He sat down on the ground again and looked to see what else was left in the capsule. Damen thought that maybe there was something else that the Valley, or else Jose and Darell wanted him to look at. He took out the Oscar, the fishing pole, and a journal that he put in it. He opened up the journal, and another gust of wind caused the pages to turn, flipping them around like wild flowers blooming, tossing them about like a box fan on high. That’s when the wind ceased, and Damen saw the page that it turned to; it was his, Jose and Darell’s speeches. The speeches that they promised one day to read at the Oscar awards when they won. Damen began to smile and at the same time said out loud, “A promise is a promise.”
He put the fishing pole back into the capsule and returned it to the cave. He placed the Oscar on Jose’s grave again and began to run away from the tombstones. Mr. Schultz ran up the Valley hill, with a journal in one hand, and found himself at the top of the Valley in an instant, like some force helped him run up the Valley’s side. He inhaled the fresh air and the scent of nature that blew in the wind and then started running again.
Damen ran on a dirt road, which led right into his town, when out of nowhere, he stopped, gawking at a sign that allowed him to grin a bit. He could feel his heart hurting by the sudden seize in massive action, but he didn’t care, he still paused and grinned at a certain thing in a short silence; the Ridge Crest Welcome sign. Walking up to it slowly, he took a marker, that he planned to bring, out of his pocket, erased the population 497 again, and wrote at the bottom of it, ‘498’ for reasons that will be shown in a bit. Turning back, and gazing at the sign’s brightness from the sun, Damen went on, running past it, and galloped with speed that he’d never used before.
He ran back to his house and got his suitcases together, packing them, stuffing them, and tightening some of them with all of his might; he didn’t want to forget a thing.
While he packed, his father entered his room, questioning with a smile, “Where are you going?”
“Well, Father, I’m actually listening to your advice for the first time. I’m going back home, I’m going back to Hollywood.” He wrapped his own arms around Damen, and hugged him tightly, feeling the love inside of his heart as they both pressed against each other. Letting go, and freeing the hug, Damen handed his father a check, speaking, “Here, this is a little something to help you and Mom out.”
“Damen, this is almost a million dollars.”
Damen smiled, and spoke with sarcasm, “Well, actually, it’s nine-hundred and fifty thousand.”
“Boy, you have turned into a smart ass.”
His dad gave him another hug, and then let go moments later, wishing that he’d done that more often in the past, but being happy that he started doing it now. “Tell Mr. Rodrigo and Mr. O’Conner that I’ll make sure the money Jose and Darell made will get to them safely. Also, if you hear from Greg, tell him to leave his number here, so I’ll be able to get in touch with him. Could you do that for me?” questioned Damen, grabbing his stuffed suitcases.
“Sure, you bet I will.”
Damen kissed his mother goodbye and rushed to the taxi that he called for already; he knew that he had a big chance at missing Chuck. Realizing that Chuck didn’t know he changed his mind about going back to Hollywood yet, Damen made sure to tell the driver to step on it. As the taxi drove out of the town, he turned his head around and took his last glimpse of Ridge Crest, seeing the beautiful trees, and how they surrounded everything, and gawking at the houses that were separated from each other in such a beautiful and perfect way; this brought a tear to his eyes. He rolled down the window of the cab, and allowed his golden-brown hair to blow against the wind, inhaling Ridge Crest’s aroma, the smell of innocent nature that caressed his nostrils in a delicate way.
Reaching the small airport, Damen pulled his head back in the cab, and exited it while telling the taxi driver to bring the suitcases into the terminal. He handed the driver a fifty-dollar bill and then proceeded to run toward the airport, knowing that time was definitely against him. He ran inside and walked up to a desk, asking, “Excuse me, ma’am, did a large jet leave yet?”
“Do you know if it’s a private jet?” the lady questioned, getting ready to type up the name on the computer’s monitor.
“No, but I know the passenger’s name. His name is Chuck Fritter.”
The lady began typing the name into the computer while the cabdriver placed the suitcases by the lady. Damen just waited there nicely, yearning to know the answer about Chuck’s presence, wanting to hear it being said by this woman. Damen saw the cabdriver exiting the airport, and then turned to see the woman’s facial expression while she typed away his information. Abruptly, disappointment came over Damen’s features, hearing this woman saying, “I’m sorry, sir, but Mr. Fritter left ten minutes ago.”
“Oh, alright, thank you.” Damen walked away from her and sat down in a seat that was right next to a bathroom, grinning away, finding out that Ridge Crest was going be the place to stay, and seeing humor in it; the worst always happens for him. He knew there was a chance at missing Chuck, and he made an agreement, that if he missed him, he’ll stay here, and never go back. Damen sat there for about a minute, understanding his fate, his destiny, his way of life that has become Ridge Crest only, when suddenly, through the airport’s structure, Damen heard a voice asking, “So, is this goodbye, or hello?”
He looked up and saw Chuck standing by the bathroom door, grinning toward Damen. “Chuck?” Damen jumped up and hugged him, adding, “But the woman over there said you’ve left already, where were you?”
Lingering out of the airport’s structure, and onto the outside area where airplanes park themselves, Chuck responded with, “No, my flight was going to leave ten minutes ago, but I had a stomachache, so I went to the bathroom here. What could I say, I couldn’t hold it.”
Damen walked up the stairway that led to the jet as Chuck followed. “Thank God,” spoke Damen.
“So, Damen Schultz, are you ready for Hollywood again?”
Damen stopped on the last stair, right before the doorway to the airplane, and suddenly ran back down the staircase, saying, “Wait a second, I forgot something.”
“Your suitcases?”
Damen ran back into the airport, and Chuck lost sight of him. After five minutes, while Chuck was waiting in the comfort of his jet, Damen came back, entering into the jet’s body, and showing himself to Chuck again.
Damen walked in and stuffed luggage over Chuck’s head in a storage compartment, hearing Chuck speaking, “Damen, why don’t you leave your suitcases outside so the airline workers could put it in the storage compartment?”
“Because, these aren’t mine.” After his words, Jessica and Maria entered the jet. “These are Jessica’s suitcases. All of her things are in here. My suitcases, along with Maria’s, are already in the back storage compartment. I told her to meet me here, and she did.”
Maria and Jessica got buckled in their seats, while Damen just smiled toward Chuck, knowing that he was still confused and finding it humorous.
“Oh, I didn’t realize you had guests coming along,” said Chuck with a mild smile.
Damen sat next to Maria, gazed at her eyes, and responded, “No, they’re not guests, they’re moving out there with me.”
The attendant closed the jet door, and the plane began moving down the runway. Chuck still sat silent, but then spoke, “Oh, well, is this the Maria you’ve been talking to me about?”
“Yep, this is the one.” Chuck realized that because of Maria and Jessica, Damen grew the strength to go back to Hollywood. Chuck looked at the way Damen smiled at Maria and Jessica; it was as if they were Darell and Jose. But, Chuck noticed that Damen gave a much more serious look when he stared at Maria, that is, the look of someone who’s destined for prosperity; the look of pure peacefulness, and the look of fragileness as he touched Maria with his hands.
The plane started to move faster down the runway as Chuck questioned, “So, whose child is t
hat?”
“Well, it’s a long story, Chuck,” said Damen, feeling the plane beginning to lift off the ground.
“Well, we have a while till we get to our destination,” Chuck announced with a smile. The plane moved quickly over Sugar Valley, but that’s when Damen looked out the window and saw his last view of the Valley and his last view of Ridge Crest. He grinned toward it, closed his eyes, and imagined himself in it, and then turned to see Chuck’s interested face.
Damen gawked at Chuck and held onto Maria’s hand, saying to him, “Okay, Chuck, here it goes.”
Chapter Eighty-Seven
While Damen held onto Maria’s hand, the feeling of happiness came to his heart, the feeling that he’s been waiting for a very long time.
I’m at the Oscars again.
Damen thought those specific words repeatedly as the Master of Ceremonies was ready to call out his category.
“I know you’re gonna win,” spoke Maria, dressed up in a designer evening gown that matched the color of her red, passionate hair. Damen gave her a delicate kiss on her scrumptious lips, and held her hand, while staring at her eyes of exquisite, divine beauty.
The sweat dripped off his face and fell upon his tuxedo, feeling nervous to be in the same place that Jose’s life was taken from, and nervous for the fact that the Oscar trophy might go to him.
“Yeah, you’re the best actor here, you have to win this category,” said Chuck, patting Damen on the back.
Little Jessica kissed Damen on the face, saying with a candid voice of righteousness, “Good luck, Uncle Damen.”
Time passes so quickly, healing some wounds, keeping others opened, but still passing by, not waiting for anyone. It passes quickly to some, and to others it lingers about in every moment they share with it, but overall, it ticks away, like their heart, pumping to a beat, waiting for them to acknowledge it and look up to it. Damen did, he realized a long time ago, some years to be exact, and his pain was about to end with closure of a moment he predicted.
The Master of Ceremonies began speaking, “Well, this is the last and final category of the night. I know that most of you are wondering if the night is ever going to end. I mean, it’s only been about three hours since we started the ceremony.” The audience began laughing at his sarcasm. “Before I read off the nominees for the best-actor category, I would like to take a moment into discussing the proudness that this final award is going to bring. Now, everyone knows that this is 2002, and this Oscar will be the final Oscar given in this year. As you all know already, the Oscar ceremonies have not been on in awhile, due the tragic incident that took the lives of Jose Rodrigo, Tom Fryer, and Julienne Wells. But, through the years, we were able to take in the strength to do the Oscar ceremonies once again. So, just to remind you that whoever wins, will go down in the history books as being the winner of this final award that is being given out after a long and traumatic sabbatical of the Oscar ceremonies.” The audience began clapping. “Now, since I got that out of the way, let’s begin to start reading the nominee names. The first one is Charles Selem, for his role in ‘Beauty Talks,’” the M.C. announced as the crowd began applauding.
Hearing the echoes, to Damen’s ears, of the audience’s glee, made his smile grow to a higher lift, and his eyes open wider. “Are you nervous?” Maria whispered to Damen.
Damen looked at her, kissed her on the hand, and whispered back, “No, not anymore.”
“Good luck, Damen,” Chuck said.
The M.C. finished calling the third nominee, without Damen even acknowledging his words. But then he did, hearing the M.C. speaking, “And the last and final nominee is Damen Schultz, for his role in ‘Sugar Valley,’ which is based on his own story.” The people began applauding harder and faster for Damen’s name, like they looked up to him, craved him, and were proud of him. “And now ... the Oscar goes to,” the M.C. announced before he dropped the envelope. Damen was watching closely as the M.C. picked up the envelope, bending his body down to the floor, picking it up in slow motion that was irritating to all that saw; they just wanted to hear the name already. Maria began squeezing Damen’s hand, but stopped when the M.C. finally spoke, “Sorry about that. But, the Oscar goes to,” the M.C. announced in a loud and excited voice, pulling out the name from the envelope. Maria started to squeeze Damen’s hand again, but stopped for the last time when the M.C. added, “Damen Schultz, for his role in ‘Sugar Valley.’”
“Oh my God, you won,” Maria yelled out before she kissed Damen on the lips.
“Congratulations, Damen,” Chuck yelled with Damen getting up and giving him a hug.
Damen grabbed his journal that was lying under his seat, and began walking down the aisle. Intriguing enchantment came to his eyes, awe came to his heart, and a bit of closure came to his soul, walking down this aisle that not many people have the privilege of doing. As he past each row, the audience members got up and gave him a standing ovation. Damen felt the proudness rush to his head, and the fact that he was almost finished with the final part to his dream, the final part that included reading his speech. A web of unlimited honor, ruptured and folded in happiness, rushed to his brain, and leaked out of him by showing a smile to his image. He suddenly couldn’t hear any noise, and when he looked at the stage that he was about to walk up to, he saw Sugar Valley, and didn’t bother closing his eyes to get rid of the image. Walking up the marble stairs that led to the stage, he stood right by Sugar’s lake, but turned around and blinked his eyes at the crowd. He did that to make a memory, a memory that he deserved to have. He turned his neck to look at what was behind him, and Sugar was still there, in his mind’s eyes, transforming itself to being reality right there and then, the way it should be always. He reached the podium and took the Oscar with his right hand, while shaking the Master of Ceremony’s hand with his left. He placed his journal on top of the glass podium and opened it up to the last page, still feeling Sugar’s hallucinating-like body behind him, and gazing out at the audience below him; that’s when he began his speech.
“Um, wow, I can’t believe it. I know this is a live ceremony, so I’ll make it fast,” spoke Damen.
The M.C. walked back to the podium, and spoke into the microphone, “Damen, you can take as long as you want, you’re royalty of Hollywood.” The audience began clapping.
“Thank you. Um, first I would like to thank my best friend, and my agent also, Chuck. Without him, I probably wouldn’t be up here right now. Um, I also would like to thank my parents, whom I know are watching this program right now. I just want to say thank you for raising me right, and I love you. I also would like to thank my beautiful wife Maria, who has helped me through the hardest time of my life,” Damen announced, seeing Jessica clapping. “Oh, and also I would like to thank my Jessica.” The audience began laughing as they looked at Jessica’s cute smile. “Last, but certainly not least, I would like to thank Darell O’Conner and Jose Rodrigo. As you know, they were my best friends and they passed on some time ago. Before we all came to Hollywood, we all had a dream of one day standing on this stage and saying our speeches while holding this beautiful trophy,” he announced, looking down at his journal and then gawking at the audience again.
Before his words could come out once more, in the front row of the building, Jose and Darell’s presence came to Damen’s sight. They were smiling at him, dressed in tuxedos, and new leather shoes, with a smile to their faces that stunned and immobilized Damen’s mouth and eyes. He rubbed them once, not believing what he’s seeing, and then understood that this was Sugar’s gift to him. Damen smiled toward them, showing a bit of a tear to his eyes, and went on with his speech; the speech that would be reminisced and remembered forever. “I always promised them that I would find a way to make sure their dream happens. Well, luckily I found their speeches in my old journal, and I have combined them with mine. But, before I read it, I would like to explain that our speeches were made up of poems. We all decided that after we thanked everyone, while holding the Oscar, we would read
our speech. Well, that’s why I’ve combined them all to make up one single poem.” He smiled toward these phantoms of his friends that stood before him, smiling toward him, showing their presence of happiness, not sadness. Damen took out the poem very slowly, and started to read in a very passionate voice.
“As I walked down the Valley side, I realized that it was safe, I realized that it was alive. But when I entered the Valley, I realized that this is a glorious scene, a place where happiness grew, a place where I realized my dream. I knew that one day I would leave the Valley, and run away, I realized that I would go, would go and achieve fame. I’m not going to let anyone stop me from achieving it with flying colors, I wasn’t going to allow anyone to even stop my blood brothers. Yet, I didn’t want to go at first, but then I wondered, why did I practice these scripts, why did I rehearse? I was afraid that my father would make fun of my dream, I was afraid that he would hate me and force me to leave. But the love for my dream was so strong, that I knew I would leave anyway, it wouldn’t be long. I thank you all for giving me this Award and making it reality, I thank you all for giving me this memory. Through the vanities of dreams, the angel has shown her wings, and taken me to a place where she made real, and now where I feel safe. Through the vanities of nightmares, they have only made me stronger, they have only made me shed no more tears. So, for all of you with aspirations so true, follow them and work hard for them, and one of these days your dream or dreams will definitely come true.” Damen closed his journal, looked up at the audience again, and saw Jose and Darell no more. He smiled toward their vacancy, and spoke toward the audience of glamour with tears in his eyes, “I thank you all for allowing me, Jose, and Darell to let our final dream come true. Thank you.”
Sugar Valley (Hollywood's Darkest Secret) Page 76