by R. M. Garcia
“That was amazing!” Abbie said. “You were amazing!”
“I’m just glad you were here,” he said.
“Why, baby?”
“I just felt good having someone cheering for me alone,” Donnie said. “My dad always came to my games. He never missed one.”
“Oh, baby. I’ll be your biggest fan now,” Abbie said and pulled him close and kissed him. Billy walked over to congratulate Donnie. He was intercepted by Trista. She grabbed and kissed him. The celebrations continued on into the night.
Meanwhile outside of the gymnasium a conversation was taking place. The tall man was intercepted by a woman with a thin build. “Hulderich, I need to speak to you,” Anna ordered. Anna had a lithe shape and was significantly shorter than the man she now addressed.
“What do you wish of me?” he replied.
“I have orders for you.”
“Why is the concubine delivering orders to me?” he asked. His tone was one of contempt. Anna grabbed Hulderich’s collar and easily dragged the much larger man down to her level.
“How dare you? You will watch your tone when addressing me, or I will have you punished, Hulderich. I am your superior and am very capable of killing you.” Anna stared into Hulderich’s eyes until he looked away. She shoved him back, forcing him to land sitting on the parking lot asphalt.
“My apologies, Frau Schmid,” Hulderich attempted to sound respectful, but it was not a skill he possessed. “What orders do you have for me?”
“Your current mission must wait,” Anna replied.
“What! I have been working on this for months.”
“That strangely sounded as if you were refusing a direct order.” Anna looked down at Hulderich and let a thin smile cross her face. “Very well, I shall inform the Führer of your insubordination.”
“No!” Hulderich quickly stood up. “You misunderstand my comment. I have put a great deal of time here. I only wonder why the Führer has made this decision.”
“It is not your place to know, only to obey. Nevertheless, he decided that you are not to complete it until your current charge is released.”
“My charge is an idiot. I would be better off destroying him.” Hulderich tried to hold back his anger.
“Your orders are clear. Make sure he is able to take on a territory, only then can you pursue your objective. I was sent to deliver the message in person so that you would appreciate how stern it is. You would be wise to follow his instructions,” she said calmly.
“I will do as ordered, as always,” Hulderich replied.
CHAPTER 12
Prom
THE ENTIRE SCHOOL had been in high spirits after the regional title victory. They had hoped that they would have received an invitation to the state championships, but only the top eight regional champions receive a bid to compete at states. The Archangels had only ranked tenth out of sixteen regional champions. That did not stop anyone from showing school spirit for the next several weeks. The school still received a huge trophy, which was displayed predominately in front of the main office. Trevor’s performance for the last quarter of the game had also been exceptional. While Donnie provided the offense, Trevor provided the defense, gaining a school record high number of blocked shots. The combination of the two proved to be unbeatable. The scout that came to the game to watch Trevor play was very impressed and offered him a scholarship to attend Georgetown University shortly after. He of course accepted the offer. Now he and Kelly would be able to attend the same university. After their impromptu kiss, Trista and Billy introduced themselves to one another. Billy had taken Trista’s forward advance well, very well in fact. He found her boldness and fearlessness very attractive. The sparks continued to fly over the next few months, and the two became a steadfast couple, rarely seen apart. The same could be said for Abbie and Donnie. They were inseparable over the next several months. Donnie had also become a common sight at Abbie’s house, having dinner with her family often. Donnie also devised a way to spend more time with Abbie without interfering with her tutoring sessions. He opened up his father’s old study for Abbie to use. The room was perfect for teaching; it was quiet, well lit, and had a table with chairs. He had been instructed in the very same room by his father in years past. Donnie spent the time Abbie tutored, working on the car in the yard. When she was finished teaching for the day, they would spend a few hours together. It had been the happiest months of his life in well over a year. When May rolled around, the main conversational topics tended to revolve around college acceptances and the upcoming prom. The girls were excited about buying and trying out dresses while the guys shared where to rent a tux for the least amount of money.
“Abbie, you pick out a dress yet?” Rebecca asked excitedly.
“Yes, I think I found the right one,” she replied with a smile.
“Will you at least tell me the color so that I can get a cummerbund to match?” Donnie asked.
“I want it to be a surprise, just don’t plan to match,” Abbie said grinning.
“Kelly is keeping me in the dark as well,” Trevor advised.
“It’s a conspiracy!” Billy added. “Maybe we need to start spying on them.”
“You will not!” Trista said. “You just need to be patient.”
“That’s fine. We have spies among you already,” Misha said imitating a Russian accent.
“Becca is not going to tell you anything Misha,” Kelly informed.
“We have ways to make her talk,” Misha said, continuing his accent.
“I love when you do voices,” Rebecca said. “But I still won’t tell you anything.”
“You know, I don’t have a date to prom yet, and not many freshmen get invited to go,” Misha said looking at Rebecca.
“Oh, that is so low,” Kelly said. “Don’t buy it, Becca, he isn’t serious.” Rebecca looked excited for a moment and then realized he was in fact joking.
“Not nice,” she said, waving her index finger at him.
“So why haven’t you asked anyone, Misha?” Trista asked. She was genuinely surprised. Had he in fact changed?
“I have my reasons,” Misha replied.
“Wait, you haven’t asked anyone?” Donnie asked.
“Well, only one person,” he replied.
“Did she say no?” Abbie asked.
“Not exactly, she said she’d think about it,” he replied.
“So what, are you just going to wait on her?” Trista asked.
“I don’t want to go with anyone else. So if she turns me down, I won’t go at all,” Misha declared.
“You know you’re in the running for prom king,” Trevor said.
“I don’t care. It won’t mean anything if she isn’t there to share it with me,” Misha replied.
“Who is she?” Rebecca asked.
“I’ll tell you if you tell me the color of the dresses,” Misha replied all too quickly.
“Nope, that is not going to work. You probably already have a date and you aren’t telling us,” Rebecca replied.
“Good going, Becca,” Trista complimented and added, “way to see through his bullshit.” Misha looked at Trista, bared his teeth, and hissed at her. She in turn made a clawing motion and hissed back and followed it with a middle finger. The table laughed at the exchange.
“What did I miss?” Cecilia asked as she sat down with her lunch tray.
“Cat scratch fever,” Kelly replied.
“Are Misha and Trista at it again?” she asked.
“When aren’t they?” Kelly replied.
“CeeCee, are you going to prom?” Rebecca asked.
“Oh no, I have had enough dances to last me a while!” Cecilia replied.
“Maybe we can hang out that night? Make it a girl’s night in,” Rebecca suggested.
“I’ll think about it,” Cecilia replied.
The night of the prom was upon the seniors at long last. Donnie had procured an obnoxiously oversize stretch limo for the group. The girls had made arrangements to
get ready and be picked up at Kelly’s house. Donnie was both nervous and excited as he got dressed.
“You sure you don’t want to come? You could always come stag,” Donnie asked Misha.
“I’m sure,” Misha replied. Donnie could tell that his friend was a bit depressed.
“I can’t believe you aren’t coming. You were looking forward to prom all year.”
“People change and I like who I am now.”
Misha had shared with Donnie what happened to him with Trista. It was the second time he had seen his friend break down in tears. “Me too, man, you aren’t that guy anymore.”
“Thanks. I guess we both changed a lot this year. I’m glad that you’re back to the way you were before your parents died.”
“Not the same, but I know what you mean.” Donnie continued getting dressed. “Well, if you aren’t going to go to prom, what are you going to do?”
“I was hoping to watch a few of your DVDs here, since I already dropped off your car,” Misha replied.
“Yeah, sure go ahead. I appreciate you helping me set this up.”
“Anything for you man. Do you have the directions?”
“Yeah, I’m all set. It sure is a good spot.”
“No place better,” Misha agreed. Donnie finished getting dressed as Misha went thru his DVD selection.
“So what do you think?” Donnie asked, showing off his tuxedo.
“That’s awesome! You all got one like that?” Misha asked in amazement.
“Yes, we did, and you would not believe how hard it was to find one in Trevor’s size.”
“I like the long tail,” Misha admired.
“Yeah this style was big in the 1950s, but wait, there is more,” Donnie said and pulled out two accessories.
“A top hat and a cane, nice touch,” Misha complimented.
“Yeah, the girls are keeping us in the dark about their dresses, so we decided to throw in a surprise of our own.”
“Classic look, the girls have a tough act to follow,” Misha said. Donnie looked outside and could see that the limo had arrived.
“I think that’s our ride. I better head out.”
“Have a great time!”
“Thanks!” Donnie made his way outside. He got in and the limo headed to pick up Trevor and Billy. Misha watched as the extended Ford Escalade pulled away. He was about to head back in when he noticed a tall man standing across the street that seemed out of place. The blond man watched the limo drive away and then made eye contact with Misha. The two of them locked stares until a produce truck drove down the street; it momentarily obstructed Misha’s view of the tall man. When the truck passed, Misha was surprised to see that he was now gone. He looked up and down the street looking for the man, but he was simply gone.
Donnie’s limo promptly picked up Billy and then Trevor. They all confirmed to one another that they looked quite dapper in the vintage black tuxedos. Once they were all seated, the limo proceeded to pick up the ladies at Kelly’s house. The guys didn’t say too much to each another on the ride over. They were all anxious to see their ladies in their top secret attire. When they arrived, Donnie could see that Cecilia’s car was at the house as well. Kelly’s mother opened the door for the boys once they arrived at the front door. She gave Trevor a familiar hug and ushered them all inside. Camille was also here and had her camera ready and began furiously snapping pictures as they entered the house.
“You all look so handsome,” Camille complimented. Rebecca peered downstairs from the top of the stairs and ran upstairs.
“They’re here!” she yelled up to the second level and then bounded down the stairs. She looked at the young men before her. “You guys look hot. Wow! They are going to freak out when they see you.” Rebecca went to each of them and gave them a friendly hug.
“You look like a bunch of penguins,” Cecilia said as she walked in from the living room.
“Hi, CeeCee, I would have expected you to be upstairs with the girls,” Donnie said.
“I was, but the clouds of perfume and hairspray was making me dizzy. Where is Meemee, I thought he was going?” Cecilia asked as she snapped a picture of the group on her phone.
“He decided to stay home. He’s at my house watching some movies,” Donnie replied.
“He seriously isn’t going? He talked nonstop about prom,” Cecilia asked confused.
“Doesn’t look like it,” he replied.
“Do you know why?” she asked.
“I don’t know, but he’s been acting weird lately. I would have liked to have both of you to come. It’s not going to be the same without you,” he replied. Cecilia looked puzzled for a moment and walked back into the living room. Rebecca went back upstairs to check on the ladies and then came down.
“Ahem. May I have your attention, Ladies and Gents?” Rebecca said clearing her throat. “I’d like to present your dates for the evening.” Rebecca started pounding on the wall, imitating a drumroll. The girls came down in a line. Camille snapped photo after photo as they descended. Kelly was wearing a sleek, full-length red dress. The dress was low cut, strapless, and very form fitting. Trista was wearing a tight, strapless little black dress. Abbie came down wearing a little short white dress with golden trim on the skirt and shoulders. The guys were left speechless. It was very apparent that they had placed a lot of effort into getting ready for them.
“You look amazing,” Trevor said to Kelly in a soft tone and stared deeply into her eyes.
“Thank you sir,” Kelly replied smiling.
“Wow! Simply wow,” Billy said to Trista. It was rare sight to see Trista blush, but on this occasion, she didn’t mind at all.
“You look very sharp there yourself,” she replied.
Donnie stared at Abbie and was silent for a moment. Abbie looked at him, waiting for him to say something about her dress. “I can’t find any words to describe how beautiful you look.” Donnie was obviously floored.
“Those will do,” she said smiling. They paired up, and more pictures were taken. The photoshoot seemed to go on forever as every possible picture combination was taken. Corsages were exchanged and even more pictures were taken. Eventually they were allowed to leave for their evening and headed to the school in the limo.
The prom committee had done a wonderful job on the gymnasium. They had extra money this year for decorations and entertainment. An unknown booster had donated a thousand dollars to the prom fund. It was enough to hire a live band vs. booking a DJ. The gym looked fantastic! They had selected “A Night in Paradise” as this year’s theme. The gym was decorated to look like a tropical island. There was a Tiki bar serving all manner of fruity drinks. Even the band that was hired seemed perfect. The whimsical folksy sounds of Solia Tera, with their assortment of instruments, completed the atmosphere. Abbie screamed in excitement when she found out who was performing. Her favorite band was here in person playing live!
Donnie, Abbie, and the others headed for their table. A light dinner was served by the caterers. It consisted mainly of fruit salads and shiskabobs. The tender meats and assorted peppers were delicious. The caterers had done an excellent job. Once the dinner was completed and plates cleared, the music and dancing began. Solia Tera took the stage and began performing.
Misha had settled on the bed with a bag of chips and a bowl of popcorn. He was halfway through Shaolin She-monks when the doorbell rang startling Misha. He hated that annoying buzzer. He got up and headed downstairs. He opened the door and was shocked by who was at the door. “You,” he said just before he was pulled outside.
The dance was going well, and everyone seemed to be having a great time. A few hours into the dance, there was some excitement. Tommy Marsh and Vigil Meyer got into a fight over Pam Womack, and later Kim Moors, and Shelby Gilmore broke up in spectacular fashion while on the dance floor. Trista went over to get the details each time and came back with the dirt.
“That’s my girl. Gotta have the four-one-one on everything,” Billy said.
&nb
sp; “Trista, what are you going to major in at Stetson again?” Trevor asked.
“Journalism,” she replied smiling as she spotted a familiar face.
“Good choice,” Misha said.
“Misha!” Everyone at the table said in near unison. Misha was dressed in a business suit, and it looked very familiar to Donnie.
“I hope you don’t mind. I borrowed one of your dad’s old suits. It was kind of last minute?” he asked.
“Not at all, glad you decided to show,” Donnie replied.
“Did you bring a date, Misha?” Trista asked as she scanned the gym.
“Yes, Ms. Nosey, I brought the date,” he replied, and he pointed out Cecilia out to the table. She was dressed in an elegant dark green chiffon dress. When she noticed that everyone at the table was looking at her, she waved at them.
“CeeCee, you held out for CeeCee?” Trista asked.
“You have an issue with that?” Misha said defensively.
“Not at all, actually I applaud you. It was very nice of you to bring her,” Trista said.
“It’s not like that,” Misha said visibly agitated.
“No, she didn’t mean anything by it,” Kelly said. “CeeCee should be here too.”
“No, you’re not getting it. I didn’t ask her to prom because I felt sorry for her,” Misha said.
“Wait, do you mean . . . ?” Donnie was pleasantly surprised by the response.
“I think I love her,” Misha said with a big smile on his face. “I’m going to tell her tonight how I feel.” The table was momentarily stunned by Misha’s declaration.
“That’s great man,” Donnie said. “I wish you luck. You’re going to need it.”
“I’m happy for you, Misha, CeeCee is a great girl,” Kelly said.
“Excuse me for a moment,” Trista said getting up. Billy grabbed her wrist firmly and forcefully sat her back down and leaned into her and spoke into her ear quietly and firmly.