| Once I began talking to Cathy again it was clearly a different situation. I was more calm and she and I seemed closer and my emotions were in check. Andy had been ignoring her for some time, emailing two or three times a week. On the contrary, Cathy and I had exchanged some 1200 emails and more phone calls since my return from Indiana in November, despite the fact I didn't talk to her for eleven days. New Year 2000 had special significance for both of us. Angie and I had once agreed to meet in New York City but she fell in love with an Italian named Giani, so that never happened. I was happy for her.
I had tried to convince Cathy to let me visit her and go to a public place together to ring in the New Year, but she knew her situation with Andy was tedious and didn't want to jeopardize it. So I told her I was going out in Yorktown, by myself. I didn't want to be alone for this New Year. I was going to hug somebody, anybody at midnight. On December 31, I went out, visited my two favorite bars (I rarely went to a bar but knew some places Miimii used to take me to) and they were closed! Closed? On the biggest New Year celebration of our lifetime? I was shocked. I visited another bar and it was so crowded I couldn't fit in. Then I drove up to the Yorktown Pub on the York River, by the Coleman Bridge. It was on the beach I'd visited all summer and next to the hills I trained on with my bicycle. I loved this area. I went inside and once again, it was packed. It was 11:40pm, so I walked outside to catch my breath. Then I looked at the water reflecting the lights of the Coleman Bridge, the fog gently carressing the span, and the moon barely visible on the still water. It was a picture. When I'm in love, beautiful things remind me of the object of my affections, and I thought of Cathy. I thought to myself,"I could go in and perhaps hug a stranger, but what if Andy doesn't show up for New Years? What if Cathy is alone? If I go home to find her, years from now I'll be able to say I rang in the new century with someone I loved". My place was with her.
I ran to my car and drove back to my apartment as quickly as possible, and at 11:55pm I started my computer and there she was. I asked her if Andy (he lived in Boston) had shown up to wish her a New Year. She said no. |
