Blind Date

by Bruce Richards

  There was a trail of blood across the kitchen floor.

  "Mom!" Alicia dropped her book bag. "I told you to be careful." Alicia yanked the roll of paper towels down from above the kitchen sink and tore off a large section.

  "It's only a small cut," her mother said, though the blood was dripping steadily, and she made no attempt to stop its flow. Alicia quickly wrapped the paper towel around the bloody finger and raised her mother's arm above her head. The paper seemed to suck even more blood out of the wound till it was red and dripping as well.

  Scott hit the horn again.

  "Why does he do that?" Mrs. Norris asked tensely.

  Alicia wished she knew. If he didn't stop she was going to kill him, she swore to herself. "Is it bad?" she asked her mother as she applied pressure to the cut.

  "I already told you it wasn't," her mother muttered with a pained expression.

  "Are you sure?" Alicia asked.

  Her mother mumbled yes. Hesitantly, Alicia lowered her mother's arm and let go of her bloody hand. She picked up her book bag then and glanced back one more time as she left to join Scott who was waiting impatiently in his clunky 65 Chevy Impala convertible.

  Alicia wiped blood off her own hand onto the back of her jeans as she hurried over to the car. As soon as she caught sight of Scott, all thoughts of her mother were forgotten. Alicia was dating the most handsome boy at Springwood High, and she still could hardly believe it.

  " 'Bout time, Ali," Scott said, as she slid into the front seat. He leaned over to kiss her, but she pulled away. Even though the sight of Scott was enough to weaken her knees, Alicia was still angry that he hadn't been more considerate and honked just once to let her know he was there.

  "Uh oh," Scott said, putting the car into reverse and backing down the driveway. "What'd I do this time?" The convertible top was down, despite the dark storm clouds Alicia saw on the horizon.

  Alicia was opening her mouth to tell him what was bugging her when a foul odor filled her nostrils. "Yuck! What's that smell?"

  "It wasn't me," Scott said automatically.

  Alicia suppressed a smile. It was hard to stay mad at Scott. Still, she thought she should stay mad at him for a little while. She tried to keep the frown on her face, which wasn't hard given the smell emanating from somewhere inside the car.

  "So, what's bothering you this morning?" Scott asked, giving her a seductive look with his sapphire eyes.

  "Your car stinks!" She reached for her seatbelt.

  Scott shrugged. "It's an old car."

  Before Alicia could fasten her seatbelt, Scott shifted into first and gave the car plenty of gas. The car shot forward and Alicia fell back against her seat.

  Scott slammed hard on the brakes then and tires screeched as Alicia pitched forward, helpless.

  She didn't even have time to scream as her forehead met the windshield.

  Chapter 2

  Scott shot out a muscular forearm to stop her momentum, but he was too late.

  "Whoa," he said as the car stalled out. "Stupid cat," Scott cursed. "You all right?"

  "Yeah," she said, though her heart was pounding and her head was already throbbing.

  Then she saw the big black cat as it ran out from in front of the car and around to her side.

  "Ignatius!" Alicia yelled at the sleek, black cat. "You almost got run over."

  Ignatius stopped and looked back at her with an inquisitive green eye. Its other eye had been lost years ago in a fight with an alley cat.

  "Is that ugly cat out of my way yet?" Scott asked, leaning over toward Alicia's side to look. He came so close to her that she could smell his Juicy Fruit chewing gum.

  Suddenly he gave her a wet smack on the lips.

  Alicia pushed him away. "Can't you ever be serious?" she asked. "I'm going to have a gigantic bruise on my head, and you almost hit Tiffany's cat." Tiffany Clark was Alicia's neighbor. They were also in the same class at Springwood High.

  "That cat is so ugly I'd be doing Tiffany a favor." Then Scott laughed softly to himself. "It's probably trying to get away from Evan."

  Alicia scowled. "Don't start." Scott was usually a nice guy, Alicia knew, but something about Evan brought out the mean streak in him. It was a side of her boyfriend Alicia didn't like to see.

  Scott removed the wad of gum from his mouth, rolled it into a tight, dry ball, and flicked it away in the direction Ignatius had run.

  "Why do you always pick on Evan?" Alicia asked, giving Scott a sour look. She didn't really expect an answer, and Scott ignored her question.

  He restarted the car and slapped the stick shift into first. "Man, you're crabby this morning!" Then he hit the gas pedal, and they roared off.

  He's right, Alicia realized. She did feel crabby. And it wasn't just because Scott had honked his horn more than once or Mom had cut herself. Alicia rubbed her sleepy eyes. She really hadn't slept well. Maybe that was it.

  They drove down Elm Street, past Evan's house. In the driveway the hearse was idling, the driver's door wide open.

  The hearse… A fragment of Alicia's dream returned, then disappeared again. She glanced back over her shoulder to see if Evan was in the driver's seat, but the door of the hearse closed before she could get a good look.

  "What were you saying before about Evan?" Alicia asked, trying to recall more of her nightmare.

  "Huh?"

  "Something about cats." An image of Evan holding a cat entered her mind. Had she really seen that last night, or only dreamt it, she wondered.

  "Well… nah — I can't tell you. It's too sick." Scott's smile was a challenge.

  "Get real, Scott. I'm not a baby," Alicia said with more confidence than she felt. Sometimes Scott really did gross her out — big time.

  "You don't really want to know," Scott said with a shrug. "You told me once that you don't like to hear stuff like that."

  "I said I don't like to hear people say mean things about Evan Walker. Especially things that aren't true," Alicia countered.

  "Are you really sure you want to hear about it?" Scott smiled innocently.

  Alicia paused. She knew Scott was baiting her, but she had to hear it anyway. "Yes," she finally said, then prepared herself for the worst.

  "I heard Evan was cutting off cats' heads and sticking them on poles," Scott said matter-of-factly. "He has them stuck all over his backyard."

  "That is such a crock of…" Alicia shook her head in disgust. Then she remembered something. "I know where you got that."

  "Got what?"

  "That story. It's from a TV special last week. There was a rumor about that serial killer Eric Betz, from when he was a teenager."

  "Hey, I thought you didn't get into that kind of stuff."

  "I don't. I was flipping through the channels and just happened to hear that part."

  "Hey, I've got news for you, Alicia, that was no rumor," Scott said. "Betz was a sick dude."

  "So you admit you saw it on TV?" Alicia persisted.

  "Yeah. So what?"

  "See — I knew it!" Alicia was triumphant. She had caught Scott in a bold-faced lie about Evan.

  "Knew what?" Scott asked, feigning innocence.

  "That Evan didn't do what you said he did. You started that rumor about him and the cats." Alicia was tight lipped. Evan wasn't exactly a "regular guy," but he certainly wasn't a serial killer, thank God.

  "C'mon. The guy is definitely weird. Why else would he drive around in a hearse?"

  Alicia shrugged. "Some people like antique cars. Besides, it's not even his car. It belongs to his uncle. And it probably runs better than this old rust bucket of yours," she said, giving the car interior a kick with her sneaker.

  Scott winced as her foot hit the car. His eyes narrowed. "Just what is bugging you this morning?"

  "Well, since you asked, I don't like you honking the horn so much when you come to pick me up in the morning. It scares my mother." Alicia ran her fingers through her windblown auburn hair.

  "Everything scare
s your mother."

  "Why can't you just wait till I come out? Or come in to get me?"

  "Because then I'd have to talk to your mother."

  "Ha, ha. Very funny." Alicia cringed. She knew her mother was in bad shape, but she hated the thought that her friends knew it too.

  "Besides, Coach called an early practice and I'm in a hurry," Scott continued, oblivious to the hurt he'd just caused Alicia.

  As they drove past Fred Krueger's old, abandoned house, Alicia thought again about her nightmare. Had she dreamt about Freddy Krueger?

  Alicia noticed that the for sale sign in the overgrown front yard was tilted at an odd angle.

  Who would buy that thing? she wondered.

  No grass could possibly survive through the weeds, and no birds could possibly be interested in the withered, dead trees. It was a house only a rat could love.

  A real eyesore.

  Even if a potential buyer didn't know the history of the house, it looked so spooky and uninviting that she couldn't imagine any normal family showing interest in it. Not for long, anyway.

  "Ali, I wonder about you sometimes," Scott said, out of the blue.

  "You wonder about me?" Alicia said sarcastically. "Why? Because I'm the only one who sticks up for Evan Walker?"

  "Yep."

  "What's wrong with that?" Alicia asked defensively. But she was glad that Scott didn't answer. She really didn't want to fight with him. "Hey, there's Ellen and Johnny walking up the sidewalk," she said to change the subject.

  Even in gray sweats Ellen looked gorgeous. She was probably on her way to the gym to work on her cheerleading routine for the audition.

  Something I should be doing if I want to be captain, Alicia thought.

  Most guys drooled over Ellen. In addition to her flowing blonde hair and bronzed body, Ellen had a gorgeous set of oval-shaped green eyes over perfectly shaped high cheekbones. The rest of her was well shaped, too.

  Funny that Ellen couldn't do better than Johnny Murphy, Alicia thought forlornly, noticing that Ellen seemed to be checking Scott out.

  "Didn't you say Miss Wilson is choosing a cheerleader captain this morning?" Scott asked, interrupting Alicia's silent fit of jealousy.

  "Yes," Alicia said. "Ms. Wilson is choosing a captain."

  "And Ellen Sawyer is your main competition, right?"

  "Yeah. So?" Alicia asked, afraid of what Scott's opinion might be.

  "So — why don't we just get rid of her?" Scott veered the convertible off the road and onto the sidewalk.

  Alicia screamed as the car bore down on Ellen and Johnny.

  Chapter 3

  At the last moment, Scott cut the wheel and Johnny and Ellen jumped off to the side.

  "What are you, nuts or something?" Johnny yelled angrily. He dropped his gym bag and in one quick step was at the car. Alicia saw a gleaming flash as Johnny whipped a switchblade from the pocket of his brown leather bomber jacket. In one smooth motion, he flicked open the blade and stuck the point of the knife right in Scott's face.

  Alicia gasped. Her eyes were glued to the red dragon carved on the knife handle.

  Johnny was a solid, stocky boy, a third-string receiver on the Springwood Night Owls football team. He had thick, black hair, and dark, sharply-chiseled features. A lot of girls seemed to find him attractive, but Alicia thought he looked like a weasel.

  Johnny and Ellen had been dating for only a few weeks, but Alicia had a feeling that their relationship wasn't going to last much longer. Ellen liked to play the field, and Johnny was the jealous type. It was a dangerous combination. Alicia only hoped that Ellen's next conquest wouldn't be Scott.

  Scott didn't flinch. "One day you're going to pull that little knife number on the wrong person, Murphy." Scott shut off the car's engine. Apparently he didn't care that he was parked on someone's lawn.

  With a smirk Johnny put the knife away. Then his hand shot out as he tried to slap Scott playfully in the face. Scott batted his friend's hand away and the boys shadow boxed for a minute as the girls looked on.

  "You're both crazy," Alicia said, relieved that the tense moment was over. "I thought you said you were in a hurry," she reminded Scott.

  The boys finally stopped goofing around.

  "Hey, you walking today?" Scott asked Johnny.

  "No, we're flying, genius," Johnny said sarcastically.

  "My MG's being tuned; I'm picking it up right after Ms. Wilson names the cheerleading captain," Ellen said, giving Alicia a sly look. "I don't know what's the matter with Johnny's heap this time."

  "It's not a heap, it's a Jeep, and I'll have it running by tomorrow, all right?" Johnny said.

  "But you were supposed to pick Boomer up," Scott reminded his friend. "We've got an early practice this morning."

  "Why don't you guys just pool your money and get one car that runs," Alicia joked.

  "Why don't you just walk everywhere from now on," Scott shot back.

  Alicia was about to tell Scott off when she noticed Ellen smiling at him.

  "So where's Boomer?" Scott asked Johnny.

  "Probably still waiting for me to pick him up," Johnny said with a shrug.

  "I'd better go get him," Scott said, glancing at his watch. "Coach will freak if Boomer's late for another practice." He started the car up. "See you later."

  "Not if I see you first," Johnny countered, reaching into the car to flick Scott's nose. Scott swatted Johnny's hand away as the car roared off, leaving twin treadmarks on someone's neatly manicured lawn.

  Scott glanced at his watch and gave the car more gas. The Chevy struggled to pick up speed. "I hope Boomer's not fooling around with Tiffany somewhere. We could both get booted off the team for being late."

  "I wouldn't worry about it," Alicia said as she tested her seatbelt. "You and Boomer are his two best players. The coach wouldn't dare cut you from the squad."

  "Maybe not, but I'll for sure have to do extra laps in full gear if I'm late. Not even star quarterbacks get a break."

  As they raced back down Elm Street, Alicia spotted Boomer. "There he is!"

  "Where?"

  "Beating up Evan," she said, pointing to Evan's driveway.

  Scott swung the steering wheel hard and the car shot up Evan's driveway. He hurtled himself out over the car door and ran over to where Boomer had Evan in a headlock.

  "Let's break it up, dude," Scott said to Boomer, trying to pry Boomer's arm away from Evan's neck. "We're gonna be late for practice."

  But Boomer was intent on what he was doing. With his free arm, Boomer shoved Scott away. Evan's face was turning blue. His eyes were practically bugging out of their sockets. Evan gurgled as a length of pink drool dribbled out his mouth.

  "Boomer… stop!" Alicia screamed. "You're killing him!"

  Chapter 4

  But Boomer didn't stop. Alicia bolted from the car and kicked Boomer in the leg as hard as she could.

  Boomer dropped Evan like a sack of potatoes and grabbed his knee. "What'd you do that for!" Boomer bellowed at her. "That's the knee I had the cartilage taken out of." He limped up and down Evan's driveway trying to shake it off. His frizzy red hair bobbed up and down. "If you messed my knee up, Ali, I am gonna be some kind of serious pissed off."

  "You were killing him!" Alicia yelled right back at him. "Can't you pick on someone your own size, you big ape?"

  Boomer Harrison was solid as a brick wall. He was Springwood High's bullish fullback, a sizable chunk of beef, probably twice Evan's size.

  Tiffany Clark stood a short distance from Boomer, wearing his letter jacket. Tiffany and Boomer had dated for as long as Alicia could remember. Tiffany was short, like Alicia, but more curvaceous. Like Alicia and Ellen, Tiffany was a cheerleader. She kept her dark curly hair cut ultrashort, like a model in Seventeen magazine. Dangling on top of her tight sweater was a silvery crucifix.

  Alicia thought Tiffany and Boomer made an odd couple because of the difference in their sizes. But she supposed the same thing could be said about he
r and Scott.

  Evan was lying on his back on the ground, still blue in the face, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.

  Alicia knelt at Evan's side and gently slapped his face, trying to revive him. "He can't breathe!" Alicia yelled. "Someone call an ambulance!" She'd never forgive herself if he died this way.

  "Why don't you give him mouth-to-mouth, Ali," Boomer teased.

  Evan rolled over on his hands and knees then, gasping in greedy lungfuls of air. He seemed to be okay.

  "What is your problem, Boomer?" Alicia asked angrily; "Don't you get enough rough stuff on the football field?"

  "My problem is him," Boomer said, pointing a beefy finger at Evan. "That little creep made me fail my biology test."

  Evan picked up his big, dark-framed «nerd» glasses and rose shakily to his feet. He examined the spectacles carefully before slipping them on.

  "How'd he do that, big guy?" Scott asked.

  "He knows Boomer copies off him, so he flunked on purpose so Boomer would flunk, too," Tiffany said.

  "On purpose!" Boomer yelled. He flexed his damaged knee gingerly.

  Scott shook his head sympathetically. "Did you really do that, Evan?"

  Evan didn't respond, and Boomer made a move toward him. Alicia was afraid Boomer was going to hit him again. Evan didn't even try to get away.

  Alicia wondered if Evan took secret pleasure in getting beaten up. He never defended himself. But then again, what chance would a nerd like Evan have against a boy twice his size?

  "Come on, man," said Scott. "Let's get to practice." He patted Boomer's shoulder and climbed into the driver's seat. Boomer slid in opposite him, still massaging his knee.

  "What happened to Johnny?" Boomer asked.

  "Car trouble," Scott said.

  "He could've called," Boomer complained.

  "You know how he is," Scott said.

  Alicia climbed into [he backseat with Tiffany. She glanced over at Evan who stared back at her with the look of a wounded animal. As usual, she felt sorry for him, but there wasn't anything she could do about it now. Or was there? No, not if she wanted to keep Scott.