FicWad

The Silent Cynic
By Dr. T

Chapter 20—Starting Senior Year

Daria went over to Troy’s the Monday morning after returning from New York. Troy was pleased with the firm hug and deep kiss he received once he had shut the door – he had been both pleased and worried when Daria had asked in an email to come over as soon as his mother went in for her morning job (8:30-noon) at his uncle’s.

“And a warm hello and welcome back to you,” he said amused once Daria had broken the kiss.

‘I wanted you to know how much I missed you,’ Daria replied. He noted that her expression changed at that point. She mostly noticed that he had been working out while she was gone – over the previous year, Troy had grown about half an inch, but had not gained any weight; he had slimmed down a bit over the summer, and was looking fairly fit.

“What?” he asked.

Daria sighed. ‘We do need to talk…about us and about, well, what is ahead of us.’

Troy nodded and took her hand. When he tried to lead her into the parlor to talk, however, she tugged him to the stairs, and they went to his bedroom. Daria sat on the bed, and then patted the mattress so that he sat next to her.

“How shall we do this?” he asked. Seeing Daria’s puzzled look, he took his fears and insecurities in hand, and plowed ahead. “I love you; I don’t know if you love me, but I do know how much you care for me.” Daria took his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze and slight smile. “I also know you probably care for Jane more or less the same…and in the same ways.” Daria’s eyes went wide, but then dropped them, a bit embarrassed. “I thought maybe five weeks with Jane would resolve things in one direction or another, but you still…care for us both, right?”

Daria released his hand. “Do you want me to choose?” she whispered.

Troy sighed. “No, not really. Even if all other things are equal, Jane will be here, and I won’t be.” He placed a finger under Daria’s chin and lifted her face so they could see each other. “I do love you, and I would like you in my life.” He made a small huffing sound. “I know, at our age, what can we really be so certain of? But I am as sure as I can be.”

‘I do not know how things might work out, or if they could work out over time. But yes, I love Jane.’ She paused for a second before going on. ‘Yes, Jane and I are lovers. But Jane is also dating Tom, although I do not know how serious they are. And I am not just dating you.’ Daria placed her hands behind Troy’s neck and tugged him close. “I know I’ve never said it,” she murmured, “but I do love you, Troy Loomis. I want you in my life.”

Just over an hour later, as they lay cuddled, nude, and a little sweaty, Daria whispered, “The next year will be tough for us. If we can make it through that, we might have a good chance going forward.”

“I hope you’re right, but why might it be easier after a year?”

“Silly man; in a year I’ll be in college somewhere near you if not at the same place, and you had damn well better be living alone, or at least in a single dorm room.”

Troy rolled so he was partially atop her, kissing her deeply. Daria moved his free hand down her body, and then moved his head to her breasts. Troy happily obliged, bringing her to another set of climaxes. He knew she was happy with things as they were, and so he was willing to share her with Jane.

*

‘I do not see what the problem is,’ Daria stated to her mother that evening. ‘Dad is going to this branding conference; you intend to go with him. I think both Quinn and I have proven that we will not throw a party of any kind. We will not have boys over, at least not past the doorway. You will be gone less than fifty-seven hours.’

“And I have no doubt that even if you both keep your exact word, which I am sure you would,” ‘well, Daria certainly would, Quinn likely would,’ “I am sure you are both clever enough to find a loophole.”

Daria shrugged. ‘If you do not want to trust us here, and you don’t mind the house being empty for that entire time, Quinn can probably stay with Tori or Stacy, and I can stay with Jane.’ Quinn nodded, and looked at her mother hopefully, while Daria retained something of her usual poker face.

Helen thought for nearly three minutes, and then said, “Fine. Here’s the deal. You will both sleep here Friday and Saturday nights. No one else will sleep here. Obviously, no parties; no boys. Jane may come over; Quinn, Tori or Stacy can come over, but not both at the same time, and no one else. If any of them do come over, they are out by ten.”

‘Not a problem; I agree,’ Daria signed.

“So do I,” Quinn agreed.

Still suspicious, Helen let it go; she had to go and decide what to pack.

That night, Quinn knocked softly on Daria’s door, and slipped in. Daria was in her night attire but had not yet gotten into bed. ‘Do you have any plans?’ Quinn signed when Daria looked at her.

‘Plans for?’ Daria asked, with her assumed innocence obviously feigned.

Quinn shook her head. ‘You know what for. I know you will not break the rules, so what do you have planned? I know it must be something.’

‘Actually yes; I have some ideas for me and even an option for you. Do not make plans for Friday, afternoon or evening. I will not be breaking, or even bending, Mother’s rules.’

Curious, Quinn left and went to bed.


Helen and Jake left the house to go to the airport just before 11:00 Friday morning. Daria left for Jane’s less than five minutes later, telling Quinn to wait. The round trip to Jane’s only took about twenty minutes, so Quinn did not have a lot of time to get overly nervous.

Daria returned with a smallish box as well as a small bag from a New York drug store Jane had been keeping for her. She guided Quinn up to her pink bedroom and sat her on her bed, as usual nearly covered with stuffed animals. She gestured to Quinn to open the box. When she did, Quinn blushed, seeing the pink gel dildo, the size she had described in New York. The small bag held a bottle of lube and a box of condoms to cover the dildo if Quinn so desired. Daria gave Quinn some good ideas on how to hide these from their mother, and instructions on how to keep the dildo clean (and why she really had to, even if she also used the condoms), as well as suggestions on how to use it since it would be the first time she was penetrated should she use it. She concluded with, ‘Now Tom and Jane will be picking me up in a few minutes. You can use that today or not, it is up to you. The four of us will be together at Jane’s, except for lunch and dinner. I will be back before Ten.’

Daria looked at her sister, unable to read her expression, although ‘conflicted’ would likely cover it. ‘Will you be okay? Remember, what you have there is an option. You do not have to take up that option, especially not any time soon.’

Quinn made a slight shooing motion, saying, “Go have fun; I’ll need to think this through.”

‘Do not hurt your head,’ Daria teased.

“Ha, ha,” Quinn retorted. To her slight surprise, Daria walked back and took Quinn’s hand in both of hers and gave her a slight smile. Then, the doorbell rang, and Daria left Quinn to her thoughts.


Quinn stared at the shrink-wrapped dildo for a time, and then made a decision. She unwrapped it and would later have Daria dispose of the shrink-wrap outside the house. She drew a warm bath to relax in, and to fantasize for a while to get into the mood. Then she would make use of her present. She only hoped it wouldn’t hurt, that she would enjoy it.


To her relief, it didn’t really even sting, and she did enjoy it more than she thought she would, since she was in total control.

*

The quartet enjoyed their Friday and Saturday very much. Each couple spent time in their respective bedrooms Friday afternoon and again Saturday morning and then again in the late afternoon. The Lane parents were as usual out of town (actually out of the country), while Trent and the band were still on their annual ‘world tour’ of regional grunge clubs. The quartet only left the Lane house for lunch and dinner, and then enjoyed a ‘bad’ movie before the three left around 9:30.

As Tom drove home, he reflected on the day with satisfaction. In every way, he had to admit it had been a great two days. Sex with Jane was as ever very active, to say the least, making it far more enjoyable than any of his previous experiences. Those girls had been willing to ‘give it up’ to him because they were looking for at least a medium-term meal ticket and going to high class soirees; in short an introduction to the world of Tom’s parents.

Jane, and her friends, had no interest in any of those things. They didn’t even rely on him chauffeuring them around (granted, driving a Pinto helped there). When they went out as a group by car, they usually went in Daria’s VW (although Troy drove it nearly as often as Daria herself). When they went out to the movies, he only paid for Jane (unlike a number of his previous double dates, where he was treated as a walking wallet more often than not, especially before he could drive and had to rely on others). The current quartet usually ate pizza or fast food, and again he only paid for Jane. On those other occasions, when they ate as what might loosely be considered a restaurant, it was usually along the lines of a diner, the Waffle House, or at other times Denny’s or neighborhood places. They avoided those middle-class theme restaurants that he regarded as too kitsch. It helped that Daria felt the same way about them.

Granted, on the one occasion the four had gone to his parents’ country club for dinner (the night of the Lawndale High Prom) he had paid for all four and supplied a chauffeured limo, but that had been a one-off. Today, they had gone for lunch to Beef-n-Cake for Maryland crab cakes. For dinner, Troy had directed them to a local barbeque place. Yes, the décor was country, but it was clear that it wasn’t over the top and fit in with most of the cliental. Again, he only paid for Jane. Considering that his weekly allowance probably equaled about six weeks of the other three combined (including Troy’s winnings and the bribes Daria received from her parents), this was a refreshing change.

It felt real, unlike his family’s social life and his experiences at Fielding. His mother and sister disapproved, but his father accepted and even encouraged him at times. He could only hope things could continue through the rest of the year.


Daria and Jane spent Sunday morning cuddling. They had ordered Quinn’s toy for delivery to Jane’s near the end of their time in New York. They had also ordered a variety of toys for themselves. They looked over their acquisitions but decided to delay using them; they were well-satisfied from the day before.

Helen was suspicious when she found two serene and content daughters when she and Jake got home. However, she could find nothing to complain about. Jake, having made a number of good contacts and two deals, was happy that his daughters looked so genuinely happy.


By then, there was only a week and a day before Troy was leaving for his university’s freshman orientation. Helen therefore decided she had no objections to Daria and Troy spending as much time together (during the day) as possible. Even Troy’s mother made herself scarce during the afternoons, although Helen did not know that.

That final Saturday was pretty much a repeat of the previous Saturday for the quartet, although Trent stayed with Jesse to give the teens their privacy. That Sunday, Daria rode with the Loomis’s to drop Troy at Georgetown and help him set up his dorm room. He would return home the next weekend to pick up more of his stuff, although only his father would make the round trip.

Troy’s roommate, another history major who had flown in from Michigan, seemed nice enough, and both he and Troy’s parents gave the couple time to say goodbye in private. The ride back to Lawndale was pretty quiet, although Mrs. Loomis had a few short monologues. After all, Daria couldn’t really speak and Troy’s father had long basically ignored his wife’s ramblings, giving only a few ‘yes, dear’ type acknowledgements and nods in response.

Jane had little to do that week or the next, as the time for Lawndale High to start up approached. Quinn, on the other hand, was busy assembling and coordinating outfits for her junior year. Daria spent the final full week before her senior year leaning more towards Jane’s response to the upcoming start, although she did go to the two malls with Quinn one time each. The sisters also spent two other late mornings working on their golf games. Quinn had hopes of at least being named co-captain of the golf team, and perhaps winning one of the officer positions on the pep squad. Daria spent a bit of her free time studying. Troy had tested out of 27 college credits via CLEP exams, and Daria planned on doing the same in the spring. As she had earned perfect verbal and math scores on her SAT attempt, she felt no need to retake them. She would take the English achievement exam (required for a number of the better universities), but since she was going to try the CLEPs in the spring, she felt no need to take any others. She knew she especially needed to get her Spanish and French beyond that required by Lawndale’s standards. Along with planning some other tutoring for Jane, they would be working on that Spanish together. If they could come into college with enough credits, they could live off-campus from the start.


September 1, 1999

As she and Jane approached the school complex that Wednesday (the teachers had spent that Monday and Tuesday at a teachers’ seminar), Jane saw her partner make a face. “What was that face for?”

‘I just wonder what idiocy awaits us.’ She gave Jane a tiny twisted smile. ‘A repeat of the usual idiocy, or something new for the new year?’

Jane shrugged. “Well, you’re right in that there is sure to be some sort. Kevin alone could supply a good share.”

‘True. Hopefully Brittany has broken up with him, so that we will not have to deal with him as often as last year.’

“I’m sure they’ve broken up and gotten back together a few times over the summer.”

‘I had an email exchange with Jodie. Apparently the two broke up when they got fired from their lifeguard jobs. They got back together when Mack moved from ice cream truck driver to the warehouse, and they took over his route.’

“I hope for the company’s sake that Kevin just drove. Brittany can at least do basic math.”

‘No, he lost the company a few hundred in two days by making the wrong change, and they broke up after they were fired from that as well.’

“In just two days? It’s a wonder that boy can even call signals.”

Daria could only nod in agreement. ‘We will have to see if they are back together.’


After school as Daria and Jane walked to Daria’s (Daria was to make the salad and start microwaving the lasagna, and as usual Jane would stay for dinner), Jane commented, “You know, as stupid as I thought today might be, it exceeded expectations.”

‘True, I wonder where Mister O came up with such a stupid idea. I mean, even for him, this must approach the dumbest, at least in execution.’

“Not just plain stupid overall?”

Daria shrugged. ‘I can almost see the point he might have been told to aim for – even it if might have been something as trite as ‘if at first you do not succeed, try again’ – after all, that is what it boils down to. If you do not take risks, you may not fail, or at least not fail badly, but you probably will not actually achieve a whole lot, either.’

“I don’t think anyone will get that message; well, Jodie might figure it out.”

‘She probably will if she has not already,’ Daria agreed. ‘She is going to try and get out of some of her extra-curriculars. Brittany is going to try and not be popular. I gave her some ideas, but warned her to be careful and not overdo it. She might succeed and really become unpopular, and I do not think she could handle that.’

“You’ve really mellowed in the two years I’ve known you, you know?”

Daria smirked. ‘Well, the love of a good man and a sexy woman could not help but soften my cold hard heart.’

Jane blushed a little at that, since she knew Daria meant it.

‘Anyway, Kevin is going to try and fail at practice this week. Mack said he would try and teach Kevin the three branches of our government.’

“How could even Kevin not know…never mind.”

Daria shook her head. ‘I bet he could not name the three colors on the American flag without looking. Quinn, Tori, and Stacy are going to try and dress unfashionably.’

“That’s an idea; maybe I can try and dress fashionably.”

Daria frowned. ‘Do even own anything other than boots and running shoes?’

“You’ve seen me wear dress shoes,” Jane pointed out.

‘They have always been Summer’s hand-me-downs,’ Daria retorted. ‘They were all a half size too large two years ago and are a half-size too small now.’

“Penny left a pair of nice sandals that might fit.”

‘Who left a less intense shade of lipstick?’ Daria teased.

“Summer,” came the immediate response. “Her style would be seen as retro-chic these days, so I’ll raid her closet.” Jane thought a moment. “Actually, I think her kids might have eaten her makeup last summer. We have time; let’s stop at the drug store.”

‘We will miss the early episode of the show,’ Daria objected. ‘Quinn bought enough variety of all that stuff, maybe she has something she will give you if you like it.’

“I guess,” Jane agreed. “Do you know what you’re going to do?”

Daria smiled the half-smile that Jane knew her friend was planning something.

“Something devious?”

‘Devious? Maybe. It is guaranteed to fail at first glance, and certain to get a raise from Mother dear, and maybe result in her giving in on something else she would have usually resisted.’

“Oh, great, dinner and a show!”


Daria actually gave a short presentation after dinner, laying out the ways in which her request was logical, no matter how outrageous it might appear at first. Quinn and Jane were impressed that Daria dared, while Jake was frozen in shock. Helen froze for a moment as well after Daria finished, but then declaimed, “NO! You can NOT be serious! There is NO way you will be going to Georgetown to spend a weekend! How can you even THINK we would agree?”

Daria shrugged. ‘I did not.’

Helen almost growled. “Then what was that all about! Are you just trying to give your father or me strokes!”

Daria looked very offended. ‘Of course not. Quinn, Jane, please explain the assignment O’Neill gave all of his classes today.’ She stood up. ‘While they do that, I decided earlier that we needed something different, so I raided the cupboards and found some instant pistachio pudding mix; it should be set by now.’ Dessert was rare, so that calmed Jake down.

By the time Daria had served everyone’s pudding and sat down, Jake was mostly calmed down after Quinn and Jane had fully explained the assignment, and had almost stopped smirking at Helen. Helen’s glare had softened, but not gone away, however. “Alright,” she told Daria as her daughter sat down, “I understand; you can report you failed and therefore succeeded – I must say that man gets sillier every year.’

As Helen took up her first spoonful of pudding, Daria got her attention. ‘While I of course would never dream of asking to go to Georgetown overnight let alone for an entire weekend, it is not that far a drive. I could still go up for a Saturday sometime, right.’

Helen’s spoonful of pudding fell on the table. She and Jake exchanged a look. Helen sighed, “Very probably.”


‘Well,’ Daria told Jane the next morning, ‘that’s certainly a different look.’ Daria looked Jane over again: a very different hairdo, a light lip gloss rather than fire engine red lipstick, a nice belly-reveling t, a well-fitting miniskirt, sandals, and…. ‘Where did you get a teddy bear backpack?’

“These animal backpacks were the rage here when I was a freshman,” Jane responded. “Teddy was in the back of my closet. I think Brittany is the only one still using hers.”

‘I have always wondered why she had a bunny backpack,’ Daria admitted.

Jane signaled Daria to come in. Puzzled, Daria did so. Jane shut the door and pointed to her mouth. “Quinn gave me some kiwi lip gloss. Wanna try?”

Daria did want to, and the two were almost late for homeroom.


By the time English met again that Friday, Daria noticed some of her classmates were acting differently, and none in a positive way. Kevin, Brittany, and a few others looked stressed and a few others looked a bit more depressed than usual. Jane had mixed feelings, as several boys, who had always ignored her, flirted with her a bit, although one made a rather crude suggestion about possible reasons Jane was dressed differently. Unfortunately for him, Ms Barch had overheard the remark, and he was greatly regretting the comment. As for the class itself, other than reminding the students to report the results of the assignment in the next class, O’Neill had made no comment on it.


Tom was not pleased with Jane’s transformation; to him she now looked like a watered-down version of the Muffy-types he disdained. Only the knowledge that this was for a class assignment stopped him from making some comments he would have regretted on their dates Friday and Saturday nights. Tom did note that neither of those dates were as interesting as the double dates with Troy and Daria usually were. This thought would lead him onto some paths he would later regret.

Monday was Labor Day, so there was no school. Helen, however, got the family, including Jane, together for a picnic lunch at one of the nice parks which surrounded Lawndale. This displeased Tom, who had to endure the company cookout with just his family and the family firm’s families. While Tom enjoyed the benefits that came from coming from a very wealthy, old-money family, he did not like the obligations. He wondered if he would want to take his place in the family business founded by an ancestor to help finance the War of 1812. He at least wanted to keep his options open.


When Mr. O’Neill greeted his first class on Wednesday, he was a bit shocked at how down most of them looked. “Ah, I hope you all have your assessments on the assignment ready to turn in?” He saw many more glares than usual, and thought he may have even heard the odd sniffle. He looked around the room. “Kevin! How did you do?”

His jaw quivering, Kevin answered, “I’m off the first string! I might even get kicked off the team!”

“And I’m facing being suspended from the squad!” Brittany squealed angrily. “I’m the captain! How could I get kicked off!”

“And I’ve been the starting varsity QB for the last…two years!” Kevin added ignoring Brittany. “I’ve been the starting QB since flag football in sixth grade! That’s….” Kevin thought about that.

‘Do you think he can add that high?’ Daria signed to Jane, who smirked.

Trying to take advantage of the pause, O’Neill turned to Daria. She started signing, which Jane translated. “I learned my parents put their values and priorities above mine, and so failed in my self-assignment, so passing the class assignment, but reenforcing the belief I already held that my values and beliefs are not important to my parents, despite making a very logical and dispassionate presentation.” Jane added, “And it really was both; I was there. She was shot down with little consideration.”

Daria then pointed to Jodie, who piped up, “I have to agree with everything Daria and Jane said.” Jodie sighed. “I didn’t think I would succeed, but I hoped I would have been given a better hearing.”

Several other students, especially Andrea, then chimed in with agreements and complaints of various types. One girl in the back actually started crying. “Oh, dear,” O’Neill exclaimed, alarmed, “what have I done!”

Daria took a prepared note out of her notebook, and waved it in the air until O’Neill noticed. “Yes?”

Daria rolled her eyes and waved the paper again before offering it to O’Neill. When he just stared at her, Daria signed and gave the sheet to Jane who gave it to Mack to read. This exchange got most of the class’s attention, other than the crying girl and Kevin.

“The purpose of this assignment,” Mack read, “seems to have been designed to remind us of that the old adage ‘if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again;’ that success rarely happens with the first attempt, and that if we give up then, we will likely accomplish little in life.”

“Exactly!” O’Neill gushed, happy he got through to Daria.

“However, for our age and in our circumstances, we are still more limited by those things than we will be in later life. Our parents still believe that their experience outweighs our self-knowledge and that therefore they get to determine our paths – this will obviously be even more true for those in the grades below us. We also all hope that we will be primarily judged by our true selves, but in high school, we are still judged more by surface appearance and superficial traits by our peers than we hopefully will be in the future. Therefore add this adage to the one mentioned above – ‘pick your battles well, as repeating the same actions over and over will rarely produce a better result’.”

O’Neill thought about that, and quietly said, “Please pass up your assessments. I need to think about this; you may talk very quietly amongst yourselves.”

The murmuring quickly started up. Daria waved at Brittany until she drew the blonde’s attention away from the sulking Kevin. ‘Remind the other cheerleaders you were acting that way only because of the assignment. The ones in O’Neill’s sections all had it as well, so they should understand.’

‘That makes sense,’ Brittany signed back. She sighed. ‘I tried to be serious, but no one took me seriously.’

‘You just picked the wrong time or place to be serious.’ Daria decided to give Brittany a boost. ‘I know sometimes it must hard for you, but we all rely on you to be a ray of sunshine around here.’

Brittany thought about that, her finger twirling her hair. After nearly half a minute, she stopped, and gave Daria her brightest smile. ‘Thank you.’

Daria smiled very slightly and nodded before turning to Jane to see how she was doing.

Brittany thought some more, and then turned to remind Kevin to tell the team that his poor play at practice had been for this assignment; he wouldn’t repeat it again, especially not in a game.

Mack was torn, but whatever his (many, many) faults, Kevin actually was an outstanding high school quarterback, and Mack wanted to have a winning season – it would help with some of his applications. Therefore, he reluctantly reenforced Brittany’s idea, and immediately after class he started with the other players in class.

‘What about you,’ Daria asked Jane. ‘If you are going to keep dressing this way, we will have to stop at a mall.’

Jane looked down at herself. ‘I do need some new clothes, but closer to what I was wearing.’ She looked at her teddy bear backpack. ‘Sorry, Teddy, back to the closet.’

‘We can go Saturday morning, before it gets too crowded,’ Daria suggested. ‘However, could you….’ Daria blushed slightly.

‘What?’

‘Could you keep wearing flavored lip gloss?’

Jane smiled.

*

The two did make it to the main mall that Saturday around 10:30. An hour later, they were walking out of JJ Jeeters with a few outfits when they heard a high-pitched, “Hi!” behind them.

Fearing the worst, they turned, and sure enough it was not just Brittany (which would have actually been unusual) but rather than with Jodie or even with a group of cheerleaders, as they had feared she was with Kevin. A Kevin who was wearing a somewhat overly-decorated leather motorcycle. Daria and Jane had (partially to bug Trent with the cheery beach/surf music) had watched two of the Annette Funicello beach party movies the night before. This led to Jane muttering when she saw Kevin, “Eric von Zipper?”

‘What is with the jacket?’ Daria asked as she suppressed a laugh.

Kevin, as usual, just stared at Daria’s signing, but Brittany asked, “Doesn’t it look good on him?”

As Kevin preened, Jane asked, “Are you getting a matching one?”

“Err, no?” Brittany was confused.

‘He will not let you ride his motorcycle?’ Daria asked, feigning surprise.

“What motorcycle?” Brittany asked, puzzled.

‘The purpose of that type of jacket is to give you a bit of protection if you are thrown off,’ Daria pointed out.

“Exactly,” Jane chimed in “You would no more wear a jacket like that without having a motorcycle than a person would wear a jersey and pads without being a football player. Right, Kevin?”

Kevin looked a bit more confused than usual, but Brittany grabbed his arm and led him back to the store where he had bought the jacket. “Come on, Kevvie!”

“What are the odds of him showing up on a cycle Monday?”

Daria snorted. ‘Well, if you mean on something anywhere between a big chopper and a Vespa, probably pretty good. I just hope Brittany gets a helmet.’

“Kevin will likely wear his football helmet.”

‘I wouldn’t bet against it!’