“Don’t you think you should go after her?” Still standing three abreast on the steps of the church Kevin, Howie and Brian watched the silver Jag screech out of the parking lot laying down a trail of rubber in its’ wake.
“Huh?” Turning to look at Howie, Brian shielded his eyes from the glare of the mid morning sun overhead.
“Callie. Don’t you think you should go after her?”
“Why the hell would I go after her?” Snorting to himself Brian slid one arm out of the tuxedo jacket.
“You have to get to know her somehow if she’s going to be your girlfriend.” Howie grinned.
“Howie has a point there cousin.” Kevin smiled, slapping Brian on the back. “What’s that old saying….there’s no time like the present?”
“You guys are crazy.” Sliding his other arm out of his jacket Brian tossed it over his shoulder walking down the steps.
Following Brian down the steps Howie and Kevin smiled at each other as Brian waved at a hot blonde wedding guest walking with a guy Brian presumed to be her date. When her date turned his back Brian gave her a sly wink that made her giggle.
“Brian aren’t you forgetting something?” Stopping Brian in his tracks Howie spun him around to face him.
“What?” Looking back over his shoulder Brian winked at the hot blonde determined to keep her attention until he could make his move.
“Brian focus.” Howie clapped his hands together in Brian’s face snapping him back to attention. “Now think really hard….are you sure you’re not forgetting anything?”
“Let’s see, car keys.” He patted his pant pockets. “Check. Wallet.” Reaching in the inside pocket of his tuxedo jacket he smiled. “Check. Hot date.” Throwing a sideways glance to the hot blonde again she gave him a flirty smile as her date leaned down to unlock her car door. “Almost check.”
“Ahem?” Kevin cleared his throat raising his eyebrows at Brian.
“What?”
“I think you are forgetting about a certain bet we made less then twenty minutes ago.”
Groaning Brian watched the hot blonde climb into the passenger side of the midnight blue Porsche convertible, casting a forlorn look over her shoulder as she and her boyfriend sped away.
* * *
Pushing the pedal to the metal Callie punched away at the buttons on the radio until her fathers easy listening was all but a distant memory, swallowed up in a firestorm of raging guitars and some guy screaming about love lost.
A laughing stock.
That is what they would call her in the society pages.
She could see it now jumping off of the page at her in glaring black and white, “Calinda Marie Jeffries Dumped by Backstreet Boy!” Accompanied by a photograph of her decking Howie Dorough while the stunned wedding guests looked on.
Stopping at a red light her hands kneaded the steering wheel until her knuckles turned white. Looking down she noticed that the wheel had suddenly become Nick’s stupid face, her hands clutched tightly around his neck as she squeezed the life out of him.
HONK.
Blinking she looked up into her rear view mirror, glaring at the guy waving his arms around behind her.
Throwing her car into park she pushed open the door, climbing out her wedding gown dragging on the blacktop behind as she advanced on the beat up Chevy Cavalier.
“Open your window.” She yelled pointing at the guy, a startled look on his face.
Rolling down the window he tried to speak but was quickly cut off by Callie’s tirade.
“Do you know it is rude to honk at someone for no reason?”
“But-“
“Did it ever occur to you that I was stopped for a reason….like say maybe a red light?”
“But-“
“I don’t know where the hell you come from buddy but where I come from we stop at red lights. And another thing-“
“But-“
“What, what are you trying to say? You’re driving me nuts with your but, but, buts?”
“But the light is green?” He replied timidly pointing up to the green light.
“Oh.” Looking around she smiled at the cars stopped behind them; the stunned passerby’s on the street as well as the touristy looking guy with a camcorder capturing it all on film.
“Well,” Gathering her now tar-stained dress into her hands Callie waved to the crowd as she walked slowly back to her car. “There’s nothing more to see here, everybody just go back to what you were doing please.” Waving her hand at them like they were a bunch of pesky flies ruining a picnic lunch she climbed back in the Jaguar, her face three shades of red.
All she wanted to do was get the fuck out of there. Pushing the car into drive she glanced up.
Red light.
Slamming on the brakes again the guy behind her plowed into her fathers Jaguar with a loud smack as the crowd that had gathered outside erupted into wild applause.
* * *
“Are you going to have that sad sack look plastered on your face the whole way to Borneo?” Rolling his eyes at Nick A.J. had been trying for the last hour to get him to crack a smile.
“Who says we’re going to Borneo.” Nick answered in a deadpan voice.
“You know this could really be fun if you would put some freaking effort into it. I mean c’mon, you….me……a getaway car…. Callie having to face all those people after you jumped out the window!”
“Those are all the ingredients for fun huh?”
“Jesus Nick I mean c’mon, it isn’t like you got cancer and had to have your leg chopped off or something, now that would really suck. All you did was ditch a mean chick at the altar in front of all of her family and friends.”
Looking over at A.J. Nick winced.
“I think I would have rather have my leg chopped off.”
“Pull over.”
“Huh?’
“Pull the car over.” A.J. grabbed the wheel pulling it towards him making the car swerve over into the next lane.
“Knock it off A.J. you’re going to get us killed you ass.” Taking over control of the wheel again Nick swung his arm slugging A.J. in the chest.
“Then pull over, pull over.”
“Okay, okay I hear you.” Checking his blind spot Nick pulled the Hummer off onto the shoulder of the highway bringing it to a slow stop.
“Get out.”
Nick laughed.
“What do you mean get out?”
“I mean you are going to get out and I’m going to drive.”
“No way.”
“Yes way. I’m going to drive, I’m going to pick the radio station, I’m going to pick all the places we stop to eat and I’m even going to pick our final destination.”
“Well if you’re going to do all of that then what the hell am I going to do?” Nick asked a mopey look on his face.
“You my friend, are going to get in the backseat, crack open those bottles of beer and get yourself rip roaring drunk.”