Emergency?
“If you ever feel like your life is in danger, open it,” he smiled. “I don’t care what day it is, I’ll come.” He closed it for me. “Never open it unless a day like that comes. Most likely it won’t but, I give those to my closest friends.”
Closest friend. I held the ring. It was a fat ring, he was right, and not really my style at all. I never wore rings, but I would wear this one every day of my life because he gave it to me. “Thank you. I’ll remember.” I smiled as I heard a honk.
I hopped off the hood as I saw them pull up. I said goodbye to Candace and Vinnie, then headed over to my parents. When I got in the car, my mom gave me a delightful look. “How was your time, dear?” She winked knowingly.
For the first time, my father caught that playful wink. As he turned around and looked at me at the back seat, I knew my easy meetings with Mister Fourth of July were over.
“A BOY? SOME BOY?” MY father kept asking me over and over what was wrong with me. “You see a particular boy once a year? You wanted to ditch me and your mother for your birthday, for a stupid boy?”
“He’s not stupid,” I defended him. “He’s just a friend, but I can only see him once a year.”
“I don’t buy it.” My father was angry, and my mother couldn’t help calm him down. “You ditched us not for your friend, not for a party. You ditched us for a boy.”
“He’s nineteen, so he isn’t just a boy.” I couldn’t help but be a little snarkish as I crossed my arms.
“You are over reacting,” my mom tried to help me again. “If Alicia wanted a boy’s attention, she wouldn’t have gone with a generic one-piece bathing suit.”
“Bathing suit?” My father suddenly remembered the pool Candace had. Mom’s lie about the bathing suit didn’t save me. “You went swimming with this boy, didn’t you?”
Okay. My dad was pushing too far. “He’s only a friend. A friend, why don’t you understand it’s just a friend?”
“Because ‘just a friend’ wouldn’t get that wink from your mom,” my dad said knowingly. “This ends now, this cute little affair. If this boy was more...” He paused before he continued. “If he was actually around, if he lived around here, okay? Alright, I would be more open. I know you are growing up and should even be dating. This boy though, you see him once a year.” My dad crossed his arms. “By now, you should be asking permission for dating. Are you hooked on this boy so much that you haven’t been?”
“I don’t like anyone around here,” I insisted. “Dad, I am not in the mood to date.” I tried to clinch it, but I think I was too late. Even my mom gave me a sympathetic frown.
“There is no way that you are going back there next year,” my dad declared. “You will stay right in this yard, pop off firecrackers, have some birthday cake, and you will not see this boy again.”
Not see him again? Okay, that was it. I stood up, and I couldn’t hold it back anymore. “You don’t control my life, dad, I’m not a kid anymore!” I looked over at my mom for support, but she didn’t want to overstep the line for me. “Mom?”
“You know, maybe dating would be a good idea,” she said. I almost heard my independence breaking. She was starting to see my dad’s side of the story. “Honey, please? I know you like the boy, but it is once a year. Your crush is only once a year, there’s no reason you can’t try and date.”
Forget it, my mom was entirely on his side too. “I don’t want to date.”
“No?” My dad took a deep breath. “Fine, then you aren’t going next year.”
“I’m not going anyway,” I reminded him. “You just forbid me.”
“Don’t get smart with me, young lady,” I can’t believe my dad came back with that lame, old line. “Next year, if you want to go to that party, you will have to bring a date. “
“Oh, wonderful idea,” My mom encouraged. “See? You could still have fun with your friends, and your father and I could have our lovely private party again.” She winked over at him before turning her attention back to me. “You could go ahead and ogle the boy,” she laughed, “when your boyfriend isn’t looking. You would have a much better grip of reality if you had someone around to keep you on your feet.”
And that was the beginning of the hard times. It wasn’t bad enough that I got to see Vinnie once a year. My family was going to force me to date someone too.
Chapter Five: Twenty
~Alicia~
Throughout the year, my family didn’t manage to get me too many dates. I set high standards for myself, that hardly anyone fit my type. I did that on purpose, but when my mom figured out that I wasn’t attracted to only guys with high IQ levels while being hunky and nerdy at the same time, my choices had to open. I ended up getting stuck with two guys. Both were okay, but neither one was what I genuinely wanted.
In fact, I never actually dumped them. I couldn’t get away with that, but they ended up dumping me. It’s hard to be with someone once you figure out that they are not that into you. I was sorry about that, I mean they were decent guys, but I just didn’t care that way. July was sneaking up on me though, and I lost my last boyfriend in early May. If I didn’t have a boyfriend for the party, I couldn’t go. If I wasn’t continually dating in the meantime, I wouldn’t get to go next year.
So, I had to find a new solution. I had a part time job at a fast food restaurant, so I had a little cash saved. I found a decent guy, someone that wasn’t spiffy but wouldn’t disappoint my dad either. Then, I paid him. Yeah, that’s right. I paid him to be my dumb date for the party.
Telling someone you wanted to pay them to have fun in a pool, eat excellent food and shoot fireworks shouldn’t cost that much, but when they know it’s vital, it becomes harder. I could have tried the fake approach and pretend I liked this guy, but I didn’t want to get involved or break another heart.
Instead, I broke my wallet. Fifty bucks solid for half a day. The entire night would cost a hundred. Dad expected to see him at the end, so I didn’t have much choice. I gave him fifty bucks at the start, and I promised him the other fifty at the end.
When Candace opened the door and saw my date for the party, she was ecstatic. Yeah, even my own best friend thought dating would be better for me.
“Come on in,” she said anxiously. “Pool is out in the back.”
I knew last year to put my bathing suit on beneath my clothes this time, so I just walked out back. Then, there he was. Every year I swear he got more gorgeous. I wondered how many drooled over him each day. That hair, those hazel eyes, and some cutoff jeans as a makeshift swimsuit.
~Mister Fourth of July~
It was worth it. The wait to see her again. Damn, twenty, and she got more beautiful every time I saw her. I got out of the pool and wanted to run, but the ground was wet. I did a walk between a trot and a run that some of the family laughed at. “Miss Fourth of July, how are you?” I held out my hand, waiting for hers in return. I shook it gently, not being able to help feeling how smooth and soft her skin had been. “Ready to go for a swim?” This year, Kyle wasn’t going to mess up a thing, I made that line clear to him. He was all the way on the other side of the pool from us. This year, it’d just be me and her.
“Hey.”
That’s when everything fell apart. A guy I didn’t know was standing next to Alicia. He sauntered up to me and shook my hand. It couldn’t be.
“I’m Alec. I’m Alicia’s boyfriend. Why are you calling her Miss Fourth of July?” He asked curiously.
Boyfriend. Boyfriend? “Boyfriend.” My words were tight, I couldn’t lose tension. “Candace never told me that she had a boyfriend.”
“For a hundred bucks,” Alicia added out of nowhere. She gestured toward him like he was something she scraped off the bottom of her foot. “My dad said I had to bring a date. Alec is here as my date, for a hundred bucks.”
The tension disappeared altogether. “But, you’re kidding? Your dad told you that you had to bring a date?”
She told me that her dad
was a disturbed psycho who wanted her safe from any guy at the party. Now that we both felt better about Alec’s true identity, I could finally relax. Alec went for a swim as we rounded the corner of the house. It had been a year since I had been able to talk to her.
~Alicia~
We could have walked all over town, never saying a word, and we’d be okay. Words weren’t always needed between us. As we walked past Candace’s garden, Vinnie bent down and grabbed a couple of cherry tomatoes. He turned the hose on beside it and rinsed them off. I watched as he stood up and held one out to me. I laughed as he popped one in my mouth. I grabbed the other one and held it out to him. He opened his mouth and I popped it in his.
It was the best cherry tomato I ever tasted.
“Hey!” Alec came around the side and looked at me. “Are you going to come to the pool? Can you at least explain about the paid situation because I am picking up some interest.”
“Interest?” I didn’t know whether Vinnie wanted to punch him or laugh at first until he patted his shoulder. “Go after Candace, she’ll be more of your type.” He just gestured behind Alec as my paid boyfriend made his way out. “Really, a hundred bucks? You are paying him a hundred bucks to hang out at a party?”
I didn’t know what to say at that moment. Yes, I’m that desperate? “I followed the rules, but nobody said I had to like the guy I came with.”
“Good. I mean-” Vinnie corrected himself. “Fine. I like it this way better. Less time wondering when we’ll shoot off firecrackers or get a chance to talk. Oh, the pool. I haven’t even let you go swimming yet.”
I shrugged. “You could steal me away all day if you want.” After I said those words, I regretted them. It was the truth. I’d much rather spend all day with him than do anything else. I didn’t want to drive his friendship away though. Candace made a clear reminder last year. He could have a girlfriend for all I know.
That awkward moment was interrupted when Candace came around the corner. She didn’t look happy as she saw the pair of us. “So, you paid Alec to be here? A hundred bucks?” She scoffed, and half smiled. “That is rude, and brilliant at the same time. I don’t like that you faked it for my party, but my gosh, that is the lowest burn you could ever give your dad,” she laughed. “Come on, let’s go. The pool calls.” She grabbed my hand away from Vinnie’s, and we ran over to the pool.
Already having my swimsuit on beneath, I shrugged my shorts off and peeled off my little top. I jumped in the water and joined Candace in a friendly game of splashing each other. Vinnie came back to the water and joined us too.
“You should pay me to not tell your dad too,” Candace teased me. “I need some money.”
I laughed. “You wish. You’re not going to tell him.”
“I should,” she said. “Really. How hard is it to find a regular guy?”
“Hey.” Alec came over to me, noticing my swimsuit. “You took me for surprise.” He looked at my swimsuit again. “Usually pretty quiet, tucked in the back of the class.”
I couldn’t help a deep frown, I mean a real, deep frown that spooky clowns wore in movies. “What are you doing?”
“Nothing,” he lied. “You just look mighty nice in that suit. I was wondering, did you actually want to go out with me without paying? Cause if you were just nervous-”
“She wasn’t,” Vinnie interrupted him as his game of splash interrupted Alec’s face. In fact, it really interrupted his face. Alec looked like he’d got hit with a wave of water out of nowhere. “She needed her obsessive-compulsive dad to back off, that’s all.”
Alec and Vinnie stared each other down as Candace grabbed my hand. We left the pool and headed inside. “You can help me set the table,” she said not mentioning what was going on between Alec and Vinnie.
I took napkins and silverware, then laid it out at each spot until something made me pause. Our old joke of Miss and Mister Fourth of July was gone this year. Our seats were marked Alicia and Vinnie. Okay, it could have been a one-time joke, but I was seated on the far left. Vinnie was set at the end of the right side. “Is this seating arrangement, right?”
Candace didn’t bother looking up. “I set you next to your boyfriend.”
I bit my lip. “Why so far away from-“
“It’s dinner, and you don’t need to be beside my cousin,” she finished before groaning. “Look, Alicia, I’m not going to lie. You see him once a year. The other years were okay, and last year it was even kind of cute.” She set down a plastic glass. “You don’t know the world he is from. Your little crush is out of control. I know my cousin is a hero and attractive, but I mean, you just paid a guy a hundred bucks to come here to pose as a boyfriend. Why didn’t you get a real one? Alec was clearly interested without money if that last little scene is any indicator.” She set the next plastic glass down a little roughly. “Stop ogling my cousin, it won’t lead to good things.”
I didn’t say a word as I finished setting the table.
“Next year, I think you shouldn’t come to my family’s party,” Candace spit out. “I like you Alicia, and you are my best friend. I care about you though, and this isn’t healthy anymore. I thought you had asked to bring a real boyfriend.” She shrugged. “Just don’t come around next year. You can see him at the fairgrounds, like you used to, but that’s it.”
I froze as she said all that. I couldn’t lay down one more piece of silverware as I felt unwelcome tears starting to surface.
“Oh geez, don’t cry!” Candace whined as she saw me. “He’s just my cousin, you meet him once a year. Why did you have to fall so deep?”
I couldn’t take it anymore, and I ran to her room. I shut the door behind me and cried. Why did I have to fall so deep? I didn’t think I did anything to egg it on. I liked him for so long, it was hard to pinpoint when I honestly did first fall. Ever since he was a skinny boy with nothing but a little muscle shirt, sitting on a hood of a car, I was lost to him. It wasn’t something I chose; I couldn’t help it. It wasn’t because he was a hero. It wasn’t because he was super attractive.
A lot of people don’t believe in love at first sight, but that’s what it was. Ever since then, he’s haunted my dreams. The boy I couldn’t get close to, and the man I could never be with. I loved him, before I even knew what love was, and it was killing me inside.
Why did I have to have a soul mate if I could never be with him? My dad, my mom, and now my best friend wouldn’t let me see him. It was one day a year, I never asked for anything else! I never asked for more days, I never asked if he liked me. I just wanted one day a year to see him. They wouldn’t even let me have that.
The fairgrounds from now on, that was all I would have. It wasn’t much, nine minutes maybe? It was still something though, and the only moment I had left. I tried to dry my eyes so I could go back down. This would be the last Fourth of July party I would have with him, and as much as it hurt, I couldn’t let what little time was left pass me by.
My heart hurt so much that I swore I just hiccupped a little bubble.
Chapter Six: The Secret of the Bubbles
~Mister Fourth of July~
“You!”
I looked behind me at Candace. I was having a small talk with Alec when my cousin grabbed my arm and dragged me away. “What the f . . . heck is your problem?”
“My problem?” Candace jutted a finger at me. “That was supposed to be Candace’s boyfriend. You were supposed to get mad, then upset, then get over her.” She crossed her arms. “You two are ridiculous. Don’t act like you don’t remember what happened with Kyle last year, he told me.”
Tattle tale. I shrugged, playing innocent. “It just got out of control. He survived.”
“Don’t give me that ‘he survived’ crap,” she said as she gestured to Alec. “When Alec showed up, you were ready to punch him. Now that he’s actually showing interest in Alicia, you’re about ready to fight him again.”
I was not. I didn’t think so. Maybe partly. He probably did something criminal I cou
ld pin on him.
“You don’t fight like this on Earth, Vinnie. You don’t pick fights. This planet is different, you know that. When you are around Alicia, you go crazy whenever you think someone is interested in her.” She held her hand up to me. “I uninvited her next year.”
Uninvited? All I had was a fairground goodbye from now on? “You can’t do that,” I protested.
“I invited her for you, but I don’t care how much you beg. I’m sorry what happened to you, Vinnie, but no more.” Candace was getting tears in her eyes. “You better not do anything. Leave my best friend alone.” She punched me hard on the shoulder. “She can’t be with you, she stays on Earth, so get it through your thick skull!” She marched off.
I stood there. Maybe she was right. Whatever thing was between us, it was driving both of us insane. I rarely got into fights because of my own actions, and I was about to get into another one for her. I didn’t want to stop seeing her though. I threw my towel on the ground in frustration. No one understood! I didn’t pick this. Whenever I wasn’t around her, I felt like I was underwater diving deeper by the day. I could come up for air when I was around her. I was no poet, I could never explain, and no one could understand.
I couldn’t even understand.
~Alicia~
I found him on the side of the house, gazing at the tomatoes. I approached him slowly with my hands a little tucked behind my back. “Looking at tomatoes again?”
“Yeah.” He didn’t sound well. “They sure are tasty. Juicy, healthy for me, and if it was my garden, I’d take care of it. I can’t have them though, so I better not pluck anything.” He turned back around but didn’t meet me eye to eye. “Let’s go inside and get something to eat, Alicia.”
Everyone was delighted and having a terrific time, chatting back and forth across the meal. Vinnie and I were both picking at our foods. I knew what my problem was, but what was his? This would be the last time we’d spend more than a few minutes together each year, and I wanted him to be happy. It was selfish, but his smiling face was what I wanted to remember until next year.
Alien Mister Fourth of July Page 4
