The Circle Ch. 46

It was a slow news day too, and so the mugging made the front page and top of the news. Two photos appeared. In the first Derek is about to put the second thug through the car window to render him unconscious. In the second, Kyle is kicking the gun out of the fourth man's hand as he struggles with the pepper spray in his face. Tracy stood by with the spray canister still in her hand and ready to apply a third shot. Ellie was already getting her phone out to call the police.

The headline read, 'Crime wave stopped by celebs. Thugs mess with wrong people.'

The newspaper was accurate, for a change, and stayed away from judgments about The Circle's lifestyle or even where we lived. We were just the TV personalities from The Circle TV Show, who had been out on a date, who got mugged and reacted to protect their lives and property. The paper went into lurid detail about the injuries to the four men who had been neutralized from their felonious ways: broken nose, jaw, and cheekbone; concussion and slash across cheek; blown-out knee; and broken hand bones.

The police had apparently let the press know some of what they'd been told. Derek was a black belt in Aikido, Tracy had been taking martial arts training since she left college, and the others were also studying martial arts. Both Tracy and Derek had appeared in some their training regimes on the TV show too.

A week later, a shortened version of the article appeared inPeople magazine along with the two photos, and an outtake photo from the TV show showing Tracy tossing an instructor twice her size onto a mat.

That would have been sufficient, along with hope that something more noteworthy would replace the news about the mugging; however, the city mayor decided that the four should receive medals for meritorious and courageous public service, along with a commendation for removing some of the street filth from the city's fine streets (or garages).

One afternoon a month later, a huge ceremony was held on the steps of city hall. Every politician within a hundred miles showed up to have their picture taken with the four members of The Circle – two heros and two heroines. Of course, every possible news outlet had been encouraged to cover the event. That too was a slow news day, and the four were again on the front-page or top of the news as they got their awards.

The entire Circle showed up too to watch their partners receive the award and to cheer. Of course, the reality TV cameras were all on hand too. The group was a bit rowdy and loudly cheered when the medals were draped around the necks of their friends. Of course, the city newspapers dutifully reported on the event in great detail, complete with more photographs.