Letting it All Out- chapter 3
Friday evening came with a flurry of activity in the Bower-Micelli home. Angela and Tony were doing their normal over the top antics in preparation of the family's night out. Samantha and Jonathan just sat back and watched their parents with amusement until it was time to leave.
"Okay gang! Let's hit it! Let's move it! Let's do it!" said Tony very enthusiastically.
"Where's Mother? She knew what time we were leaving!" said Angela with annoyance in her voice. Just then, Mona walked in the back door, completely ignoring the glares coming from Tony and Angela.
"Sorry everyone… my afternoon date went a little longer than planned… well actually it's still taking place… once I ditch the four of you later on, it will resume…" she said seductively.
All four sets of eyes rolled as they grabbed their coats and belongings and headed out the door. They took Tony's jeep to the pizza place and headed inside to get a table. Tony took the liberty of ordering for the family.
"Is there a small army coming to join us for dinner Tony? That seems like a lot of food for just us…" said Jonathan.
"Well it is our anniversary! And besides… Angela could finish off one pie by herself!" laughed Tony. Angela glared over at him but ended up laughing in agreement.
"So… what should we do first after dinner? Mini golf or the batting cages?" asked Angela.
"Well, you both have a slight chance of not erupting into World War III at the batting cages, so why don't we start there? The war in mini golf can commence shortly after…" joked Samantha.
"Hey now! We will be civil! And if not, I'll let him win again…" smirked Angela.
"Hey Jonathan… remember, even when they lose they win!" laughed Tony.
Just then, the waitress brought out the pizzas and food for the family. They dug into the food, continuing to catch up on each other's lives from the past few weeks. The ease with which they fell back into their normal, everyday banter put smiles on all of their faces and caused Tony and Angela to give each other a knowing nod throughout dinner.
"Alright everyone! Let's head to the batting cages!" shouted Tony as he and Angela headed out of the restaurant. Samantha and Jonathan held back Mona before she left the restaurant.
"So Mona… what's the plan? How is this going to help get them together?" asked Samantha.
"Yeah Grandma what gives?" asked Jonathan.
"Relax you two! The first part of the plan is already in motion! Things are already starting to get back to normal. Now we just have to let nature take it's course… with some assistance from me that is… they need to be reminded that at the end of the day, there's only two people in this world that will put up with them and that's each other! C'mon let's go!" she said as they walked out of the restaurant.
It was a short drive to the batting cage/ mini golf place. There was only one cage open by the time they got there so Tony reserved the space. He had made sure he had enough quarters for the family to get as many tries as they wanted.
"Okay! Who's up first?" shouted Tony.
"I'll go first!" said Jonathan. He and Tony had spent a lot of weekends the previous spring and summer at this very place practicing batting. He had improved significantly over the past year and was making most of the hits. Tony stood back smiling with fatherly pride as he watched Jonathan hit one all the way to the netting.
"Way to go sweetheart! That one went all the way to the end!" shouted Angela as she clapped vigorously, embarrassing Jonathan.
"Mom! C'mon!" he shouted as he hit another one deep into the netting.
"Okay my turn!" said Samantha enthusiastically. She grabbed her helmet and bat and got into the cage. She too hit most of the baseballs, hitting some line drives and a few to the netting.
"Okay Mona it's your turn!" said Tony.
"Dream on! These hands touch a lot of things but metal bats are not one of them…" she said as Angela yelled at her, followed by Tony stifling a laugh.
"Okay Tony you're up!" said Jonathan as he handed him a helmet and bat. Tony stretched and twisted around before heading into the cages, mostly to impress the family rather than for athletic purposes.
"Alright… let's see how a pro does it!" shouted Tony. He hit multiple balls into the net as well as a few line drives. After hitting one so hard it ripped the netting, he left the cages and handed the helmet and bat to Angela.
"Oh Tony I don't know. I'm really no good. This isn't my sport!" she said as she reluctantly put on the helmet and took the bat. She entered the cage and Tony helped her get set up. He made the speed the slowest one possible and stepped out of the cage. Angela swung and missed the first three pitches. Tony could tell she was getting frustrated so he grabbed another helmet and entered the cages. Mona elbowed both Samantha and Jonathan to watch as Tony walked over to Angela.
"Watch this…" she whispered to them as they took a few steps closer to the cages to get a better view.
"Angela here let me help you alright? First, you need to work on your stance and grip on the bat. Make sure your feet are shoulder width apart and flat on the ground. Next your grip needs to be higher on the bat, like this" he said as he moved behind her, his front right up against her back. He reached over and wrapped his arms around hers, placing his hands on top of hers to show her the correct grip. He led her in a few practice swings until she got the idea. He put more money in the machine and regained his spot behind her as the first pitch came by. They both swung together and she hit the ball.
"I did it! I did it!" she said as she turned and leapt into his arms. Tony's face was the only one the three could see but they were certain Angela's face mirrored the very satisfied expression on Tony's face.
"Okay Angela that was one hit! Let's go again" he said as he got back into his stance behind Angela. They could see her face was flushed and not from baseball. Mona, Samantha and Jonathan all exchanged knowing, satisfied looks themselves as they watched them finish off the round. Tony and Angela exited the cages, both looking very flushed for a cool September evening.
"That was some workout. You both look winded, out of breath, flushed. You two getting… old?" asked Mona sarcastically.
"Mother! We are not getting old! That is a workout especially if you're not used to it!" said Angela.
"You can say that again…" whispered Mona so only Samantha and Jonathan could hear.
"Alright gang! It's mini golf time! Should we do teams? Girls versus guys? Micelli versus Bower? Or every man for himself?" asked Tony.
"I say every man or woman for themselves… you up for it Micelli?" asked Angela as she took a few steps towards Tony.
"Oh you are on Bower, you are on!" said Tony as he stepped even closer towards her, their bodies inches from one another.
"Well as fun as it would be to watch the two of you play a nice, family friendly game of mini golf, my date is here to pick me up. Samantha, Jonathan, call me if you need bail money for these two…" said Mona as she winked at them, walking off into a car that was waiting for her at the entrance of the place.
"Well… it's just us four then! Okay! Ladies first! Samantha then Angela, followed by Jonathan and then the cleanup man, Tony at the end!" he laughed.
"This is golf Dad, not baseball!" laughed Samantha as she went first, hitting her ball down the green. Angela was up next, hitting a hole in one.
"A hole in one! Nice job Angela!" said Samantha as Angela gave Tony a smug look as she walked to the end of the green. Jonathan went next followed by Tony. He too got a hole in one and did a not so subtle happy dance at the end of the green. Angela, Samantha and Jonathan all rolled their eyes at him as he picked up his ball and kissed it right in front of Angela.
"Looks like we are tied Micelli. One hole down, seventeen more to go…" she said with a laugh as she got as close to his face as possible before turning abruptly, heading to the next hole. Tony was momentarily flustered as his face turned a reddish color. He had to take a few deep breaths to regain his composure before heading to the next hole. Samantha and Jonathan gave each other a knowing look before following them down the path.
They played the next sixteen holes of golf, Samantha and Jonathan a distant third and fourth to Tony and Angela, who up until the second to last hole, were tied. Angela pulled into the lead with another hole in one, giving her a one stroke advantage coming into the final hole. Tony muttered in Italian all the way to the final hole.
"Alright everyone… this is it… the final hole… winner takes all!" said Tony. Samantha went and got close to the hole, followed by Angela and Jonathan who also had similar shots. They all hit their balls into the hole, leaving Tony the last shot. He hit his ball and waited not so patiently as it rolled down the green and right into the hole. His celebratory yell and subsequent second happy dance of the game caused the family to try and distance themselves from him as a crowd gathered to see what the excitement could be.
"Hole in one Angela! We are tied! Okay it's sudden death time! How should we settle this hmm?" asked Tony.
"How about we leave it as a tie? You've each won a game before so a tie keeps it even"
said Samantha.
"Yeah we can go get ice cream at the shop across the street!" said Jonathan.
"So Tony… should we call it a… tie?" she said with a sultry voice, attempts to bait him into some form of tie breaker very evident to everyone.
"How about we go for that ice cream and we figure out the best way to settle this… tie?" he said with an equally provocative tone to his voice. The family handed back their clubs and balls and headed across the street to the ice cream shop.
"So Angela… how hungry are you?" asked Tony.
"Starving actually… that game really had me working up an appetite…" she said as she again took some steps towards him.
"I'm feel quite peckish myself… wanna see who is the hungriest? Whoever eats the most scoops of ice cream is the winner!" said Tony enthusiastically.
"You're on!" said Angela as they headed up to the counter.
"Guys c'mon! What are you back in middle school? One or both of you will definitely get sick doing that!" said Samantha.
"Yeah and I'm not cleaning up Tony's jeep if you puke in it!" said Jonathan.
"C'mon we will be fine! Unless you think you can't handle it Angela… then we can leave it as a tie…" he said as he took a few steps closer to Angela.
"Bring it on Micelli… you're paying…" she said as they walked up to the counter. Samantha and Jonathan ordered their ice cream and moved out of the way, trying to distance themselves from the impending embarrassment their parents would be inflicting upon them with this tiebreaker.
"I'll have six scoops of strawberry ice cream and the lady will have six scoops of butter brickle ice cream please!" said Tony as he paid for all of their ice cream. The staff member gave them a weird look but filled their orders and watched them take their ice cream.
"Alright Angela… on the count of three, start eating… one… two… three!" shouted Tony as they both started eating their bowls of ice cream.
"I can't watch this…" said Samantha as she turned away.
Angela and Tony were almost finished with their bowls of ice cream, both starting to look a slight shade of green, neither of them stopping until the bowls were empty. Once they were done, they both grabbed their stomachs and had to take some deep breaths to keep the ice cream down.
"Okay you two! I call it an official tie! The winner will be the one who doesn't puke in the jeep!" laughed Jonathan as he helped Angela stand up, Samantha putting her arm around Tony as he stood up.
They walked them to the car and made them both sit in the backseat while Samantha jumped in the driver's seat, Jonathan in the passenger seat. They both looked back at their parents in the backseat who were on the verge of passing out. They were both holding onto their stomachs and leaning up against one another. Despite the evident discomfort they were in as well as the obvious stupidity in their current life choice, Samantha and Jonathan couldn't help but smile at one another, feeling for the first time in a long time that their family was back on track.