She puts her hands on her hips.
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I did stay with a friend," she says.
"Man or woman?"
Her eyes get hard on me. She takes a step forward.
"You don't care if I'm home with the kids night after night," she says. "But if I go away for one night, all of a sudden you have to know where I've been, what I've done."
"I just feel you owe me some explanation," I say.
"How many times have you been late, or out of town, or who knows where?" she asks.
"But that's business," I say. "And I always tell you where I've been if you ask. Now I'm asking."
"There's nothing to tell, " she says. "All that happened was I went out with Jane."
"Jane?" It takes me a minute to remember her. "You mean your friend from where we used to live? You drove all the way back there?"
"I just had to talk to someone," she says. "By the time we'd finished talking, I'd had too much to drink to drive home. Any- way, I knew the kids were okay until morning. So I just stayed at Jane's."
"Okay, but why? How did this come over you all of a sud- den?" I ask her.
"Come over me? All of a sudden? Alex, you go off and leave me night after night. It's no wonder that I'm lonely. Nothing suddenly came over me. Ever since you got into management, your career has come first and everyone else takes whatever is left."
"Julie, I've just tried to make a good living for you and the kids," I tell her.
"Is that all? Then why do you keep taking the promotions?"
"What am I supposed to do, turn them down?"
She doesn't answer.
"Look, I put in the hours because I have to, not because I want to," I tell her.
97
She still doesn't say anything.
"All right, look: I promise I'll make more time for you and the kids," I say. "Honest, I'll spend more time at home."
"Al, it's not going to work. Even when you're home, you're at the office. Sometimes I've seen the kids tell you something two or three times before you hear them."
"It won't be like that when I get out of the jam I'm in right now," I say.
"Do you hear what you're saying? 'When I get out of the jam I'm in right now.' Do you think it's going to change? You've said all that before, Al. Do you know how many times we've been over this?"
"Okay, you're right. We have been over it a lot of times. But, right now, there's nothing I can do," I say.
She looks up at the sky and says, "Your job has always been on the line. Always. So if you're such a marginal employee, why do they keep giving you promotions and more money?"
I pinch the bridge of my nose.
"How do I make you understand this," I say. "I'm not up for another promotion or pay raise this time. This time it's different. Julie, you have no idea what kind of problems I've got at the plant."
"And you have no idea what it's like here at home," she says.
I say, "Okay, look, I'd like to spend more time at home, but the problem is getting the time."
"I don't need all your time," she says. "But I do need some of it, and so do the kids."
"I know that. But to save this plant, I'm going to have to give it all I've got for the next couple of months."
"Couldn't you at least come home for dinner most of the time?" she asks. "The evenings are when I miss you the most. All of us do. It's empty around here without you, even with the kids for company."
"Nice to know I'm wanted. But sometimes I even need the evenings. I just don't have enough time during the day to get to things like paperwork," I say.
"Why don't you bring the paperwork home," she suggests. "Do it here. If you did that, at least we could see you. And maybe I could even help you with some of it."
I lean back. "I don't know if I'll be able to concentrate, but... okay, let's try it."
98
She smiles. "You mean it?"
"Sure, if it doesn't work, we can talk about it," I say. "Deal?"
"Deal," she says.
I lean toward her and ask, "Want to seal it with a handshake or a kiss?"
She comes around the table and sits on my lap and kisses me.
"You know, I sure missed you last night," I tell her.
"Did you?" she says. "I really missed you too. I had no idea singles bars could be so depressing."
"Singles bars?"
"It was Jane's idea," she says. "Honest."
I shake my head. "I don't want to hear about it."
"But Jane showed me some new dance steps," she says. "And maybe this weekend-"
I give her a squeeze. "If you want to do something this week- end, baby, I'm all yours."
"Great," she says and whispers in my ear, "You know, it's Friday, so... why don't we start early?"
She kissed me again.
And I say, "Julie, I'd really love to, but..."
"But?"
"I really should check in at the plant," I say.
She stands up. "Okay, but promise me you'll hurry home tonight."
"Promise," I tell her. "Really, it's going to be a great week- end."
I open my eyes Saturday morning to see a drab green blur. The blur turns out to be my son, Dave, dressed in his Boy Scout uniform. He is shaking my arm.
"Davey, what are you doing here?" I ask.
He says, "Dad, it's seven o'clock!"
"Seven o'clock? I'm trying to sleep. Aren't you supposed to be watching television or something?"
"We'll be late," he says.
"We will be late? For what?"
"For the overnight hike!" he says. "Remember? You prom- ised me I could volunteer you to go along and help the troop- master."
I mutter something no Boy Scout should ever hear. But Dave isn't fazed.
"Come on. Just get in the shower," he says, as he pulls me out of bed. "I packed your gear last night. Everything's in the car already. We just have to get there by eight."
I manage a last look at Julie, her eyes still shut, and the warm soft mattress as Davey drags me through the door.
An hour and ten minutes later, my son and I arrive at the edge of some forest. Waiting for us is the troop: fifteen boys out- fitted in caps, neckerchiefs, merit badges, the works.
Before I have time to say, "Where's the troopmaster?", the other few parents who happen to be lingering with the boys take off in their cars, all pedals to the metal. Looking around, I see that I am the only adult in sight.
"Our troopmaster couldn't make it," says one of the boys.
"How come?"
"He's sick," says another kid next to him.
"Yeah, his hemorrhoids are acting up," says the first. "So it looks like you're in charge now."
"What are we supposed to do, Mr. Rogo?" asks the other kid.
Well, at first I'm a little mad at having all this foisted upon me. But then the idea of having to supervise a bunch of kids doesn't daunt me-after all, I do that every day at the plant. So I gather everyone around. We look at a map and discuss the objec- tives for this expedition into the perilous wilderness before us.
100
The plan, I learn, is for the troop to hike through the forest following a blazed trail to someplace called "Devil's Gulch." There we are to bivouac for the evening. In the morning we are to break camp and make our way back to the point of departure, where Mom and Dad are supposed to be waiting for little Freddy and Johnny and friends to walk out of the woods.