(C) 2010 by rmsl

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Breaking The Silence

For the next two days Cory couldn’t concentrate on baseball tryouts.

Kym broke up with Joey and he could just feel it had something to do with him. What should he do? It would feel too weird to go up to Kym and ask her out. What if she laughed in his face? “Cory, I’m sorry, but we’re just good friends. I thought you understood.” He needed something to happen, something to put them together.

On Valentine’s Day, the student council was co-sponsoring a dance for the seniors. However, the school couldn’t call it a Valentine’s dance so they just labeled it the Spring Formal. It was the biggest dance of the year. There were over three hundred and sixty-five students in his graduating class and the cost of prom was astronomical. Since auditions for the smaller parts of Romeo and Juliet began the day after the dance, Mr. Jurgenson considered it the start of play season and announced his pride and joy by co-sponsoring the Spring Formal with the student council. Tickets usually only cost fifteen dollars for a single and twenty-five dollars for a couple. Prom was usually over a hundred and fifty dollars for a couple. So most of the seniors usually treated the Spring Formal as their prom. Even though Mr. Jurgenson had strange rituals and talked funny, it was nice to have someone who won the lottery working at the school.

But Cory would never ask Kym to go to the dance. He knew if he had asked her to one of the handful of homecoming dances and others sponsored by student council over the years, she would’ve said yes. But he felt it would’ve been because of their friendship. He wanted her to go with someone she wanted to go with; not to sit through an entire dance out of loyalty. Besides, if he had asked her they would’ve only went as friends.

So he had to wait for something to happen. He just couldn’t figure out what it would be.

The morning of the beginning of inside tryouts, Cory skipped his workout so he could be fresh for after school. He knew he would easily make it past the first stage of tryouts. Every drill was done in the gym due to the weather. They would run the balcony, field grounders, hit badmintons birdies in the foyer, run sprints, do soft-hand drills, and other drills for glove work. Mr. Hunt would cut down the list of players competing for a roster spot after inside tryouts by half. Cory was confident he would breeze through.

“After inside tryouts we’ll practice in the gym everyday,” Cory said to Leigh as they sat on the couches of Leigh’s Stage. “We won’t get outside until March, but then tryouts will only last a couple of days. It could be earlier if we get a few dry days. Games start a few weeks later.”

Leigh encouraged Cory as usual. Even though Cory always worked hard in baseball, trying to make the team each year on his own, having Leigh share his excitement gave him even more confidence.

As Cory shut the door to the alumni room Leigh said, “So I’ll get to rub it in first that I got Juliet. Hey, that reminds me. My dad’s going out of town that weekend. Can you take me? I don’t wanna ride three different buses dressed as a fifteenth century princess.”

“Are you kidding me? I molded you! I wanna be there when my first acting student gets the nod.”

She put her head down and her straight hair covered her face. She peaked out from under it and she was smiling. Her expression made Cory feel warm all over.

The gym wasn’t crowded after school. Mr. Hunt closed the inside tryouts to observers. But nobody would’ve come anyway. Except probably Leigh. Baseball just wasn’t popular at his school. Luckily, since she was part of set crew she watched from the stage as she painted a tree for the play.

About seventy players tried out. There were only ten returning varsity players so only eight or nine of them would get on the roster. The few sophomores that didn’t make it would either be sent to junior varsity or told to hang up their cleats. The same went for the juniors. But if a senior didn’t make the team, they couldn’t go back down to junior varsity. It meant the end of their baseball career. Cory was ready.

He blew by everyone when they ran the balcony. The route consisted of running around the entire length of the gym, up the stairs on one side of the balcony, across the balcony, and down the other side of stairs to the gym again. He lapped some of the others three or four times. He loved the challenge. He noticed Mr. Hunt watching him. About the thirtieth time Cory passed him sitting on a bleacher, the head coach screamed out, “Whoaa! C. U. looking slim. Better watch out!”

Cory knew it was his year.

He did okay during the sprints but he definitely wasn’t anywhere near the fastest from a dead stop. It didn’t matter though. He played first and wouldn’t be on the team to steal bases. He was there to hit.

He botched a few grounders but he kept the ball in front of him and still fired a pill to the player catching for the assistant coach, Mr. Silva. By the time they did the soft-hand drills, his shirt was drenched. But he kept going. Side to side, scoop the ball with your hands, and toss it back. Cory knew he didn’t have the strongest glove, but the extra work with Leigh had improved his mobility and range. As he walked to the foyer for his turn at hitting the badminton birdies, he felt like a major leaguer.

The birdies really moved. They bobbed and weaved in the air and only had the quarter-sized eye to swing at. But the drill really helped with making contact. Cory was last in line and watched as the other players struggled connecting with the small plastic ball in the center of the plastic wings.

One sophomore scuffled a little more than the others. Cory couldn’t help himself. “Listen, don’t look at the birdie as a whole. Erase the wings. Watch the eye dance in the air. Don’t swing this time just put your bat out where you see the eye land.”

Sure enough the sophomore’s next birdie nailed the meat part of the bat. He turned and smiled at Cory. He did it a few more times. “Now do everything the same but swing this time.” The birdies flew everywhere in the tiny foyer. The sophomore made contact every time he swung and he was pelting the doors leading to the outside of the school.

When it was Cory’s turn, he saw the sophomore take a drink from his water bottle and pick up his glove. It was a first baseman’s mitt. He’s just a sophomore. Nothing to worry about.

In a way Cory was right. He hit every single birdie threw at him and in whatever direction Mr. Hunt asked. Left field, right field, down the middle; Cory couldn’t miss.

When the equipment was finally picked up and stored for the next day, Leigh jumped down to congratulate Cory. “You stole the show. You were amazing.”

Cory was so tired he could barely smile. But seeing Leigh with green and brown paint on her face with a dot of black on her nose was too good to pass up. She threw a tiny paintbrush at him but missed.

 

Cory wasn’t surprised when he saw the list outside the athletic department door of the players who made the inside cut. He was fourth down from the top. CORY SUTTON. The list only had twenty-five players’ names.

The last couple of days he felt like he was living in a dream. He made first cuts and Kym called him the night before to ask him to come over on Friday and watch a movie. She had her jaw-breaking surgery the day of tryouts and was feeling better now.

On Friday night, he went to the movie rental place at the top of his street. As he walked down the sidewalk towards Kym house, he wondered what Leigh was doing that night. He hadn’t hung out with her much lately because of baseball. He pictured her sitting at her piano and playing for her dad after a nice meal. Or maybe she had a date? He laughed out loud at the idea of Leigh sitting in a restaurant wearing army fatigues and eye black. Her latest character was a “gung-ho” soldier on leave. She answered everyone now with “negative, sir” or “negative, ma’am” and said things like “meet me at seven hundred hours at headquarters.” Leigh was definitely a character herself.

When Kym answered the door, every other thought in Cory’s head vanished. Her face was swollen to the size of a basketball and was purplish-yellow in some places around the cheeks. She had a metal brace of some kind inside her mouth and she looked like she lost ten pounds. Her tan skin was lighter than usual but it still looked soft and warm. She smiled at him the best she could.

They didn’t talk much. It still hurt her a little to try and she could only take two pain pills a day. And those had to be crushed up in orange juice or some other drink and taken slowly through a straw, as he learned when she did the ritual before starting the movie.

In the middle of the movie, a girl showed up to pick up Johny. He was acting super nice to both Kym and Cory while the girl stood in the kitchen.

“And that’s Cory, my sister’s best friend.”

Cory felt a confusing shiver go down his back. He liked the fact that Johny considered Cory Kym’s best friend, but he didn’t want to be just good friends anymore. Why couldn’t he tell her?

The movie ended too quickly. But Cory didn’t leave. Kym’s mother made him a sandwich. Kym ate a bowl of melted ice cream and they just sat on the couch and talked. The pain pill Kym slurped up when Cory got there seemed to be kicking in because her words were less muffled and she became extremely giggly. She looked so beautiful when she smiled, even with a purplish-yellow face the size of a small watermelon.

“Hey, do you want to see my dress for the dance? It’s blue,” Kym said between slurps and swallows. “Mom, where’s the magazine?”

The dress she chose would fit her perfectly. It had no straps, leaving her shoulders bare, with a long slit from the bottom of the dress to a little below where her waist would be. Whoever she chose to go with her would be a lucky man.

They talked about the dance for a little while longer. They also talked about the baseball team and how she would come and watch him play. Cory felt bad when he made her laugh because it hurt her, but she never complained.

“I’m glad you came over tonight. I was going crazy not seeing anyone.”

“You could’ve called Gwen or Michelle. They would’ve came too.” For a second, Cory thought she wanted to kiss him. Not with the metal death trap in her mouth. Don’t be silly.

“No way. Nobody’s seeing me like this. You’re the only one I trust with this memory.”

It wasn’t until eleven thirty that he left. Kym felt bad she couldn’t drive him home. They even argued over it for a little bit. But it wasn’t heated.

As he walked to the door, Kym’s mother stopped him in the hallway. “It’s just her way, Cory. Don’t give up on her, though. She has a strange way of showing things sometimes, but she does care about you very much.”

Cory practically floated home.

 

The dance was only a day away and he still didn’t have a date. He didn’t care though. Kym came back to school a few days earlier and was asked immediately by Eric Shields. No luck there. And she said yes. Maybe she wasn’t starting to think of him more than a friend. But he was still going to the dance. He had to see Kym in that blue dress.

He never even thought of asking Leigh.

Friday morning of the dance, Cory sat next to Kym in English class. The swelling in her cheeks had almost completely gone down. If Cory didn’t know she had the surgery, he would’ve never noticed her slightly plumper cheeks that morning.

“You comin’ tonight?”

He nodded his head.

“Good. You gonna ask me to dance…huh?”

“Won’t Eric Shields get mad?”

“I don’t care. I’m dancing with my Cory at the Spring Formal.”

“Of course I will.”

Kym turned around glowing.

But by third period, Cory changed his mind. He caught Kym in the halls during transition.

“I was thinking about our dance. I’ll only dance with you if you ask me.”

Kym shut her locker and faced him. Her blue eyes fluttered and she put her hand on her hip. “Not a chance. I want you to ask me. It’s only proper.”

For once, Cory didn’t melt. He held his ground. Even though by dance time, and seeing her in that blue dress, he would probably break down. “Naaa…I think I want to be asked. I wanna feel chased for once.”

Her eyebrows went inward and she looked at him with a confused expression for a second. Then she said, “Well,” as she stepped close to him. Cory thought she was going to kiss him right then and there in the hallway. She put her hand on his chest. “These feet won’t be dancing with you without an invitation. I promise you that. A dance is a girl thing.”

Cory coyly smiled and shook his head. He loved when they flirted. It felt more right to him than two plus two is four.

“Walk me to class?” she asked.

 

Cory sat at a round table in the gym. It had a pink paper tablecloth with a bouquet of carnations in the center. The bouquet had a plush red heart tied on to it as well. He wore a red shirt, black slacks, black shoes, and a red and black checkered tie. The checkers were slanted so they didn’t make his tie look like a picnic table cloth.

The lights were dim and in a way the gym looked like a different place other than where they practiced baseball. The d. j. played some good music and the other tables were sporadically filled with students having a good time. Nobody was on the dance floor. But Kym wasn’t there yet. She would probably be the first and last person on the dance floor.

At that moment, Cory missed Jason. He would’ve sat next to him at least keeping him company. But he couldn’t come to the Spring Formal. Jason was only a junior.

He attentively watched the door. He wanted to spot Kym walking in. Even though she never agreed to ask him for a dance, he somehow felt that she would. It would be their moment. It was all he needed to happen. It made him feel good that he had held strong during the rest of the day since they first discussed who would ask who. But each time he refused.

As his eyes—glued to the entrance to the gym—waited for Kym, Leigh walked in. Cory choked on the coke he was drinking.

Leigh had on a long, red dress that ended at the middle of her calves with thin straps on her shoulders. Her heels matched her dress and made her look goddess-like tall. Her hair was down, but it was pinned above her right ear with an off-white wired clip. She wore make-up as well, but just the right amount. The red dress made her skin appear rosy and full of life.

He couldn’t believe it. Leigh looked like a real girl. Like a real woman. No characters or costumes. She was playing herself tonight and she looked gorgeous. Even if she didn’t get the part in the play, Cory thought she was the best-looking Juliet Mr. Jurgenson would ever find.

She saw him sitting at the table, but as she tried to make her way to him a bunch of guys stopped her to talk. Now they like her. When she’s not wearing a poodle skirt or army fatigues. She gave him a “help me” glance and he went over to her and offered his arm.

“Why, thank you, kind gentleman. I would love a refreshment.”

All the guys looked confused because Cory walked up to her silently. Defeated, the boys scattered back to their dates or any other girl they guessed had come alone.

Leigh and Cory sat at a table. To onlookers they must have looked like they came together because Cory’s red and black outfit matched her dress perfectly. A huge number of students started arriving and soon the gym/dance hall was buzzing with conversation, laughing, and music.

Leigh and Cory talked most of the time and danced to a few fast songs. Leigh was a pretty good dancer. It surprised Cory because of the way she had played baseball in the basement. Her body moved like a snake but Cory’s bounced and jerked its way through the “bus driver” and the “lawnmower.” They didn’t stop laughing.

A few times Cory imitated a few of the other dancers. Leigh laughed at him but she also hit him in the shoulder and told him to stop. However, during the “Cupid Shuffle” Leigh caught sight of girl who looked like she was overdosing on her Ritalin. The girl’s legs and arms were moving so fast that when Leigh tried to imitate her moves she couldn’t keep up and almost stumbled. Cory caught her.

He did glance up to find Kym dancing a few times. She looked gorgeous in her dress. Her hair slid across her tan shoulders and her blue dress made her appear like a beautiful summer day sky. Their eyes never met but Cory could feel her watching him sometimes.

With fifteen minutes left in the dance Cory went to get a coke from the refreshment table. He stood and watched Kym laughing and smiling, dancing with Gwen and Michelle. He knew she came with Eric Shields but he hardly saw them together. Joey brought a sophomore girl but he remained at a table most of the night. Cory sort of felt sorry for Joey at that moment. Kym was bewitching and Joey had fallen for her spells just as hard as he had. Maybe harder.

Cory never took his eyes off of Kym for those last few minutes of the dance. When the d. j. announced the last slow song of the night, Cory watched as Kym slowly looked around her. She spun coyly in all directions and then just stood still, waiting. But Cory didn’t go up to her. She didn’t wait long, though. Eric Shields showed himself and took her in his arms. Even when she was dancing with him, Kym scanned the floor.

About three-fourths of the song went by and then Leigh came over and grabbed Cory’s hand. “Everybody should dance the last song,” she said.

The song ended quickly. The lights in the gym brightened a little so people could find their belongings, but the atmosphere wasn’t changed a bit. Romance and loneliness lingered everywhere, battling in the air like two Roman gods on Mt. Olympus creating a thickness that surrounded Cory’s heart and his head.

Cory knew Kym brought a light coat that she hung on the racks. He waited for her to walk over. When she saw him she went straight to him.

She slapped his chest with her hand. “You didn’t ask me.” Her voice was broken and Cory could tell she was upset.

He put his hands on her shoulders and looked into her blue eyes. “It’s okay. I danced with you in here all night.” He put his right hand over his heart.

Kym turned away but she returned her gaze quickly. Her eyes were watering and she licked her lips. Before Cory knew it they were kissing. Kissing right there in front of everybody. It wasn’t a long kiss. Only about ten seconds but it served its purpose.

‘We’ll talk later, okay?” And she was gone.

Cory didn’t move for three minutes or so. The kiss felt great, what he had been waiting for since the fifth grade, but something seemed out of place. He shook it off, guessing that was what being in-shock felt like. He knew the kiss was meant to be.

But what Cory didn’t know was that Leigh had followed him to the table of coats. She heard and saw the whole interaction between him and Kym. And she ran off crying, breaking a heel.

So when he went back into the gym area to ask her if she needed a ride home, she had already left.