Chapter 17: Formal

Monday May 5, 2014 – Freshman Year

By the time I made it to school on Monday, there was lots of news. The first was Lindsey's tirade, which blew up on YouTube. My comment about Thank God that date is over was receiving the majority of the comments and Lily told me 90% were in my favor.

The second was my confirmation of Adrienne having my love child. Lily was monitoring my twitter account and I had girls offering to show me the natural way to do it. Adrienne had called me on Sunday and asked if this was revenge for standing me up. I told her karma was a bitch. I guess she was getting hounded by the press. One of the tabloids offered to pay her a fortune for an exclusive baby bump picture.

I got to my locker and Cassidy had a stupid grin on her face. I looked down to make sure my fly was up.

"You're off the hook for Saturday. Wolf and Diane are going out with us. I really like them."

I looked crushed. I was actually doing a little happy dance inside because I had forgotten to tell them I was going to Wesleyan this weekend. I grabbed my books and headed to class. Cassidy looked confused.

By lunch, the rumor mill had spit out that Jim and Cassidy were mad at me. I went through the lunch line and got two to-go lunches. They always had a small supply of bag lunches. Mostly teachers grabbed them and ate in the teacher's lounge. When it got nice out, a lot of kids took advantage. I was meeting Suzanne in one of the tutoring rooms.

I was struggling with my English Composition paper. I was having problems with the story flow. She was going to help me organize it so it made more sense.

"Why are you and Jim fighting?" she asked me.

"I swear this school is a little Peyton Place. Cassidy told me this morning that she and Jim preferred to go out with Wolf and Diane this Saturday. I just acted like my feelings were hurt and went to class. I would actually like to go on dates without doubling. So it really was no big deal. I just acted like my feelings were hurt to yank Cassidy's chain."

"I think I'll have to give my little brother a piece of my mind. It's good for him to squirm a little," she said as she patted my hand. "Then I'll tell him you're okay with it."

I was going to miss Suzanne a lot. She fixed my paper in about five minutes. She pointed out a couple of things that would change it from an A/B paper to a solid A. We talked the rest of the lunch hour. There was only a week until finals. The study groups were hitting it heavy this week. Workouts had been suspended to make sure everyone had plenty of time for study.

After school and working with my study groups, I called Bo Harrington. He had asked me to call him once baseball was over so I could start focusing on football.

"This is Bo."

"Hey, Bo, it's David Dawson. I finished up baseball. You said to call you when I was done."

"Good. Now it's time to get serious about football. I'm going to email you a high protein diet to make you lean and promote muscle growth. I'm also going to send you a list of supplements I want you taking."

"I'm already taking some supplements I got from my nutritionist."

"Good. Send me the list and I'll check it out with my guy. We are going to build you up the right way. Too many kids these days think they need to take shortcuts. All they are doing is messing up their bodies in the long run. I also want you to work with a speed coach. He can make you more explosive and teach you how to run right. Do you have guys you can throw to?"

"Yeah, I'm working out with a group of my teammates."

"Good, share with them the things I'm sending you. We can make them better football players. I want you to start throwing every day. Get out the video on the fundamentals of throwing. Watch the stationary drills. I want you to focus on that this week. If you have another quarterback and two receivers this will work best. Watch it. You'll see what I mean. Call me if you have any questions."

We talked about how he saw my workouts progressing and what he wanted me to accomplish at each of the camps. When we got done, I watched the DVD he had left me. When I saw what he meant by stationary throwing, it was just pitch and catch. The focus was on good technique. Repetition builds muscle memory.

I called Mike, Wolf and Bill and told them what we were doing in the morning and the rest of the week. I also called Coach Hope and sent him what Bo was suggesting for getting ready for the fall. We talked for nearly an hour about how best to implement it into our program for the summer. Our biggest concern was that a high protein diet and the supplements weren't cheap. He wanted to talk to the training staff and get some alternatives plans to fit this into a family budget.

I was of the belief that if you wanted it bad enough you would find a way to get the money. Nothing said a high school kid couldn't get a summer job. Coach couldn't be that blunt with them though.

My next call was to Mary, Tracy's mom. I talked to her about recipes for the high protein diet. She had some ideas on how to poach chicken and turkey breasts, to keep them moist, and give them flavor. Once they were cooked they could be chopped, shredded, or kept whole. She had a bunch of ideas, and promised to send them to me.

I went downstairs and found Mom and Angie in the kitchen. When I explained that I was going on a high protein low carb diet, and that it would get rid of body fat ... Well, the girls loaded me into the car and we went shopping. I had forgotten that women wanted to look their best for an upcoming wedding.

I told Mom to call my gym and get guest passes from my account for her and Angie. They charged me a discounted rate for the guest passes. I suggested that they should do Pilates if they really wanted to get the inches off. I even suggested that Greg and Dad might want to try it. I would just have to be out of the country when they got home. If they could move, they'd kill me.

Saturday May 10, 2014 – Freshman Year

Greg and Mom drove me to Wesleyan. They were going to my Grandma's for the weekend to help her clean out some of Granddad's stuff. He had been a collector. Greg was going to help her put the big stuff on Craig's List and the things that could be shipped on EBay. Mom just wanted to make sure her mother was doing okay.

They dropped me off at the dorm where Tami lived. I made my way up to Tami's room. On the way, I was stopped several times by girls who wanted to chat. They were all excited about the formal tonight.

Wesleyan did things differently than we did for Prom. They had a reception for alumni and VIPs at five o'clock. I imagined that I would see Teddy Wesleyan at that event which would be followed by a sit down dinner. After dinner they would give out awards. Then there would be dancing. This was a black tie event.

Missy and Harper had helped Tami pick out a dress. She was keeping it a big surprise. I was looking forward to seeing my tomboy best friend in a fancy dress. By the time I got to Tami's room, word had gotten to her and my other dates. They were all waiting for me.

It was good to see Tami, Harper and Missy. They each gave me a kiss in greeting. I was surprised when Harper was the spokesperson for the group.

"We're very happy you're here, but you've got to leave. We're going to a day spa to get pampered and ready for tonight. You, my lover, are going to go have lunch and then work out. We have arranged to have you throw that silly football around. Then you'll go to the guy's dorm, and get ready. We'll meet you at the reception at five o'clock."

There was a knock at the door. Tami opened it, I saw Ray, Harper's ex, at the door.

"Hey, Ray, I guess they're kicking me out. You feel like going to lunch?"

He smiled. What teenage boy is going to turn down food?

"You bet."

We walked over to the boy's dorm and I dropped off my bags in his room. I meet his roommate, Lee. I pulled out my tux and shirt, to make sure they weren't wrinkled. Everything looked fine so we went to Ray's favorite Mexican restaurant.

"I was sorry to hear that you and Harper broke up," I said to get any awkwardness out of the way.

"My dad and her mom dated in college. He ended up marrying her best friend."

"Ouch, that had to be uncomfortable."

"Not really. Harper's mom actually set them up. She was the maid of honor at their wedding. So, our families have been close for years. Harper and I grew up a block from each other. No one was surprised when we started dating in junior high.

"Over Christmas break, we were feeling the pressure of our parent's expectations. We sat down and had an honest discussion. We're both looking for the same thing in a significant other ... a guy," Ray said letting that sink in.

"But I thought..."

"Oh, yeah. I like girls, too, but I want to explore this side of me for now. My roommate is actually my date tonight."

"Weren't you and Harper still dating last I saw you?

"Yeah, she said she would date me until I found someone else."

"That must be difficult. Are people giving you a hard time about your choice?"

"No, we haven't made it public. You're actually the only person besides Harper, Missy and Tami that know."

Then it dawned on me why I was taking all three to the formal.

"So, we're going to be your cover for tonight."

He let out a long sigh and smiled. "Yes. That's why Harper had me take you to lunch. She wanted it to come from me. If you're uncomfortable at all, we can do something else. I would consider it a huge favor."

"Who am I to stand in the way of love? Of course I'll help you. You have to promise me something though."

"Of course."

"I was worried that the girls wouldn't get to dance as much as they wanted. I need you and your boyfriend to dance with them."

He laughed at me.

"You do know we're gay, but Lee and I love to dance. We were afraid you were a typical guy and wouldn't want to. Harper told me you are taking a dance class. Lee says he can teach you some moves."

"Careful, there," I said, which got us both laughing.

"I want to thank you for being a good friend to Harper. She had been looking for companionship. It took us awhile to figure out that you were the perfect guy. You don't go here, she likes you as a person, and she is attracted to you. The bonus was that you're not looking for a girlfriend. It took me awhile to talk her into it, but she came home a happy girl," he said with a smirk.

I wasn't about to talk about what happened with Harper when she came to visit. That was between us. If she wanted to share with her best friend that was her decision, but I wasn't going to participate in the sharing.

"So what is the plan for the rest of the day?" I said to change the subject.

"There is a rumor that there is a slight chance that you might consider Wesleyan to play football."

"I would say those chances are almost zero."

He just shrugged.

"Tami said the same thing, but she said that you need to see what is available to you if you decide you might be interested. So I'm to take you to the Fieldhouse to work out. She said you are getting ready for football and didn't want to miss a workout day if you could help it.

"Our coach talked to yours and got permission to include you in some drills his guys are doing off season. So you'll get your throwing in. I'm told that's important," he wrinkled his brow. He was more interested in the arts than he was in sports.

I just smiled at him. It was so like Tami to set something like this up. We had had a talk about not doing this kind of stuff, but this time I was letting it slide because it sounded like a good idea.

"Sounds like you know what's going on. So lead the way."

Wesleyan had a strength and conditioning coach. He had me show him my new routine. Since I wasn't a student, he had to supervise me. He actually spotted me. He showed me some things to improve my technique and a few exercises he suggested I add.

Then we went out on the track and ran. I made the mistake of calling him old and slow. He set a pace that was faster than I normally ran for distance. I noticed a coach on the upper deck started timing us. When we reached a mile he slowed down. I glanced at him and then the other coach.

He smirked.

"I guess you found us out," he looked up in the stands. "What was our time?"

"4:52" responded the stop-watch.

"That's not bad," he told me. "You're just a freshman, right?"

"Yes. I normally run few miles a day, more on weekends."

He took me over to meet the guys I was going to be working out with. I showed them the drills I had been working on this week with Mike, Wolf and Bill. After we were done, they wanted me to throw to them in a game situation. They lined up a receiver and a defensive back.

The defensive back was given a huge advantage. He knew what the throw was going to be, and there was only one receiver. I actually liked this drill. You had to anticipate and throw the ball where only your guy could get it. I was switching off with their quarterback every other play. He went first to show me what they did.

Between turns I noticed more coaches had shown up and were watching from the second level.

Then more guys showed up and we had enough to play a seven-on-seven game. These guys were not going to win many games this coming year. I had never seen so many dropped balls. I had to remind myself this was just for fun.

Around four o'clock, we wrapped it up. I went to the locker room and showered. The guys walked me back to the boy's dorm and I went to Ray and Lee's room. They were smoking pot. I wasn't happy.

"What the fuck? My clothes are going to smell like I just smoked a joint."

They just giggled. I grabbed my clothes and went into the lounge. Sure enough my tux reeked. I called Tami.

"I've got a problem. Ray and Lee were smoking in their room and my tux smells like I have been getting high."

"Hang on," Tami told me.

I could hear her talking to the girls in the background.

Tami came back on the line, "Meet Harper out front. She's taking you to her dry cleaner."

I went downstairs and Harper pulled up. I jumped in and she was in shorts and a t-shirt with full makeup and her hair up. She looked good just like that. She was on the phone telling her dry cleaner what the problem was. She pulled up and I ran in with my tux. I was only four blocks from where we were meeting at five, so I grabbed my bow tie, belt, shoes and socks. I would just walk from there. Harper took off to get dressed.

I ran in and the owner took my clothes and smelled them. He shook his head and took my tux and shirt into the back. I was to meet the girls in thirty minutes. I sat down and waited.

It gave me a chance to reflect on what just happened. I should have just gone to the hotel and gotten dressed there. We had reserved side-by-side rooms for tonight. I could choose to let this ruin my night or not. It would be easy to stay mad about this. I decided to let it go. The girls had spent good money on dresses and getting ready for me. I wasn't going to let this ruin their night.

The owner came out with my pants and shirt.

"Here," he said as he handed them to me. "The dressing room is over there."

I looked at my phone to check the time. I was going to be a few minutes late. I sent Tami a text to let her know. I hurried up and got dressed. I was glad my Dad had worked with me to learn to do the bow tie. When I was done I came out and the owner and his wife were there with my jacket. I put it on.

"How do I look?"

"You look great," his wife told me.

"How much do I owe you?"

"Nothing, Harper put it on her bill."

They gave me a bag for the clothes I wore when I came in. I walked to the hotel and found the concierge. I gave him my bag of clothes and got directions to the ballroom.

The girls found me outside the ballroom. They looked stunning. They all had on the same dress but in different colors. Missy had gone with an emerald green that highlighted her complexion and red hair. Harper had on red, which fit her bold personality. Tami took my breath away in her black dress. I was all smiles which seemed to relax the girls.

"Ladies, you all are a vision of beauty. I'm so honored to be escorting you tonight."

It seemed to be the right thing to say because they all lit up.

"And you clean up pretty good," Harper teased me. "Let's go have fun."

For the reception, they had a quartet playing classical music. Ray and Lee found us and joined our group. No mention was made of earlier. Missy took my arm. I guess she was my date. I excused us and we started to mingle. The first couple we ran into was Mr. and Mrs. Hill.

"You two look fabulous," Mrs. Hill observed.

"Why thank you," Missy answered. "You look lovely..."

The girls started talking fashion. Mr. Hill and I started our own conversation.

"I got a call from Red today. They're running both ads now. They A-B tested them, using both girls and the one with you and Missy is getting a 73% favorable over the other ad. They are phasing their ad out and going to run with yours for the summer," he explained.

"Kendal showed me the numbers. We're already in the black and ahead of what they offered to pay us in a lump sum. I kind of like this royalty check thing. Each month I see a deposit in my account."

"I bet you do. I might have another ad for you. Do you have any problem getting dressed up as a gladiator?"

"Actually that sounds like fun. What's it for?"

"It's a deodorant ad. Kendal sent me your schedule. I'll see where we can work it in. I'm thinking towards the end of summer. We're still in the planning stages. I'll call Kendal and tell her you are on board."

"Perfect."

Missy and Mrs. Hill said their goodbyes. I spotted Cynthia Wesleyan, Jennie's grandmother. I guided Missy to meet her. She was with a distinguished gentleman. While we were making our introductions, Teddy and his date joined us. She looked to be in her early twenties and a little insecure because she was latched onto his arm with a death grip.

"I hear you used our facilities today," Teddy said. "What did you think?"

"I think you have a first class setup," I told him.

"What about the players?" Cynthia's date Mr. Ryan asked.

I looked at Teddy.

"Mr. Ryan is thinking about being our head football coach next year. I had him ready to sign when he saw you throwing. I hated to break it to him that you play for Lincoln and were just visiting," Teddy said as he smiled at me. "Please give him your take on what you saw today."

"I think you need to focus on defense and special teams. You just don't have the talent at the skilled player positions. You'll need to run a ball control offense and, if you could somehow find someone to catch the ball, you might be able to win some games this year."

Teddy and Mr. Ryan were shaking their heads.

"Me and my big mouth," Teddy moaned.

"No, he's spot on. It'll take us a few years to build this program unless we get an influx of talent. I can think of at least one player that might attract that kind of talent..."

"I hope you find him," I said to cut off this conversation. "Teddy, it's always good to see you. Cynthia, I hope you saved me a dance."

"You're sweet, but I think your dance card is already full."

Dinner was announced ... saving me. Missy squeezed my arm as we walked to the dining room.