The Beach Boy

Chapter 6

I was nervous for this date with Dennis, but I liked to think that it was just a friendly outing between friends. I told my family about the date, and I got mixed emotions from my family members. My mother was very excited because this was the first date I was going on. My father on the other hand had mixed feelings. He approved of Dennis and The Wilson's, but he was being a bit more protective than usual.

Father: "I like Dennis and his brothers very much.. His family is nice. I don't approve of you two going on a date or friendly one-on-one gathering together."

Me: "Father, all that's going to happen is that Dennis and I have dinner and then we head home before my curfew."

Father: "That's what you think is going to happen. Kate, a boys mind is all over the place. Trust me. Look, it has to be a group date. If Dennis has a problem with that, he can talk to me."

My father was right. Boys' minds were all over the place, and girls never knew what was going to happen. I called Cheyenne to help me try and persuade my father on letting me go on a date with Dennis, alone.

As Cheyenne and I discussed our plan to persuade my father, Dennis came to see what we were up to. I could tell that he was excited for tonight, but I wasn't showing any excitement.

Dennis: "Hey gals, what's happenin'?"

Cheyenne: "Bad news, Kat can't go to the date tonight."

Dennis: "Kat, is this true? Why can't you go?"

Me: "My father is being protective of me, and he won't let me go on the date unless it's a group date.

Dennis: "That's so absurd!"

Cheyenne, Dennis, and I decided a "group date." We basically would invite two people of our choice, and hopefully they would go along with the "group date" idea to tell to my father. If a group of people planned a dinner night, he wouldn't mind.

Cheyenne invited her cousins, Jace and Thomas, to the dinner. They liked the idea of a fake "group dinner". Brian and Carl decided to tag along, since they got annoyed after Dennis kept talking about me at home. Lexa tagged along and brought her hippy friend named Casey.

The whole group went to my house and waited outside as I talked to my father in my house with Cheyenne. We crossed our fingers that this plan would work.

Me: "Father, since I can't go on a one-on-one date with Dennis, can I go to a group dinner outing with friends?"

Father: "Who's going?"

Me: "Well, if you want to see who's going... they're all outside."

Father: "Outside?"

My father got out of his seat and set the newspaper he was reading on the counter. He peaked out the window to see who was outside. There were about 15 people outside of our house, including Dennis and my brother. He gave me permition to attend the dinner, and Cheyenne and I were relieved he didn't suspect anything.

Everyone hopped into their cars and drove to Paradise Diner, which was fairly close to the beach. The fresh ocean air was something I enjoyed. The sight was beautiful as well. We arrived at the Diner and all of us decided to get seperate booths. Dennis got excited about the decision, but the only thing I was excited for was to eat! I was starving! Having dinner with a good-looking guy isn't bad, but a girl has to eat sometimes..

We sat at our booth and ordered drinks. Dennis ordered a pepsi-cola with a cheese burger with onion rings, while I ordered a water with lemon and a ceasar salad. Dennis gave me a confused look about my order.

Dennis: "Why are you ordering a salad and water at a Diner which is best-known for selling delicious burgers, fries, sodas, and milkshakes?"

Me: "I need to eat healthy food. Burgers aren't that healthy, and fries are salty."

Dennis: "What do you mean you have to eat healthy? You're kidding me, Kate. I swear you eat healthy."

Me: "I do, but I have to watch what I eat. It's for modeling."

Dennis rolled his eyes and changed the topic. He asked how school was, surfing, my new job, family, and what I was lately up to. He was surprised to learn I was talking to myfriends in San Diego a lot. Homesick? Not really. They were planning to visit during winter break, and I was excited.

The Beach Boy's were heading to fame quickly. However, they hated having their father was their manager, especially Dennis. I suggested Brian firing Murray as their manager, since he was the leader of the group. But, Brian was always too scared of Murray. The date was kind of like a therapy session for us because we let out our feelings about certain topics.

Dennis: "I'm sorry about ranting about Murray to you... I'm pretty sure you didn't expect this kind of date."

Me: "To tell you honestly, I didn't really know what to expect. It's nice talking to you though!"

Dennis smiled. We realized time went by quickly and it was already 10:45 at night. We decided it was time to leave, since my curfew was 11. Dennis paid for the dinner, which was a nice gesture. We said goodbye to everyone who was still at the diner at headed home.

The drive home consisted of Dennis rolling down the windows and deciding to scream his head off with Brian and Carl. He turned on the radio and Suspicion by Elvis came on the radio. I began singing the lyrics.

Ev'rytime you kiss me

I'm still not certain that you love me

Ev'ry time you hold me

I'm still not certain that you care

Though you keep on saying

you really, really, really love me

do you speak the same words

To someone else when I'm not there

When I stopped singing, I realized Dennis, Brian, and Carl were staring at me. Then, Brian began to sing. Gradually, Carl and Dennis joined in and we sang together. It was practically a singing session in the car! After, we laughed it off.

Brian: "Hey Kate, since when do you sing?"

Dennis: "Yeah, since when? You have pipes."

Me: "I sing in my room, of course. If I'm not surfing or doing homework, I sometimes put on my records and just sing."

Brian: "Well... your a great singer! Maybe you'll be backup vocals for a song one day on our album."

We arrived at our street and we got out of the car. I thanked the boys for the ride home and I personally thanked Dennis for the date. The boys gave me a kiss on the cheek, and we went home. I entered my house and tried to quietly close the door but I was greeted by a stern voice.

"Katherine Jayne Roberts, your 20 minutes past your curfew. What kept you out so late?"

Gulp. It was my father.