A Helping Hand

In the other direction Amber saw Chris as a generally attractive man. Probably about three or four inches taller than her own five seven. If asked she would have noticed that he had blue eyes and light brown, or maybe dark blonde, hair but probably couldn't have said much else. Her mind was still filled with the seemingly overwhelming problems of her own. The world did look somewhat better but she still didn't see any way out of her current circumstances. The thought did float through her mind that if it weren't for all her problems she would like to see more of him. However, since she believed it unlikely that she would even be back next semester, she felt there was little future in that direction and let the thoughts drop.

They had little hot fudge sundaes for dessert and when they finished Chris paid and helped her on with her jacket again. They left the restaurant and Amber said, "Thank you for the meal, Chris. I'm afraid I had better get back to the dorm. I have to be at work at five thirty tomorrow morning."

"Oh, where do you work?"

"At that little coffee shop on the corner of Grand River and Short."

"I think I know the one. OK, I'll walk you back over to your dorm."

They started back and soon crossed the main street onto the campus. When they arrived outside her dorm, Chris could hear what sounded to be a loud party already in progress. Well, he had heard someone say they had beaten Illinois, but somehow he expected the party would have been just as loud if they had lost. He made a slight face imagining how hard it would be to study - or to sleep - with that going on.

In the lobby they stopped and Amber said, "Thank you again Chris, for the meal and for listening."

He looked at her for a couple of seconds and then said, "You are most welcome. Look, Amber, I know I said strangers with first names, but I would like to change that a little. I want to see you again. I may even think of some way to help out with your problems."

Amber looked almost like she was spooked. The phrase "like a deer in the headlights" came into his mind. For a few seconds she didn't respond. Then she said, "I like you Chris. I'm just not sure about anything right now. I need to think about things."

Chris seemed to accept this. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out a slip of paper and a pen. He quickly wrote something on it and handed it to her. "All right, think about it. But take my name and phone number just in case. You don't even have to look at it if you decide that way. I really would like to see you again."

He folded the paper and placed it in Amber's hand. She closed her hand automatically and at last said, "OK. I'll try to think about it. Thank you again, Chris." Then she turned and entered the stairwell.

When the alarm went off at four-thirty, Amber reached and shut it off even as her mind slowly came awake enough to realize what she was doing. She didn't feel that she had had much rest. The problems still flooded her mind. But she rose from the bed. She did have to be at work in an hour and if she wanted to eat anything first she had to be there in a half hour. One of the perks of working there was she could get her meals for half price. As she headed towards the bathroom she could almost feel the other concerns flooding back into her mind. She gave a small smile and thought to herself that the steak had probably worn off and the look of the world was no longer as good.

She got to the coffee shop in time to eat a little before her shift started. Usually Sunday mornings weren't too busy until going on eight or eight-thirty but today business seemed to pick up even before seven. By eight thirty she was kept busy almost constantly. As she returned from entering an order, she was told there was a new customer in Booth 5. She looked over and could see a man's legs but the rest of him was hidden by the back of the seat. She delivered one order and then moved to the booth, automatically saying, "Good morning. May I help you?"

She gave a little gasp and nearly jumped as Chris looked up at her, smiling, and said, "I certainly hope so. I'll have the Number 7 with orange juice."

For a few more seconds she stood frozen. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Ordering breakfast, I thought. And also asking if you've had a chance to think about things." He added, "I don't think one time counts as stalking, do you?"

She smiled and shook her head. "No, it doesn't. My mind is still a mess, Chris. Give me a little time, please."

"Of course. As much as you need." Then as she turned to put in his order he said, "Don't get your hopes up just yet, but I may have an idea that just might help you a little."

She started to say something but just then another customer called her. She just gave him a slight nod and then disappeared.

She soon brought his meal but didn't have time to talk. When he had finished she brought the check. She handed it to him along with another piece of paper and said, "I've thought."

He handed her a credit card and as she left to run it, he unfolded the second sheet of paper. On it he saw written: Amber Starbuck and her phone number. Smiling to himself he refolded the paper and put it into his shirt pocket. When she returned with the sheet for his signature he asked, "What time do you get off today?"

"Two-thirty, but I may stay and get something to eat."

He replied simply, "Don't. I'll see you then."

Just after two-thirty Amber picked up her jacket and started towards the door. When she stepped onto the sidewalk, Chris suddenly appeared beside her. He gave a slight bow and said, "My Lady," and offered his arm.

Amber laughed but put her arm on his. Somehow she felt a little better already.

Chris led the way over to where his car was parked on the street, opening the door and holding it for her. Amber climbed in and Chris went around to his own side. As he got in he saw that Amber had fastened her seat belt and then let her head drop back against the seat and had closed her eyes. "Rough morning?" he asked.

She opened her eyes. "Kind of. Pretty busy."

"Then I bet you haven't had any lunch, have you?"

She shook her head. "No, you said not to."

"Well, I certainly don't intend to let you starve. We'll go get something." With that he fastened his seat belt and started off.

Amber had no idea where he was planning on taking her and didn't really care. She was just tired. Tired and no matter how she tried to forget it, tensed up over the mess her life had become. She lay back with her eyes closed and Chris let her rest, not talking.

He did speak once when they first drove off. "You like chicken?" Amber had nodded without opening her eyes. "Good." was his only comment.

In about five minutes Amber felt the car slow and stop. When Chris turned off the engine she opened her eyes and was surprised to see they were in the driveway of a small suburban house. She looked around and finally asked, "Where are we?"

"Chez Chris," he answered. I have a chicken dish in the oven and possibly something to show you."

Surprised, Amber let Chris help her out of the car and lead her up to the front door. He unlocked it and held it open for her. She entered and he closed the door behind them. Amber looked around. There was a living room to her left and a small formal dining room to the right. Straight in front of them the hallway led into a dinette. As they moved into it she saw a kitchen to the right and a door to what looked to be a utility room on the left.

They entered the kitchen and Chris looked at a timer on the oven. "Things should be ready in about fifteen minutes. Let me get you something to drink. I have milk, coke - diet only, I'm afraid - iced tea, hot tea or instant coffee. Oh, and skim milk."

"If you have it, I would like an iced tea."

"Coming right up." He retrieved a pitcher from the refrigerator and a glass from a cabinet. He poured her a glass and a second one for himself.

They moved to the dinette and sat down at the small, round table. For the next ten minutes Chris asked about how Amber liked working where she did.

"It's OK, I guess. The pay isn't too bad and I can get meals at half price."

"But I bet you'd rather not have to work at all, wouldn't you?"

"That would make study a little easier. But, then, I have this habit of eating and I need to pay for it somehow."

Both turned when a timer went off in the kitchen. "Excuse me a second," Chris said and went back into the kitchen. Amber remained where she was and could hear Chris doing things in the kitchen. In about five minutes he returned and said, "We can eat in the dining room."

Amber stood and they both carried their glasses into the dining room where Amber saw that Chris had two places already set, one at the end of the table and one to its right, and on hot pads in the center of the table was some kind of chicken and rice dish along with a bowl of mixed vegetables and a plate of dark bread. The smell of the food was wonderful and Amber realized she was quite hungry. He led her to the place on the side and held the chair as she sat.

Chris took her plate and served her before doing the same for himself and taking his own place. Amber tasted the chicken dish and found she was even hungrier than she had thought. In fact, she felt starved, but, then, she realized except for the previous night, she hadn't eaten very well at all this week on top of being sick for the week or so before.

After both had tasted their food Amber said, "Chris, this is wonderful and I certainly am grateful. But I can't help wondering just what this is all about."

Chris lowered his fork and looked directly at her. "What it's about is that I want us to get to know each other a little better. You told me a bit about yourself yesterday. Let me tell you a little about myself today."

She smiled at him. "I can go along with that, as long as we have decided not to remain first name only strangers."

He smiled back and, over the meal, filled in a lot of things about himself. "I'm a junior also - Civil Engineering. In fact, I'm a little surprised I haven't seen you around the Engineering Building."

"I have only been going here for two months, after all. Besides, there's no reason you'd notice me."

"Oh, there definitely is. I'm always looking for pretty girls." She started to say something but Chris cut her off. "Yes, that definitely includes you."

"I told you my parents were killed when I was seventeen. This was our house - I inherited it. As you can probably tell we weren't rich either. Not poor, just typical American middle class. Along with the house there was a small insurance policy that provided enough for school and to pay upkeep and taxes on the house. With summer work I manage OK."

They talked more, each discovering a little more about the other. By the time they finished the meal Amber had relaxed a little more, some of the tenseness leaving her. They carried the dishes back out to the kitchen and put away the leftover food.

Amber suddenly noticed the clock on the stove. "It's nearly six! I hadn't realized it was so late. I really need to get back and try to get some studying done." She made a face. "Not that it will be easy. I'm sure my roommate will want to play loud music and constantly try to get me to quit work and do something else." She shook her head back and forth. "I doubt if she'll last past this semester, either."

Chris turned and leaned back with his hands on the kitchen counter. "Before I take you back, I'd like you to see the rest of the house." A surprised look came over her face but before she could say anything Chris added, "I have a reason."

"All right, as long as it doesn't take too long."

"Just long enough, I hope." With this cryptic comment he smiled and led her over to the stairwell. They climbed to the second floor, a Cape Cod, actually, with the characteristic short outside walls.

"Up here we have three bedrooms. I live here by myself and use the big one in the front. It was my parents before ..." He stopped for a second and then shook his head and continued. "It and the larger one in the back have their own bath. The smaller one I just use as a study."

"It's very nice," Amber commented, "but why are you showing me this?"

He seemed to hesitate a little. Finally he slowly began, "It's just that you said you couldn't study with all that goes on in your dorm and that you needed a place where you could spread out and work without interruption. I was just thinking ..." Again he trailed off. He cleared his throat and suddenly rushed on with, "Look, if you'd like you could use the second bedroom here to study. Just move your stuff over here and use it whenever you need to work."

Amber looked totally surprised. Slowly she said, "You mean you're offering me a place to work whenever I want?" He nodded. "What's the catch? What do you want in return?"

She could see his face turn somewhat red. "Nothing. No catch. I just saw a way I could maybe help you out a little."

"Really? Nothing else?"

"No, nothing else. My word on it."

She still seemed hesitant. "It looks like a great place to work. It's not much farther than the dorm to Engineering, right?"

He nodded. "I always walk." When she still didn't say anything he added, "You could even eat some of your meals here. Or all of them if you want." She still didn't say anything. "Oh, hell, you can even use the bedroom if you want to sleep over any time."

Amber looked around. "You're asking me to move in with you?"

"No, I didn't mean it like that." He had turned even more red. "Yes, I do mean I'm saying you could move here if you want but not in with me. Amber, I like you. You've had some bad luck and I thought maybe I can help out."

Amber stared at him. "No strings? You're not expecting something in return?"

"No strings, no quid pro quo. Just a place to study and free room and board if you want." She still didn't say anything. "I'll give you my word. I'm not expecting anything in return. I won't make a pass at you." Then he had to quietly add, "Not even if I really want to."

This last finally brought a smile to Amber's face. "Suppose I really want to make a pass at you?"

He could see the suppressed laughter on her face and his own relaxed slightly. "In that case I'll do whatever I can to help you get what you want."

Both broke out laughing. At last Amber said, "Thank you, Chris. Thank you for caring. This is all so sudden I don't know exactly what to say. We've known each other for only a little over a day. I will admit working here might make it a lot more likely for me to salvage my grades this semester. I want to say I'll take you up on it. It's just that things are moving so fast."

"I guess as a geologist you are used to things moving slower. One might even say glacial, might one?"

She smiled at his quip. "One might. All right, Chris. Suppose I move my computer and books over here and we can try it out for a while." He started to say something and she added, "Just to study. At least to start with."

Chris let out his breath. "OK. Why don't we go over and bring things back now. You said you'd have trouble working over there tonight."

Amber was feeling like things were going awfully fast but she did have a lot of trouble working in her room - especially on weekend nights, including Sundays. "All right, if you are serious about your offer."

"I am. Let's go."

They went back out to the car and in less than forty-five minutes were back with two boxes of books, her computer, and another box of pencils, pens, paper and other desk supplies.

They installed everything, Chris hooking her computer to his network while Amber arranged her books and other materials. There was a desk in the room - Chris's old desk in fact. When they had everything set, Amber sat down to begin work. Chris left the room, closing the door behind him, and went to his own studies.

Some time about eight he knocked on the door. Amber called to him and he opened it and came in. "I'm stopping for some supper. You need to eat too. Care to share a frozen pizza?"

She put down her pencil and looked at him. "Chris, I can't keep eating your food."

"Look, it doesn't really cost much more to feed both of us and in general I like to cook. I would be perfectly happy if you ate all of your meals with me. Gives me someone to talk with and definitely something much better to look at than I have now. Seriously, if you want to eat meals here, I'll take care of the food and you can help with the prep and cleanup. But only if you don't need the time for your study. Fair enough?"

"Not really, but it seems too good to pass up. Chris, you are being awfully good to me."

"You just needed a little help."

"But you're giving me a lot of help. Thank you again. Will you call me when the pizza is ready"

"Certainly. Now get back to work so you can get those grades up." He moved to the door smiling at her.

She smiled back. "Slave driver," she called as he left the room.

Over the next week Amber spent more and more of her time at the house. She had quickly found that her work went far better in this environment and she made progress much faster than she expected. Chris had given her a key so she could come and go whenever she wanted. It still meant a walk back to her dorm when she quit for the night, but the way was well lighted and patrolled so she didn't worry too much. Besides she had the small can of Mace.

Thursday night she was studying for a quiz she had the next day in one of the two problem classes. She felt she knew the material but wanted to be sure and ace the quiz, both to show her professor she was really trying and to mathematically increase her chances of keeping her high GPA. The class was at ten Friday morning and when she finally decided she had studied enough she looked at her watch and discovered it was nearly three. She thought about the fifteen minute walk to the dorm and looked over at the bed. The bed won and she pulled off her blouse and jeans and just slipped under the covers. She was asleep in less than thirty seconds.

Fortunately she had remembered to set the alarm on her watch and she woke up at eight. She took a quick shower in the bath attached to the bedroom and dressed again in the clothes she had worn the night before.

She headed downstairs with the idea of maybe grabbing something to quickly eat on her way to class. On her way downstairs she heard Chris call out. "Come here a second. I've got some orange juice and a granola bar. That won't take you too long."

How had he even known she was here? OK, he probably heard the shower. But how did he know she was in a hurry to get to class. She had probably mentioned when her quiz was during supper last night. Whatever the reason she was thankful for the food and told him so. As she went out the door, he called, "Good luck on the quiz."

When she came in late that afternoon he immediately asked, "How was the quiz?"

"Not bad at all. I'm sure I aced it."

"Good! I knew you would."

"How could you possibly know that?" she asked skeptically.

He turned and placed both of his hands on her shoulders. "Because you are a very smart and very hard working woman."

She had been slightly startled at his touch but it was more of a brotherly touch than anything else. She looked up at his face and smiled. "Thank you. Thank you for believing in me."

He smiled back. "Always."

It wasn't like Chris had nothing to do. His own studies required as much time as hers. He did have the advantage of not having to work outside of school, at least. And he wasn't desperately trying to catch up for bad grades due to flu. Amber herself didn't spend quite every minute in study. She did manage to help out with dishes and occasionally with cooking.

But he never pressed her. If she had to study he took care of things. And, true to his word, he never made the slightest pass at her, even though it was obvious - or at least noticeable - that he found her attractive.