 | | 07-03-2008, 08:13 PM |
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#9
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Elite Fan
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 29,917
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The novel doesn't finish good
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Well that's okay because - check it out, man - I missed an earlier passage. 
Quote:
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Kelly and Dylan stood for a long time watching the baby sleep. Kelly didn't understand why, but watching Erin sleep was hypnotic and infinitely interesting. She and Dylan wound up swaying together at the side of the crib in time to the soft measure of Erin's breathing.
"So, you want to see the end of Casablanca?" Dylan asked.
Kelly did, but it was late and telling Dylan to go home was becoming more difficult with each passing moment.
"Can you leave it?" Kelly asked. "I'll bring it to the beach tomorrow and you can return it to the video store. Or I can return it."
"Whatever," Dylan said, and shrugged. He seemed to be a little disappointed.
Kelly was sorry about that, but she felt Brenda's presence again. She was already disapproving. Dylan staying longer would only make matters worse.
Kelly allowed Dylan to give her a peck on the cheek before he left. After he was gone, she leaned against the front door for a while and wondered why life had to be so complicated.
Afterward she went upstairs and watched the end of Casablanca. Dylan was right - it didn't matter that the movie was in black and white. Casablanca had to be the most romantic movie ever made. While she got ready for bed Kelly thought about herself, Brenda, and Dylan in relation to the characters in the film. Would Brenda give her the letters of transit and allow her and Dylan to go off together because it was the right thing to do? Would Kelly allow Dylan and Brenda to go off? Was real life ever romantic enough? Kelly decided that it wasn't, took one last look at Erin, and went to sleep on the couch in the den.
The next morning Kelly returned the Casablanca tape and drove to the beach club. The day was beautiful and Kelly's mind was preoccupied with enjoying it. At the beach club, she found Dylan in the restaurant eating breakfast and she joined him for coffee and a bagel.
"Thanks for keeping me company last night," she said.
"Here's looking at you, kid," Dylan said in his Bogart voice, and took a sip of his coffee.
Despite the salute Dylan just made with his coffee, he wouldn't look her in the eye; she found that she couldn't look him in the eye either. Something had changed between them. She felt close to him in a way she never had before, and the feeling scared her a little. It seemed that despite her best efforts, she and Dylan were doing something behind Brenda's back. They weren't doing much yet, but if they didn't both use a great deal of self-control, they would be doing more.
After breakfast they went onto the sand and did some stretching exercises to prepare for their next tournament volleyball game. They poked the ball up and back at each other over the net of an empty court.
But when they saw their opponents were Brooke and Steve, Kelly and Dylan gave up all hope of winning and they goofed their way through the game. They weren't much of a challenge for Brooke and Steve, but the situation would not have been much different had Kelly and Dylan played their best.
The outcome was clear from the start, and by the time they finished all four of them were laughing hysterically. Steve got even bigger laughs when he pretended to be astonished that he and Brooke had won.
Steve offered to buy a round of soft drinks for everyone, and the four of them toasted the victory. Steve suggested that Dylan stick to surfing, and Dylan offered to give Steve lessons. Steve declined because he felt that playing against the ocean was a mug's game. Besides, Steve liked a sport where he could have a partner. He smiled meaningfully at Brooke.
Kelly thought this was all pretty entertaining because she could see by the way that Brooke was acting that she considered Steve to be no more than a friend. He was going to get hurt if he didn't wake up pretty soon, but Kelly could count on Steve to ignore the obvious till it punched him in the stomach.
Shortly, Dylan announced that he had things to do and stood up. He glanced fondly at Kelly for a moment then suddenly walked away, leaving her frustrated with him and with herself.
*******
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Plus, the show ends good. 
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