Chapter 2: August 1970, Backupsmore University
Rating: PG-13. Trigger Warning: Mentions of bullying.
The day Stanford Pines met Minerva DeNitti was his first day at Backupsmore University. But he wouldn't get to know her much better until after the holiday break that winter...after nearly being expelled.
He had arrived alone with a used car his parents had gifted him as a combination graduation and 18th birthday present. He had packed it to the brim with his possessions and traveled to the western side of the lower peninsula of Michigan to begin his scholarly life.
Senior year of high school had been the hardest. He had truly gone at it alone, his twin brother Stanley banished from the house by his father. No one had seen him since, but Ford suspected his mother had spoken with him and knew of his whereabouts. Ford missed him, but was still hurt, so he did not pursue the matter and instead chose to ignore the matter entirely. But he did admit to himself some guilt receiving the vehicle as a gift from his parents when Stanley had saved (and gambled) every dime he could to purchase his beloved El Diablo.
But without Stanley there, Stanford had no friends. So he simply kept to himself and buried his nose in his books. He was easily named valedictorian, but refused to address his classmates at commencement. He didn't even know them and none of them had bothered to get to know him. When his mother, Caryn, asked him why he wouldn't attend his prom, his response was a scoffed, "Why bother?" His father said nothing about any of it.
When Stanford met his college roommate, a blond Southern gentleman named Fiddleford McGucket, he was relieved to find they had a bit in common. Fiddleford was studying engineering and mechanics on a scholarship, and by the time Ford had arrived to the dorm room on the fourth floor of the honors hall, the kid had rigged up the biggest fan he could to keep the humid summer air circulating.
"It's a simple turbine on a battery," he had said. "Not hard at all."
Ford grinned, finally finding someone who enjoyed simple science as much as he had. "It's brilliant!"
It wasn't long before Ford's one friend expanded into a group of like-minded brothers. As Standford and Fiddleford emerged from their room to bring in the last load of items from his car, they came upon two other students struggling to carry a sofa down the cramped hallway. Ford ran over to grip the end being carried by the shorter man whose aviator sunglasses perched on his thinning, buzzed haircut. The other student, a built Black gentleman, called out, "Thanks! We're back down at the end of the hallway."
As Fiddleford took the last corner, he replied to them, "I think you're across the hall from us then."
Sure enough, they were. The couch shoved into the assigned dorm room, they made introductions. "Thanks again!" said the taller man. "I'm Jordan, but everyone calls me Jordie. And the shrimp is my best buddy from back in Chicago, Nathan."
Nathan shook Ford's hand. "Call me Nate."
"Howdy!" Fiddleford called.
Obliged, Jordie and Nate returned the favor by carrying in the last of Ford's things. Both doors were left open so they could converse as they each unpacked. Jordie and Nate stopped in every half hour or so to cool off in the rotating air. Fiddleford's spur of the moment invention quickly made their room the most bearable.
Between the two rooms at end of the hallway, a third larger dorm was occupied by three young ladies. Someone within had brought a record player with them and the voice of Ray Charles sang over the commotion of moving bodies and unpacking.
The first of the occupants Ford laid eyes on had red hair that was tied up in a high bun. She was walking out of the room backwards and hadn't seen him until she had accidentally stepped on his foot. Startled, she whipped around and began to apologize profusely. "I am so sorry! That was careless of me!" She had a slight speech impediment and her hands were moving everywhere at once. It took a moment to realize she was using American Sign Language. "I'm deaf in my right ear, and can only hear partially in my left!"
Ford tried to stutter a response, but didn't know ASL. The young woman motioned that it was okay, however. "No, no! It's fine! I read lips really well, too." She stopped, took a breath to collect herself, and held out her hand. "Let me start again. Hello! My name is Maggie."
Ford took it, shaking it and returning her smile. "Hello. I'm Stanford." He motioned behind him. "I live here." He found himself over-enunciating and felt a little sheepish. He had never conversed by with someone hard-of-hearing or deaf before and he didn't want to insult her.
Maggie gave no indication that she was upset, however. She watched his lips and was about to respond, when a hand took her shoulder. She turned as one of her roommates, a tiny young lady with tan skin, painted lips, and sleek black hair in a long braid down her back. She waited for Maggie to see her face before she started speaking, signing as she did so. "Do you want a soda?"
Maggie shook her head, motioning over to Ford instead. She signed as she replied, "Deirdre, this is Stanford, our neighbor. Stanford, this is my friend, Deirdre."
Ford watched as their hands and fingers worked quickly and without hesitation to communicate. He found it fascinating.
Deirdre looked up to him, however, as he stood about a foot taller than her. She didn't hold out her hand to shake his, instead continuing to sign for Maggie's benefit. "Nice to meet you Standford." She smiled showing perfect teeth.
"You too. Please call me Ford." He blushed a bit as Maggie ran back into the room, announcing loudly, "Min! Come meet the boy next door!"
Seeing the pink on his cheeks, Deirdre shook her head and told him, "Forgive her. Sometimes she doesn't realize the volume of her voice. But I promise you she's the sweetest soul you'll ever have the pleasure knowing. Min and I should know. We all grew up on the same block until our families individually moved as kids."
He blinked in surprise. "You're all childhood friends? Where from?"
Deirdre nodded, shrugging a shoulder. "Brooklyn, originally. Minerva's family still lives in the same townhouse. But my family relocated to Buffalo about seven years ago, and Maggie's moved to Maryland so she could receive resources from Gallaudet in DC. The three of us stayed in contact. We've known each other since we were six."
Ford couldn't help but think of how sweet it was to not just have one, but two devoted friends as a child. And here I am not able to make one, he thought a little bitterly. But Maggie quickly returned with another girl in tow and the thought melted from his brain.
Despite the sweltering heat and humidity written across her face, Ford thought the third girl was lovely in every way, and if he blushed once more, he was determined to blame it on the heat. She was middling height with some of the deepest brown eyes he had ever seen. Her tight dark curls were pulled up off her neck in an ornate wrap, and she was trying to beat the weather by wearing shorts and pressing a cold bottle of water against the back of her neck. She looked crabby and not in the mood to make friends, but either Maggie didn't notice or just didn't let it stop her from being courteous.
Maggie signed once more. "Stanford, this is my other roommate, Minerva!"
Minerva did not sign, and instead, swiped the sweat from her forehead with her free hand, replying evenly, "Forgive me if I don't shake your hand, but I'm covered in sweat and smell like the underside of a pig." Ford wasn't sure how to respond to this and hesitated. But Minerva caught herself and sighed. He could see the unspoken apology in her eyes and how tired and overheated she looked. "It's...been a long day."
"It's alright." Ford motioned his thumb towards his room once more as Fiddleford stuck his head out to say hello. "Would you want to come in and cool down?"
The three women looked at each other before sticking their heads into the room the boys occupied. They did not expect to see a giant fan rigged up willy-nilly cooling the room by at least ten degrees. Minerva looked between Ford and Fiddleford mumbling, "Well I'll be damned."
An hour later, Ford and Fiddleford had the most popular room on the floor and the seven new companions were sitting on a worn, but clean area rug that was serving as the room's carpet. Sodas, water, and bags of chips were passed around as everyone told abridged versions of their life stories.
Jordie Adams was attending Backupsmore with the intention of going into law school following graduation. The catch was he was on a full ride football scholarship, so despite his desire to leave the sport behind, playing was mandatory for the receiver. Nate emphasized that Jordie was a great player, but Jordie replied, "It might as well be another four credit class I have to fulfill every semester just so I have the privilege to study here. I guess there's worse things than getting a full ride for being good at a game, but it honestly feels like a chore."
Ford couldn't help thinking that Stanley's mouth would have hit the floor to hear a talented athlete say such a thing, but he had to remind himself. These were his friends, not Stanley's.
Nate Goodwin knew American Sign Language as well and signed as he talked for Maggie's benefit. "I grew up with an older cousin who is deaf," he explained, "so my family has signed for years. Fascinating guy who has dreams of the Formula One circuits across the world. I might write a book about him one day." Nate wanted to get into investigative journalism with the intention of being a writer. He had been the head of his high school's newspaper for two years. When Maggie asked him what his main interests were, Nate responded with, "Whatever has the best story to tell."
Deirdre Kelleher was studying education and wanted to teach middle school. "Junior high was the pits for me, and I noticed that's when most kids at my school started to develop nasty attitudes and habits," she stated evenly. "I'm Indian on my mother's side and Irish on ma pop's. Not exactly a typical pairing. So I was bullied for being very different in a smaller high school that had a majority of white students. School administration didn't do much in regard to curbing the blatant racism. "
Ford grimaced recalling being shoved into more than one locker. "That's awful," he sighed.
Deirdre didn't disagree. She was quite direct. "I figure if I teach at that grade level, I can help be the change. Or at least tell some little asshole kids where they can stick it. You know, the double-sided coin and all."
Everyone laughed in agreement, but Ford couldn't help by notice how Jordie's eyes danced watching her.
Fiddleford was from Tennessee and had a sweetheart named Emma Mae. He passed around a framed photo of the two gangly looking teens. Everyone agreed they made an adorable couple. "We met as Freshmen and have been together since. If I play my cards right, we'll get married as soon as I graduate."
Minerva smiled looking down at the photo. "She's very pretty, Fiddy," she said, already adopting a nickname for the man.
Maggie nodded in envy. "I'd kill for those natural waves in my hair. Gorgeous!"
Minerva handed the photo back, adding earnestly, "That has to be hard being so far apart after being so close for so long."
"Well, they say absence makes the heart grow fonder," Fiddleford told her earnestly. "And Emma's off on her own adventure in California. she's studying medicine. So I guess we just have to wait and see. But Em's been the only girl for me, and I'm gonna keep it that way as long as she'll let me." He smiled down at the photo of his beloved.
Stanford thought this was the sweetest and most devoted thing he had ever heard. From the way Minerva smiled, he guessed she agreed.
Maggie Kowalski's proper name was Margaret and she told everyone empatheticlly that she hated it. "Anyone who calls me as such will suffer great consequences."
Jordie called her bluff. "Oh yeah? What are ya gonna do? You barely reach my chest."
Maggie narrowed her eyes and replied with humor, "I may be small, but I break knee caps."
She was going into teaching as well, but wanted to focus on children with hearing and speech impairments back in DC. "I wasn't born deaf," she explained. "But I contracted a horrible infection when I was four, and it took most of my ability to hear. I was lucky I survived at all. But I want to be able to help children adapt the way my teachers helped me. The ultimate goal is to teach at Gallaudet University."
Minerva admitted that, like Stanford, Backupsmore University was a safety school. She had originally hoped to attend the University of Notre Dame, but the scholarships didn't pan out the way she had hoped. Her traditional Roman Catholic Italian grandmother was especially disappointed. The consolation prize was being reunited with Deirdre and Maggie. "And honestly, I think it's a damn good one as far as situations go."
Nate raised his bottle of soda in a toast. "Well said."
Jordie nodded to Ford. "So what's your story Ford?"
Ford wasn't sure how to answer at first. After finally having someone to talk to, he wanted to tell everyone about losing his twin brother. The bullying. The issue with being a young genius and no one understanding how his mind worked, least of all his parents. But the last thing he wanted to do was word vomit his problems on everyone. So when he couldn't think of a proper way to answer Jordie, he did the boldest thing he could do.
Stanford took a deep breath and held out his hands for everyone to see.
Maggie was the first to react as everyone else hadn't noticed the issue right away. She gave an excited squeak that was anything but negative. "Oh my gosh! You're polydactyl! You're like one of Ernest Hemingway's cats!"
"No way!" Nate answered fascinated. "Those have to be fake."
Ford wiggled his fingers and smiled showing his teeth. "All me. I was born with extra digits."
Nobody was grossed out or called him a freak. Instead, it was a welcomed change. Deirdre asked, "Does it give you any extraordinary abilities?"
Ford shrugged. "I can play more keys on the piano, I guess."
"You'll have to show me sometime," Minerva put in. "I'm taking a minor is music."
The group broke up just after midnight. The heat in the dorms had cooled down for the evening and everyone was exhausted. Orientation was in the main auditorium at 9:00am and everyone was required to attend. Poor Jordie had to attend morning practice beforehand, so he was going to be dead on his feet by evening.
Stanford fell into his bed much more at ease than he had felt in a long time. He had made actual friends. He not only made them on his own (and they genuinely seemed to like him in return), but he did so with extra digits and all. He grinned to himself in the dark, thinking, Stanley would be jealous. He shut off his bedside lamp and turned over. I even had three girls in my room. Even he can't say he's done that.
