Andrea opened her eyes and couldn’t help but smile when she saw the shocked expression on Pepper’s face. “Told you,” she said, shaking her head at him sarcastically.

“Yeah… You really can.” He smiled back and gazed at her. He was even more surprised when she slowly walked towards him, leaned in and kissed him. The long, gentle kiss made his heart surge with life, and fireworks erupted in his soul.

She finally pulled away and brought her hand to rest on top of his shoulder. “You’re taking me to prom.”

“I am?” he said in shocked surprise.

“Yup.”

“It doesn’t bother you about my whole… situation? You know, being here in the same situation as you are.”

“Umm, I consider you a lightweight compared to me. And you got caught on your first try. Way to be a major loser.” She leaned in and gave him another quick kiss. “It did bother my dad, though.”

Pepper’s eyes sprang open. “You told your dad?”

“Well, yeah. He was asking about you and I told him I was taking you to prom. He didn’t like it at first, but he’ll get over it. He doesn’t really have a choice in the matter, because this, and you, are my decision.” She sarcastically beamed a giant smile towards him.

He was baffled for a minute, but his thoughts quickly caught up. “Wait a minute… why was your dad asking about me?”

“Kyle from Kyle’s junkyard. Kyle is some kind of veteran club president of some group that my dad is in. He’s a really sweet guy. He comes by every other week to check on my dad and visits with a ton of other veterans in the town. It’s kinda like a calling of his, always trying to take care of others more than himself.”

She paused and glanced away, letting out a long, appreciative breath. “Anyways, he and my dad were doing their normal catch-up on news and Kyle told my dad about you and how you were caught stealing from him. My dad was upset, of course, but Kyle stood up for you and said there was no need to be mad at you. I think the term he used was young and dumb.”

Pepper rolled his eyes. “I guess you could say that. I sure feel pretty stupid right now. I guess I was a little desperate.”

“Well, I know I absolutely agree with Kyle. You are pretty dumb.” Andrea chuckled and then motioned for them to get back to work. The two started to walk back towards the barn.

“Oh really, you think I am pretty dumb, huh? And why exactly is that?”

“Because you’ve had a crush on me for years and never said anything. I would have gone out with you if all you would have done is asked. I finally got tired of waiting and knew exactly what I wanted.”

“Is that a fact?”

“It is.” Andrea glanced over to him with a smile, and before Pepper could respond, she reached over and grabbed his hand.

“I thought you were dating Grant.”

“Eww! Gross.” Andrea shivered. “No, I would never, never date Grant. That guy is majorly creepy, rude, and has no respect for women. He is just as bad as Brent is with Summer.”

Pepper couldn’t help but chuckle and feel bad for his best friend. “Yeah… Brent has been head over heels crazy for her longer than I can remember.”

“Oh, we all know. It’s just too much. Way, way, way too much.”

“So, are we really doing this?”

“Doing what?”

“Dating, together, labels and all?” Pepper immediately regretted his question.

Andrea turned her head with a look of sass that he was not prepared for. Her gaze bore into him as if she was a python snake ready to contract around his neck and finish him off. “If you have to ask me that kind of question, maybe I did make a mistake in choosing you.”

Pepper immediately tried to clear his throat and regain a confident presence. “Oh, no, no, no. I just wanted to be sure we were on the same page when I start to tell everyone.”

She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Nice recovery there, train wreck express. I fell for you when I saw Pepper Walker who was focused on one sole accomplishment. To become a Golem Master and give his absolute effort to it. A guy who loved his friends and family and was loyal to them. I ain’t your average woman, Pepper Walker. I’m fire and brimstone mixed with beauty and spirit. If you can’t handle this heat, then get out of my kitchen. Do you understand me?”

He smiled and squeezed her hand. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Ohh… I kinda like that. A little southern hospitality may actually get you a lot further than you think.” She winked at him and gave him a gentle shove on the thigh. “Come on, Mr. Distraction, let’s get to work.”

The rest of the afternoon work flew by. This renewed outlook on the situation brought Pepper’s spirits to a whole new level of euphoria. The work didn’t even seem like a chore at that point, rather a long-extended date with his new girlfriend. There was far more joking and playing than there was actual productivity by the time they left for home.

Andrea warned him that he needed to get a tuxedo for the prom. Her serious expression matched with the pointing finger was all the warning he needed. “Hey, Amp, be sure to remind me tomorrow that I need to go pick up a suit. Would you?”

“Okie dokie.”

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***

As Pepper walked along the fence towards his house, he saw Ryan standing there. Something appeared off to him, and he stared hard enough to see that Ryan was wearing a business shirt, jacket, and tie but also what looked like swim trunks, flip-flops, and a large Asian-style straw hat. A pair of sunglasses hid his eyes, and he was holding what appeared to be a lime-green slushie. A pink twirly straw poked up from the drink, and Ryan worked his tongue around until he finally got it in his mouth and took a sip.

“Well, well, well. You’re not just stealing golem parts, you’re stealing pretty hearts, I see.” Ryan reached up, lowered his sunglasses, and gave Pepper an overly dramatic wink.

“How did you know I was dating Andrea? That literally happened at lunchtime.”

“Pepper… I know everything. E-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g… That and it is all over Golem Chat. You certainly picked up a lot of new haters there, don’t you know. Like… a lot, a lot.”

“Great. The last thing I want is more directed drama.”

“Hey, haters gonna hate, P-Dub. Better get used to it now, because you really gonna be smothered with it once you get into the Golem League. Mmhmm, sure am there.”

“I guess you have a point. I am glad to see you. I’ve been wanting to stop by and say—”

“Oh welp, would you look at that there familiar. Say, what did your dear old dad name you?” Ryan gestured towards Amprage.

Amprage immediately turned his attention to Ryan and began to wag his metal tail. “I am Amprage, also called Amp for short. I am Pepper’s bonded familiar.”

“You bet your sweet shirt buttons you are, you crazy cute metal puppers.” Ryan smiled and turned his attention to Pepper for a moment. “Man, if you had told me old Bill Baxter would wind up creating these rune things, I would have said you’re crazier than a emperor penguin with a bazooka, you know.”

“Wait, who gave a bazooka to an emperor penguin?”

“You knows, Pep, some details just aren’t important there.”

“Well, I never got a chance to thank you for writing the letter or for telling Bill Baxter about me and helping me get selected. Amp wouldn’t be here if you didn’t. I owe you.”

Pepper watched as the playful, jokester demeanor of his neighbor shifted. A genuine smile appeared on Ryan’s face, and he removed his sunglasses and finally locked eyes with Pepper. “We all make bad choices, Pepper. Nobody is perfect. Sometimes, sometimes we are our own worst enemy in that regard. We want something so bad there that we just— we justify our actions, and it isn’t until it’s all said and done that we look back and see the error of our ways.”

“Well, I’m sorry about the stealing, and if I in any way brought embarrassment to you for everything you’ve done for me.”

“Oh geez, Pep, you haven’t embarrassed me. It’s not like you were caught making out with your cousin or anything.” Ryan tilted his head back with an overly animated expression and sipped on his drink.

“Wait, you made out with your cousin?”

“Nope, but good old Bill Baxter sure did. Now that was a hoot and a half right there. He was all for it and she was clearly not. Let’s just say neither one of them have been back to a combined family Thanksgiving dinner ever since. Boy oh boy, was college sure wild back in the heyday there.”

Just then the two were interrupted. The royal princess of the house came charging out the back door and marched up to Pepper. Her tilted crown and jewel-studded pink sunglasses proclaimed the seriousness of the situation. “Excuse me, but where have you been with my royal horsey?” she demanded with a firm foot stomp.

“Pepper… please…. don’t,” Amprage said with a whimper.

Pepper performed an overly dramatic bow before the princess. “I’m sorry, my lady. I needed him to assist me with a service to the community. Please forgive me, and may you have many amazing adventures with Amprage.”

She huffed, walked over to Amprage, and placed her hand on his metal skin. “Come, Amprage, we have dragons to slay and tea to drink.”

“Pepper, why? What did I do? Was I a bad familiar? I can be better—I’ll be better!” Amp whined, trying to resist while Meg pushed him from behind. Both he and Ryan laughed at the sight and enjoyed hearing the familiar’s voice acting out the personality profile to perfection.

“It’s going to take me a while to clean off the amount of makeup and lipstick she’s going to plaster all over him,” Pepper said, shaking his head. He chuckled. “Worth it.” He turned back to Ryan. “So, where have you been?”

Ryan’s smile widened even more and he rolled his head a little. “Things are looking up, Pepper. You know, this here Big D Energy might actually become a thing or two. I have been spending— oh, hold on here, my Canadian manners have tobogganed right on past me.” Ryan reached down and retrieved a sunburnt orange can with streaks of red scattered across it. “Slapp’n Sour Citrus. So much flavor packed inside it that it will slap your tastebuds right out of your mouth.”

Pepper rolled his eyes and grabbed the can. To his delight, the drink was a perfect balance of sweet and sour. Ryan really has been getting better at creating these drinks, he thought and turned his attention back to his neighbor.

“Yeah, so I’ve just been doing the whole national tour. Putting Big D Energy in front of people’s faces, working on getting some investors and all, you know.”

“Any luck?” Pepper asked after taking another sip.

“It was a long and hard road, but I’m finally getting some traction.” Ryan paused and made an animated expression. “See what I did there?”

“Yes, I get the reference, Ryan.”

“I’m waiting on a few people to get back to me, but I have a good, really good feeling about it all. Things are moving, energy is flowing, and any day here now we’ll be up and running and there will be Big D’s in front of everyone’s faces.” Ryan took a pause and then stared into the distance, his eyes filled with a vision of the future.

“You know, Ryan, I’m not really a marketing expert or anything, but you really might want to hire somebody to help you with phrasing.”

Ryan shifted his head down and looked confused. “Well, why would you go and say something like that there? Do you not believe in Big D? Do you not enjoy yourself with a Big D every now and again?”

Pepper pressed his lips together and looked down at the energy drink in his hand. The label pointed directly towards him. “Oh… I sure do all right.”

“See! That’s what I’m talking about there, don’t you know. Soon there will be Big D’s for everybody,” Ryan finished and looked to have returned to his daydream of a vibrant, successful future.

Pepper let him have another minute and took a few more sips of the beverage. The caffeine had refreshed his tired state, and he felt a little more motivated to do some more work in the shop. He was about to say goodbye and thank Ryan for the drink but stopped. His mind flashed back to a previous time when he and his neighbor had spoken.

He looked back at Ryan, who had just finished playing with his twisty straw. “Wait a minute. Principal Stephens said you were an Olympic gold medalist.”

Ryan smiled bashfully . “Yes… I was.”

“But the story… the story you told me. James LaShawn who trained for the longest time to become an Olympic athlete. That story was actually about you.”

“Oh jeepers there, Pep. I guess you sure did catch me red handed there.” Ryan’s face began to flush; his fingers twirled the straw around his glass. “Yeah, that was my story. I know all about being knocked down and feeling like you’re going nothing but backwards in this here life. So many nights when I would lay in bed, a fresh tear on my face and all I could do was ask why? There were those mornings when you wake up and you just don’t want to get out of bed.

“Yet somehow… while the storm rages on all around you, you still get yourself back up and laugh. You tell the storm you’re willing to work in the rain. That the dark clouds may be veiling the sun, but you know it still exists, even though you can’t see it. So you weather the storm, you ice down your lumps, and you keep taking one step forward at a time, if that is all you can muster.”

Pepper looked at Ryan, who took a deep breath. “Was there ever anything that you used, like a phrase or something you’d tell yourself when you needed a reminder to keep going?”

Ryan chuckled. “Goonies never say die.”