Brief Encounters_The Encounters Series

by Scarlett Hopper

  Counting

  “Class dismissed.” Stein shoos us away as she walks back to her projector, and students start filling out.

  “So I’ll pick you up at three p.m. tomorrow,” Jess says as he starts packing his books up.

  Tomorrow.

  The day I finally meet Jess’s infamous father. The guy who I’ve never heard anything but negative stuff about. This should be fun. Not.

  “Tomorrow, three p.m.,” I relay back to him as I stand from my seat. I look over at Jess and notice the anxiety spreading across his face. I reach over and take his hands in mine.

  “It’s going to be fine, Jess.” I smile.

  He gives me his best attempt at a smile, but I can see how much this is weighing on him.

  “I know, Els.” He squeezes my hand and places a small kiss on my mouth.

  I’ve met a lot of assholes in my lifetime. Associates of my dad, Dean, even some family members, but I’ve never really hated any of them. To me, hating someone means you have a personal stake in what they do. You care enough to be angry.

  Well, I can tell you right now as I pull on my burgundy cocktail dress with sheer sleeves, I already hate the asshole I’m about to meet.

  Jess’s dad.

  Hell, I don’t even know the guy’s name and I already hate him.

  And today, I’ll finally be able to put a face to the monster I have in my mind. My only concern is for Jess; the last thing he needs is to be disappointed by his own dad again.

  My phone chimes, and I see a new message from Jess.

  I’m downstairs

  —J

  I grab my cream coat and take a final look in the mirror. My dress ends just above my knees and has a full skirt. My black suede pumps complement not only the dress, but also the oversized cream coat that will guarantee to shield me from this Massachusetts winter.

  As I pull open the door to his truck, I smile at the sight of the man in front of me. Jess has an open-collared white shirt with a black blazer and pants. He has styled his brown hair to the side, yet still keeps that Jess Parker essence about him.

  As soon as he spots me, he breaks into a grin and his gaze travels up my body.

  “Wow,” he whispers. “You look beyond stunning.” He kisses me softly.

  I feel the flush creeping into my cheeks as his compliment fills me with elation.

  This boy has ruined me.

  Jess starts the car, then quickly turns it off again and turns to me.

  “I forgot to do something,” he says with a wicked smile before pulling me close and meeting my mouth with his own. He doesn’t hold back as his tongue roams my mouth and connects with mine. He pulls me as close as we can get while the armrest separates us and lets his hands roam my body.

  “Jess,” I say breathlessly, “if we don’t get going now, we never will.” As much as I would love to say screw it and take him back upstairs, I know that right now isn’t the time.

  He takes a deep breath and pulls away. “Later then,” he says, the promise dancing behind his eyes.

  He leans forward and turns the key while hitting Play on the CD player. Sounds of the first mixtape I ever gave him fill the air, and I wrap my hand around his lovingly.

  We spend the next forty minutes in a relaxed silence because I think we both know that once we pull up to his father’s home, it will be anything but that.

  We’ve now exited Cambridge and are in the residential area right outside of Boston. The streets are lined with amber trees that have the slightest layer of snow coating them.

  Jess takes a left and pulls up to a pair of huge iron gates. He slowly punches in a code and the gates open, revealing a yellow colonial mansion that would put my old house to shame. Although the house appears to be many stories due to its height and grandeur, it gives off a vacant vibe. Almost as if it’s never experienced love.

  The house looks empty and sad. Even from the outside, it just reminds me of a shell of a home. The front lawn is all snow-covered grass, but there isn’t an ounce of love to be seen, not like Jess’s family home with his mother, which screams home. This places screams, Place I may go on the weekends but is easily forgotten about.

  Jess puts the car in park and pulls the keys out of the ignition, turning to me. His face is no longer the relaxed self it was minutes ago. Instead, he looks scared. Like a child. The image makes me feel uneasy, as there’s nothing worse than seeing someone you love look so helpless.

  I pull his hand to my mouth and plant a kiss on his palm.

  “Thank you, Els. I can’t tell you how much it means that you came here today.” His voice is barely above a whisper, but the emotion behind it is clear.

  I try to muster my best smile and give him a reassuring nod. “Come on,” I say, signaling to the house.

  We get out of the car and grab one another’s hand for moral support as we approach what I know is going to be a difficult day for Jess. I know the best thing I can do right now is be there for him, so that’s what I’m going to do. No matter how much I want to punch this dude in the face for what he’s done to Jess.

  Jess anxiously rings the bell and pulls me close to his side as I wrap my arms around him. The anticipation that Jess was feeling in the car earlier has begun to seep into me, and I’m suddenly riddled with nerves.

  Before I have time to go over my emotions, the front door is pulled open and all the breath is sucked out of my body.

  No no no no no no no.

  Please, god no.

  I think I’m going to be sick.

  I can’t seem to catch my breath as I stare ahead at the man who knows all my secrets. Correction, the man who is one of my secrets.

  As I look into the equally shocked eyes of Roger Huntington, I try to grasp how this could have possibly happened. How, in all the millions of people in the state of Massachusetts, am I dating the son of one of my ex-clients?

  “Eliza?” Roger says suddenly, taking me off guard. I look at him with pleading eyes, begging him not to tell Jess.

  Jess, who I’d completely forgotten is next to me, shifts uncomfortably, clearly thinking his dad has remembered my name wrong. “Um, no, Dad. It’s Eleanor. Remember, I was telling you about her on the phone?”

  Now is the time. Right now, my future with Jess lies in the hands of the man I dumped months ago for his own son!

  Roger eyes me carefully with a creased brow, then finally lets a fake smile break across his face.

  “Eleanor,” he says with a smile. “Of course, welcome to my home.” Jess relaxes next to me at his father’s unexpected warmth and pulls me into the house with them, while I not once take my gaze off of Roger.

  I reluctantly enter his home, knowing fairly well that this could be the last time Jess willingly takes me anywhere.

  “So, Eleanor,” Roger says with a cool awareness, “Jess here says you work in retail.” He doesn’t even try to hide the amusement behind his eyes as he looks at me from across the table.

  I glance over at Jess with a tight smile, then turn back to Roger and give him a stiff nod. I reach for my water glass and down the thing, attempting to find even the littlest of distractions to keep my mind off my current situation.

  “So, Dad,” Jess says after swallowing his bite of food, “you think you’ll make it to the big game next month?”

  Dread pools in my stomach. Even though I know there’s nothing Jess wants more than for his dad to be there, there’s nothing I want less.

  “You okay, Els?” Jess’s wary tone grabs my attention, and I quickly realize my expression is less than thrilled.

  “Um, yeah, I just need the bathroom,” I say cheerily, trying to cover up my slip.

  “Down the hall and to the right.” Jess’s gaze doesn’t leave me once as I get up and rush to the bathroom.

  I shut the door behind me and slump against the wall, letting out a shaky breath.

  “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I whisper as I bury my head in my hands.

  Pull yourself together, Eleanor Ivy. You’
ve dealt with worse before.

  Regaining a smidgen of composure, I stand up and turn on the faucet, then splash cold water on my neck to pull myself back together.

  I let out a deep breath and pull open the bathroom door, deciding that hiding isn’t the best choice right now.

  “Did you know?” I jump at the voice coming from the other side of the door and turn to face Roger.

  “Know what?” I snap.

  “That he’s my son.” His gaze is no longer the faux-welcoming one I was greeted with today. Instead, he looks pissed.

  “No, of course I didn’t know,” I hiss at him. “I would never have agreed to have you as a client if I had known he was your son.” Anger boils in my blood, and a flush creeps up my cheeks.

  Roger’s face seems to relax a fraction, but his frustration is still clear. “Sunday, meet me at the Mirage Hotel at six p.m. sharp. I’ll be in room 105.”

  Is he serious?

  “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. You find out that I’m seeing your son and you decide you want another go? Screw you!” I can feel my voice rising, so I try to keep myself in check, but it’s getting oh so hard.

  Roger seems displeased with my answer and takes a step toward me. He grabs my arm to state dominance and assert his control. If I hadn’t dealt with men like him my whole life, I might be intimidated.

  “Now listen here, Eleanor or whatever the hell your name really is. You will meet me on Sunday, or I’m gonna go out there and tell my son all about you and your line of work.” His tone is menacing; he’s seething, a side I’ve never seen of him before.

  My whole body stiffens at the reality of his words and the damage they will do to not only my relationship with Jess, but Jess in general. Just knowing that the man he’s always looked to for approval, his own father, once dated his girlfriend would crush him. I mean, who thinks of this kind of twisted shit?

  As if sensing my defeat, Roger takes a step back, still holding on to me but eyeing me carefully. “And don’t worry, dear Eleanor. I wouldn’t go near you now even if you begged me to.”

  Just as he pulls away, Jess rounds the corner. Puzzlement and anger flash across his face as he eyes the situation we’re in.

  “Dad?” he says flatly. “What’s going on?”

  Roger quickly steps back from me. With his fake smile from before, he turns to Jess. “Just giving her a tour, son,” he grins as he walks back to the kitchen.

  Jess looks to me for confirmation, and I have no choice but to play along. “You really have an amazing art collection, Mr. Huntington,” I say cheerily as I cuddle up next to Jess.

  The tension in his shoulders dissipates and he returns the embrace, pulling me closer to him.

  As soon as Roger is out of hearing range, Jess turns to me. “Want to get out of here early and head to Viper to meet the guys?” If he had any suspicions about his father and me before, they’re certainly gone now.

  “I’d love that.” I smile up at him. “Then we can go back to my place,” I add with a wink.

  “Or we can just skip Viper,” he says in a husky voice as he peers down at me with those hazel eyes that melt my insides. “In all seriousness, Els, thank you for coming today. I know it might not seem like I needed the support, but my dad isn’t always this, uh, friendly. In fact, I haven’t seen him like this, well, ever. I think he really likes you.”

  You have no idea.

  As soon as Jess and I are back in his truck, I let out a huge sigh of relief.

  Today was intense, unexpected, and highly nerve racking. If it’s proven anything to me, it’s that Jess needs to know the truth. He needs to know everything. And he needs to know it soon. Just not tonight; it’s not the right time.

  Upon turning to look at Jess, I can see a difference in his demeanor from when we arrived to now. It’s as if we’ve switched places, because the calm I was feeling initially has now been replaced with an intense dread, and Jess is the one all smiles.

  “I’m surprised to say I think that went well, Els,” Jess states as he turns onto the main road while taking my hand in his.

  I give him a tight nod and reach for my purse to pull out my cell and text Viv.

  JESS’S DAD IS BRANDO.

  ROGER IS JESS’S DAD!

  MEET AT VIPER ASAP

  —E

  Not even ten seconds later, I get a response.

  HOLY FUCKING SHIT!

  ASDFGHDDADHGSAK!!!

  I’M ON MY WAY WITH WILL

  —V

  I must be rubbing off on Vivian, because the girl has sworn more these past few months than in her whole lifetime. Usually I would be proud of this, but considering the circumstances for her needed swearing, I’m far from it.

  “Viv and Will are gonna meet us at Viper,” I tell Jess as I tuck my phone away. I can’t manage to look him in the eye right now, so I stare at the black shadows that dance past our windows.

  “How did their Thanksgiving go?” he asks, keeping his eyes on the dark road ahead.

  Viv and Will decided to forgo Thanksgiving with his parents like originally planned and instead held it at Will’s place. Of course, word got out and Wolf, Wren, and Claudia all decided to join in on the fun. I was surprised Nick didn’t go too, but from what I know of him, he keeps to himself.

  “I’m not sure. I guess we’ll find out when you return home tonight and see the state of the house.” Jess chuckles at my attempt at a joke, yet I can’t even muster up a smile.

  “If there even is a house left,” he adds while turning his focus to the stereo. He goes to turn on the CD, presumably one of our mixtapes, but I stop him.

  “Mind if we just have the radio?” I say as I move his hand. Jess eyes me for a second, then gives me a tight smile.

  “Sure, babe, whatever you want.” He refocuses his attention on the road and doesn’t say another word about it.

  Jesus, I’m a fucking bitch.

  But something feels so wrong about listening to a tape where we essentially declare our love for one another when I’m keeping a secret so huge from him. I mean, before, I didn’t tell him about my past job because it didn’t have to do with our current relationship. It didn’t need to impact it. But now? Now that I know the man I was seeing for over two months is Jess’s father, well, I’d say that will have an impact.

  We sit in an unusual silence for the next forty minutes, a silence I have never felt between the two of us. I wouldn’t exactly call it awkward, but it sure isn’t comfortable. After my reaction to him putting on our mixtape, I can only assume Jess thinks something is up, so my goal for the rest of the night is to act as normal as possible and put his fears to rest.

  Viper is packed. I had no idea so many college kids wanted to avoid going home for Thanksgiving with their dear old mom and dad. Then again, that’s what I’ve been doing for the past few years, although, I’m not exactly the person one would look to for ideal normality.

  Jess and I push through the sweaty crowds in order to make our way across the room to the table Will has secured for us.

  “Ellie!” Viv yells, almost panic stricken, as soon as she sees me. Jess knits his brows at Viv’s outburst, but I give him a reassuring kiss and tell him she just wants dinner details. It isn’t exactly lying. I know, I’m terrible.

  “Have fun.” He winks as he goes over to join Will and Wolf. No sign of Claudia or Wren yet, so I’m assuming they skipped this one.

  “Details. I need details now.” Viv pulls me toward the bar, panic in her eyes. If you didn’t know, you would think our positions were reversed.

  “Viv,” I huff, “I really need a drink before we go into detail. I’m freaking out enough as it is. Also, you’re kind of cutting off my circulation.” I eye her hand that’s gripping my arm as if it’s her lifeline.

  “Sorry,” she says with a small shrug. “I just can’t believe this is happening.”

  “That makes two of us.”

  We get Nick’s attention pretty quickly, and he makes us two vodka cranb
erries without us even having to ask. After I down my drink and get another, Viv and I saunter over to an empty booth in the corner for the little privacy one can get in a nightclub.

  I tell her everything that happened, including my freak-out over the music choice, and Jesus, with the look in her eye, you would have thought my mom had died all over again.

  “So are you going to meet Brando?” Viv asks after I’ve recapped the events.

  I nod, taking another sip of my drink. “I have to. I mean, I need to be the one to tell Jess. I would tell him beforehand, but I have no idea how his dad might manipulate the situation afterward. I need to know what he wants.”

  Sympathy radiates off of Viv as I speak, and I can’t fight the feeling of wanting to run. I know it’s weak and pathetic, but it’s my second nature. How do you fight something that has become ingrained in you?

  Jess showed me it was okay not to run away, and after this upcoming Monday, he might be the one running. Ironic.

  “That’s some heavy stuff you have to deal with, Ellie. But I’m here no matter what happens. We just have to be hopeful that Jess will understand. He has to.”

  I do my best to give her a smile, but that shit just doesn’t come naturally.

  Viv suddenly pops up from her chair and grabs my hand. “Well, Eleanor Ivy, tonight may be the last night we can all go out and have fun, so let’s make the most of it.” She pulls me up and back to the table where all the guys are sitting.

  Her words ring true in my head, and I decide to make the best of tonight with Jess, because for all I know, it may be the last.

  In hindsight, that logic probably wasn’t the best, but regrets are for tomorrow anyway.

  Youth

  Oh my god. My head.

  I let out a cross between a groan and a cry as I lift my head off of the pillow. The action itself uses up the majority of the little energy I have. My hair is matted and stuck to my face, and I’m wearing a T-shirt I don’t remember putting on last night.

  Now that I think about it, I don’t remember last night at all. Not a single thing past talking with Viv.