Chapter 12: The Storm

Sunday November 23

Coach Hope called me before I went to church. He wanted to talk to me, and my parents, before he made his final decision about what to do with the drinking issue from last night. We had agreed to go to Granny's for a late breakfast, after Mom and I came back from church. When we walked in, Granny spotted me. She made a big fuss about my chin and thought I needed a cinnamon roll to make it better.

"I see why you come here," Mom chided me.

Before I could respond, the Hope family joined us. Brad had a satisfied smile on his face.

"Why is he so happy?" I asked Cassidy.

"For once, he isn't the one in trouble."

That just got an even bigger smile out of him. Granny came over when she saw we had guests.

"Granny, I would like you to meet my football coach, Tony Hope. These two are Cassidy and Brad. I think this is their first time here," I said as Cassidy and Brad nodded.

"First time guests, who are friends of David, earns you a Cinnamon roll as a welcome," she said.

She sent over a large plate with enough for everyone. They were hot out of the oven. I admit I snagged a second one. Granny was a marketing genus. Giving out cinnamon rolls made you a customer for life.

Once we had all ordered, Coach got to what he wanted to talk about.

"I'm torn about what to do about last night. Moose wants me to suspend everyone who was there. He has a zero tolerance rule, for baseball."

"Tony, we would never have called you if we thought you were going to go that far," my Dad said. "I thought it was more important to make sure the kids were safe."

"I agree, but I need to do something. I thought about starting the JV team, but I'm afraid one of them might get hurt. It is bad enough we are so young. I don't need freshmen lining up across from seniors. I'm looking for suggestions," Coach told my Dad.

"Run them," my Mom said. "The little darlings are all hung over. Tell them they have to come to practice today, or not play. Then run them until they wish they never drank."

I had a new respect for how evil my mother really was. I could tell this appealed to Coach Hope and Dad. They both had grins on their faces.

We were lined up and running sprints at one o'clock, and we had guys puking by one-o-five. This led to a chain reaction, as more and more guys joined them. I was gagging and having a hard time keeping my breakfast down. By one-fifteen, we had guys dry heaving. The team only ran for thirty minutes, but I think that stopping was more about not killing a few of them.

"I'll never drink tequila, again," Tim moaned as he lay in the grass trying to catch his breath.

"I think I might have broken a rib throwing up," Bill complained as he checked his side.

"I was thinking about getting some grease for lunch," I teased them.

"I think I just threw up in my mouth ... you're dead to me," Tim said.

"When I was in the UK, I had an actual pig's head. When you bite into the eye it squirts," I told them with glee.

All the ones hung over looked a little green. I was shocked when none of them wanted to go to lunch with me. I even offered to buy. Yes, I was a real good teammate!

Range Sports had scheduled a shoot for me for Thanksgiving weekend, if we didn't make the State Championship game. I called Devin to give him the bad news.

"David, I hear you won your game," Devin said as he answered his phone.

"We did. I also got my face a little banged up. Let me send you a picture," I told him as I sent him a text of a selfie I had taken a few minutes ago.

"How many stitches?"

"Eleven."

"I guess it's a good thing you won. You sure earned it."

"I should be good to go by our shoot in December. I also wanted to let you know I have been learning to shoot guns for my movie. If you need me to shoot or display some guns, I think I might be able to do better than I did in the UK," I offered.

"What are you shooting?"

"Both pistol and rifle."

"I'll make a note of that," he said and then changed the subject. "I hear you are bringing a girl. Tell me about her."

"I met her when I went to the University of Kentucky for football camp. She's very smart and wants to become a lawyer."

"Is she the one?" he asked.

I laughed.

"I don't really know. Ask me in six or seven years. I think I'm a little young to be making lifetime commitments right now. I think you're the one who is looking for that. Plus, she isn't ready yet, either, because she is focused on getting her degree right now."

"Sorry, I keep forgetting you're so young. I think you broke some hearts when Sandy found out you were bringing someone. She and her friends had plans for you," he teased me.

"I'll bet they did. I'll probably be safer this way."

"Maybe."

"Not to change the subject, but I am ... did you get the jet water board fixed?" I asked.

"We did. We are launching the improved model at the first of the year."

"I think I almost have my parents convinced to let me buy one."

"I'll bet you do. The last time your Mom talked to me, I was told to never let you on the thing, again."

"Don't worry about it," I said.

"Okay, if you get your Mom to call me and tell me it's okay, we'll see about getting you one."

"Perfect," I said, full of hope.

Now all I had to do was convince Mom that Greg needed a jet water board.

Monday November 24

When I got to school, with Peggy on vacation, the Pam-and-Tracy team teasing got up close and personal.

"Good morning, ladies."

"Good morning, Handsome," they said in unison.

That had to be planned. I got even more nervous when they got on both sides of me and took an arm each. I stopped them.

"No fair. I don't stand a chance with both of you ganging up on me. All Tracy has to do is push a couple of my buttons, and I am a babbling fool and will do anything she wants. You, Miss Pam ... grrr ... if you keep teasing me, bad things are going to happen right here," I told them.

They gave me their best innocent school girl look. I was so going to get into trouble with these two.

"Whatever are you talking about, 'stupid boy'?" Pam asked, giving me a haughty look.

"Well done," I told her. "Pam, I think you and I need to talk, without trouble following you around."

"Who, me?" Tracy asked.

"Yes, you," I said.

"Fine, you two be good," Tracy said as she gave her hips a little extra wiggle.

Pam started laughing at me.

"What?" I complained.

"She has you wrapped around her little finger. What I can't figure out is why you two aren't dating."

"What!" I exclaimed.

"Why aren't you and Tracy dating? From what she tells me, she loves you to death. You seem to like her... A LOT! If only half of what she says is true about your chemistry. I just can't figure out why not."

I could see she was serious.

"Did Tracy tell you that we used to date?"

"I think she mentioned it."

"Did she tell you she dumped me ... twice?"

"I didn't know that. Was it bad?" she asked.

"I think you need to talk to her about it. I do love Tracy, but I doubt we will ever get back together."

"Do you love Peggy?"

"What's with all the questions about my relationships?" I asked.

"I'm just trying to see where I might fit in. I know we don't know each other very well. I also know I have probably gone about getting your attention in the wrong way. You must think I'm a slut."

"I like that you are a little slutty. Don't sell yourself short."

"Would it surprise you to know you took my virginity?"

"I think I would have to call bullshit on that one."

She bit her bottom lip and looked like she was going to cry.

"Pam, did I really?" I asked as she nodded her head. "Oh, baby, I am so sorry."

"Why? It was much better than I was led to believe."

"Because ... if I had known, we would have never done it there, or in that way."

"David, I chose who, when and where. What more can a girl ask for?" she asked.

The bell rang. I felt awful I had taken her virginity in public. I needed to talk to her.

"Are you free, tonight?"

"Sure."

"I have class. How about I pick you up at eight o'clock?"

She kissed my cheek and seemed to skip away.

Paige was waiting for me in the training room.

"How are you doing?"

"I could be better. I have a headache right up from the bottom of my neck. It feels like I have something out of whack. If I could just get it to pop back into place I think I would be better."

Paige had me sit in a chair and ran her thumbs up each side of my vertebrae.

"I want you to slowly move your chin down like you are going to touch your chest. You will feel your muscles stretch. I then want you to slowly swing your chin back and forth like you are touching your shoulders."

I swung my head to the right and then to the left when there was a loud pop. It felt like an electrical charge shot from the top of my spine out through my eyes. Paige held my head in place for a moment and then had me lift my head straight up.

"Now don't move. I need to stabilize your neck."

Paige went and got a neck brace and put it on me.

"Man that feels a lot better. Where did you learn that?" I asked.

"Well ... to be honest, I probably shouldn't have done that. Actually, I know I shouldn't have. I just know it works for me. You might have an injury and I very well may have made it worse," she told me sheepishly.

"Let me guess. I get a half day off to go get my neck checked out?"

"Let me go get Becky and ask," Paige said as she scampered off.

Wolf was getting out of the whirlpool as he eased into the room.

"Did she just break your neck?" he asked with a smirk.

"I hope not. I actually feel much better. Don't tell her, but I think she fixed it."

Paige came back out and got Wolf on the table, to give him a massage. I saw the blue goop and shuddered. Becky came out.

"So your neck made a loud popping noise. Did you feel anything when it happened?"

"Maybe, but I feel great now."

She just shook her head.

I got lucky, and Mom had buyers who bailed on her. She took me to the hospital to see an orthopedist, Dr. Wang. He checked my neck out and ordered an x-ray. While I was waiting, my plastic surgeon saw me in the hall and pulled me into a room to check my chin. She thought it looked great.

When the x-rays were done Dr. Wang asked us into his office.

"It looks like there is some trauma to your C1 and C2 vertebrae," he said pointing to the x-ray. "I recommend you keep the neck brace on to stabilize the area. I would also recommend you use a heating pad on low or heat pack to help circulation. If you feel tense, I want you to get a massage every 4 to 6 hours."

"Can he play football on Saturday?" Mom asked. "I don't want to see him hurt, but he will want to play. If you think it would be better for him to sit out, tell me now, so I can tie him up in his room."

"No, he should be fine. Just don't let them pull your helmet off," Dr. Wang said with a smile.

He gave me a couple of chemical heat packs and showed me how to get them to work. There was a little metal disc you clicked, and it caused a chemical reaction. The pack went from clear to white. The neat thing was they were reusable. All I had to do was boil them for ten or fifteen minutes, and they went back to clear and ready to use, again. He had me put one on my neck, and then put the brace on. It did feel good.

I talked Mom into going across the street to the diner to have a fried chicken lunch. I then got her to split a piece of pie with me. We had a pecan with an oatmeal crust and homemade vanilla ice cream with real vanilla bean chunks in it. Pecan is not my Mom's favorite, but she let me pick. The pie came out hot and the melted ice cream made our day. I had them pack me up a banana cream pie to take with me.

Mom took me back and explained what the doctor said to Paige and Becky. They took me to the office and got me hall passes for the next three days so I could come get a massage if I needed it.

I was in time for the second half of lunch. I sat down at the cheerleaders table and unveiled the pie. They didn't even bother to cut it. I got a scoop and took it over to Yuri. I swear his Mom must not feed him. I think he inhaled it!

At football practice, Coach introduced us to the Mansfield Titans. They had somehow gotten into the championship game. They were one of those teams, who seemed to just hang around, and hang around, and then a miracle would happen and they would suddenly find themselves as winners. They had been underdogs in every game they played.

"Mansfield is a dangerous team! They find ways to win. I expect us to be in for a real dog fight. Don't let them fool you. They have had teams underestimate them all year. On paper we should dominate them; but, I'm telling you, there is something about them that lulls you into a false sense of security."

We watched the games they had played in the playoffs. What became apparent was they played error free ball, and they hustled and got every break. If a ball was on the ground, they fell on it. If you overthrew your receiver, they picked it off. On offense, they fought for every inch. Their running backs weren't especially big, strong or fast. They just never gave up, and always fought for extra yards. You had to play to the whistle on every down.

Where they really excelled was the kicking game. They had a kid who would consistently punt 40+ yards; then we watched as he kicked a 45 yard field goal. Alan told us he had only three returns all year on kickoffs because he normally booted it through the end zone.

It was the hidden yardage of the special teams that could really make a difference in evenly matched teams. We were going to be at a serious disadvantage if we weren't careful. The one bright spot was their kicker seemed to out kick his coverage, sometimes, on punts. Coach Stevens was tasked to find a way to help offset their advantage.

For dinner I had made a crock pot of potato soup. I left some for Mom and Dad, and took the rest to acting class. Everyone was there except Deb, who was upset the last time I saw her. She didn't seem to want to do what it took to be successful. It wasn't like you graduated with a degree in acting and they were lined up to give you a job. You had to work to make things happen, or get a hell of an agent, which wasn't happening for a rookie.

"Where's Deb?" I asked.

"She has dropped this class," Kate told us.

"I got my first modeling job," Cheryl said.

I was surprised that dropping a class was no big deal. I tried to keep up with the conversation.

"That's great, what are you doing?" Terrance asked.

"They thought I would be perfect playing a homeless person. It is an ad campaign for some non-profit."

We all laughed at that. It was soon time for class. I was nervous about today because we were doing a love scene. At one point it said Stryker kissed her passionately.

"David, I'm going to have Terrance and Cheryl run the scene first to give you some ideas," Kate said.

Terrance acting like a leading man was funny. He tried to look all manly and gaze deeply into Cheryl's eyes. He grabbed her and kissed her. I will say Cheryl seemed to be getting into it. She was running her fingers through his kinky black hair.

When Kate called cut, they were both breathing hard. Terrance gave me a smirk that dared me to top his effort. I took off my neck brace and prepared to do the scene. The character of Stryker was supposed to be a fighter. He was brash and full of confidence.

Instead of facing Cheryl I turned to the side and just glanced at her. I slowly smiled and turned as if I was noticing her for the first time. I did a little head motion to indicate I wanted her to come to me. Cheryl blushed and she tentatively started towards me. I turned and put my hand so my fingers held the back of her neck and my thumb could caress her cheek. I looked her in the eyes and then pulled her to me. I tilted her head back and kissed her neck.

"Oh, shit," Cheryl moaned.

I smirked at her, and then kissed her. Cheryl melted into my embrace.

"Cut," Kate called.

I bounced back, smiling. Cheryl was giving me smoldering looks. Uh, oh!

"What worked or didn't work with that scene?" Kate asked us.

"It wasn't long enough," Cheryl suggested.

"You are such a hussy," Terrance admonished her.

She just stuck her tongue out at him.

"The average love scene in a movie is short. They make it up in cuts to speed up the action. From Cheryl's reaction David gave a credible real life performance. The question is ... how would it play to an audience on film?"

"Would his hand be a distraction or a plus depending on camera angle?" Terrance ventured.

"Good. David where was the camera for the scene?" Kate asked.

"I don't know. I guess I should have thought of that," I answered.

"Normally, you would have one behind you to capture Cheryl's expressions. One behind her and one just a little off center facing the two of you," Kate said.

"If that was the case then he was facing the wrong way to start the scene, unless you wanted to see his back," Cheryl said.

We spent the rest of class talking about things like how to tilt your head, and not to lead with your tongue or devour her face. We then watched videos of some terrible on-screen kisses. When Kate pointed out what caused them to look fake or just awkward it was easy to see how to fix them. She then switched to scenes she felt worked.

Then Cheryl and I practiced kissing. What surprised me was Mr. Happy never made his presence known. The desire to be conscious of every detail was enough of a distraction to allow me to remain professional. It seemed to help Cheryl also. By the end of class, I felt I had learned something that would help in both my modeling and the movie.

I was at Pam's front door right at 8:00 o'clock. It's a Midwestern thing. We never want to be late. They lived in one of the new subdivisions and the house was very comparable to the one the Doles lived in. I rang the doorbell, and a stunning woman answered the door. I Imagined Pam, twenty years older, but with a boob job.

"Come in. You must be David. I'm Lacy, Pam's mother," she said as she took hold of my wrist and pulled me into the house.

I was having fantasies of a mother/daughter ... immediately. Then I almost passed out when the blood supply suddenly left the big head. In pranced a slightly older version of Pam in a bikini top, and hip hugger shorts. I must have been standing there with my mouth open because this goddess giggled.

"Cora, this is Pam's boyfriend, David."

Hey, what did she just say? I fought to snap out of my sexual haze. I noticed Lacy was now holding my hand. Cora came up and kissed my cheek causing me to become dazed again. She smiled at my discomfort.

"Hi," Cora said.

That was when Pam came out in a similar outfit as her sister. I made a decision to look into California real estate, if this was how their women dressed. She gave me a sly look and planted a searing kiss on me in front of her Mom and Sister. I gave up and turned control over to the little head. He had been good at my acting class. He needed a little reward. I think cupping Pam's ass might have been a step too far.

"What the fuck!" I heard a male voice say.

I looked up at what must be Pam's Dad. He was six-one and looked to be about 200 lbs. He was in board shorts, and a Hawaiian print shirt. Her dad looked like he had come off the set of those 90's beach shows like Baywatch. The combination of his good looks and Lacy ... they made some gorgeous kids. Pam spun around in my arms and planted her butt right on my hard on.

"Dad, this is David," Pam said.

He smiled at me letting me know he wasn't mad and came up to shake my hand.

"Call me Cal," he said with a firm grip.

"Nice to meet you sir ... Cal," I stumbled.

"It's a school night so why don't you take David to the basement," her Dad suggested.

At this point, I was on autopilot as Pam grabbed my hand, and led me to the basement. I walked down stairs and decided I wanted to be adopted. This was the ultimate Man Cave. It had a huge TV with six additional screens, three on each side. I could imagine watching seven games at once. There was fully stocked wet bar and a poker table. They also had an area with a big sectional couch that looked perfect for making out.

Pam let go of my hand and turned on some music. She got me a Mountain Dew and had me sit on the couch. She sat across from me, and she had a crooked smile on her face like she was up to no good.

"So did you fantasize about taking my virginity all day?"

"All I could think of, was if that was your first time, you would kill me once you figured out what you were doing. I have to say, you scare me a little bit."

"Why is that?"

"I don't think I am ready for you. All I can think of is how hard I would fall. I'm not sure I am ready for the kind of relationship I would want with you."

"What if I told you I was willing to wait? I think you might be worth it."

I groaned. She didn't even know me that well, and she was telling me what I wanted to hear. I wondered if she was doing just that. Just telling me what I wanted to hear, not what she meant.

"Just so I'm clear. You would be happy with a friend with benefits type of arrangement?" I asked

"If there is room for more at some point down the road," she said letting me know she was looking for a relationship. "For now I would like to get to know you better, and see what happens."

I wasn't sure what to think. Pam was sexy, but was I ready for her? Sexy as hell won, without even a fight. I got up and scooped Pam out of her chair and laid her back on the couch. We were making out when I felt like I was being watched. I broke our kiss to see Cora smiling at us. I knew I wasn't ready for both of them at once. Pam gave her sister a questioning look.

"Dad sent me down to make sure you two had your clothes on."

She was enjoying this too much. I jumped up and grabbed her and tossed her on the couch with her sister and then pounced on them. She squealed.

"Your dad didn't say anything about you losing your clothes!" I teased.

She stuck her tongue out at me. Pam and I decided she needed to be tickled. Cora finally admitted defeat. Her shrieks caused Cal to come down stairs to see if I was ravishing his daughters. He went over to the huge TV, and put on Monday Night Football. It looked like our fun was over. Lacy came downstairs with popcorn, and I soon found myself watching the game with the family. The Ravens were playing the Saints.

I was happy to see no one was really interested in the game. Cora was home from college. She was a freshman, and had rushed a sorority. She was telling about all the fun she was having with her new sisters. Pam bragged on me for my modeling, and landing a movie role. That seemed to be a big deal. Some of the kids that went to their old school were making a living doing TV and movies. She then told her sister about being a cheerleader.

I stayed a couple of hours. Pam walked me out.

"When can we go out again?" she asked.

"How about Saturday night? Of course, by then, you might not want to have anything to do with me."

"Why is that?"

"If we lose, it might not be safe to be seen with me in public. The town might want to lynch me."

"I think I'll risk it," Pam said and then closed the door.

Tuesday November 25

I woke up and it was thirty degrees outside. I almost went to the health club to run, but I forced myself to go out into the cold and pound the pavement. Once I got going it felt good, but the first serious taste of winter was in the air. I could see the clouds starting to roll in. It seemed like Thanksgiving week always had a bad storm. I was hoping today wasn't going to be one of those days.

I shortened my run and came home. When I showered I went down to breakfast I was surprised to see Angie there without Greg and Kyle. I could see she was waiting to talk to me, so I acted like it was normal for her to be there, and ignored her.

"Is it supposed to snow today?" I asked.

"I think I heard we were going to get a couple of inches," Dad told me.

"Well, get ready, it's cold out there. I think I want some grits this morning. Anyone want some?" I asked.

"Aren't you going to say good morning to me," Angie complained.

I went over and kissed her cheek.

"Did you finally figure out what a horrible mistake you made marrying my brother, and moved back in?" I asked.

"David Allen Dawson, you watch your mouth," my mother chided me.

"Yes, ma'am, but she didn't answer the question."

"No, I still love him. I need to ask you a favor."

"Ask away sister-in-law of mine."

"I want to bring Mac on vacation with us. There are some family issues, and I think Kyle would do better on the trip with her there."

"What kind of issues?" Mom asked.

"Her mommy and daddy are separating. Mac is spending most of her time with us while they work it out."

"Mom has access to my account. Just have her order another ticket. Speaking of which, did Grandma Dawson decide if she wanted to go?" I asked.

"No, she is going to Florida and staying with one of her friends," Dad filled me in. "I think she likes the idea of being warm."

I got my grits off the stove, and added some shredded cheese and butter. I had also made myself some tea. It was one thing I really enjoyed from my trip to the UK. While I was doing that, Dad went and took his shower. I waited until he left to turn to the two women at the table.

"Okay, what is really going on?" I asked.

"I really did want to take Mac to Utah with us," Angie said.

"Come on. You knew that was not an issue requiring you to drive over here. All you had to do was ask Mom and she would have approved it," I said. "Plus, if you thought Kyle would care, we would have done it for sure. So why are you really here?"

"We wanted to talk to you about Tami," Mom said.

I felt my chest tighten. I was surprised when I felt myself tear up. The emotions were still raw and they came flooding back, unbidden. I had put our lives together on hold in many ways because of the purgatory we had agreed to. I had worked hard to not think of her constantly. That one sentence made me want to curl up in a little ball, and hide from the world.

"Wow," Angie said as she leaned over and wiped a tear from my cheek. "I had no idea how much she means to you."

"David, she has met a guy ... Simon. She... ," Mom started.

I just waved my hands and got up.

"Please. Not right now," I said as I got up and left the kitchen to go to my apartment. "I need to focus on football."

I know it sounded lame, but I couldn't deal with this.

When I walked outside, it had started to snow. I had a feeling we were in for a big storm. The real danger with a storm this time of year was if it warmed up a little, and then the temperature plummeted. When that happened, we could be looking at an ice storm. We were a little too south to really handle an ice storm. The last one we had, we were shut down for days.

Pam and Tracy were waiting for me at the front door. Tracy looked pleased with herself.

"Ladies," I greeted them.

"David," they said in unison and kissed me on each cheek.

They led me inside to get out of the weather. I needed to talk to Pam and get to the bottom of the boyfriend comment.

"Can we talk?"

Tracy got the hint and left us alone.

"Why do your Mom and sister think I'm your boyfriend?" I asked.

"Sorry about that. I have been using you as cover to keep my Mom and sister off my back," she said. She could tell I was not impressed with her answer. She closed her eyes and then sighed.

"Look, my dad took the job here in August with no notice. I left all my friends and my boyfriend in Southern Cal. My sister was a senior last year, and she was very popular. I was popular because of her.

"When I got here, I missed my friends, especially my boyfriend. It turns out he didn't miss me at all. I heard he was dating my best friend the week after I left."

"I'm sorry to hear that. Sounds like you might be better off without him."

"You know, you can be a real jerk sometimes," she huffed.

I thought about what I said and felt bad. I had no idea what kind of guy he was or what their relationship had been. I had no place passing judgment.

"Pam, I'm sorry... ," I started.

"I don't need your pity!" she said with a vehemence that surprised me.

I just raised my hands in surrender.

"Sorry. I guess I'm a little touchy about the subject. Chris and I grew up together. We were next door neighbors. I was surprised when he told me he had feelings for me. I just never thought of him that way. He was always the quiet one of the group, but if you got him started, lookout. He had a killer dry sense of humor. To be honest, the first time he asked me out I thought he was joking.