IN THE PINK
Their day had finally come, the one they had both been dreaming of. Tonight, their wedding night, they would finally do what they'd wanted to do since they discovered that they were truly in love. They would finally get to share in each other.
Tea lay against the plush pillows of the bed in the cabana she'd rented for their wedding night. She melted into its softness as her new husband trailed soft, tender kisses across her face and neck. She gave a moan of nothing less than sheer bliss. The pressure of his strong, firm body against hers, the warmth of his skin, the sweet muskiness of his scent, was a heady mixture and she felt almost drunk with the nearness of him.
"Me amore," she sighed into his ear.
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Todd could feel the hunger building up inside of him, but this time, he knew he wouldn't have to push the feeling back. He could let it explode and swallow him up in a wave of pleasure that would linger forever. He was with the woman he loved, and whom he knew, truly loved him. The nervousness he'd first felt was slowly giving way to passion. His heart pounded in his chest so hard, he thought it might burst, but he didn't care. What better way to go then to die over and over and over again in his lover's arms? He pressed his lips to her soft, waiting ones, then set his mouth to exploring every part of her exposed skin. Her neck, her shoulders, the smooth patch of flesh right over her heart. He could feel Tea trembling under him and he welcomed the sensation, because he knew that it wasn't fear causing the trembling. It was desire.
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Sam handed the Pink Tape to the DJ.
"Would you mind playing this?" he asked, "The little one here wants to listen to it." He held Starr in his arms and nodded to her.
"Sure, why not," the DJ agreed and put the Tape in the machine. "What is it? London Bridges? The ABC song? Itsy Bitsy Spider?"
Sam laughed, "I don't know. Why don't you ask the lady here? Starr?"
"It's my daddy. My daddy's on there."
Sam looked at her quizzically. The DJ shrugged and pushed play. The sound of Blair's voice reverberated throughout the country club. "You tell her it's a game," she was saying.
"What the--" Sam begin, straining to listen more closely. What could this be about? he thought.
But before the other voice could answer, a waiter passed by carrying a tray full of empty glasses to the bar. He tripped over a pulled out chair and fell crashing into the tape machine hard enough to almost knock it off the counter. The Tape cut off sharply. The DJ dove for it, barely catching it before it could fall. He breathed a sigh of relief at saving an expensive piece of radio equipment. .
Sam put Starr down on the floor and she ran to her mother. 'Hey man, you okay there?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm okay. It didn't fall. Neither did I," he laughed. He pushed eject on the tape player, then turned to Sam apologetically, "Unfortunately, 'Itsy Bitsy Spider' wasn't so lucky." He removed the Pink Tape, which was trailed by a brown, stringy loop. The jarring that the tape player took had skipped the machine, which in turn chewed up the tape beyond repair. He pulled it out of the machine as gently as it could, tearing the string.
"Oh no, it's ruined," Sam said, "I know one little girl who's going to be very disappointed." He looked over at Starr and Blair. "Me too for that matter, I was kind of interested in hearing what was on it." He recalled Blair's voice. Tell her it was a game. "I'm sorry sir."
Sam shrugged, "Not your fault, pal. I guess it doesn't really matter."
He took what was left of the tape and took it over to Blair.
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Todd and Tea sat up, their intimate moment disturbed by the sudden end of the music, and emergence of Blair's voice. Todd's face was a mask of panic, Tea's of confusion.
"What's that?" she asked.
"I-I-uh," Todd stammered. They looked at each other, listening to Blair, then to a screech as the Tape cut off, then silence.
"That's odd. I wonder what that was."
Todd sat for a minute, waiting for his cover to be blown, but nothing else came. Somebody was playing the Tape but it stopped suddenly. What happened? He had to find out.
"I'll go see," he said, getting up.
"What? Now?!"
"I'll be right back, Delgado."
"But Todd--"
"Right back. I promise."
Before she could say another word, Todd bolted out, back into the country club and the wedding reception. He spotted Sam, Max, Blair, and little Starr, huddled over in a corner. He went over to them.
"Boomer," said Sam, 'What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be with your bride?"
"In a minute, I just need to talk to Blair for a sec."
"Daddy!" said Starr, "I had something for you but it got broke."
He looked at her, then at Blair, who was holding the Tape in her hand, a strand of the broken string hanging out of it. She gave him a curt smile and suddenly he understood what had happened.
"Oh," he said, "Well that's okay, Shorty. That's okay. C'mere and give daddy a hug." She ran to him and he hugged her hard, utter relief washing through him in a wave. "Now, you need to go find Minnie so she can't put you to bed, all right?"
"Yes Daddy."
"I'll take her," Sam volunteered.
'Thank you Sam," Starr's parents said in unison.
"I'll, uh, be over here," Max said, skulking away.
"So," Blair said, 'The Tape was chewed up in the machine. It's destroyed Todd. You're safe. You don't have to worry about anything anymore."
Todd was quiet for a minute. He wanted to ask about how the Tape got in the machine in the first place, but decided that it didn't matter. It was the only one in existence, and now it was useless. No more pink bombshell hanging over his head. He was free. He nodded.
"Blair," he said, "I got a second chance, didn't I?"
'Yes, you did. Now try not to screw it up." She softened her words with a smile. He answered it with one of his own.
"I guess I'd better go," Todd said, 'Tea's waiting for me."
"No need," Blair replied, looking over his shoulder.
Todd turned around and beheld his bride, looking at him perplexed, still in her wedding dress. She walked over to him.
"What's going on? What was it?"
"Nothing, nothing important." Todd said, "Matter of fact, I was just about to come back to you."
She smiled softly, 'Well good, I was getting worried." She caressed his cheek lightly and planted a soft kiss on his lips.
"Well, I uh, am going to go check on Starr. Have a good night, you too," Blair said, giving them a lascivious grin.
"Thank you Blair. Let's go Todd." They turned to leave. 'You know something? That was the fourth entrance I've made today in my wedding dress. I can't believe I still have it on."
"Don't worry," Todd said, grinning in his oh-so-very-Roddlike way, "We can fix that very soon."
They hurried out of the room as a wave of laughter trailed after them.
