A Ride Into Reality
A Ride Into RealityDisclaimer: Some of the characters in this fiction have been borrowed from the TV show The Young Riders and are the copyright of Ed Spielman and Ogiens/Kane Production. The other characters are created by the author. Some characters may be based upon today living persons but the author have no connection with these persons, nor does the author claim to have any specific knowledge of these persons. This story is written for the enjoyment of TYR fans and are posted without any economical gain for neither the author nor the siteowner.
© Charla
Sarah returned near dusk to find the group sitting where she had left them, staring at the TV screen. The pizza boxes were empty and it looked like they had drank several more canned drinks. Sarah also noticed the strong stench of body odor and knew that must be taken care of immediately. She was glad she had thought ahead.
While Sarah had been out driving, she had got a call on her cell phone from Thomas Stryker, the actor that had played Mike, until his character was killed off, on the decade old series. Thomas had been in several movies, including a recent box office hit, but he seemed as down to earth as she remembered him. After a short exchange of pleasantries, Thomas turned serious.
"Sarah, can you tell me why you called? I know it wasn't just to discuss old times."
Sarah took a deep breath. "Thomas, I need you to do me a big favor. I would have called Don Franklin, but well, I didn't know him as well as you."
The line was silent a moment. "Go ahead."
"Is there any way you could visit the old Tucson studio?"
"Sarah, that's…"
Sarah interrupted, "Please Thomas. I've got this problem and only you can help me figure it out." Sarah felt like she waited an eternity for a reply.
"Ok," Thomas said slowly. "I'll be there tomorrow."
Relief was evident in Sarah's voice. "Thank you. It means a lot to me."
Her recollections of the conversation were halted as Sam walked into the room. "Well Sarah…"
She grinned, "We are taking them for a tour. Did any packages arrive
while I was gone?
Sam nodded, smiling. "A good many as a matter of fact."
"Good," Sarah responded. She liked things moving smoothly.
Sam shook his head as an M&M commercial came on the TV.
"What in the hell?" Cody was on his feet. "That ain't me!"
"Well it sure looks like you Cody." Lou replied.
Sarah looked smug. "That is Stephen Baldwin; don't you know him very well
Cody?"
"I ain't seen nobody look so much like me in my life!"
For an instant, the other riders eyed Cody suspiciously, but they could tell he was just as baffled. They knew he had nothing to do with that man on the TV. Sam quickly moved to turn off the screen. Five different voices began to complain.
"Would you be quiet and listen," Sarah raised her voice above their whines.
"Hey, did you bring more of that pizza?" Cody asked, temporarily forgetting what he just saw. Jimmy punched him on the arm.
Sarah shook her head for the millionth time that day and then wrinkled her nose. "Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of the drive-thru at Burger King. But first, let's get you showered."
"Sam, would you take them one at a time for a shower. In some of those packages delivered while I was gone should be sweat pants and shirts in several different sizes."
"Who first?" Sam asked. When the group just looked at him, he added,
"A shower?"
"Come on guys, the quicker you shower, the quicker you eat! You do know
what a shower is," Sarah goaded "don't you?"
At the mention of food, Cody was on his feet. "Okay, I'll go first. You guys better appreciate my bravery here."
"That's not bravery Cody," Kid smirked, "that's your never ending hunger."
Sam showed Cody into the bathroom. "You mean it's indoors?" Cody near shouted. "Well, I'll be damned."
"Just turn it on for him!" Sarah yelled down the narrow hall. "We don't have time for this!"
Cody finished in the shower; leaving it running, he trodded down the hall with a large towel wrapped around his waist. In a back room, Sam helped him find a size to fit as Sarah hustled Buck down the hall into the bathroom.
Kid, Lou and Jimmy all stared as Cody emerged in what looked like a extra thick, dark blue union suit. "That ain't decent," Lou protested.
"I can assure you, that's quite modest," Sarah replied. Just then Buck cracked open the door and Kid willingly moved to take his place. Sarah sighed, relieved the process would begin to hurry along since Cody had seemed to survive the ordeal. She glanced over at Jimmy. "You know, your hair was a lot shorter the last picture I saw of you." She continued to stare at his hair. "Make sure you wash your hair twice," she ordered. Jimmy looked both sheepish and offended at the same time.
"Sam," Sarah called, her attention moved elsewhere.
"Yes?" He peeked his head around the corner.
"Go ahead and get the smallest sweat suit out so Lou can dress in the bathroom."
Sam nodded that he understood. Both he and Sarah ignored the fact that she was now calling them by their character names.
All were finally showered and dressed, and smelling much better, but something wasn't right. "Sam, find the packages with socks and shoes."
Sarah didn't even give the group a chance to act ignorant. After tossing the socks at them, she and Sam began lacing the athletic shoes for them. "They may not fit because I had to guess, but they'll do." Luckily, the riders' feet were shod without too much incident. Their hair was still long and out of shape, but at least it was clean.
Sarah moved to the door of the trailer. "Okay, let's go."
The group went out the trailer door in single file, surprised that dusk had fallen already. Sarah was surprised at how compliant they seemed to be. Almost like lost, scared kids, she thought.
Jimmy almost tripped in the strange shoes, but Kid grabbed his elbow and saved his pride. Lou, still feeling underdressed, kept pulling her shirt down. Buck, who had insisted on taking his knife, bent to adjust the strap under the leg of the pants. Cody swaggered, enjoying the exotic feeling of the new clothes.
Sarah waved at Sam, who had loaded the remaining packages into the back, and opened the back door of the Grand Cherokee. The riders stared at her, balking.
"I ain't getting in that metal buckboard," Jimmy said, "no way."
"We saw them on TV," Buck reminded him gently.
Cody swung into the back seat, bumping his head hard on the door frame. Kid laughed as he moved in behind Cody, "I'll be careful not to do that." Kid's hands reached help Lou get in beside him and she smiled at him shyly.
Lou had been so fascinated by the TV that she was still trying to assimilate what she had seen. Lots of women were wearing pants these days and painting their faces like saloon girls. If what they had seen could be believed, it looked as if women and men were even treated equal. I could even own me the Pony Express, she thought. If Kid noticed her distraction, he said nothing.
Jimmy, with Buck's insistence, climbed into the front bench seat. Buck followed him as Sarah got behind the wheel. "You ready boys?" Sarah laughed as she cranked the SUV and started backing up. They all gripped the seats, handles and anything else they could get their hands on. Buck and Cody grinned at one another as the vehicle picked up speed. "Yeehaw," Cody hooted. Within a few miles, everyone had relaxed and was enjoying the ride and the sights.
Sarah pulled into the Tucson Mall parking lot. While out earlier, she had arranged for JC Penny's department store to block off the men's section of their store so the visiting "actors" could shop in relative peace.
She and Lou would have to sneak over into the women's department, but that wouldn't be as difficult as four handsome men parading through a store full of customers.
"If you guys are going to fit into the year 2000, you better dress for it." First she pointed out the underwear, then the broad range and styles of clothes and finally showed them the fitting rooms. "I'll let you use your personal taste to a certain point. Get dressed and I'll come back and see if you picked out appropriate clothes."
She looped her arm through Lou's, the other hand pointing, "We'll go right over here; this is going to be fun." Lou looked up at the sign that Sarah had pointed out. "Juniors," she said aloud, but she didn't know anyone named Junior.
A short time later, Sarah had Lou dressed in khaki slacks and a trim black sweater. Her small waist was belted with a slim black belt. The bra had taken quite a bit of explaining, but Lou seemed to like the idea of binding and support and their femininity thrilled her. Sarah had at first considered sports bras, but knowing Lou didn't need to hide her gender, she instead showed her frills and lace. Careful of her comfort, Sarah had also found her some practical but stylish boots. Then, she guided Lou to the make-up counter, let the salesperson do a instant makeover and purchased a line of products. Before heading back to the men's department, Sarah took Lou over to a full-length mirror; neither of the women could believe the transformation.
"I look like those women on the TV," Lou whispered mesmerized. Then Lou looked directly at Sarah. "Why are you doing all this for us?"
Sarah shrugged, "I honestly don't know. At first I didn't believe you, but now more of me believes you than doesn't. I can't explain what happened and I don't want to try, but I have to get these basics taken care of before we do anything else."
"We better get back to the boys, but Sarah," Lou said sincerely, "thank you."
"Don't worry about it."
Sarah instructed a salesperson to put the rest of her purchases in a bag, they would be back in a moment.
Walking across the store swiftly, Sarah worried the boys had gotten into trouble while left alone. She was relieved to hear their voices still in the dressing room. "Come on out, we still need to eat."
Buck and Cody walked out first. Buck had chosen a pair of black wranglers that hugged his lean legs; he also wore a red button down shirt, tucked in, the collar open. On Buck's feet were a shiny pair of black Ropers. Cody wore a pair of faded, button-fly Levi's, the Nike shoes he'd put on at the trailer, a white t-shirt that read "No Fear" and a silly grin. Sarah tried to suppress a smile and not look at their butts too carefully.
Kid walked out next. He had on a pair of Levi's too, but his were darker than Cody's. He had also put on a pair of boots. He wore a heavy denim shirt and Sarah noted the tiny Tommy Hilfiger label on the shirt pocket. Taste knows not the boundaries of time, she thought amused.
Kid took one look at Lou and rushed toward her. "You look amazing," he exclaimed, swirling her around. "Are you sure it's you?"
"I'm sure Kid," Lou laughed, "now put me down." Kid nuzzled her neck, ignoring everyone else, while Jimmy walked out of the fitting rooms.
Jimmy had chosen a pair of khaki slacks with a green Henley shirt tucked in and a woven leather belt around his waist. He grinned at Sarah, "Will this do?"
"Yes," Sarah replied smiling, "you will all do just fine."
After getting all of their purchases loaded into the back of the Jeep, they all got back in. Sarah was relieved she had plenty of cash and a huge limit on her charge card.
If they promised to act like they knew what was going on, Sarah agreed to
take them inside Burger King to eat. It took eons to get all their orders straight,
but at last they were sitting down to eat.
A quick learner, Sarah had ordered Cody three burgers to begin with. They devoured
the food and Kid declared it was better than pizza. Lou laughed as she
dabbed some special sauce off the corner of his mouth. Buck was slurping the
last of his shake, obviously the favorite part of his meal. Meanwhile, Jimmy
pronounced that french fries were why potatoes must have been created.
Sarah's observations were interrupted by a ringing from her purse. The group didn't look nearly as anxious and curious this time when she put the small cell phone to her ear.
"Oh no, Savannah, I forgot you were arriving today," she exclaimed.
Savannah, her youngest sister, had made plans over a week ago to visit. In all the craziness, Sarah had completely forgot. Fortunately, Savannah's presence was a godsend.
"Savannah, I'm so glad you are here!"
"Yeah, I can tell by the warm welcome," Savannah retorted. "I've been sitting in your living room waiting on you for two hours"
"You wouldn't believe the day I've had."
"Sarah, you always have days like that. You thrive on it. Mom still worries you're a workaholic."
"Not like this Savannah, and you are just the person I need right now. We'll be there in a minute."
"We who?" Savannah asked, but the phone was dead.
