Cheeky Sorbet

The entire world was watching, plus those in orbit, those at the moon base, and everyone at the Mars colony. As the hour approached, life stopped for every human as they patiently waited in front of their viewers for the most anticipated event of all time. No one was sure exactly what it would be but they knew it would be spectacular. It had to be. It was Cheeky Sorbet.

It began with a blank screen that slowly dissolved into a scene of Times Square in New York City, and then the picture moved upward. The image, as if shot from a drone, turned east and quickly sped out into the Atlantic Ocean. There it picked up speed until the picture was a blur. When it cleared again the image was of Trafalgar Square. After a brief trip around the square the blur returned until the picture was of the Eiffel Tower. This sequence continued for several minutes, showing the Roman Colosseum, Red Square, the Acropolis, the Pyramids, the Kaaba, the Taj Mahal, and the Great Wall. Finally the picture headed to the South Pacific and again it blurred but this time it cleared to show the stars. The picture turned and headed straight down toward the Earth. Faster and faster it plunged. Breaking through the clouds, the viewers could see a dark blue ocean racing toward them. A tiny speck in that blue steadily grew. It was an island of multicolored lights, reflections, radiations, glows, and sparkles. Dazzling rays flashed up from the island but the picture continued to fall until it finally reached the ground and leveled off. There viewers could see fantastic buildings bent in strange twisting shapes and made from odd materials beyond imagination. Moving through the streets of this exotic city were revelers dressed in flowing gowns and painted faces. At the end of one of the city streets was a stage. The picture stopped and focused on this empty stage. Then there was a flash and an explosion, and like magic she was there. It was Cheeky.

She was naked from head to toe. Her ivory skin glistened in the colored lights that danced around her. The swirls of her blond hair were a frame for her face that was accented by her light blue eyes, small nose, and full lips. There was no denying her extraordinary beauty. She smiled to the billions that were watching her.

“Welcome, I’m Cheeky.”

She raised her hands to the sky and a gown that had been invisible suddenly appeared on Cheeky’s body. A deep, heart-pounding, industrial throbbing sound slowly began behind Cheeky who gently rose off the stage and softly settled on the street. The palpitations increased as animal shrieks and insect clicks joined in. One by one a variety of musical instruments meshed with the sounds to form a coherent theme that Cheeky moved to. Her eyes narrowed as her spirit flowed with the rhythm of the music. Finally, her golden voice sang out with the emotions and incite that her lyrics were famous for. It was all new. Not just new music or new words. It was an entirely new genre of music. Cheeky would later call it Caramel Poise.

Dancers along the street began following Cheeky and moving to the sway of her song. A giant robotic centipede appeared on the street in front of Cheeky and she was lifted onto its back where she sang and danced as the bug twisted to the music. When Cheeky reached the head of the centipede she jumped off just as she finished her song. The image zoomed in on her face and she gave another of her classic smiles.

“I love you, too,” she said and gave a wink to her audience. “And now I have a very special surprise for you.” She raised her hand and snapped her fingers.

Every view screen everywhere shimmered and that sparkle soon projected out from the surface of their screens. The shimmer amazingly dissolved into a three-dimensional picture of Cheeky, who laughed and said, “Isn’t this incredible? From now on everything you watch on your view screens will be in three dimensions. It’s all for you, my dear sweet fans. And now I’d like to perform a few more songs for you… in 3D!”

Cheeky’s followers on a moon and two planets were awed by what she had accomplished, but they really shouldn’t have been. Over the years she had impressed them with her intellect, beauty, wit, talent, humor, courage, and kindness. She always touched their hearts with her warm, human qualities and they were always eager to show their appreciation for her. So it was a stunning loss when Cheeky Sorbet died only four years after her Pacific island concert.

******

Gabe stopped short and stared at what appeared to be a crack along the curving roof line of the lava-colored building that Gabe called the Hot House. It concerned him that he hadn’t noticed until now. His mind quickly jumped to what he would have to do to repair it. He moved across the street to get a better look at the damage and then realized that it wasn’t a crack at all but simply a vine growing over the top of the odd building. He breathed a sigh of relief knowing that he would simply have to cut it back.

Gabe continued his inspection of the structures as he walked along the street. At the far end he stood in front of the stage, as he often did, and reminisced on that famous day six years ago when Cheeky Sorbet gave the greatest performance of her life. He couldn’t help but smile when he thought about her and the gift she gave the world.

To the side of the stage, he climbed on the head of the robotic centipede and said, “Okay, Legs, take me to the carnival.”

The mechanical insect responded to his voice command and began twisting its way down the street, around the golden pagoda, through the electric forest, and past the bubbling prairie. When he reached the metal mountains the centipede stopped, and Gabe hopped off. He hadn’t checked the creepy carnival in almost a month and that was a dereliction of his duties as caretaker of the island. He truly regretted this even though he knew there was no one else to note his neglect. Anyway, he was here now.

Walking down the midway Gabe checked the tents for rips and looked in the vendor booths for weather damage. He thought about the song that Cheeky sang in this carnival setting and soon he was whistling the tune as he entered the sideshow area. He remembered the fire eater, sword swallower, and strong man that popped up in front of the new 3D viewers. At the time it was quite shocking. As he reached the end of the sideshow Gabe was startled by Toby the Unicorn who trotted out from behind a tent.

“Whoa!” Gabe took a step back then recovered. “Well, hello there, Toby. I wasn’t expecting to see you, but thanks for showing up. I can check you off my list.” Gabe slowly tried to approach the unicorn, but it bolted back into the forest. Gabe returned to his inspection route and briefly ran the ferris wheel and bumper cars. Once he was done, he rode the centipede back to the future city and parked it by the stage.

It was lunchtime so Gabe headed straight for the giant conch shell that served as his home. Once inside the building he quickly washed up and made himself a large sandwich and poured a glass of lemonade. He put it all on a tray and went out to the stage where he could enjoy the beautiful bright day.

As he ate Gabe scanned the nearby trees to find the wood swallows that were singing their love songs. Just as he took a big bite of his sandwich, he looked down the street and saw someone walking toward him. He was shocked. No one else was supposed to be there. He was frozen in place. He should have fetched his gun, but it never occurred to him. Gabe could only stare as the woman got closer.

She had straight dark hair, brown eyes, an oval face, and was a bit overweight. She wore loose jeans, a green, plaid shirt, and gray hiking boots. Gabe couldn’t put his finger on it but there was something familiar about her. When she reached Gabe, she smiled.

“Hi, I’m Cheeky Sorbet.”

Gabe tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. His brow furrowed in confusion, and he said, “No you’re not.”

The woman laughed and looked at the buildings up and down the street. “They’re just the way I remember them. You’ve done a great job of taking care of them.” She turned back. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Gabe. How did you get here?”

“I came in on the boat that brings your monthly supplies.” She thumbed in the direction behind her. “They’re sitting on the dock. If the centipede still works, we can use it to bring them up here.”

“It works. Everything here works.” He hesitated then asked, “Who are you and why are you here?”

She laughed again. “I told you. I’m Cheeky. I know, I know, I don’t look like I used to, but it’s me.”

“Cheeky’s dead. She died in a plane crash.”

The woman leaned forward and whispered, “It’s a secret but I faked my death. A few magic tricks and poof, it looks like I died in an accident.”

Gabe looked closer at the woman. “You do have Cheeky’s smile, but the face is wrong. Your eyes and hair don’t look like hers.”

“Oh, Gabe, you don’t know anything about women, do you? I got fat. I stopped dying my hair and wearing colored contact lens. And most of all, I’m not wearing makeup. I promise you, it’s me.” She paused. “Say, could I get a glass of lemonade?”

Gabe led her into his conch shell house and poured her some lemonade. They went back to the stage where Gabe asked more questions.

“Why would Cheeky… uh, you, fake your death?”

“First you have to understand how big I’d become. I had enough money to do anything I wanted. I tried giving it away, but there was a ton of red tape involved in that. It was easier to do things with it. So I bought businesses that cared about people: businesses that made products that benefited others. This was all good, but I saw that the attention that I was getting was standing in the way of helping. When fans and media focused on me, they missed the message, even if I put it right there in my songs. So with the help of a few friends, we faked the crash and I went into hiding.”

Gabe lowered his head and thought about this. It made sense but he still had doubts that this was Cheeky.

“While you’re thinking it over, let’s take the centipede down to the dock and get those supplies and my own bags, then if you don’t mind, I’d like to make a quick tour of the island. In exchange I’ll make dinner for you. I bet that hasn’t happened in a long time.”

They did those things and when they got back from the tour Cheeky moved her stuff into the Hot House next to Gabe’s Conch Shell. In the evening, they had a couple of drinks and engaged in casual conversation about world events, politics, and even sports. Gabe felt uncomfortable having her on the island and it wasn’t until the next morning before he asked more pressing questions.

“Why are you here?”

Cheeky shrugged and sipped her coffee. “I’ve been living in northern Italy for two years. I just wanted something different. Hey, let’s go back to the pagoda today. I’ll show you the hidden room where I made a costume change.”

“I’d rather you tell me how the 3D viewers came about? I’ve never understood how they work, something to do with nanos, right?”

“Yes,” said Cheeky, “one of my friends gave me the idea and then some top notch engineers made it work. This friend mentioned that all the viewers in the world had been made by nanos and after they finished building a viewer the nanos simply deactivated themselves in the device. The idea occurred to me that a coded broadcast could reactivate the nanos and give them new instructions. The resurrected nanos could then build the 3D image in front of the screen.” She paused and smiled. “But you knew that already, didn’t you. You were testing me. You still don’t believe I’m Cheeky.”

“I’m sorry. It’s so hard to wrap my head around. Come on, let’s go to the pagoda.”

That’s the way the rest of the week went. Gabe asked questions that he hoped would reveal the woman’s true identity, but it didn’t work. She had the right answer for every question.

One evening as they sat outside staring at the night sky, Cheeky said, “I’m going to tell you something that very few know, but you may find interesting. You see, I don’t know my birth name. I’m not sure if I ever had one. As a very young child I was given to an orphanage run by nuns. They called me Catherine Marie, but that never sounded right to me. I lived in the orphanage until I was sixteen when I ran away. During the years I was there, I felt like an outsider. I tried to fit in by being the class clown but sometimes my joking with the other kids was rude and impudent. That’s why they gave me the nickname of Cheeky.

“But there was one nun that took me under her wing and mentored me. Sister Glory would wake me up in the middle of the night and we would go to the kitchen. She always had some kind of dessert treat for me like chocolate, cookies, or ice cream. While I gobbled it down, she talked to me about all sorts of things but mostly about people and their feelings. Slowly her lessons sank in and I started seeing others in a different light.

“After she died I ran away. I kicked around doing lots of things, but finally settled into singing gigs all over the place. At one point I needed a stage name and settled on the nickname the kids gave me and my favorite treat from Sister Glory, sorbet.”

Cheeky went silent and just stared at the stars. Gabe stared at her calm face and thought about her story. He was deeply touched.

The next day Gabe was returning from rewiring some trees in the electric forest when he noticed colored lights flashing near the stage. As he rode the centipede down the street, he saw Cheeky on the stage completely naked. Her body was plump and tan, and her hair was still dark, but she now wore makeup and struck a pose that Gabe recognized from years ago. Then Cheeky began to sing and at that point there was no longer any doubt, this was Cheeky Sorbet. Her voice was powerful and electric. She moved with the grace and charm he remembered. When she raised her hands, the invisible dress was again revealed. As she finished the song, Toby the Unicorn trotted out and stood beside her while she stroked his neck. The performance was almost as dramatic as the original. It brought Gabe to tears.

“I believe you,” sobbed Gabe. “I’m sorry I ever doubted you.”

Cheeky hugged him and stroked his head to calm him, then she led him to the garden chairs near the stage. Toby moved closer to Cheeky and casually waited for her command.

“I love you,” said Gabe.

“I know,” smiled Cheeky, “but what kind of love is it? Is it love between friends? Is it the love of a fan for their idol? Could it be infatuation or is this romantic love?” Cheeky tilted her head in thought and stared into Gabe’s eyes. “I know you want me to say that I love you, too, but I don’t know if I can. I know I have feelings for you, but I don’t know what to call them. Is it the same as the love you have for me?”

“Love is love, Cheeky. It encompasses all the kinds of love you described.”

“I’m confused, Gabe. I’ve got to think about this.”

Gabe was disappointed but not heartbroken. He half expected her to answer like that, after all she was Cheeky Sorbet. He turned in the chair and was surprised to see two men walking toward them.

Gabe jumped up and said to Cheeky, “Stay here. I’ll see who they are.”

When Gabe got close enough one of the men took off his sunglasses and Gabe recognized him as the man that had hired him to be caretaker.

“Mr. Conway, what are you doing here?”

“Hello, Gabe, we’re here to take you off the island.”

“What? But I haven’t finished my contract.”

Conway put his sunglasses back on. “We’re terminating your contract. You were supposed to send us weekly reports and you haven’t.”

“Yes, but that’s because Cheeky… “Gabe turned back to the stage, but Cheeky and Toby were gone.

“Cheeky?” questioned Conway. “What are you talking about?”

“Cheeky Sorbet,” said Gabe. “She was right here. She’s been here for weeks. She and the unicorn must have gone off into the woods when they saw you.”

Conway turned to the other man and said, “This may explain why we haven’t received reports.”

Gabe laughed nervously. “I know it sounds crazy but come over to the Hot House that’s where her stuff is.”

Inside the Hot House they found nothing. It was clean. There was no trace of Cheeky. Still Gabe didn’t panic or become hysterical. He remained calm but confused. Maybe she had moved out her stuff before she gave her private concert. It just didn’t make sense. Conway thought he was crazy and now Gabe was questioning his own sanity.

The two men lead him to the boat where they were all transported to the mainland. Soon after that Gabe was put on a plane and flown to the city where the company had him sign papers that officially released him from their employment.

In less than a week after leaving the island, Gabe found himself sitting on a park bench and trying to figure out what had happened. And then his phone rang.

He accepted the call, and the 3D image showed Cheeky.

“Hi, Gabe, please don’t hang up. I’d like to explain, then if you want you can yell at me, hang up, or whatever.” She paused for a moment. “You see, I needed time to think and in order to do that I needed to be alone. Gabe, being there on the island with you, talking to you, and trying to convince you who I was, made me think about the future.” She pushed her hair behind her ear. “I want to make a comeback, but first I’ll have to convince everyone I’m me, just like I did with you. That’s where I need your help. Gabe, I want you to work with me to reintroduce Cheeky Sorbet to the world. It’ll be the new Cheeky; a different Cheeky. I’ll understand if you say no, but I really need your help. Oh, there’s one other thing.” She flashed that famous Cheeky Sorbet smile. “I love you, too.”

THE END

Bio: George Schaade is a retired history teacher that loves writing science fiction and humor. His stories often reflect the comic books and pulp magazines that he was raised on....

E-mail: George Schaade

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