The First Love Of Alipang Havens
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Copperfox
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PART EIGHT: EMOTIONS--MANY, MIXED AND MIGHTY
Sammy Ashford, with his bicycle, was waiting to see Alipang when he came out the north entrance. "Hey, Al! My way home goes with yours for part of the way. I'll walk my bike."
Alipang grinned. "No, go ahead and ride it. I can keep up with a reasonable cruising speed. Another time I'll bring my own bike, and we'll ride back together to whoever's house is closer to the school."
"That would be your house, by about ten blocks' difference," remarked Sammy, as he mounted his bike and began pedalling, with Alipang trotting effortlessly alongside. "Hey, I wanted to tell you: I went along with us 'only finding' Leopard Man's knife, but I can't lie to my Mom and Dad. I have to tell them what happened."
"You're right, Sammy. I don't lie to my parents either."
"But they know when to make noise and when to stay cool. And Al, once my Dad knows what you did for me, I'm guessing that _your_ Dad will be able to get a _real_ good deal on any car repairs he has done at my Dad's garage."
"Thanks, Sammy. I'll make sure to tell him."
Leopard Man made sure to stay far away the whole time Al and Sammy were in the schoolyard.
==================
The Pansit Paradise wasn't open that night, which facilitated the Havens family sitting all together for a family supper, such as used to be the norm before Alipang and Chilena had gone to work at the restaurant.
"Heavenly Father, I thank You for Your grace and mercy and provision," Dr. Havens pronounced with bowed head. "I thank you for my beautiful wife, my beautiful daughters, and my strong and manly son. Thank you for the food before us, and for the freedom and safety to sit and eat it. In Jesus' holy name, amen."
As the roast beef and vegetables were being passed around--bread and salad being already at each place--Cecilia encouraged everyone to talk about the day just passed. Melody and Harmony reported to their older siblings in bubbly voices what they had done with Mommy today. Dad said a few words about an amusing patient he had seen. Then Alipang--who had already cellphoned Mom at lunchtime to recount his thwarting of the morning robbery--described some of the less alarming events of his day, dwelling with pleasure on the fact that Kim Tisdale was content to let him sit next to her in the two classes they shared.
Finally, all eyes turned to Chilena. Swallowing hard, she spoke in a squeaky mixture of hope and fear. "Mom...Dad...I met a nice boy at school. He's in first-hour English with Alipang and me..."
In the ensuing discussion, Al interceded for Dan as far as he honestly could, expressing his belief that the boy from English class was harmless. He also informed Mom and Dad that, like himself, Dan still was at least a couple of weeks away from getting his driver's license--which, Al argued, would give Chilena some power in the relationship. Dad eventually agreed that Chilena could accept a date with Dan, provided the place was known, curfew was observed, and so on.
Chilena's look of gratitude for the support, plus her earlier expressions of worry upon learning how Alipang had faced a knife unarmed, promised that there would be plenty on the agenda at tonight's downstairs meeting.
Sammy Ashford, with his bicycle, was waiting to see Alipang when he came out the north entrance. "Hey, Al! My way home goes with yours for part of the way. I'll walk my bike."
Alipang grinned. "No, go ahead and ride it. I can keep up with a reasonable cruising speed. Another time I'll bring my own bike, and we'll ride back together to whoever's house is closer to the school."
"That would be your house, by about ten blocks' difference," remarked Sammy, as he mounted his bike and began pedalling, with Alipang trotting effortlessly alongside. "Hey, I wanted to tell you: I went along with us 'only finding' Leopard Man's knife, but I can't lie to my Mom and Dad. I have to tell them what happened."
"You're right, Sammy. I don't lie to my parents either."
"But they know when to make noise and when to stay cool. And Al, once my Dad knows what you did for me, I'm guessing that _your_ Dad will be able to get a _real_ good deal on any car repairs he has done at my Dad's garage."
"Thanks, Sammy. I'll make sure to tell him."
Leopard Man made sure to stay far away the whole time Al and Sammy were in the schoolyard.
==================
The Pansit Paradise wasn't open that night, which facilitated the Havens family sitting all together for a family supper, such as used to be the norm before Alipang and Chilena had gone to work at the restaurant.
"Heavenly Father, I thank You for Your grace and mercy and provision," Dr. Havens pronounced with bowed head. "I thank you for my beautiful wife, my beautiful daughters, and my strong and manly son. Thank you for the food before us, and for the freedom and safety to sit and eat it. In Jesus' holy name, amen."
As the roast beef and vegetables were being passed around--bread and salad being already at each place--Cecilia encouraged everyone to talk about the day just passed. Melody and Harmony reported to their older siblings in bubbly voices what they had done with Mommy today. Dad said a few words about an amusing patient he had seen. Then Alipang--who had already cellphoned Mom at lunchtime to recount his thwarting of the morning robbery--described some of the less alarming events of his day, dwelling with pleasure on the fact that Kim Tisdale was content to let him sit next to her in the two classes they shared.
Finally, all eyes turned to Chilena. Swallowing hard, she spoke in a squeaky mixture of hope and fear. "Mom...Dad...I met a nice boy at school. He's in first-hour English with Alipang and me..."
In the ensuing discussion, Al interceded for Dan as far as he honestly could, expressing his belief that the boy from English class was harmless. He also informed Mom and Dad that, like himself, Dan still was at least a couple of weeks away from getting his driver's license--which, Al argued, would give Chilena some power in the relationship. Dad eventually agreed that Chilena could accept a date with Dan, provided the place was known, curfew was observed, and so on.
Chilena's look of gratitude for the support, plus her earlier expressions of worry upon learning how Alipang had faced a knife unarmed, promised that there would be plenty on the agenda at tonight's downstairs meeting.
Copperfox
Well-known member
In effect, the downstairs meeting began upstairs, and filled almost all the evening after supper--and after Chilena spent over half an hour on the phone with Dan.
While Chilena was thus occupied, Alipang in his room set out to perform for her a service like what he had done for Kim: creating a set of notes to anticipate coming sessions of his sister's various courses. As with his Trigonometry outline for Kim, he had to concentrate fiercely on spelling the words he wrote; he could both speak and read English expertly, but writing still made his brain choke sometimes. He had gained some benefit from a remedial-grammar book his friend Jason had lent him; but full mastery was still months if not years away for him.
Eventually Chilena entered his room unbidden--which was not to say she was _ever_ unwelcome there, except when Alipang was in the middle of changing clothes--and said, "Al, do you have my--? Oh, you DO have my books! What are you doing, making notes for me like you made for your girlfriend?"
"No, like I made for the girl I can't have as my girlfriend," he sighed. "And how's your boyfriend?"
"Well, only barely starting to be." Chilena latched Alipang's door behind her, knelt on the floor next to where he sat at his desk, and leaned her head on his right thigh while her right hand plopped onto his right knee. "It's looking good; he says his Mom's happy he met a girl he likes. But even a sweet boy like Dan will have to work hard at coming up to _your_ standard of being good to me."
Alipang suddenly asked her, "What time is it?"
"Your own clock's right over there--" Chilena turned her head, puzzled why her brother didn't simply look at the digital clock for himself...
Suddenly, all in one dexterous motion, Alipang pushed his chair back from the desk, grasped his sister's arms to prevent her from falling forward, and rose to his feet, lifting her with him into an--"AMBUSH HUG!"
Winding her arms around him in response, giggling in his embrace, Chilena plastered herself up against him, kissed him, and then turned serious, whispering, "Will you _please_ not fight guys with knives anymore?"
"I scarcely even did today," he told her dismissively. "Most twelve-year-old girls in Luzon handle a blade better than that amateur 'Leopard Man.' But I _couldn't_ just let that kid Sammy be robbed."
Chilena kissed him again, almost angrily. "Well, don't let ME be robbed of YOU!"
"I won't," he assured her, and repaid the kiss. "Who else would explain to you about foreshadowing of events in great fiction? Or about geometrical proofs?"
"That's MY point to say to YOU," she whispered in his ear. "You're stealing my arguments. Just for that, we're going to have to have a stairway fight before the main meeting tonight."
"I'll be ready," he replied with playful defiance. "But right now, let's go over the books. He repositioned his chair to allow himself to be as close to his desk as would be possible with Chilena seated on his lap. They studied, more or less, for over an hour in this position. Then they spent another three quarters of an hour lying on their stomachs on the floor, side by side, chins propped up on their hands, doing more studying which was occasionally interrupted by twisting toward each other to hug. This was followed by half an hour sitting on the edge of his bed reading.
They actually had covered some useful ground by the time their parents said goodnight, went to bed...and yielded possession of the main floor of the house to the membership of the Downstairs Meeting Club.
While Chilena was thus occupied, Alipang in his room set out to perform for her a service like what he had done for Kim: creating a set of notes to anticipate coming sessions of his sister's various courses. As with his Trigonometry outline for Kim, he had to concentrate fiercely on spelling the words he wrote; he could both speak and read English expertly, but writing still made his brain choke sometimes. He had gained some benefit from a remedial-grammar book his friend Jason had lent him; but full mastery was still months if not years away for him.
Eventually Chilena entered his room unbidden--which was not to say she was _ever_ unwelcome there, except when Alipang was in the middle of changing clothes--and said, "Al, do you have my--? Oh, you DO have my books! What are you doing, making notes for me like you made for your girlfriend?"
"No, like I made for the girl I can't have as my girlfriend," he sighed. "And how's your boyfriend?"
"Well, only barely starting to be." Chilena latched Alipang's door behind her, knelt on the floor next to where he sat at his desk, and leaned her head on his right thigh while her right hand plopped onto his right knee. "It's looking good; he says his Mom's happy he met a girl he likes. But even a sweet boy like Dan will have to work hard at coming up to _your_ standard of being good to me."
Alipang suddenly asked her, "What time is it?"
"Your own clock's right over there--" Chilena turned her head, puzzled why her brother didn't simply look at the digital clock for himself...
Suddenly, all in one dexterous motion, Alipang pushed his chair back from the desk, grasped his sister's arms to prevent her from falling forward, and rose to his feet, lifting her with him into an--"AMBUSH HUG!"
Winding her arms around him in response, giggling in his embrace, Chilena plastered herself up against him, kissed him, and then turned serious, whispering, "Will you _please_ not fight guys with knives anymore?"
"I scarcely even did today," he told her dismissively. "Most twelve-year-old girls in Luzon handle a blade better than that amateur 'Leopard Man.' But I _couldn't_ just let that kid Sammy be robbed."
Chilena kissed him again, almost angrily. "Well, don't let ME be robbed of YOU!"
"I won't," he assured her, and repaid the kiss. "Who else would explain to you about foreshadowing of events in great fiction? Or about geometrical proofs?"
"That's MY point to say to YOU," she whispered in his ear. "You're stealing my arguments. Just for that, we're going to have to have a stairway fight before the main meeting tonight."
"I'll be ready," he replied with playful defiance. "But right now, let's go over the books. He repositioned his chair to allow himself to be as close to his desk as would be possible with Chilena seated on his lap. They studied, more or less, for over an hour in this position. Then they spent another three quarters of an hour lying on their stomachs on the floor, side by side, chins propped up on their hands, doing more studying which was occasionally interrupted by twisting toward each other to hug. This was followed by half an hour sitting on the edge of his bed reading.
They actually had covered some useful ground by the time their parents said goodnight, went to bed...and yielded possession of the main floor of the house to the membership of the Downstairs Meeting Club.
Copperfox
Well-known member
Chilena and her books retreated into her bedroom. She and Alipang both changed into their habitual, adequately modest nightclothes, then emerged in deathly silence...as if they thought their parents didn't _know_ that they had been spending time together this way almost every night since first moving into this house in 2004. They silently embraced with as much tenderness as if they _hadn't_ done the same thing literally thousands of times; then Alipang kissed Chilena's ear as a prelude to whispering, "What are we fighting about in this stairway fight?"
"Cheater," she scolded, her hands caressing his back. "You know the rules: we have to be ON the stairs before we quarrel." So hand in hand they went to the stairwell, to sit knee to knee at the very top, each with one arm around the other and their remaining hands reaching across them to clasp in front. "NOW we can discuss our bitter dispute," murmured Chilena. "Let's see...I'm terribly angry at you for walking to school this morning, instead of letting me drive you in the new car Mom and Dad gave me."
"Okay--on guard!" Alipang whispered; and they went into a tight hug that lasted some twenty seconds. Then, moving as one, they shifted their feet and rumps to sit on the next step down. At the new location, Alipang added, "And I'm _furious_ at you for, let's see, for not completely trusting me to dispose of trash like Leopard Man." They both kissed each other's cheeks, noses and foreheads; but Alipang added kisses to both of Chilena's hands and claimed victory in the second round. Rather than debate this, Chilena initiated the next move down one step, followed by rubbing noses with him and saying softly, "I think you're _mean_ for using a _pencil_ on those geometry notes you made for me!"
A stinky-breath battle ensued--not very effectively, since both of them had brushed and flossed their teeth and used mouthwash quite recently. But they kept on puffing away into each other's faces at point-blank range, until they made themselves dizzy and thumped two steps down instead of one.
"Ah ha!" whispered Alipang. "I see your scheme, little vixen: trying to reduce the number of steps we fight on, because you know my tactics are superior to yours!" He hugged her with gently affectionate "savagery." She hugged back with adoring "ferocity," then said, "I'll show you who's afraid to fight on every step," and hoisted herself back up onto the skipped stairstep, to be followed quickly by her antagonist.
Many minutes later, they had finally hugged, kissed, nose-rubbed, laughed and teased their way down the stairs together. Arriving on the floor below in each other's arms, and each claiming to have won the desperate battle, they stood up in each other's arms, kissed again, walked to the sofa in each other's arms, sat down in each other's arms, and spent more than another hour in each other's arms, talking about everything that came to either one's mind, and praying together at intervals. The talk, of course, included how they would adjust to each other having dates...for they both wanted, impossibly, what so many teenagers want: to be able to forge ahead toward adulthood, yet not to lose the happiness of routines that had served them well in earlier life. Understanding this in their hearts more clearly than they would say openly to each other for the moment, the two siblings grew less playful and more melancholy as their meeting continued. But no matter how sad it made them, they didn't want the meeting to end. Clinging together more and more urgently, and kissing more frequently, they felt as if this were already their very last time doing this, although logically they knew it was not.
After snuggling more quietly for they knew not how long, Alipang, who by now had been cradling Chilena in his lap for quite some time, shifted himself and her so that, just for a little while, he lay on his back on the sofa with her stretched full length on top of him, where she could listen to his heartbeat. Then he uttered the most forthright expression spoken that night of the poignant feeling they were sharing:
"You know how this feels, Chil? It feels like being in a public swimming pool, when you know the lifeguard's going to order you out in less than a minute."
"Yeah, I know just what you mean," sighed Chilena. "You can't stand to leave the pool without sneaking in one last leap off the diving board." As her own leap off the diving board, she tenderly kissed him once more, squeezed herself against his chest, then reluctantly got up off the sofa, whispering, "Meeting adjourned." They went hand in hand to the kitchen for a drink of water, then hand in hand upstairs, the cloud of loving gloom still hovering around them.
To dispell it, when they kissed goodnight on the landing, Alipang said, "Good news! The governor phoned in our pardon! We're _not_ being executed, and we _will_ see each other again in the morning!"
Chilena fell into a violent giggling fit...and then into a still more violent weeping fit, through which Alipang held her just tightly enough for her best comfort. When she subsided, he still stood holding her for another minute; then they re-did the goodnight kiss, in fact re-did it several times, and at last went to their beds, each one's mouth still feeling a trace of warmth from the other mouth, while there still _was_ some night left.
"Cheater," she scolded, her hands caressing his back. "You know the rules: we have to be ON the stairs before we quarrel." So hand in hand they went to the stairwell, to sit knee to knee at the very top, each with one arm around the other and their remaining hands reaching across them to clasp in front. "NOW we can discuss our bitter dispute," murmured Chilena. "Let's see...I'm terribly angry at you for walking to school this morning, instead of letting me drive you in the new car Mom and Dad gave me."
"Okay--on guard!" Alipang whispered; and they went into a tight hug that lasted some twenty seconds. Then, moving as one, they shifted their feet and rumps to sit on the next step down. At the new location, Alipang added, "And I'm _furious_ at you for, let's see, for not completely trusting me to dispose of trash like Leopard Man." They both kissed each other's cheeks, noses and foreheads; but Alipang added kisses to both of Chilena's hands and claimed victory in the second round. Rather than debate this, Chilena initiated the next move down one step, followed by rubbing noses with him and saying softly, "I think you're _mean_ for using a _pencil_ on those geometry notes you made for me!"
A stinky-breath battle ensued--not very effectively, since both of them had brushed and flossed their teeth and used mouthwash quite recently. But they kept on puffing away into each other's faces at point-blank range, until they made themselves dizzy and thumped two steps down instead of one.
"Ah ha!" whispered Alipang. "I see your scheme, little vixen: trying to reduce the number of steps we fight on, because you know my tactics are superior to yours!" He hugged her with gently affectionate "savagery." She hugged back with adoring "ferocity," then said, "I'll show you who's afraid to fight on every step," and hoisted herself back up onto the skipped stairstep, to be followed quickly by her antagonist.
Many minutes later, they had finally hugged, kissed, nose-rubbed, laughed and teased their way down the stairs together. Arriving on the floor below in each other's arms, and each claiming to have won the desperate battle, they stood up in each other's arms, kissed again, walked to the sofa in each other's arms, sat down in each other's arms, and spent more than another hour in each other's arms, talking about everything that came to either one's mind, and praying together at intervals. The talk, of course, included how they would adjust to each other having dates...for they both wanted, impossibly, what so many teenagers want: to be able to forge ahead toward adulthood, yet not to lose the happiness of routines that had served them well in earlier life. Understanding this in their hearts more clearly than they would say openly to each other for the moment, the two siblings grew less playful and more melancholy as their meeting continued. But no matter how sad it made them, they didn't want the meeting to end. Clinging together more and more urgently, and kissing more frequently, they felt as if this were already their very last time doing this, although logically they knew it was not.
After snuggling more quietly for they knew not how long, Alipang, who by now had been cradling Chilena in his lap for quite some time, shifted himself and her so that, just for a little while, he lay on his back on the sofa with her stretched full length on top of him, where she could listen to his heartbeat. Then he uttered the most forthright expression spoken that night of the poignant feeling they were sharing:
"You know how this feels, Chil? It feels like being in a public swimming pool, when you know the lifeguard's going to order you out in less than a minute."
"Yeah, I know just what you mean," sighed Chilena. "You can't stand to leave the pool without sneaking in one last leap off the diving board." As her own leap off the diving board, she tenderly kissed him once more, squeezed herself against his chest, then reluctantly got up off the sofa, whispering, "Meeting adjourned." They went hand in hand to the kitchen for a drink of water, then hand in hand upstairs, the cloud of loving gloom still hovering around them.
To dispell it, when they kissed goodnight on the landing, Alipang said, "Good news! The governor phoned in our pardon! We're _not_ being executed, and we _will_ see each other again in the morning!"
Chilena fell into a violent giggling fit...and then into a still more violent weeping fit, through which Alipang held her just tightly enough for her best comfort. When she subsided, he still stood holding her for another minute; then they re-did the goodnight kiss, in fact re-did it several times, and at last went to their beds, each one's mouth still feeling a trace of warmth from the other mouth, while there still _was_ some night left.
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Copperfox
Well-known member
The next morning, exhausted from their marathon two-way emotional outpouring of last night, both siblings needed to be gotten up by their parents. With no spare time to walk or even bike to school, Alipang rode with Chilena in her car. Of course he had no objection to his sister's company on the drive, though he refrained from talking to make sure she could concentrate on driving. Once they were safely parked, they sneaked in a kiss for good luck, then went inside.
In their first class, English, Dan seemed sincerely pleased to see Alipang as well as Chilena; the more so when Chilena let Dan know that Alipang had wheedled their parents in favor of letting Dan ask her out. Alipang said nothing to Dan about one admission Chilena had made while on his lap at their latest downstairs meeting: that _she_ had made the first overture with Dan, insofar as suggesting that they might go out together.
Between first and second periods, Alipang found more work for his less refined talents. A stocky, dorky, fair-haired but foul-mouthed boy, having by mere coincidence the same first name as Al's new friend Sammy, was harassing and threatening Al's friend of longer standing, Grant Perry the singer. Grant was one of those who believed that New Testament cheek-turning was meant to apply to all situations indiscriminately; consequently, he was fair game for bullying in the mind of a God-mocking oaf who, as a coward himself, wanted to project his cowardice onto someone with a peace-loving conscience.
But Sam the bully lost his smugness in a great hurry when, without having heard Al's noiseless approach, he abruptly found himself grasped by his belt and one arm, to be hoisted clear off the floor and over Alipang's head. Even Grant, who knew something of his friend's strength, gaped in astonishment as Al remarked to him, "We need to give poor souls like this an _uplift,_ don't we, Grant?"
What Sam pleaded for in blubbering fright, Grant pleaded for on his behalf besides: "Al, please, put him down."
So Alipang did not slam, but lowered, the bully to the tiled floor, where he lightly but menacingly closed a hand around Sam's throat, sternly telling him, "BOY, let me tell you something. You called my friend 'chicken' because he didn't want to fight you; but all you proved is that YOU are an IDIOT. You just remember this: I can break you like a toothpick if I have to--but I still _respect_ the same boy you called 'chicken.' If you have any sense, instead of running your mouth off, you'll let Grant tell you about what he and I both believe." Then, with a growing crowd of kids beholding him, he allowed Sam to get up.
Grant salvaged a bit of cheek-turning by gathering the hooligan's dropped books and giving them back; then Sam fled as if in fear for his life. Some of the onlookers, well aware of Sam's obnoxiousness, began congratulating Alipang, while keeping a lookout for nosy teachers; but no applause was forthcoming from Grant.
"Oh, Al, what am I gonna do with you?" lamented the young pacifist. "I'm worried about where your choices may take you. I know you wanted to help me; but please _don't_ protect me like that anymore. Pray for me instead. Remember, we wrestle not against flesh and blood."
Al gave his friend an injured look. "Do you think I _don't_ pray? Do you think I'm just a dumb brawler?"
"No, Al, but--just seek the Lord about it, okay? We gotta get to class."
In their first class, English, Dan seemed sincerely pleased to see Alipang as well as Chilena; the more so when Chilena let Dan know that Alipang had wheedled their parents in favor of letting Dan ask her out. Alipang said nothing to Dan about one admission Chilena had made while on his lap at their latest downstairs meeting: that _she_ had made the first overture with Dan, insofar as suggesting that they might go out together.
Between first and second periods, Alipang found more work for his less refined talents. A stocky, dorky, fair-haired but foul-mouthed boy, having by mere coincidence the same first name as Al's new friend Sammy, was harassing and threatening Al's friend of longer standing, Grant Perry the singer. Grant was one of those who believed that New Testament cheek-turning was meant to apply to all situations indiscriminately; consequently, he was fair game for bullying in the mind of a God-mocking oaf who, as a coward himself, wanted to project his cowardice onto someone with a peace-loving conscience.
But Sam the bully lost his smugness in a great hurry when, without having heard Al's noiseless approach, he abruptly found himself grasped by his belt and one arm, to be hoisted clear off the floor and over Alipang's head. Even Grant, who knew something of his friend's strength, gaped in astonishment as Al remarked to him, "We need to give poor souls like this an _uplift,_ don't we, Grant?"
What Sam pleaded for in blubbering fright, Grant pleaded for on his behalf besides: "Al, please, put him down."
So Alipang did not slam, but lowered, the bully to the tiled floor, where he lightly but menacingly closed a hand around Sam's throat, sternly telling him, "BOY, let me tell you something. You called my friend 'chicken' because he didn't want to fight you; but all you proved is that YOU are an IDIOT. You just remember this: I can break you like a toothpick if I have to--but I still _respect_ the same boy you called 'chicken.' If you have any sense, instead of running your mouth off, you'll let Grant tell you about what he and I both believe." Then, with a growing crowd of kids beholding him, he allowed Sam to get up.
Grant salvaged a bit of cheek-turning by gathering the hooligan's dropped books and giving them back; then Sam fled as if in fear for his life. Some of the onlookers, well aware of Sam's obnoxiousness, began congratulating Alipang, while keeping a lookout for nosy teachers; but no applause was forthcoming from Grant.
"Oh, Al, what am I gonna do with you?" lamented the young pacifist. "I'm worried about where your choices may take you. I know you wanted to help me; but please _don't_ protect me like that anymore. Pray for me instead. Remember, we wrestle not against flesh and blood."
Al gave his friend an injured look. "Do you think I _don't_ pray? Do you think I'm just a dumb brawler?"
"No, Al, but--just seek the Lord about it, okay? We gotta get to class."
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Copperfox
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Unhappy about Grant's pious disapproval, Alipang was only made still unhappier in the next corridor transit, by the tall girl Callie Shore who had been on the homeschoolers' field trip to Arlington Cemetery. She had heard about Al humiliating the rowdy Sam. In less than two minutes of conversation, Callie managed both to annoy Al by saying she had hated homeschooling and was glad to be in a "real" school, and to exasperate him with platitudes aimed at the recent occurrence, to the effect that "fighting never solves anything."
Having committed himself yesterday to not telling about his easy victory over Leopard Man, Al could not now cite it as an example; but he did manage a sarcastic historical comeback: "Why, you're _right,_ Callie: my ancestors _didn't_ have to fight for their freedom at all. Everything was taken care of by just bringing flowers to the Imperial Japanese troops and asking them pretty-please to give us our islands back."
Callie harrumphed her way into the clear. But there was a medicine for Al's downer mood in fourth hour: Kim, in a more conventional outfit with jeans, was in her place ahead of him and actually seemed to be _waiting_ for him so she could smile at him. "You're a good guy, Al," she said in the half-minute available before Trig was called to order. "I got to talk by phone to Mr. Imada. He told me that you were so anxious for me to be able to earn money, that you offered to give up some of your own time at the Pansit so there'd be work for me. But he said that most of their temp summer help is gone, and they get enough customers that you and I can _both_ have good hours. I'll start either tomorrow or Thursday."
This favorable attention from his object of longing made up for every negative. Before the class was over, Alipang had slipped into a daydream, in which he was a knight in shining armor, bearing rare treasures to the loveliest lady in a whole family of beauties, lest they be evicted from their castle.
Another positive turned up at lunch: a tall white boy, looking like a benign jock, introduced himself. "My name's Brendan Hyland," he told Al quietly. "I’ve already met Jennifer Williams, who I understand is friends with you. I'm a senior, but as new here as you are. We just moved to Smoky Lake. I've been hoping to get into Virginia Military Academy. My older brother's in the Marines already. I was about four bodies back in the crowd when you gave an airplane ride to that bully."
"Well, I didn't _hurt_ him," said Al, anticipating a fresh rebuke.
"I could tell you didn't," Brendan assured him. "That was awesome, in fact. You humiliated him like he deserved, yet no one could say you were _fighting_ him. Not that a fight would have lasted long, I suspect. You into any martial arts?"
Alipang smiled. "Yeah, Escrima."
"Cool. I think I may have seen your master at Mass at St. Timothy's. My background's in wrestling, myself, with some judo and boxing. I play lacrosse, too."
"I don't think East has a lacrosse team."
"No, they don't; I know that much from Jennifer. That's a shame. Anyway, I think you and I should keep each other informed about any signs of troublemakers we see around campus."
"I'm all for that," said Al, nodding. "But are you _expecting_ anything in particular?"
"I don't know. My Mom made inquiries before we moved here. Seems that the next town, Shilohsville, is thought to have a gang forming: not well-defined yet, not even using a name for itself yet, but still getting the bad guys more coordinated."
"So good guys need to coordinate too. Let's trade phone numbers;" and so Alipang had a new friend after his own heart in Brendan Hyland.
Having committed himself yesterday to not telling about his easy victory over Leopard Man, Al could not now cite it as an example; but he did manage a sarcastic historical comeback: "Why, you're _right,_ Callie: my ancestors _didn't_ have to fight for their freedom at all. Everything was taken care of by just bringing flowers to the Imperial Japanese troops and asking them pretty-please to give us our islands back."
Callie harrumphed her way into the clear. But there was a medicine for Al's downer mood in fourth hour: Kim, in a more conventional outfit with jeans, was in her place ahead of him and actually seemed to be _waiting_ for him so she could smile at him. "You're a good guy, Al," she said in the half-minute available before Trig was called to order. "I got to talk by phone to Mr. Imada. He told me that you were so anxious for me to be able to earn money, that you offered to give up some of your own time at the Pansit so there'd be work for me. But he said that most of their temp summer help is gone, and they get enough customers that you and I can _both_ have good hours. I'll start either tomorrow or Thursday."
This favorable attention from his object of longing made up for every negative. Before the class was over, Alipang had slipped into a daydream, in which he was a knight in shining armor, bearing rare treasures to the loveliest lady in a whole family of beauties, lest they be evicted from their castle.
Another positive turned up at lunch: a tall white boy, looking like a benign jock, introduced himself. "My name's Brendan Hyland," he told Al quietly. "I’ve already met Jennifer Williams, who I understand is friends with you. I'm a senior, but as new here as you are. We just moved to Smoky Lake. I've been hoping to get into Virginia Military Academy. My older brother's in the Marines already. I was about four bodies back in the crowd when you gave an airplane ride to that bully."
"Well, I didn't _hurt_ him," said Al, anticipating a fresh rebuke.
"I could tell you didn't," Brendan assured him. "That was awesome, in fact. You humiliated him like he deserved, yet no one could say you were _fighting_ him. Not that a fight would have lasted long, I suspect. You into any martial arts?"
Alipang smiled. "Yeah, Escrima."
"Cool. I think I may have seen your master at Mass at St. Timothy's. My background's in wrestling, myself, with some judo and boxing. I play lacrosse, too."
"I don't think East has a lacrosse team."
"No, they don't; I know that much from Jennifer. That's a shame. Anyway, I think you and I should keep each other informed about any signs of troublemakers we see around campus."
"I'm all for that," said Al, nodding. "But are you _expecting_ anything in particular?"
"I don't know. My Mom made inquiries before we moved here. Seems that the next town, Shilohsville, is thought to have a gang forming: not well-defined yet, not even using a name for itself yet, but still getting the bad guys more coordinated."
"So good guys need to coordinate too. Let's trade phone numbers;" and so Alipang had a new friend after his own heart in Brendan Hyland.
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The Spanish Inquisition
New member
*shudder*
No, not MORE hugging. *shudder*
*falls over dead*
No, not MORE hugging. *shudder*
*falls over dead*
Copperfox
Well-known member
In Biology, Mr. Hayata carefully avoided calling on Alipang for anything. But he had a flanking maneuver in reserve. He had noticed the way Alipang looked at Kim--as had everyone else in the classroom; so he took to asking _Kim_ the hardest questions he could get away with. Some she could answer, some she could not; but she kept her cool far better than Chilena would have done in the same predicament.
Al wanted to talk with her about this as the school day ended; actually he wanted to talk simply with her, about anything. But Kim had things to do and places to be. So Al jogged home--with Sammy Ashford part of the way, as yesterday. At home, he learned that Chilena had been authorized to go to a movie with Dan at Better Late Than Never, herself driving. Al had to get something to eat in a hurry, so he could get to work at the Pansit Paradise; but he found a chance to slip into the backyard and talk with Chilena, who was bursting with excitement.
"Sweets, the last time I said this, you were afraid I didn't want to have downstairs meetings anymore. Don't feel that way this time; but I wanted to say, if things go really well with Dan tonight and if you're not in the mood to meet with me after I get back from work, it'll be okay. If you DO still want to meet, that'll be even _more_ okay; but don't feel like you _have_ to do it for me."
She kissed his cheek and said, "I'll at least want to tell you a bit about the date. I always want to tell you things, Al. Dan may be my boyfriend now, but _you're_ still my hero."
Al wanted to talk with her about this as the school day ended; actually he wanted to talk simply with her, about anything. But Kim had things to do and places to be. So Al jogged home--with Sammy Ashford part of the way, as yesterday. At home, he learned that Chilena had been authorized to go to a movie with Dan at Better Late Than Never, herself driving. Al had to get something to eat in a hurry, so he could get to work at the Pansit Paradise; but he found a chance to slip into the backyard and talk with Chilena, who was bursting with excitement.
"Sweets, the last time I said this, you were afraid I didn't want to have downstairs meetings anymore. Don't feel that way this time; but I wanted to say, if things go really well with Dan tonight and if you're not in the mood to meet with me after I get back from work, it'll be okay. If you DO still want to meet, that'll be even _more_ okay; but don't feel like you _have_ to do it for me."
She kissed his cheek and said, "I'll at least want to tell you a bit about the date. I always want to tell you things, Al. Dan may be my boyfriend now, but _you're_ still my hero."
Copperfox
Well-known member
Since it would not be long before her new waitressing job would be taking away from her study time, Kim resolved not to waste the _other_ benefit the scrappy Filipino boy had handed her. With his Trig notes arrayed on the floor before her, she succeeded in doing more than a week's worth of assignments ahead of time.
Betsy came into Kim's room to chat at one point. Seeing the Trig notes, she remarked, "Those aren't in your handwriting. Where did you--" Then the light bulb went on. "OOHHHHHH, that's right, I've _heard_ that your new Asian admirer is good at math. He gave you those, didn't he?"
Kim nodded, not looking her sister in the face. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I didn't want Mom saying 'I told you so, he IS crazy about you.' Al's just a generous guy. His church obviously encourages kindness."
Betsy smirked. "Yes, and I'm sure his church instructed him to help _you_ in particular. Look, darlin', I'm not saying _you_ have to be sweet on the Havens boy; but I think it's pretty clear how HE feels."
Now Kim did look at Betsy. "I'll admit that he _does_ seem to like my looks; but it's no crime for a boy to like my looks. Maybe bad taste, but not a crime. ALSO not proof of his being in love."
Betsy knelt to hug her sister. "Oh, honey, just because you've been teased and picked on--all right, and beaten up a few times--that doesn't mean the _world_ is against you. I could name one brown-skinned, well-built, homeschooled part of the world who's very much _for_ you. And even if that's no thrill to you, it's got to show you that _other_ decent boys could be attracted to you as well."
"Thank you, Betsy." Kim allowed herself to hug back; it was easy enough with Betsy, though with most people she disliked being touched. Too many touches in her lifetime had been blows. "But please _don't_ tell Mom about Al giving me these notes. His liking my looks _doesn't_ mean he has a crush worth mentioning; he'll probably have a girlfriend his own age before Labor Day. You know how much guys obsess about their dignity; do you think Al's dignity would let him ask out a girl who has her driver's license while he doesn't have his yet?"
Betsy looked at the ceiling. "Stranger things have happened."
"In roleplays, maybe."
Betsy came into Kim's room to chat at one point. Seeing the Trig notes, she remarked, "Those aren't in your handwriting. Where did you--" Then the light bulb went on. "OOHHHHHH, that's right, I've _heard_ that your new Asian admirer is good at math. He gave you those, didn't he?"
Kim nodded, not looking her sister in the face. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I didn't want Mom saying 'I told you so, he IS crazy about you.' Al's just a generous guy. His church obviously encourages kindness."
Betsy smirked. "Yes, and I'm sure his church instructed him to help _you_ in particular. Look, darlin', I'm not saying _you_ have to be sweet on the Havens boy; but I think it's pretty clear how HE feels."
Now Kim did look at Betsy. "I'll admit that he _does_ seem to like my looks; but it's no crime for a boy to like my looks. Maybe bad taste, but not a crime. ALSO not proof of his being in love."
Betsy knelt to hug her sister. "Oh, honey, just because you've been teased and picked on--all right, and beaten up a few times--that doesn't mean the _world_ is against you. I could name one brown-skinned, well-built, homeschooled part of the world who's very much _for_ you. And even if that's no thrill to you, it's got to show you that _other_ decent boys could be attracted to you as well."
"Thank you, Betsy." Kim allowed herself to hug back; it was easy enough with Betsy, though with most people she disliked being touched. Too many touches in her lifetime had been blows. "But please _don't_ tell Mom about Al giving me these notes. His liking my looks _doesn't_ mean he has a crush worth mentioning; he'll probably have a girlfriend his own age before Labor Day. You know how much guys obsess about their dignity; do you think Al's dignity would let him ask out a girl who has her driver's license while he doesn't have his yet?"
Betsy looked at the ceiling. "Stranger things have happened."
"In roleplays, maybe."
Copperfox
Well-known member
Well, Kim, if a survey were taken of all male participants in TDL, you would have lots of opportunities to accuse us of having bad taste. I am confident that every man or boy here who has seen your photos agrees with me that Alipang has GOOD CAUSE to feel attracted to a character who is supposed to look like you.
Copperfox
Well-known member
Work at the Pansit Paradise was just right for Alipang that evening: enough customers to bring in sufficient tips, but not so many as to run him ragged with Chilena not working and Kim not yet started. The only other server on tonight was Maria Ramos, a thirtyish Filipina divorcee related to Mrs. Imada. Having been away from the old homeland longer than Alipang, Maria would intermittently chat with Alipang in Tagalog to remind herself of her native tongue.
One of Al's first customers was his new friend Brendan, who asked for the spiciest dish available. Mrs. Imada ended up letting Brendan eat some of the special curry she periodically made for her husband. It was so hot that Al would never eat it, but Brendan loved it.
Half an hour or so before Chilena was due to be home from the movie, a text message came from her:
WL PK U UP F NECSRY BUT PLS WNT 2 VST AT DS HSE MOM NOS
So Al texted in reply:
OK WTR GD CN JOG HM
--and received from her:
TKS LV U WE WL HV MTG
At closing, Maria offered to drive Al home, but he said, "Thanks, but I'll make it a chance for a little road work." He picked up one of several Escrima sticks which were kept in a corner; and while holding it in his left hand, he drew from his pocket a prized possession: the balisong knife that Master Pitik had given him a few months ago. Flicking it open, he tried a few combo moves with it and the stick, then closed the knife and returned it to his pocket.
"Good night, Mr. Imada; good night, Mrs. Imada; good night, Niloban" (the last being a male cousin-once-removed of Mr. Imada who was working as a cook for awhile).
Al set out on the streets, running at a pace which many joggers would consider a sprint, swinging and jabbing at the air with his rattan stick as he went. But another weapon was with him, a more important one than stick or knife: the instinct for danger that he had developed in the Filipino slum. This instinct was triggered by something as he came onto a quiet residential block scarcely half a mile from Liddell Street.
There was something wrong with the shadows ahead.
One of Al's first customers was his new friend Brendan, who asked for the spiciest dish available. Mrs. Imada ended up letting Brendan eat some of the special curry she periodically made for her husband. It was so hot that Al would never eat it, but Brendan loved it.
Half an hour or so before Chilena was due to be home from the movie, a text message came from her:
WL PK U UP F NECSRY BUT PLS WNT 2 VST AT DS HSE MOM NOS
So Al texted in reply:
OK WTR GD CN JOG HM
--and received from her:
TKS LV U WE WL HV MTG
At closing, Maria offered to drive Al home, but he said, "Thanks, but I'll make it a chance for a little road work." He picked up one of several Escrima sticks which were kept in a corner; and while holding it in his left hand, he drew from his pocket a prized possession: the balisong knife that Master Pitik had given him a few months ago. Flicking it open, he tried a few combo moves with it and the stick, then closed the knife and returned it to his pocket.
"Good night, Mr. Imada; good night, Mrs. Imada; good night, Niloban" (the last being a male cousin-once-removed of Mr. Imada who was working as a cook for awhile).
Al set out on the streets, running at a pace which many joggers would consider a sprint, swinging and jabbing at the air with his rattan stick as he went. But another weapon was with him, a more important one than stick or knife: the instinct for danger that he had developed in the Filipino slum. This instinct was triggered by something as he came onto a quiet residential block scarcely half a mile from Liddell Street.
There was something wrong with the shadows ahead.
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Unforgotten_Memories
New member
--"Stranger things have happened."
--"In roleplays, maybe."
Lol! Brilliant The story's still as great as ever.
--"In roleplays, maybe."
Lol! Brilliant
The story's still as great as ever.
Copperfox
Well-known member
One of the boy's most useful survival skills in the slums had been his consistent and proactive efforts to know all the terrain anywhere near him...so he would know which way to flee from a threat, without being trapped in a cul-de-sac. Upon moving to Smoky Lake, he had set out to know the streets and properties radiating out in all directions from his new home. He had even identified outdoor places where he could hide small items he might need. In some such places, he had for the last two years been keeping near equivalents of Escrima sticks: actual sticks, or lengths of scrap steel rod or conduit pipe.
Just once in that time he had in fact used such a cached weapon, to drive off a mean stray dog which had menaced him and Chilena on a walk to their thinking tree. Tonight, though, he happened already to be armed; and what awaited him in an alley mouth just ahead was two-legged.
So, before those awaiting him knew he was near, Alipang detoured, finding his way to come up behind them. There were two young men or large boys peeping out at the street; in the poor light, and from behind, he could not even tell the race of either. They were whispering to each other: something about the obscenity blasphemy Flip coming this way when he walked to or from work, and something about stopping him from spoiling things. Alipang couldn't tell if they had any weapons; but he could tell that they didn't have the street sense to keep ALL directions under observation.
So when one mugger hissed to the other, "Where the _______ is he?", it was too much to resist.
With a shout of "Behind you!" Alipang delivered an overarm blow of his rattan stick to the right shoulder of one foe, then slammed a hard forward stamping kick into the tailbone of the other. His balisong knife was in his free hand, but it was not needed. In panic and fright, the surprised thugs clumsily but very sincerely ran for their lives, and Alipang never did see their faces. Not pursuing them, just in case they might have reinforcements nearby, he ran back up the alley the way he had come from; and when he felt safe, he pocketed his knife, drew out his cellphone, and called the police.
As is usually the case with even the best-intentioned of police officers, they took far more time arriving than the two punks would have taken maiming Alipang had their ambush succeeded. Eric Havens, whom Alipang called right after calling the police, arrived about a minute ahead of the squad car. To both forms of authority at once, he gave as good a report as he could of the foiled attempt to jump him.
Unfortunately, no good evidence was left behind as to the identity of the inefficient would-be assailants. But good advice was left with the two policemen by the dentist, before he loaded up his son and drove home grateful that the son was alive:
"Gentlemen, can you talk with the Chief about whether an officer can be stationed at East High?"
As it turned out, the answer to that suggestion was to take the form of a man who, mere hours before, had killed a _seriously_ mean dog which was menacing someone....
Just once in that time he had in fact used such a cached weapon, to drive off a mean stray dog which had menaced him and Chilena on a walk to their thinking tree. Tonight, though, he happened already to be armed; and what awaited him in an alley mouth just ahead was two-legged.
So, before those awaiting him knew he was near, Alipang detoured, finding his way to come up behind them. There were two young men or large boys peeping out at the street; in the poor light, and from behind, he could not even tell the race of either. They were whispering to each other: something about the obscenity blasphemy Flip coming this way when he walked to or from work, and something about stopping him from spoiling things. Alipang couldn't tell if they had any weapons; but he could tell that they didn't have the street sense to keep ALL directions under observation.
So when one mugger hissed to the other, "Where the _______ is he?", it was too much to resist.
With a shout of "Behind you!" Alipang delivered an overarm blow of his rattan stick to the right shoulder of one foe, then slammed a hard forward stamping kick into the tailbone of the other. His balisong knife was in his free hand, but it was not needed. In panic and fright, the surprised thugs clumsily but very sincerely ran for their lives, and Alipang never did see their faces. Not pursuing them, just in case they might have reinforcements nearby, he ran back up the alley the way he had come from; and when he felt safe, he pocketed his knife, drew out his cellphone, and called the police.
As is usually the case with even the best-intentioned of police officers, they took far more time arriving than the two punks would have taken maiming Alipang had their ambush succeeded. Eric Havens, whom Alipang called right after calling the police, arrived about a minute ahead of the squad car. To both forms of authority at once, he gave as good a report as he could of the foiled attempt to jump him.
Unfortunately, no good evidence was left behind as to the identity of the inefficient would-be assailants. But good advice was left with the two policemen by the dentist, before he loaded up his son and drove home grateful that the son was alive:
"Gentlemen, can you talk with the Chief about whether an officer can be stationed at East High?"
As it turned out, the answer to that suggestion was to take the form of a man who, mere hours before, had killed a _seriously_ mean dog which was menacing someone....
Nightcrawler_Fan
New member
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Not Geometry proofs!!!!!!!!!! AAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!
Copperfox
Well-known member
While driving Alipang the rest of the way home, Dr. Havens used his own cellphone to call Chilena, who still was at Dan's house with permission.
"Hi, honey, it's Dad. Listen, there was a disturbance in town tonight that the police were investigating. I want you to finish your visit there in the next few minutes and come home; but don't go _outside_ of Dan's house alone, and make sure you look all around and inside your car before you get in it. Did you lock it?.....Then for SURE look inside it first. And lock it in the future. I'll be waiting for you....I love you too, Chil."
When the two Havens males reached home, Cecilia Havens, already knowing enough to be alarmed for her son, treated him to such a round of clingy hugging as he normally only received from Chilena. Alipang was made to repeat everything he knew about the first wrongdoer he had antagonized at school.
"Mom, Dad, Leopard Man might _want_ to be in a gang; but by all accounts, he _isn't_ in one--unless you count it as a gang that he's one of the lazy bums who get to be in Special Ed because no one will _call_ them the lazy bums they are. My friend Jason is more likely to be in a gang by now than Leopard Man is; Kaitlyn told me that Jason's going over to Shilohsville much too often and too far into the night."
Parental talk shifted to the subject of the double-barrelled hunting shotgun which Dr. Havens owned, and used in deer season to put venison on the table. The couple, balancing possible external threats against possible indoor accidents, chose a safe place where the gun would be kept, well out of reach of the babies and known only to the parents and Alipang...but now, for the first time, with its ammunition close beside it.
Chilena came home without mishap, though the euphoria of a satisfactory first date with Dan was marred by the suggestion of danger. What remained of the euphoria was disintegrated when she learned that her brother--whom she had intended to pick up from the restaurant, but whom instead she had left on his own so she could visit further with Dan and his mother--was the central figure of "the disturbance investigated by the police."
"Hi, honey, it's Dad. Listen, there was a disturbance in town tonight that the police were investigating. I want you to finish your visit there in the next few minutes and come home; but don't go _outside_ of Dan's house alone, and make sure you look all around and inside your car before you get in it. Did you lock it?.....Then for SURE look inside it first. And lock it in the future. I'll be waiting for you....I love you too, Chil."
When the two Havens males reached home, Cecilia Havens, already knowing enough to be alarmed for her son, treated him to such a round of clingy hugging as he normally only received from Chilena. Alipang was made to repeat everything he knew about the first wrongdoer he had antagonized at school.
"Mom, Dad, Leopard Man might _want_ to be in a gang; but by all accounts, he _isn't_ in one--unless you count it as a gang that he's one of the lazy bums who get to be in Special Ed because no one will _call_ them the lazy bums they are. My friend Jason is more likely to be in a gang by now than Leopard Man is; Kaitlyn told me that Jason's going over to Shilohsville much too often and too far into the night."
Parental talk shifted to the subject of the double-barrelled hunting shotgun which Dr. Havens owned, and used in deer season to put venison on the table. The couple, balancing possible external threats against possible indoor accidents, chose a safe place where the gun would be kept, well out of reach of the babies and known only to the parents and Alipang...but now, for the first time, with its ammunition close beside it.
Chilena came home without mishap, though the euphoria of a satisfactory first date with Dan was marred by the suggestion of danger. What remained of the euphoria was disintegrated when she learned that her brother--whom she had intended to pick up from the restaurant, but whom instead she had left on his own so she could visit further with Dan and his mother--was the central figure of "the disturbance investigated by the police."
Copperfox
Well-known member
Chilena had promised Alipang a downstairs meeting for tonight; the only difference was that it began _while_ their parents were still with them.
Eric met his daughter outside when she pulled up, and accompanied her inside; as he did so, he told her of the unsuccessful assault attempt upon her brother. Alipang was seated with Mom on the same sofa which was headquarters for the nightly downstairs meetings; and a distraught Chilena made her presence felt, not merely by _sitting_ on her brother's lap, but by _flinging_ herself headlong upon him where he sat, straddling him and hugging him front-to-front, sobbing, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Al, oh Al, I'm so sorry..."
It was unanimous that Chilena was not to blame, that she could not be expected to foresee danger to Alipang in a usually safe and peaceful town; but she remained submerged in his comforting arms, kissing him repeatedly, and he had no objection to her staying there indefinitely. So all remaining parent-child talk for the night proceeded with Chilena clinging to her brother in the same posture as she had sprung upon him. This talk included an assurance that it would be nothing against Dan if they should decide to postpone further dates for him and Chilena. But everyone felt a little better when a call came from Chief Costamesa himself, to let them know that squad cars would be passing along Liddell Street much more frequently for the next week or two.
Eventually, Dad led them in a prayer for God's continued protection against unidentified enemies. Then Mom kissed both of her elder children where they still sat in their clinch of mutual comfort, saying, "Good night, kids. Don't stay up, or down, too long."
There was a downstairs meeting for the next forty minutes or so, during which the basic position of the siblings' embrace remained unchanged from what Chilena's bound upon Alipang had made it. There was no joking or playfulness the whole time; it was all Alipang could do to lavish enough squeezing, patting, stroking, cuddling, kissing and spoken reassurances upon his weepy sister that, in the last ten minutes before they went upstairs and kissed goodnight, Chilena felt at ease enough to tell about her fairly uneventful but still enjoyable date with Dan.
Eric met his daughter outside when she pulled up, and accompanied her inside; as he did so, he told her of the unsuccessful assault attempt upon her brother. Alipang was seated with Mom on the same sofa which was headquarters for the nightly downstairs meetings; and a distraught Chilena made her presence felt, not merely by _sitting_ on her brother's lap, but by _flinging_ herself headlong upon him where he sat, straddling him and hugging him front-to-front, sobbing, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Al, oh Al, I'm so sorry..."
It was unanimous that Chilena was not to blame, that she could not be expected to foresee danger to Alipang in a usually safe and peaceful town; but she remained submerged in his comforting arms, kissing him repeatedly, and he had no objection to her staying there indefinitely. So all remaining parent-child talk for the night proceeded with Chilena clinging to her brother in the same posture as she had sprung upon him. This talk included an assurance that it would be nothing against Dan if they should decide to postpone further dates for him and Chilena. But everyone felt a little better when a call came from Chief Costamesa himself, to let them know that squad cars would be passing along Liddell Street much more frequently for the next week or two.
Eventually, Dad led them in a prayer for God's continued protection against unidentified enemies. Then Mom kissed both of her elder children where they still sat in their clinch of mutual comfort, saying, "Good night, kids. Don't stay up, or down, too long."
There was a downstairs meeting for the next forty minutes or so, during which the basic position of the siblings' embrace remained unchanged from what Chilena's bound upon Alipang had made it. There was no joking or playfulness the whole time; it was all Alipang could do to lavish enough squeezing, patting, stroking, cuddling, kissing and spoken reassurances upon his weepy sister that, in the last ten minutes before they went upstairs and kissed goodnight, Chilena felt at ease enough to tell about her fairly uneventful but still enjoyable date with Dan.
~ ~ END OF PART EIGHT ~ ~
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Copperfox
Well-known member
PART NINE: THE CURSE OF USELESS REMEDIES
The very first thing Wednesday morning at East High, everyone was summoned to attend an assembly, in the same auditorium where Chilena had performed last autumn in Camelot. Alipang sat with Chilena, Dan and Summer. Kim came in with her Goth friend Peggy Holder; Alipang saw that Kim saw him, but she made no attempt to approach him, only vaguely nodding in Alipang's direction.
Mrs. Lewiston spent less than one minute informing students and faculty that a male student had been threatened with assault on the streets last night...and at least ten minutes feeding political correctness to her captive audience. In the Principal's universe, the attempted assault _must_ have been a racially-motivated hate crime (though the ethnicity of the offenders remained unknown); all crimes _must_ involve "hating those who are different;" the root motive OF all hate crimes _must_ be self-hatred; unlimited self-love _must_ be the cure-all which could end all violence; the concept of "evil" _must_ be meaningless (except, apparently, when evil assumed the form of racism, sexism or patriotism); and words _must_ be adequate to transcend all conflicts, making any form of fighting (except perhaps in the cause of demanding governmental entitlements) unnecessary and wrong.
Mrs. Lewiston invited questions or comments from students, expecting the usual absence of takers; but didn't it just have to be one of those non-conforming _homeschoolers_ who insisted on _actually_ saying something.
It was the tall, brown-haired, art-loving Callie Shore who came to the microphone.
"Twenty-four hours ago, I would also have said that fighting never accomplishes anything. But I've been given a reality check on that subject.
"Yesterday after school, before the incident the Principal told us about, there was another incident that not many of you know about yet. I was walking outdoors in my neighborhood, when a crazy snarling Rottweiler, a dog I'd never seen before in the neighborhood, charged straight at me. There was nowhere to hide from it, and no words that I could say to make it friendly. It was going to kill me, not ask me about my self-esteem.
"But a man some of you know lives near my family: a Navy SEALS veteran named Wilson Kramer. Mr. Kramer was nearby, digging in his garden with a shovel. Because he had that shovel, he didn't have to try to stop that Rottweiler barehanded when he ran to protect me. He beat the dog to death; it wasn't easy, but his _fighting_ it with a _weapon_ is the only reason I'm alive here, talking to you.
"When the police eventually questioned me about what happened, they mentioned that there had been robberies in the big cities in which the robbers had used attack dogs as their threat to the victims. They thought that one of these criminals had driven to Smoky Lake and set his Rottweiler loose, knowing it would end up getting killed by someone, as a way to get rid of the evidence of the robberies committed with the dog.
"If that's what happened, then the robber didn't endanger me out of 'hate,' because he never saw me or knew I existed. He just did what was convenient to himself--and I don't see how his pursuing his own convenience proves that he hates himself, either. But I do see that I need to rethink some of my attitudes. I was too shocked after my close call to thank Mr. Kramer properly for saving my life; but my whole family will be thanking him together very soon, thanking him not for words but for ACTIONS."
Brendan Hyland was among the first to congratulate Callie on her bold stance; with Brendan was Jennifer Williams, with whom he was becoming friendly almost as rapidly as Dan and Chilena had paired off. Soon after this, Callie found Alipang, and very prettily apologized to him for scolding him yesterday about his physical defense of Grant Perry.
But for Flora Lewiston, the time it took to walk to her office after the assembly was enough time to purge from her brain every trace of the unwelcome realities expounded by Callie. Sitting at her desk, the Principal made plans to distribute some new required reading to all students: pop-psychology articles about non-judgmentalness and self-love.
The very first thing Wednesday morning at East High, everyone was summoned to attend an assembly, in the same auditorium where Chilena had performed last autumn in Camelot. Alipang sat with Chilena, Dan and Summer. Kim came in with her Goth friend Peggy Holder; Alipang saw that Kim saw him, but she made no attempt to approach him, only vaguely nodding in Alipang's direction.
Mrs. Lewiston spent less than one minute informing students and faculty that a male student had been threatened with assault on the streets last night...and at least ten minutes feeding political correctness to her captive audience. In the Principal's universe, the attempted assault _must_ have been a racially-motivated hate crime (though the ethnicity of the offenders remained unknown); all crimes _must_ involve "hating those who are different;" the root motive OF all hate crimes _must_ be self-hatred; unlimited self-love _must_ be the cure-all which could end all violence; the concept of "evil" _must_ be meaningless (except, apparently, when evil assumed the form of racism, sexism or patriotism); and words _must_ be adequate to transcend all conflicts, making any form of fighting (except perhaps in the cause of demanding governmental entitlements) unnecessary and wrong.
Mrs. Lewiston invited questions or comments from students, expecting the usual absence of takers; but didn't it just have to be one of those non-conforming _homeschoolers_ who insisted on _actually_ saying something.
It was the tall, brown-haired, art-loving Callie Shore who came to the microphone.
"Twenty-four hours ago, I would also have said that fighting never accomplishes anything. But I've been given a reality check on that subject.
"Yesterday after school, before the incident the Principal told us about, there was another incident that not many of you know about yet. I was walking outdoors in my neighborhood, when a crazy snarling Rottweiler, a dog I'd never seen before in the neighborhood, charged straight at me. There was nowhere to hide from it, and no words that I could say to make it friendly. It was going to kill me, not ask me about my self-esteem.
"But a man some of you know lives near my family: a Navy SEALS veteran named Wilson Kramer. Mr. Kramer was nearby, digging in his garden with a shovel. Because he had that shovel, he didn't have to try to stop that Rottweiler barehanded when he ran to protect me. He beat the dog to death; it wasn't easy, but his _fighting_ it with a _weapon_ is the only reason I'm alive here, talking to you.
"When the police eventually questioned me about what happened, they mentioned that there had been robberies in the big cities in which the robbers had used attack dogs as their threat to the victims. They thought that one of these criminals had driven to Smoky Lake and set his Rottweiler loose, knowing it would end up getting killed by someone, as a way to get rid of the evidence of the robberies committed with the dog.
"If that's what happened, then the robber didn't endanger me out of 'hate,' because he never saw me or knew I existed. He just did what was convenient to himself--and I don't see how his pursuing his own convenience proves that he hates himself, either. But I do see that I need to rethink some of my attitudes. I was too shocked after my close call to thank Mr. Kramer properly for saving my life; but my whole family will be thanking him together very soon, thanking him not for words but for ACTIONS."
Brendan Hyland was among the first to congratulate Callie on her bold stance; with Brendan was Jennifer Williams, with whom he was becoming friendly almost as rapidly as Dan and Chilena had paired off. Soon after this, Callie found Alipang, and very prettily apologized to him for scolding him yesterday about his physical defense of Grant Perry.
But for Flora Lewiston, the time it took to walk to her office after the assembly was enough time to purge from her brain every trace of the unwelcome realities expounded by Callie. Sitting at her desk, the Principal made plans to distribute some new required reading to all students: pop-psychology articles about non-judgmentalness and self-love.
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Copperfox
Well-known member
As if to make up for not sitting near him at the assembly (though she did not _say_ that this was her motive), Kim very pleasantly surprised Alipang by walking beside him all the way from his third-hour location to their Trigonometry class. It meant something to him that she had bothered to find out where he was in third period, since he had never been so pushy about conversation with her as to rattle off his whole schedule to her.
"So tell me, Al, do you spend much time online?"
"Only for study purposes. Dad and Mom would allow me _some_ internet amusement, but I really don't have time. Church, restaurant, Escrima and so on." He thought of asking for Kim's e-mail address, but decided that this would be acting too familiar, on only their fourth day of acquaintance.
"So you never tried a text-based online roleplay?"
"Nope. Friends of mine have told me about them. But it's easier for me just to have my own private daydreams. As you must have noticed by now, writing English well is much harder for me than speaking it. Besides, my friends tell me that when you start a text-based roleplay, there's always a participant who acts eager at the start, makes you rely on him or her to keep contributing to the plotline...and then _quits_ at the worst possible time, leaving you hanging out to dry."
"Um, yeah. So what do you daydream about?"
Alipang looked away from her. "Oh, adventures. Going places."
Kim almost asked him if he daydreamed about girls. But that would sound to him as if her motive could be curiosity about his feelings toward HER....which in fact it would have been.
"So tell me, Al, do you spend much time online?"
"Only for study purposes. Dad and Mom would allow me _some_ internet amusement, but I really don't have time. Church, restaurant, Escrima and so on." He thought of asking for Kim's e-mail address, but decided that this would be acting too familiar, on only their fourth day of acquaintance.
"So you never tried a text-based online roleplay?"
"Nope. Friends of mine have told me about them. But it's easier for me just to have my own private daydreams. As you must have noticed by now, writing English well is much harder for me than speaking it. Besides, my friends tell me that when you start a text-based roleplay, there's always a participant who acts eager at the start, makes you rely on him or her to keep contributing to the plotline...and then _quits_ at the worst possible time, leaving you hanging out to dry."
"Um, yeah. So what do you daydream about?"
Alipang looked away from her. "Oh, adventures. Going places."
Kim almost asked him if he daydreamed about girls. But that would sound to him as if her motive could be curiosity about his feelings toward HER....which in fact it would have been.
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