“Fiona, let me introduce you to some of my friends,” David said as he made introductions, “and my girlfriend, Crystal.”
Fiona chuckled.
“Girlfriend?”
David raised an eyebrow in response.
“It’s just that Lexi told me that you were single, and I should take my shot,” Fiona continued.
Brook saw Halle react to the momentary twitch he made at the mention of Lexi’s name. Brook reached out and took her friend’s hand for support.
“I’m not sure how Lexi would know since we haven’t talked for a few months. She’s been in Paris,” David said.
Brook could see that he was daring Fiona to say more about Lexi.
“The rumors have it that you would make a wonderful boyfriend, especially where it counts. I heard you have the size to back it up,” Fiona brazenly commented.
“I hate to disappoint, but I’m not even close to the biggest guy in the room. Would you like me to point some of them out?” David asked.
Brook had seen him get this way before. Back in high school, there was a debate as to who was the bigger slut, David or Lisa Felton. Fiona was about to discover that she shouldn’t play chicken with him.
“I’ve never known a guy to admit he wasn’t the biggest. Introduce me,” Fiona said.
“Bear! Ryan! Get over here!” David called out.
“That’s the porn star that went to our junior prom,” Halle whispered to Brook. “I take it the other one plays football with David.”
Tracy had made Ryan show them his equipment, and the term ‘donkey dick’ fit.
“He’s a freshman lineman,” Brook explained.
Brook noted Bear’s fingers. Her sorority sisters swore that they had a method to figure out how long a guy’s member was. If you had him bend his middle finger to his palm and measure from where it touched to the tip of his middle finger extended, you had a pretty good idea. Bear had the most enormous hands. She guessed his index finger was longer and thicker than the average guy’s actual equipment. He must have a child’s arm hanging between his legs.
“Guys, this is Fiona Beckham, an actress friend of mine. She’d like it if the two of you … uhm … bought her a drink,” David suggested.
“Come on, boys. You don’t even have to get me drunk,” Fiona said as she began to walk away.
Bear and Ryan looked like two innocent sheep being led to slaughter.
Halle pulled Brook towards David.
“Since you’re playing matchmaker …” Halle said.
David paired them with two freshman football players who awkwardly tried to talk to them. He knew that it wouldn’t lead to anything, but he was actually pretty good at pairing people. The two guys gained confidence as the night went on and turned out to be fun dates.
Soon everyone wanted him to find them a friend for the night. Brook noted that it livened the party up. Even some of the older people took his advice.
When he was done, Halle went to the stage.
“David, get up here and sing with me.”
He bounded up on the stage with a smile that would light up all of LA. Then he gave her a pouty look.
“You’re not going to make me sing our duet, are you?”
“You know you love it,” Halle quipped.
“I don’t remember the words,” David tried.
A woman came out and sat down at a piano.
“Just try to keep up,” Halle said as the music for The Gift began.
She began to sing as David swayed. Brook agreed it was a sappy old-timey love song, but their remake had made the charts.
Halle began, and everyone got reminded that she was more than an actress. The girl had some skills. When David’s turn to sing came, he took it seriously and showed that he hadn’t forgotten the words. When the song ended, the two of them hugged, and Brook could tell their friendship was still intact.
David went to jump off the stage.
“Hang on, big guy, because I’m not the only one singing tonight, and they all want to say hello. Ladies and gentlemen … Pree Amarnath, Eve Holiday, and Birthrite.”
David said hello and gave them all hugs.
“Time for us to get to work. We don’t need a boy distracting us,” Jett, the lead singer for Birthrite, said to kick David off the stage.
After listening to the four women sing, Brook was convinced they should take this show on the road.
◊◊◊
“How’s married life treating you?” Brook asked.
Her date had gone to get her a water because dancing was thirsty work. She’d spotted her high school friend Zoe Pearson, now Zoe Bauer. Zoe had married Johan Bauer, who had played football and baseball with David. They now lived on David’s farm and helped to run it. Zoe was in business with David, raising horses.
“We’re busy between school and the farm. If it weren’t for Yuri’s grandmother, one of us would have to drop out of school.”
Yuri also had played ball with David. David called him his little Russian gangster because Yuri had thought he would get respect if he could take down the biggest dog in the school. David had refrained from killing him, and instead of them becoming rivals, they were now good friends.
“How is Yuri? Is he going to follow his girlfriend to Southern?” Brook asked.
“He got a scholarship to play football at State. He and Jan didn’t survive her going off to college. She’s now dating a wealthy east coast guy.”
“How’d he take it?”
“Yuri?” Zoe asked with a chuckle. “He had a new girlfriend about two seconds after receiving the news. He has a new one every time I see him.”
“What’s your brother up to?” Brook asked.
“Roc? He received an offer to play ball at State. As did David’s brother Phil. It sounds like they’ll join Yuri, and they’ll all room together.”
The three were best friends.
“Do you see any of the old gang?” Brook asked.
Zoe was still living close to the town where they all went to high school.
“I did have one unpleasant surprise: Alan Douglas is going to State. I guess Michigan pulled his acceptance after he got kicked out of that prep school.”
“I was glad when David cut ties with him. The kid has anger problems,” Brook said.
“Oh, I almost forgot. Both Justin Tune and Bert Nelson go to State. Justin is on the baseball team.”
“I’d almost forgotten about them. Do you ever hear from Gina Tasman?”
“No, but her sister Emily is in grad school there. When our paths cross, I ask about Gina, and I guess she’s doing well,” Zoe shared.
“I thought we would all stay in touch,” Brook said.
“Me, too. We were all such good friends in high school, and then everyone just moved away and didn’t look back.”
Brook thought about it for a moment. It really wasn’t all that hard to see why high school friends fell away. Zoe was now married, while Brook was running around New York with her sorority sisters. Their lives were completely different. But that didn’t mean she wanted to lose Zoe as a friend.
“It would be easy to do that, but I would like it if we made more of an effort to stay in touch. Spending time with you, Halle, and the rest are some of my fondest memories. Our friendships were what got me through high school,” Brook said.
“I was just so happy to get away from the farm and homeschooling,” Zoe said and then added, “I would love to keep in touch.”
Johan and Brook’s escort for the night returned. Johan surprised Brook when he asked his wife to dance with him. She wasn’t sure if she’d ever seen him do that before.
◊◊◊
Throughout the night, Brook took time to talk to her old friends. She hadn’t realized how much she missed them. Her sorority sisters had been a godsend. It was an instant network of new friends that she felt she would have for the rest of her life.
Then again, she thought how easy—too easy—it had been to leave and put her life with David and everyone from Lincoln High behind her. It made her understand that it would take effort if she was serious about having people in her life past school. Otherwise, her college friends would just become fond memories, too.