Birds of a Feather

"When I was doing research for my PhD on dating couples, one of the interesting ironies I ran across were antithetical sayings. For instance, who hasn't heard the old saw 'birds of a feather flock together?' Everyone, right? Then how do you explain this: 'Opposites attract'?" He looked around and saw the typical reactions. Lots of smiles, some shrugs, a few nods.

"Can they both be true? Anyone? Casey? Care to venture a guess?"

Casey Easton was a 21-year old junior majoring in sociology. Even though jobs were scarce to impossible-to-find in her chosen field, she loved the study of human behavior both individually and in groups as well as learning in general. She particularly enjoyed Dr. Seth Carlson's classes and this was the third course she'd taken from him in as many years.

Her freshman year, she had no idea who was who. She just knew she had to take Sociology 101, the introductory course, and he happened to be teaching a class that best fit the rest of her schedule. She didn't know for a couple of weeks how interesting and thoroughly prepared he was let alone that he was one of a very few tenured professors who still taught undergraduate courses. What she did know was he was freakin' gorgeous and that never hurt.

Her sophomore year she found a way to take another class with him even though it put a serious kink in her plans. She needed to work to pay her half of the rent as well as tuition, books and fees. Taking that class forced her to cut her hours back but she didn't care because it was worth it just to be around 'Dr. Dreamy.'

Seth Carlson noticed Casey on the first day of the first class three years ago, but who wouldn't? In all the years he'd been either going to school or teaching, he'd only seen a handful of young women as attractive as her. He'd just started dating another bimbo in an endless string of them and as empty-headed as they were, that was all he wanted in a relationship. Whatever interest he might have had in Casey was sublimated into finding creative ways to bring her into as many classroom discussions as possible. This way, he could 'get to know her' without risking any kind of inappropriate behavior or hint of favoritism, let alone the thought of something he deeply dreaded—a commited relationship. The only thing worse was the 'm' word and Seth Carlson was not the marrying kind. He knew professors dated their students all the time, but it was still risky and fraught with all kinds of peril and he wasn't going to risk his reputation on any student, not even one as beautiful as Casey.

"It seems to me we are somehow evolutionarily predisposed to accept ideas, which are often expressed as catchy little phrases, that at least make sense to us on some level. So we can readily agree that people who share many things in common logically fit together while also leaving room to acknowledge that people with totally opposing points of view or life interests can compliment one another. Just look at James Carville and Mary Matalin. Talk about opposites attracting, right?"

There were a few chuckles from those familiar with the unlikely pairing of a liberal Democrat and a very conservative Republican. Considering how long ago, Bill Clinton was president, there were even more "Huhs?" and "Who's that" comments from those too young or ill-informed to know who they were. In spite of their being polar opposites, politically speaking, their marriage seemed to work.

"Insightful as always, Ms. Easton. But are both of them 'true'?" he asked taking it to the next level.

She thought for a moment then said, "I try not to use words like truth, proof, or believe." Every head had now turned to look at her and not just the guys who were constantly checking her out or hitting on her. "For instance, when someone asks me whether or not I believe in God, I tell them the better question is 'what evidence is there to support God's existence?' If someone wants me to prove an argument I tell them I can't because proof is for courtrooms and mathematics classes, so there again, I can only provide evidence for or against any given thing. Therefore I can't tell you whether or not either statement is 'true.' I can only provide examples of both and offer an opinion as my conclusion."

"Damn! That chick is smoking hot and smart as hell!" one of the male students said far too loudly. A few laughed and Casey just rolled her eyes.

"Uh, would you care to come up and finish teaching the class, Ms. Easton?" he said smiling. "I feel like I've just been taken to school by one of my students." He saw her smiling back at him then shifted gears. "Okay, anyone else have any thoughts?"

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Casey dropped her book bag on the couch and looked at the clock. It was after 7pm and Caden still wasn't home—again. She knew the shop was struggling, but this was getting ridiculous. He was leaving the house at 7am and getting home after eight or nine nearly every day. As much as that bothered her on one level, she knew there was a reason for it. A new motorcycle shop had opened up just three blocks away and they were seriously undercutting his prices on parts and labor. It was part of a chain of stores that could afford to do that at any one given location until it ran its competition out of business. It would then typically swoop in, buy out the shop, and open a new franchise using the existing building which was ready to repair motorcycles after making a few cosmetic changes. It was a fantastic business model, unless of course, you owned the mom & pop shop getting run out of town.

She'd been at work or school all day herself and she still needed to make dinner and do homework. She rarely complained as she'd chosen this life for herself, but it was times like this that made her question her decisions.

Casey had an unquenchable thirst for knowledge and she'd always loved going to school. Growing up, she'd been relatively sheltered by her two loving parents so when she finally got out from under their control her freshman year of college, she went a little wild. Nothing crazy. She didn't go off the deep end by any means. She just wanted to try some new things. In the space of three months she'd lost her virginity (several times), got drunk for the first time (and hated it), smoked weed several times (and kind of like it), and met Caden Fields who, among other things, loved motorcycles. He not only loved riding them—fast—he loved working on them and he was good at it.

Caden had that James Dean look that said 'dangerous' and 'I don't care' written all over him and from the first time he'd asked Casey to hop on, she was hooked. A month later, she moved into his tiny studio apartment in the University district while going to school full-time.

When her parents found out what she'd done, her father gave her an ultimatum. Move out and call it off or support herself. Spreading her wings of rebellion a little wider, she chose Caden and the checks stopped being deposited in her account.

That year, Caden was offered a job at bike repair shop and was making pretty decent money and managed to put a fair share of it away even as she started working as many hours a week as she could get in a coffee shop near their apartment.

The following year, one of his repeat customers asked him why he didn't own the shop. 
"You're good, Caden. You're really good. In fact, you're better than any of the other mechanics in here. Why not be your own boss?"

Caden thanked him then explained the reality of the situation in terms of money. Caden was shocked when the man agreed to help him work up a business plan and possibly even bankroll him if it looked plausible. Three months later he accepted the man's offer and bought the place in spite of Casey's deep reservations. After voicing them two or three times, she could tell this was his dream so she gave up resisting and became his biggest supporter.

He'd worked a lot of long hours that first year and he'd managed to keep the place afloat and occasionally even made a little money. But since the new shop opened up, he'd been hemorrhaging cash hand over fist. It seemed like no matter how much time and effort he put into the job, nothing ever got any better. As bad as that was, the worst thing about it for her was the way it affected both his behavior and his mood.

It was just after nine when he came home and Casey was nearly finished with a ten-page paper that was due the next day.

"Hey! How'd it go today?" she asked as she got up to kiss him hello.

"Shitty," was all he said not kissing her back.

"Wanna talk about it?" she said following him.

"Not really," he told her as he threw his greasy jacket on the couch. He knew that drove her crazy but she chose not to pick a fight.

"Can I get you something to eat?" she asked pleasantly.

"Nah, just bring me a beer, babe."

Casey bristled at essentially being ordered to bring him a beer. She didn't mind cooking for both of them, but this is where she usually drew the line. She grabbed one from the fridge, opened the bottle, and handed it to him. "Don't ever tell me to bring you a beer again," she said shoving it into his hands. "I'm sorry you had a bad day, but it isn't exactly Disneyland in my world lately, either."

She thought about asking him when the last time they'd made love was, but right now the last thing she wanted were his dirty, greasy hands pawing all over her. She went back to her paper and said, "If you change you mind, just let me know."

After draining the first beer in a few short gulps, Caden grabbed another one and said, "I might have to sell the shop, babe."

Casey stopped typing and said, "Is it really that bad?"

"Bad enough that my investor wants his money back. All of it."

"What? This was his idea? What the hell?" she said with genuine incredulity.

"He knows the competition is killing us and it's just a matter of time. After the big hit we took when they opened up, we've dropped off 10-15% a month and it's only getting worse. He wants his money back—all of it—before we lose everything."

"God, Caden. That's such bullshit! Are there any alternatives? Anything at all?"

He took another long pull and after belching loudly said, "Yeah. Actually there is. That's why I was there so late tonight."

She walked over to the couch, moved his dirty jacket, and sat down. "Tell me about it."

"The guy who owns the new shop stopped by this evening just as I was leaving and made me an offer."

"What kind of offer?"

He laid out the details leading Casey to say, "That would let you pay everything off with maybe a tiny bit left over. Is that what you want?"

"Hell, no!" he told her. "I want to own my own shop. But what I want and what's possible don't jive."

"So what are you gonna do?" she asked him.

"He made me another offer, too," he said finishing his second beer. "He said I could stay on as a mechanic."

Casey tried not to sound excited knowing this had to be killing her boyfriend, but she also knew this was almost certainly the best deal he could possibly hope for. He'd be out from under the crushing weight of all the pressure and have a decent job again without having to file bankruptcy.

"What are your thoughts on that?" she asked still trying to be supportive.

"What choice do I have?" he snorted as he got up and grabbed another beer.

"So are you going to take it?"

"I guess so. It's the only way I can pay back our investor because at this rate, we'll be so far underwater in another week, bankruptcy will be the only option. So yeah, I'm takin' the deal."

"I'm so sorry, baby," she told him. She tried to put her hand on his chest but he batted it away deeply hurting Casey's feelings—again. She forced herself not to lash out and quietly went back over to the little table and tried to finish her paper but it was impossible to concentrate.

It was times like these she remembered what her dad told her when he tried to warn her about living with someone like Caden. "Honey, you're one of the smartest young women I know and your future potential is truly unlimited. The only thing that can hold you back is you and the choices you make. I can't live your life for you and I can't impart lessons I've learned if you're hellbent on learning them the hard way. I'll just tell you there are guys you...have fun with...and then there are guys you marry. Caden is not the kind of guy a smart, well-educated, classy girl like you marries and yet, in spite of how smart you are, you refuse to accept that. I just hope you can get this out of your system and salvage the wreckage when it's over before it's too late."

She'd started raising the same objections she'd done so many times before when he raised his hand and said, "Casey? You're my daughter and I'll always love you no matter what. But I will not continue to support you if you choose to make bad decisions. Especially life-alternating, bad decisions like living with a high-school dropout because he's so different from all the other guys you've ever known. If you do understand that you're on your own." With that he walked away and they hadn't spoken since. She occasionally got a call from her mom who couldn't stand not sharing her life with her daughter, but other than that, she really had been completely cut off from her family. As much as that had hurt her, it hurt her even more to have to admit her father may have been right.

By the time she finished her paper, Caden was passed out drunk on the couch—again. Casey pulled a blanket up over him and went to bed alone—again—wondering when, or even if, things would ever get back to the way they used to be.

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"Good morning! Do you know where you're working yet? If not I can show you if you'll just tell me your name."

Caden couldn't believe how perky she was at 8 o'clock in the morning. His head was still pounding from all the beers he'd pounded the night before which had become pretty much his nightly routine since he decided to sell the shop. This was his first day as an employee, and he didn't have the patience for this ditzy chick or her sing-song voice.

He pointed to his name which was sewn onto the new blue shirt he'd had to buy out of the sale of the shop and said, "Does that answer your question?"

"Oh! Okay. Hey? Are you the guy that used to own this place?" she said smiling sweetly at him.

"Yeah. That's me all right. I'm the lucky guy."

He turned to walk away and she said, "I'm Monica! Monica Anderson. If you ever need help with anything just ask me, okay? That's what I'm here for!"

"Uh, right. I'll be sure to do that," he grumbled as he found his new work station.

Not twenty minutes later he was looking at the new work order form in front of him and had no idea how to fill it out. "What the hell does that mean?" he asked himself. It said, "TWB" and "TWE." He laughed as he thought of three the only three initials that made sense to him: WTF.

He picked up the clipboard and walked back to the office and tapped on her door. "Oh, hi there again!" she said. He wondered if her smile was painted on. "How can I help you, Caden?"

"Oh, hey. Yeah, um, what do these abbreviations mean?" He pointed to them and handed the clipboard.

"Oh, those. Okay, well, TWB stands for 'Time Work Began' and TWE stands for 'Time Work Ended'. That was easy. Anything else?"

"Uh, nope. That should do it." Except it didn't. He was back in her office several more times that morning just trying to make sense of these idiotic new forms. He shook his head thinking the new owner was gonna go out of business himself over excess administrative costs. He even laughed when he wondered if there were forms in the restroom now. Would he have to write down 'Time Shit Began' and 'Time Shit Ended'?

"Somethin' funny, Fields?" someone asked.

He turned around and saw the new general manager. Unlike the owner, who was a pretty decent guy, this guy was a prick. "Uh, no. Just figuring out the new paperwork, that's all."

"Paperwork is kickin' your ass? Seriously? No wonder you couldn't hold on to your shop. It's all very simple, Fields." He snatched the clipboard out of his hands and said, "If you'd take the time to flip the damn thing over you'd see all the abbreviations are right here on the back." He stuck his fat finger on the codes then shoved it back at Caden. "Get to work. You're being paid to fix bikes, not make a career out of filling out paperwork."

He moved over to the next station and started tearing that guy a new asshole, too. "Jesus, what a fuckin' dick," he said out loud but not too loud.

Three days later Monica caught him just before his shift ended and said, "How's this bike coming along?"

"Oh, hey. Um, just about done. Maybe fifteen more minutes."

"I love this bike. It's got the new upgraded engine in it, right?"

"Um, yeah. How did you know that?"

"I love motorcycles," she said. "I always have. I've got a thing for fast cars, too." She smiled at him again and said, "I've also got a thing for cute guys who like to ride and drive them."

Caden asked her to hand him a 3/4" socket and when she did he told her, "Just so you know, I've got a girlfriend I live with."

"Oh," was all she said. Caden noticed the ever-present smile faded and didn't return. "Okay, then, I'll um, let you get back to work."

Casey got off work around 6 o'clock and decided to stop by the new shop to check it out and say hello to Caden. They still hadn't slept together since he told her he was selling the shop and she was so horny she was about to come out of her skin.

She saw the fancy new sign as she got off the bus and walked inside. She walked right past the window where Monica was sitting the way she always had but this time, the girl inside jumped up and tried to stop her. "Excuse me! You can't go back there. That's for employees only," she told Casey.

"It's okay, my boyfriend used to own this place." She turned to walk away and Monica followed right behind her. The GM had left and she knew she couldn't force her to leave but she also couldn't just let her go back into 'the danger zone' all by herself.

Casey looked around and saw Caden bent over a bike and said, "Hey there, handsome!"

He looked up and saw Casey with Monica standing right beside her. "Oh hey, babe," he said without smiling.

"I told her she couldn't come back here," Monica explained.

"It's cool. She won't be staying long. What's up, Case?" he asked her as he tightened a nut.

"I just wanted to check out the new shop and see how you're doing. Is everything going okay?"

"Yeah, peachy. The dickhead GM left so life is good. Look, I'm gonna be a while, okay?"

"Oh, sure. So um...I guess I'll see you at home then," she said trying not to let her disappointment show.

"Yeah, I guess so," he said without looking back.

Casey turned around without saying another word and left. Once she was outside Monica said, "Wow. I can see why you aren't interested."

"What?" Caden said.

"She's really beautiful. Your girlfriend. I guess that makes sense though seeing as how you're like really hot yourself. 'Birds of a feather' and all that, right?"

"Uh, yeah. Whatever," he said as he adjusted the rear brakes.

"Okay, well...I guess I'll see you tomorrow then," Monica said as he buried himself in his work. He didn't acknowledge her so like Casey, she just turned and walked away.

That night Casey decided to have it out with Caden. She started in on him the moment he walked in and she let it all fly. Not just the long hours but the neglect and the way he took her for granted. It didn't last long, but it had been so intense she couldn't concentrate and for the first time she could ever remember, she didn't finish a paper that was due the next day. Making matters worse, Caden just buried himself in another 12-pack leaving Casey all the more angry and frustrated.