Every morning Buffy Summers had the same ritual. She would get up at five o’clock, remove her pin curls and brush her hair vigorously. Then she’d roll her bangs, pull her hair in a high ponytail and tie it off with a scarf. Then there was the makeup. How she adored her crimson lip stick! She’d dress accordingly for the day, usually a pair of pedal pushers, black flats and an angora cardigan, and admire her supple figure in the mirror before heading downstairs for breakfast. Then she would load the basket of her emerald green Schwinn 10-speed with her books and make her way to school, waving at Mrs. Henry who was always tending to her garden in the mornings. She was nineteen years old, almost twenty in a month, and was attending the University, making her parents proud for her dedication to her studies. Her father, Hank Summers, was an ex-war hero who was strict with his rules and quiet about his past. It was no secret that he’d seen more than his fair share of casualties of war and it was because of his patriotism that he was well respected in the small Christian suburban community that they lived. Her mother Joyce was the epitome of a 1950’s housewife. She was up bright and early every day wearing full makeup and a dress, would have breakfast prepared for her daughters and husband and once everything was cleaned up, she would put on her gloves and go driving to the supermarket or to the fabric store. Dawn, Buffy’s younger sister was fifteen and completely boy crazy. She’d never admit it, but her older sister was her idol. She copied everything she did, lived vicariously through her friends, and constantly begged to go out with her sister when she went to the drive in with her friends. As long as she kept quiet and didn’t embarrass anyone, she was allowed. Not that it mattered if she was invited or not, because Dawn always found a way to sneak out and spy. It was just easier to let her tag along.
Yes, everything was perfect with American bubble-gum innocence in Sunnydale, California. Everyone in the small town had barbecues on Saturdays, attended church on Sundays, and the wives would start their chores starting on Mondays when the men went back to work. It was as it should be and had been for decades. Everyone knew Buffy for her ‘spunk’ and beauty. She once was a high school cheerleader, the head of the Student Council, an ex-Girl Scout and the perfect image of what a young girl should aspire to be. It was no shock that she decided to attend college instead of preparing herself to be a housewife. Buffy was just that kind of gal. She loved to dance, loved live music whenever she was allowed to go to a concert or whenever she would sneak out to go, loved gossiping with her girlfriends and experimenting with hair styles. No one could pull off a reverse roll like she could, and no one dared to try. She was constantly bombarded by men for a date, though she would have none of it. The boys in Sunnydale were far too boring for her but she turned them all down with a wink and a smile so as not to rumple their spirits. The only boy who had yet to take the hint was Riley Finn.
They went to high school together and she reluctantly went to prom with him as per her mother’s insistence. Hank had taken a liking to the boy instantly when Riley mentioned that he would be enlisting in the army after his first year of college. From that point on, all Buffy heard about was ‘what a nice young boy that Riley Finn was’ and ‘why can’t you spend more time with people like Riley Finn’ and ‘a good ol’ fashioned American boy with a heart of gold is what you need for a husband.’ She would roll her eyes and say, “Oh, daddy, you know if I ever took him up on the offer you’d find something wrong with him and he still wouldn’t be good enough for me in your eyes.” Hank would chuckle and go back to reading his newspaper, the only respite he had in the evenings. And if it wasn’t the newspaper, then he was gluing sticks together for his model boat collection he kept in his ‘private room’.
The citizens of Sunnydale were quite content with their monotony. In fact, things were so similar that even the houses on the street were just about the same floor plan. The only thing that set the houses apart was the paint color, though they were all done up in handsome shades of various pastels. On Buffy’s particular street, however, there was much commotion about the old Samson house that stuck out like a sore thumb. It had been up for sale for months and the lawn had not been mowed! Oh, the travesty of such negligence! The community hoped it would be sold soon, if not for the upkeep of the lawn but for the simple fact that there were clam bakes and block parties to be had! How could they go on with such an eye sore staring them in the face?
The old adage, “Be Careful What You Wish For” had never seemed more poignant than it did on this particular day.
As Buffy rode her bike home from school, she passed the Samson house as she did everyday since it was directly across the street and two houses down from where she lived. The ‘For Sale’ sign was gone and the lawn had been neatly trimmed. In the driveway in front of the garage, however, was something most shocking! A sleek black Triumph motorcycle, which was a notorious British brand and a shiny new, decked-out Ford Club Coupe with white wall tires! Buffy abruptly stopped pedaling her bike and pulled the cherry flavored sucker out of her mouth to take it all in with a low whistle. This only meant one thing:
A greaser had moved to Sunnydale.
~*~*~*~
Buffy parked her bike in the back yard and grabbed the empty milk crate by the back door on her way inside. Her mother was in the kitchen with an apron on and she quickly scooted over to her daughter to kiss her on the cheek.
“How was school today, honey?” she said as she went back to the bowl of cookie batter she was whipping up.
“It was good. I have a lab tomorrow to study for but other than that, it was ok,” Buffy said as she stuck her finger in the cookie dough to take a taste.
“Wash your hands young lady!”
Buffy rolled her eyes and went to the sink. “Hey, did you notice that the Samson house has a new occupant?”
“I was just talking to Mrs. Henry about that,” Joyce perked up to this news, “and apparently it’s some very young man by what Mrs. Henry could tell. You know she’s been staking out his every move since he got here,” she laughed.
“Leave it to the old crazy lady to give us the details.”
Joyce pursed her lips at her daughter’s insensitive remark but carried on with her gossip. “I just can’t believe someone would spend all that money on a motorcycle! He’s lucky he hasn’t broken his neck on that thing.”
“You don’t even know the guy and you’re already mothering him.”
“Well, I just worry about you youngsters these days. And that is precisely why you are going to march over there and bring him these cookies when they’re ready.”
“What?! Mom…”
”Don’t ‘what’ me. If he’s alone like Mrs. Henry says then I’m sure he misses his mother’s cooking. For such a young man to live by himself must be lonely. It’s our duty as a community to welcome our new neighbors.”
Buffy sat at the breakfast table while she watched her mother humming and milling about the kitchen. “I think you just want to get him your award winning butterscotch cookies before Mildred sinks her claws in him with her ambrosia salad.”
Joyce stifled a giggle. “Well, it’s true that a little flattery never hurt anyone. Why don’t you go change out of your school clothes and by the time you’re freshened up I’ll have these cookies wrapped up for you to take over to our new neighbor.”
“Fine,” she sighed and rose from her seat. “Does this guy have a name?”
“You know, Mrs. Henry’s spying skills only go so far. I guess you’ll have to ask the young man yourself!”
~*~*~*~
She wasn’t sure why, but this seemed like an occasion that would require a dress. She put on her favorite yellow kick skirt dress with the red polka dots and her favorite red flats. It was cheery and bright and sure to make a good impression on the newcomer. Who didn’t love a sunny dress on a cloudy day? Joyce placed the cookies perfectly in a plastic tub and shooed her daughter out the front door. Buffy bounced across the street chewing her bubblegum and paused at the front door. She smoothed her skirt down and pinched her cheeks and rang the doorbell. When there was no answer, she rang again and smacked away on her gum and blew an enormous bubble.
It was at that moment that the door swung open and revealed the sexiest hunk of man meat she’d ever seen in her entire life. He was almost six feet tall, had light brown hair swept up in a pompadour, a tight white undershirt with the sleeves rolled up, even tighter blue jeans that were cuffed over a pair of black motorcycle boots. His eyes were crystal blue, offset by a jagged scar on one eyebrow, cheekbones that would make Joan Crawford jealous and soft full lips that just begged to be nibbled on. The lips in question were currently smirking around a Pall Mall cigarette. He pulled the smoke from his lips and exhaled slowly as his gorgeous eyes raked over the body of the pretty blond on his doorstep.
“Hello cutie.”
That’s when the bubble popped.
TBC
squawks
05/18/17 04:16 am
pj! I remember wishing one of your stories would be finished seriously about a decade ago. Amazing. I just tried an old password I used to use and amazingly got in too. Memories!
pj
03/20/17 01:20 am
10 yrs later, i finally rem my username and password. Pari, you rock. Hope you are well.
Rabbit_moon1
12/23/16 01:12 pm
I donate every month. Please donate to keep this site up!
AudryDaluz1
10/06/16 08:34 am
Great post.
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:45 pm
And anyone else who loves this site, it's worth mentioning there's a nifty little "Donate" option just below the shout box here! ;)
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:43 pm
Just wanted to take a moment to thank Pari and all the mods for maintaining such a great site!
05/18/17 04:16 am
pj! I remember wishing one of your stories would be finished seriously about a decade ago. Amazing. I just tried an old password I used to use and amazingly got in too. Memories!
pj
03/20/17 01:20 am
10 yrs later, i finally rem my username and password. Pari, you rock. Hope you are well.
Rabbit_moon1
12/23/16 01:12 pm
I donate every month. Please donate to keep this site up!
AudryDaluz1
10/06/16 08:34 am
Great post.
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:45 pm
And anyone else who loves this site, it's worth mentioning there's a nifty little "Donate" option just below the shout box here! ;)
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:43 pm
Just wanted to take a moment to thank Pari and all the mods for maintaining such a great site!