Forbidden Fruit by Gabbie Mike surveyed his backyard and nodded to himself. Everything looked great, his guests could come now, he was ready. The B-B-Q was primed and waiting to be filled with charcoal. It was a large grill, it could easily accommodate the hamburgers, Hot-dogs and the marinated chicken that were waiting to be sizzled. The fixings were cut and in the fridge, chilling right next to the sodas and the beer. He swung around when the french door slid open to admit Marco onto the porch, followed by Smiley. Smiley was a big dog, a mix between a Border collie and a German shepherd, and the animal's exuberance was breath taking. Being a smart animal, Smiley knew that kids and food were on the horizon, and to the friendly, playful dog that meant only one thing: FUN, FUN and FUN. He jumped around Marco, dashed to his master and back to Marco. The Latino fireman loved the dog with all his heart, but right now he was loaded down with a big bag of charcoal in his arms and clutching a can of lighter fluid in one hand. "Whoa Smiley, you're gonna make me fall flat on my face there big fellow!" Smiley took that as an incentive to become even more playful. Rising on his hindquarters, he attempted to kiss Marco, undeterred by the 20-lb. bag of charcoal. The sudden weight of the large animal, combined with the big bag tilted Marco slowly back, until he lost his balance. "Whoof." The bag landed on the fireman, followed by a very happy Smiley, who now had unrestricted access to his friend's face. He commenced to place affectionate kisses on Marco. Marco struggled to get bag and dog off him, his floundering and clumsy movements convinced Smiley, that his friend was ready to play some more. Marco huffed and puffed and tried to push the bag off his midsection while trying to sit up. Smiley barked happily and nudged him with his large head every time Marco made some headway. "HEY, how about some help here?" Marco shot a dark look in Mike's direction, his eyes narrowed at the sight he took in. Mike was sitting on his porch, almost helpless with laughter. His blue eyes sparkled with tears as he watched a scene worthy of Laurel and Hardy. Smiley turned to his master and his happiness was now complete. Daddy was down on the floor too, what fun they would have now. The ecstatically happy Smiley bounced between both men, oh what fun. "WELL!" Mama Carmelita stepped through the glass door and frowned at her boys. How impossible her men were… lovable, but completely impossible. "If you two are through playing, how about some help?" With arms akimbo, she glared at the two men. "Smiley, come here, don't encourage these two, come with Mama, what a good dog you are." Smiley obeyed gladly, where there was Mama Carmelita there was food and loving. With a last glare, she turned her ample figure around and disappeared into the house, Smiley on her heels. "Could you maybe get your butt off the porch and help me here?" Marco was exhausted from his efforts. Mike, weak from laughing so hard, crawled over to his friend on his hands and knees. He pulled the large sack off Marco and stood up, holding out his hand to aid his friend. "I'm glad I could contribute to your happiness." Marco slapped his backside to get rid of the dirt clinging to his jeans. "Do you want help with this stupid charcoal or not?" Looking at Mike and seeing his friend's feeble attempt to control his mirth, he frowned again. But it didn't last long. Marco's sense of humor took over and he started laughing himself. "That must've been some picture, Mama sure wasn't amused." The memory elicited new fits of laughter from Mike, and the good-natured Marco joined in. Together they tended to the grill, anticipating a wonderful garden-party, complete with all their friends and families. #### Johnny raced a comb through his dark hair and rushed from his bathroom to his bedroom. He didn't want to be late, Mike's party would start in about 45 minutes and he wasn't even close to ready. He didn't want to miss a minute of it; he'd been looking forward to the event for two weeks. Everybody he loved and liked would be there. There were his family from A-shift, Roy and Joanne, Marco's family, Dixie, Kel, Joe, a whole lotta kids to pal around with and last but not least, there would be Jan. Mike's cousin from New York had flown in last night and Johnny had picked her up at the airport at Mike's request. He remembered his first sight of the beautiful woman who struck him speechless.  That was Mike's cousin? He'd been so klutzy, tripping over invisible obstacles, dropping her suitcase and running full tilt into an airport security officer (the guy didn't have to be so mad about it, it was an accident!), he really needed to make a better impression on the beautiful woman. The thought of her spurred the dark haired man into higher speed. "Oww!" Bending over to retrieve his socks, he hit his head on the bedside table and sank onto his waterbed. How lucky he was that his fellow firefighter was willing to trade the Vegas trip for it, he loved his bed.  It was however no consolation for him right now, as he gingerly touched his forehead. Please, no ugly bump right now, not now. 'Why is this always happening to me?'  Johnny stood and walked over to the mirror, as the unwelcome memory of the night before assaulted his brain. He 'd driven up to Mike's house and walked with Jan to the door. Of course, by then he was so discombobulated, that he tried to open the door with his car-key. The beautiful woman was classy enough not to laugh out loud, but the amusement in her eyes was apparent. With the key now hopelessly stuck in the lock, Johnny wished he could scream his frustration out loud. Of course, that would be the moment Mike chose to drive up. With envy he watched their hugs and the joy they displayed at seeing each other again. When Mike turned to him to ask why they were standing around outside, his shoulders slumped in defeat. Jan came to his defense and scolded Mike for having such poor lighting outside, that his friend inserted the wrong key. Mike wasn't fooled for a minute, his look spoke volumes as he gently took the key and worked it out of the lock. Staring into the mirror, Johnny shook the thoughts out of his mind. He would be charming and witty and simply irresistible today, she'd be putty in his hands. #### Jan sat in the kitchen, watching Mama Carmelita hustle and bustle. She felt totally useless, but her repeated attempts at being helpful earned her nothing but an affectionate smile and a squeeze of her cheek. She looked up and a relieved smile crossed her face. Mike and Marco walked in, ready to get the plates and cups set up. "Hey fellas, need some help?" Jan jumped off her chair and stepped eagerly forward. "No, no, no," Mama Carmelita took hold of her shoulders and gently pushed the girl back down onto the chair. "You are here on vacation, no work for you, just have fun." Marco saw the expression on Jan's face and came to her aid. "Mama, just let her help, she's not a guest, she's family." Mike smirked at his cousin. "On the other hand…" He began and grinned at Jan. Jan stuck her tongue out at Mike. It may not've been lady-like, but very satisfying nevertheless. Mama Carmelita relented and put Jan to task, her boy was right, the girl was family, because Mike was family. Jan happily bent to her chores, finally feeling useful. It also helped getting that charmingly clumsy, very handsome dark haired man with beautiful eyes off her mind. #### Johnny raced to his front door, coming to a hard brake and doing a 180-degree turn at the last minute. Balling his hands into fists, he ran back to his living room table, snatched his keys and wallet and ran back to the door. He had to get himself under control; he was acting like a lovestruck teenager. Wouldn't that've been a pretty picture, him calling Mike, collect no less, to request the spare key from his friend?  With his luck the object of his dreams, Jan, would probably have answered the phone to be a firsthand witness to his apparent idiocy. #### The guests started arriving, the house and yard filled up with friends and families. Mama Carmelita was in her element, she loved these people. She loved to feed them and talk to them, she enjoyed the children and their laughter and Smiley's happy barking. She directed Jan, Rosa, Consuela, Marco and Mike around like a perfect choreographer. Children and animals were drawn to her like a magnet; she exuded love, family and warmth. The opening of the front door drew her attention. A big smile spread across her face. Another one of her favorites, the sweet, handsome boy Johnny walked in. Walking over to him she engulfed him in a big hug, followed by the now customary squeeze of his cheek. "How skinny you are, you need to eat my boy." She turned her million-dollar smile right into Johnny's eyes. "We have good food, and good desserts, they'll put some flesh on your bones." Their attention was drawn by footsteps. Mike opened the glass door and walked into the family room. "Hey Johnny, welcome." He grinned at his friend. "Get out there and get yourself some food before Mama Carmelita force feeds you." Laughing at Mama's mock angry expression, Mike drew his friend outside. "Hello Johnny." Lieselotte and Jim Calhoun greeted the young man. They were Mike's neighbors and welcome guests. "Hey Lieselotte, hey Jim." Johnny knew the elderly couple well and liked them very much. Lieselotte was from Switzerland; she came to America after marrying Jim overseas over forty years ago. Her knowledge of Europe was vast and he loved listening to her stories. The pair drew Johnny to the tables, chatting and laughing. Johnny walked and talked amiably, until he spotted Jan. Suddenly his tongue was tied and his feet were unable to lift themselves properly. Tripping over a non-existent gopher hole, he finally excused himself from Lieselotte and Jim and stalked carefully over to Roy. "Hey pally." Johnny tried his hardest to be nonchalant. He casually waved at Jan, as if he'd spotted her accidentally. Ignoring Mike who was looking daggers at him, he strolled to the grill. "Hi cap, how's it going?" Johnny smiled casually at his captain. "Hey John, it's going very well." Hank smiled at his paramedic, one hand holding the spatula, the other comfortably around his wife's waist. "Hello Johnny." Helen Stanley looked at the paramedic with affection. She liked the young, big-hearted man very much. "Well John, what'll it be? We have hamburgers, hot-dogs and chicken, take your pick." Hank was relaxed and completely at ease. "I'll have a burger cap." Johnny grinned back. After carrying his hamburger to the table he took a seat across from Jan. Smiling at her, all man of the world, he grabbed the mustard bottle and shook it. "So, how do you like California?" Johnny asked casually. He proceeded to squeeze the mustard on his burger, all the while smiling at Jan. The top of the bottle shot away, the yellow condiment sprayed all over the place. A big glob landed on Jan's cleavage, another one on her cheek. The surprised girl jumped up and the back of her knees made contact with the bench. True to the physical law of the irresistible force meeting the immovable object, something had to give. Unable to maintain her balance, the hapless girl fell backwards onto the lawn. In a futile attempt to stop her fall, Johnny jumped up to catch her, sending the pitcher filled to the brim with gloriously red fruit-punch flying. The liquid ran across the table and onto Dixie's new khaki pants. The surprised woman jumped up to escape the cold, red fluid and bumped into Kel, who ended up hugging his full plate to his chest.  Mortified, Johnny looked around. All eyes seemed upon him, a movement from his peripheral vision turned his head. Mike was walking toward him with a strange look in his eyes. Johnny's head was spinning, he felt utterly humiliated and embarrassed. He turned and fled, seeking the comfort of his home. He practically ran through the french door, into the family room and turned to the front door, only to be stopped by Mama. "There, there, come sit down." The compassionate woman stroked his hair. "Have some dessert, calm down, tomorrow all will be all right." Mama Carmelita planted an affectionate kiss on top of Johnny's head and walked out into the back yard, clutching paper-towels and a large washrag. Johnny was inconsolable. He sat staring into space; the total recall of his goof made him cringe. Mama was right; he'll just eat till he'd bust. He surveyed the food around him. Standing up he walked to the pantry, why not, he'd already made a complete ass of himself, let's raid Mike's kitchen. A beautiful earthenware pot drew his attention. He opened it and took an appreciative sniff. Wonderful, just what he needed, a sweet, sticky dessert to take his mind off his troubles. Johnny carried the pot to the table and ladled a huge portion of it's content into a bowl. Mhhmm, yummy, in Johnny-style he took large spoonfuls and chewed contentedly. ##### In motherly fashion, Mama Carmelita helped Jan, Dixie and Kel clean up. "I hope you're not planning to be angry at the poor boy." She wiped the mustard of Jan's cheek with the damp washrag, keeping up a steady stream of words. "He didn't do it on purpose you know, accidents happen." Dispensing paper-towels to Dixie and Kel, she proceeded to clean up the red, sticky punch from the table. "Johnny is very sad right now, he almost went home." Tsk tsking she looked at Dixie's pants. "Jan, you and Dixie are about the same size, go upstairs and loan her some pants. I'll get the stain out; they'll be as good as new. Mike, take the doctor and give him one of your shirts, I'll clean that too." With a shushing motion she send her charges into the house. "And none of you better yell at the poor boy in there either!" Jan took Dixie's arm and pulled her along. Her sense of humor won out and she started giggling. Dixie, no grouch under normal circumstances, joined in, as did the rest of the foursome. It really was pretty funny, poor, poor Johnny. After changing they went in search of Johnny. They had to console him, he was probably beating himself up over the mishap, and they wanted to cheer him up. They met up with Marco and Roy, who came in with the same mission in mind. "Mama said she left him in the kitchen with the desserts," Marco grinned, "let's go get him back to the party." Joining together, they walked through the arch that separated the kitchen from the dining room, and all six people stopped as if hit with a sledgehammer, their mouths dropped open in unison. There was Johnny, hugging an earthenware pot, grinning goofily with a spoon stuck to his nose. He looked up at his friends and waved at them, the goofy grin widened. "Hi people, hic, howsh it goin?" "What the…?" Roy took a step forward, his face a question mark. "Oh no," both Mike and Marco spoke up at the same time, their gaze was on the earthen pot. Mama Carmelita and Lieselotte walked into the scene, both were struck speechless. "The Rumtopf, oh no, the poor boy got hold of the Rumtopf." Lieselotte put a hand on her forehead and looked shocked. "The what?" Dixie put everybody's question into words. "Rumtopf, its called Rumtopf." Mike drew a deep breath as the impossibility of the situation dawned on him. "It's a European specialty, originating in Germany. You take an earthenware pot and start with the first fruit of the season. You put it in the pot and cover it with straw-rum, the one that's over 80 proof." Mike sighed, Johnny would have a headache the size of Alaska when the liquor wore off. "Over the year you keep putting the seasonal fruit in and keep covering it with the rum. By Christmas you have a treat that'll knock your socks off." Mike rubbed his temples. "The liquid turns syrupy and very sweet, the fruit has the potency of a rocket. It doesn't taste or smell like alcohol, it's incredibly deceptive, and it gets you very drunk very fast." As one the whole company turned to Johnny, who sat at the table, grinning happily. His upper body swayed from side to side, he tried to get a hold of the pot, but couldn't decide which one of the four pots to grab. Finally his hands connected with something, but it was gently removed from his grasp. Lifting his head slowly he saw several faces swimming in his view. Johnny blinked a few times and tried to focus. Oh, that was Mike, his good buddy Mike. "Mike, ole buddy ole pal, hic, whhha a great party, oodlesh of fun, hic." Johnny rose unsteadily and slapped Mike's shoulder. Unfortunately he chose the wrong Mike and missed. The momentum tilted him forward and he would've plunked face first on the table if Jan and Mama Carmelita hadn't jumped to his side to catch him. Kel went into his doctor mode and walked over to the paramedic, who was leaning comfortably against Jan, telling her an incomprehensible story. "How much did Johnny have?" Kel frowned into the pot and lifted his head, his eyes searching for Mike. Marco glanced into the pot. "I'd say about three cups are missing." He nodded. "A good three cups." He reaffirmed his guess. Mike nodded in agreement. "That's about the equivalent of drinking a twelve-pack of beer really fast." "Hm…" Kel smiled when he spotted Dixie walking in. She had his black bag in her hands; apparently she anticipated his action and got it from his trunk. Walking over to Johnny, he proceeded to take the paramedics vitals. "That doesn't seem to be life threatening, we need to get liquid into him though. Alcohol has a severely dehydrating effect." Satisfied with the vital readings he removed his stethoscope and lowered it around his neck. "What? Do you mean coffee?" Mama Carmelita found her voice. She felt guilty about leaving Johnny alone. She should've stayed; the mess could've waited. "No, no coffee, caffeine dehydrates too, water and lot's of it." Kel tried to wrestle the stethoscope from Johnny's grasp. The inebriated man had a hold of the lower part of the devise and was rendering a very strange and very off key version of 'American Pie' into it. "Johnny will have a major hangover in the morning, that's for darn sure. We need to get him into bed, the only thing we can do is to let him sleep it off." He gently pried the stethoscope out of Johnny's hands and put it in his bag, out of harms way. Johnny looked around, grinning idiotically. He wasn't used to alcohol, so the potent 'dessert' had even more of an effect. His head lolled sideways and he spotted Roy. "Hey pally, washu doin here?" Johnny reached out for Roy, determined to draw his friend into a conversation. He took three steps, mostly sideways and fell into a chair. "Whas happn? Why m I sho short?" Jan knew it was cruel, but she couldn't help herself. A giggle rose in her throat and bust over her clamped lips. She guiltily lowered her eyes at Mama Carmelita's disapproving glance. When she looked up again, she noticed that everybody but Mama was trying to keep his or her composure. Poor Johnny, this just wasn't his day. Johnny looked up at all these faces. Suddenly the room started spinning, the chair he was sitting on took him on a merry ride, round and round. His stomach protested against its strange contents and tried to rid itself of them. "I…I don feel good, schtomach hurs." Mike jumped across the kitchen and grabbed his trashcan. He shoved it under Johnny's face just in the nick of time. The man's fighting stomach won the battle and the contents came back. Jan held a kitchen towel under the cold water spray from the sink. She wrung it out and went to the sick paramedic. Gently, she wiped the sweat off Johnny's face, talking softly to the suffering man. "Great, that means he got rid of a lot of the alcohol." Kel turned to Mike. "You got a spare bed? He really shouldn't be alone; man oh man will he be hurting tomorrow." Mike, who never for a second considered leaving his friend to his own devices nodded. "Yeah, I've got a spare room upstairs. The bed's not made up yet, but that'll take only a few minutes." He watched as Mama went to the stairs, Lieselotte in tow. "And my guess is, that it'll be made up right now." Roy sighed and shook his head. "Okay, let's get him up there, the earlier he can get to sleep the better." He went to Johnny's left side, Marco took the right. Kel walked behind them, but turned back to Jan and Dixie. "Bring that towel there, a bucket and see if you can't find a pitcher. Fill it with water, but make sure it's tap water. His stomach couldn't handle the shock of ice-water right now." The two women did as they were asked. Dixie found a pitcher and filled it. "You know, Johnny's gonna be beside himself when he finds out what happened. I've watched him since he got here, and I can guarantee you, that he wanted to make a great impression on you, he seems smitten with you." Jan swallowed. "Really? Are you sure? I mean, I never seen… I mean he didn't…what I mean to say is…" Dixie laughed a full belly laugh. "Wonderful, both of em, that's great." She turned her smiling face to the younger woman. "You know, I'm really grateful for that. Since you seem to like him too, you can help him get over it. You've already seen him at his worst, and believe you me, it'll only get better." Smiling at one another, the two women went upstairs. #### Groaning, Johnny tried to open his eyes. They seemed to be glued shut. The return into wakefulness was gradual, he felt as if he had cotton in his mouth. He wrangled one eye open and groaned louder. Damn that was bright. Where the hell was he, he sure as hell wasn't in his own bed. He sat up and immediately regretted his action. His head pounded and hurt like he never hurt before, his stomach convulsed and he felt dizzy. Taking deep breaths to combat the dry-heaves he took stock. Okay, he was naked save for his underpants. He was in a strange bed and he felt as if he'd been through the wringer. Even his hair hurt. Next to his bed stood a bucket, a pitcher half filled with water stood on the nightstand. Water! Johnny grabbed for the water and drank in thirsty gulps; his mouth and throat where parched. The liquid refreshed him a little, calmed his stomach, but did nothing for his aching head. Wiping his lips with the back of his hand he looked around again, trying to decide on a course of action. 'Where am I?' Johnny tried to remember. The memory came back in fits and spurts. There was Mike's party…all his pals…cap at the B-B-Q…he got a burger…. Oh no, the mustard and the fruit punch! He remembered running into the house and being intercepted by Marco's mom. He frowned, trying to concentrate. For the life of him he couldn't remember what happened afterwards. A knock on the door drew his attention back to the here and now. Slowly the door opened and Mike stuck his head in. "Hello Johnny, welcome back." Mike grinned and walked into the room. He offered Johnny the cup he was carrying. "Here, have some coffee, would you like some aspirin too?" "Mike, man am I glad to see you!" Johnny's face lit up, Mike would tell him what happened. "I seem to have lost an entire afternoon, what happened, was I in an accident?" Mike sighed. He'd try to be as gentle as possible with the sensitive man. "Yeah buddy, you could say that, it really was more like an accident…" Mike sat down on the bed and started talking #### Jan was in the family room, pacing. She hoped Mike would be able to calm Johnny down, she really did like him, the charming klutz. She turned when the door opened. Johnny walked into the room, spotted Jan and halted. His face went from red to pale to red alternately. Keeping his eyes on the beautiful woman he moved gingerly forward. "Jan, I…," his mouth went dry and he swallowed, "listen Jan…" For the first time in his life, words escaped him, he looked pleadingly at the woman in front of him. Jan smiled; he really was very handsome. "Let's start the whole thing all over again." Still smiling, she walked over to Johnny. "Hello, my name is Janet, but call me Jan. What's your name?" For the first time in a long time, Johnny's crooked smile appeared as he stepped forward to meet Jan halfway. The end Give Gabbie some feedback. Editor's comment:  Any resemblence between the character and this editor is strictly intentional  :-) return to main menu