My Life as a Rhombus

by Varian Johnson

  “Just so you know, it was you—not me—that ended this,” David said. “You’re the one that pushed me away.”

  David closed the door and stepped away from the car. As he stood at the edge of his driveway with his hands stuffed into his pockets, he gave me a cold, haunting look. His eyes stayed on me the entire time as I slowly backed out of his driveway. Even after I pulled onto the street and headed home, I couldn’t forget the look on his face. It wasn’t a look of sadness, disappointment, or even anger.

  It was a look of pity.

  On Friday after school, as I had done for the entire week, I headed over to Sarah’s house. While she was on bed rest, and while David served his five-day suspension, I was responsible for gathering her homework. Grudgingly, I got David’s assignments as well.

  After I rang the doorbell for the third time, I glanced at my watch. The television was blaring from inside the house, so I knew someone was home. Plus, when I called earlier to let Sarah know I was dropping by, she said David would be home to let me in.

  I was about to pound on the door when it swung open. Sarah stood at the doorway, wearing a pair of plaid pajamas, her hair stuffed into a red bandana.

  “What are you doing out of bed?” I asked as I entered the house. “Where’s David?”

  “He left as soon as he heard you were coming over.”

  “Good,” I said. “I’m in no mood to see him.”

  “Rhonda, you guys have been avoiding each other all week. Don’t you think—”

  “Drop it,” I warned her as I followed her into her room.

  “But I don’t understand. Christopher is an asshole—you’d be the first person to admit that.” Sarah crawled into bed. “The only problem with him getting punched was that it should have been your fist instead of David’s.”

  “David trying to save me by hitting Christopher is just like Dad forcing me to get an abortion. They both need to realize that I can take care of myself.”

  “He only did it because he loves you.”

  “He’s not my boyfriend. It’s not his place to protect me.” I unzipped my bag and pulled out a folder. “What do you want me to do with these assignments?”

  “I guess that means you don’t want to talk about David anymore.” Sarah pointed to her desk. “Stick them over there.”

  Sarah’s desk was littered with a mix of fashion magazines and baby books. I pushed a pile of papers to the side and placed her homework on top of the sandalwood veneer.

  There were also a few pictures of Johnnie on her desk. With her secret out in the open, she was free to show off mementos of their relationship. Maybe Johnnie really did love her. Maybe Sarah loved him back. Maybe things would work out for the best after all.

  Sarah noticed me looking at her pictures. “Johnnie was pretty mad at David, but he’s already over it … unlike some people.”

  I crossed my arms and frowned as I sat on the corner of her bed.

  “I think getting beat up hurt Johnnie’s pride more than anything,” Sarah continued, as she glanced across the room at one of the pictures on her desk. “Johnnie is too much of a nice guy to stay mad at David forever.”

  “And what about Christopher?”

  Sarah’s brow furrowed. “You haven’t heard? Christopher is pressing charges.”

  I felt like I just got hit by a truck. “What? You can’t be serious!”

  Sarah pulled her bandana from her head and ran her fingers through her hair. “He hired some fancy-ass lawyer. They called yesterday and broke the news.”

  My pulse quickened. “David could lose his scholarship. Hell, he could go to jail.”

  “He won’t go to jail—our lawyer can assure that much,” Sarah said, although I could hear the uncertainty in her voice. “He may lose his scholarship, but with his trust fund, he can afford to go to almost any school.”

  “But it’s too late to get accepted to any decent college,” I yelled, my voice rushed. “And even if he did get accepted somewhere, he couldn’t play basketball.”

  “Rhonda, you’re not telling me anything I don’t already know.”

  “Then why are you acting so damn complacent?” I jumped up and pumped my fists. “You guys can’t let Christopher get away with this. David has to do something.”

  Sarah smirked. “For someone that isn’t your boyfriend, you seem pretty protective of him.”

  I rolled my eyes and sat on my hands to keep them still. “Maybe your mother and Christopher’s dad can work something out.”

  “She already tried,” Sarah said. “No deal.”

  “Maybe Christopher will change his mind.”

  Sarah snorted. “We both know better than that.”

  I couldn’t believe Christopher was actually going to press charges. People got into fights all the time—only spoiled rich kids like Christopher would actually stoop low enough to pull something like this.

  I rose from the bed and grabbed my bag. “I’ll call you later. I’m heading to Christopher’s house.”

  “Not without me, you aren’t.”

  Sarah pushed the covers off her swollen feet and kicked her legs over the edge of the bed.

  “But your doctor said—”

  “Screw the doctor,” she said. “I’m going. And we should stop by and pick up Gail. She hates Christopher almost as much as you do.”

  I watched Sarah slip into her jacket. The truth be told, I could probably use all the support I could get.

  “Okay, fine,” I said. “Let’s go save David.”

  Sarah, Gail, and I pulled up to Christopher’s house. It was a huge five-bedroom structure that made the Gamble residence look like a log cabin. Its size alone was intimidating, without taking into consideration the people who lived inside. To make things worse, the infamous black Saab sat in the front yard, taunting me.

  “Um … what’s the game plan again?” Gail asked. She had been in the middle of eating dinner when we arrived unannounced at her house. We didn’t even give her a chance to put on a real pair of shoes before we whisked her out the door.

  Sarah slapped her hands together. “We go in there and kick his ass—that’s the game plan.”

  Gail frowned. “Isn’t that what got us in this situation in the first place?”

  I was beginning to wonder if this was such a good idea. I had no clue what I was going to say to Christopher. All I knew was that he was hurting David, and I was going to do whatever necessary to save my boyfriend.

  I mean, my ex-boyfriend.

  I parked and turned off the engine. “Just follow my lead, okay?”

  I felt myself shaking as I got out of the car. I didn’t know why I was so nervous. I had been to Christopher’s house hundreds of times. Of course, the last time I was here was under worse circumstances than this.

  It was right after we broke up. I was a scared, pregnant, fifteen-year-old girl who was still in love with her ex-boyfriend. I felt pathetic as I begged and pleaded with him to come back home with me so we could break the news to my father. As terrified as I was of being pregnant, I was even more scared of telling Dad by myself.

  But telling my father about my pregnancy was not in Christopher’s plans. First Christopher suggested I got pregnant on purpose, just to win him back. Then he claimed I was easy, and that it could be anyone’s baby. The last thing he did was stuff a wad of bills in my hand before shoving me out of the house and slamming the door in my face.

  I strode to the front door and rang the doorbell. A chorus of bells chimed throughout the house.

  Sarah popped her knuckles. “Rhonda, you go for his head. I’ll go for his stomach.”

  Gail rolled her eyes. “Please tell me you don’t plan on fighting this guy.”

  Before I could reply, the colossal wooden door opened, bringing me face to face with my n
emesis. Christopher didn’t look surprised to see me. He stood in the doorway, chewing on a bright green apple. His neck muscles bulged with every bite he took. His sleeveless T-shirt showed off his massive arms.

  “I knew you would show up,” he said in between bites. “I guess you’re here to convince me to let your ex-boyfriend off the hook.” He frowned at Sarah and Gail. “And I see you brought back-up.”

  “Can we come in?” I asked. My voice sounded weaker than I wanted it to be.

  Christopher looked over his shoulder before turning back to us. “Make it quick. I’m busy.”

  Christopher stepped back and let us into the house, and I saw what he had glanced at. Christopher’s newest conquest, a cute, tanned blonde, sat on the couch. She didn’t go to school at Piedmont—for all I knew, she could have been a college student.

  The girl stood and extended her hand. “Hi, I’m Anne—”

  “Don’t bother introducing yourself,” Christopher said. “I just need to talk to these girls for a few minutes, and then you’ll never see them again.”

  The blonde, looking confused, just stared as Christopher led us out of the room and into the kitchen.

  Christopher smirked at us. “Anne’s a freshman. In college.”

  I shrugged. “I don’t care where you scrounged up Bambi. I just want to talk about David.”

  He took another bite of his apple. “I’m not going to let David get away with hitting me like that. We’re taking him to court.” Christopher’s lip was still red from where David had punched him.

  Sarah started toward him. “You jackass—”

  I stepped in front of Sarah. The last thing I needed was a pregnant girl trying to pick a fight.

  “But why sue?” I asked. “They offered to settle.”

  “This isn’t about the money,” he said. “This is about the principle of the matter.”

  I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “Christopher, please don’t do this. David was just angry. It was a mistake.”

  Christopher finished the last of the apple and tossed the browning core into the wastebasket. “That’s not my problem.”

  I had heard those words before. I tried to think of something else to say, another way to appeal to what little decency he had, but my mind was coming up blank.

  “But Christopher—”

  “I’m through talking about it.” He crossed his arms, flexing his biceps. “I think it’s time for you to leave … unless you can think of another way to convince me to drop the charges.”

  “God, you make me sick.” The way his words slithered out of his mouth made me feel violated. “If you’re so adamant on taking David to court, why did you even let us in? You could have told us that at the door.”

  He sneered. “I just wanted to see you beg.”

  Both Sarah and I gasped, and Gail headed toward him. “Oh, that’s it,” Gail said, kicking off her sandals. “Let’s all beat his ass.”

  I gathered my wits quickly enough to cut Gail off from reaching him. “Cool down, both of you,” I said. “Let me handle this.”

  “By the way, when did you start dating again?” Christopher asked. “If you were looking for some action, you should have given me a call.”

  My fingers balled into fists. “Shut up, Christopher.”

  “Or what?” He puffed out his chest and advanced toward me. “You gonna hit me?”

  I was afraid that was exactly what I was going to do.

  “I bet you told David we used to be together. From the way he swung at me, he must really hate me.” He winked. “You must have been bragging about me.”

  My forearm began to tremble. I was losing my battle with self-control.

  Christopher was in my face at this point, still trying to egg me on. “You had to know that you and David wouldn’t last. He’s just like me.”

  And that’s when it hit me. My mouth dropped open, and I stared at Christopher like I was seeing him for the first time. Watching him stand there, gloating like a pompous jackass, made me realize I had been a fool for comparing David to him. David would never try to intentionally hurt me like Christopher was doing. David would never abandon me like Christopher had.

  David loved me, even when I was too scared to love him back.

  I tossed my head back and laughed sarcastically at Christopher. “You’re pathetic,” I said. “You’re not going to press any charges.”

  Christopher looked taken aback by my laughter. “Since when do you have the authority to tell me what to do?”

  I wagged a finger at him. “You aren’t going to press charges,” I said again, as if he didn’t hear me the first time. “Not unless you want the world to know you got me pregnant.”

  Christopher’s face dropped. “You can’t prove that.”

  “I don’t have to prove it.”

  “You’re bluffing,” he stammered. “You’d admit to the entire world you had an abortion?”

  “Watch me.” I spun around and marched past Sarah and Gail, both of them wearing the same dumbfounded expression. I could hear hurried footsteps behind me as I charged into the living room.

  Anne rose from the couch as I strode up to her and planted myself in her face. “Listen, girl,” I began, “I hate to tell you this, but I hope you have a lot of money saved up. Christopher is stingy when it comes to paying for abortions.”

  Christopher burst into the living room, with Sarah and Gail a few steps behind him. “Rhonda, what the hell are you doing?”

  Anne looked like her feet were glued in place. She quickly glanced from me to Christopher, and then back to me. “I beg your pardon … ”

  “You heard me. Christopher made me get an abortion three years ago, and not only did he refuse to come to the clinic with me, he didn’t even give me enough money to pay for it.”

  “He didn’t pay for my abortion, either,” Sarah chimed in, rubbing her stomach. “That’s why I’m pregnant with little Christopher now.”

  Anne’s eyes widened as she looked at Christopher. “You’re having a baby?”

  “Of course not,” he yelled. “Don’t believe a word these crazy bitches are saying.”

  Gail placed her hands on her hips and started whipping her neck back and forth. “You weren’t calling me a crazy bitch last month, when you were up in my bedroom, sweating all over my sheets.”

  Anne looked at Gail. “Did he get you pregnant as well?”

  Gail shook her head. “Worse. This fool gave me syphilis.”

  Christopher looked like he wanted to cry. He rushed to his girlfriend’s side. “Anne, I promise, I am not having a kid.” He glared at Gail. “And I’ve never even slept with her, much less given her any diseases.”

  Anne pointed to me. “And what about her?”

  Christopher’s mouth dropped open. “I … I … ”

  That was all Anne needed to hear. She pushed him away and stormed toward the door. “You fucking pig.”

  Christopher shuffled behind her. “Okay, I asked her to get an abortion. But I swear, I gave her enough money for the procedure.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, like that’s going to make her take you back.”

  Anne already had her purse and was halfway out the door. “Listen, I don’t know what the hell is going on here, but it’s obvious you’ve got a lot of skeletons in your closet. Do me a favor and lose my number.”

  The door slammed shut, and the entire house was quiet for a few seconds.

  I snapped my fingers. “Damn, I forgot to tell her about the whole premature ejaculation thing.” I sighed. “I guess there’s always next time.”

  Gail, Sarah, and I looked at each other and exploded into laughter.

  “You enjoyed that, didn’t you?” Christopher yelled as he started toward me. “You’re such a bitch.”

&
nbsp; I did my best to stifle my laughter. “What are you going to do, Christopher? Hit me?”

  A moment of clarity crossed his face. “You know what, I didn’t like that girl anyway. I’ll have another girlfriend by the end of the month.” He shrugged. “You can’t tell everyone I date about our history.”

  “I’m not worried about your little girlfriends,” I said. “I’ll tell your father. I’ll tell your church congregation. I’ll tell the entire goddamn city if I have to.” I stepped toward Christopher. “Think of what your father would do if he found out his perfect, God-fearing son not only got me pregnant, but that he gave me the money to get an abortion.”

  “That’s not fair.” For the first time that night, Christopher looked scared. “You know how I feel about my father.”

  Christopher hadn’t changed. He was still afraid of his father, and rightfully so. Unfortunately for Christopher, his home life was no longer my concern.

  “Wasn’t your father promising to send you to the military if you screwed up again?” My lips curled into a sadistic smirk. “The Marine Corps, right?”

  “You bitch—”

  “You really need to expand your vocabulary,” Gail said. “Haven’t you ever heard of a thesaurus?”

  Christopher growled, his eyes ablaze with anger. “You goddamn … bitches.”

  That just made us laugh even more.

  I shook my head and tisked. “You should have thought about that before you got me pregnant.” I crossed my arms. “You’re not going to press charges.”

  Christopher looked at all of us, his mouth twisted into a snarl. He fixated his gaze on me, doing his best to stare me down.

  I stared back, not blinking once.

  Christopher finally sighed, and his body relaxed. “Fine, I won’t press charges. Now get the fuck out of my house.”

  I felt like I had won a heavyweight boxing match. I knew I was leaving on my own terms, with my head held high. My dignity was intact. I was even able to take a chunk of Christopher’s self-esteem with me, and that alone was better than any punch I could have thrown. Why hit him with my fists when words stung even more?