Chapter 7: Superman and Wonder Woman

I continued my job at the works and maintenance yard during the summer and on weekends throughout the school year. I dated a few girls, but never made a connection with any of them. I don't know how to describe it, but certain girls just click with me. They either have it or they don't. Most, it seems, don't have that special something. It wasn't about beauty, either. Heck, Sym wasn't the prettiest girl on campus. A lot of guys would tell you she was a "Plain Jane." But to me, she had that something that set her apart from the others. I was pretty sure I wouldn't settle for less now that I knew the difference. Sym did write regularly and I tried to respond to each letter. I think I did pretty well at staying even on letters.

At the beginning of my third year in college, I met another girl that had "it." I had been using the student fitness centre regularly, stopping in each morning before class. If I got up by six, I could have breakfast, drive to the campus and hit the exercise equipment for forty-five minutes or so, then shower and head to class. It was a routine I followed each weekday and I was maintaining my fitness and muscle tone after another summer of strenuous manual labour.

Now, I'm not the most observant guy, so you'll understand that it took me a while to recognize that I was often seeing a striking young lady in my fitness class each morning. Not only that, it seemed she was always nearby. If I was on the exercise bike, she would usually be on one beside me. If I was running on a treadmill, it wouldn't surprise me to see her running beside me. When I was on the abdominal press, she was pulling cable weights on the station facing me.

When it finally dawned on me that this wasn't coincidental, I decided to talk to her. I was cooling down after a good cardio workout on the bike, and as usual, she was on the bike beside me. I turned to her.

"Hi ... we seem to be on the same equipment quite often. I'm Ian Dunlop," I said as I towelled my face and took a drink from my water bottle.

"Hi, Ian. I'm Michelle Petrovic. My friends call me Shelly," she said in a nice warm voice.

Now this girl was hot, to put it mildly. I guessed that she was at least the same height as I was. Her build was athletic, but she still had all the feminine curves that any woman could wish for. She had long black hair that she tied up in some kind of a bun on top of her head when she was working out. But it was her face and complexion that really got my attention.

She had an almost Mediterranean cast to her skin, with deep brown eyes and full lips. Her face was long and fairly narrow, and it was striking. When she smiled, she really dazzled me, her brilliant white teeth showing to their advantage. In short, she was sexy as hell and yet didn't try and flaunt it. She might have been a model with her looks. The question was, what she was doing following me around in the fitness centre?

I was waiting for a response to my comment about her often being nearby, but that's not what I got. Instead, "I know you were going out with Symphony Broadhurst, but I also know she's moved away. Anyone taken her place?"

I shook my head, smiling at her. "Nope, not yet."

I will say this for her. She took the direct approach and didn't try to hide her intent.

"Good. Mind if I get in line?"

"As far as I know, there is no line," I said, swinging off the bike and leaning against it as we talked.

"Oh, there's a line alright. I used to hang out with Sym before she discovered you. You really surprised us being with her. She's a really interesting person, but not what I'd call really beautiful. But you seemed to have eyes only for her, so that said a lot about both you and Sym."

I didn't know how to respond to that.

"Cat got your tongue," she teased.

"Sym was something special to me," I said at length. "She was more than what she looked like on the outside."

"I know. I thought so too. I think that's what impressed me about you. There are lots of pretty boys on campus, but most of them are shallow and too busy admiring themselves. You aren't anything like that. That's why you stand out. That's why there's a line up," she said with a dazzling smile.

"That's nice of you to say," I replied to her compliment.

"Sym said you were a hero when I asked her about you. She said you solved a huge problem for her when she was about to be homeless. I tell you, Ian, her parents are really weird."

"I got that impression. I also got the impression that Sym wasn't too close to them. My parents took her in and treated her like a daughter. She was really grateful for that. I think it might have been the first time that any adult had given her that sense of security."

Shelly nodded agreement. "No doubt, and maybe love too. There were times when I thought Sym might have been a foster kid, but that wasn't the case. Anyway, you made a huge impression on her and I don't think she'll forget about you any time soon."

"Same here. We write to each other about once a month."

"Would you be interested in going to a dance with me?" she asked after a pause.

"I ... I don't know. Which dance?"

"The Halloween Charity Ball at the Duff Patullo Center. It's on Saturday, the 25^th. It's also a costume ball," she said tentatively, probably wondering if that would put me off.

"Costume, huh! Well, if I got to go with a beautiful young lady like you, I'd better get a pretty good outfit," I grinned. "What are you planning on wearing?"

"Oh ... so ... you'll go ... with me?" She seemed quite surprised that I would agree that easily. Perhaps she didn't realize just how attractive she was, but I doubted that.

"Yes, of course with you. But, we need to think of a proper costume for ourselves. They should be complementary too."

"Okay ... that's great," she said with an ever bigger smile. "My dad works at the movie studio and he knows the best place for costumes."

"Even better," I smiled. "Nothing worse than a ratty looking costume. So, now all we have to do is decide who we'll go dressed as."

"Uhhm ... I have a suggestion," she said nervously.

"Okay, shoot."

"What about Superman and Lois Lane?"

I was shaking my head. "Oh no. You're not going to get away that easily," I grinned. "There's only one female superhero that fits your description and it's Wonder Woman. If I'm going to dress up in tights with a cape and look silly, then I expect you to be my partner in crime fighting. The legendary Wonder Woman was at least your height and had long, raven black hair, just like you do. I can't think of a sexier costume that would be more suitable than her's. Look up her image in the library."

"Oh. You don't think it will be too risqué, do you?"

"There's no such thing as too risqué at a college costume party. If you haven't been to one before, be prepared to be shocked. I guarantee you some young female will come as Lady Godiva. It happens every year and every year it gets a little raunchier."

"You're kidding!" She looked genuinely shocked.

"Not a bit. Just ask anyone about last year. I'm surprised she didn't catch a cold. However, you won't have that problem with your costume. You will be dressed in red, white, and blue. You'd better go to the library and look up some references. So ... there's your challenge."

"You're not trying to trick me, are you?" she asked with a worried frown.

"Nope. No tricks. The costume is well known and appeared in movies suitable for kids. Since you wanted to be first in line, we have plenty of time to get the costumes. You are definitely one very sexy young lady and I think your costume is going to show everyone just how sexy you really are."

I don't think she was prepared for just how direct and forceful I was. It was a risky move for me to make, but she was the one who wanted to date me, so what did I have to lose. Besides, I was already fantasizing what she would look like in the costume. I had a feeling that she was going to be the hit of the party.

Shelly continued to show up at my morning workouts and we followed our usual routine almost in unison. At the end of the week, she was waiting for me when I came out of my economics class.

"Hi, Ian. I looked up Wonder Woman and found a couple of magazines that showed the actress Linda Carter in the costume. It's pretty skimpy, but I guess it's okay. I doubt anyone else will choose that character."

"I hope some do. You'll knock them dead," I grinned. "I bet they have a best costume prize. Most of these dances do."

She smiled and chuckled. "You're really getting into this, aren't you? I thought I'd have a hard time convincing you to go with me and wear a costume."

I shook my head. "Why would I turn down a date with a dark-haired beauty like you? If I have to make myself look foolish to get an invitation to be with you, I'll do it."

That seemed to surprise her even more. The fact was, I was being truthful. In my opinion, she was by far the most attractive co-ed on campus. I'm sure that opinion was shared by a large percentage of the male student body.

"So, tell me about yourself, Shelly. What year are you in? What's your major?"

"I'm in third year, studying kinesiology. I started out thinking about sports medicine, but got interested in massage therapy, rehabilitation from injury and surgery, biomechanics, and orthopaedics. It's a very big and varied field."

"Wow! That sounds like you're studying medicine."

"Yes, and it's just as tough. Sym and I met because we both won scholarships in our high school. She was very smart and very driven. I suppose you found that out."

"I did. She hadn't made up her mind just what career path she wanted until recently. Now she's aiming for a job with the federal government. Her focus is on political science. But, she found time for us to enjoy each other's company. We'd go to art exhibits and museums and live theatre, so she wasn't just a bookworm."

"What about you, Ian? What's your major?"

"Right now, it's a combination of business management and operational engineering. I have a position available to me with City Works when I graduate. I know how the department operates and I've been given the opportunity to move around in the yard on different aspects of city maintenance. The big part of the job is anticipating problems, usually due to weather situations, and organizing the workforce to be as effective and efficient as possible. With as many people as there are in this city, and as big as it is, it's no small task."

"So you even have an employer to go with your career," she smiled.

"Yes. I know the people there and they are dedicated professionals. I don't have any doubts about continuing to work there."

"When did you decide that was what you were going to do?"

"This past summer. I've had a number of discussions with my boss and he's convinced me that I can have a very good career there if I want it. I may never get rich, but I don't think that's the main objective anyway. At least, not for me. I want a meaningful job and some sense of accomplishment. I think this gives me the best opportunity to achieve that."

"Good for you, Ian. It's good to know what you want from your working life. That's what got me into kinesiology. I want to help people and I think this is the best route for me. I'm not cut out for medical school."

"There you go," I smiled. "Your future sounds pretty bright, but it doesn't sound easy. You've got a lot of work ahead of you."

"I know, but I'm not concerned that I won't graduate next year. I'm taking some other courses too in order to round out my education. As you can tell, though, I'm into fitness. If I'm going to get involved in my field of interest, I'd better make it look like I take care of my body."

I chuckled at that. "I don't think you have the slightest worry about sending that message."

We chatted for a bit longer. We had no courses in common, so our only meeting place was here in the fitness centre. Shelly commuted from home, joining a car pool each year. It had worked well for her in the first two years and she continued on with it in third year. Their group hated the rush hour traffic, but since it was a once-a-week for each driver, they were able to tolerate it.

I was getting very positive vibes from Shelly. She was interested in me and I was interested in her. I hoped this would amount to something. She certainly wasn't some superficial bubblehead. She had a brain and she was using it to move toward a goal. I hoped she would achieve her aims.

"You're sneaky," Shelly told me the next Monday morning. "That costume is really going to be a challenge for me."

"How so?" I wondered.

"The top is not much more than a shelf for my breasts, and the bottom is like skin-tight panties."

"Oh," I chuckled. "But don't forget the tiara and the wrist guards. If anyone gets too frisky, you can bonk them with the wrist things and stab them with the top of the tiara."

"Very funny," she said with a disgusted look. "You knew what that costume was like, didn't you."

"I had some vague childhood memories of it, yes. But you'll have to remember, at that age, I didn't focus on breasts. Mostly it was about the bullet proof wrist thingies and her magic lariat. I really wanted one of those."

"You lie!" she said, trying hard to show disgust before she broke down and laughed.

"Are you suggesting you are not willing to go through with our date?" I asked with an air of disapproval.

She didn't answer. In fact, she wasn't looking at me for a few moments ... until ... she turned and I could see she was fighting to keep from laughing again.