Wakey-Wakey (Restart)

AN: Please see note on previous chapter.

Friday, February 1st

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

“Already?” Sean Tarver mumbled, noticing how dark his basement bedroom appeared to be.

Glancing over at the illuminated numbers of his alarm clock, his sleepy mind wondered why his alarm went off thirty minutes early. Muttering about meddlers, Sean shut it off during another string of beeps. Rolling over, he swiftly went off to meet the sandman again.

Some time later, Sean slapped the tongue away from his cheek. Unfortunately, the licking resumed. Pulling his head away with heavy eyelids, he muttered, “Stop it, brat. I’m tired, not in the mood. Dammit, Whitney, I said–”

Giggling finally resonated with his drowsy mind. Opening his eyes, the blond-haired, blue-eyed eighteen-year-old saw his dog staring back at him.

“Morning, Watson.”

The brown-and-white beagle, with a dash of black, wagged his whole body in excitement before letting off a pair of barks directly into Sean’s face. Patting Watson’s head lightly, the teen rolled over onto his back while complaining about mothers who don’t let their sons sleep in.

A gasp sounded.

“Sawing wood to yelling ‘Timber’, and now you finally see the big top that we saw last month at New Year’s Eve,” a familiar voice pointed out.

“YoYo!” Sean shouted, reaching out to grab the blanket that he’d kicked off in the middle of the night. Fortunately, he quickly covered his tenting pajama pants in seconds. Sitting up to further hide his morning wood, Sean spotted not just one sixteen-year-old in a gold-and-black-trimmed cheer uniform but two.

Yolonda “YoYo” Fuentes had long, light brown hair, dark brown eyes, medium-sized breasts, and a toned ass. An outgoing, exuberant girl, who could probably be called the biggest flirt on the junior varsity squad, she’d found the perfect role to tease boys.

Standing next to YoYo was Saylor Waterhouse, who had long, golden blonde hair, green eyes, medium-sized breasts, and a toned ass. A member of a prominent but second-tier Bumble family, the blonde has been instructed from a young age that image is key. A sweet girl, publicly, she could be a relentless flirt, a difference Sean hadn’t known about until less than a month ago. Although best friends with the more ambitious and bitchy Cadence Aylward and Mercedes Melrose, Saylor seemed to be thick as thieves with YoYo.

Both girls were considered Babybees, the longtime nickname for junior varsity cheerleaders. They also had been assigned to Sean as his so-called candy-stripers after he’d saved the life of Whitney Diamond, the varsity cheer captain, over winter break. Although not the worst sophomore with a crush on him, YoYo’s gratuitous come-ons often caused her to be scolded by Whitney or Beatrice, the JV captain.

“Who let you…You’re not supposed to have a key. Peyton made that explicitly clear,” Sean reminded, referring to his older sister. A college student home on break between semesters, Peyton couldn’t stand cheerleaders, which said a lot, since her best friend and mother had been on the squad. Annoyed, the twenty-year-old brunette had laid down a few ground rules for Sean’s helpers until she returned to Arbor Corners, just under two weeks ago.

“Your mom let us in, and she also sent us down here to get your ass out of bed,” the brown-haired sophomore revealed.

“You were supposed to set your alarm for earlier,” the young blonde pointed out, forcing a frown on her face, which ended up lopsided because of her grin.

“Crap. That’s why it went off early,” Sean realized, shooting a dirty look at his traitorous clock. Yet, the day of the week finally clicked with him, now wide awake. “Hold on. Today’s Friday. Why are you here? Friday is Kizzy and Harley’s day. Did you trade?”

“Do you think Kizzy would let us trade?” Saylor responded with a what-do-you-think expression. “They’re upstairs helping your mom.”

“Duh! It’s gameday!” YoYo exclaimed, pointing at their cheer uniforms. “We have to be at school early, which means you have to be there early with us. So get moving!”

Watson barked in agreement before racing around in circles on top of the mattress.

“Fine, fine. I need to take a shower,” Sean muttered, swinging his legs off the bed while continuing to cover his erection with a blanket. “I could use some privacy, you know.”

“Are you sure you don’t need any help?” Saylor inquired, twirling her blonde locks around a finger while biting her lower lip.

“We could wrap it,” YoYo suggested, smirking from what she clearly meant as a double-entendre.

“No!”

“Oh, come on. We could wrap your cast, too.”

“I can manage it on my own. Now, shush! Get out of here,” Sean ordered, waving them to leave his bedroom. “I’m locking the door, and you better not pick it again.”

“Why do I get blamed for that?” the brunette called over her shoulder while Saylor carried Watson out of the room.

“Because Kizzy doesn’t have those skills,” Sean stated, walking over to lock the door.

Although his foot seemed to be healing properly, or at least that’s what Dr. Polani said on his last checkup, Sean still had around two more weeks left in his cast. To the bored and annoyed teen, each day seemed to take three as he counted down those remaining days. The walking boot he wore for extra protection could be a hassle, and until it was removed, the Babybees would insist on caring for him.

After almost a month of practice, the process of tying a garbage bag around the cast to take a shower went by like a breeze. Stepping out of the shower, Sean checked the bathroom door’s lock before taking his morning piss. He’d been walked in on far too many times over the last month, some on accident, others on purpose.

Finished, he rechecked his bedroom door before changing into school clothes. Aware that he’d likely wouldn’t come directly home after school—he never seemed to these days—Sean packed an extra hooded sweatshirt. Fortunately, the forecast didn’t call for snow, but it was supposed to be bitterly cold.

Slowly climbing the stairs while bracing his weight on the railing, Sean could hear the voices and laughter filling the kitchen. Despite his grumbling about the JV cheerleaders' constant presence in the home, the teen knew it helped distract his mother from the impending divorce. Even Peyton privately admitted that the girls brightened up Bridget’s days.

Entering the kitchen, Sean spotted his mother first. At forty, the mother of two still looked fantastic. People often said that Bridget Tarver could pass for a decade younger, like many of the women in Honey Hollow. Having seen his mother naked multiple times over the past month, the impressed son couldn't argue with the compliment. A popular Ob/Gyn, the former cheer captain had long, wavy caramel blonde hair, blue eyes, large breasts, and a curvy ass.

Friendly, outgoing, and with a great sense of humor, Bridget had long been one of the more popular and well-liked doctors in Honey Hollow. She also loved interacting with people on a daily basis, which made her son somewhat sad to see her struggling with stress from the recent divorce decision, negotiations, and her name being dragged through the mud. So, if the cheerleaders filling up his kitchen made her a little happier, then he’d put up with the pampering, even if he’d complain about it.

“So do you think lucky number seven is happening tonight?” the blonde-haired mother asked, placing a plate of waffles onto the table. “Do you need more milk, dear?”

The fact that his mom had cooked breakfast confused Sean, as Bridget never had time except on Sundays or an occasional lazy Saturday.

“I got it,” Kizzy yelled from by the stove.

Ah, that explains it. The girls are helping her.

“Grab more butter while you’re at it, Kizz!” YoYo yelled.

“Don’t you think you have enough butter already?” Harley Peel asked, looking at the huge glob on her cheermate’s waffle stack.

Another sixteen-year-old Babybee with long, ginger red hair, blue eyes, small-to-medium breasts, and a firm ass, Harley often didn’t seem to fit in with her fellow, boisterous teammates. A shy, quiet girl, she had an incredibly kind and empathetic soul, which made her personal history so infuriating to Bridget. The daughter of Bridget’s high school rival, Gemma Harlow, Harley had dealt with her mother’s very public affair scandal over five years ago. Raised solely by her divorced father, Harley joined the cheer squad in junior high to upset her dancer mother and because her best friend planned to try out. The Beal and Peel Team couldn’t be broken up.

“Oh, I think Yolanda is safe from worrying about her butter intake at this point,” Bridget responded, lightly patting the redhead’s hair.

Sean noticed his mother wore a long, satin, royal blue robe rather than her usual silk, skimpy black favorite. Considering she’d worn it already around most of the visiting cheerleaders, he figured she had on the longer choice for once because of the bitterly cold weather.

“Morning, honey! It seems someone slept in,” Bridget greeted her son, laying a loud kiss onto his cheek. “You'd better hurry and eat. The girls have places to be.”

Suddenly, a cheerleader with long, light-brown hair, baby blue eyes, smallish-to-medium breasts, and a toned ass raced over to stop in front of Sean. The squad’s gossiper and only little cheersister currently mentored by her actual older sister, Kizzy Beal, placed a loud kiss on Sean’s other cheek.

“Morning, honey!” the smitten girl greeted, mimicking Bridget.

“He’s not your honey; he’s all of ours,” YoYo pointed out.

“I’m none of yours!” Sean declared, sitting at the head of the table with a grumpy expression.

“Is that how you’re going to act this morning, Sir Sean?” Kizzy questioned, placing her hands on her hips. The Babybee with the most obvious crush on their patient, the hyperactive teen, had dedicated much of her life over the past month following Whitney’s orders to keep her rescuer safe and well-treated.

“He is speaking the truth, girls. Remember, my boy is only playing the field with older girls these days. So, don’t get any ideas,” Bridget reminded, causing three of the four girls to groan in disappointment. “Now, I believe I asked about the winning streak.”

“Sorry, Mommy Bee,” Kizzy replied. “We feel good that we’ll hit lucky number seven tonight.”

“Whitney is the one who thinks that,” YoYo clarified. “She’s got some incentive program or something going for the basketball team.”

“Is that so?” Bridget asked. A concerned expression flashed over her face before she masked it. Still, she shot a look at her son.

“She won’t tell us any of the details,” Saylor added, pouting over being left out of something. “I think only Caterina and Kaitlin know.”

“And Katie's holding out on me!” Kizzy roared, slamming her fists against the table about her older sister.

“Deep breaths. Take deep breaths. Remember what your mom taught you,” Harley repeated soothingly at her BFF.

“Anyway. A six-game winning streak is nothing to sneeze at,” Bridget remarked.

“But it only got us up to 11-7 in the standings,” YoYo noted.

“And we just have to make the playoffs,” Saylor added. “If not, Whitney has vowed to make somebody on the squad bleed.”

“If so, I’m sure it won’t be one of you four,” the ex-cheer captain stated, chuckling.

“Oh, it’s going to be one of the juniors,” YoYo speculated.

“Or Fern,” Kizzy added.

“Alright, dear, remember that you’re having dinner with the Gibbles before tonight’s game,” Bridget reminded Sean. “They can either bring you home afterward, or you can–”

“You'd better be going to Claudia Cork’s party tonight,” Yolanda insisted, taking another bite of her drenched in syrup and butter waffle.

“Bad blood exists between the volleyball team and cheer squads since Rory flipped to our side,” Saylor pointed out. “We need our manager with us.”

“I think it’s more targeted at the varsity girls, not us,” Harley attempted to clarify. “And I thought Whitney referred to Sean as our mascot.”

“You’re not coming to the game, Mommy Bee?” Kizzy asked, which caused the other three girls to look at the older woman.

“No, I’m not. Sorry,” Bridget apologized. “I’m headed down to Blackbridge for the weekend.”

“Do you have a date?” Saylor inquired, her interest piqued.

“Of course, she does. Dr. T is finally ready to cut loose!” YoYo cheered.

“Is it anyone we know?” Harley asked.

“The most eligible MILF in the region can have any man she desires,” Kizzy declared.

“She doesn’t need any man; Dr. T already has her legs wrapped around Whitney’s dad,” Yolanda noted.

“How many times do I need to repeat myself? Nothing was happening in the picture!” Bridget insisted, causing Sean to frown.

The Stinging Truth published “Illicit Lovers Redux?” early on Saturday, January 5th. By noon, all hell had broken loose in the Tarver vs. Tarver divorce discussions. A long-lens picture of Harvey’s arm wrapped around Bridget while she wore a skimpy black robe had stirred up a hornet’s nest of gossip and rumors around Honey Hollow. Despite strong denials that the picture showed anything—Harvey was fully clothed—the impending divorce lost them the benefit of the doubt with many in the local public.

In reality, the long-distance photographer had captured only a relatively tame moment of the pair gazing out the main room’s sliding doors at the ice-covered terrain around Wasp Lake. The two parents, along with Whitney and Sean, were thankful that the picture appeared to have been taken on January 2nd, not the 1st, when they’d fucked the new year in while in the great room.

Still, any embers of suspicion Leonard had about the timing of the divorce flared. It didn’t help that Beverly called her brother-in-law to apologize for Harvey and Bridget ever meeting in the first place. That call and gloating about it to her sister led Bev to get placed in Pepper’s doghouse for now, or Faraday’s house, as Brandy called it. An insult known only to the Fallons and their closest friends, it referred to the doghouse still sitting in Fallon's backyard, built for Faraday but abandoned halfway through the first night, when Teddy Day and Brandy snuck the dog inside the latter’s bedroom. After that night, the new dog slept inside one of the two neighbors’ homes for the rest of his life.

A follow-up post, “Secret Lovechild Drop Off?”, appeared in the wee hours of Monday, January 7th, showing a recently released-from-jail Harvey dropping Sean off with Whitney in Boxwood Court. By the time that Bridget’s office opened that morning, she’d lost three patients, with two more to follow by noon. Divorce discussions turned into negotiations. And while Leo was known for his prickly demeanor, sympathy around Honey Hollow Medical Center soared for the betrayed husband.

In all, Bridget lost ten patients, while Samantha Denton lost three for her association with the city harlot. The once-beloved doctor became a bit of a shut-in, traveling to and from work only, as she knew legitimate reporters and Stinging Truth workers followed her every move around Honey Hollow. Fortunately, family, friends, and neighbors stepped up. Pepper Fallon took over chauffeuring her grandson to any doctor appointments or other events, and Bridget only had to take the stairs inside the Honey Hollow Health Annex to reach Dr. Polani’s office.

Local friends like Rachel Stratton, Shayla O’Dell, Sabrina Rinaldi, Lemon Leighton, Bailey Thirlby, and Topaz Brass all set up a rotation for visits to lift Bridget’s spirits. Out-of-town friends, especially Tinny and Gabby, kept the phone lines ringing nonstop. Felicity Nakano organized a Sugarbee Saturday show of support last weekend, bringing Valentina Quill, Cordelia Tissle, and a surprising addition: Teresa Zuccaro, along with homemade treats for their former rival. One day at school, Miranda Rusk even slipped Sean a note of support for his mother via Aurora.

Boxwood Court and nearby street neighbors watched out for photographers hiding in trees, sheds, bushes, and tree forts. Mandy Emerson earned further neighborhood admiration for chasing down a suspected Stinging Truth paparazzo after one of her morning jogs.

“That’s unlikely,” YoYo declared. “Hmm, I notice that you’re not wearing the black robe from that picture. Did Mr. Diamond tear it off you? Please tell me he did.”

“Yo, you know you’ve seen that black robe around here since. It’s her favorite,” Kizzy pointed out.

“But is it the same one? Dun dun duuun!”

Sean covered his mouth to hide a grin. Yolanda wasn’t that far off. Although he hadn’t witnessed it while at the cabin for those two days, he and Whitney had found some of the aftereffects of Harvey’s lust boiling over from his mom’s sexy lingerie. At least one robe, a piece of lingerie, and a bra and panty set had gotten torn and tossed out before anyone else returned.

“I think it’s a splendid idea to get out of town for a weekend. You deserve a break from the scrutiny,” Harley said. “I know when things…happened with my mom; Dad and I took a couple of trips to get away from everything.”

Kizzy and Saylor shared a look. They knew how depressed Harley could get whenever her mother’s scandal was brought up. They tried to move the conversation along, but their other friend wasn’t having it.

“Are you shacking up with him for the whole weekend?” YoYo continued. “Role-playing strangers meeting at a hotel in Blackbridge?”

“Where do you come up with these scenarios?” Harley challenged.

“I’m sorry, but I’m not shacking up with Harvey or anyone. I’m visiting Shelly; Shelly Wexler,” Bridget informed the four.

“Aww, you’re going to end up at a boring ass dinner with Mrs. Wexler and her husband’s friends,” YoYo moaned, while Saylor nodded in agreement.

"Am I? It sounds like a few girls aren't up to date on alumni gossip. While technically married, Shelly and her husband separated a few years ago. She's mainly kept her married name for professional reasons at the moment," Bridget explained.

“Woo-hoo! Two sexy cougar cheer captains on the prowl!” Yolanda cheered.

“Blondes, too!” Saylor added, gesturing to her hair, which caused the two brunettes to scoff at the notion of blondes having more fun.

“Sabrina Rinaldi is also driving down with me.”

“Three former cheer captains?! Two blondes and a spicy Latina? Blackbridge won’t know what hit them,” Kizzy added.

“Uh, actually, Sabrina is part Italian,” Bridget clarified.

“What are your plans?” Harley inquired.

“Her plans? Her plans! What about us?!” Kizzy nearly shouted. “We were not informed. Why were we not informed? I’m going to have to drop my plans. There goes tomorrow’s game. Sir Sean needs a feeding schedule put in place, and we–”

“Whoa, whoa, calm down, Kizz.”

“Wait, you said tomorrow’s game? Isn’t the JV game this afternoon?” Sean questioned.

“Nope! We perform tomorrow morning at 11:00 am!” Saylor announced.

“Way too early on a Saturday, if you ask me,” YoYo groaned.

“Don’t say that. Those solo Saturday games were always the most fun when I was a Babybee,” Bridget recalled before another thought occurred to her. “Oh, right. Sean can’t be at the game tomorrow.”

“What?!”

“Stay calm,” Harley directed.

“What the hell, Sir Sean?” YoYo challenged.

“It’s not my fault.”

“He’s telling the truth. Sean has an appointment because of his father’s demands,” Bridget revealed.

“Whitney is right. Any man who takes you for granted is a damn moron!” YoYo insisted.

“My dad agreed, but Mom said not to get any ideas,” Saylor added, giggling at her father’s expression in response to the warning.

“Hang on, wait a fricking second! Did you and Saylor's dad do the dirty back in the day?”

“It’s not nice to pry into the business of parents, Yolanda,” Bridget admonished. “While I wasn’t close to Ashton, he was always a nice guy.”

“Oh, your dad totally tapped Sean’s mom!”

“Considering Ashton usually had to keep Midge Milligan at bay, I don’t see how I might have had the time,” Bridget continued.

“Mercedes is one of my best friends, but her mom does get weird to this day around Dad,” Saylor admitted.

“You notice, Kizz? That wasn’t a denial,” YoYo insisted.

“Whatever,” Harley responded, waving a hand. “Do you want me to bring Watson next door?”

Harley or one of the other Babybees often took the beagle next door to the Kappmeyers, where Watson hung out with his best friend, Slinky, an adorable dachshund. Uma and Ariel, the lone sophomore Sugarbee, adored the little, long dog.

“Thank you, dear, but that won’t be necessary. I need to discuss the weekend arrangements with Deidre,” Bridget said, referring to Mrs. Kappmeyer.

“Oh, okay, no problem.”

“Wait, is Sean going to stay with…his dad for the weekend?!” Kizzy gasped in horror.

“Fuck no!”

“Sean! Don’t talk like that,” the mother admonished her son. “No, that will never be part of any arrangement until he graduates this spring. Leonard is about to move in a few weeks to his new city and new job. However, Sean’s grandmother will take him to his appointment tomorrow and likely drop him off at Whitney’s, where he’ll be spending the night.”

“At future Daddy’s crib,” YoYo said, nodding in understanding.

“Would you stop that? Bridget doesn’t need more rumors,” Harley argued.

“Your cheermate is correct, YoYo,” the soon-to-be-divorced woman responded. “Honey, what’s wrong? You look sad.”

“Nah, I’m just still tired,” Sean replied, yawning.

“Tired? It looks more like someone didn’t fully wake up,” Yolanda stated, nudging Kizzy.

“I think you might be onto something, Miss Fuentes.”

“Oh, please, no,” Harley moaned.

“Do you have any ideas in mind to wake him, Miss Fuentes?” Saylor added, grinning.

“I most definitely do,” YoYo replied, hitting play on her phone. Then, she pointed at Saylor, who snapped her fingers.

“Jitterbug.”

Next, Yolanda pointed at Kizzy.

“Jitterbug.”

Harley reluctantly went along, adding, “Jitterbug.”

Laughing at what she sensed might be coming, Bridget finished the final, “Jitterbug.”

Picking up a fork, YoYo used it as a microphone while leaning her head toward Sean. “You put the boom boom into my heart,” the brunette sang, swaying her body in the chair back and forth while snapping her fingers. “You send my soul sky high when your lovin' starts. Jitterbug into my brain.” Kizzy and Saylor added a “Yeah, yeah” before Yolanda finished the first verse. “Goes a bang-bang-bang 'til my feet do the same.”

Bridget laughed and clapped along, gesturing at her son to cheer up while YoYo jumped to her feet.

“But something's buggin' me. Something ain't right. My best friend told me what you did last night,” YoYo sang, using a hand to cover her forehead while she looked around for her best friend. “Left me sleepin' in my bed. I was dreamin', but I should've been with you instead.”

Sean groaned, trying to get up, but when he saw Watson running around, barking, the teen started laughing as well. The happy beagle especially enjoyed it when all four Babybees jumped up to sing the chorus while dancing around the table.

Wake me up before you go-go
Don't leave me hanging on like a yo-yo
Wake me up before you go-go
I don't wanna miss it when you hit that high
Wake me up before you go-go
'Cause I'm not plannin' on going solo
Wake me up before you go-go
Take me dancing tonight
I wanna hit that high
Yeah, yeah

After the first chorus, Bridget glanced at the clock on the microwave and waved her hands at YoYo. Swearing, the lead singer turned off her phone, while the girls started panicking about the time and being late.

“Whitney is going to kill us if we’re late!” Kizzy screamed, gathering dirty plates to put in the sink.

“Relax. Sir Sean can spank her if she gets too uppity,” YoYo reassured.

“I’d like to see that,” Bridget commented.

“Me too!” Saylor giggled.

“Bye, Bridget. Have a nice trip!” Harley said, already walking out the door. “Bye, Watson.”

“Thanks, Sean will be out in a minute. We just need to go over the weekend.”

“See ya, buddy,” Saylor cooed, hugging the beagle.

“Don’t let up until you wear him out, Dr T,” YoYo called back.

“Bye, Mommy Bee!”

“You know, Sir Sean is not going to marry you just because you call his mom that.”

“It doesn’t hurt to try!”

Bridget and Sean shared a look before bursting out in laughter.

“And you wonder why Newt refuses to drive to school with us.”

“Give it time. He’ll come around,” the blonde doctor prognosticated. “Now, remember, the Gibbles are taking you out for dinner tonight before the game. And if you stay out late, get drunk, or get lucky, Watson can spend the night next door.”

“Mom!”

“Hush. For tomorrow, Grandma will pick you up. As for Watson, Brandy’s dogsitting until I return on Sunday.”

“Really?”

“My sister is fine with a dog. She took care… well, Teddy also… whatever, she has experience watching Faraday. Not to mention, Fawn could always help,” Bridget suggested. “Have fun with Whitney and whomever she brings over, and I’ll see you Sunday. Remember, we’ll have dinner at your grandparents' at five.”

“Will you be back by then?”

“I should. If not, Brandy can bring you and Watson over there, okay?” Bridget asked. Checking to see that the door was shut, she added, “Now, give your mother a kiss.”

Although it only lasted thirty seconds, the scorching, passionate, tongue-filled kiss served its purpose, waking up her son for the long day ahead. Still, Sean worried about what might happen if anyone saw them kissing that way someday.

BEEP BEEP BEEP

“I’d better go. They’re getting impatient as always,” Sean groaned, walking over to open the door.

‘Don’t forget your cane!” his mother called after him.

“It makes me feel like a cripple,” Sean whined.

“I think it makes you look like a pimp,” Bridget purred, slapping his butt after handing over the walking cane. “Now hurry before they wake up the whole neighborhood.”

However, the car horn blaring wasn’t for him, but for their friend next door.

BEEP BEEP BEEP

“Wakey-wakey, Zoey!”