“Diane!” shouted Mom, looking madder than a wet hen.
“That is quite enough!”
“I'm
sorry, Mom, but jeez!” Diane grabbed me by the hair and pulled my head down.
“How dare you get me involved with Phil again!” She grabbed me by the sides of
my head and gave my head a vigorous shake and shouted, “You stupid
stupid-head! You don't remember me having you go out and tell him to get
lost?”
“Enough, Diane!”, scolded Mom as she pried Diane's
hands from my head. “I'm sure Chris has an explanation.”
There was a pause for almost a minute before Mom said,
“Well Chris? I'm waiting for an explanation.”
Pulling my disheveled hair away from my face I said,
“Well, I was at the movie theater talking with Gwen, when this salesman shows
up. He recognizes me as Diane and starts talking to us...”
I told them about our conversation and then his
insistence on taking me out. I didn't leave out a thing. I told them
everything, from how absolutely gorgeous Phil is to how wonderful his kisses are.
While I was talking, Diane's expression became more wistful with even a slight
smile forming.
Silence clung to the walls for a moment. I shrugged
and said, “And that's it.”
Mom was about to speak when Diane, with eyes closed
and face darkening, through clenched teeth said, “You have to call him. You
have to call him and tell him you don't want to see him any more.” Her eyes
became slits as she continued, “Do you understand, my dear sweet sister?” Acid
dripped from those last four words.
“He's your boyfriend, you call him!”, I said in a
serious voice.
Diane pulled at her hair and let out a frustrated
squeal. “I was done with him! You're the one that had to go out with him!
You have to call! Besides, if I call him, he'll just drag me back to him.
Just like he did once before.”
With a big smile, I said, “He is hard to resist. I
mean, he's ...well, he's beautiful! And, like, his story of you breaking up
with him was different from what you told me that night at your college. So did
you catch him with a guy...?”
My voice trailed away as Mom gave me a rather odd
look. Again Diane spoke before Mom could find her voice. “What!?” Giving me
a “what the hell” look, she continued, “He told you what?”
I just shrugged and said, “He said you caught him with
a guy.”
“Oh my God!” Diane yelped. “He must have you, I mean
me, confused with some one else, and that means… Oh my God! That means he’s
bi! I could have had sex with him after he…Oh my God!” Diane pulled her hair
tightly down on both sides of her face as if she was trying to hide with her
hair.
In a quiet voice, Mom simply said, “Chris. Call Phil
and tell him you can't see him any more.” I started to say something, but she
just waved me off and said, “No. No excuses young lady. Seeing Phil wasn't
fair to him, wasn't fair to Diane and it certainly wasn't fair to Joey. Call
him tonight.” Shaking her head, she turned to face back down the hall and
started to walk back towards the living room.
Diane wagged a finger in front of my face. “Don't you
ever do that to me again, you understand?” she snarled before turning to enter
her bedroom followed by a slamming door.
* * *
“Hey babe! How's it going?” asked the voice on the
phone.
“Oh, hey Joey!” I said as I fell backward onto my bed,
my head hitting the pillow. “It's -- going...”
“Just wanted to say congrats on your squad's victory
at the cheerleader contest. It's too bad you couldn't have been there.”
I sighed and said, “Thanks. And yeah, I wish it
could have been me there instead of Diane. She's never going to let me live it
down either. But, it's good she went though. They actually did a sex test. It
seems two squads last year had boys pretending to be girls. Can you imagine
such a thing?”
“Yeah, well, I just wanted to say congrats. Guess
I'll see you at school tomorrow?”
Joey had suddenly sounded very uncomfortable and the
conversation ended quickly. His behavior bothered me and I hoped it didn't
mean he was going to back out of taking me to the prom. I wondered if Zach had
already asked another girl?
My thoughts were interrupted by my sister sticking her
head through the door and saying, “Have you called him yet?” Pointing to the
phone I was holding to my head, she says, “Is that him?”
“No. I was going to call next week sometime.”
Talking from her room, Diane said, “You'll call
tonight. I mean it Chris!”
Lowering my voice, I said into the phone, “Sorry about
that. Got interrupted by that skanky bitch sister of mine.”
Ignoring my comment, Joey said, “Okay. Well, I'm
going to let you go. See ya tomorrow at school.”
* * *
“Yellow...” said a disinterested voice through the
telephone's receiver.
“Hey, Phil. It's me, Chr..um…Diane” I said into the
phone. I was sitting on my bed with the lights off in the room with my door
closed.
“Super to hear from you, Diane! I didn't expect to
get a call from you so soon.”
“Yeah, well. I have some bad news,” I said trying to
sound despondent.
Sounding unsure, Phil asked, “Bad news? Like what
babe?”
“I...I uh...um...” My mind wandered for a moment as
I recalled Phil's kisses. Then I blurted out, “I'm breaking up with you...”
“But we've only had one date!” protested Phil. “I
mean, not counting the ones back in college. But why?”
I really hadn't thought of a why. I paused for a
moment while I wracked my brains for some good reason. Suddenly an idea popped
into my head and without thinking too deep about it, I decided to run with it.
“It just wouldn't be right, ya know? I mean if you're
going to date a girl, you need a real girl,” I said.
“I'm not following you, Diane,” said Phil. “What are
you talking about?”
“I've never told anyone this before, Phil. So it's
kinda hard. You see...I...well, I was born a boy. I've had a sex change.”
Diane was going to kill me.
There was a stunned silence on the other end of the
phone. After a few moments, Phil said, “Are you...are you...shit, are you
serious?”
“Yes. I guess I should have told you. Two summers
ago, I made a little trip to Thailand where I had my surgery.”
“I don't know what to say!” I could hear Phil's
breathing increase. “I just can't believe this. Diane, you should have told
me this from the start!”
“I agree. I know I should.” I starting to run out of
things to say, so I hoped Phil would hurry up and get mad and hang up. “But I
was afraid.”
“No need to be afraid, babe. I love shemales!”
exclaimed Phil. “So much more interesting than genetic females. So there's no
reason to break up. Super!”
Oh crap! I didn't expect this response. I cried,
“You don't get it Phil! When I was a guy, I loved men. But now that I'm a
woman, well, I prefer women. Sorry. That's just the way things go.”
“Are you sure?” asked Phil, “I mean, you could just be
misinterpreting your feelings.”
I sat there on my bed in flabbergasted silence for a
few moments and realized that even if I said I had four eyes, a tail, and
breathed methane, Phil would just say “Super!” In exasperation, I shouted into
the phone, “Phil! Look. I was lying about the sex change part…”
“You mean you weren’t a man?” interrupted Phil.
I closed my eyes and mentally gritted my teeth since
it’s hard to grit your teeth and still talk. “No! Not ever. I said that
because it’s so hard to just blurt out that I don’t like you, Phil. I never
want to see you again! Never. Not ever. Okay? There. I said it. I made a
mistake in going out with you. I’m hanging up now. Good-bye. Sorry.
Good-bye. I mean it.”
“Baby, I think we can work this out, you know?” Phil
said without any hint of emotion.
“Say good night, Phil…” I said and then hung up the
phone. For a long time I just sat there in the darkness.
* * *
I was walking numbly though the halls to my second
period class when Joey stepped beside me and began to walk with me. I smiled
weakly at him. I was in a totally sour mood that morning. I felt awful about
how I had acted the past several days. Not only was my conscience working
over-time with guilt about hurting Diane, but also having cheated on Joey. I
couldn’t bring myself to look him in the face.
“Are you okay?” Joey asked. “You look down in the
dumps today and you seemed down this weekend too. Anything you want to talk
about?”
Still not looking at him, I just shrugged and said,
“No, it’s nothing. Really.”
We were just passing an empty classroom when he
stopped me and turned me to face him. He said, “Look, if you don’t want to go with
me to the prom, I understand. I know I’m not a jock or that exciting so…”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and a feeling of
frustration washed over me. Joey was getting the wrong idea about my mood from
last night when we talked on the phone. On sudden impulse, I pushed Joey into
the empty room and quickly shut the door behind me. I spun Joey around to face
me as I gently held him against the closed door. I looked at him for a moment
before pressing my lips hard against his. I kissed him hard, with all the
passion I could muster.
I looked at him for a moment after reluctantly pulling
my lips from his. In almost a whisper, I said, “Don’t ever think for one
moment I don’t want to go to the prom with you, Joey!” Smiling sweetly to him,
I opened the door and hurried to my next class.
* * *
After looking around, making sure no one saw me, I
softly knocked on Coach Renwick’s door. Looking up from her work, she turned
in her chair and smiled. “Come on in, hon,” she said. “Have a seat. What’s
on your mind?”
I sat down on the proffered chair, folding my hands on
my skirt. For a moment, my eyes focused far away, and then I looked down at
the floor as I said, “Ms. Thornapple told me that she’d handed the decision of
who was going to get the cheerleading scholarship to you. Have you picked the
winner for the scholarship award yet?” There was going to be a cheerleader
banquet on Wednesday before the prom. It’s a send-off for the senior
cheerleaders as well as a welcome to the girls who just won the try-outs. And
of course, the awards are presented at that time.
She looked at me curiously before saying, “Well, of
course Chris. In fact, I’m having the plaques engraved this afternoon.”
“Who are you giving the scholarship to?”
Ms. Renwick barked a short laugh and said, “You’ll
have to wait until the banquet, Chris. Just like everyone else. You know
that. Why do you ask?”
“It’s just that…um…It’s just that well, I…” I had a
hard time saying what I needed to say. One part of me knew I had to, the other
part didn’t want to. Finally I managed to say, “It’s just that if you have
picked me, I want to ask that you pick…” I took a deep breath. “I want you to
pick Mandy. I think she is so much more deserving than me.”
Coach studied me for a moment before saying, “You both
are excellent cheerleaders. You both have shown leadership in spirit as well
as achieving goals. I’m proud of both of you. My decision was not an easy
one.”
I nodded and said, “I know. But I know Mandy really
wants it bad. She’s worked hard, been a cheerleader longer than I have, and I
know she’d get more out of it since she’s, well, you know, a real girl.”
Coach Renwick smiled at me, reached out and lightly
touched my hair and said, “Honey, trust me. You’re every bit a real girl as
far as I’m concerned. Oh, I’m sure some may argue differently, but they don’t
know you like I do. I only see a sweet, talented and beautiful girl sitting
across from me.”
I smiled weakly. “Thanks,” I said staring at my
hands. “But really, the award should to go to Mandy. I need to go.” And
before Ms. Renwick could answer, I got up and quickly left her office.
* * *
“What do you want, sis?” asked an irritated voice on
the other end of the phone. “I’m in the middle of doing my nails. I have a
job interview this afternoon.”
Momentarily stunned, I forgot what I was going to say
to my sister and asked incredulously, “A job interview? You?” It was lunch
and I had walked off campus to use my cell phone.
Sounding defeated, Diane said, “Yeah. I’m tired of
sitting around the house. None of the resumes I’ve sent out have generated
anything more than two or three phone interviews. Radio station KRUD is hiring
a sales rep.”
“That’s a Country station. You hate Country Music.”
Diane laughed as she said, “I don’t have to listen to
it. Just try to get businesses to buy advertising on it!”
“Well, good luck, Diane,” I said sincerely.
“Thanks.”
“Hey, Diane. What I called about…” I hesitated a
moment. “The reason I called…well, I’m suffering huge guilt today. I really
screwed up with Phil. I hurt you and I wanted to say I’m sorry.”
“Apologies are usually best done in person, Chrissy,”
Diane said with annoyance.
“I couldn’t wait! I couldn’t concentrate on anything
this morning. I had to say it now. My head felt like it was going to explode
if I didn’t get this out. I was a real bitch this weekend while you were helping
me and the squad. I just wanted to let you know that I am so, so very sorry.”
Tears welled up with the emotional release. I wiped my finger under my eye to
get the tear and saw the black streak on my finger. Oh crap, don’t start
crying I told myself.
Hearing the sincere emotion in my voice, Diane said,
“Thanks, Chris. I…” Her voice trailed away.
“I…I have to go now. I only have a couple of minutes
to get to my locker.” Not to mention getting to the nearest girl’s rest room to
fix my make-up.
“Okay, sis. We’ll talk later about this.”
I clicked on the button to break the connection and
headed back into the school with a huge weight gone from my shoulders.
* * *
“Joey!” I called out as I exited the school building.
“Wait up!” I ran towards him. It was that moment, that very instant, that it
fully hit me that Joey was my boyfriend and that all I wanted in this world was
to be his girlfriend. All our years of friendship suddenly coalesced into
unbounded love, so profound was the emotion that washed through my soul.
Joey turned to face me. He smiled as he said, “Hey
Chrissy! You seem to be in a much better mood than this morning!”
A second later when I caught up to him, before
answering him, I put my arms around his neck and kissed him. Catching my
breath, I said, “I’m feeling much better now. And not just because school is
out.” We started to walk towards his car. He took my hand and a pang of guilt
jarred me to the core. I would never tell Joey about my weekend with Phil. I
squeezed his hand and smiled up at him.
Joey studied me for a second and said, “I’m glad. I
was worried about you.”
“I had some things on my mind earlier, but I think
I’ve taken care of them.”
“I’m glad of that!” Joey said with a laugh. “Would
you like a ride home?”
“Thanks! I’d love to!” I gave him another kiss and
as I turned to walk around his car, he patted my butt.
The ride to my house would take only minutes as I live
just a few blocks away from school. But a couple of those minutes were
squandered as we both just rode in silence. Finally Joey said, “So, do you
think you’ll get the cheerleader scholarship? I mean, you’ve done so much for
the squad.”
Looking at the floorboards, I shook my head. “I told
Ms. Renwick that I didn’t want it. I told her I thought Mandy deserved it
more.” I looked up and shrugged.
“No, no! I mean, I’m not saying this because you’re
my girl. I really do think you’re the best cheerleader!”
I smiled at him as he pulled his car up to the curb in
front of my house. “Thanks. But before I joined them, Mandy was already
shaping the squad to be the best.”
Pointing needlessly at my house, Joey said, “Well,
there’s your house. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow, huh.”
I nodded and he leaned in for a kiss. I kissed him
softly at first, then with a sudden burst of passion. The kiss was long and
filled me with raw emotion.
Pulling away from him, I said softly, “I love you,
Joey…” and before he could answer, I ran from his car into my house.
* * *
There was electricity in the air as all us girls sat
at the banquet table, some still finishing the great dinner we had, and all
were talking. In a few minutes, Coach would be announcing the awards.
I looked around the room. We were all wearing our
uniforms – some for the last time as cheerleaders. I looked at the three new
girls, chatting and giggling. They were all pretty and so excited to have won
the try-outs to replace Mandy, Brandi, and me. Stephanie, who would be a
senior next year, had already been selected to be the squad leader. I hoped
she wouldn’t be overwhelmed by it.
Coach Renwick stepped up to the podium and rapped her
knuckles on the top surface a couple of times. “Girls! Girls! I need your
attention.” There was a table set up next to the podium and Ms. Thornapple
walked up and with a thunk, placed a box on the table. She then pulled a chair
up behind the table and sat down.
Smiling, Coach said, “Now is the time to present this
evening’s awards!” Reaching into the box she continued, “First, I’d like to
start with the award for the most improved. Brittney, would you come up
here?” Brittney, a tenth grader had been the only girl besides me that hadn’t
been a cheerleader in middle school. Everyone clapped as she accepted her
award.
I sat next to Mandy at the banquet and as the awards
dwindled down to the main one, she took my hand and we smiled at each other.
There was no doubt that the scholarship award would go to one of us. Even
after talking to Coach, I wasn’t sure who would get it and the suspense was
killing both of us.
Coach pulled out a large plaque along with a piece of
paper and just stared at it for a moment before speaking. Everyone got quiet.
She looked at Mandy and me, and then glanced over to the other girls before
looking back down at the podium. Finally, she said, “Every once in a while, a
truly exceptional girl will join the squad. The kind of girl every coach
dreams to have. A girl with true leadership and unflagging spirit, a girl who
embodies all the qualities that one expects from a great athlete, but also a
role model for all the young women in this community.” She looked solemnly
around the room before continuing.
“This year, we have two such girls on our squad. Two
girls who I know will grow to be exceptional young women.” Coach Renwick cast
her eyes directly at Mandy and me as she said, “Believe me, this was no easy
decision. Without either of you, we never would have been able to go to the
contest. Without either of you, we never would have brought home this trophy.”
She pointed to the trophy sitting in the middle of the banquet table. “All you
girls won this trophy to be sure. But Mandy and Chrissy brought an energy to
the squad and kept the squad focused and spirits high.”
Coach held up the plaque along with the scholarship
certificate and said, “It is with great pleasure that I present this year’s
scholarship award to…” Coach paused several moments for effect. Mandy and I
both were about to come out of our skins. “…Mandy. Come get your award, sweetie.”
Mandy almost broke my fingers she squeezed my hand so
hard. She jumped up and hurried to the podium and took the plaque from Coach
Renwick’s hands. Everyone was screaming and cheering as she turned to face
us. The grin on her face faded as she suddenly looked nervous, her eyes
glancing to the floor.
“I…I need to say something guys.” Everyone got
suddenly quiet. Mandy said, “I…I can’t believe I finally got this. It’s been
my dream all year. For a while I was afraid Chrissy would get it instead of
me.” There were some giggles around the room.
“This has been the best year. I love all of you. We
couldn’t have won the contest without every one of you.” She studied the
plaque for a moment before saying, “But I feel there’s someone who deserves
this award more than me. Someone who has overcome a handicap most girls never
have to deal with to become not only the best cheerleader at JWB High, but also
my best friend.” She walked up to the table and laid the plaque in front of
me. “Chrissy, you deserve this more than me.”
Tears flowing freely, I picked up the plaque and tried
to shove it back at Mandy. “Oh no, Mandy! You need to keep this. You deserve
it!”
Mandy backed away and said, “The award should go to
the best girl. And Chrissy, that girl is you.”
I stared blankly at her, shook my head and just
quietly said, “No. No Mandy…”
Mandy smiled at me and said, “You deserve it, girl.”
* * *
“What am I going to do, Diane?” I whined to my
sister. “I can’t use this scholarship! It means going to college as a girl!
And I have to be a cheerleader to boot!”
Diane just stared at me for a few moments with a
“gimme a break” look on her face. Shaking her head slightly she said, “Give me
a break.” She sat down next to me on the end of my bed and took my hand.
“Chris…Chrissy…do you honestly think you’re going to return to being a boy
after you graduate?”
Staring at my feet, I said, “That was the plan…”
“Look around this room. Do you see any evidence that
a boy lives here? Look inside your self. Is there any sign of a boy in
there? Be honest, you love being a girl. You love being a cheerleader.”
Diane paused to let out a single breath laugh. “You even love being someone’s
girlfriend. Face it sis. You are totally a girl.”
I looked at Diane and shrugged. “You’re right…”
* * *
“Where’s my lipstick!” I said frantically, scattering
most of my beauty products across the surface of the vanity. “Joey will be
here any minute!” I looked over at my blue prom dress, smoothed out on the
bed. I’d been home from the beauty shop for only half an hour and I really
felt I was cutting things too close.
“Which one?” Diane asked in an annoyed voice. “You
had it narrowed down to five last night.”
“This one!” I shouted as I grabbed the lipstick that
had rolled behind a tissue box.
Calmly, Diane said, “Okay. Put it on and then let me
put it in your purse. We don’t want to lose it again.” She looked at my
vanity and shook her head. “Maybelline would go out of business if you went
back to being a boy.”
I studied myself a few moments after I’d applied the
lipstick. I was totally struck by what I saw staring back at me. Even after
all this time, it was still a shock to see a pretty girl in the mirror. I’d
never worn my hair up before, and it felt weird.
The doorbell rang. I suddenly felt as if all the
blood had drained from my body. “He’s here!” I shouted. “Oh my God, Joey’s
here! I’m not ready!” I almost tripped and fell as I got up too quickly.
Diane laughed and said, “Calm down, sis! You don’t want
to rush. Guys expect to have to wait. You don’t want to look too eager
either.”
My bedroom door opened and I jumped. Mom poked her
head in and said, “Joey’s here. Are you ready hon?” I started shaking.
Diane said, “Tell him she’ll be ready in ten or
fifteen minutes. Even if she had her dress on, she’s not going out there while
all worked up like this.”
Mom nodded and closed the door. I heard her walking
down the hall to relay the news to Joey.
“Diane, look at me!” I cried. “You’d think I’d never
been out with a guy before.”
Diane smiled as she said, “Well, this is a special
night. You’ll remember it for the rest of your life. You want your make-up to
be perfect, your hair to be perfect, your dress to be perfect. I understand.
I went to a prom too you know. Just relax. You’ve scored on all three of
those points. Trust me, every guy at the prom will be wishing they were Joey.
Come on. I’ll help you with your dress.”
* * *
I never before felt so on display as I walked down the
hall to the living room where Joey was waiting. I was super aware of
everything, from the dangly diamond (ok, cubic zirconium) earrings brushing
against the side of my face, the feel of my hair, the cold of my necklace, the
taste of my lipstick, feeling my eyelashes when I blinked, the swish of the
satin of my dress.
As I entered the living room, I felt every eye bore
into me. Diane was standing behind everyone, her hands clasped in front of her
face as she grinned broadly. Mom put her hands over her mouth as she let out a
little cry and gasp. Dad stood up from the kitchen counter where he had been
cleaning one of his rifles, with the oddest expression on his face. Joey stood
up, his eyes shining with a big grin.
Mom cried, “Oh my little girl! She’s all grown up.
She’s gorgeous!”
Joey clumsily held out my corsage and stared at me
intently before saying. “You are absolutely beautiful, Chrissy.”
Joey was all dressed up. I smiled at him and gushed,
“And you Joey. You are just so handsome!”
We just stared at each other as the magic of the
moment swirled around us. It was shattered when I heard my Dad’s voice say, “You two get over by the fire place so I can take a couple of pictures…”
* * *
“Thank you for the corsage, Joey. It’s beautiful!”
Joey had just backed out of our driveway and we were heading for Hotel Grand
where our prom was being held in the ballroom.
Joey glanced over at me and smiled. “It’s not as
beautiful as the girl that’s wearing it.” I smiled back at Joey and turned to
look out the windshield, but not really seeing anything. I was a mix bag of
emotions. I felt so feminine, so pretty, so excited and so, well, natural.
We drove to the hotel in silence, each lost in our own
thoughts. I looked at Joey and wondered what he was thinking. I’m sure he
never dreamed of taking his life-long buddy to the prom. I wondered briefly
what Jeff was doing. I’d heard that a couple of popular girls had turned him
down. I shook out the memories of my old daydreams of going to the prom in this
dress with Jeff.
Finally, Joey was turning his car into the parking lot
of the Hotel Grand. He rolled into a parking spot and killed the engine. He
let out a sigh and said, “Well, we’re here!” He just sat there, his hands
staying on the steering wheel. He looked at me, smiled, took a deep breath and
let go of the wheel. He looked back and me and said, “Let’s go.”
He started to get out the car, but I just sat there.
He looked back at me questioningly and asked, “Something wrong?” I tilted my
head toward the door. Joey had a sudden embarrassed look, pointed at me and
said, “Gotcha.” He exited the car and came around to my door, opened it and
helped me get out of his car. Between the dress and the heels, I actually did
need help.
It was a gorgeous night, with a gentle warm breeze, as
we walked hand in hand to the entrance of the hotel. The lobby was decorated
with ribbons and balloons and signs pointed the way to the ballroom. Some of
the kids were hanging out in the lobby and we waved to the ones we knew as we
made our way to the ballroom.
We entered the ballroom, which was basically an
enlarged dining room and they had attempted to cheer it up with more ribbons
and balloons. At one end of the room was the obnoxious DJ from one of the
local radio stations. There was a dance floor directly in front of the DJ. The
rest of the floor area was taken up with tables draped with ugly red
tablecloths. Near the door was what during adult parties would be a bar, but
tonight they were serving soft drinks and punch. Near it was a table loaded
with finger food. From the middle of the ceiling hung a disco ball which sent
its shiny reflections all over the room.
Letting go of my hand, Joey said, “Let me get you a
soda. Can you find us a table?” I nodded and he hurried off to get in the line
to the drinks. I looked around and saw Mandy waving at me. I walked over to
her.
Over the DJ and general noise I heard Mandy say, “Hey
girlfriend! I saved you and Joey a spot here with us.” I looked around the
table, but Mandy was the only one there, but evidence that others had been
sitting there. We hugged and then sat down in a rustle of satin.
While we both waited for our dates to return, Mandy
and I engaged in mostly small talk. Suddenly, Mandy pointed to a couple just
entering the ballroom. “Oh no. There’s Jeff. I hope he doesn’t come over
here! Hmmm. That girl he’s with. I don’t recognize her.”
I turned around and peered through the lightly
darkened room. My eyes widened as I recognized who the girl was that he was
with. I couldn’t believe it. He was with Danny, or I guess I should say,
Dani. I had to admit that Dani looked very girly and very pretty tonight,
draped on Jeff’s arm. I shook my head with disbelief and wondered if Jeff knew
that his girlfriend was a boy.
Mandy looked at me and asked, “Well? You seem to know
her. Who is she?”
“She’s just a girl from school. You know, one of the
quiet ones that no one ever seems to notice.” If it was only Jeff that would
have been affected, I would have told Mandy the truth. But I really didn’t
want to risk hurting Dani. Dani was playing with fire and the last thing she
needed was me throwing gasoline on it. I just wish she’d stop taking so many
risks. I mean, Jeff knew what he was getting into with me.
Before Mandy could ask another question, someone
shouted, “Look! It’s Nikki! She’s back!” I quickly looked back at the
entrance and sure enough, there was Nikki, in a wheelchair, in a prom dress
with one arm and one leg in casts and one of the football jocks pushing her. I
had no idea she was finally back from that Navy ice station in the Antarctic
when the cargo plane she was being transported in was forced to divert there.
Several people got up and gathered around her to welcome her back home.
Joey finally came to the table and handed me cup of
soda. As he sat down he said, “Hey, did you see that Nikki made it here?
That’s cool. She’s been through a lot. To be honest, I didn’t think they were
going to be able to get her back from that Saudi prince without paying for
her.” He took a drink of his soda.
After a few minutes of chit-chatting with Mandy, Joey
set his cup of soda down and took my hand and said, “Let’s go dancing!” I gave
Mandy a smile and a wave and got quickly to my feet.
Fortunately, the DJ was playing a string of slow songs
so Joey and I could hold each other and feel romantic. For a few moments,
neither of us said anything. We just looked into each other’s eyes and smiled.
“You look…happy tonight, Chrissy.” Joey said breaking
the silence. “I mean happier than I’ve seen you in a while.”
“I am happy. Finally I know who I am and glad. I’m
here dancing with a wonderful guy. I’m so happy I could explode!”
Joey laughed and said, “I hope you don’t explode…this
tux is rented!”
Before I could say anything, a voice behind me said,
“There! That’s her!”
I turned and there was Nikki in her wheelchair being
pushed towards me. With a finger that was hanging out of the cast she pointed
at me. I then noticed her other arm was in a sling. She said, “That’s her!
You’re the one that took my place on the squad.” Some of the people dancing
were starting to look at us.
I said, “Well, yes. They asked me to fill in. I was
very sorry to hear about all the accidents. I’m glad you made it safely back.”
“It’s not fair! That should have been me, not you!”
She squirmed in her wheelchair.
Just then Coach Renwick came up to Nikki. Coach
looked at me with an apologetic expression and said quietly, “Nikki sweetie.
Let’s go over to the snack table and get some cheese.”
Nikki glanced up to Coach, smiled and said, “Oh, I
like cheese.” Coach then turned the wheelchair and around and disappeared
through the crowd of dancing teenagers.
Joey just stood there a second and said, “What the fuck…?”
“Let’s just keep dancing,” I said. Nikki was right. I
took her position, but it certainly wasn’t my fault. Still, I started to feel
bad.
“I said, what are your college plans?” ask Joey. I
was lost in thought for a moment and didn’t know he had been talking.
“Well, I got the scholarship, so it’d be crazy not to
go to County College. It might not be as good as State, but it’s still a good
school. Of course, I’m committed to be a cheerleader there. They go to
nationals every year, so I’ll probably have to borrow Diane again!”
Joey laughed. I loved his laugh. Biting my lower
lip, I studied his face up and down. I was in love with Joey.
I saw a hand fall on Joey’s shoulder and a familiar
voice asked, “Hey man, can I cut in for a minute? Thanks.” I was shocked to
see Joey step aside as Jeff took his place. Jeff grinned as he looked at me
and said, “I just had to dance at least once at the prom with the most
beautiful boy in school.”
I frowned at him as I said, “I’m not a boy, Jeff. Now
let me get back to Joey.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that,” said Jeff
with a faked sincere voice. “But like I said, I wanted to get in one dance
tonight. For a while there, I really, truly thought that Prom Night would be
our night. Joey’s a nice guy. Does he know what’s between your legs?”
“You can stop now Jeff,” I said, growing pissed off.
Dani came up to us and said, “Oh, there you are! Why
are you dancing with her? I’m feeling lonely Jeffie.” She tugged on Jeff’s
arm.
Jeff gave me a look of dismissal and as he took Dani’s
arm said, “Oh, I’m done here. I’m ready to go back to dancing with a real
girl.”
I refrained from telling Jeff that he needs to check
up Dani’s dress. If Dani didn’t stop the direction she was going, Jeff might
find out later tonight anyway.
As Joey took my hand and put his other on my hip, he
said, “What was all that about?”
I shook my head and said, “It’s nothing. Just closing
that last door on my past.”
There was a scream and a sudden ruckus behind Joey.
Someone shouted “Oh shit! Someone grab her!” I looked through the crowd in
time to see Nikki’s runaway wheelchair slam into the DJ’s equipment and Nikki
somersaulted into the amplifiers and speakers with one of the speakers falling
on top of her with a sickening crunch. Coach Renwick and the football jock
that brought her in rushed to her. A shout of “Somebody call an ambulance!”
resulted in over a hundred cell phones being whipped out.
The prom went into standby mode while waiting for
paramedics to arrive. When they did and looked her over, I could barely make
out one of them saying to Coach, “No local hospital will be able to help her.
The closest is two hundred miles away. She’ll have to be air lifted. The
helicopter was re-directed to here after it was already in the air heading to
the airport for refueling…”
* * *
The prom was beginning to wind down while Joey and I
were still on the dance floor.