Next Contestant

Chapter Three:

Johnny's POV:

Katie and I continued dating and I finally felt like luck was on my side. After a month of being together, I took her out for a special date.

I picked her up around six and took her to a fancy restaurant outside of town. She was wearing a navy blue dress with a red belt and had her hair in a curly ponytail. Her lips were bright, bright red.

After dinner, we went for a walk in a little pocket park. I held her hand and stopped her, tilting her chin upward. "Katie," I began, "we've been dating for a month now." I paused and pulled out the promise ring I'd picked out the week before, with a green gem that matched her eyes. "What do you say about being my girl?"

"You want to go steady?" she whispered.

I nodded, holding my breath. I was unprepared when she threw her arms around my neck and kissed my lips. "Yes," she answered once she pulled back.

I slipped the ring on her finger and kissed her again, pulling her body close to mine.

It was two weeks after that when I decided that it was time for her to meet my father. I warned her that I'd be on the Harley when I came to pick her up so that she'd know to dress appropriately.

When I pulled up, she was standing on her sidewalk, her arms crossed over her chest. "Johnny, why can't we take the Camaro?" she asked, her voice nearing the whine I'd started to grow accustomed to.

"Because I like the bike."

"My hair is going to be all messed up," she pouted, jutting out a hip.

I sighed; I'd known that this was coming. "C'mon, Kitten," I said, flashing her a smile. "For me?"

She sighed, but the pout broke into a small smile. "Fine." She climbed on behind me and wrapped her arms around me, a bit tighter than she needed to, and rested her cheek against my shoulder.

We pulled up to my father's house about half an hour later. My mother had died when I was baby, so it had always been just the two of us. He was a great father, trying to compensate for the fact that his own father had never been around. He was a tall man with grayish white hair that he kept in a low ponytail. He hardly ever wore anything other than button down dress shirts and slacks, which was exactly what he was wearing when we pulled up.

His house was a two story brick house with a large, wrap-around porch. Proof that his years of hard work had paid off. We'd lived in slummy neighborhoods until I was eight. That was the year he'd gotten promoted to head of the bank. We'd lived in this house ever since.

I got off the bike and helped Katie off, holding her hand as I walked her up the porch. "Hi, Dad," I said. "This is Katie. Katie, this is my father, Charles."

"Nice to meet you," he said, shaking her hand.

"Same to you."

We walked inside, where I hung our coats on the rack beside the door. "Johnathon, why don't you show her around while I check on dinner?"

"Alright."

I took her hand and led her up the staircase. The second door to the left was my room when I lived her. I walked her to the door and pushed it open.

"This was my room," I said as I turned on the light.

Posters of motorcycles covered every wall except for one. The one with the bookshelf full of trophies for various sports and academics. "Baseball, basketball," Katie read the labels on the trophies. "Ooh, here's a good one, Perfect Attendance. Quite the little overachiever, weren't you?"

I grinned, "Just a bit." I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her to me, kissing her.

She kissed me back, biting my bottom lip gently before she pulled away. She walked over and sat on the edge of my bed, picking up the framed picture I had on my nightstand. "Is this your mom?" she asked quietly.

I walked over and sat beside her, "Yeah." The picture was of my mom holding me in the hospital the day I was born, two weeks before she had been killed in a car accident.

"She's beautiful," Katie breathed.

I had to agree. My mother had long, auburn hair that fell in waves and a breathtaking smile. Katie wrapped her arm around my waist and leaned her head on my shoulder, kissing my cheek. "Let's go check on your father."

I stood up and followed her back downstairs to the kitchen. Dad was standing at the oven, pulling out a roast. "Mmm," Katie said. "Smells great."

My dad flashed her a smile, "Thank you. It's nothing compared to what Johnny's mother used to make, but I do my best."

I grabbed a stack of plates and began to set the table. As we were all seated, Dad attempted to make conversation. "So, Katie, Johnny tells me that you graduated from college recently. What did you major in?"

"Fine arts. With a minor in Literature."

Dad nodded and winked at me discreetly, showing me that he approved. After dinner, Katie offered to help do dishes with me in the kitchen. "I really like your dad," she said, scrubbing a plate before handing it to me.

"Really?"

She nodded and I stacked the plate on the rack to dry. She didn't know at the time that she was the first girl I'd ever brought home to meet my father. My life had been a string of bad luck, over and over again, up until I met her.