Chapter 4

Sam managed to swallow her chicken, and then began coughing. The question Daniel had just asked her had taken her completely by surprise.

Daniel shot her a concerned look.

“Whoa, are you okay?” he asked.

Sam nodded quickly and reached for her bottle of iced tea. She gulped the cool liquid down, and in a short time her coughing subsided.

“Yeah, sorry about that,” she finally replied, panting.

Daniel gazed at her with apologetic eyes as she managed to calm down.

“Okay?” he asked.

Sam nodded and gave him a slight smile.

“I’m sorry; I shouldn’t have been so blunt. That was way too forward,” he conceded.

“No, it’s okay,” she replied, shaking her head. “I’m comfortable being perfectly candid with you, as long as you are with me.”

Daniel seemed to mull it over for a moment, and then he nodded.

“Okay,” he said quietly.

“To tell you the truth …” she said tentatively. She hesitated, not sure whether she should mention the man who had just emailed her. Would it really make any difference if she had? Surely Daniel himself must have been seeing some lucky woman, especially with his attractive mind and looks. Sam started blushing upon that last thought.

Daniel looked at her expectantly.

“… No. Not really,” she finally finished.

Daniel’s eyebrows drew together as he gave her a bewildered look.

“I … I haven’t been very lucky in love,” she admitted, sighing heavily.

“Look, if this is too much for you to talk about, you don’t have to. I’m sorry I even mentioned it,” he said regrettably.

“No, really, it’s fine,” she insisted. “I’ve always been on the quiet side, and very bookish all through high school and college. I didn’t always have much of an opportunity to socialize. I mean, I had my own little circle of friends, but beyond that …” she trailed off.

Daniel nodded silently.

“I did date a guy after I graduated high school. He was nice, but he just wasn’t on my level. To be quite frank, he was boring. He spent most of our dates telling me how he wanted to study the efficacy of shoe horns,” she smirked.

Daniel gave her a sad smile and chuckled softly.

“When I was in college, my friend Sara kept bugging me, always wanting to fix me up with someone. She actually moved here and attended CSU Pueblo. She met a guy, who, from what I hear, is her dream man. They got married about ten years ago. Despite the fact that we lived thousands of miles apart, she seemed to be so concerned about my love life … she still does, to this day, actually.”

Daniel looked at her curiously.

“She and her husband … um … Jack I think his name is … live not far from here. She calls me every so often and it’s usually the same thing: ‘so, did you find a guy yet? You have to snatch one!’” She ended her impersonation of Sara with a nervous little laugh.

Daniel grinned amusedly. “Well, it’s nice that she cares about you that much,” he conceded.

“I think it’s nearing the realm of ‘too much,’ if you ask me,” Sam smirked.

Daniel shrugged slightly and grinned at her again after taking another sip of his coffee. It made Sam snicker.

“Anyway, I …” she hesitated and her cheeks flushed. “This is kind of embarrassing.”

“What?” he asked softly.

“I … signed up for one of those online dating services,” she muttered as she put her head down.

Daniel looked at her curiously and waited for her to raise her head. She did, tentatively, and was surprised to see him shrug nonchalantly.

“So?” he asked.

“You don’t think that’s stooping low, or anything?” she asked.

“No, of course not,” he said frankly. “There are lots of people who are so busy at work, that they don’t have time to socialize much and actively pursue relationships. It’s nothing to be ashamed about.”

Sam seemed to relax visibly. “Thanks,” she said, barely audible.

Daniel nodded. “Actually, I’m curious as to how those things work. I mean, I’ve heard quite a few success stories about them.”

Sam looked at him seriously. “Did you ever think of trying it out?”

“Ah … no, not really. I’ve never given it very much thought,” he replied, averting his eyes.

Sam nodded.

“But, for the sake of discussion …” he continued, looking back up at her. “… How is it?”

Sam looked at him, her brow furrowing slightly.

“Ah, I mean … have you had any luck with it?”

Sam couldn’t tell from his tone whether he wanted to try it himself and was too embarrassed to let her know; whether he actually liked her more than he let on and was trying to mask the smallest trace of jealousy; or whether he was just being curious.

“Well, to be honest, I un-subscribed from it a few weeks ago,” she replied, her tone emotionless.

The corners of Daniel’s mouth drew up. “No good, huh?”

Sam shrugged. “It wasn’t a terrible experience. I had to fill out a profile – physical appearance, occupation, interests, living situation, and etcetera – and then describe myself and who I was looking for in my own words. Then I had to include a photo.”

Daniel nodded.

“I … I don’t know. It was …” she shook her head, a bit unsure of to how to continue. “I did meet a few nice guys, but none of them were really a great match. One guy was just too bold. He pressured me into very personal conversation – so personal that it made me very uncomfortable.”

“He didn’t do anything … bad … to you, did he?” Daniel asked urgently, fear rising in his voice.

Sam’s eyes widened a bit. Her new friend really seemed to be quite concerned for her well-being. For a split second, it made her wonder about how he felt about her. She then decided it was silly. He was a nice guy and it was probably in his nature to react this way. He’d probably react the same way if his brother or sister – if he had any – had been in a similar situation.

“No, no,” she insisted, shaking her head. “We just talked on the phone. He wanted to meet me … for a date … but I had made up my mind that I wouldn’t want to go out with a guy like that. I called him the next day and confessed that he’d made me uncomfortable with all the personal, intimate talk. I guess I hurt his ego, because he became insulting.”

Daniel raised his eyebrows.

“He acted all surprised, like he thought someone my age would have been very … well … active,” she emphasized the last word, and made quotation mark gestures with her fingers.

Daniel looked at her seriously.

“You’re kidding,” he said quietly.

“No,” she said bitterly. “He then started calling me horrible names and actually ended up shouting before I hung up on him.”

Daniel wrinkled his nose. “He sounds like he’s cracked.”

Suddenly, Daniel’s reaction and comment made her crack a wide smile and she snorted. Daniel looked at her incredulously.

“Sorry, it’s not that I find it funny … you’re absolutely right. He was nothing but a pervert, and I wouldn’t doubt that many other women have turned him down before me.”

“Well, it certainly sounds like it,” Daniel said, before taking another sip of coffee.

Sam nodded before continuing. “A few weeks after that, another guy began corresponding with me. He was nice, but he wasn’t crazy over my occupation.”

“Your occupation?” Daniel asked curiously, brow wrinkled in confusion.

“Yeah, I think he wanted a housewife – someone who’d stay at home all day while he worked, and would take care of his nine cats,” she said dryly.

“Nine cats??” Daniel repeated incredulously. “Oh God, I feel a sneeze coming on already.”

Sam’s dark mood lightened briefly and she began to laugh softly.

“You’re allergic?” she asked between chuckles.

“Oh, yeah … big time,” he replied, his voice full of dread.

Sam grinned. “I’m more of a dog person myself.”

A small smile graced Daniel’s lips. “I don’t think I’m allergic to those.”

Sam smiled back at him for a few moments, and then it faded and she became more serious.

“What about you?” she asked.

Daniel raised his eyebrows. “What?”

“Have you been … um …” Sam started talking into her chest, and suddenly became very interested in the embroidery along the round neck of her shirt. “… Seeing anyone?” she blurted out awkwardly.

“Ah …” Daniel sighed. “No.”

“No?” she asked, millions of questions in her eyes.

Daniel shook his head. “I guess you could say that my love life was always lacking somewhat,” he said ruefully.

Sam looked at him intently.

“Like you, I was always very bookish in school. Actually, my parents pushed me a lot, and I did so well that I skipped ahead a couple of grades.”

Sam raised her eyebrows quickly. “Wow,” she said thoughtfully.

Daniel shrugged. “It wasn’t really a big deal. It had its ups and downs. On the up side, I wasn’t as bored as I had been and had more challenging, worthwhile schoolwork. On the down side, all my peers were a few years older than me. Being the studious kid that I was, it made me a target for ruthless bullying and teasing.”

Sam gave him an apologetic look. “I’m sorry,” she said quietly.

Daniel shrugged again, like it was something he’d come to terms with long ago. “Sometimes, being a fountain of knowledge comes attached with a small price tag,” he grinned slightly, in spite of himself.

“I sympathize,” she said. “I had my share of teasing, especially in grammar school. I was ‘Brainiac Carter.’ ‘Hey, Brainiac Carter! Come over here and build us a rocket, so we can ship you out to the moon!’ they’d say.” She rolled her eyes and chuckled.

Daniel smiled. Whether it was an affectionate smile, or it was slightly teasing, she couldn’t tell.

“’Brainiac Carter’?” he said incredulously. “That’s the best they could do?” He chuckled amusedly.

Sam shrugged and smiled at him.

“You don’t even want to know what they called me,” he said in a mock challenging tone, half smile on his face.

“Don’t worry, I won’t even bother asking,” she assured him.

Daniel smiled briefly before continuing.

“The experience of skipping ahead in school actually made me feel a bit lonely at times. Sure, I kept myself occupied with my books, but there were times when I desired companionship. I was in the Science Club, so I had friends there, but it was hard relating to girls. Can you imagine how hard it is for a twelve year old boy to talk to a sixteen year old girl?”

“Uh … no,” Sam said awkwardly.

“… Especially a sixteen year old girl that he has a crush on?” Daniel elaborated, blushing faintly.

“Oh,” Sam said quietly.

“Her name was Melanie Cross, and she was one of the most beautiful girls at my high school. Not only was she pretty, but she was very smart. She was also in the Science Club, so I was around her quite a lot. Being so much younger, I was a bit shy and didn’t talk very much, but whenever Melanie walked past, I ended up staring at her like a … well … like a lovesick teenage boy. I never told anyone, but one of my friends suspected I had a crush on her and dug it out of me. He actually told her, and I was mortified. I found out that she’d been dating the captain of the football team, so that was the end of that. I was literally crushed. Actually, I couldn’t blame her. I mean, when you’re sixteen years old and that beautiful, why would you want to be seen with a young, lanky, twelve year old with large eyeglasses and a mop of brown hair?” he said, self-effacingly.

Sam looked at Daniel sadly as she tried to picture him as a young boy.

“Then, when I attended college in Chicago, I had a brief relationship with a fellow anthropology student. Actually, she was a student in a class for which I was a TA. She was bright and charming, but I knew it wouldn’t work out between us.”

“Why?” Sam asked in a small voice.

“I ... I don’t know. Actually, for a while, I thought we really had something special between us. She was sweet and unassuming, and we really seemed to understand each other well. I was actually planning on popping the question on our last date, when she suddenly announced that she was going to UCLA to work on her Doctorate.”

Sam bit her lip worriedly.

“She then seemed like a whole different person. She didn’t seem to care about what we had. It was like she was putting her career and her work before our relationship. She actually accused me of the same thing, which was totally ridiculous. It became clear to me that she no longer wanted me to be a part of her life. Whatever the reason was, it never became apparent to me. Later I was talking with one of her friends, and I found out that she had always been afraid of commitment. So …” Daniel sighed heavily.

“Gosh, I’m sorry about that,” Sam said sadly.

Daniel forced a smile. “I guess some things just aren’t meant to be, no matter much we think we’re convinced otherwise,” he said dismissively.

Sam swallowed hard and nodded as she looked down at the tabletop. Suddenly her eyes flew back up to Daniel as she thought of something she desperately wanted to tell him.

“I … uh …” she hesitated.

Daniel set his coffee cup down and looked at her curiously.

“A guy … from that online dating service … has started emailing me,” she said awkwardly.

“I thought you said you had cancelled that thing,” he said slowly with a bit of suspicion in his voice.

Oh boy, was this a mistake? She questioned herself. Reluctantly, she decided to forge ahead.

“Yeah, I did, three weeks ago. They said that when I un-subscribed, my profile would be deleted.

“That’s strange,” Daniel mused as he brought the coffee cup back up to his lips and took another sip. “Maybe he’s a fraud?”

Lines of frustration appeared on Sam’s face and she shook her head. “I … don’t think so. He mentioned the name of the dating service. He said that I sound like the kind of person he’d like to get to know. He said he it seems like we have a lot in common.”

“Do you think that?” Daniel asked, placing the cup down again. Sam could have sworn she could almost pick up a hint of jealousy in his voice.

“To be honest with you, I really don’t know,” she replied. “All I gathered from the profile he sent me, was that he’s looking for a serious relationship, and that he’s tired of the bar scene.”

“And does that sound like you?” Daniel asked frankly as his eyes pierced hers.

Sam’s brow knitted and she averted her eyes. “Uh …” she hesitated before looking back up at him. “… Kind of.”

Daniel raised his eyebrows at her as a signal for her to elaborate.

“Well, I mean … I eventually want to have a serious relationship. I don’t want to deal with someone who just wants to play games, but I don’t want to rush into anything either, if you know what I mean.”

Daniel’s lips edged upward into a faint smile and he nodded. “Yeah, I know.”

Sam smiled briefly at him. “I’m not into the bar scene, either,” she continued.

Daniel’s smile broadened. The way he looked at her made it seem almost as if he was taking notes. Sam chuckled inwardly at the thought and dismissed it.

“So, what else is there about him? What does he do for a living?” Daniel asked.

“Um … he’s a regional manager for … a software company, I think,” she said, struggling to remember the details of the man’s profile.

Daniel shrugged. “Interesting.”

Sam nodded. “He said he wants to be a firefighter, though. He said something about wanting to join a ladder company in Denver.” She shrugged. “Oh, uh … he sent me a picture of himself, too.”

“And?” Daniel prompted her.

“Eh, he’s … pretty good-looking,” she said awkwardly.

Not as good-looking as you, she added. Even though she didn’t say it out loud, the mere thought made her feel as if it had suddenly gotten very warm in there.

“I don’t know, looks really aren’t much to me,” she quickly blurted out. They sure do help, though.

Daniel looked at her blankly.

“Anyway, I just told him that I’d like to know more about him. That’s all. I was almost shocked to receive this email. You don’t expect something like this after three months of virtually nothing. After that, and the negative experiences I’ve had, I’m not expecting anything to come out of this. The thought of someone actually being interested in me after all this time sometimes makes me wonder if my luck is turning around … but, I’m not getting my hopes up. We probably won’t be more than pen pals.”

“Hey, you never know,” Daniel replied.

Sam sighed heavily and looked up at him, a small smile on her lips. “I wish I could see it that way. Thanks, Daniel.”

“For what?” he asked, a slightly bewildered look on his face.

“For letting me get all of this off my chest, for listening to me, and for just being a good person. We’ve known each other for such a short time, but I feel like we’ve been friends almost forever. Thank you.”

Daniel smiled tenderly at her and reached out across the table to caress her hand.

“Anytime. Anytime you need a friend to talk to, I’ll be more than happy to listen. And, thanks for listening to me. I don’t usually share details of my exciting childhood and non-existent love life with just anyone,” he finished facetiously.

Sam chuckled softly. “Anytime,” she returned.

Daniel smiled at her before glancing at his watch. “Ah … it’s almost a quarter after 2. Do you have to be somewhere?”

“Oh, uh … yeah, I have the advanced astrophysics lab at 3. I have to go and set up the equipment,” she said, flustered.

Daniel nodded. With that, they got up, walked away from the table and deposited their trash. They made their way out the door and walked to the front atrium of the union. It was a beautiful area, with large windows overlooking the Earth and Space Sciences building and its grounds. The wall on the opposite side was made of marble, and a large waterfall cascaded down into a small, decorative pool below.

Sam turned to Daniel and smiled. “I guess I better get going,” she said as she gestured toward the building in front of them.

Daniel smiled back and looked into her eyes. “Good luck with that guy,” he said frankly.

Sam looked at him, slightly bewildered. Was this it? Was he saying that he no longer wanted to be friends with her? A small, irrational uneasiness grew deep inside her.

“Just remember to be careful,” he continued. “I’ve heard a few stories about people meeting over the internet, and they didn’t end well at all.”

Lines of worry etched across Sam’s forehead.

“If you want to talk, just call me anytime. Actually …” he paused as he dug a piece of paper out of his pants pocket and began scribbling on it. “… Here’s my home phone number, in case you feel like talking after hours.”

Sam stared at him, momentarily surprised.

“Ah … I mean, outside of work,” he corrected himself as he blushed.

She extinguished the small flame of apprehension that threatened to consume her and breathed a little sigh of relief. So, he didn’t want to give up on her. She allowed a smile to form on her lips.

He gave her the piece of paper and she thanked him. In turn, she grabbed another post-it note from her purse and wrote her home phone number down for him.

“Thanks,” he smiled.

“I’m usually home in the evenings, and most weekends,” she added.

“Likewise,” Daniel replied.

“Okay, um … I guess I’ll see you later,” she said awkwardly, not wanting to be free of his company yet.

“Sure,” Daniel nodded, still smiling. He held back as she made her way to the doors.

“I’ll, uh … I’ll call you on Monday,” she said.

“Okay,” he nodded.

She gave him one last smile and exited the union.

Sam sighed as she entered her office. It was just after 5 PM, her aforementioned lab being two hours long. The class had actually gone well for a change. None of her students seemed intent on fooling around, and most of them had done the experiment with hardly any problems. She was embarrassed to recount that she seemed more jovial than usual, and some students had picked up on it – one in particular noting sarcastically that she was in a “light, airy mood.”

Sam shook her head amusedly and snickered to herself. She was aware that she had been in a better mood than usual, not letting things get to her and even cracking a few jokes during the lab period. She wondered if Daniel had something to do with it. She had gotten a lot of things off her chest in talking to him, and it made her feel very good. She couldn’t remember the last person whose company made her feel that way. Sara? Well, maybe, but the fact was that, as much as she and Sam were very good friends, Sara could be a bit antagonistic. It wasn’t often that she’d let Sam get through a whole sentence without interrupting her.

No, Daniel was different. He would sit there and let her talk, adding his thoughts along the way whenever it was appropriate. He was a very sweet man, and certainly much different from any of the men she’d met before. The way he seemed to be so concerned about her made her wonder if he was the one – the one she was looking for that would complete her. She shook her head and chuckled inwardly, thinking how ridiculous it sounded. They’d only been friends for just over a week. She hadn’t known him very long at all, yet she seemed to know quite a bit about him. They’d shared quite a bit of information about their personal lives, and it was almost akin to sharing your deepest, darkest secrets with your best friend.

Sam sighed and was about to shut down her computer when she heard the sound effect for new email. She maximized her email program and checked out the list of emails she had. The new one was a department-wide email sent by Doctor McClellan, notifying everyone of the deadline for submissions to the May newsletter. Sam grinned and rolled her eyes.

She was about to close out the program when she decided to check her personal email account as well. She opened it up and cycled through the new email messages:

“Hi Sam, how are you doing? It sounds like we are both looking for the same thing in a relationship. As I said in my profile, I’m the regional manager for SunSystems software. It’s an OK job, but I really want to be a firefighter. I know a lot of people aren’t too crazy about that since there’s always a chance of getting hurt, or killed, or whatever, but I’m not worried. It’s something I really want to do. I’m hoping I can join a ladder company in Denver.

I suppose this is very forward after only two emails I’ve sent you, but I was wondering if we could talk on the phone? I think it’s a better way to communicate than email. My phone number is 555-1132 if you want to call me, or if you’d rather I call you, you can give me your number. Okay, I have to run and get ready for work. Hope to hear back from you. Take care.

Joe”

Sam stared at the computer monitor and exhaled slowly.