Plans Come Together Ch. 01

- "I wasn't finished." I said. "I have one more suggestion. Someone for me. Possibly."

- "What? Oh, this I've gotta hear." Lisa was smirking. I thought I'd detected just a little jealousy on her part when I first mentioned Diane and Amy. But maybe it was just idle curiosity.

- "Joanne Kalinowsky."

- "WHAT?" Lisa was glaring at me. "That's not funny, Kyle."

-"I'm not kidding, Lisa. If you can invite Matt Ryan, I can invite Joanne. She's a lot of fun."

Joanne had a reputation as one of the biggest sluts in our high school. There were five guys who claimed that she'd blown them all after a party. Some people compared her pussy to Algonquin Provincial Park: neither one could accurately count how many visitors they'd had, so they could only estimate how many people had entered.

That was a bit cruel. I'd been with Joanne three times, myself. She'd forgotten the first time, so our second encounter was a brand new experience for her.

She'd gone through a Goth period, and then dyed her hair about twenty different colours. She had a lazy eye, and a gap between her front teeth that you could've driven a truck through. Great tits, though, and a great body. And I actually liked her.

When Lisa had turned me down for the Prom, I'd sulked for three days, and then I asked Joanne. She just looked at me.

- "You don't have to do that. " she said. "I'd fuck you again. Last time was really nice."

- "I want to take you to the Prom." I insisted. "I like you, Joanne."

- "Are you sure it isn't just 'I wanna fuck you, Joanne'?"

- "Can't it be both?"

She smiled, then. "You're a nice guy, Kyle." (See - there's that word again. Nice.) "I think I see what you're doing here. Lisa Lejeune turned you down, right?"

Of course she knew. Everybody knew. Who asked who to the Prom was the topic of conversation all over the school.

"So I'm not offended, or anything. Second choice isn't the end of the world. And I get that you're trying to ... I don't know ... help me out? But you should know this: I wouldn't go to Prom if you paid me. Well - maybe I would for a million dollars."

- "You're one of a kind, Joanne." I said. "Would you go out with me? I mean, on a date. Before Prom."

- "I already told you that I enjoyed our last time."

- "No - I mean a date, Jo. If you have a good time, and you still want to have sex afterwards, that would be awesome. But I thought that maybe we could go for a pizza, or something."

- "Okay." she said.

- "Really? Excellent."

We had a good time. We talked music, for the most part, and avoided topics like her sex life - or mine. I asked her about her aversion to Prom.

- "Fuck that." she said. "Fuck them. The popular ones? It won't mean shit, twenty years from now. Or even ten years from now. Most of 'em will be stuck here, in dead end jobs, married to each other. They'll say stuff like 'Remember that slut, Joanne Kalinowsky?', and they'll feel good about themselves for a minute or two. Meanwhile, I'll be a movie star, or a high-priced escort, or something, and I'll have people lined up to kiss my ass. And I'll be remembering somebody like you, Kyle. Somebody who wanted to fuck me, but also wanted to talk to me, and buy me a pizza. You know?"

- "I do like you, Jo."

- "I know. That's why we're going back to your house, and we're going to make a fucking mess of your bedroom."

My Mom was already asleep, and my sister was staying with a friend. Joanne did exactly what she'd promised.

Back in the present, Lisa couldn't help sneering a little.

- "Wow, talk about a sure thing. You're going after some pretty low-hanging fruit, there."

- "You know, Leece, you and Joanne have something in common. You both turned me down when I asked you to go to the Prom with me."

That shocked her, more than a little. While she was off-balance, I told her a little bit of lie.

"Look. There's Debbie and Steve. You and Matt. I'm hoping that Mike and Diane will work out. If Amy and Joanne are there, then I have options. That just seems fair to me - especially since you really only need me for my car."

Lisa chewed it over for a full minute.

- "Fine. But Bailey knows who Joanne is. And don't say I didn't warn you when you take a ribbing from Steve and Matt."

Was that what she thought they did? Ribbing?

-"Won't bother me." I said. I didn't give a fuck what Steve Holmgren said. As for Matt Ryan, he probably couldn't have spelled 'ribbing'. I had my plan, which involved both of them - intimately.

- "Oh, Kyle ..." Lisa rolled her eyes again, and then smiled at me, to take the sting away. "Are you trying to make me jealous, just a little? You're still not over me, are you?"

Some things never change. I'm sure that was what Lisa thought. But she was the one who was failing to move forward. She thought that she could hook up with Matt fucking Ryan, right in front of me, and that I would still continue to be in love with her?

Lisa was dead wrong. Oh, I still wanted to nail her. In fact, I wanted to fuck her so well that she would fall for me. But I no longer pictured the two of us together, with the house, the white picket fence, the two car garage, maybe with a couple of red-headed kids ...

Lisa wouldn't want that. It would have a been a couple of steps down for her. Whereas I still wanted that ... just not with her. The colour of the kids' hair didn't matter.

I had some more planning to do.

***

I called Joanne first. She was surprised to hear from me, but also pleased. Unlike the vast majority of our graduating class, I knew that she was still in town, and that she was gainfully employed - as a model, of all things. A body model, that is.

I'd always thought that Joanne was attractive, but her lazy eye and the gap between her teeth largely disqualified her from modelling with her face. She was also too short, at 5 foot 3, to model clothes. But bras and panties? Lingerie? She had a great body, and a naturally darker skin tone. She had also - wisely - refrained from getting any tattoos or piercings.

Now she was getting offers to do nude photoshoots.

- "Are you going to?" I asked.

- "Probably. I'm still thinking it over, but the money is pretty good, and it's not like I'm shy or anything."

- "You'll have to let me know if you do. I'd love to see that."

She laughed. "What are you talking about? You've already seen everything."

- "Yeah - but I didn't take any pictures."

She laughed again. "Well, we can fix that next time I see you. But what's up, Kyle? You didn't call me to talk about my modelling career."

I told her. I told her just about everything I had planned. Considering what I was asking her to do, she had a right to know.

- "Wow ..." she said. "That's pretty ... intense."

- "I know. And I know that it's a big ask."

- "Nothing I haven't done before. And it would be helping you out, right?"

- "Yes. It's more than just a favour, though. So I would want to do you a favour in return. How do two tickets to Arcade Fire sound?"

- "You're shitting me. That show sold out in less than an hour. I couldn't even get on the website!" Arcade Fire was one of Joanne's favourite bands, and the tickets had cost a pretty penny. I was glad, though, that I'd had the foresight to get them (although I'd had someone else in mind when I did).

"You've got a deal." said Joanne.

***

Mike was a little tougher to bring in. I wasn't going to lie to him, or spring a nasty surprise on him when we got there.

- "Steve Holmgren will be there. And so will Matt Ryan."

Mike took a long, deep breath. He rarely got angry, and I'd never seen him lash out at anyone, but I could see him struggling with his self-control right now. He disliked Bailey's boyfriend, but he had to hate Matt Ryan just as much as I did. He certainly had more reason than I did.

Matt was a year older, and a year ahead of us in high school. When Mike and I arrived, fresh Grade Niners, Matt and some of his asshole friends had decided that 'initiation' meant hazing. They selected Mike as one of their targets. Three of them shoved his head in a toilet. I tried to intervene, and got punched in the stomach. I knew that Mike hadn't forgotten; it wasn't the kind of thing that you forget. Ever.

- "And why would you think that I'd be even remotely interested?" he said.

- "Because Diane Pirrie will be there."

Ten days with Diane Pirrie. Mike swallowed as he tried to imagine what that could be like. We both knew that he would never be able to ask her out - he'd be too paralyzed to get the words out of his mouth. I'd even offered to do it for him, but Mike also knew that he would fail on a first date. Too shy, too nervous. It would be a disaster.

But ten days, in a cottage setting? With other people around, including me? Even Mike could see the potential in that.

Except for Matt fucking Ryan.

- "He doesn't even remember you, Mike. All you have to do is pretend that you don't remember him, either."

I wasn't going to tell Mike about my plan. He was such an upright guy, I doubted that he would approve. I just had to hope that he would forgive me, afterwards.

It took him an hour to make up his mind. He probably could have taken all week to mull it over, if I let him. But I put him on the clock.

- "Five more minutes, Mike. That's it. Then I'm going ahead without you. Are you in, or out?"

- "In."

Now I just had to deliver Diane Pirrie.

She and Amy were both still on campus. Diane was taking a summer course, and simultaneously working for two separate charitable foundations. Amy had snagged a summer internship as a lab assistant.

They were willing to meet me, and hear my pitch. It would have been a stretch to call them friends; like Mike, we had moved in vastly different social circles in high school. They were both involved in multiple extra-curricular activities, while I was usually out the door the moment the bell rang (if not sooner), on my way to work.

But I'd made an effort to stay in contact with them throughout our first year at university. I kept in touch with Diane, partly so that I might have the opportunity to put in a good word for Mike, or even bring him along if he ever found the courage. I was interested in Amy for her own sake, but she wasn't easy to get close to, and I was still trying to figure out the best way to approach her.

Both girls were dark-haired, slender, wore only basic makeup, and dressed conservatively. Diane was the shorter of the two, which made Amy look taller than she actually was (5'7"). It also drew attention to her chest, which was hard to ignore. Diane was prettier, and much more animated. Once she started talking, Amy started to fade into the background a little bit.

One thing in my favour was that Diane had also been to the Prom party at Bailey's cottage, and she hadn't forgotten how spectacular it was. Amy had not been there.

- "It is a wonderful spot." Diane admitted. "I don't know if I can take the time off, though."

I looked to Amy.

- "I don't think I can." she said.

- "You both need a vacation." I said. "Between all of this summer work and running back home to see your families, you're going to be exhausted by the time second year comes around. All work and no play ..."

Diane, at least, was mildly tempted. "I don't know ... who else is going to be there?"

This was not going to help my case, but there was no way to hide it. It might have been just my imagination, but I thought that Diane's smile might have gotten just a little wider when I mentioned Mike. But I couldn't have missed their reaction when I said Steve's name: they both looked like they'd just opened a container of spoiled milk.

Interesting, but bad for my plan. I went back to describing how big the place was, emphasizing how many things there were to do at the cottage, or around the end of the lake. I had to hope that they would get the point - they wouldn't have to spend much time around Steve.

It didn't work. Amy wasn't all that interested, and Diane stood by her friend.

- "Thanks for the offer, Kyle. It was nice of you to think of us, but I don't think we can go."

That would spell the end of half of my plans - the more important plans, too. For Mike's sake, and for mine, I couldn't leave it there.

I went to see Diane right after work the next day. In case she was with Amy, I texted her.

Really need to speak you. Alone. It won't take long. I'm right outside your building.

Fortunately, I didn't have to wait too long for a reply. Okay. I'll be right down.

She came out the front door, and spotted me right away, leaning against the hood of my car. Diane came straight over.

- "Is something wrong, Kyle?"

- "No. Thank you for coming down, though. I have a question for you, and then I need to ask you for a favour. A big favour."

- "Just me?"

I nodded. "For now, yes. But you can tell Amy whatever you want afterwards."

- "Good - because we don't keep secrets from each other. Let's start with your question, then."

- "Diane, what happened with Steve Holmgren?"

- "What?"

- "The moment I mentioned his name yesterday, you both made a face - the kind you make when you're suddenly hit with a really bad smell."

Diane looked down at the ground. "I can't ... it's not something I can talk about."

She sounded ... angry? But not fearful, or embarrassed, or ashamed.

- "It happened to Amy." I said. Diane suddenly looked up, right at my face.

- "Kyle ..."

- "Did he say something? Or do something to her?" Now I was angry. And then I remembered something from our senior year.

"That time he got suspended. For a day." Steve had said or done something to Amy; whatever it was, the school administration hadn't deemed it worthy of anything more than a day off. That didn't mean that it wasn't serious - just that it wasn't one of the worst things I could imagine.

- "It's not for me to say. Please don't bring it up with Amy, either. It happened, we took the matter to the Vice-Principal, and a punishment was assigned. It's over."

- "He got off too lightly."

- "Well, we can agree on that much." she said.

- "Diane, if you and Amy come to Bailey's cottage, I'll make sure that Steve doesn't say or do anything to either of you."

- "And how would you do that?"

- "By letting him know in advance that I'll beat the living shit out of him if he does."

Diane actually smiled. "That might almost be worth seeing. Alright, I've answered your question, as much as I can. So what kind of favour are you looking for?"

I took a deep breath. This had to work.

- "I want you to persuade Amy to come to Bailey's cottage. Please."

- "She doesn't want to go, Kyle. Why would I try to persuade my best friend to do something she doesn't want to do?"

- "Because I really, really want her to be there."

- "What? Why?"

- "I really like her, Diane. I want to get to know her better."

No, it wasn't just for her chest. Amy had always lived in Diane's shadow. She did just as much work for charity, and was involved in every extracurricular activity that her best friend was. But Diane was more outgoing, more charismatic, and she got three lions' shares of the credit.

Amy was hard-working, humble, and just as devoted to public service. She was smart, too: I'd discovered last year that she had won the same entrance scholarship that I had. In many ways, she was the exact opposite of Lisa. Amy was a bit of a mystery, and I wanted to find out what she was about.

- "Why don't you just ask her out, then?" asked her best friend.

- "Come on, Diane. I know her well enough that I can predict how that would go. How many guys did she date, this past year? None, right? But how many guys hit on her? How many asked her out? A dozen? More? She did much the same in high school. I think the longest she went out with anybody was, what, two weeks?"

- "Three weeks."

I didn't have to say 'I rest my case'. Diane could see it on my face.

- "So if I just asked her out, she'd probably say no. Tell me that I'm wrong."

- "Well, you might have to ask her more than once."

- "She'd just keep saying no. But if we were at the cottage, with a group of people around, including you, and Mike, then I would have a chance to talk to Amy, to get to know her, without her feeling like I was hitting on her."

- "That ... almost makes sense."

Diane was a good friend to Amy. Sure, she hogged the limelight a lot, but it wasn't as if Amy was competing for attention. Quite the opposite, in fact.

I didn't know if it would be better for Amy to stay away from Steve, or to face him in a social situation. I didn't know if Diane thought that I might be good for her best friend. That was why I had to put it into Diane's hands. I smiled, then, thinking that this was just like Grade 7. I couldn't tell a girl that I liked her, but I could tell her friend, knowing that the message would get through.

Diane saw me smile, and that brought a little answering smile back to her face.

- "I'll talk to her, Kyle. I'm not making any promises - but I'll try."

- "Thanks. I owe you one."

- "No, you don't. It's not that big a favour." she said. "I'll be in touch."

Three days later, Diane sent me a text.

Okay, we're in. What should we bring?

***

FRIDAY

Shorts and T-shirts, a single sweatshirt and track pants in case the weather went bad, a rain jacket, and a second pair of running shoes. Munchies, bottled water, Kool-Aid, beer and booze. And more beer. Plus I reminded everyone I'd invited to bring some cash.

With the car packed full of clothes and beer, there wasn't much room for coolers with perishable food. Lisa let me know that we could pick up plenty of food in Walker's Corners. It was too small for a beer store or a liquor store, which was why we had to bring so much in the car. There was a small grocery store, though, with a meat department, and a butcher who did regular business with Bailey's family. He would have steaks, burgers and sausages ready for us on Saturday, at a very good price - as long as he was paid under the table - hence the cash.

That added a really nice little element to my plan.

Bailey's cottage had just about everything else we'd need: paddles and life jackets, bocce balls, lawn darts, badminton rackets and birdies - you name it. Bailey also had enough clothing up there to outfit all five of the girls.

Steve and Bailey would bring Lisa and Matt. Diane and Amy would drive up together. That left me to collect Mike and Joanne. Mike was pretty cool about the whole deal. He didn't ask me why I was bringing Joanne, and he didn't complain about us having to drive back home to get her, instead of going directly to Bailey's. I had suggested that he could get a ride with Diane and Amy, but he wasn't ready to be stuck in car with them for two and a half hours.

Joanne had a small bag of clothes; I'd told her that I would cover her booze and food. When I got out to open the door for her, she greeted me with a little hug.

- "Hi, Mike." she said, cheerfully, as she got into the backseat (which she would have to share with our gym bags and a case of bottled water).

Thank goodness for GPS. I'd only been up to Bailey's cottage once before - at night - and I wasn't the one driving at the time. Joanne already had her phone out, but I put a playlist of my own on the car stereo.

She looked up. "Roxy Music? Nice ..."

I'd put together a collection of some of her favourites that I also liked, old and new. Almost every time a new tune came on, she'd look up to see me glancing at her in the rear view mirror - and then she'd grin, showing that big gap in her front teeth.

Honestly, I thought that it added to her appeal. It gave her character. She wasn't a beauty anyway, so why not be unique and memorable? She'd cut her dark brown hair again, so that it fell just short of her shoulders. I don't know; maybe I just liked the way Joanne looked because I liked her.