Peter.

This story is my argument that it isn't always the LENGTH of a love story that determines it's worth - sometimes a LOT of love and life can be packed into a few short months. Three, in this case.

Peter Steadman came to Interlochen my senior year. The same year that I took off a quarter to do musical theater in Dallas. He was just starting Interlochen that year as a sophomore.

Peter had bright red/orange hair, freckles,was an inch shorter than me, and looked exactly like the 'young Santa' in that stop-motion animation thing that ran every Christmas when we were kids - it's called 'Santa Claus is Coming to Town', I think. Anyway - it's the one where they tell you the origins of Santa Claus - with Miester Burger Burger Miester - that guy was who hated toys. PLEASE feel free to chime in if any of you know these details!
Peter was VERY energetic, just like a puppy with SOOOO much energy, and one day - near the end of school, he took me out to the forrest to have a chat. It was spring time, after a LONG winter. Birds were chirping, bees buzzing, flowers blossoming....Spring, in fact, was in the air. Peter sat me down on a fallen tree and proclaimed his love to me. He stood there, baring his heart....and what did I do? Evil, evil girl that I was! I couldn't help it! I just started laughing. I mean he was so SINCERE! I just couldn't help it. I didn't WANT to be mean - but I laughed. I did. It was horrible. But it wasn't THAT horrible, because Peter laughed with me. Not at first - but when I wasn't stopping...he started laughing, too. That was a big part of the reason that he thought he loved me. Because we had so much fun together.

So that's what happened at Interlochen. I laughed at him, scorned him as a younger man, if you will, and that's it. But we remained friends somehow.

Cut to a couple years later. I get an offer of a Broadway show. While I'm still at LAMDA. I can't refuse. Steve Fox and his family fly Max and I to NYC, and relocate us into this bomb apartment on West 17th St. In Manhattan. It's on the top floor of a new building, and it's TWO WHOLE bedrooms and TWO WHOLE BATHROOMS!!!! In the city! With hardwood floors. And a new kitchen! And I'm given carte blanche - car service, accounts at restaurants - I feel RICH!!!!! After starving to death at LAMDA - saved ONLY by Joe's kindness and homemade Italian food - I feel RICH!!!

I had everybody over I possibly could. The Husky girls, Hilary, Lothair came, I think John Patton, Chris Earl came one time (different blog) - and finally - Peter came.
Peter came over one day on his own. I don't exactly remember how we connected with each other. But - he came over one night for a visit. He got along swimmingly with Max. And I was immediately impressed with several things about him. First off, he was taller. Secondly, his voice had dropped an octave. Thirdly, he had dropped out of NYU's writing program to become a union carpenter - and it SHOWED!!! Fourthly, he just seemed like a man instead of a kid.

After Max went to sleep,Peter went around the apartment telling me all of the non-union flaws that he saw - and explained WHY they were so bad and how they should have been done on a union job. This was very sexy to me. I have always been a sucker for a man who is good with his hands.
Then, we watched a little TV, and talked about stuff. Drank some wine.We discussed the idea of Peter staying the night - because it was so late and he'd have to take the train out to Brooklyn and all..

I brushed my teeth and got into my PJ's. My head was reeling. I could FEEL Peter waiting out in the living room - probably pacing. I didn't know what to make of it, or what I should. I couldn't stop thinking about Peter's confession in the woods only a couple of years prior - and how I had been so mean - probably screwed everything up - in CASE ...just in CASE he liked me like that still.

As I was coming out of the bathroom with sparkly clean teeth, Peter sort of rushed in to me. He grabbed both of my hands and pulled me into the bedroom, sat me down on the bed and kneeled before me.
"The thing is, Jennifer, " he said in an earnest whisper, "Is that I can't stay here. I just can't.."
He said this, but he didn't SEEM this.
"Why, Peter? It's 2 o'clock in the morning." I said back to him, trying to read his face and voice over and above his words.
"I can't stay here with you tonight....", Peter said carefully and slowly, "because I am REALLY attracted to you. And I'll go crazy. I will literally go stark, raving mad if I have to sleep in the other room with you just in here...I just can't do that. I can't."
He tried to pull his hands away from mine, but I wouldn't let him. I pulled back. Brought him in close to me. So close, I could smell his breath.
"Stay." I whispered.
"Really?" Peter said - and it was almost a little too loud.
I just kissed him and pulled him into bed with me.

That night started one of the best love affairs of my life. It only lasted three months - but when I tell you abut those three months, I think you might understand where I am coming from.