"She's the one who hugged me first... and she even closed her eyes..." Georgie pleaded his case desperately.
The church baptism that day had been a grand affair, held as a gesture of gratitude to the congregation after the massive success of the Halloween fundraiser. It just so happened that Georgie and Veronica were assigned to the same group to enter the holy water pool.
Perhaps swept up in the solemn atmosphere, Veronica had given Georgie a polite, sisterly hug during the ritual. But Georgie, currently a walking biological reactor of teenage hormones, couldn't exactly resist the "wet t-shirt" allure of the moment.
So, in front of a dozen witnesses and the grace of the Lord, Georgie went for it. And in return, he received a stinging slap across the face.
"Alright, Georgie. I get it. I was young once, too," George said from the head of the dinner table, finally finishing his role as a silent spectator to the gossip. He offered his eldest son some comfort.
Getting slapped in front of the entire congregation was enough of a "social death" for one day. As a father, George didn't want to make it any harder on the boy. After all, who hasn't had a moment of youthful impulsiveness?
Relieved by his dad's support, Georgie felt a bit better, though he still doubled down on his defense. "I didn't want to do it, but I just couldn't help myself. It was the hormones... yeah, it was all the hormones' fault!"
To clear his name, Georgie pinned the entire incident on his endocrine system. To be fair, it sounded scientifically plausible.
"I know, I know," George laughed, seeing that his son wasn't completely crushed by the rejection. He decided to share some experience. "Actually, I did some pretty stupid things for a girl back in the day. I know the feeling..."
"Oh? Who was she?" Georgie asked, his curiosity piqued by a rare bit of dad-gossip. "Was she your first love?"
"Her name was Catherine Dempsey. She was a real sweetheart..." George trailed off, a look of nostalgic reminiscence crossing his face.
He failed to notice, however, that as he was bonding with his son over past flames, his wife Mary's expression was becoming increasingly dangerous.
"Did she—" Georgie was about to press for more details.
Finally hitting her limit, Mary snapped, "Enough, Georgie. It's dinner time."
Seeing his mother's stern face, Georgie swallowed the rest of his questions along with a large bite of steak and lowered his head obediently.
George finally realized he'd stepped in it. It looked like Mary was actually jealous. He quickly tried to backpedal. "I was fifteen, Mary. I didn't know any better."
Mary wasn't having any of it. She kept her face cold, her knife and fork working through her steak with aggressive precision.
"Well..." George muttered, feeling the awkwardness settle over the table like a heavy fog. Since he was technically the one who brought up another woman at the dinner table, he didn't have much of a leg to stand on. He went back to eating in silence.
Just as dinner was ending in this stifling atmosphere, Mary, who had finished first, looked up and asked, "Mike, are you free tomorrow?"
Tomorrow was the day Mike was supposed to meet Regina and the others to jam and talk gear. But just in case Mary had something urgent, he asked, "Is there something you need help with?"
"Actually, yes," Mary said. "I have a friend who's a child development specialist, someone who studies brain development and cognitive potential..."
"Friend" was a loose term. The specialist had somehow heard that Sheldon was a child prodigy with an off-the-charts IQ and wanted to run some tests on the Cooper siblings. Since Mary had mentioned in passing that Mike was also exceptionally bright, the specialist had become interested in Mike's brain as well.
"They promised to pay a stipend of ten dollars an hour during the testing, and they'll even reimburse travel expenses," Mary explained. "What do you think, Mike? Interested?"
At eight hours a day plus travel, Mike could easily clear over a hundred dollars in a weekend. In the late 80s/early 90s, a hundred bucks was nothing to sneeze at—it was practically half a month's salary for someone like Mary or George.
"I appreciate the offer, Mary, but I've already got plans tomorrow. I don't think I can make it," Mike declined politely. He had zero interest in being poked and prodded like a lab rat for a research paper.
"That's a shame," Mary said, shaking her head. She genuinely felt bad that Mike was missing out on the extra cash.
Meemaw, sitting nearby, saw the situation for what it really was. She chuckled and said, "Nothing to be sorry about, Mary. Mike isn't exactly hurting for money. Besides, he'll probably be busy tomorrow 'taking care' of his girlfriends."
Meemaw knew Mike had been playing the stock market and had recently made a tidy profit. She also figured a young man like Mike should be spending his weekends with pretty girls, not lab coats.
Mary knew a bit about Mike's complicated love life, too. She noted Meemaw's plural use of "girlfriends" but didn't push the brain testing further.
After dinner, as Mary started clearing the dishes, Georgie couldn't help but lean in and ask his dad one more time, "Dad, do you really think I should give up on Veronica?"
George looked at his son. He knew that at that age, with hormones screaming, a first crush isn't something you just walk away from. "Your heart will give you the answer, son."
George figured Georgie needed to run head-first into the wall a few more times before he'd either learn his lesson or grow up.
"Right, because some people's hearts still remember girls named Catherine..." Mary remarked as she came back for the rest of the plates. She was still feeling petty and couldn't resist taking another jab.
"I told you, that was a lifetime ago! I've forgotten all about her," George explained helplessly.
"Clearly, since you remember her name is Catherine," Mary said with a heavy dose of sarcasm before huffing back into the kitchen.
"I really have forgotten!" George shouted toward the kitchen.
When he turned back, he met Meemaw's judging eyes.
"I really have..." he muttered.
"Sure, George," Meemaw grinned. "It's normal for a first love to stick in your head. But you'd better figure out how to explain that to Mary."
With that, Meemaw waved to Mike, and they left the Cooper house together.
George was left standing there under the gossiping stares of his children. "Everyone, to your rooms! Now!"
Rarely seeing their dad actually lose his temper, Sheldon and Missy scurried away. Only Georgie looked at his dad with a look of genuine empathy. "I feel you, man."
Remembering that this whole mess started because of Georgie's hormones, George growled, "You, too! Disappear!"
"You got it!" Georgie gave a mock salute and headed for his room. He had already decided: he was going to spend the weekend writing a masterpiece of a love letter to Veronica. Come Monday, he was going to win her over for real.