The four very tired young women walked along the deserted highway in the wee hours of the morning, heading home to the comfort and safety of their own Emily Dickinson College. Their night with those strange guys ending with the four of them being ditched by their blind dates in that awful nightclub in the middle of nowhere, forced to dance with those colored men until closing time, which couldn't have come too soon.
"I can't believe Fawn would know boys like that," said one.
"They reminded me of criminals," replied another.
"I thought Frank was kind of cute," said Shelly, the one who had set up her three friends on this quadruple date.
"EEEEWWWWWWWWWWWW," answered the other three in unison.
"No, really," insisted Shelly.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW."
------
Several weeks later, and Shelly Dubinsky is sitting the bed in her dormitory room, on the verge of tears. Her attempt to find Frank -- the young rogue who had come into the dorm lobby a few weeks ago, announcing to her friend Brunella at the desk that he was Shelly's ex-roommate's finace -- reached a dead end. Fawn Liebowitz, the sophomore from Fort Wayne who had been Shelly's roommate, was dead, killed in a kiln explosion. Hadn't this boy known about Fawn's tragic demise? He was her finace. Hadn't anyone called Amherst and told him?
Shelly had called Amherst. The college told her it didn't have anyone named Frank Lyman enrolled there. She called the Liebowitz house. No, Fawn didn't have a boyfriend named Frank. She even called the Dexter Lake Club, where she and her friends had spent that harrowing night with all those Negroes, because one of those boys seemed to know the band leader. The club put Shelly in touch with Otis Day, who informed her he knew those fellows from something called a toga party at some fraternity at Faber College where his band had played a week or so earlier. Delta Tau Chi, he said, was the name of the frat. She called the dean, who told her in a very angry voice that he had kicked all the Deltas off campus ("out of here like shit through a goose" was how the dean phrased it). She wanted to describe Frank to the dean, but the man was obviously in no mood to discuss "those punks" he swept from Faber for good.
Faber. What a place. Shelly had heard there was a street riot there during the FC homecoming parade. Wonder if Frank and the others were in on that. Then she read about how the mayor of Faber was indicted by a grand jury on racketeering charges. Her hopes of ever finding Frank were dead in the water.
Then a knock came on her open door. Brunella stood in the doorway, her long and very thick brown hair in a rare state of being perfectly brushed. Brunella was barefoot, but was fully dressed otherwise in freshly washed jeans and a bulky Irish sweater. Shelly sat of the bed wearing just an EDC sweatshirt and khaki trousers.
"Hey, Shel, let's get our shoes on and go downtown. Noreen is playing at the coffeehouse tonight. Not just her and her guitar. She's got a bass player with her tonight. C'mon, what do you say?"
Shelly said nothing. She turned her head away from her friend.
"Something wrong, Shel?"
"I'll never find Frank," Shelly said, almost in tears. Brunella huffed.
"Why would you want to find him?"
"I liked him."
"EEEEWWWWWW."
"Keep your EEEEWWWWs to yourself. I wanted to get to know him better."
"Shelly, he's a creep," Brunella said in an indignant tone. "So were his friends. Forget him. Look what he did, pretending to be Fawn's boyfriend. Talk about bad taste. All he wanted..."
"I know what he wanted," Shelly said, cutting off Brunella. "But he was cute. No, he was handsome."
"Is that all you want in a boy, handsome? Shel, there are lots of handsome guys out there; boys who wouldn't have the nerve to say they were friends with a dead girl. I never saw anything so bold in my life."
"I like men who are bold, and different, and will do crazy things just for kicks and will take chances."
"Shelly, he did those things at your expense. He's a con man and a liar, why would you want a boy like that?"
"I don't know. I don't know."
"You wouldn't change him, if that's what you're thinking. You don't change men. You take them as is."
Shelly couldn't argue. She knew boys better than that. But Frank was just so damned good-looking she couldn't get her mind off him.
"Come on, Shel. It'll make Noreen happy if we go down and listen to her. It'll be the last time she plays before Christmas break."
Shelly got up and reached for her socks and shoes. Brunella started walking out of the room to get something on her own bare feet. Before she left, she had one last thing to say.
"You know I told you my parents are letting me go to Italy as a 21st birthday present this summer? You know, how they want me to get in touch with my heritage."
Shelly nodded.
"They said I can only go without them if I have a friend with me. Why don't you come along?"
"Me?" asked Shelly, pointing her index finger at her chest.
"Yeah, you. Why not you? You're an art major. Don't you want to see Italy? The great art museums. Florence. Milan. Venice. Oh, it'll be wonderful. Just us bumming around Italy."
Shelly smiled, a smile that let Brunella know that she would think about it, and that she was happy to have been asked. Brunella left and Shelly began pulling a wollen sock over the toes of her left foot.
NEXT: Shelly & Brunella see more Italian traditions besides great artwork.
"I can't believe Fawn would know boys like that," said one.
"They reminded me of criminals," replied another.
"I thought Frank was kind of cute," said Shelly, the one who had set up her three friends on this quadruple date.
"EEEEWWWWWWWWWWWW," answered the other three in unison.
"No, really," insisted Shelly.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW."
------
Several weeks later, and Shelly Dubinsky is sitting the bed in her dormitory room, on the verge of tears. Her attempt to find Frank -- the young rogue who had come into the dorm lobby a few weeks ago, announcing to her friend Brunella at the desk that he was Shelly's ex-roommate's finace -- reached a dead end. Fawn Liebowitz, the sophomore from Fort Wayne who had been Shelly's roommate, was dead, killed in a kiln explosion. Hadn't this boy known about Fawn's tragic demise? He was her finace. Hadn't anyone called Amherst and told him?
Shelly had called Amherst. The college told her it didn't have anyone named Frank Lyman enrolled there. She called the Liebowitz house. No, Fawn didn't have a boyfriend named Frank. She even called the Dexter Lake Club, where she and her friends had spent that harrowing night with all those Negroes, because one of those boys seemed to know the band leader. The club put Shelly in touch with Otis Day, who informed her he knew those fellows from something called a toga party at some fraternity at Faber College where his band had played a week or so earlier. Delta Tau Chi, he said, was the name of the frat. She called the dean, who told her in a very angry voice that he had kicked all the Deltas off campus ("out of here like shit through a goose" was how the dean phrased it). She wanted to describe Frank to the dean, but the man was obviously in no mood to discuss "those punks" he swept from Faber for good.
Faber. What a place. Shelly had heard there was a street riot there during the FC homecoming parade. Wonder if Frank and the others were in on that. Then she read about how the mayor of Faber was indicted by a grand jury on racketeering charges. Her hopes of ever finding Frank were dead in the water.
Then a knock came on her open door. Brunella stood in the doorway, her long and very thick brown hair in a rare state of being perfectly brushed. Brunella was barefoot, but was fully dressed otherwise in freshly washed jeans and a bulky Irish sweater. Shelly sat of the bed wearing just an EDC sweatshirt and khaki trousers.
"Hey, Shel, let's get our shoes on and go downtown. Noreen is playing at the coffeehouse tonight. Not just her and her guitar. She's got a bass player with her tonight. C'mon, what do you say?"
Shelly said nothing. She turned her head away from her friend.
"Something wrong, Shel?"
"I'll never find Frank," Shelly said, almost in tears. Brunella huffed.
"Why would you want to find him?"
"I liked him."
"EEEEWWWWWW."
"Keep your EEEEWWWWs to yourself. I wanted to get to know him better."
"Shelly, he's a creep," Brunella said in an indignant tone. "So were his friends. Forget him. Look what he did, pretending to be Fawn's boyfriend. Talk about bad taste. All he wanted..."
"I know what he wanted," Shelly said, cutting off Brunella. "But he was cute. No, he was handsome."
"Is that all you want in a boy, handsome? Shel, there are lots of handsome guys out there; boys who wouldn't have the nerve to say they were friends with a dead girl. I never saw anything so bold in my life."
"I like men who are bold, and different, and will do crazy things just for kicks and will take chances."
"Shelly, he did those things at your expense. He's a con man and a liar, why would you want a boy like that?"
"I don't know. I don't know."
"You wouldn't change him, if that's what you're thinking. You don't change men. You take them as is."
Shelly couldn't argue. She knew boys better than that. But Frank was just so damned good-looking she couldn't get her mind off him.
"Come on, Shel. It'll make Noreen happy if we go down and listen to her. It'll be the last time she plays before Christmas break."
Shelly got up and reached for her socks and shoes. Brunella started walking out of the room to get something on her own bare feet. Before she left, she had one last thing to say.
"You know I told you my parents are letting me go to Italy as a 21st birthday present this summer? You know, how they want me to get in touch with my heritage."
Shelly nodded.
"They said I can only go without them if I have a friend with me. Why don't you come along?"
"Me?" asked Shelly, pointing her index finger at her chest.
"Yeah, you. Why not you? You're an art major. Don't you want to see Italy? The great art museums. Florence. Milan. Venice. Oh, it'll be wonderful. Just us bumming around Italy."
Shelly smiled, a smile that let Brunella know that she would think about it, and that she was happy to have been asked. Brunella left and Shelly began pulling a wollen sock over the toes of her left foot.
NEXT: Shelly & Brunella see more Italian traditions besides great artwork.
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