Betty in Jeopardy
My nerves were getting the better of me. I stood in a bright light as my palms began to sweat. Truthfully, I had always wanted to do this. I loved showing off my knowledge of trivia. He was a big factor in everything. Giovanni Rossi always pushed me to do crazy and outrageous things. Once, we stole a Good Citizen trophy. Another time we went swimming in the waterway by jumping off a gondola in Venice. Well, there was another time when we got back…he pushed me to write. However, this had to be the craziest idea he ever pushed me to try.
"You'll do great, I promise." He said as he held my face between his hands.
I smiled encouragingly as he hugged me. "Well I have you to thank." I kissed him passionately as he tightened his grip on me.
"Maybe after this, you could thank me properly?" He grinned and raised his eyebrows. It was the suggestive look he always left for me.
"Unless I meet and fall for Peter, the guy over there…he's Greek and he makes gyros. It kind of gives sandwiches a run for their money." I wrinkled my nose at him.
"Leave me for gyros and see what happens." He threatened and kissed me one last time.
"I'm nervous…Gio…I can't believe you talked me into this." I looked down at my hands, but they weren't empty. Gio rested his hands in mine. Suddenly, I felt comforted.
"Good luck." He motioned to the door. "I get a special reserved seating for this event. Do you know what you're going to say when he asks?" Gio gave me a cautious look.
"It's the most interesting story I ever have…and the most meaningful. See you later." I smiled as we embraced another time and he exited through the door.
"Betty…Suarez…you need to go take your place." A guy with a headset beckoned me to follow.
I wandered onto the familiar stage and made my way up to the stand. The familiar blue TV screens made me feel butterflies in my stomach. I looked over at Gio and smiled. He was the reason I was doing this. He flexed his muscle with one arm in a 90 degree way. It reminded me of the time I told Daniel that Gio was my boyfriend, way…way back in the day in order to score Wicked tickets.
"…This is Jeopardy!" The announcer called. He suddenly brought me back to reality. I nervously watched Alex Trebek out of the corner of my eyes. He hadn't entered yet for his cue. Suddenly, they called out the first name.
"Please welcome out first guest. A gyro shop owner from Burbank, California: Peter Kintos." The crowd applauded him.
"Our next guest is an assistant to the Editor in Chief of Mode magazine from New York, New York: Betty Suarez." I grinned proudly as she received applause. I could vaguely make out Amanda and Marc who decided to wear cheerleading outfits, and came because Daniel made them. Plus, Amanda had a crush on Alex.
"Finally, our returning champion with a cash winning total of 13,400 is a day care worker from Honolulu, Hawaii: Christina Evans." The crowd applauded her. I looked over at her as she smiled with pride. I suddenly gulped.
After what felt like a century, Alex came out and introduced the categories. I had my buzzer ready as the first round of Jeopardy began. I managed to come in second as we went to commercial break. I was ready for the introductions. Peter went first and told some lame story about how his gyros were eaten by George Bush. Then came me.
"So, Betty, I hear you have an interesting story about how you met a special someone. Did I read this right…you got him fired?" Alex chuckled.
"Well yes. One day I was working at Mode and I went to order a sandwich. Well he was cute and funny, but a tad bit annoying. He didn't make my sandwich the right way and so I told my boss Daniel about it and he ended up getting fired." I smiled. "The best part of that was that we ended up on good terms. We've had our moments. He's even been my pretend boyfriend…but we really hit it off when we were both chaperoning my nephew's dance." I suddenly remembered Justin. "Oh…Mr. Trebek…my nephew Justin is a big fan…can you sign this…" I realized it wasn't the best time as I handed Alex Trebek the only thing I could find: a napkin from Gio's. I looked over as Gio gave me that "don't embarrass yourself look" and grinned at him.
"Alright…and our final contestant…" Alex went on to Christina from Hawaii.
Although I didn't win the game, I came out with something more important. I learned to take more risks, partially thanks to Gio. Sometimes you need a little push and shove, and Gio liked to push very hard.
"Betty…look at you…you're hot stuff tonight!" Gio bit his bottom lip and grabbed my waist.
"Gio, I'm glad you're the guy." I smiled as he pulled me close. He just gave me that all knowing look, but said nothing. His eyes told me all that I needed to know. He knew he was the guy.