Chapter 7

Monday Oct 2, 1978

The day Billy been both dreading and excited for had finally arrived. An hour before the digital radio alarm clock went off, he lay there watching the numbers flip as each minute passed by. The digital clocks of this era were simple yet still pretty cool. This one had numbers that flipped over like a rolodex but the LED ones were the newest technology and were fairly new to the market.

All the years of listening to seventies compilations was nothing compared to hearing it first hand for yourself. The number of songs Billy had forgotten about was astounding but there was a certain nostalgic excitement when he heard one played on the radio. Hearing the animated jabbering of the DJ’s when they proclaimed certain songs to become sure classics tickled his fancy. Some were right on the money and others didn’t come anywhere close, but the fun of it all soon went away when he realized there was no one to share it with. At least anyone who knew what he was talking about. Tiffany came bouncing into the room not long after the alarm went off to let him know breakfast was ready. She stopped at the door and turned around.

“Watcha thinking about? Nervous for your first day?”

Billy’s mood brightened when he realized he could talk to Tiffany. “It’s so cool listening to this music everyone considers new. This song being played right now (Bohemian Rhapsody) will be a classic. Kids thirty years from now will have the words memorized and it will even inspire a movie. Too bad Freddy Mercury will die from AIDS in just a little over a decade.”

“AIDS? What is that?”

“It’s a disease that shuts down the immune system and was prevalent among homosexuals ... and yes, he was.”

Tiffany stood there a moment taking it in before replying. “Who else is batting for the same team?”

Billy chuckled at her attempt to lighten to be cool. “There are a few notable people but it’s not my place to divulge such personal information, especially in a time when it might hurt them in the public eye. They will eventually come out when they deem it the right time.”

“I think it’s wise you are considering the ramifications of your words before they are spoken. Make sure it’s a habit you keep because if what you say is true, then you could potentially hurt a lot of people.”

On his way out the door for school, she handed him a lunch along with a kiss on the cheek. His reaction was much like what any other teenage boy would do in the same situation but he tried to control it. Tiffany smiled and said: “That’s for good luck!”. Her morning was going to be spent working out at the country club in an attempt to be serious about playing competitive tennis again. She even hired a coach to get her back into competitive form. It felt good to see her little boy off for his first day of school rather than have one of the staff do it. The feeling was very reminiscence of when Billy was in grade school.

The drive to school was uneventful and Billy parked out in the “South 40” to avoid his car from getting dinged up by careless teenagers who had no sense of their immediate surroundings or didn’t care. The burden of having an adult mind sometimes took the fun out of being a teenager. A few people said hello on his way in but most just gave him funny looks. Tiffany had been able to obtain his schedule ahead of time and walk him through the school so things weren’t completely foreign to him.

Two girls came up and grabbed him by the elbow as he neared the building and steered him towards the student commons area.

“Cindy was wondering where you were, we were sent on a seek and deliver mission so here you go” they said as he was “escorted” towards a table full of well dressed students with Cindy sitting in the middle as if she were holding court. In an act that was overly dramatic, she got up and scurried around the table as if they had never broken up and gave him a quick peck on the lips. It appeared as if she was genuinely glad to see him. What a great acting job he thought to himself.

“Hey babe, glad to see you back at school. I saved a spot for you next to me. Come sit down and tell us all about what you did during your little holiday from school.”

Holiday? He thought to himself. Billy stood there trying not to react to the obvious drama unfolding before his eyes. A quick scan of the area picked up Doortje, Beth and Janneke standing in the distance watching. Janneke had an apprehensive look on her face so she must’ve seen the kiss. Not wanting to be a part of whatever scheme Cindy had concocted, he politely responded.

“I wouldn’t exactly call it a vacation, and if you had made an attempt to contact me every now and then you’d know what I’ve been doing, now if you will please excuse me, I have a few things to do before school starts.”

He disengaged from the group of girls who couldn’t believe what they just heard. Billy called out to the three Dutch girls “Hey Doortje, Jan, wait up!” Cindy gave a subtle nod to a football player who peeled away from the table and blindsided Billy making sure to use a little extra elbow to the ribs. “Oh, sorry man” he exclaimed, “I didn’t see you there” he said while casually walking away. Cindy surreptitiously gave him a thumbs up before turning back to her friends but not before seeing Doortje rush over to help Billy off the ground. In a calculated move, Cindy used the incident as a reason to get up from the table and approached them as if to make sure Billy was OK but used it as a chance to threaten him.

She whispered through gritted teeth at Billy but loud enough for both to hear while acting as if she were trying to help: “Who you hung out with while you were at home is of no consequence to me, but in this school I have the last say so just remember that, or other accidents just might happen. Same goes for your little friends” using her eyes to point at Doortje. Cindy then kissed Billy on the forehead and returned to her coven of sycophants. Doortje stood there seething but wasn’t sure what to do or say so she uncharacteristically returned to her sisters leaving Billy to fend for himself. The first period bell rang as Billy bent over to pick up his belongings. He could no longer see the Dutch girls through the throng of students so he headed into the building by himself. He had no intention of hanging out with Cindy and made a mental note to be more aware of his surroundings to avoid similar incidents in the future. He did not notice a tall blonde Norwegian girl standing off in the distance just off school grounds with her fists in a ball.

Billy made it a point to listen extra carefully during roll call in an effort to learn names and faces because for some reason he felt pressure to know everyone’s name as if he were the original Billy. Knowing names wasn’t enough since he had no idea of who he should and shouldn’t know. Carl happened to be in his third period class so he made an effort to flag him down after class to say hello. At first Carl was very cool towards Billy but finally agreed to made plans to talk during lunch. Doortje was in his next class where he teased her about abandoning him in his time of need which caused her to feel worse than she already did. A quick comparison of schedules showed they didn’t share the same lunch, but they’d be able to meet up after school. The teacher brought the class to order which ended their conversation.

————————— When lunch finally rolled around, Billy was one of the first people through the cafeteria and out into grassy common area where most of the kids sat when it wasn’t too hot outside. A small group of palm trees swayed gently in the breeze providing shade to a few tables in the middle. He chose an inconspicuous spot on the outskirts of the area in hopes of avoiding Cindy and her friends. Human nature dictated it was most likely Cindy and her group that would be in the coveted shady area in the middle. It wasn’t long before Janneke showed up and timidly approached him.

“Hey Cowboy, this seat taken?” she said with fake confidence trying to smile big. Billy chuckled at how cute she was.

“Howdy, partner!” he responded with a very bad John Wayne imitation and a tip of an imaginary cowboy hat. “Why don’t you just mosey on up, strap on the feed bag and have at it?”

A look of confusion came over her face as she tried to process what she’d just heard. “Well...” She stammered, “OK” as she put her tray down next to Billy and took a seat. His big goofy grin made her laugh which helped break the ice. Janneke looked at his tray and asked “Didn’t I see you bringing a lunch this morning?”

“I did. Us growing boys need lots of nourishment. All the physical therapy has my metabolism off the charts.”

“Your metabo-what?”

Billy laughed. “Never-mind, don’t worry about it. I’m hungry all the time.”

“Oh.”

After swallowing a bite of enchilada, Billy said “That was my John Wayne impression in case you’re wondering. And yes, it was bad. You don’t have to let me know. So, how has your day been?”

Janneke smiled and took a sip of tea. “It’s looking up” she responded and gave him an unintentionally sexy grin. She was studying him closely without appearing to be. He was much cuter than she remembered, but nobody looks their best when they’re laid up in a hospital. “I saw you had a run-in with Cindy this morning, I hope all is well? Doortje told me what she said. I can’t believe someone could be so mean.”

“She expected me to jump at her command and I refused. She’s a despicable person and I have no desire to hang out with her but I will be cordial and try to keep the peace since she can make life rough.”

“That’s very mature of you to do that” she said while popping a Cheeto into her mouth. “I’ve been knocked on my kooster once or twice, from her friends, too”

“Kooster?” he responded quizzically. After a moment it hit him, “Oh, you mean keister” Billy said as he started laughing. He quickly realized she might be thinking he was laughing at her and said “I’m not laughing at you, I think it’s cute. I realize English isn’t your first language so it’s no big deal, just makes you a little bit cuter, that’s all.”

“You think I’m cute?” she responded as she sat a little more upright in her chair.

Billy nearly choked when he realized those words came out a little too effortlessly. “Uh yeah. I hope you don’t mind, but I think you’re one of the cutest girls in school if not the cutest.”

Janneke began blushing. “Cuter than Cindy?”