Chapter 18: May - Senior Prom

"Holy! ... You're kidding!"

"Mitch, what's going on? I'm trying to work here!" Usually, Tory and Mitch sharing the office space at the house wasn't a problem. But, when trying to work on her finals, Tory found Mitch's outbursts disturbing. It was Friday evening and she was trying to get as much work done as possible, since she and Mitch would, again, be chaperoning the prom on Saturday.

"Sorry, baby, but you've got to hear this."

Tory saved her work and then moved her chair so she could see Mitch from across their desks.

"I just got this e-mail from Chuck. They just sold my house."

"And... ? That's good news, but what's the reason for the outburst?"

"Okay, you're right. Let's back up a bit. Chuck starts out by telling me that while Denise was working with some of the other wives on the decorations for the wedding, Janet barged in and created a scene!"

"Oh, great! Here we go again!" Tory raised her hands and dropped them to her desk with a thud.

Mitch pushed ahead. "Denise kicked Janet out and complained to Chuck, who talked with Frank. From what Chuck says, Frank chewed Janet out in front of him and told her to stop ... or else. I guess Janet put on her best pouting routine and Frank bought it. That was until he caught Janet trying to convince another wife to cause trouble at our wedding!"

"What did Frank do?" Work forgotten, Tory was now completely captivated by Mitch's story.

"Frank carried out his threat ... He finally left Janet! And, to add insult to injury, HE'S the one who bought my house!"

"Poetic justice! At least, he'll be secure in knowing she doesn't have any keys to those locks hidden away somewhere."

Mitch couldn't help but chuckle as he nodded his head in agreement. "Listen, baby, Chuck also says that Frank is asking to be part of the honor guard for our wedding; what do you think?"

"Ultimately, you know it's your decision. But, for what it's worth, I think the man has been through enough and deserves a break. He was genuinely sorry for what Janet did last year, and he didn't have to be — he wasn't the one responsible. And, you did tell me you two were friends once."

"I agree. Maybe it is time we move on. And, now with him and Janet split, we won't have to worry about her showing up with him to ruin things. I'll let Chuck know. I love you, baby!"

"I love you, too! Now, can I please get back to work?" With an exaggerated huff, Tory turned back to her work. A few moments later, Mitch got up from his chair silently and kissed Tory on the back of her neck before leaving the room.

Saturday morning went by quickly with all three having errands to run before prom. Trent was again doubling with Ben and their dates. This year, however, Trent offered to drive. The insurance company settled quickly after his father wrecked his car, so he had a nice, shiny new/used car to drive. Trent left first to go pick up the others; Tory and Mitch left soon after that.

The evening started off well. Mitch was enjoying watching the male students stare at his fiancée. He had made a mental note to look for the boys who were ogling his date last year. He couldn't remember all of their faces, but one of the boys made it easy to notice him. Keith made it a point to strut up to the teachers and wish them all a good evening, especially Tory. Mitch did notice, however, that Keith refused to make eye contact with him.

After the dinner was cleared, the dancing began. Mitch and Tory danced a couple of dances, but then chose to sit out and socialize with the other adults. While chaperon Tory strolled her turn around the hall, Mitch sat at the table, scanning the students. He noticed Keith leaving the hall just as Trent approached his table.

"Having a good time, Commander?"

"Of course I am. The question is - are YOU having a good time?" Mitch smiled when the young man blushed.

"Have you seen Amy tonight? I mean, she's really looking HOT!"

"I hope you remember what we talked about a couple months back," Mitch warned.

"I know. I've got my wallet with me," assured Trent. "Well, have a good night. Remember to tell Mom that we're going to the after-party tonight, okay?"

"No problem, Trent. Have fun." Mitch smiled, fondly remembering the exuberance of youth.

Trent caught up with Ben at their table. "Hey, have you seen Amy?"

"She and Janie left a couple minutes ago, but I haven't seen them come back, yet. Maybe they're in the bathroom. You know how they always go in pairs, right?"

Chuckling, both young men started to leave to find their dates. Trent was cornered by some classmates asking questions about the commander, so Ben continued looking for the girls on his own. He met up with Janie just outside the restrooms, but Janie said that Amy wasn't there. As they were heading back into the prom, they heard scuffling down another hallway.

"Get off me, Keith!" Amy was trying to push Keith off of her body. The harder she tried, the harder Keith pushed back. He held her arms down by her side and blocked her body with his own.

"Hey, man, what's going on?" Ben slowly approached Keith from behind.

"None of your fucking business, Campbell! Go back to the dance."

"Hey, Keith; take it easy, man. Why don't you let Amy go and we can talk about this?" Ben turned toward Janie and quietly whispered, "Go get help." Once she was gone, Ben tried to move so he could see both Keith and Amy.

"Go on, man. This slut's been teasing me all through high school. I'm gonna get me some before we graduate. I'm not gonna let a little shit like Markus have all the fun." Keith bent his head and bit at Amy's neck.

"Let me go, Keith! You're hurting me!" Amy continued to try to wiggle out of his grip, but he was stronger than she had anticipated.

"Look, Keith. The lady isn't interested. Not to mention, you don't fuck with another guy's girl; it just isn't right."

"If you don't like what I'm doing, just get your ass out of here! Me, I'm gonna get myself a piece of this sweet ass before the night's over!" Keith continued to push his erection into Amy while moving one hand around to maul Amy's ass cheek.

"Ben? What's going on here?" Janie had found Mitch, first, and showed him where to go before returning to find a dean.

"Oh, great!" Keith banged his head on the wall by Amy's shoulder. "I thought they always called the Calvary for reinforcements, not the fuckin' Navy! Look, sailor, you got the best piece of ass in the school. Go fuck her and leave the rest of us alone!"

"Amy? Are you okay?"

"Of course she's okay; I'm not going to hurt her! I'm just gonna fuck her brains out!"

"Keith, you need to let her go."

"Go to hell, you motherfucker!"

Tory and Trent followed Janie and Mr. Thompson, Keith's dean, to the scene. When Ben noticed Trent there, he quickly went to restrain his best friend from doing something rash. Janie and Ben stayed with Trent while Tory and the dean approached Mitch.

"Come on, Keith," Mr. Thompson coaxed. "You know this is not the way to handle the situation."

"Aw, shit! What the hell do you know about how to 'handle the situation'? I'll give you something to handle!" With that, Keith reached into his pocket and brought out a switchblade, clicking it open. As the adults took a step back, he held the knife to Amy's neck while spinning around her. Keith kept the knife to her neck while he held her tightly by the waist in front of him.

"Well, look-ee here. The no-longer-available MILF-Markus is here, as well!" Keith leered at Tory while pulling Amy tighter toward his body.

"Come on, Keith," Mr. Thompson continued to plead. "You know your mother wouldn't want you to be doing this."

"My mother! What a laugh! The old man says she made her choice and we have to live with it and get on with our lives! Isn't that the biggest piece of bullshit! Hell, it didn't take him more than a week before he fucked some young bitch. I just figure it's about time I took Dad's advice." Mitch watched Keith closely and noticed his eyes were red and bloodshot.

"Keith, let Amy go and we can get you the help you need." Tory decided to try persuading him. Of all Trent's friends, he had bothered her the most; he was always staring at her when he was over the house. But, despite that, she still felt compelled to try to reach out to the troubled youth.

"The only help I need is with this wood I've got stickin' in this sweet ass! You like suckin' dick? Or, maybe, your sailor here gives it to you up the ass?" As he continued to grind his hips into the back of Amy, he traced her neck with the tip of his knife. Amy's eyes showed her panic as she felt the cool blade on her skin.

"Amy, stay calm." Trent spoke calmly to his girlfriend. Slowly, he crept toward Keith and Amy, but stopped beside his mother. Amy looked directly at Trent.

"How sweet! Baby boy is trying to help his little whore, here! Any words of wisdom, brainiac?" taunted Keith.

"Maybe," Trent continued. "Amy, remember that movie we watched a couple months back; remember how to sing."

"Oh, I'll have her singing, buddy! And, I'll have her screaming before long, too!" Keith chuckled at his own joke.

Carelessly, he relaxed his hold around Amy's waist. When she realized this, she quickly brought her free elbow out to jab sharply into his side. While Keith was caught off-balance with that, she dug the heel of her shoe into his foot. Amy felt Keith drop his knife, so she turned around and swiftly gave him a knee to the groin. As Keith doubled over in pain, Amy was pulled away by Mitch and quickly handed off to Trent. Mitch put distance between Keith and his knife and stood over his writhing body while Mr. Thompson used his cell phone. Tory took the foursome and moved them down the hall and away from Keith.

In no time, the police and paramedics were on the scene. Mitch went to stand with the others while one officer interviewed Mr. Thompson.

A second officer quickly joined the group to gather their statements.

"What was all that about, Trent? What movie did you and Amy watch about singing?" Tory was curious to understand her son's logic. The young couple looked at each other and chuckled.

"It wasn't about singing, Mom," explained Trent. "The movie was an older one, about an undercover cop in a beauty pageant. She didn't have a 'talent' for the contest, so she demonstrated a self-defense technique she called 'SING'. It was a comedy, but the technique made sense to me. I checked it out with a friend from the Troop who works at a self-defense club and he thought the theory was sound." Trent's voice turned serious. "Ben and I brought the girls down a couple times to get some pointers and some practice, just in case. We've heard too many stories about girls, especially freshmen, being taken advantage of on college campuses. We wanted them to be prepared."

"I didn't do the entire 'SING', though. It was supposed to be side, instep, nose and groin. I couldn't do the nose, so I just skipped it," added Amy. "But, kicking him in the groin felt good, especially after what he put me through!" Trent continued to hold her close in his arms, and gave her a peck on her cheek.

"You were a very brave young lady," the officer added. "They found some drug paraphernalia on him. Was he known for doing drugs?"

"He never used to," chimed in Ben. "But, his mother committed suicide before Thanksgiving and he's not been the same since."

After a couple more questions, the police had finished and were ready to escort Keith's ambulance to the hospital. Mr. Thompson continued trying to contact Keith's father while the rest went back to the dance.

When they re-entered the prom, the students erupted in cheers and whistles; word of the incident had already filtered into the hall. Embarrassed, Ben and Trent led their dates to their table while Tory and Mitch migrated toward the teachers.

"Mitch, why don't you take Tory home? She doesn't need to stay until the end; I'll make sure everything is clear," Terri Larson suggested. "You look tired, sweetie. Go home and relax; you still have a wedding to finish planning!"

Terri leaned over and gave her best friend a hug. When she reached for Mitch, he bent down and kissed her cheek. "Thanks, Terri. I think I will take her home."

"Make sure you watch Amy, and Trent, at the after-party. Amy could realize what happened at any point and go into shock," Tory advised.

"I know, sweetie. I went to the same classes you went to, remember?" teased Terri. "I'll watch out for them; I promise."

Tory and Mitch went over and said good-night to Trent and Amy before they left. Mitch was surprised — Amy seemed to have bounced back quickly and she was as happy as she had been before the incident with Keith. Even Trent seemed calm, although he kept his arm protectively around Amy's waist and continued to keep her close to him.

Once they got home, Mitch pulled Tory to him in a warm embrace. "What do you say to a glass of wine before bed, baby? You've had a rough night."

The stress of the 'Keith incident' had kept Tory tense for the entire ride home.

"Hmmm," Tory purred in agreement.

"Let's get changed and then enjoy the wine in the hot tub. We can christen it the right way."

"Now? It's almost midnight."

"What better time, baby? It'll be great sitting there together, relaxing and watching the stars. We can have our own after-party while Trent is at his." Without much argument, Mitch led Tory to their bedroom to change. Once in their swimsuits, Mitch settled her into the hot tub while he retrieved the chilled wine and glasses.

"Ahhh, this was a good idea, Mitch." Tory enjoyed the cool of the wine sliding down her throat while the warm bubbles pulsed around her. She rested her head on the edge of the tub while keeping the rest of her body submerged in the water.

"Do you realize how beautiful you look right now?" Mitch tilted Tory's face and then gently captured her lips with his. As Tory reached her right hand up to pull Mitch closer, he snaked his left down to her waist to do the same.

"Oh, God!" Tory was breathless when they finally broke their kiss. Mitch continued contact with her body, trailing kisses down her neck to her exposed shoulder. As his mouth reached Tory's bathing suit strap, Mitch gently pulled Tory's right arm off his shoulder. Two of his fingers found their way under the strap and began to pull it down Tory's arm.