Hopes

       "William Nicholas Miller!" Wheeler knew what his dad meant when he said out his full name. He was in trouble, again. But this time it was not something he had done.
        "Tell your mother not to bother me anymore. She's being way too scrutinizing."
        "But dad, how am I going to tell her?"
        "Just do it."
        "But dad, you're bossing her too."
        "Do as I say, not as I do."
        That was Wheeler's daily life. As the psychologists would call it, he had a dysfunctional family. His dad, a blue collar worker, drank too much and sometimes got verbally abusive. His mom did not know how to handle it. So it was up to Wheeler to keep the peace at home. He had no siblings, so it was up to him to be responsible.
        Although Wheeler was very street-smart, his heart ruled over his head many times. School was not designed for kids like him--even if he was very smart, classroom work bored him to death. Still, he managed to get top grades. It was the only way for him to have a good future.
        Wheeler wanted to be a businessman or a journalist when he grew up. But that was not his only hope. Wheeler had always known he liked girls. He got along very well with his female cousins, and two of his closest friends were girls. Although his family situation made him skeptical of love and marriange, he deeply wanted to find that special girl someday.

        "Hey, teacher, why are the Russians our enemies?" Wheeler asked one day in History class.
        "After World War II, the Soviet Union became a superpower and wanted to spread communism all over the world and topply over the USA and capitalism."
        "Oh, we're cooler than them. But we should annex them and have them become the 51st state. That way they could be our friends."
        "I think Israel is at the top of the list for 51st," his friend Joe said.
        Wheeler did not listen much to his intuition, but something struck him strange about the Soviet Union. What it was, he had no clue.

~~~~~~

        Wheeler was developing into a fine young man. He could have been much finer if he were in an environment with more opportunities. But the tough streets were not a place for a bright boy with heart and hopes.
        In high school, he really wanted to have a girlfriend. Every guy did. Wheeler had many female friends, but no significant other. He went out with several girls, but none of them were quite what he was looking for. Unlike many guys his age, Wheeler had morals therefore he refused to sleep with the girls he went out with.
        "Babe, I know you are out there, somewhere."
        That night, he had a strange dream. He dreamed that he was a soldier on the US army and was invading the Soviet Union. This one female soldier captured him, but when they revealed themselves to each other, they fell in love immediately. So they stole a space shuttle and sneaked out to live at the moon, where they could live happily ever after.
        He remembered her perfectly--wavy, golden hair, aqua eyes, full lips, and an hourglass figure with lots of inches. And she was such a genius! However, he could not find a woman in real life who matched her! He researched through the NY public library, and through all the celebrities he could think of. But no woman came close to her.

~~~~~~

        Later that week, Wheeler was walking home from the arcade when he spotted a bunch of thugs trying to steal a wallet from one of the teachers at his school. Wheeler could not help but hurl a trash can at the punks.
        "Thanks, Wheeler. I owe you big time." My. Kensington hadn't taught Wheeler any classes, but he was familiar with his never ending enthusiasm at school.
        "No problem!"
        As he walked home, a ring fell in his right hand. "What in the world? Probably some lady dropped it from her window." But an inner voice told him, "Put it on." So he put it on his right index finger. Tradition was not his thing.
        And like magic, he was teleported to an island.

        He could not believe his eyes! It was the girl from the dream he had had earlier that week!!!!! "Wow," he kept saying.
        "I'm Linka. I'm from the Soviet Union. I will be sixteen on Sunday. I would like to become a physician when I grow up. I like computers, music, animals, dolls, reading, and CHOCOLATES!"
        Wheeler could not keep himself from gazing at her and drooling. The little Native American boy at the end of the line could not help but giggle because he could tell what was going on. And he gazed at Wheeler's cell phone, wanting to call his family and gossip about "Gringo and Russky's little thing."

~~~~~~

        "WOOHOO, Wheeler loves Linka!" Ma-Ti (the Indian boy) teased him.
        "I just wish she liked me back, dude! She seems totally immune to my attention!"
        "Don't lose hope. I think she cares for you too. Put yourself in her shoes and try to imagine how things have been for her, how hard it is to be a genius girl with good looks in a small town of a communist country." Ma-Ti was picking up English quickly.

        Was it Wheeler's imagination, or did she actually smile at him that afternoon? It was the first time he saw her smile. She was usually very serious and solemn.

        "Tell Tanya that she was wrong. It is a wonderful feeling," he overheard Linka tell her sisters over the phone. He did not speak Russian, but Ma-Ti's Heart powers helped translate. Wheeler was familiar with Linka's bitchy cousin. "He's adorable!" Now that he did not expect!

        The next morning, Linka found a long love letter in her doorstep.

Dreams - companion to Hopes