Chapter Three
The bees known as Aralyn's cousins swarmed about her. They had ambushed her at her locker right before school started. Aralyn put her fingers to her lips and whistled loudly. Her female cousins fell silent.
“Holy crap, you guys are loud,” she muttered, forcing all pleasant thoughts of Cam out of her head. “Now what’s all the hubbub?”
“We were thinking for Halloween-” Rayma started.
“There’s enough of us-” her younger sister Mabon interrupted.
“These fools think we should-” Dana began.
Aralyn held up her hands in an effort to shush the onslaught. “Dana, you start,” she said wearily.
The fifteen year old shot her other cousins a triumphant look, grinning at the go-ahead from the eldest cousin, before continuing. “We were talking about costumes, and we thought it’d be neat if we went as a group of characters from the same series.”
“Okay, so what series are in the running?” Aralyn asked suspiciously.
“I said Xena!” Mabon pouted.
“There are too many of us,” Rayma replied exasperated. This obviously wasn’t the first time she had tried explaining this fact to her younger sister. “Anyway, there are more She-Ra characters.”
Aralyn snorted as Tiffany burst into laughter.
“I suggested the X-men characters,” Dana interjected.
“Think about it!” Rayma jumped to her feet, violet eyes sparkling. “Aralyn-you’re She-Ra, Tiffany-Cat-Ra or Casta-a-Spella. You two have the looks, and there are plenty of other characters for us to pick our favorites!”
“Are you on crack?” Tiffany asked her cousin desperately trying not to burst into laughter.
“No, think about it! There’s five of us, and lots of characters!” Rayma repeated. “No one will have anything like it!”
“I did hear some seniors talking about going as Strawberry Shortcake and pals. I think we’d be much cooler,” Dana grinned.
With a nod and a sigh, Aralyn relented. “I am so going to regret this.”
***
Aralyn stared at her cousin in disbelief.
“You’re serious?”
“Why not?” the pretty, dark haired girl asked.
Tiffany was laying across her cousin’s queen sized bed, arms and head hanging over one side. Aralyn sat on the floor; a moment ago content painting her toenails a ghastly shade of bright pink. Her room was done in shades of blue, light blue carpet and walls, dark blue comforter and pillows. The walls were decorated with various posters of Dierks Bentley, Emerson Drive, Keith Urban, Rascal Flatts and other country musicians. The mirror over her vanity had pictures of her and Tiffany, tucked into the edge.
Aralyn’s mouth fell open. “Because you’re practically scared of your own shadow!”
“I am not!” Tiffany snapped.
Aralyn rolled her eyes. “Tiff, please, you didn’t like trick or treating after dark because the dark has always spooked you. Any time we went exploring in the Preserve, you whined and practically cried when I dragged you in, and Tim had to promise to hold your hand. You slept with a nightlight until you were twelve. Now you’re telling me that you’re willing to go cross country on a motorcycle with me?”
“Sure,” Tiffany shrugged.
“Your mom will flip!”
“Yeah, but Daddy’ll be all for it.”
“I don’t know which of my parents will be all for it,” Aralyn sighed. “They might even team up against me.”
“Or they’ll both be for it. You got the double thrill seeker parents, remember?” Tiffany chuckled. “I only got one.”
“Yeah, but Honey was right there with Mom through all their adventures. I’m already working on-” Aralyn hesitated, “swear you’ll keep this to yourself.”
“Don’t I always?”
Aralyn couldn’t hold back the grin. “Not always,” Aralyn retorted. As a child, Tiffany, usually called Tiff by the family, had a tendency to blab their ‘see-cruds’ to her father, Luke.
“Oh, come on! Are you ever going to get over that?” Tiffany protested. “I’ve learned how to keep a secret,” she insisted. “Besides, I only told if I thought you were in danger from some dumb stunt.”
“All right,” Aralyn conceded. Getting up, she fumbled around in her white dresser until she found the magazine. “Check this out.”
“A motorcycle magazine?” Tiffany asked, confused.
“Check this out,” Aralyn pointed. “Isn’t she gorgeous?”
“You would ride that thing?”
“Hell yeah. Now that, I bet Daddy’ll back me on. He did some bike racing back in Hazzard. So did Uncle Luke, remember.”
“Mom won’t go for it. She may not be as bad as Grandmother but she does have her limits,” Tiffany sighed. “Besides, I’d be afraid I’d fall off.”
Aralyn snorted. “Hello, I’m the one who falls off fences. You always manage to keep your balance.”
Tiffany smiled. “At least I got that from Mother.”
“Hey, you going to the Homecoming dance?” Aralyn asked, tossing the magazine on her desk returning to her toe nails to add the second coat.
Tiffany shrugged, not missing a beat. She was used to her cousin’s abrupt jumps in conversation.
“Probably not. No one’s asked and I don’t want to go alone. You?”
“I don’t know,” Aralyn hesitated. “I was kind of hoping Cam might ask me. He’s been hanging around so much lately the last week or so.”
“Well, rumor has it he went out with Callie West a couple weeks ago, and she was all about getting it on.” Tiffany added the dramatic pause before continuing, “He turned her down.”
That stopped Aralyn in mid-brush stroke. “Wait-a guy turned down Callie West? Come and Get Me Callie West?”
“Yep,” Tiffany confirmed. “Apparently he’s got a bit of honor to him. She had her top off within minutes and he kind of freaked out when she tried to undo his pants.”
“How do you know that?” Aralyn demanded .
“I listen to the gossip hounds while you’re daydreaming in class. Callie was pouting about it in homeroom, and one of the guys overheard her. He, of course, told everyone. Tracy overheard Callie spouting off in the bathroom between classes. Cam got a lot of admiration for refusing her; she got a lot of laughter for being such a slut. You know pretty much the entire football team has done her.”
“Yeah, but . . . ew!”
“So yes, Cam does have some class,” Tiffany laughed. “He probably just said yes to a date with Callie because he’s too nice to say no. I have a feeling he’ll ask you to the dance.”
“You can always go with Dean,” Aralyn grinned. “I’ve noticed him hanging around you again.”
“Please,” Tiffany snorted delicately. “It’s only because I turn him down that he persists. Besides, his best friend is tutoring you. It’s inevitable he’d be around.”
“He’s a nice guy, Tiff. He used to hang out with us all the time when Tim was around, remember?”
“I remember,” Tiffany picked up a hot pink polish bottle. “He annoyed me then too. The guy never shuts up!”
Aralyn laughed. “He’s still nice.”
Tiffany responded with a “hmpph” noise.
Aralyn’s eyes drifted to the window and she couldn’t help but wonder what was going on in Cam’s mind and if he was going to ask her or not.
***
"Why don't you just ask her out and get it over with?" Dean suggested.
Cam pushed his food around on his plate. The rest of the newspaper staff eating with them were in a heated debate about a television show from the previous night, giving them a few minutes to talk privately.
"I don't know. I just . . . what if she says no?"
"Dude, I've seen the way she looks at you. She won't say no."
"She doesn't date a lot, and neither do I. I mean come on, my first date ever was with Callie and that was a disaster. What if I just botch it all up?" Cam stabbed the helpless French fry on his plate in frustration.
Dean rolled his eyes. "Wuss. Besides, a date with Callie West doesn’t count. For all you know, Aralyn just doesn't date boys from this school."
"True," Cam admitted.
"Bet you a hundred bucks she won't say no to a date with you, especially to the dance," Dean wagered, noting Callie West walk by with her jaw clenched..
***
"Did you see Cam's editorial this morning?" Tiffany handed her cousin a copy of the school paper.
Aralyn found herself looking more and more forward to seeing Cam in class. In the evenings, they had chatted online several times, and Aralyn found herself smiling at the random thought of him. She had even taken the time to wear prettier clothes, ones that flattered her, instead of her usual loose blouses and jeans.
Aralyn frowned as she skimmed the article. "I'm mentioned."
"He did a big thing on Homecoming, and predicts who will be chosen to the court. Apparently his staff has been polling students in all levels,” Tiffany explained.
"Why the hell would my name come up? I don't play any of that football-cheerleader crap. Everyone knows it’s a popularity contest between the cheerleaders."
"Well, if you weren't on the potential list before, you are now. Think about it. This edition came out today, Monday. Homecoming nominations start tomorrow."
"So?" Aralyn shrugged.
"We have to start planning your campaign!" Tiffany exclaimed.
"Uh-uh. No way. I'm not getting into that crap," Aralyn shook her head.
"Too late. Your boy already got you in," Tracey appeared with a grin. "We’ll be calling you ‘Your Highness’ by the end of the week."
"Oh God," Aralyn rolled her eyes.
***
Friday morning the classrooms went silent, when the Stones came bursting through the loudspeaker prior to the day’s announcements. Girls fidgeted, glancing at one another. Tiffany peeked at Aralyn, who was trying to study her math homework. When Cam explained the problems, they made sense. Now she was trying to figure it out on her own as the morning announcements were read reporting on the usual club meetings, fundraisers and practices.
"And ladies, I do believe I have some information here that might be of interest to you," the teasing voice of Dean Acklen echoed through the intercom. "It’s that time of year again, yes indeed, for Homecoming nominees. I have just been handed a sealed envelope with the names you’ve all been waiting for.”
Tiffany rolled her eyes at the laughter in Dean’s voice. The boy knew how to put on a show.
“And we'll start off with the freshman court nominees."
Dean often read the morning announcements; his cheerful anecdotes and quips were a good way to start off the morning, though he was often poked by the teacher who oversaw the broadcasting program when his comments started to stray as they inevitably would from the topic.
Aralyn and Tiffany listened, cheering when their cousin Mabon, youngest daughter of Mart and Diana Belden was announced. The sophomore court was next, and included their cousin Dana, the only daughter of Dan and Daisy Duke Mangan, again setting Aralyn and Tiffany off with more cheers.
"Now you know, there's enough girls in that family to fill the whole court- and quite lovely I must say-ow! Ok! Onto the junior court . . . and how funny is this folks, we also have Rayma Belden on the junior court! I'm telling you, this family sure does something right with these girls-OW! that hurts you know- yeesh. Ok, ladies, and now we move on to the big one, the senior court!" The sound of a drumroll reverberated through the loudspeaker and Aralyn rolled her eyes with it.
"We have . . .Callie West!" Dean proclaimed with significantly less enthusiasm then before. Snickers and groans filtered through Aralyn and Tiffany’s homeroom. Dean quickly moved on, "Missy Cohn! Michelle Foreman! And- holy cow folks, I was right. This may be a first in our school- the first time ever one family has had someone on every level of the court- our final contender, folks, is none other than Aralyn Duke!"
Aralyn's jaw dropped as her classmates cheered and she was swallowed up in a hug from Tiffany.
"What the hell?" she managed.
For the rest of the morning she spent in what she could only describe as her own personal hell. She was congratulated, repeatedly, as she walked to class, forcing herself to smile and reply with ‘thanks’. A few of Callie's friends snubbed her, but she couldn’t care less. She was going to kill Cam. She despised this sort of attention.
"Hey Duke," he called to her from the doorway of their German class. It was Friday, which meant yet another opportunity to admire the dark blue of her warm up suit setting off her golden hair and curvy figure.
"This is your fault," she stated entering the classroom, as he held the door for her.
Cam grinned. "I got every single candidate correct, except one of your cousins."
"I wouldn't have even been considered at all if you hadn't mentioned me," she brooded.
"I thought girls liked that kind of stuff," he answered, looking a little hurt.
Aralyn turned to face him, looking somewhat exasperated.
"Cam, I don't care about things like that. Really, I don’t. Now everyone is expecting me to have some sort of big campaign and you know every year it turns into a total fashion and popularity contest. I am not going to prance around here in mini skirts and tight shirts just to win a stupid title," she protested angrily.
Cam grinned in spite of himself. "Not even one miniskirt? For me?"
"Oh you!" Tension broken, she smacked him in the arm, not oblivious to the strength under it.
Cam grinned as they took their seats.
***
At lunch, she was besieged by her younger cousins. While they rarely ate lunch together, the beehive known as the Belden-Duke clan was swarming at full force hovering over their oldest cousins.
“Isn't it exciting?"
"Can you believe?"
"We can do a family campaign?"
"All four of us on a poster?"
"Mom can?"
Aralyn held up her hands for silence. "Girls, I can't think about this right now, I have a chem test next class. Let’s regroup at my house after school, ok?"
With looks of disappointment, the cousins dissipated, returning to their tables and friends.
"I'm going to kill him," Aralyn declared. Tiffany snorted in response.
The younger Duke was glad it was Aralyn, and not her on the ballot. Tiffany was much shyer than her boisterous cousin, and she was content to let Aralyn take center stage most of the time. She certainly didn’t relish the unwanted attention her cousin was getting and the campaigning had barely started.
***
The chemistry test was difficult, and Aralyn was last to finish. When she handed in her paper, the teacher nodded encouragingly. She knew the girl was being tutored by Cam Kent, and usually Aralyn was first to turn in her test-half blank. She seemed to be making an effort and hoped that her score would reflect that.
"Well?" Cam asked when the bell rang and they got up to leave.
Aralyn shrugged. "I tried."
"I'm sure you did fine," he assured her. "We still set for tonight?"
"Yep. Seven," she smiled. Studying on a Friday night would be tolerable with Cam.
"Ok, see you then!" he disappeared into the wave of students as they headed to their last classes of the day.
***
Cam grinned as Aralyn came flying down the stairs in jeans and a zipped up sweatshirt, her hair loose and wild. Her cheeks were flush and her smile bright as she greeted him and he marvel at her, she always looked so alive, no matter what she was doing. Conscience of the fact that her father was right next to him; he made an effort not let his jaw hit the floor.
"Sorry. The girls wouldn't let me go. They’re all in a dither over the Homecoming crap so everyone stayed for dinner."
"I wouldn't say it's crap," Bo said mildly, smiling at her. His little girl was growing up too fast, he often thought.
She grinned. "You're just happy you get to drive me around that stupid town square."
Bo laughed. "Guilty. Luke said we can borrow his convertible."
"The Porsche?" Aralyn almost squealed in delight, her eyes sparkling.
Bo nodded. Aralyn shrieked and threw herself at her father with a big hug.
"Is Mart going drive both Rayma and Mabon?"
"No, I think Luke will drive one in Jim's corvette."
"See, now you're excited," Cam smirked. “And you didn’t want to be on the court.”
Aralyn laughed. "I just like the Porsche.”
"The office is ready for you two. There's soda in the fridge if you want it, and your mama made some brownies earlier."
"Thanks, Dad," Aralyn gave him a quick hug.
"Thank you, Mr. Duke," Cam replied.
Before he could follow her to the office, there was a scream upstairs, a crash and the sound of thundering. Cam stepped backwards as a cluster of girls appeared in the stairwell.
“Oh, Hi Cam,” Tiffany called down to him.
“Hi,” he said awkwardly. He recognized most of the girls from school. Time seemed to stop and the silence was filled with giggles and amused grins.
“Oh good God,” Aralyn sighed. Grabbing Cam by the sleeve she led him to the study.
***
"You want what?" Aralyn demanded.
"An interview," Cam said simply as they walked towards Algebra II on Monday morning. "I'm interviewing all the representatives of the Homecoming court."
"Oh, for crying out loud," Aralyn sighed. She had spent the whole weekend hoping he’d call her, but he hadn’t. "Cam, I don't want anything to do with this mess. How many times do I have to tell you?" she pleaded.
"Just grant me the interview and you can even say that. But I bet it gets you the crown," he predicted.
Aralyn rolled her eyes. "Fine, you can interview me tonight while we're studying."
***
"If you're so opposed to such tradition as Homecoming, why do you think you ended up on the court?" he asked. He sat with his back against Bo’s desk, their notebooks spread out between them. Aralyn had her long legs stretched out, and he noted the worn cowboy boots near him. She was leaning back on her hands, completely unaware how appealing she looked to him.
Aralyn gave him a hard look that would have made her mother in discipline mode proud. "Some fool of an editor decided he thought I belonged up there."
Cam grinned. "Dashing young man with influence mentioned it," he amended, scribbling.
"Why are you so opposed to Homecoming?" he asked.
"It has nothing to do with tradition anymore. It's all about who's the most popular, wears the best clothes, and anyone who thinks she needs a crown to show herself off is a ninny," Aralyn answered.
"Can I quote you on that?" he asked.
Aralyn rolled her eyes. "It’s become as shallow as the Miss USA pageants. This country has enough social issues with women and how they're portrayed, and crap like this sets us back fifty years. It’s bad enough we've got bunch of men on the Supreme Court trying to tell us what we can and can't do with our bodies, but now even as teens, we're subjecting ourselves to other's people approval based on our physical appearance," she replied heatedly.
"Good thing I'm recording this, I can't write quite that fast," he muttered. "So what will you do, if by some fluke, you win the crown?"
"Sell it for cash," she replied promptly, causing him to burst into laughter. "Seriously? I’ll give it to one of my younger cousins to play with. I have a ten year old cousin who’d love it."
"Have you looked into withdrawing?" he asked.
"Yes, and I'm told it's not allowed because of the prestigious honor, and that there are plenty of girls who would be delighted to have it, blah blah blah."
"What about campaigning with your cousins? Your pretty face is all over school on those posters."
Aralyn covered her face with her book for a minute in feigned horror, but she was laughing when it came down.
"I know. I had nothing to do that with. Rayma is very- what did you just say?" she asked, startled.
Cam felt his face redden slightly. "I said your pretty face is all over school."
Aralyn opened her mouth, then shut it, not quite sure what to say. "You think I'm pretty?" she asked.
Cam nodded. "Well, yeah. Who doesn't?"
Aralyn didn't know how to answer that and, as the awkward silence grew between them, she quickly changed the subject. "Well, as I was saying, Rayma is really artistic and she designed the posters so that we're promoting a family ticket. I mean we're a very close family, but we're all very different. I really just want to play hockey and have fun."
"Who's your escort to the dance?" he asked, trying to be casual.
Aralyn smothered her grin. "No one. I haven't been asked. I can tell you my dad will drive me for the procession."
"And any scoop on your dress? Color or something?" he asked with a laugh, sensing she was dodging the question. He really wanted to ask her but it seemed like such a touchy subject. How could he bring it up so she’d be receptive?
"Yeah, whatever's clean," she replied sarcastically. “Whichever pair of jeans has the most holes.”
Dang, he liked that sarcastic streak in her. He’d have to find out from Tiffany what she was going to wear. "Thanks, Duke. Now I get to go interview the others, though I doubt they will be as entertaining as you always are."
"Hey, watch out for Callie West," she said suddenly. "That girl has a beef with you. In fact, you might want to let someone else to interview her."
"I'll keep that in mind." All signs of laughter were gone from his handsome face.
Callie had recently embarked on a smear campaign against him which did not amuse Cam in the slightest. Even though her cattiness had backfired on her, she still had made it onto the court. He had been stunned when she had set her sights on him and began coming onto him in class one day. When she finally wrangled a date out of him, it had been more out of his sense of honor than real interest. It hadn’t taken much before she was trying to kiss him, and undo his pants in the car, which shocked him. He had always assumed the rumors of the locker room about her to be exaggerated.
Her retaliation for him refusing to have sex in the car with her was to spread some nasty comments about him around school. He blew them off and no one seemed to really listen to her but he didn’t want Aralyn believing any of her lies.
"All right, you ready to tackle Algebra?" he grinned.
"No," she replied with a smile.
The door opened quietly and Sean slipped in with his sketchpad. He took up his usual place across from Aralyn and Cam.
***
Aralyn shut her locker with a heavy sigh. Another day of relentless teasing from her brothers, and dark looks from Callie and her friends. At least she had plenty of smiles from Cam.
Turning, she was startled to see Callie West standing in front of her.
“Hi Callie,” she said mildly.
The pointy faced brunette was glaring at her; her blood red lipstick heavily drawn outside her thin lips in an attempt to make them look bigger. The usual black liquid eyeliner was heavier today, Aralyn thought, and the thin figure was clad in skin tight pants and top.
“You need to drop out of this race,” Callie demanded.
Aralyn sighed. “I can’t. It’s against the school rules.”
“Well, then you need to find a way. That crown is mine. I have worked hard to get it!”
“Look, I don’t get why you think sleeping around with the football team entitles you the crown. For that matter, I don’t get why you even want the damned thing, but you’re pathetic to need it so bad. I can’t get out of the stupid contest so get over yourself and get used to it.” Aralyn started walking away.
“Yeah, I read your interview and I think you’re just a snotty bitch who’s after the editor for some reason. Maybe your Duke ego needs more flattering through his articles. To tell the truth, Cam Kent ain’t all that,” she smirked. “And I would know.”
Aralyn spun around, her sapphire blue eyes narrowed in anger, her pretty face with a murderous expression. “Look, Callie, I don’t give a damn about the title, the crown or any of it. I got nominated because Cam thought it would be funny, and if you want to try and smear his name with me, I’ll knock your teeth out,” she snapped, her fist clenching. “Cam is about the most decent guy I know and turning you down just shows he has standards.”
“Well, aren’t you two awfully chummy suddenly?” Callie arched one perfectly waxed eyebrow. She didn’t really want Aralyn to hit her. The Duke girl was at least six inches taller and outweighed her plenty. On the other hand, it would get the blonde suspended and she’d have a clear shot at the crown.
“I didn’t think it would be funny,” Cam said quietly putting his hand on Aralyn’s shoulder. “I thought you would be a great candidate and someone worthy of the honor.”
Callie glared at the two of them contemplating her next move. Neither girl had seen him come up.
Aralyn took the ball out of Callie’s court. She snapped the lock on her locker door and turned her back on Callie, taking Cam by the arm.
“C’mon Cam, we have studying to do.”
***
The presence of the Belden-Duke girls had been requested by her cousins, Daisy and Dan Mangan’s. So Aralyn grabbed a ride with Tiffany after school. Daisy had started Daisy Duke Designs with Di as her active partner years before, specializing in wedding and formal dresses. While Honey and Trixie were tracking down criminals, Di and Daisy wanted something to do. Daisy had spent years drawing clothes, and Di made her a business deal she couldn’t refuse. Honey and Trixie were both silent partners in the company, and once the Dukes and Mangans all moved to New York, Di joined Daisy in the design process and they ran the New York office together.
Their current plan now was to open a branch in Paris over the next few years. Tiffany had shown an interest in fashion design, and spent a fair amount her weekends and summers working for their design team, learning the basics and attending some of the runway shows around the world. While Aralyn had gone along on many of the trips, she spent most of her time sampling local bakeries and walking the cities.
Excited that her family was all on the Homecoming court, Daisy volunteered to make all their dresses. Diana had been Homecoming Queen her senior year of high school and thrilled her daughters, niece and cousin were all on the court.
Rayma would be in her signature purple, a trait inherited from Diana. She had also inherited her mother’s slender figure, violet eyes and black hair. Her younger sister Mabon had Mart and Trixie’s china blue eyes, curly blond hair and freckles and sturdy figure that this year had finally developed into curves. She wanted to wear blue. Dana, with the dark hair and eyes of her parents wanted crimson or ruby red. Aralyn didn’t care.
“With Mabon in blue, we don’t want a repeat, even though it looks fab with your blonde hair,” Daisy mused, fussing over her young cousin.
“I’m telling you, I’m wearing my jeans and boots.” Aralyn protested
Di snorted. “Spoken like Trixie’s daughter.”
“I think not. But you know, I have just the thing, sugar,” Daisy smiled.
The next hour Aralyn was tortured as she was measured and subjected to endless talk of styling while Di sketched out Daisy’s directions, according to each girls’ personal style and figure.
Aralyn stared out the window as the chatter continued. She had a tutoring session with Cam tonight and she needed to get home.
“Ok girls, everyone back here this weekend for fittings. It’s gonna take some fast work to get you all ready in time,” Daisy announced.
Aralyn was the only one not giddy with excitement as the cousins left. Instead, she walked the few streets over to her house, relieved to be away from the giggling brigade. Homecoming was turning out to be a royal pain.
Meet the cast in full & see the family tree!
Author’s Notes
- A huge yee-haa to Dana and Jenn, the fabulous editors for this Universe!
- Yes, Dean has a bit of Lee Jordan from him, yet another Harry Potter reference. Could he really get away with that in a school today? Not likely. But it was too amusing to me to remove it.
- She-Ra and all She-Ra characters are property of Mattel (last I knew) and borrowed with love.
Word Count, 4,780
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