Chapter One
"Wow!" My head was spinning in reaction to the kiss.
"Oh my," Sandy said with a smile as she stepped back. "That was better than I remember."
"I still can't believe it," I said with a shake of my head. Sandy's smile turned into a laugh.
"Me neither," she said, leaning forward and hugging me.
This was beyond my wildest imagination. My friend Ted insisted that I go to our high school reunion, but I figured it would be a waste of time. Actually, I was certain that it would be worse than a waste of time because I was recently divorced, currently unemployed and quite a bit heavier than I was back in high school. I might as well have put a big loser sign on my back.
Ted thought it was funny when I told him so. His reply was typical Ted. "What are you bitching about? At least you still have your hair!"
That was Ted. He was the most carefree person I ever met. It was one of the reasons why I called him first when I moved back home from the west coast. I needed to get beyond the depression of the last few months. Of course, I didn't expect that he would drag me to my high school reunion the first weekend home.
"What are you thinking?" Sandy asked. I looked at her and smiled.
"Just that I owe Ted a big one for convincing me to come tonight," I replied. Sandy laughed again. I was mesmerized as I watched her.
Sandy was my high school sweetheart and my first love. We never consummated that love, but we used to do a lot of heavy petting in my father's car. She was still just as gorgeous as she was the first time I saw her cheering for the football team. I can still remember her expression. It was a bitterly cold day, but she and the other cheerleaders did there best to get the crowd into the game.
I remembered how she smiled at me when I jogged off of the field. I wasn't one of the star players. I was just an offensive lineman. There was no way that one of the cheerleader captains would be interested in me. At least that's what I thought until Sandy came up to me at the victory party that night.
We were inseparable the rest of the year. I couldn't remember why we went our separate ways after high school. I leaned forward to kiss Sandy once again. She did the same, but we were interrupted before our lips met.
"What are you doing with that loser?"
The voice asking the question was unarguably beautiful, just like the woman it came from, yet the tone was anything but pleasant. Shelly Colbert was the other captain of the cheerleaders back in high school and Sandy's best friend. She was also one of the most self-absorbed people I ever met. It amazed me that Sandy could be friends with her.
"Nice to see you too, Shelly," I said, with a false smile. Most men found it hard not to stare at Shelly when in her presence. She was blond, big breasted and as I said earlier, beautiful. It took time for people to realize that her outer beauty hid the real Shelly. I guess it took a whole five minutes for the slower witted ones.
"I see you stopped playing sports after high school," she sneered as she saw how much weight I gained. "And I love that beautiful florescent green skin tone. Don't you ever get out into the sun?"
Shelly received the 'Biggest Bitch' award in the unofficial senior awards back at high school. I would have lobbied hard for her, but there was no need. Shelly was in a league all her own. She took it as a complement when the award 'appeared' in her locker. She wore the ribbon all day.
"You look well Shelly," I said with a half smile. "How is the singing career going?" It was a cruel question. I knew for a fact that it never really took off. The shame of it was that she had the talent. I was certain that it had to be her personality holding her back.
"It's fine," she snapped, not doing well at hiding her irritation. I started to grin in satisfaction when I noticed Tyler walking over. My grin turned into a grimace. Tyler was the football quarterback and the star of every sports team he ever played on. He was also Shelly's boyfriend throughout most of senior year of high school. I always wondered why they never got married. They were perfect for each other. They even looked alike.
"Hey, is it true your wife dumped you?" Tyler asked. Shelly's smile returned. I wondered how Tyler had heard about my divorce already.
"Fat and divorced. I told you he was a loser," Shelly said to Sandy. Sandy just stood there. She looked unhappy, but she didn't defend me.
"Unemployed too," I replied, watching Sandy as I spoke. I wasn't even sure why I volunteered the information until Sandy once again didn't react to the abuse Tyler and Shelly began to heap on me. I sat silently until they were done. It didn't last very long because I wouldn't respond.
"Let's go Sandy," Shelly finally said. "Tommy Geskin is looking for you. I promised you'd dance with him."
Tyler and Shelly turned without another word and left. Shelly didn't bother to glance back to see if Sandy was following her. She knew already.
"Talk to you later," Sandy said as she stood.
"What a shame," I sighed as she turned to follow the others. "I remember now why we broke up. It was your taste in friends." Sandy paused a moment. I thought she was going to say something, but she finally dropped her head and followed Shelly without another word to me. There was definitely something odd about her relationship with Shelly.
I made my way to the bar and ordered a double. I probably should have done something when Shelly and Tyler were laying into me, but it just didn't seem to matter at the time. This was exactly what I was afraid would happen. I should have known better.
"So, how is it going?" Ted said with a smile as he joined me at the bar.
"About as I expected," I replied. Ted laughed.
"It can't be that bad!"
"Oh, yes it can," I replied. Ted slapped me on the back and changed the subject.
"Have you seen Freddy yet?" he asked. I frowned.
"Freddy?"
"Yes, Freddy!" Ted said in exasperation. "You know, the guy who always had the best Halloween parties. He says he still does it! He's so drunk he's inviting everyone he meets to his next party."
"Halloween is six months away," I said. Ted shrugged and smiled.
"It would be fun to go to a costume party again. It's been years," Ted replied before wondering off again. I sighed to myself.
"It would be fun," a voice said from my other side. I turned and saw Bart Halburg sitting. I caught myself before I sighed. There were almost three hundred people in my graduation class. Why did I keep bumping into the jerks?
"Hello Bart," I said, hoping he had changed since high school, but I doubted it. He was wearing a very expensive suit and plenty of jewelry. He was filthy rich and a bit of a snob.
"You could go as an Elephant or something," he said. It was actually more of a slur. Bart was pretty drunk. I felt a strong urge to punch him in the mouth, but instead I downed my drink and left. I could feel my anger growing as I looked for Ted to tell him I was leaving.
Freddy bumped into me quite literally and slurred an invitation. He was probably worse off than Bart. I nodded in thanks and continued looking for Ted. It wasn't just jerks I was attracting tonight. It was also drunks.
I was surprised at how angry I became. I was mad at everyone and everything, but mostly myself.
"How did I let myself get this way?" I snapped aloud. I got strange looks from a couple of people near me, but I was past them too quickly for them to react further.
Ted was nowhere to be found and I was feeling a desperate need to leave the reunion before I did or said something stupid. I gave up on finding Ted and went to get my coat. There was no one at the desk. I waiting a moment and then angrily walked around the counter to get my own coat.
The room where the coats were stored was l-shaped. I found my jacket easily enough. It was close to the front. I was just turning to leave when I heard moans coming from the back of the room. They were not sounds of pain. Normally, I would have smiled and wished the couple a good time, but I was so angry that I couldn't.
I assumed the coat check girl was busy with one of her fellow employees or one of my classmates. I rounded the corner angrily, not really sure what I was going to say, but it didn't matter. It wasn't the coat check girl. It was Sandy.
