“Hey, Buckwheat! Good news! I fixed the Batmobile, so I'll be over in a bit to pick you up.” 

“I thought it had a rod knock,” said Joshua. “What was wrong with it?” 

“It turned out to be a core bridge on the number three spark plug,” said Davy. “These old inline sixes are kind of doggy, but they're really rugged. Ready for the festival?” 

“Sure am! Karen is looking forward to it, too.” 

“Pat has never been, so she's excited about it,” added Davy. “I just need to get cleaned up and put on a fresh shirt, so I'll see you in a bit!” 

It wasn't long before Davy chugged into Joshua's driveway in an early seventies four-door Nova that he had scavenged from his father’s salvage yard. Like most of his cars, it had seen better days, but Davy always enjoyed the challenge of driving something that wasn't road worthy. 

The passenger door gave a loud groan as Joshua pulled it open. “Wow, those are pretty dry,” he commented. “Ever consider oiling the door hinges sometime?” 

“I never think to,” admitted Davy. “I only use this side.” 

“Smells pretty musty,” said Joshua as he opened his window. “This thing leak, too?” 

“Around the rear window,” said Davy as he backed out of the driveway. “It's ok, though; I poked some holes in the floor to drain all the water out. It should be dry enough back there for Karen and Pat, though.” 

“Where's Pat?” Joshua asked. “I thought she would be with you already.” 

“We have to swing by to pick her up,” replied Davy. “She was going to come over, but she said her Mom doesn't have much gas left in the car and doesn't get paid until next week.” 

A few minutes later they pulled up to Karen's house. She gave the back door a couple of hard yanks before it flew open. “Wow, the Nova lives another day!” she exclaimed as she settled in. “I thought it was on its last legs.” 

“Nope, not yet!” exclaimed Davy as they headed down the street. “It was just a core bridge on one of the spark plugs. Sure made a racket, though, didn't it?” 

Karen leaned over and gave Joshua a kiss. “And here we are, risking life and limb again!” 

“Save it, cupcake,” admonished Davy with a smile. 

“Says you!” exclaimed Karen, giving Davy's long blonde ponytail a playful tug. 

“Where's you sense of adventure?” asked Davy. “Live it up a little!” Then he began to sing, “Come on baby, do the Novamotion!” 

Then Karen sang, “When we go for a ride we're taking a chance – oh yeah!” 

“Come on baby, do the Novamotion!” sang Davy, pointing at Joshua. 

“Um - and the carburetor will flood the engine if you give it the gas, oh no!” Joshua added. 

“Come on baby, do the Novamotion!” 

“If we're really lucky it will get us where we have to go!” sang Karen. 

“As long as there is air in the tires so it will roll!” sang Joshua. 

Then they all sang together: “So come on and dooooooooooooooooooooo the Novamotion with me!” Everyone had a good laugh, with Davy adding, “Little Eva would be proud of us!” 

As Davy pulled into the driveway, he noticed a black Mercedes Benz parked next to Mrs. Snodgrass's car. “Wow,” exclaimed Davy. “Someone has expensive taste.” 

Joshua looked at the car as he got out. “It has Massachusetts tags.” 

“Maybe it belongs to Pat's father?” suggested Karen. “Isn't he a stock broker or something?” 

“I think so,” replied Davy, scratching his head. “Never met him. All I know is that he's always sticking it to her Mom. You'd think with all the money he makes he could cough up for alimony and child support once in a while.” 

As they hiked up the stairs to the second floor apartment, a look of consternation came across Karen's face. “I can hear loud voices,” she observed. 

“Well, let's find out who it is!” said Davy as he opened the door. They were greeted by Pat, who looked unsettled. “Dad's here,” she said nervously. Then she called out, “I'm off, Mom, Davy is here!” 

Just then Mr. Mulligan stormed into the kitchen. “You're not going anywhere, young lady!” he commanded. He took one mortified look at Davy, who held out a grease-stained hand in greeting, and shouted back into the living room at her mother, “You're letting my daughter go out with THAT?” Joshua and Karen looked at Davy, who just shrugged and walked over to the refrigerator. 

“What do mean by THAT???” Mrs. Snodgrass shouted back as she walked into the kitchen. “Davy is a very nice young man!” 

Pat's father jerked his thumb over his shoulder and yelled, “I can't believe you let MY daughter hang around with a bunch of delinquents like them! What's the matter with you?” 

“THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH MY FRIENDS!” Pat shrieked. “They're all...” 

“Don't you talk back to me! You sit right there and DON'T YOU MOVE!” he shouted at the top of his lungs, pointing at a chair. Pat gave him a scathing look but did as she was told, grumbling to herself that she wanted to change her name from Mulligan to Snodgrass. 

“Maybe we should leave...” started Joshua to Pat. 

“Please stay!” she pleaded, grabbing his arm.  

Joshua and Karen looked at each other, then quietly sat down next to Pat while her parents resumed their argument. Davy, meanwhile, leaned against the kitchen counter eating some cherry pie he had found in the refrigerator, oblivious to the whole scene. He was about to take another bite when a thought crossed his mind. He looked out the window for a moment, then quietly walked out the door with the plate under his arm. 

“She's MY daughter, too! And she's in MY custody!” Mrs. Snodgrass shouted. 

“You're not doing a very good job, are you?” retorted Mr. Mulligan. “Letting her run around with purple streaks in her hair and hanging out with that – that freak!” he added while pointing toward Davy, who wasn't there. “If I had half a mind, I'd get a court order to take full custody of her myself!” 

“If you had half a mind,” she countered tersely, “you'd have kept it in your pants!”  

The fight picked up fresh steam, with Joshua and Karen sitting at the table in silence, watching the argument ping-pong back and forth, while Pat pulled the hood of her sweatshirt up over her head and buried her head in her arms trying to block it out. Nobody noticed Davy, who quietly returned to the kitchen, put the empty plate in the refrigerator, and grabbed a container of juice before going out the door again. 

“YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO...” her father shouted. 

“I HAVE EVERY RIGHT! Just who do you think YOU are, barging in here like that and telling me how to raise her?” she yelled. 

“I'M HER FATHER!” he roared. 

“OH YEAH? Well, as her father, maybe you should act like one rather than spending so much time with that floozy...” 

“You can't talk to me like that!” 

“Oh yes I can, and you sure can't talk to Pat like that, either!” 

“I'll talk to her any way I want!” 

While all of this was going on, Davy walked in, put the empty container back in the refrigerator, and took out a cake. He rummaged through a drawer for a spoon, then glanced into the dining room to see how the argument was progressing as he walked out the door again. 

Pat's mother finally drew up an ultimatum. “If you don't get out of here RIGHT NOW,” she huffed, “I'll not only call the police, but I'll also put a restraining order against you that will ensure that you never come within five hundred miles of us again! How would you like THAT?” 

Joshua and Karen continued to look at Mrs. Snodgrass, then at Mr. Mulligan as the argument came to a head. Pat just sat still, with her head still buried in her arms and her hood pulled tight over her head.  

Finally, her father gave up. “FINE, BE THAT WAY!” he shouted, then he slapped the kitchen table, startling Pat, Joshua, and Karen. “YOU, young lady, you better wash that purple out of your hair if you know what's good for you! And YOU TWO,” he ordered, pointing at Joshua and Karen. “You two better shape up!”  

As he stormed out the door, he yelled at Davy, who had just walked back into the kitchen, “And YOU, YOU STAY AWAY FROM MY DAUGHTER, OR ELSE!”  

Davy just gave him a casual look and shrugged him off as Mr. Mulligan gave the door a violent slam behind him.