AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well, it's been more than two months since I wrote the last chapter of this story...Let's just say a lot has happened since then. I actually TRIED to write this chapter once, and completed most of it...and then realized I didn't like how I'd written it and (for the first time ever) decided to completely start this chapter over from the beginning. It's funny; I thought this story wouldn't be all that difficult to write (considering it's a companion piece to "Story of Ralph", my first story I wrote), and yet I've been SEVERELY frustrated writing this one. There's been several reasons for that...but now, I hope to get this story back on track! (I intend to complete every story I start, even if it takes me years to do so!)
Anyways, last time around, we met Scott Mulligan, Melissa's long lost uncle who was only vaguely mentioned in several previous stories. Scott was...an interesting character, to say the least...he was basically a more realistic (and heavily Southern) take on Bert. A character who comes off as pretty likable and someone who would be a lot of fun to hang out with. I had a lot of fun writing for him, which makes me feel somewhat bummed out knowing I can never use his character again (his character HAD to die in order for Melissa to ultimately end up in Canada). Unfortunately, in this chapter, Mike Mulligan gets the terrible news that his younger brother died in combat in the Vietnamese jungles. This'll be a bit of a sad chapter, to say the least...and to make matters worse, Mike receives a letter telling him that he's being drafted into the Army as well. You see him get out of it in this chapter, but alas, it won't last long...Let me just say the next chapter will be QUITE a big one. In this chapter, we also see Melissa going to school for the first time, where she quickly experiences frustration when she tries to play with the boys and they rebuff her because they don't want to play with a girl...It won't be the last time that happens in this story, either. It's another one of those bridging chapters (maybe THAT'S why I've had a hard time writing this one...those are always the least exciting chapters and the most drab to write), but it should be a nice leadup to the big events occurring in the next chapter...
CHAPTER FOUR: Ups and Downs
And then, before I even knew it, Uncle Scott was gone. The very next morning, he caught the Golden Arrow train to Fort Campbell for basic training. My father went to the train station to say his final goodbyes while Jim Peterman and his wife looked after me until he got back. After that evening where we found out he'd been drafted into the army, I never saw him again...
For a while, Uncle Scott kept his promise. He wrote to us from boot camps several times, and continued to write to us once he was deployed to Vietnam. My father never went into much detail as to what he said; he always just told me that Uncle Scott was thinking about us and that he couldn't wait to see me again once he got back. My father kept those letters over the years...I never actually saw what they said, and my father never really told me much about them until I was well into my teenaged years. Dad told me that Uncle Scott had tried to remain optimistic at first, but soon he began to grow truly terrified, especially so after he'd been deployed to the Vietnamese jungles. My father only shared a few details, but I remember him telling me that Uncle Scott had said in his letters that he'd seen at least a few of his friends he'd made in the Army die right in front of him and that he was constantly being haunted by nightmares of getting his head shot off by the Viet Cong. He evidently was truly fearful that he'd never see home or anyone he loved again. I can't help but feel sorry for my uncle just imagining everything he went through...I just couldn't imagine having to go through so much...
But then, after several months of constant letters, the letters stopped coming. My father wasn't bothered at first, but when more than three weeks passed with no new letter in our mailbox, he began to grow quite concerned...
I still remember that particular day. It was late in the summer of 1966...when I was five, almost six years old. My father and I were playing baseball that afternoon after he had gotten home from work. Even though I hadn't wanted to play baseball again after I'd accidentally injured Jim Peterman the very first time I played, I hadn't given up, and just as Dad said, I'd gotten a lot better at catching the ball.
My father was holding the ball as he tossed it up into the air. "Well, that was a good throw, Melissa! But d'ya think ya can catch this one?"
I giggled innocently as I held my paw up in the air, eager to catch the ball. "Of course, Daddy! You told me I would get better with practice! Look at how good I'm getting!"
My father chuckled. "Heheh, well, okay, Melissa. Here goes!" My father tossed the ball towards me.
I leaped up a bit and, much to my delight, caught the ball. "See, Daddy? I told you I would catch it!"
"Well, you weren't kidding," my father chuckled. "You've caught all but a few of my throws!"
"Daddy, this is too easy!" I beamed, as I tossed the ball to my father, which he quickly caught. "Give me something tougher!"
"I think that's enough for today, Mel," my father said as he took off his mitt. "I had a long day at work and it's high time I got some rest."
"Aw, c'mon, Daddy..." I said in a rather sad-sounding voice, trying to coax him into him playing a little more...
"We can play anytime, Melissa, y'know that," my father shook his head. "But right now Daddy needs some rest, okay?"
"Okay..."
As my father and I went back to our house, Dad had the presence of mind to check the mailbox, as he hadn't collected the mail for the day yet.
"Daddy, did we get a letter from Uncle Scotty?" I hopefully asked my father as he thumbed through the mail. I always looked forward to getting a letter from him, and I was disappointed he hadn't written to us in several weeks.
My father quickly looked to see if a letter from his brother had come. "No," he sighed. "I'm afraid not, Melissa. No letter today."
"Why hasn't he written us, Daddy?" I asked. I guess I was your typical kid back then: always thinking that my father knew the answer to everything.
"...I'm afraid I don't know, honey..." my father sighed again. He was clearly worried himself as he hadn't heard from his brother in weeks; I think he had a hunch that something had happened to him..."Perhaps he's just really busy."
"When do you think he'll write us?" I wondered.
"I don't know...we'll just have to see," my father sighed once more.
At that very moment, my father and I both heard a voice that was rather familiar to us..."Hey, Mikey!" It was another one of my father's friends, Len Blankenship, a wallaby. Like Jim Peterman, he had been a friend of my Dad when he went to school and, like Jim, had also worked alongside him at the automotive factory. However, he had an accident on the job the year before that caused all of his fingers on his right paw to be sliced off. He'd had to seek employment elsewhere afterwards as he couldn't really put cars together anymore, seeing as he had little more than a stub for a right paw. But I remember he had trouble finding a job...
"Well, if it isn't Len Blankenship!" my father managed to crack a smile at his old friend, reaching out to shake Len's good paw. "How's the job search been goin', pal?"
"Ah, not so good," Len sighed. "Sad to say a lot of places ain't hirin' lately. No luck so far..."
"Maybe you'll get lucky soon enough," my father tried to look on the bright side.
"Well, I'm hopin'. My wife just had our daughter an' I need that money for the kid," Len sighed. "If only I'd have watched where I placed my paw..."
"So your wife did have the baby after all?" my father raised an eyebrow.
"Yep," Len nodded. "I'm a Daddy now. I always wondered how it'd feel...well, right now, I'd say it feels pretty darn good!"
"I've had ups and downs here with Melissa," my father replied. "But in the long run, I'm sure it'll turn out a'right for you!"
"Uncle Lenny," I smiled at my father's friend. "You're a Daddy now?"
"'Course I am, Melissa," Len smiled as he rubbed my head.
"Can I see the baby...?" I hopefully asked.
"Sure ya can. When she gets a lil' bigger, I might even ask you to babysit her," Len continued to smile at me.
"That sounds like a fun idea!" I couldn't help but beam. Sadly, I never saw Len's daughter...I can't even remember what her name was. It started with an S, but I just can't remember..."Hey, Daddy?" I had something on my mind that I'd been wondering about for a while, and I felt now was the time to ask my father.
"Yes, Melissa?"
"Daddy...where do babies come from?" I curiously asked. "I know they come from somewhere...but where...?"
My Dad's eyes immediately grew large as an expression came across his face that basically said "Oh, crap!" He knew the day would come when I would ask that question...When I was older, my father always told me he found it so hard to explain things such as the facts of life to me. That was a role my mother surely would have filled had she not passed on...He rarely ever came across as weak, except in situations like these...
"Uh...erm..." My father stumbled for an answer, but couldn't come up with one.
"Ooh, that's quite a tough question," Len managed to chuckle. "Whatcha gonna tell her, Mikey?"
"Erm...ah...Well, Melissa..." he continued to stumble around. "Well, Melissa...when a Mommy and Daddy love each other very much...they...uh..."
"They what?" I eagerly wondered aloud.
"Uh...they lie really close together and...Gosh, this is tough..." He was finding it so hard to explain to a five-year old, but he was doing the best he could...
"And then what?"
"Well...ah...nine months later the Mommy lays an egg, an' then the egg hatches, an' that's where babies came from. That's how you were born!" Dad hurriedly finished, breathing a sigh of relief. "You understand, right?"
"I think so," I nodded. It seemed to make sense to my young mind. "Daddy...? Does that mean I can lay eggs?"
"Errr..." my father's face flushed. "Yes, but not until you get older. You're too young right now, ya shouldn't have to worry 'bout that until you're much bigger. Alright?" For the longest time I sincerely did believe babies hatched out of eggs. It wasn't until I was almost a teenager that my father told me the whole truth on how children were created and that I couldn't actually lay eggs...
"Okay, Daddy," I smiled.
"Golly, I wonder how I'm gonna tell that to my lil' girl?" Len wondered.
"I guess you'll figure it out when the time comes," my father said as he turned to the door and entered our house. I followed him in. "Well, don't just stand there, Len," my father smiled. "Why don't ya come on in?"
"Sure thing, Mikey," Len nodded as he followed us and sat down on the couch across from my father. As I played with my toys, I overheard their conversation.
"Mikey, I've been thinkin'...you know 'bout all this fussin' and fightin' goin' on over in 'Nam, I'm sure. I mean, they shipped yer brother off an' all..." Len began.
"It ain't fair, Len..." my father sighed. "He didn't even WANT to go and they made him go anyways. Now how is that s'pposed to be fair?"
"Ah, I know it ain't fair, Mikey," Len nodded. "But ya know, I done some thinkin', an'...well...I'm thinkin' 'bout joinin' the military."
I remember my father being quite taken aback at that statement. "What?! Len, ya can't be serious! D'you know what they're doin' over there in 'Nam? I heard all kinds of bad stuff from my brother and the TV...The Viet Cong will snipe your head off!"
"Ah, well, I gotta earn money somehow...I mean...my wife an' baby need the money," Len shrugged.
"Surely there's gotta be another way, Len..."
"Ah, don't worry 'bout me, ol' pal," Len laughed. "I ain't joinin' the army! I'm thinkin' 'bout joinin' the Coast Guard."
"The Coast Guard...?" my father replied.
"Yeah. Don't worry, Mikey, they ain't gonna send me to 'Nam. Most likely they're gonna put me out in the Caribbean or somethin'. I'll probably be trackin' down rum-runners or illegal aliens or somethin'. Nothin' near as dangerous as the Cong...an' besides, I always wanted t'see the Bahamas..." Len filled in my father.
"I just hope ya know what you're doin', Len..." my father sighed. He'd never trusted the US military in his entire life.
"Eh, I'm sure I'll be fine," Len shrugged again as he dropped the subject. From what I remember, Len did indeed join the Coast Guard by the year's end.
He then turned his attention towards me. "So, Melissa, you're almost six years old now. Gettin' to be pretty big, ain't ya?"
"Mmm-hmm!" I happily nodded as I flashed a grin at him. "Daddy says I'm a big girl now."
"Yer 'bout ready for school, ain't ya?" Len asked me.
"Daddy says I'll start school next month!" I informed him. "He says I'm gonna learn a lot! Is school fun, Uncle Len?"
"At times, yeah," Len nodded. "Other times...well..."
"Is it hard, Daddy?" I curiously asked my father.
"Well...you'll just have to see for yourself, Melissa," my father responded to my question. "Nothin' me or your Uncle Len could say can really prepare ya for school. You'll just have to see how you like it once you start..."
Len turned his attention back towards my father, when suddenly, a loud knock came at the door and rang out through the house.
"Hrm, now who could that be?" Len wondered. He was about to get up from the couch, but Dad stopped him.
"No, no, Len," my father remarked as he got up from the couch and headed to the front door. "Wonder who that could me," I heard him mumble to himself. "Probably Jim. Boy, Len and Jim comin' over to my house at the same time...things could get interestin'..."
When my father opened the door, he got quite a shock, as he certainly didn't expect to see who he actually saw standing at the front door of our old house. There, standing at the front door, was a fox dressed in a US Army uniform.
"Sir, are you Michael Christopher Mulligan?" the fox asked my Dad.
My father swallowed hard. "Yes, sir...that's me..."
I couldn't make out most of the conversation between my father and the fox. I could hear bits and pieces, but it didn't really make a whole lot of sense to my five year old mind.
"Uncle Lenny...?" I asked Len as he pulled me up onto the couch.
"What is it, Melissa?"
"Who is that man? What does he want with Daddy?" I curiously asked. I couldn't make out or understand much of the conversation my father was having with the fox, but from what I could hear it didn't sound good...it had me worried something bad was going to happen.
"Well, Melissa, that's a man from the US Army," Len explained. "Ya can tell by the uniform."
"Okay, but what does he want with Daddy...?" I asked again, as Len hadn't really answered my other question.
"I dunno," Len shrugged his shoulders. "All's I know is that when a guy from the Army shows up at yer front door, it probably ain't good..."
I remember my father's facial expression absolutely sank as he wrapped up his conversation with the Army fox. As the fox turned to leave, my father slowly slunk back towards the couch, a very saddened expression planted upon his face. It looked like he was holding back tears...I just knew something bad had happened.
"Well, Mikey? What was all that 'bout?" Len asked, wanting to know what exactly had happened.
My father let out a very heavy sigh as he spoke up in a rather solemn, subdued voice. "Len...I...I think ya better go, Len..."
Len looked confused. He didn't understand why Dad wanted him to leave. "Hrm? Why do I gotta leave? C'mon, Mikey, just tell me what happened, ol' pal!"
My father pointed towards the front door. "Len...please...leave. I...I..." He let out another despaired sounding sigh. "I really need to talk about this with...Melissa...alone...if ya don't mind..."
Len looked a bit agitated at my father. "Doggone it, Mikey, anythin' you can tell her you can tell me! Now tell me just what the Sam Hill went on over there."
"I'll tell ya later, Len..." my father's sad voice trailed off. "Right now I need to be alone...with Melissa..."
Len shook his head as he headed for the front door. "A'ight, fine then. Suit yerself, Mikey. I suppose I'll see ya later."
"See ya 'round, Len..." my father sighed again as he turned his attention towards me. I was practically bursting with questions for my father...but before I could ask him anything, my father scooped me up in his arms and sat me down on the couch.
"Melissa..." my father sighed once more as he tried to begin, "I know ya saw me talking with that man at the door...an' I'm sure you've got all kinds of questions for me about that..."
"Yes, I do, Daddy!" I replied, curious to know just what was up. "That man was from the US Army, wasn't he?"
"I'm sure your Uncle Len told you that," my father replied as he nodded his head in confirmation. "Yes, he was. That was Sergeant Neil Cunningham," my father explained.
"What did he want?" I asked, practically dying to know. I sometimes look back and laugh remembering how curious I was when I was just a kit...I actually see a lot of my younger self in Michael...
"Melissa..." my father stumbled for words. "Urgh...how am I gonna say this...Melissa..." He finally managed to get his composure together. "It was about your Uncle Scotty..."
"Uncle Scotty?" My ears immediately perked up. I was so excited to hear what my uncle was up to, I just wanted to know right then and there. "How is he, Daddy?"
"He's...he's..." My father choked up just trying to say it. "He's...he's not alright, Melissa..."
"Huh?" I was confused. "What do you mean?"
"Melissa...I'm afraid...you're never gonna see your Uncle Scott again..." my father barely managed to hold back tears.
"What? Uncle Scotty's not coming home?" I was so confused. I didn't understand why he wouldn't come home. I knew he'd said he was afraid he wasn't going to come back from the war, but I had firmly believed he'd come back home soon. Now he wasn't coming back at all? "But why...?"
"Because..." my father continued to choke up just trying to say it. It must have been one of the hardest things he'd ever had to say. "Because...Uncle Scott...is...is...dead," Dad sniffled as a few tears finally managed to slide down his cheeks.
Being that I was only five years old, I had no idea what "dead" actually meant. I'd heard the word before, but it had no meaning to me..."Dead...? What does dead mean, Daddy...?"
My father sighed again as he wiped his eyes. "Melissa...do you remember how I told you that people who are good go to Heaven and that people are bad go to Hell?" he sniffled again.
"Of course I do, Daddy," I nodded.
"Well...that can only happen when that person is...dead...When you're dead, you can never come back...you can never see those who you love again..." my father started to cry once more.
Almost immediately I began to cry as well. This hit me hard. I really loved my Uncle Scott. He might have been silly and wacky at times, but he had a big heart and I always thought he was a lot of fun to play with. To be told that I was never going to see him again because he was dead was just too much for me.
"Daddy!" I cried as I began to sob. "Uncle Scotty can't be dead. He can't! You said he would come back! You promised me! He can't be dead!"
My father sat down on the couch and embraced me in his arms as he cried as well. "I'm so sorry, Melissa...I'm so sorry..." he croaked out.
"Why?!" I cried out. "Why did this have to happen, Daddy? Why? Uncle Scotty didn't want to fight in the war. Why did he have to go?"
Dad tried his best to gain his composure, but it wasn't much use as he couldn't stop crying himself. "Because the government didn't give him any choice, Melissa...They took him away from us..."
"I still...don't know what...the government is, Daddy..." I said between sobs. That word had no meaning to me as well. It didn't sound like a nice word to me at all...I imagined the government to be some kind of horrible monster who forced Uncle Scott to fight in Vietnam. Some might say that was a pretty good first impression...
"You're still too little to understand," my father tried to explain, "but I'll just say...they don't care about us, Melissa. They took your Uncle Scott away...they'd have no problems taking me away from you..."
I gasped in terror upon hearing Dad say that. That just made me cry even more. I remembered my father had mentioned that he could be drafted the last time I saw Uncle Scott alive, but I didn't really want to believe it...until now. Now I knew that the government could take my father away from me as well. The thought of the government taking Dad away as well was one of the scariest things my young mind could think of. "Daddy, no!" I cried out. "They can't take you away from me...they can't! Can they...?" I sobbed.
"I'm afraid they can, Melissa..." my father continued to cry. "If they think they need me..."
"You can't let them take you, Daddy! You can't! What will happen to me then...?" I bawled. I was so terrified that my father was going to be taken away from me; I just couldn't control myself. "Please don't let them take you away, Daddy..."
My father told me years later that it was at this very moment that he made his mind up. Seeing how frightened I was just imagining him getting taken away from me made him decide at that moment that there was no way he was going to be drafted into the US Army. At that moment, a warm smile came across my father's face as he wiped his eyes. "Don't worry, Melissa..." he whispered to me as he hugged me tight. "I won't let them take me away...I promise nothin' is gonna happen to me. I promise," he smiled as more tears ran down his face.
"Okay, Daddy..." I managed to croak out as I continued to cry.
Uncle Scott was a good man in spite of his flaws; he certainly didn't deserve to die the way he did. There was a lot he wanted to experience in life that he never got to experience...he'd been engaged to be married when he died, and I'm sure he wanted children...
But alas, looking back at it now, I know that for my life to turn out the way it has for me, Uncle Scott pretty much had to die...if he'd survived the war, my father more than likely would not have fled the US for Canada, and who knows how my life would have turned out...Still, I just wish he could have seen me grow up...
Uncle Scott's body came home from Vietnam shortly after we received the terrible news of his death. He was buried at the Louisville Memorial Gardens with full military honors. I can only vaguely remember my uncle's funeral...it was such a sad moment in my life that I've pretty much blocked most of the memories of it out of my head. As far as I know, his name is just one of the thousands etched on the Vietnam Memorial Wall.
It wasn't until I was much older that my father actually told me the circumstances of Uncle Scott's death. He had been holed up in the middle of a fierce gunfight with the Viet Cong. In the middle of the battle, one of Uncle Scott's friends he'd made while in the Army, a Siberian Husky by the name of Bryce Grundy who hailed from Wisconsin, had been hit by a bullet in the shoulder and was lying there wounded in the middle of the battlefield. Uncle Scott had decided to risk his own life by dragging Bryce off the battlefield in an attempt to save his friend. Bryce was seriously injured, but he would recover, although he had to have his arm amputated. Unfortunately, Uncle Scott was not so lucky; by choosing to save his friend, he left himself wide open to be sniped. A sniper's bullet found his head and literally blew out his brains. I vaguely remember seeing the Grundy family at Uncle Scott's funeral paying their respects to the man who had saved their loved one's life, although I didn't know why they were there...For his bravery and willingness to put his own life in danger to save a fallen comrade, Uncle Scott was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, which was given to my father seeing that he was his closest living relative. I remember asking Dad quite often when I was little what the medal was for; my father explained to me that it was an award given to him to honor Uncle Scott's bravery. I didn't know it was the Medal of Honor until I was older...
Uncle Scott's death greatly affected my father, myself, and all those who knew and loved him...but alas, we all had to move on with life. You can't mope over a loved one's death forever, after all...I remember crying for several days after my Dad passed away, but Ralph was always there to comfort me and tell me to look on the bright side as my family's blood was destined to live on and his death would not be in vain. Like he often is, he was right...
Clifford Usry took over the junkyard after Uncle Scott died, and the last I heard of him, he was still working on building that car out of spare parts that Uncle Scott had so dearly wanted to build because he felt that's what he would have wanted. I'm not entirely sure what ever became of Uncle Scott's fiancee, Emily Thomas...The only time I ever saw her after Uncle Scott left was at his funeral, where she seemed visibly distraught. Other than that, she seemed to practically disappear from public altogether. I'm not sure whatever became of her...it seems rather mysterious she disappeared from the general public. I wonder whatever happened to her?
My father and I took a while to get over Uncle Scott's death, but we eventually managed to come to terms with it. Before I knew it, my first day of school arrived. I'm sure you all remember your first day of school...you were either very excited or very frightened. Me...well...I was quite excited!
I can still remember running into my father's bedroom, jumping right on top of him while he was asleep and shaking him awake...
"Daddy, Daddy!" I excitedly shouted right in his ear. "Wake up, Daddy!"
"Huh...what is it...Melissa..." my father growled, obviously not wanting to get up.
"Daddy, don't you remember? It's my first day of school!" I giggled. I certainly couldn't hide my excitement...
"Oh, that's right," Dad replied as he stretched his arms and yawned. "It's finally here. I see someone's excited..."
"Ooh, I am, I am!" I beamed at my father. "I think school's gonna be a lot of fun!"
"Well, we'll see about that," my father responded. "I remember my first day of school..."
"It wasn't fun for you, Daddy?" I asked.
"Not really..." Dad sighed. "I never really liked school, to tell you the truth..."
"But I think it's gonna be fun, Daddy," I continued to smile. "There's gonna be so many kids there! I think I might make a lot of friends." I'd played with a few other kids when I was little, but I didn't really have any friends I really spent a lot of time playing with. Part of the reason I was so excited was the opportunity to make new friends...
"Well, alright," my father remarked as he got out of bed. "I see you're already dressed and ready...Let me just go get dressed and we'll be on our way, alright?"
"Alright, Daddy!" I brightly smiled.
Soon, my father and I were in my Dad's old Studebaker and on our way to my school, Buster Cobbs Elementary-the very same school my father attended when he was a little kit. It was all the way on the other side of Louisville, so it was a bit of a drive from what I remember.
Eventually, we reached the school. "Alright, Melissa, here we are," my father turned to me as I unbuckled my seat belt. "Buster Cobbs Elementary. Gosh, this place sure has changed a lot since I was your age..."
"I can't believe you were my age once..." I idly remarked. It can be a little hard for a young child to comprehend the fact that their parents were kids once as well...I imagine my little Michael will probably be surprised to learn that Ralph and I were his age once!
"Well, I was," my father confirmed that fact. "Times have changed a lot since then..."
As I opened the door, my father spoke up again: "Now Melissa, you be sure to be on your best behavior, alright? I don't wanna hear you got in trouble on yer first day of school..."
"Don't worry, Daddy," I giggled. "I'll be good! I'm always good, aren't I?"
"Well...mostly," my father admitted. "Be sure to get along with the other kids, and if the teacher asks you anything, you be sure to answer her, alright?"
"Okay, Daddy. I understand," I nodded.
"Alright...have a great day honey," my father smiled as he kissed me on the cheek. "I love ya, honey..."
"I love you too, Daddy..." I smiled as I stepped out of my father's car and headed towards the school.
As I said, I'm sure you remember your first day of school. Some of you were probably as excited as I was...I just remember being filled with excitement and anticipation when I walked towards my school for the first time. Maybe I was a little naive in thinking school would be nothing but fun...On the other hand, some of you were probably frightened out of your minds...like my hubby was. Ralph told me that he was quite afraid to go to school since he was scared he wouldn't make friends and that he'd be picked on...I just wonder how my little Michael will fare when the time comes for him to go to school...the last thing I want to happen is to hear from him that he's being bullied...
Anyways, I can't really remember too much of my first day of school. I guess it was pretty uneventful. I did play with the other children during our play time, and I do remember answering some of the teacher's questions...but other than that, I can't really remember much. But one thing in particular sticks out in my mind...
what happened when it was time for recess.
"Alright, kids!" our teacher, Mrs. Malloch (a flamingo) called out to us. "It's time for recess!"
All of us happily dashed out of the classroom towards the playground out back. I'm sure all of you remember what recess was like...it's one of the things I miss the most about being a kid. Who doesn't remember playing all sorts of fun games with their friends fondly looking back at their childhood? While I'm glad I'm a fully grown woman now and there are many more things I can do now that I could not do when I was a little girl, there are always times I look back at my childhood and realize how much I miss some of those good times...
I remember looking around and seeing what the other kids were doing. Most of the other girls were either playing hopscotch or skipping rope-activities I never particularly had much interest in. I always loved to play a little rough when I was a kid and never minded getting dirty, so I was more interested in what the boys were doing. I could see some of them were playing kickball...and I thought it looked like it would be fun to play.
I walked up to a bobcat once he kicked the ball and tapped him on the shoulder.
"Huh?" the bobcat said (I can't remember his name, or the names of most of the other students I went to school with in Kentucky...my mind is too hazy there). "What d'ya want?"
"Excuse me," I innocently smiled. "I saw you guys were playin' kickball. Can I please play too? It looks like a lot of fun!"
"And why would you want to play with us?" a ferret scoffed at me.
"We don't want any icky girls like you gettin' cooties on our kickball," the bobcat growled at me.
I was surprised at how hostile the boys were being to me. I didn't know what they were talking about. "Cooties...?" I curiously asked, confused. "What are those...?"
"They're what yucky girls like you have," a boy raccoon, who I remember was called Ernie (I'm not sure why I remember his name...), chimed in.
"I don't have those!" I firmly replied.
"Sure ya do. All girls have 'em," the ferret retorted.
"You...you don't want me to play with you...?" I said in a sad voice.
"That's right," the ferret laughed.
"But why not...?"
"We don't want no icky girls messin' with our ball," the bobcat snorted. "My Dad told me that girls don't play ball!"
"Why don't ya go skip rope with the other yucky girls?" Ernie chuckled.
I was so disheartened at what the boys had said to me that I just sat down on a picnic table for the rest of recess. I'd had such high hopes I'd make new friends...and my hopes were dashed when the boys wouldn't let me play with. I didn't cry, but I do remember my feelings really being hurt...
Soon, school was over and it was time for my father to pick me up. I remember cracking a small smile when I saw him drive up, but when I climbed into the old Studebaker, a sad expression clouded my face once again...
"So, honey," my father warmly smiled. "How was your first day of school?"
I turned to my father and he immediately noticed my disheartened face. "I didn't like it, Daddy..."
My father immediately looked concerned. "Aww...why not, Melissa? You were so excited this morning. Did something bad happen...?"
I let out a heavy sigh as I explained what had happened to Dad. "The boys were mean to me, Daddy..."
"They were...?" my father raised an eyebrow. "What did they do to you, honey?"
"They wouldn't let me play kickball with them..." I said as a tear came to my eye. "And they said mean things to me..."
"Like what?"
"They said I was icky and that I had cooties..." I sighed as I cried a little. "And they said that girls should be playin' jump-rope...and that I shouldn't be playing ball with them..."
"Aww, Melissa," my father warmly smiled as he gently wrapped an arm around me. "Don't take what they said too personally. You're a really bright little girl, don't let 'em bring ya down!"
"I just don't understand why they were so mean, Daddy..." I sighed as I stopped crying. Even when I was very little, I'd always found romance to be very sweet...but at a time like this, I honestly wondered why girls would ever want anything to do with boys. "Daddy, do I really have to marry one of them when I grow up?"
"Well, ya don't if you don't want to..." my father trailed off. "Look, Melissa, you gotta understand that they're young. They don't really know any better at their age. I think most all boys go through this phase where they think all girls are yucky. When I was your age, I thought girls were icky, too!"
"You did...?"
"Sure did," my father nodded. "But things'll change a lot when ya get bigger, honey. When boys get a little bigger, they start to realize that maybe girls aren't as icky as they thought and maybe some of them are really special."
"They do...?" I realize now that my father was trying to explain puberty to me in an innocent manner...but I didn't know that at the time.
"They sure do," my father nodded his head again. "Happened to me!"
"Then the boys will want to play with me?" I smiled.
"They will when you get older, yes," my father replied. "Things'll really change when ya get older, trust me. Someday, some boy is gonna be watchin' you, and he'll say to himself, 'Y'know, that Melissa Mulligan girl is somethin' really special. I would really love to get to know 'er better.'"
I smiled a bit hearing my father say that. "Daddy, do you really think there'll be a boy out there who'll find me special someday?"
"Well...I'd like to hope so," my father nervously chuckled, although I could see his face wince a bit. Nowadays, I know that my father had always dreaded the day that I'd start going out on dates, because he knew a lot of guys out there weren't particularly nice, and he was afraid I'd get taken advantage of, which saddened him to think about as he didn't want to see me get hurt...He once told me he thought of my first date as "D-Day"!
"But Daddy, one of the boys said that his Daddy told him that girls weren't supposed to play ball," I said, my facial expression sinking a bit again. "Uncle Jimmy told me that I shouldn't be playin' baseball. Why is everyone tellin' me that I shouldn't be playin' ball? Is it wrong...?"
"Well, I already explained this to ya once, honey," my father began to explain, "but some people's minds are rooted in the past. When I was yer age, girls didn't have as many opportunities as they do now. They had even less when my father and his father was little! Why, when my grandfather was little, girls were expected to do nothin' more than work in the kitchen and have babies."
"Really?!" That was definitely a shocker to me. "That's all girls could do back then?"
"Well...yeah," my father nodded. "That's all that they were really allowed to do. Maybe they could work as teachers or nurses, but other than that, that was pretty much it. But times are changin' fast, Melissa. Women are gettin' more and more opportunities nowadays than they could before. Some folks don't like the fact that things are changin' and they'd rather things stay the way they've always been. But...they'll just have to accept it. You've got a great chance to show anyone who doubts ya that they're wrong."
"I do?"
"Of course ya do! You're got one heck of a throwin' arm, Melissa. Like I told ya, I think you could make history and be the first woman to play in the World Series...if ya try hard enough," my father smiled. "If no one else will believe in ya, I always will!"
"Aw, thanks, Daddy!" I smiled at him. My father always had my back when it came to issues like these. Playing in the World Series really was my childhood dream...and like most people, I never got to accomplish that childhood dream...
"Anytime, Melissa. Now let's go home, shall we?"
"Okay, Daddy!" I beamed as my father drove home. Even though my first day of school hadn't gone so well, I knew not to let other people get to me. As long as my father believed in me, that was good enough for me then...
My first school year was a fairly uneventful one...sadly, I can't remember most of it. Like I said, my memories are kind of hazy when it comes to certain things...I'm sure most of you can't remember your early school days particularly well. As I said, I don't remember the names of most of my fellow classmates from my days in Kentucky!
I do know I passed kindergarten with flying colors, though. I was never the best student (I never particularly liked writing...I still don't, hence why Ralph helps me write my advice column!), but I never failed a class in my life. I usually made Bs and Cs in my school days...but I never really had to worry about failing a grade or getting in trouble with my father, since Dad always knew what to expect when it came to my grades. I guess you could say I was at least a decent student...
Anyways, I'd just gotten out of school for my first ever summer vacation. Summer vacation is another thing I miss about being a kid...when you're a grown-up with so many responsibilities, you don't have the time to take a summer off...Anyways, as I was saying, I'd just gotten out of school for the summer. It had been nearly a year since Uncle Scott's death, and life seemed to have moved on for me and my father. In fact, I'd almost forgotten that the war in Vietnam was still going on...
But then came a cruel reminder that my happy life with my father could be so rudely interrupted...
I still remember it pretty clearly. I'd been out for school for maybe three weeks as it was early July. My father had recently come home from work and after playing a quick game of catch with me, he'd gotten the mail out of the mailbox. He sat down on the couch as he prepared to sort through the mail, while I was excitedly dancing around him.
"Daddy, Daddy!" I happily chirped. "What did we get in the mail? Is there anything good?" My father always used to tell me what we got in the mail.
"Eh, who knows, Melissa?" my father shrugged. "Don't know until I take a look at it."
"Well, let's take a look at it!" I smiled.
"Alright, alright, honey..." he sighed as he sorted through the mail. "Hmm, bills, bills, bills...nobody I know...bills..." When he got to the next envelope, his one eye nearly bulged out of his head in shock. I didn't know what he'd just seen, but I knew it wasn't good.
"Daddy, what's wrong?" I curiously asked, wondering just what he'd seen.
My father said nothing as he hurriedly opened the envelope and read the letter that was contained inside. No sooner than he finished reading it, he tossed it aside as his facial expression immediately sank. I knew something was terribly wrong.
"Daddy, what did the letter say...?" I asked, just wanting to know what was up.
My father let out a heavy sigh as he tried to explain to me as best he could. "Melissa...I was hoping this day wasn't gonna come...but..."
"But what?"
"They're...they're...they're tryin' to get me, Melissa..." he solemnly replied.
I had a hunch who might be trying to get my Dad. "Who's 'they'? Is it...the government...?" I fearfully replied. I still didn't know what the government was...all I knew was that it had the power to take my Uncle Scott away from me, and now it was potentially trying to take Daddy away as well.
My dad sadly nodded his head in confirmation. "...Yes..." he managed to squeak out. "They got your Uncle Scott...an'...an' now they're tryin' to get me, too..." My father had just received a letter from the local draft board that he was required to appear before them that Friday, and he also needed to undergo a physical to determine whether or not he was fit for Army service. If he passed, he would be drafted...
Almost immediately, tears came to my eyes. "No, Daddy! No! They can't take you! No! No! No!"
"I'm sorry, Melissa..." my father sighed as he just stared down at the floor glumly, not sure how to respond to me.
"Daddy..." I tearfully pleaded with him, "please don't let them take you away...I don't want you to go away...Who will take care of me?"
"D-d-don't worry, Melissa," my father stammered, trying to put on a brave face. "They may be tryin' to get me, but I'm not gonna let 'em take me! They surely won't let draft me seeing as I only have one good eye...No, Marc Mitchell was blind in one eye an' they drafted him," my father quickly realized as he thought of one of his automotive co-workers.
"How are you going to get the government to leave you alone, Daddy?" I asked as I continued to cry a little, still fearing fearful that I was about to lose my father.
"That...I don't know..." my father sighed. "I've got to think of a way to get outta this...but how?"
It was at that moment a knock came at the front door. My father hesitantly got up. "Oh no..." he sadly remarked under his breath. "It's probably a man from the draft board..." My father hesitantly turned the knob as he visibly shook, terrified at what might greet him upon opening the door.
I felt fearful as well, as I thought my father was about to be forcibly taken away from me. "DADDY!" I cried out.
But when my father opened the door...it was none other than his old friend, Jim Peterman, holding a letter in his paw.
"GAAAHHH! You scared the hell outta me, Jim!" my father said, shaking his fist at his friend.
"Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to startle ya," Jim shrugged. "Say...Mike?"
"Yeah...?"
"You didn't happen to get a letter from the draft board, did ya?" Jim inquisitively asked.
"I did..." my father nodded. "Wait a minute...they didn't send ya a letter too...did they...?"
Jim sadly nodded his head as well. "Yeah, they did..."
"They're...they're tryin' to get you too, Uncle Jimmy?" I sniffled, as I'd been overhearing their conversation. I couldn't believe it. Both my father and Jim were potentially on the verge of being drafted into the US Army.
"Yeah, they are, kid..." Jim sighed. "Can ya believe it, Mike? They're tryin' to nab us both in one go..."
"This ain't right, Jim," my father growled. "They took my brother away and if they hadn't, he wouldn't be pushin' up daisies right now. Now they're tryin' to take me away from my little girl. I can't let 'em do that, Jim, I can't. I don't want her to go through what I had to go through when I was little...she deserves SO much better than that..."
"I don't wanna go either..." Jim sighed. "I ain't prepared to fight for my country...I gotta lot things I still wanna do here...I don't wanna die young, Mike..."
My father growled once more. "That damn President Johnson...He oughta pull outta 'Nam before it's too late and we're all getting our head shot off by the Cong!"
"Darn tootin'," Jim emphatically agreed with my father. "Just like President Johnson's dad shoulda pulled outta-" He didn't get to finish his snide statement as my father quickly interrupted him.
"JIM!" my father shouted at him, as he grabbed Jim by the scruff of his neck. "May I remind ya that there is a six-year old child over there by the couch?! Don't say somethin' that inappropriate in front of her, no matter how much I may agree with it!" He then quickly turned to me as he let go of Jim. "You...you didn't hear that, did ya, Melissa?"
I had heard every word they'd said, but I pretended not to have. I didn't really understand what they were talking about, so it didn't really matter. "No, I didn't, Daddy..." I said as I continued to listen to their conversation.
"Sorry, sorry, Mike. I shoulda thought about that," Jim hastily apologized. "Well, this is a difficult situation, Mike, ol' buddy. I don't wanna get drafted an' neither do you. We got until Friday to figure a way to get us off the hook. What are we gonna do?"
My father scratched his chin as he thought for a moment. "I don't know, Jim. I can't think of anythin' off the top of my head..."
"Well, y'know..." Jim quickly spoke up, "We could do like Buddy Young and Earle Bowman and move our families on up to Canada." Buddy Young and Earle Bowman were two former co-workers of my father...I vaguely remembered him telling me about them fleeing to Canada with their families to escape being drafted.
"Jim, that's my last resort," my father firmly shot back. "Moving to Canada might be a lil' too harsh on Melissa. I'm only willin' to take that option if there's no other way I can get out of this..."
"You're right," Jim nodded. He placed his finger to his chin as suddenly, an idea came to him. "Ah-HA! I got it, Mike! I know how we can get outta bein' drafted."
"What's yer plan, Jim?"
"I'll whisper it to ya, but...well...you may not like it..." Jim whispered his plan into my father's ear. I couldn't hear what he was saying...I only wondered just what they could have in mind that would get them out of being drafted.
No sooner had Jim finished than my father's eye nearly bugged out of his head. "Jim, are ya crazy?!" he shouted. "That's never gonna work! They won't fall for that! Besides, that's gonna be humiliating!"
"I'm sure it'll work," Jim laughed. "They won't let their kind serve in the Army, after all. If they see us actin' like that, they won't even make us go through the physical!"
"But I don't wanna be humiliated like that, Jim..." my father protested.
"Well, hopefully, word won't get out about what we're gonna do...You do wanna avoid gettin' yer furry butt put in the jungles, do ya?" the wolf raised his eyebrow.
"Well...desperate times call for desperate measures..." my father sighed, obviously feeling defeated. "Alright, ya got me, Jim...I guess I'll be seeing ya Friday, then?"
"Friday, yes," Jim nodded. "Trust me Mike, my plan is gonna work!"
"I sure hope you're right..." Dad sighed. "See ya, Jim..."
"See ya 'round, Mike!" he grinned as he turned to go. "Catch ya later, kiddo," Jim said as he turned back and waved good-bye to me.
"Bye, Uncle Jimmy," I managed to crack a smile as my father sat beside me on the couch.
"Daddy?" I curiously asked him.
"What is it, Mel?"
"I heard you and Uncle Jimmy come up with a plan so that the government wouldn't take you away," I informed him. "What are you gonna do, Daddy?" I wanted to know just what they were planning.
"I can't really tell ya that, Melissa..." my father explained to me.
"But why not? I want to know!" I begged.
"It's a little too embarrassin'," he admitted. "I guess you'll just see when Friday come along..."
Soon enough, Friday afternoon came. My father had brought me over to Jim's house to stay for a while while he and Jim went before the draft board. I couldn't stay home alone, so Jim's wife, Rebecca Peterman, or "Becky" as I remember she preferred to be known as, volunteered to look after me. I still remember Becky pretty well; she was a very nice, warm-hearted lady, a real stark contrast to Jim, who was often conceited and could be quite full of himself. I always loved spending time with her as she was quite fond of me. She'd told me that she'd been a close friend of my mother's in high school and that my mother had helped set her and Jim up. Whenever I wanted to know a little more about my mother that my father hadn't yet told me, Becky would usually fill me in.
"Alright, Mike, are we all rarin' to go?" Jim asked my father.
"I think so," my father nervously said, as much to my surprise and confusion, he grabbed Becky's purse off the table and slung it over his shoulder. I was absolutely baffled by what he was doing.
"Daddy, what are you doin' with Aunt Becky's purse?"
My father didn't know how to answer that question. "Well, if they see me with it, they won't take me away, Melissa..." he tried to explain, but it didn't sound good enough to me.
"Jim, dear, I hope you know what you're doing..." Becky rolled her eyes at her husband.
"Hehehe, don't worry there, hon! It's one of the greatest plans I've ever come up with!" he managed to laugh.
"Sure..." Becky just rolled her eyes again.
Much to my surprise, Jim grabbed my father's paw and clutched it tightly. "Well, this is it, Mike, ol' buddy. You ready...?"
"Alrighty then, Jim. Let's go..." As my father and Jim walked out of the front door paw-in-paw, Dad turned back to wave to me. "You be good for your Aunt Becky, alright?"
"I'm always good for Aunt Becky!" I beamed as I gazed at her. "Aren't I?"
"She's always been a little angel for me," Becky smiled at my father.
"Well, be good for her, Melissa. I'll be back in a little bit...I hope..." my father said as he and Jim left paw-in-paw. I was just so perplexed as to why they were holding paws and why my father was taking Becky's purse with him.
I hopped up into Becky's lap while she was watching television. "Aunt Becky?" I asked her.
The wolf gazed down at me and smiled as she adjusted her glasses. "What is it, Melissa?"
"Why are Daddy and Uncle Jimmy actin' like that?" I wondered.
"Well, sweetheart, they're trying to get out of being drafted into the Army," Becky explained to me.
"I know that, but just what are they doing?" I still wanted to know. "Uncle Jimmy told you what they were gonna do, right?"
"He sure did," Becky nodded.
"Well...what are they doing, Aunt Becky?"
Becky sighed as she tried to explain what my father and Jim's plan was in a simple way. "Well...Melissa...Your father and Jim are trying to pretend to be...er...in love."
"In love?" I was confused. At that time, I thought only men and women could fall in love. "But they're both men! Can men fall in love with each other, Aunt Becky?"
"They can, Melissa," Becky nodded. "Most men like women, but there are a few men who like other men."
"Oh, I didn't know that," I replied. This seemed very...strange to my young mind, learning that people of the same gender actually could fall in love with each other. Nowadays...I have nothing against those who are homosexual; I say, if two people are of the right age and really want to be together, then nobody should come between them!
"Well...now you know."
"Huh," I said, shaking my head a little. "Can women fall in love with each other too, Aunt Becky?"
"Yes, they can as well," Becky nodded again. "Some women do love other women."
"Okay...but how is that plan gonna work, Aunt Becky?"
"Well, Melissa...you see..." she tried to explain. "The Army doesn't allow men who like other men to join." She was right; at that time, the US Army did not allow homosexuals into their ranks. I don't think that was right to discriminate against people just based on their sexuality, but those were the attitudes of that time...
"Huh? Why wouldn't the Army let them join?" I curiously wondered.
"You see, there are a lot of people out there who believe that only men and women should fall in love. They believe that men shouldn't fall in love with men, and that women shouldn't fall in love with women. They think it's wrong," she finished.
"Do you think it's wrong, Aunt Becky...?"
"It doesn't really make a difference to me," Becky replied. "As long as those people aren't botherin' me, I don't have any problem with them."
"Aunt Becky, do you think Daddy and Uncle Jim's plan is gonna work?" I wanted to know. I so dearly hoped it would work as I didn't want to lose my Dad...
"Well..." the wolf sighed as she placed her paw on the side of her head. "Honestly...no, I don't think so. No offense, I do love my Jimmy, but he's an absolutely horrible actor. I don't see how he's gonna be able to fool them."
"I hope their plan works, Aunt Becky," I tried to encourage myself. "I don't want them to take my Daddy away."
"I hope it does too, but I'm not gettin' my hopes up," Becky sighed. "I really don't want them to take my Jim away from me..." She then gazed out the window as she began to speak up again. "There's a very good reason I don't want him to go away..."
"Why's that, Aunt Becky?" I was curious; she had my interest.
"There's...somethin'...I've been keepin' from your Uncle Jim," she admitted. "A little secret that I think I should tell him about pretty soon."
"Huh...?" I dearly wanted to know what Becky's secret was. It had to be important if she was keeping it from her husband..."What is it, Aunt Becky?"
"Can you keep a secret, Melissa?" Becky asked me.
"I promise, Aunt Becky," I smiled.
"Well...as I said, I haven't told your Uncle Jim yet, but..." Becky quickly cleared her throat. "I just recently went to see the doctor, and I found out that...I'm going to have a baby," she managed to crack a smile.
"Awww, Aunt Becky!" I smiled up at her. I'd always thought babies were adorable, so I was happy to hear that she was going to be a mother. "You're gonna be a Mommy?"
"I am, Melissa," Becky smiled. "I've always wanted to have children...so I'm happy I'm going to have one soon."
"Aww, that's so sweet! When are you going to lay the egg, Aunt Becky?" I asked her.
Becky looked confused for a moment. "Lay an egg? Is that where your father told you babies come from?" she chuckled.
"Yeah!" I smiled. "When are you going to lay the egg...?" At least my father was somewhat close to the truth when he told me that babies hatched from eggs...Ralph told me his mother told him that babies grew in a turnip patch and you plucked them out of the ground when they grew big enough. How confused he must have been when he was a kid! (He told me once he tried to find the turnip patch when he was little because he wanted a little brother...)
"Well, the doctor said I should lay an egg in March," Becky smiled as she decided to play along with me. At that moment, she lifted up her shirt a ways to expose her stomach. "The egg's right in here, Melissa. Go on, you can feel it if you like..."
I reached out and placed my paw on Becky's tummy, gently feeling around. "The egg's in here, Aunt Becky?"
"Yes, it is, Melissa," she continued to smile as she put her shirt back down. "It'll grow in there until it's big enough for me to lay it, then it'll hatch."
"Aunt Becky, you seem so happy," I noted. "Why wouldn't you tell Uncle Jim you're going to have a baby? Wouldn't he be happy, too?"
"Well, Melissa..." she sighed. "Your Uncle Jim told me he didn't want children..."
"Why wouldn't he want a baby, Aunt Becky?" I wondered.
"Because Jim told me that he doesn't really like kids all that much. He's...he's just not all that fond of them."
"He doesn't like kids...?" That was news to me. "You mean he doesn't like me...?"
"Well...kinda," Becky replied. "He's still not entirely happy about you throwing that ball at him when you were learning how to play..."
"But it was an accident!"
"I know," Becky nodded. "But as I said, Jim doesn't really want children."
"Maybe he will if you tell him about the baby!" I beamed at the wolf.
"I'd like to think so, but I just don't know..." Becky sighed. "I suppose I'll have to tell him at some point...If I don't, Jim'll find out anyways..."
"How will he find out?"
"Well, while the egg's growing in my belly, it's going to get bigger and bigger, and so will my belly," she explained as she gently patted her stomach. "Have you seen women with really big bellies before, Melissa?"
"Yes, I have, Aunt Becky," I smiled.
"Well, when you see a woman with a really big belly, that's when you know they're gonna be a Mommy. That's what I'll look like soon enough...and by the time I get that big, your Uncle Jim will know what's going on..." the wolf finished.
"Oh, okay," I smiled. Up until that point, I'd always assumed that pregnant women were just really fat. "You should tell Uncle Jim, Aunt Becky. I think he might want to know he's gonna be a Daddy! Maybe he will like being a Dad..."
Aunt Becky managed to smile. "You know what? You're right, Melissa. Tonight...tonight, I think I'm gonna tell him that we're gonna be parents. Maybe he'll change his mind about all this and see that being a father might not be so bad, after all..." From what I remember, Becky indeed did tell Jim that night that she was pregnant with their child...
Soon, the front door to the Peterman house swung open as my father and Jim came in...gagging.
"Good grief, Jim!" my father gagged out. "I can't believe we did that!"
"I can't believe we kissed," Jim spluttered. "I gotta go wash my mouth out...Why did I do that?! Urgh! I'll never live that down!" he shouted as he ran straight for the bathroom. From what my father later told me, he and Jim actually kissed each other right on the lips in front of the draft board. He told me he'd come very close to barfing right into Jim's mouth...
"Hey, it was your idea, Jim!" my father shouted at him, shaking his fist. "Urgh...I need some mouth wash myself!"
Becky managed to stifle a chuckle. "I guess you got more than you bargained for with that plan, huh?"
"Ugh, you ain't kiddin' me, Becky!" my father groaned. "Never again. NEVER AGAIN!"
"Daddy...did your plan work?" I asked as I gazed up at him, smiling hopefully at him.
"Well...Melissa, Becky...I got some real great news for the two of ya," my father smiled. I knew I would like what he had to say.
"The draft board rejected you two, Mike?" Becky guessed.
"Yeah, they did!" my father beamed as he scooped me up into his arms. "You hear that, Melissa? Your Uncle Jim's plan worked! They're not gonna take me away!"
"Aww, Daddy!" I happily smiled as I wrapped my small arms around his neck and joyfully hugged him. I was so happy knowing that the government wasn't going to take my Dad away from me. "We can be together forever, Daddy!"
"We sure can," my father laughed as he tussled with the fur on my head. "Becky, thanks for lookin' after Melissa for me. I always appreciate the help."
"Oh, no problem, Mike," Becky smiled at him. "I'm glad to hear the two of you are off the hook..."
"I'm just glad this whole ordeal is over," Dad breathed a heavy sigh of relief. "See ya 'round, Becky."
"See you, Mike. You take care, Melissa!" Becky cheerfully waved as my father and I headed back home. I can just imagine how relieved she was knowing that her husband had been rejected by the draft board...
"Daddy...?" I whispered in my father's ear.
"Yes, Melissa...?" he whispered back.
"Aunt Becky has a surprise for Uncle Jim. She said she's gonna tell him about it tonight..." I told him.
"Surprise, huh? What kind of surprise?"
"I can't tell. Aunt Becky promised me to keep a secret," I smiled.
"I think I can guess what it might be...but I'm sure Jim'll tell me soon enough," my father shrugged.
"I'm sure he will...Oh Daddy, I'm so glad they're not gonna take you," I smiled as I hugged him again.
"I'm glad too," my father smiled. "I can't believe they were so easy to fool. Who woulda thought Jim's crazy plan would work?"
It seemed my father and Jim were off the hook and they were no longer in danger of being drafted into the Army...
...but alas, they were wrong...and they would soon find out.
END CHAPTER FOUR
AUTHOR'S NOTE: YES! YES! IT'S FINALLY DONE! WHOOOOOHOOOO...er, sorry, I just had to celebrate for a moment. You have NO idea how much this chapter frustrated me...as I said at the beginning, I had this chapter mostly written and nearly ready to go...but the first draft of this chapter looked dull and clunky because I was in a bad mood when I wrote it. I really DID rewrite this whole chapter again from scratch...and DAMN, does it feel good to finally have this story on the move again! Just a few notes this time...
Uncle Scott's death was tragic and needless, yes, but as Melissa herself says, it was necessary for him to die for Melissa's life to turn out the way it ultimately did. I must admit...there is certainly some potential to write an "alternate universe" story in which Uncle Scott never died and Mike didn't flee to Canada, and as thus, Melissa actually stayed in and grew up in Kentucky...It would be interesting to write an alternate timeline story like that showing how differently Ralph and Melissa's lives could have ended up had their paths never crossed with one another. It's not LIKELY I'll write something like that, but it's something to keep in mind.
And yes, it was indeed true that during the days of the Vietnam War, homosexuals were not allowed to join the US Army...I'm certain plenty of people pretended to be gay to get out of joining the Army. There's a good reason I didn't actually SHOW Mike and Jim really pretending to be gay with one another in front of the draft board...That would have the potential to piss off readers of my stories who might be gay, and I really don't wish to do that...I don't mean to actually offend anybody. My own views on gays match those of Melissa's: If two people are of the right age and really wish to spend their lives together, I don't see why they shouldn't. Besides...this is from Melissa's point of view so you couldn't really see them actually acting like that in front of the draft board.
Well, that's Chapter 4...onwards to Chapter 5! In the next chapter...we'll see Melissa's first childhood crush, a rather sad moment that I won't spoil for you, and a REALLY big moment...that you can probably already guess what it will be. Stay tuned for Chapter 5!