The rube any decent liar got to believe their most outrageous tales was
themselves. This maxim about life was why most people thought they were
above average in almost anything. Most people think that they were
smarter than average, better looking than average, and more popular than
they were. People were gullible to believe these sweet words for they
helped make a better narrative about their lives.
Steve nor Emily were decent liars, they were starting to see themselves
as the hucksters they were. The thirst for revenge they had which
blinded them from the truth was weakening. It only regained strength
when they had direct dealing with Terry which was becoming less and
less.
The Hulls' true emotions and feelings were the biggest flaws making sure
the fox ended up in the silk trap. Once they were away from the source
of their negative emotions they saw clearly. Acting out of character is
hard for someone when they have a level head and are seeing the world
normally.
Steve and Emily were starting to admit that they were going too far.
They even tried to end it a couple of times, but they let Terry push
their buttons. Terry getting under their skin was unintentional, it was
just the arrogant man being himself.
Then Steve got another chance to get out of this predicament, Terry
called him. The man who just wanted to move on with his life was going
to tell Terry the good news. Steve knew he would be the better man doing
so. It actually felt right for him to want to say to Terry, good luck
with the wedding and your life.
Terry did not give him a chance, for the fox falsely thought he figured
out how to outsmart the hound. Steve always had Terry reacting when they
talk, this time Terry was not giving him a chance. Terry was just going
to give his game changing statement and hang up.
"Hiya Fucko. Listen here, this is done on my terms. There is one simple
reason why. If you do not drop this, I will pay your brother Mikey a
visit and tell him his family doesn't care for him. So wait for more
instructions and you do not follow them I will not say hi to Mikey for
you."
All the good will Steve had for Terry disappeared as quick as Eminem
could drop a dope freestyle rap. It was not that Terry call him Fucko,
Steve found that cute. It was not that Terry was trying to negotiate
from a position of power, this was not personal to Steve anymore, he
knew the man who had no power was trying to show he had it. It was that
Terry was bringing Mikey into it.
Mikey did nothing wrong and Terry was going to hurt him. Mikey Hull had
an intellectual disability and would believe anything that Terry told
him. Terry could sincerely tell anyone a lie. That bastard went too far
in bringing family in it. If Terry wanted to bring family in Steve had a
contingency plan for that.
Steve called Terry's mom to expose the flaw in his plan to make Steve
stop. Terry thought he showed his trump card against Steve's. He did
not, Steve still had a couple which he did not mention to his foe. A
threat to do something would not give Terry the upper hand because Steve
would do something to hurt Terry.
Steve then went to visit his brother at the assisted living campus. He
felt so guilty that his thirst for the poison also damaged Mikey. Before
spending time with his older brother, Steve went to the offices to take
Terry and a couple of other people off Mikey's visitors list.
With his conscience feeling less guilty, Steve was able to enjoy the
time with his brother. Mikey was happy to see Steve. It was not a
surprise that Steve stopped by unexpectedly. Steve always made sure he
had time to see his brother. No matter how busy a person's life got they
can and will find time to do what is important to them,
If anything, Mikey was a little disappointed that there was no
Butterfinger bar. Steve would always bring one when he stopped by. The
little sadness which Mikey felt was soon forgotten the first time those
two laughed. The sadness came back a little when Mikey asked Steve where
his invite for Terry's wedding was. Mikey was looking forward to going.
He would see his childhood friends and meet new people.
Steve told him it was coming, but Mikey knew better. He could tell by
the look on his brother's face he was trying to protect his older
brother. Mikey did wish that more people would be honest to him, he
could handle bad news. He could handle people not wanting to be his
friend or spending time with him. Mikey was not upset that Steve lied,
Mikey knew that his brother was going to talk to Terry. Terry would send
the invite and Mikey was going to decline. Mikey did not want to go
where he was not wanted.
As Steve was leaving, he promised Mikey the next visit, Emily would
come, they would go out to eat and he would bring two Butterfingers. The
older brother who had to be cared for was happy that his brother made
those plans. Mikey knew what Steve said was true.
**********
Terry could not help but show up to this dance lesson early. It was the
beginning of his victory over Steve. He wanted to savor the moment as
much as possible. This was going to mean more than just a victory, Terry
was going to totally annihilate Steve's life. The hound should have
known better than to try to ruin Terry's wedding, the fox would destroy
your life.
Terry was going to play it by ear. There would be no why that Steve
could outflank his moves if the move was not known until the last
moment. Today was a perfect example. He called Steve an hour earlier and
told him to show up with high heels and a nice change of clothes for his
first dance lesson. How defeated Steve sounded was the sweetest sound to
the ears of the man who was prematurely celebrating victory. The fox
would play with the hound until the victim showed he was broken
His fellow dance students showed up and could not believe the cockiness
which the man who got them into this fine mess was exuding. The old
Terry was back and at that moment they never understood how they put up
with his smugness. It was like arrogance and conceit was just oozing out
of every pore of his body. He looked like the biggest douchebag they
ever saw.
His ex-cronies all asked why Terry was so happy. He told them to wait
for Steve was coming, and the tables were turned. The only one who truly
believed him was Kim. Kelly and Max had faith those words were true, or
wished it so. Mel became as fanatical as a doomsday preacher wearing a
sandwich board warning any and all not to believe the words of the false
prophet Terry.
Steve slowly pull up to the dance studio and came out of his car
dejected. Everyone in the parking lot believed that Terry had gotten
them out being bridesmaids. Kim started to cheer and mock the Hound. Max
and Kelly were just relieved that what they put faith in was true.
Jessie hated that once again Terry was going to get away with his
childish antics. Mel even seemed to start to believe Terry. Terry was
going to gloat.
"Ok Stephanie, there are some new rules. You listen to me and you are
going to like it. You will like me making your life a living hell. It
will start by you going into your bag and showing the guys the nice
outfit you will be wearing for the dance lessons you will be taking for
the foreseeable future."
Steve slowly unzipped the bag and reached in. He then pulled nothing out
except his bare hand, he was giving Terry the middle finger with that
hand. The other hand was pointing at it, and Steve had a mock look of
surprise on his face.
"Terry Jo, you really thought you had me. That is so funny. I set it up
so you cannot visit Mikey anymore. I know you don't have his number.
Even if you did have his number, you will not call him.
Here is why. I told your mom about those pictures. Yeah, I went there.
You brought family into it so I did also. She is upset. I told her not
to say anything for I will get to the bottom of this. She told me you
were so lucky to have a friend like me."
Four out of the five amigos hated that once again, they fell for Terry's
hubris. Kim was too pissed at himself to care about Terry leading them
astray once more. Kelly and Max knew Terry just made the situation
worse. Jessie hated that he lost faith in the one friend who used to
always have faith in him. Mel was happy for his prophecy came true.
The one thing all of the five amigos agreed on was that Terry went way
too far in bringing Mikey into it. They did want out of this situation
and also would enjoy to see Steve squirm like he made them, but not at
the expense of hurting Mikey. How low Terry went made almost all of them
accept their fate.
Kim was the lone holdout on being mad at Terry for going where he went.
These are drastic times so they called for drastic measures. Kim took
Steve making him buy those breast forms personal. That was
understandable. Steve would have seen he made it personal when he'd
never let up on Steve's lack of hair at his wedding. Kim would have also
accepted he deserved it, for instead of being grateful about Steve
making sure the sign language interpreter his mom needed at his wedding
was authentic, he joked about how Steve only had his back for the man
was scared of what Kim would do.
Terry actually got physically sick, his great plan to get out of this
backfired. It actually sucked him more into the quicksand of Steve's
trap. Terry knew his mom would never forgive him, she believed he
cheated on Beth. His dad was one of the biggest philanders the Mon
Valley ever knew. Ms Sakic wanted her son to never be unfaithful for how
much it hurt the others.
Terry was a mama's boy. He needed everyone to like him and that was even
more true with his mom. If she ever lost her faith in him, that would
destroy his confidence in himself.
"You bastard! Call my mom right now and fix this."
"I do not think you really want me to, for I will tell her I found out
you slept with that stripper. I will also bring up I found out you are a
sexual pervert who likes to dress like a woman. I got pictures of that
also."
"So gals, I will be telling you what you have to look forward to for
Terry bringing an innocent person into this. You girls should really
thank him for what is first. The next four dance classes you need to be
dressed in drag.
Also, now onto the destination bachelorette party. It is not in Vegas.
The glitz and glamour of the big city does not fit the a girl with a
country name like Terry Jo. Don't worry, it is only a little over a hour
drive in Morgantown. It will be a two night event at the Vice Versa
Club. Don't worry, Miss Susan will be in contact with Terry Jo with more
details.
Oh, by the way, it is the same weekend as the bachelor party."
Those five started to object, they bought non refundable tickets and
booked non refundable hotel rooms. They felt it was unfair that Steve
was making them spend even more money on this.
In a stern voice, Steve said, "I told each and every one of you not to
book anything non-refundable. It is not my fault you did not listen. Do
not put any of the blame on me about the money you wasted on this. I
warned you at the beginning, if you listened to me it would not be that
bad."
Steve went into his car and peeled out of the parking lot. They thought
his outburst was aimed at them. It was not, it was aimed at himself. He
hated that he told them a lie to feel better about what he is doing. He
hated that he almost got his brother hurt. He hated that he let his
anger get the best of him again. He hated how he allowed Terry's being a
self-centered, immature person get the best of him.
********
Emily did not like that each time they tried to pull themselves out of
revenge, they seemed to be pulled in deeper with going through with
their plans. It was for she knew they could just walk away, but used
excuses not to. The lady was ashamed that she was letting her worst
qualities shine. It might feel good to make Terry pay for his childish
behavior, but it was not right.
Even with her knowing that those people were going to be out of her life
soon, Emily was so concerned about them finding out their plot. It made
her paranoid. The lady who was hiding a secret swore that Rosey knew by
how genuinely she was sorry about not being more supportive with Emily
about Terry's prank.
Emily tried her hand at subterfuge, but Rosey was giving the vague
enough answers to leave the question of if she knew in Emily's mind.
Finally Emily had to know why her friend was so passionate about
something which happened years ago. Emily just went straight to the
point those two were dancing around.
"Rosey, why are you not doing the usual teasing about my wedding, like
you did when the other girls got married?"
Rosey took a drink from her glass to buy some time. She was not going to
break the trust between her and her husband. She wanted to make sure
that Emily knew that she was going to hold no ill feelings about seeing
her husband in a gown.
"Oh, Em. Jessie told me how Steve saved our wedding and I just feel bad
about getting a laugh at your expense. Then Beth just laughed about that
plan and thought it would have been funny. I was able to be put in your
shoes.
I would not blame you or Steve if you did have something planned for
Terry and Beth. I know I would.
After the wedding I want you and Steve to come over our place for a
cookout. It would be nice to hang out, just the four of us."
Emily was sure that her friend somehow knew the plan, but had no proof.
It had to be the paranoia. She had to change the subject, wanting to
have at least one last, nice, one on one chat with Rosey.
"It's a deal, but you call us after the wedding to set it up.
Now, are you and Jessie really going to start a family?"
Rosey dropped the wedding talk and wnt onto her favorite topic of
conversation, how she was ready for the next phase of her life. She was
so looking forward to being a great mother, and knew her husband would
be a great father. To her, raising a family was going to be the true
highlight of her life.
************
Maryanne knew the feeling she had for Mel was more than just being
smitten. He was smart, charming, talkative, compassionate, and looked
great in a short skirt. That man was the total package in her eyes.
Her being beyond smitten was not just from him fitting the perfect
description of her dream man. This was because most people leave what
was most important in finding the person who you want to give your heart
to, how they meshed with you. Mel and Maryanne complemented each other
perfectly. She was the yin to Mel's yang and Mel was the yin to her
yang.
Maryanne was finishing off supper when Mel came home. Hearing the front
door unlatch put a smile on her face. She wanted nothing more than to
greet her man as he came home and her to be greeted by him when she came
home. It looked like one day soon that would be happen all the time.
It has been only a couple of months since they became a couple, but both
of them already had keys to the others place. They both would do what
Maryanne was doing tonight, come over while the others was not home to
start supper, maybe tidy up some, but mostly to greet the other as they
came home.
As Mel enter the kitchen, the two hugged and kissed each other. Mel was
not his normal polite self for he was excited. The happy man went right
into telling her about the dance lesson after they exchanged their "I
love you"s. Maryanne did not mind that her man did not ask how she was
doing before he told her the news. She loved how he was not scared to
show his emotions and also he would ask her afterwards.
"Terry thought that he was able to turn the tables on Steve and it
backfired in his face. I love it. For one of the punishments is; we have
to dress en femme at the dance lessons. Then, he finally announced where
and when the bachelorette party is going to be. I am so happy that I
listened to him about not getting those cheap tickets and hotel rooms.
How strongly he said it, I did not even book either. I acted like I was
mad, for if the guys found out, they would have been pissed at me along
with Terry. That prick can take all their anger.
After we eat, I so want to go through my wardrobe with you to pick out
two outfits which are smart for those dance lesson and also for a girl
night on the town.
That's how my day was, so how was yours my love?"
Maryanne was so happy. She was ecstatic that Terry and the rest of the
crew were getting their just rewards. Also, it was great that Mel was
getting to let Melody out in public.
"Dear, my day was good, but it is now better with you home.
I think it's great that you get to go out as Melody. But I have an idea.
Instead of picking from your wardrobe. why don't we go shopping tomorrow
for two new outfits? One will be my treat. I so want to buy you
something sexy and smart to model for me!
Just one thing, in the changing room, make sure none of those guys see
your belly piercing. They would ride you all about it."
Mel grabbed his woman by her hips and pulled her closer to him. "Thank
you so much for that reminder. I will not. I am so happy that you
understand that even if I have that belly button piercing, I can still
be all man, most of the time."
"While stud, you prove it to me with how you fix things around the house
and in the bedroom."
***********
Jessie came home feeling a little defeated. He did not like that now he
had to dress like a woman not just twice, but seven times. That would
make it eight times too many in his life. He already did it once too
many at the gown fitting.
His wife did not like seeing her man down. He was getting stronger and
more confident each and every day, but how bad he looked tonight, if she
did not boost his ego quickly it would lead to a step back in him
becoming more assertive. She was still proud of him, for a couple of
months ago, whatever the issue would have had her snookums devastated.
Another good thing about Jessie finally seeing in himself what she saw
all the time, was the loving wife was not going to have coax out what
was bothering him. Rosey understood why Jessie saw it as an issue, but
wanted to assure him it was nothing.
"Jess, don't worry about it. It is just clothes. You have to do nothing
but wear them. I will pick you out two outfits, one for the dance class
and the party, the other just for the party. The one just for the party
will have slacks as the bottom. They will both be classy and
conservative but fit the occasion they were for,
Now, before we head out for the night come to the bedroom and show me
how much of a man you truly are."
*************
Max just got done ordering a nice cocktail dress and a skirt blouse
combo for the bachelorette party. He was still pissed about having to do
so, but knew everyone in the group was to blame for this situation.
Terry for not growing up, the guys for not standing up to Terry about
the prank, and Steve for just being so vengeful.
Max had to hand it to Steve, he did not think his friend had it in him
to go through with his revenge. The man sitting at his computer sure as
hell did not think that Steve had it in him to keep being more devious
and cunning each time Terry did the unwise move of trying to weasel out
of their fate.
Max knew one thing, if he ever saw Steve out after the wedding he was
going to march straight up to him and buy that man a drink. It was to
show that there were no hard feelings between those two, and Max could
give a toast to the man who bested him and his friends. He just hoped
that Steve would accept the drink and the couple minutes of his company.
*********
Kim was a cheapskate when it came to spending money on anything he did
not want. He would lie and say he was frugal. That assertion would be
true if he ever looked at the price of one of his precious miniatures
before he bought one.
With not wanting to part with any more money, and being a little smaller
than his wife, Kim always had a thing for thick women, the stingy man
came up with a plan. He and his wife had not done a good spring cleaning
of their closets in a couple of years, so he just suggested doing it,
and donate the old clothes to charity. The stingy man would pick out a
couple of her outfits before he took the clothes to donation center.
Of course his wife was going to say yes, Lorene would use it as an
excuse to have a shopping trip. Kim did not like that it would lead to
her spending more money than if he just bought two outfits. It was still
better in his eyes, for she would use the clothes more often, plus they
would probably end up doing the spring cleaning next year. It just moved
up them spending that money by a year.
***********
Kelly thought about just shopping online, but was not going to chance
getting the wrong dress or skirts. He was going to do this on his terms.
Kelly always wanted his outfits to look great, he was the type of guy
who color coordinated his yard work clothes. If he was going to be made
to look like a fool, this man was going to look good doing so. It was
easy enough for him to do some shopping after work for this week his
wife was traveling for business.
Kelly was somewhat of a clown, so it was no big deal for him to go to
some shopping mall and try on women clothing. In Macy's, he went right
up to the sales clerk and asked her to help him pick out the best dress
for a night out of the town in his body type. She laughed and he did
also, then, when she went away to help another customer, Kelly stopped
her. Mandy felt bad for he was not joking.
After making a quick apology, which Kelly accepted, he told her not to
worry about it, for him needing this dress was a joke. Mandy used her
fashion sense and reading of people to figure out what was best for
Kelly. She ended up picking out a silver, metallic, strapless knot front
high low hem dress and a black lace up sleeve swing dress. They both hid
the fact the man had no figure and were on clearance.
Kelly was a little concerned about showing his bra straps with the
strapless dress and Mandy laughed again. By this time those two had a
playful banter going on, so she knew he would not be offended. She then
told him the solution, an adjustable bra which over the shoulder straps
could be taken off to be strapless also.
Mandy went out of her section to help him in the lingerie department. It
was just fun to be around him and she knew her manager wanted the sales
staff to act more like personal shoppers if they could. After helping
him with the bra, panties and stockings. she asked him if he wanted a
necklace.
Kelly said, "No way Mandy, this is going to be for only a one time
event. I am not spending a ton of money on jewelry which I will never
wear again.
"Oh Kelly, I know that. I was not talking about real jewelry, I meant
some costume jewelry.
I know we have one necklace which would really make the outfit work out
great. The necklace and matching earrings would only be an extra $20."
This time vanity's name was man, and that sold Kelly. "Lets get them.
Thank you so much taking this as serious as anyone could."
*********
Terry did the least amount possible getting his two outfits. He would
had just gotten two black jersey dresses, but Steve did call him with
instructions. He wanted the male bride's outfits for the bachelorette
party to be the same shade of purple as the bridesmaids gowns. So Terry
found a skater dress in that shade, and a bodycon one. He hated the
latter one for how form fitting it was.
Terry did not fight Steve's fashion request, it was not for the fox
would admit defeat. He would be kicking and screaming his way to the
altar in that dress. It was just Terry needed to regroup. His best move
was no move at all. Plus, he needed time to get his friends back on his
side.
The weeks leading up to the bachelorette party were horrible for Terry.
He could not get any of his groomsmen to talk to him other than Kim.
Other than needing those losers for an unified front, Terry was happy
that they were done with him. He convinced himself they were dead weight
which he should not have to carry anymore. Plus, in a couple of months
after they found out how lame their lives were without him, they would
come crawling back to him. That would be when he got his revenge on
Steve.
Finally, Terry got a call from Fiona Carr, Ms Susan's assistant, to talk
to talk to "her" about the bachelorette party. Terry hated that she
called him Terri Jo and was so nice and friendly. The last thing he
wanted was small talk with this lady
Fiona was very understanding about Terry not wanting to do small talk.
She assured him the reason was just to make sure he was comfortable with
coming to Vice Versa.
All the details which Fiona gave the man were forgotten as quickly as
they were heard. That was until the end, when Fiona talked about
pictures. Terry retained that piece of information, and told her no way.
This was a deal breaker in his mind. He will take his chances with Steve
showing Beth the pictures.
Fiona started to talk Terry down from his hysteria. She started to use
his real name and referring to him as a male. The lady on the other line
made Terry believe that she understood his need for privacy and that was
why she wanted to let him know that he would get the SIM card at the end
of the night. That the club cannot take the chance of those pictures
getting to anyone else other than him. They depended on protecting the
privacy of their clientele.
How friendly Ms Susan's assistant was in the beginning of the phone call
eased Terry's worries. He loved his Beth and did not want to chance
losing her. The business man looked at the bar as a business, and knew
they would take all the safeguards and precautions needed, and told her
it was fine.
Being relieved about fending off Beth seeing Steve's blackmail made it
so Terry was not upset right away hearing those two nights were going to
set him back by $600. It did upset him right after the phone call when
he wrote out the check. That was enough to cover for the mini fridge and
a couple of the neon lights decorations for his man cave.
**********
It was finally the weekend of the two destination Bachelorette parties.
The real girls were going to New York City, for shopping, hotel spas and
hitting the nightclubs. The boys who would be playing girls for the
weekend, had all the fun that Morgantown, West Virginia had to offer
during the day and then hitting the drag bar at night.
Emily was able to talk her way out of going to Beth's by stating her
trip to Florida made the logistics impossible to do. There was no way
she could had faced Beth for the entire weekend. It was wrecking her
soul about what she and her better half believed needed to be done.
Steve was feeling just as bad about himself as Em was. The man whose
hard work was coming to fruition, calmed down from Terry's threat of
going after Mikey. If only Steve and his better half could find a way to
get out of this gracefully, he knew they would jump at it.
The sad part of them racking their brains and feeling guilty about
finding no solution to the problem they made, was the way out was right
in front of their faces. It was so simple that they did not want to see
it. This was for they would have felt even worse about themselves if
they had. The solution to their problem was just to call everything off.
They had a contingency plan in place to back out. Steve had ordered the
tuxes which he felt would fit his former best friend's style, and also
was perfect for how his wife described what Beth wanted. Those two would
not have to worry about Terry doing any retaliation, for Terry would
take credit for getting the guys out of their gowns. The self-centered
man's ego would be bruised, but not enough to try to go after someone
who made him his bitch. The fox would not chance losing twice to the
hound.
To save money, Terry and Kim shared a room, as did Kelly and Max. Mel
did not agree to share a room with Jessie, for the crossdresser wanted
as much Melody time that weekend as he could get. As the guys arrived at
the hotel next to Vice Versa, Jessie was surprised that Mel told him
they were not sharing rooms.
The rest of the reluctant members of the destination party started to
get on Mel for not sharing a room with Jessie. They did not care why Mel
wanted the room to himself, he should share his double with Jessie. Mel
relented, for he'd much rather keep Jessie as a friend than sleep in a
nightgown. That was how weak any bonds which were left between any of
them were. Any little disagreement could rip them apart.
As Jessie and Mel went into their room, Jessie could tell that Mel was
nervous. Jessie did not want his friend to feel uptight, so soon as the
door was closed he laid his cards out on the table.
"Mel, it is fine. I know you are a crossdresser."
"No I am not. I told you all why I said that. I used that tattoo Steve
made me get to my advantage."
Jessie did not like that his friend was denying the truth. He did not
take it as Mel protecting a secret, but as Mel trying to pull one over
on the fool of the group.
"Oh please. I am not as dumb as I let you and the guys make me out to
be. I saw how you took so well to walking in heels. I saw how relaxed
you were putting on the makeup. Its fine.
You might like to wear a dress, but you were more of a man than any of
us at Steve's bachelor party. You stuck by his side when he was passed
out with that gash on his head. We all ran away. I am ashamed of myself
for that.
I just wish that I showed the strength you had and my wife believes I
had that night. If I did, maybe this would not have happened. I wanted
to stand up to Terry that night, but I put being in a group over a
friendship. Also, maybe me and you would have been friends. "
Those words made Mel feel great and bad about himself at the same time.
A person will feel good about him or herself when someone they care
about gave them a compliment. Mel liked that Jessie recognized what he
did. At the same time, he felt bad that the nicest person out of his
circle of friends did not think they were ever friends.
Jessie's statement confused the man because he believed he was always
nice and kind to his room mate. Mel just had a distorted view of the
past. The distortion comes from many different factors. In this case,
Mel was only looking at the group from his perspective of it, not
Jessie's. What he saw as good old fashion teasing was more everyone
ganging up on Jessie. Terry and his crew would claim that there was give
and take, but if Jessie gave some back, they just piled on him more.
The only one out of that group of friends who could state otherwise was
Steve. When the man who planned this getaway was around, he made sure
that the group would not make only Jessie the butt of the jokes. This
would be less and less after they shaved his eyebrows and the side of
his head.
"Oh come on Jessie, we are friends. I don't even know what made you say
that last part."
"Mel, you would if you think of about it. When the group is together the
jokes are always aimed towards me. If I joke back, you guys just amp up
the jokes more. There is no real give and take. Just think about it. It
has gotten worse with Steve not being around."
While people are at any crossroads in life, they tend to be more
reflective of the past. For mature people, that reflection tends to be
more of a true representation of the past. Mel had to admit that Jessie
was right, and he was not.
"Man, I never even saw that. Trust me, to us it was just having a good
time, no harm was meant by it. You should had said something."
"Mel, when I said something, my being sensitive was mocked. It was
downplayed, just like you are doing now."
Mel and Jessie's friendship was at a crossroads right then. What Mel
said next would determine the destination of their friendship, if it was
on an open highway, or an dead end street. Mel made a huge decision, he
was going to open up to Jessie. His friend had opened up to him, plus
Jessie knew Mel's secret and it was nothing to him. That was the type of
person Mel wanted in his life after next Saturday.
"Dear, you are right. None of us would have liked how we treated you. I
can't say more. I can't say I am sorry for that would do nothing. I can,
if you let me, show you I am sorry. I can only do that by being a better
friend."
Jessie noticed the little differences in how Mel just talked to him.
Using the word dear, and being empathetic, "It is fine. I should have
said more. How about after the wedding we have a cookout at my place?
You know, do something, just us hanging out."
************
As Mel and Jessie were making a connection, Kelly and Max were getting
ready. This was the first time in years that it was only those two
together. It felt like their first day at college, and just randomly
being given a room mate. How uncomfortable they were, made the men who
were getting into their dresses realize that they were not friends
anymore. Neither of them could remember the last time they called one
another.
There was silence until Max saw Kelly in his silver, metallic, strapless
knot front high low hem dress. Max joked that he did not feel
overdressed by going with his sequin black cocktail dress. They both
laughed, and that made them at ease, at least they were going to get
along with their bunkmate.
**********
Terry and Kim spent their time getting ready bitching like the bitches
they were going to look like in their dresses tonight. Those two talked
like wolves about how they were going to get revenge on Steve, but deep
down, they knew they would be like sheep and not do anything. They so
wanted to get him back, but from how their nemesis was always one step
ahead and willing to do what needed to be done, the two guys knew they
were outmatched. They could not beat him.
**********
The front end clerk did not even notice the the six ladies, for the
night, as they left the lobby. It was a common occurrence for patrons of
Vice Versa to stay at the hotel. Now, if the worker knew that they did
not get the deal the hotel offered for guests of the Vice Versa, she
mentioned that to her husband when she got home. That would had been
just odd.
The six of them was so happy that the club was just next door to the
hotel. For most of them it was that they felt out of sorts being dressed
like the opposite gender. Mel was different, she was scared that the
rest of the group would be wise to her secret like Jessie was. The lady
who was waiting for the moment of truth started to relax when she heard
the other ladies all talk about their fears and insecurities. Her old
friends were to worried about themselves to really pay attention to her.
As they entered the club, a lady like them greeted the group. She hugged
Terri Jo while saying, "You must be Terri Jo, and these girls are the
rest of your party. I am Miss Susan."
The only thing which was small about Miss Susan was her size. The drag
queen was only 5'8" in her 6" platform heels, thigh-high, neon pink,
faux leather boots. They matched her wig and the pink background of her
leopard print bodycon miniskirt. She went by Miss Susan, so that people
right away gave her the respect an authority figure got.
Terry was taken aback, and did not know how to handle this little ball
of fire. He so wanted to tell her off, but did not want to risk getting
kicked out or alienating himself from his group anymore.
Miss Susan could tell that Terri Jo was not feeling the love. "Sorry
dear. I just get excited meeting new girls. I talked to Fiona and did
not believe her that you were modest, and did not want that much
attention. How you all look, its hard to see you being modest. You are
owning what you are wearing! Just follow me to the bar."
At the bar Miss Susan passed out the dark purple sashes to the ladies.
In glitter, Terri Jo's read Bride, and the rest read Team Bride. She
then got the girls a round of drinks, all with penis shaped straws in
them, and told them to enjoy the pre-night party as she pointed to the
table with the reserved sign on it.
As the night went on, they saw a genetic girl come in with a camera and
go right up to Miss Susan. While hugging the lady, the hostess with the
most-est also gave her a kiss on both cheeks. Then Miss Susan pointed at
the group and the lady nodded. They all thought that must be Fiona.
The club was getting crowded, the girls could tell that the party was
going to start for them as Miss Susan came and told them there was a
round of shots on the bar for them. Terri Jo was so happy to hear that.
She could go for a nice shot of whiskey right now. Anything to make her
feel more like the man she really was.
They walked up to the bar and saw seven shots with whipped cream on the
top of them. They went to grab them, and Miss Susan laughed while
stopping them. "Come on, you know those shots are Blow Jobs, and no girl
on a night out on the town drinks them like that. Here is how it is
done."
Miss Susan put her hands behind her back and then lifted the shot with
the mouth. After the lady who was a pro at blow jobs was done, she put
the glass down and licked the whipped cream off of her lips. Terry Jo
and the rest of the girls followed suit. Miss Susan congratulated the
girls on their first Blow Job, and only Kellie and Mel laughed. Terri Jo
and Kimmie shot them dirty looks.
On the way back from the bar was the first time the weekend girls
started to talk. It was more bickering than talking. Terri Jo and Kimmie
tried to talk down the two who laughed at the job. Those two fired back,
they were not going to be miserable anymore about the predicament Steve
had them in. They were going to have fun. Jessica agreed with them, and
suggested that they hit the dance floor.
Jessica looked right at Melody and gave a quick wink only Melody saw.
That warmed Mellie's heart. Her friend was making cover for her to enjoy
the night. Mel jumped at the chance of dancing, she was so sick of
dancing by herself in her house. She had been with her girlfriend
Maryanne as Melody, but there was never a chance for them to cut a rug.
The lady who felt the rhythm knew she needed to feel free on dance
floor.
After a couple of songs Melody asked Jessica to join her in the
bathroom. Kellie laughed, thinking that those two were really getting
into the spirit of the night, even going to the bathroom together. As
soon as they were in there, Melody hugged Jessica and thank her big
time. Jessica felt good doing this for Melody, that was true
appreciation. After using the restroom, Jessica went to leave and Melody
said she would be out in one moment, she wanted to check her makeup.
After a while Terri Jo got a text on her phone. It was from Steve. It
read "Quit being a wallflower and get out on the dancefloor like Kellie,
Jessica and Melody. Take Kimmie and Maxine with you." He want no
reminders of what Steve was making him do.
That fucking bastard was here. Terri Jo was going to hit the floor and
dance to find that SOB. Oh, he was so stupid to come here. That man
overplayed his hand. Terri Jo spent the rest of the night with her drink
in her hand looking for the man who was making her dance like a puppet
on a string. Steve was nowhere to be found.
********
Beth's bachelorette party was not going as well as she wanted it to.
Tonight at the club, all the ladies in her bridal party were distant to
her. She figured it was from them not being as full of energy as her.
The truth was that Rosie brought up Terry had planned a prank at her
wedding, and the bride to be started to laugh. Then she went on to brag
about the plans he'd had for the other three, and how he was able to
pull it off on Steve.
Right then, the other two saw Emily and Steve's wedding in the same
different light as Rosie. They could not believe that Beth found
amusement from those childish actions. Then they could not believe,
until right then, they too had found amusement out of them.
Beth was too wrapped up in the preceding before her Pretty Pretty
Princess day to notice what caused her friends to become cold towards
her. Her awareness was also lessened by the fact that her mom, older
sister, and her favorite cousin were there to lavish her with attention.
Beth would have liked her youngest half-sister to be there, but was not
that concerned. The missing sister, Alice, was not blood with her mom,
so the Letang women would have had an impostor with them.
Letang was her mom's maiden name, and that was how the four of the party
members who were related referred to themselves as such. It was an
exclusive group and they looked out for each other. Beth did not have
her sister and cousin in the wedding party for they did not want to be.
They were past that stage and did not want to waste time and money on
being in it. Beth understood, for she was done ever being a bridesmaid
beforehand. She also mailed it in the last couple of times, she was one
and did not want anyone in her bridal party to do so.
When Beth got to her hotel room she gave her man a call. She just wanted
to hear Terry's voice before she went to sleep. She did not like that it
went to voicemail after 5 rings. It made her wonder what her groom was
doing. This was for every time she asked what the plans were for the
Bachelor party he would joke with the stupid ad line, "What happens in
Vegas, Stays in Vegas."
***********
Terry woke up and was happy that he did not need to be in a dress again
until they hit Vice Versa tonight. He hated how he looked and felt last
night. The happiness of being able to pick his wardrobe quickly wore off
when he checked his phone for missed called. The man who could not catch
a break cursed himself when he saw the missed calls from Beth. Why could
she not leave him alone this weekend? It was not too much to ask not to
talk with her for a couple of days. She would be able to tell him all
about shopping, dancing and the spa on Sunday.
Terry and his groomsmen might have been the first people ever to use
Vegas as a cover story to be in Morgantown. Morgantown, where people
have sofas as porch furniture. Morgantown, where the cornershop sign was
likely to be a cracked vintage 7-up one. Morgantown, where they think
that Domino's is great pizza. That was driving him crazy, he should not
be in this one star town, he should be acting like the big spender he
was in the adult amusement park that was Vegas.
Terry was a winner in his eyes, so even with being caught by the hound,
he was under the illusion Vegas would have went his way. The man who
held himself in high esteem thought, by now, he would have won big
playing No Limit Texas Hold-Em. Then, go to the strip club to see the
sights of Sin City, maybe a great steak dinner as the manliest midnight
snack, and just be heading to bed now if Steve was not being so
childish.
Oh, that man was so lucky that Terry could not find him in the club last
night. Steve was the Questing Beast and Terry was Percival. He was so
close to catching what was out of his reach. Terry knew Steve had to be
there, because of that text last night. All the traitors were with him,
so he would have caught them calling Steve.
The man who had too many issues in his life to dwell on the biggest one
called his bride to be back, to get rid of one of them. It was 8 o'clock
and Terry knew the lady who was attached to him by a phone cord was up.
The call should be painless.
Terry forgot one little fact which made the call cause more trouble. It
was only 5 A.M in Vegas. The man who was trying to keep things smooth
between him and his soon to be wife only made it messier. He didn't even
notice, for Terry was too wrapped up in thinking about how embarrassing
tonight was going to be. The call being quick made it worse, for Beth
took him sounding happy as him thinking he pulled one over on her, not
him being relieved that she did not have to tell him about everything
that she did.
Beth was a little more upset after getting a call which she thought
would have made her more composed. First, her bridal party was not
letting her be the sun they orbited around, and now her Terry was being
distant on the phone. If things did not get better for the lady who
wanted the weekend to be all about her, she might need to call Emily to
help get herself back together.
**********
Emily and Steve were both not feeling any energy, so they slept in on
Saturday. The world seem gray to them, and those two could not find any
motivation to add any color to it. To them it was just a lazy Saturday.
They needed it for they were drained from all the work they had put into
getting their revenge. Even with the energy guzzling activity of getting
payback those two thought that they would have been more energetic so
close to achieving the goal.
Getting the updates and pictures last night were anticlimactic. The
Hulls lied to themselves and said it was for they were not there to
enjoy seeing Terry get what he deserves. That was what it had to be. A
little spark of happiness did come to both of them when they started to
think the reasoning they gave was wrong.
They finally found the energy to go about their day and once they were
busy, their guilty consciences stopped stalking their thoughts. For
Steve and Emily, the old adage the idle mind is the Devil's playground
was true. Being inconsiderate, and cruel, along with their lust for
retribution, was their personal Lucifer. This holiday from them
accepting their actions ended suddenly in the afternoon with a phone
call.
Beth called, breakfast and morning at the spa did not go how she
planned. Her bridal party was still acting distant to her. All three of
them showed up late for the breakfast, Rosie and Rhonda, when the Letang
girls were half way through it. They claimed 'sleeping in'. Lorene came
walking in as Beth was leaving and she claimed there was a mix up on the
time.
The situation did not get any better at the spa. The late comers to the
spa did not try to find their party. To Beth, the best part of going to
a spa in a group was that the girls got to talk. Now those three were
going to be building up Beth's ego. This weekend was about everyone
telling the vain lady that her wedding was going to be the best ever.
Even with feeling guilty about the trainwreck she was helping to make,
Emily was not going to offer Beth any shelter from the rain others were
causing in her life. Emily was sick of being passive-aggressive towards
Beth. It was high time to show that lady where she stood. Even with the
lady who was calling to hear a friendly voice being on Emily's shit
list, she took the higher ground. Emily was just apathetic towards her
friends plight.
As Emily was leaving the land of denial, it was gaining another visitor.
To Beth, Emily was invested in their chat because she was feeling down
that she was not part of the festivities. Beth was not mad at Emily for
she could not blame her for being jealous. What lady would not want to
be in NYC shopping and living it up for the weekend? Plus, her
destination last night out as a single lady was so much better than
Emily's choice of staying at home making candles as part of the guest's
wedding treats.
Beth also wanted to know if Steve and Emily were going to stop in quick
while dropping off Terry from the airport. She did not like the response
that Steve was not doing so. That was odd, for that was the reason Terry
gave for not needing his bride to wait for him, her flight was landing
an hour before his. Now she really was not going to let what happened in
Vegas stay in Vegas.
A little while after Emily was done talking with Beth, Steve's phone
rang and the conversation from the call rang the alarm clock for his
conscience. The strange phone call was from Jessie. Steve was not
prepared for this. His sweet friend has gone off the deep end. Jessie
did all the talking, about how he was making the guys go get a pedicure.
What got him was how Jessie was wording what he was saying. His friend
made it sound like Steve already informed Jessie about what he wanted.
Jessie was under the delusion that Steve and him already had this
conversation, and was reaffirming it for the other guys.
The man who thought his action were justified felt extremely guilty. If
it was anyone else making this call he would have thought it was pulling
a Sarah Palin, going rogue with a hair-brained plan to get out of their
gowns. Not Jessie, Steve believed that he finally pushed his friend too
far.
Expecting the unwanted negative results of your actions was one thing,
having to deal with them was another. Steve lied to himself that he
would be fine if any of his friends were pushed over the edge by him
getting them back. It was just giving them what they gave him. There was
just a little problem with his rational. It was not in Steve's nature to
hurt someone.
Some people, and Steve was one of them, would say getting revenge hurts
the one who is dealing it out. They become the monster they are
fighting. Steve kept on telling himself it was him just embarrassing
them like they had him, so it was fair play. The man who was mentally
waking up to what he was doing tried to just ignore the call.
All Steve wanted was to get those guilty thoughts out of his mind. He
broke down and went against his plans and called Jessie. This phone call
was worse for Jessie sounded happy to hear from Steve, telling him not
worry, they were going to get the pedicure. Steve started to panic some
and just reiterated no to his friend.
Then Jessie said, "Here, tell Terry, he does not believe me."
Steve was repeatedly saying no as Terry got on the phone. Terry heard
the panic in Steve's voice. This could be the break he needed to get out
of wearing that bridal gown.
"So there will be no pedicure now?"
When Steve heard Terry's voice the hurt and betrayal of his bachelor
party came back, his anger came back. If Jessie wanted them to get
pedicures so be it. With his anger being back in control of how he saw
Terry, Steve said "You forgot how to greet me when we talk on the
phone."
As Terry said "Hiya Terri Jo speaking" he grinned. The fox mistakenly
believed he found something to use against Steve. The hound did not want
his victims to enjoy one moment of it.
Steve was a little flustered, for this was only the second time he had
to ad lib while dealing with his intricate plan. "That's better, I was
saying no, for I was trying to tell Jessie if he kept on bothering me
about what I told him then it would be also a manicure."
Terry was great at reading people and knew that Steve was lying. Terry
was not so great in knowing the reasoning behind Steve's actions. He
never was, for how Steve thought was so foreign to Terry. For the most
part, Steve looked out for the group, while Terry looked out for
himself. Not being able to get into the head of his opponent made Terry
falsely believe he was on the right track.
"Oh we were thinking of getting manicures anyway, even if you do not
want us to."
Steve saw Terry's bullshit for what it was, his prey trying to wiggle
out of the trap. The man who was going to stick to his script just said
fine and hung up.
Jessie was so proud of himself, he used Steve's revenge as a way to
cover Melody getting a pedicure. The man who took advantage of the
situation to do his room-mate a solid was also feeling good about
talking with Steve, he stood up to the man who had him in a dress. Also,
Steve was genuinely concerned about Jessie's well being. That touched
the over-sensitive man's heart, Jessie knew Steve did not mean it when
he called him the bitch of the group.
Melody could not believe what just transpired, Jessie made it so she
could get her pedicure. That sweet man overheard her talking to herself
about trying to figure out how to leave the group long enough to indulge
herself for some foot care. On the group's way to the nail salon, Melody
quietly thanked Jessie and the response was, "You're welcome, but it is
not big deal. That's what friends do."
*********
Beth could not enjoy the rest of the trip. All she could think of was
how Terry really never let her in on what he did when those two were not
together. It came off as him being secretive. What exactly did he not
want her to know about Vegas?
At least her sister Abigail, along with cousin Wendy, and her mom, were
there to talk her down. They all assured her that her being suspicions
of Terry was just pre-wedding jitters. Terry was just doing immature
guys things which he did not want her to know about. Beth found that
believable, for Terry loved acting like one of the boys, but did not
like hearing her talk about him needing to grow up. Him bringing up
going to the strip club or losing a couple of hundreds dollars gambling
would only lead to her being a buzzkill about what he found as fun.
The lady whose unfounded fears were killed by her family was not happy
that the rest of the party-goers did not offer that much help. They told
the worried woman she needed to relax and let Terry do his thing. That
she needed to remember that their men were there also, and they were not
worried at all.
***********
There is one quality about Terry which more people needed to have, he
never gave up until it was over. The man who did not own a white flag
would die before admitting defeat. Part of it was vanity, he could not
admit that someone could do anything better than him. Another part was
he was stubborn. The part more people needed was his drive.
Terry knew that people had to go get what they desired in life. The only
person who was going to deny him what he fancied was himself. He fancied
being out of this trap, so he would be damned if Steve would keep him in
it. He would fail getting out of it. Terry was in control, not anyone
else.
This quality was like any virtue, if one has too much then it becomes a
vice. Terry was looking for a way out of the quicksand and did not
figure out each move was only causing him to sink deeper. The hubris
filled man's actions, based on his flawed notion that Steve would make a
mistake when he saw them enjoying it, was going to give the hound
another chain around Terry's throat.
The only one Terry filled in on his escape plan was Kim. For his plan to
achieve its goal, Terry needed everyone to look like they were having a
great time. The other four were not an issue, they had fun last night.
How they gave up, those four deserved to be in dresses. Kim, on the
other hand, was a fighter like Terry. Terry knew Kim should have always
been his right hand man, not Steve.
Miss Susan was so happy to see the male bride finally embracing her big
night out. Her heart was like everything else other than her height,
larger than life. It warmed her to see people enjoying life. It helped
her business also, and she wanted it to thrive, so she could offer
people an oasis of support and acceptance in a rural area.
Terri Jo was laughing and having a grand old time. Feeling like you were
getting the upper hand on your foil would make anything fun. Miss Susan
came up and told the girl of the hour her big moment was about to start
if Terry was woman enough to do so. Terri Jo was feeling so confident
she agreed to whatever Miss Susan had in store before even hearing it.
On the way up to the stage Miss Susan said "Now sweetie, you might want
to touch but you don't. You can act like you are touching, hoot and
holler all you want, but you cannot touch. Treat it as what it is, a
joke lap dance."
Terri Jo did not like the warning, "I can't touch what?"
Miss Susan grinned, "The dancer. That stripper is just doing his job. He
does not want to be touched by you. He makes me say that, for men try to
touch his female stripper friends when they don't have permission. I
know you would never do that, and you wouldn't understand why men think
they can, being a girl and all."
Terri Jo right then thought about just leaving, there was no way a naked
man was going to dance close to him. Then it dawned on him, this was
checkmate. Terri Jo was great at playing gay chicken, and secure in his
masculinity, so it was no big deal. Steve would be so flustered that the
hound would make a mistake and this would be over.
Terri Jo played along with the suggestions Miss Susan gave on the mike
as "It's Raining Men" was playing. Then, little did the man acting like
a lady know, checkmate occurred. Miss Susan said, "Open wide like he is
going to give you a surprise!", The angle Fiona took the pictures gave
the optical illusion that Terri Jo was deep-throating the hung man.
After the dance was done Miss Susan said, "Give Terri Jo a big hand! You
all have made her bachelorette party one to remember. The festivities
might be over, but the night is like you, young. So enjoy it!"
Everyone clapped and Terri Jo was the loudest, her night was over. She
could get out of the club, out of that stupid dress, and go home. She
wasn't sticking around this poor imitation of a city for one second
longer than she had to. Before she made her escape from womanhood and
back to being Terry, one thing was needed. To get the evidence of the
night from Miss Susan's assistant, Fiona.
"Miss Susan, I would love to stay but I want to get back home. I have so
much to do for my big day. I should have never planned for a two night
party, but a diva has to act like a diva. So just tell me, where Fiona
is so I can get the SIM card, and I will be leaving, thank you again."
Miss Susan looked at Terri Jo confused, "How should I know, she is your
friend?"
Terri Jo was hit with fear, "What do you mean? She is your assistant."
"No, she is your and Stephanie's friend. Those two were the ones who
called me about setting up your party. She helped me a lot with this
party, but I do not keep track of every little thing for the guest of
honor.."
Terri Jo could not believe that once again the hound cornered the fox.
"Why did you let her take pictures then you bitch?"
Miss Susan was not going to take any abuse from anyone. She started to
wave her hand to get help and laid into Terri Jo, "Listen here, you do
not call this lady a bitch. You show me the respect which I have shown
you and your guests.
Now I suggest you apologize, and do what you said you were going to do,
leave."
Terri Jo's mind was made up, she was not going to apologize to this drag
queen or leave until he knew more of what was going on. Then when two
bouncers came to stand behind Miss Susan. Terri Jo did what every woman
did with their prerogative did, changed her mind.
The group left the club and Terry did not want to tell them the bad
news. He knew even with it not being his fault, he would be blamed for
the pictures. The story he told them was Miss Susan was trying to get
more money of of him. The group of guys who were in the same quicksand
trap as their former leader did not buy it for one second. They thought
that Terry had finally snapped from the pressure of looking his best in
a wedding gown next Saturday.
The man who still was not going to admit he was defeated went straight
to his room and changed. His roommate found out his plans and followed
suit for he was also getting out of this town.
On his way home, Terry did wonder who in hell were Fiona Carr. How did
Steve get someone else to help him? Fiona Carr was the real name for
Diamond Sparkle, an old work colleague of Maryanne Fox. She was also a
freelance photographer and was more than happy to help Steve when she
found out who the target was. Terry had made many 'friends' at the strip
clubs he went to, and she was one of them. Her nickname for him was
Mister Handsy. It felt good to put the quintessential jerk in his place.
Terry spent no time wondering who Stephanie was for the foolish fox
quickly figured it out. It was Steve.It drove him crazy that the hound
was always one step in front of him and also flaunted the fact. It drove
the defeated man crazy that most of the blackmail Steve got on him,
Terry did willingly.
***********
Beth was miserable when she got home from what was the opening night of
her Pretty Pretty Princess show. The spotlight was not shined bright
enough on her during the weekend and her supporting cast performances
were mailed in by her bridal party. If that was not enough to put her in
a bad mood, it was how secretive Terry had been acting.
How he always said he was with Steve when he was not and the dance
lessons. She thought that Terry quit ostracizing Steve for putting
family above being in the wedding. It would be best for their big day if
someone who could not be invested in it was not part of the bridal
party. She understood that the other guys did not want to ruin the
surprise of being able to dance, but with her knowing Terry could have
let her take the lessons with him. That would have been a great activity
to do, and with them both being good at it they could of had a new
hobby, ballroom dancing.
When the suspicious lady got home, she saw her man waiting for her. Her
first thought was that Terry was hiding something horrible that he did
from her. That did not jibe, it just did not feel right. If Terry was
trying to prevent her from knowing he messed up there was no way he
would be at home right now.
The look of defeat on Terry's face was another sign he did nothing
wrong. Terry would not be sulking if he thought he was close to being
busted for a wrongdoing. Her man was a man of action and he would have
been trying to prevent getting caught. Yeah, she did not like that he
always thought he could outfox his way out of trouble, but she knew that
was from part of his personality which made the lady madly in love with
him. To her, Terry was so clever and cunning.
Terry lost track of the time, that happens a lot when people are
wallowing in misery. The fox was coming to the conclusion that the hound
has caught him. It irked him that the hound's plans were so much more
elaborate than any of his schemes, trying to be cunning. The man who
needed to be the smartest hated that fact. Steve was playing a high
stake game of bridge to Terry's game of go fish.
How could Steve come up with this plan and then have the fortitude to
pull it off? Terry could not think of how to get Steve back. He could
not outdo Steve's revenge. Even if Terry could come up with a better
plan, the fox doubted that he could outsmart the hound. Then, if he
could outsmart the hound, the fox doubted that he could go through with
whatever malicious plan he came up with.
Terry's pranks were mean spirited, but there was no true malice in his
heart when he performed them. He was just a selfish, self-centered prick
who did not care about the results of his pranks. Yeah, Steve had a bald
head from him, so what? It was not done on purpose, it was in fun.
In Terry's simple minded logic, if his actions were done in fun and jest
that made everything fine. It didn't matter that his jokes towards
others put them down. It did not matter that he made sure Jessie felt
like an outsider. It was in fun, so there could never be harm from his
actions. Even if someone thought Terry was responsible for his actions,
the man who puts others down to lift himself up knew better. Terry was
innocent, for his intentions were not to cause harm.
Terry thought his misery was going to increase when he was caught flat
footed by Beth. By the time he even saw her, Beth was done thinking the
worst and was worried about the look on his face. His eyes were greeted
with a gentle smile and Beth asked, "Is everything alright?".
Terry felt Beth's love and trust for him. That gave him the strength to
tell her the truth about what Steve was doing. He took in a deep breath
to get ready to tell her how he was not as witty as she thought, and
said, "No, and I need to tell you something."
That made Beth think the worst, and she blurted out, "Please say at
least you did not sleep with her."
Those ten words took all the courage away from Terry. How could Terry
expect Beth to believe him that the picture of him with a stripper in
bed was not after sex. She already had that on her mind. Beth did not
think that Terry was capable of cheating on her, it was just how bad the
weekend was, her mind went to bad places.
That accusation also hurt him, that Beth thought that he would cheat on
her. It did not matter t