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This was going to be the best summer of her life, she was
sixteen and could finally go, fly, soar with the eagles.
She was no longer dependent on what others wanted to do
because she had to hitch a ride. Most of all, she didn't
have to go with that stuck up snob anymore. She had
promised herself as soon as she had her drivers license,
she would break up with Matthew Derr for the final time. No
more believing his lies. No more falling for his
controlling lines. What did it matter that everyone
including her parents thought she was crazy every time she
broke off with Matt. True, they had been going with each
other in one way or another since the fourth grade, but
their history was more bad than good. Gramma had helped her
realize this fact and ever since making that list of good
v.s. bad, she had become more and more concerned what would
happen the day she told Matt her decision. The drivers
license read, State of Illinois, Kaitlyn Diana King. She
was going to spread her wings and fly for the first
time.
Today was the last day of school, next year
would be her Junior Year, she gasped as the memory came
back to her. As a wanna be teenybopper, truly obsessed with
Hanson, a rock group popular in Tulsa while she lived there
in the early 90's. They must have been something like ten
years old, when she saw him performing at May Fest a
festival held in town. She had never seen him that way, and
when he asked, she had promised him she would take him to
her Prom, Being home schooled they only went out to a fancy
dinner as a group. "That would be one way to soar, show up
at your Jr. Prom on the arm of Taylor Hanson." she thought
to herself as memories of her past came flooding
back.
At the present moment was the task of finding
the correct words to use, to let Matt know that she was
going away for the summer and when she came back, she hoped
he would find someone else, she no longer wanted her future
tied to his. Kaitlyn had convinced her parents that a
summer or two of volunteer work listed on her college
applications might ensure her acceptance to the Ivy League
colleges.
Matt cornered her at her locker as the
last bell of the year rang. He wanted to go to the beach,
everyone who was anyone was going and he could never try to
be different. "Listen Matt, I had planned on telling you
later tonight but now is as good as a time as any. I'm not
going to the beach, I'm going home to pack, my folks
finally agreed to let me do volunteer work this summer to
beef up my resume on college applications. If my grades
don't get me into Yale or Harvard my resume just might with
volunteer work listed. I report tomorrow morning for my
assignment." Kaitlyn said watching him for his reaction. He
slammed her locker shut but didn't say a word. Typical
Mall, if I ignore it, it will go away. "Matt you know
things haven't been good between us in a long time. I just
can't go on this way. It's for the best. While I'm gone
this Summer you can tell everyone you're tired of me and
date other people. Hopefully you will find someone that's
meant for you. It's just not me." Kaitlyn finished. "You'll
regret this. I swear. You mark my words." Matthew said
leaning closer until Kaitlyn quickly removed her rings and
gave them to him. "Matthew when you find her and give her
these and she loves you the way you deserve to be loved, I
hope you finally forgive me." Kaitlyn said walking
away.
She made her way quickly to her car and left
before she had to face him again. At home, she grabbed her
suit cases and one large duffle bag. Everything on the list
she had been mailed was packed into the duffle bag, and
what she considered to be the necessities in life she
packed into the suit cases. When she was done she took them
to the car placing the duffle bag on top of the luggage.
The suit cases would remain in her car, and when she had
her free weekends, she could resume normal living. At
dinner she inform1ed her parents, that because she would be
gone all summer, she felt it was only fair, that she and
Matthew break up, so he wouldn't have to be unfaithful to
her, something she knew she would never be able to forgive.
"You may have something there, young Matthew does have his
needs. I suggest when you go out with him tonight for the
last time, you give him something to remember you by. then
when you're back, it's you he wants, not some floozie he
may hook up with while you're gone." her mother said. "Your
mother's right there. Wear that little black dress he gave
you." her father said. "The little black dress?" Kaitlyn
asked. "Yeah, he'll know what you mean." her father said.
"Great idea folks, me, the little black dress, my last
night here. I think I'll go now." Kaitlyn said and excused
herself and headed to her room. "Well excuse me, Mr. and
Mrs. Pimp, I have no intention of giving Matthew something
to remember me by, but I will wear the little black dress
and make this town remember me all summer long." she said
to herself as she made her way to her room.
Kaitlyn
was still mumbling as shepulled off her clothes and then
pulled on a black thong, slid into her black single strap
sandles, before sliding the black dress over her head and
pulled the zipper up adjusting herself into it. "Hot if I
say so myself." she said as she twirled in front of the
mirrors. She used the powder with the glitter in it on her
face, her chest, then she hiked her dress and powdered both
her lower cheeks. "I'll give them something to remember me
by." she said and she grabbed her little black bag on the
long shiny chain put lip gloss and her favorite perfume in
it and headed out. "Thanks for the suggestion folks, I'm
headed out. See you in the morning." Kaitlyn said and she
headed to her car and raced to downtown.
Kaitlyn
pulled into the parking lot of the bowling alley, looking
at all the cars parked, "Good everyone is here." she said
to herself as she backed into a spot near the door, noting
the quickest path between the door and the door of her car.
She took a deep breath, "Let the show begin." she said as
she opened the door. She heard the gasps, the whispers and
smiled to herself.
"Hey Kaitlyn, that lucky Matt is
in the back." Jimmy called out. "I'm not looking for
Matthew. Didn't he tell you, you're his best friend Jimmy."
Kaitlyn asked the disappointment apparent in her voice.
"Tell me what, he talked but didn't mention you. He brought
me here tonight, I still don't know why?" Jimmy said. "Oh
Jimmy, I finally did it and I hope some day you do too. He
doesn't deserve you as a friend. I broke it off with him
today. As school ended, so did Kaitlyn and Matthew and it
will never be again. I've come here to make sure he hates
me and never begs me to come back to him. I could use your
help if your ready to dump him too?" Kaitlyn asked. "I'm
game. What do you need?" Jimmy asked. Kaitlyn told him her
plan. "Count me in Kaitlyn, you're so bad." Jimmy said.
"You sure Jimmy? I'm leaving tomorrow and won't have to
face anybody here until the Fall, you have to face them
every day?" Kaitlyn asked to be sure. "I'll just tell them
I was walking through and she was all over me." Jimmy said.
"Lets do it." Kaitlyn said and smiled a wicked smile.
Jimmy headed in and fed the jukebox. Kaitlyn stopped
just out of sight and waited for the song. As "Look At You
Baby" started she made her entrance. The room came to
attention as she surveyed the room, glancing one way then
quickly glancing the other way, sending her long blonde
hair whipping through the air catching everyone's eye. She
stepped to the dance floor, pushing people lightly,
clearing the way and as Jimmy walked by she grabbed his
hand and jerked him to a stop. She gyrated her butt in a
way that demanded the attention of all, male and female,
and Kaitlyn moved up and down Jimmy's right side as he
gazed at her. She strutted her way to his left and did the
same dirty dance up and down his side. She stepped behind
him and first rubbed her butt to his, then she faced his
back, placed her hands on his hips and gyrated his along
with hers. Kaitlyn strutted to three feet in front of Jimmy
and then finished the dance. As the song ended, she walked
up to Jimmy and threw her arms around him and kissed him,
"You promised" she whisperedd into the kiss and Jimmy
wrapped an arm around her and with his other hand he lifted
the back of her dress. He could tell by people's reaction,
girls gasping and guys leering he was missing something, he
turned to get the other half of the room, all except
Matthew,and he placed her back down on the floor. "Have a
nice Summer Jimmy." she said as she turned and walked away.
Kaitlyn picked up her bag, dropped it purposefully and
bent, looking back to see Jimmy smiling. She grabbed the
bag and left quickly.
Kaitlyn squealed all the way
home, and seeing the lights off, backed into the drive and
quietly entered the house. She made her way to her room,
slipped out of the black dress and hung it at the back of
her closet, then slipped into her bed, setting the alarm
and heading to bed.
At 5 am and her alarm blared.
Kaitlyn rolled and turned it off, rising slowly, and making
her way to her bathroom and taking a long hot shower. As
she stepped out, "Goodbye Luxury" she said as she grabbed a
towel and wrapped it around herself. She dried her hair and
dried off before heading to her dresser, putting on the
clothes she had laid out. She stepped to the closet and
pulled on the denim dress and slipped on the sweater. She
grabbed her back pack, added the last of the personal items
she would need for the Summer, a make up bag, personal CD
player, favorite CD's batteries, stamps, paper, envelopes,
pens, pencils, crayons, and a new journal just to capture
the experience. "Bye room, I'll miss you." she said and
made her way to the front door, dropping her pack and then
headed to the kitchen, finding no one. "Why bother" she
whispered as she grabbed a frozen breakfast and nuked it
and started the coffee maker. Kaitlyn walked to the hall
desk, grabbed paper and pen and returned to the kitchen
grabbing her breakfast, sitting at the table, writing. She
opened the microwave, retrieving her breakfast, "Oh thanks
mommy, my favorite pancakes." she said sarcastically. She
wrote a goodbye note to her folks as she ate. It was easier
this way They were probably upstairs awake, waiting for her
to leave anyway, she thought, mumbling, "Sad" She finished
her breakfast and tossed the container and plastic fork.
"Won't even know I was here. Bye house, I'll miss you."
Kaitlyn said picking up her pack and heading out the door
and to her car. She started the engine, turned and looked
one more time, and pulled out and headed out for the two
hour trip to Springfield, giving herself an extra hour
before she had to report.
It seemed just minutes, not
hours, had passed as she pulled into the parking lot of the
Tri-State Red Cross offices and she found a spot to park.
Kaitlyn grabbed the letter off the front seat next to her
and her pack, locked the car and headed in a half hour
early. She checked in with the receptionist and was told
she wasn't the first to head up to the second floor and get
to know her fellow volunteers. Kaitlyn took the stairs up
and met the three girls and two guys and they chatted as
more and more arrived. Finally the director, and a few
others arrived and informed them of what would be expected
of them and what they could expect. The first week would be
spent in Springfield, rooming at the local college and
receiving first aid, emergency preparedness, basic survival
and empathy/compassion training. After that they would be
separated and assigned throughout the tri-states and would
not be rejoined unless, dissaster/emergency events
dictated. The group became quite close during that first
week, and campus living was a blast. Then assignments came
and they met the real world. Kaitlyn was assigned to a
small town in Missouri on the Mississippi, still trying to
recover from devastating floods a few years back. Mainly
because she had her own transportation. She would be one of
four. Also going were Sandy, a short, heavy set brunette,
with a heart of gold, Dave, another person with a heart of
gold. Dave was tall, lanky, still trying to grow into
himself. Kaitlyn thought he and Sandy were a perfect match,
even though they didn't no each other existed. Ken made the
fourth, she had the feeling he was volunteering to get away
from something. He had sandy blonde hair, nice to look at,
quite muscular but such a chip on his shoulder. The group
was to leave asap and Kaitlyn was given maps and
instructions on how to get there, gas vouchers, and a map
of the town and the local shelter they would be stationed
at.
The four loaded up and headed out, making their
way to the interstate and heading south. Kaitlyn grabbed
the cell phone, calling home and reporting in, telling her
Mom about her week if training and her assignment, giving
her the address and number. "Tell Daddy hey, I miss you
both. Bye Mom." Kaitlyn said hanging up. "Anybody else have
to do their duty? It's on Daddy." Kaitlyn offered and Sandy
and Dave called but Ken passed. "If you don't want to call
home, you can call your girlfriend then." Kaitlyn offered.
"Sure?" Ken asked. "Why not." she answered and he dialed
and after the call the chip didn't seem so big. They pulled
off and found gas, food, and a restroom around noon. The
guy at the gas station, looked at the map for Kaitlyn and
showed her where she was and how much longer it would take.
"You kids are doing fine, you'll be there in time." he said
and then double checked all the fluid levels, belts, and
tire pressures, showing Kaitlyn what she should do. "Gee
thanks Mr. Jones. My dad just taught me to call someone
like you." Kaitlyn said hugging him. "Your a good kid, you
all are, giving your time like this. You'll all make a
difference in this world." he said and they headed back to
the interstate, getting into a heavy discussion over his
remarks, making a difference in this world. "I guess I
never considered that, I just wanted a better looking
college applicaion." Kaitlyn confessed. "I just wanted away
from an impossible home life." Ken confessed. "I just
wanted to not have to watch my younger brother and sister
all summer, again." Sandy said. "Well, don't look at me, I
did it to make a difference." Dave said and they all booed
him and laughed.
They made it in record time 2:30pm
they pulled off the interstate and headed into town. They
were shocked by the visible scars left by the rising
waters, the remaining devastation. Many places vacant,
abandoned. They found the shelter and reported in. Their
new advisors, the Smiths, John and Mary to boot, made jokes
about it themselves, putting the group at ease. They spent
time getting to know each other and then got everyone
situated the boys bunking on the first floor and the girls
on the second floor along with the Smiths. The kids
unpacked and they all made supper together. After they
loaded into the Smiths suburban they headed out to see the
sights and what they would be doing. Downtown they would be
painting, or doing some landscaping. The nearer to the
river they got, the deeper the scars. John finally pulled
off in a little park next to the Mississippi and they got
out and stared. Not being able to see across, and it's
gentle, almost non-existent movement made it hard to
believe something so beautiful did such damage. They loaded
back up and headed back. They learned that they would
rotate the resonsibility of manning the shelter, and free
weekends were assigned.
Back at the shelter they all headed to bed, work began tomorrow, early. Kaitlyn looked at the map, figuring Tulsa was less than two hours from her, she grabbed the address book with their old number in it, picked up the cell phone and dialed. "Hello" someone answered and Kaitlyn had the strangest feeling. "Oh hello, the number is so old I'm sure I have the wrong number but this is Kaitlyn King, and I am a friend or was a friend, is this still the Hansons?" she asked. She found she was talking to Isaac, he was at the old house, they used it to store all the MOE merchandise, and he was doing some computer work or trying to. She told him what she had been up to and what she was up to and the reason for the call. "Ike I know it's short notice and you probably have a zillion things to do, but I have this weekend free starting Thursday at 5pm and I figure I'm a couple hours from you guys, so do you think Mom and Dad would let me come visit, I sure miss all of you." Kaitlyn asked. "God KDK I'm sure, hang on a minute can you?" Ike asked. "God I haven't been called that, since I left you guys, sure I'll wait." she said tears filling her eyes thinking of all the wonderful times she had spent with the family and now there was a new baby she'd never met. Geez Mackie was just born when she left. "KDK Mom and Dad are so excited they can't wait. We'll be waiting for you Thursday night." he said. "Oh Isaac I could kiss you. I mean, damn what did I say that for. I mean, damn you." she blushed. "Hey I don't mind we could you know." Ike said shyly. "Yeah I know, you're still the romantic I've read. I always could talk to you. Remember all the times we used to spend in the treehouse talking and writing. Those were the good days." she said. "Yeah they were, so you want to know how to get to the new place?" Ike asked. "Yeah sure but hun it's lights out here and I don't have a flash light. Yeah I know Miss Emergency Preparedness, pray for no disasters while I'm on duty." she said and he laughed along. "God I've missed you KDK, I knew something was wrong, but just now as I was laughing from my soul, I figured out what was wrong. They took you away." Ike said. "I know what you're saying, I've hated them from that day on. They did it deliberately and they know I know and it makes things so sad. But life sucks sometimes, get over it." Kaitlyn said. "God I can't believe you can be so cool about it." Ike said. "It changed me Isaac, I'm not the same. Shit, my last night in town, I had broken up with my boyfriend as school ended told him I was leaving in the morning and leaving him now and handed him his rings back and that when I returned in the fall I hoped he had found someone who could love him because it wasn't me. When he threatened me, I marched into the town hangout, dressed to kill, he had given me this little black dress and I wore a thong, you now a thong doesn't cover your butt, so I go in and dance the most seductive dance I've every imagined to you guys' "Look At You" and as it ended I kissed his best friend and he pulled my dress up in back just enough to moon them all, except him. They ought to have a nice summer without me, but they sure as hell won't forget me." she explained. "You have changed remember the pool and your first two piece?" Ike said. "Oh God, I'd almost forgotten." she laughed. "Well I have a string bikini, that will replace that memory and I brought it with me. Guess I knew I'd get the guts to call you." she said. "Ike?" she asked "Yeah KDK" he said. "Ike remember how we used to talk all night until.. Ike I missed talking to you. These past years, everytime I had a difficult call to make, I'd remember one of those talks we used to have and then I remembered what you said and my choices have been based on those talks, well maybe not the mooning of the town on my last night, but other biggies, like breaking up with Matthew Derr, son of the richest man in town, county and probably the state and everytime I've broken up with him, I'd hear you tell me that there's someone for everyone and you shouldn't settle for seconds. Everytime we broke up it was because he wanted something I wouldn't give him because I knew somewhere out there was the guy I was meant to give it to. How do you manage, I mean you must have fans offering themselves up to you left and right. Tell me the most bizarre time?" she asked and Isaac relayed some very interesting stories, "You always could do that. Get me to spill my guts and then you'd hold it over me." Ike complained. "Isaac have you. God that's none of my business, don't answer, I guess if it was me I wouldn't want you tell someone, no matter how close they were." Kaitlyn said. "Kaitlyn?" he asked. "Yeah hun?" she asked. "I'm still waiting for her, It can only be my first once too, and I just haven't found her. I mean I've found them in my bed but they aren't the ones, The one would never do that." he said. "You're right, she wouldn't. Ike instead of me having to learn directions to the new place, will you meet me at the old place Thursday, I'd love to see it than you can show me where you moved to. I know I can find the old place." she asked. "Of course I can KDK, you want me to bring Tay?" he offered. "No I'd rather you didn't, I'd like a chance to just talk to you again first no pressure or anything. I just remember always feeling nervous around Tay. Just you promise me?" she asked. "I remember I could never say no to you back then either. Kaitlyn?" he asked "Yeah hun?" she answered. "Good morning KDK!" he said. "Why you old devil, you still have the knack. When my ass is dragging later, I'm going to send you a message. You get ready to blush." she teased. "You always did have a potty mouth." he teased. "Isaac Hanson how could you talk about me like that, God I was only ten." she teased. "Can't wait to hear what you've learned in public school since I last talked dirty with you." he teased. "I'll knock your socks off." she teased. "You did back then, that's why I kissed you." he confessed. "Yeah I figured as much. Sure hope you've practiced and learned from your mistakes, kissing your brother's girlfriend in a room full of people causes problems." she said. "Kaitlyn I swear I couldn't help myself, I had no idea things would end up the way they did. I'm so sorry." Ike said and she could hear the pain in his voice. "Isaac I've never blamed you, never even considered it. You would never hurt me and you had no way of knowing anyone could be so cruel. We learned though didn't we." she said and heard him crying in the background, "Isaac can you feel me wrapping my arms around you, I love you still and can't stand the thought of you hurting. Isaac it'll be okay, believe me. Lay your head on my shoulder and I'll hold you until it's better. It's going to get better." she whispered. "Kaitlyn I've missed you so." he choked out. "Ive missed you too" she whispered. "Did you get it?" she asked. "God I haven't felt that in so long, I actually thought it wasn't real, but yeah I felt it, you and telepathic hugs." he said. "Isaac I have to go there goes the alarm. Hun?" she asked. "Yeah KDK?" he answered. "Isaac will you call me Wednesday night say 10pm on my cell phone. I'm afraid I'll chicken out and I want you to make me come, I want to face this so I can move on, Matt wasn't my only bad relationship I needed to fix. Sometimes I think I've gone with Matthew just to punish myself and I'm tired of being punished for something that wasn't bad. We didn't do anything wrong!" she said. "I won't let you back out, I'll come get you and bring you kicking and screaming if I have to." he threatened. "Now that's a pretty picture, Isaac the Cave Man dragging me kicking and screaming." she laughed. "Bye hun. Call me, oh my number" she said giving him the phone number."Don't lose it and don't give it out." she ordered and hung up. "Hey big guy? You trying to tell me something?" Kaitlyn said as she got and dressed for her first day of work.
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