“Max!” she barked, and turned to look at him with twisted lips. “Today’s your birthday!”“Yup. Guilty as charged. Twenty-nine and holding,�...� he said with a cringe, and raised his drink. “A toast! To my extreme good fortune to share my day with such a smart, beautiful lady!” They clinked glasses.“Why didn’t you tell me?”“It wasn’t important. I wanted to be with you. And I wanted you to be with me. But I didn’t want you to feel any obligation. Not that you would…”“But to be out with you on your. Totally my spec, my kind of girl. I knew that from the first day I saw her at the party. And I didn’t hesitate when she made advances. We got to talking and bonded so quickly. She invited me over to her house one night when her parents were away. We spent time together, eating pizza, watching movies, and solving puzzles. But that wasn’t my thing.“Uhmmm, Lisa. This is such a boring puzzle” I threw the piece in my hand on the floor angrily when I got tired.“I know” Lisa replied dropping hers too. Would you want to leave me for her if the opportunity came up?"I looked at Tara and then at Dee and both Tara and I had shocked looks on our faces as I answered her, "No Dee, I couldn't do that. Yes, I still do love Marie very much honey, but like I belong to you, she belongs to Lisa." I have found my life's mate and she is you. I love your mother the same as I love Marie, perhaps even more if I was totally honest with myself, but you are my woman. There'll never be anyone for me except. I reported the noise to the school, but they told me no construction was going on in the building. Other teachers heard it as well, but no one could locate the drilling’s source.I started taking pills, Xanax, so I could finally sleep and stay asleep. I’d read that Xanax intensifies dreams in some people. But for me it was the opposite. Xanax not only allowed me to sleep, but it also stopped the dreams. If ever I didn’t take the pills, however, the dreams came back, even more frighteningly...The.