Love and Obsession
Chapter 9
-October 15-
Karla and Ted were at Karla's mother's apartment. The eighteen year old's mother had gone out to run errands and didn't approve of her decision to be with a man who was twice her age, but she wasn't around, which gave Karla the perfect opportunity to sneak him into her room.
Ted lay across her bed as she straddled his waist, kissed him, and drew her long fingers along his torso. She reached down to his pants and unbuckled his belt and threw it up at the ceiling fan, then she took off his pants and he helped her unhook her skirt.
"Hey, I have a new plan."
"Oh, yeah? Do tell." He said with a grin.
"Well, there's this dance tomorrow night in the school gym. I'll go and watch my ex and his rotten girlfriend, then when she isn't around, I'll go up to him and seduce him. Then, they'll have to break up. Then, I'll invite them to a picnic at the park on the pretense that Gia asked them to meet her and tell them to bring their little brat and yours..." She told him. She revealed the rest of the plan to him and his smile grew wider.
"You're so diabolical! I love it." He kissed her neck and the two of them continued to talk as they did the horizontal mambo, as they called it.
-October 16-
It was the night of Bayview High School's Homecoming dance. Stephanie sat on her bed as Rebecca styled her hair and applied her make up.
"Mama pwetty." Sadie said, not quite able to pronounce the letter 'r' properly. Rebecca and Stephanie thought it was adorable though. It reminded them of how Michelle, Nicky, Alex, and Leah used to talk at that age.
"Yes, your mommy is very pretty, isn't she?" Rebecca asked. Stephanie smiled and picked up her daughter, who cooed and clapped her hands.
"Steph, Josh is here!" Jesse called as he came up the stairs and saw his wife and niece put the finishing touches on their make up.
"Okay, Uncle Jesse."
"You look really pretty tonight."
"Thank you."
"Have mercy! Beck, you look stunning." Jesse complemented as he turned to admire his wife and her slim figure.
"You look hot yourself!" Rebecca replied, running her fingers along the sides of his face as she gave him a kiss.
She was wearing a knee-length red dress with thin straps and sparkles all over it and simple black high heels. Her hair was down with a thin black headband and she wore brown mascara to give her eye lashes a fuller, but still natural look, and reddish pink lipstick. Jesse wore a black suit with a red tie, and black dress shoes and his hair was moussed and styled the way he usually did for special events.
He and his band were hired to provide the music for the dance, just as he had for Steve and DJ's proms, and Rebecca was going as a chaperone, while Joey and Elise would look after the children.
They went downstairs where Danny was holding his video camera, recording as his middle daughter kissed her boyfriend.
"You ready to go?" Josh asked her.
"Yeah."
"Have fun, you guys." Elise said with a wave.
"We will." Stephanie replied.
The young couple went over to their daughter, who was in Joey's arms, and gave her a kiss and hug goodbye, then they went out to Josh's car and drove to their school with Jesse and Rebecca following close behind.
When they got there, Jesse and Rebecca went to help Jesse's band set up the equipment while Stephanie and Josh went to the refreshment tables to get something to drink.
Soon, the dance was in full swing and everyone danced or chatted with their friends. At around nine o'clock, the music died down as Jesse spoke into his microphone.
"All right, Bayview High, this is the moment you've all been waiting for. It's time to announce this year's Homecoming King and Queen!" Cheers erupted from the crowd as the Principal handed Jesse a white envelope. "The Homecoming King is...drumroll, please...Joshua Miller!"
"Way to go, Josh!" A female classmate cheered as Josh walked up to the stage and a crown was placed on his head.
"And our Queen is...Stephanie Tanner!" Almost everyone clapped and Stephanie walked up and stood next to her boyfriend and received her crown. Everyone formed a large circle around them as they danced to 'Iris' by the Goo Goo Dolls.
'And I'd give up forever to touch you
'Cause I know that you feel me somehow
You're the closest to Heaven that I'll ever be
And I don't want to go home right now
And all I can taste is this moment
And all I can breathe is your life
'Cause sooner or later it's over
I just don't want to miss you tonight'
They twirled around gracefully and the crowd went wild when he kissed her lips, but neither of them cared. They were enjoying this moment together, and felt as though they were on top of the world.
'And I don't want the world to see me
'Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am
And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming
Or the moment of truth in your lies
When everything feels like the movies
Yeah you bleed just to know you're alive'
"Stephanie, I know I've told you this a million times by now, but I love you so much. You and Sadie are the best things that have ever happened in my life."
"Oh, Josh, that was beautiful. I love you too. You're a wonderful man and an even better father. I couldn't have asked for anyone better."
"I couldn't have asked for anyone better myself." He pulled her closer to him and the crowd went wild as he held her and pressed his lips gently against hers. They kissed for what felt like hours, until they could no longer breathe and had to stop for air.
'And I don't want the world to see me
'Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's meant to be broken
I just want you to know who I am...'
The song continued and when it finished, Jesse's band played another one, this time it was some eighties rock and roll song that they had played the week before at the Smash Club, and almost all the students danced to the beat.
Stephanie, however, was beginning to feel a little chilly and hadn't realized until now that she left her sweater in the back seat.
"Josh, can you excuse me a minute? I left my sweater in the car."
"Do you want me to go with you to get it?" He offered, concerned about her going out there by herself at night.
"No, I'll be fine. Thank you." Stephanie found Rebecca and let her know what she was doing, and she walked outside toward the student parking lot.
Back at the Tanner home, Joey and Elise had just put the children to bed. Leah was resistant at first, since she was used to her parents tucking her in, but she settled down within a few minutes and now they had the rest of the evening to themselves. They sat on the living room couch, his arms around her sweetly as they watched one of Joey's Popeye tapes.
"You know, Joey, it's been a very long time since I've seen Popeye."
"Really? Well, blow me down!" he replied in Popeye's voice, which made her giggle.
"Yeah. I haven't seen it since my second year of college. My roommate watched it all the time."
"Wow! That is a long time. If you don't mind me asking, how old are you?" he asked her. In the time they'd been going out together, her age was a detail he had never asked about. He was too polite to ask then, worrying that she'd feel insulted.
"Not at all. I'm thirty-two. You?"
"Forty-two."
"Has anyone ever told you that you don't look your age?"
"Yeah, I've had people come up to me and say I looked like I was thirty."
"I agree. You definitely look more like a thirty-something."
"Well, thank you very much. You don't look older than twenty-five or twenty-six."
"Good genes."
They chuckled and watched a few episodes from the first tape. Elise fell asleep on Joey's lap in the middle of the third episode, so he turned off the TV and they went up to his room and turned in for the night.
At the dance, Stephanie came back from the car with a black knitted sweater she had left unbuttoned and she made her way back over to her boyfriend. She found him by the punch bowl, but what she saw made her blood boil with rage.
"Josh! What the hell?" she confronted. There he was, in the arms of another girl. Josh quickly pulled away.
"What's the deal, Joshie-poo? I thought you still wanted me." the girl taunted, shooting a glare at Stephanie, who growled softly to herself.
"Karla, I told you, we were over the moment I caught you stealing from my parents. If you think I still want to be with you after that, you're out of your mind."
"But Joshie..."
"No, just get away from me."
"Fine, I'll go, but I haven't given up on you yet." Karla ran out of the school, angry at being rejected again, leaving Stephanie and Josh alone.
"That wasn't what it looked like, Steph." He pleaded.
"Save it, Josh! I saw it. It looked like you were busy sucking face with her."
"She kissed me. I kept trying to tell her no, but she wouldn't listen."
"Oh, sure!"
"It's the truth."
"I want to believe you, but I don't know if I can. Goodbye, Josh."
"Stephanie, wait!" he called out, but she was already gone. She went to the ladies' bathroom where she saw Rebecca touching up her make up.
"Aunt Becky, can you please take me home?"
"Yeah, sure. What's wrong, sweetie? Your eyes are all puffy and red, like you were crying."
"I don't want to talk about it right now, okay. Maybe later. Right now, I just want to leave."
"Okay, come on." Rebecca got the keys from Jesse and she and Stephanie left to go home.
More soon!