Casino Party 2U - 16 Photos - Party & Event Planning ...

OKAY SO any thoughts on who the fifth person Luck hires in 1935 is? It was a whole cliffhanger in I think 1935-B, but two books later we've yet to see anything else about that, since the Gandors haven't really had a presence at the casino party yet. I've spent years trying to figure it out, but I can't for the life of me think of anyone who it could be except the fucking president of Daily Days and I have absolutely no reason why he would be even remotely useful to hire for a casino party. I've gone through the entire cast and that's like the only New York/Chicago person who isn't already accounted for in the 35's, cuz the 35's are such a (hilariously fun) clusterfuck
Any thoughts/speculation is welcome. This has actually been bugging me for ages.

Since vegas opened, my facebook friends seem to have gone crazy and it seems almost everyone is posting photos of the strip, casinos, parties and no sign of anyone wearing face mask or even practicing social distancing.
I commented on some of their posts/images only to get a " you only live once " response.
Just saw someone post today they are boarding flight for a 3 day getaway and 2 of them in that group are flying from LA (hot zone).
Stay away from the craziness!!!!

This is the fifth and final part of me reading and sharing my thoughts on the Danganronpa Fanfic; ‘Three-Point Shot’ by RandomRex6. Here’s the last thread if you missed it, and here’s the actual story if you’re reading along. Spoilers for the canon V3 will be left unmarked, you have been warned, and it’s kind of difficult to spoiler tag the actual final case of a killing game. I’ll do my best, but I will once again implore you to go read the story yourself before reading this.
On that note, if you’re someone who’s struggled to find the time to read this story you may be able to have it read to you instead. A frequent commenter of the story on AO3, Net Neutrality, has their own Youtube Channel where they’ve spent the last couple of years working on a audiobook style video series for this fanfic. It’s not finished yet but the latest update is less than a week old at the time of me posting this, so it’s worth a look in at the very least.
Anyway, we’re kicking off with a big spoiler after the last chapter, so this really is your last chance to stop reading if you haven’t finished the story yourself, don’t start complaining at me if you ignore this and get spoiled
…Ok, that should be long enough. So we return to the cast gathered in the hidden room of the library, having just discovered that somehow, Keebo has taken control of Motherkuma.
He explains that when Kokichi sent him into the virtual world, the Supreme Leader used a flash drive (which I had completely forgotten about) he won back in chapter 2 to create a copy of Keebo’s AI. In the chapter 5 Free Time, Kokichi used a weaker EMP to disable the Nanokumas in the library whilst he placed a stronger EMP next to the door to the hidden room. The whole stand-off where both he and Maki pressed their detonators? Yeah, once of those triggered the library’s EMP, taking out the Nanokumas again and disabling the door to the hidden room (I’ve seen some comments saying this doesn’t make sense, Kokichi would still need the card key to open the door, but I think the story’s good with this one. There are electronic doors out there that actually require power to remain shut, so in the event of a power outage, they’re easy to open and nobody gets trapped inside. I can buy that this is one of those occasions.) When Kokichi fled the group using the flash bomb, he went to hidden room to plug the Keebo USB into Motherkuma, and as soon as the EMP wore off, TDR switched Motherkuma back on remotely, not knowing it was now compromised. Also, when Kokichi sent Keebo off to fight the Exisals, he snipped his antenna off. Kind of feel like that’s something that should’ve come up in the last case, but oh well.
Getting all this information at once is a bit hard for the group to digest, and a lot of them have a hard time believing that Kokichi set all this up knowing that he was going to die as part of this plan. Everyone but Kaede, that is, who seems to have an easy time believing that Kokichi was trying to atone for setting Tenko and Keebo up to die. Honestly, I feel like this shouldn’t be so hard to come to terms with. Not so much the whole, “he felt he had to atone part,” but the idea that he wouldn’t be willing to sacrifice himself when these guys literally just had a trial that ended with him allowing himself to be executed to resolve the unsolvable crime he’d set up. I mean what more proof do they need after that? He literally told them he was more interested in hitting the mastermind where it hurts than his own life. Ambiguous character or not, it’s a whole other story when they were actually alive to explain this stuff to you like he was.
Also, small nitpick, but how does this Keebo know all of this? My understanding is that this Keebo’s memories should end from when Kokichi made the copy, when OG Keebo entered the virtual world. Sure, he can scan Motherkuma’s databanks and learn some of the stuff he missed, but how can he know what happened whilst the EMP’s were active, surely Motherkuma can’t see that either?
Anyway, Keebo’s making the preparations for his Monokuma army (dubbed Kiibokumas/Keebokumas) to detonate at one point in the End Wall to blow a hole so they can escape, but Kaede vetos that idea, worried that they have nowhere to go, no rations prepared, no ID’s and would probably just be recaptured and taken somewhere else. So instead, they send a message to the ones pulling Monokuma’s strings, telling them to make their final ultimatum, or else…they’ll just go with Keebo’s plan.
Of course, the ultimatum proposed is the Danganronpa tradition; one final class trial, if they can solve all the remaining mysteries, they can go free. If they fail, Keebo goes back into his regular body and the game continues. They’re given a small bit of time to investigate, and each have some new evidence in their labs (how did the new evidence get there? Keebo has control of everything but the one Monokuma unit he’s allowing the puppet masters to speak through.) Most of the clues pertain to the canon V3 plot twists; their memories and personalities are fake, and the killing game has happened before. And after a short space of time, the group (joined by Keebo, using a modified Monokuma unit as a vessel) have their final class trial.
The Monokubs are back…again…because we all want that final scrum debate at the end, I’ll give them that. And the start of the trial plays out like you’d expect; they bring up the Gopher Project plan for the first time and swiftly dismiss it as fake news. The information they have on Rantaro suggests this isn’t the first killing game, and from there they figure out that these games exist for people’s entertainment.
They’re shown a video of Rantaro vowing the same things they’re now saying, that he won’t stand for this which…I guess means he failed, since the killing game is still going? …Yeah, the whole ‘Rantaro and Tsumugi are prior participants of the killing game’ thing they’ve been building up kind of ends on a down note. I mean, I know they couldn’t have beat TDR of the game is still going, but I at least thought the pair stayed behind so their friends could go free. But the video message Himiko finds shows Rantaro pleading with his future self to ‘save them,’ so it sounds like he didn’t even manage to accomplish that.
Kaede explains that the clue in her lab was a flashback light, the first in the entire game if you would believe it, only Kaede opted not to watch it, not trusting Monokuma’s intentions. This turns out to have been a close call, as apparently it was supposed to reprogram Kaede’s mind and make her the game’s mastermind. And finally, we meet the game’s mastermind, the mastermind I was spoiled on from the beginning; Kaori Akamatsu, Kaede’s twin sister! She was mentioned a couple of times throughout the story, so it doesn’t come out of nowhere, and Rex left an extremely subtle hint in chapter 20 of the story that I’m not surprised none of us picked up on.
And having went into this story knowing who the mastermind is, I never actually stopped to think about the merits of the decision, and ...I kind of would’ve preferred it if they just went with the teased plan of reprogramming one of the characters we already knew. I mean, the idea that TDR can literally make anyone into the game’s mastermind with their technology paints them as a truly heinous and powerful villain that must be stopped before they can ruin anymore lives…but it also strips those masterminds of their autonomy, they don’t matter. Kaori really isn’t the villain here, and honestly we really don’t know anything about her, she’s not even herself right now because they infused her with the typical mastermind/Junko personality. She’s Kaede’s sister, so we care about her by proxy, but I just feel like this would be more effective if it was a character we were invested in, one we’d really gotten to know throughout the story as opposed to a casual reference every now and then. Don’t get me wrong, she’s not bad, but she’s just sort of…Junko without the shifting personalities.
The mastermind precedes to explain what’s left; who Team Danganronpa are, Keebo’s role in the killing game, they even show some comments made by the ‘show’s’ fans (which are actually comments of the story itself on AO3, which is a nice touch.) That’s basically all the mysteries solved now, so the kids have to make their choice; continue the killing game, or leave, but have their original personalities returned to them.
Kaede doesn’t know what to do, and in a moment that was very DR2-esque ends up in a black void, talking not with her love interest or any of the deceased students, but her pre-game self. I love this idea, these kids confronting their past selves, the versions of them that saw no value in their lives, and threw them away to participate in the killing game. It’s essentially their past selves’ fault that they’ve been put through this mess, so it’s a confrontation that has a lot of potential. Kind of wish the two of them didn’t get along so well though. Past Kaede gives present Kaede some sass before helping her to make a decision.
In the end, Kaede decides they need to take the option to leave and get their old personalities back. She argues they’ve come too far to turn back now, even if this moment doesn’t won’t end Danganronpa, it will plant a seed of doubt in the hearts of those that enjoy the show (which is admittedly a more realistic approach to how TDR would have to be dealt with than the game took. One bad season probably isn’t going to cut it.)
We get the customary final challenge of the MC convincing everyone else to join them; Ryoma joins because if his past trauma is fake, he may have something more meaningful waiting for him out there. Himiko joins to honour Angie and Tenko’s memories (even though Angie didn’t really do much at all for Himiko in this story?) Keebo joins to show he’s a strong, independent robot who don’t need no creator. Maki joins both for the sake of honouring Kaito’s memory, but also to payback TDR for turning her into a weapon through her backstory (kind of the best reason of the lot, imo) and Shuichi joins because he can’t keep hiding away from the truth anymore (even though this Shuichi has already embraced the idea of being a detective as a coping mechanism for his depression)
Kaori tries to argue that once their personalities are back, they won’t want this decision anymore, but Shuichi disagrees, citing the post-trial aftermath of chapter 4, where Miu continued to call Keebo ‘Idabashi’, suggesting that they’ll maintain some of their in-game personas even with their old personalities back, and they’ll just have to take that risk (Like I said, very DR2-esque ending.)
They win the scrum debate with the Monokubs, Kaori admits defeat and takes them to the flashback light terminal to begin work on returning their original personalities. Keebo explains that he’s going to try and hack into TDR’s main servers, and upload his AI into the net, since his physical body can’t leave the academy, he may find freedom there instead. And Kaede and Shuichi kiss (I really feel like this should’ve been the first time they did that, but I forgot to mention they did this in the Free Time chapter of the last section, so whoops.) And the army of Monokumas and the five Kubs self-destruct by the end wall to let the kids re-join the outside world.
The epilogue takes place quite a long time later, 4 years in fact. The kids are now adults, Kaede and Maki are meeting for lunch and MAKI HAS A CHILD! KAITO GOT MAKI PREGGERS DURING THE LOVE HOTEL SCENE AND NOW SHE HAS A LITTLE BABY GIRL CALLED ANZU! I FUCKING LOVE IT! SHE’S ADORABLE, SHE SAYS KAITO’S CATCHPHRASE IN BABY TALK! I NEVER KNEW I NEEDED THIS SO BADLY! I’VE KNOWN THIS CHILD FOR 5 SECONDS AND I’D ALREADY SLAUGHTER EVERYONE IN TDR FOR HER SAKE!
Ahem, sorry about that. Anyway, the kids have sort of become figure heads in a protest movement against the show. Their whole gamble about regaining their old personalities paid off about as conveniently as it did for the DR2 cast. They’re pretty much exactly who they were in the game, but they just also have some fond memories of watching the show. Kaori’s seeing a shrink, since they’re struggling to get that Junko personality out of her brain (Can’t help but think this may just be an attempt to dodge having to give Kaori a personality of her own.) Ryoma’s enjoying his new freedom, travelling around the world as a tennis coach. Himiko’s on tour holding magic shows whilst trying to raise awareness of how wrong the killing games are (Kind of feel like that message is kind of diluted when you’re still making use of the talent and personality they gave her as part of the show.) Shuichi’s receiving medication for his depression and I believe is still dating Kaede. And the pair of them overhear that auditions for the next season of the show will be starting soon, but the cast size has shrunk again, since they’re struggling to find participants, and something (Keebo) is making it difficult to access the website.
I love this idea of giving us a small peak into the characters adult lives. Sometimes, you just need something a little more concrete than simply hoping that the characters had a good life once the killing game was over. I’m torn on how they dealt with TDR, I know I said it’s a more realistic approach and it is, but it’s a shame that 3/4 more groups of kids have to participate and die before the show gets shut down.
And, that’s it. My journey through Three-Point Shot is completed, and I’m now obliged to give my final thoughts on the story as a whole.
Before I talk about the story itself, I just want to acknowledge how insanely difficult the format of Danganronpa even is to write for;

• 16 characters, do you know how few stories out there try to have as many as 16 new, reasonably fleshed out characters with each instalment? Yeah, some characters matter more than others, but they all have a personality, background, dynamics with each other. Most stories opt for no more than 8 or 10 characters at best, so it’s no wonder how much of a struggle it is to try and pull it off with 16 of them.
  
• Then you have to be brutal and try and parcel down all those backstories and potential character arcs you’ve come up with to the bare essentials, the cream of the crop, because you’re killing off, on average, two of these characters every chapter. You will never have enough time to flesh out all of them. So, you’ve got to pick and choose which ones matter most for the story you want to tell.
  
• But let’s not forget, those characters that die aren’t simply being killed off, it’s a murder mystery! So you’ve got to devise clever schemes that manage to strike the right balance between not being too obvious whilst also making enough sense to create a satisfying conclusion. You have to spend more valuable time foreshadowing this stuff, without it ruining the pacing.
  
• And then, if all that wasn’t bad enough, you have to try and wrap this all up together. You have to come up with an overarching story, a mastermind who’s motivations justify this whole charade, and build towards a satisfying final confrontation between them and the rest of the cast.
  

When you really break Danganronpa down into those four components, you realise how much of a miracle it is that this series is even a fraction of coherent as it actually is. Most sensible writers wouldn’t touch this idea, they’d tell you it just wouldn’t work. So no matter what I have to say about this, or any other fanfic I read in the future, they all have my upmost respect for even attempting this challenge and having the guts to put their work out there.
(Also, I don’t go over everything that happened in these threads. I say it all the time, I want you to read this stories for yourselves before reading these threads. You should never let someone else’s opinion act as a substitute for your own.)
Telling a story is a two-part process; both coming up with your ideas and then conveying those ideas to your audience. Three Point Shot’s greatest strength was the ideas it came up with. I loved the creativity behind the motives, and the cases. I thought the casino party in chapter 2 and the use of honey in case 3 were great ways to make new use of V3’s already established locations. I loved V3, but my favourite parts of this story were when Rex let their creativity go unrestricted by what the canon dictated. Kokichi blackmailing Maki, only 1 murder in chapter 3, Shuichi’s depression, Angie not knowing whether her thoughts were hers or Atua’s, Keebo wanting a surname, the split vote idea. When the story attempted something new, or injected its own take on the V3 canon, I was generally all for it.
And inversely, when the story repeated something that happened in V3 just for the sake of it, it generally wasn’t received so well by me; night time training in chapter 2, Himiko’s relationships with Tenko and Angie, the way Rantaro’s storyline just sort of ended. The problem isn’t replicating events from the canon, I had no problem with Kokichi’s antics and the student council, but it’s when the story replicates something without considering if what this story’s already changed affects it.
I loved the romances. I’m a sucker for a good romance, but I don’t turn to Danganronpa all that often to get it. Saimatsu and…(checks Google) Harukaito (Really? That’s what we call it?) just felt really genuine in this story. It felt like teenagers falling in love, being awkward about it at times because they’re only teenagers and they don’t know what they’re doing. Just very wholesome, genuine teen romance.
However, one of the issues I brought up quite often towards the end was how the story handled its supporting cast. Kaede, Shuichi, Kaito, Maki and Kokichi were all used to reasonably good effect across their lengthy screen time, but all the other characters kind of suffered for it. This isn’t exactly unexpected, I did say a while ago that it’s impossible to flesh out all 16 characters in Danganronpa, and you have to prioritise the most important ones for your story. It’s just kind of a shame that they went with the characters that already received a lot of screen time and development from the canon. The only characters that made it to this story’s chapter 5, that didn’t make it that far in the canon, were Kaede and Ryoma. I never really got the sense that anyone here was this story’s equivalent to Fuyuhiko, or canon Himiko, someone who initially didn’t seem like much, but develops in such a way where you can’t imagine them not surviving.
It’s not for a lack of trying. Each chapter had three instances when the group split up (when they’re expanding the school, the Free Time chapter, and the investigation) and it consistently tried to give each character some sort of scene in each of these sections, but they kind of gave me a Ultimate Talent Development Plan vibe; they were fun interactions but they didn’t actually build much character. I think that’s partially because the story kept trying to mix and match different people together, so instead of really developing one strong bond with another person, we got several soft bonds with several people. I can see some debate over which approach is better, but I personally prefer the former, consistent interactions with a smaller portion of the group. My favourite interactions was when Gonta showed Angie around his lab, because that was an interaction the story kept up with, but the little three-way dynamic between Himiko, Ryoma and Keebo was also pretty consistent.
I think RandomRex6 showcased that they’re more than competent as a writer. You have to bear in mind that this was just supposed a simple 1-chapter project that exploded into a full-game rewrite and from start to end, the project took just under a year to complete. They came up with some great ideas, and whilst I found faults in the execution at times, there was always some element that made me want to keep going, and Rex was their own harshest critic, never letting themselves of easy after disappointing their audience with Korekiyo at the beginning, and that fuelled them for the rest of the story. Whilst I think the fanfic peaked with chapter 3, I don’t think it ever dipped significantly after that.
And that’s about all I have to say. I’m not gonna type up my thoughts on the characters again, because honestly what I said in the last thread for each of them still stands. I suppose Kaede stepped up more as a leader in this finale.
It might be a couple of weeks before I start another fanfic series like this, and I think it’s time to move away from the V3 related ones for a while, just to give the rest of the franchise a chance.

I with many others will no longer be following or even consider using Calgary Casino Party. Their instagram is loaded with misguided posts on masks and they think it's some kind of joke. link
It's pathetic that we still have people thinking like this. I only wonder what kind of foolish posts they will have after the city council vote today.

I said I would update when I found something out. The main post states my ex is trying to keep my kids until Wednesday and possibly exposed them to covid. I went to the cops and they couldnt go get the kids without a court order and advized I go see the DA.
Well y'all. The clerk of courts told me the DA is the wrong person to go to, advized me to file a civil warrant, didnt want to provide the paperwork, and sorta gave me an expensive run around. At least thats what she tried to do. My amazing mil finally got someone on the phone and a different lady helped us and slipped us a copy of what we are supposed to file.
My mil helped me fill it out and we turned it it.
Now heres the twisted part. Undoutedly it was rejected. They called and told me that this afternoon. They told me the paperwork was rejected "per code". Which the lady didnt understand either. So tomorrow i have to call and figure out what that means, then see if its an error on their part, and if it is then see how they are going to fix it. If its error on mine then I will figure out what i need to do paperwork wise from there. Next step is to talk to my old lawyer and see how much he would require to help me again. I have a bill with him but I cant afford it. My mil is trying to figure out how we can get help for that right now. Additionally I have to set up appointments for testing and see what I need to do to have them be able to legally quarantine with me 14 days after I get them back from court.
I do want to say that today is the first day court houses opened up in months here, and casinos. Not gonna lie the casino party wirries me as my ex's mother is an addicted gambler and has been for years. Maybe one day ill write up some of my past with these people.
My last step will be seeing what i need to do to move the court system my case is in from the parish that we currently have it to the parish where I live. Theres much more helpful resources there than here.
If anyone has any advice I'm welcoming it. I just wish I knew what else to do.

Looking for someone in the Wilmington area to teach an hour long class on casino craps for a private party in a few weeks. Trying to avoid the casino party planner places. Will pay of course. May provide the table unless said pro has one that can be used for the event. So random, I know

[Cover] [Chapter 1] [Table Of Contents] [Patreon] [Discord] [Join my mailing list for a free book]
This is Book 4: Boarding School Break: Happy Thanksgiving
[Book 2: Boarding School Beginnings] [Book 3: Boarding School Boyfriends]
I have always loved the snow. Every snow day, my father would take my brother and I to the big hill at our school. I would sit on my sled, with my friends nearby, and we would race down the hill, laughing the entire way. Then, we would drag our sleds back up the hill, ready to go again.
When I was nine, my friends brought me to the local ski mountain to go tubing. They showed me how to bring my tube to the top of the mountain and how to ride it down, much like riding my sled. The tubing mountain was fantastic. Even though I was going downhill the entire time, there were little hills along the trail that would slow me down and speed me up.
The next snow day, I realized that sledding was no longer fun. It could not compare to the thrill of tubing. That winter, my friends and I made a pact to go tubing the first Saturday of each month as long as the mountain was open.
This will be the first year I’m tubing without them. I wonder if they will keep up the tradition without me.
Pat and Melinda climbed out of her mother’s car as she idled in front of the ski mountain Friday morning.
“I’ll be back around one. Call me if you’re done earlier, but keep in mind, it takes me nearly an hour to get here.”
“Will do,” Melinda said.
Melinda watched her mother drive away before reaching for Pat’s hand, which was difficult to grasp since they both were wearing gloves. “So, do you want to eat first or go tubing?”
“It’s been at least two hours since I last ate. Food first.” Pat sent her his famous smile.
Melinda returned his smile as they walked into the lodge, which was nearly abandoned that morning. They wandered through the cafeteria, deciding to order a soda to share and some freshly made cookies.
Melinda’s previous boyfriends had always paid for their own food, which Melinda found comforting, since she was never sure when she was supposed to pay for other people. Today, however, her mother had given her some cash to pay for both their tubing tickets. When Melinda had informed Pat, he offered to buy the snacks.
They brought their snack to the upper level of the lodge, sitting at a table in the back corner of the room. They were able to watch skiers going up the lifts and coming back down the mountain, while no one was using the tubing section on the far left of the mountain.
Melinda took a bite of her cookie before waving it towards Pat beside her.
“Random question. And, it’s purely because I’m curious. Do you get an allowance?”
Pat smiled. “What do you think?” He stared out the window while he waited for Melinda’s answer.
“See, I never had an allowance. My parents just kinda give me money when I need to buy something. Like, my mom gave me money for tubing today. But, I think your parents are different. I bet you get an allowance. And, I know you get paid for your movies. I bet that goes into some sort of college fund and you get paid from your parents’ money.”
“Meghan’s right. You are insightful.” Pat’s gaze never left the window.
Melinda observed Pat for a few moments. “You look anxious,” she finally decided. “What’s wrong?”
Before he could answer, she was hit with a sudden realization. “Oh! Are you worried about being recognized? I just realized. I’m sorry. I totally forgot.” She began looking around, but they were the only ones there.
Pat turned back to her and smiled warmly, reaching out to touch her hair. “You’re adorable.” He leaned in to kiss her.
“No,” he said a few minutes later, when Melinda’s heartbeat began to return to its normal rhythm. “I thought about it briefly, but figured I would be so bundled up that no one would recognize me. And, it’s pretty derelict here.”
“Derelict?”
Pat smiled, brushing back her hair. “Um…abandoned. Deserted. Almost neglectfully.”
Melinda looked around, understanding Pat’s description. The lodge felt very old and unused. The wooden benches where they sat were slightly splintered and some of the tables had initials carved into them. The fireplace in the corner was unlit. Whenever Melinda had previously visited, it was always so full of people that it gave a homey feeling. However, with no other people around to give the room life, it did feel somewhat neglected.
Melinda returned her attention to Pat. “Okay. You’re not worried about being recognized. Is it the whole Poppy thing?”
Pat smiled at her weakly. “I was wondering when she was going to ruin our time together. I had nearly forgotten about her. I tend not to think about her when I’m with you.”
“What’s happening with all that?” Melinda was trying to sound casual, but she was anxious to hear his answer.
Pat shrugged, again staring out the window as he answered. “Tuesday, after we all calmed down about the incident with Poppy, Meghan and I spent most of lunch having a long talk with Mom about Cynthia. We explained how she’s not looking out for our best interests anymore.”
Pat looked at Melinda, tracing circles on the back of Melinda’s hand that was resting on the table. “By the end of the meal, I had started to worry about finding a new agent. When we got to the studio to pick up Walter, Mom called Cynthia to fire her.”
“So, now what?”
Pat started playing absently with the cookie on his plate. “I started doing some research, found an agent I like. Mom’s gonna contact him today. We’re gonna try to figure out if Walter and I should have different agents. Meghan is pretty sure she wants Mom’s agent. This is gonna sound pompous, but we’re so famous, most agents would love to represent us.”
Pat gave Melinda a weak smile that did not reach his eyes. Melinda smiled back.
“But, what about the Poppy rumor?”
Pat made a face and shook his head. “We fired Cynthia, so Mom’s agent is gonna try to sort things out for us. But, it’s possible it won’t go away. There’s some legal things we might look into, but, honestly, I’m letting Uncle Brendan figure it all out.”
“The lawyer, right?”
Pat nodded, looking back out the window. Melinda took a sip of her soda as she considered Pat for a moment. “If you’re not worried about being recognized, and you’re not upset about Poppy, then why do you look so anxious?”
To Melinda’s amazement, Pat began to turn red. “I’ve just never gone tubing before.”
Melinda giggled, but she rubbed her hand gently up and down Pat’s lower back as she tried to assuage his fear.
“Tubing is a lot of fun. It’s like sledding. Only faster.”
“It’s dangerous. They make your parent sign one of those waiver things.”
Melinda rolled her eyes, giggling when it seemed to distress Pat even more. “Yes, but, you also sign a waiver when you visit the town pool. It’s no more dangerous.”
“Are you kidding? The town pool? That’s got kids peeing in the water and people jumping on top of you. That’s got to be more dangerous than this!”
“Fine. Then…laser tag. You have to sign a waiver for that.”
“People running around in the dark? You can trip over something and break your neck. Or, you can trip over the person that tripped over something, and you both break your necks. Or –”
Melinda kissed Pat to get him to stop rambling. He pulled her close.
“This is nice. Why don’t we just stay here and do this until your mom comes?”
Melinda giggled as she stood, taking Pat’s hand to pull him up. “Come on. You clean this mess, and I’ll go get the tickets.”
​
It took nearly half an hour for Melinda and Pat to put on all their cold weather gear, collect their tubes and helmets from the rentals building, and trudge to the tubing park. This area of the mountain had ten lanes carved into the snow with walls about the height of the tube to separate each lane.
Melinda showed Pat how to attach his tube to his wrist using the strap, then hold on to his tube while he stepped onto the magic carpet lift.
“It’s like the moving walkways the have at the airport!” Pat announced.
At the top of the mountain, they selected adjoining lanes and Melinda showed Pat how to climb into his tube. Then, she removed the strap from her wrist and tossed it to Pat. “Here. Hang on to this and we can go down together.” Pat did as instructed, and they headed down the mountain.
They swerved up and down their lanes, both squealing in delight as they headed down the mountain, occasionally going over slight bumps in the hill, until they skidded to a stop at the end.
Pat jumped to his feet excitedly. “Wow! That was sick. Let’s go again!”
Melinda lost track of how many times they went down the mountain during the two-hours their passes were valid. On the second run, Melinda ended up turning around after the third bump. The following run, Pat was backwards after the first few feet. He enjoyed it so much, that by the fifth run, he had figured out how to make himself turn backwards for most of the way down the mountain.
​
When they returned to the lodge, Pat and Melinda returned to their table in the back of the room. There were only a handful more people in the lodge, since most of the skiers were still on the mountain. Melinda texted her mother that they were finished and they were about to eat.
Melinda had packed jars of peanut butter and jelly and a loaf of bread, and they made their own sandwiches. After they had each eaten two, Pat was still eyeing the bag of bread.
Melinda giggled. “Go ahead. I don’t mind.”
“But, I don’t want to turn into my brother.”
“Tubing is a physical activity. You’ve got to replace the calories you just burned.”
“You only had two.”
“I normally don’t eat two. I’ve seen you eat, Pat. Have another sandwich. I promise not to tell Walter.”
Pat smiled as he made another sandwich. “So, you’ve been here before?”
Melinda nodded. “My friends and I used to come all the time. I’m shorter than them, so they had been once or twice before I was tall enough to join them. It became an annual thing: go tubing one weekend a month all season.”
“You still do it? Go tubing with them?”
Melinda looked down and sighed. Instinctively, Pat gently rubbed his hand up and down her lower back. She leaned into him.
“Did you have any friends who changed when they started high school? Like, not in a good way?”
Pat considered a moment. “Not really. But, I didn’t have a lot of good friends before Hartfield. Some Hollywood friends, some homeschooling friends locally, but no one close. I didn’t mind. I had Meghan and Walter.”
“I had two really good friends growing up. We did everything together. Looking back, I can see a little how I was different from them. Like, they were always calling me Bookworm. Affectionately, but still. Anyway, when they started high school, they became all boy crazy and just totally different. The first time I came home, I went to a football game with them. As soon as we got there, they stripped into really skimpy clothes, put on a thick layer of makeup, and went outside to smoke cigarettes with their boyfriends. Then, they left me alone with some stranger who assumed I was going to make out with him.”
“I’m sorry,” Pat held her close and played with her hair. “I’ve seen that happen too many times. I’d do a movie with people I liked and respected, and then the movie’s over. The next time I see them, they’ve completely changed and I no longer can like and respect them. I can’t say it’s ever happened to a good friend, though.”
“I don’t mind too much. I have Sarah and Walter now.”
“That reminds me,” Pat sat back a little and snapped his fingers. “Zach finally plugged his phone in and has joined the land of the living. He’s looking forward to meeting you next week.”
“Your best friend? He’s home from Spain?”
“Not yet. His term isn’t over until the end of this week. He’s flying into New York early Sunday and heading straight to campus. He’s not even bothering to see his parents. Then again, I think they went there to visit him this week.”
​
When Melinda’s mother arrived, Melinda and Pat were sitting on a bench in front of the lodge. As people began coming into the lodge for lunch, Melinda and Pat noticed people pointing in their direction. They decided to move outside where Pat could wrap himself in his scarf and hat to be less recognizable. After sitting alone by the fire pit, kissing for a long while, they had headed to the bench near the drop off area.
From their perch, they could watch both the parking lot and the skiers on the mountain. Most of the people in the circle were dropping off their teenagers, not picking them up, and Melinda caught a few sideways glances as they were getting into the car.
Melinda’s mother glanced at them in the rearview mirror as she pulled away. “How was tubing?”
Pat smiled. “It was a lot of fun. I’ve never gone tubing before. Thanks for driving me, Mrs. Luzzelli.”
“I’m glad you had fun. Are you going straight home, or were you planning on staying for a while? Either is fine with me.”
Pat turned to Melinda. “Did you finish that puzzle without me?” When she shook her head, he shrugged. “I guess that means I’m staying for a little while.”
​
Melinda let Pat place the last piece into the puzzle. He stared for a moment at the three kittens sitting in a large basket of brightly colored yarn balls. “It’s cute. It’s a shame we worked so hard and now we have to put it back in the box.”
“Why?” Melinda went to search the closet.
“Because we worked so hard on it.”
“No, I mean, why take it apart?” She returned to the table with a bottle of glue.
“What’s that for?”
“You’ve never glued a puzzle?” When Pat stared at her with raised eyebrows, Melinda explained. “We always do this. Look around. All the pictures on the walls are puzzles.”
Melinda unscrewed the top from the bottle and poured a copious amount on top. Then, she began spreading it around with her fingers.
“Aren’t you gonna help me?”
Pat raised his eyebrows. “And get that all over my fingers?’
Melinda tried to attack him with her gluey hands, but he was able to dodge her. She decided against chasing him, and after a moment, he was beside her, helping her get glue into each crack. They ended up using almost the entire bottle of glue, but eventually it was covered with a thin white film. Melinda smiled at him.
“See? Now it’ll dry clear.”
“That’s pretty cool. I may have to start doing this at home. Now what?”
“Well, first we have to wash our hands.” Melinda led the way to the bathroom. “We have a little time, but you have to leave by five.”
“Why? Is your other boyfriend coming over?”
“Yes. His name is Eric and my parents like him better than you.”
When Pat did not reply, Melinda looked around. He had stopped in the doorway on the other side of her room. He gestured towards the bed.
“Is this your bedroom?”
“Yeah. My bathroom’s right here.” Melinda pointed towards a door on the opposite side of the room.
“I can’t go in there.”
“Huh? Oh. Right. I forgot. Hang on.” Melinda washed her hands, then returned to the hallway. “There. I think you can go wash your hands, if I stand here. So, what do you want to do now?”
Pat called through the room. “I have no idea. WTTE?”
“How about cards?”
Pat crossed the room back to her. “I can play solitaire.”
“How about double solitaire?”
They returned to the study, where Melinda retrieved two decks of card from the closet.
“That’s a game?” Pat joined Melinda on the floor, where she had sat to avoid getting glue all over the cards. He watched her shuffle each deck with a practiced ease. “Mom and Dad had a casino party once. They hired actual dealers from real casinos. They shuffled the cards like that, at the corners. Are you a card shark?”
Melinda giggled. “My grandfather loves playing cards. He taught me when I was seven. I could shuffle better than him by the time I started middle school.”
Pat raised his eyebrows. “You are a card shark! I don’t wanna play with you.”
“It’s only solitaire. Watch.” She handed him the deck of red cards. “Do what I do. First, count out thirteen cards and put them on the left. Turn the last one face up.”
Pat followed Melinda’s directions and she continued. “Now, place four cards face up on the right of the stack. These will be your playing slots later. Now, this is your personal area.”
Pat pointed to Melinda’s pile. “That’s my personal area? It looks like yours.”
Melinda made a face at him and continued to explain the rules.
“Got it. Alright. I’m ready.” Pat leaned in closer to his cards, picking up his deck in one hand and getting his other hand ready to flip his first card.
Melinda giggled. “Okay. Go!”
​
It took three rounds before Pat reached 100 points, beating Melinda by two points. After they separated the decks, Melinda taught Pat how to play War.
Melinda began to explain how to play, but Pat interrupted after a moment. “Wait, I know this game. This is the game I play with Frank,” he said, referring to his roommate at school, whose real name was Pete Wu. He had earned himself the nickname Frankenstein as a third former, and now most people called him Frank.
“I thought you said you only play solitaire.”
“Well, I didn’t know the name of this game. He calls it something else. Jung-Jang, I think. His grandfather taught him. One of his grandfathers speaks Korean, the other one Chinese. I’m not sure which one taught him the game.”
Melinda just shook her head as they played a lively battle of war. They had each won a game when Melinda’s mother called that her ride had arrived.
​
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[Table Of Contents] [Chapter 7]
Follow follow Patrick McGregor's story in Confessions of a Teenage Celebrity - Chapter 4: Tubing

[Cover] [Chapter 1] [Table Of Contents] [Patreon] [Discord] [Join my mailing list to receive a free book]
This is Book 4: Boarding School Break: Happy Thanksgiving
[Book 2: Boarding School Beginnings] [Book 3: Boarding School Boyfriends]
I have always loved the snow. Every snow day, my father would take my brother and I to the big hill at our school. I would sit on my sled, with my friends nearby, and we would race down the hill, laughing the entire way. Then, we would drag our sleds back up the hill, ready to go again.
When I was nine, my friends brought me to the local ski mountain to go tubing. They showed me how to bring my tube to the top of the mountain and how to ride it down, much like riding my sled. The tubing mountain was fantastic. Even though I was going downhill the entire time, there were little hills along the trail that would slow me down and speed me up.
The next snow day, I realized that sledding was no longer fun. It could not compare to the thrill of tubing. That winter, my friends and I made a pact to go tubing the first Saturday of each month as long as the mountain was open.
This will be the first year I’m tubing without them. I wonder if they will keep up the tradition without me.
Pat and Melinda climbed out of her mother’s car as she idled in front of the ski mountain Friday morning.
“I’ll be back around one. Call me if you’re done earlier, but keep in mind, it takes me nearly an hour to get here.”
“Will do,” Melinda said.
Melinda watched her mother drive away before reaching for Pat’s hand, which was difficult to grasp since they both were wearing gloves. “So, do you want to eat first or go tubing?”
“It’s been at least two hours since I last ate. Food first.” Pat sent her his famous smile.
Melinda returned his smile as they walked into the lodge, which was nearly abandoned that morning. They wandered through the cafeteria, deciding to order a soda to share and some freshly made cookies.
Melinda’s previous boyfriends had always paid for their own food, which Melinda found comforting, since she was never sure when she was supposed to pay for other people. Today, however, her mother had given her some cash to pay for both their tubing tickets. When Melinda had informed Pat, he offered to buy the snacks.
They brought their snack to the upper level of the lodge, sitting at a table in the back corner of the room. They were able to watch skiers going up the lifts and coming back down the mountain, while no one was using the tubing section on the far left of the mountain.
Melinda took a bite of her cookie before waving it towards Pat beside her.
“Random question. And, it’s purely because I’m curious. Do you get an allowance?”
Pat smiled. “What do you think?” He stared out the window while he waited for Melinda’s answer.
“See, I never had an allowance. My parents just kinda give me money when I need to buy something. Like, my mom gave me money for tubing today. But, I think your parents are different. I bet you get an allowance. And, I know you get paid for your movies. I bet that goes into some sort of college fund and you get paid from your parents’ money.”
“Meghan’s right. You are insightful.” Pat’s gaze never left the window.
Melinda observed Pat for a few moments. “You look anxious,” she finally decided. “What’s wrong?”
Before he could answer, she was hit with a sudden realization. “Oh! Are you worried about being recognized? I just realized. I’m sorry. I totally forgot.” She began looking around, but they were the only ones there.
Pat turned back to her and smiled warmly, reaching out to touch her hair. “You’re adorable.” He leaned in to kiss her.
“No,” he said a few minutes later, when Melinda’s heartbeat began to return to its normal rhythm. “I thought about it briefly, but figured I would be so bundled up that no one would recognize me. And, it’s pretty derelict here.”
“Derelict?”
Pat smiled, brushing back her hair. “Um…abandoned. Deserted. Almost neglectfully.”
Melinda looked around, understanding Pat’s description. The lodge felt very old and unused. The wooden benches where they sat were slightly splintered and some of the tables had initials carved into them. The fireplace in the corner was unlit. Whenever Melinda had previously visited, it was always so full of people that it gave a homey feeling. However, with no other people around to give the room life, it did feel somewhat neglected.
Melinda returned her attention to Pat. “Okay. You’re not worried about being recognized. Is it the whole Poppy thing?”
Pat smiled at her weakly. “I was wondering when she was going to ruin our time together. I had nearly forgotten about her. I tend not to think about her when I’m with you.”
“What’s happening with all that?” Melinda was trying to sound casual, but she was anxious to hear his answer.
Pat shrugged, again staring out the window as he answered. “Tuesday, after we all calmed down about the incident with Poppy, Meghan and I spent most of lunch having a long talk with Mom about Cynthia. We explained how she’s not looking out for our best interests anymore.”
Pat looked at Melinda, tracing circles on the back of Melinda’s hand that was resting on the table. “By the end of the meal, I had started to worry about finding a new agent. When we got to the studio to pick up Walter, Mom called Cynthia to fire her.”
“So, now what?”
Pat started playing absently with the cookie on his plate. “I started doing some research, found an agent I like. Mom’s gonna contact him today. We’re gonna try to figure out if Walter and I should have different agents. Meghan is pretty sure she wants Mom’s agent. This is gonna sound pompous, but we’re so famous, most agents would love to represent us.”
Pat gave Melinda a weak smile that did not reach his eyes. Melinda smiled back.
“But, what about the Poppy rumor?”
Pat made a face and shook his head. “We fired Cynthia, so Mom’s agent is gonna try to sort things out for us. But, it’s possible it won’t go away. There’s some legal things we might look into, but, honestly, I’m letting Uncle Brendan figure it all out.”
“The lawyer, right?”
Pat nodded, looking back out the window. Melinda took a sip of her soda as she considered Pat for a moment. “If you’re not worried about being recognized, and you’re not upset about Poppy, then why do you look so anxious?”
To Melinda’s amazement, Pat began to turn red. “I’ve just never gone tubing before.”
Melinda giggled, but she rubbed her hand gently up and down Pat’s lower back as she tried to assuage his fear.
“Tubing is a lot of fun. It’s like sledding. Only faster.”
“It’s dangerous. They make your parent sign one of those waiver things.”
Melinda rolled her eyes, giggling when it seemed to distress Pat even more. “Yes, but, you also sign a waiver when you visit the town pool. It’s no more dangerous.”
“Are you kidding? The town pool? That’s got kids peeing in the water and people jumping on top of you. That’s got to be more dangerous than this!”
“Fine. Then…laser tag. You have to sign a waiver for that.”
“People running around in the dark? You can trip over something and break your neck. Or, you can trip over the person that tripped over something, and you both break your necks. Or –”
Melinda kissed Pat to get him to stop rambling. He pulled her close.
“This is nice. Why don’t we just stay here and do this until your mom comes?”
Melinda giggled as she stood, taking Pat’s hand to pull him up. “Come on. You clean this mess, and I’ll go get the tickets.”
​
It took nearly half an hour for Melinda and Pat to put on all their cold weather gear, collect their tubes and helmets from the rentals building, and trudge to the tubing park. This area of the mountain had ten lanes carved into the snow with walls about the height of the tube to separate each lane.
Melinda showed Pat how to attach his tube to his wrist using the strap, then hold on to his tube while he stepped onto the magic carpet lift.
“It’s like the moving walkways the have at the airport!” Pat announced.
At the top of the mountain, they selected adjoining lanes and Melinda showed Pat how to climb into his tube. Then, she removed the strap from her wrist and tossed it to Pat. “Here. Hang on to this and we can go down together.” Pat did as instructed, and they headed down the mountain.
They swerved up and down their lanes, both squealing in delight as they headed down the mountain, occasionally going over slight bumps in the hill, until they skidded to a stop at the end.
Pat jumped to his feet excitedly. “Wow! That was sick. Let’s go again!”
Melinda lost track of how many times they went down the mountain during the two-hours their passes were valid. On the second run, Melinda ended up turning around after the third bump. The following run, Pat was backwards after the first few feet. He enjoyed it so much, that by the fifth run, he had figured out how to make himself turn backwards for most of the way down the mountain.
​
When they returned to the lodge, Pat and Melinda returned to their table in the back of the room. There were only a handful more people in the lodge, since most of the skiers were still on the mountain. Melinda texted her mother that they were finished and they were about to eat.
Melinda had packed jars of peanut butter and jelly and a loaf of bread, and they made their own sandwiches. After they had each eaten two, Pat was still eyeing the bag of bread.
Melinda giggled. “Go ahead. I don’t mind.”
“But, I don’t want to turn into my brother.”
“Tubing is a physical activity. You’ve got to replace the calories you just burned.”
“You only had two.”
“I normally don’t eat two. I’ve seen you eat, Pat. Have another sandwich. I promise not to tell Walter.”
Pat smiled as he made another sandwich. “So, you’ve been here before?”
Melinda nodded. “My friends and I used to come all the time. I’m shorter than them, so they had been once or twice before I was tall enough to join them. It became an annual thing: go tubing one weekend a month all season.”
“You still do it? Go tubing with them?”
Melinda looked down and sighed. Instinctively, Pat gently rubbed his hand up and down her lower back. She leaned into him.
“Did you have any friends who changed when they started high school? Like, not in a good way?”
Pat considered a moment. “Not really. But, I didn’t have a lot of good friends before Hartfield. Some Hollywood friends, some homeschooling friends locally, but no one close. I didn’t mind. I had Meghan and Walter.”
“I had two really good friends growing up. We did everything together. Looking back, I can see a little how I was different from them. Like, they were always calling me Bookworm. Affectionately, but still. Anyway, when they started high school, they became all boy crazy and just totally different. The first time I came home, I went to a football game with them. As soon as we got there, they stripped into really skimpy clothes, put on a thick layer of makeup, and went outside to smoke cigarettes with their boyfriends. Then, they left me alone with some stranger who assumed I was going to make out with him.”
“I’m sorry,” Pat held her close and played with her hair. “I’ve seen that happen too many times. I’d do a movie with people I liked and respected, and then the movie’s over. The next time I see them, they’ve completely changed and I no longer can like and respect them. I can’t say it’s ever happened to a good friend, though.”
“I don’t mind too much. I have Sarah and Walter now.”
“That reminds me,” Pat sat back a little and snapped his fingers. “Zach finally plugged his phone in and has joined the land of the living. He’s looking forward to meeting you next week.”
“Your best friend? He’s home from Spain?”
“Not yet. His term isn’t over until the end of this week. He’s flying into New York early Sunday and heading straight to campus. He’s not even bothering to see his parents. Then again, I think they went there to visit him this week.”
​
When Melinda’s mother arrived, Melinda and Pat were sitting on a bench in front of the lodge. As people began coming into the lodge for lunch, Melinda and Pat noticed people pointing in their direction. They decided to move outside where Pat could wrap himself in his scarf and hat to be less recognizable. After sitting alone by the fire pit, kissing for a long while, they had headed to the bench near the drop off area.
From their perch, they could watch both the parking lot and the skiers on the mountain. Most of the people in the circle were dropping off their teenagers, not picking them up, and Melinda caught a few sideways glances as they were getting into the car.
Melinda’s mother glanced at them in the rearview mirror as she pulled away. “How was tubing?”
Pat smiled. “It was a lot of fun. I’ve never gone tubing before. Thanks for driving me, Mrs. Luzzelli.”
“I’m glad you had fun. Are you going straight home, or were you planning on staying for a while? Either is fine with me.”
Pat turned to Melinda. “Did you finish that puzzle without me?” When she shook her head, he shrugged. “I guess that means I’m staying for a little while.”
​
Melinda let Pat place the last piece into the puzzle. He stared for a moment at the three kittens sitting in a large basket of brightly colored yarn balls. “It’s cute. It’s a shame we worked so hard and now we have to put it back in the box.”
“Why?” Melinda went to search the closet.
“Because we worked so hard on it.”
“No, I mean, why take it apart?” She returned to the table with a bottle of glue.
“What’s that for?”
“You’ve never glued a puzzle?” When Pat stared at her with raised eyebrows, Melinda explained. “We always do this. Look around. All the pictures on the walls are puzzles.”
Melinda unscrewed the top from the bottle and poured a copious amount on top. Then, she began spreading it around with her fingers.
“Aren’t you gonna help me?”
Pat raised his eyebrows. “And get that all over my fingers?’
Melinda tried to attack him with her gluey hands, but he was able to dodge her. She decided against chasing him, and after a moment, he was beside her, helping her get glue into each crack. They ended up using almost the entire bottle of glue, but eventually it was covered with a thin white film. Melinda smiled at him.
“See? Now it’ll dry clear.”
“That’s pretty cool. I may have to start doing this at home. Now what?”
“Well, first we have to wash our hands.” Melinda led the way to the bathroom. “We have a little time, but you have to leave by five.”
“Why? Is your other boyfriend coming over?”
“Yes. His name is Eric and my parents like him better than you.”
When Pat did not reply, Melinda looked around. He had stopped in the doorway on the other side of her room. He gestured towards the bed.
“Is this your bedroom?”
“Yeah. My bathroom’s right here.” Melinda pointed towards a door on the opposite side of the room.
“I can’t go in there.”
“Huh? Oh. Right. I forgot. Hang on.” Melinda washed her hands, then returned to the hallway. “There. I think you can go wash your hands, if I stand here. So, what do you want to do now?”
Pat called through the room. “I have no idea. WTTE?”
“How about cards?”
Pat crossed the room back to her. “I can play solitaire.”
“How about double solitaire?”
They returned to the study, where Melinda retrieved two decks of card from the closet.
“That’s a game?” Pat joined Melinda on the floor, where she had sat to avoid getting glue all over the cards. He watched her shuffle each deck with a practiced ease. “Mom and Dad had a casino party once. They hired actual dealers from real casinos. They shuffled the cards like that, at the corners. Are you a card shark?”
Melinda giggled. “My grandfather loves playing cards. He taught me when I was seven. I could shuffle better than him by the time I started middle school.”
Pat raised his eyebrows. “You are a card shark! I don’t wanna play with you.”
“It’s only solitaire. Watch.” She handed him the deck of red cards. “Do what I do. First, count out thirteen cards and put them on the left. Turn the last one face up.”
Pat followed Melinda’s directions and she continued. “Now, place four cards face up on the right of the stack. These will be your playing slots later. Now, this is your personal area.”
Pat pointed to Melinda’s pile. “That’s my personal area? It looks like yours.”
Melinda made a face at him and continued to explain the rules.
“Got it. Alright. I’m ready.” Pat leaned in closer to his cards, picking up his deck in one hand and getting his other hand ready to flip his first card.
Melinda giggled. “Okay. Go!”
​
It took three rounds before Pat reached 100 points, beating Melinda by two points. After they separated the decks, Melinda taught Pat how to play War.
Melinda began to explain how to play, but Pat interrupted after a moment. “Wait, I know this game. This is the game I play with Frank,” he said, referring to his roommate at school, whose real name was Pete Wu. He had earned himself the nickname Frankenstein as a third former, and now most people called him Frank.
“I thought you said you only play solitaire.”
“Well, I didn’t know the name of this game. He calls it something else. Jung-Jang, I think. His grandfather taught him. One of his grandfathers speaks Korean, the other one Chinese. I’m not sure which one taught him the game.”
Melinda just shook her head as they played a lively battle of war. They had each won a game when Melinda’s mother called that her ride had arrived.
​
[Table Of Contents] [Chapter 38]
Follow Patrick McGregor's story in Confessions of a Teenage Celebrity - Chapter 13: Tubing

[Cover] [Table Of Contents] [Prologue] [Patreon] [Discord] [Join my mailing list to receive a free book]
[Book 1: Relationships]
As Melinda led me towards the ski lodge, I began to wonder what I had gotten myself into. From where we were standing, I could only see the ski slopes, not the tube park. It was pretty cold outside. Maybe Melinda would change her mind and we could just stay in the lodge.
Exploring the cafeteria options, I was glad Melinda had brought us lunch. Nothing sounded very appealing. However, as we debated between getting two sodas or one to share, we saw someone behind the counter putting warm cookies into a display case.
We sat beside each other near the window, where we could watch the mountain while we ate. Melinda was trying to make conversation, but I was only giving her part of my attention as I looked out the window.
I didn’t see anyone tubing. I only saw skiiers. The people on the mountain seemed to be enjoying themselves. I wondered if they knew how dangerous winter mountain sports could be. There was a stretch of the mountain to my left no one seemed to be using. I wondered if they had closed off that part because of some horrible accident.
“You look anxious.” I could hear the concern in her voice. “What’s wrong. Oh! Are you worried about being recognized?”
I turned away from the window. My adorable girlfriend was looking all around as she continued to babble. “I just realized. I’m sorry. I totally forgot.”
“You’re adorable.” I played with her hair before pulling her in for a kiss. Somehow, that calmed me slightly. I explained how the place was so empty I wasn’t too concerned about crazy fans.
“Okay. You’re not worried about being recognized. Is it the whole Poppy thing?”
I smiled at her weakly. “I was wondering when she was going to ruin our time together. I had nearly forgotten about her. I tend not to think about her when I’m with you.”
“What’s happening with all that?”
There was a small red speck barreling downhill. I watched it grow larger as I explained to Melinda how Meghan and I convinced our mother to fire our agent. The red speck eventually turned into a full-sized person who skied straight back onto the empty lift. I turned to Melinda. She began to play with my hand on the table.
“So, now what?”
I picked up my cookie and put it back down a few times without actually eating it.
“I started doing some research, found an agent I like. Mom’s gonna contact him today. We’re gonna try to figure out if Walter and I should have different agents. Meghan is pretty sure she wants Mom’s agent. This is gonna sound pompous, but we’re so famous, most agents would love to represent us.”
“But, what about the Poppy rumor?”
“We fired Cynthia, so Mom’s agent is gonna try to sort things out for us. But, it’s possible it won’t go away. There’s some legal things we might look into, but, honestly, I’m letting Uncle Brendan figure it all out.”
“The lawyer, right?” Melinda asked.
I watched another speck speed down the hill. Melinda slurped the soda we were sharing before trying to resume the conversation.
“If you’re not worried about being recognized, and you’re not upset about Poppy, then why do you look so anxious?”
I wanted to lie, but figured that probably wouldn’t be a great idea. I felt my face grow warm as I turned to her. “I’ve just never gone tubing before.”
Melinda giggled, but she reached around to trace her hand along my spine. That was supposed to be my job. I held her close, playing with her hair as she tried to assuage my fears.
“Tubing is a lot of fun. It’s like sledding. Only faster.”
“It’s dangerous. They make your parent sign one of those waiver things.”
“Yes. But, you also sign a waiver when you visit the town pool. It’s no more dangerous.”
“Are you kidding? The town pool? That’s got kids peeing in the water and people jumping on top of you. That’s got to be more dangerous than this!”
“Fine. Then...laser tag. You have to sign a waiver for that.”
“People running around in the dark? You can trip over something and break your neck. Or, you can trip over the person that tripped over something, and you both break your necks. Or –”
Melinda stopped my babbling with a kiss. That calmed my anxiety a lot. But, I wasn’t going to drop the subject completely. I pulled her close.
“This is nice. Why don’t we just stay here and do this until your mom comes?”
Melinda stood up, giggling as she reached for my hand. “Come on. You clean this mess, and I’ll go get the tickets.”
She tugged me to my feet, then went to the desk near the front entrance while I threw the garbage into the nearest can. A few moments later, she returned with two stickers and two strange-looking metal things. They looked like witches’ hats, or noses.
Melinda showed me how to attach the metal wicket to my zipper, then put the adhesive ticket on either side to create a tag. We bundled ourselves out and went back to the cold.
Melinda led me to the rental building, where an attendant gave us helmets and tubes, which we dragged to the tubing park.
As we approached, I realized we were heading right for the part I had assumed had been closed. There were about ten lanes, divided by mounds of snow, and they had small bumps as they went down the mountain.
Melinda stopped as we got near the bottom of the mountain. “Put down your tube and gimme your hand.”
Gladly. That thing was getting heavy. I held out my arm. “Everything okay?”
Melinda bent down to my tube, picking up a leash I had not noticed earlier. She fastened the strap around my wrist.
“We’re gonna get on the lift now. You can just kinda drag your tube behind you on the way up, okay?”
“How do I get on the lift?”
She pointed to a black belt slowly moving up the mountain. “It’s kinda like an escalator with no stairs. Just step on. Follow me.”
She boarded the lift and I followed. At the top of the mountain, I followed Melinda to a center lane and she showed me how to sit in my tube. Then she moved to the lane beside me.
Before we left, she took her strap from her wrist and tossed it to me. “Here. Hang on to this and we can go down together.”
I held it tight as we pushed off.
Tubing was more exhilarating than I could have imagined. We didn’t go straight downhill. There were bumps. There were dips. The tube slid from side to side within the lane. Before I knew it, we were slowing down at the bottom.
I jumped out of my tube, feeling more alive than I had in a while. “Wow! That was sick. Let’s go again!” I was nearly bouncing with excitement.
Our passes were only good for two hours, and I wanted to get every second’s worth. I raced back to the lift.
I didn’t need to hold Melinda’s leash anymore. I wasn’t scared. As a result, she ended up turning backwards on our next run. I was a little in front of her, so I didn’t notice until we had reached the bottom.
The third time down, I ended up backwards before the first bump. It was even more exhilarating because I had no idea what was coming next. I spent the fourth run figuring out how to do it on purpose, finally succeeding about a third of the way down my fifth run. I spent the rest of the two hours tubing backwards.
The lodge was a little more crowded when we were done tubing. The ski mountain was started to have a little more life as well.
We went back to where we had sat before, where Melinda had left her soft cooler lying. Apparently, it is normal to leave your belongings lying around a ski lodge. I had worried someone would move it or put it in lost and found, but it was exactly where we had left it.
Melinda sat beside me and texted her mother while I emptied the contents of the cooler. She explained her mother was at a nearby mall and would get us in about an hour.
We made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. After two, I was still hungry. I didn’t say anything, but there must have been something in my expression because Melinda started giggling as she leaned against me slightly.
“Go ahead. I don’t mind.”
“But, I don’t want to turn into my brother.”
“Tubing is a physical activity. You’ve got to replace the calories you just burned.”
“You only had two.”
“I normally don’t eat two. I’ve seen you eat, Pat. Have another sandwich. I promise not to tell Walter.”
As I ate the third sandwich, Melinda told me about how she used to come here with her friends. Then, we talked about how her friends had changed once they started high school.
I felt bad that I couldn’t relate. I had never let anyone get close to me until Hartfield. But, Melinda just seemed to be looking for someone to share her story, not her emotions.
We talked a little about one of my best friends at school, Zach. Then we talked a little about going back to school.
People started coming off the mountain and the lodge was getting a little more crowded. I saw people starting to stare in our direction.
“Can we go somewhere less conspicuous?” I asked as I started packing the picnic back into the cooler.
Melinda looked around. “Yeah, sure. I have an idea.”
We took the cooler and went out a glass door towards the slopes. Melinda backtracked slightly until we were in a small area away from both the lodge and the slopes. A fire pit had been constructed with Adirondack chairs surrounding it.
I sat in one of the chairs, pulling Melinda into my lap. We kissed for a long time, unfazed by the cold, until she thought we should go wait for her mother.
​
“How was it?” Melinda’s mother asked as she pulled away from the drop off circle.
I smiled. “It was a lot of fun. I’ve never gone tubing before. Thanks for driving me, Mrs. Luzzelli.”
Melinda’s mother smiled. “I’m glad you had fun. Are you going straight home, or were you planning on staying for a while? Either is fine with me.”
I turned to Melinda, sitting beside me in the backseat. “Did you finish that puzzle without me?”
When she shook her head, I turned my attention back to her mother. “I guess that means I’m staying for a little while.”
​
I placed the last piece into the jigsaw puzzle and stood back to examine my work. The picture displayed three kittens sitting on yarn balls of various colors in a large woven basket.
“It’s cute. It’s a shame we worked so hard and now we have to put it back in the box.”
Melinda went to the closet. “Why?”
“Because we worked so hard on it.” Wasn’t she listening?
“No, I mean, why take it apart?” She returned to the table with a bottle of glue.
“What’s that for?”
“You’ve never glued a puzzle?”
No, because I hadn’t done puzzles since I was little. I had no idea what she meant. I just stared at her.
“We always do this. Look around. All the pictures on the walls are puzzles.”
I did as she said, noticing for the first time that all the artwork on the walls were indeed puzzles of various shapes and sizes. While I was admiring all the framed puzzles, Melinda dumped the glue on top of the one we had just completed, then massaged it between the pieces.
“Aren’t you gonna help me?”
No. It looked squishy and gross. I didn’t want to touch it. I tried to respond as nonchalantly as possible. “And get that all over my fingers?’
Melinda smiled mischievously, then reached for me with her glue-covered hands. I leapt out of her way. I expected her to follow me, but she went back to gluing the puzzle.
I stood beside her, watching over her shoulder before deciding to help. It didn’t take too long and, despite our hands being covered in glue, wasn’t quite as icky as I thought it would be.
When we could no longer see the cats and yarn through the white film, Melinda stood back to admire our handiwork.
“See? Now it’ll dry clear.”
“That’s pretty cool. I may have to start doing this at home.” I meant it, too. Doing the puzzle had been a lot more fun and way more relaxing than I had anticipated. “Now what?”
Melinda led me down the hall. “Well, first we have to wash our hands. We have a little time, but you have to leave by five.”
I couldn’t help but tease her as she entered a bedroom. Since it had a lot of pink and purple, I was pretty sure it was hers.
“Why? Is your other boyfriend coming over?”
“Yes. His name is Eric and my parents like him better than you.”
Melinda turned around. I could tell she was waiting for my response to her joke. (I’m pretty sure it had been a joke.)
Instead, I pointed to the bed. “Is this your bedroom?”
“Yeah. My bathroom’s right here.” Melinda pointed towards a door on the opposite side of the room.
“I can’t go in there.”
“Huh?” Her bafflement was adorable. “Oh. Right. I forgot. Hang on.” Melinda left the bathroom door open as she washed her hands. Then, she came to stand beside me in the doorway.
“There. I think you can go wash your hands, if I stand here.” As I crossed the room, she called after me, “So, what do you want to do now?”
I wasn’t sure if soap would make it harder to get the glue off, but since there were still bubbles in the sink from Melinda, I decided to try it as I answered her. “I have no idea. WTTE?”
“How about cards?”
I made a face into the mirror, but I was pretty sure she couldn’t see me. I waited until I was beside her before responding. “I can play solitaire.”
I followed her back to the study, where Melinda took two decks of cards from a box in the closet. “How about double solitaire?” Melinda suggested as she sat on the floor.
“That’s a game?” I sat on the floor across from her and watched her shuffle. It was different than the normal way. There was something about it that was familiar.
“Mom and Dad had a casino party once.” My eyes were fixed on her hands. “They hired actual dealers from real casinos. They shuffled the cards like that, at the corners. Are you a card shark?”
Melinda giggled. “My grandfather loves playing cards. He taught me when I was seven. I could shuffle better than him by the time I started middle school.”
“You are a card shark! I don’t wanna play with you.”
“It’s only solitaire. Watch.” She handed me the deck of red cards.
I copied Melinda as we laid out cards in front of ourselves and created playing slots. She explained how to play our personal space and the shared space. After she explained the scoring, we played the first round.
I picked up my pile in my left hand and prepared my right to flip the first cards when Melinda gave the signal.
She beat me, forty to twenty in the first round, but I was a fast learner and I reached a hundred points in the third round, while she still had eighty-nine.
We separated the decks and she said she would teach me to play War. She then described the game I played with my roommate.
“Wait. I know this game. This is the game I play with Frank.”
“I thought you said you only play solitaire.”
“Well, I didn’t know the name of this game. He calls it something else. Jung-Jang, I think. His grandfather taught him. One of his grandfathers speaks Korean, the other one Chinese. I’m not sure which one taught him the game.”
Melinda smiled as she picked up her stack and we began flipping the cards. I won the first game and she won the second. We had just separated the stacks for a tiebreaker round when her other boyfriend arrived.
​
“Melinda!” Her mother called up the stairs a few moments after we heard the doorbell sound. “Your ride is here.”
Oh man! I had lost all track of time. I kept my voice low as Melinda packed the cards away.
“I didn’t get to say goodbye.”
She turned and put her arms around my neck. “I’ll see you Sunday. I’ll try to get back to campus early.” Our kiss was interrupted by a knock on the door.
Melinda’s roommate was standing just over the threshold with a knowing smile. “Sorry.”
Her miniature clone peered around her into the room. I had met her once before, so I knew she wasn’t about to turn into a screaming fan. She started waving at Melinda, but when she saw me, she started signing frantically.
Although I had learned American Sign Language for my last film, I was not able to follow Crystal when she got excited. I missed a lot of what she was asking, but I got the impression she wanted to know why I was there and if Melinda was my girlfriend.
I laughed, speaking aloud as I signed. “Slow down! Melinda will tell you all about it later. I better get home. Hi, Sarah. Bye, Sarah!”
I smiled at Melinda’s roommate, kissed the top of Melinda’s head quickly, then started out of the room, the three girls in tow. As I got in my car, I saw Melinda wave one last time before shutting the door.
​
[Table Of Contents] [Chapter 13, Part 2]
Want to read more about Walter and Melinda? Check out Boarding School Blues - Chapter 37: Tubing

[Cover] [Table Of Contents] [Prologue] [Book 1] [Patreon] [Discord] [Join my mailing list for a free book]
As Melinda led me towards the ski lodge, I began to wonder what I had gotten myself into. From where we were standing, I could only see the ski slopes, not the tube park. It was pretty cold outside. Maybe Melinda would change her mind and we could just stay in the lodge.
Exploring the cafeteria options, I was glad Melinda had brought us lunch. Nothing sounded very appealing. However, as we debated between getting two sodas or one to share, we saw someone behind the counter putting warm cookies into a display case.
We sat beside each other near the window, where we could watch the mountain while we ate. Melinda was trying to make conversation, but I was only giving her part of my attention as I looked out the window.
I didn’t see anyone tubing. I only saw skiiers. The people on the mountain seemed to be enjoying themselves. I wondered if they knew how dangerous winter mountain sports could be. There was a stretch of the mountain to my left no one seemed to be using. I wondered if they had closed off that part because of some horrible accident.
“You look anxious.” I could hear the concern in her voice. “What’s wrong. Oh! Are you worried about being recognized?”
I turned away from the window. My adorable girlfriend was looking all around as she continued to babble. “I just realized. I’m sorry. I totally forgot.”
“You’re adorable.” I played with her hair before pulling her in for a kiss. Somehow, that calmed me slightly. I explained how the place was so empty I wasn’t too concerned about crazy fans.
“Okay. You’re not worried about being recognized. Is it the whole Poppy thing?”
I smiled at her weakly. “I was wondering when she was going to ruin our time together. I had nearly forgotten about her. I tend not to think about her when I’m with you.”
“What’s happening with all that?”
There was a small red speck barreling downhill. I watched it grow larger as I explained to Melinda how Meghan and I convinced our mother to fire our agent. The red speck eventually turned into a full-sized person who skied straight back onto the empty lift. I turned to Melinda. She began to play with my hand on the table.
“So, now what?”
I picked up my cookie and put it back down a few times without actually eating it.
“I started doing some research, found an agent I like. Mom’s gonna contact him today. We’re gonna try to figure out if Walter and I should have different agents. Meghan is pretty sure she wants Mom’s agent. This is gonna sound pompous, but we’re so famous, most agents would love to represent us.”
“But, what about the Poppy rumor?”
“We fired Cynthia, so Mom’s agent is gonna try to sort things out for us. But, it’s possible it won’t go away. There’s some legal things we might look into, but, honestly, I’m letting Uncle Brendan figure it all out.”
“The lawyer, right?” Melinda asked.
I watched another speck speed down the hill. Melinda slurped the soda we were sharing before trying to resume the conversation.
“If you’re not worried about being recognized, and you’re not upset about Poppy, then why do you look so anxious?”
I wanted to lie, but figured that probably wouldn’t be a great idea. I felt my face grow warm as I turned to her. “I’ve just never gone tubing before.”
Melinda giggled, but she reached around to trace her hand along my spine. That was supposed to be my job. I held her close, playing with her hair as she tried to assuage my fears.
“Tubing is a lot of fun. It’s like sledding. Only faster.”
“It’s dangerous. They make your parent sign one of those waiver things.”
“Yes. But, you also sign a waiver when you visit the town pool. It’s no more dangerous.”
“Are you kidding? The town pool? That’s got kids peeing in the water and people jumping on top of you. That’s got to be more dangerous than this!”
“Fine. Then...laser tag. You have to sign a waiver for that.”
“People running around in the dark? You can trip over something and break your neck. Or, you can trip over the person that tripped over something, and you both break your necks. Or –”
Melinda stopped my babbling with a kiss. That calmed my anxiety a lot. But, I wasn’t going to drop the subject completely. I pulled her close.
“This is nice. Why don’t we just stay here and do this until your mom comes?”
Melinda stood up, giggling as she reached for my hand. “Come on. You clean this mess, and I’ll go get the tickets.”
She tugged me to my feet, then went to the desk near the front entrance while I threw the garbage into the nearest can. A few moments later, she returned with two stickers and two strange-looking metal things. They looked like witches’ hats, or noses.
Melinda showed me how to attach the metal wicket to my zipper, then put the adhesive ticket on either side to create a tag. We bundled ourselves out and went back to the cold.
Melinda led me to the rental building, where an attendant gave us helmets and tubes, which we dragged to the tubing park.
As we approached, I realized we were heading right for the part I had assumed had been closed. There were about ten lanes, divided by mounds of snow, and they had small bumps as they went down the mountain.
Melinda stopped as we got near the bottom of the mountain. “Put down your tube and gimme your hand.”
Gladly. That thing was getting heavy. I held out my arm. “Everything okay?”
Melinda bent down to my tube, picking up a leash I had not noticed earlier. She fastened the strap around my wrist.
“We’re gonna get on the lift now. You can just kinda drag your tube behind you on the way up, okay?”
“How do I get on the lift?”
She pointed to a black belt slowly moving up the mountain. “It’s kinda like an escalator with no stairs. Just step on. Follow me.”
She boarded the lift and I followed. At the top of the mountain, I followed Melinda to a center lane and she showed me how to sit in my tube. Then she moved to the lane beside me.
Before we left, she took her strap from her wrist and tossed it to me. “Here. Hang on to this and we can go down together.”
I held it tight as we pushed off.
Tubing was more exhilarating than I could have imagined. We didn’t go straight downhill. There were bumps. There were dips. The tube slid from side to side within the lane. Before I knew it, we were slowing down at the bottom.
I jumped out of my tube, feeling more alive than I had in a while. “Wow! That was sick. Let’s go again!” I was nearly bouncing with excitement.
Our passes were only good for two hours, and I wanted to get every second’s worth. I raced back to the lift.
I didn’t need to hold Melinda’s leash anymore. I wasn’t scared. As a result, she ended up turning backwards on our next run. I was a little in front of her, so I didn’t notice until we had reached the bottom.
The third time down, I ended up backwards before the first bump. It was even more exhilarating because I had no idea what was coming next. I spent the fourth run figuring out how to do it on purpose, finally succeeding about a third of the way down my fifth run. I spent the rest of the two hours tubing backwards.
The lodge was a little more crowded when we were done tubing. The ski mountain was started to have a little more life as well.
We went back to where we had sat before, where Melinda had left her soft cooler lying. Apparently, it is normal to leave your belongings lying around a ski lodge. I had worried someone would move it or put it in lost and found, but it was exactly where we had left it.
Melinda sat beside me and texted her mother while I emptied the contents of the cooler. She explained her mother was at a nearby mall and would get us in about an hour.
We made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. After two, I was still hungry. I didn’t say anything, but there must have been something in my expression because Melinda started giggling as she leaned against me slightly.
“Go ahead. I don’t mind.”
“But, I don’t want to turn into my brother.”
“Tubing is a physical activity. You’ve got to replace the calories you just burned.”
“You only had two.”
“I normally don’t eat two. I’ve seen you eat, Pat. Have another sandwich. I promise not to tell Walter.”
As I ate the third sandwich, Melinda told me about how she used to come here with her friends. Then, we talked about how her friends had changed once they started high school.
I felt bad that I couldn’t relate. I had never let anyone get close to me until Hartfield. But, Melinda just seemed to be looking for someone to share her story, not her emotions.
We talked a little about one of my best friends at school, Zach. Then we talked a little about going back to school.
People started coming off the mountain and the lodge was getting a little more crowded. I saw people starting to stare in our direction.
“Can we go somewhere less conspicuous?” I asked as I started packing the picnic back into the cooler.
Melinda looked around. “Yeah, sure. I have an idea.”
We took the cooler and went out a glass door towards the slopes. Melinda backtracked slightly until we were in a small area away from both the lodge and the slopes. A fire pit had been constructed with Adirondack chairs surrounding it.
I sat in one of the chairs, pulling Melinda into my lap. We kissed for a long time, unfazed by the cold, until she thought we should go wait for her mother.
​
“How was it?” Melinda’s mother asked as she pulled away from the drop off circle.
I smiled. “It was a lot of fun. I’ve never gone tubing before. Thanks for driving me, Mrs. Luzzelli.”
Melinda’s mother smiled. “I’m glad you had fun. Are you going straight home, or were you planning on staying for a while? Either is fine with me.”
I turned to Melinda, sitting beside me in the backseat. “Did you finish that puzzle without me?”
When she shook her head, I turned my attention back to her mother. “I guess that means I’m staying for a little while.”
​
I placed the last piece into the jigsaw puzzle and stood back to examine my work. The picture displayed three kittens sitting on yarn balls of various colors in a large woven basket.
“It’s cute. It’s a shame we worked so hard and now we have to put it back in the box.”
Melinda went to the closet. “Why?”
“Because we worked so hard on it.” Wasn’t she listening?
“No, I mean, why take it apart?” She returned to the table with a bottle of glue.
“What’s that for?”
“You’ve never glued a puzzle?”
No, because I hadn’t done puzzles since I was little. I had no idea what she meant. I just stared at her.
“We always do this. Look around. All the pictures on the walls are puzzles.”
I did as she said, noticing for the first time that all the artwork on the walls were indeed puzzles of various shapes and sizes. While I was admiring all the framed puzzles, Melinda dumped the glue on top of the one we had just completed, then massaged it between the pieces.
“Aren’t you gonna help me?”
No. It looked squishy and gross. I didn’t want to touch it. I tried to respond as nonchalantly as possible. “And get that all over my fingers?’
Melinda smiled mischievously, then reached for me with her glue-covered hands. I leapt out of her way. I expected her to follow me, but she went back to gluing the puzzle.
I stood beside her, watching over her shoulder before deciding to help. It didn’t take too long and, despite our hands being covered in glue, wasn’t quite as icky as I thought it would be.
When we could no longer see the cats and yarn through the white film, Melinda stood back to admire our handiwork.
“See? Now it’ll dry clear.”
“That’s pretty cool. I may have to start doing this at home.” I meant it, too. Doing the puzzle had been a lot more fun and way more relaxing than I had anticipated. “Now what?”
Melinda led me down the hall. “Well, first we have to wash our hands. We have a little time, but you have to leave by five.”
I couldn’t help but tease her as she entered a bedroom. Since it had a lot of pink and purple, I was pretty sure it was hers.
“Why? Is your other boyfriend coming over?”
“Yes. His name is Eric and my parents like him better than you.”
Melinda turned around. I could tell she was waiting for my response to her joke. (I’m pretty sure it had been a joke.)
Instead, I pointed to the bed. “Is this your bedroom?”
“Yeah. My bathroom’s right here.” Melinda pointed towards a door on the opposite side of the room.
“I can’t go in there.”
“Huh?” Her bafflement was adorable. “Oh. Right. I forgot. Hang on.” Melinda left the bathroom door open as she washed her hands. Then, she came to stand beside me in the doorway.
“There. I think you can go wash your hands, if I stand here.” As I crossed the room, she called after me, “So, what do you want to do now?”
I wasn’t sure if soap would make it harder to get the glue off, but since there were still bubbles in the sink from Melinda, I decided to try it as I answered her. “I have no idea. WTTE?”
“How about cards?”
I made a face into the mirror, but I was pretty sure she couldn’t see me. I waited until I was beside her before responding. “I can play solitaire.”
I followed her back to the study, where Melinda took two decks of cards from a box in the closet. “How about double solitaire?” Melinda suggested as she sat on the floor.
“That’s a game?” I sat on the floor across from her and watched her shuffle. It was different than the normal way. There was something about it that was familiar.
“Mom and Dad had a casino party once.” My eyes were fixed on her hands. “They hired actual dealers from real casinos. They shuffled the cards like that, at the corners. Are you a card shark?”
Melinda giggled. “My grandfather loves playing cards. He taught me when I was seven. I could shuffle better than him by the time I started middle school.”
“You are a card shark! I don’t wanna play with you.”
“It’s only solitaire. Watch.” She handed me the deck of red cards.
I copied Melinda as we laid out cards in front of ourselves and created playing slots. She explained how to play our personal space and the shared space. After she explained the scoring, we played the first round.
I picked up my pile in my left hand and prepared my right to flip the first cards when Melinda gave the signal.
She beat me, forty to twenty in the first round, but I was a fast learner and I reached a hundred points in the third round, while she still had eighty-nine.
We separated the decks and she said she would teach me to play War. She then described the game I played with my roommate.
“Wait. I know this game. This is the game I play with Frank.”
“I thought you said you only play solitaire.”
“Well, I didn’t know the name of this game. He calls it something else. Jung-Jang, I think. His grandfather taught him. One of his grandfathers speaks Korean, the other one Chinese. I’m not sure which one taught him the game.”
Melinda smiled as she picked up her stack and we began flipping the cards. I won the first game and she won the second. We had just separated the stacks for a tiebreaker round when her other boyfriend arrived.
​
“Melinda!” Her mother called up the stairs a few moments after we heard the doorbell sound. “Your ride is here.”
Oh man! I had lost all track of time. I kept my voice low as Melinda packed the cards away.
“I didn’t get to say goodbye.”
She turned and put her arms around my neck. “I’ll see you Sunday. I’ll try to get back to campus early.” Our kiss was interrupted by a knock on the door.
Melinda’s roommate was standing just over the threshold with a knowing smile. “Sorry.”
Her miniature clone peered around her into the room. I had met her once before, so I knew she wasn’t about to turn into a screaming fan. She started waving at Melinda, but when she saw me, she started signing frantically.
Although I had learned American Sign Language for my last film, I was not able to follow Crystal when she got excited. I missed a lot of what she was asking, but I got the impression she wanted to know why I was there and if Melinda was my girlfriend.
I laughed, speaking aloud as I signed. “Slow down! Melinda will tell you all about it later. I better get home. Hi, Sarah. Bye, Sarah!”
I smiled at Melinda’s roommate, kissed the top of Melinda’s head quickly, then started out of the room, the three girls in tow. As I got in my car, I saw Melinda wave one last time before shutting the door.
​
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[Table Of Contents] [Chapter 4, part 2]
Want to read more about Walter and Melinda? Check out Boarding School Break: Happy Thanksgiving - Chapter 6: Tubing

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So I’m relatively new to reddit, but I love this sub. This just happened to me last night, I just thought about posting it waking up for all of you to get a kick out of it.
So I have a hobby-like job working for a casino party company. They get contracted by companies to come out and set up some casino tables so their employees can “fake” gamble just for fun, during their parties/events. Most of the time employees buy tickets (like 1 ticket for $50 and a ticket is worth $2000 in fake chips) and that’s how they play. You can then turn in your chips for “Prize tickets” and go through a raffle to win prizes at the end. It’s a lot of fun, and easy money for someone in college, like yours truly.
We had a gig last night at a nice hotel ballroom, for a really good company too, I won’t list the name. We’re required to dress in all black, with a button up shirt and slacks. We look just like the actual staff of the hotel, but with a name tag with our “‘Owner’s’ Casino Parties” text on it. So I can sort of see why I’d be mistaken for the hotel staff.
Cue in a really good night, having fun, good people, good table dealing. I swap out with someone to freely take a break, and walk about and grab a drink of water. Now here’s where it goes completely downhill. A what looks to be a 30 year old woman comes to me and asks for a refill on her drink. It goes a little bit like this we’ll call her Thick Skull, or TS for short.
TS: Excuse me, could I ask you to refill “drink”. I’ll be right here.
Me: Sorry! I don’t work here, I’m one of the dealers at the tables. I can grab someone for you though!
TS: You’re clearly in the waitstaff uniform, i KNOW you work here, I’ve seen you help others. (Lied to my face, I was at my table all night!)
Me: I’m sorry but I really can’t serve you, let me grab someone who can-
TS: You do work here!! (SHE STEPPED ON MY FOOT AS I STEPPED AWAY! I then took my foot back and now I was a little pissed, because I’m wearing some nice shoes here, that I paid for, and I am proud of that because I’m POOR AS SHIT.)
Me: Okay look, I’ve told you I don’t work here. You can find someone ELSE. Hopefully you won’t step on them.
She now grabs the attention of an actual waitstaff member and asks her to grab the manager and she hesitantly does, and I was actually stunned.
Me: You do understand I DONT WORK HERE.
TS: Keep saying that to me, you’ll regret it.
Here the Manager came-
Manager: Everything okay ma’am?
TS: This man refuses to serve me the drinks I asked for.
He looks at me and asked my name, and I pointed at my name tag and told him, and he immediately knew I didn’t work here.
Manager: I’m sorry but he doesn’t work here, can I get your drink?
She FREAKS OUT at this. Like full blown SCREECHES.
TS: This is stupid! I’m not an idiot! She proceeds to GRAB my water and flings it at me and it gets all over me!!
Manager: Ma’am We do NOT act like this here and I’m asking you to leave. Leave.
She starts throwing what I can only say is a tantrum, and then gets escorted out by the security they had on site.
The table she was at had 10 of her tickets. TEN. She also had redeemed some earlier too. That’s over $500 she spent. With no prizes. She waited until after the party was over to speak to MY manager (So about 2 hours, when we were breaking down the set up) and demanded a refund. He denied her and said she can go on her merry way, and told her the exact reason she couldn’t was because she dumped water on his employee and he won’t stand for that. She stormed out after bickering for what seemed forever.
TL;dr: Woman poured water on me in frustration that I didn’t work here and was lying to her, gets kicked out with no refund of $500+.
Edit: Spelling

The Official DunderMifflin Re-Watch Thread – S.2 Ep. 22 – Casino NightWelcome to the DunderMifflin Rewatch Thread. Please join us in watching today’s episode of The Office (US). Feel free to comment your favorite moments, thoughts, etc. in the comments section below.
If you are interested in watching today’s episode in real time with other viewers from DunderMifflin, u/CasdenCool will be hosting a stream at rabb.it/CasdenCool at around 6pm PST. Unfortunately, I know nothing about rabb.it. If you have any questions about the “real time” watch please PM u/CasdenCool.
Also, please keep all spoilers to a minimum. As this re-watch continues there is a possibility that we will pick up some first-time viewers. Let’s be respectful to them and their watch through. Thanks!!
The Office
Season: 2
Episode: 22 – Casino Night
The Dunder Mifflin crew holds a casino party at the warehouse and Michael has two dates.
Release Date: 11 May 2006
Run Time: 29 Min
Director: Greg Daniels
Writers: Steve Carell
Trivia:
· In this episode, Michael says he's donating his money to Comic Relief, even though it no longer exists. This was an homage to the original British series, where an entire episode (#2.5) was devoted to raising money for Comic Relief.
· In "Casino Night" Creed is shown stealing from a vending machine. He holds up a candy bar. This a bar made by Gertrude Hawk Chocolates, a company founded in Scranton.
· Creed mentions the excellent pea soup at the soup kitchen. He would be referring to the St. Francis of Assisi Soup Kitchen at 500 Penn Ave. in Scranton (right across the street from the Penn Paper building shown in the opening credits of the show). The soup kitchen is for the homeless.
· In his beginning monologue to the camera, Michael states that he considers himself to be an accomplished "philanderer." This word is often applied to men who engage in sexual relationships with multiple women simultaneously. The word he should have used is "philanthropist," which is more aligned with people who support charities.
· Michael's line, "Jan Levinson, I presume", is a reference to Journalist Henry Morton Stanley's reported first words to adventurer Dr. David Livingstone, "Dr. Livingstone, I Presume", when the former found the latter in Africa.
· After Michael makes his speech to get casino night started, he says "let's get it started--- black eyed crows". He is referencing to the song by the Black Eyed PEAS "Let's Get It Started" but has the group name wrong. This was a deliberate but subtle joke.
· In this scene where Michael and all the others are playing poker, Michael goes all in on the first hand and Toby calls his bet but Michael folds his cards berfore there is a flop. It is never shown what Michael's losing had was.
· Spoilers
· In "Casino Night" Dwight tells Pam & Jim his tux belonged to his grandfather & that he was buried in it. He again wears it in the beginning of the episode "The Farm", when announcing the death of his Aunt Shirley. However, according to Schrute tradition, they shoot their dead before burial to make sure they are "completely dead". If his grandfather had been buried in this tux, there should've been bullet holes.
Goofs:
· At the poker table, both Michael and Toby go all in. Toby has a pair of Jacks, while Michael's hand is practically indistinguishable, presumably two mismatched cards lower than a Jack. However, the game is Texas Hold 'Em, and the dealer gives the hand to Toby without dealing any cards into the center of the table.
· During the poker game between Kevin and Phyllis, Phyllis was dealt a six of clubs on the river. Therefore, Kevin's set of queens should have been good.
Quotes:
· Jim Halpert: Hey, can I talk to you about something?
Pam Beesley: About when you want to give me more of your money?
Jim Halpert: No, I...
Pam Beesley: Did you want to do that now? We can go inside. I'm feeling kind of good tonight.
Jim Halpert: I was just... I'm in love with you.
Pam Beesley: [No longer smiling] What?
Jim Halpert: I'm really sorry if that's weird for you to hear, but I needed you to hear it. Probably not good timing, I know that. I just...
Pam Beesley: [Stunned] What are you doing? What do you expect me to say to that?
Jim Halpert: I just needed you to know. Once.
Pam Beesley: Well, I... I... I can't.
Jim Halpert: Yeah.
Pam Beesley: You have no idea...
Jim Halpert: Don't do that.
Pam Beesley: ...what your friendship means to me.
Jim Halpert: Come on. I don't want to do that. I wanna be more than that.
Pam Beesley: I can't.
[a small tear runs down Jim's face]
Pam Beesley: I'm really sorry if you misinterpreted things. It's probably my fault.
Jim Halpert: [Trying to recover] Not your fault. I'm sorry I misinterpreted our friendship.
· Michael Scott: Oh, and another fun thing. We, at the end of the night, are going to give the check to an actual group of Boy Scouts. Right, Toby? We're gonna...
Toby: Actually, I didn't think it was appropriate to invite children since it's... You know, there's gambling and alcohol, and it's in our dangerous warehouse and it's a school night... And, you know, Hooters is catering. You know, is that enough? Should I keep going?
Michael Scott: Why are you the way that you are? Honestly, every time I try to do something fun or exciting, you make it not that way. I hate so much about the things that you choose to be.
· Michael Scott: Hey, Carol, how goes the real estate biz? Is it real good?
Pam Beesley: It's still me.
· Michael Scott: I am no longer your boss. Lady Fortune is your boss.
Stanley: Will Lady Fortune give me a raise?
Michael Scott: Shut it, shut it, shut it.
· Toby: I don't really play cards, but I'm not going to lie to you. It felt really good to take money from Michael. Gonna chase that feeling.
· Michael Scott: There are certain topics that are off-limits to comedians: JFK, AIDS, the Holocaust. The Lincoln Assassination just recently became funny. I need to see this play like I need a hole in the head. And I hope to someday live in a world where a person could tell a hilarious AIDS joke. It's one of my dreams.
· Pam Beesley: Sometimes I don't put Michael through until he's already said something. I look at it as a practice run for him. He usually does better on the second attempt.
· Michael Scott: Jan Levinson, I presume?
Pam Beesley: It's still me.
· Jim Halpert: [to Pam] I'm in love with you.
· Dwight Schrute: I'm Michael's wingman. I've got his back. Two dates. He's got two dates tonight. My job is keep Jan away from Carol and vice versa. Michael said, "We must deceive them, so as not to hurt them, and in that way, we honor them."
· Michael Scott: Okay, you know what? I will not donate my winnings to Comic Relief, since apparently, it doesn't exist. I am going to donate to Afghanistanis with AIDS.
Jim Halpert: Nope. I think you mean the aid to Afghanistan.
Michael Scott: No, I mean Afghanistanis with AIDS.
Phyllis: Afghani.
Michael Scott: What?
Phyllis: Afghani.
Michael Scott: That's a dog.
Pam Beesley: No, that's Afghan.
Michael Scott: That's a shawl.
Dwight Schrute: Wait, canine AIDS?
Michael Scott: No. Humans with AIDS.
Creed: Who has AIDS?
Jim Halpert: Guys, the Afghanistananies.
Michael Scott: Okay, you know what? No. No. AIDS is not funny. Believe me, I have tried.
· Darryl: [explaining to Michael why he doesn't want fire-eaters in the warehouse for Casino Night] We just have a lot of stuff down there that could be stolen.
Michael Scott: That's ironic.
Darryl: What?
Michael Scott: That *you* are afraid.
Darryl: Why? 'Cause I'm from the hood?
Michael Scott: Dinkin flicka.
Darryl: [to film crew] I taught Mike some phrases to help him with his interracial conversations. You know, stuff like, "Fleece it out." "Going mach five." "Dinkin flicka." You know, things us Negroes say.
Michael Scott: Give me some.
[Mike and Darryl do choreographed handshake]
Darryl: [laughing] Oh, yeah, I taught him a handshake, too.
· Jim Halpert: Excuse me. How long is the wait for a table for two?
Dwight Schrute: I would never, ever serve you. Not in a million, billion years.
Pam Beesley: It's a nice tux.
Dwight Schrute: I know. It belonged to my grandfather. He was buried in it, so family heirloom.
· Creed: Oh, I steal things all the time. It's just something I do. I stopped caring a long time ago.
· Dwight Schrute: [In response to Jim's claims of childhood telekinesis] I don't believe you. Continue.
· Ryan Howard: One beer and one Seven and Seven with eight maraschino cherries, sugar on the rim, blended if you can.
Jim Halpert: So, that's still going on, huh? You and Kelly?
· Michael Scott: Why are you here?
Dwight Schrute: When Darryl was coming, you said you wanted me here for protection.
Michael Scott: Not. I said, not that.
· Kevin: I suck.
· Michael Scott: Two queens on Casino Night. I am going to drop a deuce on everybody.
· Michael Scott: Love triangle. Drama. All worked out in the end, though. The hero got the girl. Who saw that coming? I did.
· Michael Scott: Comedy's very much alive, as are homeless people.
· Michael Scott: Jan and I understand each other. The romance thing is sort of on hold for the time being, but we've remained good friends. Good friends with privileges. Not now, someday.
https://www.reddit.com/DunderMifflin/comments/930x55/previous_rewatch_threads/

I’ve (28m) worked at a low ranking sales company for the past 5 years. It’s a monotonous job with no room for growth, but I’ve stayed because I met my best friend there. She’s the secretary (27f), cute, smart, and talented artist. Bonus she laughs at all my jokes and pranks I play on my tightly wound co-worker.
I think I love her, and I think she feels the same way. We always catch eyes in the middle of the office and have this crazy back and forth chemistry.
The problem is she’s engaged. Her boyfriend seems like an asshole. Never spends time with her and hates talking to her. She looks unhappy whenever she’s with him. She’s been engaged for the past 3 years with no end in sight. I think it kills her inside, you can tell she loathes spending time with him.
My boss organized a Casino party the other night. Everyone was drinking, and I told her I loved her. When we were alone, I grabbed her and kissed her. She told me she wanted to kiss me for a long time too, but that I misinterpreted things. She wants to stay friends and she’s still going to marry her boyfriend.
Am I the asshole for misinterpreting things? I want to runaway to Stamford right now.