Chapter 57: Makeup Prom Week
Tuesday morning Ron and Yori showed up at Kim's house for the walk to school. While they were waiting for Kim, Bonnie, of all people, showed up driving her mother's car.
"I thought you could use some help hauling the food," Bonnie explained.
The four teens quickly loaded the prom food, marking the packages to distinguish it from the standard, school fare. Bonnie caught Ron alone, and made her apologies. There were tears in the tall brunette's eyes when she and Ron came out of the Possibles' kitchen.
Those tears quickly dried up on the drive to school. Ron, sitting in the back seat with Yori, (a sitch that Kim found much easier to put up with after last night) saw fit to describe the prom menu. He did so in a high pitched voice and a fake French accent, mimicking an elderly lady, who had a cooking show on Public Broadcasting in the 60's. By the time they reached the school's parking lot, Ron had moved on to cooking techniques and proper prom dining. The constant laughter almost caused Bonnie to wreck the car on a couple of occasions.
"Is he always this much of a goof?" Bonnie whispered to Kim, as the four teens carried the supplies to the school's kitchens.
"Usually," Kim replied, with a fond glance at Ron's back. The blond boy and Yori were a few yards ahead of the two cheerleaders. Ron had taken the breakables. This was a good thing since he had taken to greeting passing students in the same falsetto voice and accent. The resulting expressions from the unsuspecting passers-by were giving Bonnie and Kim a rough time holding their bags of supplies.
"I'm beginning to see why you hang around with him," Bonnie commented. She chuckled at another student, whom Ron had asked if he preferred sour cream or butter to moisten a devil's food cake. Even Yori's solid composure was beginning to crack a little bit. The four teens stored the supplies in the kitchen and headed off for their morning classes.
Morning classes proved to be tense, but uneventful, with the students facing the distraction of the upcoming dance as well as the need to buckle down to prepare for finals the next week. At lunchtime Kim joined her usual group. She found the three boys all looking very satisfied, Cindy looking relieved, Monique smiling and Yori looking a little flushed. Her friends quickly informed Kim that Felix had just asked Yori to attend the prom with him. Yori had accepted, and the three boys had planned a triple date. The boys hadn't divulged the details, but Cindy felt a little better knowing that she had Monique and Yori to help keep the three of them in line.
Kim and Yori shared a look. The triple date would allow Yori to keep close to Ron without blowing her cover. Kim allowed herself to relax, laughing at how Cindy and Monique, with occasional input from Yori, tried to get the boys to tell them what they had planned. The boys, of course refused to give up any real details, but gave grandiose pronouncements about how they had the absolutely perfect evening planned. Kim's smile became a little more forced when she realized that, of the seven teens at the table, she was the only one who wouldn't be on this date.
You have no right to be jealous, she told herself. How many times have you gone on dates without Ron?They'll have their triple date, but you'll be there, in the gym, for most of it. Kim hid a smirk behind her smile; besides, Yori will be chaperoning Ron and Monique all night.
After a few more minutes, lunchtime was over and it was off to afternoon classes. Much the same as the morning classes, the afternoon classes proved to be tense but uneventful. With classes over, Kim headed for the bus garage, to help on the arch. While she really wanted to help Ron, she knew her track record in the kitchen. She would be the most help by keeping clear.
Kim and several other volunteers spent two hours getting the arch ready. When done, they covered the arch with a tarp and left it in the spare bay, just as Bonnie showed up to check on the progress. With the arch no longer a worry, Bonnie asked Kim to accompany her to the kitchen to check on Ron's progress.
"I've been so mean to him for so long that I'd rather have one of his friends with me," Bonnie explained to Kim. "I'm sure he'll feel better if you're there at the same time." Then Bonnie paused a moment. "Please, just stay in the cafeteria. Don't actually step into the kitchen."
Kim was ready, for just a moment, to punch Bonnie's grin off of her face. Then she realized that her rival had a point. Much as Ron had his strange Ron Factor, the ability to do everything wrong but still accomplish what he had set out to do, Kim had her own factor. Unfortunately, the Kim Factor disrupted any nearby food preparation, usually with loud and messy results. The other thing restraining Kim's temper was the fact that Bonnie was actually trying to check on Ron without making him uncomfortable. Maybe Bonnie was going to cut Ron just a little bit of slack.
The two girls walked across the schoolyard and into the school cafeteria, only to stop cold when the smells from the kitchen hit them. The smell was a combination of baking cake, cookies, bread and meat. Kim's mouth immediately began to water. She looked at Bonnie and could tell that her rival was suddenly ready for dinner, as well. Ron emerged from the kitchen to report his progress in the same falsetto voice and accent he was using that morning.
"We're just finishing up the desserts," Ron reported. We've got the cookies baked and we're decorating the lovely sheet cake. We'll be able to freeze them and take them out on Saturday afternoon. We've also got the turkey, the beef, and the bread baked and will make them into sandwiches on Thursday. We'll mix the punch on Thursday as well. Mr. Barkin wants to be here to put a padlock on it, since he thinks that some more…exotic…ingredients will find their way in if he doesn't protect it. About all we have left to do tonight is clean up."
"Why did you insist on doing everything from scratch?" Bonnie giggled.
"It's my prom too," Ron replied switching to his normal voice. "This is just my way of trying to make it special."
Kim smiled fondly at her friend, and was both touched and shocked to see Bonnie doing the same thing.
"It really smells good, Ron, thank you," Bonnie told Ron. "Tell you guys what, I want to have a word with the contractor in the Gym. You know, find out exactly when we can get to work on Friday and all. I'll catch you tomorrow." Ron and Kim both nodded, too confused by her vocal appreciation to speak. Then they pitched in, cleaned up the kitchen and headed home for a short sparring session with Yori.
Bonnie went to the gym and asked the big, blonde man she found there to introduce her to the contractor.
"HEY BOSS DUDE!" The man shouted to another man, who was on a ladder. "This babe here wants a word with you, seriously."
The second man slithered down the ladder with an almost cat like grace and approached them. "Edward," he reproached the first man. "Must I remind you to use proper manners? Using the term 'babe' is offensive."
"Seriously?" The big man asked.
"Serious…er, YES! Now get back to work." The contractor took a deep breath and muttered, "Monkeys are fine creatures, but I will no longer work with apes." Then he looked at Bonnie. "My apologies Miss…"
"Rockwaller."
"Miss Rockwaller," he replied. "How may I be of service?"
"I'm the chair of the prom committee," she explained. "When will we be able to start decorating on Friday?"
"Ah, yes," the contractor mused. "One of your members spoke to me last week. I assure you that we will be done on Thursday night, allowing you complete access to the gymnasium all day Friday. Do you still wish to use the net?"
"Yes, that was a very good idea!" Bonnie complimented him, taken aback by his good manners.
"I'm glad that I can be of service," the man replied. "I must sympathize with your situation. You must be facing a monumental task, dealing with a compressed schedule and limited funds."
"Yeah, well it isn't easy, but I'm pulling it together."
"Indeed," he said. "I trust that you and some of your members are putting forth extraordinary efforts?"
"Well, yes," Bonnie was a little confused about his interest.
"I have found myself managing groups in an effort to meet a goal many times," he continued. "And perhaps, Miss Rockwaller, you would accept some advice from me. Those who are making those extraordinary efforts will appreciate public recognition. Perhaps letting everyone at the prom know who has made the effort will make those hard workers more likely to repeat such strenuous efforts in the future."
"You mean, like giving them a little certificate or something, right up on the stage in front of everyone?" Bonnie asked.
"Exactly, Miss Rockwaller."
Bonnie thought about it for a moment. It would be really easy to print out certificates and the frames would be cheap. Not to mention, she would have several pictures of herself presenting the awards. "I like it," she declared. "Thank you. You've been a big help!"
"I do what I can," the contractor informed her, modestly. "I hope that you find this a most memorable celebration."
"It's going to be awfully hard to beat the last one," Bonnie quipped.
Her only answer was a raised eyebrow.
Wednesday and Thursday passed, for Kim, in a blaze of activity. Between classes, homework, prom activities, and working out with Ron and Yori, there wasn't any time to sulk about her Ron situation. Friday afternoon found her in the final, prom committee meeting.
"So, as soon as we're done here, we'll head to the gym and hang decorations on the net," Bonnie was saying. "How about the arch?"
"Done and we checked on it last night. We'll carry it over as soon as this meeting's over." One of the girls reported.
"Good, how about the music?" Bonnie continued.
"The company was setting up just before I came here," another girl answered. They'll even start up a track while we're working."
"Great, that leaves the food," Bonnie turned to Kim.
"All ready and waiting," Kim reported. "We only have to set it up tomorrow and the underclassmen volunteers are all set and briefed." The redhead frowned for a moment. "We did have a scary moment yesterday afternoon. Oscar showed up to help and had an idea to save time making the sandwiches, which involved the mayonnaise and a power painter. Luckily, saner minds prevailed."
"So, the only thing left is to finish decorating the gym?" Bonnie asked the entire committee. Everyone nodded. "Good! I've got a little chore to take care of. I'll be there in about ten minutes."
Kim went straight to the Gym to help finish the decorating. Ron, Cindy, Yori, and Felix had joined the volunteers decorating the gym. Oscar and Monique were at their jobs. The small crowd of teenagers worked for the next three hours, which Kim found very enjoyable. For that time, she wasn't a world saving teen heroine or the head of the committee; she was just a teenager, among friends, getting ready for a party. Bonnie was actually nice and the music company played a string of popular songs, which made the time fly by.
They hung the decorations then raised the net. Half a dozen teens ran off to the bus garage and fetched the arch while the rest of them set up tables and chairs. Ron himself made sure that the serving tables were set up how he wanted them. Finally, the gym was ready for the following night. Mr. Barkin even complimented them on how quickly they had put this whole thing together. Bonnie positively beamed at the praise.
Kim looked over the gym with a sad sigh. Two weeks ago she and her new hottie date were the talk of the dance. Tomorrow, she was going to be dateless while her two best friends were going together. She looked over at Ron, who was refusing to divulge date plans to Cindy and Yori, much to their amused annoyance.
Two more days, she reminded herself. In two more days I'll tell him how I feel. Then, one way or the other, we'll know where we stand.
A/N
I know that I must be sounding like a boken record, in a writers sense, but I just have to thank everyone who has been reading, reviewing, and emailing me with comments and suggestions.
Also, special thanks to Joe Stoppinghem for beta reading and becoming more of a collaberator than a proofreader. Thanks Joe.
As always, catch you at the next update.
daccu65