Chapter 3: The Dance

"Now I'm going to give you another series of questions to answer" said a history instructor. "They will review a number of different chapters from this course". Randy hoped he already knew all the answers. It was hard not to 'look up' answers from a history text book. While Randy took the test he encountered several questions concerning dates such as when the War of the Roses ended, and when the New World was discovered. Randy could tell that the War of Roses actually ended in 1490. There was still fighting before that. He could also tell that the first human set food in the New world in 17974 B.C exactly. However, when Randy had is paper corrected, he felt foolish about these apparently wrong answers. Of course the standard answers to these questions were 1485 and 1492. Randy guessed he hadn't been thinking straight, but it was difficult to imagine how he'd gotten the answers so wrong.

Later, in a biology course, the teacher asked Harmony, tongue-in-cheek, how many livers she had. "Two," she replied absently. Jennifer squeaked with laughter. "I mean one!" she corrected hurriedly.

"That's amazing Harmony!" Dean said sarcastically. Harmony blushed and Randy glared at Dean. Dean smirked back. Dean was handsome with brown hair and pale gray, almost colorless eyes that could make anyone feel uneasy.

Later, Harmony went to Randy's house to work on their project. "Not your house this time?" Randy asked when Harmony suggested going to his house.

"No. Nobody's home at my house and I forgot to bring the key."

When Harmony arrived at Randy's house, the two of them worked, but Harmony seemed a little sad.

"Dean got you down?" Randy asked.

"A little,"

"It really is amazing that you have two livers" Randy joked, trying to cheer her up.

Harmony glared at Randy with pretend bravado then said "No, it isn't that. It's just that my parents are home so little. I'm afraid one day I'll get locked out of the house for too long and have to stay with someone else".

"Wasn't your mother at home when I was at your house?"

"Yes, but she often runs off to do who knows what with my Dad, and he doesn't even live with us, really."

"He doesn't?"

"He'll stay with us sometimes, but most of the time I see him, he's either coming to take my Mum somewhere or just checking in"

"So he has his own house?"

"That's the thing. I've never seen his house. I have no idea where he lives."

"That is strange." Randy agreed. "My Dad doesn't do that, but he often looks like he wishes he could. He works as a software engineer, but I think he thinks he's capable of doing more."

"Then why doesn't he?"

"No idea." said Randy thoughtfully.

The next day, in a psychology course, the instructor had people work in groups to discuss common features of the mind. Randy, Harmony, and Jennifer comprised one of the groups. "Apparently we're supposed to discuss nightmares" Randy reported, looking at the sheet. After thinking a bit on what the group could write on such a subject Randy asked "What do you have nightmares about?"

"Getting sucked into vortexes" replied Harmony.

"Melting" replied Jennifer.

"Melting?" Randy replied incredulously. Harmony glared at him. "I mean, why would you have nightmares about that?"

Jennifer blushed deeply. "I don't know." she replied nervously.

"So Harmony has two livers, and Jen is afraid to melt!" said Dean who had come over to them when the three hadn't been looking. "You two make quite the pair!"

"Back off Dean," Randy growled.

"What are you going to do, fight me?" Dean taunted.

"Dean, please..." Harmony pleaded.

"What made you choose him over me?" Dean replied indignantly. "He's a useless little fuck."

Randy stood up aggressively, but then the teacher absently told the class to settle down. "You heard him" Randy said, a bit helplessly.

"Right..." Dean growled. "I'll see you later."

Later, when Randy's father was giving him a ride back from school he asked "What's wrong?"

"Nothing..." Randy replied bitterly.

Rather than pursuing the matter further directly, Randy's father asked "Who exactly is this Dean fellow?"

Randy almost jumped at the relevance of what would otherwise be a non sequitur

. "Just some git." Randy replied.

"Any idea who his parents are?"

"Not a clue." Randy replied.

"Well, be careful."

"Why?"

"I think I may know this family, and not in a good way. Also it looks as if you've offended him."

Randy cursed under his breath.

That Friday, Randy went with Harmony to the school dance. He decided to bring a bottle of beer to enhance the fun. The dance itself was pretty fun, Randy liked the songs played and had fun dancing with Harmony, but to his chagrin, the beer didn't seem to be having any effect whatsoever, even after he'd finished the bottle. "What's wrong?" asked Harmony at one point.

"I brought some beer, but I can't seem to get drunk" Randy replied carelessly.

"First of all, I don't think you can get drunk on one beer. Second, you brought alcohol here?"

"Doesn't seem to be having any effect anyway, not even the little bit of effect one could expect from a single beer and I should have no tolerance!"

"Have some punch then. Maybe it's spiked" Harmony replied bitterly. Randy found he was thirsty, so he complied, tossing the punch down as if he were drinking a shot of hard liquor.

"Oh you're so funny" Harmony said, trying, somewhat unsuccessfully, to be sarcastic.

"You think tha's funny?" Randy slurred. "Look! It's meltyface!" He pointed at Jennifer.

Jennifer, who was standing in the corner, looked mortified. "You take that back!" cried Harmony indignantly.

"Guess she's afraid of melting because she already has!" Randy exclaimed.

"You're drunk!" cried Harmony. "But you weren't a few second ago... How is this even possible?"

Jennifer walked over to the two of them. "Did somebody spike the punch?" she asked, concerned.

"I suppose someone must have, but he didn't have that much of it" replied Harmony, confused.

"Oi, leave me alone I chose to drink" grumbled Randy.

"Feeling excessively pissed?" asked Dean coming over.

"Oi! You say that to my face!" Randy yelled belligerently.

"I am saying it your face, genius" Dean replied.

Randy launched himself at Dean and started throwing punches. Dean tried to punch back, but Randy was winning, until a hand suddenly lifted Randy off Dean.

"That's it! You're coming with me!" said a familiar voice.

"Oi! What are you doing here?"

"I'm chaperoning" replied Randy's father.

"Chaperoning?" replied Randy incredulously. "Chaperoning? You'd never do that! Why the fuck would you do that?"

"Out of concern for you!" Randy's father yelled back. "How dare you get drunk!"

"I only had one beer!" Randy protested. "I wasn' planning on gettin' drunk!"

"Really!" replied Randy's father with skeptical viciousness.

"Erm, sir?" asked Jennifer nervously.

"Yes?" asked Randy's father suddenly looking up.

"I think somebody may have put something in the punch." Jennifer suggested carefully.

"Hmm, have they?" Randy's father tasted the punch and swished it around in his mouth.

"But he didn't have that much of the punch!" Harmony protested.

"Ginger beer..." Randy's father muttered. "GINGER BEER!"

"Somebody spiked the punch with ginger beer?" Harmony asked skeptically.

"I've got to take this boy home!" announced Randy's father without explaining, and with that, dragged Randy away by the ear, and took him out of the door.