[OCTOBER 31, 1990 – Wednesday, 8:30 pm]
Derek
“Peter, hold still so I can get your hook on.” He kept wiggling his hand inside the base, so the fasteners slipped through my fingers as I tried to connect them.
“I’m sorry, Derek, but it feels weird,” he replied.
“It was your choice to be Captain Hook, remember; I let you choose.”
“I’m too tall to be Peter Pan,” he said. He shrugged as I finished, “And you make a better Pan than I would.” He straightened his dark curly wig and spread his arms, turning around to show off the full costume.
“Oh, really?” I raised my eyebrows at him. I braced my fists against my hips in a classic Peter Pan pose.
“Oh, really, really,” he replied. He grabbed my green hat off the table and stepped in close to place it on my head. Then he leaned down and kissed me.
I put my hands on his chest and pushed him away with a laugh. “Come on then, we’ve got to get moving. Sherri wants us there by nine so we can help set out the food.”
We headed out the door of Peter’s apartment and held hands as we walked toward the dining hall.
“What do you think Sherri’s costume will be?” Peter asked.
I thought for a moment. “Well, the party theme is ‘The Flintstones–Come Have a Gay Old Time’ so all the LBGA officers will be in costumes from the cartoon. Maybe Wilma or Betty?”
Peter shook his head. “No way, Sherri’s not the type to go for a female stereotype.”
“Then it has to be the saber-tooth cat,” I replied. “He always gets what he wants, just like Sherri.”
“You’ve certainly got her figured out,” Peter agreed. We walked on in silence for a few moments, then Peter went on thoughtfully. “I love how comfortable Sherri is in herself; nothing anyone else says seems to bother her.”
“You’ve known her since Freshman year?” I asked.
Peter nodded. “And I’ve always admired her. She’s a true friend.”
“What about the other two guys-the ones you were eating lunch with the day we met?”
“Tim and Malcolm,” he replied slowly. “We were roommates for two years, but now they won’t even make eye contact with me. They’ve taken to sitting across the room from me and Sherri in any class we have together.” I heard Peter take a deep breath. “I’ve lost a lot of friends and acquaintances since I started seeing you,” he admitted.
I was silent for a minute. “That’s hard. I never really had to deal with stuff like that.” I squeezed Peter’s hand tighter. “Besides, I’ve always been pretty much a loner; I’m happy with only one or two close friends.”
“You know, I was surprised you didn’t know Sherri or some of the other LBGA people.”
“Well, I’ve never been the club-joining type. I did have one really close friend here at Waldron, Drew Bishop, but he graduated last year. He’s a music teacher in a middle school in Trimont now.”
“I guess you must miss him?” Peter asked.
I shook my head. “No, not really, he comes back pretty much every Friday and we two have game night. Since I started seeing you, that kind of got put on hold.”
“We could do it this Friday if you’d like and it’s not too short notice? I’ll invite Sherri so it could be a foursome.”
“I’d like that,” I replied. “I’m sure Drew will be happy to meet you finally, after all I’ve told him about you!”
The View from Mt. Hope 