Franc couldn't believe it. His beloved mystery girl was sitting on his front porch!
He froze midstride and simply stared. He couldn't bring himself to do anything else. His knees were too weak to walk; his mind was too frazzled to think; his mouth was too dry to talk . . . or breath. He didn't realize he wasn't breathing until Tom slapped him hard on the back, bringing him back to the moment.
"Cassanova," said Tom with an unnecessary amount of pride in his voice, "why didn't you tell us you had a date?"
Tom was grinning from ear to ear, and Franc's mouth hung open. Liza, on the other hand, simply looked curious. "Franc," she said cautiously, "what is she doing here? Did you know she would be here?" Franc's attempted response failed. "I'll take your silence as a strong yes," she said sarcastically.
"Dude," Tom said enthusiastically. "You have to go talk to her!"
He was right, of course.
His dream girl was sitting on his front porch. Moreover, she was sitting on his front porch, waiting! She kept looking around expectantly as though whatever, or whoever, she was waiting for would be there any minute. Was it possible she was waiting for him? Possibly. Who else could she possibly be waiting for? No one else from their school lived on his block . . . and definitely not in his house! She HAD to be there for him!
In that moment, something changed inside him. A powerful force erupted inside his gut and flowed through his entire body. He practically radiated confidence as he set his gaze and began the home stretch to his front door and his destiny!
His thoughts were swirling. His entire life flashed before his eyes: past, present, and future.
He saw himself growing up, going through elementary practically alone. Some friends, but most of them moved away or moved on. He saw middle school where he first met Tom and Trystan. He saw Tom slowly change over that year from bully to best bud and Trystan reluctantly following along. He saw the first day that his mystery girl arrived at school. He saw scene after scene of her flipping her hair, laughing with her friends, and walking down the hall. Her montage was only briefly interrupted by their ragtag group being joined by Liza. Then it was back to her all the way up to this moment.
He saw the block, virtually empty save himself, Tom, Liza, and his beloved. He saw the houses, virtually silent save the Custer's beagle in their backyard. He saw the street, virtually abandoned save the oddly familiar yet out-of-place car sitting across from his house.
He saw himself walking up to her. He saw their first date and their first kiss. He saw them dating, going to prom together, and kissing. He saw them going off to college together, getting engaged, and kissing. He saw their wedding, their honeymoon, their honeymoon, and their honeymoon again. He saw them growing having children, growing old together, and kissing. He saw himself lying on a hospital bed and her holding his hand as he took his last breath.
It was beautiful.
With this new vision giving him confidence, he charged forward. There was no hesitation in his steps nor concern for anyone else in his mind. The only people that existed at that moment were him and his beloved.
And she was beautiful.
He reached his driveway, and as he approached she stood as if to meet him. She flipped her hair over her shoulder and straightened out her shirt. A smile spread across her face as he approached and she turned . . . to meet Jermaine as he came out of the front door.
The ground vanished, and he fell into a bottomless abyss.
He vaguely heard Liza up on the surface speaking to Tom, "Really? Jermaine and Penny? I never would have guessed!"
He could hear the doors close as the two of them climbed into the car that had earlier picked Jermaine up from school. He heard the engine start and drive away as Tom began to speak. His voice echoed into the hole, but Franc only picked up a few words. " . . . Liza . . . did you . . . name . . . fun . . . Penny."
The last word was like a rope that he grabbed onto and used to pull himself up. He came back from the abyss to land softly on the surface and look into the faces of Liza and Tom. He felt life reenter his body. Finally after all this time, he knew her name.
And it was beautiful.
Penny.
Jermaine had to go.
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