Bus Logic

Pledge Party was upon us. Yvonne  and I were getting ready in her room before we went to dinner. We were going to dinner at 5, coming back to pre-game, then get on the bus at 9:15. Freshmen got stuck on the early buses because they apparently weren’t as fun. I’m not sure what these means, really. But whatever.

I wore a hunter green cocktail dress with rouching at the waist. Yvonne had a cream silk dress. She looked amazing. Mark said he would wear his charcoal gray suit, so I was excited! I hadn’t seen him in a suit since his recruitment.  He looked good then, I’m sure he’d look even better now. Rich had called Yvonne to ask what she was wearing (ADORABLE!) and he said he would wear a pastel tie to coordinate. Um, I’m sorry, but how sweet is that!

Mark and Rich drove over to the girls dorm in Rich’s Range Rover. Oh yeah, Rich’s dad owns car dealerships all over the south. How awesome is that?! I let Yvonne sit up front with Rich and Mark and I sat in the captains seats behind them. Mark looked at me, “You cleaned up nicely, ma’am.”

“Thanks, honey. You look great.”

We sat down to dinner at Chez LuLu and lamented over not being able to order wine or drinks. They have several champagne cocktails my mom and aunt always let me have a sip of when we’re in town, and I really wanted one even more after peering at the menu. Our dinner consisted of a lot of brie, a lot of poached fruit, and delicious salad dressing.

Now, it’s customary for the girl to pay for the boys everything when you invite him to a sorority function. He’s your date. You take care of everything for him. Sadly, most boys don’t let you do this, I’m learning. Yvonne and I reached for the bills, and both Mark and Rich quickly grabbed them. We were having similar discussions on either side of the table, but Yvonne and I both lost horribly. I could at least rest assured I’d bought the liquor and beer for the pre-game (Thanks cousin Fran!).

Rich invited us to his room before it was time to leave for the party. We all poured our drinks and sat around to talk. I was deep in conversation with Mark about how Alabama football actually wasn’t the greatest thing since sliced bread, when I looked over and noticed Yvonne perched in Rich’s lap. I grinned instinctually. I leaned into Mark, “Don’t look now, we don’t want to startle them in their natural habitat, but I think we’ve found two love birds.”

Mark winked at me; we were proud of our match making. Just then, his phone rang. Leslie was calling.

“We can come down there if you want. We’ve got drinks though, is that a problem?... No, there shouldn’t be. I’ll get them... Okay, I’ll get some cups... Yes we can take a picture to send to Mom... She will love it... Okay, see you in a bit.”

Mark looked up. “Leslie and some other people have beckoned us to the Theta house. She said they need ice and cups. I’m sure that is the main reason why she called.”

Yvonne and I balked. We shared awkward looks between each other. “Mark, we can’t go. Upperclassmen will NOT like us drinking.”

He shook his head. “I asked, Leslie said as long as you weren’t fall down drunk, no one would care. And I can attest that you are not. So, we are fine. Plus, she offered us EACH two drinks at the party. So, I don’t think she’s worried.” He kissed my forehead and ushered me to the convenience store with Rich and Yvonne. We drove down the fraternity house, and about 20 minutes later we were surround by hoards of Thetas and Beta Nus.

Leslie bounded up to me and gave me a hug. “Kathleen! I’m so glad you can make Marky look so dapper. He’d never dress up for me! Let’s me, you, Luke and Mark get a picture. Mom will love it!”

I nodded emphatically, to match her drunken high-speed speech. “Yeah, let’s do it!”

She nodded. “Your mom and Aunt Mary would love to see it, too. I’ll email it to them!”

I was saying a silent prayer I didn’t look too drunk as she shoved the camera in some other upperclassmen Theta’s hand and shoved Mark, Luke, and I into a heard. She then joined us and we took at least 14 photos. Leslie checking between each one, “No, we’re definitely hotter than this!!”

When she was drunk, she sure was excitable. It was a strange contrast to Mark. Mark just got dopey. I liked it, he was affectionate. It was weird, but I feel like he is more honest when he’s drunk. Like he’s lost some level of guardedness. He is so content to just sit and talk with me. It’s flattering. And, he gets flustered when his words don’t come out right, which is totally precious.

Rich and Yvonne had once again cuddled up on a couch over in the corner. Leslie nodded at them. “You did a good job, Hoover! Those two are a match pair! And, I LOVE Theta/Beta Nu couples!” She pointed to some lone guy in the corner. “Like Vince over there? He needs to be dating Mitchell Anne. He won’t because he’s afraid she’ll say no. But they’d be a perfect couple. I’m going to get them together if it’s the last thing I do!”

I looked at her weirdly. “Doesn’t Mitchell Anne have a boyfriend?”

“No! You’re thinking of Anne Margaret. She does have a boyfriend. He’s in a med school. She hooked a good one.”

Oy Vey. Double names have always been hard for me.

“Well, I say you and I get Mitchell Anne down here one night with us, huh?” I smiled sweetly.

“You’re so gung-ho! I love this!” She nudged Mark who was talking to Luke, “You seriously have the best girlfriend. Ever. Don’t screw it up. Or I’ll screw you up.”

Mark shrugged. “She’s kind of awesome. But don’t tell her too much. She’ll get cocky and leave me.” He kissed me on the cheek. Just then we got a huge announcement from some obscenely drunk Beta Nu. “FIRST BUS GIRLS AND DATES—THE BUS IS HERE! LET’S PARTY!”