Something Feels Strange…

“You know,” Dan says to me quietly to avoid being overheard. “Ben is, despite his crudity, actually correct. You are very good looking and, to top it off, easy to be around. You’re really making this summer something special for all of us. I’m glad you came. Are you sure you can’t stay?”

“Thanks for the compliment,” I quietly reply, “but, no, I can’t stay. Anyway, I haven’t really done anything to earn the praise.”

“Sure you have,” he responds. “You are like a cool breeze on a hot day. Just being here makes everything better. Too bad you’re not staying. I think that we’d make great friends, you and me.”

Oh no! Where’s the fire extinguisher? Somebody has to put out this guy’s fire–fast!

Chapter 28: Pool Party & The City

“I’m sure we’d be just friends,” I try to emphasize the lack of romantic attraction.

Fortunately, Caitlin chooses just this moment to arrive giving me an excuse to leave the boys.

“Whew,” she says holding her nose, “You guys stink. You boys’ll have to wait out here until your other clothes arrive then take a shower before you get in the pool.  There’s a shower in the pool house out back you can use. Come with me, Tina.”

Once we are in the house, she sends me to her room where I left my clothes earlier then to the shower for a quick rinse to get the perspiration off. When I get back to Caitlin’s room to stow my stuff, I find a couple of the other girls from the team there changing into their swim suits. I hardly notice them until I’m half-way out to the back patio, when it occurs to me that neither I nor Brain Central hardly even glanced at the almost-naked girls when I was in Caitlin’s room.  Just another day with the girls.

Going out to the pool, I find that most of the other kids have also arrived and the food table is starting to fill up. Laurie has arrived also and is chatting with a couple of the other girls. Coach Arnold is here with his family which includes his lovely wife and two adorable children–a three year-old girl and a
boy who is a little over one.

“Hey, Tina,” Coach calls to me as I leave the house. “Come meet my family.”

Mrs. Arnold is holding the little boy–Mikey–on her hip.  As he is introduced Mikey leans over with his arms stretched out for me to hold him. I instinctively reach out and gather him in, holding him on my hip while I say hi. He immediately starts to explore my face with his hands. The girl–Jessie–is shy and hides behind her mother.

“Sorry about that, Tina,” Mrs. Arnold says trying to take Mikey back. “He’s a real people person. He thinks everyone wants to hold him.”

“That’s alright,” I reply. “He’s cute. Can I hold him for a few minutes?”

Several other girls come over to play with the baby–toddler really–and he gets passed around the group until he’s met everyone.  Several of the girls have apparently babysat for the Arnold’s before and know the children well. I notice the boys are keeping their distance from the baby.

“Caitlin,” Coach Arnold asks, “may I talk with the group for a couple of minutes?”

“Sure, Coach,” she replies then calls everyone over.

“I’ve been thinking,” he begins. “With all this running you all are doing, I think you might like to enter some races. Real race experience will be helpful in the fall when we start the school running season. I’ve been looking around and there’s a race somewhere within driving distance almost every Sunday morning
over the summer. What do you think?”

Everyone starts talking at once, but the consensus is favorable. A couple of the kids have other commitments on Sundays, but most of us are available.

“I’m glad to hear it,” the Coach smiles as he starts to hand out large envelopes. “I’ve put together packets with the schedule and entry information for races I think you should try. You’ll need parental permission to enter the races, so take the packets home and discuss this with your parents. It’s too late to get things together for this weekend, but we can shoot for the race in Castro Valley next weekend. It has both 5K and 10K events. Just to remind you: this is NOT a school sponsored activity. You don’t have to enter any or all of the races, just do what you’d like to do. You’ll have to work together to
arrange rides and anything else you need.”

Dr. Sommers thinks this a great idea decides to help, “Alright, I’ll spring for shirts for the runners so you can look like a team. You all just need to tell me what you want on them. Caitlin, can you handle it?”

“Sure, Daddy,” she squeals as she jumps up and down with excitement. I’m not sure making her the fashion consultant is a good idea. I just hope she gets us something decent.

After much discussion, we settle on a team name: Cool Runners. Kinda’ corny but it beats Tina’s Teamies, which Caitlin suggested. The ‘Cool’ part was apparently inspired by my Alaskan ties. Laurie sketched out a couple of cartoon images of a polar bear in running shoes and wearing sunglasses which caught everyone’s fancy. One of the images has the bear coming right at you. The other shows the back side of the bear as if he is running away from you. You’ll never guess which image will go on the front and which on the back of the shirt.  She really is a good artist.

Most of the girls have been admiring my running shoe necklace over the past week or so. I hardly go anywhere without it–including running. A couple of the girls have already been down to the store to get one for themselves. They all decide we need matching ones for when we travel as a team. I hope the store has
enough. I’ll never understand the need for girls to do everything as a group, but I have to admit it’s nice to be part of the team.

Once the business is over, someone turns on the music and everyone wanders off to do whatever. Several kids start a game of keep-away in the pool with a small ball.  Others just hang out, eat, and visit. A few of the ‘couples’ start dancing.

I join Laurie who is visiting with a couple of the girlfriends of other runners.  One of the girls is Suzie, Dan’s girlfriend. She gives me a decidedly frosty reception. I guess she’s picked up on Dan’s interest in me. From my former existence I know she really is a very talented and wonderful girl. She’s also very good looking and is a cheerleader. I can’t see why Dan would even dream of dumping her for me. Suzie and I have been in a lot of classes together over the years. She is something of a science geek–not your normal cheerleader. I really like her, or did up to now.

Laurie introduces me to the group as her visiting cousin.

“I hear you have the guys on the running team following you around with their tongues hanging out,” Suzie mentions with a degree of venom in her tone. I guess she’s thrown down the gauntlet.  The other girls wait to see my response. I don’t think I should tell her about my little chat with Dan earlier.

“Actually,” I reply as casually as I can, “I’m not sure what their problem is. All I’m looking for is a running partner this summer and Caitlin decides to invite the whole team to join in the fun. I don’t think it’s me they are here for. While it is fun running with a team, I’m not looking for a boyfriend.”

I’m pretty sure they don’t believe me.

“The sweet, innocent type,” Suzie notes to the group. “They drive the guys mad. Well, sweetie, you may not be trying to attract a boyfriend, but, from what I’ve heard, you could have your pick from the team. If you don’t mind, some of them are spoken for already. You’re making us work extra hard to keep them. You can have Ben, though. I don’t think anyone else is interested in that jerk.”

“I’m sorry, Suzie, is it?” I respond as if I don’t know her. “I really don’t want to complicate things for anyone.  I just want to run and hangout with my cousin and a few kids this summer. Believe me, the last thing I want to do is get cozy with some guy during my short stay here. I just don’t need the complication right now. My family sent me down here to screw my head on straight, not to make a mess of things.”

As this goes on, the rest of the girls just stand there and watch. I wonder who’s keeping score. I can tell I’m not making much progress.

Fortunately at this time, some guy grabs me from behind and tosses me in the pool. I don’t even see who it is.  Most of the rest of the girls have the same problem. There are lots of squeals and shrieks as pool is filled with sputtering girls. I have to admit I was the first to scream. I’m getting to be such a girl.

The guys are standing laughing by the pool until one of them shouts, “Cannonball!” At which command the whole bunch jumps into the pool in such a manner that they make a huge splash and nearly drown the girls already in the pool, generating another round of screams.

This is fortunate for me because I wasn’t sure how to end the little standoff with Suzie.

Over the next couple of hours we play in the pool, snack, and hang out together.  I try my best to avoid Dan and Ben, but both went out of their way to be near me most of the night. I caught Suzie giving me the evil eye several times throughout the evening as Dan was not sticking as close to her as he normally does.  I never once saw him put his arm around her, much less give her even the smallest of kisses–this is definitely out of character.

“Laurie,” I whisper to her when I can get her aside, “I’ve been trying to think of what to do to patch things up between Suzie and Dan.”

“Have you come up with any ideas?” she asks. “Right now you’re public enemy number one in Suzie’s eyes.”

“Yeah,” I reply, “I figure there’s not too much I can do about Dan, so I was thinking if Tina can become friends with Suzie then maybe that will put a wrench in any plans Dan is cooking up.”

“How do you propose to do that, girl friend?” she asks.

“What does a cheerleader like to do more than anything else?” I ask her.

“Chase guys?” she responds.

“No, silly,” I grin. “Shopping! And Dan tells me Suzie is the Queen of Shopping on the cheer squad.”

“So how do you want to work this?” she asks, “You don’t want to drag her along tomorrow do you? It’s supposed to be our special day.”

“Well,” I reply, “Actually I was thinking that, but how about Sunday? Caitlin’s working so she can’t come. We could have a girls day out at the mall across the valley.  I hear there are some pretty awesome sales for the holiday.”

“If you can get her to go, I guess it would be a good idea,” she observes. “If you two can become friends then Dan would have a hard time chasing you. I can invite Amy, Cindy and Marjorie. I need to spend more time with them too. Alright–it sounds like a good idea. See if you can get her to go.”

A little later I follow Suzie into the house when she goes to find the ladies room. I catch her as she comes out.

“Hey, Suzie,” I begin. “I hear there are some good sales this weekend, I was wondering you’d like to go with Laurie and me on Sunday. I don’t know my way around these big stores and I’m told you’re the best shopper around. I’m also told you have great fashion sense. I’m kind of a tomboy and want to learn more
about fashion.”

“Okay, girl,” she says. “You don’t have to try so hard to convince me you’re not trying to steal my boyfriend. I’m sorry about coming across like a bitch. I’ve been watching you tonight and you really are a nice girl–you haven’t once used feminine wiles on the guys. I just don’t understand what it is about you
that has all the guys chasing after you. I’ve watched the guys too and they all seem to want to be around you. I know you’re not trying to cause a ruckus. I just feel bad that Dan is acting like such a loser.”

“Suzie,” I tell her. “I really mean it when I tell you I need your help with shopping. I’m really not good at it plus I’d really like to get to know you. I think if Dan sees that you and I have become friends then he’ll have to cool it. Even the guys know girl friends share everything. He’ll leave me alone if he
knows I’ll tell you what he is up to. I’d really hate to see anyone hurt over my being here.”

“Interesting plan,” she says thoughtfully. “I like it. You know, I think you might actually be the genuinely nice girl you portray. I should keep you away from my cheerleader friends–they’d teach you about being ruthless bitches and I’d hate to spoil your innocence. Okay, Tina, I’ll go shopping with you guys. Do
you mind if I bring along a couple of other girls?”

“No problem, Suzie,” I reply, “I believe Laurie wants to bring along a couple of her friends as well so we’ll have just have a big girls’ day out.”

With that settled we arrange a time to meet at the mall on Sunday then link arms and head back out to the patio like old friends. Dan sees us laughing together and gets a worried expression on his face. I give him a little wave, then walk over to him.

Whispering in his ear I suggest, “I bet Suzie could use with a little dancing.” With that I wander off to see what Laurie is up too and tell her of our plans.  Pulling out her cell phone she calls her friends to see if they want to come. Meanwhile one of the other unattached runners asks if I’d dance with him. As the evening progressed I dance with most of the boys on the team and a couple of the guests. At first it’s very awkward, but I relax after a few dances and just have fun. Fortunately, the Sommers made sure most of the songs were fast ones. Not too much of the close romantic stuff. During the slow dances I excuse myself either to the ladies room or the snack table. Laurie got in the action as well and danced several times. I also get in some time chatting with some of the other girls there.  All in all, it is a pleasant evening.

Before it gets too late, Laurie and I excuse ourselves as we have to get going early in the morning for our trip to the City. Up in Caitlin’s room several other girls are changing out of their swimsuits as they get ready to head home. It gets a little crowded in there as everyone changes. Unlike earlier, I find I can still become a little uneasy being around naked girls, but I also find I don’t feel the urge to stare anymore either. Brain Central still has no qualms at all. The girls chat endlessly as they change. It seems
everyone has had a pretty good time at the party.

At home we take quick showers and rinse out our swimsuits before heading to bed.

“Tina,” Laurie says. “Thanks for inviting me. I had a good time tonight. Did you know Dan was making sure the other guys knew that I am Chris’s girl? He scared off more than one guy who wanted to get fresh with me. He must be a pretty good friend for him to watch after Chris’s interests like that.”

“I didn’t see that,” I admit. Maybe Dan isn’t such a sleaze ball after all. “I hope we can save his relationship with Suzie. She is more than a little put out that he can be so easily distracted by another girl.”

“Well,” she laughs, “His expression when you came out of the house arm in arm with Suzie was priceless. I’m pretty sure he thought his goose was well and truly cooked. I was happy to see him making up with Suzie later.”

“Me too,” I mention. “Maybe our plan is working already.”

“I’m sure it is,” Laurie responds thoughtfully. “You know, Tina, I have to admit you’re pretty good at handling people. I thought I’d have to teach you how to handle things as a girl, but I see I have a lot to learn from you. I wonder if it’s your guy experience that makes you so different. Whatever it is, you seem to have the golden touch when working with people.”

“I don’t know, cousin dear,” I respond, “I still have a lot to learn from you about all this girl stuff.  Thanks for helping me soooo much. I love you, girl,” I say, giving her a goodnight hug.

The big question is: do I love her as my girl friend or as my girlfriend? At this point I’m not really sure. What I do know is that I feel closer to her than ever before. It’s a good feeling.

---<>---

Standing on the platform at the train station we look like your typical pair of teenage girl friends. Both wearing shorts, similar baby doll type halter tops and comfortable walking shoes and carrying nearly emptyday packs. We definitely look like two girls poised for a day of fun in the City. It is not long before we are aboard the train and racing towards our day of togetherness. We’ve switched off the recording features on our cell phones and figure we are off the clock and can’t imagine why anyone would want to monitor us today. We hope it stays that way.

Arriving in San Francisco about the time the shops and attractions open up we have fun wandering through Fisherman’s wharf, walking the waterfront to Aquatic Park, then riding the Powell/Hyde cable car and visiting our favorite little hole-in-the-wall restaurant in Chinatown. We take each other’s picture or have a
bystander take a group shot at many of the famous sites of the City.

The restaurant, Sam Wo’s, has been around forever.  My parents–the real
ones–have told me many stories about when they used to come here as teenagers in the 70s. Apparently there used to be an obnoxious waiter back then–Edsel Ford Wong was his name–who used to tell everyone what to do and how to do it, but the kids loved him. Unfortunately the guy is long gone, but we still enjoy the food in the tiny three floor restaurant. The kitchen is on the first floor and the seating on the two above. The food comes up by dumbwaiter. It’s a cool place. Everyone should check out this place when in the City.

After lunch, we still have some time to visit the shopping district around Union Square. We start by going into some of the really expensive places such as Saks and Neiman Marcus. The sales help isn’t all that helpful since they don’t seem to think we can afford anything there, but we have fun anyway.  I fall in
love with a leather mini-skirt that looks great on me, but we both agree the $598.00 price tag was probably pushing the generosity of the Lab. I try on a couple of dresses and find a turquoise satin dress that I like for only $449.00. We passed that one up as well.  I do go a little wild and purchase an animal print underwire demi bra for only $75.00.  Of course I have to buy the matching bikini panty for only another $50.00.  I figure I have to get something at the Lab’s expense. The shoes are off the price chart as well, but we try on at least a dozen pairs each. I don’t think I’ll ever learn how to walk on high stiletto
heels.

We end up at the Gap–which is closer to our price range–where I pick up a couple of pairs of dress pants and a top suitable for work. We both got some more casual tops which are relatively modest. I also buy some low heel wedge sandals which look great with the pants. Laurie also talks me into a new shorter skirt.  She manages to find a few items for herself as well.  I find I like helping her find clothes which looked nice. I like trying them on myself. Fortunately most of the items were actually on sale. Before we were ready, it’s time to rush to the station to catch our ride home. We are each carrying full day packs and a couple of shopping bags each.

“Girl,” Laurie says, “Thanks for a great day. I had fun. How about you?”

“Yeah,” I reply. “I did. What did you like the best?”

“Shopping,” she says without hesitation. She has a huge smile plastered on her face. “How about you?”

“Being with my best friend,” I reply, giving her a quick hug.

“Yeah,” she says. “I liked that too, but what else?”

Thinking for a few minutes, I reflect on the day. I always like wandering the waterfront. Cable cars are a blast. How can you not like Sam Wo’s?

“You know,” I say reflectively, “I have to say I had a lot of fun in Saks. Trying on those expensive clothes was a hoot. Did you see the one saleswoman who positioned herself between us and the exit? I’m sure she thought that we’d grab something and run. She seem really surprised when I bought the lingerie. It was
worth the price just to see her face when I whipped out the credit card like it was nothing.”

“That was a hoot,” she agreed. “I was surprised that you hung in with me through all the shopping. Chris would never have gone for that.”

“Yeah,” I agree, “but a guy feels out of his depth in a women’s clothes store. He can’t relate to it like a girl can. He doesn’t want to relate to it. Not only that, but a guy who knows a lot about women’s clothes is viewed with suspicion by both men and women. It’s a lot more fun as a girl because you can really join the fun. I suspect Chris will never be able to enjoy shopping like Tina can, even with her memories.”

Reflecting on the day for a few minutes, I add, “Actually, if I had it to do over again, I’d have spent more time at Union Square and less time wandering the waterfront. I really did enjoy the shopping.”

“Oh no, not another shopaholic!” Laurie exclaims in mock horror. “Quick, we need to get you back to the wilderness.”

I just roll my eyes and ignore the jest.

“You know something else that was nice about today?” I ask her.

“What?” she answers.

“This is the first day this summer where I’ve really felt at ease,” I tell her. “It’s nice to have a day off from the job. I really doubt anyone was checking on us, we didn’t have to be on the lookout for anything, and I’m really starting to feel comfortable like this.” I wave my hand over my body. “It was just great to get away for most of a day and to just hang out with my best friend.”

“I really enjoyed it too, Tina,” Laurie agrees. “We should do it more often.”

Arriving at the end of the line, we find Aunt Jen waiting for us.

“Well,” she says when she sees us with our burdens. “It appears you two had a successful day. I hope you didn’t spend all your summer earnings.”

“Oh, Mom,” Laurie says in a mock whining voice, “You should have seen the $600 leather mini-skirt that Tina passed on. We did show some restraint.”

Aunt Jen raised an eyebrow, “A $600 skirt, eh? And just how much didyou spend?”

“You don’t want to know, Aunt Jen,” I tell her, “but I doubt we broke the Lab’s budget.”

“I can’t wait to see what you got,” she says with a trace of eagerness.

“She did spend $125.00 on a bra and panty set,” Laurie informs her mother.

“Restraint, eh?” Aunt Jen questions my restraint.

“Blabber mouth,” I stick my tongue out at Laurie which just causes giggling.

On the way back to the house we tell Aunt Jen all about our day and how great it felt to get away. Aunt Jen tells us she spent some time shopping and visiting with her good friend Amanda Quinn. She reassures me that the Quinns really do miss their son.

I also give Andy a quick call only to find out he’s tied up at the store and will be a few minutes later getting home than he thought.  This is good because it gives me time to put away my new acquisitions. Of course, we have to model everything for Aunt Jen.

“Tina,” Aunt Jen asks, “did you pick these clothes or did Laurie? They are all very nice.”

“Actually,” I reply, “it was more of a group decision.”

“I didn’t have to say too much, Mom,” Laurie adds. “She is developing quite a fashion sense.”

Once everything is properly cared for, I grab a quick bite in the kitchen before borrowing Aunt Jen’s bicycle to go see Andy. I decide to bring my super spy computer with me in my messenger bag since we are doing computer stuff tonight. Maybe I can leave it out to get some information for the investigation. On the ride over I feel so good about the day that I find myself humming a catchy tune and just generally feeling good.

Arriving at the Lang’s home I find it to be a moderate sized house in an older neighborhood.  There is nothing pretentious about the place. I am able to lock the bike near the front door in a location that’s not too visible from the street.

A minute or so after I ring the bell the door opens to reveal Dr. Lang–and he doesn’t look very happy once he figures out who I am.

“You’re that girl from the office,” he observes. “One of Susan Harrison’s lackeys. What are you doing here?”

It’s not quite the reception I was expecting–so much for being subtle. I must look pretty stupid standing here with a shocked expression on my face. I mean, what’s a girl supposed to say?

---<>---

Thanks once again to Gabi for her skills
in editing.