At the Cunninghams the same afternoon—

Howard came home from work; he was so quiet that Marion, who was on the couch sewing, didn't hear him come in. He sat in his chair and sighed loudly.

"Ow!" Marion had pricked her finger.

"Hi, sweetheart."

"You scared me Howard and I pricked my finger with the needle."

"That's nice, dear."

"Nice? What's wrong?" Marion put her sewing needle and shirt on the table, got up, and sat on the ottoman facing Howard.

Joanie and Richie came home and saw their parents talking, "Hi, Mom, hi, Dad."

"I hate my boss right now." Richie sat on the couch and Joanie sat on the table.

"What's wrong?" Joanie asked while she felt uneasy.

"No…no… Come on Dad! Joanie was looking forward to it! Let me take your place!"

"Looking forward to-," Joanie said then thought.

"Dad, don't break Joanie's heart."

"I'm sorry, Joanie. I told him that I had other plans but he said he didn't care and I was going to a convention in Madison on Friday morning until Sunday," Howard said disappointed.

"I don't like your boss," Richie and Joanie said then went upstairs to their respective rooms.

"Oh, Howard."

"I was really looking forward to it," Howard said somberly.

"What are you going to do?" Richie began walking towards the door after coming back down stairs.

"I have to go but I really want to make it up to her." Howard turned towards the door and yelled at Richie, "Richard, you better not go talking to my boss!"

"No, I won't, Dad. I was going to see Lori Beth."

"You better, but if I find out that you talked to my boss, I will take your car away, understood?"

"Yes, Dad." Richie left.

"Sometimes he is as nosy as you, Marion."

"I'm sorry, Howard."

A day later—

Joanie told her friends that she couldn't make it to the dance because her dad's boss wanted him to go to a convention and she sulked for a day. A few of her friends offered to ask their brothers to take her which she accepted. She met one of them at Arnold's.

Night of the dance 6:30pm—

Howard was already at the convention; Richie was with Lori Beth at the college library. Jefferson High was out for the day and Joanie was at home getting ready for the dance and Marion was in her room talking to her.

"When did you get a date?"

"A few days ago."

"You didn't tell me then?" Marion asked worried.

"Nothing to worry about, Mom."

"Who is he?" Marion asked.

"The brother of one of my friends." She finished getting ready.

"I want to meet him." They walked out of the room and went downstairs.

"It'll be fine, Mom." They heard a car horn honk then she left and went on her date.

"Oh," Marion started to worry then called Arnold's to see where Richie or Fonzie was. She talked to Al who said neither of them was there but she told him that when one of them showed up, to have them call her.

Fonzie was finished at the garage but was on a date at Inspiration Point. After hanging up with Al, she looked outside to the garage apartment that had the lights off and no motorcycle in front of the doors. She hoped that Richie or Fonzie would get her message.

A half hour later—

The door opened, "Mom, I got your message from Al. What's wrong?" Lori Beth was with Richie as well.

"Oh, Joanie went to the dance anyway with a brother of one of her friends. I wanted to meet him but she blew me off and I'm worried about her."

"I guess we can go dancing then, Rich."

"Okay, Mom, I'm going to get changed then Lori Beth and I will go."

"Thank you."

Richie went upstairs to change.

"I'm sure she will be fine." Lori Beth smiled.

"I know but usually Howard and I want to see her date. We did that to Richie."

"Yeah. My parents did that to me, too." Richie came downstairs in his suit.

"Let's go."

"Make sure she comes home with you, Richard."

"Okay, Mom." Marion had dinner and watched TV even though she was worried about Joanie.

8:15pm—

"I had fun tonight," Joanie told her date, Kurt Keller.

"I did too. Did you want to go to Arnold's afterwards?"

"No. I think my mom sent my brother to keep an eye on me." She pointed out Richie and Lori Beth who were not paying attention to Joanie pointing to them.

"Oh. Do you want me to get rid of them when this is over?"

"No. He's just being a big brother, that's all."

After the dance contest was over, the announcer, Mark Baker, announced the winners, and invited them on the stage to use the two microphones next to him.

"Harry and Karen Reynolds are the winners tonight."

"Wait a minute!" Joanie ran up to the front when she realized who was up on the stage. "Wait a minute!" She stood on the stage; Harry took his microphone.

"I won, young lady." They noticed she looked upset. A few friends of Joanie's started booing Harry. Harry was going to speak.

"Uh oh, I don't like where this is going. I don't believe who that is," Richie said when he noticed Harry was on the stage. Richie and Lori Beth walked up to the stage steps and took the microphone that was not used.

Joanie took the mic from Mark. "Are you serious? You are here tonight with her but I don't have my father with me!"

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked her since he had forgotten what Joanie looked like.

"What do you think? Bucko!"

"Oh boy." Harry realized what he had done and who called him bucko.

"You are such a selfish jerk for making my father not be with me tonight!" The audience booed while Karen stayed quiet. Joanie ran off the stage in tears while Lori Beth followed her.

"Joanie and my dad were looking forward to tonight. You don't deserve this award!" Richie said as the audience cheered and he took the trophy with him and smashed it on the stage.

Richie and Lori Beth went to find Joanie. It took them a few minutes but they couldn't find her.

"Oh man. Where could she have gone?"