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MviluUatusun
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Michael and Amanda, Chapter 37

Marooned on Tashoo, Chapter 3
michael_and_amanda_chapter_37_-_google_docs.txt
Keywords male 1108892, female 998688, human 99888, leopard 11101, red fox 8168, marsupial 4462, pouch 865, virginia opossum 324, binturong 216, humanimal 71, amanda fuchs 63, michael thomson 62, jacob fuchs 28, ophelia fuchs 28, brina 14, punker 9, arranged marriage 8, oskar protelo 7, angelique protelo 7, thapig 6, justin ingwe 3, reginald reynard 2, mr. ingwe 1, mark binturam 1
Chapter 37

At the Gun Range

After he hung up the telephone, Michael lay in his bed for a couple of minutes thinking.  He was concerned about the dreams he’d had.  They were frightful in the extreme.  He could vaguely remember hearing the two voices telling him that the dreams were premonitions.  The voices had said that the accident would occur and there was nothing he could do to prevent it from happening.  However, he could prevent Amanda from dying by making the right decision concerning his relationship with her but, they wouldn’t tell him what was the correct decision.  The white voice had even gone so far as to tell him that he wasn’t supposed to know about the accident nor could that voice tell him the correct decision.  Yet, the white voice had given him a clue.  He would feel in his heart when he made the right decision.  With that thought, Michael’s eyes fluttered shut and he fell asleep.


**********


After hanging up her telephone, Amanda lay in her bed.  “That silly goose.”  She thought.  “So concerned about me that he had to call me at 2316 to tell me to be careful because of a silly dream he’d had.  To think that he loves me so much that he’s worried about a silly dream.  Well, I’ll be extra careful just for him.”  After thinking these things and with a smile on her face, Amanda’s eyes slowly closed and she fell back asleep.


**********


Ophelia awoke with a start.  She sat bolt upright in the bed causing Jacob to sit upright, too.  “What’s wrong, Sweetheart?”  Jacob asked.

Ophelia’s eyes started tearing up.  She turned and hugged Jacob tightly.  “Oh, Jacob!”  She cried.  “I just had the most terrible nightmare.  I dreamed that Amanda got killed in a car accident.”

“It was just a dream, Ophelia.”

“No, Jacob!  A shadowy figure warned me that the dream would come true unless we get Amanda away from that human.  Jacob, you’ve got to help me.”

“Ophelia, what did the shadowy figure look like?”

“A shadowy figure, Jacob!  What do you think it looked like?”

“I mean, was species was it?  Was it a fox?”

Ophelia thought for a few seconds before saying, “It looked like a human.”

“Sweetheart, as much as you hate humans, you believe a shadowy human-shaped figure?  Now, you know I don’t believe in premonition dreams.  It was just a dream, nothing more.”  He lay back down and closed his eyes.

“Jacob?”

“Mmm.”

“The figure said the accident will occur no matter what.  He said that Amanda will either die or be severely injured.  Which one will occur will depend on whether or not Amanda stays with that human.”

“Ophelia, did the figure say what we have to do to prevent her death?”

“He said he isn’t allowed to tell us.”

“Then, it could just as easily be that she dies if she stops seeing Michael as not.”

“Humph!  I don’t believe that.  I think she’ll die if she continues seeing him and I’m going to do something about it.”

Half asleep, Jacob said, “All right, Ophelia.  Just stop trying to make her unhappy.  Amanda’s never been happier than she is right now.”

Ophelia lay back down and thought.  After a few minutes, she had come to a decision and fell asleep.


**********


At 0100, Michael’s alarm went off.  He groggily shut it off.  He’d spent a restless night because of his nightmares.  He wanted to make the correct decision but which one was correct?  He knew that he’d never been happier than he’d been since he confessed his love for Amanda to her.  He looked forward to seeing her and the smile on her cute feline face when she’d walk up to him and hug and kiss him.  He still felt a bit odd kissing her on the mouth but, at the same time, he enjoyed those hugs and kisses more than he’d ever enjoyed kissing one of his human girlfriends 20,000 years ago.

After considering these things, Michael decided to get up, get dressed, and prepare his breakfast.  Since he was going to be going to the gun range in a couple of hours, he decided to dress casually so, since it was late fall and, consequently, the temperature was cooling significantly, he chose a red and black flannel shirt, jeans, thick socks, and canvas shoes.  He also brought out a coat to wear when he was outside.

After dressing, Michael walked to the living room and placed his coat on the back of a chair before he walked into the kitchen to prepare himself a bowl of cereal.  Just before he entered the kitchen, his telephone rang.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Michael.”  Mr. Ingwe’s voice said.

“Good morning, Mr. Ingwe.  What time and where do you want to meet?”

“I thought we’d meet at 0330 outside SoGa Industries.  Is Amanda coming with us?”

“She said she wanted to.  I think we need to give her some lessons on proper firearms handling, though.  She admitted to me that she’s never fired a pistol before.”

“Then, I believe your suggestion has merit.  Give her a call and let her know when and where we’re going to meet.”

“I’ll do just that.  I’ll talk to you shortly, Mr. Ingwe.”

Michael hung up his telephone and then dialed Amanda’s telephone number.  After a couple of rings, he heard her cheerful voice saying, “Good morning!”

Michael laughed softly before saying, “Are you always this cheerful first thing in the morning?”

“Only when I’m expecting to hear from someone I want to talk to.”

Michael couldn’t resist the temptation to aggravate her a bit.  “Oh.  I guess I should hang up so you can receive the telephone call you’re expecting.”

Michael could hear the soft growl in her voice as she replied, “You hang up and I’ll bite you when you come over here later.”  Michael could her snapping her teeth together and couldn’t resist laughing.  “Now, when are you coming to get me to go to the gun range?”

“Mr. Ingwe wants to meet at SoGa Industries at 0330.  So, I thought I’d meet you at your apartment around 0245.  Since you’re a woman, that’ll give you plenty of time to waste before we absolutely have to be on the road.”

Once again, Amanda growled softly but said, “That sounds good.  It’ll give me more time to spend in your arms before we leave.  I’ll see you then.”

Michael smiled and said, “Oh!  Amanda!”

“Yes?”

“You should eat some breakfast while you’re waiting for me.  I’m about to prepare breakfast before I go to get you.”

“Oh!  Thanks for reminding me.  I’ll see you when you get here.”


**********


A little over an hour later found Michael climbing the stairs to Amanda’s apartment.  As he reached the second-floor landing, he expected Angelique to greet him in her usual state of undress.  When she opened her door, his jaw almost hit the floor.

“Angelique, are you not feeling well?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re fully dressed.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen you even partially dressed.”

“Oh, I decided to change things a bit since you and Amanda seem to have become jaded to seeing me naked.  Oskar seems to be a bit happy about it.  What do you think?”

Micheal looked her up and down before saying, “I like it.  The outfit seems to fit you perfectly.  Maybe you should answer your door like this all the time.”

Angelique stuck her tongue out at him causing him to laugh uproariously.  “Are you and Amanda going out this early in the day?”

“Yes.  We’ve been invited to the local gun range by one of the bodyguards at SoGa Industries.  I showed interest in his firearm and he offered to let me fire it a few times.  Amanda wants to go, too.”

Oskar walked up behind Angelique and said, “Did I hear you mention firearms, Michael?”

“Yes, I did, Oskar.  Why do you ask?”

“I was in the military when I met and married Angelique.  I love firearms and the good they do for society.”

“Good.  My father, my real father, taught me to love and respect firearms.  I’m hoping to teach Amanda the same thing.”

“Well, enjoy your time at the range, Michael.  If you’re going to the range near SoGa Industries, that’s a good one.  There are a lot of good people that go there.”

“Thanks for the info, Oskar.  I’ll see y’all later.”

As Oskar and Angelique went back into their apartment, Michael resumed his climb up the stairs to Amanda’s apartment.  When he reached her door, he knocked and, after a few seconds, Amanda opened the door, jumped into his arms, wrapped her legs around his waist, and kissed him deeply.  She was wearing her blouse but no pants.  Her blouse was unbuttoned to just below her breasts revealing her upper chest and a V to just above her navel.  

Michael looked at her and slowly shook his head.  “Amanda, how many times do I have to remind you about being completely dressed when you greet me?”

Amanda was rubbing her cheek against his as he spoke.  “Aw Michael.  You know I enjoy showing you my body.  Why don’t you enjoy looking at it?”

“I never said I don’t enjoy looking at your body.  I’m just afraid of you embarrassing yourself when someone else walks by.  Now, get off me and go finish getting dressed.”

Amanda dropped off of Michael and, taking him by his hand, walked back into her apartment.  She started to drag him into her bedroom but he balked and told her he’d wait on her sofa.  She frowned at him but left him and went into her bedroom.  She left her bedroom door open so they could talk while she finished dressing.  She asked him what she should wear.  He told her to dress casually including casual shoes.  At 0300, as Michael had predicted, Amanda walked out of her bedroom properly dressed as Michael had suggested.

Michael took Amanda’s hand and, after she locked her door, they walked down the stairs, got into Michael’s car, and headed toward SoGa Industries.  About 20 minutes later, they arrived and sat in the car and talked while they waited for Mr. Ingwe.  Well, Michael talked, Amanda sat in his lap and nuzzled his cheek and neck.  She only responded when Michael asked her a direct question.

“Amanda, since you’ve never fired a gun before, we’re going to teach you about them.  We don’t want you to hurt yourself.”

“Mmmmokay.”

“Amanda, pay attention.  This is important.”

“I’m paying attention.  I heard what you said.”

“Don’t just hear me, Amanda, listen to me.”

“I understand what your saying.”

“Tell me what I said.”

“You said, Since I’ve never fired a gun before, you’re going to teach me about them.  You don’t want me to hurt myself.”  She said as she continued to kiss his neck.

“All right.  You were paying closer attention than I thought you were.”

Amanda turned her attention to his lips.  She started kissing him over and over again.  Michael returned the kisses; he kept trying to look out for Mr. Ingwe but, Amanda kept her head between his eyes and the windshield.  Soon, Michael felt her hands go inside his shirt and start caressing his chest and abdomen.  She couldn’t see them but, she moaned appreciatively at the fact that his abs and pecs were developed enough that she could trace them with her fingers.

After a few minutes of this attention, Michael thought he heard a soft laughing outside the driver’s side window.  He turned his eyes and saw Mr. Ingwe standing there with his hands on his hips and a big, BIG grin on his face.  The grin was so big that Michael could see Mr. Ingwe’s exposed canines.  Michael was so surprised that he pushed Amanda away from him much to her confusion and consternation.

Amanda looked out of the window, saw Mr. Ingwe, and said, “Good morning, Mr. Ingwe.  How are you this beautiful morning?”

“I’m doing quite well, Miss Fuchs, and it looks like you’re doing quite well yourself.”

Amanda smiled and said, “I most certainly am.  I’ve been trying to get him to fall in love with me for six months.  Now, that I’ve succeeded, I’m going to take advantage of it every chance I can.”

“But, what does your father think about this situation?”

Amanda glared at him slightly and said, “My father’s fine with it.  My mother, on the other hand, . . .”

Mr. Ingwe smiled.  Somewhat confused, Michael looked between the two of them with the confusion obvious on his face.  He couldn’t understand how these two knew each other so well.  Amanda saw the look on his face and said, “Michael, Mr. Ingwe and my father worked together for several years before Mr. Ingwe started working for SoGa.”

“Uh-huh.”

Amanda wrapped her arms around Michael’s neck and said, “Aw.  Are you getting jealous?”

Looking lovingly at Amanda, Michael replied, “No.  I was just a bit confused that you two know each other so well.”

“Now you know.”  Turning to Mr. Ingwe, Amanda said, “Are we ready to go to the gun range?”

“Well, I am.  I’m not so sure about you two.”  Mr. Ingwe replied as he smiled at them.

Michael smiled mischievously and gently pushed Amanda off of his lap.  Amanda groaned unhappily but complied.  Mr. Ingwe smiled at them and motioned for Michael to follow him.  Mr. Ingwe got in his car, started it, and pulled out.  Michael put his car in gear and followed about 50 yards behind.  They drove for about 20 minutes before pulling into a gravel parking lot in front of a large building.  Michael looked from one corner to the other and estimated the building to be about 35 yards wide.  There was a door in the dead center of the face of the building and Mr. Ingwe led Michael and Amanda toward it.

They entered the building and walked to a desk where Mr. Ingwe said, “Good morning, Mark.”

The attendant, a binturong, looked up and smiled at Mr. Ingwe and said, “Justin!  It’s so good to see you again!  How are you doing?”

“I’m fine, Nicholas.”  Indicating each in their turn, Mr. Ingwe said, “This is Michael Thomson and this is Amanda Fuchs.”

“How do you do?  Thomson?  Like the . . .”

“Gazelle, yes.”

Nicholas looked at Michael and smiled.  “You’ve heard that before.”

“At least two or three times.”

Nicholas grinned broadly, turned to Mr. Ingwe, and said, “What can we do for you today, Justin.”

“Nicholas, Michael and Amanda need some hearing protection.  You do have hearing protection for a human, don’t you?”

“Now, Justin, you know better than to ask that.  You know we’ve got several human members.  Give me a second and I’ll have a pair for Michael in a jiff.”  After a few seconds, Nicholas turned back around with two pair of hearing protectors, one designed for human usage and one to fit Amanda’s ears.

Nicholas looked at Mr. Ingwe and asked, “Do I need to put the three of you away from everyone else?”

Michael asked, “What do you mean?”

“I’m sorry, sir.  Do you know how to handle a firearm?”

Michael smiled and said, “I do.  I don’t know about Amanda.”  The three of them looked at her and she sheepishly looked away.  “I’m going to take that as a no.  But, why would you need to put us away from everyone else just because Amanda doesn’t know how to handle a firearm?”

“It’s for everyone’s protection, Mr. Thomson.  We have special compartments that will prevent an accident in case of an inadvertent discharge.”

“Ah, that makes sense.  I guess we need one of those compartments.”

“Yes, sir.  Take compartment 12.”

Mr. Ingwe said, “Thank you, Nicholas.”  


**********


As they talked to the binturong, out of the corner of his eye, Michael noticed two furless hands at the ends of two light cream colored furry arms reach around Mr. Ingwe’s waist and wrap him in a hug.  At the ends of the fingers, Michael noticed that, instead of fingernails, there were ten claws that were painted black.  The five on the left hand seemed to be filed down to be barely visible.  Before Michael could view more than these few things, the Humanimal spoke.

The voice was a raspy, husky, sexy female voice.  “Hello Justin,” the female’s voice said.

Mr. Ingwe smiled and, without looking, said, “Hello Brina.”

Now, the female walked around Mr. Ingwe so that Michael could see her.  He saw a female Virginia opossum.  She had a Mohawk haircut that was dyed black but, not the black you might expect. It was shiny, coal-black and the tip was blood red as were her eyelids.  Her lips and hairless rat-like ears were painted the same color of black that her Mohawk was.  She was wearing a sleeveless black leather coat, black leather pants, and black leather stiletto high heel shoes.  She was also wearing a thick layer of black mascara around her eyes.

“Justin,” Brina said, “it’s wonderful to see you again.”

“Brina, you saw me a week ago.”

“It’s always wonderful to see such a handsome leopard as you, Justin.”

Mr. Ingwe smiled indulgently as he said, “Thank you for the compliment, Brina, but you know nothing could ever happen between us.”

“Why?”

“Brina, you’re a marsupial and I’m a placental.  You know that we could never have cubs of our own.”

“That’s all right, Justin.  There are plenty of opossums that carry the heritage trait of multiple births.  We could adopt one or two of them and I could carry them to term.”  She opened her jacket and opened her pouch for everyone to see.

Embarrassed, Justin rolled his eyes and looked away as he said, “Brina, I know you’re very open-minded about your pouch like most marsupials but, most placentals are scandalized when you show it off like that.”

Brina zipped her jacket closed and turned to walk off.  As she left she said, “Justin, you don’t know what you’re missing.  I’ve been with plenty of placental men and they all loved making love with me.”

Michael watched her hips sway as she walked away and said, “Boy, she’s rather open about her body, isn’t she?”

“I’ve known Brina for several years and she’s always been that way.  I don’t know if it’s her or if it’s just the way marsupials are in general.”

“She’s a punker?”

“Yes.  Is that a problem?”

“No, it’s just that I’ve never seen a Humanimal punker before.”

“Brina’s a nice girl; don’t let the way she dresses fool you.  I understand she’s a fantastic guitar player.  Did you notice the claws on her fingertips?”  Michael nodded.  “She files the claws on her left hand down almost to the finger so she can fret the guitar; otherwise, the claws would get in the way.  She uses the claws on her right hand in the same way that most of us would use a pick.  She even does shows around Catlanna with her backup band.”

“Punk rock?”

Mr. Ingwe smiled and said, “Yes.  Do you like punk rock?”

“Personally?  No.  Have you seen her in concert?”

“A couple of times.  My ears are too sensitive to listen to that type of music for any length of time.  She is quite the entertainer, though.  She really plays to her audience.”

Michael turned to look at Amanda and saw the sour look on her face.  He stepped over to her, took her in his arms, and said, “Is there something wrong, Sweetheart?”

“You were ignoring me, Michael.  A girl doesn’t like to be ignored by her boyfriend.”

“I know, Sweetie.  I was just shocked at the way Brina was dressed.  I’ve never seen anyone dress like that since I woke up.

“Well, let’s go to our compartment.”


**********


After she awoke, Ophelia slipped out of bed and walked into her living room.  She looked around surreptitiously to make sure she was the only one awake.  It was rather early and she wasn’t sure she’d be able to call the person she needed to talk to.  She dialed the 10 numbers of the telephone of the person she was calling.  After a few rings, a masculine voice answered.

“Reynard residence.”

Ophelia whispered into the receiver, “Charles, this is Ophelia Fuchs.  Is Reginald available?”

“Which Reginald, Mrs. Fuchs?”

“The third, Charles.”

“One moment.”

A few seconds later, a different masculine voice spoke, “Mrs. Fuchs!  To what do I owe the pleasure of your voice.  Has your husband gone bankrupt?”

“No, Reginald.  Do you remember our little agreement?”

There was a pause of about 15 seconds before Reginald replied, “No, ma’am.  I can’t say as I do.  What agreement?”

“The agreement that you’d marry Amanda?”

“Oh!  Yes.  How could I forget?  You want me to marry the result of your little premarital tryst with a tiger.”  Reginald said this with the utmost of contempt in his voice.

Ophelia practically growled, “Reginald, you know that those rumors are untrue.  Of course, if you’ve changed your mind about Amanda’s dowry, I guess I could find another eligible fox who’d love to have such a beautiful looking young woman warm his bed for him every night.”  

Reginald paused as he remembered the promised dowry.  “Oh, yes.  No, I haven’t forgotten about the dowry.  So, what should I do?”

“She’s 18 now.  She’s at the prime age to marry and bring forth your heir.  Your father should be proud of you when you announce your engagement to my daughter.”

“Hmm.  Very well.  I’ll start preparing the engagement party.  I’ll make sure to send you and your husband an invitation.  It wouldn’t do for you to read about your daughter’s engagement to the most eligible fox bachelor in all of Catlanna.  Would it?”

Ophelia smiled and said, “I’m sure my husband will be as happy as I’ll be when the announcement is made.”


**********


As Mr. Ingwe, Michael, and Amanda were entering the compartment, Amanda was saying, “Wait a minute.  All firearms are loaded?  I don’t understand.  What if you shoot all the bullets?”

“It’s still loaded.”

“Michael, that makes absolutely no sense.”

“Yes, it does.  Think about it, Amanda.  If you treat all firearms as if they’re loaded, there won’t ever be a tragedy where you have to tell someone that their loved one won’t ever be coming home.”

A light dawned on Amanda’s face.  “Oh, I see.”

“Good.  Third, always point the muzzle of a firearm downrange or at the ground.”

“Why?”

“Because if you accidentally pull the trigger the bullet won’t hit anybody.  Trust me Amanda, I can’t say this enough, a bullet can do a lot of damage.”

Mr. Ingwe said, “Michael, perhaps we should show Amanda what to expect when she fires my pistol.”

“Good idea.”

Mr. Ingwe pulled his pistol from the holster, pulled the slide back, and released it.  Standing square to the target downrange, he aimed his pistol, and gently squeezed the trigger.  The pistol kicked up about a foot and an empty cartridge flew to the floor.  Downrange, a little round hole formed in the paper target before the cartridge hit the floor.  As they watched this happen, an idea formed in Michael’s mind.

“Mr. Ingwe, does this range have fruits of some kind?”

“I believe so.  Why do you ask?”

“I want Amanda to see exactly what would happen if she accidentally shot someone.”

A knowing look crossed Mr. Ingwe’s face.  He stepped to a telephone, picked up the receiver and spoke into it.  “Nicholas, do you have any melons we can use to shoot at?”

“You do?  Great.  Can we get a few set up?  We want to show Amanda what to expect when she shoots at something.”

A few minutes later, a watermelon was sitting on a pedestal about 15 yards downrange.  Michael said, “Now, Amanda, watch the watermelon as Mr. Ingwe shoots it.”  

Mr. Ingwe took aim, fired, and the watermelon exploded.  Amanda nearly fell over as she watched.  She was hyperventilating.  Michael saw that she was a few seconds from hitting the floor so he put his arms around her.  Amanda looked at him with tears in her eyes as she said, “That, that watermelon disappeared.”

“That watermelon exploded, Amanda.  That’s what could happen to someone’s head if you accidentally shot them.”

Amanda’s tears started falling because she was imagining that happening to Michael.  “Why would you do that?”

“Shoot someone?  Self-defense.  If you shoot at an animal, it’s because you intend to use that animal as food.  Never, ever shoot an animal just to shoot it.  Make certain you’re going to eat it or you’re trying to protect someone from the animal.”  

“Protect someone from an animal?”

“I’m sure there are still feral animals that would harm you if they had the opportunity.  Just never shoot one just because it sounds like fun.  Try to imagine how much fun it would be if someone decided to shoot you ‘just for fun’.”


**********


After the last round in the clip was fired, the slide stayed open.  Mr. Ingwe turned to Michael and handed him the pistol grip first.  Amanda watched this and, although she was a bit curious about this, she said nothing.  Michael took the pistol, dropped the clip, accepted a full clip from Mr. Ingwe, slipped it into the magazine, pulled the locking lever down to chamber a round, and set the safety.

Amanda said, “Michael, why did Mr. Ingwe hand his pistol to you like that?”

“It’s a bit of a tradition, I guess.  If you hand someone your pistol butt first, it shows that person that you have no intention of shooting them and you trust them to not shoot you.  Also, it allows that other person to drop the clip, put a new clip into the magazine, and load the pistol.”

“Oh, I see.”

“Now, you saw how Mr. Ingwe stood to fire the pistol.  I stand a little differently.  Watch.”

Michael stood with his non-firing shoulder facing the target.  He had placed the butt of the pistol into his off-hand, gently held the grip, aimed, and pulled the trigger.  Once again, the pistol jumped about a foot.  Michael fired the pistol 15 times before the slide locked in the open position indicating the clip was empty.  He turned to Mr. Ingwe and said, “Sweet.  I would have thought that an 11 mm would have more recoil than that.”

“It’s because the slide is so heavy.  The weight of the slide more than compensates for the recoil.  By the way, where did you learn about firearms?”

“My father, my real father, was one of the first people to obtain a pistol after our right to bear arms was reinstated.  He taught me how to handle a pistol, semi-automatic, and revolver.  He told me that I should always handle them properly and safely.”

Michael turned to Amanda and asked, “Would you like to try it?”

Shyly, Amanda said, “If it’s all right.”

Michael turned and said, “Mr. Ingwe?”

Mr. Ingwe shrugged and said, “If you want to, Amanda.  I’ve got no problem with it.”

Michael loaded another clip into the magazine and handed the pistol to Amanda.  “Now, remember, always point the pistol downrange or at the ground.”

Amanda stood square to the target, pointed the muzzle downrange, squeezed the trigger, the pistol fired, and Amanda almost hit the floor.  She juggled the pistol and quickly laid it on the bench in front of her.  She looked at Michael in shock.

“What’s wrong, Amanda?”

“I almost fell down.”

Smiling, Michael said, “That’s because you weren’t prepared for the recoil.  That’s also one of the reasons why I stand the way I do when I shoot a pistol.”  Michael picked the pistol up again and handed it to her.  “Go ahead, you’ve got 14 more shots.”

“Michael, show me how to stand the way you do when you shoot.  Please.”

Michael positioned her and taught her to aim the pistol.  “To aim the pistol, you see this blade-like piece with the notch in it?”

“Yes.”

“That’s the rear sight.  The post-like piece at the front is the front sight.  To aim, you line the post up with the notch.  The top of the post should line up with the top of the notch and you shouldn’t see any light around the post.  When you have them lined up properly, pull the trigger.”

“Okay.”  

Amanda did as she was told and fired 4 rounds but the fifth round didn’t fire.  She turned toward Michael and called his name.  He turned and saw the muzzle of the pistol staring him in the face.  Before he could think, he had slapped the pistol away from his face and taken it away from Amanda.  Amanda looked at Michael with shock because she couldn’t understand why he seemed so angry.

“Michael,” she said, tearfully, “did I do something wrong?”

Michael took a few breaths to calm his jangled nerves before putting his arms around her and hugging her gently as he calmly said, “Amanda, what did I say about pointing a firearm at someone?”

“You said don’t unless I intend to pull the trigger.”

“Exactly.  Sweetheart, you pointed that pistol right between my eyes.  If that pistol had gone off, you would have lost the man you love.”

“But, Michael, I had tried to pull the trigger but the pistol wouldn’t fire.  It must be out of bullets.”

“Amanda, you only fired 5 times counting the first time.  You’ve still got 10 bullets left.  What happened is the pistol jammed.  You need to clear the jam before the pistol will shoot again.  Here, let me show you how to clear a jam.”  Michael took the pistol, pulled the slide back, and an unfired bullet was ejected.  He released the slide and it closed the chamber.  Michael returned the pistol to Amanda and encouraged her to empty the clip.  When she did so, she handed to pistol to Mr. Ingwe and refused to shoot any more.

Finally, after a couple of hours of shooting, they decided to finish for the day.  Michael thanked Mr. Ingwe for allowing him to join him.  Amanda also thanked Mr. Ingwe for allowing her to shoot his firearm, although she had only shot it a few times.

When they reached their cars, Mr. Ingwe spoke to Amanda saying, “Amanda, please don’t let what you did upset you too badly.  Yes, you shouldn’t have pointed the pistol at Michael but, I think you learned a lesson about that, especially after seeing what a bullet could do to someone.  I think you and Michael should come here on a regular basis and he should teach you how to shoot.  You’ve got good form and understanding.  I believe you’ll become a very good shot.”

“Thank you, Mr. Ingwe.  Maybe we’ll do that.”


**********


After driving for about 25 minutes, Michael arrived at Amanda’s apartment building.  They walked hand-in-hand to the door of the building.  Amanda stopped and checked her mail.  There was only one piece of mail in her mailbox.  It was a smallish square envelope addressed to her with Michael’s return address.  The envelope measured about three inches square.  She looked at it curiously and Michael looked at it fearfully.

Amanda looked at Michael and said, “Michael, why did you send me a note?  You visit me almost every day and call me every evening.”

Michael responded, “I think I need to get home.  I’ll see you later, Amanda.”

Just as he turned, Amanda caught his shirtsleeve and held him as she opened the envelope.  She pulled a folded card out and opened it.  What she read brought tears to her eyes.


“This love that I feel
“It’s so right and so real.
“I realize how lucky I am.
“And should you ever wonder if my love is true,
“There’s something I wanna make clear to you.
“There’s no way I could make it without you.
“There’s no way that I’d even try.
“If I had to survive
“Without you in my life,
“I know I wouldn’t last a day.
“Oh, baby, there’s no way.” (1)


Amanda turned to look at Michael with tears glistening in her eyes.  Michael wasn’t sure what the tears meant, so he said, “Amanda, are you all right?”  All Amanda could do was smile slightly and nod her head.  “Are you upset?”  Once again, all Amanda could do was nod her head.  “Please say something.”

For an answer, she wrapped her arms around Michael and hugged him tightly as she kissed him more passionately than she had ever hugged and kissed him before.  After several seconds of kissing him, she let go of him and dashed up the stairs.  Michael, still not absolutely certain that she wasn’t angry, followed her as closely as he could.  When she stopped at Angelique’s door, he was aghast.  

“Amanda, I didn’t send you that card for you to show the whole world.”

Amanda ignored him as she knocked on Angelique’s door.  When the door opened, Amanda handed the card to Angelique who read it.  As she read it, Angelique’s eyes started tearing up.  She looked at Michael and said, “Do you really mean this?”

Sheepishly, Michael smiled and said, “Yes, I do.”

“Amanda’s a lucky girl.  I foresee a happy marriage for you two.”  Angelique then hugged Amanda and smiled at her.

Amanda turned to Michael and hugged him again and said, “Michael, this is the nicest thing I’ve ever received.  Thank you so much.”

Michael walked Amanda to her apartment, kissed her, and said, “I’m glad you liked the card.  I wasn’t sure that it would be acceptable.  Why did you start to cry if you liked it?”

“Michael, women do cry when they’re happy, you know.”

“I’m glad that you’re happy with the card.  I need to go.  I’ve got to meet Dr, Leo and Richard at the gym.  I’ll see you later.”

Amanda grabbed him in another tight hug and passionate kiss.  “Bye, Michael.  Understand that what you wrote in this card goes equally for me.”  She turned and rushed into her apartment before she made a bigger fool of herself.

Michael turned and hummed the song, “There’s No Way”, as he walked back to his car.


**********


(1) – Lyrics from the song “There’s No Way”.  "There's No Way" is a song written by John Jarrard, Lisa Palas and Will Robinson, and recorded by American country music band Alabama. It was released in January 1985 as the first single from the band's album 40-Hour Week.











 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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The Blue Deer Restaurant Sign
Michael and Amanda, Chapter 38
I'm sorry that it's taken so long to upload a new chapter. I took on a couple of other projects that interfered with my writing time. With that said, here is Chapter 37 of "Michael and Amanda".

In this chapter, Mr. Ingwe makes good on his promise to take Michael and Amanda to the gun range so Michael can test fire Mr. Ingwe's pistol. Since Amanda had never fired a firearm before, Michael gives her a few instructions on proper firearms usage. Unfortunately for Amanda, she forgets a very important instruction and almost causes a tragedy. Michael averts the tragedy and reiterates the most important of his instructions.

After leaving the gun range, Michael takes Amanda back home where Amanda finds a card he's sent to her.

Brina the opossum appears thanks to the courtesy of ThaPig (https://inkbunny.net/ThaPig) because he helped me with a semi-contest to assist me in giving different names to "modern" names for cities, states, countries, etc.

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Published: 3 years, 2 months ago
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PumaConcolor
3 years, 2 months ago
So glad to see your writting again. Great chapter!
MviluUatusun
3 years, 2 months ago
Thank you.  I'm hoping that I'll post the next chapter in two weeks but I can't guarantee anything.
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