal he went through during those terrible years at Bishop
Dwenger high school.  Well, they weren't that bad.  They just weren't as good as his college years. 
Beginning of his sophomore year in high school, he had one conversation with her.  It was on top of
the heater in the band room.  While he just sat on it for no particular reason, she had run up, jumped
right next to him, and carried on a conversation with him.  That's when he began having a huge
crush on her.  You know the feeling.  Seeing her smile and hearing her voice just made him feel
great.  However, he was a year ahead of her.  And he wasn't a very social person.  She was.  It was
totally impossible.  So, he just left it at a crush for two years.
     She had many boyfriends in those two years.  Then came his senior year.  She was only a
junior, one year behind him.  For some reason, he didn't remember what, she was crying one day
after school.  He guessed it had something to do with her current (and last) boyfriend being a jerk or
something.  So, on his way home from school, he decided to call her just to talk to her.  Why?  He
didn't know.  It was just something he felt like doing.  When he got home, he called her, and that's
when their friendship started.  He still had a huge crush on her, so about a week later, he told her. 
She was still together with her boyfriend, so he figured it was safe to tell her.  She took it in stride
and just continued to talk with him as friends.  And that's how it stayed for the rest of his senior year
and his first year of college.  In that time, she had broken up with her boyfriend, gotten back together
with him, and repeated that process two more times.  He spent lots of time trying to get over her, and
he did after a long, long time.  But he never did forget their time as friends.
     Three more years in college and he had a degree in computer engineering.  He also liked to
write, play the saxophone, and practice martial arts.  His freshman English teacher had said he was a
well rounded person, and he was inclined to believe him, arrogant as he was.  He already had two
internships at IBM when he got out of college and automatically got a job there.  For two years, he
learned the trade inside and out and, after gaining confidence, he built his own computer hardware
company.  It was tough at first, but he eventually built up quite a business.  His company was now
the tenth largest hardware company in the nation, and he was really happy with it.  Plus, in his spare
time, he wrote short stories, played saxophone in a jazz combo, and practiced martial arts.  His life
was really good, except for one little aspect.  He was still looking for the perfect mate.  Bad luck
with the opposite sex was an understatement.  In another year, he'd be ready to give up.  Oh well, he
thought.  Only one big failure in his life wasn't bad, was it?
     Which brought his thoughts to the present.  At first, he didn't recognized her voice when she
had called.  Then, she mentioned her name, and her maiden name.  It was then that it hit him.  She
did sound older, with a slightly lower voice and a very relaxed tone.  It was just a quick call, asking
him to dinner so she could give him back his yearbook.  Now that he remembered everything that
happened between them, it seemed like only yesterday.  He wondered, would this be a quick dinner,
or would they spend all night discussing old times?  While he waited, he turned these two questions
over in his mind.
     After about fifteen minutes of reflection, she arrived.  He stood up as she made her way to
him.  Looking her over, he decided that she had aged very, very well.  She wasn't as skinny as she
was in high school, her frame had just the right amount of body fat added to it.  Her blond hair, still
short like it was in high school, bounced around.  Wearing a simple light blue dress, she looked
great.  They hugged and exchanged how-are-you's before sitting down.  She put the elusive
yearbook down on the table and her purse on the ground.
     "You look good." he said.
     "Why, thank you!  You look good too!" she replied.
     "Thanks."  He noticed her voice again, lower with age and a little softer.  "I see you brought
the yearbook."
     "Yup, like I said I would."
     "Did you sign it?"
     "Of course!"
     He grabbed the book and opened to the back of the cover.  There were only a couple
signatures.  Hers was on the bottom, with some comments about their friendship.  He read the
paragraph really quick before looking up at her.
     "Thanks for signing it.  Though, I would have liked to have seen it when it was signed."
     "Sorry, but someone didn't ask for it back."
     "Hey, I assumed you knew!"
     "Well, that's your mistake, not mine!"
     They laughed together for a moment.  The waiter came and they ordered some food.
     After the waiter left, he continued the conversation.  "How's Matt doing?"
     "Oh, he's doing well."
     "When did you two get married, anyway?"
     "About two years ago."
     "Really?  I thought you would've tied the knot sooner."
     "No.  We waited until he graduated and I got a steady job."
     "That was smart of you two.  What does Matt do now?"
     "He's still looking for a steady job.  We're really close to finding him one."
     "That's good.  Any kids?"
     "Just one, a boy."
     "Wow, that must be a real handful."
     "Sometimes, he can be.  But he's a real sweetheart. He'll be two next month."
     "Two?  Didn't wait too long, did you?"
     She shook her head, which made him laugh.
     She shifted the subject.  "So, how have you been doing?"
     "Good.  I own a computer company. . ."
     "Yes, I know.  That's how I got your number, from one of those computer magazines."
     "I'm flattered."
     "Tenth largest company in America, not too shabby."
     "Their being kind when they say that.  It's more like the twelfth."
     "Still, that's pretty good."
     "Yeah, I guess."
     There was a short pause as their drinks and appetizers were brought to them.
     She continued.  "You still play the saxophone?"
     "Yeah, I'm in a little quintet.  We play at this nearby jazz club once a week."
     "That's good."
     "It's fun.  And, I might as well tell you, I still write too."
     "Really?"
     "Yeah, nothing big, just some poems and short stories published in literary magazines.  Oh,
and a couple in some books."
     "That sounds great."
     "Yeah, I guess."
     "You guess?  Don't you know?"
     I looked at her and smiled.  "I thought I did.  Now, I'm not so sure."
     "Why's that?"
     "Well, first of all, I'm turning twenty-eight this December."
     "Okay."
     "And my parents are getting really old.  My dad's heart condition's getting worse and
worse."
     Her eyebrows scrunched together.  "Where's this going?"
     He looked into her eyes and said, slowly, "I'm not married."
     She gave him a puzzled look accented with a, "Hmm?"
     "I'm not married.  I'm almost thirty, not married, and my parents don't have any grand kids
from me to look forward to."
     She looked at him and nodded.  "I see, you're afraid of disappointing your parents."
     He explained further.  "They've always said they're proud of me and that they don't mind if
I stay a bachelor.  But, every time they see my sister with her family, their grandchildren, they seem
very happy.  I know they'd love to see me get married and have kids.  I just feel like I'm going to
disappoint them in the end."
     She put her elbows on the table and rested her chin on her hands, in thought, before replying. 
"It does sound like your parents would like you to settle down and make them some grandchildren. 
But, I don't think you should feel pressured at all.  They already have some from your sister, and
you've already said they're proud of you."
     He nodded in understanding.  "Thank you.  There is one thing that makes it more difficult
for me, though."
     "What's that?"
     "I feel really lonely."
     She tucked her arms under the table.  "Why?"
     He looked at her and smiled.  "I don't really know why.  I guess just seeing how everyone's
so happy, makes me want to find that."
     "And seeing me doesn't help, does it?"
     He nodded his head.
     "I'm sorry for that."
     He shook his head.  "No, don't be.  It's not your fault."
     "Yeah, but still, my timing was kind of bad."
     He smiled again.  "You've got a point there.  Don't worry, it'll pass.  Either that, or I'll do
something to help me forget about it, like play my sax or write."
     There was a short pause before she spoke.  "Haven't you tried finding someone?"
     "Yeah, but you remember my luck with woman, don't you?"
     "Kind of."
     "Well, it didn't get any better as I got older.  In fact, I think the best relationship I ever had
with the opposite sex was with you."
     "Oh, come on, there were probably better ones.  We were just friends."
     "True, but I was hung up on you for a long, long time."
     "And you never got hung up on the other ones?"
     "No, they just weren't as nice or as interesting as you were."
     "I'm flattered."
     "So I just gave up after a while.  I couldn't take the disappointment anymore.  Now, here I
am, talking to you of all people."
     "Well, it could be worse.  You could be married to someone you really didn't love, someone
you just settled with, have nine kids and a house mortgage that is way overdue."
     He looked at her and smiled.  "Thanks.  You always did make me smile."
     She smiled back.  "That's what I'm here for."
     The waiter brought them the rest of their food.  For the rest of the meal, they just talked
about the little things.  She talked about that tough first year of having a baby, a career, and a
marriage to maintain.  He talked about that first rough year of starting his own business.  She talked
about her college experience in his absence, as did he.  And they talked about the possibilities that
could have been.  Overall, it was a very nostalgic conversation.
     When it came time to leave, the man offered to pay for the whole meal.
     "No, I can't let you do that!"
     "Sure you can.  I own a business, I can spare a little money for an old friend."
     "Oh, so I'm old, am I?"
     They both chuckled.
     She protested further.  "I've got some money I can spend.  And, besides, we're not dating or
anything."
     "I hope not, you're married.  I don't want to get mixed up in an affair."
     She gave him a look of annoyance.  "Fine, go ahead and pay for everything, since it's
obvious you like to flaunt your money."
     "One of the pleasure of having it."
     He paid, she grabbed her purse, and then they walked outside.  It was a nice, cool June night. 
The stars were out in full force and the moon was shining it's usual shine.  And not a cloud was in
the sky.
     The woman turned to the man and said, "Well, it's been a lovely evening."
     "Yes it has.  I hope we can do it again sometime."
     "I'll give you a call."
     "Okay."
     "Well then, good night!"
     "Good night!"
     And she walked to her car.  He was about to do the same when he realized something. 
Turning around, he went back into the restaurant and, after a couple seconds, came back out.  In his
right hand was the yearbook.
     "Can't forget this again."
     He walked to his car and drove home.