>Next, we have a story from Stephanie. I'm sure she'd love to know what
>you think about it. You can write her at dodle_people@msn.com.
>
>"And It Looks Like We've Made It..."
>
>1 It was a clear, cool night as I stepped into the Ferris wheel. The
>fair
>was pretty crowded, and though I was alone, they put someone else on
the
>ride with me. As the
>ride started, I looked up and was instantly mesmerized. He had long
>brown hair, brown eyes, and a green wool hat placed casually on his
>head. He looked up at me and his eyes seemed to
>stared into my soul. I shook myself out of the trance and said,
"Hello."
> He replied, "Hi. My name's Michael."
> "I'm Stephanie." We sat in silence as the ride rose into the air.
> "Are you here alone?" he said.
> I said, "Yeah, my friends are out of town and I hate to miss the
fair."
> "Would you want to walk around the fair with me? I could take you
home,
>too, if you want."
> I was surprised. Why was I all of a sudden trusting this strange man?
>He
>could be a deranged psychopath for all I knew. But I looked into his
>eyes and knew I
>had nothing to worry about. "Sure," I replied, smiling, and at that
>moment the ride stopped.
>_______
>2 Michael got out first and held out his hand to help me out. We
touched
>and
>it sent shivers down my spine. He didn't let go of my hand after that.
>We walked
>around the fair, talking about who we were, our likes and dislikes, and
>found we had a lot in common.
>We were both quiet and serious, and silly at some times, and we both
>loved art and music.
>After riding the roller coaster and the Tilt-A-Whirl, and sharing a
>funnel cake, Michael won me a
>stuffed bear at one of the game booths.
> Eventually it began to get late, and it was time to go home. I did not
>want
>to leave; the night was perfect, Mike and the fair and the cool breeze.
>I knew it had to
>happen, though. As we walked out to the parking lot, I turned to
Michael
>and said, will I be able
>to see you again?
>"Where do you live?"
> He said, "I don't live around here. I live in California with my three
>friends. I have to drive
>back there tonight"
> I felt like someone had socked me in the stomach. How could someone so
>wonderful just
>walk in and out of my life? "I don't want to leave you. Is there any
way
>you could stay in town a
>little longer?" I cried.
> He gazed into my eyes and said, "Stephanie, I don't want to leave you
>either, but I have to go. There is one way... no, you couldn't..."
> At this point I was grasping at straws. "No, tell me! Please, tell
me,"
>I begged, at the
>same time trying to calm myself down, taking deep breaths.
> Michael, ever the strong one, took a deep breath himself and said,
"You
>could come with me tonight. I'LL take you by your house and you can
grab
>a few things"
> I was so happy. "Michael, you are so wonderful" I exclaimed. I held
his
>hand tighter as
>we walked to his car. I had taken the bus, so I rode with him. "And
>that's another thing" he said. "If you're going to live with me, you
>might as well call me Mike."
> "Yes, sir, Mike," I saluted, and we both burst into giggles as he
>started
>the engine.
>_______
>3 We drove along, singing with the radio at the top of our lungs. He
had
>a beautiful voice and we harmonized wonderfully. Then, I suddenly had a
>thought: what about my best friend
>Terri? We had grown up together, and if she just never saw me again, it
>would break her heart. I
>decided to mention it to Mike. I turned the radio down and said, "Mike,
>I can't leave without my
>best friend Terri. Is there any way she could come too?"
> "Sure, babe," he said, with a twinkle in his eye. "I know my bandmates
>Micky, Peter, and Davy would love to have a girl to drool over around
>the house!"
> I sighed with relief. "She lives with me, so when we swing by the
house
>we can pick her
>up. I'M sure she'll come along" We drove for awhile and eventually
>pulled into my driveway. I
>ran into the house, yelling, "Terri, Terri! Are you there?" I had
>forgotten she was out of town and
>silently prayed she was back.
> "What?" she yelled from the bedroom. I walked in there to find her
>unpacking.
> "I'm so glad you came back on time!" I said as I hugged her. "But
don't
>unpack, we have
>to go on a trip" I threw all my stuff into a suitcase and dragged Terri
>out the door, filling her in on the details as I went.
> "You mean there's three other guys? Single guys? Count me in!" she
said
>as we ran to the car. We hopped in and I made quick introductions as we
>sped off.
> We drove along for a long time, several hours; not too long after we
>got past the Texas
>border Mike drove onto a side road. I asked him where we were going,
but
>he didn't say
>anything, just smiled. Eventually we got to a large ranch house
>overlooking a canyon. It was
>beautiful and we got there as the sun was rising. "Alright, everybody
>out," he said as we pulled in
>the garage.
> "Wow, Mike, is this your house?" I said, partly because I knew it
>couldn't be the one in
>California and partly because I was so tired and I was ready to go to
>sleep. Terri looked about as
>tired as I was.
> "Yep, it's my humble abode," he said, and he led us each to two
>beautifully decorated rooms. Mine was next door to Terri's, connected
by
>a bathroom. Mike showed us his room so we
>would know where he was and gave me a kiss, and we all went into our
>rooms and fell asleep.
>_______
>4 We woke up around noon and had lunch. Then we got all our stuff back
>into the car and
>drove off. "If we don't make any stops, we can get back to the pad by
>sunset. Then you two can
>meet the guys and we can go out tonight," Mike explained. It seemed
like
>we left too soon, the
>ranch was so beautiful, but I knew there were better things to come.
> We pulled into the driveway of the pad right around sunset, like Mike
>figured. By this
>time we were all practically bouncing off the seats; we had been
cramped
>in the car for a long
>time, not to mention how much we wanted to meet Micky, Davy, and Peter.
>Terri was the most
>excited because Mike had told her all sorts of good things about them,
>and she was planning on
>having a major flirt fest! We all got out of the car and Mike brought
>our things into the house. It
>was a great looking house on the beachfront, and the inside was very
>groovy looking and
>comfortable. He showed us our guest room (we each had a twin bed), and
>took us on a tour of
>the place.
> Terri was bouncing off the walls at this point, so Mike said, "Okay,
>let's go down to the
>beach where the guys are. They're probably swimming or something." So
we
>all walked through
>the sand to the water and sure enough, they were there!
> Mike introduced a tall guy with dark, curly hair. "This is my friend
>Micky. He's the
>drummer and our crazy guy of the bunch." Micky grinned from ear to ear,
>looking at Terri. I knew he would; guys always do that for Terri! Mike
>continued, "This short guy is
>my friend Davy. He plays the maracas and the tambourine mostly, and
he's
>a real girl-getter."
>Uh-oh, I thought, as Davy got these little stars in his eyes. He was
>looking directly at Terri.
>Mike went on, "And this fella here is my friend Peter. He plays bass
and
>he's one of the nicest guys I know, really into the peace and love
>thing." And of course, Peter had this little smile on his face, smiling
>at Terri. Mike finished, "Guys, this here is Stephanie. She's the most
>wonderful girl I've ever met! And this is her best friend Terri.
They're
>going to live with us now." You should have seen the looks on their
>faces when they found out Terri was going to be there all the time! And
>of course, Mike was smiling at me with the sweetest look on his face,
>and we left Terri to fend for herself. We figured Terri didn't do too
>bad, considering she started walking down the beach with Micky and
Peter
>on each arm and Davy walking backwards in front of her so he could see
>her. We walked back into the pad and curled up together on the couch
and
>watched a movie.
>_______
>5 They came back in about two hours later to find me and Mike cuddling
>on the couch. We
>both got up and walked over to the kitchen table to talk about dinner.
>Davy suggested, "Let's
>take the girls out on the town tonight, you know, show ‘em around the
>place." We all agreed this
>would be a great idea and Terri and I rushed upstairs to get ready. We
>wore these short, flirty
>dresses and our favorite white go-go boots. We rushed downstairs to
find
>the boys sitting on the
>couch, waiting. "I hope we didn't take too long," Terri said, with a
sly
>smile. Davy rushed over,
>grabbed her arm and said, "Of course not, luv, you can take all the
time
>you want!" Micky and
>Peter followed them out the door. Mike looked at me and let out a low
>whistle. "You look
>absolutely gorgeous, Stephanie. I can't wait till you see where we're
>going." He took my arm, led me out the door, and helped me into the
car.
> We drove for awhile until we came to a nice looking restaurant. It
>wasn't too fancy or
>expensive, but we both knew the guys couldn't afford much and couldn't
>wait to see what was
>inside. Mike parked the car and we all got out. "We're all going to
have
>to play for a little bit, but we ate while you got ready, so go inside
>and order whatever you want. Stephanie, I've got a
>surprise for you, so you and Terri stay at the table," Mike said. I
>wondered what he was talking
>about.
>_______
>6 The guys walked around back and Terri and I took our table and sat
>down. We ordered
>our meals and talked as we waited for them to come out and start
>playing. "I wonder what your
>surprise is," Terri said. I just shrugged my shoulders; I had no idea!
>They walked out and played for awhile, Micky and Davy alternating their
>different love songs while looking at Terri. She was so touched that
>they had wanted to sing to her! And then to my surprise Mike stepped up
>front. He said, "This is a song I wrote for a special girl out there
out
>there tonight." And he began to sing.
>"All men must have someone, have someone
>Who would never take advantage
>Of a love bright as the sun.
>Someone to understand them,
>And you just may be the one.
>
>All men must have someone, have someone
>Who would never take for granted
>All the pleasures and the fun.
>Someone to stand beside them
>And you just may be the one.
>
>I saw when you walked by
>The lovelight in your eyes
>I knew I must try
>To win you more than as a friend,
>I'm starting near the end,
>And here I go again.
>
>All men must have someone, have someone
>Who would never take advantage
>Of a love bright as the sun.
>Someone to stand beside them
>And you just may be the one.
>Someone to understand them,
>And you just may be the one."
>
> He looked up from his guitar and I could almost see tears in his eyes.
>I had tears in my
>own; I was so happy! I couldn't believe he loved me that much. They
>walked offstage and Micky, Davy, and Peter rushed Terri and whisked her
>away to the dance floor. The house band had started playing. Mike
walked
>up and took my hand and said, "May I have this dance?" He took me to
the
>dance floor where Peter was dancing with Terri. Micky and Davy were
>dancing with each other in an attempt to make her laugh. I looked up at
>Mike and said, "That song was
>wonderful. I love you, Mike." He hugged me tight and kissed me and
>whispered, "I love you too."
>_______
>7 When our feet were tired from dancing, we walked out to the car.
Micky
>had taken Terri's
>arm and helped her into the back seat. Mike and I sat up front; he
>drove. When we got home we
>realized it was almost time for the sun to come up! Mike, Davy, Micky,
>and I were all too pooped out to do anything else, but Peter took Terri
>for a walk on the beach to watch the sunrise.
> The next day Terri woke me up bright and early so she could tell me
>what happened with
>her and Peter last night. "It was so wonderful. I think I'm in love!
>Peter held my hand and walked me down the beach right up to the tide,
>and we sat together and he held me as we watched the sunrise. Then he
>took off his love beads and put them around my neck, and
>leaned over and kissed me lightly on the lips. I kissed him back and
>then we walked back to
>the house, holding hands." I gave her a big hug and said, "I"m so happy
>for you! Maybe we could double date sometime."
> We walked out of the room just in time to see the boys walk out of
>theirs. "Oh, great," I
>grumbled, "Me with my bed hair, and in my nightgown. Morning guys.
>Morning Mike."
> Mike smiled warmly. "Oh, don't worry about that. You look beautiful."
>He reached out and
>ran his fingers through my hair to smooth it out. "There." I gave him a
>good morning kiss and we walked over to the kitchen table to have
>breakfast.
>_______
>8 "Uh-oh," I thought, as I sat down at the table. Davy has those stars
>in his eyes again. I
>didn't think Micky would be as hurt as Davy when Terri or Peter tells
>them. Then suddenly the
>stars vanished and Davy got a hurt look in his eyes. I followed his
gaze
>to see Peter and Terri holding hands on the table. I think Peter
noticed
>too; he dropped her hand and said, "Davy,
>Micky, guys we gotta have a talk." He took them into their room while
>Mike, Terri and I finished
>our breakfast. "I hope Micky and Davy take it okay," Terri said. Mike
>gave me a questioning look and I gave him one back that meant I would
>tell him later. I took our dishes to the sink and turned around just in
>time to see Davy run out of the bedroom and out the front door.
> Micky ran after Davy, Peter sat down to talk to Terri and I took Mike
>outside to the beach
>to explain what was going on. "Mike, Peter and Terri are really hung up
>on each other, and Davy
>seems to have fallen for her. I think that's why he ran out like that,"
>I explained. "What do we
>do?" "I think we just wait and see how Micky does trying to calm him
>down. If that doesn't work, I'll give it a try," Mike said. "Maybe
Terri
>should talk to him;" I suggested, "He might want to listen to her." He
>agreed, and we walked back into the house together.
> I saw Micky, Peter, and Terri at the table, looking upset. "I tried,
>man, but he just wouldn't
>listen," Micky said. "Hey, Terri, go talk to him. I think you'd be the
>best one to comfort him," I
>said. Terri let out a sigh. "i don't want to hurt him any more than I
>have... but I suppose I have to." She walked into the guys bedroom.
>_______
>9 A little while later Terri walked out of the room. "Davy didn't want
>to talk to me at first, but then he began yelling at me. I told him
that
>a million girls wanted him, and then I asked him who else he fancied."
>She chuckled. "He told me the name of one girl, and another, and
>another, until he got the stars in his eyes all over again, in love
with
>all of them! I think he's going to be just fine."
> We were so happy the problem with Davy was solved, we all went out on
>the beach for a swim. Everyone ran around, chasing each other and
>dodging the waves. Mike grabbed me, dipped me so low the ends of my
hair
>touched the water, and gave me a long, deep kiss. Peter, not to be
>outdone, took Terri, picked her up, walked out into the water and
kissed
>her. Micky threw Davy over his back, walked out into the water, and
>threw him into a wave. We all burst out laughing, giving Micky cheers
>for winning the "contest." Davy pretended to look grumpy, but then
snuck
>up behind Micky and pushed him into a wave. By this time we were
>laughing so hard we could barely stand, so we all sat down in the sand
>together, leaning on each others shoulders and giggling. When we all
>calmed down we raced each other to the house. Micky and Davy got there
>first and locked the doors! We yelled at them for a bit, but they just
>made funny faces until Terri and I offered to make supper. As soon as
we
>got in the house, Terri and I walked in to the kitchen. We whispered to
>each other for a minute, nodded in unison, and she marched right over
to
>the phone and ordered pizza. Even Micky had to laugh at that one! After
>supper, the guys decided to play us a song or two. Peter sang on "Your
>Auntie Grizelda" and Mike sang on "Papa Gene's Blues. ` Terri and I
>pranced around, singing along.
>_______
>10 When they were done playing, we decided to go to bed. We were so
>tired,
>but we were really happy. Mike held me back as everyone went upstairs.
> "Stephanie," he whispered, "hold on a second." He looked at me with an
>expression of love I had never seen before. "I want you to stay with
me;
>I want you to
>marry me," he said as he held me close. Mike always had that
take-charge
>attitude, and the way he said it reminded me of something from "Gone
>With The Wind."
> "I love you so much, of course I will!" I told him. He kissed me and I
>got
>swept up in the moment; it was so perfect, I knew that even though we
>didn't have much money
>and the house wasn't too big that we would be just fine.
>_______
>11- conclusion
> Mike and I got married a month later, we love each other more and more
>every day. He moved into the spare room with me and Terri rooms with
the
>guys. She and
>Peter got closer and closer, and they are talking about marriage. We
are
>all doing fine; the guys
>have been getting more gigs lately, and Terri and I, though we don't
>have jobs, love to take
>care of the guys.
>
>-Stephanie
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