The story was about how that exotic dancer once drove up to LSU to perform, using a flatbed trailer for a stage. They all laughed, elbowed each playfully, then moved on to another topic, probably not too far removed. Hey, when frat boys talk about strippers they can't stop at just one Anyway, Reggie's claim sort of got lost as the pleasant chat turned solemnly toward such serious world problems as dry counties, college algebra and coed curfews.
Now these four guys were Larry's very good friends but, he explains, they were financially out of his league. They had a maid who did their cleaning and laundry and even cooked their meals. They invited Larry to move in with them but, he points out, "I couldn't afford it. In fact, about six months later I dropped out of school and went back home. His friends, after leaving Tech, stayed mainly in West Texas but were scattered from south of Big Spring to north of Hereford.
Hagood didn't think of them too often at first, having put his focus on the farming operation he had just begun. As the years passed, Larry not only enjoyed success in his tilling the soil but, as well, in a real estate sideline that brought him to Lubbock.
Sometime during the post-Tech years, one of Hagood's four buddies - we'll call him Butch Larry's touchy about breaking any confidences, however unpledged - got married. Or, in that case, to disprove. He could hardly wait, as his tugging was about to dislodge his bride's arm from its socket.
He was just dying to see the puzzled look sure to cross Stormy's face when he asked if she knew a guy from Texas named Reggie. When told by the club manager that Stormy wasn't there, she was on vacation, Butch's look of deep disappointment prompted the manager to ask what they had wanted with Stormy. When the manager was told the name of that friend, not only did his attitude change but his entire demeanor flushed with congeniality.
