Drowning in Her Eyes (17 page)

Paddy turned to Helen.
“Guess what? Jack has managed to have next Friday off. He is coming home for the weekend. How about that?
” He paused and a gleam in his eye revealed a glimpse of the Paddy of old.
“Says he
's bringing a sheila to meet us. Must be bloody keen
,
eh?
”

Helen
could see
Paddy was ecstatic at the news. Jack
's visit would be good for both of them. The big house som
e
times felt like a hollow shell since the youngsters had gone.
“They
're coming on Friday? That is not much notice. At least we have enough to feed them. I
'll put the girl in De
n
ni
's room.
”

Paddy had the old roguish sparkle in his eye.
“Jack might want her in
his
room.
”

“Paddy, don
't be disgusting. Not under
my
roof. Did he say what her name was?
”

“Susan, I think.
”

“Hmm, the Willis girls mentioned a Susan. I wonder if it
's the same one.
”

“Well, we
'll find out soon enough. I think this calls for a beer.
” He was animated, excited. His best mate was co
m
ing home!

Meanwhile, at Andrews Air Force Base, commanders of transport squadrons r
e
ceived orders to prepare to airlift combat troops and their equipment to Clark Field. If it went ahead, it would be the single largest troop deployment since the war in Korea. Clark Field is near Manila in the Phili
p
pines. This is not far to the north of Australia and not far from a small country in Ind
o
china.

Armidale, New South Wales, Australia
—1964

If they only could, Jack and Susan would have spent every waking moment together. However, both had to turn at least some of their attention to their studies.

Jack quickly fell into the rhythm of his academic life. He was in a class of twenty-
four, all but two of them male. The two girls quickly learned to give as good as they got from the men and proved to be good sports and good friends. Jack was happy in his work, although the theoretical nature of his first year was a bit boring. He and Susan managed to meet most mornings over coffee in the Students Union caf
e
teria; when they did, they could not take their hands off each other.

Jack had visited the Bakers for supper as invited. This was to become a regular event for him. On that first Sunday, there was another guest. Sarah had managed to get her mot
h
er to invite her current, and, so far, most serious boyfriend. John Starr was Sarah
's fellow student at the High School, albeit a year older. As such, he had a driver
's license, and could borrow his father
's car occasionally. His parents owned a restaurant
o
n the main street, and John had been buttering up Marci by bringing her surplus desserts and cakes, for she had a sweet tooth. It had been a pleasant eve
n
ing. Marci had decided to treat the Australian boys to one of her specialties, southern fried chicken. Long before fast food, this was a favourite all over the southern United States and still is. She would not disclose her secret, but said she would make sure her girls would get the recipe when they married. The irrepressible James Junior quipped that Susan would be getting the recipe soon. Everyone laughed, but Marci
's laughter did not reach her eyes.

Marci and Jimmy had discussed the problems presented by the prospect of the girls
‘going steady
' as Americans put it.
“Jimmy,
” said Marci,
“they
're both too young for this. I fear it will lead to trouble if we allow it to continue.
”

Jimmy understood her worry. He knew about Sophie and her Karl. However, he could see they could not lock up their daughters forever. Perhaps his newfound clarity of thought had given him a sixth sense. Birds have to be free to fly. He said as much.
“Susan is a young woman now. She does not need your protection. I agree Sarah needs some s
u
pervision, but it won
't be long now and she must be free
,
too.
”
Marci did not like it, but they agreed on some house rules for the time being.

The chicken was delightful. Marci served it on a huge platter, in the middle of which was a large mound of whipped potato, hollowed out and filled with fragrant gravy. She apologised for the green peas, saying she could not buy the black-
eyed peas that normally accompanied the dish. No one complained. Jack had been telling James Junior about
Ballinrobe
. Everything fascinated him, except the part ab
out shooting kangaroos.

“That
's awful,
” he said,
“they
're so cute.
” Even an e
x
planation of the necessity to cull numbers when they reached plague proportions did not sit well with this audience.

After the meal, Marci announced she wanted to tell them about some new house rules she and Jimmy had agreed on, since they now had regular boyfriends visiting.
“We want you to go out on dates only on Saturday nights, and o
n
ly visit on weekends. Both the girls have to concentrate on their studies as you boys both have to
as well
.
” Jack felt a bit put out, but realising he and Susan could meet every day as adults at uni, readily agreed. Sarah and John, still at school, had no say in the matter. Susan walked Jack to his car. She kissed him goodnight and arranged to meet next day.
“I love you and want you so, so much,
” she said.
“I
'll go mad if I cannot have you soon.
”

Jack felt the same way.
“Don
't worry,
” he said,
“wait for Saturday night.
”

Meanwhile, not far to the north, small men and women dressed in black and carrying AK47s were assisting regular soldiers of a small country in Indochina invade a third small country in Indochina. In a small office in a five-
sided building in Washington DC, preparations were u
n
derway to increase signif
i
cantly the number of US combat aircraft in another small country in Indochina.

Armidale, NSW, Australia: 1964

Jack was feeling his frustration to the limit. All day he thought of her, all night he yearned for her. They met in the Students
' Union, the library, or on the lawns. They held hands, they talked of the future, of life on
Ballinrobe
, and they talked of children. Jack knew the current situation was hopeless unless Susan could have more freedom. A stolen kiss or two over coffee was not enough.

He visited Bernadette in her college to talk about it.
“Susan
's father is very ill, you know,
” she said,
“I think he has cancer and I doubt he will see the year out. I do not know if she knows or not, but I
'm sure she senses it. Her mother is almost paranoid about something happening to her children. I think if Mr. Baker dies, she will be on the next boat home and she will not leave anyone behind.
”

“What if we were to get married?
” asked Jack.

“You are both only eighteen. You cannot legally marry unless your parents agree. There is no way Mrs. Baker would do that.
”

* *
*
*

All day
Susan
thought of
Jack
, all night she yearned for him. When she saw him on the campus, she just
had
to touch him and her knees went weak at his touch. She must have more freedom. She must be with him! She talked to Sarah, as sisters do. Sarah was feeling the same about John, but still hedging her bets by wondering how many other men were out there from which she could choose. She wanted to make love to John, but was afraid of her mother and did not want to lose the few privileges she had won from Marci.

“Susan,
” she said,
“do you really love
Jack
that much?
”

“I know I can
't live without him. I love him more and more each day. I need him as a flower needs water. I want to marry him and be with him forever.
”

“Mom will never agree to that. Believe me, I know. I heard her talking to Daddy. She is worried
about
what you want and is determined it will not happen.
”

“What did Daddy say?
”

“He wants you to be free. I am so worried for him. I think he will die soon.
” She began to cry. They hugged each other and mourned their father. Susan knew Sarah was right.

Saturday Night

There was to be a social dance in the Student Union on Saturday night. Now that the students of legal age were in residence, the bar served alcohol. It had been a while since Jack had tasted a nice cold beer, but he thought he should wait until he had collected Susan before he did that.

Susan was waiting for him. She had chosen a figure hugging green jersey dress for the evening. The dress was short, displaying her beautiful legs and she wore her hair up in the now familiar style. She wore an Indian silver necklace with a turquoise stone. As usual, Jack felt his heart lurch when he saw her. He knew that from now on
,
green would be his favourite colour.

Both could sense that tonight would be extraordinary. Electricity hung like a halo around them, their thoughts completely intertwined.

Jack had plotted for the supervising tutor on his block to be at the social tonight, as were most of the residents of Robb College. Bob O
'Connor had arranged with Margie to get a girlfriend to ask the tutor to the social. Margie
's friend was a stunner and the tutor could not believe his luck. He was in for a disappointing night.

They danced; they drank, but not much. When Frank Sinatra began to pour from the speakers, and the lights began to dim, they glided across the dance floor locked together as one. Neither could wait any longer. Bob and Mike saw them leave and raised a surreptitious glass. Bob spotted their tutor across the hall having an earnest discussion with a pretty girl. He looked as if he was having a most unrewarding co
n
versation.

They drove to the College in silence. Neither wanted to break the spell of this night. In the car park, Jack looked around. The coast was clear. They hustled across the qua
d
rangle, and entered the block. In seconds, they were in Jack
's room. Jack locked the door and turned to meet Susan
's gaze. He was speechless. So was she. For a long moment, they stared at each other. Then Susan held out her hands. Jack took them and they moved together touching from shoulder to hip. Jack gazed into those eyes. They sparkled with love and their tawny depths invited him in. He knew he would want this moment to last forever, for those eyes to draw him into their limpid pools and never release him. He was hers
. F
orever.