Hi, guys, hope you're all doing well. Here is the next chapter, I hope you enjoy it.
Chapter 14
Taking a deep breath, Kyle crossed his arms angrily as he sat on the sofa in the living-room.
"Oh, bubbe, get that look off your face," said Sheila, who was standing next to the window. "She'll be here any minute now."
Knowing that she wasn't even paying attention to him, Kyle said nothing. Now it was truly too late to back out, to quit. This was it; his life was over. He was going to be the laughing stock of America and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Running away and starting a new life had never sounded so tempting.
Gerald and Ike had conveniently gone out for the day, and Kyle wished he'd managed to sneak away with them. He had a feeling he was going to be seeing even less of his father and brother for the time being, and he wasn't too sure how to feel about that. On the one hand, they clearly didn't want to be around him, and he wasn't going to force them to spend time with him, but on the other hand, he wished they weren't embarrassed by him. They were family, and he couldn't help but feel hurt.
Soon enough, there came a knock at the door, and Sheila opened it to reveal a middle-aged casually-dressed woman, and two slightly younger men.
"Hi, Mrs Broflovski!" she grinned, shaking Sheila's hand vigorously. "I'm Janet Cooper; it's nice to finally meet you!"
"You, too, but please, call me Sheila," she said as she stepped aside to welcome them inside.
"And this must be Kyle." Janet, spotting the boy on the sofa, smiled warmly at him. Catching Sheila's look out of the corner of his eye, he attempted to smile back, though it was more of a grimace. "This is Tom, and this is George," she pointed to the cameraman and light/sound man in turn.
Janet made amiable small talk with the two of them while the camera and lights were set up. "If it's okay, I'd just like to talk to you, about anything," she was saying. "Just to make you comfortable in front of the camera."
She began talking to Sheila, and Kyle zoned out as his mother did her usual spiel about how it was her idea to put Kyle in pageants, and she admits that he has to work hard in order to be noticed – if the judges don't notice him, he won't win, etc. The both of them clearly had no interest in talking to him, it seemed, and so he wondered why he was even there.
She told Janet of her routine, and how and she and Tony got Kyle ready.
"You can't just walk in and expect to win; you've got to work at it," she explained. "The most important category is the Beauty round, and you've gotta be prepared. They look at what the kids are wearing, the fit of the clothes, and the colour has to suit them. And that's not just for Beauty, that's for every category. But Beauty is the one that gives the highest points, so you've gotta have everything together."
"So, from what I've heard, he's become really successful."
"Kyle is a force to be reckoned with," said Sheila, fully believing it with all her heart, unable to keep a smile off her face.
Kyle rolled his eyes, biting back a laugh. She was actually serious; it was too funny.
"I'm looking forward to seeing him compete," Janet said. "How many titles has he won again?"
"Um," Sheila raised her eyes to the ceiling as she muttered under her breath. "I think, around 50 in all."
"Wow! That's impressive, especially considering how long you've been doing this. Where are all the crowns and trophies?"
"They're all upstairs." Sheila couldn't help but straighten up a bit, feeling really good. She then turned to her son. "Kyle, why don't you show them?"
"No, thanks," he said, trying to ignore the huge camera pointed at him.
"You don't want to? I think you should; they're yours, after all."
He could sense her impending annoyance, and not having any particular interest in being chewed out on camera, Kyle stood up and slowly led the film crew upstairs to the spare room, where all of his awards were stored. He opened the door, suddenly aware of how many crowns, trophies, and sashes there were. He remained where he was, saying nothing as Tom stood in the middle of the room, filming everything.
Shelves lined the upper part of the room, at least three rows on every wall, with bars underneath. Sheila had organised all of his prizes from oldest to newest; the crown would rest on the shelf, the trophy (if small enough) resting inside the base, and the accompanying sash hanging over the bar below it. If the trophy was too big to fit on the shelf, which had become the case more often than not, then it was placed underneath the bars. The rest of the wall space was taken up by Kyle's various plaques and medals.
"Which one is your favourite?" asked Janet, and Kyle looked around at the glittering room.
"That one," he said, walking over to a large five foot golden, sparkling trophy, sitting underneath a velvet embroidered sash, and a large, silver, jewel encrusted crown.
"And what one is that?"
Kyle delicately touched the sash.
"It says ABC's Overall National Talent," he read aloud, not looking at the camera. It was the first National Talent title he had won, and as he had won it for talent, it actually meant something to him. He had four of them now.
"What does ABC stand for?"
"... American Beauties and Cuties," Kyle admitted in a low voice, gritting his teeth.
"And what did you win it for?"
"I won – it means I had the best talent in the whole pageant."
"What's the most recent title you've won?"
"That one." Kyle pointed to a similar crown and trophy set. "Star Grand Supreme."
"Is that a high title?"
"Yep."
"Are you glad you won?" Already, Janet could sense that Kyle was just doing all of this to make his mother happy. She felt bad for him, but she kept the camera rolling anyway. This could be great for her career.
"I didn't win." Kyle was still not looking at her. "First place is Ultimate Grand Supreme, and I haven't won that yet. If you don't win that, then you haven't won." According to his mother, anyway.
"So you don't consider these as wins, then?"
Kyle shrugged.
"I just wanna win the Ultimate so I can quit."
~ X ~
By the time evening practise rolled around, Kyle had decided what he was going to do. He thought that maybe he had been too hasty earlier; maybe Sheila wouldn't snap at him in front of the cameras because it might make her look bad, so it was time to start standing up for himself a bit.
He, Sheila, and the film crew were in the garage, and Sheila was getting ready to start the music.
"Are you ready?" she asked, and Kyle took a deep breath.
"I don't want to practise; I've already practised today." He was silently pleased to see that she looked shocked.
"You know you practise every evening," she said, giving him that typical 'mom' look that subtly told Kyle not to embarrass her, the one that always made him buckle under pressure, but he did his best to remain calm.
"I don't wanna practise tonight," he repeated, wondering just how far he could push this.
"You have a competition in two weeks, and you want to be prepared. Don't you?"
"Is it important for Kyle to practise every day?" asked Janet, and Sheila turned to her.
"Yes, I think so," she said. "If they're not performing at their highest level, it shows. I don't want him to get rusty. If you think about it, two weeks isn't that long a time to prepare. If you were preparing for the Olympics, or anything at a National level, you would train months in advance to prepare yourself."
Kyle closed his eyes; she seriously did not just compare pageants to the Olympics. She had truly gone off the deep end.
"I know what I'm doing, and I don't want to practise," he said, and they all turned to face him. He really was now in two minds about this whole thing. The more he practised, the better he got, and the sooner he could quit. On the other hand, people were going to watch this, and having them think he actually enjoyed what he was doing gave him a desperate need to rebel. Even he didn't know which one was going to win out in the end.
Sheila walked over to him, and Kyle tried to keep his face calm. "Kyle, you need to practise," she said. "You know how important it is, and I want you to do your best. You know I only want what's best for you, don't you?"
For a moment, Kyle was tempted to apologise, and then he realised that he was supposed to rebel.
"I don't want to practise tonight," he repeated. Though Sheila's face did not change, a small flash of anger glinted in her eyes. Kyle took that as a win.
"Well, you're going to," she said after the slightest hesitation. "I am your mother." She grabbed his upper arm and began walking.
"Ow!"
"Oh, Kyle, stop being so dramatic. Everything is just such a big deal with you."
For the time being, Kyle had no choice but to comply; it was either that or get thrown around like a rag doll.
As he stood on the makeshift stage, an idea came to him. What if he deliberately did a bad job, but made it just subtle enough that he couldn't get called out for it? It was worth a shot, right?
Kyle found that he had to work very hard in order for this to work; muscle memory had been well and truly engrained in him. He kept his smile bright as he made his turns just a bit too rough, not positioning his arms in just the right place, not putting his head up high enough.
To his delight, it was working, but Sheila knew what he was doing.
"Do it again; you stumbled," she ordered, not about to let Kyle show her up. She didn't understand why he was acting like this. "Do it again, it wasn't smooth. Come on, energy! Energy! Put some effort into it! Keep the head up. Keep it up! What do I have to do, put a book on your head?"
Kyle knew that he was still doing well, and everything Sheila was saying just made her seem more overbearing. He hoped that by doing this people would understand he didn't enjoy competing.
Sheila managed to keep quiet until later that night, when the miniature film crew had left. As soon as the front door had closed, she turned to Kyle.
"What was that?" she asked, and Kyle, sat on the sofa, fought not to cower.
"What?" He hoped he sounded nonchalant.
"Practise! You can do so much better than that, and we both know it. I don't appreciate you trying to make a fool of me."
"I wasn't trying to -"
"Don't even try to deny it!" she snapped, and that was when Kyle knew his idea of rebellion was a big mistake. "You are too old to be acting like this, and I won't have it, understand?"
"Yes, Mom," Kyle said quietly, and Sheila left the room. "Fuck!" he whispered as soon as he was alone.
~ X ~
A few days later, Sheila, Kyle, and the film crew were at Tony's house, where they (meaning Sheila and Tony) were finalising Kyle's costume and music. The upcoming pageant had a Vegas themed category, and Tony was very excited to share his ideas.
"I think it will be a big hit," he was saying, as he and Sheila sat on the sofa, while Kyle lounged in an armchair, engrossed in his phone. "I don't think anyone else will be doing it, so Kyle will definitely stand out."
"Great," said Sheila. "What is it?"
"Okay... Kyle as Siegfried or Roy, and doing magic on the stage!" Tony grinned, and Sheila's face lit up.
"Amazing!"
"So, he'll be doing a normal routine, and I'm thinking that we add in a few magic tricks here and there; the crowd loves that kind of stuff, with a couple of giant stuffed tigers on the stage. But get this; at the end, Kyle will turn one of the tigers into a real puppy wearing a little tiger suit!"
"I love it," said Sheila. "How will he do that?"
"My idea was to have some kind of smoke popper, and then have someone do a quick change. I told my sister, and she said we can borrow her dog."
"That sounds perfect." Sheila couldn't keep the smile off her face.
"I've already got the perfect song; it's called 'Mind is the Magic' by Michael Jackson. Although, I did have to spruce it up a bit; it's quite 90's, but it's perfect because it's about Siegfried and Roy."
"Great. So, what about his costume?" asked Sheila, and her smile grew even wider when Tony told her what it would be. "Wow! I think this is your best one yet."
"Thanks, but it'll all come down to Kyle." Tony turned to the boy and smiled. "I know he'll do great, as always."
A few minutes later, Kyle was in the centre of the room, working on getting his timing with the new music right. It wasn't quite perfect, but that was to be expected.
His favourite part, however, was when Tony brought out an adorable West Highland Terrier. "This is Silky," he said, putting her down on the floor, where she immediately ran over to Kyle.
"Hey, there!" he grinned, bending down and petting her. Silky rolled over, and Kyle rubbed her tummy, grinning as the dog panted happily.
"So, Kyle," said Tony, and Kyle tore his gaze away from the dog, "after your mom does the switch out, that's when you pick Silky up, carry her to centre stage. Once we get the timing down, that's when the music will end, and you'll take a bow, and then carry her off stage, okay?"
"Okay," he said, and on Tony's cue, he walked back over to his right, to start the routine over again.
Kyle couldn't help but smile as he ran through his routine over and over again; he couldn't get enough of Silky, and he enjoyed nothing more than holding her close him, especially when she twisted her head and licked his face, like she was doing now.
"Now, Kyle, if she does that on stage, just ignore it, and focus on the judges, okay?" said, Tony, as he gradually turned the music up louder, so that Silky would get used to it. "In a minute, I'll show you how to hold her so she can't do that."
"Okay," he repeated, dutifully turning his gaze to the imaginary judges, the little dog lying obediently in his arms.
~ X ~
That Friday afternoon, Kyle, Sheila, Tony, Janet, Tom, and George were in Atlanta, but it wasn't to compete in the Regal Gems pageant. Kyle was there to crown his successor; as he'd won the National Photogenic Supreme title the previous year, it was his job to award that title whoever won that weekend.
To Kyle, it felt so weird being at a hotel and not competing; he couldn't remember the last time he'd travelled and it not being for a competition. He hoped he would get some time to enjoy himself, though he doubted it as he did actually have a job to do.
The pageant was due to start the following day, and so most of the contestants had already arrived, and were in the process of signing in. Sheila led the way past the queue and headed into the ballroom, where she sought out the dance director, soon finding her, where she was talking to a small group of the parents of the other previous winners.
Miss Shelly Jenson was a bright, smiley lady who greeted Sheila enthusiastically.
"Hi!" she beamed, "great to have you here."
"Thanks," said Sheila.
"Shall we get started?" asked Shelly, and upon Sheila's nod, she led the way out of the ballroom and down a hallway into an empty room which would double as a makeshift dance studio. There, the parents sat down on the chairs that lined the sides, and the kids gathered in the middle. Shelly headed to the front of the room. "Right, now that we're all here, we can get started. All of you are Regal Gems Royalty, and I expect every one of you to conduct yourself with all the appropriate behaviour we want from a Queen – or King," she added, glancing at Kyle, who was the only boy in the group. "This means no bad sportsmanship; for example, no talking bad about anyone, no arguing, no opinions on who you think you should win. Basically, just be nice, and be respectful. Okay?"
When the kids mumbled an affirmation, she smiled again. "Great; let's get started."
Kyle had already known beforehand that he would have to learn a dance routine for the opening of the crowning ceremony, and he knew that he was going to be terrible at picking up the steps, but nothing could have prepared him for just how bad he was going to be.
Unlike his practise sessions, he wasn't deliberately trying to get it wrong, but it seemed he couldn't do anything right, though the routine was quite a simple one. He jumped in the wrong places, he got his lefts and rights mixed up, he kept bumping into the other girls, and all of his claps and other moves were very off beat. He believed he wouldn't be doing so terrible were his every move not being filmed.
Shelly, to her credit, did not let her annoyance show on her face, even when she had to stop the music for the seventh time. "Let's try it once more!" she cried, keeping her tone light and upbeat.
Kyle could feel a few of the girls sneaking him dirty looks, but what could he do? The steps weren't sticking in his head for some reason. Not since the rainforest choir had he had to learn an actual dance routine, and this right here was the reason why.
Sheila could also feel the other parents staring at her, and she lifted her chin and continued watching her son attempt to dance. Both she and Kyle, and well, everyone in the room really, knew the only reason no one had said anything was because they were afraid of having their title stripped from them.
By the time evening rolled around, Shelly decided to call it a day, and told them to come back the next morning, but asked Sheila and Kyle to stay behind, and they did so, along with Tony, Janet, Tom, and George. "Let's see if a little one-on-one will help us," she said to Kyle, smiling brightly.
"Okay." Kyle doubted that it would, but he didn't have a choice.
"Thanks for staying behind," said Sheila. "I think my bubbe was probably a bit nervous. He's never had any dance training."
"Oh, it's no problem." Shelly made her way over to Kyle and stood next to him. "We'll get this down. Ready?" she asked Kyle.
"Sure."
"Okay, when you all come out on the stage, this is where you'll be standing, and we're gonna have our feet shoulder length apart, like this." She demonstrated, and gestured for Kyle to do the same, which he did. "Then, we're gonna jump, and land with our feet crossed." Again, she did it slowly, and waited while Kyle copied her. "Good! Now, we're gonna do a full turn."
An hour later, while Kyle still didn't have the five-minute routine down, he had managed to memorise the first six steps. If he could get the final six by tomorrow, in between his other duties, then maybe Shelly could make it work. "I think that's what would be best," she said to Sheila and Tony when they had finished, keeping her voice low.
"Okay," said Sheila.
"It's nothing against Kyle," she assured her, "he's a wonderful little boy, but I don't think he'll have time to learn the rest of the routine before the ceremony, and this way, he still gets to perform."
"That's fine with me." Sheila had become quite good at learning how to hide her disappointment by now. "We'll see you tomorrow."
~ X ~
The following day, Kyle was up early to get into hair and makeup.
"Why do I have to wear this? I'm not competing!" he protested in their hotel room as Tony applied powder to his face.
"People are still going to see you," said Sheila, "and you're still representing this contest, so you have to look decent."
"I don't want to wear it," said Kyle through a yawn; Tony, having picked up the dance routine rather quickly, had been trying to teach it to him late into the night, but Kyle still hadn't managed to get the steps down.
"Oh, Kyle, stop making such a fuss; you act like you're being tortured," Sheila jokingly eye-rolled at the camera, again hiding her annoyance. "You should be used to this by now."
"No one's even gonna see me, so there's no point."
"That's not the point," said Sheila. "It's not about that, it doesn't matter whether you're seen or not, it's about showing your best side. And you will be seen; you're going on stage, so you have to wear makeup."
A few hours later, Kyle, in his official pageant shirt, sash and crown, which he was expected to wear throughout the weekend, was backstage with Sheila, Tony, and the film crew. As per usual, he had not won the argument with Sheila; had he ever? Sometimes he wondered why he even bothered – even when he had perfectly valid arguments, she would stomp all over his reasoning with the old chestnut 'I'm the parent, you do as I say'. It was so unfair.
Along with the rest of the Royalty, one of Kyle's jobs was to unbox the miniature participation trophies and arrange them on the table, and also to unbox the teddy bears that every contestant got, and place them on another table. Tomorrow, they would lay the crowns and sashes out in preparation.
It was menial work, but Kyle would rather be doing that than be up on stage competing, so he made himself busy, and chatted with the girls.
"How long have you been competing?" one girl asked him.
"Over two years," he said, placing a trophy on the table, before removing another from the large cardboard box on the floor.
"Really? And you're Royalty already?"
"Yeah." Kyle didn't really know what else he was expected to say to that.
"How many have you done?"
"I don't know," he said truthfully; he had lost count a long time ago.
"I think I've done almost three hundred," the little girl bragged, smiling at him. "I've been doing this since I was a baby."
"That's.. great." Again, Kyle was unsure of what to say.
~ X ~
While Kyle was making himself useful, Janet, Tony and George sought out the pageant judges, and explained they were filming a documentary. Fortunately for them, the judges, two men and two women, were only too happy to be interviewed.
They all went and sat down in a quiet corner, and made themselves comfortable.
"Tell me, what's so special about Kyle Broflovski?" asked Janet, who was sitting to the side of the camera.
"Kyle is what we call a total package," one explained in her Southern drawl.
"What is a total package?" Janet asked.
"He's got everything. He's got good clothes, he's got great stage presence; poise, confidence, natural beauty, charm, and a great personality. Just everything we're looking for in a contestant."
"I've judged him before at another pageant," said one of the other judges, "and he's one of the best contestants I've ever seen. He usually does really well. I've never seen a boy win as much as he does."
"What do you think the reason for that is?"
"I think it's the things that Annie mentioned," said one of the male judges, who also had a Southern twang to his voice. "The looks, the confidence; he's got great clothes. He ticks all the boxes, basically, and it's reflected in the score sheets."
"Can you break down how the scoring works?"
"Well," began the first judge, "facial beauty is the most important, so we score the highest on that; we also look for eye contact, the way their clothes fit, their smile; everything has to tie together. Kyle has all that."
"I see. Well, thank you so much for speaking to me, and I hope the event goes well for you," said Janet. The judges enthusiastically thanked her, and they went their separate ways.
Janet and the boys returned backstage, and approached Sheila. "What are you hoping Kyle will get out of this?" she asked.
"Confidence, mainly," said Sheila, "which I think is working. He's also earning money, which goes straight into his college fund, he's making friends, travelling, winning prizes."
"Speaking of winning," said Janet, "can you explain the titles he wins?"
"Well, we're usually winning the Supreme titles now, which are the highest, and there are basically Supreme levels," explained Sheila. "Say level one, two three, and four. Level one is like the lowest Supreme titles. Right now, we're around level two, level three, but we'd like to go higher."
"What would going higher mean?"
"It would be great for Kyle; a boy's never won first place before, and for him to do that would be amazing. It's not about the crown or the money; just seeing him up there, knowing that his hard work did that, would be a great feeling."
~ X ~
Now that the pageant had started, part of Kyle's other job was to escort his age group on and off the stage for the group line up. Standing behind the curtain, he waited until the emcee announced them, before putting on his pageant smile, and stepping on stage. He walked slowly across the back of the stage, and stood there, smiling at the judges, while the rest of the contestants did the same. After a few moments, the host thanked them, and Kyle followed the girls off stage, feeling that this whole thing was completely pointless. Why couldn't he just show up Sunday evening, place a crown on the winner's head, and then go back home? Why did he have to be involved in all this nonsense?
The other part of his job was to wait backstage, and help the girls step on stage. He quickly checked to make sure they were all in numerical order, and when the emcee called the first contestant, he gently took her arm and helped her up the steps.
"Good luck," he whispered, and she smiled at him.
~ X ~
The following evening, Kyle and the other pageant Royalty, dressed in their pageant shirts, sashes, and black bottoms, were backstage, preparing to go on.
Stranding near the curtains, Kyle was hurriedly going over the routine in his head, if only to prevent some embarrassment. He didn't have a lot of time. Before he knew it, the music was starting, so, doing his best to look happy, he and the other girls ran out onto the stage to cheers and applause.
It took all of Kyle's efforts, but he managed to do his steps in the right order, even if he was half a beat behind everyone else. Once he had completed his first set of steps, he then winked at the audience and ran backstage. There, he watched the rest of the routine from behind the curtain, until Shelly gave him the cue to return, upon which he ran back on stage, and completed the dance. Finishing to more cheers and applause, they bowed, panting slightly, and exited, where they all remained backstage while the crowning ceremony commenced.
Kyle sat in a chair next to a table, watching videos on his phone. He adjusted his sash, moving it aside, as it always got in the way when he played on his phone. The crown and sash of his successor was resting on the table, and the other girls were standing in a little group near the curtains, watching the proceedings.
He was painfully aware of the camera pointing at him, but he ignored it. This was his only chance to have a break, and he wasn't going to waste it.
"Okay, Kyle!" the pageant director headed over to him, and Kyle respectfully turned his phone off. "They're about to announce the National Photogenic Supreme; make sure you're ready."
"Okay." Kyle dutifully stood, took the envelope containing the cash prize she handed him, and placed his crown on his head, before picking up the other crown and sash. As he walked over to the steps, one of the backstage helpers placed a four-foot high trophy next to him.
"Right, so remember, you'll stand on the first X, they'll announce the winner, she'll come up. When she's standing on the third X, at the end of the runway, you'll walk over to her, and crown her. Do the sash, then the crown; it's just easier that way," she said, keeping her voice low.
"Okay, but what about the trophy?" asked Kyle, not knowing how he would be expected to carry all three.
"Oh, don't worry about that; Carly will bring that on stage." The director pointed to a teenage girl standing near to him, and Kyle nodded.
At her nod, he stepped on stage, and stood on the first X, smiling at the audience.
"Ladies and gentlemen," said the emcee, "please put your hands together for your National Photogenic Supreme. She is... number 135, Skye Benson!"
Kyle clapped and kept smiling as Skye leapt up, while her joyous, screaming family hugged her tightly. She made her way up to the stage, and when she was in place, Kyle walked over to her. He briefly wondered how he was going to do this, as she had at least six inches on him. Thankfully, she bent down a bit, and he was able to put the sash on her with no awkwardness. Keeping the smile on his face, he placed the crown on her head, and handed her the envelope, as the applause continued.
"Well done," he said, and she beamed at him.
"Thanks!"
He stepped back and allowed her to walk off stage, before doing do himself. Sheila, Tony, and the rest were waiting for him.
"How was that?" Sheila asked him.
"Didn't think it was worth it," Kyle shrugged. He caught the look in his mother's eye, and quickly went over to the director, and began asking her if there was anything else he needed to do. Anything to avoid the wrath of Sheila Broflovski.
~ X ~
Back in Colorado the following week, and Kyle, Sheila, and Tony were back at Laura's photography studio, and the four adults were looking over the pictures from the latest photoshoot. They were deciding which ones to add to his portfolio. Kyle, ushanka on and face free of makeup, was lying on his back on the sofa on the other side of the room, grateful that the camera was focused on the adults so he could at least message Stan in peace. He was also chatting with Brianna, who had recently sent him a friend request on Facebook, and messaged him almost as much as Stan did.
"I really like this one," Tony was saying, pointing to the picture that showed Kyle with his head turned to his left with his eyes closed. Kyle had simple wanted a quick reprieve from the constant flashing, and the camera had caught him mid blink. "It's something different, you know, and it's unique. It has that elegant vibe to it, if you get what I mean."
"I see it," said Sheila, leaning close to examine the photo. "It could work."
"Yes, if we have it in black-and-white, turn the contrast up a little bit, it could definitely be a winning picture."
Once they had selected a handful of photos, Sheila sat next to Laura to observe the now customary retouching. Even though Laura knew that Sheila wanted the under eye circles removed, the teeth slightly whitened, the skin made smoother, she still asked for clarification before she did so. It was unlikely that Sheila's preferences had changed, but Laura was a professional, and a professional always consulted their clients. She was certain that Sheila could single-handedly keep her in business if her other customers were to leave, and so she wanted to keep her happy.
When the pictures had been adjusted to Sheila's liking, she paid the photographer, and made arrangements to come back later in the week, when the prints were ready.
~ X ~
A month later, and they were back in Atlanta for the American Royale pageant, the competition which had the Vegas themed category.
At that moment, he was lining up with his group, getting ready for the aforementioned Vegas category. He was wearing a long sleeve, sequinned, tiger-patterned silver shirt with a deep V-neck, and black jeans, and Tony was standing next to him, dressed identically. "You can't have Siegfried without Roy," he'd said, and Sheila had agreed.
"You excited for this one?" Tony asked, the sequins on his shirt glittering in the light.
"Sure," said Kyle, casting a glance toward the stage, where a boy his age was singing a pop ballad.
"It's gonna be great," Tony said, "it's so different; the judges will love it."
When Kyle's name was called, Sheila and Tony quickly set up the stage; two large, stuffed white tigers near the first and fourth X's, behind one of which was hidden a smoke popper. "Remember," Tony whispered as he returned to Kyle, "if Silky starts wriggling and squirming, just keep going, all right?"
"All right," said Kyle, as their music started. He stepped up on one side of the stage, while Tony stepped up on the opposite side, and they turned to face the audience, smiling.
Tony was right; not only did the judges love the act, but so did the rest of the crowd. They couldn't seem to get enough; cheering, whooping, clapping. Tony did a great job of not stealing focus from Kyle, acting more like a magician's assistant, and Kyle did his routine perfectly; he turned, he posed, he pointed, and winked, just like he'd been working on.
Walking over to a small table draped with purple velvet at the back of the stage, Kyle stood behind it. Upon the table was a top hat, and Kyle picked it up, and turned it towards the crowd, showing that there was nothing inside it. Tony gave a theatrical flourish and point, and Kyle reached into the hat, opened the secret compartment, and pulled out a stuffed rabbit. A simple trick, but Kyle hadn't the time to learn anything more complicated. The crowd applauded loudly, and Kyle stepped away from the table and continued his routine.
As Kyle walked over to stage left, he saw Sheila crouching down behind the curtain with Silky in her arms out of the corner of his eye. Turning to the audience he lifted up a silver piece of fabric that was lying in front of the tiger, holding it up high.
After Sheila had removed the plush tiger and discretely let off the popper, Kyle dropped the fabric, and held up Silky to amazed gasps and rapturous cheers. Grinning widely, he returned to the centre of the stage, where Tony joined him and the music finished.
"Great job, number fourteen, Kyle Broflovski! Thank you, Kyle!"
Kyle and Tony left the stage with Kyle still holding Silky.
"That was great," said Sheila, but Kyle was too focused on the dog to pay attention to anything else, and she pursed her lips. "Come on, you better put the dog upstairs; you have to get ready for Talent."
"Okay," Kyle sighed, as they made their way back to their hotel room. Sheila wouldn't allow him to hold Silky after he'd changed outfits, as she didn't want dog hairs on his costume, and so Kyle contented himself with stroking her as she lay on the bed. He wished he could spend more time with her.
After two days of competition, Kyle ended up winning Pro Supreme, his highest title yet, which pleased Sheila greatly. For Kyle, it was one step closer to quitting.
~ X ~
Done! What did you think? I'd love to know!