Day 5: Speech Dorks, Part II

First, I want to thank the great state of Illinois for passing same-sex marriage equality.  Now I can see same-sex equality every time I look across the Mississippi River.

Back to the saga, of Jamie and Natalie, or Speech Dorks in action.  Over the summer to my senior year I broke up with Randy, which was sad.  Randy worked hard to still be my friend, but I did not make it easy on him.  I started my senior year with one thought in mind to getting the hell out of Crawford County.  The one thing I actually looked forward to that year was my final year on the Speech Team.  I went to my first meet with high expectations for a good season. As soon as I showed up for the first round of Duet Acting there was Natalie ready to perform with her acting partner.  I pasted on my glad to see you face and thought, "Well, guess she didn't go away."

Senior Picture, Fall 1983

Natalie for her part was glad to see a familiar face and prattled on about practicing opening a pack of cigarettes for her role as Becky in "Bad Habits" by Terrance McNally.  She kept laughing about how that was the easiest thing to do because she smoked.  I stayed to watch her performance and was surprised by how funny Natalie could be.  The character she played was a very feminine, very vain woman, so against type for Natalie. I must admit a part of me was giving Natalie a second look for friend potential.

Later that day I went into the gym to regroup with my teammates, but found only Natalie and Mollie on the bleachers.  Mollie was asleep with her head on Natalie's knee.  Natalie was stroking her hair.  My heart sank a little because Mollie and I were not good friends.  Mollie had obviously staked a claim to a friendship with Natalie and I knew I had missed my chance to get to know Natalie better.  Accepting the situation, I sat down next to them and started chatting.  Later Natalie would tell me how I had surprised them and they could not believe I was so clueless to what was going on.  I must admit I kind of was clueless.  Natalie also told me she was annoyed that I showed up and ruined their private moment.  I think about how on those bleachers Natalie's present and future were right there within her reach, if only we had known.  However, had we known maybe things would have turned out different, fate is tricky that way.