Shane and Carmen: The Novelization Ch. 24

"I'm sorry." Shane said, and her voice broke when emotion welled up from somewhere down deep. Carmen turned to look at her. "I'm sorry...that you're having these nightmares...because of that fucked up thing that I did."

Carmen relented. "I know that we're ... we're doing this, we're trying to work this out and stuff, but I ... guess that ... I'm still hurt."

Shane looked down. "You have every right to be," she said meekly.

Carmen nodded her head. "You flew off, Shane. You totally took off with this bird."

Oh, Christ, here we go, Shane thought. The fucking bird.

She looked at Carmen. "I'm not going anywhere," she said.

They looked at each other. After a moment they heard, "Hey, guys!" as Tina came across from her yard.

"Hey," Shane said.

"I wish I could go with you guys to San Jose," Tina said, "but Angelica's got a cold, and I don't think I should take her on the plane."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Carmen said.

Just then Jenny came out of the house onto the porch.

"Hi, Jenny," Tina said. "Where's Moira?"

"Max," Jenny corrected. Everyone had been told that Moira had decided to change her name to Max, but no one was used to it yet. Not only was the name change a problem, so were the pronouns. She was a he now. Her was a him.

"Oh. Sorry. Max," Tina said.

Shane turned to Jenny. "Is he coming, or what?"

Jenny looked down. "I dunno."

They heard Angelica crying inside Tina's house. "Have a good time. I should go," Tina said, listening to Angelica cry. "She's not doing well." She hurried off.

"Bye," Jenny said.

"Hope the baby's better," Carmen called after her.

***

They had told Dana they were going to swing by the Burbank airport to pick up Bette, who was flying in early from her business trip, and then they were all going to go out to dinner at this trendy new restaurant Alice knew about. Everyone was dressed casually; Dana was more dressed up than anyone, but that was due to her continued use of disguises to hide her bald head. She wore a casual blazer, and on her head a black bandana. Over the bandana she wore an oversize, stylish porkpie hat.

When they got to the airport they didn't go to the arrivals terminal; Alice drove them to the section of the airport where the private jets embarked. Alice pulled up in front of a small terminal building, and they all got out. Dana realized that something was wrong with the plan to pick up Bette and go out to dinner. She came around the front of the car.

"Alice, what's going on?" she asked.

Shane, Carmen, Jenny and Max gathered behind Alice, smiling. "Dana, we are taking you to the San Jose-Houston game," Alice told her.

"The basketball game?" Dana asked, in something like shock.

"That's right," Alice said, Shane nodded.

Just then a man came out from the terminal building. "You the Peabody party?"

"We are. That's us," Alice said. "C'mon, everbody, comeoncomeoncomeon!"

"Get out!" Dana said, stunned.

The young man led them across the tarmac to where a big private jet sat waiting, its hatch open and a short pair of steps extended. It was the corporate Peabody company jet.

"Ohmygod, I can't believe I'm about to get on a private jet," Carmen whispered.

"I can't believe I'm going to a championship basketball game!" Dana said.

A Jaguar sedan pulled up by the jet, and Helena Peabody got out. Dylan got out of the passenger seat, and as they walked over to the group everyone noticed that Helena and Dylan were holding hands.

"Hi!" Helena exclaimed, smiling grandly at everyone. She and Alice hugged hello, and introductions were exchanged.

"You guys remember Dylan, right?" Alice said.

"Ready?" Helena asked everyone. She gestured them all to go on board.

Dana went to Helena. "Thank you," she said sincerely.

"It's my pleasure."

Dana was overwhelmed. "This is awesome," she said, entering the cabin. "Do we get, like, free food on here?"

Max hung back, not sure as always if he fit into the group. Even more intimidating, he was the one person in the group least used to this kind of fancy luxury. This was just so clearly out of his league.

At the top of the stairs Helena turned and saw Max standing there, hesitating. "You coming, Moira?" she asked.

"Max," Max said.

"Oh. Right."

Jenny paused at the entrance to the plane, turned and faced the open runways, the airport, and the world in general. "Everybody," she shouted over the sound of the jet's engines now starting up, "Moira's dead!" She lowered her voice and looked at Max. "Long live Max."

Max smiled at Jenny, and went aboard.

A few minutes after take-off a flight attendant came down the aisle from the galley right behind the cockpit. She stopped at the first passenger's seat, where Max sat facing aft, across the aisle from Dana. There was a small table between Max and Jenny, with plates of food and a big loaf of bread on it. Drinks and cocktails had been served. Alice and Shane watched, grinning, and loving the entire surprise treat they'd arranged.

"We have apricot tarts, all kinds of freshly baked cookies," the hostess told Max. "Fruit. Yogurt. Would you like a latte or a cappuccino?"

"Uh, yeah, I'll have the..." -- Max hesitated -- "uh, ya know, I shouldn't. Sorry. Never mind."

"You trying to quit caffeine?" Alice asked.

"Yeah, I'm trying to stay as clean as possible," Max said.

"Is that because of the medication you're on?" Dana asked.

"Yeah, actually," Max said.

"Me, too," Dana said.

Max paused. "I'm really sorry about what you're going through."

Dana looked down at her hands. "Thanks," she said quietly.

"Dana, I want you to know that I can understand why you wouldn't want to be around me. I mean, you worked really hard to create the body you have, and, um, your whole life's been in that..." He trailed off.

"You're right," Dana said, looking at Max in a new way.

"I want you to know...I mean, you don't have to accept this...maybe I shouldn't even say it, but...it's life-and-death for me, too."

Dana looked down. "But you don't have cancer."

Max didn't have an answer.

"Hello, ladies, it's your captain here," came a woman's voice over the plane's PA system. "Hope you enjoyed your ride so far. We're going to begin our descent into the San Jose Airport in approximately ten minutes"

***

When they got to the basketball arena, Dana and Max both had to use the bathroom before they sat down, so they parted ways from the rest of the group. Max was actually excited about the prospect; it was the first time he was going into a public men's room and the first opportunity to use the new strap-on he'd bought to allow him to pee standing up at a urinal. He walked confidently into the men's room, where dozens of other men were using the facilities. He walked up to an unoccupied urinal between two other men. No one paid any attention to him whatsoever, in accordance with all the rules and regulations governing guy behavior in public johns. Max sidled up to the urinal, unzipped, fished out his dick, and experienced one of the greatest pleasures of manhood.

Back out in the concourse surrounding the arena, he met Dana just as she was coming out of the ladies room. Just then a woman approached them. "Hey, aren't you Dana Fairbanks?" she asked excitedly.

"No, I'm sorry," Dana said, lowering her head and brushing past the woman. She and Max walked together around the concourse to the section where their ticket stubs indicated they were to sit.

"You don't like being recognized, huh?" Max said as they walked.

"No, not like this," Dana said. She had been thinking quite a lot about their earlier conversation. "So, um. What did you mean back there, on the plane, about life-and-death for you?"

Max thought about the question for a while.

"The first time I tried to kill myself, I was, like, ten years old," he said, "and I tried to fight against it because I really believed it was a sin. But I knew, I was like...I knew this wasn't my life."

Dana was shocked. "You were ten when you tried to kill yourself?"

"Yeah," Max shrugged like it was nothing. "But I knew, I was like...I knew this wasn't my life," he repeated. "I thought maybe, if I died, and if I came back, God would put me in the right body."

Dana didn't know what to make of that.

They found Section 106, and entered the area. Dana led the way down the steps, and almost immediately the arena announcer's voice came over the PA.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have someone very special in the house tonight."

Overhead on the big four-sided projection screen high over the center of the arena a camera had focused on Dana and Max as they walked down the aisle steps. Dana didn't see it, though, because she was looking down at the steps in front of her. But the thousands of people in the audience saw it, and many along the aisle of Section 106 began to turn their heads to look at the woman walking down the steps. Dana suddenly found herself in the center of a glaring spotlight, the crowd beginning to cheer. She looked up.

"Give it up for the 2006 Mercedes Challenge Tennis Champion, Miss Dana Fairbanks!"

The crowd roared its approval, cheering and applauding. They rose to their feet, a standing ovation. Dana froze in the spotlight, still wondering just what the hell was going on, why this applause. At their seats, Helena, Alice, Shane and the other girls went wild.

"Are you rrrrready for Lightning to strike?" the announcer taunted the audience, and they cheered even louder. Up on the scoreboard there were clips of Dana's tennis matches, including the famous final serve that won her that championship. "The San Jose Lightning congratulates you, Dana! Sports fans! Make some noise!" The scoreboard display did its thing, flashing skyrockets and huge "Go Dana!" and "Congratulations!" messages. The arena filled with thunder.

Max stood next to Dane, the two of them taking it all in, looking around in astonishment. A tall black woman in the uniform of the San Jose Lightning came running up the steps at them. It was the Lightning's star forward, number 10, the incredible Malaika Maitland, Dana's all-time favorite player. She carried a large stuffed teddy bear dressed in a Lightning uniform with the number 1 on the back below the teddy bear's name, Moose.

"We LOVE you! We're so excited you're here!" Maitland said, presenting the teddy bear to Dana with a huge grin. She turned and ran back down the aisle.

"Thank you," Dana said to the retreating figure, nodding and smiling. But in a panic she turned to Max and whispered, "Get me outta here!" She started to head back up the stairs. Max blocked her way.

"Dana, it's not for you," Max said. "It's for them."

Dana stopped. She turned, and looked down the aisle where Helena, Shane, Alice, Jenny, and Dylan stood, grinning and laughing and applauding. They were so happy; they'd pulled it off, this magnificent gesture, this tribute to their long-suffering friend, whom they loved.

Dana turned, looked around the arena. Thousands of people were on their feet, thousands of women, cheering and applauding. It just wasn't going to stop. Dana walked down a few steps toward her friends, then stopped again. She looked up, saw the clips of her on the giant overhead screen. A grin began to spread across her face, and she raised her arm, finally acknowledging the crowd, the gift she was being given. She waved, and tears wet her face.