GOODNIGHT, SWEET PARTRIDGE
CHAPTER 7
For the next few days, life in the Partridge household was fairly routine. The kids went to school in the morning, leaving Carly and Shirley to themselves. Carly would ask Shirley a myriad of questions about Keith, show business or some other such subject, and Shirley would ask Carly questions about her personal life, but to no avail. Four days of grilling and still she wasn't about to spill it, to Shirley's chagrin.
It wasn't until Thursday afternoon when things began to pick up. Reuben arrived with an announcement for a Saturday gig in Redwood City. All of the kids were home, now, and talk of the show made the rounds at the dinner table.
"I remember we played there last year," Laurie said. "It was in the banquet room of the hotel, wasn't it?"
"Yeah. It was small, dark and stuffy in there. I hope this gig's not in the same place," Keith frowned.
"Actually, no it's not," Reuben chimed in. It amused Carly to see just how often the man would show up at dinner time. He'd eaten with them twice since she'd been there!
"Good. I almost fell off the box they stuck me on," Tracy twisted her spaghetti around her fork in a failed attempt to actually get some to her mouth. Carly smiled, reaching over and helping her while the Partridges kept discussing.
"It's at a zoo of some sort if I remember correctly." Reuben buttered a roll.
"Hey, Danny, that sounds like the perfect place for you. You get on our nerves, they can lock you in with the rest of the monkeys!" Keith teased.
Danny looked at Carly as she helped his little sister with her spaghetti. "Whatever. I suppose Carly will be going."
"Of course Carly's going! Whatever gave you the idea that she wasn't?" Shirley frowned as Carly looked up.
"Nothing. I just thought maybe she'd rather GO HOME instead," Danny muttered.
He felt the wrath of Keith's boot against his shin. "Ignore him, Carly. He's just mad because he flunked a math test yesterday," Keith said evenly, glaring hard at his little brother.
"If…if it's going to be a problem…" Carly looked worried.
"No problem at all. You're coming with us. It's Danny we should leave home," Laurie glared at her little brother as well.
"Yeah, let's do that." Chris nodded, stuffing a meatball into his mouth.
"No one is staying at home! We're all going and we're all going to have a great time, now is that clear?" Shirley's voice rose as she looked at her middle son.
Keith grinned over at Carly. "Looks like we'd better get our date over and done with before we leave town. I only have a couple of late classes tomorrow. Do you want to see the movie tonight, or would you rather wait until Friday night? It'll be less crowded if we go tonight."
Carly swallowed. "Well, okay, tonight's fine with me. You really don't have to do this, you know."
He flashed his dimple and she swore she could feel it whiz by. "I know, but I want to." Checking his watch, he stood up. "We'd better get moving, then. It's almost seven."
Danny scowled, putting his head on his hand, his elbow resting on the table. If he had his way, he thought, Carly wouldn't be going anywhere; especially not with his brother!
It was dark and chilly when Keith and Carly exited the Rialto, and despite having a light sweater on, Carly shivered visibly.
"Here," Keith smiled, slipping out of his brown suede jacket. "Don't want you to get the flu right before our show. My singing might make your head ache even more." He draped the jacket over her shoulders and she stopped walking, looking up at him. He was only about an inch and a half taller than she was, but right now, he seemed ten feet tall.
"Oh, please, don't even say that. Your voice is…magnificent! I could listen to you sing all day! And I often have. When my mom and dad are working, I play your records for company."
"Yeah? You must be pretty hard up for company, then."
She saw him wink in the streetlight above. "Oh, Keith, you honestly don't know what you…what you and your family mean to me. You were always there when I came home from school, no matter what. I would go into my room, put on a record and look at the pictures of you on the wall. No matter how I was feeling, you always had a smile on your face and pretty soon, I was smiling, too." She almost poured out her confession to him and she was grateful that he didn't speak, just like his pictures. She stared up at him for real, now, and saw the true, three-dimensional beauty of his face. His skin was smooth and just lightly freckled; his long eyelashes swept downward over the most deep, wide-set eyes she had ever seen. His nose was straight and his lips were full and perfect. She was falling in love all over again, and this time it wasn't with a photograph in a magazine. If he would just kiss her…
He cocked his head and her heart leaped into her throat.
"Carly…"
She put her finger against his lips, shaking her head. She had to stand a little on her toes, but she did it. She pressed her lips into his, wrapping her arms around his neck and letting his jacket slip to the sidewalk.
As she pulled away, fear replaced passion. What had she done?! Suppose he was angry at her brazenness? She looked down at the sidewalk, wishing it would just open up and swallow her whole.
"I-I'm sorry, Keith…" she whispered.
He licked his lips. "For what?"
He head popped up. "For…kissing you."
He smiled. "Why? Didn't you like it?" He grinned, his eyes sparkling in the light from above.
"Of course I liked it!" She sounded irritated at his sparring with her. "And I'd do it again, but…"
"But what? Come on, I dare you." He took her chin between his thumb and forefinger, looking her square in the eye.
She glared at his cockiness, but he was just too darn irresistible. She threw her arms around him, her mouth finding his there again in the pale lamplight.
The ride home felt as if she were floating on a cloud. She had actually kissed him; not once, mind you, but twice! And the second time, when he hadn't been taken unawares, he kissed BACK! Unbelievable, that's what it was, completely mind-boggling! She, Carly Stratton, a plain, ordinary fifteen-year-old girl from Muncie, Indiana had kissed Keith Partridge, America's Teen Heart-throb, smack, full on the lips! She felt like laughing and crying all at once.
They hadn't said much to one another about what had taken place outside the Rialto, for which she was more than grateful. His silence unnerved her at first, but then she convinced herself that it only meant that he was fleshing out his feelings. Even now, as she sat beside him in the front seat of the car, he looked thoughtful, pensive. She just hoped he wasn't angry.
"So, what did you think of the movie?" Carly asked out of the blue. Anything but silence.
He shrugged. "I've seen worse. The ending could have been better, and whoever wrote the music must have done it in a blender. I've heard better songs on Sesame Street," he smiled, taking his eyes off the road briefly to look at her.
"Oh, I agree. You could have done so much better."
It was hard to tell in the shadows, but she was sure he was blushing.
"You're just saying that."
"No, I'm not. You know how I love your music." She wanted so badly to mention the broken guitar string, but it wouldn't have been a good time to lose his trust, now. "I can see it now…and the Oscar for the best musical score goes to…Keith Partridge!" She waved her arm.
He laughed. "Oscar, huh? You dream big!"
"You have NO idea."
"Actually, yeah, I do." He looked at her. "Carly, I know this is sudden and kinda corny, but…I don't want you to go home."
She gasped as he looked over at her, his face completely serious.
"You don't?"
He shook his head, reaching over and sweeping his hand under her chin. "Not at all." His voice was soft and low.
She swallowed hard. "You're just saying THAT."
She could see his teeth glinting in the darkness. "No, I'm not."
He stroked her cheek with his forefinger and she reached up, taking his hand and holding it against her face.
Then, all too soon, they were home.
continued....
CHAPTER 7
For the next few days, life in the Partridge household was fairly routine. The kids went to school in the morning, leaving Carly and Shirley to themselves. Carly would ask Shirley a myriad of questions about Keith, show business or some other such subject, and Shirley would ask Carly questions about her personal life, but to no avail. Four days of grilling and still she wasn't about to spill it, to Shirley's chagrin.
It wasn't until Thursday afternoon when things began to pick up. Reuben arrived with an announcement for a Saturday gig in Redwood City. All of the kids were home, now, and talk of the show made the rounds at the dinner table.
"I remember we played there last year," Laurie said. "It was in the banquet room of the hotel, wasn't it?"
"Yeah. It was small, dark and stuffy in there. I hope this gig's not in the same place," Keith frowned.
"Actually, no it's not," Reuben chimed in. It amused Carly to see just how often the man would show up at dinner time. He'd eaten with them twice since she'd been there!
"Good. I almost fell off the box they stuck me on," Tracy twisted her spaghetti around her fork in a failed attempt to actually get some to her mouth. Carly smiled, reaching over and helping her while the Partridges kept discussing.
"It's at a zoo of some sort if I remember correctly." Reuben buttered a roll.
"Hey, Danny, that sounds like the perfect place for you. You get on our nerves, they can lock you in with the rest of the monkeys!" Keith teased.
Danny looked at Carly as she helped his little sister with her spaghetti. "Whatever. I suppose Carly will be going."
"Of course Carly's going! Whatever gave you the idea that she wasn't?" Shirley frowned as Carly looked up.
"Nothing. I just thought maybe she'd rather GO HOME instead," Danny muttered.
He felt the wrath of Keith's boot against his shin. "Ignore him, Carly. He's just mad because he flunked a math test yesterday," Keith said evenly, glaring hard at his little brother.
"If…if it's going to be a problem…" Carly looked worried.
"No problem at all. You're coming with us. It's Danny we should leave home," Laurie glared at her little brother as well.
"Yeah, let's do that." Chris nodded, stuffing a meatball into his mouth.
"No one is staying at home! We're all going and we're all going to have a great time, now is that clear?" Shirley's voice rose as she looked at her middle son.
Keith grinned over at Carly. "Looks like we'd better get our date over and done with before we leave town. I only have a couple of late classes tomorrow. Do you want to see the movie tonight, or would you rather wait until Friday night? It'll be less crowded if we go tonight."
Carly swallowed. "Well, okay, tonight's fine with me. You really don't have to do this, you know."
He flashed his dimple and she swore she could feel it whiz by. "I know, but I want to." Checking his watch, he stood up. "We'd better get moving, then. It's almost seven."
Danny scowled, putting his head on his hand, his elbow resting on the table. If he had his way, he thought, Carly wouldn't be going anywhere; especially not with his brother!
It was dark and chilly when Keith and Carly exited the Rialto, and despite having a light sweater on, Carly shivered visibly.
"Here," Keith smiled, slipping out of his brown suede jacket. "Don't want you to get the flu right before our show. My singing might make your head ache even more." He draped the jacket over her shoulders and she stopped walking, looking up at him. He was only about an inch and a half taller than she was, but right now, he seemed ten feet tall.
"Oh, please, don't even say that. Your voice is…magnificent! I could listen to you sing all day! And I often have. When my mom and dad are working, I play your records for company."
"Yeah? You must be pretty hard up for company, then."
She saw him wink in the streetlight above. "Oh, Keith, you honestly don't know what you…what you and your family mean to me. You were always there when I came home from school, no matter what. I would go into my room, put on a record and look at the pictures of you on the wall. No matter how I was feeling, you always had a smile on your face and pretty soon, I was smiling, too." She almost poured out her confession to him and she was grateful that he didn't speak, just like his pictures. She stared up at him for real, now, and saw the true, three-dimensional beauty of his face. His skin was smooth and just lightly freckled; his long eyelashes swept downward over the most deep, wide-set eyes she had ever seen. His nose was straight and his lips were full and perfect. She was falling in love all over again, and this time it wasn't with a photograph in a magazine. If he would just kiss her…
He cocked his head and her heart leaped into her throat.
"Carly…"
She put her finger against his lips, shaking her head. She had to stand a little on her toes, but she did it. She pressed her lips into his, wrapping her arms around his neck and letting his jacket slip to the sidewalk.
As she pulled away, fear replaced passion. What had she done?! Suppose he was angry at her brazenness? She looked down at the sidewalk, wishing it would just open up and swallow her whole.
"I-I'm sorry, Keith…" she whispered.
He licked his lips. "For what?"
He head popped up. "For…kissing you."
He smiled. "Why? Didn't you like it?" He grinned, his eyes sparkling in the light from above.
"Of course I liked it!" She sounded irritated at his sparring with her. "And I'd do it again, but…"
"But what? Come on, I dare you." He took her chin between his thumb and forefinger, looking her square in the eye.
She glared at his cockiness, but he was just too darn irresistible. She threw her arms around him, her mouth finding his there again in the pale lamplight.
The ride home felt as if she were floating on a cloud. She had actually kissed him; not once, mind you, but twice! And the second time, when he hadn't been taken unawares, he kissed BACK! Unbelievable, that's what it was, completely mind-boggling! She, Carly Stratton, a plain, ordinary fifteen-year-old girl from Muncie, Indiana had kissed Keith Partridge, America's Teen Heart-throb, smack, full on the lips! She felt like laughing and crying all at once.
They hadn't said much to one another about what had taken place outside the Rialto, for which she was more than grateful. His silence unnerved her at first, but then she convinced herself that it only meant that he was fleshing out his feelings. Even now, as she sat beside him in the front seat of the car, he looked thoughtful, pensive. She just hoped he wasn't angry.
"So, what did you think of the movie?" Carly asked out of the blue. Anything but silence.
He shrugged. "I've seen worse. The ending could have been better, and whoever wrote the music must have done it in a blender. I've heard better songs on Sesame Street," he smiled, taking his eyes off the road briefly to look at her.
"Oh, I agree. You could have done so much better."
It was hard to tell in the shadows, but she was sure he was blushing.
"You're just saying that."
"No, I'm not. You know how I love your music." She wanted so badly to mention the broken guitar string, but it wouldn't have been a good time to lose his trust, now. "I can see it now…and the Oscar for the best musical score goes to…Keith Partridge!" She waved her arm.
He laughed. "Oscar, huh? You dream big!"
"You have NO idea."
"Actually, yeah, I do." He looked at her. "Carly, I know this is sudden and kinda corny, but…I don't want you to go home."
She gasped as he looked over at her, his face completely serious.
"You don't?"
He shook his head, reaching over and sweeping his hand under her chin. "Not at all." His voice was soft and low.
She swallowed hard. "You're just saying THAT."
She could see his teeth glinting in the darkness. "No, I'm not."
He stroked her cheek with his forefinger and she reached up, taking his hand and holding it against her face.
Then, all too soon, they were home.
continued....