by Rita Delude
“Wow. I wish you were my aunt.”
Sandy laughed that deep laugh again and Honey smiled.
“Have you got a plan besides Steve?”
“I just thought of it now. I’m going to ask Annie if she’d like to start biking again. There’s a lot to discover around this new place. It’s beautiful, actually.”
“I’ll make a suggestion then. Get those bikes of yours out of the garage early in the week in case the movers did any damage. Goodale’s is a great bike shop. They’ll fix you up in a jiffy.”
“Good idea.”
“Now, tell me what the Amanda bitch said to you.”
It was Honey’s turn to laugh. She felt like she’d known this lady all her life, and they were good friends. If only she could find a friend around Laconia her own age that understood her like this one did, life would be so sweet again.
“Well, she was rude to both Henry and me, but kept her voice down because she was working. She said I wore slutty clothes to school and because I’m always licking lollipops I look like hooker trying to solicit Johns and that I had stolen Beth’s boyfriend away. Beth’s boyfriend used to be Henry. She said none of the girls at school can trust me.”
“Is that all? Didn’t she tell you your feet stink and you don’t love Jesus, too?”
Honey, who had stiffened, loosened up. “Oh, you’re joking. Yeah, it was brutal, right there in public and in front of Henry. I ran out then. Henry came out and picked me up. Then he drove me to Preacher’s Hill to talk he said, but we kissed, which was fine, but then he put his hands all over my breasts, and I didn’t want him too. He thought I was easy, just like Mandy said.”
“Did he stop when you told him to?
“Yes, but he was surprised. I know he expected more. But I’m not giving it up for anyone. After what I went through, I want to make love, not have sex. I want my husband, if I have one someday, to have me, only me, and me to have only him. That’s the way I want it to be.”
“It’s good you know what you want. You stick to your principals. Don’t let anyone talk you into something you’re not ready for.”
“I’m afraid, too.”
“How so?”
“That it will always feel awful, wrong, sick, dirty, and scared like it did, you know, before…”
“Oh, hon, I can’t guarantee that, but my guess is when you find the right man and the time is right for you, it will feel just right, the way it’s supposed to feel—special, sweet, two lives entwined as one, sharing something precious and exceptional.”
A tear dropped from Honey’s eye then. “I sure hope so.”
“I hope so, too,” Sandy said.
“Now let’s talk about what else this Amanda said. She said you dress slutty. Is this what you wore to classes today?”
Honey looked down at her cut-off jeans shorts, cropped gingham red and white checkered top, and her flip flops.
“Yes,” she answered.
“Is that how the other girls dress?” Sandy got up and pointed to the door behind Honey’s chair “There’s a mirror over there if you want a close look.” Honey stood up and walked to the mirror and saw just what she’d seen looking down in the comfy chair only then she saw how very, very short the jeans were and how super high up the tie on her crop top was. Why hadn’t the administrators said anything? Did they have a dress code? She really did need to read the school’s rule book. Tears trickled down her face.
“No. This isn’t what they wear. How stupid can I be? I didn’t even wear this at my old school. I would have been sent home. They even sent me home from there the first day saying I had to change. Was I asking for trouble?”
“I don’t know. What do you think?”
“I think I’ve got to go back to my normal outfits. This is not me. When all the gossip started back home, I started dressing the part, thinking screw them, if they think this about me, let them have a reason to think it, and I never went back to dressing like I used to.”
“That’s an easy fix, then. It’s not the real you dressing this way. It was something you put on for the gossips in Maine. Don’t keep it going for the gossips in New Hampshire. You came here for a fresh start. Start fresh.”
“That I can do. Don’t know if it will make a difference with these bitches, though.”
“Is it worth a try?”
“Definitely. I love my sister, but I need some girlfriends my own age.”
“What about this lollipop issue? You’ve always got one.”
“It’s a nervous habit, plus I love the sugar. Mom says they’ll rot my teeth, but I love them. Lots of kids my age smoke and vape; I don’t. I suck lollipops. I can’t see how that hurts anyone.”
“Fair enough. Just be sure you brush—a lot!”
“Now you sound like my mother.”
“Sorry,” Sandy said with a wink as she showed Honey to the back door.
Chapter Thirteen
It turned out the bikes needed tuning up and Annie’s needed a new rear tire, so their dad took them to Goodale’s after he got home from work. Steve, the green-eyed, redhead from her science class, worked at the shop as a repairman, and Honey introduced him to her father since he’d be coming to the house that Friday to pick her up, anyway; she couldn’t act like she didn’t know him. He hinted that he’d like to take the Saturday ride with her, but Honey didn’t commit. She wanted to see how the date would go, and mostly, she wanted time alone with Annie like they used to share when they went biking almost weekly when weather permitted. She had missed that and blamed herself for falling out of the habit of doing something that had given her so much joy.
“I could show you some really great trails in the area; I’ve likely been on pretty much every one,” Steve pressed as he replaced the inner tube in Annie’s bike, made some adjustments to her gears, asked her to take it out to the back parking lot for some testing, and then threw Honey’s bike up on the rack to work on.
“That does sound nice, but some other time might be better. I promised my sister. You know. I don’t want to disappoint.”
He held out his hand in a stopping motion. “I get it. I get it. I’ve got kid brothers at home. Twins. Five years younger than me. Always wanting to do something with me. Sometimes I go along; sometimes I just tell them to back off.”
Honey laughed an uncomfortable laugh. She was close to Anne and really, except for that one time when she caught her going through her diary, did not mind having her around at all. Maybe it was because they were only three years apart in age or maybe because they were girls and not guys. Whatever it was, she didn’t like the way he talked about his brothers. But that was his problem, not hers. Annie came in beaming and bragging that the bike flew across the parking lot. Right about that time, Honey’s was ready, and Steve took it off the rack and rolled it to her.
“I’ll pay the bill, girls, and meet you outside,” their dad said, so they went outside both testing their rides while Steve was stuck inside with the father.
“Apparently, you do good work, son,” Mr. Delano said; Annie was impressed.
“Thank you, sir. Goodale’s has a good reputation. We try our best.” He smiled and gave Mr. Delano his change. “I’ll see you on Friday when I pick up Honey.”
Mr. Delano smiled. “Yes, right. I’ll see you then.”
“He seems like a nice guy,” he said as he slipped the girls’ bikes into the back of his pickup truck and headed to the driver’s seat. “I like a guy who can use his hands to fix things. Did I ever tell you that’s how I got started as an engineer, by taking stuff like toasters and coffee pots apart and putting them back together to see how they worked?”
“Yes, Dad, about a zillion times,” Anne said and rolled her eyes dramatically, so her dad could see her expression.
“Mom’s coming home late tonight, so I thought we’d go out to dinner, but maybe you don’t want to sit around with this old guy and hear any of his lame old stories for the zillionth and one time do you?”
“Dinner out? W
here?” Honey asked. It meant they wouldn’t have to help cook or clean up the dishes. She loved dinners out.
“You two choose as long as it’s someplace Mom would like because we’re supposed to bring a carryout meal home to her for later.”
They actually had a great time sharing stories about their father’s new job and how it compared to the old one. He sounded like he was making some new friends already. They’d been invited to a barbeque at someone’s house for that Saturday.
“Not Saturday,” the girls moaned together. “Saturday’s when we’re going biking. We wanted to pack a picnic and make a day of it,” Annie pleaded.
“Hey, who invited you? Adults only,” he said with a wink. “So your biking trip is perfect. As long as Honey keeps her phone with her, so she can call in case you two get lost or your bikes break down, I’m sure Mom will be okay with you to be biking together.”
The girls linked their pinkie fingers together and gave him their brightest smiles. Saturday would be perfect. Something they could both really look forward to, plus they had Monday off, so it was going to be a very special weekend for sure.
Of course, he asked about how they were settling in, and it took Annie until dessert to finish her stories about the kids she’d met and the friends she’d made. She was hoping that she’d be able to have a huge costume party the week before Halloween for her birthday. Honey was thinking how great that was for her sister, but also feeling a bit jealous. She hoped by Halloween she’d have a friend or two of her own to invite to Annie’s party.
While they ate cheesecake with blueberries for dessert, Honey told them that she really liked her writing and English classes, which were both taught by Mr. Farnsworth and that her U.S. History class seemed pretty fascinating too.
“How about the kids? This Steve guy seems nice and we met Henry. Anyone else we might meet?” he asked.
“Don’t know yet, Dad, kids here seem a bit more standoffish at the high school than I remember us being, but that may be because I grew up with them forever. New kids might have felt a bit left out like I do. It’ll just take time. Don’t worry about me. Sandy and I have this worked out.”
“Who’s Sandy?” Annie and her dad asked in unison.
“Oh, Dr. Bechard. Dr. Sandra Bechard. She asked me to call her Sandy, so I do.”
“Glad that’s working out for you. That’s good. Let’s get this food home. Your mom should be getting home any minute.”
As they traveled home with the bikes repaired and ready for Saturday’s outing, Honey was glad she had taken Sandy’s advice and planned something that made her feel good and she could look forward to. Biking was a smart choice.
Chapter Fourteen
Tryouts for the upcoming musical, Hello Dolly, passed and it was time to get into rehearsals and serious staging and production, so Henry talked Honey into joining the stage crew. There she got to meet a different group of kids. Most of those she worked with wanted nothing to do with the spotlight, but no one could miss Tara, the drama queen, who had the lead role in the play. She should have it. Her voice was so well trained and carried across the theater even without the help of microphones which would be clipped on during final rehearsals and on show nights. Her face and body were bigger than life with every expression visible across the room. She was born for this, Honey thought. Good for her. Yet, no matter how many times Honey complimented her on her stellar practices, Tara answered her curtly with something like, “Yeah, whatever,” and walked away.
Nothing she did would break through the barrier that these girls, who she then thought of as “the mean girls,” had built up against her. Honey had a string of one-night dates, including the one with Steve. She went to the movies, bowling, roller skating, dirt biking, hiking, biking, a fancy dinner at the nicest restaurant in town, to a video arcade for several hours of pool and shuffle board, depending on what the guy suggested, but they all ended the same. Each guy wanted to feel her up. Each one thought the price of the night’s date was a ticket to touch her body, and she wasn’t having any of it. Didn’t they talk to each other and tell each other that there was no getting anywhere with Honey Delano? Duh. Of course not, she finally realized. They likely all played it up like they’d scored a home run; that’s why the invitations kept coming in. Finally, Honey had stopped saying “yes” because she was afraid that one date would refuse to take “no” for an answer and get rough with her.
She and her mom had taken a self-defense course at the local police station after what happened to her, and she knew some moves, but she didn’t want to risk having to use them. Guys were a lot stronger than she was, and she knew it. That’s why she kept pepper spray in her purse, always.
Henry hadn’t gone back with Beth like Honey suspected he would and wasn’t going out with anyone else that she could tell. He was a nice guy, but she wasn’t taking any chances, so she never said “yes” to any of his repeated requests for a second chance.
Sophie was at every rehearsal playing piano for the show. While some were rehearsing lines, she worked with the chorus or various solos or duets and played as they practiced. Honey was fascinated by how it was all organized; Henry did most of it because Mr. Farnsworth was busy with the actors.
Cory was there every day too. His baritone voice had earned him the role of Horace Vandergelder in the play. He didn’t have as many lines as Tara, so he often spent time with Honey, who was painting scenery. Sometimes, he painted with her.
“Are things getting any better for you here?” Cory asked one day.
“Not much. I’m enjoying doing this. It’s fun and creative, but I mostly work alone.”
“Are the ladies still shunning you?”
“Yes.”
“Tara, too?”
“Yes, but don’t say a word. I don’t want trouble,” Honey mumbled around the lollipop that was locked into her mouth.
“I’m having a Halloween party at my place a week from tomorrow. About two dozen kids are coming. It won’t be all couples. You can bring a date or not. Costumes mandatory. Starts at eight and goes ’til about one a.m. unless my parents get tired of the noise and kick everyone out sooner. Give me your phone; I’ll put my number and address in.”
She handed it to him and just as she did, Tara came off the stage and saw them.
“It’s not enough you’ve broken up half the couples in this school, you have to set your target on my Cory now?” Tara yelled. Then she grabbed Cory by the arm and said, “Come on; I’m finished. Take me home. Unless you’d rather be with her.” The dripping distain coming from Tara sent tears streaming down Honey’s cheeks.
“Enough! Tara, stop. You, Mandy, Sophie, and Beth, you all didn’t treat me like this when I was new. You reamed Seth a new asshole when he came after me. Why can’t you just be nice to her?”
“Go ahead. You go out with her too,” Tara screamed and everyone in the auditorium went silent as she and Sophie ran out together, and Cory took Honey into his arms and let her cry. No one took their eyes off of them except to click pictures with their phones. They went viral in seconds.
Sophie drove Tara home, but before Tara got out of her car, they talked for an hour.
“I love Cory. I don’t want to lose him to that bitch.”
“If you lose him to someone who’s slept around with half the high school, he was not worth having anyway.”
“That might be true, but I love him anyway. No one’s ever treated me like he does. Look at me,” she insisted, pulling up the sleeves of her hoodie, “I haven’t cut since Cory and I started dating in late August. I can’t lose him. I don’t know what I’ll do.”
Both girls’ phones blew up. They pulled them out and gawked at the pictures of Cory and Honey hugging each other. None of the pictures showed them kissing or holding hands, but it was enough for Tara to explode into a torrent of wails and tears like Sophie had never seen before. She texted Mandy to get to Tara’s house ASAP.
Within minutes Mandy joined them in Sophie’s Jeep; she hadn�
�t been at rehearsal, but had seen the pictures too. Who hadn’t?
“Text Seth,” Sophie suggested. “Maybe he can find out from Cory what the hell is going on.”
She did and minutes later he joined the trio and suggested they move out of the cramped car and into Tara’s house. Her parents weren’t home from work yet anyway and her little sister could be trusted to keep out of their business. They piled into Tara’s room where she collapsed on the bed acting as though she’d never be able to get out of it again.
“What the hell, Seth? Cory’s picking the new girl over me now? Why?”
Seth looked around. It was the first time he’d ever been in Tara’s room. The walls were covered in Broadway show posters and intricately painted masks to the point where you could hardly see the deep blue paint under them. She had two chairs, one by her desk and one by her window. He stood.
“I’ve seen the picture. He’s holding her, not having sex with her, and not even kissing her. Give them a break. Maybe if you ladies would give him a chance to explain. And maybe if you’d slow down and give Honey an opportunity to try to fit in, you might even like her.”
“Way to go, Seth, taking her side,” Amanda hissed.
“I’m not taking sides. You guys are. You have since the first day she showed up. I’ve seen other new kids come around over the years; we all have. Hell, Cory was new just months ago. We all give them a chance. Well, I admit, I thought he was hitting on Mandy, so I didn’t give him a break, but everyone else sure did. Why can’t you do that for her?”
“That’s just it,” Mandy said. “You got pissed because you thought the new kid, Cory, was hitting on your girl, even before you and Mandy made it official. Well, from day one, we saw you guys all drooling over her in her sexy clothes and watching her lick those lollipops like she was inviting you to come have a taste. We didn’t want her stealing our guys just like you didn’t want Cory sweeping Mandy off her feet.”
“Yeah, and it turns out she’s dated like eight different guys, and most of them had girlfriends and ended up breaking up with them over her,” Tara said, keened, and reached for a box of tissues from her nightstand. “It’ll be me and Cory next.”