by L B Pavlov
He pulled me out of our embrace and looked at me. He wiped my tears so he could see my eyes, and he tucked my hair behind my ears—I was sure it was as out of control as I was feeling. I couldn’t be mad at him now. He was the only person whom I felt truly close to. He was doing this because he cared about me, not to embarrass me.
“I think it’s OK, Daniel. I had looked it up on the Internet a while ago. I think it’s just because of all the running maybe? Or I may just be a late bloomer? But it doesn’t mean that anything is wrong with me because lots of people get it late. Plus, my mom wrote about it in one of her journals, and she got hers for the first time at seventeen years old too. She ended up with four kids, so I think everyone is just different,” I said in a hopeful voice.
“Of course nothing is wrong with you. You are the most perfect person that I know. My sweet little late bloomer.” He chuckled and continued, “But I don’t think it would hurt to talk to a doctor and just make sure that you aren’t pushing yourself too hard with the running.”
I agreed to consider that as long as he didn’t tell anyone, and I would think about telling Grace myself. I didn’t want them to discuss it. It was embarrassing enough that he knew. He agreed to my terms.
He then grabbed my hand and said, “I’m really sorry that you don’t have a mom to talk to about this, Charlotte,” and I could tell that he genuinely hurt for me just by the look in his eyes. My waterworks started again This was unbelievable. I had never cried this much in my entire life.
I hugged him tightly again, and after a while he said, “Charlotte?”
I quietly said, “Yes?”
“Did you really call me an idiot when you were yelling at me?” he said, and we both burst out laughing again.
We ended up talking about my date and the BMW, which made Daniel absolutely sick. He went on and on about pretentious cars and pretentious people. I told him how Blane fed me tiramisu, which made him cringe and made both of us laugh some more.
He told me about how his night went. How Crystal Bryant made yet another attempt to repeat their evening from a few weeks back, but he restrained himself this time, probably due to worrying about me, he said. We laughed some more.
I told him how Blane asked me to go to Johnny Grant’s party after the game Friday night. He thought it was a fine idea because he would be there as well. “You’re growing up, Charlotte. First it’s the date, then it’s the period and now a party.”
I slapped him on the shoulder. “Please, please, don’t say the word ‘period’ ever again, Daniel. It’s too embarrassing for me,” I said desperately.
“OK, I won’t use that word again. But you know you can always talk to me, and you can trust me, Charlotte,” he said sincerely.
“I know I can. I promise I will if I need to.”
He continued to ask me about Blane, and he was relentless with his questioning. I finally admitted to him that Blane didn’t know anything about running, including the fact that it was a real sport. He found this to be absolutely hysterical. Blane was also very interested in fancy cars, which I had absolutely no interest in. The only real thing we had in common was football, but I realized that I only liked to talk to Daniel about football.
Daniel seemed excited to hear me say that. But I told him that I would not go back on my word and that I would go with Blane to the party, and he understood. I told him Blane was not a bad guy; we just didn’t know him very well yet. We both laughed some more when I told him that I wanted to have at least two dates under my belt anyway. Daniel got ready to go home, and I was exhausted and more than ready for bed.
We agreed to meet at 7:00 a.m. for our Saturday morning run. We had so much more to talk about now. We hugged one more time, and he kissed me on the top of my head.
“You aren’t bad for a late bloomer, Charlotte Ford!”
Charlotte and I met early Saturday morning for our run. We talked about what had happened on Friday night, and I think she was feeling better about everything. I had convinced her to talk to my mom about a few things, and she seemed comfortable with the idea. I hated the thought that she was at a restaurant scared, nervous, and alone—well, if you didn’t count the douche bag that she was with who didn’t even bother to walk her to the door. I agreed to drop all “Blane bashing” until I got to know him better. I had absolutely no intention of getting to know him better, so I resolved to keep my thoughts to myself until she got to know him better and realized he was a prick.
Sunday night Charlotte had dinner with my family, and Lenora joined us as well. Jack Sr. was working late. We all found it strange that he would be working on a Sunday evening, but no one said a word for fear it would upset Charlotte. She had enough on her plate.
My mom and Charlotte ended up having a nice, long talk out front on my mom’s favorite porch swing. I could tell that Charlotte felt much better when she came back inside to find me. She didn’t want to talk about it, but she gave me a thumbs-up and a smile.
The next week flew by. Everyone at school was getting excited about the first game of the season on Friday night. Charlotte was busy with her training, and I was busy with football practice, but we had dinner together every night that week and we would talk about our day. We couldn’t help but laugh about Blane’s daily visits to our lunch table and how I hadn’t made one rude comment to him in days. This wasn’t because I didn’t want to but because I had promised that I wouldn’t. Charlotte could tell it was killing me, but she was thankful that I stuck to the deal.
Friday at lunch everyone was talking about the game and about the party at Johnny’s afterwards. Kathleen and Steph were very excited that Charlotte would be going to the party because it was rare to see her out. I wondered how she would handle the fact that there would most likely be alcohol there, and people hooking up, and God knows what else. I would be able to keep my eye on her (and on the douche bag), so I felt good about that.
“Hey, Charlie,” Blane said as he approached our table. Even the way he said her name made me cringe.
“Hi, Blane,” she said quietly.
“You’re still driving with me over to the party after the game, right?” he inquired.
“Sure, I’ll find you after the game,” she replied.
“Great. Don’t forget to cheer me on tonight,” he said as he glared in my direction.
“Oh, OK, I will.” She smiled awkwardly at him.
Don’t forget to cheer me on? Seriously? What a prick. I bit my tongue and smiled at her. We both just started laughing without saying a word.
The stands were completely packed. The first game was drawing a huge crowd. We headed out to the field, and right as I went through the gates to go into the stadium, I saw Charlotte waving and smiling at me.
I ran over to her and gave her a hug. “Good luck, Daniel! I will be cheering for you!” she enthused.
Of course she would be cheering for me and not the douche bag. Just as she always had.
We won the game forty-two to fourteen. I threw the ball to Gomez for the majority of our touchdowns, and we had some great plays. Coach Pank was really happy, so I didn’t think Gomez’s position was at risk at all.
I saw Charlotte after the game, and she congratulated me with a big hug. She was so excited and was asking all sorts of questions about some of the new plays that she saw.
“Charlie! Are you ready to go?” Blane yelled to her in an impatient voice.
I felt my blood start to boil at his tone.
“Oh, sure, one minute, please,” she said, and she turned to smile at me. “You’re going to the party, right, Daniel?” she said anxiously.
“Yes. I’ll be there. I’ll find you as soon as I get there. I just need to go change my clothes. Are you comfortable driving with him?” I said calmly, hiding my annoyance.
“Yes. But I may drive home with you if that’s OK? Why make him drive me all the way home when we’re neighbors, right?” she said nervously.
“Of course,” I said, and I gave her a hug and told her
that I would see her soon.
I hated that she was even driving to the party with that guy. I didn’t trust him.
Sean drove over with me to the party. We talked about the douche bag, and Sean told me that he couldn’t stand the kid either. But he told me he thought I disliked him for a different reason than he did.
“What do you mean?” I asked, puzzled.
“I think you don’t like that he asked Charlie out,” he said cautiously.
“Well, of course I don’t want her to go out with a prick,” I said defensively.
“Daniel, it wouldn’t matter who she was going out with, you wouldn’t like him. Haven’t you wondered why no one ever asks her out? Come on, dude. She’s beautiful, smart, sweet. You haven’t found it odd that she doesn’t have a boyfriend?” he said incredulously.
I was completely caught off guard. “Why doesn’t anyone ask her out?” I asked tentatively.
“Because they know that, um, they don’t want to deal with the wrath of Daniel,” he said, laughing now.
“They know what Sean? What do they know?” I asked, completely unsure where this conversation was going.
“They know that you’re in love with her, and they don’t want to deal with your wrath by stepping on your toes,” he finally blurted out.
We pulled up to Johnny’s and I parked my truck. It was silent for a minute.
“Sean, of course I love her, she’s my best friend,” I said, exasperated.
“Daniel, this is way beyond being best friends. You’re my best friend. This is definitely different. You’re in love with that girl, and we all see it,” he said.
There was a long pause before I spoke. “I’m not good enough for her, Sean,” I said quietly.
“Daniel, you wouldn’t think anyone was good enough for her. That’s love, buddy,” he said, smiling at me.
We were at Johnny’s door now. We would have to talk about this later.
We walked in to the party, and everyone was excited about the game and giving high fives. They all appeared to be in great spirits. The music was loud, and everyone was dancing and having fun. Crystal ran up to me as soon as Sean and I walked through the door. She was hanging all over me, and I was on a mission to find Charlotte.
“Not right now, Crystal, I’ll see you later.” I sounded distracted but was trying not to be rude.
It was hard to get through the room because everyone was stopping to talk about the game. I was trying to scan the room, but I hadn’t seen her yet.
Gomez came rushing up to us, and he didn’t look happy. He was with a couple other guys from the team, Logan and Chase, and they were anxious to talk to Sean and me about something. “Dude! Blane is acting crazy. He is really pissed that he didn’t get to play much. He’s saying things about getting Coach Pank fired, and he’s being an asshole.”
Gomez continued uncomfortably, “He’s trying to start a fight with everyone he runs into. I don’t know why he even came to this party, but I’m staying clear of him.”
“Where is Charlotte?” I asked apprehensively. I was not concerned with the douche bag as long as he wasn’t with her. Logan said that he saw her talking with Steph and Kathleen in the other room and that she seemed to be having a good time, but that she had been looking for me as well.
I moved into the next room, and first I saw Blane, who was drinking straight from the keg in the kitchen as people stared at him in shock. I saw Charlotte in the adjacent room, talking to Kathleen and Steph and a few other girls. She seemed to be having a great time, and I was happy for her. When she looked up and saw me, her face lit up. She rushed over and gave me a big hug.
“I’m so proud of you, Daniel! You really did great tonight. I saw your parents on my way out of the stadium, and they were so happy,” she said proudly.
“Thanks, Charlotte. Hey, make sure you drive home with me tonight, OK?” I said firmly.
“Sure. I hope Blane won’t mind, but I think it would be easier to drive home with you,” she said.
She obviously had no idea her date was chugging beer and picking fights in the next room. But she didn’t seem to be missing him one bit. I stood with Charlotte and the girls, and I listened to their funny conversation. She kept looking up at me and smiling. It was nice to see Charlotte having some fun and laughing with her friends.
Kathleen asked me if I knew where she could get a bottle of water because she was thirsty. I asked the other girls if they would like something to drink too, and I went to get them a couple bottles of water. When I got to the kitchen to grab some waters, I couldn’t believe what I saw: Blane was making out with Crystal Bryant in the kitchen. I thought, this just might be the king of all douche bags. He saw me walk in, and he pushed Crystal away.
“Dude! Guy code! You can’t say anything!” he shouted at me in a slurred voice. This guy was absolutely out of his mind.
“I’m not your dude, and I’m not your friend. I think you just need to leave now. That way no one gets their feelings hurt,” I said, holding back what I wanted to say to him.
“Go to hell, Daniel!” he shouted as he grabbed two beers and stormed out of the kitchen.
I tried to follow him, but the kitchen was crowded with people. I saw him stumble into Charlotte, and her sweet smile turn into a horrified and frightened look. This prick had pushed me too far. He shoved a cup of beer in her face, spilling it all over her. She pushed the cup away, and then she attempted to push the douche bag away. I tried to get to her, but people were in the way now, standing around and pretending not to watch.
I heard her say, “I don’t want a beer, Blane!” She definitely sounded angry.
He screamed at her, “You need to loosen up, Charlie! You’re no fun at all. You don’t get to do this to me twice,” and he moved to grab her arm roughly just as I was finally approaching them.
She tried to push him away again, and I saw her friends struggling to help her pull out of his grasp. That was all I could handle. I rushed up beside him, and I punched him in the face. He fell to the floor as he let go of her arm, and she stared at us in shock.
Blane was on the ground, slurring his words and acting like an idiot. He was screaming, “You’re not going to leave with him, Charlie! You came with me! You leave with me! Do you hear me?”
She looked down at him in horror and looked back at me with her big, brown, innocent eyes, complete trust evident in her face. She clasped her hand into mine, and I turned and led her out of the party and to my truck.
I turned her around when we got to the truck to look at her. “Are you OK? Are you hurt?” I asked in a panic.
She looked down at her arm. It was purple and swollen where he had grabbed her. I felt my blood boil once again.
“Are you OK?” she asked, concerned, and she grabbed my hand to see if it was hurt.
“I’m fine, Charlotte. Are you kidding me? I’m not the one that was just assaulted. Let me see your arm,” I said, gently lifting it.
“I’m fine, Daniel. It really doesn’t hurt that bad. Can we just go home?” she pleaded.
I opened her door and assisted her into the truck. She turned to me and said, half laughing, “Daniel, I’m not broken, I can get in the truck.”
I waited for her to buckle up, and we drove off. “Are you OK?” I said again cautiously.
“I don’t know whether to laugh or cry. What was that? What’s wrong with him?” she said, and her voice began to sound angry.
“Do you want to cry because you’re upset about Blane? Or because you’re upset about the night?” I asked tentatively.
“No. I don’t even know Blane. Obviously you were right about him being a douche cake, or whatever you call him.” We both started laughing as she continued, “But I’m sorry that he ruined a fun night because I had fun watching your game, and I was having fun at the party, and I certainly don’t like someone grabbing my arm that hard!” She was starting to calm down.
“No one should ever touch you like that, Charlotte,” I said angrily.
We pulled into my driveway, and she turned toward me before we got out of the car. “Daniel, thank you. Thank you for punching him,” she said sincerely and touched the hand that I had punched Blane with to make sure it was OK. “I’m so sorry that I ruined your night. You should have been celebrating tonight, not dealing with this,” she said quietly.
I reached over and tucked her hair behind her ear. She stared at me with her worried eyes, and she was biting her lip. Before I could think to tell her to stop biting her lip, I leaned over and I kissed her.
chapter 5
the truth
I could feel his lips on mine. He pulled away to look at me, and I was frozen.
“Charlotte? Are you OK?” he asked nervously.
I looked up at him. “Why did you kiss me? Was it because you feel bad for me about what happened?” I asked firmly.
“No. I kissed you because I wanted to kiss you,” he answered confidently.
“When did you decide that you wanted to kiss me?” I pressed while staring him right in the eyes.
I certainly didn’t want a sympathy kiss—not even from Daniel.
“Are you asking me when the first time that I wanted to kiss you was?” He seemed surprised by the question.
“Yes, I am,” I said, certain of my question. I was not going to allow him to kiss me because he felt sorry for me.
“The very first time?” he asked again nervously.
“Yes,” I said, unwavering.
“Well, the very first time that I ever wanted to kiss you was twelve years ago, if you want me to be honest,” he said, more self-assured now.
“What are you talking about?” I was irritated that he was making a joke out of this.
“You know, when Chandler Hoboken threw sand in your face. You were sitting in the sandbox, and you had sand all over your head. You started to cry. I punched the prick. And I remember looking over at you, and you had a little bun in your hair with a pink ribbon tied around the bun. You were wearing a little white dress, which was now covered in a shitload of sand. And I remember that I wanted to kiss you on the cheek to make you smile again. But that damn Mrs. Barnacle grabbed me by the arm and wrenched me out of there and down to the principal’s office. But yes, that was the first time that I wanted to kiss you,” he said, as if this should come as no surprise to me at all.
