superclea

We're the Cupcakes

Chapter Four.
A Confession.

Back at the home base, McCabe sat the girls down in the sunken living room to relate a story:

“Maybe I should have told you girls before we went to the Surf Shack today. Bud and I, well, many years ago, we were dance partners and (gulp) lovers. It’s a long, torrid story—“

“Oh goody, I love torrid!” cried Lola.

“That I’m not going to get in to,” clarified McCabe with a stern glance Lola’s way. “The reason I am telling you this is because I know, I know first hand what it’s like to have desirous feelings towards a man, or boy, there are chemicals that are duking it out on your insides“

“Okay, kind of grossing me out McCabe, no offense, but can you make it sound any more unappealing?” asked Ten.

“Well, maybe that’s my point dear. Now really, I understand. I’ve been there. I know those Nutter Butter Boys were handsome young men, but we make choices in life. I’ve made them. I made them back when Bud and I were much, much younger and yes, hot and heavy—“

“Can you go over that part again?” asked Lola.

“No. I chose the IDS instead of pursuing Bud. He was hurt. I was upset, but I knew it was the right thing to do. And had I not, I would never be here with you girls right now, so obviously I made the correct choice.”

McCabe’s top secret membership in the IDS, or International Department of Spies, had brought her to Sunnydale and of course, ultimately to the Cupcakes.

“Was he hurt?” asked Vivi, “you know when you told him you were going to work for the IDS?”

“I never told him,” said McCabe. “I do regret that, but alas, a good spy cannot divulge their spy-ness. He never knew about my involvement with espionage. Instead I sent him a ‘Dear John’ letter stating that I had fallen for another. It was pure lies, but as you know, a spy sometimes is forced into a position of falsification and fabrication.”

“Wow, that’s so sad,” said Vivi.

“It really is kinda,” added May.

“What about now,” wondered Lola.

“What, now? You mean Bud and I?” said McCabe as if she hadn’t thought of it herself. Which she had. But she was well schooled in the art of coy equivocations. “No, the timing isn’t right still. Besides, my first love has always been justice. And music. That would be my second love. Men just ain’t in the cards girls. But now that I’m officially out of the IDS, I think I can come clean with him, just a small attempt to make amends. So I’ve invited him over this evening to tell him.”

“And maybe, you know, maybe…” Lola was trying to imply a little hankypanky with an over zealous winking eye but McCabe shot her a Cyborg death look, the one she learned in Indoensia in 1983. Lola sat up straight, wiped the smile off her face and put her hands in her lap. Nothing worked as well on her as the Indonesian Cyborg death look circa 83.

“I expect while he’s here girls that you will be on your best behavior and give us a little privacy. But not leave the premises, is that understood?”

The Cupcakes all nodded in agreement.

Meanwhile, McCabe received a call informing her that the Cupcakes had in fact been chosen as one of two bands to return the next day. But who had any doubt?

So, after a full day of band practice, surfing and Tae Kwon Do instruction, the girls ate supper in relative calm and quiet before retreating to their rooms to give McCabe and Mr. Ingstarr some privacy.

Soon after they heard the doorbell ring and the door open and shut, there was a knock on Lola and Vivi’s window. Lola pulled back the pink and white gingham curtain to reveal not one boy, but two: Weston and Stu. Lola tried to stop the smile from covering her whole face, she really did. She knew she was doomed. “It’s a disease!” she cried to no one in particular and she opened the window.

Vivi looked scared and yet a little thrilled. “Not in our room!” she whispered.

“Right. Makes sense. Outside,” said Lola. “Boys, we’ll come out, you stay there.” Vivii followed Lola, who had done this a thousand times. Vivi wanted to be good, but McCabe’s speech had had the opposite effect of its intent. She thought it was real sad that McCabe chose crime-fighting and espionage over potential true love. She wanted to be careful, but she didn’t want to end up loveless and alone. Or managing a band of reckless teenagers. She thought she had to see what Stu was all about. And so she straightened out her skirt with her hands and smoothed her hair down before walking over to Stu and boldly taking his hand. Lola and Weston, they were already macking on the chaise lounge of the back porch. “Sorry about your hair earlier,” she said during a rare air break.

“No sweat, babe,” and they went back to kissing.


Meanwhile, Ten heard a ‘ping’ coming from her window. She walked a bit closer and heard it again. ‘Ping.” She opened the window and was pelleted with a small jellybean. Theo and Bobby we’re tossing them at their window, over the sweet smelling honeysuckle bush, and around the side of the house from where Vivi and Lola were.

“Hello girls,” said Theo.

“Hi May,” said Bobby. May giggled.

“No thanks,” said Ten and she shut the window firmly.

“Ten!” whined May. “I like him. Open that window!”

“No, you heard McCabe. We can’t get sidetracked. Our careers are too important.”

“I like him!” May said with force this time, no smile.

“NO!” yelled Ten.

“Yes!” yelled May.

And then, “Ping. Ping. Ping.”

“And I like jellybeans!” and May ran to the window and threw it open. “I’ll come out Bobby, stay there!”

“And you?” yelled Theo.

“Shhh, McCabe might here you!” whispered Ten.

“Oh she’s too busy to hear us,” said Theo.

“How do you know?” asked Ten.

“Oh, well I mean, I saw Bud Ingstarr’s Miata out front, that’s all.”

“Oh right,” said Ten, “doesn’t that worry you? I mean, this is a contest, aren’t you wary of some funny business, him being here at night and all?”

“Nope. I’m confident in my abilities. And yours.” And he flashed her this dangerous smile, the kind of smile that affects all girls, of all persuasions. “I’m not coming down,” said Ten, standing her ground firmly. “But, but I’ll talk to you, you know, from here.”

“That’ll work,” said Theo.

Theo kept the conversation on music and Ten didn’t mind at all and before they knew it hours had passed. Ten thought it was perfectly acceptable since they couldn’t touch, they couldn’t kiss, she couldn’t be entirely too distracted from a distance.

The same could not be said for the other three girls. May and Bobby were sitting on the side porch, bare feet in the cool damp grass kissing and giggling and talking about candy.

In the back, Vivi and Stu were on the double wide swing. Vivi was alternately feeling empowered and lusty and attacking Stu with kisses and then she’d feel guilty and terrible and she’d retreat to her side of the swing. He coaxed her back to kissing every time.

Lola and Weston had been making out since the moment she stepped out on the soil. They were still kissing wildly, hours later and the only difference was that both their faces were red and raw from so much action. And oddly enough, it was Lola who ended the entire garden party.

See, Lola had never been able to get away from McCabe AND the girls for any length of time. This was the very longest she had ever kissed anyone. And after all that violent mashing, her face was in fact very, very tender, very, very sore. It happens you know.

So after three and a half hours of hardnose kissing, she called it quits!

And she rounded up Vivi and they caught a glimpse of May and Bobby and they grabbed her too and they shooed Theo away, which suited Ten fine. She was enjoying talking to him, as long as they stuck to the conversation of music, but she was tired and wanted to lie down. She actually was considering climbing out her window and hitting a chaise when Lola and the gang decided to come in.

The boys were not so happy, but the girls’ were of one mind. They’d had their fun and now sleep was required. Several pleas later, the boys reluctantly left.