# Car 54

####
© 2005 / revised 2014
K Pelle

### Chapter 6:
Caution - Pedestrian Zone

Perhaps I'm making too much of it, but I think my difference in age between me and my classmates during my school years and my resultant shyness had set me slightly apart from others, so I saw people differently than most do. For instance, that afternoon as I sat on the front porch with my family and close friends, I was observing what was going on around me. For some reason I was paying attention the groupings of people and for a short time I watched the way the others mingled and how they interacted.

My brother Wil and the Coulter twins were standing in one group, slightly away from anyone else, which wasn't really surprising if you thought about ages. Wil was almost two and a half years older than I was, while Carissa and Corinna were almost a year younger than he was. Since the twins had seen me with Sandy and had heard their Uncle call her my girlfriend, they had backed off. Now however, they seemed to be giving Wil the eye and I had to grin to myself; Wil wasn't shy like I was, so the twins might be in for a surprise.

I was still thinking about the way the twins were acting when I noticed George and Beth talking and I did a double take. Beth was acting almost the same way toward George as the twins were acting toward Wil. Actually when I thought about it, it made sense since I knew they liked each other, even though they never made a big deal about it. For some reason or other though, that afternoon they were showing their feelings more than usual.

Sandy had been sitting beside me and Tom had wandered over to join us. I suppose since I was acting a little withdrawn, they had struck up a conversation which neither included nor excluded me. It was as if they acknowledged that I was there, but didn't expect me to react. Somehow the interaction between the two of them was unlike the others though. In some ways it was as if they were fencing with each other and yet it was also as if they wanted to be closer, almost as if they were trying to develop a friendship. At the same time, Sandy seemed to be paying attention to the way Wil and the Coulter girls were acting, while Tom was keeping an eye on Beth and George.

The overall situation had left me quite thoughtful and I suppose it showed on my face, because when Sandy and Tom stood and moved over to chat with Beth and George, Mom came over and sat down at my side.

"That's a rather intense look on your face," Mom smiled. "Thinking deep thoughts?"

"Yes and no," I had to grin at her perception of my mood. "I was just people watching."

"You do that a lot, don't you?"

"Oh, to some extent I suppose? I like to try to understand the people around me."

She studied my face for a moment as if she wanted to say something deep, but seemed to think better of it, then she just smiled softly and patted my arm gently.

"Actually, it's four o'clock so chores are in another half hour, that will give you some time alone with Sandy. Then it'll be time for supper, but what did you want to do after that?"

"Well, I have to have Sandy at work by a quarter to seven, then I sort of promised her dad to pick her up from work at eleven and give her a ride home. In between those times I'm not sure what I'm going to do."

"Then I think that we'd best feed you and Sandy earlier," she smiled.

"Oh Mom, I can buy Sandy something to eat in town and ..."

"No, I'd like you two to eat here," she smiled at me, but her smile had that 'no nonsense' edge to it that I'd long ago learned not to argue with. "Besides, I'm trying to think of a way to have everyone sit down to a meal at once. Let me talk to your father for a moment."

For some reason when she walked away, I dropped into a very thoughtful mood and it wasn't until Sandy bent over in front of me and then kissed me on the tip of my nose that I jerked back to reality.

"Sorry," she giggled. "I didn't mean to scare you, but I was wondering if you'd mind if I went with everyone else to do chores while you sat here thinking?"

"Oh yeah, fine," I answered, trying to pull myself back into the present.

"Great, we won't be that long and I promise not to let her get all mucked up," Beth said from the porch steps. "Come on Sandy, I'll show you our horses."

I glanced around and realised that everyone else was gone, then wondered how long I'd been concentrating and inattentive, but just as I frowned over that Mom stepped out onto the porch from inside.

"That was very thoughtful of you. Besides, it gives me a moment to speak to you alone," she said quietly.

"Oh, was there something wrong?"

"Not really, but I was wondering a bit about you and Sandy, I noticed ..." she paused, looking at me strangely as I shook my head and grinned sardonically at her.

"Sorry Mom, maybe I'm being pessimistic, but I think we might be done before we start," I sighed. "Actually, that's what I was just sitting here thinking about."

Just the look on her face told me I'd have to explain, so I took a deep breath and shifted my leg slightly just to give myself time to think of how to tell her what I felt.

"Look. Sandy has been kept on a tight string by her dad. I don't think she's ever really gone out with a guy before. Suddenly she's here, with all these people around and on top of that there are guys here. Not just me, but three other guys too and it almost looked to me like she was ... well, sort of competing for attention with the twins and Beth."

"For a young fellow who has never had much to do with girls, you seem quite certain of yourself," Mom said very quietly.

"I may not have gone out much Mom, but I've been one of the biggest girl watchers around the school," I snorted. "I don't understand girls at all, so I watch them to see if anything makes sense."

"Does it?" she smiled.

"Not often, but sometimes," I had to grin. "In Sandy's case, she reminds me of someone who has just gotten a new toy, or in this case, a new freedom. In a way, she scares me."

"Why should she scare you?"

"Well ..." I paused, not sure how much I could say to my own mother. I sighed deeply, then continued. "Okay, maybe I'm just being pessimistic about her actions, but I think she's an awful lot like a bomb that was dropped, but didn't explode, so it could go off at the slightest tremor. She's been mollycoddled and protected so closely by her dad, that I think she'll change drastically, now that she has the opportunity to be free of his control. On top of that I think she believes that I'm the chance she's been looking for."

"I take it you mean that you think she wants to ... have sex?"

"Yeah," I sighed. "Exactly!"

"Then I take it since you're talking to me about it that you don't feel the same way about her?"

"No, Mom, I really do like her and while I wouldn't push her, if she led me that direction I'm not sure I could stop myself," I shook my head vigorously. "The thing is, I think ... well, I think she's going to want someone older and more experienced than me, and probably really soon."

"Now, that is pessimistic," Mom laughed, then she paused and looked at me strangely. "How did you do that?"

"How did I do what?" I frowned, not understanding.

"How did you get me to nearly root for you to have sex with a girl?" she chuckled. "I should be warning you of the dangers, not be ..."

She let the words hang and I think she blushed a bit, then she changed the subject slightly. "You're acting very grown up for someone your age, young man. I almost felt like I was talking with a contemporary, not with my son. Sometimes I'm sure that you think altogether too much."

"I don't think that's possible, Mom," I grinned. "Most of the time when I'm thinking I have a lot of questions and not many answers."

"So, now you've left me with the questions, is that it?"

"Not really, I have to live my own life. You and Dad taught me that," I sighed. "I guess I was just letting my thoughts run, and you happened to tap into the right questions to get me to express them aloud. I really don't know what I'm going to do. I know your advice is going to be for me not to get involved, but I don't see how I can do that now, and not cause a problem for either her or me."

"Actually, I was wondering if you realised just how involved you were getting yourself," she smiled. "I'm not sure that your assessment of Sandy is right either. Unlike you, I feel that she has really been enjoying herself while she's been here today. I did notice that her reaction to others changed as she watched Beth and the Coulter twins, but I think that was more of a learning experience than anything else. I agree that she's been sheltered, and I really do think she's just learning how to tease a man. I got the idea that she was practising what Beth and the twins were doing at a time and place she felt was safe."

"Oh Mom, you've got to be kidding me."

"No, I think she's even more innocent than you thought she was. I'm starting to think that the two of you are perfect for each other right now. Both of you are undereducated about the opposite sex, both of you are quite shy, and while you're a young gentleman, she's equally as much a young lady. I am going to suggest one thing though."

I waited for a moment and then asked. "Okay, just what are you going to suggest?"

She reached her hand into her apron pocket and held her closed hand out to me.

"Just in case, carry these in your wallet and if you need one, for gosh sakes use it," she dropped a pair of small foil packages into my hand.

I stared down at them and then up at her face, not knowing what to say or to do.

"I'll make it plain. I'm not trying to encourage you. But, I know accidents will happen, and at your age your hormones can take over from your thinking brain. I just want you to be safe and I don't want you to feel that you have to marry someone, not quite yet," And with that, she turned and went back into the house.

I must have stared at those two foil packages for five minutes, then almost guiltily slipped them both into my wallet and resolved to remember that I had them. I was still in a bit of a blue funk when Beth and Sandy came running around the corner and up onto the porch.

"That horse that broke your leg is beautiful," Sandy grinned, plopping down at my side. "He doesn't look mean at all though. He looks like a pussy cat."

"Oh my," Beth giggled. "Right now he is, but he can be a real so 'n' so when he wants to be."

"Why would he change?" Sandy asked guilelessly.

"Because he's a male horse," Beth chortled. "When a mare lets him know that she's ready to breed, he turns from a family pet into a typical male, then he has only one thing on his mind."

"Beth!" I growled.

"Well, it's true," she snapped.

"Not all guys are animals," I argued.

"Damn near," she retorted. "Just because you can wake up in bed with two nude women and not do anything doesn't mean a damn thing, because you're not typical. Most guys would have thought that they'd died and gone to heaven, then they'd have taken advantage of the situation."

"I'm not using myself as an example," I growled again, annoyed with her for even bringing that incident to mind again.

"Okay, so I guess what I should have said is that a girl had best watch what signals she gives a guy. Okay?" Beth sighed in exasperation. "If a girl goes too far with the wrong guy, she can get into really big trouble, real quick."

Sandy was simply staring at us, her mouth open the slightest bit as if she was in shock that we could talk this freely with each other.

"And you're the ultimate of experience I guess?"

"No, but at least I've necked with a guy and had to fight off his wandering hands. How far have you gone, Mr. know-it-all?" Beth snapped.

"Far enough that I know it's not always the girl who says enough," I grinned at her.

"Yeah, and how far is that?"

"Well, I suppose being in bed with two nude girls at once," I grinned even wider. "You saw a photo of that as the evidence."

"I thought we weren't bringing that into this?" Beth snapped again.

Sandy suddenly realised I was teasing Beth and she broke into a giggle.

"Well, if you can throw it at me, I can throw it back at you, besides we started out talking about horses, not people. They're a bit different."

"Yeah, how does a mare tease a stallion?" Sandy asked, trying to help change the subject back.

"Chemicals," I laughed.

"Chemicals?"

"He means pheromones," Beth snorted. "When a mare comes into season she gives off a special smell. At least she doesn't tease like a teenage girl does."

"Girls give off a special smell too," I laughed.

"Oh come on," Beth snapped. "You're kidding, right."

"Okay, maybe all girls don't," I shrugged my shoulders. "Maybe it's just you."

"Me?!?"

"Sure, I can be talking to you and I can tell when George walks into the room, even if I don't happen to see or hear him. I decided last year that it was just the way you act, but it had to be something else too. Then I thought about the animals and read in a book about pheromones. That's when I first noticed the smell."

Beth stared at me in astonishment and then she blushed bright red.

"Don't worry. I've never told him ... or anyone else, until now," I smiled. "But, it might be an idea if you let him known that you like him."

Suddenly Beth leaped to her feet and ran inside.

"Oh shit," I sighed and rolled my eyes. "I did it, didn't I?"

"Oh I don't know," Sandy smiled at me. "I think she'll survive. But, can you really smell when a girl likes a guy?"

"Sometimes. It depends on the girl and the guy."

"So, do I like you?"

"Enough to scare me," I laughed uneasily.

"Oh, I hope not," she giggled. "I sure don't want to scare you away."

"The problem is that I'm scared of me," I sighed, deciding to be honest. "I do like you, but I know that you've never been on a date before and I ..."

She held up a hand and stopped me. "Shh. Don't say anything more. We'll talk later. Okay?"

I nodded and was going to answer when suddenly Beth came running back out the door and stood right in front of me with her hands on her hips.

"Why should I say something?" she demanded.

"Because he's a nice guy and every time you hear that he's going out on a date with someone else you get upset," I said as quietly and as evenly as I could.

"I can't just come out and tell him," she argued.

"So, do you want me to clue him in? Really gently, so I don't scare him off."

"Maybe? Unh, no, don't. But, well ... I don't know," Beth sighed softly.

"Well, when you make up your mind, let me know would you?"

To my surprise, she bent forward and hugged me, then went back inside.

"You really are a nice guy, aren't you?" Sandy whispered. "And you're so full of surprises."

I didn't know what to say, so I just shrugged my shoulders and she giggled, which astounded me. I was going to ask her what was so funny, but just then Dad, Wil, and the two Coulter twins came around the corner.

"There, the chores are all done, but for the milking, little brother. Do you think Mom has supper almost ready?" Will grinned at me.

"More than likely, big brother. Are you starving already?"

"For Mom's cooking? Of course!" he laughed.

Dad had gone right into the house and he stepped back out. "Come on everyone, time for the farm help to wash up so we can eat."

I waved everyone ahead of me, I was actually worried about hitting someone accidentally with those bloody crutches. To my surprise, Sandy insisted that she stay back, then held the screen door from springing against me. We were the last ones inside, but Mom just waved us straight to the table while everyone else was washing up.

Mom and Beth must have added an extra leaf to the table so everyone would have room to sit down. Beth was helping put dishes on the table and she looked at me as I came in, then smiled and pulled back a chair for me.

"I've decided I'll say something," she whispered.

"Good," I grinned. "Then I don't have to worry about saying the wrong thing."

She surprised me by blushing again as she hurried past me to get something else.

"What was that about?" Mom asked.

"You'll have to ask Beth. It's her business to say anything, not mine," I shrugged my shoulders.

Sandy grinned, along with a wink and a squeeze on my arm.

I just smiled at her, but didn't get a chance to respond because everyone started to come in and sit around the table. By the time everyone got seated, it was quite a crew. Beth had put me in the middle seat on one side and she directed Wil to sit opposite me. He had Carissa on his left and Corinna on his right while I ended up with Sandy on my right and Beth on my left. Of course Dad sat at the head of the table and Mom sat opposite him.

After bowing his head for a few seconds as a concession to our guest's possible beliefs, Dad looked up at me.

"Chris, you're going to have to stop this practice of bringing back more and more beautiful young women or we won't have a large enough table to all eat together," he teased.

"Don't you dare stop him, Dad?" Will grinned. "If I'd known he was this good at bringing home pretty gals for company, I'd have taken him along to Ag. school. The idea of sitting down to eat at a table with someone I don't mind looking at is wonderful."

"Don't mind?" Beth shot back immediately. "Girls, I think we've been insulted."

"Perhaps not insulted ..."

"but certainly not complimented."

"Wil needs to take lessons ..."

"from his little brother ..."

"who always seems to be a gentleman ..."

"except that he brings home ..."

"prettier girls than we are."

I laughed and turned to Sandy. "Poor Wil, he seems to have inherited the stereo sisters."

"You're right," she giggled. "I always have to threaten my sisters with the suggestion that I'll stuff a sock in one of their mouths if they don't stop that silliness."

That tickled me and I turned to Wil and winked. "Since I'm wearing a cast on one foot, I have a spare sock if you need one."

"We take back the suggestion ..."

"that he's a gentleman ..."

"no gentleman would threaten ..."

"young ladies like that."

"Young, I can believe, but I have a problem with the other part," Will grinned. "Now what was it you said about a spare sock, Chris?"

"Alright, I think that's enough threats of socks and things," Mom interrupted with a grin. "Chris, just how is your foot feeling now?"

"Oh, it's a lot better Mom," I smiled at her. "I think having it lifted up on a stool did the most good."

"So, what are you going to do while Sandra is working for four hours. Are you planning on coming home for a rest?"

"That seems like a waste of gas," I sighed. "The trouble is what do I do in town for four hours on a Friday night?"

"You could always go watch my sisters play baseball for a couple of hours," Sandy suggested.

"Oh sure, and sit beside your Dad and Mom, huh?" I grinned.

"Actually, that's not a bad idea," Mom offered with a smile. "In fact, it's the sort of thing you would normally do."

"Or you could phone Tom and George and invite them along," Wil offered. "I could help Dad with the milking, and that would free up all the girls to go along."

"We've got a better idea," Carissa spoke up. "Why don't we help Wil with the milking and perhaps after we're done, he could borrow the pickup truck and we could meet you at the game?"

"Sure, then Beth could go with the rest of you and it would give everyone a break, even if it's just a little one," Corinna added.

"What do you think Sandy?" I asked. "It's your date."

"I think it sounds okay, I mean as a date it's kind of screwed up anyway. I just wish I didn't have to work. I'd love to go out with all of you guys."

"So should I phone Tom and George?" I suggested.

"Let me," Beth jumped to her feet and ran off.

"Well, I guess that's settled," Dad winked at Mom, grinning like a Cheshire cat. "We get a night off, Mrs. Wife. No milking, no kids, whatever will we do?"

"Oh, I'm sure we can think of something," Mom laughed.

We kidded a bit more, then Beth came back from her phone calls.

"So, are they coming along?" I asked.

"Tom can't come, but George said he'd be over in just a few minutes," she smiled, actually she glowed.

I winked at her and she broke into a blush, then excused herself, leaving her meal unfinished. I knew it was because she wanted to get changed and gussied up for George's benefit.

"Well, what's up with her?" Dad asked quietly.

"Ask me later, Willard," Mom said shortly, cutting him off and getting a surprised look from Dad in return.

Wil glanced at me and raised an eyebrow, I just shrugged my shoulders and asked him something about Ag. school, just to change the subject and we chatted about that for a few minutes. Mom excused herself and I heard her go upstairs. I assumed she was going to talk to Beth.

I'd been keeping an eye on the clock because I didn't want Sandy to be late for work, but I didn't want to have to drive faster than I felt was safe either. George appeared in plenty of time, which was a relief, and Beth came downstairs not long after he got there. I suggested that we leave then, just to be certain we had Sandy at the hospital in time.

Sandy and I hopped into the front seat of my car and Sandy set my crutches on the far right side of the front seat, sliding over next to me and I think she winked at Beth. It doesn't matter, she'd made it plain to George that she expected him to ride in the back seat. To my surprise, Beth actually got him to hold the back door open for her as she slid in. Of course he slid in right behind her, meaning she had to slide over, which brought a giggle to Sandy's lips.

Of course Mom and Dad told me to drive carefully and to enjoy ourselves, but we expected that. I did find it funny to look back and see Mom and Dad standing on one side of the porch with Will standing between the twins on the other. We'd hardly gotten out on the road and Sandy snuggled tightly against me, lifting my right arm to drape it over her shoulder.

"There that's better," she whispered.

I heard murmurs from the back seat and couldn't resist peeking in the mirror. Beth and George were sitting close, but not snuggling, and I decided my little sister should have a bit more privacy. I knew I could see traffic just fine with my outside mirrors, so I glanced at Sandy.

"I need my arm for a minute, then you can snuggle again," I told her.

She frowned, but leaned forward a bit. I reached up to turn the mirror so I couldn't see into the back seat, then I turned the radio up a bit. I even remember the song. It was Jerry Lee Lewis singing 'Great Balls of Fire'.

"He's a weird singer," Sandy said as she snuggled back against me.

"He's different," I agreed.

"Do you like him?" she asked.

"I like the fact that he's noisy right now," I whispered, glancing at her and rolling my eyes toward the back seat.

She just giggled and snuggled closer, if that was possible. All too soon we were driving into the hospital parking lot and I was wondering just what to do. Should I kiss her then, or should I wait to do that until later, or ...

She solved my dilemma.

"Could you walk me in?" she smiled at me and blushed. "I want to brag that I've got a guy escorting me."

"I could do that, but it's going to cost you," I teased.

"Mmm, I think the effort of hobbling inside on crutches should be worth at least one kiss," she giggled. "Do you want payment in advance?"

"Do you think we should do it here? It might give the young kids in the back seat ideas."

"Hah, where do you think I got the idea?" Sandy snorted.

"Hey, no fair peeking," Beth giggled from the back seat.

I glanced back and then grinned at George who was wearing more of Beth's lipstick than she was. After looking closer, I couldn't help it, I laughed aloud.

"Oh poor George," Sandy said as she turned and giggled loudly. "When we're inside, we'd better find him some tissues."

"Tissues? I think he needs a wash from the neck up with something that will take off lipstick," I snorted. "I hope your lipstick doesn't smear like that."

"I'm not wearing any now, darn it. Beth, can I borrow your lipstick?" she teased me with a wink.

"I forgot it and I really need some more," Beth giggled as she looked at George's face too. "Oh wow. George, I really did get you good."

"You did?" George asked, sounding as if he'd been in a daze and was finally waking up.

"Oh oh, I think George got run over by a semi," I laughed. "Either that or he got lambasted by my little sister."

George scrambled outside then and bent to look in my side mirror.

"Holy shit!" he said rubbing at his mouth with the back of his hand and smearing his face even worse. "How come there's so much of it?"

"I guess I used too much," Beth almost whimpered. "I just wanted to look really good for you."

"Well, at least you shared very generously," I grinned. "George, you might as well get back in the car. I'll bring out some tissues and maybe even some soap and water. That way you can clean up a bit before anyone else sees you."

George got back in the car while Sandy and I got out, then I took a few seconds to get settled on those damn crutches again. We were almost inside when I paused.

"Hey, you didn't give me my advance payment," I teased Sandy.

"Oh, oh, how much interest will it cost me if I make you wait until just before I go to work?"

"Not much, only a hundred percent," I grinned. "But I need a little kiss now as a retainer."

"Loan Shark," she giggled, but grabbed my head in both palms and brought her lips to mine right there in plain view of half of the windows of the hospital.

I stared at her in surprise. I really hadn't expected her to kiss me at all, at least not when others could see us. Somehow, I thought she'd talk her way out of it, or at least tease me until we were in the shelter of the entrance overhang.

"Hey, wake up before you make me late for work," she teased. "Or are my kisses that good?"

"Fantastic," I managed to mutter and got my crutches moving in time with my legs again.

Once more she held the door for me and I grinned at her. "Gee, but you make a good doorman."

"Door MAN?!" she squeaked. "Are you blind? I'm a door girl."

We were trying to be quiet and we fought our giggles as we walked across the entrance lobby. That's when we were met by the Matron.

"Sandy, what are you doing here? Don't tell me Chris is hurt again?"

"Oh no, I'm here for my regular shift," Sandy said in surprise.

"Didn't your Mom get the message to you? I phoned her right after lunch to tell her that we had one of our other girls coming in specially tonight. I'm sorry if you didn't get told."

"Oh boy, I'd better phone home," Sandy said instantly. "Can I?"

"Certainly, Sandy, you can use the phone in the office. If you haven't been home, your mother must be worried."

"Yeah, Dad too," Sandy sighed and looked at me. "Come with me, Chris, please?"

"Sure," I tried to smile, but was worried that we might have a tough time explaining to her dad, if not to her mother.

A moment later, Sandy was holding the phone in one hand and my hand in the other.

"Hi Mom ... Yes, I'm at the hospital ready to go to work, but they have someone else taking my place ... We were out at Chris' and Beth's parents' farm and they insisted we stay for supper ... Well, if we had gone to the river like we planned, you couldn't have phoned me there either ... Yes, I know I should have phoned from the farm, but I simply forgot ... No, Chris is right here, and his sister is waiting in the car ... No one of the guys from one of the farms just down the road from her family's farm is with her. I think it's their first date too ... Well, they were going to go to the baseball game while I was working and then pick me up later ... Yes, Chris is still here ... Why do you want to talk to him? ... Oh, okay, here he is," she handed me the phone with a strange pleading look on her face. "Mom wants to talk to you."

I could see she was almost in tears, so I took a deep breath before lifting the phone to my ear.

"Hello, Mrs. McAdam," I said as calmly as I could.

"Hello Chris. First off, I'm not angry, but I am annoyed. Sam almost drove down to the river to look for you two, just to tell you that Sandy didn't have to work."

"I am sorry about that," I sighed. "I think Sandy not calling is partly my fault. You see my brother Wil was hitch hiking home from school in Olds and we stopped to pick him up. My family got so excited about him being home early because he did well at school that we just forgot to call."

"Oh I'm not really annoyed about that, although from now on if you two change your plans about where you're going, I'd appreciate knowing about it. What I'm annoyed about is that Sam has already left with the twins and by the time I walk to the ball park, the game will have started. Sandy mentioned that you were planning on going and I was wondering if I could catch a ride with you?"

"Oh sure!" I grinned and winked at Sandy as she stared at me in surprise. "We can be there in about ten minutes."

"You take your time Chris, I want you and my daughter to arrive in one piece so I can show that silly husband of mine that you're a responsible young man. I'm not about to let you give him an excuse to be tough on either you or my daughter, certainly not on your first date."

"Yes Ma'am!" I almost tried to salute.

"All right, I'll see you in a few minutes," she said and hung up the phone.

Sandy was staring at me and I could see her annoyance rising because I was grinning.

"First off, your Mom isn't mad at you," I grinned and bent to catch her cheeks in my hands and kissed her lightly. "Second, your dad has already taken your sisters to the ball game. Your Mom was going to start walking down to the ball park, but since we're in town now, she asked me if we could give her a ride instead. So I said yes."

I kissed her again. "She did tell me that if we change where we are planning to go in the future we should phone and let her know though, just so she can tell the search parties where to look for our bodies."

"I don't believe it," she said, shaking her head. "I thought I was going to be grounded for a year and instead we're only supposed to give Mom a ride to the ball game?"

"Unh huh, but I think we'd better find some washcloths for George and that idiot sister of mine. I don't think your Mom would want to arrive at the ball park with those two looking like clowns, especially since they'll be getting out of the same car as we do."

"Oh my!" she broke into a giggle. "Oh, that would never do. Mom might understand, but Dad would have a fit. You go pry them apart, while I go thank the Matron for the use of the phone and see if I can get something to help clean their faces."

"Okay, but don't be long. Remember, your Mom is waiting for us and she warned me not to get in an accident."

"Yes, Mr. Boss," she grinned, then stuck out her tongue as she skipped away.

When I got to the car, I did have to separate Beth and George.

"Hey you two, you have to calm it down. We have to go pick up Sandy's mom and take her with us to the ball game."

"Oh, noooo!" Beth moaned. "I've got to clean up before Mrs. McAdam sees me."

"Take it easy, Sandy is getting you something to wipe your face."

"But my hair is all messy and my clothes are all rumpled and ..." she stared at me as I grinned at her. "You're teasing me, right? Please say you are?"

"Sorry kid, it's the truth. The hospital didn't need Sandy tonight, so they phoned her mom hours ago. She's been waiting at home for Sandy to call. I have to pick her up and give her a ride to the game, or else Sandy and I might be in deep doo doo," I said as straight faced as I could. "We need her on our side when it comes to Sandy's dad."

"Oh yeah, I can understand that," she nodded, then she paused, looked at George, then broke into a giggle. "I was just wondering what Mr. McAdam would say if you and Sandy walked into his house with your faces looking like George's and mine."

"I think you'd need to buy a black dress for my funeral," I sighed.

Just then Sandy came running out of the hospital carrying a big can in one hand and a ragged looking cloth in the other. She hopped in the car, then handed the can back to Beth.

"Here, the cloths in the can have soap and water on them and you can dry off with this old flannel sheet. You'd better wash each other so you can see where to wash. Chris needs to get going if we're going to get Mom to the game in time for the first pitch."

So I drove carefully to the McAdam house as Beth and George cleaned each other's face. Then I lent Beth my comb so she could try to repair her rumpled hairdo. Sandy passed my crutches back to George and he stowed them in the back seat just as we turned the corner onto the street where Sandy lived, At the same time Sandy was checking and taking an occasional wipe at first Beth's and then George's face. Mrs. McAdam was standing on the sidewalk, waiting for us when we got to their house. She slid in beside Sandy, greeting us all with a smile. I was surprised because she even knew George, then I realised that everyone seemed to know George.

Since I was paying careful attention to my driving, I missed most of the conversation on the way to the ball park and was relieved when we were finally parked.

I should explain, this wasn't a regular baseball game, it was softball and it was girls' softball to boot. Just a semi-friendly game between two small town teams out in the middle of the prairies, so it was supposed to be relaxed and easy going. That night there was one small problem, our town's team was short one player. When we showed up, Sam McAdam as the manager of the home team wanted to draft Sandy to play, but she was older than the other girls who were playing.

The other coach didn't like the idea at all. I'm sure he thought Sam was bringing in a ringer, so he pointed at Beth and said "How about her? At least she looks more like she's about the same age as our girls."

I happened to look at the home team dugout and saw Sandy's sisters Jess and Jean. They were grinning and nodding madly at Beth. To my surprise, she seemed to think that playing softball was a good idea, but she floored me when she asked George first if he'd mind if she played. When he said she could play if she wanted to, the other town's coach just nodded his head and walked away smiling.

Maybe someone should have told him that Beth has almost all the athletic skill in our whole family. She didn't play baseball because she loves to play soccer and field hockey, but as well as that she's on the track team and entered riding competitions on her horses. She liked baseball, but she simply didn't have enough time for that on top of everything else she did.

Somehow they dug up a team shirt that was about two sizes too big for her and a pair of shorts that were about half a size too small, then she borrowed a baseball glove from someone else and she walked onto the field, ready to play.

I've always thought softball was a boring game and the first inning certainly was. A few of both teams' players got onto base, but no one got home. The fist exciting play of the game was almost a home run for the other team in the second inning, but Beth was playing out deep in the field. She raced under that ball, then caught it way out in the tulies, somewhere past where I think the fence would have been if we had a regular baseball field. That shook up the other team.

It was in the fourth inning that she knocked the heart right out of them though. By then the other coach must have decided that she was really good and that he'd accidentally picked a ringer himself. He had his pitcher throwing the ball with the intention of walking Beth. One of the pitches was low and outside, maybe Beth thought it was like playing field hockey and she was defending against a shot on goal. She leaned forward until she reached all the way across home plate, swung the bat as if she was golfing, and smacked that ball into an open space in left field, then she was off like a shot for first base.

The left fielder caught her ball on the first bounce and threw it to first, but his throw was made as Beth rounded first base ... so she kept on going. I swear the softball passed over her head going toward first base when she was about half way to second. She made it to second base, standing up and ahead of the returning throw from first. There weren't that many people in the stands, but we made enough noise that you would have thought it was a thousand. Beth just stood there and grinned.

But she wasn't done yet. As soon as the pitcher had the ball, Beth took a lead-off toward third. The pitcher saw it and faked a throw to second, but dropped the ball, and somehow it rolled behind her. Beth sprinted flat out for third. The pitcher turned and bent, then grabbed the ball, fired it in the direction of third base ... but she wasn't set for the throw, so it sailed about four feet over the third baseman's head. Beth never even paused. She raced all the way home.

For almost a minute, the whole ball field was dead silent, then it exploded. Everyone was yelling and screaming. About then I wanted to do what the umpire and both coaches were doing - look at the rule book.

Somehow, Beth had turned a low outside pitch into a possible base hit to left field. The left fielder had made the error of throwing to first base instead of second and that error had changed her hit to a double. Then the pitcher had made two errors, first by dropping the ball and then by overthrowing third base. So if I understood the rules correctly, Beth had turned a possible single to left field into a home run. I'm not sure what the rules are, but I know the argument was about stepping out of the batting box. However, the umpire said that her feet were still inside the batting box when the bat struck the ball, so he let the run stand.

Of course that play pretty well sank the other team. They just couldn't seem to get back up to speed after that and agreed to call it quits in the sixth inning. The score was eight to nothing for the home team by then. Needless to say, Beth was the heroine of the day. It took us almost twenty minutes just to get out of the ball park. Even with that, it was still before nine o'clock. The strange thing was that when we got to the car Beth was almost crying.

"If I'd have thought at the time, I'd have stopped at second base," she muttered. "But no, I didn't think, instead I had to show off. Now, I'm a damn hero for no bloody reason."

"Welcome to the club," I grinned and hugged her gently after I leaned my crutches against the car. "At least it took the pressure off of me."

"Wanna bet," she snorted. "People might have started to forgot what you did, but now your stupid sister went and reminded them by showing off. Now they have another hero in our family to yammer about."

"So, what do you want to do about it?"

"Could we go home, please?" she almost whimpered.

I thought it strange that she was acting that way. I felt as if she should be on the top of the world, but instead she felt bad about what she'd done. As I reached inside to unlock the back door I looked at George. He gave me an odd shoulder shrug as he tossed my crutches into the back, then helped Beth in, following her and pulling her head to his shoulder. I slipped into my seat and slid over to unlock the other door for Sandy.

"Since Beth wants to go home, should I run you home first, or bring you along for the ride and drop you back home later?" I asked.

"I'd like to go with you," she said and slipped over to sit at my side.

We stopped at the service station to get some soft drinks and then I had to drive directly into the setting sun, so I took my time getting home. Wil, Carissa, and Corinna were sitting on the front porch with Mom and Dad when we drove up.

"Hey, how was the ball game?" Wil called as I got out of the car.

"Don't ask," I answered hoping to ease things for Beth, but Beth and George had beaten me out of the car.

"I made a silly fool of myself," Beth told Wil, then turned to George. "Look, this was my fault and I'm sorry I've ruined our evening, but can we do it again sometime?"

"Would tomorrow be too soon?" he asked with a smile and wrapped her in a hug.

Sandy had gotten my crutches and given them to me, so I was on the way to the house when Beth dashed past me and ran inside. I glanced at George and he shrugged his shoulders again.

"Want to talk?" I asked, but he just shook his head and grabbed his bike to pedal off toward home.

Sandy and Mom went inside to talk to Beth, leaving me to explain to the others what had happened. I still couldn't understand why Beth was so upset.

Dad sighed and looked off into the distance. His voice was quiet, almost a whisper, and from where I was sitting all I could see was his dark outline against the brilliant colours of the sunset.

"Beth doesn't like to hurt anything or anyone," he sighed. "She's probably empathising with the fielder and the pitcher of the other team because she made them look so bad and she's probably blaming herself. I wouldn't be surprised if it affects her other sports activities as well."

"But Dad, she did it so well. That's what games are about, they're competitive," I protested.

"Yes, but she feels that she showed off and made it look like she intended to hurt the other teams' feelings, which just not her way of playing a game. I've noticed it before in other games she's played, she seems to play harder against tougher competition and ease up against less strong teams. It's almost as if she wants everyone to at least come close to winning. Let's face it, Chris, you have what they call a 'killer instinct,' so you're extremely competitive and really want to win. Beth isn't, not at all."

"I don't understand. She was so good and she did so well," I shook my head in confusion.

"Um hmm," he murmured softly. "You probably never will understand. If you had her athletic talent along with your drive, you could probably be a professional athlete. As it is, you're going to have to find some way to compete, perhaps in that damn race car you had given to you. Either that or you'll go nuts trying to suppress your will to compete."

I just stared at him, wondering what the expression on his face was, but the light from the dying sun shining behind him made it impossible for me to tell.

### Chapter 7