Donna smiled at her daughter, Katie. The blonde hair, wide smile, and the unmistakable laugh were so much like her fathers. Yet, she saw some features of her own reflecting back at her. The clear blue eyes, the nose, and the neck were all prime examples of her. Katie had just finished washing the dinner dishes and Donna noticed she was anxious. Donna always thought she was calm and collected like her. Katie looked out the kitchen window for the 5th time in 3 minutes. Donna looked at her husband from across the table. Jared was just now finishing his coffee as he looked up at Donna.
“I still don’t understand why you like that boy so much.” Jared told his daughter.
“He is sweet.” Katie replied leaning on the counter looking out the window.
“He is never here though. You know that. Besides you are only 17. How old is he again?” Jared thought for a second. “22?” Katie sighed loudly. Donna pleaded with her eyes to stop. He didn’t. “Katie, I want you to…”
Donna interrupted, “Jared, don’t…”
Jared held a hand to stop her talking. “I want you to break this thing off.”
“But daddy…” Katie turned from the window to look at her father’s serious eyes.
He continued. “Honey, I only want what is best for…”
“He IS the best, daddy.”
“But, sweetie, how do you know that he isn’t cheating on you while he is away?” Her father asked.
“But he isn’t…”
“How do you know? Katie, you don’t understand…”
“No, you don’t understand. He would never do anything like that to me. We both agree on that. Cheating is a waste of time. He wouldn’t do that,” Katie told her father her eyes burning with anger. She took a deep breath and calmed herself before she spoke again. “I know him. We have been together for a year and he hasn’t done anything yet. Dad, please try to understand.”
“Well I don’t think…”
“Stop it,” Donna warned him. Jared looked at her wide-eyed. Katie stormed out of the house leaving the screen door slam loudly behind her. Donna watched Katie sit on the old front porch. Her head rested lightly on the banister railing.
Donna saw herself on an old porch, waiting for her date. Her father, who would be Katie’s grandfather, had come out to sit beside her. They had argued briefly before they heard her date in a loud, old, Chevy truck. She had gotten up and jumped in the old truck with Jared.
-Hey sweetie, he had said.
-Lets go, she had told him.
They had left her father one the first step. Angry.
Donna stood up from her chair at the round table, disappointed. Jared followed her to the laundry room where he confronted her.
“What is wrong with you?” he asked.
“What is wrong with me… what is wrong with you?” Donna asked. “We agreed we would discuss the subject later. You had no right to tell her to leave her boyfriend of one year. No right at all, Jared, no right. So don’t you dare ask me what MY problem is.”
“I just want is best for her, you know that. I thought you of all people would know that.”
“My god, Jared, open your eyes. Don’t you see what has happened to your daughter? She has changed. She is in love, Jared. She may be young and she might not care, but she is in love. For once, you can’t stop her. I won’t let you ruin it for her. Do you understand that, Jared?”
Katie dug a hole in the ground with the sole of her shoe. She couldn’t believe her father had tried to make her break up with her boyfriend. She wouldn’t have that. Katie was determined not to let one person, her father, stay in the way of their friendship, and their love for one another. Katie watched a chicken peck at the hard, dry ground. The sun was just starting to set when she heard the familiar car coming up the long drive way. The loud horn sounded throughout the farm. She smiled getting up and running to the white fence gate. A green mustang stopped at the front.
Her date reached over the passenger seat and unlocked the door to let his girl in. Katie smiled as she opened the door. She stopped when she heard her name being called from behind her. Turning around she faced her father’s now calm face.
“Make sure to bring her back at 11 ‘o clock sharp.” He told the driver leaning over to look inside.
“Yes sir.”
Katie looked at her father shocked. Jared smiled at his daughter and grabbed her face in his hands. “You have fun, now. You hear?”
Katie broke in a large smile and hugged him close. “Thank you, daddy.” She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before climbing in her date’s car.
Her date rolled down the tinted window on Katie’s side as Jared leaned over the side. “Be careful you two,” he told them. “Keep your eyes open on this one. You hear, Lance?”
“Yes sir, I will.”
“Ok, then.” He watched the car race down the driveway onto the highway. Jared turned to look at the house and saw his wife smiling from the screen door. It made him proud to know his one and only daughter had grown up. He had to have done something right.
*Katie is sitting on her old front porch
Watching the chickens peck the ground
There isn’t a whole lot going on tonight
In this one horse town
Over yonder coming up the road
In a beat up, Chevy truck
Her boyfriend Tommy is laying on the horn
Splashing through the mud and the muck
Her daddy says ‘he isn’t worth the lift. When it
Comes to brains he got the short end of the stick’
Katie is young and she just don’t care
She’ll follow Tommy anywhere
She’s in love with the boy
She’s in love with the boy
She’s in love with the boy
And even if they have to run away
She’s going to marry that boy someday*
Katie looked up at Lance’s green eyes. His arms were around her and holding on tight. They were at a drive-in movie and neither one of them was paying much attention to it. The movie wasn’t very interesting anyway. Lance looked down at Katie.
“What?” he asked.
“I have just missed you that’s all.” Katie looked back at the movie and sighed disappointedly from between Lance’s legs.
Lance stopped kissing her neck from behind when she sighed. He turned her around to face him. Lance looked into her eyes worriedly. “What’s wrong?”
“I just wish I could go on tour with you next time.”
“Well, why can’t you?” he asked.
“Yeah right. My dad would really go for that. I would like you to live your life, not end it early.”
Lance chuckled, “Oh come on your dad can’t be that bad.”
Katie shook her head. “You don’t know my dad. He can break you in two if he has a good reason too. You really don’t want to mess with him.”
“We’ll see,” Lance whispered to himself when Katie had turned around. They watched the remaining of the movie on the hood of his car.
They returned to a cliff to look down on the small town. It was dark and the lights in the houses were all on. It looked just like one big light instead of all different kinds. They were lying on top of the hood looking up at the stars when Lance broke the silence.
“I love you, Katie.”
Katie looked over at the man lying beside her. “I love you, too, Lance.”
Lance stood on his feet and helped Katie on hers. He suddenly grabbed her left hand, got down on one knee and proposed. Katie’s eyes began to water as she covered her mouth with her free hand. She nodded as he slid the ring one her finger. He got up on his feet and hugged her tightly to his chest.
“I’m sorry this isn’t a proper engagement ring, but I’ll get you one as soon as I go to town. I promise…”
Katie grabbed his face and pulled his lips to hers. His lips were tender and soft as she kissed him dramatically. When they pulled apart Lance was smiling.
“I don’t need a proper engagement ring, Lance . All I need is somebody to spend the rest of my life with. I don’t need a ring to show we love each other. I have my heart to prove about that. Don’t worry about it.”
*Katie and Tommy at the drive-in movies
Parked in the very last row
They’re too busy holding on to one another
To even care about the show
Later on outside the Tasty Freeze
Tommy slips something on her hand
He says ‘my high school ring will have to do
Till I can buy a wedding band
Her daddy says ‘he isn’t worth the lift. When it
Comes to brains he got the short end of the stick’
Katie is young and she just don’t care
She’ll follow Tommy anywhere
She’s in love with the boy
She’s in love with the boy
She’s in love with the boy
And even if they have to run away
She’s going to marry that boy someday*
Jared tapped his pencil on the wooden, round table in the kitchen. It was 12:30 and they still hadn’t come home. That boy was going to pay. No more will she see him again, he made sure of that. He stopped tapping the pencil when he heard a car come up the driveway. It was loud; it was Lance’s car.
He watched as his daughter was helped out of the car by the devil himself. Katie grabbed Lance’s hand and ran up the walk to the door. Jared moved away from the kitchen window and stood just inside the door, arms crossed over his chest.
Katie swung open the white door to her house. Her smile faded when she saw her father waiting up inside the door. Her father didn’t look happy, in fact he looked angry. She had never saw him this angry before. The look scared her.
Jared suddenly spoke his voice strong and loud. “Get up to your room, young lady. Say good-bye because you won’t see this young man ever again.”
“But daddy…” Katie started.
“Go! I need to talk to junior, here.”
“Daddy, we’re…”
“I won’t tell you again, Katie. Now, go.”
Katie dropped Lance’s hand and ran up stairs to her room. They watched her crying figure disappear at the top and they both winced when they heard a door slam. Only then did Jared turn and stare at Lance. Lance stood tall, determined to not show his fear.
“Who do you think you are? I told you to be back by 11. You are an hour and a half late. There is no excuse for that,” Jared told him. “My daughter don’t deserve anybody who plays her around like the way you do.”
“I don’t play anybody around,” Lance informed him.
“How do I know this? You won’t see my daughter again.” Jared turned to leave but Lance’s reply stopped him dead in his tracks.
“I can’t do that.”
Jared turned around slowly. He walked quickly to get up in Lance’s face and point a finger in his chest. “You can and you will.” His eyes burned in anger.
Donna stood at the living room doorway watching and monitoring the verbal fight. Lance didn’t flinch as he boringly said, “I’m sorry but I won’t do that. If you would’ve listened to your daughter she would’ve said that we were getting married.”
Jared grabbed Lance’s collar but Donna’s voice stopped him from doing anything more.
“Don’t you dare touch that boy, Jared.” Lance looked over Jared’s shoulder, gratefully. “Let go of that boy, Jared. Let go of his collar. Jared, I’m telling you to let go of his collar.” Donna walked toward them quickly to stand between the two when Jared had let go of him.
Donna turned to look at her husband as she spoke. “Now, don’t go blow your top over any of this, Jared. It wasn’t long ago when you yourself were a plowboy. Remember Jared. My daddy said you couldn’t support me when we got engaged when we were Katie’s age. My daddy was wrong,” Donna paused but then started again pointing her finger in Jared’s chest, “and honey you are too. Now don’t go shaking your head at me and saying this is different because it is. This young man, Lance, here can support our daughter because he already has a career. Katie loves this boy and the way he looks at Katie he loves her too. Katie looks at this boy like I still look at you. Now, if you forbid Katie to see this young man again, she will runaway and get married without our knowing. Do you want that to happen?”
Jared shook his head no. He realized Donna was right, that he couldn’t keep her away from him. If they ran away together, he might not see them ever again. He wouldn’t be able to live with that.
Looking up toward the sound he just heard, he saw Katie standing half way up the stairs. He couldn’t let her run away and never come back. It came to him that if he really loved her he would let them be together. He also knew that if Katie didn’t run away, she would be unhappy for the rest of her life. He couldn’t see that and know it was all because of him. He then knew what he had to do.
Jared looked at Lance’s pleading eyes. “You and Katie…” he stopped short to look at his daughter and then back at Lance. “You and Katie have my permission to get married.”
*Her daddy is waiting up to half past twelve
When they come sneaking up the walk
He says ‘young lady, get up to your room
While me and junior have a talk
Momma breaks in says ‘now, don’t lose your temper
It wasn’t very long ago, when you yourself was just
A hasty plow boy, who didn’t know how to write a note
My daddy said ‘you wasn’t worth a lift, when it came
To brains you got the short end of the stick.
He was wrong and honey you are too. Katie looks
At Tommy like I still look at you
She’s in love with the boy
She’s in love with the boy
She’s in love with the boy
What’s meant to be will always find a way
She’s in love with the boy
She’s in love with the boy
She’s in love with the boy
What’s meant to be will always find a way
She’s going to marry that boy someday*
Katie had run down the few steps she had left to fling herself in Lance’s waiting arms. Lance encircled her in his arms. They laughed in happiness as he rocked her back and forth. Jared left the little utility room to go into the living room and sat down with his head in his hands.
Donna came in to sit down beside him on the couch to rub his back. “You did the right thing, sweetie.” She told him.
“Yeah? Well, then why don’t it feel like it?” he asked.
She placed her cheek on his back. “It takes a while for a parent to let go of their daughter.”
Katie came into the room with Lance holding her hand. She dropped his hand at the edge of the couch and moved to where her father was still sitting. She placed her hand on his shoulder and he slowly looked up.
“Thank you, daddy.” Love was just radiating out of her eyes. For the first time in 17 years, Jared saw how much love could be given to somebody. He smiled.
Jared got up and picked up the phone beside him. He slowly made his way to where Lance was standing quietly. “Lance, I trust you to take care of her, since I’m not the only man she loves anymore. We are so alike so I hope we could become friends. I wish you both all the happiness in the world.”
Lance shook Jared’s hand. “Thank you, sir.”
“Please, just call me Jared…” he paused to look over at Katie who was smiling with tears in her eyes, “or dad.”
Lance nodded when Jared looked back at him. “Thank you…dad.”
Katie crossed the room to where they were standing to throw her arms around her father’s neck. Her head rested nicely in the crook of his neck as she whispered, “I love you, daddy.”
Jared almost broke there, but in a moment they pulled away. Jared handed the phone to Lance. “Better call your family to tell them the good news. I’m sure they would like to hear about it.”
Lance nodded as he smiled and grabbed the phone. He dialed the first number that popped in his head. After a few rings it was picked up and a feminine voice answered.
“Mom,” he started, “she said ‘yes’…”