Chapter 4
Reflections
Josh was still in a bitter mood the next morning when he woke up, he looked at his face, sure enough, there was a large purple bruise from where Ron had slapped him,
"Damned him." Josh said, touching the bruise, and wincing slightly,
"He's right, Josh, if you saw what Ron and Brick saw in that room, you wouldn't think someone playing dead in the foyer very funny." Monique said, coming out of the bathroom, and walking over to the vanity where Josh was looking at his swollen jaw,
"What exactly did they see?" Josh asked, looking over at Monique, she had been one of the few who had heard what Ron and Brick had seen, she heard it from Ron himself,
"It's too horrible to put into words, Josh, but I assure you, I wouldn't wish that kind of death on my worst enemy." Monique replied,
"So, we got some wackjob running around here, hacking up high school seniors, what next, is Freddy Kruger going to appear in the foyer, and begin gutting us all?" Josh asked, he watched Monique turn white,
"Oh my God, oh my God, that's how they were killed, wasn't it?" Josh asked, Monique nodded, "Oh my God, that is totally sick."
"Give it up folks, Josh Mankey has discovered something sicker than his false facade that he hides under." Monique said, looking over at Josh, who's face was in a sad kind of frown,
"You'd hide under a facade if you have to live like I do." Josh said,
"What's that supposed to mean, you got it better than I do, you're one of Middleton's privliged few." Monique said,
"Yeah, but with privlige, comes a price, my father bailed on my mother when I was born, and she can't keep her nose out of the coke, so now you know the real me, my stepfather beats on her all the time, to top matters off." Josh said, not looking Monique in the eye,
"Why didn't you tell anybody?" Monique asked,
"Because I'd be considered social poison if I did." Josh said,
"Why did you tell me, then?" Monique asked,
"Because, and I know this is gonna sound crazy, I trust you." Josh said,
"And noone else knows this?" Monique asked,
"No, not even Kim, and I dated her for a little while, remember." Josh said,
"I didn't know." Monique said, now looking at the floor in embarrassment,
"Don't feel sorry, you didn't know, because I never told you." Josh said,
"Do you forgive Ron for what he did?" Monique asked, looking over at Josh,
"Yeah, I can forgive him, I can only imagine how freaked out he is, he was the one who found the bodies, wasn't one of the victims an ex-girlfriend of his?" Josh said,
"Yeah, Zeta Flores," Monique said, "I can still remember how those two met, she was working the ticket booth at the theater, Ron was so tongue tied, he couldn't get word one out of his mouth."
"Wow, sounds like Ron had it tough back then." Josh said,
"Yeah, he did, he'd been considered a social outcast for years. It's only just recently that he got out of that shadow." Monique said,
"How did he pull that off, anyway?" Josh asked,
"He saved the lives of fourteen of our classmates last winter, when an avalanche buried Mt. Middleton in about ten feet of snow, Kim wasn't around at the time, she'd broken her leg, on a mission earlier in the month, and was rehabing at home, Ron was the only one left to stand up, and take charge, there's about five of us in this house that owe our lives to him, I'm one of them." Monique said, remembering how Ron had been regarded as a hero that day,
"Who's the other four?" Josh asked,
"Brick Flagg, Bonnie Rockwaller, Tara King, and Alan Platt." Monique said,
"Man, and I thought I had it tough?" Josh said,
"I'll tell you something my Granny always told me," Monique said, "'No matter how bad you think you got it, there's always someone out there who's got it worse than you,' something you need to think about, Josh." Monique said, turning on her heel, and walking out of the room.
Josh had to admit, Monique had a point, her parting words stuck in his brain,
'From now on, I'm going to be straight, be myself, if Ron can get out of that shadow, then I can do it too.'
Ron was in the kitchen, preparing breakfast when Josh Mankey walked into the room,
"Ron, can I talk to you in private for a minute?" Josh asked, Ron nodded, and the two men walked out onto the veranda, Ron remained standing, while Josh sat down on a deck chair.
"I'm sorry for the stunt I pulled last night." Josh said,
"Don't worry about, it's no big." Ron said,
"No, it is," Josh replied, "I forgot that you were one of the two who found the bodies."
"Hey, I said it was no big." Ron said,
"Monique told me what you did last winter, were you scared?" Josh asked,
"Out of my mind." Ron said,
"Why? You and Kim have been through worse than that?" Josh asked,
"Well, that's just it, everything I've done, I've done with Kim up to that point, that was the first time I've flown solo, and I was scared shitless." Ron said,
"What got you and Kim to start dating?" Josh asked,
"What's with the twenty questions?" Ron asked,
"Curiosity." Josh said,
"You're not always this curious, are you?" Ron asked,
"Sometimes, now, how 'bout it, how did you and Kim start dating?" Josh said,
"Well, we'd been best buds forever, we just took our relationship a step further." Ron said,
"Something brought it about, didn't it?" Josh asked,
"Yeah, it all started last spring, we had to face off against Drakken, and Shego, during the fight, Kim got this microchip stuck to the back of her neck, I think the scientist that developed it called it a 'Moodulator,' or something to that effect, anyway, what it did, was amplified certain emotions that Kim felt, at one point, the chip was set to 'love,' and Kim's deep rooted feelings for me came to the surface, after that, Kim decided to act on the emotions that had come to the surface, we've not been happier." Ron said,
"Man, I tell you, I wish I could get that lucky." Josh said,
"It'll happen, sooner, or later, you just gotta give it some time." Ron said,
"Well, I got something I need to tell you." Josh said, and he proceeded to tell Ron all that he had told Monique earlier that morning,
"Why are you telling me all of this?" Ron asked, he seemed a little freaked out that Josh Mankey was acting this way around him,
"I'm hoping that we could be friends." Josh said,
"Coolio." Ron said, smiling a kind of goofy grin,
"Please don't think I'm doing this to take Kim from you, that's not the reason." Josh said,
"What is?" Ron asked,
"Well, it's just that I think that we were in the same boat." Josh said,
"Sounds like it." Ron said,
"Want a beer?" Josh asked,
"You got some?" Ron asked,
"Would I offer if I didn't have any?" Josh said, Ron agreed, and Josh disappeared, a few seconds later, he reemerged, holding two cans of Coors in his hands,
"The Rocky Mountain Legend." Ron said, popping open his beer, and sitting down in an empty deck chair,
"Only the best." Josh said, the two men touched their cans together, and began to drink,
"By the way, was it you, or Kim that smuggled in that liter of Thunderbird that Flagg had the other night?" Josh asked,
"I did." Ron said, an impish smile crossing his face,
"Oh man, and I didn't even get a swallow of it." Josh said,
"Oh, I'm sure if you look around, you might find someone who has some liquor to you satisfaction." Ron said,
"I know what you got, and I'm not much of a wine drinker, what about Kim?" Josh asked,
"Oh, nothing, only a fifth of Crown Royal." Ron said, in a matter-of-fact voice,
"Who else brought in the booze?" Josh asked, he knew that Ron had been watching the other classmates load up their bags,
"Well, let's see," Ron said, pulling a mock thoughtful look, "Platt's got two liters of Jagermeister, Monique has a liter of Jose Cuervo, Tara has a fifth of Smirnoff, and I know for a fact, that Jake Quinn smuggled in a twelve pack of Budweiser, and two fifths of Gold Schlager."
"Those eyes in the back of your head, Ron." Josh said, laughing slightly,
"They do come in handy." Ron replied, smiling widely.