From the first day I laid eyes on her, I knew that she would be something else. It took me a while to gain the courage to actually go and ask her name. She moved in a few houses down, in the quaint little suburbs that had sprouted on the outskirts of the main city. I always saw her, riding around in her bike. I never saw her in a dress, like the other girls back then. She also never wore her hair like the others, or acted like them. She was always very quiet, sitting on her front steps and painting when she wasn't riding her bike. That first day I saw her, she wore khaki shorts, much like the guys, a white top and a pink sweater. Her lovely auburn hair was tied in a ponytail fastened by a pink hair-tie with an exotic looking flower. Her café au lait eyes spoke more often than her soft, pink lips. After a few days of watching her silently paint her surroundings, I puffed up my chest, straightened my hat, and walked up to her.
"Peter, am I you are hello?" I stammered after making my wobbly promenade to her. She gave me a blank look, her eyes barely lifted from her sketchbook. I cleared my throat and took off my hat, trying again. "Hi, miss! My name is Peter! What's yours?" I tried to ignore the strange sensation in my cheeks that only happened when my aunt pinched them, or when the girls in class said they liked my sailor suit. She gave me another glance, her pouty pink lips barely parting as she spoke words that flowed like the traces of honey in her eyes.
"Paula…" She muttered. The sweetest sound I had ever heard! Paula! What a name! Sweeter than a double-chocolate milkshake at Sammy's soda shop! I smiled from ear to ear and after a few seconds of awkwardly pondering the mystery of her name, I sat next to her on the steps.
"Paula eh? So uh…you like it here at Sunny Seas Suburbs?" I asked, still grinning like a madman. She simply shrugged and went back to painting the identical row of pastel colored houses in front of her. "So…uh…Paula! Uh…you wanna…uh…come…uh…watch me and the guys play baseball?" I asked. I anxiously twisted my hat into a pretzel as I awaited her answer. Finally after some thirty fateful seconds, she shrugged and went back to painting. I ran back to my circle of friends, ecstatic that this wonderful angel had said yes.
As I was the youngest in the group, I was not to well known. My circle of friends consisted of a few guys in leather jackets, each a few years older than me. The only one who really accepted me was a boy by the name of Raivis. He still never really recognized me as part of the group, but at least he talked to me. Raivis was a bit of an enigma himself. People said that he escaped from the Soviet Union through a Soviet submarine that was captured by American soldiers. He did have a bit of an odd, Eastern accent, and he stammered a lot. Besides, the cool kids never lied, so I believed deep down that Raivis was in fact an ex-Soviet spy. He was not much older than 15, but just a few inches taller than me. "I-I dunno…" He sighed as we sat on the swings in the park. "F-from what you tell me…she seems really nice!" He smiled brightly and slumped back down on the swing. "I wish I could get a nice girl to talk to me like she did to you…" Ok maybe I had told him that she was totally head over heels in love with me but whatever I mean, this was the older crew of cool greasers in their leather jackets, all almost old enough to drive, and there was I, struggling with a surge of new feelings for a pretty little dame. I smiled and stood up in front of him, standing straight, shoulders back, and my hands at my hips.
"So you think the rest of the crew will recognize me as a member now? Do you think I'll be able to hang with the cool kids and get a jacket like all the rest of you now that I have a girlfriend?" I asked, beaming with the excitement of being recognized as one of them.
"U-uh…sure!" He popped the collar up on his jacket and produced a comb from his pocket and began combing his hair. "O-oh look! Here comes Sebo and Mo!" Sebo was the main one in the gang. He was about 16, had his own car and a lady in each arm. Still, this did not affect his cool-cat personality at all. He was still rather humble by any standards. Next to him was the coolest cat of all, Mo. He was smooth, foul mouthed, and the ladies loved him. He maintained his reputation as the obscure kid from Nevada, hidden behind his popped collar and dark shades, whom very few people knew much about. These three and a few more made up the greaser gang known simply as The Cocky Crew, or C. C. I'd always admired them and wanted to be part of them, but because of my young age and way of dress (I had a fondness for the sailor suits of the previous war, which they hated), they only let me circle around their gravitational pull. Raivis was the only one I could trust with personal matters. Sebo sat on the swing next to Raivis and began swinging.
"Heeeey why so gulm, chum?' He chirped, looking at me. Mo followed and sat next to him on the adjacent swing.
"I think the little squealer's found himself a girl" He teased. I felt my face grow red hot but tried to play it off as anger.
"No!" I exclaimed. "Well…actually…yes…I have! Her name is Paula and she has agreed to watch me play baseball with the boys in the schoolyard! And she'll come because she's my first girlfriend!" I puffed out my chest and pulled up my shorts a bit higher, up to my waist, to show just how manly I was.
"Well, where can I meet this very special sounding lady?" Sebo jeered, elbowing me. I blushed even redder and exhaled.
"She lives a few houses down from me in the burbs!" I was determined to prove to them that Paula was the love of my life and that I was old and manly enough to be part of their gang. Sebo nodded and whistled.
"Oh you mean that new dame? Yeah, yeah, I've seen that pretty little lady around. Miss Pink Pouty lips huh? She's cocky enough to be in our gang herself!" He jumped off the swing at its highest point and landed smoothly on his feet. "Yeah that's one fine little lady. I would ask her out in a heartbeat. She's a bit mouthy and mature for my tastes but she's one fine looking babe!" I frowned and began walking back home.
"I'll bring her over! You'll see! She loves me!" I marched back home, feeling a very peculiar surge of emotions.
On my walk back home, I began to reflect on a few things. First, I concluded that I did in fact love Paula. I'd known her for a few weeks since she moved to my neighborhood, but I had to love her because I'd never loved anyone before and she just seemed so perfect and because she said yes when I asked her out, then that meant I had to love her! Second, because I loved her, she had to love me back. I was only 12, but in a few years, we could get married, buy a house in the burbs, I could go work out as a sailor for the Navy and she could stay at home and paint all day long. Third, because I was so in love, I had to join the Cocky Crew. They were guys who already had a girlfriend or two. Sebo was already old enough to drive! The fact that I had a girlfriend now meant that I was old enough to be recognized as a member of a greaser gang. I walked along, muttering to myself, when suddenly I heard a giggle coming from behind me. I spun around only to find Paula, sitting at a bench in the park, sketchbook and pastels in hand. "Paula!" I ran up to her, that big goofy grin forever on my face.
"So, you talk to yourself?" She leered. I shrugged and looked down at my shoes so she wouldn't see me blushing. She stood up and pushed me playfully. "Hey, you don't seem that bad. I see you hang out with the Cocky Crew over there!" I nodded, looking down still, at a loss for words. She smiled and nodded as well. "They invited me in you know. They think I'm older and mature. And I am! I listen to jazz! Not that new Rock n Roll crap! I may be small, but parents and other kids think I'm like in high school or something! I'm really recognized around here!" I realized that I slightly envied her recognition, since I was thought of the charming little boy of the suburbs and not much else. "And I'm too old to watch little boys play their little ball games!" I felt my little heart break. The perfect being that was Paula just shot me down from my euphoric love high with a few simple words.
"Then come with me to Sammy's…" I muttered, my gaze not leaving the ground.
"Where?"
"Sammy's! The soda shop!" I found the courage to look up and look her straight in the eye, my face flushing as our eyes met. "Come on, I'll buy you a drink, we can dance to all that jazz! Artie Shaw, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk! All of them! I'll make sure the jukebox plays no Rock n Roll! I'll make sure it's all mature, sophisticated cool jazz for a sweet cat like you, babe!" I tried using some of the new slang I had learned from Mo and the others. Paula pouted her little pink lips and crossed her arms. Finally, she flipped her pony tail and nodded slightly.
"Fine. But it's not like I want to go out with you or anything!" She muttered. I could detect a hint of blush forming on her cheeks, just tinted enough to match her pink sweater. "Come by my house on Sunday at noon. And make sure none of the greasers see you! I don't wanna have my reputation ruined by such a JAMF like you!" She took her sketchbook and pastels and walked away, her ponytail swinging with each step.
I sprinted and skipped all the way home. Finally! I thought. I have a formal date! With the girl of my dreams! I arrived home and began digging in my closet, looking for the perfect outfit for Sunday, which was a mere four days away! With it being summer and all, the wait seemed even longer. I spent the next four days rehearsing my every line for when I saw her again. "Ah yeah cool cat, pass the salt please! Yeah, I'll have a Shirley Temple and oh bring one of those famous Sammy's Strawberry Surprise Shakes for the dame, yeah all on my bill. You see babe, I have a paper route! Yep, I get up at 4am sharp to deliver papers round the burbs!" When Sunday finally came, I combed my hair back, slipped into navy blue slacks, my sailor suit top, my sailor hat and my navy blue blazer. I looked like a true Navy man, white shoes and everything. I took all of the money I had saved up from my paper route and put it in my pocket. I walked down the street to Paula's house and knocked on her door. After a few seconds, she came out, in a pink poodle skirt and white button-up blouse, her hair in a slightly higher pony tail, covered by a pink scarf, her eyes shielded by white framed cat-eye sunglasses, her feet in dainty little white slippers. I blushed deeply when I saw her.
"I don't want any of the greasers to recognize me and make fun of me for going out with a little runt like you" She whispered, blushing. I nodded and took her hand. We walked silently to Sammy's, a few blocks away, hand in hand. I was stunned by her beauty. Her whole radiance left me dumbfounded. When we arrived, I went up to the bar and sat down on one of the red and white striped stools, helping Paula into the one next to me. "Uh Sammy, gimme a melon milkshake!" I ordered. Paula giggled as she took off her sunglasses, revealing painted eyes and a touch of artificial blush on her childish face, her lips accented with pink lipstick.
"A milkshake? What are you, 12?" She jeered. I blushed and called Sammy back.
"Scratch that! I want some…uh…" I tried to think of what my parents drank when they went out. "Gimme a rum and Coke!" Sammy laughed at my request and brought me a Coke in a glass instead, with a lime wedge to make it look grown up. Paula giggled and gave me a sly look. She ordered the melon milkshake that I had originally ordered. I frowned and sipped my soda, shuddering at the unfamiliar taste of the drink with lime. "So uh…" I managed after I downed about half of my drink. "Uh what brings you to the burbs?"
"I am from this little nation overseas called Wy. You've probably never heard of it, but I have. It is internationally recognized!" She took a dainty little sip of her milkshake and folded her hands in her lap. If I had to guess her age at that moment, I would have probably thought her a high school kid like those in the Cocky Crew.
"O-oh! You know, someday, I dream of starting my own little country on a sea fortress! Just me and the missus! And a dog! All on our own on our little sea fortress! I will call it, Sealand!" Paula laughed and snorted her milkshake at my comment.
"Yeah, as if! Good luck with that!" I frowned and drank the rest of my soda. I could tell she was displeased with the way things were going. I stood up and walked over to the jukebox. I put in my nickel and selected the jazziest thing I could find. The sweet sounds of Duke Ellington's "Just Squeeze Me" filled the air. I began tapping my foot and dancing a bit. Paula stood up and walked over to me. "You know this song?" She inquired, raising a delicate eyebrow. I nodded and began shaking my hips.
"Yeah, my parents play it all the time!" I had actually never heard the song anywhere else but the popular radio, but anything to impress a dame! I offered her my hand and much to my surprise, she took it. We danced, swinging and jiving through the entire song. After our little dance, I put in another nickel and we danced to "Sing, Sing, Sing," nailing every twist and turn of the demanding swing style. After a few songs, we sat back down in a booth, giggling and smiling after another round of drinks on me. We spend the afternoon talking about trivial little things. She was reluctant to talk to me at first, and seemed way more mature for her age, but eventually, she let her guard down a bit. She told me that she was around my age, and she had never had a boyfriend before. "Well I'll be your man!" I offered. She blushed and nodded, avoiding my gaze at all times.
"It's not like it's official or anything, you have to give me your ring…a-and your letter jacket…and take me to the drive in!"
"That's all fine and dandy! I'll just ask Sebo to give us a ride and lend me his car when we get to the movies!" It all seemed like such a perfect plan! She giggled and nodded again, a few stray curls coming loose from her pony tail.
"Take me home!" She pleaded after a while. I took her hand and we walked all the way back to her house. I walked her to the front steps and she leaned in to peck me on the cheek. I blushed to the roots of my hair and kissed her in return, our lips barely grazing. "So uh…thanks for the drinks…a-and the jazz…"
"No problem babe!" I muttered, trying to sound confident. She went into her house, leaving me with her kiss and the ghost of her smile. On my way back home I ran into the gang.
"Heeeeey if it isn't Sly Pete!" Mo grinned. I gave him a curious look.
"What did you call me?" I growled. He chuckled.
"Sly Pete! It's your nickname you smooth devil you! Rockin and Rollin that cat all night long!" He howled like a wolf. Raivis blushed and put a hand on my shoulder.
"I'll explain to you what he means when you're older" He muttered. Sebo combed his hair back and playfully punched my arm.
"We saw you two at Sammy's" He teased. I blushed and looked down.
"Yeah? And? She's my girl now!" I was ready to fight for my girlfriend if necessary.
"Nah, nah, cool it Pete. We wanted to congratulate you!" Mo patted my back with a grin. I smiled and accepted the gesture. "Nice move man, nice move!"
"Can I be in the gang now?" I pleaded, trying still to sound mature. All three of them laughed.
"Hold your horses, Jack!" Sebo smiled. "You need to wait! Where's date number two?"
"A-ah…t-that's the Drive In! Which reminds me, can I borrow your car?" I was serious when I asked him. He merely laughed and patted my back.
"We'll see, Pete, we'll see!"