Calypso High
Episode 8: Fun, Fun, Fun
Marianna DeSka slammed the door to the bathroom she shared with her sisters
Daniela and Pandora. She was panting, as sheÕd barely made it up the stairs
before Daniela could saunter down the hall from her bedroom. It was very
important that Mari make it into the shower before Daniela could start
working on her hair. Otherwise, sheÕd never get that shower. And damn, did
she need a shower tonight!
Her hair was disgustingly matted from swimming and then driving with the top
down. Her back and shoulders were sticky from the aloe Blaine had fairly
coated her with. And her feet and lower legs were covered with sand. That
was the really irksome bit. Those little shiny black pieces of sand, the
ones that were supposedly teeny fragments of obsidian from Calypso BeachÕs
early days as a volcanic beach (about a million or so years ago), those
things would never come off. No amount of scrubbing or rinsing could get
rid of them. They came off when they damn well pleased, and that was
usually when Mari was in bed. Then theyÕd be in her sheets until laundry
day.
Still, it was with great relief that Mari stepped into a lukewarm shower and
started rinsing away the vestiges of her afternoon at the beach. She even
had a moment of peace before the banging started.
ÒMarianna, I have to do my hair!Ó Daniela cried, pounding on the door to the
bathroom.
Mari ignored her. She started humming to herself.
ÒMari!Ó Daniela whined.
ÒBack hoooooome, I spend my summers, back home, a-back hooooome,Ó Mari
wailed, purposely off-key as she sang at the top of her voice. When she ran
out of oxygen, she took a moment to breathe and lather up her hair.
ÒMy hair! My makeup! IÕve got stuff to do if IÕm going to a college
party!Ó Dani shouted.
ÒHey, shut up, stupid!Ó Mari shouted back. ÒAs long as our parents are in
this house, it is NOT a college party! Now quit whining and let me take my
shower in peace or youÕre not coming at all!Ó
ÒPeace? Is that what you call that caterwauling?Ó
ÒWhere did you learn such a big word as caterwauling? ThatÕs four whole
syllables!Ó Mari said, mock amazed.
ÒShut up yourself,Ó Dani said.
After a minute of silence, Mari concluded that Daniela had finally left the
area and was moping in her room or elsewhere in the house. She started
singing again, this time the song Blaine had debuted to her this afternoon.
With no comments from the peanut gallery after the first verse, Mari had a
thoroughly enjoyable shower and even managed to lose track of time.
***
ÒOh, no,Ó Mari muttered, tossing clothes about her room as she stood wrapped
in a towel. The clock by the bed read 6:45 in rude, glaring red numbers.
ÒOh, noÉ I am late. Again. Twice in one day. He says that he loves me,
but IÕm not sure heÕs going to put up with me being late all the time.Ó
ÒAre you ready yet?Ó Daniela said, knocking on the door impatiently.
ÒSure, if going nude is acceptable.Ó
ÒIt is to me,Ó Dani snickered.
ÒShut up. Give me a minute.Ó Mari cast about her room in despair. Well,
she could always wear the usualÑcutoffs and some kind of top. Hopefully it
wouldnÕt get terribly cold tonight, what with her nasty sunburn. She
settled on a halter, lime and turquoise tye-dye, and black cutoffs. A pair
of black Keds, and she was almost ready to go.
Her hair was always a problem. Her parents would yell if they saw her leave
the house with wet hair, but she didnÕt have time to dry itÉ and she didnÕt
have time to braid it, either, unless she let Dani the freshman daredevil
drive to the beach. Well, up it went into a high bun, and maybe Blaine
wouldnÕt mind a practical hairdo for once. He had some weird obsession with
her hair being down. They were all like that, actually, even if her hair
ended up in their mouth. Silly boys!
ÒOkay, IÕm ready,Ó Mari said. ÒExcept I need you to put aloe on my back.Ó
She opened the door to find Pandora hovering there. ÒWhereÕs Daniela?Ó she
asked the sixth-grader.
ÒCar,Ó ÔDora said. She had to talk around a popsicle in her mouth. ÒWhere
ya goinÕ?Ó
ÒBeach,Ó Mari replied just as concisely.
ÒYou were there this afternoon.Ó
ÒAccurate,Ó Mari said, heading downstairs with a tube of aloe in one hand
and her purse in the other.
ÒWhy ya goinÕ again?Ó
ÒWeÕre setting fire to stuff.Ó
ÒOoh!Ó ÔDora cried, eyes lighting up. She was almost as much of a
pyromaniac as Mari was. ÒCan I go?Ó
ÒNope, sorry, past your bedtime.Ó
ÒIs not, itÕs not even seven yet. And I donÕt have a bedtime.Ó
ÒWell, weÕll be out past your curfew,Ó Mari said, sighing. She opened the
screen door. ÒTell mom and dad that Dani will be home by midnight but I
might stay out till two with my friends.Ó
ÒNo fair,Ó ÔDora pouted.
ÒWhen youÕre ancient like me you can do whatever you want at night. Bye.Ó
Mari dashed across the front lawn to where her car was parked at the curb.
Daniela was perched on the passenger door, flirting with one of the
neighborhood boys.
ÒIn, now. WeÕre late,Ó Mari said, sliding into her seat.
ÒBye, Tchadde,Ó Dani grinned. ÒIÕll tell you all about it tomorrow.Ó
Tchadde didnÕt have a chance to reply as Mari sped off toward TianneÕs.
ÒUm, the beach is the other way,Ó Daniela said.
ÒI know, but stupid Tianne wouldnÕt leave me alone till I said IÕd bring her
along. And no, I canÕt just ditch her, because sheÕll never shut up about
it.Ó
Dani just shook her head.
Mari switched on the radio. As usual, it was set to the oldies station, and
as usual, when Daniela tried to switch it to KLPS, the local top-40 station,
Mari swatted her hand away. ÒWe do not listen to that crap in my car,Ó Mari
said firmly.
ÒJust thirty-year-old crap,Ó Dani quipped.
ÒHush-a-you. ThatÕs Beatles there, that is.Ó Mari turned up the volume.
ÒÉBack in the USSR!Ó they sang together. Daniela leaned back in her seat
doing that air-guitar thing. ÒDoo-doo-doo, Ukraine girls really knock me
out, they leave the west behindÑÒ
ÒAnd Moscow girls make me sing andÑÒ Mari stopped when she realized Dani had
fallen silent. ÒWhatÕd you stop for?Ó
ÒCute boys at nine oÕclock,Ó Dani hissed.
Mari glanced at the left lane, where a convertible full of goofy college and
high school boys was passing them. A couple of the boys had gotten a look
at Mari and Dani and were hooting and waving wildly. Mari returned her eyes
to the road, to make sure she wasnÕt going to crash into anything, then
looked back to catch the eye of the other driver.
ÒHi, darlinÕ,Ó she cried, waving saucily.
Blaine grinned, laughing, and waved back. ÒRace ya!Ó
ÒCanÕt. I gotta pick up someone else!Ó Mari waved again, signaled right,
and whipped around the corner. Dani spun around in her seat and waved
goodbye to the guys who were now pestering Blaine to follow the VW.
ÒIs that your boyfriendÕs car?Ó Dani asked in amazement as she turned back
around and restored her seatbelt to its rightfully protective position.
ÒAnd my boyfriend, and his brothers and cousin and frat brothers.Ó
ÒWow. We need a sorority,Ó Dani mused. ÒThen we could do stuff with the
fraternity.Ó
ÒIf you go to LU, you can join the fraternity. ItÕs open to women.Ó
ÒHeh?Ó
ÒIf youÕre a music major and you get good grades.Ó
ÒOh, that kind of frat. Never mind,Ó Dani scoffed, then decided it was high
time to check her makeup in the rearview mirror.
ÒHey, dope! I need that to drive with!Ó Mari cried as her sister shanghaied
the rearview. ÒUse the side mirror!Ó
ÒSor-ree. Geez, youÕre a bit sensitive today.Ó
ÒNo, I would kick your butt for that any day.Ó Mari squealed to a halt in
front of TianneÕs house, and miraculously, Tianne was actually waiting out
front as she had been instructed.
>From there, it was only a few minutesÕ drive to the beach, where Mari parked
next to BlaineÕs car and locked her purse in the trunk, her keys slung on a
chain around her neck. Tianne and Daniela scrambled out of the car, of
course not bothering with doors, and hovered hesitantly at the edge of the
sand. Mari was puzzled: normally the two man-eaters would charge the beach
and immediately each claim one or more of the present males as their
personal slaves for the evening.
Unconcerned, she shrugged and headed across the sand to where she saw Blaine
helping to stack scrapwood for the bonfire. The sun was just setting over
Calypso Bay, a different beach than Sphere Bay, where they had been earlier
in the day. The waves at this more northerly beach were calmer, although
slightly white-capped as warning of an approaching storm. However, Mari
knew how to read the waves, and that storm wouldnÕt hit until well after her
two oÕclock curfew. And even if it did, there was a shelter and a boyfriend
to keep her dry and warm.
She wondered when sheÕd started thinking of Blaine as a boyfriend. Oh well.
ÒHey.Ó
ÒHey yourself,Ó he smiled, tossing another two-by-four onto the growing pile
of wood. ÒThis is going to be a nice one. You said youÕre a pyromaniac,
right?Ó
ÒI said no such thing,Ó Mari sniffed. ÒI may have mentioned attempts at
burning down the school, but that does not mean IÕm a pyromaniac. It means
IÕm anti-school.Ó
ÒAh. HowÕs the sunburn?Ó
ÒPainful. I need more aloe.Ó
ÒYouÕre going to be freezing tonight. Did you bring a sweater?Ó
ÒNo, darn it, I did not,Ó Mari said, sounding not at all sorry about it.
Blaine took MariÕs hand and pulled her away from the wood pile, to a large
piece of driftwood that would be serving as a bench this evening. ÒSit. Do
you have aloe on you?Ó
ÒUmÉ yeah,Ó Mari said, and pulled the tube out of her pocket. ÒAlmost
forgot about that.Ó
She sat, quietly observing the sunset as Blaine rubbed aloe into her back.
Daniela was walking down the beach with a gaggle of guys of various ages,
although none were even close to her very young age of 14. Tianne was
nowhere in sight, although that could just mean that she was standing behind
Mari and Blaine. Those concerns melted away and Mari found herself actually
enjoying the view of Calypso Bay as she had never done before, BlaineÕs
hands on her back, her shoulders, her waistÉ
ÒHey, I am not burned there,Ó she said, smiling lightly.
ÒOh, youÕre not?Ó Blaine asked innocently. He dropped his hands.
ÒDid I say to stop?Ó Mari said, turning around. On a bizarre impulse, she
leaned over and kissed him.
ÒHm. I guess you didnÕt, but now youÕve opened up a whole new kind of
entertainment. And speaking of entertainment, I am it for tonight. If I
sing one of my new songs youÕll harmonize, right?Ó
Mari bit her lip. She was pretty good at figuring out harmonies on the fly,
and she knew most of his songs inside and out, having been his sounding
board for the past few weeks. But she wasnÕt sure she wanted to sing in
front of people. Especially people she didnÕt know. College people.
ÒWell, itÕs okay if you donÕt want to, but if you feel like it,Ó Blaine
said, shrugging. She could tell by the way he wouldnÕt look at her that he
was majorly bummed.
ÒOkay.Ó
ÒOkay what?Ó
ÒOkay IÕll sing. But if I freak out and run away, I canÕt be held
responsible.Ó
ÒYou wonÕt freak out,Ó Blaine said, tilting his head up so that his hair
fell over one eye as he gazed at her. ÒYouÕre a born entertainer.Ó
She simply pushed his hair back in response.
***
Later that night, after a marshmallow roast over the bonfire, Blaine got out
his guitar for the sing-a-long. The best part of LUÕs music fraternityÕs
parties was the sing-a-long. There were always the standards, childrenÕs
songs and whatnot that everyone knew from Girl Sprouts or Boy Sprouts. Then
there were the rock standards, the Beatles and Beach Boys tunes that
everyone knew. Mari loved these, that sort of music being right up her
alley.
When Blaine started playing Fun Fun Fun, his brothers joined right in.
Pretty soon there was a veritable chorus of harmony, with the girls taking
the falsetto parts. Even Daniela knew all the words, which Mari hadnÕt
entirely expected. Tianne, however, on the other side of the fire, was
looking a bit confused. She tended to be more into Christian rock and
hymns. Mari would have to remember to tell her that until the Maharishi
thing, most Sixties band members had been some kind of Christian. It was
the only way to get Tianne to accept anything.
After a couple of standards, Blaine decided to play one of his new songs.
Mari caught her breath. SheÕd rather listen to him, solo, any day, than
harmonize in front of people. But then she caught a Look that he gave her,
and figured sheÕd have to at least give it the old college try or deal with
him pouting for days. So when he got to the chorus, she took a deep breath
and wove her soprano around his high tenor (that sometimes crept into
falsetto range, but weÕre not picking apart the poor guyÕs voice right now).
All conversation died away. Apparently Blaine hadnÕt told anyone about his
songwriting aspirations. Except, perhaps, his brothers, who by the second
verse were humming low harmonies and exactly matching the chord changes.
Daniela listened carefully as well, and joined the boys with her low alto,
although she was a bit more tentative. She was just a kid, for one thing,
and had only met these people today. Also, while a good singer, Daniela
wasnÕt much for figuring out harmonies on her own. However, because of the
solid harmonic foundation Blaine had laid, the result could not have been
anything but spectacular.
Then the bridge threw everyone for a loop. Everyone except Blaine and
Mari, of course, who continued on in a different key and a different time
signature as if nothing had happened. It did register in MariÕs mind that
the bridge had not been in a different key the last time sheÕd heard the
song, but somehow she was entirely able to follow along, as if her mind had
melded with BlaineÕs.
The song was an instant success. As the last chords died away on the
evening breeze, offers came in to help with recording the song in LUÕs
studio. Blaine only smiled shyly and deferred compliments to Mari and their
siblingsÕ singing skills. Acting on impulse once more, Mari leaned over and
kissed Blaine again, this time on the cheek, and whispered, ÒTheyÕre right,
you know. YouÕve got a number one single here.Ó
Blaine handed over the guitar to one of his brothers, who took over playing
and entertaining the masses, while the most musical couple Calypso Beach had
ever seen disappeared into the darkness.
ÒYou should record it,Ó Mari pressed.
ÒI will. But only if youÕll sing on it. And your sister, sheÕs got a good
voice. IÕll have to write something down for her though, I think sheÕs
scared of working on her own.Ó
ÒShe is. WeÕre chorus girls, after all, weÕre used to being bossed around.
Musically, anyway.Ó Mari wrapped her arm around BlaineÕs waist and
slipped her hand in his jeans pocket.
ÒHey, you donÕt belong in there!Ó he protested, just as her fingers found a
ring.
ÒWhatÕs that? Superbowl ring?Ó
ÒVery funny.Ó He fished her hand and the ring out of his pocket and palmed
the ring before she could see it.
ÒAh, a man of mystery,Ó Mari said, for some reason using her ÒGroucho MarxÓ
voice and waggling her eyebrows.
ÒAll will be revealed in due time,Ó Blaine said, continuing on in the goofy
mood, although he didnÕt have MariÕs talent for voices.
ÒOkay. I can wait then.Ó They stopped at a lifeguard chair, and Mari
gazed off into the northern distance. There was a short cliff not far away,
with a few houses breaking up the steady dark green of the trees. Lights
twinkled and reflected in the water. ÒSome day IÕm going to have a house up
there,Ó Mari said, Òthat house.Ó She pointed to the Victorian mansion on
the very tip of Calypso Point.
ÒOkay,Ó Blaine agreed. ÒI drove by there once, itÕs a nice house. Some
old lady lives in there.Ó
ÒCool, maybe sheÕll kick it right when IÕm ready to buy it.Ó Mari stopped,
stricken, and slapped her hand over her mouth. ÒI donÕt mean that! I mean,
not the way it sounded!Ó
Blaine hugged herÑcarefully, remembering the sunburn. ÒItÕs okay, I
understand what you mean.Ó He gestured to the lifeguard chair, indicating
that they should sit there for a while.
Mari agreed, hauling herself up on one side as Blaine climbed up the other.
ÒAre you getting cold at all?Ó he asked, wrapping an arm around her waist.
ÒNah.Ó She leaned into him, resting one arm on his thigh and curling the
other hand behind his knee. ÒBut if ya donÕt mindÉÓ
ÒNot at all. Just let me know if you get chilled, and we can go back to
the fire.Ó
ÒOkay, Daddy.Ó
They sat quietly for a while, and Mari took the time, staring out at the
stars and the ocean, to think. She guessed they were officially ÒtogetherÓ
now, as in dating, as in boyfriend-girlfriend. She hadnÕt dealt with this
kind of official relationship in a couple years, having recently preferred
either being single or ripping her way through male companions before the
relationship could turn serious. It was a bit weird, too, dating someone so
much older than she wasÑnearly four years. It was usually easier to snag a
younger one, manipulate him for a while, then drop him. It was a technique
Daniela was also quite adept at, although they werenÕt sure where it came
from or whether Pandora would eventually develop the same guile. Also,
DaniÕs Òex-boysÓ tended to continue on in what was termed her ÒentourageÓ,
the mixed-gender group of persons dedicated to keeping Dani happy on a daily
basis. MariÕs exes, and Mari herself, would wind up so hurt that they
couldnÕt stand to cross each othersÕ paths for years afterward. She still
had problems with Dava, although that was more due to her mal-usage of a
Love Spell than any real bad feelings. Maybe in a few years, after high
school, they could be friends again. Dava was a real nice guy, smart,
responsible. The kind of guy her parents would have liked her to stay with.
Oh well.
Blaine was actually much along the lines of Dava, all-around nice guy, good
student, former high school track star (of course, Dava was a current track
star). The bonus was that he actually had something in common with Mari,
that being music and the beach. As far as Mari could tell, those were the
only things in the entire world that were even remotely important to her.
Nothing else, except perhaps family and Blaine, could come close. And she
got the feeling, especially the last few days, that Blaine cared about
exactly the same things: music, beach, familyÉ and her.
Suddenly, Mari shivered.
ÒHey, you getting cold?Ó Blaine asked, hugging her a bit more tightly.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, shifting slightly on the chair to
face him better, and replied, ÒNo, I donÕt think so. I just got a bit of a
bad feeling. Bad vibes floating aroundÉÓ She looked around, expecting to
see Dani or Tianne wandering nearby. ÒLike someoneÕs watching us, or
something badÕs going to happen.Ó
ÒDonÕt worry, I wonÕt let anything bad happen. And if anyoneÕs watching
us,Ó he said, raising his voice slightly, Ògo away!Ó
Mari laughed a little, trying to shake the feeling. And, to tell the
truth, it had faded just as soon as it had come. ÒI am feeling a bit
chilly, now that you mention it,Ó she said.
ÒWant to go back to the fire?Ó
ÒMm, not really.Ó
ÒCar?Ó
ÒCar is good,Ó she said, disentangling herself and leaping to the sand.
ÒWell, we always knew Ôcar is goodÕ,Ó Blaine said, smiling. ÒAll cars that
serve their purpose are good.Ó
ÒNot the ones that pollute,Ó Mari said, thoughts of Dream flashing briefly
through her mind.
ÒTrue that.Ó
ÒHey, thatÕs my line! You stole that from me!Ó
ÒYeah, youÕre probably right.Ó Blaine fished in his jeans pockets for his
car keys, intending to put up the top to keep Mari warm.
Daniela ran up to the Corvette before they could get in. ÒMari, itÕs ten
minutes to my curfew!Ó
ÒAw, man,Ó Mari whined. ÒOkay, fine, get Tianne and get in the car. WeÕll
drop her on the way, because sheÕs got the same curfew as you but her
parents are worse with punishment. Plus you can just tell Mom that I was
driving slow to be safe and misjudged the time.Ó
Daniela nodded, already heading back across the sand to collect Tianne and
say goodbye to BlaineÕs brothers.
ÒIÕll be back soon,Ó she said, turning to Blaine and meaning to hug him.
But something stopped her.
A gold something. A circular gold something. With a diamond chip set into
it.
ÒUhÉÓ Mari, for once, was at a loss for words.
ÒI wanted to do this more in private,Ó Blaine said, words coming out in a
rush, Òbut if I didnÕt do it right now I might lose my nerve. And I know
you wonÕt graduate for another year, and I know you donÕt like wearing gold,
but silver just didnÕt seem right, andÑÒ He took a breath while Mari was
still in shock, shook his head. ÒIÕm going to do this right.Ó He bent down
on one knee, took MariÕs hand in his, and said, ÒMarianna, will you marry
me?Ó
A crowd had gathered, which Mari could see in her peripheral vision.
Daniela was standing open-mouthed not even an arms-length away, and BlaineÕs
cousin, who usually had some obnoxious comment to make, was completely
still. But none of that really registered. Even the ring and the question
had barely registered. Thoughts rushed through MariÕs mind at
faster-than-light speeds. What her parents would say, what her friends
would say, what the legal implications wereÉ could she even accept, being
only 16 as she was? Her birthday wasnÕt for another month, and then it
would be another year before she was legalÉ
ÒOkay,Ó she said weakly, her mouth knowing an answer had to come, her heart
knowing that that answer was the right one. Her head was still spinning in
circles, and it was all she could do to keep breathing.
The crowd erupted in cheers. Blaine managed to slip the ring onto MariÕs
finger before leaping up and engulfing her in a hug. This finally broke her
reverie, and she clung tightly to him before realizing her back was in
massive, massive pain.
ÒSunburn!Ó she gasped. Blaine dropped her.
ÒOh, geez, sorry! Oh noÉ are you okay?Ó
ÒMild pain, mild shock,Ó Mari managed to get out. ÒStill have to get Dani
home.Ó
ÒWhatever,Ó Daniela snorted. ÒIÕm not the one whoÕs going to get in
trouble tonight.Ó
ÒShut up,Ó Mari said, moving back into BlaineÕs arms and clinging again.
ÒNothingÕs going to ruin this night for me, not even parents.Ó
***
Next time, you get to find out what Mari's up to "All Summer Long"!