the Scuffy - 6. Chapter 6

The five-thirty alarm went off. Glen’s head was on my chest, and his leg was over mine. I quietly slipped out of bed, trying not to disturb him. I headed to the bathroom to take care of an urgent need. I started to brush my teeth when I felt Glen passing me as he headed to drain his bladder.

I walked downstairs, started the coffee, poured two glasses of orange juice. Glen walked into the kitchen, “Do you always get up this early? I could have used another 30 minutes of sleep.”

“Drink this and follow me.” I led the way down to the rec room.

He looked around and smiled. “Wait till Nicky sees this. He’s going to bug you to have a party here.”

I opened a door, “Look, this is why I get up at 5:30” I watched Glen’s face as he looked at the workout equipment. The smile began slow, and then his whole face lit up.

“We work out for thirty minutes. If you need help, let me know. I can start, and you can follow me, or I can show you how to work out safely and then move on.” I didn’t have to show him much. Either he had used these machines before, or he was a quick study

Finished, I led him to the showers. “Just step in front of the shower, and the water will start.” We stood side by side as we showered. Glen had other ideas, and when my back was turned, he moved behind me.

Laughing, he put his arm around me, “Nice way to wake up.”

“You devil” I turned around, pulled him into my arms, and kissed him. “This, is a nice way to wake up. Come on, let’s get dressed or we’ll be late for work. We can pick this up when we get home tonight.”

“Who says I’ll be staying here tonight.” Saying that he ran up the stairs.

Dressed, I poured two carafes of coffee, fixed two lox, and bagels for breakfast. I wrapped them in wax paper, and I was ready to leave. Just as I was going to call Glen, he showed up in the kitchen. “Ready? This is your coffee, fix it the way you like, and then we can get going.”

I grabbed the two sandwiches and headed out to the car. Glen followed, sipping his coffee. The drive to work took forty-five minutes, including interstate driving. “Here’s breakfast, I hope you like salmon.”

He unwrapped the sandwich, and seeing it was a bagel with lox, “Perfect; I haven’t had one of these for a long time. Thanks.”

The ride to work was quiet but comfortable. We would look at each other and smile. I was happy and hoped he was also. I saw Glen as my soul mate and wished he saw me the same way. Arriving at work, I parked the car in the garage.

“Are you free for lunch today?”

“I’m, sorry Glen, but Monday is a full day for me. I have Friday afternoon plus the weekend to catch up on. I really would like to have lunch with you, but I can’t do it today. Any other day would be okay.”

“Okay, then I’ll bring lunch, I’ll call later”

"Good morning Marge, how are you this morning?”

“Good morning Kevin, here’s your newspaper and coffee.”

Marge has been at this kiosk ever since I started here. She kept a tab of my expenses, and I paid her at the end of the week, including a tip. Her smiles always start my day off on a good note.

My day starts in investments. I pick up the transactions and take them to my office to enter them on the computer for management review and accounting records. Each transaction also has to be entered into the specific client accounts. Since trading is over the weekend, worldwide, many transactions need to be entered on Monday morning.

I was so involved; I forgot the time until a young man knocked on my office door. I looked up, and Glen was holding a paper bag. “Lunch as promised?”

“Are you going to join me?”

“Maybe, if you want me to join you, you’ll have to share your lunch?”

“Okay, I’ll share. What delights did you bring us?”

“Peanut and jelly sandwiches, Marge said they were your favorite.”

Laughing, “And to drink?”

“I thought an office this high-class would have coffee all the time.”

I buzzed my secretary, “Bess, will you please bring two coffees, one with milk. Thank you.”

I never ask my secretary to bring coffee. I usually get it myself. “Thanks Bess, I really appreciate this. Sit there Glen, we can share my desk.”

I know that Glen likes to play jokes, but lunch wasn’t fair. He took a sandwich, opened it. It was a pastrami sandwich. I smiled, took the other sandwich, opened it, and it was peanut butter and jelly, I looked at him, and he started to laugh.

I guess my face must have shown my disappointment or shock, laughing he gave me half of his sandwich and took half of mine. “You know I never share, you’re just too easy to have fun with. Maybe that’s why I find you so different from the others. Maybe that’s why I have some feelings for you.”

Hearing that, I so wanted to grab him and kiss him, His humor is what I needed in my life. Up to this point, I was always serious. There wasn’t anything except work and fishing.

We sat there eating our sandwiches, “The peanut butter jelly sandwich reminds of grade school, it was my favorite then. My mother would pack me a peanut butter jelly sandwich, but she would add peanuts to the sandwich, she said it made it taste better. This brings back so many memories, thanks.”

Finishing lunch, “I’ll see you at six. Dad wants you to plan on having dinner with us tonight.”

“Thanks I’d like that. Is this like when a guy brings his intended home to meet the parents?”

“Maybe, we shall see.”

I laughed, there’s no question he likes to play cat and mouse games.

When you’re busy, time seems to fly. I noticed the noise in the office was absent. Looking at my watch, I was surprised to see it was a quarter past six. I wrapped up my work and locked my office since I hadn’t filed anything. I headed for the garage. I was afraid that Glen had left with his father. Running up the stairs to the third level, I saw Glen sitting on the hood of my car laughing. I thought he laughs a lot because of me.

“Sorry, I forgot the time.”

Looking around and seeing we were alone, he leaned in and kissed me, not one of those brushing your lips and backing off, but a soul-reaching kiss.

“Let’s go, Dad just left, and you have to come for dinner.”

On the way home, “Kev, I hope you weren’t upset about lunch.”

“Glen, I’m not upset. Yes, it was a surprise, but you made it right. I’m not use to your humor, but don’t stop. I think it’s something that draws me to you. I had never experienced that before, my life has always been serious. I needed this humor, and I’m glad that I met you.” That got me a kiss on my cheek.

“I like you, Kevin, you are unique, and I think that’s part of your charm.”

“Does that mean you’re going to move in with me?”

“Maybe, we’ll see”

I laughed, never a direct answer, but I’m getting use to his way of teasing. “Should we bring a gift?”

“There’s a flower shop, stop and get flowers.” That’s what I did. I picked a bouquet of mixed flowers which I thought where very pretty.