Closed for EklectikChik
I'd been nervous about attending my ten-year high school reunion. Though I'd barely seen anyone from my class since I left for college, driving to the school awakened old insecurities. Logically, I was quite a different person from the shy, nerdy academic from a decade ago. But as I walked into the gym, I felt the same butterflies as when I'd done so as a freshman in P.E.
Fortunately, the reality was far kinder. I had not gone three steps inside before I heard, "Saul Wright! Haven't seen you since graduation! " I looked up into the broad grin of Terry Jackson, who played tuba in the band. He extended a meaty paw and then introduced me to his wife.
I spent the next hour repeating myself as each classmate had the same questions. I got Lasik surgery three years ago, so I don't wear glasses anymore. I got my engineering degrees from MIT. Moved back to the state and started my own consulting firm in the city. Yes, I have been working out. No, I'm not married or divorced. No, no kids, either.
Meanwhile, I caught up on a decade's worth of history from them. Allen Tate dropped a ton of weight and shaved off that lion's mane of hair. Britton Fairbanks, Brian Hemphill, and Karen Trin all were finishing up med school. Renee Richards had become a dentist and was engaged to another one. Demarcus Collins had become a barber and now owned his own shop here in town. Martin Ryder had become a chiropractor and kept introducing himself as "Doctor", as if three years of schooling made him anything of the sort. Amy Lee (now Green) was married with a daughter and teaching fifth grade. Brandon Marshall, the former class clown, was a vice principal at Hughes Elementary.
I even had conversations with folks I knew only by reputation. I only knew Brent Davis as one of the popular guys from the football team back in the day, just as he only knew me as that smart, quiet guy. Yet we spent seven minutes chatting about his landscaping business as if we were old friends.
Had a similar encounter Janice Smith (now Woods). Back in the day, our paths would never have crossed aside from an occasional sighting in the halls. Janice had been petite and gorgeous, easily making any guy's top ten list. She revolved in that exclusive strata of high school society where all the pretty girls and hunky guys gathered. Having never been "cool" and given how intimidating I found attractive girls back then, I would likely have avoided the opportunity to speak with her had it ever arose.
Yet despite a complete history of non-interaction, as soon as I passed near her, she squealed "Oh my God, I can't believe it's you! Come over and give me a hug! You look terrific without the glasses! Tell me what you've been up to! "
As a teenager, I'd often fantasized what Janice's honeydew-sized breasts would feel like, so feeling their warm softness press against me created a fierce stirring in my groin. Fortunately, my libido was somewhat tempered by having to lean past a belly the size of a basketball. Janice was very pregnant - "One month to go," she grunted. She was soon filling me in on her life.
Seeing her made me wonder if the rest of Triple J was in attendance. The crasser members of our class might insinuate that the group had been so nicknamed based on their cup size, for all were easily the bustiest girls in the entire school. But such insinuations had little basis in truth. While Jessica, easily the largest of the trio, might have come close to such a size, I'd have pegged the pre-pregnancy Janice at little more than DD.
Besides, the nickname stemmed back from our elementary days. The three girls - Janice, Jennifer, and Jessica - had become inseparable friends, so they seemed more like one unit than three individuals. Hence the Triple J nickname. They'd been part of what passed for "in crowd " in elementary school and were amongst the coolest of the cool by high school.
I'd heard little concrete about Jennifer. She'd been the tallest of the three, a facet used to good advantage when she captained the drill team. About five years ago I'd heard a rumor she'd experimented with bisexuality in college, but that same person also claimed she could drive a car using only her knees, so I didn't place much stock in the story's accuracy.
Everyone, however, knew a bit about Jessica. She and Ben Sherman had been a power couple back in senior year. They'd eventually got married. But when Ben lost his baseball scholarship, he moved back to town to work at his father's dealership. Rumor was that he'd started cheating on Jessica and ultimately precipitated the divorce last year. Ben had apparently recovered swiftly: I assumed the barely-legal blonde on his arm was Wife #2. With Ben throwing that in her face, I could see her skipping the reunion to avoid it.
Admittedly, talking to her a decade after it mattered seemed a silly accomplishment achieved too late, but my heart skipped a beat at the possibility. Adolescent fantasies never completely fade, I suppose.
I'd been nervous about attending my ten-year high school reunion. Though I'd barely seen anyone from my class since I left for college, driving to the school awakened old insecurities. Logically, I was quite a different person from the shy, nerdy academic from a decade ago. But as I walked into the gym, I felt the same butterflies as when I'd done so as a freshman in P.E.
Fortunately, the reality was far kinder. I had not gone three steps inside before I heard, "Saul Wright! Haven't seen you since graduation! " I looked up into the broad grin of Terry Jackson, who played tuba in the band. He extended a meaty paw and then introduced me to his wife.
I spent the next hour repeating myself as each classmate had the same questions. I got Lasik surgery three years ago, so I don't wear glasses anymore. I got my engineering degrees from MIT. Moved back to the state and started my own consulting firm in the city. Yes, I have been working out. No, I'm not married or divorced. No, no kids, either.
Meanwhile, I caught up on a decade's worth of history from them. Allen Tate dropped a ton of weight and shaved off that lion's mane of hair. Britton Fairbanks, Brian Hemphill, and Karen Trin all were finishing up med school. Renee Richards had become a dentist and was engaged to another one. Demarcus Collins had become a barber and now owned his own shop here in town. Martin Ryder had become a chiropractor and kept introducing himself as "Doctor", as if three years of schooling made him anything of the sort. Amy Lee (now Green) was married with a daughter and teaching fifth grade. Brandon Marshall, the former class clown, was a vice principal at Hughes Elementary.
I even had conversations with folks I knew only by reputation. I only knew Brent Davis as one of the popular guys from the football team back in the day, just as he only knew me as that smart, quiet guy. Yet we spent seven minutes chatting about his landscaping business as if we were old friends.
Had a similar encounter Janice Smith (now Woods). Back in the day, our paths would never have crossed aside from an occasional sighting in the halls. Janice had been petite and gorgeous, easily making any guy's top ten list. She revolved in that exclusive strata of high school society where all the pretty girls and hunky guys gathered. Having never been "cool" and given how intimidating I found attractive girls back then, I would likely have avoided the opportunity to speak with her had it ever arose.
Yet despite a complete history of non-interaction, as soon as I passed near her, she squealed "Oh my God, I can't believe it's you! Come over and give me a hug! You look terrific without the glasses! Tell me what you've been up to! "
As a teenager, I'd often fantasized what Janice's honeydew-sized breasts would feel like, so feeling their warm softness press against me created a fierce stirring in my groin. Fortunately, my libido was somewhat tempered by having to lean past a belly the size of a basketball. Janice was very pregnant - "One month to go," she grunted. She was soon filling me in on her life.
Seeing her made me wonder if the rest of Triple J was in attendance. The crasser members of our class might insinuate that the group had been so nicknamed based on their cup size, for all were easily the bustiest girls in the entire school. But such insinuations had little basis in truth. While Jessica, easily the largest of the trio, might have come close to such a size, I'd have pegged the pre-pregnancy Janice at little more than DD.
Besides, the nickname stemmed back from our elementary days. The three girls - Janice, Jennifer, and Jessica - had become inseparable friends, so they seemed more like one unit than three individuals. Hence the Triple J nickname. They'd been part of what passed for "in crowd " in elementary school and were amongst the coolest of the cool by high school.
I'd heard little concrete about Jennifer. She'd been the tallest of the three, a facet used to good advantage when she captained the drill team. About five years ago I'd heard a rumor she'd experimented with bisexuality in college, but that same person also claimed she could drive a car using only her knees, so I didn't place much stock in the story's accuracy.
Everyone, however, knew a bit about Jessica. She and Ben Sherman had been a power couple back in senior year. They'd eventually got married. But when Ben lost his baseball scholarship, he moved back to town to work at his father's dealership. Rumor was that he'd started cheating on Jessica and ultimately precipitated the divorce last year. Ben had apparently recovered swiftly: I assumed the barely-legal blonde on his arm was Wife #2. With Ben throwing that in her face, I could see her skipping the reunion to avoid it.
Admittedly, talking to her a decade after it mattered seemed a silly accomplishment achieved too late, but my heart skipped a beat at the possibility. Adolescent fantasies never completely fade, I suppose.