Stupid Boy: Senior Year - Spring 09

Chapter 9 -- Aftershock

Wednesday February 15

I was mindful of Frank's tenets of getting out in front of the news and preparing for the worst. So, I got the bodycam video of the previous night's fight from my security and emailed it to him. I accompanied that with a message to call me once he'd had a chance to review it. Luckily, he was still asleep, Los Angeles being two hours behind our time.

What had happened last night had already reached my parents' ears by the time I came downstairs. That was something I hated about growing up in a small town: trouble always beat you home. I told them I'd sent the bodycam video to Frank, 'just in case.' I was saved from having to talk about it further because my dad had his morning workout with Joey. Mom had started to go with them to make sure both Greg and my dad took this seriously. Both men had some weight to lose, and there was the specter of my dad's heart issues to contend with.

Joey had talked to my dad's doctors and gotten the dos and don'ts of his rehabilitation. She'd worked with athletes to help them recover from injuries, but had never before dealt with someone with a heart condition. She had him riding a stationary bike and walking on a treadmill for now so he could build up his stamina while not overdoing it.

As my parents walked out to go to the gym, they informed me that we would talk tonight. Great, I had that to look forward to all day.

---

The Lincoln High grapevine was in fine form as the various versions of last night's massacre made their way through the student body. Dare filled me in on what he'd been told.

"Did you fight both Luke and Mike Herndon last night?" he asked.

"Why? What did you hear?" I asked.

"That it was payback for what they did to Phil and Jill. You made Luke get on his knees and acknowledge you as the Alpha Male, and then you beat Mike bloody. Luke had to take him to the hospital after you were done exacting your vengeance," Dare gushed.

Crud! It sounded like I was some comic-book werewolf or something that had come to life and decimated the Herndon clan.

"Did you pass on Gwen Larkin and give her to Tim and Wolf as a reward for being your loyal servants? Could you get Brook for me? I promise to be a loyal servant," Dare babbled on.

"Settle down. I didn't give them anything. You're aware that they lost their girlfriends last night, right?" I asked.

"But it was totally worth it. They had sex with Gwen Larkin," Dare pressed.

"So, you're willing to lose Chrissy as a girlfriend if I snap my fingers and give you Brook Davis for a night?" I asked.

This was something that teenage boys did. You asked, 'Would you give up your left nut if you could have sex with {insert random name}?' I didn't expect Dare had ever played before because his brain finally caught up with his motormouth, and he didn't catch on that I was teasing him.

This chattiness was a new side of Dare that was both amusing and irritating. Next, he would be like Alan and never shut up.

"No," he said dejectedly. "I don't want to lose Chrissy."

I thought of a couple of more clever retorts, but let it slide because it was Dare.

"I guess there's no talk about Dumpster Girl?" I asked.

"Oh, there is, but you finding a new girl is no big news. Everyone says that they seem to throw themselves at you. She does get high marks for getting your attention by jumping into a dumpster," Dare said, looking at his shoes, and then he looked up and smiled. "We all thought it was funny that Paul stole her from you."

I put him in a headlock and rubbed the top of his head, which made him squeal. My little ninja appeared and made me let him go. Dare was giggling like a little girl. It pleased me to see that he could now take something like that and know I wasn't trying to hurt him. The kid had come a long way from the introvert who arrived at Lincoln High. He still didn't talk to many people, but since Brook left, he'd opened up to Cassidy and me. He was even brave enough to make comments at lunch.

"You're not hurting him?" she asked.

"No. Dare was being a smartass," I said.

"I pointed out that David lost his dumpster find to Paul," Dare said to fill her in.

"Are you going to try to fix things with Don?" I asked to change the focus from me to Cassidy.

"As if. Not after he walked out like that. He should have taken us home at the very least," Cassidy concluded.

"If you listen to Dare, I'm some avenging angel. I can go kick his butt if you want," I offered.

"No. You've reached your limit on hurting boys this week. I'll take care of it," Cassidy said.

"There he is," Dare supplied helpfully.

The three of us looked at Don as he walked into the school. He saw us and went white. Don impressed me when he used his sister as a human shield while he hustled inside. It looked like she was just as impressed as I was. I suspected that we would be dealing with the aftershocks from last night for some time.

---

Joey and Cassidy sent me to lift with Tim and Wolf during PE because the training staff was busy evaluating my little brother's injuries from last night. I'd caught a glimpse, and Mike had done a number on him. The only difference from what I'd done to Mike was that Phil didn't look to have any serious cuts, though he did have a split lip.

My friends had already begun lifting when I came into the weight room. They both gave me a wary look.

"Joey told me to rotate in with you today," I said to explain my presence.

"We're doing upper body today," Tim said.

I just nodded.

Everyone in the weight room remained quiet as we worked out. It took about ten minutes for me to notice the silence. Typically, when you had a bunch of high school guys lifting, there would be constant banter going on.

Wolf was doing bench presses with Tim spotting when Don appeared at my side.

"Can I talk to you for a moment?" he asked.

I glanced over, and he looked like he was afraid I planned to kick his butt or something.

"Sure," I said and let him lead me into the hall.

"Is Cassidy really angry enough to beat me up?" Don asked.

"I offered," I said with a straight face, and he noticeably flinched, "but she told me she would take care of it herself."

"I messed up. I should never have left Cassidy at the restaurant without paying," he admitted. "I wanted last night to be just the two of us, and once again, we were on a double date."

"Did you ever try to talk to Coach Hope about that?" I asked.

Don looked at me like I had told him one of Wolf's jokes that made no sense.

"He would never agree to that."

"Then why are you bitching about something that's never going to change? That's part of the deal if you date Cassidy."

Don knew the score and had finally come to grips with it. I wasn't about to let him in on the fact that I'd asked Coach Hope and gotten her out of the double-date rule.

"I might have made a big mistake. Do you think she'll ever forgive me?" he asked.

I shrugged. I didn't want to be in the middle of this. I imagined that Cassidy would forgive him, but they would never date again. Don's best course of action would be to apologize and move on.

"Are we okay?" he asked.

"Just because you dated Cassidy and broke up with her doesn't mean we can't still be friends and teammates. Now, if you do something to hurt her, that will be a whole different story," I warned him.

"Thanks," he said and left me in the hall to collect my thoughts.

When I walked back into the weight room, I noticed the conversations had started again. They must have wanted to see what would happen between Don and me. Wolf and Tim, on the other hand, remained focused on working out. That was probably for the best, since I wasn't quite sure how I felt about them right now. I had a little too much of my mom in me and feared I'd say something I'd regret if they set me off somehow.

I spotted Yuri and Roc buddied up on one of the weight machines and strolled over. They looked up at me expectantly.

"Did either of you or your dates take any pictures of Phil or Jill last night?"

Roc nodded slowly and pulled out his phone to show me.

My anger rose again when I saw the pictures of Phil's battered face. Only the thought that Mike now looked every bit as bad kept me from punching a wall.

"Send copies to me, store the originals in a safe place, and don't spread them around. Tell your girlfriends to do the same. I'm betting there will be some fallout from what I did to rectify the situation. Being in the public eye sucks sometimes," I shared.

They both nodded their agreement.

"I'm sorry it got out of hand," Yuri said to remind me of his promise to look out for Jill.

"Yeah, Luke's friends kicked us out," Roc explained.

"Did they ...?" Yuri asked.

"No. They didn't touch her, but I suspect they may have slipped her something."

"Really?" Roc asked.

I just nodded.

"That sucks. If I'd known ..." Yuri started and trailed off.

"You did the right thing by calling me. It all turned out okay," I assured him.

I knew the guilt that the 'What if?' game started in your head if you let it. The two of them were no match for Luke, Mike, and Luke's football teammates. They would have just ended up like my brother with their butts beat. They also had to worry about their dates. With that in mind, Yuri had made the right choice.

"Hey," I said. "Thanks for being Phil's friend. You two were there when he needed you."

---

I was cooling down from my workout when Frank's call came in. He was almost hyperventilating with worry, but calmed down when I took him through what had happened and why. I told him my teammates had practically surrounded me, so I doubted that anyone had gotten any decent video of the parking-lot activities. I did manage to reassure him that no one but me had any film of my confrontation with Mike.

I also shared that I was sure both Luke and Mike would be every bit as interested in burying the story as I was. They both had scholarships and playing time to protect, just as I did. Publicity that they had drunk underage girls in their bedrooms would get Luke expelled and risk destroying Mike's Michigan ride before it even started.

"Yeah," Frank grumped. "It'll keep them quiet only until they have nothing to lose and everything to gain by making it public. That might happen as early as two years from now."

We talked it over and agreed to create a 'defense' file, with its packet of films, pictures, and statements. That was what we'd done for both the feminazis and the underage actress Laurent Vance had set me up with the previous spring. Frank promised to call me if anything at all came up.

By the time we hung up, it was halfway through the second period. Great.

---

At lunch, Pam sat down next to me before everyone else joined us.

"Three things: You're taking me to State tonight, and we're taking Tracy out to dinner. The second is that you and I are going out on a date Friday night. Finally, you're babysitting all the little ones Saturday night so that Angie, Ashley, and Peggy can have a girls' night with Joey."

"That sounds fine. Why aren't you and Scarlet joining them?" I asked.

"I'm too young, and Scarlet is going out with Paul," Pam informed me.

"And I take it Greg and his little ones are coming over as well."

"I think that's the plan," she confirmed.

I would have to make sure our new nanny was available because I didn't see Greg and me surviving a night alone with all eight of the ankle-biters. Not with five of them just learning to walk. On second thought, I might need more backup than just our nanny. Maybe I could convince some grandmas to show up and help. When we'd gone shopping for Halloween, they'd had a good time. Greg could order Monical's, and we'd make a night of it.

"Good," I said, which seemed to shock her. "Ask your mom if she wants to join us. I'm thinking of inviting the grandmas to come help."

Pam wasn't impressed.

"You just don't want to have to deal with all of them at once," Pam said, and then got an evil glint in her eye. "Are you sure you want the grandmas to get together and compare notes?"

I shrugged. It wasn't like they were their daughters who knew me a little too well. What was the worst that could happen? Plus, the grandmas all loved their little ones. Surely, they would be focused on their grandkids and not me.

---

How I ever thought Joey was attractive escaped me. The evil woman tried to kill me after school. She wanted to demonstrate to Cassidy how far I'd come in only a few weeks under her tutelage. Yes, baseball practice starts next week. Yes, I wanted to be in top condition so I could focus on baseball and not on getting in shape. And yes, I had let the two of them change up my training.

What I hadn't done was sign up for them to torture me. I didn't realize that the rowing machine had different levels of difficulty. Joey let me warm up at my normal level, which I already considered damned hard, then she cranked it up to eleven.

When I first tugged on the 'oars,' they didn't budge.

"I think you broke it," I said, unaware of their evil plan.

"Try harder," Cassidy urged.

I settled in and figured I would jolt it free. I gave a mighty pull, and it was like rowing in quicksand.

"What the heck?" I complained.

"Quit being a baby and see how far you can go," Joey ordered.

The rowing machine is a complete body workout. After I'd gone five minutes, I was about to hyperventilate and was soaked in sweat. My legs and butt muscles seemed to be on fire, my stomach screamed for relief, and my shoulders were on the verge of cramping up.

"Fight through it!" Joey yelled.

That caused everyone in the gym to take notice of the pain and suffering I was being subjected to. This reminded me of the Elite 11 football camp when they ran us through different exercises with the knowledge that our bodies would fail us. It had been a way for them to gauge how we faced adversity. For many of the guys, they'd never crashed and burned before. Some didn't handle it well. I'd dug down and refused to give up and somehow had pushed through to the finish.

"Come on, David. You can do it," Cassidy encouraged.

What was it that made athletes push so hard? Without their desire and willpower to improve their performance, all the other mental factors--poise, intensity, focus, and passion--were meaningless. To become the best, an athlete must be motivated to do what it takes to push past where others stop. I'd read about many rising stars who had peaked early and became disappointments when their development leveled off. I wasn't going to be one of them.

Being the number-one football recruit in the land put a target on my back. It would be easy to get by on my talent. I might even become a fantastic college quarterback or college baseball player. If I played in the pros, I didn't want to be the guy they said had a lot of potential and didn't live up to it. I'd worked too hard to allow that to happen and had an inner desire to prove myself the best.

To get there, I had to face each challenge head-on. If Joey thought that killing me on the rowing machine would bring me closer to my goal, I would grit my teeth and do it. My heart seemed like it might burst from my chest as I pushed beyond anything I'd ever done before.

"Time!" Joey finally called.

I gave it two more pulls and then collapsed. I felt like I'd sprinted a marathon.

Joey had a huge smile on her face.

"I've never had anyone at any level last that long at that setting. We might be getting somewhere," she shared.

Cassidy handed me a water bottle. I took a swig and poured it on my head to help cool down. When I could finally stand up, I did, and pulled my shirt over my head. I caught Joey checking me out, which secretly pleased me. Even though I'd put her out of bounds in my mind, now that she was no longer actively trying to kill me, my attraction to her reasserted itself.

They sent me out to the field house track to run a few laps to cool down. As I left, Joey was sharing with Cassidy my progress and what she planned for me next. Cassidy was like a sponge, hanging on every piece of wisdom Joey uttered.

When I finished, I took extra time stretching. If I didn't, I would be sore tomorrow. I almost certainly would anyway, but stretching helped prevent the worst of it. After that, I took a quick shower and jumped into an ice bath.

It had been a good workout.

---

I'd slipped my security. Cassidy had been assigned to watch me, but I told her what I planned to do, and she let me off my leash. It gave me a chance to drive my Dodge Demon, which was always a treat. I swung by Pam's condo and picked her up so we could take Tracy to dinner. I'd promised I would stop by her dorm room since Christmas break, but had been a complete slug and not gone.

When we got close to her dorm, Townsend Hall, Pam sent her a text.

"We'll see her dorm after," Pam said.

I pulled up on Gregory Street and found Tracy waiting for us. She jumped into the back seat.

"Where to?" I asked.

"We're going to the Krannert Art Museum first. My roommate is having a show of her photography, and I promised to bring you to her opening," Tracy explained.

"Do we get to eat?" I asked.

"Yes, David. I promise to feed you," Tracy said, like she was put out.

I glanced back in the rearview mirror, and her face betrayed her. She was giving me a hard time. I'd missed her.

"David is taking me out Friday night," Pam shared.

"Is he? Do tell," Tracy responded.

I tuned them out as I drove through campus. This time next year, I would be at the University of Michigan, experiencing all this firsthand. I was jealous that Tracy got to do it now.

The Krannert Art Museum, or KAM for short, was one of the few cultural hot spots in our area. Tracy's roommate's exhibit was being held in the lower-level lobby. She displayed a series of photographs using a technique called 'horizontal mirror.' The idea was simple: you took the image, flipped it over, and then butted the two images together to create art. It was as if the photo was a reflection of itself.

The end result was not something you usually saw, so it had a noticeable impact that was oddly beautiful. The first photo had been taken from atop a grain silo. It was a simple picture of a fence row, slightly off-center. The converging halves of the mirrored image made fascinating and unexpected forms from an otherwise 'ordinary' rural setting. It had the vibe of one of those art pieces meant to trick your eye. The fence seemed to merge into itself.

"Hey, Big Hands," a female voice said behind me.

I turned around to see Destiny Crown's cousin, Jocelyn. She was the girl in the sorority who had invited our baseball team to a frat party last year. She'd also taken Destiny and me to another party on the date Destiny won by gathering signatures for Duke's candidacy for mayor. I'd teased Jocelyn and her friends with the old wives' tale that big hands and big feet equaled being big in other areas of your anatomy.

"Hey."

"David, meet Jocelyn. She's my roommate, and this is her exhibition," Tracy said.

"We've met a couple of times," she said.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Tracy asked her roommate.

"Because I was afraid he wouldn't come to visit if he knew I was your roommate. I think I scared him the last time we met."

"Tell me about your photographs," I said before we had to talk about my big hands.

"The marketing piece I wrote explains that the mirrored images are meant to represent the duality of life. There are always two sides to every story. The yin and yang of it, if you will."

"What's the real meaning?" I asked.

"I just liked how it looks," Jocelyn said.

"I agree. How did you do it?" I asked.

"I found it works best with a wide-angle lens. Stitching the images together isn't too hard with the right software. When my photography professor saw the images, he loved them."

"Show me the rest," I urged.

The following image was of one of my favorite old covered bridges that crossed a small river just a few miles from us. The picture had been taken on a cloudless day, so the clear blue sky looked like calm water that captured the reflection of the bridge.

"How did you do this one?" I asked.

"That was the hardest one to do. I had to frame it so it just showed the bridge. I waded out into the river up to my waist to get the shot."

Then she showed me a picture of the reverse. This one showed a tailgate party at a football game with an RV next to a canopy where a group of people barbecued and drank adult beverages. She'd taken a great picture that told a story, and then twisted it when the image was flipped upside down and looked to be crashing down on everyone. It had taken a cute picture and given it a sense of being both claustrophobic and intense.

She walked me through several others, and they were equal parts disturbing and beautiful.

"What do you think?" she asked.

"I have two thoughts. First, you need to immediately find a publisher and create a coffee-table book with these pictures. It will sell like crazy. Second, your next endeavor should be done in video. If you were to add movement to this technique, it would take it to another level," I said.

"Young man, you have an eye," I heard as someone came up from behind to stand beside me.

"David Dawson, this is my professor, Dr. Garrison," Jocelyn said.

The next thing I knew, I was in an in-depth conversation about her art and different ways to tweak it. Before we concluded, I'd called Mr. Hill at Hill Advertising and introduced him to both Jocelyn and Dr. Garrison. I'd also bought the covered bridge picture and the rights to it.

Both Jocelyn and Dr. Garrison were excited. I mentioned that I could help her sell more of her artwork if she were so inclined. I was thinking of Mrs. Hill and Mrs. Wesleyan and their design businesses, along with the internet resources I might use to sell this particular type of art.

If my stomach hadn't loudly announced that it hadn't been fed, I might have spent the rest of the night talking. I was going to love college.

---

Jocelyn came to dinner with us. College kids do not pass up free food.

Tracy picked Alexander's Steak House, making me a happy boy. While in no way did it compare to some of the steak places I'd been to, it was budget-friendly. They also had a salad bar that you could fill up on. The restaurant was unique in that it gave you the option to cook your own steaks. Somehow, the girls put me in charge of that.

When I came back to the table, Jocelyn was grilling Tracy and Pam.

"You never told me that you dated him," she said pointedly to Tracy.

"Pam did too. We have a son together," I said as I sat down. "Want to see pictures?"

Jocelyn looked at me funny, but I was past feeling guilty about having kids at my age. It was what it was.

"I think someone did say something about that," Jocelyn said.

You would imagine that whipping out your wallet and showing a girl pictures of five little ones would slow her down. Think again.

"Does he have a big ... uh ... you know?" Jocelyn asked.

Both Pam and Tracy looked at me.

"Please! You know that as soon as she gets you back to your dorm room, you're going to tell her," I said.

"Well, okay, then. Yes, David is big all over," Tracy shared.

"I knew it," Jocelyn said triumphantly and then locked eyes with me. "Word is you're currently single."

Oh, Hell, No!

"I've been put on notice that I can't date anyone older than I am until I graduate high school. So, don't even go there."

"He's taking me out this Friday," Pam added to slow Jocelyn down.

"Send me the video," Jocelyn said.

I suddenly liked her. She had a sense of humor and seemed just the right amount of slutty. I was ready to drop out of high school right then.

---

I should have visited Tracy sooner. I ended up having a great time. The best part was that my parents were in bed by the time I got home, so I didn't have to rehash the Valentine's Day debacle.

---

Thursday, February 16

The rehash finally happened at breakfast. Phil had managed to hide what happened from his parents for a day, but last night, his mother had finally seen his bruised face and split lip. This was followed shortly thereafter by a call to my dad, who wanted to know what had happened. Even though Phil wasn't Mom's child, she seemed almost as concerned as Dad.

I told them how Phil had been beaten up, what I'd done to rescue Phil's date, and that I'd made sure that both Mike and Luke had taken the first swings. I was letting them know that I'd sent the recordings to Frank when, speak of the devil, he called.

"I got a call from someone at TMZ last night, asking me for videos and a comment about David's fight. Luckily, I smelled a rat and said I couldn't possibly comment without seeing what they had. It turns out the video doesn't show David doing anything except walking up to Luke, and later David walking to the door of an apartment. Everything else is blocked by a bunch of other guys crowding around."

"I called TMZ back. I said that David was just getting his little brother and his brother's date away from a college party where they'd gotten in a bit over their heads. He agreed it didn't make for much of a story, but said that I owed him for not running it. I promised them an exclusive when you come to town for the Oscars," Frank said.

His tone said he was pleased with both turning this into a non-story and roping me into an interview. He also knew that I wasn't about to fight him because when your PR guy is relaxed about something, it's good--trust me. I hoped this would put an end to it, at least as far as the media and my parents were concerned. How I felt about Mike being a teammate at Michigan was another matter entirely.

---

Friday February 17

By Friday morning, I'd given the events a lot of thought and had decided that I didn't want to play ball with someone like Mike. I'd gotten a chance to talk to Phil, and he told me how Luke and Mike had gotten Jill drunk. The way he described it, I still suspected that they'd slipped her something like ecstasy.

Phil said that he'd stayed close to her, and they were having a good time. The next thing he knew, she'd gone to the bathroom and didn't come back. When he went to look for her, Luke and Mike jumped him.

The long and short of it was that Phil had had enough and decided to break up with Jill. She'd made a comment over the phone to him about him abandoning her, and that I'd had to save her. When Jill had come to school and seen his condition, she regretted saying that.

Before I did something drastic, I wanted to talk to Wolf, Tim, and Ty about Mike. I'd arranged to meet them at Granny's West for breakfast before school. When Cassidy learned about my plans, she insisted that she had to be my security today. I suspected she just wanted a cinnamon roll.

We were the last to arrive, and the other three already had their drinks and a starter roll each. Our server came right over when she saw me and took our order. Cassidy was happy when they brought us our rolls.

"I've had a couple of days to cool off over what Mike pulled. But even having calmed down, I'm still having a problem envisioning him as a teammate," I said to kick our meeting off.

"You're not planning to back out of your commitment, are you?" Ty asked.

"Ideally, they would pull Mike's," I said.

"Do you really believe they would? He's already signed a National Letter of Intent. I think they're bound to take him," Tim said.

"But we already said that it didn't really matter if he went to the same school because he was one of 85 players," Ty reminded me.

"Mike was given multiple chances to straighten out and ended up quitting the team and going to Wesleyan," Wolf said. "I thought that his BS was over with. What he and his brother did to Phil was a step too far, and I detest that he's hurting people you care about, trying to get at you. If he'd do it to you, I'm sure he'll do it to all of us. Heck, he messed with Jim last year. That's just asking for trouble. I don't need to be around someone like that."

"What are you saying, exactly?" Ty asked.

I thought it was pretty clear, but apparently, Ty needed to hear the words.

"I'm not talking for Tim or Wolf. They need to decide for themselves," I qualified. "But if Mike is at Michigan next year, I'll go somewhere else."

"Even though you gave your word?" Ty asked to dig at my core values.

"Ty, I realize this doesn't make you happy, but I respect you too much not to talk to you first. If Mike hadn't said what he did to me in that apartment, on top of what he did to my little brother, I might let it go," I said.

Ty threw a face.

"Hold on, Ty," Tim said. "What would you do if Luke held your little brother and Mike beat the crap out of him? Would you want to forgive and forget?"

Ty let out an exasperated breath.

"No. I get it," he said, looking defeated. "Are you two saying you would follow David somewhere else?"

"I think so," Wolf said.

"Yeah. I want to play ball with David and Wolf. If they decide to go somewhere else, I'll go with them. But I want to go on record that I hope Michigan can work this out," Tim said to make his feelings known.

"I admit that I'm also torn, but I've signed," Ty said.

"I think we all agree that Michigan is our choice," I said, and everyone nodded. "If they can convince Mike to go elsewhere, I wouldn't look back. Just between us, I might still go if they convince me they can manage him. How they would do that, I have no idea."

"Before we do anything, we need to tell them how we feel," Wolf said.

"Would it be okay if I call and talk to them since I've already committed?" Ty asked.

"Ty, I don't want this to affect your decision. I know you've wanted to go there from the beginning," I said.

"I appreciate that, I do. When I heard what Mike did, it made me have some doubts. To be honest, if Mike goes to Michigan, I'll be disappointed, but I will go. They've been my dream school since I was little."

"David's right. We want you to do what's best for you," Wolf said.

"Now that the Mike-Michigan situation is somewhat settled, Wolf and I want to apologize for Tuesday night," Tim said to me.

"Yeah. Hindsight being what it is, we didn't use our best judgment. Tami has to be pissed because her original plan was to join us at Michigan, but now probably not," Wolf said.

This was news to me. Tami had never told me that she planned to join us at Michigan. That only highlighted how far apart we'd grown. I hadn't even thought to ask her. I assumed she would be going somewhere like Johns Hopkins University for her undergraduate. I remembered having a discussion with her about doing what was best for her and not tying her decision to mine like we'd originally discussed.

Then it struck me. Tami had planned to go to school where Tim did, not where I did. And Michigan was an excellent school for her to get her undergraduate degree. This was a reminder for me that even though the teenager in me thought I was the center of the universe, I wasn't.

"Where's she going?" I asked Tim.

Tim shook his head to indicate that she hadn't shared that with him.

"Stanford," Cassidy supplied. "She applied to a handful of schools, but if she's accepted, that's where she's going. Everyone says she's a shoo-in; she needs to get the official notice."

Cassidy saw our confusion as to how she would know and turned to me.

"Your mom told me."

And there it was. Every time I considered myself past the feeling that my mom was closer to Tami than to me, something like this raised its head. I tapped that little upset back down since it wasn't worth digging into any deeper. I'd come to understand that Tami and my mom would always be close, and there was nothing I could do about it. Frankly, I shouldn't do anything about it if I didn't want to cause even more hurt.

"Hey," Cassidy said. "That girl you found in the dumpster ... she ghosted Paul."

That made me laugh.

It made a certain amount of sense. She wasn't looking for another guy, and she'd made it a point not to tell us her name. Dumpster Girl had told me she didn't want to spend the night alone after she'd made her dramatic escape from her ex. I could see where following me around and watching everyone else's relationship implode would be much more entertaining than going home to your own thoughts.

Besides, it served Paul right for stealing my dumpster find. I had always understood that possession was nine-tenths of the law.

---

When I got to school, Dare was in a tizzy.

"What's his problem?" Cassidy asked.

"We have a test in AP Calculus second period."

"What are you learning in there?"

"We're covering differential calculus right now. It's about approximating more complicated functions by using linear functions," I explained.

Cassidy blinked at me.

"Most of the functions can be formed by starting with three basic functions ..." I began.

"Go away. That makes my head hurt," Cassidy said as she bailed.

I had to agree with her. What was giving Dare headaches was the whole 'approximation' part. The kid wanted to know the exact answer. I tried to explain to him that sometimes close was good enough, but he didn't buy it.

Of course, I oversimplified my explanation, which caused Dare's head to explode.

"I should go and fix what you told her," Dare said.

"As a friend, I'm telling you to leave it alone."

"But ..."

"Shouldn't you be focused on not obsessing if your answers aren't exactly right?" I asked to distract him.

Dare had complained that Ms. Lowden rounded her calculations to a greater extent than he did. It didn't matter that the little brainiac had also rounded. He just went a few more decimal places deeper, so his answers sometimes differed from hers by a small margin. He still didn't agree that the 'right' answer was the one closest to what he got. Hence, he stressed.

"But if it's wrong ..."

"Buddy, I love you like a brother, but you have to understand Ms. Lowden doesn't care. She already told you to pick the best one and write your answer down to show your work. We've talked about this," I said, getting a little frustrated.

Times like these, I miss Brook. She would tell him the same thing, and he would accept it.

"But ..."

I held up my finger and called Brook. Surprisingly, she answered.

"What's up?" she asked as she answered her phone.

The background noise said she was between classes.

"Tell Dare to pick the closest answer. We have a calculus test in an hour. If he gets one wrong because he's being hardheaded and then cries about it, I might have to do something evil to him," I said.

Then I handed him the phone.

"Hey ... sure ... Hey, David said that he could snap his fingers and you'd date me ... Oh ... Yeah, here he is," Dare said and handed me the phone.

"It sounds like you have your hands full," Brook said.

"I don't know what to say about him right now," I said as I gave him the stink eye.

"Just give him a hug from me ... and not a bear hug, a nice one ... and tell him everything will be okay with his test today."

In the background, her bell rang.

"Gotta go," she said and hung up on me.

I gave Dare a hug. He stiffened, thinking I might be acting like a bully, but relaxed when I didn't try to crush him. Not that I ever had; he was just skittish about stuff like that.

"Brook said everything will be okay today and to listen to me," I said.

"She didn't say the last part," Mr. Smarty Pants shot back.

"Maybe, but you should."

He waved me off as our bell rang.

"I'll see you in an hour. And quit stressing out. If I end up with a better grade than you, it won't be the end of the world," I teased.

His look of disbelief that I might get a higher grade made my day.

---

At lunch, Dare was comparing notes with Gina and me about the AP Calculus test.

"What did you get for number eight?"

"587," I answered.

Gina shook her head.

"You made a significant-digit mistake on that one. I almost did the same, but caught it. The correct answer is 5.87," Gina said, and Dare nodded solemnly.

"Dang it!" I complained.

According to these two, I'd missed half the answers on the first eight questions.

"Did you study?" Dare asked.

I was being played, and quickly realized who was responsible ... Brook! She and Gina were helping Dare get some back on me for teasing him. I looked over at Cassidy, and she suddenly appeared very interested in the mystery meat surprise we were having for lunch.

This was big. Darius Rossetti was pulling a prank on me. It was one thing for him to quip about what he observed at lunch. Most of the time, he was calling it as he saw it, with no idea he was being funny. But now Dare was actually punking me. Me, the guy who stood up for him. It made me suddenly proud of my little misfit. This was a big step toward him fitting in and no longer being afraid of his own shadow.

What I shouldn't do was reveal that I'd figured it out. Dare needed to have his big moment pulling one over on me. Fortunately, I was an actor.

I sighed.

"I must have taken this too lightly. Instead of worrying about academics, I was focused on getting ready for baseball and lost sight of the importance of a good education. I hate to think about what my mother will do to me. She'll most likely ground me for the rest of the semester," I all but moaned.

"This will probably make Gina valedictorian," Dare added sadly.

Brook Davis was dead to me. That was the little touch that sold it. Darius would never have been that mean to me on his own. I looked over at Cassidy and spotted her phone on the table. I'd bet anything that Brook was listening in.

"That's okay. Gina will give a great speech at graduation," I said, and almost laughed when Gina flinched.

I suspected that she'd tanked PE so that she wouldn't have to give the speech. While she loved to hear the sound of her own voice, she didn't like to speak in public. Gina always seemed to find a way out of doing that. I'd figured that out when we had a group project, and she'd volunteered to do all the work if someone else would present it.

I slapped both my hands on the table, startling everyone.

"Fuck it! This means I don't even have to try anymore. I have the grades to get into college, and I have the scholarship to play football, so why should I worry about school? I think I'll go out and get drunk tonight," I said, turning to Pam. "You'll go drinking with me, won't you?"

"Uh," was Pam's witty reply.

"Hell! I haven't gotten high since middle school," I said to a tableful of suddenly worried faces. "Phil, you probably know where I can get some drugs."

"No, not really," my little brother replied.

"You know what? Why am I still here?" I asked, looking around. "I'm a senior! If that's the way it is, I should just skip this afternoon and go get baked. I used to love getting high and not giving a flying leap. I mean, really. If everything I've worked for has gone down the drain academically, why shouldn't I?"

My phone chirped with a text. I pulled it out and saw it was from Brook. I must have gone a little too far with my meltdown.

'Stupid Boy'

I let a little smile touch my eyes.

"He knows," Gina proclaimed to ruin my fun.

"We aren't skipping out to smoke ganja?" Wolf asked.

I touched my forehead with two fingers to represent tipping my hat to Darius and Gina.

"Well done. Tell Brook that paybacks are hell."

"You got 587 for number eight?" Dare asked.

"Yep," I said, and Gina nodded her agreement.

Now Dare wasn't happy. I think our boy genius had missed one. That might have just made my year. He would be pouting about that for the next week. It gave Gina and me a shot at getting a better grade than him ... of course, only if we were both right. I crossed my fingers and said a silent prayer that we were. I'd felt confident about that one.

---

I'd come to Pam's building early so I could spend some time with Carol, Allen, and Dawson. The added benefit was hanging out with Ashley and Scarlet. It also meant I didn't have to buzz Pam to get into the building.

"How did you get in?" Pam asked when she opened her condo door.

"I know your neighbors," I reminded her.

"Oh," she said, realizing her misstep. "Mom, I'm leaving for my date with David!"

"What time are you going to be home?" Lacy called from the other room.

"She's sleeping over," I said.

That brought her mom out of the kitchen.

"Okay. You kids have fun," Lacy said.

I grabbed Pam's hand and pulled her out the door.

"How do you get away with that?" she asked as we got in the elevator.

"Moms love me."

"Next time I want to do something I'm sure my mom won't like, you're talking to her for me."

---

Pam had a fun idea for dinner: we were going restaurant-hopping. We started at my favorite Italian joint and had antipasti and bruschetta. We then shot over to Washington and had blue crabs for dinner. We ended up at Our House, where we had Meyer lemon-cranberry cake for dessert.

At Washington, Paul had to join us for dinner because the place was packed. When we got to Our House, he managed to grab a barstool and keep an eye on us.

For some reason, they put us at a table for four. Our House was pretty full, and the band would be starting soon. I would have been happier with a table for two.

After we finished eating our dessert, Tracy and Jocelyn showed up to crash our date. Pam saw my look, grabbed my hand, and leaned in close.

"She misses you," she said of Tracy.

I just nodded that I was okay. If Pam wanted her best friend and Tracy's roommate to join us, I could live with that.

They'd just sat down when Mary Dole appeared at our table.

"Do me a favor," she said, looking at me. "Introduce the band."

I gave her a startled look like I wasn't sure I could do it, and both Tracy and Pam laughed at me. Mary handed me the microphone and went to the back. I got up and followed her. When I got backstage, she gave me a piece of paper and pointed for me to go out front and do my job.

Mary cut the house music and dimmed the lights. As I walked out on stage, she turned on the stage lights, just about blinding me.

"Welcome," I said as I waved at everyone to get their attention. "I'm David A. Dawson, and I thank you for coming tonight. I know you have a lot of other options for spending a Friday night. It means a lot to me personally that you would come to my restaurant to have some fun.

"Tonight, we have a special treat for you. There's a local band that's blowing up, and it won't be long before you start hearing them on the radio. Please give a warm Our House welcome to Five Odd Cats!"

I stepped aside as the band came out from backstage. I had never heard them play, but from the crowd's reaction, they were popular. The group was made up of two sisters and three brothers, and they played their version of Indie Pop. They were loud, energetic, and their music had a good beat, perfect for dancing in a club.

Paul ended up joining our table and helping me dance with the girls. We all had a great time.

---

Paul pulled into the driveway. I saw a light on through the back door.

"Let's pop in and say goodnight to my parents," I suggested.

"Let's not. Take me upstairs and make me a happy girl," Pam said, changing my plans suddenly.

"I think you can go," I told Paul.

He scoffed at me.

"I'll see you Monday," he reminded me.

I grabbed Pam's hand and dragged her through the apartment door and up the stairs. I pressed her up against the wall and leaned my body against hers, trapping her, so there was no escape. I put my mouth next to her ear.

"I'm warning you, Surfer Girl," I whispered gruffly in her ear. "Don't say something like that if you don't mean it."

Her eyes were full, bright, and showed her desire. Pam's mouth parted enough to let her tongue glide over her lips, making them glisten in the light. Her cheeks were flushed, giving her a healthy glow. I nuzzled her neck and could feel her pulse beat rapidly as she anticipated what came next.

She licked her lips again, her red tongue inviting me, mocking me, causing my erection to swell at her teasing action. Mr. Happy rushed full of blood, diverted from the big brain. I was moments away from him taking control. All rational thought faded as full-blown lust began to rule the day.

"I mean it," Pam replied, her voice husky with yearning.

That did it: Mr. Happy wrenched control of the body. Our lips locked as my last coherent thought fled. I was now in the moment. Better yet, I dropped into the sexual zone where pleasure ruled. Pam took full advantage as she thoroughly kissed me. I once said that when Tracy kissed me, it was like my mind was erased. Tracy had nothing on Pam.

Pam playfully sucked on, nipped, and licked my lips and tongue as I lost myself in her clutches. I suddenly wondered who the captive was. She rubbed up against me, causing me to whimper and moan. The big brain woke up enough to complain that it was my job to produce the whimpering and moaning, not Pam's.

I became a happy boy when she moaned into my mouth. My ego restored, I found I wanted to hear more of her cries of passion. Pam found the buttons of my shirt and fumbled with them. I chuckled when she got frustrated and ripped it open to expose my chest. She bit my lip and dug her nails into my flesh to grab my full attention.

I didn't plan to be a passive participant. My hands traveled down her sides, and she shivered as they slid down until I could grope her glorious ass. Pam should be the poster child of California girls. She'd grown up on a surfboard, giving her a lean, athletic appearance.

Together with her striking good looks, the combination had earned her runner-up status in the Miss Teen California beauty pageant a couple of years back. If I were looking for arm candy, Pam would be right at the top of the list. She was precisely the right combination of tomboy, girly-girl, and innocent that appealed to me.

In some ways, Pam was a mystery to me. She would freeze up and become passive if she felt threatened. Then at other times, she could stand up to me. I believe it was because Pam understood that I loved her and would never do anything to harm her.

I'd asked if she wanted to get married when she was pregnant with Coby, and then again last summer. Both times, Pam said she wasn't ready. I'm sure she knew I had asked out of obligation. I knew she loved me. But I wasn't sure that it was the kind of love where she would be my one and only, and we would become more than we were now. Exactly what that was, I wasn't sure.

I came out of my head and focused on what was at hand. Specifically, her magnificent ass, which was perfectly molded in her tight jeans. I jerked her up against my hips. Pam trusted me as she opened up and wrapped her legs around my waist. I pressed her against the wall and ground my hardened length into her soft core. The added stimulation made us both groan in pleasure.

"Bedroom," she ordered. "Fewer clothes."

It was a good thing she was thinking for both of us. I pulled her tight and spun her around, carrying her towards my bed. Pam gripped my shoulders and burrowed her head into the crook of my neck. She kissed below my jaw and then sucked there.

"You better not give me a hickey," I warned.

She wrapped her arms around my neck and tightened her thighs around my waist as she sucked on my throat like a vampire. I would have to spank her butt for leaving her mark on my neck. She giggled when I peeled her off me and tossed her onto my king-size bed.

The brat looked up at me with hungry eyes. Her sun-kissed blond hair fanned out to form a sort of halo, reminding me that the little devil really might be an angel. Pam bit her lower lip as her blue eyes took me in as well. I reached down and pulled my shirt open. I noticed that she'd popped several buttons. If I hadn't gotten this shirt on a photo shoot, I might have been mad. I would have to get someone to sew the buttons on later.

I removed my jeans and boxer briefs. Her eyes dropped to Mr. Happy, who stretched out and stood proudly for inspection. Pam gave him an appreciative appraisal.

"You look like a Greek god who has come down from heaven just for me," Pam purred.

She had better be careful with what she said because things like that would go straight to my head. Speaking of which, my member seemed to grow a little because of her praise.

"Clothes off," I said, reverting to a caveman.

She reached for her jeans, got them open, and pulled them off her hips. I reached forward and helped her pull them off her long, shapely legs. It pleased me to see that she wore sexy black lace panties. I reached between her legs and slipped my finger under the lace; she was wet.

"I feel your need," I growled.

Pam sat up so she could remove her top, tossing it to the floor. I took in her exposed body as I gently stroked her wetness. A few tiny blond hairs peeked over the minuscule briefs framing her taut tummy, causing an interesting effect in the light. She glowed. My eyes traveled up, and her breasts were encased in a matching black lace see-through bra. The outline of her areola showed through. Her thick nipples looked diamond-hard and pushed out to make that fact evident.

I gave Pam a knowing little grin and slipped my finger inside her as I leaned down. I used my other hand to pull her bra away from her nipple so I could suck it into my mouth. Her hand reached up, and she ran her fingers through the hair on the back of my head. She arched her back and spread her thighs, granting me complete access to her core.

"I love your long fingers," she muttered as I pleasured her.

I pushed her bra straps off her shoulders to release her breasts from their confines. Pam gripped a handful of hair and directed my mouth to her other nipple, apparently worried that it seemed to have been left out. How I'd missed it escaped me. They deserved equal attention. Her skin smelled of lavender, and its taste was a sweet, salty mixture. I rolled her stiff nipple with my tongue as my thumb found her button.

Pam pushed her hips into my hand to increase the contact, which made her gasp as her body went rigid. I nipped the side of her breast, and her core muscles spasmed around my fingers as I focused on stroking her G-spot. She signaled I'd found the right place when she cried out and all but ripped a bald spot on my head.

Pam pushed my head back to her breasts when I lost contact. I wish she'd make up her mind. Then she grunted and almost broke off my fingers when she peaked. She drew her legs together, squeezing them to hold my hand in place as she enjoyed the aftershock of her orgasm.

I crawled up onto the bed and kissed her. I waited for Pam to come back to me, and when her eyes opened, I whispered into her ear.

"Roll over."

She complied as I reached into my end table and grabbed a condom. Latex soon sheathed my member. I straddled her thighs and nudged the blunt head against her still spasming entrance. I grasped her at her hips, letting my fingers dig into her flesh, while I pushed my hips forward and sank my erection into her.

Pam made happy sounds as I took my time. Her muscles clenched around my girth, and I slowly pushed into her until my groin made contact with that hot, taut, surfer-girl butt.

"I love doing this with you," I groaned as I was finally entirely inside her.

She constricted her inner muscles to hold me in her depths. I gasped and almost lost control for a moment. Then I began to move. I pinned her to the bed with my hands tight on her hips as I began to pound into her. Pam arched her back to give me a better angle as she gripped my comforter.

"Faster. Harder," she commanded.

I did as she wished. My conditioning was having a positive effect because otherwise, I would have been breathing hard by now as I worked to bring her pleasure. When you have vigorous sex, you feel it in your core muscles. I would have to share with Joey that her workouts made hot caveman sex easier for me. I was sure she'd be proud that my athletic abilities in bed had improved.

I pistoned into Pam. I loved this position because it allowed me to get so deep. Pam's arousal had her so wet that every glide of my shaft felt terrific. From the sounds Pam was making, she agreed. To think, my church wanted me to give this up.

"You're amazing," I complimented Pam as I pushed all the way in and ground against her backside.

Pam began to clench her inner walls around my length, signaling that another orgasm was imminent. I reached around so my fingers could find her wet sex. I parted the tops of her nether lips, found her most sensitive spot, and began to rub her little nubbin. It didn't take long to set her off as she buried her face into the folds of the comforter to muffle her screams of passion.

When Pam stiffened as the first wave of her orgasm took her, I slammed my hips forward and exploded deep inside her. My release was of epic proportions as I throbbed in rhythm to her clenches as if our orgasms were in sync.

Finally spent, I collapsed on top of her with my face next to her neck. My hot breath hit her damp skin and sent shivers through her. As I recovered, I reached down, grasped the condom, and pulled out as I rolled off Pam so I wouldn't crush her. I gave myself a moment as I looked at the ceiling, replaying what had just happened. This was one of the reasons I loved Pam. The sex was extra special.

I rolled off the bed to clean up and dispose of the condom. I glanced back and saw Pam checking out my butt as I walked to the bathroom.

"Damn, that's a nice view," she chirped.

When I came back out, Pam stretched like a happy cat who'd just woken from a good nap. Sex did that for her. I was a little surprised when she got up, pulled back the comforter, and climbed back under the sheets. It looked like we were indeed having a sleepover. She patted the bed.

"Come on, Sexy. Come snuggle with me."

I slid in next to her and gathered her close. I loved how she willingly molded her sexy body against mine. I let out a contented sigh. Pam touched my chin to turn it to her and planted a long, slow, deep kiss on me. She laid her head against my chest as I pulled her tight into my arms. This just felt right.

We drifted off to sleep, tangled together. If it were possible, I felt even closer to Pam after what had just happened.

---

I woke up in the middle of the night to a call of nature. When I slid back into bed, Pam woke up.

"What time is it?"

"A little after three."

Pam reclaimed my chest as her pillow and reached down and grasped Mr. Happy. She began to give me little kisses on my chest and then started to suck on my skin. I swear that if it didn't feel so good, I would complain about the little hickey I was sure she was leaving. Pam worked her way down my stomach as she stroked my length into hardness. I reached my arm around her and down her hip so I could grab her ass.

Pam continued to work her way down and took me into her mouth. I lay back and enjoyed the oral bliss. She seemed content to nurse on me and extend the pleasure slowly. Pam appeared in no hurry, which worked for me.

As she worked her magic, I reached into her wet folds and began to tease her into an aroused state. Being tall and having big hands had its advantages.

Pam finally released Mr. Happy from her prolonged, slow torture as she rolled on top of me. She straddled my stomach and reached back to grasp my length. She'd guided my thick member to nudge her entrance.

"Pam," I murmured into her hair as she leaned down to kiss and suck on my neck. "Hey, we need a condom."

She let out a disgusted breath, sat up, and pushed Mr. Happy down as she slid back. Her wet folds slid along my length. The little tease was about to get taken advantage of, as it was everything I could do not just to grasp her hips and have my way with her, consequences be damned.

Pam knew where I kept the condoms and grabbed one. I watched as she opened it and then sat up, which allowed Mr. Happy to stand up. She slid his protective glove on and gave him a few practice strokes to assure the condom was in place. Pam squeezed him as a reward for being a good boy.

I had sat back long enough. I grabbed her hips and pulled her forward, positioning her for my thrust home. Pam gasped as I filled her up.

She squealed when I grasped her hips and rolled her under me. I grabbed her wrists and pinned them over her head. I looked deep into her eyes and gave her an evil smile as I began to move my hips. Pam lifted her head for me to thoroughly kiss her. I briefly considered a little payback and giving her a massive hickey on her neck, but thought better of it.

I began to move with purpose; long, slow thrusts as my tongue mimicked the motion into her mouth. Pam showed her approval by the happy little grunts she made each time our hips came together. I filled her with every thrust, stretching her around my thick member. It didn't take long for me to work my magic as I pushed Pam closer to her goal.

"No one else will ever make me feel like this," she whimpered her need. "You make me feel things that give me naughty ideas."

"I'm right there with you, Pam," I said as I picked up my pace.

She wiggled her hands so I'd let them go, then reached down and grabbed my butt to guide my efforts. Pam wrapped her legs around my waist so that she could get me even deeper inside her. This opened her up to me completely, and tilted her pelvis so that Mr. Happy rubbed her swollen button. I began to move faster as my length thickened and hardened even further while my climax got closer. Pam wasn't passive. She gave as well as she got, which made it even better for both of us.

I pounded into her, and her inner walls tightened around my shaft before they began to flutter as her orgasm hit. The intense waves of pleasure were all I needed as I began to throb within her. To extend her release, I continued to push deep into her with long, hard strokes, until her body became limp and spent.

I rolled off her as I slowly pulled out. She mewed her complaint at the loss of my member. I hopped out of bed to deal with the condom. When I came back, she sighed with contentment, relaxing in my arms.

"David?"

"Yes?"

"Tracy thinks I can get a car seat into the back of a Mustang."

"Okay."

"We can get one?" she asked, looking me in the eyes.

"For you ... anything," I confirmed.

If girls ever learned that if they gave their guys great sex and then asked for stuff, they would always get it ... I would have to beg Pam not to share that tip with the other baby mamas, or I would be in trouble.

---