Ch. 7-The Game Plan
Author's Note: Well, my Spring Break is almost up, which means that I don't know how long it will be before I get to make another update. IF I can find time again this Easter weekend, I'll try to work on the next chapter, and really get the ball rolling.
pitbullladyOne of the secrets to winning the game, as Wilt knew all too well, was having the right team. You had to have teammates you could count on, who each knew his role and could use his strengths to balance out where his teammates were weakest. Only now, the object of Wilt's particular "game", if you could call it that, was not to score baskets, but to land a date within less than a week. Make that a HUMAN date, a goal made all the more difficult to obtain due to the fact that Wilt was not human himself, and further compounded by the fact that he was also missing an arm and an eye, due to circumstances he preferred not to discuss. Part of his game plan, as suggested by his friend and roommate, was simply to log onto an online dating service that promised it could hook up ANYBODY with a date, in their local area. Piece of cake, right? Not exactly, not, if like Wilt, you didn't have much experience with computers and that sort of thing. Wilt tended to think of computers as something not from his era, something rather foreign and mysterious. He'd used one a few times, but for some reason couldn't really feel comfortable with the thing. It was very different, he reflected, for those who were either born or, in the case of Imaginary Friends, created, after computers had become a household item. They were exposed to the things from the get-go, while someone like himself needed a bit more time to really get used to the things. Besides, while he would never publicly admit it, using a keyboard AND that mouse thingie when you only had one hand was really more of a challenge than even HE preferred to tackle.
Wilt DID have a plan, though, and that plan also involved the drafting of a team member who DID know a lot about computers, and was really cool about not blabbing everyone's secrets. The only problem was, this team member didn't know yet, that he was going to be called upon, and worse yet, it was imperative that he didn't actually know WHY, since he happened to have created Wilt's rival in this increasingly desperate little contest. Still, Wilt was reasonably certain he'd be able to skirt that particular issue. All he had to do was wait for the team member to show up, as he did every day.
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For Mac, it seemed like any other day-wake up, listen to his older brother moan to his mom about having a stomach ache so he wouldn't have to go to school, listen to his mom lecture said older brother on the importance of an education, and on how hard she worked to provide for her two sons, go to school, leave school, walk to Foster's for his daily visit with Bloo. Little did Mac know, but he was about to be conscripted as a key player in a rivalry of sorts between his Imaginary Friend, and one of his Imaginary Friend's equally Imaginary roommates. Entering the large foyer as usual, Mac noted that no one seemed to be around-no big deal. Bloo was probably up in his room, or outside in back somewhere, with his friends. Mac hoisted his beloved backpack a bit higher up on his shoulders, and headed for the staircase that led to Bloo's room, to check it out first. His foot had barely touched the bottom stair when a hand, seemingly from out of nowhere, landed on his shoulder.
"AGHHHH!" the startled boy jumped, spinning around to face the direction that the hand had apparently come from, startling in turn, the owner of that hand.
"WHOA! Uh, SORRY, there, Mac! I didn't mean to scare you!"
Mac relaxed upon seeing whom the hand belonged to, though it did strike him as bit odd that Wilt should just walk up behind him and grab his shoulder like that, instead of his usual warm greeting. "Oh, hi, Wilt-glad it's you! You really kinda scared me for a moment there; what's up?"
Wilt looked around him, as though making sure that they were the only ones about, before giving Mac a somewhat sheepish grin and yet-another apology for frightening him like that. "Yeah, I'm REALLY sorry about the way I just came up on you like that, OK? But look, Mac", Wilt glanced around him in a conspiratorial manner again, "I kinda need your help with something, if that's OK? I mean, that IS OK, isn't it?"
"Yeeeahh, sure, I guess. What is it you need help with?" Mac inquired. Something about Wilt's tone seemed a bit odd, or perhaps it was the fact that WILT was asking someone else for help, for a change. As long as Mac had known the tall, red Imaginary Friend, it was always Wilt who DID the helping, and he very, very seldom asked anyone else for anything!
"You know a lot about computers and the internet and stuff like that, right?"
Mac's guard relaxed. Now THIS was something he truly prided himself on, and really felt comfortable with. "Sure, Wilt! Whatya need?"
Wilt straightened himself up. "Oh, nothin' much, just some help with a website, like you know, how to log on and all that stuff. I'm not really that good with high-tech things, so I figured I'd play it safe and ask you. You gotta few minutes?"
"Yeah, no problem. We can go to the Computer Room. But Wilt, why did you have to wait for me to show up? I mean, Frankie knows a lot about computers and stuff, too. You coulda asked her. NOT that I don't want to help, but I hate that you'd have to wait for me to get out of school and all…"
"Oh, no, no…Frankie's been waaay too busy, and I didn't want to bother her." Wilt explained as he more or less herded his recently-drafted key player towards the Computer Room, hoping that they wouldn't run into Bloo along the way. If Mac didn't have to find out about this wager between him and Bloo, all the better. As they reached the Computer Room, Wilt breathed a silent sigh of relief that they were, for the time being, anyway, the only ones present. He pulled up a chair in front of one of the computers and gestured for Mac to sit down, then grabbed another seat from in front of another unused terminal and sat down in it himself, next to Mac, straddling the seat with the back of the chair turned towards the boy. Mac quickly "woke up" the computer with a flick of the mouse. "OK, now what's this website you wanna go to?"
"OH, here it is," Wilt answered, then reached into the top of his right sock to retrieve a folded-up piece of paper he'd stashed there. He carefully shook out the folds, then handed the paper to Mac.
The boy looked at the piece of paper, a clipping from a newspaper, and a frown began to take hold of his features, causing Wilt's own grin to falter. "Uhm, Wilt? This says it's for an online dating service. WHY do you want to go to THIS site? Or maybe you got the wrong piece of paper, or something?"
Darn it, I was hoping he wouldn't notice THAT-oh, well, whatdya expect from a bright kid, anyways?
Wilt swallowed hard, trying to think of something to reply back with that would not sound totally dumb, and probably cause the kid to get up and leave.
"Uhhmm, well…I uhm…Yeah. I just…sooorta…thought…I'd…liketocheckitout. You know…just to kinda see who was on there, you know….sorta…?" He could see doubt written all over Mac's face now, as the kid started to give him that "you gotta be joking" look, that raised-eyebrow look. Wilt could feel heat beginning to spread up his neck and across his face, and found it necessary to avert his gaze for a moment.
"Uhhh, I dunno, Wilt. I mean, this seems sorta weird, you know, for YOU. Besides, it says here that you have to be at least 21 to log on, and I'm only…"
"But I'M over 21! I just want you to, you know, show me what to do to log on and stuff, NOT sign up on there yourself! Once you show me, I can take it from there, OK?" Wilt tried to ease the kid's apprehension with one of his trademark chuckles, but it just wouldn't come out quite right. Mac started to push the chair away from the computer, not at all certain about this. Something about this whole thing was sending up red flags all over the place. Why would WILT, of all people, want to go to one of those stupid online dating sites, anyway?
Mac found a restraining hand, gentle but firm, placed once again on his shoulder. "Mac, PLEASE", Wilt could not keep the desperation out of his voice, even though he knew it would probably just upset Mac even more, "I REALLY need you to help me with this, OK? I promise that once you get me logged on, you can leave and go play with Bloo. I know it sounds weird, but trust me, it's something I HAVE to do."
Mac just stood there for a moment, not speaking, studying the face of the tall red Imaginary Friend he'd thought he knew pretty well. He knew that there had to be something wrong. Wilt NEVER pleaded like this, ever. He knew that he had no reason to assume that it was something trivial now, and his apprehension began to turn to genuine concern for his friend.
"Wilt, is there a problem? This isn't like you. If there's something wrong, maybe you should talk to…"
Wilt silenced him with a wave of his hand. Sighing, he knew that it was now or never-he could either tell Mac the truth, or risk the boy getting too alarmed and walking away, or worse yet, telling Frankie or Mr. Herriman, out of concern for Wilt, of course. Wilt found himself left with no other recourse.
Taking a deep breath, he started to explain. "OK, Mac. I guess I owe you an explanation for all this. I shoulda known you'd be too sharp to just go to this website, and not know what it was and all, sorry." Wilt wiped his wristband across what would have amounted to his forehead, if his head had been like a human's, that is. "You see, it's like this…man, I don't even quite know how to start with this…you see, Bloo and me…"
Mac groaned out loud, rolling his eyes. He of ALL people should have figured that BLOO had something to do with this, after all.
"Anyways, Bloo and me, we sorta got this bet goin' on, and…"
"A bet? What kind of bet?"
"Well, I was getting to that. You see, Bloo came in the room one night about, oh, I guess…three weeks ago, and you know, Bloo bein' Bloo, started sayin' some things that I guess I kinda took exception to. Not really BAD things, just…DUMB things. But that's just him. I mean, I didn't mean Bloo was dumb or anything…"
"I know what you mean. Now, what about this bet? What's it about, and all that stuff?"
"Well, I ended up runnin' MY big mouth, on account of what Bloo had said, about how I'd once gone out with human women…"
"Oh, waitwaitwait…did you just say, YOU went out with, as in DATED, human women? That IS what you just said, right?" Mac's eyebrows seemed as though they were trying to leap off the top of his head at that moment.
Wilt swallowed again, "Uhm, yeah. That's what I said, and Bloo said…"
Mac shook his head slightly, not knowing exactly HOW to respond. The whole notion of an Imaginary Friend actually dating human women just seemed, well, strange, to say the least. At the same time, though, Mac inwardly chastened himself, since he of all people should have known better than to think of Wilt, or any of the other Imaginary residents of Foster's, as somehow below humans. Besides, his natural curiosity was piqued by now.
"And just how long ago was this, that you, uhm, last dated…a girl? A human girl, I mean?"
"It was a long time ago, Mac. Long before I came here, before you were even born. Before FRANKIE was even born, really." An odd look came over Wilt's features, a look of nostalgia and remembrance, as he continued, "Things were…I dunno, DIFFERENT, back then. It was a time where people weren't as hung-up as they are now about, you know, some things…there was a lot of stuff goin' on, with a war, and the marches, and that sorta thing, and all the 'Free Love' scene…you know what I'm talkin' 'bout, doncha?"
"Uhm, no. I don't. But Wilt, I'm not even nine years old yet. And 'Free Love'? What's up with THAT?"
Wilt sighed. This wasn't getting him anywhere, except to alienate his young friend and create mistrust between them, something that Wilt had NEVER, ever wanted to cause. He reached over Mac's head and retrieved the newspaper clipping from beside the keyboard, folding it back up in his palm. "Never mind, Mac, I'm sorry to have bothered you, I guess I can figure out how to…"
"Wilt, wait. I didn't say I wouldn't help you. But I DO want to know the details of this bet between you and Bloo, if you don't mind telling me."
"Oh, yeah, the bet, right. Anyways, Bloo and I have this bet, because of my big mouth, that I would be able to get a human woman to go out with me, on a date, you know, just for fun sorta thing. Bloo didn't think I could do it, so he made this bet that I wouldn't be able to. AND he set the deadline, which is up in ooohhh, about four days. And I basically agreed to it." Wilt thought for a moment, before adding, "Yeah, I know it was stupid. Sorry."
"OK, so you two have this bet, that you can or cannot get a human woman, or girl, or whatever, to go out with YOU…on a DATE…within the next four days, am I correct so far?"
Wilt nodded, prompting Mac to continue, "Sooo, then, what happens if you CAN'T get a date…I mean, you two must have had something to wager, right? What did YOU put up?"
"You know that collection of sports cards I told you about, the one I keep in the safe deposit box?"
Mac's faced paled. "You don't mean the one that your creator gave you, the one with all those famous athletes from way back, not THAT collection of sports cards?"
"Yeah, that one." Wilt stared down at the floor, biting his lower lip a bit.
"But Wilt, you CAN'T just let Bloo have that! You KNOW he'll just sell it on Schmebay or something! It wouldn't mean ANYTHING to him, but to YOU…I mean, your CREATOR gave you that! That's all you have left from your… from your…" Mac gave up on finding the right words, and simply stated emphatically, "No, this has to stop! You HAVE to call off the bet! Just tell Bloo it's over, to forget the whole thing! He'll just have…"
"NO!" The force of the word cut short Mac's little diatribe, making him blink in total surprise. Had Wilt just yelled, "NO" at him? As if to answer that question, Wilt repeated it, though with a bit less force than the first time.
"No. I won't call it off. I got into this, and I'm GONNA see it through, one way or the other!"
"But Wilt," Mac tried to reason, "what if you lose? You don't want to have to give up those cards to Bloo, do you? I don't see why you just can't tell Bloo…"
Once again Wilt interrupted, his face now a hardened mask of determination. "I will NOT call it off! If I lose, I lose. I'd rather be known as a loser than a wall-jumper, a QUITTER, any day! I NEVER was a quitter, and I don't plan to start bein' one NOW!"
Mac was stunned. He had only on one other occasion witnessed Wilt becoming so emotional over something. Obviously, the entire notion of "quitting" had really struck a nerve, and was one of those subjects, that in Wilt's case, was better left untouched. It was several minutes before Mac could even think of anything to say, as he knew he had to chose his words carefully, lest he make an already-volatile situation even worse.
"Ooohhh-Kay…so? What did Bloo put up, in case HE loses?"
Wilt took a moment to snap out of his state of intense emotion, his whole expression changing back to one that Mac was more familiar, and more comfortable, with. "Oh, uhm, he agreed that if he loses, and I DO get a date, that he has to do all my chores around the place for a whole month."
The slightest hint of a mischievous grin began to play about the corners of Mac's mouth.
"Sooo, a whole month, huh?" He leaned forward and stretched out his hand. "How about letting me see that piece of paper again, if you don't mind."