AT LUNCH, I FOUND A table by myself. I’d thought about what Uncle John had said. I saw where they were coming from, but the bottom line was I didn’t need the aggravation. I had too much going on to have to worry about what was next.
Two things kept going around in my head:
1) Were they good-enough friends to go to the mat for?
2) Friendship was a two-way street.
I was learning my lines for tonight’s acting class when I noticed Emma, Piper and Kylie all sit down at my table, so I looked up.
“I need to learn my lines.”
“Okay,” Kylie said, keeping it brief.
I went back to reading the script. It was eerily quiet. I’d never seen these three not in the middle of a conversation during lunch. I worked on my lines until I had the basics down. I found I could memorize the lines if I learned them at lunch and then did the scene in class. It didn’t help to over-prepare at lunch. I looked up, and they were all staring at me.
“What?” I asked.
They all looked at each other. Then Emma took charge.
“Are you mad at us?”
“No, not really. Disappointed yes, but I’ve thought about it and it’s a waste of energy to stay mad at you.”
“David, you know we think the world of you, and we were just having fun,” Piper said.
I just nodded.
“Will you come back and sit at the table with us?” Kylie asked.
“I only have so much time in the day. I use lunch to study to keep my grades up. I also have to prepare for my movie; you know that. If I have some free time, I promise I’ll come back to the table.”
I pulled out my Geometry book and graph paper so I could do my homework. The girls got up and went back to their table. I wasn’t sure how I felt about cutting my ties with the freshman cheerleaders. I guess I felt some relief that I no longer was responsible for them.
DURING PRACTICE, WE got our first look at Mt. Carmel on film. They had speed on both sides of the ball. Mt. Carmel had one of the most explosive offenses I’d seen all year. It looked a lot like ours when we ran our hurry-up offense. Their quarterback was an experienced senior who had started the last three years. He had verbally accepted an offer to play for East Carolina. This was going to be a tough game.
We were more balanced, both on offense and on defense. Where they just threw the ball, we had a running game. They gambled on defense, and, if you scored, they didn’t care. They wanted to get the ball back and score again. Their game plan was simply to outscore you.
I would have loved to have seen Beverly play them. They were complete opposites.
Coach Hope told us our conditioning was going to win us this game. Mt. Carmel wore out defenses. He felt we could keep up with them. This should be fun.
ACTING CLASS WAS DOMINATED by the news that Kate had gotten a modeling job with Mr. Hill. He had some advertisers who preferred mature women. She had done a shoot for cooking products earlier in the day. Cheryl was supposed to meet with him later this week. He’d told Kate he had plenty of work for me as soon as football was over.
I TALKED TO SANDY RANGE when I got home. I was going to surprise my family and take them with me when I went to the ranch over Christmas. I’d made arrangements with Uncle John’s neighbors to watch the farm for him so he and Bonnie could go. I talked to Bonnie and Angie to make sure the dates were clear. I told Mom and Dad because Mom started planning a huge Christmas for Kyle.
I had one person I need to ask that I’d been putting off. I finally got my nerve up and made the call.
“Hey, how are you?” I asked.
“David, I was just thinking about you.”
“I hope they were good thoughts.”
“They are. I was just thinking I needed my ‘David fix.’ It seems like it’s been forever since I saw you,” she said.
“I’d like to see you, too. I have a photo shoot and vacation planned for Park City, Utah over Christmas Break. I’d love to fly you out, be it for a few days, or the full two weeks.”
“What are the dates?”
“You could fly out the 19th of December and come back the 3rd of January. I have to go to LA from the 3rd to the 9th of January for my movie. If you’re available, you’re more than welcome to come with me ... if you don’t mind being on your own during the day.”
“Who all’s going?” she asked.
“Mom, Dad, Greg, Angie and Kyle; I also invited my Uncle John and my soon-to-be aunt, Bonnie. We’ll be staying at the Range Ranch. I think my managers, Kendal and Tiffany, will be there at least part of the time. I have to work four or five days, but there’ll be plenty for you to do.”
“I don’t have any gear, or know how to ski; do you think that’ll be a problem?”
“Nancy, you’re overthinking this. I want you to come spend time with me. I also want you to meet my family. Just say yes.”
“I want to spend time with my family, too.”
“Invite them,” I said.
“What do you mean?”
“They’re welcome to come, too, if that’s what you want.”
“David, it’s too much ...” she started to protest.
“Devin Range is putting us up at his ranch, and the main house has twelve bedrooms. The bunkhouse can sleep eight more. They’ll have plenty of room.”
Devin was excited when I suggested bringing my family for Christmas. He and Sandy were alone since their parents had passed. He told me Christmas used to be a big deal for them, but last year was depressing. He looked forward to sharing it with my family and me. I just hoped he was okay if I brought Nancy and her family.
“I need to talk to my parents before I commit. But I would love to spend time with you,” Nancy said, making my day.
Bonnie, Angie and Sandy would coordinate everything, so I gave Nancy their numbers. I called Sandy back and told her what I was up to. She said she’d call Nancy and let her know that she and her family were invited.
I had been thinking a lot lately and kept coming back to Nancy. There was something about her that attracted me. I think a big part was her self-confidence. She knew what she wanted out of life, and was an independent woman in every sense of the word. There was just something about her that made me want to get to know her better. I didn’t know if she could be my one and only, but there was enough there that I wanted to explore it.
What about Peggy? That was the question, wasn’t it? We were just dating. I’d come to realize there was never going to be anything more to it and was surprisingly okay with that knowledge. Even so, I had no qualms about inviting Nancy and her family to the Range Ranch. Peggy and I would, or would not, continue to date until the end of the year. Then she’d be off to college. I would just enjoy our relationship for what it was. We were good friends who liked to spend time together.
Wednesday November 19
MY PHONE WOKE ME. IT was Nancy. My clock showed 5:30 a.m.
“Who died?” I asked.
“What are you talking about?”
“If you’re calling this early, someone has to have died.”
“I wanted to call you before you took off for the day,” she told me.
“Mission accomplished. You do realize it’s 5:30 in the morning, and I don’t work on a farm?”
“Oh, I forgot about the time difference.”
“What’s the good word?” I asked.
“You’re getting me for Christmas break, but my family’s taking a pass. Dad doesn’t have any vacation time left.”
“I can’t wait to see you.”
“I do have some questions, though. Why does Sandy want my size?”
“She’s going to set you up with ski clothes.”
“Oh, I was afraid it was for naughty underwear or something,” she said, getting a groan out of me.
“What did you tell your sister-in-law about us?”
“Not much, why?”
“She asked me some pointed questions.”