Chapter 47

As expected, the wind nipped at my legs as we boarded the commuter plane in Chicago for the final leg of our trip home. I was surprised to be addressed by name by the flight attendants during the entire trip. After taking off from LAX we were even asked if we'd like to sit up in first class. Mom, as always, had booked regular coach fares for us. We took advantage of the offer and moved forward. The seats were much roomier and the food was better. After things settled down on the four-hour trip, we were visited by the flight attendants and I gave out some autographs. The flight attendants all told me how much they had enjoyed my performance in 'Open Spaces, Closed Hearts'. One was familiar with the book and asked if we were going to do the rest. I told her that there were plans to do all three parts if the movie was a commercial success.

The two attendants on the short commuter flight called me by name also. There wasn't any first class on the small plane but I probably would have been offered an upgrade if there had been. There are a few times when being a celebrity is nice.

*****

Back at school on Monday I found myself the center of attention again. Everyone wanted to talk about the movie. I didn't think that this many people could even have seen the movie since it had only been playing in the cine-plex since the previous Monday, the first day of general release, but I was told that they were playing it in three of the theaters on a rotating schedule. A new show started every 45 minutes in one of the three.

In the past, things quieted down after a couple of days, but not this time. The excitement continued during the entire week. There were even a few incidents where boys made some crude remarks about me because of the character that I had played. That didn't last very long once Brad's former teammates heard about it. The next day one of the boys who had made a remark was sporting blackened eyes and several bandages. I didn't hear of any more remarks after that.

*****

My new credit card came bearing the name 'C. Ramsey' and I was able to go shopping, in disguise. I got strange looks from salespeople when I presented it and I knew that they were trying to figure out if I was Crystal or related to her, but the card always returned an authorization code when run through the card readers and they didn't press me for more ID.

I missed shopping with Carol, Heather, and Sheri. We always had so much fun together. I had a lot of friends at school but none that I was real close to. Spending so much time away probably had something to do with that, and since becoming somewhat famous I found myself being cautious about getting close to people because I didn't know if they wanted me as a friend, or just wanted to associate with the actress, Crystal Ramsey. The cheerleading squad had definitely wanted 'Crystal the actress' and so I had never gotten real close to any of those girls.

My closest girlfriends were the ones that I had made right after becoming Crystal. I had originally tried to split my time between them and the cheerleading crowd but now I concentrated more on redeveloping those early friendships. Three girls from my shorthand class, Barb, Jenny, and Diane had been the ones that I had been closest to after starting school as Crystal. I had been having lunch with them at least twice a week during the past school year, but now I started to call them up and go out with them more often. I knew that they were my friends, not just fans.

I also made contact with Mr. Tucker again. It had been almost 10 months since I had helped out with February's production and I hadn't seen him since. I found out from Barbara when he was going to be at the theatre and I went down there to visit.

"Crystal, my lovely young flower. You've blossomed into a wonderful actress. I saw your new movie and you were absolutely wonderful. I was enthralled every time you came onto the screen."

"Thank you, Mr. Tucker. I owe it all to you."

"I only helped shape the skills that you already possessed. Actors are born, not made. You can't teach screen presence. One either has it or doesn't. You have it."

"Thank you, but I still have to give you the credit for teaching me about acting. The things that I learned from you enabled me to go on and do the things that I've done. Without you, I never could have done it. Whenever I'm acting, I keep hearing your voice in my head. 'Crystal, don't slouch. Crystal, watch your marks. Crystal, identify with your character. Crystal, stay focused. Crystal, make the audience your friend.' I get so wrapped up following your instructions that I forget to be nervous."

Mr. Tucker laughed. "I'm glad that I was able to help bring out the actor that was there all along. You've done marvelously well. In just a year and a half, you've had substantial roles in two movies. The first movie did great and the second looks to be a chart topper."

"I've been lucky to get the parts in such great movies. So many wonderful actors never get the chances that I've had, and it appears that I may be doing either one or two sequels to 'Open Spaces'. My contract had an option for up to two if the original is successful. The reported numbers from the first two weeks are good."

"When's your next engagement?"

"Well, I'm kinda up for a part in a movie that supposed to start shooting in March but I've already been on two callbacks and they haven't made up their minds. It's been almost four months since they first interviewed me so I don't know if I'll get it or not."

"What kind of movie is it?"

"I'm not exactly sure. I do know that it's set in the Victorian period but I don't know if it's a drama, love story, suspense, mystery, or historical production. I've only seen the parts of the script that they wanted me to read from."

"Who's the producer?"

"Mark Silver, and the director is Trevor Bacon."

"Hmmm… I've heard of both of them of course, but I don't know them personally. Still… taking six or eight months for casting a picture isn't unusual. Sometimes it takes a year or two until they find just the right people for the top spots. When you're spending twenty, forty, or sixty million dollars, you take your time and do it right."

"I guess."

"So you don't have anything going on before March?"

"Nothing right now."

"Wonderful. How would you like to help us out."

"I'll be happy to. What would you like me to do?"

"Perform in our new play, of course."

"Perform? Okay. What are you doing?"

"'Wait until Dark', by Frederick Knott."

"That… sounds familiar. Is that the movie that Audrey Hepburn was in?"

"Yes. It's a classic stage thriller, but she was in the movie version. Basically, the plot is that there's a doll stuffed with contraband hidden somewhere in the Greenwich Village apartment of a blind woman named Susy Hendrix. Some very nasty characters want the doll and will do what ever is necessary to get it."

"And you want me to play Susy Hendrix? That's a major role as I remember. There are only about 6 others actors in the play."

"The play needs someone like you to carry it off. I've wanted to do it for a long time but never had anyone that I felt could do the part justice. Until now."

"And yet you scheduled it before you knew that I would be available?"

"Uh… no, not exactly. I was planning on doing 'Getting Away With Murder' by Stephen Sondheim and George Furth until you came in today. When you agreed to do the play I decided that now was the chance that I had been waiting for."

"But the part is so large. The blind girl is on stage almost the entire time if the play is like the movie."

"That's why I haven't been able to do it before. I haven't had anyone that could really carry the entire play. You can."

I sat and thought about the play. I hadn't seen the movie version in quite a while but I remembered it. I had watched in fascination as Audrey Hepburn had felt her way around the set for almost the entire picture.

"Okay, Mr. Tucker. If that's what you want, I'll do it."

"Fantastic. We'll give this town something to see that they'll talk about for years. I'll get the performance rights and scripts right away. We should be able to put together the rest of the cast from among our regular players."

We continued to sit there and talk about the play for a while and then talked about personal matters. I learned that Mr. Tucker's mother was not doing very well in the nursing home and that it appeared to be only a matter of time now, probably less than a year.

Mr. Tucker had asked me about my future plans and I told him about the colleges that I had applied to. He agreed with my selections and wished me luck. We talked for a little longer before I had to leave in order to meet Mom for my ride home. She didn't want me riding the bus alone anymore.

She was just pulling up when I emerged from the theatre. On the way home I told her that I had agreed to do the play for Mr. Tucker.

"Oh, Crystal. What are you going to do if something comes up professionally?"

"Put them off. I owe it to the company for giving me my start. We have enough money now so that I can do this. And I don't have any prospects for other work right now. Besides, the play'll be over by March, and I can still take off for a few days to go for an interview if something worthwhile opens up."

"Okay, dear. It's up to you. As you say we have enough to pay for Carol's and your educations. We've paid off the condo, and with the money from the commercials and the latest movie you don't have to work anymore if you don't want to."

"I'm not looking to not work, Mom. I haven't worked since August except for the commercials. I'm anxious to do something, that's why I agreed to do the play. If I can't get paid work, then I'll do free work."

*****

I finished up my Christmas shopping the following week. The traffic in the stores was getting crazy and I was glad that I was done. Carol would be home soon and I began to decorate the house for the holidays. Mom and I picked up a tree and set it up in the living room. We would wait until Carol got home before we decorated it, so that we could do it together.

We also had our telephone number changed to an unlisted one. We had been getting sporadic calls from fans since I had begun acting, but with the new movie they picked up tenfold. We always let the machine answer, and most had been pleasant inquires because people didn't know if they had the right number. Ramsey is not an uncommon name, and Mom only had her first initial listed in the phone book. But now a lot of callers seemed to know that they had the right number and a lot of calls were very lewd, so Mom cut off the old number right away. We had to go through the trouble of notifying family and friends of the change. My fan mail picked up appreciably too. It was a good thing that Mom had stocked up on the glossy prints that she sent to everyone who wrote.

*****

We picked up Carol at the airport on Thursday the 21st. She was done with her classes until the 15th of January. The house immediately took on an entire new feel as Carol began calling her friends who were also coming home from college for the holidays, and as they began to return the calls.

Carol hadn't completed her shopping yet so I wound up returning to the crowded mall and stores with her so that we could get the final items on her list. The hordes of people aided in shielding my identity. Everyone was so concerned with their last minute shopping that they weren't paying attention to much else.

It actually took us two days to finish her shopping because the selections had thinned and it took forever to get service in the stores.

*****

Brad arrived home late on Friday night and called me as soon as he got in. Because of being on the football team, this was his first trip home since he had left for school during the summer. I had only spoken to him once since he had left for college, but he had written a letter to me every week, which I had always answered right away. There was a big Christmas party at Jimmy Benecker's house on Saturday and he wanted me to go. Carol had already been invited by Vinnie DeMarco. I hadn't known it but Carol and Vinnie had been in contact since they had left for college. He either called her or wrote to her every week. I said 'yes' to Brad's invitation and he said that he'd pick me up at seven.

*****

Carol and I finished up her shopping on Saturday. As we had neared the end of her list we had spent more and more time trying on things for ourselves so it took forever to get done, but we had a lot more fun. We got home around 3 o'clock and almost immediately started getting ready for the party. We did our nails and then decided what we were going to wear, trying on some of the new things that we had bought, until we were satisfied.

Brad always liked me dressed in tight fitting clothes, so I decided on a tight, black leather skirt, plum-colored blouse, and knee-high boots with 4-inch heels. Since Brad was so tall, I could never even come close to him even if I wore 6-inch heels.

Carol selected a beige, knit, pullover dress that accented her figure, and brown boots with 3-inch heels. Vinnie was only about four inches taller so she didn't need much to almost match his height.

Brad arrived right at seven. I heard the doorbell ring and hurried to finish because I expected it to be him since he was always so punctual. I put on some scent and grabbed my purse before going downstairs. Mom was talking with Brad in the living room when I got there. I saw his face light up and I returned his smile as he rushed towards me and picked me up, hugged me, kissed me, and twirled me around twice.

"Brad, stop it. You're making me dizzy."

He stopped. "I'm sorry, honey. I'm just so glad to see you. I've missed you more than I could say. A few times I've wanted to tell the coach where he could put the football just so I'd be suspended and be able to come home like most of the guys at school do on weekends. But I stuck it out and now football is over for the rest of the school year, except for practice in the spring. Now I can come home on weekends and it's less than a four hour drive."

"That's wonderful. I'll bet that your parents are excited."

"They are, but they said that I have to keep my grades up or they'll take my car away so that I can't come home too often." He smiled. "Don't worry about that. I'll get straight A's just so that I can see you every weekend."

We said good night to Mom after Brad helped me with my coat and we left for the party. Brad had been to Jimmy's house so often that his 4x4 practically knew the way there by itself and he talked as he drove, telling me all about his college and the guys that he was rooming with this year. Being a freshman, he didn't get much playing time during games but he was learning and getting better. He felt that he would be used next year because he thought that he was as good as the backup quarterback, who was a junior this year.

"I went to see your latest picture this past week. None of the guys believe that I'm going steady with a movie star. I have to show them the prom picture."

"I'm not a movie star. I'm just an actress. An out-of-work actress at the moment, but I'm going to be in the winter production at the Community Theatre."

"What are they putting on?"

"It's called 'Wait until Dark. It's about a blind girl who's terrorized by criminals searching for a doll that contains heroin or something.

"Are you the lead?"

"Yes. I'm going to play Susy Hendrix."

"Great," Brad said. His voice conveying annoyance.

"What's the matter?" I said with a concerned voice.

"I finally finish football and now you'll be tied up with acting."

"It's only for a few months. And by being tied up here you know that I won't be off in California or New York."

He brightened. "That's true. I'll just have to squeeze in when you're not busy."

We arrived at Jimmy's house and managed to find a parking spot that was still open, then trudged through the snow to reach the house. From the minute that we walked in, people started to hug and kiss us. Both Brad and I had been away and hadn't had contact with most of this crowd since June. The music was loud and we had to shout to talk about what we had been doing since the graduation exercises in June. Of course, most everyone knew what I was up to because of the movies.

Things settled down once we had made the rounds and greeted everyone. Carol and Vinnie had arrived about ten minutes before we did and I saw them dancing or off in a corner kissing. Brad, unlike previous parties, didn't spend most of his time talking with his buddies. Instead he wanted to dance, or just be with me. He found a vacant spot along one wall and whenever we weren't dancing he pulled me to that spot, trapped me between the wall and his body, and kissed me until my mouth got sore. Carol rescued me after about an hour to go to the powder room with her.

"Wow, Crys, are you guys gonna to stand against that wall all night?" She said smiling.

"Me? How about you? I saw you and Vinnie in that corner that you've staked out." We both giggled.

"They're both horny as hell. Be careful that Brad doesn't drag you upstairs to a vacant bedroom. That is if there is a vacant bedroom. I sure wouldn't want to have to clean the sheets tomorrow. I'm surprised that Mr. and Mrs. Beneker let Jimmy have a party without them being here."

"Maybe they figure that he's grown up now that he's in college," I said.

"He's only older. I haven't seen him for the past half hour. He went upstairs with Dee Smith and hasn't come down yet."

"I'm sure that Dee's on the pill."

"I am too. I've been using them since I started USC."

"What?" I gasped in surprise. "You never told me." It may have been due to the fact that I was incapable of being aroused due to my medication, and thoughts of sexual activity were usually far from my mind, but Carol's admission had totally shocked me.

"I haven't been promiscuous, sis, but I've been with a couple of guys since September. I'm eighteen, and I'm not a nun."

"You haven't mentioned anyone special at school."

"They weren't really special. We saw each other for a few weeks and then it ended."

"And Vinnie?"

"Vinnie's… special. The more I date in college, the more I realize how special he is. I haven't wanted to just fall into bed with him and the circumstances haven't been right for anything else."

We continued to talk about the boys as we touched up our faces and then left the room. There was a line of four girls waiting to come in. Brad and Vinnie were waiting at the end of the hallway when we emerged. They wanted to drag us off to the dark again but we told them that we were thirsty and hungry, so we all went to see what beverages and chips and dips were available.

We stayed at the party until almost one o'clock and I spent most of that time wrapped in Brad's embrace. He was trying to make up for lost time and missed opportunities. He didn't try to get me upstairs and wouldn't have succeeded anyway. I think that he knew that.

At 15 minutes before the hour Carol came to get me to tell me that we had to go. She would have been permitted to stay as long as she wanted, but I still had a curfew. Brad and Vinnie went to warm up the cars while we said goodbye to the remaining guests. Jimmy Beneker hadn't been seen in hours so we couldn't thank him for the party. Brad and Vinnie were double-parked in front when we went outside. Brad had to hurry around to lift me into the seat because my skirt was too tight to climb up by myself.

Brad used up the rest of my curfew time in front of the house. This time I didn't bother fixing my makeup, I just used a tissue to clean off my lipstick and to wipe Brad's face as well.

*****

Sunday was Christmas Eve and we spent most of the day finishing the decorating and preparing for the Christmas dinner. Aunt Jessica arrived around noon to help out. During the afternoon, Carol and I alternated our use of the phone. I got to speak with Debbie for about an hour. She had only gotten in last night and had called just after I left for the party. I wished her a Merry Christmas and we agreed to go shopping on Tuesday. I knew that she and her parents would be spending Christmas afternoon with her Grandmother at the nursing home.

Things had been so hectic during the past month that Mom hadn't wrapped her presents, so after dinner Carol and I were made 'official wrappers'. Working from my bedroom, while Carol worked from hers, we wrapped gifts for several hours. Mom would bring in gifts to each of us to wrap for other family members or friends. Mom even got Aunt Jessica working in her bedroom. By 10 o'clock we were all done and the presents were organized around the tree in the living room.

With the work done, Mom made some Brandy Alexanders to celebrate the holiday. One was enough to get me dizzy and I was falling asleep as I tried to watch television so I kissed everyone goodnight and went to bed.

*****

Mom and Aunt Jessica were already in the kitchen when I went downstairs in the morning. I guess that the drink had made me sleep more soundly than usual, or I had been worn out from all of the pre-Christmas activity. Mom had batter made and poured some into the waffle maker when I came in. After kissing them both, wishing them a Merry Christmas, and getting a glass of OJ, I sat down to await the waffles. I could smell the turkey baking in the oven for our afternoon meal. Carol came in just as the waffles were ready so we each took one as Mom made two more.

After breakfast we all went into the living room and opened our presents. Carol and I received mostly clothes from Mom and Aunt Jessica, but we also got some makeup and jewelry. I had bought Carol a couple of games for her computer, and she had gotten me a couple of soft leather travel bags that were made in Mexico. The highlight of the day, for me at least, occurred after all the presents were unwrapped. Mom took a small, gift-wrapped box that she had kept separate from the other gifts and gave it to me. I thought that it was just one more of the minor little gifts like stocking stuffers that Mom liked to give and that she had forgotten, but when I opened it I found a picture of a car and a set of keys.

"It's parked around the corner on Pine Avenue, right in front of Mrs. Witcom's house, honey," Mom said. "It's all licensed and ready to go."

I just sat there with my mouth open. "A car? For me? My own car?"

Mom had nodded with each question. "It's not new. It's a five year old Subaru, but it's in excellent condition and it has low mileage."

I felt tears starting to run down my cheeks as I cried with happiness that I had my own car now.

"I don't want you taking the bus anymore. You're too well known. And I don't want you standing at bus stops either."

"Oh, Crys," Carol said excitedly. "Your own car. That's so great. Let's go shopping tomorrow and try it out."

I jumped up from my chair and ran over to Mom and gave her a big hug and a kiss.

"Thank you, Mommy. Thank you, thank you. I love it. I love you."

"You're welcome, honey. Merry Christmas. Just be careful until you get a feel for the car. Even though you have your driver's license, you haven't had a lot of experience."

"I will, Mom. Thanks."

I sat back down next to Carol who wanted to see the picture of the car.

"It's looks great, Crys. I think that I'm as excited as you are. Let's take a walk and look at it."

"We have a lot of work to do, girls," Mom said, "to get ready for dinner. No joy riding today. Just bring the car back and put it in the driveway."

Carol and I quickly cleaned up the wrapping paper mess and organized the gifts under the tree. Then we hurried upstairs and got dressed. I didn't even bathe. I would do that after we got back. Fifteen minutes later we were standing on Pine Avenue looking at the car.

I circled it a couple of times, just looking at it, until Carol said, "Come on, Crys, it's cold. Open the doors and let me get inside.

I unlocked her side and went around to the driver's side as she got in. Mom must have driven it here because the seat was adjusted all the way forward. I found the control and moved it back a little before inserting the key in the ignition lock and turning it. The car roared to life immediately. As the car warmed up, we figured out where all of the controls were by looking in the owner's manual that Carol found in the glove box. As the heat finally started to warm the interior, we set the radio to a few stations that we liked. The former owner must have been into country-western because that's what the buttons seemed to be set to.

With the music playing, warmth flowing from the vents, and an understanding of the various controls, I turned on the left directional and pulled out onto the road. I know that Mom said that we shouldn't go joyriding, but I didn't think that a few turns around the neighborhood was really joyriding so we spent about ten minutes on the nearby streets before returning to the house and parking in the driveway behind Mom's car. Aunt Jessica had parked on the street in front of the house. Now that we had two cars at the house we would have to figure out some system so that we weren't always blocking one another in the driveway.

Mom and Aunt Jessica were in the kitchen when we got inside and I went up to Mom, hugged her, and gave her another kiss on the cheek. "Thanks, Mom, I love it. Carol and I drove around the block a couple of times and it handles great. I even tried it in 4 wheel drive."

"Enjoy it, honey. It's registered with the school already so you can park in the student lot. I'm glad that you won't have to ride the school bus anymore. Now, why don't you and Carol go up and take your baths and get dressed. Then you can come back and help with lunch."

"Okay, Mom."

As I relaxed in the tub I kept thinking about my car and the freedom that I would have now that I didn't have to worry about bus schedules or troubling Mom for a ride. I couldn't wait for tomorrow to come so that I could go driving around.

After I finished in the tub I knocked lightly on Carol's door so that she could use the tub next, then I went into my bedroom. I thought briefly about last year's Santa's helper costumes. I wondered if Dad would be dressed as Santa again.

I put on my panties, bra, and slip before going to my closet to select my clothes. Even though it was December I got out the white leather skirt that Dad had given to me. I thought that it might make him happy to see that I was wearing it. I selected a red satin blouse and red pumps with 4-inch heels to go with it.

Before getting dressed I sat at my makeup table and did my face, then put on my garter belt and stockings. I could hear the tub draining as I finished getting dressed so I went into Carol's room to talk to her as she dressed. Now that Christmas was almost behind us, we talked about New Year's Eve.

"Why don't you and Brad come with Vinnie and me? We're going to a party at Adele's house?"

"Brad hasn't said anything about New Year's Eve yet. He might have to attend a party at home like last year. I just don't know yet. We didn't talk much the other night. All he wanted to do was make out."

"I'll speak to Adele just in case to make sure that' it's okay. As if anyone wouldn't want the famous Crystal Ramsey at their party."

I giggled. "Yeah. Right."

Carol laughed. "I'm serious Crys. Your coming to somebody's party is a status symbol. You become more famous every day that that movie is playing in the theatres. And once it gets to videotape and television, you'll be even more famous. Nobody would turn you away at the door."

I stopped giggling and thought about the situation. Carol was probably right. My fame would probably get me into any party, and I probably wouldn't have any difficulty getting a table at most restaurants for awhile, even if they were packed. You can't have it both ways. With fame comes limitations on freedom but it's offset with other benefits.

Mom and Aunt Jessica were upstairs getting ready when Carol and I went down to the kitchen but we knew what to do and we started working. Carol washed the sweet potatoes and made the cream sauce while I washed and cut up the mushrooms. By the time we were done, Mom and Aunt Jessica were back down and we worked together to finish the preparations.

Dad arrived around 12:30 and Mom let him in after sniffing his breath. He came dressed in normal clothes this year but he had a sack of presents with him that he put down next to the tree.

Dinner wasn't quite ready so Dad put the football game on while we finished up. As soon as the turkey had cooled enough to cut, Mom took it to the dining room table and called to Dad. We put the rest of the food on serving dishes and carried them to the table while he sliced the bird, then we all sat down, said grace, and started enjoying the meal.

Over dinner we all talked about what we had been doing since Thanksgiving. Dad had gone to see the new movie and he told me how proud he was to see his daughter in a major motion picture and what a great job I had done. He said that his friends at the office kept asking him to invite me to visit him there.

After dinner we went into the living room to relax and open the presents. I received a skirt and jacket set and a sweater from Dad. My present to him was a new VCR and a tape of the play at the Community Theatre that started my career.

Brad called early in the afternoon and wished me a Merry Christmas. He asked if he could come over and I said yes. He arrived about a half-hour later and I brought him into the living room to say 'hi' to everyone. He had met them last year when he had come over and, after exchanging greetings, we sat down and Brad got into a conversation with Dad about the football season at Penn State while the rest of us talked about our gifts. I let Dad and Brad talk for about an hour before interrupting to invite Brad to have a sandwich.

Once in the kitchen Brad immediately grabbed me to kiss me. I let him have one kiss then pushed him down into a chair while I made him a sandwich from the leftover turkey. As he ate, he told me what he had gotten for Christmas and I told him about my gifts, especially my car.

"That's great. Now you can come down to visit me at school."

"Well, I don't know about that. I'm still only seventeen, and I don't think that Mom would let me go."

"Start working on her. I'll arrange for a room if you can come."

"Don't make any arrangements just yet. I also have to worry about bad publicity, and going to visit with a boy for a weekend would be like pouring honey on myself while walking through a cage full of bears."

"Nobody would ever know, outside of us and your mother."

"Oh, Brad, don't be so naïve. People recognize me wherever I go."

"Wear your disguise."

"That's not 100% effective. Especially with people trained at identifying people, such as celebrity photographers who are a lot better at it than store security guards."

"I'll think on it. There has to be a way."

"We'll see," I said, but I didn't expect that it would ever come about. I didn't relish having a sexual confrontation with Brad while in a distant city.

"Anyway, the real reason that I came was to bring your Christmas gift. Here. Merry Christmas."

Brad had pulled a small wrapped gift from his sweater pocket. I took it and went to the cupboard and removed a gift that I had hidden there earlier.

"Merry Christmas, Brad."

"Thanks, baby-doll. What is it?"

"Open it and see, silly."

He tore the wrapping from the present and found a jewelry presentation box that contained a waterproof sports-watch, good to 250' down.

"Wow, I love it. Thanks, honey."

"You're welcome."

"Open yours."

I stood next to him slowly removing the wrapping paper and found a small box from Romanoff's. I was praying that it wasn't a ring as I opened the box and discovered that it contained a pair of earrings that looked to be an exact match to the pendant that he had given me last year. Each earring contained a large stone that I assumed to be a diamond.

"Brad, they're absolutely beautiful. Thank you."

"You're welcome, doll."

Brad put his arm around me as I leaned down towards him, intending to give him a kiss, but instead of just kissing me, he pulled me onto his lap and cradled me in his arms first. Just like last year, Dad chose that minute to come into the kitchen. What timing! Instead of looking upset he looked embarrassed and merely said, "Oops, sorry kids," and backed out of the room as I pushed Brad away quickly. I was so surprised by Dad's reaction that Brad had an opportunity to pull me to him and start another long kiss before I recovered. Once started, I figured that I might as well let him get it out of his system so I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him back as thanks for the beautiful diamond earrings.

I knew that we couldn't monopolize the kitchen for much longer so after the long kiss I pushed Brad away, cleaned the bright red lipstick from his face using a paper napkin, and then tried to straighten myself out. After that, we returned to the living room where I showed everyone the beautiful earrings that I had, by now, put on. I was already wearing the pendant.

Mom, Carol, and Aunt Jess made a small fuss over how pretty the earrings were while Dad just looked and said, "Nice. Very nice." I looked closely to see if I could figure out what he was feeling and there didn't seem to be any of the indignation that I had seen last year when he had found us kissing.

Brad stayed until almost six and then told me that he had to leave so as to be home as the relatives started to leave, so I walked him to the door.

"My folks are throwing another New Year's Eve party. Can you come?"

"If you want me to. We're also invited to Adele's party."

"I'd love to go to Adele's party. Most of the guys are going to be there, but I can't."

"Okay, we'll go to your house then."

"You're the greatest. Thanks honey. Oh, by the way, it's formal this year. Maybe you could wear that gown that you wore to the premiere of the play last February. I really liked that one."

I smiled. "I know that you did, but I think that I have something else. I've worn that one twice already."

Brad bent and we shared one more, long kiss before he left. Afterwards I used the hall mirror to fix my face before returning to the living room.

*****

Dad went home Christmas evening without ever mentioning the kiss in the kitchen to anyone. I wondered if he had surrendered to the idea that I was going to remain like this for a while and that I would act like a woman at all times, or if he had forgotten as most everyone else seemed to have forgotten.

Carol and I spent the rest of the week together having fun and enjoying the new car. We went shopping almost every day with Heather, Sheri, and Debbie. My friend Jenny from school joined us several times and fit right in with our crowd. I went out with Brad twice more before New Year's Eve. He was spending most of his time during the days running around renewing friendships with former football teammates who were home from school like he was.

I also picked up a script from Mr. Tucker, who had paid the license fees for the play that we would put on, and I began to study the part. As I supposed, a lot of the on-stage time would be spent emoting fear rather than spouting lines.

*****

Brad picked me up at seven for his parent's New Year's Eve party. He wanted us to be there to greet guests as they arrived. His parents greeted me warmly, as they had always done, and we went into the living room to talk with his father, as his mother saw to final, last minute arrangements. The number of kitchen help and serving people that I saw as we walked past the kitchen surprised me. I counted at least nine. I began to wonder how many people were coming to this party tonight.

Brad's father said as we reached the living room, "That's a beautiful gown, Crystal."

"Thank you, Mr. Reese. I had it made for the movie premiere that I attended in New York City. I'm happy that I had another occasion to wear it."

"Oh, I thought that your movie premiered in Los Angeles."

"That was the second one, where I had a much larger part. The first one was 'A Promise of Spring'. I barely made the opening credits on that one."

"I missed that one. We'll have to get it on videotape when it comes out. We loved your performance in 'Open Spaces'. My wife talked about it for days."

"I'm glad that you liked it. It was a lot of fun to make and the cast and crew were great."

"Any new pictures coming up?"

"No, nothing in sight, so I agreed to do another play here in town with the Community Theatre. It's called 'Wait Until Dark'."

"I saw the movie. It had Audrey Hepburn in it I think."

"That's the role that I'll be playing. The play only has a small cast."

"When does it open?"

"It'll play during all the weekends in February. I've already begun working on the script and the carpenters are building the sets."

"Wonderful. I'll tell my wife to get tickets as soon as they come on sale."

"That should be in about two weeks."

We talked until the first guests started to arrive around 9 o'clock. Once the first few arrived it was like the floodgates were opened. At least twenty-five couples came. That was quite a difference from last year's half dozen, but like last year, I seemed to be the center of attention during the early evening. I think that almost every one of the men was either a lawyer or a politician, although I did meet two land developers too. I also learned that several of the wives were either lawyers or in politics.

During the evening I was surprised to be told by one man that his main reason for coming here was to meet me. He'd been told weeks ago that I would be here. That was long before I had even been invited and I began to think about what Carol had said about being welcome at any party because of my fame. I also thought about something that I had heard Marilyn Monroe say during a recorded interview played on one of those 'classic movie' channels about how she felt that she was often invited to parties as window dressing rather than a real guest. I guess that it was logical for Mr. and Mrs. Reese to assume that I would be here since I was going steady with their son, and he had to be here.

At midnight we counted down the last few seconds and then celebrated. I think that every man in the room came over to me for a 'Happy New Year's' kiss. The state governor made sure that he was first in line, followed by state senators and judges.

We stayed for another hour before Brad took me home. He got the last kiss of the evening, and the longest.

 

(continued in Chapter 48)

I want to express my grateful appreciation to Lynn Jennings and Debbie Cybill for their very helpful suggestions and proofreading on this series.

 

 

 

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