“Hey! I need you to do something for me right away.”
Chapter 15
Madi
Madi had been diligently studying for finals and had finished her last paper. She was glad to have something to distract her from what had happened the other night. She regretted the texts she had sent Jake, but also had mentally high-fived herself for being the first to say goodbye.
She knew she had no reason to be so upset with him. He was Jake Morgan and she was just a small time girl from Illinois. Of course he had tons of girlfriends. He’d probably slept with half of LA. It was really none of her business and she had no reason to be angry with him. She sighed and blew her bangs out of her eyes. She needed a trim before she left. She walked over to her wall and wrote it down on the “things to do before LA” list she had started.
So a girl answered his phone? Did she expect him to stop dating the minute he met her? She opened her laptop and typed in “Jake Morgan girlfriend”. A whole slew of photos of Jake with various women popped up. Madi could feel herself tensing more and more as she looked from one gorgeous woman to the next. She slammed her laptop shut and growled as she flew up out of her seat with her hands in her hair. Why was she torturing herself? She was being absolutely stupid. She was better than that. She didn’t need to compare herself to other women. Jake Morgan was a professional singer who had offered her the chance of a lifetime and she was going to take it. She would work her ass off, go to Paris and Italy and travel the world. She would come back more mature and with a killer résumé. She would land a job at a big five hundred company and be on her way to becoming the Vice President of HR. She needed to focus on the prize. The prize of this contest was a job. It was not Jake Morgan. He had made it clear that he was not interested in her. She had to accept that and move on. She needed to grow up and put on her big girl panties. She would not allow her panties to ever get wet in his presence again. That was final!
Madi’s phone buzzed.
Kendra: Going to get my mail then stop at the grill before I come over to study. Want me to get yours?
Madi: Yes please and could you also get me a chicken salad with honey mustard? I really need one tonight!
Kendra: You got it. See u soon.
Madi’s stomach began jumping up and down at the idea of having a chicken salad. Madi loved chicken salad. It was who she was. She got chicken salad. It made sense to her. Madi could feel herself coming together. She needed to focus on what was really important and right now, that was her grades, and chicken salad.
Thirty minutes later, Madi started to wonder what was taking Kendra so long. She glanced out her window in time to see Kendra struggling to open the door. She had her backpack on, was carrying a large cardboard box and plastic bags from the grill. She put down the box and tried to open the door. She held the door with her foot and tried to pick up the box. Her foot slipped off the door just as she picked up the box and by the time she got back to it, it closed. Although Madi couldn’t hear her, she could see Kendra saying ‘fuck’ repeatedly.
Madi ran down the stairs and opened the door. “Need some help?”
“For fuck’s sake, Mads! Who in the hell sent you this fucking box? I mean it’s heavy as fuck!”
Madi shrugged her shoulders and laughed as Kendra shoved the box at her. Kendra wiped her forehead and pulled herself together instantly, as usual.
As Kendra went through the door she turned back to Madi and walked backwards up the stairs stating, “I’m so fucking hungry I could eat ten drummers drumming.”
Madi was glad Kendra was there with her. She knew the night would fly by.
Kendra plopped down on Madi’s bed and dove into her hamburger from the grill. “So, what’s in the box?” Kendra asked with a mouth full of burger.
“I have no idea. I wonder who it’s from.” Madi eyed the box but there was no return address.
“It’s not ticking is it?” Kendra sighed loudly as if she had just orgasmed at the taste of a french fry.
“No it’s not ticking.” Madi rolled her eyes as she grabbed her scissors and sliced open the box. Inside it was gift basket full of chocolate, popcorn, ibuprofen, Tylenol, gift cards to neighboring restaurants that delivered to school, a teddy bear and a copy of Jake Morgan’s newest release.
Madi saw the CD and slid down slowly into her chair.
“Awesome!” Kendra said excitedly. “Oh my God, I call the truffles! Who sent it?”
Madi pulled the card attached to the basket, took a deep breath and opened it up.
I was worried about you. Hope this cheers you up! Good luck on your finals. Can’t wait to see you next week. Be ready to work your ass off!
Jake
Madi held the card to her chest and beat her fist into a nearby pillow. “Every time I pull myself away and convince myself that I’m happy with chicken salad, he has to do something like this. Why, Ken, why?”
Kendra shoved a fry in her mouth as she got up and pulled the card away from Madi. “Let me see.” She examined it closely before tossing it back at her. “Wow. Did you blow him or something and not tell me?”
“God, no! I didn’t blow him.”
“Well, what the fuck then? He likes you, girl. He really likes you.” She sat back down on the bed.
“No he doesn’t,” Madi said in a sigh as she stood and placed the basket on her desk.
“Yes, he does.”
“NO HE DOESN’T!” Madi shouted as she turned to face her.
“Why are you fighting me on this? I didn’t get a box from the drummer guy and I did blow him,” Kendra laughed.
“Stop.” Madi half grinned and half frowned. “TMI.” She gave her a disgusted look while she hit her with the card.
“Okay, spill.” Kendra said. “Something happened. Why is he worried about you?”
Madi sighed and sat back down. “The other night, I took a break from studying and decided to give him a call. Some girl answered his phone. She sounded beautiful.”
Kendra took another bite of her burger as she spoke with a mouth full of food. “Okay, how does someone sound beautiful? Maybe she was his cleaning lady.”
“At 8:30 on a Sunday night?”
“Um, yeah. Why the hell not?” Kendra said as she shoved another fry into her mouth.
“Why would he have a cleaning lady over at 8:30 p.m.?”
“You said he works long hours. Maybe she was washing his underwear.”
“She was probably doing something with his underwear, but I’m sure she wasn’t washing it.” Madi opened her chicken salad and began to angrily cut it up.
“Mads! Are you jealous? What did you say to her?”
Madi stopped chopping and looked up. “I thought I had the wrong number so I apologized and hung up. When I went to redial I realized it was his number and a girl had answered his phone.”
“Okay, so?”
“Okay so!”
“No really. Is that why you’re upset? I hope you didn’t tell him you were angry with him for having a date! Did you?” Kendra asked with dread in her voice.
“No…” Madi said sheepishly.
“What did you do?”
“I texted him the next day.” Madi showed Kendra her phone and Kendra laughed.
“Girl, why are you so upset? It’s not a big deal. You don’t know who she was or why she was there. Maybe the band came over and one of the guys’ wives answered his phone while he was in the john.”
Kendra said it so calmly and so matter-of-factly that Madi instantly felt dumb. She hadn’t considered the possibility that it was a band member’s wife. She just assumed Jake had a date. Kendra was right. Even if it was a date, it didn’t necessarily mean he didn’t care for her. He obviously went out of his way to have the basket put together and even hand write the note. He was so sweet and so considerate. Madi felt her armor turning into lace.
Madi moaned as the realization that all her psychology classes did not prepare her for the puzzle of Jake Morgan. “I just don’t get him.”<
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Kendra furrowed her brows and sighed. As she ate another fry she said, “You don’t have to figure everyone out you know. Sometimes the picture on the carton is better than what’s inside. If it’s a good carton, I say leave it closed. Better to keep it closed than to realize there’s no prize in your cereal box.”
“What if the prize could be everything you ever wanted?” Each word Madi spoke contained more hope than the next. What was she thinking?
“Prizes are temporary,” Kendra replied. She lay down on her side on Madi’s bed, propping her head up with her hand. “Prizes break. They get boring… The next thing you know you’re trying a new cereal looking for a better prize. Before you know it you’re fat and addicted to cereal.”
Madi’s head twisted to the side as she smiled, examining her quizzically. “Are we talking about the same thing?”
“I don’t know but I’m suddenly craving some Lucky Charms.” Kendra’s lips curled upward as she pointed to the basket, “Seriously though, I want the truffles.” Her face suddenly went slack as she stared intently. She couldn’t hold it for long before she started to grin.
Madi wondered how she was going to survive LA without Kendra there to keep her feet on the ground. “Do you know how much I love you?”
“Keep it in your pants. I like men.”
Madi laughed and threw the truffles at her.
As she started to open the package Kendra said, “He must really like you. You know that, don’t you?”
She bit her lip and sighed. “I think I just might.”
Jake
Jake sat at his piano in his jeans, no shirt, no socks. Murphy was at his feet and Jake was humming, playing, and scribbling notes at the same time. Writing music was cathartic for him. When he wrote music he forgot everything else. It was his release. His hands skimmed the keys and he played as if they were a part of him. Playing the piano had come easily for him. His mother insisted he take lessons when he was five and he instantly fell in love. His mom would often find him sound asleep with his head on his arms at the piano. His mom could tell, based on the notes he would play, whether he was happy, angry, sad, disheartened or melancholy.
Jake had decided to work from home today. He was tired from working on the set all week and found he was in need of some extra sleep. He slept until 3 p.m. and woke up feeling much better. Murphy had left him a present, but Jake couldn’t blame him. If you got to go, you got to go.
Jake ran his hands through his hair and got up. He opened the fridge and decided that Chinese delivery sounded better than mustard and bread. He really needed to go shopping. Not his favorite thing in the world, but he had to start eating better. He grabbed a box of Wheat Thins and dialed the number. Within minutes, Jake had ordered enough food for three days worth of meals. Nothing was better to him than coming home late and eating cold noodles. He preferred leftover Chinese food to the original delivery itself.
The doorbell rang and his phone buzzed at the same time. Jake paid the delivery dude, set the food down on his table, licked his fingers from the sauce that was seeping out the side of the bag and picked up his phone.
Madi: Thank you so much for the gift basket! I was a little more stressed than I cared to admit. Sorry for being such a crab.
Jake smiled. He put down his phone and grabbed a plate. He began piling on chicken fried rice, egg foo young, and vegetable lo mein. He put his phone in his pocket, grabbed a bottle of water and his plate and sat down on the couch. He turned on the TV and ‘Empire Strikes Back’ was on. “Yessss…” he said as if he had just won the lottery.
He pulled his phone out of his pocket, shoved a fork full of fried rice into his mouth and re-read the text from Madi.
Jake: I’m glad you liked it. You may want to bring the meds with you when you work for me. That was Ang’s idea. She said I can give people a headache. Can you imagine that?
Jake returned to the kitchen for an egg roll and some sweet and sour sauce. Luke was on Dagobah.
Madi: I cannot imagine! LOL Kendra took the truffles. She claimed them from the start. We’ve listened to your song six times now – beautiful!
Jake had thrown a piece of chicken to Murphy who was begging as usual before he gulped another huge serving of noodles. He barely took his eyes away from Yoda and tried to read Madi’s text as he watched at the same time.
Jake: Empire Strikes Back’ is on cable. Too bad you have to study. Ha! Tell Kendra I said hi. That’s an advance copy you know. Only special people have it now.
More noodles, more egg roll… buzz.
Madi: Why did you tell me that? Now I have to turn it on! Why is it that even though I have it on DVD and can watch it any time that I want, I still get excited when it’s on TV?
It was a commercial and Jake had left to use the bathroom. He grabbed another water bottle and some teriyaki sauce before reading the text.
Jake: Understand you I do. The ways of the force are strong in your family.
Madi: Well, I wish the force could help me with my final tomorrow. Thank you again for the basket. You spoil me.
Jake stopped eating and read her text. He liked making her happy.
Jake: Get used to it! Now go study. I only want smart people working for me. See you Monday.
Jake put the phone down and turned the TV up. He imagined Madi and Kendra lying on her bed studying while wearing thongs and t-shirts. He could hear Madi laughing and giggling while sucking on a piece of chocolate and listening to his song. He suddenly wasn’t interested in his food or the movie any longer. He made his way back to the bathroom.
Chapter 16
Madi
Madi checked over the test one final time, closed the booklet and made her way toward her professor.
“Have a great summer, Madison.”
“Thank you Dr. Kelly, you too.”
Madi glanced back as she walked out the door and saw Kendra twirling her hair and writing intently. Madi breathed a sigh of relief. She was done. Now she just had to wait for her grades. She was glad that she and Kendra had practiced writing essays about the assessment of and treatment methods for generalized anxiety disorder. It was one of the essay questions on the test. Madi reviewed her answers in her mind and felt confident that she covered the questions thoroughly.
A few minutes later, Kendra danced out of the room. “We’re done. We are finally done!”
Madi smiled and then Kendra frowned. “That means you are about to leave me. Oh, the agony of it all!” Kendra placed the back of her hand on her forehead, being overly dramatic as usual. She quickly removed it and returned to normal. “Have you started packing?”
“Nope. You?”
“No.” They both laughed and walked arm and arm back to the dorm. ‘’Seriously though, you are going to call me every day right? Oh by the way, I have a little something for you in my room. Come with me.” Kendra pulled Madi to walk faster.
Madi felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of her shoulders until she thought about living in LA without Kendra for two months. She was going to miss her terribly.
“Okay, I know I’m still driving you to the airport and that we’re going out to dinner tomorrow night, but I need to give this to you now. I can’t wait any more!”
“What did you do?”
Kendra opened her closet door and removed two large gift bags with pink and orange tissue paper peeking out the top. Kendra put her hands to her mouth and smiled. Then she started to clap. “Open it!”
“What is this? Why would you buy me a present?” Madi asked.
“Well, I am going to try my best to come to see you for your birthday, but I wanted to get you a little something now, just in case.”
“This is too much!”
“You don’t even know what’s inside. It’s also a good luck in LA/thank you present for helping pull me through my psych finals. I couldn’t have made it without you.”
Madi put her hands on her hips. “Now you’re just making excuses.”
“You know I
love to shop. Open it for fuck’s sake!”
Madi pulled the paper out of the bag to find multiple wrapped boxes inside. She smiled and sighed at Kendra as she sat on the bed, opening one by one.
When Madi had finished opening them all she took an inventory. She had received: Red lacy lingerie with red thong panties and garters, which Kendra had said was ‘just in case’ and a special joke from her text to Jake; a journal; a framed photo of Kendra and her from the end of freshman year to take with her to LA, so Madi wouldn’t forget about her – as if; three blouses of various colors; two sundresses; four skirts in varying lengths; a new pair of heels; earrings; a box of condoms ‘ribbed for her pleasure’ because Kendra said they were the best – again, ‘just in case’; a box of replacement truffles; two tubes each of body cream; soap and bubbles (Madi’s favorite scent); a baby doll nightshirt that was semi transparent; and six matching bras and panties.
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