Trouble And Money #41
He only had to survive for four months.
Slaughter Recreation Center, UVA Campus - October 2024
The score of the table tennis match was now 9 points to Jason Falter's 8 points. In Table tennis, the game goes to 11 points, and there has to be a two point lead to declare a winner.
Once the stakes of the gentlemen's bet went everywhere electronically, the student rec center had at least six hundred people watching this match in less than ten minutes.
It was nine to eight, and the crowd was getting louder with each point.
As each boy served, it became deadly quiet. The volleys were serious dogfights. Each person needed to win this match.
Kevin Vongeist now had 10 points to Jason Falter's 9, with Kevin's next serve being a match point.
Both boys were sweating from the forehead onto the green plane table.
Vongeist pulled his paddle back and smoked one just before the opposite corner. Falter lunged with his paddle a second too early in anticipation in the wrong spot. The ball hit the table in a fair area, then went into the air off the table. It was an ace.
The crowd gasped, and they all stared at Falter.
Falter stood for a second in disbelief, wiped his brow, then came around the table and shook Kevin VonGeist's hand while looking him in the eye.
He didn't speak, and the crowd parted as he aimed for the door to return to the dorm. Every person in the crowd wondered if Jason Falter would honor this crazy, dangerous bet.
Earlier, fueled by blackberry brandy and beer, the two had argued about the war in Ukraine, taking opposite sides of the conflict.
Had Kevin lost this match, he would have packed his bags and joined the Ukrainian resistance against the Russians.
However, Jason Falter lost and would join the fight in Ukraine on the Russian side. The bet had the loser being in Ukraine until February, which would cause him to miss lacrosse tryouts, giving the winner the defense player slot.
Kevin was happy, but his happiness was tempered by the enormity of what Falter must do to honor his bet.
He thought about asking Jason to skip Ukraine and to "just back down" from Lacrosse tryouts.
The small circle of real friends knew Jason did not doubt what he had to do. He would go to Ukraine. Jason was honorable, and some think he would even like the challenge.
Those who didn't know him did not think he would do it.
Two days later, after swearing to himself that he would not touch a drop of alcohol for the rest of his life, Jason Falter parked his Jeep in a rental facility and took a bus to Dulles Airport for a flight to Warsaw, Poland.
His girlfriend, Terry, kissed and hugged him before he boarded the bus. Her last words to him were, "I love you, and stay in touch with me as often as you can. I'll see you in February. Be careful."
And then he was gone.
(How will I present this to Jason's Parents? - Conrad Grange)
Trouble And Money is published Monday through Friday. It is a free serial fiction detective story with characters you will love. Read the adventures of Conrad Grange as he solves cases and contends with a harsh world.
