| General Fiction posted June 21, 2024 | Chapters: |
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The art of the pursuit
A chapter in the book DUEL with the DEVIL
DUEL with the DEVIL - Chapter 6
by Jim Wile
| Background A brilliant young chemist creates a new opioid with unknown benefits and pitfalls. |
Recap of Chapter 5: Brian helps Sandi study for the final. It was their last session together, and he waited until then to ask her out. She is flattered, but tells him she has a boyfriend and usually dates older guys. He is devastated but not willing to give up yet. He comes up with a plan to spy on her to see who her boyfriend is, in hopes of finding a way to show her that he is better for her than him.
Fran commiserates with him and tells him he should try again in a few years, when they are both older and more mature. Brian also mentions that he will be seeking his learner’s permit soon, and Fran promises to drive with him.
Chapter 6
Sandi lived at the bottom of a hill. The road went by her house and curved to the right, ending abruptly at a woods about 50 feet away. There was a Road Closed sign marking the end of the road, which I always thought was kind of ridiculous because, with the woods straight ahead, it was rather obvious the road was closed. At any rate, this afforded me a perfect place to stay out of sight while I watched her front door.
Being a dead end, no cars except those of the owners who lived here or an occasional visitor came down this way, so I didn’t have to put my full attention on this stakeout. I would notice any car that came by. I had brought Stephen Hawking’s The Theory of Everything with me to pass the time. I loved Stephen Hawking’s books. What a brilliant guy. By 9:00, there’d been no action, and it was getting pretty dark. I didn’t figure she’d be going out after 9:00, so I packed it in for the night and rode home.
The same thing happened again the following night. So far, this plan was a bust, but at least I was getting a lot of reading in.
It was all worth it on the third night, though. Jackpot! A blue convertible pulled up, parked in her driveway, and a tall, well-built guy got out and headed up the walk to the front door. Oh, shit. I knew who it was. His name was Josh Bennett, and he was the center on the basketball team and would be a senior this year. What chance did I have against that guy?
Before he reached the front door, it opened, and Sandi came out. She was probably watching for him. She had on a tank top and a pair of low-cut denim shorts that showed off her skinny waist. She looked fantastic. They walked to his car with his arm around her waist, and they were laughing about something. Josh backed out of her driveway, and they headed up the street, leaving me more depressed than ever.
I guess I should have figured he’d be a good-looking, bigshot kind of dude, but Josh Bennett? How could I ever compete with him? Alright, now I knew who he was, so what was I going to do with this information? I hadn’t thought that far ahead. I went home and stewed about it.
In a few weeks, summer came to an end, and school started up again. I’d seen Sandi once or twice while over there mowing her yard, but only to wave at her. She never invited me over for another drink or anything. Josh was even there one time, swimming in her pool with her.
In the middle of September, the sports boosters were holding a car wash to raise money for the sports programs at the high school. I wasn’t into any team sports, but I figured I might get a chance to be with Sandi again, who I was sure would be participating. She was a cheerleader after all. I rode my bike over to the high school parking lot, where the car wash was being held.
The operation was divided into four stations, with four kids assigned to each. One team did the sudsing, one the rinsing, one the drying, and one worked on the wheels. The teams were constantly changing as kids came and went, putting in as many hours as they felt like.
Sure enough, I spotted Sandi working at the rinsing station. Also working there on the same side of the car was a fat kid named Dallas Seifts, who was in my English class. He was the equipment manager of the JV football team. He looked pretty sweaty, as if he’d been there for a while working in the hot sun. The temperature was in the high 80s today, which isn’t at all unusual for North Carolina in mid-September.
“Hey, Dallas,” I called to him as I walked up. “You look like you could use a break and maybe a cold drink. Why don’t you let me take over for you?”
“Gladly. Thanks.” He handed me his hose and made a beeline for the refreshment table.
“Hey, Sandi,” I said as I took up his place in the rinsing crew on her side of the cars that came through.
“Hey, Brian. You planning to go out for a sports team this year?”
Honestly, I’d never even thought about it, but I had to say something to explain why I might have shown up at an event to raise money for sports. Obviously, I couldn’t tell her the real reason I was here, so I said, “Yeah, I was thinking of joining the wrestling team and putting these huge muscles that you drew on me that time to good use.” I flexed my arms, and she laughed.
She had on a really short pair of cutoff shorts, and she’d tied a red flannel shirt up just under her breasts so her flat stomach was exposed. She looked as gorgeous as always.
“So, Sandi, how did you end up doing on your math final?”
“Pretty good! I got an 82, and I actually finished with a B in the class, which really helps my GPA. I couldn’t have done it without your help, Brian. Fortunately, I only have to take geometry, and then I can be done with math forever!”
“Yeah, well, if you need any help with that, you know where to find me.”
“I may take you up on that.”
We started talking about this and that as we rinsed cars, a steady stream of which had been coming through all morning. I was really enjoying talking to her and squirting her with the hose a few times. She seemed to be enjoying it too, and squirted me back. It was going great until Josh Bennett showed up and took over for one of the two other kids in our crew on the other side of the cars.
“Hi, Sandi,” he said as he looked across the car at her.
“Hi, Josh. Do you know the other two in our group here? That’s Carlyn Ernst on your side, and this is Brian Kendrick over here.”
He said hi to both of us. I didn’t respond. He and Sandi started talking to each other over the cars, and after a while, he asked me if he could switch sides with me. I didn’t want to sound like a petty jerk by refusing to switch, so I reluctantly switched with him.
Sandi and Josh kept up their chatter, and I was now left completely out. The other girl, Carlyn, tried talking to me, but I didn’t feel like talking to her—only to Sandi.
I started registering a slow burn. I couldn’t compete with this guy, except maybe on one front. He didn’t strike me as all that bright from their conversation. Maybe I could outwit him with my superior intelligence by trying to engage him in a conversation.
“So, Josh. What’s your favorite subject in school this year?”
This question came out of the blue and was apropos of nothing he and Sandi had been talking about. It threw him, and he just looked at me blankly for a few seconds before answering. “Uh, phys. ed., I guess.”
“No, I mean a real subject like physics or calculus or western civilization or something.”
He thought for a few seconds more. “History, I guess.”
“Ah, history. Have you ever read A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking? I guess that’s more about science than history, but anyway, have you read anything by him?”
“Uh, no.”
“Yeah, it’s really fascinating. You ever hear of a wormhole?”
“Worm hole? Like you’d get a night crawler out of for bait?”
“Not exactly. According to Hawking, it’s more like a connection between far distant points in the space-time continuum. You know what that is, don’t you?”
“Uh, not really. I don’t go in for that kind of stuff very much.”
“Very much, or not at all?”
He just looked at me and didn’t reply. I glanced over at Sandi, who was frowning.
“Never mind; I’m just messing with you. Anyway, wormholes are shortcuts through the space-time continuum that supposedly could allow for time travel, but Hawking believes that even if you can travel through a wormhole, you couldn’t travel through time without creating major inconsistencies or paradoxes.” No reply from Josh.
Sandi had heard enough. “Hey, Brian, come here for a second,” and she led me away from the line and out of hearing from the rest. “What are you doing?”
“I’m trying to have a conversation with your boyfriend.”
“Sounds to me like you’re trying to put him down. Look, he may not be as smart as you, but he’s a really nice guy. Otherwise, he’d probably pound you for trying to make him look dumb. He’s too polite for that, though. Why don’t you just lay off?”
I realized then how stupid and childish I must have sounded. Josh did seem like a nice enough kid, if not overly bright. I think I really blew it with Sandi.
“Look, Brian, I know what you’re trying to do, but that’s the wrong way to go about it. Let’s just be friends, huh, and I’ll try to forget about this? Okay?”
God, I felt like a fool. “Yeah, sure. I’m an idiot.”
She headed back to the car and picked up her hose. I felt so ridiculous that, rather than resume washing cars, I turned and fled and didn’t look back.
So much for Sandi MacReady… for now anyway.
 Recognized |
CHARACTERS
Brian Kendrick: The narrator of the story. At the beginning of the story, he is 12 years old and in 6th grade in Kernersville, North Carolina.
Francine (Fran) Kendrick: Brian's older sister. She is 18 at the beginning of the story and goes to junior college, where she studies law enforcement.
Chloe: Brian and Fran's cat.
Sandi MacReady: She is a pretty blond and Brian's crush in high school.
Derek Shafer: Brian's best friend and lawn mowing partner.
Josh Bennett: Sandi's boyfriend. He's the center on the high school basketball team.
Pays
one point
and 2 member cents. Brian Kendrick: The narrator of the story. At the beginning of the story, he is 12 years old and in 6th grade in Kernersville, North Carolina.
Francine (Fran) Kendrick: Brian's older sister. She is 18 at the beginning of the story and goes to junior college, where she studies law enforcement.
Chloe: Brian and Fran's cat.
Sandi MacReady: She is a pretty blond and Brian's crush in high school.
Derek Shafer: Brian's best friend and lawn mowing partner.
Josh Bennett: Sandi's boyfriend. He's the center on the high school basketball team.
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