“Sorry!” Sassy returned to her desk and sat with a thump. She picked up a pen and started drawing circles on a pad of paper to keep her hands busy. “I’m not thinking straight right now. I was imagining that my best friend just told me she’s going to Vietnam in a couple of weeks.”
Marion’s nervous laughter tinkled through the phone. “Far out, huh?”
“That’s heavy, Marion. Are you sure about this? How do you feel?”
The line was quiet for a beat. “Excited, pleased that they actually agreed to it, but kind of in shock, I guess. I’m a little scared, too.”
“You’d be nuts if you weren’t.”
“It feels surreal. I keep saying it out loud to myself. ‘I’m going to the Vietnam War.’ I’m not sure it’s really sunk in yet.”
“It’s so massive, Marion. Help me understand. Why are you doing this?”
Marion took a breath, then she said, “First, because I’m a doctor and I believeI can help. Second, and maybe more important, I’m going because you’re my friend. I haven’t thanked you for everything you’ve done for me, and now I can.”
“I haven’t done anything.”
“You just don’t know what you’ve done, because it comes so naturally to you. When you took me to places and shows and introduced me to people, you were giving me a whole new outlook on life. The way you enjoy life has changed who I am. I think that because of what you have given me, I am now the kind of person who would like to test herself and do something good at the same time.”
“Marion! Stop that!” she cried, sobbing. “You’ve given me so much, too. I’ve never thanked you, either.”
“You just did.”
Adrenaline shot back into Sassy’s bloodstream. “But I don’t want you to go! What if something happens? I can’t lose you, too!”
“I will be fine.”
“Gosh,” Sassy said, leaning back in her chair. Marion was calm. Sassy needed to get to that state, too, and Marion had taught her how. She exhaled slowly, counting to four. “All right, Marion. I will try to believe that. What can I do to help? I know. We’ll get you some new threads for the jungle. Shopping this Saturday.”
“Good idea.”
The door to the office opened, catching her attention. “Tom’s here. I’d better hang up. Can I tell him?”
“Sure.”
She swept the tears off her face with her sleeve, sniffing loudly. “See you tonight? My place?”
“I’ll be there.”
Tom was checking his mail as he approached, picking through envelopes without watching where he was going. It gave her the opportunity to admire his navy-blue herringbone jacket, unbuttoned over nicely fitted dark trousers. He’d loosened his blue-striped tie so he could undo the top button of his crisp white shirt. He didn’t like wearing ties, he had confided once. Coats were fine, but ties made him feel like he was on a leash.
She cleared her throat, stopping him from walking into her desk.
“Oh, hey,” he said, popping out of his stupor. “How was your morning?”
“I can’t even think straight. Marion just called me. She had the craziest news.”
While she told him the story, she watched his expression soften from polite interest to bewilderment then harden to concern.
“To a war zone?” he asked in disbelief. “What is she thinking?”
“I’m so proud of her,” Sassy said softly. “She’s braver than I’ll ever be.”
“Braver than me,” Tom agreed. “You said she’s a psychiatrist, right? Doesn’t it seem ironic to either of you that a shrink is doing something so insane?”
She laughed. “We’re both aware.”
He stood back and folded his arms, thinking through those dazzling blue eyes. “I’m going to make a donation to the Red Cross to help her out.”
