Feeling Peppy

The days went by and the fall air grew cooler. Every day was the same. Up at 6 to man the shop for an hour before I headed off to school then back to work til 8 then dinner and homework until I passed out. Tommy was a slave driver, stayed on me at work and then the second I got home was expecting me to have my nose in a book. Weekend nights were spent having a few low key beers with the guys down Irby's, but I was growing tired of the monotony of it all. It was good to be home, but I missed the action. I missed tossing the gang in the car and heading out to cause some trouble. I missed having a steady stream of income on the side from selling booze to freshmen or a bag of coke to the baseball captain...doing this straight was a lot harder than I ever expected.

I had at least made it to Friday. I walked in and the whole school was decorated for homecoming. In homeroom, the ballots to vote for king and queen were distributed. My eyes were drawn to Rory's picture. She looked good, but different than how she had been face to face at the gas station the week before. She smiled brightly from the photo and I remembered that she probably seemed different in person as the occasion didn't give her much cause to smile.

I checked the box next to Rory's name. Figured I made a promise and I should keep it. And I couldn't imagine what Rory would have to deal with if she came home without a crown.

I caught up with Vince on my way to my next class. "I voted for Rory Scanlon cause she's got the best ass of the three." He held up his homecoming ballot.

"Who fucking cares?" I fumbled with my combination lock.

"Come on man, you're a high schooler again, get into the school spirit crap. It at least means today's a layup, no teacher in their right mind can contain all this pep!"

"What girl are you trying to get with that has your mind even thinking about this rah-rah homecoming bullshit?"

Vince grinned. "Sylvia Palumbo."

I coughed. I had drunkenly hooked up with Sylvia at a party sophomore year. She was one of those stuck up view rats, but she looked damn good. Every so often one of those snobby broads felt like slumming it and I was always happy to oblige.

"You taking her to the dance?"

"Nah, gonna catch her after. No point in buying tickets to the dance when I can get her for free later."

The bell rang and we went our separate ways to class. Vince was right, teachers had all but given up that day. I fell asleep in the middle of American literature and no one even noticed. Classes were ending early for the pep rally where the homecoming king and queen nominees would be introduced. The game was after school and the dance followed the game. I was hoping I could slip out before the pep rally, the idea of sitting through that garbage made my stomach turn.

Unfortunately, I wasn't so lucky. Teachers stood at all the exits and ushered everyone to the football field. I wandered to the back of the bleachers and spotted Charlie. "Bullshit man, they cut our education short for this popularity contest and force us to stick around for it." He shook his head and we grabbed a row to ourselves.

Half the town seemed to pour into the stands, proving that Castle Rock is just another sad suburban town with nothing better to do than see some high school kids hit their peak and win a crown.

I noticed Ashley Scanlon walk in, dressed to the nines, accompanied by an older man in a gray suit and two small clones of Rory. I gave her credit that she was much steadier on her feet than the last time I had seen her. The Scanlon family was quite a picture. You could smell the money on the father, who had at least 15 years on Ashley. The little pharmacy she carried around in her purse made more sense when you realized that all she was is an aging high end trophy wife stuck in a small town.

Principal Fletcher took the stage and introduced the football coach, who gave a roaring speech to get everyone fired up for that night's game against Durham. Charlie and I exchanged bewildered looks at the chants and claps around us as Coach Burton pumped his fists in the air and guaranteed victory.

Fletcher retook the microphone and started to ramble on about the tradition of homecoming and to present the nominees for king and queen. The winners would be revealed at the big dance after the game, but there was no shortage of pomp and circumstance to fire everyone up.

Each nominee was announced and brought up on stage and paraded around. When it was Rory's turn, you could hear her mother's cheers over everyone else in the crowd. It would have been sweet had I not seen the other side of Ashley Scanlon the week before.

Things finally wrapped up and Charlie and I seized our chance to make an exit.

"I don't know why they bother parading those other girls up there, Rory Scanlon's going to win." Charlie said. "She's the hottest one by a mile."

"A hot castle view snob queen is better than an ugly castle view snob queen I guess." I shrugged.

He shook his head. "Nah, Rory ain't so bad, she was in my group for a history project last year. She's kind of funny actually. Not as stuck up as you'd expect."

We headed to my car, figuring out our plans for the night until Charlie went silent. I looked up and realized I was about to cross paths with Amanda for the first time since I'd come home. I had successfully dodged her a few times, and I guess six weeks is a long time to lose someone in a small town. Her eyes narrowed as we approached where their group was standing.

"Someone told me you were back in school and I didn't believe them, but sure as shit here you are." She popped out her hip and rested her hand on it.

"Yup." It was all I could muster.

"Yup? That's it?" She flipped her long hair off her shoulders, annoyed and fidgeting at my response. I stared back at her expressionless. I could feel Charlie shift uncomfortably next to me as she glared back at me.

"Look at you all high and mighty. Everyone said you had gone soft when you got home and I didn't believe them. But here I am seeing it with my own eyes. Ace Merrill, schoolboy leaving the pep rally. Never thought I'd see the day."

"I had to do something to pull myself out of the gutter, got scared that I'd get desperate and end up stuck down there with you for the long haul." I glared down at her and her eyes blazed right back at me.

"I'd rather be in the gutter than in those bleachers pretending I'm something I'm not." She narrowed her eyes at me. The girl had a temper, which at one point I had found pretty hot, but right now could not be less interested in.

I shook my head. Maybe it was the year away, maybe it was how antagonistic she was the night before I got arrested, maybe it was how she called me out for going soft, but when I looked at Amanda I didn't feel the adrenaline pumping like I used to. "Well then, looks like we agree to stay out of each other's way. Have a nice life." I spun and walked away. 6 weeks in of trying to play it straight, I knew a girl like Amanda would be a one way ticket back to lockup. Let her call me soft. I'd rather be soft than stupid.

"You'll come crawling back. You always do. Hopefully you toughen up before you come back begging me for another chance, I don't mess with pussies." She yelled after me.

Charlie and I headed toward my car. "Jesus man, that girl is a piece of work." "Fuck her. She thinks I'm soft? She can go find someone else. I'm all set with that." We reached my car. I climbed in and lit a cigarette.

"No offense man, but I've heard that before. You never can manage to stay away from her for long."

I shot him a glare, but I knew keeping my distance from her would be easier said than done.