From Billy Bob to William, Sweet

Here is a short, 4,250-word story for Literotica Valentine's Day Contest 2021. Thanks to Shygirlwhore for giving it a read, doing some editing, and laying some advice on this old guy.

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Because It was my senior year, the town's Valentine's Day dance tonight was going to be extra special. For at least the next four years, this will be the last Valentine's Day dance I can attend. So I bought a new suit and had red roses delivered to my date. Today is Friday the 13th, and the dance starts at 7:00. Why is the dance on Friday the 13th? Because the dance has always been held at Dentine County's Rental Pavilion. A 150-foot by 100-foot venue, it was rented out on Saturday the 14th for a wedding.

Awful big for a dance, you say? Well, let me tell you a story, everyone who can walk, come using crutches, or roll in a wheelchair, comes to this dance. Since there is no city tax in Dentine, Texas, population 4,153, this fundraiser covers up a big chunk of the city's annual expenses.

There were picnic tables around the Pavilion for eating barbecue with all the fixings, for an 'all you can eat' price. Ten Chef's had half a dozen smokers, cooking every kind of barbecue ever invented, to keep a hungry crowd happy.

So then you might say, awful big venue for a wedding, and I'd answer, we do everything big in Texas.

Now let me tell you my tale, sad at first but happy in the end. My name is William Robert Wagner, yea I know, Billy Bob. Tonight my date is Becky Anne Childers, my on-again, off-again girlfriend. Since the fourth grade, she has kept me as her yo-yo, keeping me in heat for her kisses, pushing me away when it suits her.

Lately, it's been off again, but she did say yes when I asked her on Christmas Day to go with me to the dance. Her daddy had a big grin on his face, but Becky's mom had a look in her eyes like she was watching a plane crash coming right at her. Before I could ask anything, Becky said yes and began swabbing my tonsils with her tongue. That girl could cause amnesia with her kisses.

So the big day came, and I was to arrive at Becky's house by 7:00, and we were going to the dance in a limo with school friends. I contributed $75 toward the rental. Becky had the tickets I bought at $100 a piece because I was a little forgetful at times. I'm telling you; it was because of Becky's kisses that I forget things. Anyway, my daddy dropped me off at Becky's fifteen minutes early and went home to get my mama. She wasn't ready when I needed to leave because she's always late. I did not say that out loud, mama.

Becky's mom answered the door, and I said, "Good evening, Mrs. Childers. Is Becky ready?"

"Better come inside now, Billy Bob."

She motioned for me to sit. "I have to tell you a story, Billy Bob. You won't like it, but it's time you stopped drooling after that girl I'm ashamed to call my daughter."

Well, now, that didn't sound too good.

"You remember, all those times she dumped you but acted like she was busy, had to study, wasn't feeling good? That's when she was running around with Carl Hayes, or Jimmy Jennings, or Ryan Smith. Ryan graduated last year and enrolled at UTEP. When she blew you off New Year's Eve, and New Year's day, she was in El Paso with Ryan. The only reason she said yes to the dance tonight was so you'd buy the tickets, and she could take Ryan. The limo was extra. She knows that after tonight, you won't have anything to do with her anymore, and she doesn't care."

"She must hate me a lot." I wasn't going to cry in front of Mrs. Childers, but it wasn't easy holding my emotions in.

"Are your parents at the dance? If they are, you're welcome to stay here in the apartment above the barn. Mr. Childers has the car but should be home by breakfast from his meeting in Dallas."

I stood up and headed out the door. "No, thank you, Ma'am. I have a lot to think about, and it's such a nice night, I need to walk. It's only fifteen miles to my home." I turned to hug her and said, "Good night."

"Good night Billy Bob." So I started my journey home, feeling sorry for myself and angry at the world. My brain was sorting through every time Becky blew me off that I could remember, and the reason why. Boy, was I blind and clueless? Monday, I'm going to be the butt of all jokes at school. Every day until I graduate, all the jokes, pranks, and nasty remarks, will be focused on me. If I were eighteen, I'd enlist in the marines tomorrow.

So I trudged home, thinking of my options. Instead of going to the University of Texas, I could go elsewhere. Penn State offered me a full-ride Academic Scholarship in Computer Science and Programming. I know more than a few people who will be going to Texas, but I don't know anyone going to Penn State.

I was halfway home at the crossroads of Rte. 6218 and Dentine Rd, when I saw lights flickering through one window of the old Davis house. Mrs. Davis died from a heart attack six months ago, after hearing Mr. Davis died in a car accident in Oklahoma. A new family had moved in this week, as the father would be the new general manager at the refinery outside town. I squinted, and the light was brighter but still flickering.

FIRE! My training as a volunteer at the fire station kicked in.

I started running as I dug my phone out of my back pocket and dialed. "911, what's your emergency?"

"Fire at the old Davis place, corner of Rte. 6218 and Dentine Rd. There's a station wagon parked out front, so the new people must be in there."

"What's your name, hon," The dispatcher asked me?

"It's Billy Bob, Billy Bob Wagner." There are a lot of Billy Bob's in the Dentine area.

"Don't go into the house. Wait for the Fire Department," was the dispatcher's response.

"I can't wait, ma'am," I told her as I dropped my phone on the hood of the car. I ran onto the porch and kicked the front door in. To my left, the living room and kitchen were fully involved, with flames running up the walls and across the ceiling. To my right were three bedrooms and a bathroom, all opening into a long hall. I knew all this because I'd been in this house before when Mrs. Davis made me pies for helping out around her yard. Smoke was building up on this side of the house, and when I went through the first bedroom door, the parents were stumbling out of bed. I made my way over to the side window and pulled it up. Thick paint was making it stick, but I got it up enough for the man and woman to slip through.

"Get your wife out. Any kids?" I asked the husband.

"THREE, two in the middle room." He pushed his wife through the window. "And one in the last room!" He yelled this at me, coughing and hacking from the smoke in his lungs.

"Follow your wife; I need you outside. I'll get them, I promise. Go."

I went out the door and shut it. The bathroom was next, so I turned the water on in the sink and grabbed towels. Soaking the water up with three towels, I wrapped one around my nose and mouth. After leaving the bathroom, I found the next door locked, so I kicked it in. The two kids in this bedroom were over by the window, coughing and crying. I gave each a towel and told them, "Cover your mouth and nose and breathe through the towel." Without hesitation, I flipped the lock on the window and pulled the window up so hard the frame broke. The window fell into the side yard and smashed the glass.

I grabbed a child and passed her out to her father. The second child, a boy, followed. I didn't hesitate but moved as fast as my feet would take me, through the doorway and turning to my right, toward the last door. The smoke was so thick now, I had to feel for the doorknob to open the door. After I entered the bedroom, I shut the door and felt for the bed. Finding it with my knee, I checked, and no one was in it. Dropping to my knees, I felt around me as I moved toward the sidewall. I felt a body, it was a girl, and she wasn't breathing. I was right in front of the window, so I attempted to open the window with one hard upward pull. As I strained to push up the window, a sharp pain went from my left shoulder down to my elbow, and I collapsed to the floor. Crap, I must have torn something. I hadn't bumped into anything I could use to break a window, so carrying her over to the middle bedroom seemed like my only choice.

I struggled to stand up, and the pain in my left arm tried to make me give up, but I didn't quit. I was able to lift her in my arms and stumble to the door. It felt hot, so I stood to the side and opened it. Flames blew through the door opening but quickly retreated. I staggered out the door and up the hallway to the middle bedroom. When I got to the window and looked out, they were all kneeling and crying, looking through the last window.

"Hey, a little help here." I croaked.

Screaming, they all staggered over to me. I handed the girl to her father and climbed or fell out the window. I couldn't rest because I knew she wasn't breathing. I crawled over to her father, who was holding his daughter and crying while her mother was screaming, "No." I yanked her away from her father, tilted her head back, and began giving her CPR. I breathed into her mouth twice, followed by 30 chest compressions. Check for pulse and repeat. Check and repeat. She coughed after the third round, and I felt for and found a pulse. I thought I heard sirens, and I could swear I saw Mrs. Davis smiling and nodding her head before I started to blackout.

Falling on my back, I could hear voices, and one of them said, "Isn't that Billy Bob Wagner? Why isn't he at the dance with Becky?"

An EMT placed an oxygen mask over my face as I tried to stay awake, "Didn't you hear what she did to him? She..." and I blacked out. Hell, I didn't need to live through that again.

When my eyes opened again, I was in an ambulance, on the road to Den/Tox hospital. It was halfway between Dentine and Nitrox, Texas, hence the name.

"Hey, Billy Bob. How are you feeling? It's me, Missy. You know, Jimmy's wife."

Jimmy? Oh, yea, Jimmy, my brother who's in the army, serving in the sandbox in Iraq.

"I called Mom and dad, and they'll meet us at the hospital."

I pulled the oxygen mask off and asked, "People, kids, all okay?"

Missy put the mask back on, "They're fine and fortunate that Becky is a bitch. Now rest."

When I woke up again, I was in an emergency room bay. Mama was on my left, and my daddy was on my right.

"Billy Bob, you're a hero. You saved a family from that fire." She was crying while she talked, and she squeezed my hand.

I screamed, "My arm!"

"I'm sorry, Baby."

"Excuse me; I need to x-ray his shoulder." A tech pulled up the side rails on the bed and pushed me down the hallway to the x-ray department.

"We're going to go get some coffee. I'm proud of you, son," My dad said, his voice was breaking up with emotion but no tears.

The tech brought me back, but my parents hadn't returned yet. I closed my eyes and tried to sleep. I heard a curtain being pulled back, and then a young female voice, erotic yet innocent, said, "Hey."

So, of course, Captain Cool came back with, "Hey." Smooth.

I opened my eyes, and sitting on the bed next to me was an angel. I couldn't talk or move, only stare at her. I heard some beeping getting faster and faster, and I heard a voice, over by the nurses' station, "I'll check on him." Then I heard footsteps and that voice again, "Billy Bob, are you okay? Billy Bob. BILLY BOB!" Whap, someone slapped my foot.

"Oww, why'd you do that? Oh, it's you, Mrs. Jeffries."

She smiled and turned to walk back to the nurses' station. "Billy Bob's in love," she sang as she moved away.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to stare; that was rude. I'm Billy Bob Wagner. And you are?"

"I'm Rebecca Angela Thorpe. You saved my family and me."

"I'm glad to meet you. Have you started school yet? I'm a senior." I better shut up because she most likely thinks I'm an idiot.

"I start Monday, and I'm a senior. We moved here from Odesa for a job at the refinery. But now we have no clothes and no house."

"Perhaps, I can help with the house. My two brothers are on their own, and their rooms are empty. My bedroom is unused because I sleep in an apartment over our garage. I'm sure my parents will agree, so I would like to extend an invitation to you and your family to stay with my family. This is the way we help our neighbors in this part of Texas."

"One of my grandfather's rules is, If you save a life or lives, you are responsible for that life or lives. So you are my responsibility, and I want you to sleep in my room." "Um, I mean you can sleep in my room that I don't sleep in."

I heard something behind me, and looking over my shoulder, I could see both sets of parents smiling and looking my way.

"Hey." Another profound statement. I could have a career as a politician. Then the ER Doctor saved me from my tongue.

"Well, Billy Bob, I have good news, and I have bad news. The good news is your shoulder is fine, so the bad news isn't as bad as it could be."

"Huh?"

"Shoulder operations are much worse than arm operations. You have a tear in your left bicep muscle and need some surgery on it. So at 8:00 AM, Dr. Conrad will be cutting into you. It looks like a simple tear, but he'll want to check the nerves in that area. And you Missy, um, Rebecca, all your tests came back normal so you can get dressed and go with your parents."

Mama took Mrs. Thorpe's hand and said, "I'm Ellen, and this is my hubby, Jason. And like Billy Bob said, please accept our invitation and stay at our house as long as you need. We have plenty of room because my oldest boys are on their own. I won't accept no for an answer."

Mrs. Thorpe spoke, "Please call me Dot, and this is my husband Arthur, our children Timmy, Jayce, and Rebecca. Our hero, Billy Bob, seems to be getting a lot of attention from Rebecca. We graciously accept your kind offer. Now we have to find some clothes."

Staring at Rebecca, I could see her eyes were brown, no gold, well maybe green. Her lips were, well, I wanted to kiss them, but there were too many witnesses. Why can't they see I want to be alone with Rebecca and leave?

Mama continued, "Dot, don't worry. I got this covered. I estimated your sizes when I saw you in the emergency room and sent your sizes to our local network of wives. I do believe we will have quite a lot on our porch when we get home. How about you follow us home, and we'll get you settled in, and then you and I can come back here while the men watch the kids?"

"Sounds good, Ellen. Hurry up and get dressed, Rebecca."

She pulled her clothes out from under the ER bed and remarked, "Mommy, my clothes have soot all over them. Can I stay here until you bring me something?"

I nodded up and down in agreement without taking my eyes off Rebecca. Another gem of wisdom from Billy Bob passed my lips, "I'll keep an eye on her."

Mama turned away with a twinkle in her eye. "I'm sure you intend doing that, Billy Bob, but when you get operated on, they'll knock you out." It sure sounded like she was laughing, but I didn't know what's so funny.

"We'll be back soon."

A few minutes later, Rebecca said, "Okay, they've left. I have a question. Why do they call you Billy Bob? Why not Billy or Bobby? You don't play football, do you?"

"No, I never played. Ever since my first memories, that's been my name. Why?"

"Can I call you William instead of Billy Bob? If you hear William, you'll know it's me talking to you."

"You can call me Kermit as long as you call me."

Dr. Conrad came by holding some x-rays. "Hello, Billy Bob. I remember you now from when I fixed Jimmy's broken ankle. How've you been, son?"

"Fine, sir."

"And who might this young lady be?"

"Doctor Conrad, this is Rebecca Thorpe. Her family was in the burning house."

"Nice to meet you, Rebecca. Your father is the new GM at the refinery, I hear."

"We moved from Odesa. Does everyone know everything about everyone else here in Dentine?"

"Oh, yes, it's STS, Small Town Syndrome. Now, Billy Bob, this is where the tear is at." With a sharpie, he drew an X on my right arm.

"Now, here is the nerve that might be pinched." He drew an O next to the X.

"Now I have to check a little higher for a crack in your fibula right here." He drew another X.

"I get it, and you can stop now Doc."

"William, what do you get?"

"Everybody is a comedian in Dentine, Rebecca. XOXO? Hugs and kisses?"

"Oh." And she laughed a happy laugh. I believe my heart stopped.

"I'm sorry, Billy Bob. The nurses made me do it." So he made the correct markings on my left arm, and as he was leaving, the anesthesiologist came up. He checked my IV and gave me a little something to mellow me out. By the time a nurse came to get me, I was flying over the yellow brick road.

'Haaay Bill-Leee Boub. How dooo yooou feeel?" She sounded like a drunk truck driver talking underwater.

"Okay, I knocked out."

"Whoo iss thiss yung ladee?"

"Ree-beca, my wife. I think she's expecting something."

I heard laughter, and the nurse started to push, and I hollered, "Stop. I always have to kiss my wi-fee when we separate."

So Rebecca came over and kissed me.

"I love you, Ree-beca. I want steak for dinner tonight. Bye."

The nurse started pushing, and I asked, "Can I drive?"

"Do you have a gurney license?"

"No, ma'am."

"Then settle down and enjoy the ride."

I relaxed and let sleep overtake my speeding brain. When I woke up, I was in a bay with curtains on either side. I had something in my mouth, like a tube.

"Well, look who is awake. How do you feel, Billy Bob?"

Hearing the nurse's voice was like hearing Carol Kane's voice in 'Princess Bride,' Humperdinck! Humperdinck! Humperdinck! Was this lady a nurse or a witch?

"AAnngg." I made a noise because my left arm was hurting like I got hit by a baseball bat. I looked and saw the full-arm brace on my left arm.

"Oh, don't try to speak yet. Oh, Doctor Conrad, Billy Bob's awake."

Can someone muzzle her?

"Hey, Billy Bob. How do you feel?"

Why do Doctors ask the dumbest question in the world when you have a tube down your throat and can't speak?

"Do you want me to take the tube out?" I shook my head no, to be stubborn.

"No! Why not? You'll feel much better." The inmates from the asylum have escaped, and they look like Doctors and nurses. Oww!

"Take it out, Doctor, he's acting like a baby. I'm here, William."

Rebecca? I turned, and she was by my right ear as she took my right hand. I nodded and tried to smile.

"Miss, um, Ma'am, are you sure you know him? Everybody calls him Billy Bob, not William."

"Uh-huh, I'm the only one who can call him William, and he'll behave while I'm here." I nodded up and down several times.

"Okay." The Doctor said and pushed a button.

I woke up, and the tube was gone. Rebecca was still holding my hand, and I managed to croak one word, "Water."

Nurse Humperdinck responded, "Oh no, you can't have any water. How about a Popsicle?"

"Cherry?" I sounded like a frog.

"You most certainly can have a cherry Popsicle. I'll be right back."

Rebecca brushed my hair with her left hand and asked, "When did I become your wife?"

"What?"

"As they wheeled you out of the emergency room, you made them stop so you could kiss your wife."

"Here you go, dearie. A cherry Popsicle." Saved by nurse Humperdink.

Rebecca tore the paper off and fed it to me a drop at a time. When she wanted to pluck my nerve, she would drip some on my lips and kiss me. I laid there staring at her perfect hair, swirling eyes, cute little nose, kissable lips.

When we finished the Popsicle, another nurse came by to take me to my room, riding in a wheelchair. I lost track of Rebecca until we got to a room the nurse said was mine. Both beds were empty, and as the nurse helped me from wheelchair to bed, Rebecca sat in the chair and covered up with a blanket off the other bed. The nurse left us alone, and Rebecca held my right hand with the IV in it.