DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction. If you are offended by 
sexually explicit material or are under the age of 18, stop reading 
now. This material cannot be reproduced for commercial purposes 
without the consent of the author.

John Carter
By
Lazlo Zalezac 
Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezak, 2003

Part 1: Shield, Staff, and Compass
Chapter 6

John stood in line at the cafeteria with his tray full of food on the 
shelf in front of him. It was a standard southern cafeteria where 
you push your tray along a shelf, selecting the items that you 
wanted to eat. The person behind the counter would serve up a 
single portion. At the end of the counter, you paid for your meal 
based on what you had taken. More often than not, a person would 
select a lot more food than they could eat. John looked at his tray 
and wondered how he was going to eat everything. 

In the line ahead of him was another man who appeared to be 
about three years older than he was. He was dressed in a white 
shirt with a tie and dress pants. He looked like a normal 
businessman at dinner, but his posture reflected a sense of defeat. 
His eyes were down cast, his voice a flat monotone and his 
shoulders slumped. Listlessly, he pushed his tray along the shelf. 
At the register, he paid for his food and aimlessly walked off to 
find a table.

John watched him go. He turned to the lady at the register and 
commented, "He looks like he's had a rough day."

She shook her head, "He's like that every day; both at lunch and at 
dinner."

John nodded and paid for his meal. Stepping away from the 
register, he looked around the room. Most of the tables were 
occupied. He noticed the guy who had been in front of him at a 
table sitting alone. He walked over to the table and stopped, 
"Excuse me, do you mind if I join you? I really hate to eat alone."

The man looked up in surprise at John. He asked, "Are you talking 
to me?"

"Sure, can I join you?"

"I guess." The man arranged his tray to make a little room at the 
table for John. 

John set his tray down and extended his hand, "I'm John Carter!"

"Jack Anderson," replied the man as he shook John's hand. The 
tired look fled his eyes for a moment.

"Nice to meet you Jack. Doesn't this food look good?"

"I guess so. I eat here twice a day, so I don't really notice. Fridays 
they have fried seafood. I usually get the shrimp for lunch and the 
fish for dinner. That's pretty good," replied Jack. It had been a 
while since he had talked to someone in a social situation. He felt 
like he was babbling.

"Well, I really appreciate you letting me join you. I travel a lot 
during the summer and it really gets old eating alone."

"I know what you mean. I always eat alone." Jack wondered for a 
moment if John was gay and trying to pick him up. His doubts 
were immediately put aside as he watched John eye an attractive 
woman as she walked past their table. 

"So, what do you do for a living?"

"I'm an accountant." Jack answered expecting to hear some 
negative comment about counting beans.

"Really? You know most people don't think too highly of 
accountants, but they are the backbone of any well-run business. 
To be able to make good business decisions, you have to have 
good information. The accountant is the person you go to for that 
information. It's a tough profession." The respect in John's voice 
was real. John also knew that the average businessman didn't know 
how to ask the right questions of an accountant.

Jack stared at John in amazement. He wasn’t used to getting 
understanding and respect. "Are you an accountant too?"

"No, I'm a physicist."

"Oh." Suddenly, Jack felt a little intimidated. It took him a minute 
before he recalled how his profession could impact others. He 
hadn't thought that other professions could produce the same 
conversation killing effect.

"Yeah, that's as good of a conversation killer as telling someone 
you're an accountant." John replied with a smile. He continued, 
"You know. Most women think that if you get a brainy occupation 
like ours that your sense of fun dries up. But you know what is 
worse, they think your balls fall off!"

Jack laughed and nodded his head in agreement. He didn't know 
how often he had told a woman his profession only to be greeted 
with an 'oh' and a sudden excuse to be else where. He shrugged, 
"So how are you supposed to counteract that?"

"Well, that's a tough one. Sometimes I pretend like I 
misunderstood the question."

"Huh?"

"Well, if they ask me what I do for a living, I tell them I have sex. 
Usually that gets quite a reaction. Then I act as if I realize that I 
misunderstood the question. That's when I say, oh you mean what 
do I do for a living. I tell them that I thought the question was what 
do I do to feel alive. Then I tell them that I'm a scientist."

"Does it work?"

"Oh they usually go away thinking I'm a pervert or something, but 
they do know that I haven't lost my balls." John smiled across the 
table.

Jack laughed. He shook his head in surprise. This John fellow was 
funny. He looked down at his plate and realized that he had 
finished his meal. He hadn't had such a fun time eating a meal 
since he graduated college. He observed, "I can't believe that I had 
so much fun eating a meal. Thanks for joining me."

John looked up at Jack for a minute and then stated, "I tell you 
what. I'm going to baby sit a five year old boy. Why don't you 
come along? I'm sure you'll have some fun."

Jack was about to turn him down and then thought about going 
home to his empty apartment. It sounded like a weird thing to do, 
but it was better than nothing. "Sure, I'll come along."

They left the cafeteria after John retrieved his walking stick from 
the coat rack. Jack drove them in his car to Jenny's house with 
John giving directions. John led the way up the walkway and then 
knocked on the door. Davie answered, surprised to see another 
man with John. John knelt down and tickled Davie, "How are you 
doing ace?"

Wriggling and giggling, Davie answered, "I'm okay."

John stopped his tickling and stated, "Davie, I brought my friend 
Jack over to help tonight. There were just too many Bug Eyed 
Monsters the other day. I know you are the best shot in the known 
Universe, but we need help. The problem is that I'm a bad pilot. 
Jack here, is the third best shot. Can he join our team?"

Davie looked up at Jack with a serious look on his face, "Are you 
really the third best shot in the known universe?"

Jack felt like he was towering over everyone else and knelt down. 
He had no idea what was going on, but decided to play along, "Of 
course, he wouldn’t say so if it wasn’t true."

Davie nodded his head quiet seriously, "Okay, he can join our team 
if it is okay with mommy."

Jenny showed up with a smile for John and then noticed Jack. 
Puzzled she asked, "Is everything okay?"

John looked up at Jenny. He broke out into a wide smile. "Oh hi. 
Jenny, this is Jack. Jack, this is Jenny."

Jack stood up and took Jenny's hand. She was the most beautiful 
woman with whom he had talked in ages. He looked very 
uncomfortable as he stood there looking at her. He finally stated, 
"John invited me to help baby sit. If that's a problem, I'll go."

Jenny examined John for a minute. She didn't really like the idea of 
two men babysitting her son. She trusted John, but decided that she 
would rush through her shopping trip. She said, "No, that's okay. I 
won't be gone long."

Jenny rushed home from her shopping trip. The chance to go 
grocery shopping without taking a five year old kid with her had 
been too tempting to resist. It hadn't been as pleasant an experience 
as she had hoped. The whole time she had worried about leaving 
her son with two grown men. It just didn't seem right. She quietly 
entered the house through the door next to the kitchen rather than 
front door of the house. She could hear giggling, laughing, and 
screaming coming from the front room. As she moved closer, she 
clearly heard John excitedly say, "There's a bug eyed monster over 
there and one over there." This was followed by two different 
voices going "zzzzzzzing". 

Puzzled she looked around the corner into the living room. The 
cushions of the couch had been removed and placed upright along 
the couch creating an enclosure. The three of them were sitting in 
the enclosure. John was making steering motions with his hands. 
On either side of him were the other two with their hands held in 
the position of pistols. All three of them were grinning like idiots. 

John shouted, "Two more coming."

Jack and Davie made the 'zzzzzing' noises again. John shouted out, 
"Jack, you only wounded yours."

Davie suggested, "You have to lead them. That way they move 
into the shot!"

"zzzzzing," shouted Jack. He looked around John and told Davie, 
"Thanks. Maybe one day I'll become the second best shot in the 
Universe!"

John shouted, "Oh no! Another dust cloud."

All three started bouncing in their seats, laughing and giggling the 
whole time. Jenny stared in amazement as the two adults played in 
the make-believe world of a five year old. She backed into the 
kitchen and unloaded the groceries. She realized that she should 
have trusted John a little more. He'd had several opportunities to 
take advantage of her and had always acted the gentleman.

After putting up all of the groceries, she made a pitcher of iced tea. 
After all the energy they were expending in the living room, she 
was sure they would be thirsty. She took a minute to relax and 
realized that it was the first time in ages that she had just sat in her 
kitchen resting. The past few days with John had been like a breath 
of fresh air. 

She got up and entered the living room. Her entrance brought utter 
silence as all three looked around guiltily at the mess they had 
made of the room. She looked around and stated in a mock stern 
voice, "What did I tell you about making a mess?"

Davie frowned and answered, "Yes mommy."

John lowered his head with an exaggerated frown. "Yes, ma'am."

Jack brought up the rear assuming a like posture. "Yes, ma'am."

John eased himself off the couch. "Davie, how about you pick up 
the tool set we use to fix the rocket ship and put it back in your 
room. Jack will put the couch together. I'll pick up the hand 
grenades over here."

Davie smiled relieved that there were at least two adults there to 
get in trouble. He agreed easily, "Okay John."

Davie bustled off with his little tool kit to put it in his room. Jack 
started putting the cushions back on the couch. John went around 
the room picking up the other toys they had used as hand grenades. 
Jenny watched with an amused smile on her face. When they were 
all done with their respective chores she asked, "You boys care for 
some iced tea?"

John turned and answered, "That sounds great."

Jack hesitated. Jenny understood and interjected, "Come on Jack, it 
won't be a problem."

Jack smiled and agreed, "That would be so wonderful."

Jenny smiled and suggested, "Let's all go in the kitchen and have 
our tea there."

They were joined by Davie who ate a Popsicle. As they sat around 
the kitchen table, the conversation centered mostly on Davie and 
the activities that would take place next time they were to watch 
over him. Davie looked a little hesitant about continuing the space 
journey. John noticed that and asked, "Is there something else that 
you would like to do next time?"

His mother couldn't teach him the one thing that he really wanted 
to know. Davie hesitated and then blurted out, "Can you teach me 
baseball?"

John frowned, "Gosh, I don't know how to play baseball. Do you 
know how, Jack?"

Jack looked at John in surprise, "Sure, I know how."

John turned to Davie, "Would it be okay if Jack taught you how to 
play baseball if it's okay with your mother?"

Davie turned to his mother excitedly, "Can he?"

Jenny looked at John in puzzlement for a minute. She couldn't 
believe that he didn't know how to play baseball. She decided that 
she would just have to trust him. "I guess it would be alright."

Davie screamed, "Yeaaa!"

Jenny smiled at seeing Davie so happy. She hated to tell him that it 
was bedtime, but he would be impossible tomorrow if he didn't get 
his rest tonight. "Well, I hate to say this buddy, but it's your 
bedtime."

Davie started to protest, but Jack interrupted, "Hey, don't you know 
that all ball players have to get plenty of rest."

Davie felt like he was being tricked but decided not to take the 
chance of being wrong. "Okay, I'll go to bed now."

Jenny went to help Davie get ready for bed. She came back and 
refilled everyone's glasses. With Davie gone, the conversation 
turned to the more adult topics of politics and the economy. Soon 
Jenny and Jack were arguing over the economic policies of the 
current president. The conversation went from that to the 
difficulties of running a business. Jack tended to view it in terms of 
return on investment while she tended to view it in terms of 
bringing in customers and making a profit on each one. 

They soon had exchanged occupations and rather than halting the 
conversation, things became a little more animated. John sat back 
and watched the other two. Jenny was full of questions about how 
to better organize her books. Jack was full of questions about how 
she ran her business. John wondered how long it would be before 
there were Soup Shoppes everywhere. 

It was soon late and they all agreed that it was time to head off to 
their respective homes. Jack was the first to leave, but had 
arranged to visit her at the Soup Shoppe to review her books. At 
the front door, he thanked John and Jenny for the best evening he 
had in ages. His sincerity was touching. Even Jenny realized just 
how lonely Jack had been over the past few years. It seemed to 
resonate with her loneliness. 

As John left, Jenny grabbed his arm. He turned and she embraced 
him. Tears were running down her face, "Thanks so much John."

"For what?"

Jenny replied, "For everything. You never pressure me, but you 
always do the right thing to make me feel better."

"You're welcome."

"Jack is a smart guy," stated Jenny.

"Yeah, he also has a good heart," replied John. He added, "He 
needs someone like Davie to remind him how to play."

Jenny was quiet for a moment. She knew John was leaving in less 
than a week and she was afraid of the day he would go. She 
realized that John had given her a gift that might help take the 
emptiness away. She still held John in a hug. She whispered, "He 
may need something more than Davie."

It wasn't until the day before John was to leave that the four of 
them were together again as a group. John had babysat Davie 
almost every night while Jack and Jenny had gone out. It had 
started with them going over her books for her store. The next 
night it was a movie. The night after that it was dinner. Saturday, 
Jack had spent the afternoon in the park with Jenny and Davie 
teaching the boy how to play Tee Ball and then spent the evening 
at the house putting together a barbecue grill.

Today they had agreed to meet for a potluck dinner. John showed 
up carrying a pot of his famous camp beans. Jack had brought over 
three huge steaks and a hamburger patty. Jenny had fixed up a 
potato salad and had a watermelon chilling on ice. Davie had 
proudly picked out the watermelon. He went around telling 
everyone that this one was orange inside rather than red. 

It was a nice family afternoon in the small backyard. The Frisbee 
flew around with Davie dropping it more often than catching it.  
John and Jenny sat in lawn chairs sipping iced tea watching Davie 
and Jack play. John turned to Jenny stating, "I don't think it gets 
any better than this."

"No, I don't think it does." She sat back and smiled. She had been 
smiling a lot lately. She added, "I feel more alive today than I have 
in ages."

Jack bounded up and eased himself into one of the lawn chairs. 
After taking a sip of iced tea, he stated, "He's wearing me out."

They all laughed as Davie came running up, sweat running down 
his face. He was breathing hard as he said, "I think I need to sit 
down for a little bit."

After things had calmed down a bit, Jack broke the comfortable 
silence that had descended upon the group. "Let's get started with 
dinner."

"Great idea. I'll set the table. John can start the fire while you get 
the steaks ready."

Davie feeling left out, pouted, "What do I do?"

Jack smiled. "You have to help me. You have the most important 
job. I need you to ask everyone how they like their steaks so I 
know how to cook them."

Davie sat up a little prouder. He enjoyed being included in the 
adult activity of preparing dinner. He enjoyed having men around 
the house and having them treat him like a man.

Everyone went off to perform their individual task. It wasn't long 
before the air was filled with the odor of cooking steaks. Davie had 
to run to everyone two and three times to make sure that he had 
their order right. The meat took its time to cook. Jack worried over 
the meat afraid to let anything burn. Soon, the table was set and 
everyone was seated around the table. 

Jack asked, "Who would like to say grace?"

John answered, "I think that Davie ought to do it!"

"Okay!" Davie smiled mischievously, "Rub a dub dub, thanks for 
the grub. Amen!"

Jack laughed aloud, "That's exactly the same one I used when I 
was your age!"

Davie replied, "Really, John taught it to me!"

Jenny playfully slapped the arms of the two men sitting on either 
side of her, "You two are incorrigible." 

The dinner went off without a hitch. Everyone took turns telling 
bad jokes. It was amazing how many knock-knock jokes Davie 
knew. The time passed and the meal was soon finished. The steaks 
were just bones. The pot of beans was empty. The potato salad had 
a small spoonful left; Davie proceeded to eat it when challenged 
that he couldn't eat any more.

Jenny cleared the table and brought some large plates. Jack carved 
the watermelon and placed the slices on the plates. Davie was so 
proud of the orange melon. While eating the melon, they discussed 
the dangers of swallowing the seeds. Davie wasn't sure if he 
believed that if he swallowed a seed, that a watermelon would 
grow in his stomach. The conversation then drifted to various ways 
to spit out the seeds. The demonstrations were halted after a stern 
warning from Jenny. All three of the males managed to look 
abashed for a whole ten seconds before the snickers broke out.

After the watermelon was finished, Davie went off to watch his 
favorite video. That left the adults sitting around the table. They 
sipped coffee and discussed what each was hoping to do in the 
future. Most of the conversation centered on John although he kept 
switching subjects away from himself. It was after about the tenth 
time that he had switched the subject, that he realized that Jack and 
Jenny were working together to get him to talk about himself. 
After that, he gave up and answered their questions.

Jenny had been waiting for the opportunity to ask the one question 
that had been bothering her, "So how did you get injured?"

John took a deep breath. "Well, I was in a convenience store when 
it got robbed. I got shot in the shoulder. The guy got caught. No 
big deal."

Jack shook his head and reached into his pocket. He pulled out a 
piece of paper and opened it up. He stated, "This article that I 
found on the web tells a very different story. The title is 'A Hero 
Came To Town.'"

Jenny looked over at Jack in surprise. "What does the article say?"

"It basically says that John saved the life of the Sheriff's daughter 
by stepping in front of a bullet meant for her. In the process, he 
knocked the man out thereby enabling his capture. It goes on to say 
that the man was a serial killer and was wanted in two states. It 
goes on to state that John gave the reward money to the families of 
the victims. Let's see, it also says that he helped bring in a second 
doctor to work in the hospital, a doctor by the name of Dr. Doug 
Wilkins. Finally, it says that he saved the life of a little boy before 
leaving town. It seems he prevented the kid from stepping in front 
of an oncoming car. There's actually a picture of him saving the 
life of the kid."

Jenny recognized the name of Dr. Doug Wilkins and knew some of 
the trouble that he had been in as a teenager. She arched her 
eyebrows and asked, "Anything else in that article?"

"It says here that John was dead for four minutes before being 
resuscitated by the doctor. Let's see … It also says that Mr. John 
Carter was extremely modest about his actions saying that these 
things happened by accident or that anyone else would have done 
the same."

Jenny turned to Jack and stated, "You know the first day he came 
into my café, he saved the life of our old Principal."

John waved his hands, "hey, enough of this hero stuff. It's just 
plain old John Carter sitting here."

Jenny looked at the kitchen clock and remarked, "Wow, I didn't 
realize where the time went. I have to give Davie his bath and then 
tuck him into bed. Why don't you two stay here and talk for a bit? 
I'm sure that Jack has some things to say to you."

She left the room, but a minute later Davie came in. Davie threw 
his arms around John and cried, "I'm gonna miss you when you 
leave tomorrow. Do you really have to go?"

"I'm gonna miss you too, ace. I really have to go, but don't worry. 
Jack is going to be here and he has to finish teaching you how to 
play baseball. And I bet he'll be happy to be pilot then next time 
you go hunting bug eyed monsters."

"Yeah, I know. He's a nice guy."

"Now, I know you're going to grow into a great young man that 
makes your mommy very proud of you. I'll be around sometimes 
to see you, don't worry about that."

Davie held out a little box to John. "I have a going away present 
for you. Mommy and Jack helped me pick it out."

"Oh, my," said John. "This is wonderful. Let me open it right 
now!"

John unwrapped the present. Inside the box was a beautiful brass 
compass with an exquisite leather case. The compass had a cover 
to protect the glass. He opened the cover and inscribed inside were 
the simple words, 'Blessed Be.' He looked up to see Davie jumping 
up and down in excitement. He whistled, "This is beautiful. I can't 
believe it. This is the best present I've ever gotten."

"I'm so glad you like it."

"Thank you, Davie," he gave Davie a great big hug.

Jenny cleared her throat, "Bath time."

"Good bye, John."

"Good bye, Davie. May the Gods and Goddesses watch over you 
and protect you from all harm."

As Davie ran out of the room, Jack remarked, "That was an 
unusual blessing."

"I'm gonna miss the little guy."

Jack nodded and rested his elbows on the table with his hands 
laced. He leaned forward and rested his chin on his knuckles. He 
sat like that for several minutes before clearing his throat, "John, 
there's something very important I want to talk to you about."

"You can level with me."

"Well, Jenny and I had a long talk last night about our relationship. 
Anyway, it all boils down to the fact that I want to marry her."

"I hope she said yes!"

"Oh she did."

John stood up and extended his hand, "congratulations. I'm so 
happy for you both. This is great news."

Jack accepted his handshake and answered, "Thanks."

"I hope you send me an invitation to the wedding."

"Well, we want you to be the best man."

"That's great. I'll be here for you guys."

Jack resumed his thoughtful position once more. He was wrestling 
with how to say the next part. John interrupted his thoughts, "You 
can tell me straight out. I can tell you're worried about something. 
Just say it and if you say it wrong, then say it again until it comes 
out right. I won't mind."

"John, Jenny wants you to stay the night here. I would appreciate it 
if you would do this for her."

"Pardon?"

"Jenny wants to go to bed with you. It is very important to her."

"Jack, how do you feel about this?"

"You know … at first … well … I'm all for it."

"You don't sound very confident."

Jack looked him straight in the eyes, "You know, until the day I 
met you I was the most unhappy man in the world. I had nothing. 
One day was like the next. I woke up. I ate cereal. I went to work. I 
went to lunch. I went back to work. I went to dinner. I went home 
and sat in the dark. Then I'd go to bed. I did that every day. My 
weekends were even worse, since I didn't even go to work. I had 
one date in ten years and that was a blind date arranged by my 
mother. It was horrible."

Jack's eyes misted, "Then one day you blew into my life. 
Suddenly, I'm about to marry the most beautiful woman I've ever 
met. She's intelligent, witty, charming, and caring. I have a kid that 
is amazing in terms of his energy, sense of fun, and potential. I 
never thought I would have that. I haven't been home in the past 
three days. I've spent them here. I love them so much that at times 
I fear my heart is going to burst."

Tears were now running down Jack's cheeks, "When I heard that 
you were leaving, I wanted to do something for you. The problem 
is that you are so self-sufficient and satisfied with what you have, 
that I have nothing to give you. My friendship? Hell, you had that 
ten minutes after you sat down at the table in the cafeteria. My 
love? That was given when we were on the couch shooting Bug 
Eyed Monsters."

Jack pulled himself together, "When Jenny told me that she wanted 
to make love with you, I realized that here was something that I 
could do. I could share with you that most intimate form of 
happiness that you brought into my life. This is the most precious 
thing that I have and to share it with you, well it would make me 
happy."

John started to reply, "I didn't…"

Jack held up a hand. "I know what you are going to say. Let me 
say a few more things to you. In a funny way, we're not doing this 
for you. We're doing it for ourselves. You see, we have this great 
need inside us to find some appropriate way to thank you. This is 
what we found and we need to give it you."

"Your modesty is nice and good. It means you do things for the 
right reasons. Yet, it also diminishes the actions that you perform. 
You see, saying that it was nothing makes something that was 
important to someone appear as though it were nothing to you. 
You cheapen the experience. You have to learn to let people say 
thank you. Accept the little gifts of gratitude that they give you and 
appreciate them. It lets them recognize that you understand how 
important the occasion was for them."

"Maybe instead of saying it was nothing, it would be better for you 
to say that you were happy to be of service to them. That you are 
happy that everything worked out for them. Turn the attention 
from yourself back to their understanding of the experience. It 
allows you to remain modest, yet it completes the experience for 
those you've helped."

John sat back in the chair and thought about what Jack had said. It 
was a revelation to him that he might be hurting people; even if it 
was unintentional. He could see how important this relationship 
was to Jack and Jenny. Jack was sitting up straight, his voice was 
active, and he laughed at bad jokes. Jenny looked years younger. 
He took a minute to choose his words carefully, "You know, I 
wander through this world basically happy with myself and those 
around me. I know I occasionally help someone. I've never given it 
a second thought; it just seems like the natural thing to do. Does 
one take pride in being able to breathe? No, you toss it off as 
nothing. Nevertheless, you gave me some great advice. One also 
has to consider just how important it is to breathe."

John took Jack's hand in both of his. He stated, "Jack, I accept the 
gift from you and Jenny. You are both great people. I am honored 
that you have chosen to share this part of your life together with 
me."

Jack stood up and shook his hand. John stood up as well. The 
handshake turned into a hug. Finally, Jack said, "Well, I better get 
going. I'll be seeing you around."

John said, "I understand. I'll be seeing you around."

At the door, Jack turned around and stated, "You know. Until I 
actually explained it to you, I didn't really understand how 
important this was to me. May God watch over you and allow no 
harm to come to you."

John watched Jack leave. He couldn't believe the luck that had led 
him to met Jack. He returned to the table and looked at the coffee 
cup. He took a large sip and swished the cold coffee around his 
mouth. Everyone knows the flavor of cold coffee held in the mouth 
too long; he felt it was one of the universal experiences.

Jenny called out to him, "John, could you come here?"




