TNG: Aralyn, chapter 1

The wind rushed against her body as she leaned into it, guiding the motorcycle-

“Miss Duke, would you be so kind as to grace us with your attention please?”

Seventeen year old Aralyn Duke blinked twice, trying to come back to the moment. Her tapping pen stopped. It wasn’t unusual for the blonde girl to be caught daydreaming in class.

“Uh, um, sorry Ms. Kettner, what was the question?” she asked sheepishly as the class snickered. They were used to their classmate’s lack of focus.

“Recap the coverage of the Iraq War from last night from the news coverage, please.”

Aralyn’s brain whirled as she desperately tried to recall last night’s news watching assignment. She was fervently wishing it was three thirty and school was over.

The sudden ringing of the bell was the answer to Aralyn’s wish. Aralyn sloppily shoved her books into her backpack, almost tripping over her own feet as she bolted out the door before Ms. Kettner could call her back.

Aralyn smiled back shyly. The skinny, nerdy, bespectacled boy she had known for the last several years had really hit his peak this summer, and without the thick hair falling into his face and his glasses, his bright blue eyes were easy to see. The once geeky, now handsome, dark haired boy had always been friendly towards her but lately she had been catching him staring at her throughout class. And since they had most of their classes together this year, she caught him a lot. Not that she minded, he was pretty nice to look at this year.

Camden was on the school newspaper, and this year had been promoted to editor-in-chief. That combined with the good grades, friendly and a killer smile courtesy of the now absent glasses and braces put him at the top of all the girls’ list of Desirable Boys who weren’t jocks. By the end of the first week the list had circulated through the girl’s locker room of who had changed over the summer and was now considered dateable.

“You know, I saw him staring at you in class while you were off in lala land.” Tiffany Duke, her dark haired cousin and best friend, stepped up next to her. When Aralyn had been caught daydreaming, Tiffany just rolled her eyes. She knew exactly where her cousin had been daydreaming.

“Really?” Aralyn grinned at her quiet, soft spoken cousin. Tiffany resembled her mother Honey more than her father Luke. Aralyn took after both of her parents, with their blond hair and blue eyes, though she favored her father Bo more.

“I won’t complain about that,” Aralyn giggled. “I don’t know what he did this summer but damn is it working!”

Aralyn smiled all the way to Algebra II, where she knew she would find Camden sitting a couple seats away from her.

Lunch found the Duke girls at their usual table, joined by their usual group of friends. Aralyn couldn’t help but notice that Camden was sitting with his usual crowd, several of the writers on the paper. He smiled at her and she grinned back.

“Ten bucks Kent asks you to Homecoming,” Tracy Mainen> grinned slyly at Aralyn. The thin, pretty black girl had been friends with the cousins ever since junior high and had a knack for gathering gossip. “He’s been staring at you like you’re the water to his dying man in the desert for years.”

Aralyn shook her head, sorting through her lunch of cookies, fruit and a sandwich. She and Tiffany wordlessly swapped, Aralyn’s fruit for Tiffany’s cupcake. “No way. Last week I heard he was planning on taking Callie West.”

“We’ll see,” Tracy laughed. “I hear Callie’s already making her way through the varsity football players. Kent’s too smart to hook up with trash like her.”

Aralyn rolled her eyes so they wouldn’t see she was secretly pleased with that thought. Her foot was twitching to no tune in particular as she opened her bag of chips.

Camden was in two of her afternoon classes, and she noticed today he seemed to be sitting a desk closer than usual. His last class would be journalism, hers was Foods. It was an easy A, and a fun way to end the afternoon as they sampled what they cooked.

When the final bell rang, Aralyn dashed outside. Most of her classmates hated being picked up by their parents but Aralyn didn’t mind. And today it was her Dad’s turn, which meant he’d have the General Lee, his old racing Dodge Charger painted bright orange, with a big rebel flag on the top and 01 on the side. It was only because of Bo’s notoriety as a NASCAR driver that he hadn’t been hassled up here in the North.

Besides that, her southern born Dad was beyond cool. Almost every boy in school worshiped the former NASCAR racer turned Federal Marshal, and almost every girl had a crush on local celebrity Bo Duke. Most of her classmates had been in school together since the Dukes moved to White Plains, and all of the parents in the Belden-Duke Clan were regular visitors to sports games, science fairs and school plays.

Sure enough, she spotted him standing outside the General, surrounded by five teenage boys asking questions about the General, and several groups of giggling girls watching. Aralyn always got a chuckle out of it. Her Dad didn’t mind a bit, in fact she was sure that it was one reason he liked to pick her up. Her mom Trixie would roll her eyes and say he was reliving his Hazzard County days where the women practically fell at his feet.

She turned, never knowing which sibling or cousin was being hailed. This time it was her, and Camden Kent was hurrying towards her. Her breath caught in her throat and as he got closer, she turned on the Duke charm and flashed her father’s inherited smile.

“Hey Kent,” she stopped and waited for him to catch up. He had really grown this summer, she thought. Cam had to be as tall as her father, somewhere around six foot four. His shoulders and chest had definitely filled out, the dark hair almost falling in his eyes. She hadn’t really paid that kind of attention to him last year, but this year it was almost impossible not to. Cam had always been so shy, sitting in the back of class, rarely raising his hand to be called on. This was likely the first time he had ever really approached her.

“So where were you in class today?” He smiled and she noted how electric blue his eyes were, like her cousin Luke’s. And he had an adorable smile, she thought, hoping she wasn’t blushing. Had he always been so cute? She wondered.

“Oh you know, anywhere but there,” she laughed, trying to play off her nervousness.

“Seriously, you always look like you’re on another planet.” He was smiling though, not intending it as an insult.

Aralyn shrugged, trying to ignore the pounding of her heart as he smiled down at her. Had he always such a strong jawline? She wondered. And when did his shoulders get so broad? “Off in my head I guess. There are a thousand things I’d rather be doing than sitting in a classroom.”

“Such as?” his bright blue eyes were intent on her and she felt a shiver run down her back.

“No kidding, you’re really into that stuff?” he asked. He knew full well she was, but this was the first real conversation he’d ever had with Aralyn Duke and he wanted to prolong it.

Aralyn tried not to note the way his shirt hugged the shoulders, a strap of his backpack over one. His hands were shoved in his jeans pockets and he hadn’t stopped smiling.

“Sure. My family takes great vacations. Sometimes just me and Dad. We kind of have an adrenaline addiction in my family.”

“Wow,” he smiled down at her. “My family takes pretty boring vacations, like, crowded lakes, and exhausting roadtrips,” he laughed. “You seriously like skydiving?”

“Oh yeah,” she grinned, her face lighting up. “It’s the biggest rush you can imagine. That door opens and you think you’re going to wet yourself-” she paused, realizing how silly she must sound, “but you don’t and when you jump, it’s just great,” she finished, feeling lame because of his amused smile.

Bo Duke stood waiting for his teenage children, entertaining himself with his eager young fans. He could see his curly headed twin boys heading his way from the left, and his tall, blonde daughter was being escorted by an even taller young man with dark hair. Bo’s eyes narrowed slightly. His karmic payback for being such a player as youth was to end up with his oldest child being a vivacious, beautiful blonde daughter.

The boy didn’t look like a jock, Bo noted, his dark blue eyes taking in every detail while he continued to answer the boys’ questions about the General Lee. Well dressed, semi-scholarly looking, his attention was solely on Aralyn. Not once he did he look at the General like the other boys. His hair was short and neat, at least in back, the front could use a trim, he thought, and while he walked confidently, didn’t display any arrogance.

“Dad!” Logan and Leif, his fourteen year old twin sons were racing towards him. Identical to their freckles, they had also inherited their mother’s curly blond hair and bright blue eyes, but had his lean and tall frame. “Dad, guess what!”

“Excuse me fellas,” Bo stepped away from his admirers as the twins reached him. “Where’s the fire?”

“Both of us! They got us mixed up but they said we’re naturals!” Leif beamed.

Leif turned and looked. “Cam Kent, he’s on the newspaper. Talk about boring.”

Boring was good, Bo thought as his daughter and Camden approached. When it came to a boy interested in his daughter, the more boring the better.

“Aralyn! Step it up!” Leif yelled as Logan tossed his backpack in the backseat and hopped in through the General’s window.

“Three sisters? Want to trade?” she asked hopefully. “There’s one more little brother in elementary.”

“Might be a fair trade,” he grinned as they reached the General and her family.

“Thanks for walking me,” she smiled. It was hard not to smile at him, she thought.

“My pleasure,” he grinned back, then turned to Bo and offered his hand. “Camden Kent, sir.”

Bo, surprised, shook it quickly. The boy’s grip was firm but not crushing, and he made full eye contact. The Marshal in him approved. The father in him didn’t. Any boy looking at his baby girl was trouble.

“An honor for me, sir. See you tomorrow, Aralyn.” Camden smiled at her once more.

“Let’s roll,” she tossed her backpack in and slid into the drivers seat through the window. Aralyn was only permitted to drive the General if Bo was with her. The doors had been welded shut years earlier, in true NASCAR racing style. Hopping in through the windows was the only way of entry. Bo would moan and groan he was getting to old to do it, but his leap into the window was as natural as sitting down.

Aralyn sat at her desk, surfing the Web for research on her first history paper. Her senior year was only three weeks in but already the papers were mounting. History and English didn’t bother her, but chemistry and algebra were a struggle, and neither of her parents was much good at either subject. An IM popped up suddenly, startling her.

EditorManCam: Aralyn? It’s Cam Kent.
AralynDuke: Hi Cam.
EditorManCam: How are you?
AralynDuke: Bored. Trying to research that history paper.
EditorManCam: I hope you don’t mind me IMing you. I found you in the school directory. What topic did you decide on?
AralynDuke: I don’t mind at all. My topic is Hitler’s escape and how great it would have been if the Highlander episode had been real and he was taken out. And of course, focusing on the after effects and how WWII might have ended then and there with his regime broken.
EditorManCam: Kettner accepted that as a proposal?
AralynDuke: Yep. She just said it better be good. Lol Originally it was just to be about if one of the assignation attempts had worked but she let me spin it for the show.
EditorManCam: I’m sure it will be. I saw the essays you submitted last semester to the lit mag. They were great.
AralynDuke: Really? I thought my argument on W’s Iraq policy had a few weak points.
EditorManCam: No, it was really solid. That’s why we sent you the letter.
AralynDuke: What letter?
EditorManCam: The letter we send to students displaying writing talent.
AralynDuke: I never saw it!
EditorManCam: So that explains why you never answered, lol. Your name was on the list.
AralynDuke: Well there are half a dozen Dukes in school.
EditorManCam: I really apologize. It must have gone to the wrong Duke. It’s too late to get into the class but we always accept editorials and such. You should think about guest writing for us.
AralynDuke: Hadn’t thought about it but I will. Thanks for the offer.
EditorManCam: You’re very welcome. Hey, I have to go. One of the females needs to computer. I can’t wait until we get the wireless network set up!
AralynDuke: LOL it’s a lifesaver. See you tomorrow!
EditorManCam: Night! See you tomorrow!

Aralyn leaned back and grinned to herself. She reflected on the Camden Kent of several years ago. A tall, skinny, quiet boy with glasses who often sat in the back of the class but managed good marks. Brilliant writer. He had definitely bloomed this summer, filling out, growing a couple inches, and gaining confidence. And Aralyn wasn’t about to complain. Most of the boys in her school annoyed her with their one track minds and childish antics. Cam just might make her senior year more interesting, she hoped with a smile.

He had always been polite, friendly, but they had never moved in the same circles before. She hung out mostly with her hockey teammates, he kept to his journalism buddies, particularly Dean Acklen, his best friend whom Aralyn and Tiffany had known since grade school

Tired of reading about Hitler and his atrocities, she clicked over to her favorite places and found the motorcycle folder. She spent the next ten minutes drooling over the sleek new machines. The deal with her parents was that she had to keep a B average, and earn half the money for the car she wanted. They would pay the other half.

But she didn’t want a car. She wanted the pretty blue motorcycle on the page in front of her. Mom wouldn’t be keen on it, Dad might probably go for it but he’d leave the final decision to Trixie. And Aralyn knew how to approach it.

For some unknown reason her mother was immune to the “but if I don’t, I’ll just die!” plea. Yet Aralyn had heard Trixie say it and Bo always caved. For her however, it was much more effective to snuggle against her father on the sofa and blink her dark blue eyes and say a sweet “Please Daddy?” That tactic had served her well over the years, especially for ice cream trips as a young girl. She had learned early on pleading didn’t work.

She had to get them in a good mood, show them figures on paper. Gas mileage was better, insurance was lower, and she had looked into the cost of taking a motorcycle driving class. Always a helmet of course, and they had spiffy jackets to match that had bulked up shoulders for extra protection.

Aralyn’s eyes drifted to the stack of college applications. Her grades were generally a high B, and she had loads of athletics but she didn’t want to go to college. Four more years of classrooms just didn’t appeal to her. What she wanted was to get a bike and hit the open road. She’d be eighteen next month. Technically her parents couldn’t stop her, except financially. She couldn’t access the trust that had been set up as a gift from Honey and Luke years before, until she was twenty five. And that was for college anyway, her parents were the trustees of it.

And what would she study in college anyway? She liked to read. She was okay at writing. But she didn’t want to study English. Forensic science was intriguing but she was barely passing Chemistry now. In fact, she was pretty sure she was going to need a tutor, and soon. Tiffany struggled with it as well, and tried to help her, but Aralyn just couldn’t absorb the stuff. Which ruled out any forensic work. Besides, her cousin Riley was interested in that field. Belden-Dukes had a hefty streak of competition in them, as well as the need to stand out in such a huge family.

Aralyn knew she wasn’t particularly talented in anything artistic. She couldn’t draw like her grandmother or cousin. She couldn’t sing like her dad and cousin, she sang only in the car with the music cranked up. The twins were the theatre junkies. There was always the family business, Daisy Dukes Design, which her cousin Rayma already worked with and Tiffany would likely join. But Aralyn didn’t want to work in fashion. She didn’t know the difference between cuts of jeans and never went clothes shopping without Tiffany to help her.

An open road trip would appeal to both of her parent’s sense of adventure. Aralyn came by her curiosity, impulsiveness, and thrill loving attitude by nature. Bo Duke and Trixie Belden were the most notorious members of their huge family for finding trouble and had been deemed a perfect match, albeit a dangerous one, early on.

But somewhere along the line, both developed a sense of responsibility, especially when it came to their free-spirited daughter. Aralyn had to approach it just right. Which meant a lot of research to prove it wasn’t just a passing fancy or whim. Aralyn liked to read. She didn’t like to research.

Bo’s tall frame came in and shut the door behind him. Sitting his lean body on the edge of her bed, his eyes traveled the room. Posters of country musicians lined the walls, a number of them being Dierks Bentley, Emerson Drive and Keith Urban. The days of ponies and rainbows were long gone.

“That Camden fella seemed nice,” he said absently. After all these years up in New York, he still had his southern accent that her mom always joked drove her wild.

Aralyn laughed. “Daddy, he’s just a boy I know. Noone special. And we had the whole dating talk a couple years ago remember? I choose not to date much.”

“You know, Princess, that kinda worries me.” His dark blue eyes met hers, and not for the first time, he marveled at the resemblance to him.

“Daddy, you know I’m picky. No one can compete with a celebrity father. I have high standards,” she said loftily in jest.

Bo grinned at her. “And I’m right proud of you for it. But as beautiful as my little girl is, I don’t seem to have much of a job runnin’ boys off. I suppose I should be grateful for that.”

“Your reputation precedes you,” she said dryly. “You’re a hero to them. The few that have the nerve to ask me out just want to say they dated Bo Duke’s or Trixie Belden’s daughter.”

Bo shook his head. “Sorry about that. I thought when we moved here, being unknown was a good thing.”

Aralyn laughed again. “Daddy, the General is too famous and you still hold unbroken NASCAR records. Same with Mom. She’s still got a reputation for being a such a good detective so young and all the work she did. Besides, it doesn’t bother me. If a guy only wants to date me because of you or Mom, then he’s not anyone I want to be associated with.”

Aralyn sighed as she looked at the motorcycle picture one last time before calling it a night.

The next morning, she chose her outfit a little more carefully than usual. Her jeans always flattered her behind, but she tended to wear loose peasant blouses that hid her curvy figure. She envied the slender, graceful figure that Tiffany had inherited from Honey. Aralyn had her mother’s build coupled with her father’s height, and she was never really happy with her weight. Loose blouse helped hide her imperfections.

Today however, she chose a pretty pale blue blouse that hugged her a little closer, with a scoop neckline and short sleeves. Sweeping her long hair into its normal ponytail, she made sure she had brushed it extra, and the long waves fell softly in a golden waterfall down her back. Hunting through her jewelry box she found a pair of small blue sapphire earrings, and winced as she poked them in the rarely used holes. Around her throat went her gold chain with the teardrop sapphire, a present from her parents on her thirteenth birthday, and worn almost everyday. Debating between her pretty brown sandals that would show off her turquoise nail polish and toe ring, or her usual comfy, worn western boots, she opted for the sandals today.

It wasn’t quite cool enough to need her jacket; upstate New York was just cooling off in mid September. Making sure she had her hockey uniform and equipment ready in its bag, she doubled checked for her homework.

Her brothers were already gorging themselves on eggs, bacon and toast by the time she got downstairs.

The pretty, youthful looking blonde woman was leaning against the sink, sipping coffee as her twin boys devoured breakfast. Ten year old Sean sat quietly as usual, eating slowly and methodically. His dark blue eyes glanced up at his sister and she smiled at him.

“That’s all right. I tried to save you a plate before the ravenous jackals over there could eat everything,” Trixie handed it to her, noting the different blouse and earrings. “I still wonder if Mart didn’t switch sets of twins with me.”

“There’s my girls,” Bo joined his family as he straightened his suit jacket and kissed his daughter on the cheek. “Pretty as a picture, as always.”

Aralyn rolled her eyes but smiled. Many of Bo’s expressions from his youth found their way into everyday conversation. Along with his cousins Luke and Daisy, they had been raised in the Deep South of Georgia and their country sayings often came out while talking.

The twins pretended to gag as Aralyn turned away. Twenty years later, and Bo and Trixie Duke were still crazy about each other. In fact, Aralyn was surprised she didn’t have more siblings.

Logan reached for the last piece of bacon on Sean’s plate that he hadn’t eaten yet but Aralyn slapped his hand away.

Leif relented and hurried back, swiping their dishes and dumping in them in the sink before dashing back out.

Trixie giggled and slipped her arms around his waist. “Reminds me of a couple other kids I knew.”

Sean was staring out the window but nodded. Clearing her little brother’s plate along with hers, she set them in the sink, ignoring her kissing parents.

“I gotta run.” Bo lingeringly kissed Trixie one more time. “See you tonight.”

Aralyn marveled at her parent’s closeness. Most of her friends’ parents were still together, but in the Belden-Duke Clan, only Dan and Daisy rivaled Bo and Trixie for passion openly displayed, even after twenty years. Cousins Luke and Honey, Tiffany’s parents, weren’t quite open as Bo and Trixie, though there were plenty of more discreet gestures. And Bo and Trixie never left the house or hung up the phone without saying ‘love you’. Aralyn couldn’t even remember open affection displayed between Jim and Hallie. Mart and Di were pretty affectionate as well, which made Hallie and Jim’s relationship stand out even more. Uncle Brian was still a bachelor, and had never brought a woman around the family. The older teens had wondered in recent years if their uncle might be gay.

Aralyn headed up to the bathroom she shared with her brothers. The twins raced down the stairs past her. Mornings had never been her favorite; she didn’t get going till about ten. Lucky for her she was good in English, and it was her first subject.

After brushing her teeth and brushing on some lipgloss, she met her siblings downstairs and hopped into the SUV passenger seat. Sean got dropped off first, then the older kids.

Tiffany noticed the pretty blouse and rarely used lipgloss, but didn’t comment. Aralyn had managed to get the gloss on correctly, and she knew her cousin would be self conscious over it. Mentioning it would just flare Aralyn’s insecurity.

After a boring English lesson, Aralyn grinned as she headed to German. First class she had with Cam. Giving her golden hair a toss, she slid into the empty seat next to him, she flashed him her famous Duke grin. Cam gave her a shy smile back, his eyes lingering on her curvy figure, for once not hidden under a loose blouse.

The pop quiz made her blanch, but she was fairly certain of her answers. She noticed Cam was frowning as he wrote, erasing his answers several times. He was one of the last to turn in his quiz before the day’s lesson started. It never occurred to her he would struggle in a subject, she was pretty sure he was a straight A student and possibly the valedictorian for graduation this coming Spring.

Cam was distracted by the constant motion of her swinging foot, which made his eyes linger on the rest of her, particularly the long, shapely legs and pretty toes. She was confidently marking answers on the quiz.

She was casually sliding her book into her backpack when she saw him standing next to her.

“Sure,” she stood up, enjoying the fact he a few inches taller than her. She had just hit six feet tall that summer, thanks to her dad being six foot four. Her mom barely hit five foot four. Aralyn was the tallest of the cousins, and only a month older than five foot ten Tiffany. With Tim off at military school, she didn’t know how tall he was now, and he was only six weeks younger than her.

“No prob,” Aralyn shrugged. “German isn’t that different than Spanish really, and I’ve got that one down easily.”

“Sure. They’re fun. I did some French at home this summer. It was a cakewalk after Spanish. What about you?”

“English is best for me,” he chuckle. “Even after three years of German, I have trouble with the sentence structure.”

His handsome face lit up. “Really? You don’t mind?” He held open the door to their history class, not unnoticed by several of their classmates, including Tiffany, who ducked her head to hide her smirk.

“Not at all. I have hockey Tuesday and Thursday after class, but I can work you in.”

“Great. If you ever need help in Chemistry or Algebra II, I’m your man,” he offered with a hopeful expression.

Aralyn beamed. “Now that I might take you up on. I can’t quite seem to grasp some of that stuff.”

“We’ll work it out,” Cam promised, trying not to start dancing with happiness.

Aralyn gave him a pretty smile back and slid into her usual desk, next to Tiffany. Cam took the one behind her, instead of his usual seat on the other side of the room.

Aralyn tried to pay attention but predictably, her mind wandered. She was racing down old highway 66 through Texas, wind whipping at her as she leaned into her bike. The plains flew by-

“Huh?” Aralyn sat up, turning bright red, and stopping her finger drumming on the desk. Her ability to blush easily definitely came from her mother.

The expected lecture fell on deaf ears, until the mention of a phone call to Trixie.

“Ms. Kettner, I really do try to pay attention,” she protested. “I can’t help it if history just doesn’t interest me.”

“Tell me exactly what does interest you,” Ms. Kettner snapped. “Other than Camden Kent.”

Aralyn sighed and told her teacher about roaming around the country on her motorcycle.

“Well, now I see half the problem,” Ms. Kettner’s lips twitched into a smile.

“You, Miss Duke, are what would seem to be of a nomadic nature. Knowing your mother as well as I do, it’s not surprise. You’ve left quite a reputation in this school with some of your antics, which your twin brothers are attempting to outdo,” she said disapprovingly but with a twinkle in her eye.

“You’re also quite talented on the hockey field. You’re simply restless, girl, this is what I’m trying to tell you. Your grades are average and completely belie your intelligence. Your essays are brilliant and you have quite a gift for language I’m told. Are you planning on college?”

“My parents want me to,” she said with a sigh, “but honestly, I don’t.”

“No.” Aralyn shook her head and briefly told her teacher about her road trip desire. “I’m trying to figure out my plan of attack.”

“With your mind I don’t doubt you will. I don’t want you to underestimate the value of a college education, Aralyn, and I’m sure your parents don’t either. Have you considered working a bargain with them, perhaps doing a summer bike tour before the fall semester?”

“I don’t know any set of parents who would be thrilled at the idea of their child blowing off college to hit the open road, Aralyn. Not even your parents. If you want their blessing, I suggest you think of a compromise.”

“But in the meantime, try to focus on my class, and I’ll see if I can’t help you come up with a satisfactory deal to present to your parents in return, all right?”

Ms. Kettner scribbled on a piece of paper. “Give this to your next teacher so you don’t get in trouble for being late.”

Ms.Ruthie Kettner just shook her head. She had known Trixie from school of course, and had met Bo several times over the years. It was from Bo and Trixie that Aralyn got her enthusiastic and impulsive nature. She sighed; getting that girl to be calm was a lost cause. And even if the school survived her, her cousins and brothers were poised to fill her shoes. Leif and Logan Duke were every bit as charming and cute as their sister was pretty, with a flair for exploding toilets and locker surprises made the staff and students alike wary of them. And rumor had it there was a fourth child to follow the twins. Ms. Kettner hoped to retire by then.

Aralyn slid into Algebra II, handing Mr. Willis her note from Ms. Kettner. He nodded to her and she slid into the only empty seat. Up front, and unfortunately, three seats from Cam. Opening her book, she tried to focus on today’s lesson, her foot tapping as usual. Aralyn tried to pay attention to what Mr. Willis was explaining about the equations, but between trying to understand the lesson and write notes, she was quickly lost. Her eyes stared at the overhead projector as she chewed on the end of her pencil, trying to make sense of the numbers.

“Hey, here’s my number,” he scribbled it on a sheet of paper as they reached the lunch room. “Call me about that Chemistry/German deal.”

“Okay,” she said with one more brilliant smile and she headed towards her usual table, where she was pounced upon by her friends.

Tiffany swatted her hand away and handed Aralyn her bagged lunch. Tiffany’s locker was closer to the cafeteria, saving Aralyn the hassle of carrying her lunch all day. Aralyn refused to eat cafeteria food and insisted on bringing her own lunch, a compilation of whatever snacks were laying around. Which usually meant a variety of snack cakes, nuts and cookies. Aralyn didn’t believe in eating healthy when her parents weren’t around. The family joke was that Bo was to blame for Aralyn’s eating habits. He could never resist their father/daughter ice cream outings when she was a little girl.

“Damn, girl what’s the secret? It’s not enough half the guys in this school worship you, now you get the editor too?” Tracy asked with a laugh.

Aralyn just shrugged and grinned as she stood to get a soda. “Chalk it up to the Duke charm. And I don’t see men knocking down my door to ask me out.”

Plenty of male eyes in the lunchroom watched the tall hockey player saunter over to the machine and get a Dr. Pepper out of it.

“You gonna eat your food or just torture it?” Dean Acklen, Cam’s best friend and Photography Editor nudged his arm.

“Can’t help it man.” Cam stabbed at what he thought was macaroni and cheese idly. “I can’t stop thinking about her. We actually talked, today and yesterday. She got even prettier over the summer and actually noticed me!”

“I can’t believe you grew so much nerve. Three years of drooling over her and you finally grow some nuts. That camp did wonders for you.”

“She’s really nice,” Cam said dazedly. “She was always polite but she’s really nice and friendly.”

Dean rolled his eyes. He had been telling Cam for years Aralyn Duke was approachable and friendly. He had known the Duke girls since they were all in grade school together, and both were well-liked and friendly.

Cam wasn’t the only one with a girl on the brain. He would love to score a date with Tiffany Duke, but the quiet girl didn’t seem to have him on her radar these days.

Aralyn seemed be the one in the spotlight most of the time, but he had always noticed Tiffany. Although Aralyn might have been his crush in grade school, somewhere around junior high, his attention had turned to Tiffany. She was classy and elegant, always well dressed and exuding an air of quiet confidence. Her big hazel eyes were gentle, her complexion flawless, her smile sweet and she was smart, which he really found attractive.

Most of their classes were together, and while she often rolled her eyes at his antics, he knew she had to appreciate his humor. Getting dates wasn’t a problem for Dean, getting a date with Tiffany Duke was. She had politely turned him down several times for a date in the past.

The following morning, Cam Kent stood by his Jeep, watching Aralyn talk to her mother as she was dropped off. The curly headed twins had bolted quickly, but Aralyn didn’t seem to be in the same hurry. A moment later she laughed, shut the door and started walking towards her cousin’s SUV. Tiffany was leaning against it chatting with their friend, Tracy.

He had just transferred in, second semester freshman year. It was first period, English, and he sat near the door, feeling queasy. So far the students hadn’t been overly friendly, mostly ignoring him.

Then the door opened and he heard the musical laughter. His breathing skipped as the pretty blonde bounded into the room, golden ponytail swinging. Her brown leather jacket enhanced the blonde hair, and her dark blue eyes sparkled with life. She was followed closely by a thinner, also striking girl with long, honey colored hair. Both girls were taller than any other Cam had seen, he’d guess them 5’8” without standing up to be sure.

The blonde shrugged her jacket off, revealing a pretty blue, soft sweater that highlighted her fair skin. Cam noted the worn old cowboy boots underneath her jeans, faded jeans that hugged a figure his mother would have called “sturdy”, but he’d bet the other girls called “chubby” or just plain fat. Cam had three sisters, he knew how mean girls could be. He thought immediately of the pin up girls of the forties and was embarrassed to find his eyes on her backside as she slid into her seat.

The other girl had big hazel eyes, and wore well tailored jeans and a deep green sweater that looked like angora. She was too thin, Cam thought, but very pretty. Matching jewelry, light makeup, sides of her hair clipped back, very polished. His eyes drifted back to the blonde who glanced his way and gave him a friendly smile. The bell rang as the class took their seats, his golden girl sitting two rows over, her brunette friend in front of her.

So intent on watching her he didn’t catch her name, and barely heard his own. There were plenty of pretty girls, he thought, but he was just something about this one.

As he slowly made his way towards the cafeteria through the crowd of students, he wished he could speed up time. Eating lunch alone really sucked.

Suddenly, he found another boy in front of him, with sandy blond hair and greenish eyes. Skinny, he wasn’t as tall as Cam, who was already six feet tall.

“Hi there. I’m Dean. I’m in some of your classes. I heard through the grapevine you’re in journalism too?”

“I’m one of the photographers. Why don’t you eat lunch with us? Some of the staff usually eat together.”

“By the way,” Dean said as they walked towards the journalism room, “The object of your attention back there? The Duke girls.”

“All the guys in our class want ‘em. The brunette is Tiffany, the blonde is Aralyn, and I’d bet ten bucks she’s the one you’re eyeing.”

“She’s hard to miss. Aralyn’s something of a wild child, but they’re nice girls. They have a third cousin too, who doesn’t go to school here anymore, and a whole slew of siblings and cousins. If you stick around, you’ll eventually see them all. They’re the oldest of the clan,” Dean said.

“How do you know she’s a wild child? Is she into drugs or something?” Cam asked, hoping for a negative.

Dean laughed. “Hell no. Not them. Aralyn is just…a very exuberant girl and her head is always in the clouds. She’s a bit older than Tiffany but they’re inseparable. You’d think they were twin sisters, not cousins. Tiffany tries to keep Aralyn out of trouble.”

Cam smiled. A tall, scrawny nerd like him, with his heavy glasses, would never have a chance at a girl like that.

“Tiffany is loaded. Her mom is Honey Duke, she’s the daughter of a big business man around here, Matthew Wheeler. Aralyn’s dad is Bo Duke, who was a NASCAR driver years ago. Both of their moms were Federal Marshals once-their dads still are. I think there was some private detective stuff too.”

“Real nice family, I’ve known them for years,” Dean said, but something flickered in his eyes that made Cam question the assessment.

“Just walk up and say hi. The whole bunch of them are very friendly. That’s why they’re so popular. Tight knit family but nice to everyone.”

This new information pleased Cam immensely, but it was several days before he had a chance to actually introduce himself. He had been working up his courage.

She turned up in several of his classes, but not journalism, his last class of the day. Dean was in most of his classes as well, and Cam took a liking to the friendly youth. Other students started to warm to him as well. Dean was the class clown, well known and generally well liked.

Cam had just finished storing the books he wouldn’t need for homework in his locker and he shut the door. Flipping through his notebook to find an assignment, he heard, but didn’t register the running feet approaching.

Reaching the corner at the same time, Cam and his unknown assailant collided and Cam was thrown into the stacks of lockers lining the hall. Paper, unsecured from his notebook, rained down on him, and he turned his attention to the tornado that started the chain reaction. Prepared to be extremely irritated, he found himself staring down at Aralyn Duke, who was sitting on the floor, looking a bit stunned.

Her long hair was down, almost touching her waist, and she wore a dark blue warm up suit with silver stripes down the arms and legs. The patch over her left breast was for the field hockey team, and Cam had realized that morning that Fridays were school spirit days, when the athletes and cheerleaders wore their uniforms. There were blue and silver uniforms everywhere.

“You’re kidding, right?” He asked her. “You’re sitting on the floor, asking me if I’m all right?”

“Well, I know I’m a pretty good tackler, just ask my cousins,” she grinned at him. He held out a hand to help her up. He was surprised again by her height, she and her cousin had to be the tallest girls in the freshman class.

She brushed the hair from her eyes. “I’m late to practice and didn’t realize anyone was in the hallway,” she smiled sheepishly before she knelt and started picking up papers. He scrambled to the floor to help her.

“Hey, I can get these, you get to your practice,” he said. She only shrugged.

“I run fast,” she laughed, and held out her hand. “Aralyn Duke. You’re Cam, right? New guy.”

“Right. Cam Kent.” He couldn’t stop smiling. She knew who he was. He was bordering on giddy.

“I’ve seen you with the newspaper staff. I’m looking forward to reading your articles.” She handed him the rest of his papers.

She was up and took off down the hall, leaving one very stunned Camden Kent staring at her retreating figure, the back of her warm up suit emblazoned with a silver DUKE and 01.

The next fall, their sophomore year, she and Tiffany had both grown several inches. Tiffany filled out to an enviously slender figure, and Aralyn was gifted with a curvy figure reminiscent of Marilyn Monroe. Cam wasn’t the only male to notice but he never saw her singling out any one boy. She was friendly to everyone but kept to her small circle of friends. She had cut her hair to the middle of her back, and he’d swear it was a deeper shade of gold.

Cam spent the next two and a half years waiting and watching. She would always smile at him, but they were never partnered in classes. She always paired up with Tiffany, or another girl, Tracy, for projects. She was slow to turn in her math and science tests, but she whizzed through their German and English classes.

He watched as her various cousins began to arrive at the High School. Dean knew them all and where they fit into the family and, thankfully, the arrivals were staggered. During Cam’s sophomore year, the school had welcomed the arrival of the dark haired, violet eyed Belden twins, Riley, a science whiz and top of his class; Rayma, a shining art student; Jesse Mangan, the brooder who kept to himself. The following year brought Tiffany’s younger brother Jace, a rising football star, and Dana Mangan, a brunette beauty who quickly made a name for herself on the girl’s soccer team. This year Aralyn’s prankster twin brothers Leif and Logan arrived on scene, both with a talent in theatre, and the younger set of Belden twins, blondes Mabon, a cheerful, sturdily built girl with a keen intellect, and Miles, who looked enough like Leif and Logan to be their triplet.

As he covered stories over the years, he found it easy to make contact with whichever sibling or cousin might be involved in the event or sport, inevitably highlighting them in the paper. The siblings and cousins quickly became known as the Belden-Duke clan, which also included the Mangans and the much younger Fraynes.

Now, they were seniors and Cam was determined to make this year his best. Cam’s fitness regime had paid off, he was strong and toned, he’d had LASIK surgery that summer and he was editor in chief of the newspaper. He was ready to take on the world and that included getting closer to his golden girl. Cam knew he had been crazy to accept a date with that slut Callie West last week. But he was too polite to say no when she asked, and also incredibly flattered a girl had asked him out.

He walked past the girls and lost his nerve. Aralyn glanced up and saw him, giving him a smile and wave. He smiled back. That was good start. She had grown into a real beauty, with a shining smile and her long golden hair. Tiffany was her perfect contrast, a delicate beauty against Aralyn’s girl next door charm.

“You didn’t trip,” Dean greeted him cheerfully as he fell into step next to him. “You’re progressing.”

“Aw, shut it,” Cam said good naturedly. “I don’t see you asking Tiffany out.”

“I’m plotting my plan of attack,” Dean grinned. “Tiffany is a girl who needs finesse and-”

“Chicken,” Cam nudged his friend. “You haven’t got a clue how to ask a girl like her out.”

Author’s Notes
-a giant yee-haa! To Dana, my editor. A giant yee-haa! to Jenn, for a very last minute, late night editing job. All mistakes are mine!
-a giant yee-haa! To StephH, who figured out what I was doing wrong with the background and fixed it for me.
-Aralyn’s story is dedicated to my late father, and a tribute to father-daughter relationships, much like ours was.
-Cam is loosely based on Clark Kent, from the Superman mythos (and cast as Tom Welling, another tie to Bo Duke’s portrayer John Schneider, who played Jonathan Kent on Smallville, seasons 1-5)
- This generation came swarming in one day and demanded some attention. Get comfy!
- Word Count, 8,202