Emily

by

Sarah Lynn Morgan

 

Chapter 8

 

It was six o'clock, and Emily was just coming down the stairs. Her father's heart froze. He knew then that he had never seen a more beautiful young woman, nor would he ever again.

His wife spoke first. "Sweetheart, you should wait up stairs to make an entrance!"

"I can still do that from down here, Mom, and besides I'm ready, and I want to be with you guys." She gracefully floated down the rest of the staircase, and into the living room. She definitely tended toward the feminine, Joan thought Her gown almost looking bridal. All across town tonight, mothers were trying to argue their daughters out of spiked hair and leather. Well, count your little blessings, she thought.

"Well, Daddy?" She smiled nervously at her father. "Did you get your money's worth?"

For a moment all he could say was "My goodness." Then finally, "Many years ago, when I saw your mother at our wedding, I knew that I had found the most beautiful girl in the world. I know that she will understand that I've never doubted that for a single instant… until now. You look exquisite baby."

"Oh, Daddy!" Emily said as she flung her arms around her father.

Joan reacted too. "Don't start crying, for god's sake, it took us two hours to make her up. What on earth is wrong with you saying something like that, at a Time like this!" Joan was completely flustered.

Tom recoiled as if he had actually done something wrong, and almost apologized before what she'd said dawned on him. "Hey! Wait just a minute, dear."

"Oh hush, Tom, I think you've said enough."

"Ok." her father said, clearly putting on his most uppity manor for them, "But only for the girl."

"That's right, Mister." Joan said

"So who is this beau, you managed to ensnare child?" he asked innocently.

"Daddy!" I told you that Roger was picking us up first, and then we would bring Vic to meet you." Emily said, in exasperation for the hundredth time.

"Well, I just…" He began, but her mother interrupted.

"I think they are here. Go into the dining room, Baby." A moment later the doorbell rang.

Her father quickly reached the door, and opened it, to see Roger standing there.

"Hello Roger. I'm sure we can dispense with the usual speeches, now can't we…" Tom said to the young man.

"I'm sure that you can, sir. You see, I have some very good news…" Roger suddenly halted as Emily came drifting back into the living room, her white full skirted gown shimmering, as she seemed to float just above the floor.

"Hello, Roger." She said in her exquisite voice. "Are you here to escort me to the Prom?"

Then, she just stood there smiling at them, until the silence had gone on quite enough for her rising level of discomfort. It seemed like everyone she knew had lost his or her minds completely.

"Roger, your mouth is open, dear." She said no less softly.

The snap of Roger's teeth sounded like a pistol shot in the small living room. "Emily. I'm sorry; I just didn't know what to say. You look…" The poor boy did everything except for clapping his hands over his eyes just to keep them from falling out of his head. However, he quickly decided they were only eyes. "Emily, you look wonderful." He finally managed to get out.

Her father had finally been able to look away from Emily, only to recognize the look of pure adoration on the face of the young man standing beside him. "Joan, you take Emily in the other room, while I have that little talk with this young man of our daughters." He said only half jokingly.

"Tom, Please." Joan hissed.

"Daddy!" echoed Emily.

Game set and match to the double X team, he thought. Two-thousand eight hundreds and thirty-four to nothing, but someday… He'd win one some day, he grinned to himself as he sat in his chair and reached for the paper.

Roger found his voice. "Sorry, Sir, but that won't be necessary. Like I tried to say before. Em she's going to be here." He rushed to get it all out.

"What?" Emily said.

"She'll be here, Em. She caught another flight, and she's already on the ground and on the way here. She should be here any minute." Roger glowed to be able to bring her the news.

"Oh, Roger, please tell me you're not teasing me. She's really going to be here?" Emily said with eyes that threatened her makeup again.

"She?" her mother and father said in unison, as they both rose to move toward Roger in the vain hopes that simply being closer to him would make for better understanding.

Her Mother was the next to speak. "Did you say 'She', Roger?"

"Yes, Ma'am, I di…"

"Excuse me?"

There was no mistaking the voice that came from the door.

"I don't wish to intrude, but are you the parents of Miss Emily Gordon?"

Standing in the still open door, was a second vision of loveliness. This one a contrast with their own fair, and virginal white gowned daughter, was dressed similarly in a full flowing pattern, but hers was all in black.

"Who are you, dear." Joan found her voice.

"You must be Joan. I'm Victoria, Emily's date for the prom. Have I come at a bad time? Am I early?" she said with her stunning inflections, as she looked at her watch.

"No, you are right on time. Please, come in." Joan managed to get out.

"Oh, hello Roger." Victoria smiled when she noticed him, and then offered her hand. "For a moment or two, I thought I'd got the directions wrong or something."

And then she caught sight of Emily. Like everyone else that evening, she was temporarily at a loss for words, but her surprised expression quickly melted into a warm glow. "There you are angel. I've missed you so. You look smashing. Brilliant really. I've never dreamed anyone could look so lovely."

"You came, Vic. Is it really you?" Emily said as she rushed to press herself into Victoria.

"Of course I did. I promised. Actually it's quite a story, but all worth it to see how beautiful you are. You look like a princess. No Emily, that's not quite it. You look like princesses want to look." Emily moved to meet her, and Victoria clutched the fairer girl tightly to her. "For a while I thought I might not make it, but I got lucky."

Emily finally began to loosen her grip on the older girl sufficiently to lean back far enough to see her eyes.

"So," Victoria asked, "Are you too timid to kiss me in front of your parental units then?"

Emily only smiled, and with slow deliberation, and without ever allowing her eyes to leave Victoria's own, turned her head from one side to the next.

"That's good, that," Victoria laughed, " Because I'm not afraid either." and proceeded to kiss Emily after a fashion that has inspired writers of poetry through out human history. None of the others in the room were actually poets; unfortunately, so they were mostly shocked and uncomfortable, but that didn't detract form that kiss in the least.

When they came up for air, Joan quickly took her daughter in tow, to once more repair the damage to her makeup, while muttering softly under her breath.

Her father managed to say. "Won't you have a seat."

"Thank you, no. I've been sitting for some time already. I'd prefer to stand for the moment, if you won't think it rude of me." The coolly self-assured girl explained.

"Anyway, you wouldn't believe what I went through to get here. There I was sitting in the airport with my dad, when my friend Lucky, Bob Luckner, from my old high school shows up to see me off, from his job right there in London. Well we're sitting there in one of those little airport Café's at Heathrow, when they start calling the passengers for our Virgin flight early. Well I'm thinking that this might just be super, because we might be able to get off a little early, and I won't miss the ball after all. Of course, they immediately announced that the flight had been cancelled due to mechanical problems, and that we would have to wait, or find other flights."

The lovely girl continued, "Now I tell you I was horrified. I'd already spent two days trying to get on an earlier flight, and I was ready to have a go at the ticket agent right there, armed anti-terrorist police and all. So now we are just sitting there, me knowing that I'm going to have to call this girl who means more to me than life itself, and break her heart. I'm crying, and my Da's trying to calm me down, when Lucky chimes in that he's got this brilliant plan."

"You see, we'd been looking for flights on the list that left earlier. We'd never looked at those that left later. Lucky had noticed that the concord would leave from Paris in a few hours, and get into Baltimore, much sooner, and much closer to here. Well, I have to tell you we were stunned. So we rush to the counter, where Lucky gives these people in line ten pound notes, to let us jump up to the counter, and I get booked on the flight, and on the high speed Chunnel Train to get me right to Orleans."

Neither Man even considered interrupting the girl; weather because of her beauty, the story, or her lovely voice did not matter. Emily and her mother, who had silently entered from the other room a moment before did not interrupt either "Anyway, I have to leave right then if I've any chance at all, and My Dads there having an actual stroke at the counter. I mean it. He's just realized that he just paid about eight thousand pounds, for a non-refundable ticket to get me on the next flight on the concord to the states, and I'm probably not even going to make it to the gate."

"Finally, My dad kisses me, and tells me that it will be worth it to get rid of my moping around so much because I've missed Emily so. Well we're off, dashing across the terminal to get to Luckey's car, knocking people over, when I realize I don't even have my luggage. Lucky said don't worry about it, and pushes his phone into my hand, and tells me to call my dad, and tell him to call this number at his bank, and they will up my card to whatever is needed.

"Before you know it, we're in his car, racing out of London for the train in Ashford. Well of course this female policewoman stopped us, because Lucky is doing his maniac at the wheel impression, and you know, he's good at it. Well Lucky starts in on her with this story, about how I am racing to get to the girl I'm going to marry, and if I don't make the train it will be too late, and how my dad just spent the family inheritance to see his only daughter happy. Well before you know it, officer Helen Hardly, I promise you, is sobbing. Next thing you know, we are on the express, with an honest to god police escort.

Well we made the train, and I got to the Plane just as there were closing the doors, where I swear that someone had told Lackey's whole story to the flight crew of the concord. The hostess comes back, and tucks me in, and in her beautiful accent tells me that the captain has assured me that we will be on time to meet my fiancé. She also tells me not to worry that my father has been contacted, and Air France has arranged to have my bags transferred to BWI, where they will be delivered to my hotel here by noon tomorrow.

Now I'm cracking up. I expect at any moment to have BBC three to jump out with a camera on one of those awful joke shows, when the hostess comes back to me with a five hundred dollar bottle of Champaign that the other first class passengers have chipped in and bought for Emily and I to share, and they all start applauding. We are talking the story is probably on the national news or something.

Anyway, we get the order to taxi, and I tell you it was as if the captain never even makes it to the runway. He gets his window, and we take off like we have been launched from an aircraft carrier. So now we are in the Air, and I get on the phone to try and make sure I can get a cab to reach you in time. Sure enough I find out that it's actually cheaper to hire a limo, which is what I do, and thank god I did because I never even thought about what it would be like to change into this dress in front of some cab driver.

Anyway, then I call my best friend Sam, and give her a list of things I'll need to get ready, and tell her I have to borrow her favorite evening gown, and to meet me at the airport in just less than two hours. Lastly I call Roger, less than two hours ago, and tell him I'm over the Atlantic Ocean, going faster than a bullet, to make it here on time. Well Sam meets me, and in minutes I'm rolling around in the back seat of this limo half naked, when this driver, who looks like that movie character Shaft, comes on the intercom to tell me not to hurt myself, that we have plenty of time, and that he will get me to my fiancé before the party. Now I'm really thinking that there isn't anybody who doesn't know. It turns out the Gate guy, for Air France had told him the whole story, about how I'm racing to propose in this most romantic of all proposals, how Tiny Tim needs the operation and the Lot. We are talking a bloody international conspiracy.

So I calm down and do up my face and hair, and I get all of fifteen minutes to breathe before I get here. Then I finally get here, and Emily takes my breath away again. I mean I think I'm going to be a feature story on CNN, except for the fact that everyone in the free world already knows all about it." Victoria chuckled and turned back to walk over to Emily and this time very gently, and very Carefully brushed her lips over Emily's.

"Well I hate to rush, but the Limo is waiting, and we are all ready to go, so first of all." and with that the limo driver stepped to the door, and handed a corsage to Victoria, who may have been the first Prom date in history to be able to pin one onto the front of her dates bodice in front of her parents without fainting. And after few pictures, they were off.

It was many minutes later when Tom turned to Joan and asked, "What just happened?"

"I'm not sure, Tom, except for agreeing that that girl is some kind of secret agent, and that she's probably going to be on CNN tonight." Joan sighed.

"Is that girl going to be our son in law?" he asked.

"That's what it sounded like." Joan said.

"Why didn't she tell us Vic was a she?" he asked one last time.

"The Car, Tom. Paybacks a bitch." Joan laughed.

 

In the back of the limo, Victoria and Emily cuddled close, while Roger, Amy and William just watched Victoria in awe. After a while Roger leaned over, and asked the driver if he wouldn't mind circling for a few moments. The driver looked in the mirror at Victoria, who nodded, surprised, but agreeing to Rogers request.

"Sorry guys, but I didn't want to say anything in front of Em parents, or they would have freaked." Roger said weightily. "Unfortunately, we have a problem."

"Excuse me Sir." the driver said. "If you folks need privacy, you can close the privacy panel from the control panel."

"Jackson, Isn't it?" Roger Asked.

"Yes, Sir." The driver said in that curious tone that adults use when showing excessive respect to children.

"Well the truth is Mr. Jackson, I want you to hear every word, Sir." Roger said. "You'll understand as I explain."

Emily was sitting there, her eyes as large as a Japanese Anime Character. "This is because of me, again, isn't it Roger?"

"Yes, and no Em. So far as I can tell, none of this is ever your doing, but yes the Assholes are out in force tonight." Roger reached over to pat Emily's knee, before continuing. "William?" he finished.

William took a deep breath. "Last night my dad and some of his cronies held an extra session of the school board. Now they only do that when the excretory exudates have had excessive momentum imparted to them by the rotary wind machine. He wouldn't say anything to any of us, but he was so mad that when he got home he went into his office and pulled out a bottle of scotch, and began making calls until around three in the morning. We were able to figure out that some of the local bible thumping assholes, lead by the mayor and the chairman of the board, made a move to ban Emily here from the prom…"

Victoria interrupted. "Mr. Jackson?"

"Yes Ma'am" He answered.

"Wouldn't you think that finding someplace to pull over would be a good idea?" She said.

"I do ma'am. I'm already looking for the place."

"Good, and Thank you. Go on William."

"Well, like I was saying, the assholes were out in force. We are not sure why or how, but even with the schools non-discrimination policy, they were able to somehow ban Emily from taking part if she's dressed like a girl Now the school is trying to keep it quite, because they don't want the students to walk out, or the other parents to get involved. But they couldn't stop the Chairman from being at the door, and turning Emily away."

Emily was silently crying now. "But why?" she asked in an almost normal voice. "What did I do?"

Roger leaned forward and said, that it had nothing to do with her, that it was just some sad and twisted people trying anything to give some meaning to their pathetic lives. It didn't stop Emily's tears.

Mr. Jackson spoke up. "Children, I have to tell you right now, that if I think that there will be any danger to any of you, or to this car, I am going to turn this thing around." he looked at them sternly. "Is that understood."

"Too bleed'n right, it is." Victoria actually sputtered. "I'm not taking this girl anywhere near that place, if those lunatic assholes are waiting for her. Are you all Crazy? She's not going anywhere near them, or their twisted notions of the meaning of life. You can just bloody well turn this boat…" She was shocked when Emily put her fingers onto her lips, but she shut up immediately.

"Hold on a minute, Victoria. Hear them out. They have a lot of experience running interferences for me. I'm ashamed to say it, but they have." She said, so sadly. "And if we still think there will be a problem, then we will go somewhere else. I don't care if we wind up at some truck stop. I only wanted to see you anyway."

Emily watched her girlfriend's eyes as they smoldered in anger. Her first thought was for how much she loved her, and the second was that she was unsure. "Besides," Emily continued, "I think that if you make it this far, just to have to turn around, your father will have a heart attack to go along with that stroke."

"Oh god." Victoria groaned. "Thank you for that pleasant possibility, Emily I think I'll tell you what my dad would say though. He's got lots of money, and only one daughter. I'm sure he's never had any doubt about which was more important to him, just as I'm sure how disappointed he'd be in me if I were to let any harm come to you." Victoria then took a breath. "He'd still have a stroke though."

Then she shook her head, and said. "Go on, William."

William, who had been sitting there quietly, slid forward to the edge of the seat. "This morning, my Dad, Roger, and I went over to see the head-master. The first thing he did was to take Emily's file, and lock it in Doctor Lane's safe…"

"The school Psychologist?" Emily asked.

"That's right, Emily. The school Psychologist has patent records in there, and once it's locked, no one can get to them except for him. Now the school board had a copy of your file too, but my dad is sure that one of his friends "lost it" somewhere near his shredder when he found out what the meeting was about." William could see that Emily was still looking confused. "They don't know what Emily looks like. The School pictures aren't in, and the Yearbooks aren't back yet, and both copies of your records are sadly unavailable to them. Oh, and there was a minor glitch in your computer records too. For some inexplicable reason, a picture of Patrick Swazie replaced your school photo. No one can figure out how."

Then William grinned. "Nice work Amy."

"Your Welcome." Amy said proudly.

Victoria was still looking at them like they were crazy, when Roger began to speak.

"William's dad altered the list of students invited to the party. He took Emily's name off, as ordered, but he also added the name Joan Lilly to the list as well." and with that he handed over an invitation for Joan Lilly and guests to the prom.

"Now so far as we could tell. There is a group of sign carrying Neanderthals, who are standing across the street, and who are not allowed to come any closer. There are a couple of sheriff's deputies there to make sure they stay on their side. Our friend Mr. Martian has been doing an impression of an Indian rain dance, complete with feathers directly across from them for the last hour. The head master has refused to remove him, because he said it was a religious ceremony, and if he goes, then they all have to go. He probably just blew his bonuses for this year, but by the way he smiled when he said it, it made him pretty happy to do it."

Victoria asked. "What did the signs say, Roger?"

"I don't honestly know. Martian was dancing around, and doing that Hey Yah, ho, Yah Indian chant, and several of the cheerleaders were chanting right behind him. Then every once in a while he'd hold up a sign of his own. The ones I saw said 'Save the Wales', 'Lord, protect me from your followers', 'We'll paint any car for $239.99', 'keep off the grass' and 'We roll back prices everyday!'" Roger chuckled. "To tell you the truth, I was laughing so hard that I never even read what was on the other side. In fact, I would swear that I saw several of the yahoos looking pretty nervously at the sky for clouds."

"Coach Thompson and several of his former players are standing at the door right across from the head, the chairman, and the reverend what's his name. Mrs. Leigh hired them out of the student fund as chaperones. So far as I know, none of them have said a word, but the coach is just standing there smiling at the jerks, and it's pretty clear that if anyone so much as looks like they are going to touch you, then someone is going to end up in the dumpster, and they are probably going to throw an angry skunk in right after him."

"The kids all know. Several of the guys, and their girlfriends have switched clothes, and keep coming to the door to waive at the Jerks, which is almost as funny as the show that Dean is putting on out front."

Victoria broke in. "Wait a minute, you mean that funny guy you people call Mr. Martin is actually named 'Dean Martin." She was laughing in spite if herself.

"Yeah, he is." Roger said, "but he's sensitive about it, because he thinks that the other Dean Martin is stealing his jokes, and he insists that he is funny in his own right, and he very much regrets his parents choice of names. He's a little sensitive about it, so we all just usually call him Mr. Martin."

Victoria laughed again, but there was very little humor in it. "It's a bloody nightmare." she finally said softly.

"It is, but the punch line is this. Freddy Thompson is carrying Emily's invitation. We know they've asked about twenty kids if they will identify Emily, and so far as we can tell, all twenty will have to serve out their last two weeks or so in detention. At least two have been exempted from their English finals, though, by Mrs. Leigh for the creativity they showed in telling the assholes off."

"Emily, they don't even know what you look like. No one is even thinking about going near you, because seriously, the coach would break someone in half if they tried. All the kids want you there. And to be honest, No one, and I mean no one is going to expect anyone who looks as beautiful and as adorable as you. We think that you can just walk right in. What we propose is that William will escort Victoria in. They know Amy and I, from this morning, so we'll go in together, and I'll wait inside. And you Emily will walk in alone."

"She's not going alone," Victoria said flatly.

William spoke again, "Victoria, they won't be expecting a beautiful woman alone. They'll expect her to have us with her. I promise you, that there will be ten good people, within ten feet of her the whole time. We really don't think there is any chance of a problem, or my dad would have come to Em's house to call it all off. Besides, he's so proud of what the other kids are doing in standing up to the assholes, and the Head right there with them, that they both have tears in their eyes. So, Emily, what we've done is to give you the choice, and not the assholes. You are still invited, by all of the people who really matter, and they all want you to come. The choice is yours."

 

Mr. Jackson spoke finally "I just have one question. What in the hell are you kids talking about, and why would the moral minority give a shit about her."

"That's you Em" Amy said, with resignation.

"Mr. Jackson," Emily said, "you're right. If you want to you can turn the car back, and you can have dinner with us. Those people are mad just because I'm a girl."

"And, just what the hell does that mean?" the driver said. "Were you Satan's girl, or something?"

Emily giggled in spite of herself. "Not quite, sir, but in their eyes, probably. You see, I haven't always been."

"You haven't always been what? The antichrist?" the driver asked.

"A girl."

"Say what?" the driver slowly pronounced each word distinctly.

"I haven't always been a girl on the outside. In fact to some, I'm still not. To me and my friends here, I am, but not to everyone."

"Are you trying to tell me that you're a guy? No chance in hell. You are one of the finest young ladies I've had in this thing in years. No way."

"It's true, Mr. Jackson. I'm sorry if it bothers you." Emily said softly.

There was silence for almost a minute, before the driver spoke again. "So you're her?" he chuckled. "Well, I'll be god damned. I read about you. I can't believe you were ever…. No Miss, it doesn't bother me one bit." He paused

"Miss, are you planning on making speeches, or something like that, for gay rights or lesbians for professional boxing or something?" the driver asked looking her in the eye.

"No, Sir. I just wanted to dance with Victoria, and my friends." Emily said sincerely. "I think you can see how much they all mean…" Emily stopped short. "Why don't we all go to the steakhouse, and…"

"No." Mr. Jackson said. "What does bother me is them messing with you like they are. You don't look like bad kids to me."

"Thank you, Sir." several of them said.

The driver began to slowly shake his head. "Like you take that there. Do you know how many times I've been called 'Sir' from the back seat of this here limousine? Or Mister Jackson? Three or four times, in all my years, and all of them tonight. I'll take you." Than turning to William, "Son, would you mind running back to the trunk, and getting me my leather coat, and the little black case you'll find there. This is what we'll do…"

The limo pulled up to the curb, and everyone watched as the driver got out, and walked to the door. The first thing they noticed was that the limo had diplomatic flags on the front. The second was that the driver, in his leather coat, looked more like a bodyguard, than a driver. He opened the door, and reached into the dark interior of the car, and drew out the most beautiful young woman. She was dressed all in white, in a gown that flowed about her like wheat in a windy field. When she smiled and looked at the people standing near the door, there was an audible intake of breath. Slowly, she lifted her skirt with her left hand slipped her right into the crook of Mr. Jackson's arm as he escorted her to the door. She never once looked back across the street.

"Good Evening Miss Lilly", The Headmaster said, as Mr. Jackson handed over the invitation. "Enjoy the dance." He was beaming.

"Thank you, Mr. Jackson. For everything." Emily said to the man as she released his arm.

"That's quite all right, Miss I always wanted to do that." He said, reaching into his coat, and shifting the rolled up gym socks that he was carrying under his arm. "If you need anything else, Ma'am, my beeper is on your speed dial. I'll be right across the street with the car."

Emily stepped a little way inside of the door, and turned to wait as Jamal walked back to the limo, and pulled away. Four minutes later, the same limo, minus the flags, and with the vanity lights turned off, pulled in from the opposite direction. Quickly, two couples popped out of the back, and headed toward the door.

"Ladies. Good to see you all." The head said, calmly.

But the Chairman, who was eyeing Victoria, had recognized them. "William, and Roger. Good evening Children. You haven't by any chance seen your friend Mr. Gordon have you?"

Roger looked at the man very hard, causing him to step back a pace. "Yes sir, I did.. Mr. Gordon is at home with his wife, waiting for their daughter to be returned safely to them."

"Very funny Roger, but just try to remember that you are just another student here." The chairman bristled.

Roger was holding his temper, which was a good thing, because the Headmaster had time to intervene by placing his hand on the Chairman's arm. "Tom. He's also the man who put a known criminal in the hospital with one punch because he threatened the girl. You'd be wise to let it go."

"He wouldn't dare…" the Chairman sputtered.

"Tom, I've been sorely tempted myself all evening. Let it go. " The Headmaster said. Causing the Chairman to spin around on him.

"YOU'LL LOOSE YOUR JOB FOR THIS!" The man vibrated.

"Tom, you'll loose a lot more than that. I won't even have to stand up to the board, or tell the newspapers what an ass you are. If this young man ever did loose his temper," He glanced briefly but poignantly back at Roger, "which I highly doubt he would over a fool like you." Then to the chairman again, "there are fifty people in this crowd who'd swear it was self defense." Then turning to Roger, he placed his other hand on his shoulder and said. "Run along Son. Well done, and enjoy the party."

A few moments later, the sounds from inside the prom suddenly died. There was a long pause of silence, and then everyone began to clap. The asses knew they had been had, but they were not sure how. The final confirmations were Mr. Jackson, who was leaning on his limo, laughing at them, and Mr. Martin who jumped into the middle of the street and held up a Fed-ex sign for the considerable crowd that had gathered, and screamed, "When it positively has to be there overnight!"

"I'll be damned." The chairman said, and made for the door.

Coach Thompson stepped right in front of the man.

"What are you doing? GET OUT OF MY WAY!" The Chairman said.

"I'm sorry sir, but do you have an invitation?" The coach smiled pleasantly.

"What the hell are you talking about, man? Get out of the way or you're fired.'

Thompson just smiled, and pulled an envelope out of his pocket and pressed it to the chairman's chest. "Tenured" was all he said.

"What the hell is this?" The chairman asked through his teeth.

"Retirement papers. You sign them, and I'm gone by the end of the year. Of course, there will also be the early retirement bonus, as specified in my coaching contract, which I would very much appreciate your signing over to me. Now, since I've been kind enough to go first, I think it's only fair if you show me your invitation."

"I don't have a God Damned Invitation." the Chairman sputtered.

"Doesn't surprise me, Tom. I've known you for twenty years, and I would not want to invite you to a car crash, but I thought it only polite to ask. Now move away, or I'll call the police over and have you removed." The coach never broke his smile. He had finally found something he liked more than homeroom.

"This hall is owned by the school board. You can't remove me." Tom growled.

"You made the students rent it for the night, out of the funds that the student organizations raised. So unless there is an eminent danger of destruction to the property, under the terms of the rental contract, you have no rights here at all. You see, I sent two of my kids to good law schools. I told you we needed a better lawyer than your brother-in-law - you cheap prick."

Inside, they had done a wonderful job on the hall. It was beautiful. Emily slipped her hand into Victoria's arm, and walked to the top of the stairs that lead to the dance floor. She paused to look down, to see who was there, only to find the word of her arrival had already spread. Someone turned a light on her, and there was another gasp, and then a very faint murmur from here and there in the crowd. Most people just stopped and stared at her, until the music stopped.

Suddenly, several people began to clap politely, which spread to include even many of those students who had been unkind to her in the past

Suddenly she felt Victoria's lips on her cheek, and then near her ear, as the older girl placed her hand on the middle of her back. "Go down and say thank you, Princess."

And with a gentle push, she found herself drifting down the stairs into the middle of all her friends.

Looking back at that night, the only thing she might have changed was that she would have wanted to dance with Victoria more. It seemed that she had to dance with everyone there at least once, including Coach Thompson, and even the Headmaster, who both requested a waltz.

When the dancing paused, to announce the king and queen, she tried to head for the girls room, but they held her in place. To her relief they did not announce her name as the queen. She was still confused when they came to pull her up to the small stage amid loud applause, until she realized that the name they had announced had been Joan Lilly.

The only disappointed face in the whole crowd was that of Freddie the quarterback, who to the amusement of all, tore up his own invitation, and threw it on the floor.

The next announcement took most by surprise, even though most had voted for him. The boy chosen as the king came willing to the stage. Apart from his feathers for which he eschewed the crown, he looked quite dashing in his tuxedo and ceremonial headdress. His Acceptance speech was four simple words. "Did you hear thunder?"

"Thank you, Dean." Emily said, and kissed his lips gently in gratitude, and to everyone's approval.

"You are again welcome, Emily. You are one hot chick." He whispered back as she hugged him.

It wasn't the loudest applause of the night, however. That round of applause came later, when toward the end of the evening when from a dark corner of the hall everyone heard Emily squeal loudly. "Yes, Victoria! I will!" as Victoria slipped the ring that had been her grandmothers onto Emily's finger.

 

Chapter 9

 

It was nine o'clock, and high time for the award." When the distinguished man turned on the microphone.

"Everyone here knows that the women we are gathered to honor is an eminently deserving candidate. This year's award for humanitarian efforts, within the medical community, was made more remarkable by the fact that this has been the most successful, and hopeful year we have ever had. What is more, it is a crowning achievement, as each of the last five years has each been more successful than the last." He looked over at Emily and smiled warmly. "So, when I was asked by the Secretary General to present this medal for him, because he was called back to Africa. I was pleased to do it."

"Now, It is traditional to recount the highlights of our honoree's achievements at this time, but we have been asked most graciously to skip this step by our honoree; so, in deference to her gentle good nature, and her humility - we will. You've all been reading about them for years anyway. Instead, I have asked a long time friend, and the current commander of our Central African Peacekeeping Force, General Roger Sloan, to speak.

Emily couldn't move. She sat at her table right before the stage, frozen in place with her hands clasped at her breasts, while Victoria gently messaged her shoulders. She could feel it coming, and once again, try as she might she could not do anything about it.

As the applause died, the large man on the podium spoke. "You all know that I'm not one for speeches." A chuckle ran through the crowd at the obvious joke. "Even so, this is one subject about which I could speak all night. If I were ever to try to tell you of all the many ways, my dear friend Emily, has shown how much she deserves an award for her endless love, and for her boundless humanity, we'd never get to eat." The crowd chuckled and applauded politely.

"So instead, I thought I'd tell a very short story of how we met. Now I know many in this room have heard all or part of the story before, but I think it's worth repeating." He paused to look at the crown. "I was, as is a habit of mine, injured…' The crowd responded again, with laughter and applause. The general was wearing a sling one arm, and a new decoration for personal valor stemming from several weeks before when he rushed into a burning Humvee to pull one of his men out alive after one of his escort vehicles had hit a mine. Not his first award, or injury received in that fashion. "Although, this time it was for nothing quite so noble. I had been showing off." He let the crowd chuckle once more.

"I was laying on the ground, with my eyes closed, when all of a sudden I felt this little warm hand on my forehead, and heard a very sweet voice telling me that I would be OK." The emotion in the big mans voice was unmistakable. "I have to tell you that for a moment, I was afraid to open my eyes. I thought it was an angel." There was some scattered but soft applause, and a few laughed along with him. "Then I opened my eyes, and found out that I was right"

He paused again, to seemingly collect his thoughts. "I also remember that on the occasion described, an older but not wiser student made several mean comments to our Emily for trying to help when everyone else just stood by. Most of what that boy said that day was galacticly wrong, and does not bear remembering. I say most, because he did call her 'special.' That has always stayed with me, because for all his errors, he got that one spectacularly correct. In the intervening forty-five odd years, I have never found a better description of Emily."

"For all those years, this woman has been thanking me for coming to her rescue. Most recently during our intervention in the subcontinent." Everyone laughed along. "Don't get me wrong, I would have done that for her alone, but this time there were other justifications as you are all aware." More laughter. "What she has never understood at all is how many times she has come to my rescue. When my Mary passed; when the plague surfaced in Calcutta; and when insurgents burned the food for the refugees in Uganda. Every time she ever told me it would be Ok- it was. So you see: I am only the spokesperson, elected from amongst her many friends and admirers, almost all of whom share those same common experiences of her selfless love, and the same sense of appreciation for her boundless humanity..."

Then, turning away from the crowd at large, and directly to Emily, he added: "Over the years, Emily, your compassion for everyone around you, as well as those you have never met; your love, and your gentle wisdom have saved me countless times. From that first time, every time you told me it would be all right - it always was. I doubt if one of us can tell you what something like that really means, least of all me. Not one in a million could even try. All I can do is to stand here and tell you how much you have enriched all our lives, and how much I personally love you. You do know that don't you Emily?"

Emily nodded at him through the tears that filled her eyes, which caused the whole crowd to go "awe", which in turn caused then all, even Emily to chuckle affectionately.

"Oh, and I guess we also can give you this little medal, form the Secretary, to add his small thanks to our own." Roger finished.

Amid the applause, Emily was able to stand and to thank everyone with her ever gracious smile and bows, but in the end Roger brought the medal to her, and placed it around her neck, even as she placed her arms around his.

 

Chapter 10

"Comfortable?" Victoria asked.

"Hmm. Very." Emily answered. It was late in the season, and cool, but they had the windows open so that they could listen to the late night sounds of the creatures with which they shared this end of the lake. The fire was warm, but Victoria covered Emily with a quilt anyway.

"That feels good on my legs, love, it's nice and warm from the fire." Emily sighed with pleasure.

Victoria just smiled that she knew.

"Dinner was delicious again too, and I'm feeling nicely stuffed. Thank you, Honey."

"You're welcome, angel." Victoria Paused just to watch the way the reflections of the fire sparkled in Emily's eyes some more.

"Victor called while you were in the bathroom." Victoria finally said, and only because it would make her beloved so happy.

Emily's eyes shifted to her expectantly. Victoria smiled, "He's coming and should be here late the day after tomorrow. He told me that Marie decided that she could come after all, and that she's bring the kids."

Emily visibly perked up at the good news. "That's wonderful, I'm so glad she decided to come. I was disappointed that he wasn't going to be able to get away until next week. What changed?"

"Well, it seems that the new chief resident at Chicago's Mercy Hospital has some latitude on when he decides to get away."

Emily Laughed, and it was still the most wonderful sound in the world to Victoria, even after all their years together. "They gave him the job? That's wonderful, Vic. When did he find out?"

"Tonight Angel. He called us about ten minutes after he got the news." She grinned

"I'm so happy for him." Emily said, reaching for Victoria's hand. "And I'm so proud of him too. I always have been, but he really seems to be doing very well for himself these last few years. You were a good father Victoria." Emily grinned some more, because it was an old and cherished joke between them that stemmed from those times when things had not been smooth, as they sometimes are when you are raising kids.

"And you made a good Mother my love." Victoria chuckled back. "But, all of them are doing very well. Thank god that's one worry we don't have. I'm proud of all three of them, and the grandkids too."

Emily tugged her hand a little. "Lets open a bottle of wine, Vic. I'd love a good bottle of wine to celebrate our good parenting."

"Emily, you know the doctor said you should avoid any alcohol." Victoria said, her face suddenly sad and worried.

"Victoria, dear. It doesn't really matter. Does it?" She said as gently as she could.

"No, sweetheart, I guess it really doesn't." Victoria's eyes still looked sad, but she smiled for Emily anyway. "Red or White, sweetheart?"

"Do you remember that bottle of red that we bought in Paris on our fifth anniversary?" Emily giggled.

"You mean the one we drank on our sixth anniversary." Victoria giggled right back.

"Nooo! Not that one, I mean the expensive one we put aside." Emily still smiled.

"Oh! That one." Victoria shook her head a little. "We drank that one the next night, baby."

"Oh for goodness sakes! Victoria, you do know the one I'm talking about. It was the one you bought saying it would be a good investment, when you had the idea of building up a really first class wine cellar?"

"Ah, yes. I remember the one. That was the one I was carrying when we had that party on the old, out of service, concord aircraft they had in Paris." Victoria Laughed out loud. "That was nice of them to let us onboard for a glass of Champaign with our friends."

Emily leaned over toward, Victoria. "And they got angry, and hustled us off when they caught you snogging me in the cockpit?" Emily laughed and kissed Victoria's cheek.

"Kissing wasn't the problem, dearest. It was where you had your hand when that poor girl walked it." Victoria said giggling just as hard. "But I suppose the reason why doesn't really matter now." she continued to glow with the memory.

"No," Emily said, "I guess it wasn't too important since you refused to leave, and locked them out of the cockpit until you were finished with me." She laughed out loud too. "You were magnificent by the way. You would have made a great airline pilot." Emily beamed at her wife. "How on earth did you ever arrange that, Victoria? You never told me you know."

"I didn't? Well it seems that at the time, the head pilot for all of Air France was a friend of mine. I had met him again the night before at that party, and it turns out I had flown with him once, when he still flew the concord. When he heard how the first flight had turned out, he suggested it might be good luck."

"Really?" Emily's Eyebrows rose by several inches. "Friends in high places. That was awfully lucky, Vic, and very sweet of him."

"It was." Victoria sighed.

"You're stalling." Emily said with great kindness, but waning patience.

"Oh! Sorry. We drank that one the night that Matt got his doctorate." Victoria giggled.

"Well then, what about that good Champaign we bought out in California a while back? We had cases of that?" Emily said with true wonder in her eyes.

Victoria started giggling more loudly. "Do you remember the night that Jamal's Youngest graduated from Yale Law, and he decided that driving you around for twenty years was enough?"

"His retirement party, well Not really, but I do remember it was one hell of a party." Emily grinned.

"There you go, pet. Neither you, nor that Champaign went the distance that night."

Emily began to giggle softly again "And several others, as I remember. You know, I'm starting to get a little worried about this drinking problem of yours." She finished by leaning up and kissing Victoria sweetly.

"It's not a problem, Angel. It's just that I realized that the only place I like my wine better than in a well-stocked cellar, is in a glass. Chilled just so… Anywhere I can share it with you."

"Oh, well I guess that's nothing to worry about, then." her angel sighed.

"Emily?" Victoria whispered softly.

"Hmmm?"

"We do have the bottle of La Tour, the one we bought on our tenth anniversary." Victoria giggled, as Emily lightly swatted her with a pillow.

"Right." Victoria said, getting up. "I'll just nip down and get it then, shall I?" and somehow managed to dodge the pillow the second time.

 

Sometime later, neither had spoken more than a few words, until the second glass.

Emily broke the silence. "God this is good. Well worth waiting for."

"Umm Humm." Victoria agreed without taking her glass away from her lips, or opening her eyes.

"I'm glad all the kids are coming." Leaning back, Emily sighed, and closed her eyes as well.

For a little while Victoria just watched her resting there, and then she said. "Is there anyone else you'd like to see?"

"No, Dear, just you and the kids. That's enough. Of course, there are a lot of people who've been gone a while. I miss your dad, and my parents. I've made sure to keep tabs on everyone who was still around who matter's, and I'm fine about it. Every one of them knows how I feel about them. That's enough."

Victoria thought for a while before she decided just to ask. "Any Regrets, Em?" Victoria's voice was very serious.

Emily thought for a moment or two, and then looking right into Victoria's eyes, and slowly shook her head once from one side to the other. It was a gesture that Victoria had learned to trust as the final word on anything. "No. There were some sad things, I didn't like, of course. But, no; not one thing I can say I'd definitely change." Emily said, while trying to wipe her eyes without Victoria seeing.

Victoria leaned over, and wiped the other eye with the back of her finger. "A toast Sweetheart. To Roger! I'm sure that he knew what he was doing. He gladly saved all those people, baby; and, I'm sure he was content with his choice."

Emily just nodded, and sipped her wine. It had been many years since Roger had lead a small group of forty solders up into the mountain valley between several thousand refugees, and the rebel army intent on slaughtering them. No one really knew the details of how it had all ended; only that they had been outnumbered by hundreds to one in that valley, and that somehow Roger had held them long enough. It was all Roger, but the sacrifice still burned in the hearts of all who had known him, or his men.

"You always could read my mind." Emily sighed finally.

"That was easy, love." Victoria grinned. "All I had to do was think of how much you loved me."

Emily smiled again, but silently.

The third glass was almost gone, when Emily started to giggle suddenly.

"What?" Victoria started to giggle too. Emily's giggles always affected her that way. It was one of the things she had always loved about Em. She had never lost the will to giggle.

"Do you remember the day that Matt came home from high school with his football uniform, and you took him out into the back yard, and proceeded to show him how to be a linebacker?" Em asked her, while still chuckling deeply.

"Oh god, don't remind me. I love American football, or at least I did until that day."

Emily was loosing it completely now. "I will never forget when you put on some pads, and started yelling at him to hit you as hard as he could, or you'd 'kick 'is Arse! Do you remember what you called him?"

Victoria was chuckling too, as she always did when Emily laughed, because that had always affected her that way too. "Oh god – no - I do. I don't know what came over me. I called him a big pussy."

Emily nodded her head while she giggled some more. "That's it. Well he got so mad."

"Tell me about it, Em. You didn't see his face."

"When you two squared off, and you realized that I had raised the whistle to my lips… the look of shear terror in your eyes… when you saw I was about to blow…" Emily was breathless for a full minute with the effort to speak, and howling with gales of laughter. "I thought I was going to pee my pants."

"Thought hell, I did Pee my pants." Victoria looked at her crazy wife. "And then he screamed and lunged for me, and he just picked me up in a bear hug, and said 'thanks for the lesson coach'"

Emily was nodding her head, but finally said "Not quite exactly. He screamed, and then you screamed when he came lunging at you, and then he grabbed you up like you were a toddler." Emily was laughing again.

Victoria wrapped an arm around her beloved. "I thought I was done for sure. I don't know what I was thinking."

"Emily's giggles began to subside. "You were thinking you wanted to be a good father, dear, and that he loved you so much that he'd never really hurt you. You were right on both counts."

Victoria just nodded, and smiled. "Thank god."

Emily sighed, and tried to explain. "What would I change, Victoria? I wouldn't trade that look in your eyes, or just that one single day for another hundred years without you. It's been a good life, dear. It's been better than I ever dreamed or hoped for. You made it that way for me. I can't say thank you enough for that, so 'I Love You' will just have to do."

Tears began to fall onto Emily's hand, causing her to look over to see the anguish in Victoria's tortured face.

"Please, Victoria, don't be sad. It really is OK. I know you'll miss me, but you have to keep your promise to be happy."

"I never promised you that." Victoria's broken heart was a terrible thing to hear in her broken voice. "I'd never make a promise to you that I knew I couldn't keep." Victoria's tears continued to fall on the hand she held clasped so tightly in her own, as Emily watched the top of her bowed head.

"I'm sorry." Emily said. "I know you didn't, but you did promise you'd try, and that you'd take care of yourself for as long as you could, so that you can be here to look after the kids while I'm gone." Emily now had her other arm around Victoria's neck, and could only feel her head nod, even as she listened to her soft sobs against her neck.

"That was a wonderful promise, my love." Emily said, and then feigning a British accent, "you know I quite fancy you, you know. I do. If I had a choice in any of this, I'd stick around so that I could marry you. That way, I'd be able to dance with you as long as I wished"

Victoria giggled softly through her tears. "Don't do that! Terrible at that. It hurts my ears."

Emily just held her for a long time, until she had to lean up for a Kleenex.

"Victoria?"

"Yes, Em"

"Do you remember that bottle…"

"I'll get it, my angel." she paused only to throw another log on the fire.

 

Chapter 11

 

It was almost ten o'clock on a glorious June morning. The young couple came over the small ridge, and down along the side of the cove, finding the walking easier in the field, even if it was warmer than under the trees. It was their third year here and they planned to complete their hike around the lake this year if they could. And, even if they could not, they knew as all young people do, that there would be many more happy summers together.

Suddenly the young man looked up to see lovely cabin nestled in the trees at the head of the cove. "Look at that." he said, drawing his wife's attention to it. By unspoken agreement, they changed direction toward the cabin.

"Gosh, no one's lived here for years. Do you think it's abandoned?" The woman asked as she tried to peek in a dirty window."

"No, it's not. Look over here. Someone had recently replaced these windows. No one lives here, but someone has made sure to take care that it stays weather tight." He observed.

"It's beautiful inside." The girl said, looking through the newer, and cleaner windows. "Look at the woodwork over the fireplace, and over the doors. Beautiful, John."

"Yah it is." He said peering in beside her.

Slowly they pushed away from the window, and walked around the porch that faced the lake. They found large windows, and to one side a swing, before continuing around another separate porch that overlooked the wooded side. In the back they came upon a sight that halted them both in mid-step.

"Would you look at that." the man said in amazement. "What kind of flowers are those.

In a sunny area, covering a small backyard were thousands of beautiful flowers, all gently swaying in the wind. Purple and white, but all mixed together.

"The purple are violets, and the white, well they look like some kind of Lilly." she said equally amazed. "It must have taken a lot of love to make this garden, John. Look at all of them."

"I see, but honey, no one's been doing any gardening here for a while. They must be growing wild. They are just beautiful. Probably they grow out every year from the beds over beside the cabin, do you see?" He pointed to the where you could just see the old flower garden.

"Oh, yes. I do." She looked for a moment more. "Like I said. A lot of love went into this garden to make it grow so beautifully."

"John…" She said in that funny tone she got when she was thinking.

"Oh, here we go!" He sighed, but with no hint of displeasure in his voice.

"Don't tease me, please." She said.

"OK, Angel. When we get back I'll look into it." He smiled and shook his head.

"Thank you, dear." She said leaning affectionately against him.

"I like it too, really. It's so wonderful and warm. I bet they want a fortune for this place." He began to think seriously about the possibility.

"We can afford it, my Love. The last thing I want is to be too old to enjoy the piles of money we still have in the bank!" She said, laughing at his look of worry.

Then he smiled too. "You are right, as always."

"Only I'd love to keep the garden, just as it is. It's so beautiful."

"Me too, baby." he assured her. "We'll do just that."

They stood for a few moments more, watching the flowers sway together in the gentle breeze, and the insects humming about making sure that there would be many more summers to come.

"We have to keep going, hon." He said, as reluctant as she to leave the area.

"Is it too early for lunch?" She asked playfully

"It'll make the afternoon hike a bear? Are you sure?" He asked, even as he un-slung his pack.

The sun had moved along the sky visibly when she finally gave that sigh. "I know. Lets take some pictures before we head out." She said, and he just nodded.

 

Once again the quiet peacefulness had returned to the little cove. The only sounds coming from the rustle of the wind, the animals and insects who made the happy place their home, and the faint rustle of Lilies and Violets as they danced together forever to the music in the wind…

Sarah Lynn Morgan

  

  

  

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