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Backstage, El Capitan Theater

"Oh, I'm afraid so, honey. We've got a lot to do and a short time to do it. So let's just get on with it, all right?"

"Ok, listen, Miss Bender... it's Jackie, right?"

"Mm hmm."

"OK, Jackie, I know you're just trying to do your job. And I really don't mean to be difficult here. But I don't need my nails done, I don't need my brows thinned out, and I most certainly do not want my hair done."

"Honey, if you think you can't look any better than you do now, then you're not qualified to make that call."

I shook my head. "Jackie, that's not the point. I have no doubt you can make me look better. I'm just not comfortable with the whole idea. I think I look good enough already."

"Girl, we don't do 'good enough' here." She stepped back and peered at me. The look on my face made it clear she wasn't making an ally out of me. She shrugged her shoulders, turned and picked up a telephone. "Hey, it's me again.... Yeah.... Could let Rachel know? OK, thanks."

Jackie hung up the phone, crossed her arms and gave me a you're-in-trouble-now look. Within thirty seconds, I could hear the clicking of heels echoing down the hallway. I looked over at the twins for some support, but both of them seemed to have found something fascinating to stare at on the other wall.

Rachel walked in with a smile on her face. "Hi Jackie, could we have the room for a minute please?"

"No problem." Leaving, she not-so-quietly muttered, "she's all yours."

Rachel took a seat beside Brenda, facing me. "OK, Lora, I understand. I really do. We're asking you to step out of your comfort zone, and you can't see any reason why this should be so important to us." She paused for a second, but didn't take her gaze off of me. "Does that sound about right."

She was good. That was exactly what was going through my mind. I just nodded my agreement.

"Right then. Here's why it's so important to us that you look your best. We're making a television show, and if nobody watches, we're all out of a job. So we want to do every little thing we can to grow our audience. We try to make the show as funny and as interesting as we can, but there are other little hooks we use to get people's attention. One of those hooks is trying to make sure that everyone appearing on our show looks as good as possible. Especially the women. Because when a chap sees a beautiful woman on our show tonight, it might just make him want to tune in again tomorrow night. That might seem a tad sexist, and it probably is. But we didn't make the world, we're just trying to do business in it. Are you with me so far?"

Again, I nodded.

"All right. So that's why you looking beautiful is important to us. Now I know you're wondering how this could possibly be important to you. Well, I'd like to offer you a business proposal. If you let Jackie come back in here and do whatever she thinks is necessary to make you into a goddess, and then you let Erica take you over to wardrobe and put you into a spectacular outfit, then I can guarantee that Mr. Kimmel will personally interrupt his busy evening to encourage his national audience to pay a visit to your lovely restaurant." She paused, letting her offer sink in. "A nationally televised plug for your restaurant, and all you have to do is let us make you beautiful. Do we have a deal, Miss Williams?"

I struggled with the decision for all of two seconds. Looking at Rachel looking at me, I tilted my head, raised my eyebrows and nodded. The stress that had been obvious in her smile disappeared.

"Brilliant." She got up to leave. "Oh, and Lora, in spite of any reservations you may still have, I'm sure that this evening will be a very pleasant experience for you. I'll let Jackie know she can get started."

As soon as she was out of the room, Terry huffed. "Wow, you told her."

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El Capitan Theater

"Ladies and gentlemen, we all know that last Tuesday, something absolutely inexplicable happened in downtown Boston. Thousands of people who were just going about their daily routines suddenly had their worlds turned upside down. Each one of these thousands of people have an unbelievable tale to tell, but the story of one of these people has managed to capture the minds and the hearts of everyone around the world."

"Of course, I'm talking about the incredible internet video showing one person's selfless act of courage for a friend. And I'm sure that everyone here tonight has already seen it, right?

The audience started clapping and whistling. Jimmy waited a few moments for it to die down. "Is there anyone in the audience tonight who'd like to see it again anyway?" The crowd roared their approval. Jimmy smiled and let them go on for a while, then he played them with. "I'll take that as a no." When the laughing and hollering calmed down again, he went on. "All right then, ladies and gentlemen, here it is. I give you the viral video that has amazed people around the world... Bubble Babe to the Rescue."

There was a hush in the theater as the video played for the audience on a twenty foot wide screen. As the final scene of George laying on top of a passed out Lora ended, the silence broke. The audience wasn't just applauding, they were on their feet, cheering.

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Boston City Hall

As was often the case, when there was a glitch in one of his client's security systems, they wanted it fixed and they wanted it fixed now. Being in a highly competitive service industry, Mike knew that I'll-be-there-in-the-morning was the kind of answer that would have him out of business lickety-split. So it wasn't all that unusual that he found himself walking up to the main security station in Boston city hall at 12:20 in the morning.

The guard on duty, having made his scheduled midnight rounds, was somewhat annoyed at Mike's arrival just as he had gotten comfortable. The guard's routine included a half hour lunch break, which he regularly scheduled to coincide with his favorite late night show; Jimmy Kimmel Live.

While Mike got busy installing the replacement monitor he'd brought along, the guard went back to watching his TV. Mike wasn't really paying any attention to the guard's show until something extremely familiar caught his eye.

Mike was so amazed to be seeing his video on national television, he stopped what he was doing and watched it with the guard. As the video ended, the guard asked, "I wonder how she managed to get that video of herself doing that."

Without thinking, Mike corrected him. "Oh, she didn't make that video, I did."

The guard looked at him. "Yeah, right."

"No, really. I've got a hidden camera mounted on the outside of the building right over there."

Mike mistook the guard's stare for skepticism. "It's true. I record the images from a lot of my systems. You wouldn't believe some of the shit I've seen people doing when they don't know I'm watching them. Like just yesterday, this idiot was..."

The guard's stony expression finally woke Mike up to what he was saying. When he stopped talking, the guard took over.

"Please, go on... Tell me more about the people who don't know you're watching them. I'd love to hear all about it."

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El Capitan Theater

Jimmy let the audience go on for a full twenty seconds before motioning for them to calm down. "Tonight, we have a surprise for you. I'd like to introduce you to Boston's newest favorite daughter; the bubble babe that everyone loves to love... Please join me in giving a warm welcome to Miss Lora Williams."

I looked at Rachel. She smiled and nodded at me. That was my cue. After one final adjustment to straighten the hem of my dress, Erica stood and gave my shoulders a gentle push to get me moving. When I stepped out onto the stage, the audience erupted. There's no other word for it... they simply erupted. Smiling and waving at the crowd, I walked out on shaky legs. I had no idea that three hundred people could make that much noise; it was deafening.

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Natick Massachusetts

"Oh, hey, I think you're right Natasha."

"I told you. As soon as she got off the escalator, I knew it was her."

"How could you tell?"

"There was something a little bit off about the way she was walking, and then I saw the cast on her arm."

"What was she like?"

"Sweet as can be, but she had a weird sense of humor. I didn't get it at all."

"Really?"

"Mm hmm. When I told her my name, she asked me where Boris was."

"Maybe she knows another Natasha..."

"Well then she asked me if I ever did catch that moose and squirrel, and then she just cracked up. It took a while for her to calm down enough for me to do her ears. Even the girls with her didn't know what she was laughing about."

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El Capitan Theater

Jimmy was waiting for me with open arms out in the middle of the stage. As I reached him, he smiled and pulled me in close enough so I could hear him over the din. "I think they like you." All I could think to do was smile back at him and turn to wave at the audience again. Jimmy took a step back from me and made a ta-da motion toward me with his hands. The clamor continued as the crowd's excitement seemed to be feeding off of itself. Jimmy escorted me back to the chair next to his desk, then went around and took his seat. We both just sat there smiling at the crowd and each other as the roar continued. Jimmy shook his head and gave me a what-are-you-gonna-do look.

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Medford Massachusetts

"Oh look honey, isn't that the girl that you put on the front page last week?"

"Yeah, that's her mom."

"Well, isn't she lovely."

"She's a real sweetie."

"Why don't you ask her home for dinner one night, Kenny?"

"I don't think that's a good idea, mom."

"Oh, honey, why do you say that? Is it because she used to be a man?"

"No, mom. That's not it."

"Because nowadays, young people don't seem to care about little things like that. She certainly looks like a lovely girl now, doesn't she?"

"She's lovely, mom."

"Then why wouldn't you want to ask her here for dinner?"

"I don't think you'd like her, mom."

"Why in the world would you say that, Kenny?"

"She's not Catholic, mom."

"Look at how low cut that cheap dress is... she looks like a street walker."

Ken had seen it coming. From long experience, he knew it was best to just roll with it. "Sure mom, a regular working girl..."

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El Capitan Theater

Jimmy decided it was time to get on with the show, so he stood up and mimed as if he was begging the audience to calm down. The hooting turned to mild laughter, and then died down to the buzz of an excited crowd.

Jimmy sat down and turned to me. "So Lora, do you get this kind of reaction everywhere?"

I'd been prepped to say whatever I wanted to... so I did. "Well, only when I show up naked."

That set the audience off again. Even Jimmy was laughing.

Standing off in the wings, Erica nudged Rachel in the ribs. "See, I told you. She's a natural."

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Belmont Massachusetts

"Emma, you've gotta be kidding me. That's Brenda's Uncle Lenny?"

"I swear to god."

"That's un-believable. Well, at least she got some good looks. I've seen some of those girls that turned out ugly as sin."

"Oh, Bruce... really?"

"No Mom, he's right. I saw this one girl who looked so bad ..."

"Emma, stop right there. You know that looks aren't everything. At least Brenda's uncle came through it healthy."

"She might be healthy, but I think that bubble might have messed up her head a bit."

"What makes you say that?"

"Well... Lenny always seemed like a pretty normal guy. And he's given me a ride home plenty of times, so I know he knows where we live. But last Saturday morning..." She tried to think of a way to put it gently, but then just blurted it out. "Mom, she asked me if we live in Scotland."

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El Capitan Theater

Jimmy decided to try and ask some serious questions. "I gotta tell you Lora, you surprise me. You don't seem to be having any trouble at all adjusting to your new situation. Was it really that easy for you?" The look on his face told me that in spite of trying to be serious, he was on the edge of cracking up... so I pushed him a little closer to the edge.

"It's getting a little better every day. But the first time I looked at myself, I think I went into shock. It was overwhelming... I was just a puddle of sweaty flesh, lying there trembling in the middle of my bed."

I sat there with an innocent cat-that-ate-the-canary look on my face. And like the professional he is, Jimmy played it perfectly. Leaning forward, he just stared at me with a gaping, blank expression on his face. The hooting and laughing from the audience built into a crescendo. I let a grin form on my face, then I turned to look at the crowd, raised my eyebrows and shrugged. The crowd exploded. Still smiling, I looked back at Jimmy to see him lean back in his chair, shake his head and throw his pen back over his shoulder.

It took a good twenty seconds before the audience started to calm down. With perfect timing, he looked directly at the camera and said, "Right now, all over America, girl friends are smacking their boy friends."

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Santa Monica California

All five guys in the room were howling. When they calmed down a bit, Jordan popped out with, "She's fuckin' hilarious, but I still don't get why she's famous."

That did it. Two of them had to get up and run out of the room to try and catch their breath. Kyle actually had tears running down his cheeks. Jordan just grinned and looked from face to face, waiting for someone to explain it to him.

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El Capitan Theater

When the hoots ended, Jimmy went on with his questions. "I can imagine that the world must seem completely different to you now. How have people been accepting you?"

"Well, I don't really go around telling people about me, so most people just look at me, see a person, and treat me like anyone else."

"So no one's given you a hard time?"

I tilted my head down and looked at him through my brows. "Is that a trick question?" I could hear the snickering in the crowd..

"No, really, has anyone tried to make you feel uncomfortable about what's happened... about who you are now?"

"To tell you the truth, in the beginning, I was really worried about that. But it just didn't happen."

"I guess sometimes we don't give people enough credit. So, you were a single guy, right?"

"Yeah, that's right. I can only imagine the grief that some people must be going through right now over this... the folks with husbands, wives and kids. I really feel for them."

"What about your family? How did they take all of this?"

"Jimmy, I don't know what I would have done without them. They've been absolutely amazing. I think the biggest thing that's made it so easy for me is the way they've accepted all of this. Especially my nieces Brenda and Terry." I waved at them in the front row of the audience. "Is it OK if they stand up and take a bow?"

"Sure... girls, where are you?"

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Belmont Massachusetts

Jessie was beaming at the television. "Oh, look, there they are. It looks like they got some sun."

Ben offered, "I was thinking that about Lenny, too." He felt his wife's glare. "Whoops, sorry. Lora. It looks like Lora got some sun, too."

Kelly turned to look at her sister. "I wonder what the twin tornadoes have been dragging her through out there."

"That's the whole reason we said they could go with her. I knew they wouldn't put up with her trying to hide in a hotel room." Jessie smiled and tilted her head. "You know, Brenda took an extra bikini with her. I wouldn't be surprised if Lora came back with some itty-bitty teeny-weeny tan lines."

Ben changed the direction of the conversation. "I wish I could see the look on her face when they tell her. I hope one of the girls has a camera with them."

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El Capitan Theater

"So it's obvious that the bubble did a total make-over on the outside. Have you noticed any other changes?"

"Well, I used to enjoy really spicy foods, but not any more. Things I used to find bland taste amazing now."

"What about the way you think.... ?"

I wrinkled my brow at that one. "I'm not quite sure what you mean. Like, I still have all my memories... growing up, people I know, what I do for a living... that's all still there."

"I guess what I'm getting at is this. Up until last Tuesday, you were a heterosexual guy, right?"

"Mm hmm."

"Has that changed?"

I saw an opportunity to play with him. I just looked at him for a few seconds, then I looked down at my breasts. I glanced back at him and then turned to face the audience. Raising my eyebrows, I bobbed my head toward Jimmy in a get-a-load-of-this-guy motion. Once the crowd was giggling, I cupped one of my breasts in my right hand. The light laughter grew into a howl of woo-hoos and wolf whistles.

Once the room calmed down, I answered, "Jimmy, I don't think I'm any kind of a guy now."

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Santa Monica California

"I don't get it." Everyone in the room erupted at Jordan's stupidity.

Kyle couldn't take it any more. He threw his cigarettes at his cousin. "You fuckin' idiot... she used to be a guy!"

"Get the fuck out of here."

"Last week, she was a dude, and this week, you're sniffin' around him like a horny dog."

Jordan tried to think of something to say, but he was never very good at come-backs. One of the other guys in the room added, "Hey, yeah, you were snuggling in real close with him in that picture. Did you get his phone number?"

"Yeah, Jordie-boy, what's next? You gonna move up to Frisco and get a job packin' fudge?"

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El Capitan Theater

I think Jimmy was enjoying the banter more than the audience was. When the laughter died down, he went on.

"What I mean is, do you find yourself attracted to men now?"

I gave him a stern look. "Are you having an argument with your girlfriend, Jimmy? Because I'm not going to be your rebound, OK."

It was his turn to look out at the crowd for a laugh. I just sat there smiling.

"You really don't want to answer that question, do you?"

"The truth is that I can't answer that. Not yet, anyway. It's the one part of all this that I haven't let my mind go to yet. I don't really feel like there's any reason to rush it. After all, I'm about twenty years younger than I was a week ago."

He looked at me, smiled and nodded. "Fair enough." He reached out to shake my hand. I took it.

"Lora, you have been one of the biggest surprises we've ever had on this stage. I wish we could keep talking for hours, but unfortunately, we're just about out of time."

I smiled and tried not to blush, but it was no use. "Thank you Jimmy. Rachel, your producer... she said I was going to enjoy myself here, and she was right."

He turned to look out at the audience. "Folks, have we had fun with this girl or what?" The crowd started applauding. Terry and Brenda stood up while they clapped. Being in the front row, that triggered the rest of the crowd to rise to their feet as well.

Jimmy came around from behind his desk and took my hand as I stood up. He put his head to my ear and offered, "You did great Lora. We don't get a lot of ovations in here." Again, not knowing what to do, I just smiled and waved. Jimmy took a couple of steps away from me and stood in front of one of the cameras. As the applause died down, he started his speech for the television audience.

"Ladies and gentlemen, if you ever find yourself in the Greater Boston area, you can drop in and visit Lora at her restaurant in Belmont, Massachusetts. For a great meal, a cold beer or the best frappe in Boston, do yourself a favor and stop in at Lora's on Leonard. That's it folks, thanks for watching. Tomorrow night, we have..."

Did I just hear him right. Did he just call my restaurant Lora's on Leonard?

I started to panic. I looked toward Rachel as she came walking out on stage. She was just smiling at the concern on my face.

"He said the wrong name."

She just continued smiling at me.

"My restaurant... he said the wrong name."

"No, he didn't." She motioned to the twins to join us on the stage.

"But he said Lora's on Leonard... it's Lenny's... Lenny's on Leonard."

As Brenda and Terry walked up, Rachel just pointed and said, "Talk to them", then turned and walked away.

They were giddy. Brenda started. "You were fantastic, Lora. It was like you've done this a hundred times already."

Terry backed her up. "Really. You should think about getting into this kind of thing. You're a natural."

"OK you two. Spill it." They both just stood there with looks of innocence on their faces. Dammit, they were good at this. "You both know what I'm talking about. Rachel said to ask you why Jimmy called the restaurant Lora's on Leonard."

Terry cracked first. "Happy birthday."

I felt like I was missing something. "What?"

Brenda couldn't keep it in any more. "Your friend George called Mom last weekend. She said she wanted to do something nice for you while you were out here. Mom, Dad and Aunt Kelly talked it over and decided to split it with her."

"Split what?"

"They put a new sign on the front of the restaurant yesterday."

I was stunned. I almost didn't notice the flash as Terry took my picture.

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Carla stuck her head through the office door. "Lora, there's a group out in the dining room asking to see you."

I looked up. "Problem?"

"I'm not sure. A woman and three girls. They just sat down and then asked to see the owner."

"OK." I smiled, stood up and followed her out.

Even before I was all the way through the door, I knew who it was. I walked over to their table and sat down.

"Hello Donna. It's good to see you again." I turned to the girl on my right. "You know, in some cultures, it's not polite to wear a hat indoors." She just gave me one of her big-eyed smiles. "It's so good to see you up and around." I leaned in and gave her a warm hug.

"I guess the sign out front makes it official... I'm Lora now. But I'm not quite sure what to call you."

"Well, I think I'm too old to try changing that. I think I'm just going to stick with George for now." She looked at the two other girls at the table. "Lora, I'd like to introduce you to my pride and joy. This is Ingrid..."

"Hi Lora."

"...and this is Amber."

"Hi."

"Welcome back, ladies. Let's see if I can get this right... It's Thursday, so you must want two strawberry frappes, right?" They both nodded. I turned to look at George. "And a black cherry for you?"

"No, I'm not really in the mood for ice cream. But I could use something cold, though."

"Well George, I've just put something new on the menu."

"What's that?"

I smiled at her. "I've been making lemonade."

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Well, that's it folks.
I've always wanted to write something, and now I have.
One less thing on my bucket list ;-)
I would like to thank each and every one of you who have left (or are about to leave) a comment.
If there hadn't been such wonderful feed back from all of you,
this story would have ended at chapter one.

I might write again, I might not.
It all depends on if a good idea pops into my head.

Oh, and I know I'm going to be asked, so here it is:
The aliens in the prologue were attacked because they started it, two thousand years earlier.

Bye for now... Lora