Chapter 15: What's Your Name? Who's Your Daddy?

FEBRUARY 24th, 1981

We all came up with the idea, but Livvie and Debbie, the most daring of us, actually did the deed.

Debbie wanted to get back at the asshole for some time, and we were all appalled that he'd tried to ruin another girl's reputation. Livvie even said, "I know she's your ex-girlfriend, and I know the breakup hurt you, but Beth told me that Kelly was a sweetheart." So, we put our plan to action. We--including Stan and Michelle--brainstormed on what to do.

So, on this day, Debbie and Livvie made their way into one of the girls' bathrooms at Cabot High, early in the morning before school started, with a permanent marker. Stan, Michelle, and I hovered outside the girls' room, nonchalantly talking, to warn them if trouble came. Nobody came. They picked three stalls like the asshole did. On one, they wrote, "JIM SAMUEL HAS A TWO-INCH DICK!" On the second, they wrote, "JIM SAMUEL IS A LOUSY LAY!" And on the third, "FOR A TWO-MINUTE FUCK AND A CASE OF THE CLAP, CALL JIM SAMUEL!"

The two girls came out all jubilant. "Done!" Debbie enthused. We all high-fived. Then we separated to head to our lockers, and then our first classes.

At lunch, the five of us were sitting together. While we were eating and chatting, I saw Kelly headed over to us. She leaned over to me and whispered, "Are you the one that did it?"

"It was all of our idea. Livvie and Debbie actually did it," I told her.

"Thanks," she said, softly, to all of us, with a little grin. Then she was gone.

Of course, I got a phone call that night from Kara. Kelly had called her and told her all about it. She thought it was hilarious!

After Kara hung up, I got a call from Michelle. It sounded like something was bothering her. After the small talk, she asked about it.

"Do you still have feelings for Kelly?"

"Oh, I think I always will," I told her.

"Well, what if she wants you back?"

"Well, I've got Olivia now."

"I guess that's what worries me," Michelle said. "I think Olivia's really into you."

"Oh," I said, understanding. "Well, you have to understand my number one dating rule. Never break up with someone to go out with someone else. If the relationship is breaking up anyway, for internal reasons, that's one thing. But to dump someone just because you're attracted to someone else? That's not kosher in my book."

"Really?"

"The way I see it is this: if you're happy, you shouldn't be looking. And if you're not happy, why are you in the relationship in the first place?"

"I never thought of it that way," Michelle said thoughtfully, "but it makes a lot of sense."

"Yeah. And, furthermore, when it comes to Kelly in particular--well, yes, I'll always have feelings for her. But considering how it ended, I'm not quite sure I trust her."

"Yeah."

"In either case, Livvie has nothing to worry about."

"Good!"

APRIL 15th, 1981

This was a Wednesday, in the middle of April vacation.

The previous two months had been fairly uneventful. We'd played another school dance, killing them again. Olivia and I had gotten closer and closer. I was surrounded by good friends.

My grades were excellent. In fact, if we graduated this minute, I'd be salutatorian. Heck, I'd been through high school before--and at a tougher school. I hoped I'd remember a few things.

There were two things that were interesting about my second-in-the-class standing. The first one was that the person ahead of me wasn't Christine Seneca. She was only ranked eighth or so. The potential valedictorian was a girl I knew only slightly by the name of Laura Benning. She was ahead of me because of one A-minus I'd gotten first semester this year in pre-calculus.

The other one was the person directly behind me, the person ranked third. That was a certain sexy bass player. And, yes, she teased me all the time. "How about another A-minus so I can be salutatorian?" I told her to keep dreaming. I also told her that I was going to unplug her bass at the next gig!

All of this really wouldn't be decided until next year, though--Advanced Placement classes Senior year tended to separate the contenders from the pretenders.

Did it matter to me? A little. I wouldn't be crushed if I didn't get it, but it would be nice.

The band was also going well. We'd played another dance and a couple of parties. We were really making a name for ourselves around the high school.

And then there was Olivia.

I was happy being with her--really happy. We got along great, my family and friends all liked her a lot, and we had fun together. And the sex was wonderful.

This day, April 15th, as I said, was in the middle of April vacation. Vacation weeks had turned out to be interesting--Olivia was at my house all the time. I understood why, and didn't mind--and, besides which, I liked her being around all the time. My parents understood as well and liked her being there as well. We didn't have sex at my house--I did have a ten-year-old sister, after all--but our relationship wasn't just about sex. We had places to go to do that--the only time we ever spent at her house was when we were fooling around. And we still had her big ol' boat of a car!

Anyhow, on this day, she came over early, about 10 AM. It was a lifting day for me, and I'd already done that. Livvie knew not to come over too early, since she had no desire to lift or run with me! Yep, I still did both--and, since I'd been sent back, the exercise had paid major dividends. Every time I took my shirt off, Livvie gasped--trust me, that'd never happened in the first life!

So, Livvie knew I'd get up, run or lift, and then get some breakfast. She knew by 10 I'd be all set, so that's when she came over.

When she got here on this day, my dad was in work, my mother was in our backyard working on her garden, and my sister was out playing with Terri McKenna, who lived next door. Declan, my brother, was around. He gave me a lopsided grin when he saw Olivia and I greet each other with a big kiss.

Declan would be 13 in a month. He was in seventh grade. So, he was at that age where he was just starting to discover girls.

If things held to the first time, he was going to have as tough a time of it as I did. He was a nerd as well. Now, things got better for him in college--he was a hell of a lot luckier in college than I ever was--but in junior high and high school--he went to the Prep as well--he wasn't any luckier than I had been. Though part of that was missed opportunities. We'd discussed that in adulthood. With the hindsight of growing up, he'd decided that his big high school crush, Maureen Feeney, most likely liked him back but he was too much of a dork at the time to do anything except moon over her. Hell, they worked together and half the place knew he liked her, and she was still extremely nice to him and talked to him all the time--at that age, that's a big huge honkin' sign. Of course, at that age, you never see those signs. Youth truly is wasted on the young.

He also found out in adulthood that our neighbor Lisa McKenna, Terri's older sister--and the younger sister of Josephine, who I'd dated--would've slept with him, which was his longtime recurring wet dream. And I was the one that told him, because she told me she would've slept with him. Of course, she told me that after he'd gone to school in Baltimore and was living there, and she was on her way into the Air Force. In other words, too late for him to do anything about it!

That's one thing I've noticed, the things you figure out when it's too late. Me, too, though for me it was in college. Maggie Konolowicz must've thought I was the most clueless human in the history of humans, especially male-type humans. I did have a furious makeout session with her at her instigation, which most likely would've led to me losing my virginity if we hadn't been interrupted and had someplace to be--but it was three weeks before I left that particular college never to return. And I'd known her since day one of freshman year. I could've been humping the daylights out of her for the whole two years I was there. Teenagers are stupid. And nerdy teenagers--trust me on this one--assume they're going to get shot down, which makes us stupider.

I had realized how much I had changed by now being aware of all of this. Now, it might not look that way--because Kelly had approached me, not the other way around, and with Livvie I'd been tipped off by Debbie. But, there's two things. First, the 'old' Eddie might not have even believed Debbie. And the second one was, this still all stemmed from Kara, who I did approach. If I didn't have the guts to approach Kara, none of the rest of it would've happened. I had the confidence to ask her out, and the smarts to do it the right way this time--but my relationship with her, especially the first time, let me know I was on the right track. And my relationship with her worked because of the past memories.

And I knew I could pass on the past memories, in a roundabout way. Now, I had no desire, nor the time, to be the date consultant for all of Nerddom. However, if I could help Declan, my cool (as little brothers go) little brother have better luck with the girls, I'd be glad to.

So, when after he watched Livvie and I engage in a huge kiss, and then we sat on the couch in the den across from Dec, I understood that the next thing he said wasn't just simple teasing. It was a real question.

"Olivia, what the hell do you see in him, anyway?"

"Well, let's see," she grinned, "he's smart. He's wonderful to talk to--interesting, can hold up his end of a conversation like nobody else, and he's a great listener. He's sweet and treats me like a princess. He's funny. And he's, er, welll..." She blushed bright red.

"He's what?" Declan asked innocently.

I had to laugh. "Livvie, Declan isn't a little kid. And he's not naive."

"OK," she said, still blushing. "The truth is, your brother's fantastic in bed, OK?"

Now it was Declan's turn to blush! "Yeah, well, but you didn't know that before you went out with him, so that wouldn't be a reason to go out with him."

"Well, you're right in that you don't want to go out with someone just because of that," Livvie agreed. "But, actually, I did know. Word gets around." Declan looked at her blankly. "Your brother doesn't talk, because he's a good guy--but some of his previous girlfriends did."

"I'm still missing something," Dec said.

"Well, at a Fourth of July party the first summer we went out, after eighth grade, Kara pretty much told all of her friends that I was Superstud," I admitted it.

"Oh, Jesus," Declan laughed. "Wait a minute--you slept with Kara way back then?"

"Yes."

"You weren't much older than me!"

"True."

"I figured I'd be a virgin until I was thirty. Honestly, I'm surprised you're not headed there. How did you get Kara to sleep with you? Heck, how did you get her to go out with you?"

"Getting her to go out with me, well, that was because I made a decision. I stopped acting like an idiot every time I was around her. I'd see her a lot when running, and I just talked to her normally. Then, when I went to ask her out, I did it in person. Also, I had to kind of talk her into it--but I was calm and reasonable when I did it.

"As for sleeping with her?" I told him with a smile. "I don't know. I didn't push anything physical. That was all Kara. She said she wanted to have sex a week before we actually did. I turned her down because I didn't have any rubbers. But she made all the decisions when it came to that. I don't know why, to tell you the truth. Something about me attracted her to that. I do know she trusted me a lot, and that helped."

"That was part of it," Livvie said, "but I know something else."

"How do you know anything?" I asked her.

"Something Kara once told Beth, and Beth spilled the beans to me. And now that I'm going out with you, I know that Kara was right on." She turned to Declan with a big grin. "Your brother, you see, is a completely awesome kisser!"

OK, I know I was blushing at that! Declan was just grinning at both of us. "Wait a minute," I said, "Kara told Beth this?"

"Yeah. You know they were in home ec together that year," she said. I nodded. "After you slept with Kara for the first time, I know Beth was the one person you told." I nodded again. Livvie grinned at Declan. "Like I said, it was Kara that told the rest of the world. Anyhow, Beth asked Kara what made her decide she wanted to go that far with you at that age. You know Beth, she wasn't critical or anything--but you know how she was. Sex at 13 was completely beyond her."

"Yeah," I agreed. "When I told her, she dropped her books all over the railroad tracks and stared at me in complete disbelief."

"I believe it," Livvie laughed. "Anyhow, when Beth asked Kara that, Kara told her that she knew she was going to sleep with you at the end of your first date, when you kissed her. She told Beth that that kiss made her completely wet! She also told Beth that the kisses after that just made it worse."

"Wow. I never knew this," I said.

"Yep. And I can agree with it." She looked at Declan again. "Declan, Eddie wasn't my 'first'--you know what I mean." Declan nodded. "But I have to tell you--kisses from him turn me on more than actual sex did with a couple of my past boyfriends."

Declan was still blushing, and he grinned again at Olivia. "But how did you get to be such a good kisser?" he asked me.

"I have no idea," I laughed. "It's all instinct. Kara was the second person I ever kissed." Olivia looked at me questioningly. "Cyndi Gagnon," I told her. "Anyhow, Dec, it's all instinct. And I didn't know I was that good until right now."

"Yeah, and with my luck, I probably stink," Declan whined.

"Have you ever kissed a girl?" Livvie asked him.

"No."

Livvie shot me a look. I knew exactly what her eyes were saying. And I thought it might be good for Declan--so I nodded at Livvie.

"Declan. Would you like a lesson?" Livvie asked him. He just looked at her blankly. "Well, you could practice by kissing me."

"Really? I could?" Oh, his eyes lit up like a Christmas tree! It was very amusing. Yes, he had a crush on Livvie--I'd known that for a while.

"Sure. Come on over on the couch next to me," Livvie said. I scooted over to make room for Declan. He shot me a questioning look, but I just waved to him to go ahead.

"Wait a minute," I said. I got up and looked out the window. "Just making sure Mom is occupied," I told them. "She's knee-deep in tomato plants, so we're all set."

"Good. Now. A few tips?" Livvie asked. Declan nodded. "OK. Not too hard and not too soft. Don't take it over--I should feel you kissing me but you should also feel me kissing you back. And you don't start with the tongue, you have to work up to that." Declan blushed again at that! "Ready?" Declan nodded shakily. I bet the poor kid's hands were clammy as hell at this point. "OK," Livvie said, "put your hands on my shoulders. And then go for it."

He did--nervous as hell, no doubt, but he did it. So, there I was, watching my girlfriend kiss my little brother. Did it bother me? Make me jealous? Nah. My 13-year-old brother wasn't any threat. And Livvie was just trying to boost his confidence.

But, shit, that was a looooong kiss. And I do believe I saw a bit of tongue at the end!

And, when Livvie finally pulled away, I must admit that it was rather amusing. She was flushed! And looking at Declan like he had three heads. "OK," she finally got out, "it runs in the family. Boy does it run in the family."

"You mean it was OK?" Declan asked, blushing beet red.

"Oh, it was more than OK," Livvie grinned. "You've got nothing to worry about. Wait until the girls figure it out. You'll be fighting them off."

"Really? Wow! Thanks, Livvie."

"My pleasure," she grinned. At that, Declan scampered out of the room. I heard him head upstairs.

Livvie finally looked at me. I was grinning at her. "Sorry. I think I got carried away," she said sheepishly.

"No problem. You made his day. You do realize he's now upstairs whacking off, right?"

"Oh, Jesus," she hissed. "He's only 13? And that was his first kiss?"

"Not even 13. Next month. And yes."

"Unbelievable." She had a wry little grin. "He's not in your league, of course, but it was a hell of a lot closer than I ever would've dreamed. I wasn't kidding. It must run in the family."

"I'm glad you did it, and I'm glad he knows. I had to figure out a lot of this shit by myself, and Declan is on his way to being as much of a nerd as I was. At least he knows he's got a secret weapon."

"Does he ever."

"And that will give him confidence."

"Which is what I was hoping. Since he's your brother, I figured he wouldn't be hopeless, at least, so I'd be able to say nice things without lying."

"You did that."

"Uh-huh," she grinned. She slid over to me on the couch and put her arms around me. "Your turn," she said. Our lips met. And it was a good one.

"Just trying to reassure yourself that I'm better than my little brother?" I joked.

"Oh, I knew that," she smiled, "no doubt. He's good but not that good. No, it was that if I'm going to be horny, it's going to be because of you."

"Uh-huh," I said with a laugh.

"Now. Weren't we going to hang out with your friends up the street today?"

"Yes."

"Then let's go," she said. "If we don't go distract ourselves, I'm going to jump your bones. Probably just in time to get walked in on by your mother, or sister, or both."

"Good point," I chuckled. "Later for that."

"Oh, you betcha."

We were going to hang out up at the Neelands. The gang up the street had met Livvie once or twice, but only briefly.

While we walked up the street, hand-in-hand, I was thinking. Honestly, I was thinking--what had I just done?

Declan, in adulthood, when I got 'sent back', was very happily married. His wife, Libby, was a doll. They had two kids. They were living in California.

By giving him the confidence to possibly start his romantic and sexual life earlier than he had, would I have fucked that up?

And there was more. When he originally graduated from high school, he wanted to go to art college--specifically, Skidmore, in Saratoga Springs, NY. He got in, but didn't get nearly enough financial aid. So, he went to Boston College. He hated it, and, after a year, transferred to an art college he could afford: the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore. He loved it there. By fixing 'the Eye', I'd made it so my family had a lot more money than they had the first time--so, he'll probably be able to afford Skidmore. Would that change his life, irreparably? And for better or worse? I didn't know. I did think I remembered that he really didn't discover MICA until he was stuck at BC. All I remember from his senior year was Skidmore. I guess, if money looks like it isn't going to be an object, I'll just have to somehow suggest he put MICA on the list and let him decide. I'd been with him on the visit to Skidmore, though. It was a gorgeous place and art was very well supported there. He would've been happy there, too, I think.

See what I mean about the ethics of time travel?

Declan had grown up to be a happy adult. But he wasn't a happy teenager the first time. Who knew what can of worms I'd just opened? Then again, I'd done that just by living my life. Since I was a complete washout with girls at this age the first time around, Declan didn't have to live with the knowledge that his big brother was getting laid. He didn't have a 'big brother's girlfriend' type like Olivia to have a crush on. He had been too young, I think, to really know just what I was doing with Kara and Kelly--but he knew what I was doing with Olivia. Or, at least, had deeply suspected it--and Livvie, by telling him how good I was in bed, had just confirmed it. Just by being with Olivia I'd changed the way he thought.

And now I was giving myself a headache.

We got up to the Neelands just in time to save my sanity.

DeeDee and Lynne were outside on the picnic table in their back yard--it was a nice day--along with Dee's friends Penny and Melissa, plus one more person. I was glad to see Dee and Lynne--was less than crazy about Penny and Melissa. But I'd deal with them.

The girls were a bit younger--Penny was 15, Michelle and Dee still 14. They were all freshmen at Cardinal Steen High School. Lynne was even younger still, she'd just turned 12. Now, Dee had known Penny and Michelle all through elementary school, at St. Joseph's. But, of course, Dee had met new people at Cardinal Steen. That's who the other girl was that was there with them, a new person Dee had met. Her name was Ashley Donegal.

I, of course, remembered her from the first life. In fact, she was the only one of that crowd that I still saw quite a bit in adulthood, as she came into the store where I worked all the time.

Ashley was a sweetheart, one of the nicest people you'll ever meet. I was glad to be reintroduced, so to speak, to her. But she did take a little getting used to. And since I hadn't seen her since a few months before the rewind, I had to get used to her all over again.

It was her voice, you see. She whined. I mean, she really whined--her natural speaking voice was a whine, it wasn't for effect. It reminded me of Penny Marshall on "Laverne and Shirley" when she'd go into 'whining' mode--except Ashley talked like that all the time. And it was actually worse at 14 than I remember it had been when she was an adult, which was the last time I'd seen her, remember. So, there I was, being reintroduced to the adolescent Ashley Donegal whine. I had to hold in the chuckle. It's true, some things never change!

However, she was still sweet. So, I 'got acquainted' with Ashley all over again. We hit it off, as friends, just as we had the first time. As an added bonus this time around, she also hit it off immediately with Livvie. Which was amusing--because I'd been in Ashley's house the first time around and I remembered what it looked like. Not quite as unbelievable as Win Craymore's, but close. I could imagine Ash inviting Livvie to her house, and Livvie's jaw dropping! Ash was as unpretentious as you could get--but her family did have money and lots of it.

Anyhow, Ash gravitated right to Livvie and I. That's when I realized something. Ash didn't much care for Penny. Now, seeing it through my wizened eyes, I remembered tension from the first time around--with poor Dee caught in the middle. But as for Ashley not liking Penny, that was just another thing to like about Ashley as far as I was concerned!

None of us had eaten lunch, so Olivia, Dee and her three friends, and I decided to trudge down to the McDonalds in Cabot Square. Not too long of a walk, though it wasn't next door either. Lynne decided she didn't want to walk, so she stayed home.

We started walking, and Livvie started teasing me. "Look at this, Eddie. You walking down the street with five girls. If anyone that knows you drives by, they're gonna think you've got a harem!"

Everyone giggled at this--except for Penny, of course, who was scowling. "Speak for yourself! I'd never be any part of a harem of his!"

"Your loss," Livvie said sweetly. "Did I mention that he's really, really good in bed?" I know I blushed at that one! Penny was still scowling. Everyone else was still giggling.

"Livvie, darling," I told her, "I'm good in bed one-on-one. Five at once would tax even my stellar abilities for sure. And probably kill me while I'm at it."

"Yeah, but what a way to go," Ashley interjected, reigniting the giggles.

"Ah, you're just sick of him and trying to foist him off on one of us," Penny maintained.

"You should be so lucky," Livvie teased, keeping it up. "Seriously, I am by no means sick of him and I certainly don't share. Which is becoming a problem. Especially at gigs. I have to make sure I latch myself onto him after every gig to ward off the rampaging hordes of groupie wannabes."

Dee, who knew about The Narcoleptics, giggled--but everyone else looked at Livvie quizically. "What are you talking about?" Penny said impatiently.

"Eddie is a member of the most popular rock group at Cabot High," Livvie informed her. "They only played their first gig in October, and they're already getting asked to do all the dances and parties."

"Yeah, we've got a party Saturday night."

"Right," Livvie agreed. "And since Eddie's one of the two lead singers, he's really good, and the other lead singer is female--well, that means all the girls swarm all over him after every gig!"

"He's good?" Penny snorted disbelievingly.

"He's fantastic," Livvie said. "The whole band is. But the girls are starting to swarm. Over him and Stan, the lead guitar player. Michelle and I have to practically throw up a roadblock after the gigs!"

"Michelle is our bass player, and the other lead singer besides me," I told the rest of them. "She and Stan are going out. Of course, Livvie, in their case, it's more that Stan has to keep the guys away from Michelle!"

"Too true," Livvie agreed with a laugh. "Of course, that could easily be solved if she wore some clothes to a gig once in a while."

"There is that," I chuckled. I told the rest of them, "Michelle Pepper, in school, is this demure, sweet little straight-A student. When we're playing? She shows up in these skimpy little spaghetti-strap shirt things and tight miniskirts and the whole bit. It's like she goes into a phone booth and changes into Sexy Rock Chick. Plus she's gorgeous, and she's stacked. I mean, trying to squeeze those boobs of hers into those little low-cut flimsy tops--man, it's like Cleavage Fest '81 up there. And she's pounding on the bass with the cleavage wiggiling and jiggiling and all. And there's her boyfriend, standing next to her, watching her while he wails away at the guitar with this huge shit-eating grin on his face."

"It's something to see, all right," Livvie grinned.

"But how do you feel that your boyfriend just admitted to noticing another girl's boobs?" Penny said to Livvie, clearly baiting her.

Livvie knew better. "Hell, since I've seen her playing in those outfits--if he didn't notice her boobs, he'd have to be completely blind!"

"Besides which," I added, "I've seen Livvie in a tight skimpy top. Screw that, I've seen Livvie completely naked. And Michelle doesn't have much of anything on Livvie in the boob area."

"Oh, how sweet," Livvie cooed, cracking everyone up.

"So, there's a girl in this band?" Ashley said.

"Three," I told her. "Four guys, three girls. There's Michelle. Then there's Karen, who's one of our two keyboard players. She dates Dave, the drummer. The third girl is Debbie, who plays guitar and saxophone."

"Who does Debbie date?" Dee asked.

"Cabot High," Livvie and I both said in perfect unison. Then we cracked up.

"You've heard of a little black book?" Livvie asked. "Debbie's got a big black book."

"It's funny." I said. "Before we started this band, Deb was known as the school slut. She wasn't, really, but she certainly wasn't a virgin and she'd been with a couple of guys that had big mouths. And all the taunting and stuff really bothered her. But now she's in this band, and she's fantastic and plays multiple instruments. So she's not being taunted about being the school slut anymore--people talk more about her saxophone playing. But now she almost is the school slut!"

"Oh, it's funny. She picks up a different guy every gig," Livvie laughed.

"What I like about her is she's attracted to nerds," I said.

"Of course you like that," Livvie teased--before Penny could more nastily, and Livvie knew it.

"Shaddap. Anyhow, I watched her after a gig a couple weeks ago. Walked right past all the muscle-bound jock types, and grabbed a nerd."

"Knowing Debbie, it was probably the best night of his life," Livvie laughed.

"I think I need to see this band," Ashley said.

"I know," Dee agreed.

"We'll figure out a way," I told them.

MAY 22nd, 1981

Tonight was the Junior Prom.

Nope, we didn't play it. They had a DJ. That was fine with us--we all wanted to go to the prom and dance.

We all sat together. Olivia and I, Stan and Michelle, Dave and Karen. Kenny brought Lisa, Win Craymore's cousin that he'd met at Win's party. Yup, they'd been going out since that night. Debbie came with John Roy, a guy I knew slightly.

We had a great time. It was funny--I guess I'd never really thought about it before, but our positions in the band reflected our personalities. By that, I mean front-liners and back-liners. The three that played instruments that had to be stuck in place, like drums and keyboards, were in the back line when we played--Dave, Karen, and Kenny. The other four of us were in front.

What I meant about that reflecting our personalities is that those of us in the front were by far more outgoing than the back-liners. Debbie was the most outgoing, followed by me, Stan, and Michelle. Kenny and Dave were quiet. Not shy, but quiet. Karen was shy--before the band started, almost painfully so. The band, plus her burgeoning relationship with Dave, had opened her up some--but she was still pretty shy.