by JIrwin
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Adam and David
“So what's first on the fun to do list today?” David asked Adam after finishing up the box of Cap’n Crunch between them and placing their bowls in the dishwasher.
“Mulch…..” Adam rolled his eyes. “I have to take the green monster out to Canaan Farms to get a truck load for mom's jungle and rose bushes.”
“Cool! So, I'll just follow you in the F450, right?” David beamed gleefully. Adam wanted to knock the smirk off David's face, but the look on Adam's clearly gave David his answer. “Alright, alright…” He threw his hands up as if in surrender. “Then what do we have to do after that?”
Adam frowned. “.....Then, we spread the mulch around the trees and plants in front of the house, mow the front yard, mow the back yard, weed eat around everything that can't be moved, replant one of my mom’s rose bushes in the back yard and clean the pool and pool house.”
David sighed. “Wow, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Think I could get a rain-check?”
Adam let his eyes narrow and gave his companion a cold stare. “So….what you're really saying is hey Adam could you send my mom those pics I sent you last night, right?” he stated evenly.
“Blackmail B.R.? Is that how you wanna play this? Really?” Adam raised an eyebrow. David panicked. “You wouldn’t dare and I’ve got dirt of my own to share!” Adam had forgotten that while he was busy driving last night David was busy taking selfies in the passenger seat.
Adam held the stare for a moment longer before he broke. “No.....but dude come on, I could really use some help today.” He nearly whined.
Calling it even, David sighed. “Alright, alright.....I said that I would help just no blackmail okay?” His eyes pleaded with Adam.
“You know me better than that.” Adam admitted.
“Yeah, I know.....so....lead the way my big red truck driving friend!” Adam frowned. “Sorry, just had to say it…I was just playing….Okay so let’s get this stuff done so we can at least swim after it's all finished! You turn the heater on in the pool?”
“Stays on year round, you know my parents and their early morning swims.” Adam remarked flippantly.
“Oh yeah, I forgot.” David added after remembering.
Adam grabbed the keys and headed toward the garage where he started the green monster without even giving his dad’s other truck a second glance. Guilt and shame haunted him.
Adam backed out of the garage and turned left onto his street. “Do you see the gas can back there?” Adam asked.
David looked back over his shoulder to the bed of the truck. “Yeah, it’s up close to the cab.”
Adam nodded. “Okay good, don’t let me forget we need gas for the riding lawnmower, too.”
David looked at him pitifully. “You gonna at least let me drive that?” David asked facetiously.
Adam laughed. “Yeah man, knock yourself out. It’s all yours today. Drive until you can’t drive anymore, or at least until the yard is all cut.”
David held up his fist in agreement and tapped Adam’s. “Done!”
Canaan Farm was way out on Hwy 99 near the edge of Edensville. People from all over the county went out there for anything organic. The farm had been passed down from generation to generation for as long as anyone could remember. They sold mulch, pumpkins, vegetables, fruit, homegrown beef and chicken, homemade jams, jellies, breads and by far the best homemade sausage you could ever hope to put on your table, or so the sign read. Miriam’s brother Aaron Marah worked on the tractors and farm equipment out there. He had gone to school to work on diesel engines and found a job as Canaan Farm's chief mechanic when he graduated.
The place was bustling this time of year with a parking lot full of customers. Adam and David pulled into the busy gravel parking lot and got out of the truck. “Hey there b..bb…bboys! H..hhh....hhhhhow are ya? Wha….wha..what brings you out this far today?” Old man Moses’ speech impediment caused him to stutter, but he was a nice old man and everyone took into account he couldn’t help it. It was just a part of him, like the farm it had been in his family for generations, but no one alive now could even remember who ran it before him.
Adam returned the owner's greeting. “Hey Mr. Canaan! How are you today?” The old man made his way through the crowd to the pair. His walk was halted a little as he leaned on a large wooden walking stick shaped like a shepherd’s staff that stretched well beyond the top of his head. Anyone visiting or working on the farm would be able to find him with no problem. They need only look for the staff. “What can I d...dd...ddddd....do for you boys today?” The old farmer patted Adam on the shoulder when he reached them.
“My dad sent me out to get some mulch from you so that I can protect mom’s shrubs for the winter.”
“W…w…well then, I b…bbb….believe we can handle that for ya.” The older man nodded. “Well sss.....sshhh....sure, wouldn't w..wwwa...want your mother's prize winning rose bushes tt.....tttt...to get frost bit. Yyyy....yyyyy.....you're gonna need something to put over them too. Has she ppp...pppp...pruned 'em yet?” He was asking questions that Adam had no idea the answers to.
“Uh.....I'm not so sure sir, dad just sent me out for the mulch, but I'll ask her when they get back. Oh and he asked could you put it on his account?”
“Shhhh…..shhh….sure can. Hhhhh….hh…how 'bout I jjj.....just fix you….uuuuup…with everything shhhh….she uuuu….usually gets?"
"Sounds great, thank you!"
"Wh…wh…where is your mom and dad today anyway?” The old farmer questioned.
“They're at West Point bringing Joshua home for the holiday,” Adam explained.
The old man nodded his head as he made his way around the truck to the big red barn motioning for the boys to follow. “Oh nnn.....nnnnn...now that's a good one there. I l...llll.....like that brother of yours, he’s a real fine young m...mmmmm....man....he'll bbb....bbbb....be something special some day. Aaron!” He called toward the barn. A tall, lean Aaron Marah came out of the barn wiping his greasy hands on a soiled rag.
“Yes sir?” He nodded his head in acknowledgement toward Adam and David.
“Hey.” Both echoed back in unison. “Yyyyyoung M....mmm…….Master Ggggggrace here is in need of some mulch. Could you get him a tt....tttt…..truck load and annnnything else his mom uuuuusually gets for her fffffall plants?”
Aaron nodded. “Yes sir.” He answered the old man and then looked at Adam. “Just back your truck up over there.” He motioned for Adam to move it over next to the front end loader. Adam did as he was instructed and hurriedly put the tarp on the inside of the bed with David’s help as his dad had instructed.
“Tttt…..tttell your mom and dad I said Hi...oh and Aaron I’ll be s...sss.....sssending his dad a bill.” Aaron nodded and old man Canaan bid them both goodbyes as he headed back around the barn to help his many other customers. Aaron emptied the load of mulch into the truck and then climbed down out of the cockpit of the tractor.
“Hey, you two haven’t seen my sister have you?” Adam shook his head and David lowered his gaze.
“No....I uh....I guess she’s probably with Eve.” Adam ventured, but Aaron shook his head.
“No, I saw some pictures on Instagram this morning that she posted last night. I think she was with that low life Lucian Black. Man, I hate that guy!” David had nothing to say. He paid more attention to the knot in his Chucks and the bottom of his jeans than he did to Aaron.
“I uh…..I don't know, I saw her for a little bit before the game last night.” Adam commented casually and noticed that David wasn't fessing up about anything he might know.
“You couldn’t tell who she was with in the pictures?” David asked after finally finding his voice.
Aaron frowned. “No, I could tell she was in Lucian’s car and Eve was with Lucian, but I couldn’t tell who Miriam was with in the backseat. All I know is that he had short hair. Her pictures are usual
ly pretty blurry when she gets to drinking.”
David quickly tried to steer the conversation. “Maybe it was just the movement of the car? Yeah probably nothing more than just the movement of the car that's all. Uh…well….you ready to go? We…uh…we have a lot to do today better get to it.” Adam looked hesitantly over at David as he gestured toward the truck.
Aaron nodded and helped them by shutting the tailgate. “Yeah, okay then well see ya'. Thanks.” Just as the boys were about to get back into the cab of the truck Aaron called out once more. “Hey!” Adam and David froze, their gazes locked on each other from the opposite side of the truck through the open cab doors. “If you hear of anything, would you let me know? I hear there’s this big truck that showed up at the game last night, but no one seems to know who it belongs to and I just don’t want her getting into any trouble.”
Adam shook his head. “Sure.”
“Uh, yeah will do!” David answered without even looking at Aaron.
“Alright, thanks again. See ya’.” Both boys slid into the cab of the truck so quickly Adam could get the keys out fast enough.
Only when they were a good distance away from the farm did Adam attempt to speak. “Dude, were you drinking last night?”
David looked out the window, not wanting to meet his best friend’s gaze. “Dude? Did you hear me?” His speed had increased during the inquisition. “I asked…..”
David bobbed his head. “Yes, I heard you!” He threw back.
“So you were?” Adam waited. No answer. “Where did you get alcohol from? Lucian? Is that the real reason you stayed out so late and couldn’t go home?”
“You’re not my dad, lay off!” David still wouldn’t meet Adam’s gaze he kept his steadied out the window looking at nothing in particular, but everything at once. There was a heavy pause between the two for at least four miles.
Finally, Adam broke the silence. He was relentless. “Well....?” This time his voice was calmer, less like a dad more like a concerned friend.
David nodded. “Yeah Lucian had a cooler in the trunk of the Camaro. I had a little and got sick from riding in the backseat down Lookout Point with all those winding roads. It was embarrassing. He had to pull over and let me puke on the side of the road. After Lucian left me at Miriam's I started walking and puked some more, but didn’t miss my shirt that time. I was so sick and reeked of alcohol and puke that I just went to Mr. Dabar’s classroom and laid down until the world stopped spinning. I knew my parents would have 187'd me if I went home like that, and I figured since you were mad at me I couldn’t knock on your door at 4:00 a.m.! So I waited until I felt better which was around 6:00 this morning. I had an extra shirt in my locker and……..” He shrugged, the rest Adam already knew.
Adam didn’t say anything for another half mile, then blurted out. “Well, I can tell you changing shirts didn't help much.” His voice was a little harsher than he meant for it to be, but he was disappointed and was having a hard time not letting it be known. They had always been truthful to one another even if it was brutal honesty. “You know I thought I smelled alcohol this morning. I thought maybe Miriam had been drinking and spilled it or something on you. I never thought that it would be you that was stupid enough to have been the one to drink it!”
“Awe, Adam, come on. Noah Arkley was there hanging out and Lucian was offering it to anyone that wanted it. I didn’t want to seem rude, so I accepted it.” He lied as he tried to explain.
“Did Eve drink anything?” Adam was livid when he asked.
“Not really, I mean I really don't know....” How could he tell him something negative about his precious Eve? Adam didn't want to hear anything but praises about little Miss Perfect. “... I…uh…I was with Miriam, so I don’t know.”
“And what about Lucian? Was he drinking? I mean he was the one driving you all, right?”
David shook his head. “I don’t think so.......I mean he was holding one, but I never saw him drink any of it. Like you said, he was driving so maybe he just held it.”
“So you’re saying that you don’t know if you got back in the car with someone that was driving under the influence? Really, David? I mean come on, you know better!” Adam wanted to kick himself. He was totally acting like David’s dad, but he couldn’t help it. He was thinking perhaps had he been there David wouldn’t have done it. Clearly he was blaming himself, but admitting it was different. He found projecting his own feelings easier. Although he was relieved to hear that at least Eve hadn’t drank anything. That just didn’t fit what he knew of her. She was a good girl, sweet, whole, innocent. However, he was definitely surprised that his best friend had. He and David had signed a pledge at church making them accountable to each other, to stay celibate and alcohol/drug free...... at least until college since they had planned on applying to different schools.
“Dude, don’t be mad. There was just beer there and something that Noah had brought....which didn’t look like a big deal. It was just like Kool-aid or fruit punch with a kick I heard him say.” He laughed slightly at his own humor.
Adam shook his head angrily. “Yeah man, it is a big deal. You made a promise with not only me, but to God to live clean and sober.”
David was at a loss for words. “Dude, lighten up, nothing happened. I have my virginity intact, and I didn't drive while under the influence of alcohol.......” David scoffed as he used his fingers to make air quotes around the last part of his statement.
Adam shook his head with disdain, which infuriated David evoking his own anger. “You know what man, you are not my dad.....if you can’t understand that I was just blowing off a little steam with some friends then maybe I just need to go home. Because a real friend would understand the need for a little alcohol every once in a while when you're just hanging out with friends.”
Adam agreed. “A real friend.....really? A real friend wouldn't have offered it to you in the first place…..so yeah maybe you should go on home then. Because as a non-real friend I guess I don’t understand why you would think that you have to have alcohol to have a good time with the Populars? It’s just stupid!”
David was at a loss for words. He turned his head to look out the window again, the conversation was over. He and Adam had never fought like this before. They were like brothers, the ride or die kind.
Adam didn’t understand what was going on with his friend, his best friend. It wasn't like him to just walk away from a promise or commitment, it just wasn't David. He once wore a pair of Converse his grandmother bought him for Christmas to bed every night because he promised her that he would never take them off. It took his parents the rest of Christmas break and finally making a call to his grandmother to ask her to tell him he could break the promise and take them off because he needed to shower and wash his feet. Even then he argued that he could just take a bath with them and wash them too so he could keep them on like he promised her. He actually wound up wearing them until the bottoms had several holes and the side rubber came off. Jesse King finally bought him a new pair and took the opportunity teach him the difference between a grand gesture of gratitude like making a promise to wear them forever and never taking them off, and being truly committed to a promise that you would make that could greatly affect your life.
The friends rode back to Adam's house in silence. When they arrived David jumped out of the truck without a word, got on his scooter and left, leaving Adam alone with his thoughts and a mountain of yard work.
