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"Yes, Jimmy. I feel like a new person."
There was a small vanity table and mirror just outside the bathroom. I sat down and began drying my hair.
"Let me help," Jimmy said, jumping up. "You probably don't remember when I used to dry your hair when you were a pint-size kid," he joked.
"I remember, Jimmy," I said, smiling back at him. He took the towel and wiped my hair vigorously until it was fluffy dry. It felt so good, I closed my eyes and let him go on and on. Then he stopped and planted a kiss on top of my head.
"Maybe I'll become a hairdresser," he said.
"I'm sure you can become anything you want, Jimmy," I said with confidence, gazing at his face in the mirror. "What do you really want to do when you're officially discharged from the army?"
"I don't know." He shrugged. "I guess something mechanical or electrical. I like working with my hands."
He stood back and watched me brush out my hair with long even strokes. Of course, my bangs were long and uneven and I had to trim them down. Wearing my hair tied up most of the time I was at The Meadows, I hadn't realized how long it had grown.
"It feels so soft," Jimmy murmured, stepping up to run his hand over it. I caught his hand and brought it to my lips. For a long moment, I just closed my eyes and held it there.
"It's all right," he whispered. "Everything's going to be all right."
When I was finished with my hair, I lay down to rest. Our plan was to take short naps and then go have a wonderful dinner. It had been so long since I had anything to eat that really tasted good or had any seasoning in it. But neither of us realized just how tired we were. He had been traveling for days before finally succeeding in finding me. In fact, I was the first to awaken and realize we had slept into the night. I didn't have the heart to wake him, even though my stomach was growling because I was so hungry. I tiptoed out of bed and got dressed quietly. Then I sat in a chair, waiting for his eyes to open.
When his eyelids lifted, he blinked quickly and then he looked at me peculiarly for a moment before he shot up into a sitting position.
"What time is it?"
"Almost nine," I said.
"Why didn't you wake me up?" he asked, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed.
"I couldn't, Jimmy. You looked so content while you were sleeping."
"It's just like you to think about someone else while you probably sat there starving," he said. "When I first looked at you just now, I thought I was back in Europe having one of my dreams. I wanted to see you so much every day," he said while he put on his shoes, "I used to imagine you everywhere."
"Well, you don't have to imagine it anymore, Jimmy," I told him. He smiled and hurriedly got dressed so we could go to eat. We went to the restaurant connected to the motel because it was the closest and at this point, I knew that wherever I went to eat would seem like the most celebrated gourmet establishment.
After we sat down and we were given menus, I couldn't make up my mind. I simply enjoyed reading all the wonderful choices and seeing scrumptious things that had been forbidden and impossible to get for months and months. Jimmy teased me for taking so long. When I told him why, he suggested I put the menu down, close my eyes, and let my finger fall on a selection. I did it and chose the hot turkey dinner.
First, I had a delicious salad. I nearly ruined my appetite by eating three dinner rolls smothered in butter. I ordered a Coke and luxuriated in the sugary sweetness of it. Heavenly! Jimmy kept laughing and shaking his head. When the platter of turkey, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes and broccoli was brought out, I began to cry. I couldn't help it.
"Hey, come on," Jimmy said, reaching across the table to take my hand. "You're going to spoil your appetite if you get yourself so upset."
"Nothing can spoil this appetite," I announced and attacked my food, savoring every morsel. Even though I was stuffed, I ordered a slice of chocolate cream pie. When we were finished, I could barely stand up.
"You put some of these truck drivers to shame," Jimmy declared.
It didn't take either of us long to fall asleep again once we crawled into bed, but when the sunlight came through the curtains, my eyes snapped open. Just the sight of it was a wonder to me. It had been so long since I had awakened to see golden morning rays lift the darkness. I thought it was truly one of the most beautiful sights on earth. How horrible it had been living like a mole in that depressingly dark old mansion.
My appetite for breakfast was no less than it had been for dinner. Just the aroma of bacon sent my stomach into ecstasy. I had eggs and sausage and little rolls, as well as cup after cup of coffee, something Miss Emily had considered as vile as whiskey.
Strengthened by the food and a good rest, wearing new clothes and having my hair washed and brushed, I did feel strong enough to face my horrible grandmother. Jimmy had been right in saying, "First things first." We drove on, now only hours away.
"You haven't asked me anything about my love affair with Michael Sutton, Jimmy," I said somewhat tentatively after he had talked and talked about his experiences in Europe.
"You don't have to tell me anything," he said somewhat tersely.
"I know, but I do. I want to," I stated in a rush. "He was my vocal teacher and he had told me he was going to make me into a Broadway star. Everything happened so quickly to me. Before I knew it, he was inviting me to his apartment and . . ."
"Dawn, please," Jimmy pleaded, his face grimacing in pain. "I don't want to hear it. It's over with now. You were hurt, I know. And I wish I really could get my hands on him. Maybe someday, I will, but you don't have to explain it to me. I told you, I understand how these things happen. I've seen it.
