, and said, 'Neon tan,
Cleo--that's it. Fuck it.' That was the end of IBM for Eddie. He's
doing great now; he's building out in California."

"Right on."

"Pretty good catcher, wasn't he?"

"Damned good." Eddie was one of the saved. Patrick was beginning to
feel that way, too. It was good to be 22 and not have to keep your
mouth shut. Gino got to his feet and stretched.

"What a man!"

"Sit down, Gino."

"No compassion."

"It's lonely at the top," Gino said, trudging toward a ladder.

That evening in the Depresso, Patrick finished the mathematics book. He
planned to mail it to Molly on Saturday, when he usually checked the
Post Office for mail. His parents and Molly were the only people who
wrote to him. They were used to mailing to General Delivery wherever he
was living; he hadn't given them Gert's address. And anyway, summer
wasn't going to last forever; he wasn't sure how long he'd be around
Woodstock. Willow. He couldn't really think about her. She was too new,
too big, or something. He felt the sweetness again and was glad that
they were getting together the next night.

Patrick looked out the Depresso window and saw a red Chevy convertible
passing with its top down. Willow was riding on the passenger side, her
hair blowing. Martin. Willow. So that's why she couldn't meet me, he
realized. She looked as though she were having a good time. What do I
do now? he wondered.

The next afternoon, Willow was at the Depresso before him, absorbed in
a paperback. "Hi, there," Patrick said. She looked up and smiled.

"Hi, Patrick. I brought my largest handkerchief."

"What are you reading?"

"_Balthazar_, by Lawrence Durrell."

"I saw you go by with Martin, yesterday."

"Oh, yeah. Martin took me for a drive and showed me his studio. He has
been making recordings."

Patrick looked at her directly and tried to keep his face calm. "Do you
like him?"

"I do. He's nice; he asked me a lot of questions."

"He seemed O.K. to me," Patrick admitted.

"Patrick, are you jealous?"

"Umm . . . "

"Tell you what," she said. "Walk me home tonight and I'll show you how
much I like him." Patrick started to smile.

"It's a deal." The sun came out from behind a cloud. Willow covered his
hand with hers for a moment, and he felt reconnected. "I like you," he
said.

"Now don't go overboard, Patrick."

They ate dinner and walked to Byrdcliffe, taking turns pushing Willow's
bike. Amber was at Art's; they had the house