Chapter 2

I Was Tricked

In mid November just before my 20th birthday I asked Denise to marry me. She said yes despite the fact that I had no job and no place for us to call 'home'. Suprisingly her parents were supportive of our engagement although they should've objected.

Late November 1981 I kissed Denise goodbye as she left with her family for a 2-week vacation to Iowa. On the day she left I was given a key to her house. She wanted me to write a letter to her everyday and leave them on her desk in her room. My heart ached as I watched her leave. I was faithful and wrote her everyday and lovingly placed the letters on her desk.

On about the fourth day, I pulled up in front of her house and made my way inside. I walked up the stairs and went to her room. There on her desk were the other letters that I had written. I took the letter I had just written her and placed it with the others. Then, I reached in my pocket and took the house key out and laid it on top of the last letter. I remember wondering why I was doing this. Denise wasn’t due back for over a week. I still had other letters to write. But it was as if I was unable to stop myself from leaving the key behind on this day. I left her room and went downstairs. Instead of leaving as I had done on previous days, I made my way over to the piano just on the other side of the living room. I sat down and played a song I had written her called, One Day We’ll Make It To The Top. Afterward I cried as I thought of how much longer I had to live without seeing her, holding her, kissing her. I stood up and walked back through the living room. I caught my reflection in the large mirror that hung on the wall. I looked awful. My eyes were bloodshot from all the alcohol I was ingesting on a daily basis. I looked sick. I went to the door made sure it was locked and shut it behind me. I walked to my car, pulled out a cigarette and lit it. Standing outside the car I looked back at the vacant house. Dozens of memories of Denise and I together flooded my brain. Tears welled up in my eyes again as I thought of how much I missed her. After a few more minutes, I got in my car and pulled away.

I arrived home after drinking more beer. My parents were waiting for me in the living room. My dad started the conversation. "How would you like to go to Florida?" He asked. I was excited and responded "Are you serious? YES I would love to go to Florida." Then I asked, "But why?" My dad replied, "Haven’t you ever wanted to do something on the spur of the moment?" I shook my head yes. "Well, he continued, that’s what we’re doing." "When do we leave?" I asked. "Right away" my mom piped in. Surprisingly my bags were already packed. I was so excited about getting out of town for a while. Without Marcelle around and my constantly drinking alone everyday, I figured it would do me some good to get away. My younger sister showed up just as we were getting ready to leave. She was there to see us off. "Julie’s not going with us?" I asked. Mom explained that Julie still had school and couldn’t get away. Reluctantly I gave Julie a hug and we were off to the airport.

The flight was uneventful. We arrived safely in St. Petersburg, Florida. We picked up our luggage and then went to pick up the rental car. I insisted on driving us to the hotel. My parents didn’t argue and handed me the keys. As we drove along the roadway it suddenly occurred to me why I was here with my parents. "Marcel and her parents weren’t in Iowa. They’re here in Florida. My folks and hers got together to give us a surprise party and to celebrate our recent engagement." I felt my heart leap with joy and I smiled. I didn’t tell my parents that I had figured it out and ruin the surprise. They had worked really hard for this. A little while later, I pulled the car into the parking lot of the hotel. My dad and I went inside the lobby to get the key. I practically ran to the hotel room. My parents followed trying to keep up with me. I opened the door completely convinced that I would see Marcel only to find the room dark and empty. My heart sank and sadness flooded my emotions. I turned around and angrily asked, "Okay, what’s going on?" My mom in a calm but nervous voice replied, "We’re taking you to STRAIGHT."

My mind instantly went back to the night I had watched my mom talking with Cathie’s mom in our driveway a few months earlier. Up until that very moment I never saw the connection. I didn’t see this coming at all. I was outraged and began yelling at my parents and begged them to reconsider. But my parents weren’t backing down. My mom at one point said, "You’ll have to go to an Open Meeting tonight. If you still don’t want to go after that, we’ll talk about it then." By this time I was emotionally and physically exhausted. I cried myself to sleep that night.