I looked forward all week to attending the dance at the K of C. It was the best place in town for teen dances because it had a large stage and a gym that was dimly lit. There were no scowling teachers there to chaperone, so holding hands and snuggling close to your girlfriend wasn’t out of bounds.
That night the Intruders were performing. They were a local band comprised of friends from my senior class. Jim Engstrom played organ, Dennis Fink played guitar, and Lenny Moore manned the drums. The vocals were expertly handled by Bill Wachter, who also was the bassist. These guys were veterans of the local rock scene and covered all the hits note-for-note like they sounded on the radio.
The Intruders launched into a raucous version of “Devil with a Blue Dress On” just as I sauntered through the door. Although it was just a few minutes after eight, the K of C was packed! Mostly girls shimmied on the dancefloor. They were making themselves available to guys who lined the walls checking them out.
I was looking for one girl in particular. She promised to be here. After a fifteen minute search, I finally spotted her in the shadows. She was standing with her friend, Kathy. Kathy was short and wore horn rimmed glasses and a perpetual sneer. I took it as a bad omen that Merrie had come with her.
Merrie, though, was looking particularly fine. She was wearing the same tight yellow blouse and blue skirt that had driven me so crazy in journalism class that afternoon. She had shapely legs and a lithe, fit body. I caught a whiff of her tantalizing perfume and longed to hold her forever in my arms.
As I approached Miss Merrie, I flashed her an adoring smile. Her dark eyes registered my presence and went completely blank. When I brushed my hand across her arm, she jumped as though bitten by a spider.
“I’m sorry I startled you,” I murmured. “You look really nice tonight.”
“Just have on my school clothes,” she droned in an emotionless voice.
“Well, anything you wear is boss!”
Merrie squirmed uncomfortably and nodded to Kathy. Her friend immediately crowded between us and began jabbering about boys she thought were cute. It was like I was invisible.
Several times I tried to interrupt, only to be rebuffed by Kathy’s strident voice. Finally, I pushed her aside and said to my girl, “You know, I’d really like to dance.”
“Then, go ahead,” snapped Merrie. “I’m not stopping you!”
As I stood there with my mouth agape, Merrie turned her back to me. I didn’t know what I had done wrong, and she wasn’t about to tell me. She hissed like a cat a couple times and then slunk off with Kathy. I could hear them snarling unkind words before mocking me with their laughter.