Chapter 5

Double Date

"Okay, Compson, he's alone," Francine said. The two girls, along with Arthur, looked on as Buster stood in front of Bowl City's snack counter, watching from their lane as the boy placed an order for nachos despite dining on pizza half an hour ago. "Time to put up or shut up."

"What are ya talkin' about?" Ladonna said, an incredulous waiver in her voice as her wide eyes darted to Francine then back to Buster. "This wasn't my idea. And who said I had to do it right now?"

The quartet had left for Pizza Paula's as soon as the grueling five-hour rehearsal ended. Once settled, relaxed, and their hunger satisfied, it was clear that one subject and one subject only occupied Buster's mind:

"Mom and Dad had coffee again last night," he said cheerily after inhaling his first slice. "They've been doing that a lot lately. Just hanging out. And talking on the phone. Like it's no big deal."

The others barely got a word in, and whenever an attempt was made to discuss a different topic, Buster always brought it back to his mother and father, as if he had not even been paying attention to them and chose instead to voice his thoughts.

"Dad has dinner with us a couple nights a week, sort of a new routine for us… Sometimes Mom shows him how to cook things and sends him home with recipes. Nothing too complicated, but I think he actually likes learning. He's home every night now, and I think that's why he never got cooking before… Thanksgiving is gonna be weird, but good, you know…? I'm willing to bet money he took Mom for a ride on Stella. That's what he called his motorcycle. Dad was really proud of Stella, and I could tell he was dying to show her off… Wouldn't it be great if they got back together…? I'm not saying they will. Just, wouldn't it be great?"

"Um, yeah," Arthur said. He looked uncomfortable to be put on the spot, but Buster did not seem to notice. "That would be great, Buster."

When Buster walked away, leaving the table for the restroom, Francine said in a low voice, "Would you look at that? He's so happy. I'm kind of worried about him."

"Me too," said Arthur. "I'm glad his parents are getting along, and I'm glad he's glad about it, but…you know how obsessed he can get."

"Yeah," said Francine, sighing deeply, "I know. He's living in a dreamworld, and he's going to keep dozing if he doesn't get a wakeup call and soon. Sucks to rain on his parade, but someone needs to step the eff in."

Arthur and Francine stared at each other intensely before inspiration seemed to hit them at the same time, and they turned to look directly at Ladonna. Ladonna, who had plucked a pepperoni from her slice, paused with it halfway to her mouth.

"What are ya lookin' at me for?" she said.

"Because," Francine said, as if the answer were obvious, "you're his girlfriend now. It's your duty to keep him in check, part of your job."

"Keep him in check? Sounds a little sexist, if ya ask me."

"Okay, then," said Francine, "be his better half. How does that sound? You should have his ear. You're close."

"I dunno about that," Ladonna said. "I mean, I haven't even kissed him on the lips yet."

"TMI," said Arthur, making a timeout signal with his hands.

"It's really not," Francine said to him. "Come on, Compson. You have to tell Buster, for his own good and for our peace of mind."

"Why can't it be one of y'all? You're his best friends, plus you've known him a lot longer."

"Normally I would be the one to set him straight," Francine said. "I mean, if Arthur wusses out first. But I can also be a blunt A-hole if he refuses to listen. Blunt isn't what he needs, not with something like this. He needs gentle, and that means he needs to hear it from you, someone he loves and trusts."

"Ya really think he feels that way about me?" Ladonna said softly.

"Uh, sure. Probably."

Ladonna told Francine and Arthur she knew they had elected her to talk to Buster because they were too chicken to do it, but she agreed to confront him as soon as possible. In Francine's opinion, here in the bowling alley was just as good a time as any. Besides, she needed to talk to Arthur about something important, and she needed to do it before he got any bright ideas.

"Go on," Francine said, shooing Ladonna away with a couple of flicks of her wrist before taking Lightning, her prized bowling ball, from its bag and cradling it in her lap. "Don't be afraid. The longer he thinks about it, the more he'll convince himself. Tell him he's full of crap and should give up on his parents getting back together. But, you know, do it tactfully."

"Well, okay. I'll try…"

Francine watched Ladonna stand and take her first tentative steps toward the snack counter before turning her attention to Arthur. Overhead, the endless 80's tunes switched over, from "Causing a Commotion" to "Dance Hall Days." The less-bombastic song meant she would not have to raise her voice too much to be heard. Not that she minded getting loud, but this was a personal matter.

"Now that they're gone, I need to talk to you."

"If you hadn't invited them, you wouldn't need to get rid of them," Arthur said in a cool and quiet voice. "Just saying."

"What—you don't like hanging out with them?"

"It would have been nice to know they were coming along before yesterday, that's all. I just thought you might have checked with me first, since I was the one who invited you out today."

"Arthur, this is our first real break in days. You really want to spend it arguing over this?"

"I'm not arguing. I'm just saying."

"Why are you upset?"

"I'm not. Really. I'm—just forget it."

He got up from his seat and walked over to the hand dryer, as if he were dying for something to do while they waited for Ladonna and Buster. Or he needed an excuse to abandon their argument. She could not let him get away, not until she resolved her problem. She followed him, Lightning in hand.

Inviting Ladonna and Buster along today had been a strategic move on Francine's part. Since Arthur had invited her Tuesday evening, she had been eagerly awaiting their Pie-Bowl outing. However, the longer she spent anticipating the event, thinking about it, the more she wondered if Arthur had been trying to get her alone for other reasons. He had seemed eager when he asked her at rehearsal. Why?

Well, it's been forever, she had reasoned. We haven't had a ton of free time, thanks to the musical.

Nah. There was more to it. Had to be.

He's looking forward to spending time with me.

So what if he was? That was not unusual. Unless…

What if he wants one-on-one time so he can ask me to the Autumn Ball? What if he wants to ask me during Pie-Bowl? Oh…hell, no.

Francine had been quick to get Ladonna and Buster on board with joining her and Arthur Saturday, asking them yesterday morning as soon as the idea had come to her. With Luster around, there would be fewer opportunities for Arthur to ask her. Had she known what would transpire during rehearsal this morning, Francine would not have wasted time worrying. Sue Ellen had approached her as she set up for her Frensky Star interviews, and she had asked some unexpected-but-interesting questions.

"Francine?" Sue Ellen had said shyly. "Hi. I meant to ask you something at lunch yesterday, after you interviewed me, but we ran out of time."

"Yeah?" Francine said, making sure her voice recorder had enough memory, "What's up?"

"The Autumn Ball…" said Sue Ellen, "I was wondering if you're going with anyone?"

"Oh, wow, Sue Ellen. I'm flattered, but—"

"By 'anyone'," Sue Ellen said, "I mean 'Arthur'."

"Arthur?"

"Yes. I thought maybe you and he…?"

"What?"

Sue Ellen looked frustrated. "Might be going together?"

Francine let out a brief, scoffing chuckle. "Why would you think that?"

It was no secret that pretty much everyone at MCM assumed Francine and Arthur were a couple. Pretty much everyone was an idiot. Sue Ellen was one of MCM's smartest students, but even she had managed to get it completely wrong.

"You go out a lot. All the…pizza-bowling the two of you do?"

"We changed it to 'Pie-Bowl'," Francine said, "and it doesn't mean anything."

Sue Ellen tilted her head and asked in a voice that sounded skeptical, "Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Okay… Next question—"

"What—do you want to take him to the Autumn Ball?"

She smiled ruefully. "Would that be okay?"

Sue Ellen never was even remotely this timid. She was confident, not afraid of confrontation. To see her acting like this was bizarre.

"Sue Ellen, why are you asking my permission? I'm not Arthur's mother. We're not going to the dance together, so if you want to ask, I say go for it."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Knock yourself out."

"Okay. As long as you're sure…"

"Believe it or not, I don't want to argue," Francine said when she caught up with Arthur at the hand dryer. She placed Lightning on the ball return rack to take the load off until they began the first frame. "You're right, I should've checked with you. I owe you one. For now, let's all have a good time… Truce? I won't even bitch if you beat me again."

"Truce," Arthur said with a nod after a moment's thought.

"Great. Do you want to hear something freaking hilarious? Get this—Sue Ellen wanted my permission to ask you to the Autumn Ball."

Arthur looked surprised, but then his brow furrowed in confusion. "Why is that hilarious?"

"Because she thinks she needs my approval. What's wrong with her?"

"What did you tell her?"

"I told her to ask away."

"What?" Arthur said, sounding as if Francine had said something truly appalling. "Why did you say that?"

"Because she has my approval."

"Approval?"

"You're available," she said sensibly, "and, let's be honest, you could do a lot worse than Sue Ellen Armstrong."

"Well, what if I don't want to go with Sue Ellen Armstrong?"

"Did you ask someone else?" she said, knowing he had not. "Who is it?"

"I haven't asked anyone. Not yet."

"Then what's the problem?"

"I didn't want to ask anyone," he said firmly. "I was thinking about going alone. Or…if you're not going with anyone, maybe we could hang out together while we're there."

"I'm not going to that stupid thing!" Francine said. "Besides, what would I even wear?"

"Didn't Muffy buy you an expensive dress months ago?"

"Oh, that doesn't mean sh—" Francine said, catching herself before she could raise her voice loud enough to be heard by the bowlers in the next lane. "I can't control how Muffy chooses to waste her money. I'm not going to the Autumn Ball. I've got other things to do with my time."

"Like?"

"Like working on my Frensky Star piece, for starters. But really, literally anything else would be a better option. As for you, just tell Sue Ellen 'no' if you don't want to go with her. The rejection won't kill her."

Francine looked away for a second, distracted by Ladonna, who had one arm draped across Buster's shoulders as he supported the pile of cheesy nachos with careful hands. The two were returning to their lane. She picked up Lightning.

"But if you really do want someone to hang out with, well, like I said, you could do a lot worse. If Sue Ellen asks, I think you should say 'yes'."

With each step, she drew closer and closer to Buster, and Ladonna had absolutely no idea what she was going to say to him.

How do ya just hurt someone's feelins like that, even if it's what they need to hear?

She would much rather lift his spirits than deflate them, even if Francine believed she could do it gently.

Perhaps she should have seen this coming. Since his father had moved back to Elwood City, Buster talked about his folks a lot. But that was to be expected, right? Buster had been so young when they had separated, and he barely remembered a time when he was not darting back and forth between here and New York or traveling around the globe and stealing what few moments he could with his father. The distance had been difficult for Buster, along with the fact that he was something to be shared between two people. He never expressed these sentiments outright, but, being a former military brat who had faced her own family difficulties, Ladonna could easily read between the lines and see his frustration. But Mr. Baxter was back, and things were going extremely well, and there was no way Ladonna would begrudge Buster the endless babbling his newfound happiness and optimism had brought on. Not until now. She had to agree with Arthur and Francine that it was time to worry, at least a little. There was danger in the way Buster was thinking, and his happiness and optimism could turn into delusion at the drop of a hat, setting him up for major heartache if his wishes did not come true.

And it might be your fault, ya big dummy, she scolded herself. At least, partly.

Buster smiled as she approached, and he continued to wait for his nachos.

"Hey," she said.

Amused, Buster gave her an exaggerated, arching wave. "Hey!"

"So…how's it goin'?"

"Ladonna, are you okay? We've spent most of the day together. Why are you acting like we just ran into each other at the mall?" His smile faded. He must have read her nervousness.

"Can we talk for a sec?"

Buster held up a finger to the clerk behind the counter, wordlessly letting him know he would be back as Ladonna took him by the wrist and led him over to the wide window of the pro shop. It was quieter in this corner of the alley. Buster said nothing, but he looked concerned as he crossed his arms right across Hello Kitty's face.

"I hafta know," she began, glancing down at her bowling shoes before summoning the courage to look at him, "Did I start somethin'? I'm afraid I might've."

Buster shook his head. "Help me out here."

"When I gave ya that photo, the one from parents' night?" she said, and she could tell he was searching his memory but not piecing everything together. Before Ladonna knew it, her nerves had gotten the better of her, and she was chattering uncontrollably. "See here, I'm so happy that things are workin' out for ya and your mom and dad, but if I'm responsible for ya…thinkin' things, then…not that it's wrong to think things, as long as ya don't overdo it—"

Buster held up a hand. "I'm afraid if I don't stop you now, you'll never be able to do it on your own," he said with a tight grin. "In a nutshell, tell me what's bothering you."

"I don't want ya to get hurt, and neither do Arthur and Francine."

She followed Buster's gaze to their lane, where his two best friends were deep in conversation.

"Earlier," she said, forcing herself to talk slowly, "when ya were talkin' about your mom and dad and got all excited, and ya said it would be great if they got back together…well, they got kinda worried about ya. It worried me, too, the more I thought about it, and now I can't help but wonder if givin' ya that photo might've…helped ya along in wantin' that for your folks."

He balked at this then seemed embarrassed that he had done so, and he tried to cover everything up under a smile. It was hard to watch.

"Ladonna…"

"I don't want ya to stop feelin' happy, but maybe just manage your expectations a little? Situations like this can be pretty sticky, ya know?"

"I know, I know," he said quickly. "Believe me. You guys don't need to worry about me. Maybe I have yakked about it too much lately, but I swear I'm good. It's only because Mom and Dad…I wish I could explain it, but it's private, between them. But if I could, you'd understand just how much better things are, way better than I ever thought they would be. Sorry if it sounded like I was dreaming too big. Of course I don't actually think they'll get back together! That's pretty crazy. As long as they keep getting along, I'll be perfectly happy, and I really think they will. My expectations are completely realistic, I promise. And don't worry about the parents' night pic. You didn't start anything."

"That's a relief," Ladonna said, flinging her arms around him and hugging him tightly. Though it had been a tough conversation to start, it had not been as awful as she had anticipated, and she was glad she had done it. "Ya know ya can always talk to me if you need to, though."

"I know," he said before pulling away and throwing a thumb toward the snack counter. "Nachos are getting cold. Ready to head back to the lane and watch those two avoid gazing into each other's eyes?"

She placed her hands on her hips, shaking her head as she stared at Arthur and Francine. "They are so awkward…"

"Yeah, they are."

Ladonna walked back with Buster, her arm around him. She foolishly believed her boyfriend's expectations for his parents were managed when they were not, and she did not know she would soon comfort Buster after he received a very rude awakening.

To be continued…