In March, when Tyson and I had been dating four months, Tyson’s band, Rose Madder, went on to perform at Marcher High School’s annual Battle of the Bands. Everyone loved Rose Madder. They put on a fantastic performance, and Tyson’s voice was the best thing Marcher, Virginia had ever heard. They were really just so passionate about their music and that drew the crowd in with the same kind of passion. At one point during their line-up of songs, Tyson dedicated a song to me and I realized something as he began to sing. I was crazy about him. And not just that punch-drunk, high school, promise ring kind of crazy. I was in love with him.
And later that night, I told him I loved him. After Rose Madder had won first place in the Battle of the Bands, I ran to him, jumped up into his arms and as I planted quick kisses all over his face, I told him I loved him. He looked at me and in that one second, it was as if everything around us—the first place prize money, the roaring audience, the bright stage lights…everything, all disappeared, and there was just me and him.
“I love you, too,” he told me and then he wrapped his arms around me and kissed me.
A million flashes of the future went through my head—a future with Tyson. A life so amazing that only few people could even ever imagine it. I believed in a soulmate now. I believed that Tyson and I were the two Legos meant to connect to each other to build something great.
That same night of the Battle of the Bands, I finally met Tyson’s mom. She, along with Laura, Tyson, and myself, went out to the local Mexican restaurant to celebrate Tyson’s win. Tyson’s stepdad was absent from this family outing, but Tyson clearly didn’t mind. It was his night to be with the ladies in his life.
“So, Ava,” his mother said to me after we’d ordered our food. We were sitting in a booth, and she was sitting right across from me, where she could observe me for the entire meal.
“Yes, ma’am?” I responded, politely.
“You go to Marcher High School?” she asked.
“Yes, ma’am,” I said again. “I graduate in June.” I was so intimidated by her. Not particularly because she was Tyson’s mother, but mainly because she was gorgeous. Long, flowing blonde hair, flawless facial features, amazing, womanly figure, and the same intriguing pair of big blue eyes she’d passed on to Tyson and Laura. She was that timeless kind of beauty. How could I not be intimidated? This was the woman I was going to have to live up to. And I was sure she cooked.
“Now, how did you two meet?” she inquired. “Ty told me once before but it’s escaped me.”
It “escaped” her? Oh my God, I was having dinner with Audrey Hepburn.
“We actually met at the local church here,” I told her, desperately needing a drink of my water, but afraid to take it because I might spaz out and spill it on myself.
“At Laura’s chorus recital,” Tyson piped up. “Ava was taking pictures for the high school newspaper. She hangs out with Jake’s girlfriend, Emily.”
“Oh, yes, Jake,” she said. “Such a funny boy…and so handsome, too. I keep telling Laura when she gets a little older…”
“Mom!” Laura hissed, blushing slightly.
There was an awkward silence then, but thankfully, our food came and I managed to sneak in a gulp of much-needed water.
The dinner never got any more relaxed, but it wasn’t too torturous. The conversation went the same, with Tyson’s mother asking me questions, I’d cordially answer, and Tyson would break in every now and then with a witty remark.
I was thankful when it was over and I could go put some fresh deodorant on.
“She loves you,” Tyson assured me over the phone later that night while I lay in my bed.
“She’s has her own law firm!” was my random reply. Tyson laughed.
“So what?” he said.
“Does she cook?” I asked him. I had to know.
“Hell no,” he replied, and I could just hear him smiling. “She’s the least domestic woman on the face of this earth. When she was still married to my dad, all we ever ate was take-out.”
Well, if anything, that was a relief.
“So when do I meet your dad?” I asked him.
“In due time, honey,” he yawned. Then, sleepily, he added, “I love you, Ava.”
I smiled.
“I love you, Tyson.”
3.
Everyone loved Tyson.
Even people that didn’t know him liked him. People who’d heard him at the Battle of the Bands, people who’d seen him at Marcher to visit his sister Laura and me, and by word of mouth, no one had a bad thing to say about him. He was that cool guy.
Cassie and Emily really just liked him so much because he made me so happy all of the time. Tyson and I never even so much as had a simple argument. In a way, Tyson changed me. I’d never been mean to anyone before meeting Tyson, but after we met, I was definitely a lot kinder and a lot more outgoing than before…a lot less cynical about the world.
In May, after Tyson and I had been together for a little over six months, the “big question” came up. Well, it was the “big question” for a seventeen-year-old girl, at least. It was Emily who asked it.
We were studying in the library one afternoon and Emily abruptly just blurted it out.
“Have you and Tyson been…?” her voice trailed off when she asked, as if she couldn’t say the word “sex” out loud.
“No,” was my honest answer. She didn’t believe me at first.
“Ava, seriously,” she replied, giving me a look. “You can tell me. It’s okay if you are…I just assumed you were. Me and Jake are. We have been since, like, the second month we were dating.”
“Are you serious?” I asked her, a little incredulously. I’d really had no idea.
“Yeah,” Emily admitted. “Are you and Tyson really not—?”
“No,” I told her firmly. “We really aren’t.”
“Have you at least talked about it?” she asked. I shrugged.
“Not too much,” I replied. “I mean, we’ve briefly discussed it here and there, but it’s never really come up as something serious.”
“You’ve fooled around though, right?” she asked. I didn’t know where this was going.
“Sure,” I replied, then lightly added, “Have you seen my boyfriend? I couldn’t just not physically take advantage of that!” It was a joke. I was hoping it would lead to a change in subject.
“Me and Jake talked about it before we did it,” she pressed on. “He’s my first, but I’m not his, and in the beginning, that kind of bothered me. But it’s totally cool.”
I just nodded, not sure what kind of response she was expecting out of me.
“I still can’t believe you and Tyson haven’t yet!” she went on. “From the way Jake talks, he’s so sure Tyson’s been…well, you know.”
“How is he so sure?” I asked her, frowning.
“I dunno,” she said simply. “Maybe you should ask Tyson about that.”
I did ask Tyson about it that night, actually. We were upstairs in his bedroom, watching TV while Tyson strummed on his acoustic, when I couldn’t hold it in any longer.
“Have you been telling Jake that we’re having sex?” I asked, in an oddly high-pitched tone.
He looked at me and burst out laughing.
“Where on earth did that come from?” he asked, setting his guitar against his bedroom wall and walking over to his bed where I was sitting.
“Tyson, I’m serious,” I said, chewing on my bottom lip. “Have you been telling Jake that we’re having sex?”
“No, babe, I haven’t,” Tyson replied, his smile fading. “Why do you ask?”
“I dunno,” I mumbled, shrugging and looking down. Tyson sat down on the bed next to me. Now I felt stupid for even bringing it up.
“Hey,” he said softly, placing his hand on my knee and squeezing it gently. “What’s up, Ava?”
“Nothing,” I replied with a sigh, looking up at him again. “It’s just…something Emily said today. She was surprised when I told her we weren
’t…you know. And I was thinking about it and we haven’t even talked about it that much.”
“Have you wanted to talk about it?” he asked me. “I mean, I didn’t think it was a big deal, Ava.”
“It’s not,” I said quietly, looking down at my hands. “I just…I dunno…”
“Listen,” he said to me, putting his hand under my chin and tilting my head up so that my eyes met his. “What does it matter if we are or not? Shouldn’t it be up to us—not anybody else—when we do? Who cares about Emily and Jake or whoever? It’s between you and me, anyway, you know?”
I nodded.
“I’m not a prude,” I spoke up. I suddenly felt the need to defend myself. He laughed.
“I know,” he replied. “But when it happens, it happens. Whether it be tonight, next month, or on your wedding night. Whenever you’re ready for it and whenever the moment is right, that’s when it’ll happen for you.”
God. Could he be any more perfect?
“Sorry, Tyson,” I whispered. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a hug.
“Don’t be sorry for saying something,” he said. “It’s all gravy, baby.” I managed a small laugh, feeling embarrassed. Suddenly, his hug turned into tickling me.
“Hey!” I exclaimed, falling back on the bed. He began kissing my neck and tickling my sides.
“Tyson!” I yelled, laughing uncontrollably.
“What? What?” he asked, laughing, too. He finally pulled away and looked down at me, breathing a little heavily. I was breathing hard, as well. We just looked at each other for a moment, and his eyes searched mine for some kind of answer to an obvious request.
I smiled suddenly, touching his face tenderly.
“I love you so much,” I murmured, kissing him on the side of his neck. He pushed my hair away from my face.
“I know,” he replied, quietly. “I love you, too.”
He kissed me on my mouth then—the passionate kind of kiss that makes you feel as if you’re floating away into some euphoric plane. When he pulled away, I realized that I was shaking. This wasn’t our normal kind of kiss. There was a hunger behind that kiss that I knew could only lead to one thing.
“I-I want to,” I told him, my voice seeming so small.
“I know,” he said, and kissed me again.
And then it happened. My mother always told me that if I waited for the right person, then sex would be beautiful. She was right.
We fell asleep in each other’s arms, and after an hour of dozing, I awoke with a head full of thoughts. Mainly, I wondered what was going through Tyson’s head. I was his first, as he was mine, and I hoped and prayed with all my heart that it’d been just as special and amazing for Tyson as it had been for me.
When he took me home that night, he was quiet for the entire ride back.
“Ava, I want to tell you something,” he finally said, once we’d pulled into my driveway. We sat in his El Camino in the quietness of the night.
“Yeah?” I asked him.
“Six months isn’t a very long time,” he said, quietly, and for a slight second, I thought he was about to break up with me. My heart literally skipped a beat.
“But the way I feel about you,” he went on. “It’s like we’ve known each other for way longer than that, you know? I’m not freaking you out, am I?” I laughed, with relief, and shook my head.
“No,” I replied.
“Anyway,” he continued. “I love you, Ava. And you know how we talked about soulmates and stuff the first night we met? Well now that you’re in my life, I-I don’t want you to walk out.” He was stumbling over his words, but I knew what he meant. I felt the same way, of course.
“Tyson, do you realize how amazing I think you are?” I asked him then. “You don’t have to explain yourself. I love you.”
“I love you, too,” he said, smiling. “And that’s what I’m trying to say, you know? I love you and I’m pretty sure it’s a lifetime kind of thing.” I laughed.
“You love me…infinity plus one, right?” I teased. “Was I that good in bed?” He cracked up and gave me a sweet kiss on my lips.
“Yeah, I gotta admit,” he replied. “I guess I’m your love slave now.” I lost myself in a fit of laughter.
4.
I didn’t tell Emily or Cassie or anyone else about what had happened between Tyson and me that night. It was something that I wanted to keep for just the two of us.
Both of our proms and college acceptance letters came and went, and we were still going strong, still together, loving each other more and more every day. Luckily, graduation fell on two different nights for us, and at Tyson’s graduation, I finally met his father.
After his graduating class threw their caps into the air, I ran down to Constantine High’s football field to congratulate Tyson. As I was cutting up with Tyson and Jake, I heard someone yell Tyson’s name.
“Ty!”
We all turned and saw Laura running down the field. She ran to Tyson and gave him a big hug, just as a man walked up behind her.
He was nothing like I’d imagined he’d be, though somehow, I just knew who he was. Tall, lanky, with thinning brown hair showing bits of gray, he wasn’t what I’d pictured ever being married to a woman as breathtaking as Tyson’s mom. But there was a kindness behind his tired eyes and his somewhat droopy smile, so I figured there was potential in there somewhere.
“Ava, you look so pretty!” Laura said to me then. I smiled.
“You’re the pretty one,” I replied, eyeing her white sundress that made her look nothing short of an angel.
“So this is Ava,” Tyson’s dad spoke up. I looked over at him and smiled, extending my hand. I was much more at ease with this man than I could have ever been with Tyson’s mother.
“Hey!” I said. “It’s so good to finally meet you!” He surprised me when instead of taking my hand, he gave me a hug.
“I’m Tom,” he said, returning my smile. “Ty, you did good, son. She’s stunning!” I grinned sheepishly.
“Thank you,” I told him, graciously.
“Ava graduated last night,” Tyson told Tom. “But I think I look better in my graduation digs, don’t you?”
I punched him playfully on the arm.
“You look like a Batman wannabe,” Laura joked. “Who has black graduation gowns? That’s so morbid.” Tyson retaliated this by giving her a noogie.
“What are you kids doing now?” Tom asked Tyson. I saw a different question than what he’d asked in his face and silently, I hoped Tyson would see it, too.
“Well, I was hopin’ I could get my dad to take some of us out for some grub, since I actually made it out of school alive,” Tyson responded, glancing over at me with a wink. I smiled. Bingo.
“You’d be so lucky,” Tom replied, with a large grin. The same smile Tyson had. “Where do you wanna go?”
“Chinese!” Laura said loudly. “Ty, please!”
“Yeah, Chinese is good,” he said. “That okay with you, Ava?”
“Oh, of course,” I replied.
“Jake, you coming along?” Tom asked Jake.
“I can’t, Mr. Andrews, sorry,” he declined. “My girlfriend has ‘special plans’ or something.”
“They’re very special plans!” Emily walked up to us then, giving Jake a big smack on his cheek.
“Let’s go, I’m starving!” Laura said.
“I just need to go by my car and get my purse,” I said.
“Nonsense,” Tom said, smiling. “It’s on me, Ava.”
So I went out to eat with the Andrews and I have to say, the food went down a lot easier compared to the dining out I’d had with Tyson’s mom a few months earlier.
That summer went by so fast, it’s like a blur in my mind now. Tyson and I spent nearly every waking moment together. He was scoring more and more gigs with his band all over Virginia and even North Carolina. I was going to every show that I could, while still managing to work a job at the local newspaper once to twice a week layin
g out the ad pages. When August came, it was time for me to move out of my mom’s house to go live in the dorms at Virginia State University. I wasn’t really nervous about it at all because Cassie would be my roommate and it was only twenty minutes away from Constantine a.k.a. Tyson. Again, I was taking a full-time load of college classes and working part-time, but Tyson and I made as much time as we could for each other.
Tyson also had some transitioning of his own going on. He moved out of his dad’s house just two miles away to live with Jake and the drummer in his band, Pete.
People around us were changing, too. My mom was promoted within her company and for the first time since my dad passed away, there was a genuine smile on her face. Emily and Jake broke up amicably, giving Emily the opportunity to transfer to a prestigious college in California and giving Jake the opportunity to enjoy true college bachelorhood. Life was good. Simple, normal, and really falling into place for everyone.
Tyson and I celebrated our one-year-anniversary in November by going back to that little church where we’d first met. We had a picnic in the grass and just talked for hours.
“You think we’ll get married here?” he asked me as we watched the sun set. I looked at him, smiling.
“You want to marry me?” I asked him. He laughed.
“What moron wouldn’t want to marry you?” was his reply, followed by a sweet kiss on my lips.
Six months later, at the beginning of the summer after my freshman year in college, Cassie and I decided to give up the dorm life and move into an apartment five miles from the VSU campus. After a long day of unpacking our dorm into our awesome new place, Tyson told me he wanted to go grab something to eat, just me and him. An hour later, on the way back from stuffing our faces at the Sonic drive-thru, I was surprised when Tyson pulled off the road and parked the truck in this field that was covered in clovers and poppies.
Broken Glass Page 3
