Straight No Chaser

Parents

i met marcus's parents yesterday; they took us to dinner. everyone thought i'd be really nervous, and tried to get me to take it really seriously, but i stayed calm and it was really enjoyable. i got to hear tons of anecdotes about baby and toddler marcus, and how when they lived in omaha they had to bundle him up like an eskimo baby to keep the negative forty-degree air out of his precious little lungs; why he loves strawberries (mom ate them in ridiculous quantities while she was pregnant, so he was born loving them, but turned out to be allergic); what he looked like when he was three, eight, thirteen months old, et cetera. delightful.

"take care of him," his mom whispered on the way out, under the umbrella. i thought it was weird because i know he didn't introduce me as his girlfriend, but i smiled and told her that yes, i try; most of the time he makes it difficult but i do everything i can for him. she said he looks thinner than when she saw him last. i hope she doesn't think that's my fault.

all in all a pretty good evening. now he's home in louisiana, grouching around and trying to fall asleep; i'm here, missing him. wednesday, the day i sneaked over to massage aloe into the scars on his back--that was the first i've seen him since february thirteenth, believe it or not. seven of the longest weeks of my life. and now he's gone again, only this time it's just three days, and i can handle three days; i handled almost two months with inconspicuous grace. everyone said they couldn't even tell i was a pledgewife until thursday's probate show, when i stood in front and screamed his name long and loud enough to destroy my voice. secret-keeping is hard, but not as hard as being without him for that long. tuesday, we've got a lot of catching up to do.