Chapter 13

(Fifteen years earlier)

Life was good for Dex. When things are going so well, why can't they stay that way?

When Dex first started accompanying Jenny and Chris to the Emporium, he spent a lot of his time watching the crowd while Jenny sang. After a few nights, though, it became too hard on him to see all the obvious examples of men he thought were mistreating their women. Of course, there were no overt physical acts among the crowd, but he was so sensitized that even common rude or inconsiderate behavior bothered him. The Emporium was not known as a place for heavy drinkers, but very few men's treatment of their women improved with any alcohol intake.

The past nearly year and a half had brought Dex very close with five women. His extremely strong protective feelings toward them spilled over to females in general. These feelings led to his only real problem at school. The high school was large, and contained a diverse demographic mix. Excessively macho behavior, however, seemed evenly distributed across the economic and racial mix.

Frequently, during routine moving about the school, Dex would encounter boys abusing their girlfriends verbally, often as a show in front of their buddies. On very rare occasions, Dex would see a boy manhandling or even striking a girl. Psychologically, he was unequipped to ignore these occurrences. Physically, he was more than equipped to deal with them. His martial arts training strongly emphasized defusing situations, and using force only when unavoidable. Thus, on several occasions, he intervened and talked down the boys. Given his size and demeanor, this was all it took.

One day, walking to lunch with Bitsy from the farthest wing of the school, Dex turned a corner just in time to see a nasty confrontation. Four biker wannabees were watching as another of their group kicked a girl lying on the ground, her face already bleeding. Dex was there in a second, using a painful bent-finger hold to force the boy back from the girl. He knelt next to the girl, still facing the attacker. As he started to speak to her, the boy pulled a knife, bringing gasps and a scream from the six or seven onlookers.

Dex was on his feet in a flash. His leg swung, knocking the knife into the air before the boy had it completely in position for an attack. Dex turned to the four companions, and said, "Pick up that knife, take your friend and get him out of here, quickly!" Bitsy was already calling over her shoulder that she would get the nurse. Dex knelt by the victim and told her not to move, taking off his jacket and folding it under her head. The girl wore standard biker chick garb which could not hide the fact that she was very pretty. He found out her name was Connie Archer, and she was a Junior.

The nurse arrived and Dex and Bitsy stayed to make sure Connie was OK. An ambulance was called and the nurse told all the onlookers, now quite a crowd, to go about their business. Dex and Bitsy grabbed a hurried lunch and separated for their next classes.

Halfway through the class hour, a messenger handed the teacher a note, and she directed Dex to go to the principals office. The principal, Lester Schantz was, unfortunately, at the forefront of the mindless zero tolerance movement that was consolidating its grip on US education. As soon as Dex entered the office, Schantz told him, "Your aunt is on the way to take you home."

"Oh. Why?"

"You are expelled for fighting."

"Fighting? I didn't fight."

"You had a physical confrontation with another student. That qualifies as fighting. Expulsion is automatic for that offense."

"I did not fight. I kept him from seriously injuring another student, that's all. I did him no harm, and I didn't attempt to."

"Don't try to argue with me. The rule is clear. You were fighting, and you are expelled. Now, clean out your locker."

Dex was the one who had to restrain Karen when she heard what had happened. She was ready to lay waste to Lester Schantz with extreme prejudice. To her surprise, Dex asked her to take him to the dojo. To his surprise, she called back to work and said she would not return that day, and stayed with him. She waited quietly while he talked briefly with the sensei, then she talked to the sensei while Dex went through an ultra-high-intensity workout. Karen had seen him work out before, but had no idea what he was really capable of. It was impossible for her not to wince when he unleashed thundering kicks against the dummies. His exertions did little to quell her anger, but she could see that it was essential to him.

Karen brought Dex home about the time Donna arrived, and the girl went ballistic when she heard the story. Dex got her calmed down, and then asked her to take him to the hospital to see if Connie was OK. He made a couple of calls to be sure where she was, then the two left, picking up a burger on the way.

Donna knew who Connie was, but knew almost nothing about her, except for the crowd she hung with. When they walked into the room, a man and a woman, assumedly Connie's parents, were there. As Dex walked in the door, Connie said, derisively, "Well, hello Hotshot! I'll bet you're the big hero around school now!"

Donna had learned a lot from Dex about composure, but this was too much for her. Parents or no, she exploded. "Hey, wait a minute! He got expelled for saving your butt! Maybe he shouldn't have bothered!" The mother barely had time to gasp and Donna was out the door. Without hesitation, Dex followed her.

"Hey, wait!" Connie yelled at Dex's back, then "Shit! Shit! Shit!"

Dex was hugging Donna tightly several doors down the hall when the father came up to them. For a while he just stood quietly, then finally said, "Could we go to the cafeteria and talk?"

By now realizing what she had done, Donna tried to apologize, but Gerald Archer waved her off, then put a hand gently on her shoulder. To her credit, she didn't cringe, but started walking down the hall toward the elevators.

Over a Coke and some cookies, and after introductions, Gerald Archer took the initiative. "I know you feel bad about what you said in there, Donna, but you are more right than you know. Connie has been a source of unbelievable heartache to her mother and I."

"How badly is she hurt?" Dex asked.

"One broken rib and two cracked, broken bone in her hand, oral surgery needed on two teeth, and a deep thigh bruise. They are very worried about blood clots from the bruise. If you hadn't intervened, it's no telling the damage he might have done."

"Mr. Archer, I really didn't mean Dex shouldn't have helped," Donna said tearfully. "There's no way he could not have, and that's what makes me so angry. He'd do anything for anybody, and that pompous jerk kicks him out of school without even knowing what happened."

"Dex, why don't you tell me what did happen?" Gerald asked. Dex gave him the brief but complete story. There was some question and answer, particularly about the session with Schantz.

It was Donna who asked Gerald "I assume you know who the boy is?"

"Unfortunately. We have lived in fear every time she is with him. Who would have thought the worst would happen in school?"

There was silence for a while, then Gerald tried to change the subject. "Dex, I saw you play last year. My son Tim was the center a few years ago. I'm glad to hear you will be the point guard this year."

"That was yesterday. Now I'll have to hunt for somewhere else to play."

"Oh, you won't be out that long. All you have to do is apply for re-admission and have a hearing before a committee. I'm sure there won't be any problem."

"I won't apply!"

"What!" Gerald and Donna said this in unison.

"What Schantz did was wrong. If that is the policy of the school board, then that is wrong. I did exactly what I was trained to do and did it for the right reasons. If I can be punished for doing the honorable thing, then I don't want to go to school there."

"What do you mean what you were trained for?" The teens explained Dex's martial arts proficiency and the defensive, minimum force philosophy he trained under. "Then, I guess you could have hurt him badly, couldn't you?"

"He could have killed him like that!" Donna told Gerald, snapping her fingers.

Both Donna and Gerald tried for a while longer to change Dex's mind, but he was adamant, and they slumped in resignation.

"Um, Mr. Archer," Donna said after another pause, "I need to go back up and apologize to Connie."

"No, Donna, I really wish you wouldn't. Connie doesn't think anything she does has consequences. Please, let her stew a while, knowing your honest opinion of her."

"Well, I should at least talk to your wife."

"I'll take care of that. I'll tell her you wanted to apologize."

Returning from the hospital, Dex got into a rare disagreement with Mike. Mike had called Marty, and they were discussing legal action. Dex became quite agitated as he told them, "Mike, you work for the School Board. If you take action against them, they could retaliate. I will not be a part of any lawsuit." Mike felt frustrated and helpless, and kept insisting he couldn't just let this slide. It was Karen who had to settle him down and convince him he couldn't change Dex's mind. Uncle and nephew reaffirmed their love and respect for each other with a hug.

Unbeknownst to the Fergusons, Gerald Archer was a force in the local business community. He was the CEO of a small conglomerate of family-owned businesses, and one of the ten largest employers in town. He also had a spotless reputation that he had preserved from three generations of Archers before him. When a young investigative reporter whose work Gerald admired received a call, there was no hesitation. By the time Gerald outlined the story to her, she could barely take notes because of her excitement.

At the same time the news story was brewing, Marty was showing another aspect of her resourcefulness. Coincidentally, the two women's paths crossed at the home of one school board member. Both were researching the validity of the policy Schantz had invoked, and they decided to team up.

Schantz was interviewed with a camera in his face, and could not have looked worse. He denied there was a knife, claiming it was made up by the students to cover for their classmate's actions. "Turns out this kid is some kind of karate-ninja nut. I can't have dangerous students like that running around my halls acting like vigilantes!"

The TV piece and the article were both beautifully assembled. The reporter included a short clip of the sensei explaining the philosophy he taught. Marty had leaked Bitsy's name as a witness, and the reporter really went to town on that choice bit of human interest. She even made the leap that it was Dex who paid for Bitsy's orthodontia. That was never verified, but it didn't matter. Bitsy on screen was awesome. A few seconds of Dex making a steal and going coast to coast for a layup didn't hurt the audience appeal, either.

The fact that the policy had never been presented to the school board, as required, and had been released only in teacher's meetings at the school was covered, citing school board minutes and referencing the interviews.

The wrap-up had questions to Schantz about how badly Dex had injured the assailant, and what the assailant's punishment was, since the boy had been charged with a assault by the police. It finally came out that Schantz had neither found nor punished the boy. Schantz mumbled something about the assailant being punished enough already by the beating he got. The final shot showed a hospital bed with someone in it (not necessarily Connie) overwritten by a list of Connie's injuries.

The expulsion lasted three days before the Superintendent forced Schantz to give in. Fortunately, all of Dex's teachers defied policy and allowed him to make up all his work. Donna had brought home all his assignments.

On Connie's first day back in school, Donna found her in the cafeteria and apologized for unloading on her. Two days later, a red Mustang pulled up to the Ferguson house at dinner time, and Connie came to the door with flowers. She thanked Dex profusely, then apologized to everyone for her remark and accepted the invitation to stay and eat. Over an hour later, Connie left, looking definitely perplexed at what she had experienced.

That Sunday, Dex was invited to the Archer home for supper, and rather reluctantly agreed. Donna dropped him off, and he was to call for a ride home. When Mrs. Archer greeted him at the door, she thanked him, then made a remark about Donna's comments. Dex blinked in surprise, but said nothing in response. Within minutes, there was another snide reference, and Connie told her mother how Donna had apologized as soon as Connie got to school, and that they had become friends. Mrs. Archer shot back that Connie didn't need friends who would talk to her like that.

Courtesy came naturally to Dex, and his training reinforced his natural politeness. There are limits, however, to what any fifteen-year-old can take. Before they had even left the entryway, and before Gerald had joined them from upstairs, Dex said, "Mrs. Archer, Donna is my very best friend and the finest young woman you will ever meet. It would be better for Connie to have friends like Donna than those who beat her up. If you are this angry at Donna, my presence here will be uncomfortable for everyone. Thank you for the invitation, but it would be better if I left now." Dex was all the way down the long circle drive of the mansion and out the gate before Gerald came downstairs and found out what had happened.

After a short but extremely heated discussion with his wife, Gerald drove after Dex and caught him a few blocks away. Gerald took Dex for Dinner at a restaurant and they talked. Dex was hard put to understand how a man like Gerald, whom he genuinely admired, could have a wife and daughter who were so screwed up. Surprisingly, Gerald unburdened himself on just that issue. He told Dex how his wife had succumbed to the wealth and was acting more and more like the worst of royalty. He believed Connie's problem was that she had never had any limits set on her behavior, and the brutish biker types she hung with filled a need for some limits and some consequences. He realized how perverted that sounded, but the most expensive shrinks had agreed on this point.

Tabling the family talk, Gerald quizzed Dex thoroughly on his interests and his future plans, and they talked business in general. Because of his natural interest, the many sessions spent with Chris, and the activities of his little group at school, Dex was able to make quite an impression with his grasp of business concepts. The meal ended with an offer of a summer job at one of Archer's companies. Dex expressed his preference for the brokerage firm, and Gerald gave him a contact name and a personal note on the back of a business card.

Connie Archer's world was in chaos. She had a strong submissive streak, but it was never evident to her parents through all her rebellion. The boy she hung with provided the control she instinctively sought. It was sometimes brutal, but even that seemed to meet a certain need. Now, her boyfriend had really hurt her, and she had been rescued by a guy she considered both a jock and a nerd, two forms of life she scorned. Of course, her big brother Tim had been both, but that was different.

Connie had battled furiously to attend public school, rather than the boarding school her mother was set on. It was her front line of rebellion as a young teen. She was tired of being different and longed for what she considered a normal life. At thirteen, she was madly in love with her big brother Tim, who was heading off to college. Tim loved his sister, but took on a definite big-brother role - almost a second father. When Tim left for college, young Connie decided she had lost true love forever, and it didn't matter what boy she was with from then on.

Connie's rescuer's cousin was painfully square, but Connie found she liked the girl. She still could not believe she had actually made a visit to the Ferguson house - the Cleaver residence, as far as she was concerned. The visit had been upsetting, mainly because there seemed to be no tension or struggle between the family members. And then the parents had seemed more like love-struck teenagers with each other! To top it all off, Dex had later walked out on Connie's mother!

Almost more than the rescue, Dex's simple act of walking out drew Connie to him. This was strength she could relate to, strength she could barely muster for herself. To everybody's surprise, she went with her father to the opening basketball game, the first she had attended since Tim graduated. Before the holiday break, Connie had completely abandoned the biker chick duds she had so carefully accumulated over the last two years.

Connie and Dex were by no means an item, however. In fact, they hardly spoke. They shared no classes and were in different lunch periods, so there was nothing to draw them together. Dex had no idea of Connie's interest in him, and he certainly did not reciprocate. It would be too strong to say she worshipped him from afar, but she did keep track of his activities and became a faithful basketball fan. She even attended a regional martial arts meet to watch Dex compete - he did not know she was there.

In this rather strange environment, Dex had his first 'normal' teen-aged date. Normal, that is, with the girl's father pleading with him to ask his daughter out, and the girl doing the driving. They went to an Addison basketball game on Saturday afternoon, had dinner, then went to hear Jenny sing her early set. Dex had no idea if Connie liked basketball or country music at all. He almost hoped she did not, because he dated her out of respect for Gerald, and was not anxious to encourage more dates.

A funny thing happened that Saturday in early November. The Connie that spent the afternoon and evening with Dex was one that her family and classmates rarely, if ever, saw. The brittle, rebellious attitude never left the house. She looked for all the world like a preppy coed, and was witty and vivacious the entire time. Dex discovered an active mind and excellent conversational skills. If she disliked basketball or country music, she never let on. The clincher, though, was a strong underlying need that Dex could not quite identify, but that made her an automatic object of interest for him.

Going into basketball season, Dex had acquired two enemies, Lester Schantz and Mrs. Archer, an influential friend, Gerald Archer, and a girlfriend of sorts, Connie. He had also acquired more money in his trust fund through some astute investments.

About halfway through his freshmen year, Dex had started working on his little group of brainy friends to focus on something other than the usual nerdy interests. Dex's earliest discussions with Chris had sparked a keen interest in the business world, and particularly the financial world. After some initial reluctance but strong support from Bitsy, now acknowledged as the group's co-leader, they formed a little lunch-time investment club. The six members were each assigned $10,000 in pretend funds, and instructed to invest it. Bitsy acted as the broker, recording all trades. Each person was given a market sector to do research on, just as in a brokerage firm. Imagine the flap when they first unfurled the Wall Street Journal on a cafeteria table! By this time, all of their reputations were locked in, and they couldn't care less.

Much to the delight and amazement of several parents, the kids all took to the club with a passion, and, since the market was relatively healthy at the time, all of them made nice 'profits.' The week after the wedding, Dex sat down with Marty and showed her the record of the 'trades' he had made. He then asked Marty to invest $20,000 of his fund money in some stocks he had picked. Having enough interaction with Dex to know how serious he was, Marty agreed, and made the trades. By Halloween, due to unquestionable luck and good timing, Dex's stake had increased to $31,000 in value. After the first month, Marty started shadowing Dex's trades with some of her own money, and was very pleased with the result. Dex's request to to put another $20,000 in his stock account was not even questioned.

Through the many discussions with Chris at the Emporium on Friday and Saturday nights, Dex had picked up Chris's entrepreneurial yearnings. It was Dex who first suggested that Chris form a company to market albums that Jenny could record, and perhaps stage concerts. Chris was enthralled with the idea, but their discussions highlighted the cold reality of no startup capital, and too little exposure for Jenny, so far. Nevertheless, the idea stayed at the top of both of their minds. They began stealing as much of Hoss's time as they could get to pick his brain about the recording business.

Angeline had a good family in France, and she got along well with them. When the Thanksgiving break came at school, though, she wanted to visit Jenny and her family more than anything. When Jenny and Donna met her at the airport, she looked around in obvious disappointment as she asked why Dex wasn't there, causing Donna and Jenny to share a meaningful look. Angeline arrived on Tuesday evening, a day before the worst rush, and with another day of school for Donna and Dex. The reason Dex was not at the airport was that he had not returned from basketball practice when the girls had to leave. They all stopped by the Fergusons' to drop off Donna and say hello.

Dex was downstairs studying when he heard the commotion upstairs. As he emerged from the stairway, he was hit full force by Angeline, who jumped up and wrapped her arms around his neck, and her legs around his waist. She said nothing, just hugged, and Dex swung her around playfully. Dex stopped, expecting Angeline to drop down, but she showed no sign of letting go. Chuckling, he sat on the sofa and pulled her across his lap. When she looked up at him, there was none of the usual mischievous glint. She said, simply, "I missed you!" and kissed him warmly. The two sat like that for several more minutes, until Angeline reluctantly climbed off to leave with Jenny, planting one more kiss on Dex.

No sooner were the girls out the door, then Donna pushed Dex back onto the sofa and took Angeline's former place. "Told 'ya!" she exclaimed, as Dex just shook his head.

This was Angeline's first family Thanksgiving meal, and she was impressed. It was a squeeze with thirteen adults (the Boggs, Chris and Jenny, Ron, Karen's parents, Margo), but it never dented the good humor, nor the quality of the food. At the very beginning of the meal, Kristen announced her pregnancy, and it took quite a while for the hubbub to subside.

No one ever figured out how the timing was done, but just as dessert was being prepared, a cab pulled up and the driver delivered two bottles of top-quality champagne. It was from Gerald, with a very nice thank you note to Dex. Of course, that required another retelling of the whole saga, causing Dex no end of frustration. Angeline's gaze at Dex moved way past adoration at that point.

After the meal, Margo was talking with Jenny and Angeline together. "Both of you girls are used to much more luxurious dining, aren't you?" she asked, somewhat baiting them.

Jenny was the most vociferous in her response. "Margo, none of that matters. Now I have love - I would never trade."

Angeline was a little more thoughtful. "You know, Margo, I have never heard Karen apologize for anything she didn't have or anything that was old or worn out. I think think these people really know about this Thanksgiving. How about you Margo? Wasn't your husband wealthy?"

"Yes, I had more things than I knew what to do with, but the Ferguson's have more of what counts. I could have gone with my parents and brothers and sister, but these are more my family than anyone else."

Many knowing smiles were exchanged the rest of the evening as Angeline firmly attached herself to Dex.

On Friday night, the basketball team had a game against a strong team from the neighboring state, part of a pre-season exchange between the two conferences. Angeline had never seen a basketball game, but there was no way she would miss it.

Dex had an excellent game, as he usually did. He was a slasher, constantly driving toward the basket for either a score or a dish off to a teammate. It was early in his career, but he started something he did every game. One of the first times he touched the ball, he drove hard toward the basket, sending the defensive player sprawling. He got the offensive foul, but none of the defenders wanted to try to stop him thereafter. It was to become his signature move, and his fans developed a unique 'falling bomb' sound for when he did it.

Dex was so quick that even much shorter players could not stop him in the backcourt when he wanted to penetrate. He was an excellent rebounder - despite being a good but not great leaper. His quickness and footwork let him always be in the right position, and his strength meant he had the ball once he touched it. Angeline probably had no idea what was happening, but her eyes never left Dex the entire game.

It had been pre-arranged that Donna, Dex, and Angeline would go to the Emporium for Jenny's second set, and that Angeline would spend the night with Donna. Angeline thought Dex's Jeep was a real adventure, and was practically bouncing with excitement when they pulled into the Emporium She had moist eyes most of the time Jenny was singing, except when Dex asked her to dance.

Back at the house, the girls were just settling into the room with the twin beds, when Donna gave Angeline a hug and said simply, "Go!" The tiny girl practically flew down the stairs. As she reached the basement, she heard the shower running and could not believe her good fortune. She dropped her night clothes and entered the bathroom quickly to avoid causing a draft. Then she pulled back the corner of the shower curtain and stepped in with Dex.

One several occasions, Donna had come into the shower with Dex. In fact, it was one of her favorite types of foreplay. Thinking it was Donna joining him now, Dex was preparing a tickle attack, or some other form of retaliation, when he was encircled from the back by impossibly small arms coming from an impossibly low angle. He realized immediately who it must be, but then two impossibly small hands found his penis. He had the crazy thought that this must be why pedophiles are pedophiles. Very gently turning around, the look on Angeline's lovely little face erased any thought of pedophilia. This was a woman, and she was in serious love with him, or at least serious lust.

Dex was by now fully erect, and his cock seemed to be the only part of his body Angeline was aware of. She began working on it with both hands as if it was a race to ejaculation. He was first bemused by the whole situation, then uncertain how he should respond to her obvious infatuation with him. Ultimately, he responded as a normal fifteen year old male with a highly stimulated cock. He erupted, and she pulled herself to him, taking every surge against her chest.

Even though he was shaky from his come, Dex reached back and shut off the water, then moved her over to sit on the back edge of the shower tub. He knelt in front of her and thrust his face into her crotch with the same urgency and abruptness with which she had attacked his cock. She apparently needed no warmup, as the vocal encouragement, in French, started with the first broad swipe of his tongue.

This, the fifth pussy he had been close up with, was decidedly different from any of the others, but he took no time for exploration. He assumed the same need to get him off quickly applied to her own need, and he zeroed in on her clit immediately. Sensing no tenderness or recoiling, he gave it the full treatment while using a finger in her hole. Either she was a natural firecracker or she was incredibly strung out, because she achieved the fastest orgasm he would produce in his entire life.

When recovered from her come, Angeline became very affectionate, and showed a little of her usual playfulness. She turned the water back on and gave Dex a now-redundant thorough washing, and he eagerly returned the favor. They dried and scurried to the bed, where they cuddled for a while just waiting to get warm.

"I could not believe you were in the shower. You showered after your game."

"It was warm in the club and I got a bit sweaty. It was also rather smoky. I like to go to bed very clean."

"Ah. All your women like that also, no?" Dex just chuckled in response. They cuddled silently for a few more minutes.

In his usual atrocious French, Dex asked "Pourquoi?" This time, she did not even giggle, but drew in a big breath and let it out with a huge sigh. He continued, "I'm sorry you cannot tell me in French. Maybe it would be easier."

"It is not difficult to explain. It is impossible. I can not choose who I love. I know I am older. I know I am always far away. I know it makes not sense for me to love you. These things I know, but my brain does not my heart control. You are the best man I know, Dex Madison."