Chapter 7

The Tuesday school day was rather uneventful for the Ed's, their Kanker counterparts and all of their friends. It was around 4:30 p.m., and school had been dismissed for about an hour. The weather was quite chilly, and due to it being the twilight hours, the sun had begun it's descent below the horizon. Accordingly, the sky was illuminated in beautiful orange, red and pink hues.

During lunch the previous day, the Ed boys had decided that they would spend the afternoon scouting out the business district, searching for Christmas gifts for their loved ones. Unfortunately, Ed was absent due to having another unknown commitment, leaving Eddy and Double Dee to undertake the adventure without his lovable oafish antics.

Double Dee and Eddy we're currently standing outside one of the large department stores lining the street. The storefront had a very large window, which served as a display for the holiday season. At the heart of the display was a very elaborate train set, consisting of various interconnected tracks. Small scale models of steam locomotives pulled small box cars, each decorated with a Christmas theme, around the track as "Jingle Bells" played over the stores PA system. Around the tracks were several models of houses, stores, and other buildings, in addition to elaborate Christmas trees. At the center of the entire display was a large, realistic Santa Claus doll. The doll was outfitted in his classic red and white suit and hat, and was currently posed as if he was reading a list of names, presumably of children on the "good" list.

Double Dee observed the trains pass in front of him with a smile on his face, as he clasped his hands out of excitement and joy. In contrast, Eddy appeared to be in a borderline catatonic state. His eyes appeared droopy, with heavy bags lining the underside, and while he too was excited about the Christmas season, he did not have the energy to enjoy it as much as he liked.

"My oh my," said Double Dee, "Kresslers has really outdone themselves this year. This is their best Christmas display yet."

Double Dee turned to Eddy.

"Isn't it just wonderful Eddy?" asked Double Dee.

"Yeah, it's great!" said Eddy in a somewhat sarcastic manner, as he leaned his elbow on the concrete slab lining the bottom of the window, and rested his chin on his hand.

"Come now Eddy," said Double Dee, "Where is your holiday spirit? As Ed and I have already decided on what we are going to procure for our significant others, the entire purpose of this trip is for you to decide what you are going to purchase for Lee. How could you possibly locate the perfect gift if your heart is not fully engaged?"

Eddy groaned.

"I don't have to," said Eddy, "Lee's already made up her mind about what she wants."

"That's wonderful Eddy," said Double Dee, "May I ask what it is?"

Eddy smiled sarcastically

"Lindsay Stata-whatever the hell her name is to get packed up in a crate, put on a plane and sent off to Timbuktu." said Eddy with an angry look, "And for my own damn sanity, I wish I had the money and power to make that happen!"

Eddy stepped away from the window and began pacing up and down the curb as Double Dee watched with concern.

"All damn night!" said Eddy, "She was supposed to come over to help me get ready for the math test on Friday, but when she showed up she was all pissed off about this Winter Prom Princess thing and did nothing but talk about it for three hours. Then after she leaves, she video chats me on my phone until around 1:00 a.m. complaining even more"

"Well that explains your lack of energy throughout the school day." said Double Dee, "Did you attempt to reason with her and explain your frustration as I suggested prior to gym class yesterday?"

"I tried but couldn't get a word in edge wise!" yelled Eddy.

Eddy paused briefly before continuing, emphasizing the characteristic and unique working classic accent that Lee inherited from the city she grew up in as if to imitate her.

"I need a custom dress, I need to get my hair done, youse guys need to help me rally votes, you need to help me bake cookies. Lindsay this, Lindsay that, Lindsay, Lindsay, LINDSAY!"

Eddy took a seat on the curb. He positioned his elbows on his knees with his face resting on his palms. Double Dee walked over toward his friend and took a seat next to him. He placed his hand on Eddy's shoulder.

"Come now Eddy," said Double Dee, "I won't lie, Lee does have a temper sometimes, but I do not doubt for a minute that she truly adores you. If I were to warrant a guess, I believe she is placing confidence and trust in you as her lover to express her emotions. As much as I abhor violence and confrontation between individuals, Lee obviously harbors an intense hatred for Ms. Statorowski, and from what Marie has told me, she has caused nothing but trouble for Lee from the time they were children."

"So now I have to pay nowadays for stupid kiddie arguments!", said Eddy in an annoyed tone, "She needs to just get over it!"

"Eddy!" yelled Double Dee, "I'm surprised at you! This is your girlfriend you are talking about and you really should show some understanding."

"What you need to understand Sockhead," said Eddy, "Is that if I hear the name Lindsay Statorowski one more time, I'm going to wind up spending Christmas in Peach Creek Asylum!"

Double Dee sat next to his friend in silence, pondering what he could possibly do to remedy this situation and relieve Eddy's frustration. As he scanned around the area, he took notice of the candy store directly across the street. In the window was a large sign that read:

Brand New! Exclusive to the Holiday Season

CANDY CANE FLAVORED JAWBREAKERS

It had been quite awhile since Double Dee and his friend had enjoyed a jawbreaker, and he knew that he was long overdue. He reached into his pocket to ensure he had fifty cent to spare, after which he decided to make Eddy an offer.

"Excuse me Eddy," said Double Dee, after which he pointed across the street, "It has come to my attention that we have not been able to enjoy a jawbreaker together in quite some time. Perhaps the sugary, divine sweetness of those flavorful spheres will assist in calming your nerves?"

Double Dee stood up, after which he reached his hand out to help his friend up.

"Come now," said Double Dee, "It's my treat."

Eddy thought for a few seconds, after which he smiled and grabbed his friends hand.

"Well since your footing the bill, how can I not say yeah." said Eddy.

Double Dee smiled as he helped Eddy into a standing position, knowing that Eddy's comment was not delivered put of greed, but rather out of playful friendship. The two boys made their way across the street toward the candy store to procure their beloved jawbreakers.

Ten minutes had passed, and the boys had retook their place sitting on the curb in front of the department store, the only difference being that each of their cheeks now housed a rather large jawbreaker; so large in fact that it appeared that the boys cheeks would explode at the slightest touch.

The boys enjoyed their jawbreakers for a few minutes, their faces carrying an air of relaxation, before Double Dee began the conversation.

"Ah, to think I had forgotten how delicious these delectable candy spheres are!" said Double Dee.

"You said it pal," said Eddy, "Thanks a lot buddy, I owe you one."

"No worries Eddy," said Double Dee.

"It's funny thinking about all the crazy stuff we used to do just to get a hold of these things," said Eddy, "All the time we spent coming up with scams just to earn a few bucks, and then the girls would come and steal it away from us."

"It's still quite surreal to think that less than a year ago we viewed our Kankers as our arch enemies" said Double Dee.

"Yep," said Eddy, "Ya know, I'll be honest with ya. I never thought I would wind up dating Lee."

Eddy giggled jokingly prior to continuing.

"She's tough as nails, hell I know she can kick my ass easily and I'm still afraid of her to this day. But she is also so sweet, and I know she would do anything for her friends and family. That's what really attracts me to her, and seeing her so upset over her fight with Lindsay is frustrating."

Eddy twirled his thumbs as he continued speaking

"She's never told me anything about what exactly happened between her and Lindsay, other than that she hates her. I know Lee's been bullied, as hard as that is to believe, but I wish I could convince her to let the past behind and just ignore this girl. She's just a spoiled brat, and Lee letting her get to her as bad as she is is just stupid. She really needs to just get over it"

Eddy looked towards Double Dee.

"But like Lee says, we Ed's are suckers for bad girls with big hearts, and if this winter ball thing is so important to her, I'm going to make her happy."

Eddy paused.

"I don't know how I'm going to do it, but somehow someway, I'm going to get her that $ 600.00 dress she wants, and the matching suit for me...I'd figure I'd at least give her the honor of me standing next to her looking sharp the night of the dance."

Eddy winked as he delivered a sly grin. Double Dee couldn't help but smile, not only at Eddy's classic sense of humor, but also at Eddy's genuine display of selflessness.

"Eddy", said Double Dee, "That is a wonderful idea, and I am sure Lee will unfathomably appreciate it!"

Double Dee dusted off his jeans with his hand.

"It seems that that jawbreaker fulfilled it's purpose of bringing you to your senses." said Double Dee as he giggled.

"Hey, I never said it was gonna be easy!" said Eddy, "I know I'm going to get all wrapped up in all kinds of crap with this winter ball queen campaign, and it's not like I'm happy with it."

"Whatever you say Eddy." said Double Dee.

The boys shared a smile, after which they set in silence enjoying their jawbreakers for a few more minutes Double Dee decided to continue the conversation.

"It's quite a shame that Ed couldn't be here with us," said Double Dee, "Sharing laughs over jawbreakers with my two best friends has been one of the greatest highlights of my adolescent years, and it just doesn't seem complete without our triumvirate fully assembled."

"Yeah," said Eddy, "Where the hell has Lumpy been anyway? He's been playing Houdini for the last few days."

"True, Ed has been behaving in an extremely secretive manner over the last couple of days." said Double Dee, "It's certainly not like Ed to be able to keep a secret for too long, as his excitement more often than not, gets the best of him."

"Whatever," said Eddy, "I'm sure he's fine, he's probably been inside shoving popcorn in his face while he watches all those old Christmas specials. If it's anything important he'll wind up blabbing it."

"I suppose," said Double Dee.

The boys continued chatting about memories past, as well as the present situation, for around a half hour, at which point their jawbreakers had completely dissolved returning their cheeks to their normal state. The sun had gone down completely, the street lights had come on, and the entire business district was abuzz with people taking advantage of the sales the stores had to offer. The Christmas decorations lining the store front windows shined brightly in hues of red, green and white. At the same time, a group of Christmas Carolers took their place on the street corner and began singing a rendition of "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" in perfect harmony.

"Well it's dark," said Eddy, "I guess we should be heading back."

"I concur," said Double Dee, "Father just returned home from Hawaii, and I am excited to share that he will be spending his time from now until after the New Year working back in Peach Creek. Mother is home as well, and we have an exquisite feast planned for tonight. It was insisted that I be home at 5:30 in order to facilitate our dinner plans."

"Funny," said Eddy, "My folks were on me about getting home at 5:30 for dinner this morning too."

"Interesting," said Double Dee, "It must be some sort of coincidence, as I am not aware of any other plans."

"Well one things for sure," said Eddy, "We gotta high tail it out of here now if we want to make it back in time. C'mon Sockhead, let's andale!"

The two Ed boys rose off of the curb, and began making their way back to the cul-de-sac. Eddy walked with his hands stuffed in his pockets, as Double Dee clasped his hands out of excitement, admiring the beautiful decorations lining the streets.