Having Fun with Dycke and Payne Ch. 12

57. "Graduation Daze."

Alletta Temple was not going to be among the happiest of parents, at the graduation ceremony, next Friday. She thought she was going to loser her daughter, for one year, and she did not like that situation at all. She understood Dycke's reasoning. She understood Payne would be away, at Duke, for almost of the year. However, thinking of her in Moscow, Tibet, or some other remote place, scared her to death. This was 'her' precious little girl, and she would not let her go, so far away, without her there, to supervise and protect her. She thought about everything Payne had been through, during her entire life: every terrible insult, nightmare, hospitalization, and operation. The verbal abuse she had suffered through, because of the automobile accident, shortly after her birth, until she had, now become, the outstanding young woman, she was today. Alletta was determined, not to let her go, without a fight.

Ten days prior to her graduation, Alletta called Bacillica, and asked her to bring her family, to her home, for dinner.

Bacillica said it was a wonderful idea, and they would supply the dessert, and the wine.

When the Schneider's arrived that evening, everything was polite, and jovial. The dinner was superb, and the conversation was convivial. Steve was even nice, to Dycke. There were no threats of bodily harm to Dycke, now, or in the near future.

Afterwards, when they retired to the den, Alletta stood up, with a check in her hand, and said, "Dycke, I know you love my daughter. You have proved it, every day, and in every way, since the two of you met. I love you as my own son, and I know, what I am about to say, is going to hurt you, deeply. I do not want Payne to go away, with you. I want her to go to Duke. I want to know, where she is, every day. I want to feel her, in my heart. I want to know I can see her, when I want to see her, and she can see me. I cannot bear the thought, of not seeing her, for months at a time. I cannot give her, what you can give her. However, I can give her everything I have.

Alletta walked over to Payne, and handed her check number 1001, from her personal account. The amount was $1,225,632.57. She said to Payne, "This is the first check I have ever written, from my own account. This is every penny that was in it. I know Dycke can give you more, and I know he loves you. However, I am asking you, as your mother, and someone who has loved you, since the day of your conception, to please stay home, with me."

Payne looked at her mother and cried. She had given her everything she had ever worked for, and saved for, her entire life. How could she say 'no' to her? She turned to Dycke, looking for an answer and support; not wanting to hurt, either of the people, she loved 'most,' in the world.

Dycke had a frown, on his face, and she said to him, "If this is another of your practical jokes, so help me God, I am going to get a gun and shoot you, until you die."

Dycke looked at her, and sadly said, "It is not me!"

Payne approached him, and said, "Swear on your life."

Dycke said, "I will not only swear on my life, but I will swear on our love, for each other."

Payne looked at him and said, "Shit. If it is not you, then this is for real. I have to make a choice, between you, and my mother. Your face tells me, you already know, who I am going to pick."

Dycke looked at her, and said, "How could I not know. No man, no matter how much money he has, no matter how much he loves a woman, can stand between a loving mother, and her daughter. I want you to have the best of everything, Payne. Hopefully, one day, we will be able to be together, once again."

Dycke stood up, kissed her, and with tears in his eyes, fled the house, running as fast as his legs could carry him.

Steve was hot on his heels, yelling for him to stop. Finally, Dycke listened, and he came to a halt.

Steve yelled at Dycke, for being so stupid. He called him a coward, for giving up, so easily. He tried to convince him to go back to his house, and stay with Payne.

Steve said, "If I had known, how thin your skin was, I would never have lost a race to you. Fight for her, damn you."

Dycke replied, "I cannot do that, Steve. Your mother's heart was breaking. Do you know how many of her own 'taboos' she broke, writing that one check? I could not make her suffer any more than, she was already. I could have offered Payne, a small country, if she wanted one. That was not where the problem lay. I had to decide, 'Whose heart was going to be broken?' I chose mine, instead of your mother's, Steve. I have run away, before I change my mind, or I will go crazy. Tell Payne, I love her, and I will miss her, forever."

Dycke ran off, leaving Steve looking at his back.

As Steve started to walk back, to his home, when an arm reached out, and grabbed him.

Desiree said, "Not bad squirt. In another three minutes, Dycke would have been fifteen blocks ahead of you. Yelling for him, to stop, was a very prudent move."

Steve looked at her, not believing she was there. "How, and why, are you here?"

Desiree said, "Oh, how quickly, they forget you, when they are not between your thighs. I am always around you, Steve. I am the reason you graduated, with decent grades. I am going to make sure your grades at UNC, remain high. I am going to be the reason, you will be in peak condition, and you will run, faster times, than you ever have. I am going to be the reason, that your sex life is going extremely limited, at UNC. Cynthia is going to be there, with you, and she is not going to be hurt. Payne has given me very explicit instructions, in that matter. As long as, I am assigned to you, I will enforce these rules, vigorously. Now, shall we run back to your house, or should we sprint?"

Steve said, "Oh shit."

Dycke was running, in the opposite direction, when, he heard footsteps, on the other side of the street. He yelled, "Marti, you him can come over here, now."

In a few moments, Marti was running alongside him. She asked Dycke, how he knew she was there, because she was dressed, all in black.

He said to her, "We have run together, so often, I recognize the beat of your footsteps."

Marti laughed and said, "I cannot change my gait, so I am going to have to have your hearing adjusted."

Dycke said, "No, thanks, Marti. It is quite comforting to know, where your friends are."

Marti asked him if he wanted to continue the run, or just go home.

Dycke replied, "If we can get a chase car, I would like to try for 'twenty.'"

Marti smiled at him, and said, "Getting a little 'ballsy', aren't we?"

Wednesday, was rehearsal day for graduation. The seniors marched out, on to the athletic field, to the sounds of the band playing, "Pomp and Circumstance," as they filed into their assigned seats. The principal informed everyone, there would be several speeches, including a speech, by a Member of the School Board, himself, the valedictorian, and several others. Graduation would take approximately, 2 hours. He did not want to hear, any moaning or groaning, from the student body. They would receive 'Fake Diploma's to the song, "It Is the End of the World as We Know It" and the 'Real Diploma's would be handed out, when they returned their caps and gowns. If they disrupted the ceremony, the real diploma would be withheld, until they served a two-day detention.

Now, the students groaned, while the principal and the teachers smiled.

Many students noticed Payne was not happy. It looked as if she had been crying, and anything could set her off, again. Several people thought about going over to her, however, they saw Gabby, at the end of her row, and decided against doing so. Jessica knew she could not get into any more trouble, than she was in already, so she went over to Payne and asked her, if there was anything, she could do, to help.

Payne looked at her and said, "No. I had a problem I could only solve, by hurting one of the people I loved most in this world. Dycke helped me make it, and I have been miserable, since then."

Jessica asked, "What happened?"

Dycke asked me to go away with him, for one year, before we started college. He wanted us to have memories, which we could tell our children about, before his businesses tied him down, to a desk. He was going to take me to the most wonderful places, in the world. We talked about it and it was a fairytale. We had dinner at my house, his family, and mine. We had a wonderful time, until my mother stood up, and said that she could not let me go. She told Dycke that she knew how much he loved me, and she knew she was going to hurt him. However, she wanted me to be in a place, where she could reach out, and touch me, at any moment, of the night or day, to see my face, and talk to me.

I looked to Dycke, for help, and he just looked at me. I thought it was one of his practical jokes, but it was not. He told me he knew what my answer was going to be 'because no man could get between a loving mother and her daughter.'" He kissed me, he wished me a wonderful life, and he ran from the house. I have not seen, or heard from him, since.

Jessica grabbed Payne, around her shoulders, as she started to cry. She said to her, "Could Dycke use that technical stuff, in his basement, to communicate, with your mother, every day, like he did, when he showed Gail and I, some of our escapades, in Bermuda?"

Payne said, "I do not know? He did not say anything about it. He just ran away, crying."

Jessica said, "Do you think, he might have been hurting, also?"

Payne said, "Yes."

"I can tell you that pain can do a lot of things to you. It could send your mind reeling, a mile a minute, with great ideas, for your next project.

However, it can also, blank your mind out, for long periods, of time. I think you should contact Dycke's parents, and by hook, or by crook, get to speak to him, one on one, before he goes off, by himself."

Payne thanked Jessica for her thoughts on the subject, and told her that she would see her, on graduation day.

Payne called Bacillica, and asked if she knew where Dycke might be? Bacillica told her that Dycke had not been home, and had not called her, since he was at her mom's house. She was worried, about him.

Payne told her that she was going to call everyone, starting with Fiona and, find where her 'idiot son' was. She would get back to her, very soon.

Bacillica said to Payne, "My son is not an idiot. He is in love, and he is acting like an idiot. They are two different things."

Payne said, "I love you, mom."

Bacillica said, 'I love you too, dear."

Payne called Fiona, and asked if she knew where Dycke was?

Fiona said, "Of course, I know where he is."

Payne said, "He is acting irrationally, and he will not talk to me. He has been under a great deal of stress, and he needs to be under a doctor's care."

Fiona laughed, and asked, "Do you have a 'particular type of doctor,' in mind?"

Payne said, "My first choice would be a doctor, with a 'horsewhip.' My second choice would be a doctor with a 'straitjacket.' I need to talk to that twerp of mine. No, let me change that statement. I need that twerp of mine to listen to me. I need to get it through that thick skull of his, that there is more than one way to 'skin a cat.'"

Fiona yelled out, "Bob, Payne is on the telephone, and she wants to talk to Dycke. When he tells you that he does not wish to speak to her; convince him, that it is in his best interest, to change his mind."

Fiona told Payne, "Dycke will be here, in a moment, or so. It all depends, on the amount of persuasion; Bob has to apply to that, 'thick head' you spoke about."

Several moments later, Dycke picked up the phone, and said, "Hello, Payne."

"Dycke, you sound exhausted. Have you been working out?"

"That is very funny, Payne. I just got my ass kicked, because I did not want to talk to you. I was convinced, that it was in 'my best interest' to talk to you, before something was broken."

"Fiona would never have let that happen. She is too nice a person to do that to you."

"So was my coach, until he met her. Her temper has rubbed off on him. What can I do for you, Payne? "

"Jessica told me something, and I wanted to find out if it was true. Were you able to make a phone call, from your basement, and have the video of her and Gail played on the television downstairs?"

Dycke's said, "Yes, it is true."

"Dycke, you dumb fuck. You could have told that to my mother and father, last week. Do you think it might make it easier for them to let me go, with you, if they knew they could see me, and talk to me, anytime they wanted? Do you think if you gave them a satellite receiver and phone, with the best technology available, where they could contact me, anytime they wanted; it would make it more palatable, for them, to let me go, with you? They show people, live, on television, every day, from Tel Aviv, and Hong Kong, via satellite. You did it the other night, from South Africa. For a very smart person, Dycke Schneider, 'sometimes, you are as dumb, as a fucking post.'"

Dycke wanted to kick himself. His mind had gone blank, when Alletta told him Payne could not go with him. The pain she exhibited, turned his brain off. Under no circumstance, could he take Payne away from her. His fight, or flight mechanism, kicked in, and he ran away, as fast, and as far, as he could.

Dycke asked Payne, where she was, and he would come and get her. She replied, "You hid from me. If you want me, find me." She hung up, and Dycke was left looking, at the receiver.

Dycke asked Fiona, "Find out where she is, please."

Fiona looked at Dycke and said, "I am sorry boss, but I just went off duty. You will have to wait for your new agent, to do your bidding."

Dycke laughed and grabbed her by the shoulders, and Fiona screeched out the word, "Bob!"

Bob saw Dycke, playfully, throwing Fiona shoulders left, and right. He went over to Dycke, and threw him back, onto the mats, not so playfully. He said to Dycke, "I am going to teach you, never to attack another man's woman."

For the next fifteen minutes, or so minutes, Dycke tried every move Bob taught him, about defense, and he even had some limited success. He was very thankful Bob did not move at full speed, because he could not have handled it.

Marti showed up, a short time, after they had finished their workout, and Dycke asked her to find Payne.

Marti responded, "I cannot do that, Dycke. You ordered, all of us, to keep you, and Payne, away from each other. I feel that it is my duty, to honor your wishes."

Dycke yelled, "Okay, have your fun, at the expense of an eighteen-year-old kid, who would not let a forty four-year-old woman, suffer the loss of her daughter, and had his mind turn off at a critical moment. It seems to me that one of the women in this room had a similar experience, and her age is..."

Fiona screamed, "If you say my age, they will be the last words, out of your mouth."

Bob laughed. He said, "Darling, I do have to bring your birth certificate in, for our marriage license."

Fiona said, "You will go first. I will provide my birth certificate after you leave the window. I will then put the license in my pocketbook, and it will be the last time, you ever see it. You will always know the day, but never the year."

Marti said to Bob, "If she ever gets testy, with you, and yells 'divorce,' come to me, and I will tell you the year."

Fiona looked at her and said, "You would keep me tied to him, forever?"

Marti replied, "Forever or until you grow up, little girl."

Fiona smiled at her, "You have not called me that, in decades."

Marti laughed and said, "You are showing your age, darling."

Dycke yelled, "Will somebody find out, where Payne is, or I will have to go out, and find her myself?"

Bob said, "Dycke, go take your shower. You and I will find her, and take care of your little problem."

Fiona said, "You cannot find your shoes in the morning, without help."

Bob laughed, and started running towards the service elevator. He yelled, "I always could, before you moved in."

Fiona went after him, like lightning.

Marti and Dycke laughed. Marti said, "Dycke, take your shower. I think it will be you and me, today."

Dycke found Payne with her mother. Alletta did not look happy, to see him, when he walked in to her house. Payne took her mothers' hand to give her some reassurance. She said to her mother, "Nothing has changed. I just want you to listen, to what Dycke and I are going to say. If your answer is still 'no,' both Dycke, and I will abide by it. Are you willing to listen?"

Alletta said, "Yes, I will listen, because I love you both, very much."

Payne said to Dycke, "Set up your toys, while I tell my mother, what you are going to do."

Dycke opened the large box, and took out all the equipment. He took the miniature satellite antenna outside, staked it into the ground, to stabilize it. Then, he hit the button for the electronic servo, tuned the dish into the best available satellite, and returned inside, to finish setting up, the bulk of the equipment.

Alletta knew satellite communication was available, to the news networks, and to large corporations, but not to families, no matter how rich they were. Her children were about to prove her wrong.

Dycke asked Alletta if there were anything, in this world, or out of it, she would like to see.

She asked him, "What do you mean 'out of it', Dycke?'"

"Mom, I can download live feeds, from government, and commercial satellites, taking pictures of the heavens. I can show you pictures from Hubble looking at the stars, and NOAA satellites taking pictures of weather patterns, here on Earth. I can show you the Great Wall of China from stationary or orbiting satellites. More importantly, I can see, and I can communicate, with anyone, anywhere in the world, ninety-nine percent of the time. I have business interests, all over the world. We have to be able to contact each other constantly, and sometimes, at a moment's notice.

In a few moments, I am going to speak to my Uncle Turnquest, in Switzerland. To prove to you that he is, in Switzerland, and not someone, that says 'he is there', I have a picture of a mountain, which is quite famous. It is called, "The Matterhorn." He will be at a restaurant, near the base of that mountain. Although the mountain borders four countries, its' most famous ascent, is from the Swiss side. This demonstration is to prove to you, that you can speak to Payne, anytime you want. You will be able to see and hear her, as clearly as you could, if she called you from Duke."

Payne said this to her mother, "Mom, go to any channel on the satellite stations that is blank. It does not matter how high, or low the station is."

Alletta did what she was told and turned to station 913.

Dycke showed Alletta the little satellite antenna outside, and how easy it was to tune in the strongest satellite signal, and lock the antenna on it. He joked with her and said, "This will work just fine, as long as, Steve does not kick it or fall on it." He picked up the telephone and dialed the first set of numbers, and put the phone into the voice scrambler.

A voice answered and said, "Identify by code."

Dycke put in his sixteen number codes and waited.

"Good afternoon Mister Schneider. How may I help you?

"Good afternoon. Please put the video and voice feed to Turnquest Schneider on Channel 913."

Payne and Alletta sat on the couch, where they could see the television, as Dycke set up the small television camera just to the left of it. He then sat down between the two women.

Seconds later, the television signal started to appear, and his uncle Turnquest, sat staring at the camera, at his end of the hook up.

Dycke said, "Uncle, it is impolite to stare. I am not in the television camera; I am on the television."