Lois and Carolyn, thanks for the beta...you’re the greatest! I would also like to thank everyone who previewed the chapters for me.
Author's comments: I know that you've gotten used to the daily updates of this story. (smile) And I really hate to do this to you, but there will be a delay...probably until Friday/Saturday...before the next chapter is posted. I just wanted to let you know.
Chapter 33 – Let’s Get It Started Saturday Evening…(Day 62) Carl and Debbie parked their car in front of Jennifer’s condo. “Shall we go in?” Carl asked hesitantly. “I’m not sure what we’ll find,” Debbie whispered. “We’ll find Jennifer, of course. Now, what ELSE are you expecting?” “Never mind…I’m sure that in a minute we’ll find out all that there is to know,” Debbie assured him. They approached the door, and just as Debbie was about to ring the bell, she paused. “You should have heard the bell at the house that Jennifer used to live in. The doorbell sounded nice,” she reminisced. “It was like a set of wind chimes. I remember the first night Michael and I took Sunshine back there. That was the night that I first met Jennifer,” she added wistfully with a sigh. “That’s nice,” Carl answered, shaking his head. “Now are you going to ring THIS bell or shall I?” Debbie pushed the doorbell, and within seconds, Jennifer answered, still in her robe. “Carl…Debbie, come on in,” she said taking their coats and offering them seats. “I’m almost ready. I wasn’t exactly sure what to wear. Debbie, I love your dress!” she added. “Emmett bought this as a present for me. I rarely get a chance to wear it. I never thought that red was my color.” “It’s beautiful…” Jennifer gushed. “It was always one of my favorites,” Carl said with a smile, remembering the last time he’d seen Debbie in that dress. It was at the Policeman’s Ball, and it was the moment he became absolutely sure that Debbie was the only woman for him. Naturally, it took him a while to be able to admit it out loud, but inwardly he knew the truth. “I’ll only be a minute. Can I get you anything?” Jennifer offered. “No, we’re fine,” Carl added, trying to understand the continued look of anticipation on Debbie’s face. “Do you need me to give you a hand?” Debbie finally asked. “No, I think I’m fine. I’ll be right down,” Jennifer confirmed with a smile, before heading back up the stairs. When Jennifer was gone, Carl looked at Debbie with a puzzled look. “Debbie Honey, you want to tell me what’s going on with you?” “Now, why would you think that something is going on?” “Because, I’m a very good detective…” he quietly said with a laugh. “And you look like you’re waiting for a ghost to jump out of woodwork.” “It’s nothing. I’m just wondering if Jennifer is bringing a date along tonight,” Debbie finally admitted. “Well, why didn’t you just ask her?” Carl whispered, realizing that he was stating the obvious. He should have known that there was an unbelievable explanation awaiting him. He wasn’t disappointed. “That’s not the sort of thing you can ask. We’ll just have to wait just a minute and see what happens.” A few moments later, Jennifer emerged, looking stunning in a long dress as well. “Well, I’m sure that heads will turn at the Club, as I enter with the two of you. I’ll be the envy of everyone there. Both of you are stunning,” Carl couldn’t refrain from adding as he helped everyone put on with their coat. “Shall we go?” he said, extending both arms so Jennifer and Debbie could each grab one. Once they were settled in the car, with Debbie and Jennifer in back and Carl behind the wheel…they were off. *** “You know you could have brought a date,” Carl innocently mumbled to Jennifer as they were driving along. Debbie froze at the comment and then waited to see what would happen next. “I thought about it. But, I wanted to be able to relax and enjoy the show with both of you. It would be different with a date along.” “So you DID think about bringing a date? Was it Tucker or someone new?” Debbie now plunged right in with all her questions since Carl had already given her an opening. “Debbie, stop fishing…” Carl said, in a teasing tone. “I have to ask,” Debbie responded quickly, “Otherwise, I’d never find out anything,” she finally said to Carl, before turning her attention back to her companion, “I’m waiting, Jennifer…” “What’s there to tell?” Jennifer answered with a slight laugh. “You might as well tell ME, because let me tell you, Sunshine’s already asking questions.” “He is? I thought he would be too busy to wonder about me,” Jennifer said with a laugh. “I’ll have to talk to Brian…he’s, obviously, not keeping Justin busy enough.” “Jennifer!” Carl and Debbie both said in unison Jennifer couldn’t resist a laugh at their reactions; after all, she’d had a lot of years and a lot of experiences with Brian to risqué to mention. Teasing about Brian now felt natural to her now. “You don’t have to worry,” Jennifer finally continued. “Tucker and I are still friends. We still see each other occasionally. But we’ve both been rather busy lately.” “I wondered about you and Tucker,” Debbie finally admitted. “I hadn’t seen him since the bombing. That has to be at least a year ago.” “The bombing…what a horrendous night that was…” Jennifer added with a sigh. “You can say that again. But as a result, even the homophobes began to question themselves, and Prop 14 went down to defeat,” Debbie pointed out. “And, Brian reopened the club. I’m glad that he did that,” Jennifer said softly. “All of Liberty Avenue is glad that he did that too,” Debbie added. Jennifer decided it was time to change the subject. “I’m really excited about this evening. I’m really looking forward to seeing Daniel perform as Divina Devore.” “Me too…someone of the stature of Divina Devore, this has got to be good. Emmett talks about her all the time.” “I wonder if it will be like watching Shanda Leer perform,” Jennifer asked. “I’ll have to admit that Darrin is pretty good as Shanda Leer.. We’ll just have to wait and see how the two drag queens compare,” Debbie added. “After all, Divina Devore is a legend,” Carl said, finally managing to get a word into the conversation. “A legend,” Debbie mumbled mindlessly, as her mind drifted back to a time long ago…when two teenagers, who used to hang out together, fell in love. Both Carl and Jennifer allowed Debbie her moment of memories. *** Upon arriving at the Kit Kat Club, Carl handed his keys to the parking attendant for valet parking. Then he, once again, held out both arms and said “Ladies…” with a big smile, and Debbie and Jennifer each took one of the offered arms as Carl escorted them into Club. Carl gave their names at the door and indicated that they were guests of Divina Devore. The doorman instantly signaled to a special waiter, who appeared and personally escorted them to their reserved tables in the front row. “Be sure to let me know if you need anything,” the waiter said, “My name is Casey, and Ms Devore left specific instructions that I was to personally take care of you,” he added with a smile directed primarily at Carl. “Thanks, Casey,” Carl said, returning the smile. “We’ll be sure to let you know.” And with that their waiter disappeared. “I love the club,” Jennifer commented. “It’s so cozy and intimate. But, I must admit, this is certainly different from Babylon. The tables….” “Yes, definitely different from Babylon,” Debbie confirmed with a laugh. “It’s classier than Babylon. There’s no thumpa thumpa to be heard.” A few moments later, Casey reappeared carrying a bottle of champagne. “I’ve already let Ms Devore know that you’re here, and she instructed me to bring this to your table. She hopes that you will enjoy the show. Would you like me to open it?” he asked. Carl nodded yes, and Casey opened the champagne with flair and poured a class for everyone. Then he placed the bottle on ice at the table. “Enjoy the show!” Casey said, as he was leaving. The three friends chatted easily as they waited for the show to begin. *** Then the house lights were dimmed and a spot light appeared on stage. The unseen announcer made an introduction. A stylishly dressed figure appeared on stage to a rousing applause. This was the comedienne to warm up the audience. She told a series of jokes that were really more observations of life. Everyone seemed to identify with her stories of those ‘Ah Ha’ moments of life. Even Carl got some to the punch lines. Debbie and Jennifer kept smiling at each other, from time to time, as the jokes and stories resonated for them too. Once the comedienne left the stage, an array of various performers performed in cabaret style. There were singers and dancers performing several numbers, again to the enjoyment of the crowd. Finally, the unseen announcer’s voice came on once again, “Ladies and gentlemen, it is with great pleasure that the Kit Kat Club presents the long-awaited return engagement of Pittsburgh’s own Divina Devore.” And with those words, the whirlwind known as Divina Devore sashayed on stage and immediately broke into her signature song. Everyone at this reserved table was enthralled and captivated by what they saw. Divina Devore was a wonder for them all. Jennifer immediately noticed the difference, Divina was impeccably dressed…that part was the same…of course, the sequined gown was totally different and hard to miss. She had to admit that Divina definitely had her own sense of style. Divina was clearly much more animated than the Daniel that she had met before, but Jennifer loved the difference and clapped often during the show. Jennifer eagerly watched as Divina sauntered back and forth across the stage, singing peppered versions of recognizable show tunes. Debbie, too, watched Divina with complete amazement. She knew that Danny was a good actor, even in high school, but this was beyond anything that she’d expected. The Danny that she remembered was quiet with a wicked sense of humor…whereas his alter ego of Divina could only best be described as a ‘bawdy dame’. And, the wicked sense of humor transformed into almost flirting as Divina talked to the crowd throughout her performance. Carl just sat there in complete wonderment as he thoroughly enjoyed the show. He thought that he was mentally prepared for Divina’s performance…after all he spent a lot of time on Liberty Avenue, encountering all the drag queens there. But his was something totally different. This was truly special. He could understand why Divina has been such a success…and has managed to have such a long career. She was wonderful. Throughout the performance, Divina thoroughly captivated the audience, which constantly erupted with laughter, as she told raunchy jokes in between songs. And each song generated several rounds of applause, as her performance was amazing. As Divina started to wind down her performance in preparation for her exit, stage left…the audience refused to let the performance end and kept urging her into additional songs with rounds of applause. Divina was obliging and happy to perform repeated encores. Finally, with a sweep of her hand, Divina announced that her performance was truly ending. The crowd tried to moan and coax her back for more. But she finally said, “Thank you, Pittsburgh. You’ve reminded me why I left, but now I think it’s time for me to come home to you!” And with that Divina Devore exited stage left. With that statement, the stage went dark, once again…while the audience erupted into cheers and applause again. There was a buzz in the audience about the closing announcement that Divina just made. “So, the posts on the Blogs are true,” Jennifer heard someone in the audience say. “I’d heard the rumors, but I didn’t think they were true,” someone else added. “I wonder why she coming back here. She could live anywhere in the world,” someone added. Evidently a few members of the press were attending this return engagement…because a few people rushed out immediately after the announcement…probably to file their story. Debbie commented to Carl and Jennifer that the gay press would be full of stories about Divina over the weekend. “This is big news…” Carl said with a laugh. “I’m just surprised that she made the announcement,” Debbie added. Once again, the stage lights came up and the dancers reappeared on the smoky stage. As they were dancing, platforms started to arise out of the stage floor, elevating the dancers. The stage was now transformed. But the dancers couldn’t contain the rumblings in the audience. Divina’s performance and her announcement were still on everyone’s lips. Eventually, the audience settled down and a few tables started to empty as some people in the audience started to leave. Carl, Jennifer, and Debbie lingered behind to talk with each other a bit longer. A little later, Carl enjoyed a cup of coffee, while Jennifer and Debbie continued to drool over the toned bodies of the male dancers now on stage. Carl was particular amused by his companions. Casey returned to table with a note, which he handed to Carl. The note indicated that Divina was inviting them to join her back stage in her dressing room. Carl, Debbie and Jennifer couldn’t wait. They were thrilled to accept the invitation.