Chapter 7: Senior

Five weeks later, it was time for Danny to saddle up and drive up to Triple-P for his last hurrah. With Ashley’s okay, Lynn had given him a torrid good-bye night and he felt wrung out. This time, he could check back in quickly and move to the senior wing. He roomed with Jimmy Crenshaw, a quiet studious kid who had been sent to Triple-P to be out of his mother’s way.

Danny planned to finish his applications for several colleges, Penn being his true wish. They had an excellent undergraduate science program and Danny did not want to move too far away from his new family. He would take ACT and SAT again in the fall and hopefully improve his score. Danny knew that Tyler Westbrook would bankroll his education, but he nevertheless aimed at achieving the best possible grades and scores.

Danny continued to keep outside the cliques in the senior class. He helped people when asked, but for the most part he was happy if he was left alone. Some people still ran their mouth on Danny and he thought it best to ignore them.

Two weeks after the start of school, the social order at Triple-P was upset when a new student checked in. Grant Taylor was a certified celebrity. At 17 years of age, he had played in four major movie productions and had several guest appearances in crime shows and sitcoms under his belt. After three arrests for underage drinking, his father had relocated to the East Coast and enrolled him as a sophomore at Triple-P. He immediately became the focal point of the school’s limited social life. His coterie of weak-kneed girls followed him everywhere and caused the gender separation rules to be enforced rigorously by the teachers. Even some of the male students followed him around, no doubt hoping for his leftovers.

He was handsome in a brooding way and he acted cool and unapproachable. He behaved aloof to other guys and possessive of the members of his harem. Danny just watched the spectacle and grinned, even when he saw Helen hanging with Taylor’s fan club. He had the weekends to look forward to when he would drive the forty miles into Philadelphia to stay with the Westbrooks. He also saw Lynn who would take excellent care of his physical needs.

In general, he was good about buying whatever people needed and bringing it back to school, so he usually had a shopping list of some twenty items. He was not too surprised therefore when Taylor approached him on a Friday at lunch with three girls in tow, Helen among them. He nodded to her, but then Taylor stepped close to Danny’s table.

“You must be Westbrook?” he inquired a touch condescendingly, causing Danny to respond in kind.

“Yeah, and you must be the FNG,” he nodded, causing Taylor’s girls to gasp collectively over the effrontery to their idol.

Taylor’s eyes narrowed. “A smart ass. Well, here’s my list.”

Danny looked at it and shook his head. The list had at least thirty items, including booze and condoms.

“Get it yourself,” he said and pushed the list back.

“Are you stupid? I can’t get out of here.”

Danny shrugged. “I can, but trying to smuggle this shit in will cost me my weekend passes. They can check my car at the gate when I come back. Besides, I bring back stuff for my friends here. You’re not my friend.”

“Who is this asshole?” Taylor asked his followers.

Danny could see Helen biting her lower lip, but Charlotte Konig had no compunctions. “He’s the bastard son of some rich guy in Philly. His mother’s a porn bimbo.”

Danny kept his face in check, but Taylor grinned maliciously.

“The son of a whore! Isn’t that sweet?”

Danny made himself shrug. “You’re still not my friend.”

“Somebody has to teach you manners!”

Danny developed a genuine grin. “That’s been tried. Ask Helen how it worked out.”

Taylor turned to Helen and she blushed. “Danny and I didn’t get along, and Tom wanted to teach him manners. He missed two months of school and wasn’t back until the new school year.”

Wrapping his arm around Helen’s shoulders, Taylor squinted at Danny. “You’ve been insolent to my girl?”

Danny shook his head. He had no desire to aggravate the situation.

“Look, Newbie. I don’t give a shit about you or the lousy movies you played in. I don’t give a shit about your ego and your need to prance around with an airhead on each arm. Basically, I don’t give a shit. Just stay away from me and I’ll leave you and your bimbettes alone. There are more guys than just me who have weekend passes and some of them might just be eager to help you out.”

Helen had flinched and she gave Danny an angry stare.

“You enjoy being rude to people? I don’t think I want to be your friend anymore.”

Danny looked back at her and a part of him wanted to apologize to her, but another part wanted to lash out for her perceived betrayal.

“Am I cramping your style by not buying condoms for Taylor? Try the Rhythm Method.”

She flushed pink and turned on her heel while Taylor tried to bluster.

“You really need a lesson, you bastard!”

Danny shrugged. “Yeah, yeah, knock yourself out. But guess what — even if you have somebody jump me, you’ll still be locked in this place where I’ll find you. Now be a nice boy and shove off.”

“Bastard!”

“God, that’s all you have? You’re boring. Just go!”

Taylor stood undecided for a second before he turned and shoved off. To Danny’s surprise, a number of fellow seniors stood behind him, including Tom Burton. Tom and Danny had an uneasy relationship after their run-in, but now Tom shook his head.

“That prick!” he snarled. “Who the hell does he think he is?”

“He just never heard the word no in his life and he can’t deal with it,” Danny shrugged.

“Did you see Helen? How she’s following him? Fuck! I thought she was something better.”

“Helen’s a user,” Danny agreed a little sadly. “She’ll treat you nicely for as long as you’re useful. Something better comes along and you’re history.”

“I shoulda listened to you, man.”

Danny nodded. “You should’ve, but she’s damn pretty and she knows how to bat her eyelashes for effect. Peace?”

Tom thought about the offer and then nodded with a grin. “Peace. I guess it’s healthier for me.”

“I hated to do it, man,” Danny offered.

“And I hated you doing it,” Tom answered unconsciously touching his nose.

“You need stuff from the Free World?” Danny asked pointedly.

“I dunno. Can you get your hands on a Hustler copy?”

Danny shrugged. “No promise, but I’ll try.”

The last weeks before Christmas passed quickly, and then it was time for Danny to load his gear into the Mini for the Holidays. The car was not exactly made for transporting luggage, but Danny had to make three trips anyway to fill it up with his stuff.

He arrived with the third and final load to find the Gundersons standing behind his car, ready to stow their daughter and her gear into their Lexus.

“If it isn’t young Mr. Westbrook!” Mrs. Gunderson gushed as if he was a long lost relative. “Have you had a nice school year so far?”

Danny dropped his bags on the ground and answered politely.

“I’m doing great. Still, it’s good to spend the Holidays away from this place.”

“Are you going to Philadelphia too?” she wanted to know.

Danny shook his head. “No, Ma’am. I’m heading straight for North Carolina. We have a beach house near Kitty Hawk where we’ll spend Christmas.”

He felt somebody approaching from behind and guessed it to be Helen. He was right.

“Helen, dear! Did you know that Daniel’s family has a beach house on the Outer Banks? It must be lovely there.”

Danny turned and as expected, Helen looked daggers at him.

“Hey, Helen. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy new Year!”

“The same to you,” she forced herself to say. “No, Mother. I had no idea. Danny isn’t the type trying to impress girls.”

“And Gunderson takes the lead with a wicked backhand!” Danny shot back. Not to be outdone, he followed up. “I heard that Helen’s brother is quite the hopeful at Marshall. He’ll come out big there, no doubt!”

Mrs. Gunderson was almost simpering now and her husband grew at least two inches.

“Won’t he? We’re so proud of him! To think that he made the varsity team as a freshman! Of course, he’s been paying his dues on the bench last year, but this year he’s started a few games already!”

“The boy is going places. Mark my words!” Mr. Gunderson affirmed. “And you? Still excelling academically? You look a bit buff too. Are you into any sports?”

“I’m on the boxing squad. It keeps me healthy.” Danny added another hidden barb. “It’s a pity I never had the chance to play football. I love to watch it though.”

“Oh, nothing to say against an interesting fight either!” Mr. Gunderson beamed. “Drive carefully, son! That’s a hot little car you have.”

“I like it, Sir. You want to take it for a spin around the parking lot? The principal doesn’t mind.”

“Really? Could I? Maggie? You’re up to it?”

Mrs. Gunderson was actually blushing. “Why, I’d love to!”

A minute later, Danny was standing beside a fuming Helen while her father crept away in first gear.

“You prick! You’re doing this on purpose!”

“It’s just my ingrained politeness.”

“You asshole!”

“Come on! I was only being friendly and expressing an interest in your family.”

“Fuck you!”

“What a potty mouth,” Danny chided. “Do you suck Taylor’s dick with that?”

For a moment he thought she’d attack him, but then she just shrugged.

“Yeah, sure, that’s how you peg me. The blonde bimbette. You know what? For a guy who got razzed all his life, you certainly are one bigoted son of a bitch.”

Late December is not the nicest time of the year on the Outer Banks, but it was warm compared with Pennsylvania. The Westbrooks had a quiet Christmas. The Westbrooks’ housekeeper had not come along, meaning that the family had to cook and clean by themselves. It soon showed that apart from Marsha, Danny was the only family member with a clue about cooking.

Over the years, Irina had parked Danny with a variety of neighbors. One in particular, Mrs. Colombo, had found an eager student in Danny, and she had taught him the intricacies of Italian everyday cooking. Mr. Perez, an elderly retired electrician who collected his fees with Irina every first Sunday of the month, had not only taught Danny proper wiring procedures but also fine Mexican cooking.

From Marsha, David now learned the secrets of roasting a Christmas goose. That was new to him since he and Irina had never really celebrated Christmas. He knew how to make dumplings though, and that made him the new sous-chef at the Maison Westbrook.

The Christmas dinner was a great success. Everybody praised Marsha’s cooking, but Danny got recognition too. Over the next days, while he dazzled the family with traditional Italian and Mexican dishes, Danny marveled how comfortable he had become with his new family. He was not self-conscious anymore when Ashley plopped down on a sofa next to him and snuggled against him, which she liked to do claiming she’d always wanted a big brother.

Lynn would then plop down on his other side, maintaining the legend that she was Danny’s on-and-off girlfriend. Ashley was still unsure of her own orientation, or rather of whether she should leave the closet, and Danny did not mind the little charade. There were worse things than having Lynn snuggling up.

All things considered, they had a great ten days. The two men then had the next important task by setting up the fireworks for the New Year’s night. Tyler Westbrook seemed to like things that go “boom!”, and he took the lead. Danny secretly shook his head seeing how much money went up in smoke, but then again, he had great fun. Ashley gave him a full lip-on-lip kiss when the New Year started, and Lynn topped that easily. Marsha did not begrudge him a light kiss either. The New Year looked promising to Danny.

They slept in on January 1, but around ten o’clock, Tyler Westbrook found Danny and Marsha in the kitchen.

“We just received an invitation from Mr. and Mrs. Gunderson. Do you know them, Danny?”

Danny almost shot orange juice through his nose.

“Yes, they’re the parents of a classmate, Helen. I met them twice, once when they dropped off Helen at the start of junior year, and then when they picked her up before Christmas. They invited us?”

“Yes. It’s a dinner invitation for the day after tomorrow. Are you and ... Helen ... an item?”

Danny had to laugh. “No, not at all. Rather the opposite. I schmoozed up to the Gundersons because I thought it would p ... irk Helen.”

“You can say “piss off” when we’re alone,” Tyler grinned. “Well, it seems your prank is biting you in the ass now. What do you know about them?”

“He’s a bit of a bible thumper, and he’s the vice president of a pharmaceutical company. Mrs. Gunderson became my fan as soon as she learned of my new last name. Helen is ... difficult to describe. She’s at Triple-P ‘cause she was picked up drunk by the cops. Sometimes she’s really cool and nice, but then she can be an airhead and a bimbo. I think she doesn’t have it easy with her parents. They have this super athlete son. He’s a sophomore playing football at Marshall as a running back and he’s supposed to be the coming sensation.”

“Uh-oh! I smell a rat!” Marsha stated. “This isn’t about Danny.”

“Huh?” two male voices asked in unison.

“Think! They have a star athlete son and we have a daughter.”

“Gold-digging attempt?”

“Likely. Maybe I’m wrong and they want to foist their brat on Danny, or maybe both? What are we going to do?”

“It’s a free meal. We’d be stupid to refuse,” Tyler grinned. “Bible thumpers?”

“That’s what Helen told me in one of her sociable moments.”

“Well, let’s see how it goes. By the way — is she pretty?”

“Who?”

“Helen.”

Danny nodded solemnly. “Yes, very. Scratch that. She’s gorgeous.”

“Uh-oh!” Marsha laughed. “A match for Caitlyn?”

“I’m claiming 5th Amendment rights,” Danny grinned.

The Gundersons had a rather impressive home in the suburbs. It was not really in a posh neighborhood, but it sat on two lots. The design left a few things to desire Marsha commented, such as taste. It was a mishmash of styles, with pseudo-classic dominating.

The Westbrooks arrived in Tyler’s limousine, with a professional driver at the wheel. Danny had wanted to drive up with his Mini, but his father had nixed the idea. They would arrive and leave together.

The Gundersons were decked out in their finest Danny suspected. The parents received the Westbrooks on their front porch and Danny had to do the honors. Mrs. Gunderson gave Ashley a more than cursory look, confirming Marsha’s suspicions regarding the purpose of this invitation. Then they all went inside where they found a muscular young man in a slightly too tight jacket, his bulging neck a challenge for the top shirt button under a polka dot tie.

“My son Earl,” Mrs. Gunderson stated proudly. “He has to drive back down to Marshall tomorrow.”

The Westbrooks mumbled some words in greeting. Then somebody came down the stairs, her heels clicking on the fake marble steps. It was Helen and she was dressed to the nines. The simple black dress left no doubt about her figure and her blonde mane had been brushed into a golden cascade. She would have looked stunning but for her look of barely disguised anger.

She pasted a forced smile on her face as she was introduced to the older Westbrooks and to Ashley. Danny was last.

“Hey, Helen. You look like a million bucks,” Danny said easily, trying to avoid any confrontation.

“Don’t I?” she smirked. “I guess that’s the point,” she added bitingly.

“Helen!” her mother instantly cautioned her.

“Yes, doesn’t she look gorgeous?” Mr. Gunderson beamed taking Danny’s hand. “We have seated you together. After all, you are classmates, aren’t you? I guess that leaves young Miss Westbrook to sit with Earl.”

Danny caught Marsha’s wink and had to suppress a grin. Ashley just nodded with an enigmatic smile on her lips. They all moved to the living room. Mr. Gunderson had a Champagne bottle in a cooler and the adults sipped dutifully while their offspring had orange juice which Helen had to serve.

They were a few steps away from the parents, and Helen stepped close to Danny.

“You ass! That’s what you get for sucking up to them.”

Danny shrugged. “What’s wrong with a free dinner? How was Christmas?”

“If you need to ask, horrible! I’m almost looking forward to school.”

“You certainly don’t look and sound like Miss Sunshine. What’s eating you?”

“This shindig is! For three days I was the kitchen help while Mr. Running Back played Warcraft in his room. I will also be my politest tonight, because I know what’s good for me.”

Danny’s grin widened. “Do I have to propose tonight, or can I wait until we’re 18?”

“Caught on to that?” she whispered. “Well, that’s not all she wrote.”

“Your brother and Ash, huh?”

This time, Helen looked at Danny almost with respect. “Wow! You got that one too. Why’d you come anyway?”

“Dad said it’s a free dinner, and Marsha said it’s a once-in-a-lifetime chance to unload Ash.”

A fist hit his shoulder blade. “Hey! I heard that!” Ashley hissed.

Earl was busy setting up the DVD recorder and Helen giggled.

“He’s showing the last quarter from the Kent State game. Nudge me when I’ll snore.”

“Seen it before?”

“Unh, only like half a dozen times?”

Ashley was standing close and she giggled. “Is he for real?”

“I suppose you got a full dose of my brother?” Helen smirked.

“Oh yeah. I never heard that many first-person pronouns in five minutes before.”

“Oh, that was just his warm-up routine. He can do much better.”

“Ugh! Shoot me now!” Ashley laughed.

Mr. Gunderson cleared his throat. “We have some entertainment prepared for you. These last weeks, Earl had some playing time playing in Marshall’s varsity team, and we prepared a little compilation.”

“Mom, I’ve seen it already. Do you want me to do something in the kitchen?” Helen offered.

“Why yes, dear! Can you slice the sweet melons?”

“Yes, Mom. Ashley, want to come with me? I’d like to continue our conversation.”

Ashley grinned. “If you don’t mind. I can help.”

“Great. Let’s!” Helen exclaimed, and when nobody looked she stuck out her tongue at Danny who had to sit in an upholstered chair and watch Earl’s greatest hits. He shrugged. At least two innocents had made it to safety.

A few minutes later, Danny discovered that his father had a very wicked sense of humor and that Marsha was just as bad. Not only did they “ooh” and “aah” at Earl’s exploits in a meaningless fourth quarter, they even made him jump back to replay some of them, all the while faking sincere interest.

Finally, it was time to sit at the dinner table for the first course, honey melon wedges and finely sliced prosciutto. For the main course they had veal medallions in a lemon and pepper sauce. It was not too bad in Danny’s opinion, but the dessert was. Poire Belle Helene they called it, but it was canned pears with some squeeze bottle chocolate sauce squirted on top. The Westbrooks had to grin and bear it.

After dinner, Danny and his father had to sit with the male side of the Gundersons plus Marsha while the rest of the females were busy clearing away dishes and leftovers. Danny’s offer to help had been nixed by Mrs. Gunderson and he had to sit through Mr. Gunderson’s interrogation. Once, Helen entered the living room under the pretense of refilling the snacks and shot Danny a mocking grin.