Bunny & Mousey

Stumbling In.

Our love is alive, and so it begins. Foolishly laying our hearts on the table, Stumbling In.
Suzi Quattro.

Last Day of School, June 1980.

"Mousey! Come sign my yearbook."

I strolled over to her as nonchalantly as possible. "Of course, Bunny. Hi, Ginger."

She remained seated on the low brick flower planter with her friend, and looked up at me. "I knew you would be tall."

I stood a scrawny five-foot-ten on that day, and every inch of me quivered with anxiety.

I'm going to ask her out, but I'm scared. Afraid she'll laugh at me, or worse, say yes. Then what? I wish I could just kiss her without anything else happening, like Ellen. That's all I'm ready for...

After quickly scribbling a bland, "Best wishes! Mousey!" in one of the few blank spaces left inside Bunny's back cover, I handed my book to her. With only a handful of signatures inside either cover, she had plenty of room to draw a stylized bunny and mouse. She then wrote Bunny & Mousey inside a heart.

Oh shit oh shit oh shit...

I lost my nerve to ask her on a date, but stammered, "Umm, Bunny? Can I, you know... call you over the summer?"

She beamed, "Of course, Mousey. I'd love that. You have my number, right?"

Feeling faint, I nodded. My sister had given me a phone book a few years back, and Bunny's had been the first girl's number to grace its pages. After high school, it would become a comedy piece with various notations, as my efforts with girls succeeded or failed. "I do, Bunny. You gave it to me at Mark's house."

My mother had discovered the folded paper in my pants pocket, and had delightedly teased me. "You have a girlfriend named Bunny? What's she like?"

"Ok, Mousey. I'm going to be gone for a couple of weeks, but I hope to see you after that. That is, if you're not too busy with your job. How is that going?"

I love it! Jackie and Kelly are so awesome...

"You know, it's work..."

She stood, then briefly hugged me with her whole body.

Ok, this is nice. I think I'm ready for her...

We spoke together.

"Bye Bunny."

"Bye Mousey."

***************

July 1980.

"Hi, I'm calling for Bunn... I mean Kari. Is she home?"

A woman's hoarse voice called, "Kari, there's a boy on the phone. Make it fast, you don't want to miss your flight."

Flight?

It took a minute for her to answer, "Hello?"

"Hi Bunny, it's Mousey."

"Oh, you finally called! I thought you had forgotten."

I deserve that...

"I'm sorry Bunny. I've been busy with work..."

Jackie and Kelly keep me busy...

"Umm. Bunny, would you like to go see The Rocky Horror Picture Show on Saturday night?"

I said it smoothly, but my index finger turned purple where I had tightly wrapped the phone cord to stave off the extreme anxiety of asking her out.

"Oh, Mousey. I'm sorry, but I'm going to live with my father in Oregon. My plane leaves in an hour, so I have to go now. I loved our time together, and..."

My heart sank. "Oregon? Bunny, I wish I had..."

Sobbing, she squeaked, "Me too. I won't see you next year, but I plan to move back there someday. Goodbye, Mousey. Take care of yourself."

"Bunny, I'll miss you. Bye."

Damn...

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