The Real

by James Cole

  “Who?” Jeremy asked, as if he didn’t know.

  “June, that’s who.”

  Jeremy’s suspicions from earlier proved right. “You don’t have to worry about her,” he replied. “She’s my coworker, nothing more.”

  “I watched you with her, before you knew I was there. I saw the way you two were laughing and talking. You were just so chummy with her.”

  “You don’t have to worry, Jinni,” he said defensively. “We’re just friends.”

  “Don’t worry?” The pitch of her voice began to rise. “What am I supposed to think? You did take her parking at the lake that night, didn’t you?”

  “I told you nothing happened at the lake,” Jeremy replied adamantly.

  “But if it did, I would never know, would I?”

  “I suppose not, especially if you’re going to act this way,” Jeremy said. It had been a long day and he didn’t try to hide his irritation. “If something had happened, I don’t think I would have mentioned taking her to the lake in the first place.”

  “I want to trust you, Jeremy – I do,” Jinni said. “But the thought of you sneaking around behind my back makes me crazy. Look at it from my perspective. First you start spending all this time with June at work. Then I find out that y’all spent time alone at the lake. Today I see how attractive she is and how comfortable you two are with each other. When I walked up, I felt like the outsider.”

  “June is a fine person. I’d be lying if I said she and I didn’t hit it off on some level. Since we began working on this project together, we have become friends, nothing more.”

  “Nothing happened when y’all went parking at the lake?”

  Jeremy felt as if he were fighting a losing battle.

  “We’ve covered this ground before, Jinni. Do we have to go there again?”

  By now they had made it into the parking garage where Jinni had left her car. He parked next to hers and turned his full attention to her. “Jinni,” he pleaded. “Let’s don’t end this day on a sour note. I’m tired and you’re tired –”

  She cut him off. “Answer my question. Did anything happen at the lake?”

  “No,” he replied begrudgingly. “Nothing happened.”

  “Did you want something to happen?”

  “You mean did I try to make a move on her?” he asked. “No, I most certainly did not.”

  “Did the thought cross your mind?”

  Now she had him. The thought had crossed Jeremy’s mind but what could he say? Could random thoughts be a violation of the terms of their relationship? If so, then to even notice an attractive girl could be prohibited.

  He didn’t have the energy to explain the nuances of the male sex drive to her right now. All he could muster was a frustrated, “I don’t know.”

  They sat side-by-side but with a rift between them a mile wide.

  “I found out some other stuff, too,” Jinni said vaguely. She did not elaborate, only frowned at him expectantly as if she were waiting for some kind of confession.

  No confession would be forthcoming. Jeremy had grown tired of defending himself and freely expressed his displeasure.

  Glaring at her, he asked, “What other stuff?”

  “Forget it,” Jinni replied with exasperation. “I think it’s time for me to leave.”

  She got out and slammed his car door.

  Jeremy watched as she pulled away without acknowledging him. He followed her down the spiral exit of the parking garage. At the main road she turned right. A right turn would direct him toward his apartment and away from the Biotech Facility. It wasn’t necessary that he drop by June’s lab tonight, but if he didn’t, wouldn’t that only be giving in to Jinni’s irrationality? Was he not allowed to interact with his coworker just because his jealous girlfriend didn’t want him there? With a defiant jerk of the steering wheel he turned left, even though he knew Jinni would be watching in her rear view mirror.

  On the main boulevard leading to campus, Jeremy was greeted by a long line of cars and pedestrians headed in the opposite direction. The RockFest had run its course and the boisterous hordes of deathcore rockers swarmed by like so many mindless locusts, having devoured all there was to consume at Grover’s Field.

  *****

  Jeremy easily laid claim to a parking space on the street directly in front of the Biotech Facility. When he noticed Tavalin’s little yellow Honda still occupied the same spot as earlier, he guessed that Tavalin must be inside the Facility. Perhaps he had second thoughts about driving home in his condition.

  Only a smattering of festival-goers remained, some still sitting in the grass or milling about Grover’s Field while others drifted aimlessly by as they searched for their cars. One such couple who appeared happily lost lollygagged up the sidewalk toward Jeremy.

  “Dude!” exclaimed the tall, skinny male. The greasy locks of hair that hung into his face could not obscure his bloodshot eyes. He asked, “Can you tell us how to get to the Nowhere Bar?”

  Jeremy smiled at the coincidence. “Downtown, a few blocks west of the Square.”

  The guy looked at his companion who only shrugged her shoulders helplessly. “Can you tell us how to get downtown?” he asked unabashedly.

  Jeremy pointed up University Boulevard. “Go that way, about a mile or so. When you get to the Chevron Station, take a left. When you see the Courthouse, you’re in the Square.”

  Knowing it would be futile to try and give these two detailed directions to Bar Nowhere, Jeremy added, “When you get to the Square, just pick out somebody who looks hip and ask them where the bar is.”

  “Awesome,” he replied as they ambled on by.

  “And, dude,” added Jeremy, “the name is Bar Nowhere.”

  Jeremy crossed the front lawn and started up the steps that led to the front doors of the Facility. At the top of the steps he paused. While Tavalin had likely gone downstairs to his basement lab, Jeremy had to entertain the possibility of an ambush. If he went in this way, he would have to pass through the lobby, one of Tavalin’s favorite hiding places. Tavalin had surely heard Jeremy mention that he might stop in to see June tonight. For all Jeremy knew, Tavalin could be watching for his arrival out the plate glass windows in the lobby. Jeremy couldn’t take that chance.

  Stupid game, Jeremy thought as he circled around to the small parking lot and loading dock in back of the building. He stuck to the shadowy areas whenever possible, just in case Tavalin was on to him. He made it to the back door without incident but hesitated, thinking he heard someone on the other side and sidestepped just in time to avoid the door as it swung open in its outward arc. Jeremy stood with his back tight against the bricks as someone, not Tavalin, exited the building. Two steps later Jeremy recognized the short statue and bald beanie on the back of the man’s head. It was Dr. Sloan, a.k.a. Skippy.

  Jeremy held his position, his arms crossed in an X across his chest, hoping that he wouldn’t be noticed, but Skippy sensed his presence. He turned and looked questioningly at Jeremy.

  “You almost got me,” Jeremy said before Skippy could say anything. “Good thing for my quick reflexes.”

  Jeremy snagged the doorknob just before the door closed completely and pulled open the door. “Have a good night,” he said in a jolly tone. At last glance, Dr. Sloan had not moved nor replied when the door swung shut.

  At least it wasn’t Dr. Cain again.

  It was then that Jeremy’s conscious mind caught up to something else of interest that he glimpsed in the back parking lot as he stood with his back against the wall. A pair of parking lights switched on when Skippy exited the building. Jeremy couldn’t be sure because the lion’s share of his attention had been focused on Skippy, but he thought he recognized the car.

  Jeremy vaulted up the back stairwell to the second floor where he had a bird’s eye view of the back parking lot. Skippy had just arrived at the driver’s side of his car while the mystery car waited with illuminated parking lights. Jeremy knew that car – it belonged to Dr. Ca
in. Jeremy checked his watch. It was a quarter past midnight, not unusually late for Dr. Cain to be leaving the Facility, but, as Jeremy watched, something about the scene below struck him as odd. Only after Skippy cranked his car and switched on his headlights did Dr. Cain turn his own headlights on. And even though Dr. Cain was parked closer to the exit, he allowed Skippy to back his car out, turn around, and leave before following Skippy out.

  They were leaving together.

  As Jeremy walked around to the elevator, he heard a strange whirring noise. He eased around toward the front wing of the second floor in the direction of the sound. He rounded the corner to the sight of the backside of a man operating a large buffer machine. Jeremy watched until he got a good look at the man’s profile. It was Grady, waxing the hallway. Jeremy ducked back around the corner before Grady saw him. He wasn’t in the mood for any Grady-speak tonight.

  As he rode the elevator up, Jeremy asked himself what reason Dr. Cain and Skippy might have to leave together. What common destination might the two men have at this hour? Jeremy could not make sense of it. Unless… One of his mother’s many sayings came to mind:

  Birds of a feather flock together.

  Jeremy had long suspected that Skippy might be gay but what of the executive director? Jeremy had seen pictures of Dr. Cain’s wife in his office. She was a knockout. Nonetheless, Jeremy recalled a time or two when he thought he detected a subtle prissiness in Dr. Cain’s gait. There was also a definite effeminate quality about the shriek he gave when Tavalin scared him that night in the lobby. Could it be? Could Dr. Cain be a homosexual? Though only a hunch, it was an intriguing supposition that the big boss might be harboring such a juicy secret.

  Considering Dr. Cain in this new light, as a man of deceit, laid clear the path to further suspicions. What if Dr. Cain was behind what June referred to as the intelligent redesign of his mitochondria? Was it possible that Dr. Cain had secretly used Jeremy as his personal human guinea pig? If anyone was capable of such cutting-edge science, it was Dr. Cain, and Jeremy had always thought it strange how much time he spent in his private lab. If he had nothing to hide, why do so much hands-on work in the lab with so many capable scientists at his beck and call? Jeremy’s mind ran with the idea and by the time the elevator released him to the fifth floor, he had all but convinced himself that the good doctor was responsible for the changes in his mitochondria.

  Jeremy charged into June’s lab, ready to run his theory by June, but the distraught expression on her face stopped him in his tracks.

  “I’m afraid I have some bad news,” she said haltingly.

  “What is it?” he asked and grimaced at the taste of sour reflux in the back of his throat.

  “He knows,” she replied miserably. “Dr. Cain knows.”

  “What happened?”

  “Dr. Cain came by and asked to see what it was I was working on. I had no choice but to tell him that it was unrelated to my official research project.”

  “How did he know?”

  “I have no idea.”

  “Did you tell him any specifics?” asked Jeremy.

  “No, and he didn’t ask for any. He only said that we would discuss the matter on Monday, first thing.”

  “When did this happen?” asked Jeremy. “Tonight?”

  “Just a few minutes ago.”

  “Does he know I am involved?” Jeremy asked and immediately felt guilty for thinking of himself.

  “Your name wasn’t mentioned.”

  “June, I am so sorry,” Jeremy said. “This is my fault. If you want me to, I’ll talk to Dr. Cain. I can tell him the truth, that it was my idea and I asked you to help me.”

  “I don’t see how bringing you into it helps either of us,” she said stoically. “I’ve just got to figure out what I’m going to say on Monday.”

  “I’m just sick that you’re the one who got caught.” Jeremy literally felt like vomiting. “It should have been me.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” June said sadly. “I agreed to work on this. I knew the risk I was taking.”

  After a few minutes of Jeremy hanging around, trying to cheer her up, she said, “I’m tired of talking about it. We should just call it a night.”

  “All right then,” he said, taking the hint. “Can I give you a ride back to your place?”

  June lived in the large complex of dated, on-campus apartments known as the bungalows. Jeremy had offered before to give June a ride but she always declined. Tonight was no different.

  “No thank you,” she replied. “I’ve got a couple of things I want to wrap up here before I go.”

  “Can I call you tomorrow?” he asked. “Maybe I could take you out for lunch or something.”

  “Sure,” she replied unenthusiastically. “If you like.”

  “It’s the least I can do. Maybe we can figure a way out of all this.”

  *****

  Jeremy drove directly home from the Facility. He was in the shower bathing away the dirt of the now-spent day when he thought he heard a faint ding dong over the sound of the splattering water. The television was on in the other room and he dismissed it as merely one of those irritating commercials that mimic the ring of a telephone or doorbell as an attention-grabber.

  He heard it again, past the thirty second limit of most commercials.

  Not the television. Who could be here at this hour?

  Jeremy hurriedly rinsed and cut off the water. Now someone was knocking loudly on the door, demanding his immediate response.

  “Just a minute!” he yelled as he wiped away a portion of the water dripping from his body.

  Wearing only a towel, he scampered down the hallway. “Who is it?” he asked the door.

  “It’s me. Let me in.”

  It was Tavalin. Jeremy disengaged the deadbolt and opened the door.

  “What took you so long?” Tavalin asked.

  “Guess.”

  “Oh,” Tavalin said as he belatedly processed the answer based on Jeremy’s dripping hair and the towel around his waist.

  “What do you want?”

  “Can I come in?”

  “This better be important,” Jeremy replied with unreserved aggravation as he motioned Tavalin into the living room.

  “Do you know what time it is?” Apparently the six hours just spent with Tavalin was not sufficient for his good friend.

  Tavalin checked his watch diligently. “Oh, about a quarter past one.”

  “I know what time it is, you idiot. I just wondered if you did.”

  Tavalin stood there like a puppy begging for just a little more playtime. “Umm…” was all he could say.

  “Hold that thought. I’ll be back in a minute,” advised Jeremy as he went to throw on some clothes and brush his teeth.

  While Jeremy was still in the back, Tavalin called out, “Hey, can I borrow your washing machine?”

  “What for?” Jeremy asked, but couldn’t hear if Tavalin responded.

  By the time Jeremy came back, the washer was filling with water and Tavalin was sitting on the couch wearing only his boxers.

  Jeremy shook his head in disbelief. “This I’ve got to hear.”

  “Umm, I sorta threw up after all that beer I drank and got a little on my clothes. I threw them in the wash. You don’t mind, do you?”

  “I guess it’s better than getting it on my furniture,” Jeremy muttered. “So tell me again, why are you here?”

  “I just didn’t feel sleepy and didn’t feel like going back to my place and, yada, yada, yada, here I am.” An anxious look appeared on Tavalin’s face, as if Jeremy’s company was of the utmost importance. “You want to order a pizza?” added Tavalin. “I’ll buy.”

  Jeremy smiled in spite of himself at his friend’s strange and unpredictable ways. And besides, he couldn’t exactly throw Tavalin out of the apartment in his underwear. “I could eat,” Jeremy conceded.

  They ordered a pay-for-view movie, some second rate horror flick that Tavalin wanted to see. Tavalin made seve
ral trips downstairs in his underwear to watch for their pizza, just to make sure the delivery guy didn’t get lost.

  On returning from one such trek, Tavalin announced, “We’ve got company.”

  Much to Jeremy’s surprise, it was Jinni who followed Tavalin inside. She took one step into the room and stopped. “Can we talk?” she asked. She indicated the bedroom with her eyes.

  “Yes, of course,” replied Jeremy. “What’s wrong?”

  They went inside and shut the door behind them.

  “What is he doing here?” she whispered.

  “With Tavalin, I have learned to expect the unexpected. Did he tell you why he’s walking around in his underwear?”

  “Yes,” Jinni replied. “Why don’t you give him some clothes?”

  “Why would I want to deprive you?” asked Jeremy with a smile. “It doesn’t seem to bother him. He’s oblivious.”

  “If only I could be so oblivious…”

  Their laughter faded into the void of a self-conscience hush, forcing Jinni to address the elephant in the room. “You’re probably wondering why I’m here,” she said.

  “You could say that…”

  “Yes, well, it’s just that…” she stammered a bit before she began. “I just felt so bad for the way I behaved. I shouldn’t have jumped all over you like I did.”

  “It’s okay, really,” Jeremy said.

  Jinni’s apology actually made Jeremy feel worse. She had been right to be suspicious – only the target of her jealousy was misplaced. While kissing June had crossed his mind that night out at the lake, he had resisted. Monika, not June, was the other woman.

  “I don’t know what’s gotten into me lately,” Jinni said. “I’ve been feeling a little insecure.”

  Jeremy didn’t know what to say. “Maybe it just means you care for me.”

  “Or, maybe I just need more hugs,” she said with puppy dog eyes.

  “C’mere,” Jeremy said as he guided her into his open arms.

  “You feel so good,” she said. “I don’t want us to ever fight, okay?”