It's Bliss Read Online Free PDF

your mind wandered off to since it was, supposedly, on the subject?” He watched her contemplate what to tell him, noting a small ghost of a smile come and go.
    “ I was reflecting upon what an excellent example you are of self-management.”
    Caught off-guard, he blinked a couple of times, then scrutinized Miss Bliss while the class scrutinized him, waiting for his reaction. Inwardly, he was pleased.
    “ Thank you, Miss Bliss. But I assure you, flattery will not get you an A in this class.”
    The class erupted with laughter. He waited, his face one of unflinching sternness. When it died down, he said, “Now, may we resume the lecture?”
    -
    Billie walked quickly toward her small studio apartment just off campus, smiling and thinking of Dr. Ackerman’s class. She soon arrived at the old brick home with its tall maples and lush landscaping front and back. When looking for her new accommodations, she had immediately fallen in love with this old place, and the apartment in the back part of the house. It consisted of one large room—a combination front room, bedroom, and kitchen, and one small bath.
    Unlocking the door, she stepped into the neat and cheery room which she had furnished herself. A flowered chintz, pull-out couch doubled for a bed.
    A chair, upholstered in leaf green and white stripes, matched the green in the couch. Throw pillows of plain leaf green on each end of the couch tied in both pieces of furniture. To Billie, the room was inviting, attractive, and comfortable.
    She had also purchased a small, white desk and bookcase. The pictures and plants she had brought from home added nice touches to the decor. The landlady had carpeted the room in light beige and had provided white miniblinds for the large window.
    Her family had been in a state of bewilderment, unable to understand why she would want to move away from home, since they lived only three blocks from the campus. The atmosphere in her parents’ home was pleasant and lovely, but since four of the five members of the family were feeling more and more concern over her unmarried state, it exacerbated her weight problem.
    Her mother and father, Aunt Tilly, Grandpa Bliss, and Uncle Henry, all independently, had confronted her with how ludicrous it was to move into an apartment. Each had repeated the same logical arguments for living at home.
    Aunt Tilly, her mother’s sister, who had never married, was the most vociferous. “Now, Billie, it would make sense if you moved out because you were getting married. But you don’t really want to be alone, do you? Look at me, so alone that I moved in with your mother and father. Look at Grandpa Bliss and Uncle Henry, both widowers, neither wanted to live alone. It will get awfully lonely . . . unless,” she looked hopeful, “you change your mind and decide you want to get married.”
    Billie assured Aunt Tilly and the others that all their arguments certainly did have merit. “But,” she had reminded them, “I’ll be twenty-eight soon. It’s about time I moved out on my own.” Then she promised to visit often and reminded them that they could visit her.
    She had moved out just before the spring term and now two and a half weeks into the summer term, her family was finally adjusting to her living alone.
    She took off her linen blazer, which was really too warm to wear during the summer, but since it covered up her figure, she wore it anyway.
    Suddenly, she realized she hadn’t gone to the cupboard or refrigerator to munch. This was the first day after attending a class of Dr. Ackerman’s that she hadn’t had the munchies.
    Humming a song, she stuck a potato in the microwave and began preparing a salad.
     

Seven
     
    After an enjoyable dinner Friday evening, the DeePees were settled in the small lounge of the country club, contentedly sipping their coffee—all except Sheldon. He was so anxious to learn their decisions, he could no longer contain his restlessness.
    “ Well?” he asked, looking at