Written in the Stars © 2023
by David Lee
Chapter 1
Toryn McDill was heading for Ames on Thursday, a few days ahead of the start of the fall term at the university. It was his second year and he had managed to rent a one-bedroom furnished apartment not far from campus. It would be great to get away from the noise and distractions of the dorm. He hadn't let those keep him from having a successful freshman year, but it had been a challenge. Too many guys went wild once they were away from parental restraints. For that reason, some wouldn't be back this fall. While a number of returning students would be joining fraternities to continue their carefree, social experiences, Toryn would be pursuing more solitude.
He could have saved money by having a roommate to split the rent, but he had decided not to. He hadn't gotten close enough to anyone at school to feel like he'd want to be around them all the time. It was, perhaps, a luxury to live alone. However, the generous support of his doting grandparents made it feasible without its being a hardship. He might pick up a tutoring job or something if finances got tight.
He was zooming along I-80 not far from the Grinell exit when he saw an old car stopped on the shoulder. Seeing that the driver was a young man who appeared to be about his age and who looked quite distressed, he felt it would be kind to offer aid. The guy appeared to be harmless enough, so Toryn didn't think he'd be in danger if he got involved.
Pulling up just ahead of the stalled vehicle, he put on his flashers and checked traffic carefully before exiting.
"Hey, is there anything I can do?"
"Thanks for asking. I'm positive the engine's blown. It sounded like Armageddon before it seized up. Damn! I'm gonna have to call a salvage yard and junk it, I guess. This rust-bucket isn't worth a new motor – not even a used one. Now, I'm not sure how I'll get my crap to school."
"Are you going to Grinell College?"
"Nope, I'll be a sophomore at Iowa State."
"Wow! Me too. I'm sure we can find space for your stuff in my vehicle. As may have guessed, I'm driving my mom's soccer-team mobile. I was gonna drive my own little car, but it was a bit too small for all my crap. This beast is bigger than I needed, so I'm sure there will be room for your things. Let's get them transferred."
"You're really kind. You don't even know me."
"Hey, we're both going to ISU, and like the song says, `we're all in this together.'"
"You know about High School Musical, too?
"Yeah, I got to be Troy when my high school did it."
"Me too. `It's a small world after all,'" he sang.
"Are you going full-blown Disney on me?" Toryn joked
"Maybe. Anyway, my name actually is Troy, Troy Harnish."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Toryn McDill. Hey, let's do this. I don't like the looks of that smoke coming from under the hood."
The two of them made several hurried trips with Troy's possessions. The one which took the most effort was an electronic keyboard. Toryn had to move some of his things around to make room for it because of its length. Finally, they got everything in and closed the rear hatch.
Troy double checked the trunk of his car and cleaned out the console and glove compartment before they made one last trip to Toryn's vehicle. Just as the did, the car burst into flames. Once they got into the van, Toryn pulled it ahead several yards to make sure they were out of danger in case of an explosion.
Troy called the highway patrol emergency number to report the fire. It didn't take long for a firetruck from Grinell and a patrolman to reach the scene.
"Which one of you boys owns this charred mess?" the officer asked.
"Me," Troy shook his head, sadly. "I suppose I'm responsible for having it removed. My insurance policy won't cover the loss, but it will cover towing."
"That's cool. I'll radio for the service we use. They'll probably need a flatbed because the front tires are toast."
It took over an hour to get things straightened out. The tow truck driver had to wait for the incinerated car to cool enough to take it. Feeling sorry for the forlorn college kid, he offered him $100 for it. There really wasn't much of anything to salvage except the catalytic converter, but that was worth something. Troy was thankful for anything.
On the road again, Toryn tried to make conversation to cheer up his new acquaintance. They discussed things about high school and last year's college experience. In doing so, they found quite a bit of commonality.
"So, where am I taking you when we get to Ames," Toryn asked.
"Um, I'm not sure. That's why I was coming back early. This has been my year for bad luck with fire. The building I was going to live in had a minor blaze last week. It wasn't destroyed, but there was a lot of water damage and it won't be habitable for months. I'm hoping that Pastor Glenn from First Pres will let me couch surf.
"He's on vacation, and I haven't been able to contact him on his cell. I keep getting the automated response that he's out of the office. I was planning to sleep in my car if he didn't answer by the time I got to Ames, but now I don't have that option either."
"Oh man, even if he were here, that might not work out in the long run if he has a family around to distract you."
"Yeah, he has several rug rats, but I don't really have a choice, unless something opens up in a dorm."
"I've got a wild idea. Why don't you room with me for a while? My place isn't big, but it's got bunkbeds. If we split the rent, it would save both of us money. When you get tired of living with me, you could always move when something becomes available. We could give it a try."
"Who are you, the Archangel Gabriel?"
"Huh?"
"What mortal being would go that far to solve the problems of a perfect stranger?"
"Well, I'm no angel, and I'll bet you're not perfect either!" Toryn joked.
"You're the best!"
The young men spent most of an hour moving their things into Toryn's apartment. There was enough room for everything, but without much to spare. The closet in the bedroom was fairly large and neither of them had an overabundance of clothing. They each used two drawers in the chest for folded clothes like their underwear and socks. Troy said that Toryn should have the upper ones which were more accessible, but Toryn thought they should alternate so it would be more equitable.
The sleeping situation was another decision. The bed configuration was a twin bunk over a full-sized one. Troy insisted that Toryn should take the lower, larger one because it was his apartment. That was non-negotiable. Toryn felt that Troy should pay less for the inconvenience of the smaller bed, but, again, Troy wouldn't budge. His half of the rent would be quite a bit less than what he'd planned to spend living alone.
By rearranging the sparsely furnished living room, they managed to find a convenient spot for Troy's keyboard near an outlet where it wouldn't be in the way. Its addition actually made the place look homier.
"That's a nice instrument," Toryn said. "Do you get a lot of use from it?"
"Yeah, I have a couple of fairly regular gigs. Thank God you came along and rescued it so it didn't get incinerated! It helps pay the bills. I see you have a couple of nice guitars. Do you play professionally?"
"Nah, I've never done it for money, so I'm not professional. I like my acoustical one when I sing with my family and stuff. I used my Gibson Ebony when I played in our jazz ensemble. We went to The National Jazz Festival in New York during my senior year. Um, we came in second."
"Wow! That's a really big deal. We sent an audition tape to it and didn't get picked to participate. The judge did say nice things about my keyboard work and encouraged me to continue."
"Cool! We have another thing in common. I'd love to jam with you. We could do it before the rest of the students move in so they won't complain about the noise."
By the time they gotten settled, it was far past lunchtime and they were starved. Troy suggested that they go to the Hy-Vee grocery which had a small café attached so they could have lunch before stocking the cupboards and fridge. It was never a good idea to shop for food on an empty stomach.
It was an awkward time of day to eat - being too late for lunch and too early for dinner. So, the guys decided to eat light and purchase things which wouldn't be too hard to prepare for a late supper. Settling on a pan of Simek's frozen Italian lasagna and a variety of fresh produce for a big salad to offset the starch and carbs, they were pleased with the prospect.
Of course, they picked up a few more staples of canned food and pastas for quick meals when needed. Both were planning to buy five-day meal tickets so that they didn't have to cook when they were busy with studies. On the weekends, they would make their own meals. Weekend offerings in the cafeterias often consisted of leftovers which weren't all that palatable.
"We did pretty well with our food choices," Toryn noted. "Our tastes are a lot alike. This could be a great semester!"
After the groceries were put away, Troy encouraged Toryn to join him in a jam session. He used the percussion function on his keyboard to provide the drum beat. Troy was impressed by how smoothly Toryn made chord changes and how he improvised on the melody when given the chance. They played some jazz classics and a few hymns.
"You could do this professionally if you wanted to," Troy told his new friend.
"That might be fun if I could perform with someone like you," Toryn replied.
"I know a trio that could use you because their guitarist flunked out and isn't coming back to school this fall. Would you like to take his place."
"It depends on the schedule and how I'd do in an audition. I tend to obsess when I know I'm being evaluated. Would they expect more that I can do?"
"You'd be fine, and you've already auditioned."
"Huh?"
"I've been recording us, and since it's my trio, I'm in charge of hiring."
"Seriously?"
"Yup. Have you heard of Trifecta?
"Um, it's a triad or series of three, I believe."
"It's also the name of my jazz trio. Since I'm Troy, the drummer is Tommy, and our former guitar guy was Terry, we came up with this cutesy name. You'd be a perfect fit since your name starts with the same letter."
"So, I'd fit alliteratively. Is that the main thing that qualifies me?"
"NO! You're an excellent musician! I could have changed the name of the group or given you a nickname that starts with "T" in order to make you part of it. It's your ability that I'm after."
"Okay, so does it require a lot of hours? I know we'd have to rehearse as well as perform."
"Normally, the schedule is Saturday afternoon and evening with an occasional gig on Sunday. We provide the music for the Saturday service at First Pres which is their contemporary one, and sometimes participate in the traditional one on Sunday morning. Saturday night we perform at a club downtown. It's cool because we're paid more than minimum wage and we get pretty good tips at the club as well.
"As far as rehearsals go, I'm sure you can sightread well. Obviously, we wouldn't go in cold, but it won't require a lot of extra time."
"Hmm... I think I could do that without overloading my calendar."
"Cool! I'll text Tommy. He's planning to come in tomorrow. If he does, we could play for the 5:00 PM service on Saturday. We don't have a club date this weekend, but I could call to see if they'd like us to come. We could do the numbers you and I have been playing today. Tommy's a natural in adding the rhythm.
Since they'd had their lasagna in the oven while they played, it was ready for a late supper. They were hungry by then, and it really hit the spot.
Cleanup was minimal and they shared in it equally. Toryn was beginning to wonder why he'd been a loner for so long. He didn't see himself as terribly shy, but it seemed like he'd never encountered anyone who really meshed with him. That must be what people felt when they made a good buddy. He'd never had one outside of his family.
They took turns in the shower and dressed in sleep shorts for bed. Having had an adventurous day, it would seem like they would have gone to sleep the minute they hit the bed. However, the stress of the fire and the changes which had resulted in both their lives kept them awake for a while. So, they ended up chatting. In so doing, they shared more about their lives. The more they talked, the more they appeared to have in common.
Just before they drifted off, Troy asked a question which surprised Toryn.
"I could tell you're familiar with the church music we played. Do you believe in predestination?"
"I'm a Lutheran, Man, not a Calvinist. What's your guess?"
"Okay, I get where you're coming from, but do you think that some things happen for a reason?"
"I suppose. I'm not sure how much free will we have and how much is determined by factors like genetics and environment, if that's what you mean."
"Well, I'm not big on the doctrine of predestination, and I don't think that a lot of people in the Presbyterian church are today. However, I've been thinking about how miraculous my day has been."
"Um, it's not miraculous having your car self-destruct."
"No; but look at what's come out of it. I've made a new friend who rescued me and provided a place to stay. That's magical. My keyboard didn't get fried, and I didn't get injured. It's like someone is watching out for me and fixing everything."
"I see your point in that regard. It could have been a lot worse. In a way, it was magical for me too. I don't feel like I want to be a loner anymore."
Author's notes:
This is the first chapter in a fairly short story. There will be more to come.
Thanks for reading this story. If you enjoyed it, please feel free to contact me a dlee169@hotmail.com and let me know. Your emails are the only reward I receive for writing. Please put the story title in the subject line in case your email goes into the spam folder.
Thanks to David S for editing. He finds typos and missing words! He also makes valuable suggestions.
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Thanks, David
P.S. I have a chronological list of all my posted stories which I will email to you if you have an interest.