The Art of Life

by Carter, Sarah

“Well, you are going to find out in a few seconds.” He darts around the table and I go the other way, but there isn’t really anywhere to go. I plan on jumping over the couch, and yet that doesn’t happen. Jeremy tackles me onto the couch, before I can do anything. He pins me down and starts to tickle me.

  I scream, “STOP! SO NOT FAIR!” Then he starts to tickle me more. “Jeremy!” I gasp, “I will pee in my pants! Stop it!”

  “Eww,” he retorts, still holding me down. “Don’t pee on the couch, I have to sleep there. Actually if you pee on the couch, I am no longer being chivalrous and you are sleeping on it.”

  “Well,” I gasp between laughs. “If you would get off of me, I won’t pee in my pants. I only have one set of pajamas here, and I don’t really fit into your clothes. Though your clothes smell like you, so that’s a bonus.” Suddenly, I realize what I just said and want to scream.

  Jeremy grins and says, “My clothes what? Smell like me, why is that a good thing Isabelle?”

  “Shut up Jeremy. I didn’t just say that.”

  “Oh no, yes you did,” he replies. “You like the way I smell, which means you are attracted to the way I smell.”

  Groaning, I give in. “Fine, I love the way you smell. It makes me all giggly.”

  “I make you giggly,” Jeremy whispers, pressing himself down on me. “My, oh my, I can make you more than giggly.”

  “Pervert,” I laugh. “Get off of me Jeremy!”

  He finally lets me up and chuckles. “How awesome is that!? My ego is definitely pumped for the day.”

  “Oh yeah,” I say, getting a little ballsy. “If they could bottle your scent, you could sell it to people. I would buy it and smell it ALL the time.”

  Jeremy teases, “Would you put it on your pillow?”

  “Totally,” I reply walking up to him. “It can lull me to sleep.”

  “Is that what did it last night, my manly scent?”

  Rolling my eyes. “Let’s see, I am lying in the arms of this gorgeous guy, that has sworn to protect me. He smells delicious and I am pressed up against him. Yes, that would be what made me sleep better.”

  “That sounded very sexual, like a steamy romance novel.” Jeremy dramatically says, “He looked down at me with fire in his eyes. I couldn’t wait, I had to have him right there. So, I kissed him with the passion of a thousand suns.”

  I burst into hysterical laughter. “Yes Jeremy, that is what I dreamt about last night, hot steamy sex scenes involving you.”

  “Really?” He asks.

  “No,” I snap. “Geez, if I had a sex dream about you I wouldn’t tell you about it.”

  Smacking me on the butt, Jeremy counters, “Well, I would tell you in a heartbeat. I do like to see you blush.” He saunters his way down the hall to his bedroom. When he disappears, I gasp softly to myself. I have NEVER acted that way with a guy. I would think that would be flirting if we were actually interested in each other, but oh my gosh!

  There is a sudden knock on the door and I back up. “Jeremy, there is someone at the door, and I am NOT going to answer it.”

  He comes back into the living room and opens the door. Cassandra and Kent are standing in the hallway. “Hey,” Cassandra says softly. “You are nowhere near ready.”

  “We are moving her stuff. I didn’t think we needed to shower,” Jeremy retorts.

  My stomach tightens and does back flips as Kent walks in. I hang my head and put my hand up to my throat. “So,” Kent starts, “Cassandra won’t tell me what is going on. All I know is that I am not supposed to ask questions or really talk to Isabelle. What in the hell happened?” He looks over at me and narrows his eyes. I clench my throat even tighter. With a very angry look, Kent walks over and yanks my hand away.

  “JEREMY!” He yells. “What is that!? Who put their hands on her!?”

  “No questions,” Jeremy replies. “It wasn’t me, that’s all you need to know.”

  Kent breathes hard and then turns to me. “Did your mother do this?” I shake my head and shy away. “I personally will tear this person apart. I want to know who it was!”

  Jeremy walks over to his friend and puts his hand on his arm. “She has been through enough, please, don’t push her.”

  With a disgruntled grimace, Kent spits out, “Fine.”

  Cassandra walks forward with a bag. “Here, I got you some stuff. I picked out scarves to go with the outfits that we bought you. If you want to get dressed, I will show you what you can do with them.”

  “Okay,” I barely whisper. “I will go get dressed.” I turn and walk down the hallway. Jeremy comes up behind me, and puts his hand on my back. Turning I look up at him, and start to cry. He ushers me into his bedroom and closes his door.

  “Come here,” he sighs, pulling me to the bed. Jeremy sits down and pulls me onto his lap.

  I put my head on his shoulder, and choke out. “That is how everyone is going to react! How am I supposed to go to school?”

  “Hey, you don’t have to go back to school until you feel comfortable. They will understand. I think you should call your guidance counselor. Someone needs to know, especially if the police contact them.”

  “Yeah, not right this second,” I sniffle into his shirt. “I am scared to go back home.”

  “That is no longer your home Isabelle,” Jeremy scolds me. “You live here. We are going to get your stuff from your mom’s house and bring it HOME, and hell hath no fury, if someone tries to get in our way.”

  Bringing my head up, I am face to face with Jeremy. “Are you sure about this?”

  “Oh,” he says with a smile. “Definitely.”

  With an impulse, I kiss him gently on the lips and whisper, “Thank you.”

  “What is a fairy god father for?” He replies against my lips. Pulling back, he says, “We should get dressed. Which one do you want, the bathroom or bedroom? Unless, well, you know, we can change in the same room. I am totally okay with that.”

  I stand up. “You would like that wouldn’t you, pervert?”

  “What?” Jeremy laughs. “We are going to be living together. Sooner or later, we will probably see each other undressing. I mean, personally, I usually walk around in my boxers after I get out of the shower.”

  “Well, I do NOT walk around in my underwear, sorry.”

  Jeremy leans back onto his hands. “Well, that is a bummer. I was going to enjoy seeing that. What’s the bonus of having a girl live with me then?”

  “I can cook and clean,” I retort.

  “In a bathing suit?” Jeremy quips.

  With a glaring look, I snap, “No, sorry.”

  “Fine,” he groans. “Go, get dressed. I will change in here.”

  My mind drifts to the fact that I would like to see that. My eyes get huge at that thought. I quickly turn and grab my stuff, leaving the bedroom immediately. What is my problem!? Really?

  I go into the bathroom and change. Leaning on my hands, I stare at myself for a while. I look like I got hit with a ton of bricks. My throat is now a dark purple and black color. My eyes are blood shot and red. I have dark circles under my eyes. Geesh, I have never looked this bad. Suddenly, there is a knock on the door. “Yeah,” I yell.

  “Can I brush my teeth or did you fall asleep in there?” Jeremy asks.

  Going over, I open the door and cock my eyebrow. “You are a pain in the butt. You know that right?”

  “Hey, I like having a clean mouth, and we need to get going. Are you ready?” He pushes me to the side gently and goes to grab his toothbrush.

  “I need to brush my teeth, too,” I counter. We stand and bump each other while we do that. I can’t help but laugh. Jeremy shoves me out of the way, while I am trying to rinse out my mouth. “Hey!” I exclaim.

  He spits out his toothpaste and smiles. “You are slow and in my way.”

  “Whatever,” I say, wiping my mouth. “We should go. I don’t want my mom to be there.”

  Jeremy nods his head, “Let’s go then.”

  Kent and Ca
ssandra follow us in Kent’s car. I try to explain to Jeremy that I don’t have that much stuff and he keeps ignoring me. “You don’t know. We may fill a lot of boxes.”

  “Okay,” I sigh, looking out the window. When we pull up to my mom’s house, I just sit there and stare at it.

  “Are you ready?” Jeremy asks, taking my hand.

  Inhaling a very deep breath, I nod. “Yeah, let’s go.”

  We get out to find Josh leaning against a truck. I nervously play with the scarf around my neck. Josh looks at us with a bewildered look. “Can I ask what’s going on?”

  “Nope,” Jeremy says, pulling me passed him. “We need to box her stuff up quickly and get her out of here.”

  I go and unlock the door. Taking a deep breath, I walk in. It’s like there are lead weights in my shoes walking up the stairs, and when we get to my door, I freeze. It is only cracked a little. Part of me wants to just run and scream. I feel Jeremy put his hand on my shoulder. My eyes look up at him. He stares back down at me questioningly and looks at the door. I nod my head, and he opens it.

  There is nothing really out of place. You would think with such a horrible thing happening, that everything would be askew, but it isn’t. My eyes drift to my bed and that’s the only thing that makes my stomach turn. You can see it all crumpled, with the blanket pushed back. My bed is always made nicely.

  A knot grows in my throat, and I can’t move. Jeremy bends over and whispers, “It’s okay. You don’t have to go in if you don’t want to. Just tell us what you want.”

  “No,” I reply, taking his hand and squeezing it as tight as I can. “I can do this.” With that, I step into my bedroom. Josh, Kent and Cassandra come in behind us. Josh throws down boxes and starts to assemble them with tape.

  “What do you want us to take?” Cassandra asks softly.

  “My art,” I say. “I want all of it.”

  Kent goes to the wall. “I can handle that. We need a big box to put this in. I don’t want to wreck it.”

  “What else?” Jeremy inquires.

  “My clothes, I guess,” I reply, putting my hand on my head. “Oh, and my books, I want those.”

  Jeremy looks at Cassandra. “You help her with her clothes. I will pack up her books.”

  Cassandra nods and walks to my closet. Josh brings over a box and drops it down by us. “You don’t have to put it in there folded or anything. Just throw it in,” I say.

  “Alright,” Cassandra retorts, nodding her head. She opens the closet and starts to take stuff out.

  I turn and look at my bed. Horrible visions start to play in my head. My chest tightens and I can’t breathe. I start to back up into the wall, cringing with fear. Jeremy stands up, “Izzy, are you okay?”

  Shaking my head, I start to cry. “No, I can’t. I can’t get it out of my mind.”

  “Why don’t you wait downstairs,” Jeremy soothingly murmurs. “We can do this.”

  “What exactly happened?” Josh asks, looking at me with a concerned expression.

  With a really deep inhale, I gasp, “My mom’s boyfriend….he came into my room. He held me down on the bed……and…..”

  “Oh, Isabelle,” Kent says. “Did you take her to the ER?”

  “He didn’t get to that point,” I stutter. “My mom came in.”

  Josh crosses his arms. “Isn’t that a good thing?”

  My head hangs and I just cry. Jeremy puts his arms around me. “Her mom said it was Isabelle’s fault. She is an evil, vile woman and we need to get Isabelle out of here.”

  “So, that mark on your neck, that’s from him?” Kent asked.

  “Yeah,” I whisper. “He, he choked me. I actually started to black out.”

  “What mark?” Josh asks. Nervously, I undo the scarf and expose my neck. Growling, Josh snaps, “Who is this guy?”

  Jeremy sighs. “We don’t know who he is exactly. We went to the police station and filed a report. They were going to talk to her mom. I haven’t let Isabelle have any contact with her. I think that’s for the best, at least for now.”

  “I agree,” Josh retorts. “Well, let’s get this packed up quickly then.”

  I kind of sit on my desk chair as everyone packs up my stuff. My hands just won’t stop shaking, so Jeremy made me sit down. The guys start to carry stuff down to the truck and cars. Jeremy was right, there are a lot more boxes than I thought. Cassandra does all my clothes, which is nice. I don’t really want Jeremy to go through my underwear.

  Finally, there are only a few boxes left. Kent took down a box and Jeremy picks up another one. “We will get you downstairs now. Josh can put the rest in the truck.”

  “Okay,” I whisper.

  We walk out of my room, when we suddenly hear, “Ugh, Jeremy, there is someone here.”

  With a very quick speed, Jeremy flies down the steps. I hear my mom yell, “Who in the hell are you!? What are you doing? I am going to call the police!”

  “Mom,” I shout. “Don’t!” I run down the steps. “Leave them alone, they are my friends.”

  “What do you think you are doing!?” She snaps.

  Jeremy gets in front of me and seethes, “She is moving out and you will not speak to her.”

  “She is my daughter! You can’t tell me what to do! She is in high school, she can’t move out.”

  “Isabelle is 18,” Jeremy yells harshly. “She can do whatever she wants and she is moving out. And if I have my way, you will not know where she is going.”

  My mom crosses her arms. “You aren’t moving out. I will not permit it. Don’t you think you are being a little dramatic?”

  “Dramatic!?” Jeremy screams. “Your daughter is attacked in her bedroom, in her bed and you think she is being dramatic!?” He steps aside and points at my throat. “I don’t know about you, but that looks like it probably hurt! You dumb bitch!”

  Narrowing her eyes, my mom finally looks at me. As soon as she sees my throat, her hand goes over her mouth. “Isabelle,” is all that she can say.

  “You will not speak to her,” Jeremy growls. “Josh, take Isabelle outside. I will get the rest of her stuff.”

  Josh puts his arm around me and ushers me outside. My mom comes up behind us. “Isabelle, you can’t move out. I love you! I am your mom!”

  Turning around, I just scream, “You don’t love me! You don’t know what love is! Maybe you will realize what you have lost when I am not around to take care of you anymore!”

  That obviously pisses my mom off. She snarls, “Well, go move in with a guy at the age of 18. Don’t come running back to me when you are knocked up.”

  “You are such a….” I yell, leaping forward. Josh grabs me and picks me off the ground. I try to squirm out of his grip, because I really want to go punch my mom. “Put me down!” I command.

  “No,” Josh replies. “I don’t need there to be bloodshed.”

  Kicking and screaming, he drags me to the car. Kent opens the door and Josh shoves me in. I pout and glare at him. “Don’t give me that look,” Josh demands. “We are leaving before anything else happens.”

  “I really want to kick her,” I snap.

  “I know,” he laughs. “And as much as I want to let that happen, I need to make sure it doesn’t.”

  Cassandra comes up next to the car. “Go, help Jeremy.”

  Josh nods and leaves. I look up at Cassandra. “He’s a traitor.”

  “No, he is just looking out for you,” she replies. “We all are. You are one of us now, like it or not.”

  Tears start to blur my vision. “I hate her, I really do. What in the world did I ever do to deserve a mom like that?”

  More screaming is heard from the porch. I look out the window to see Jeremy and my mom yelling at each other. Kent and Josh load up the last of the boxes. “Jeremy!” Kent yells. “Come on!”

  He glares at my mom one last time, before coming to the car. I watch a little wide eyed. Jeremy gets in the car and slams the door. He just stares out the windshield, tightening his grip
on the steering wheel. “You are not coming back here.”

  “I wasn’t planning on it,” I sigh. Reaching over, I take one of his hands off the steering wheel and pull it onto my lap. “Thank you for defending me.”

  Jeremy rubs his thumb on my hand. “I have to.”

  “You have to?”

  “No,” he whispers. “I want to.” Jeremy brings my hand up to his face and kisses it. “Let’s get you home. We have some serious unpacking and organizing to do.”

  I snort. “We have to tackle the spare bedroom and get your stuff out first.”

  “Let me go in there first. There is some stuff I need to take care of,” Jeremy says really quietly.

  Of course, I know what he is talking about, the photo album. Wait, the girl in there, I wonder if that is who he was in love with. They seem so young though. Who is she, if not the person he loved so much? Hmmm, maybe I will never know.

  Chapter 14

  Carrying up the boxes is tiring. After all this, I need a nap. We pile everything up against the dining room wall, to keep it out of the way. Cassandra, Kent and Josh leave after a while. Jeremy thinks I need some time to decompress. I sit down on the couch and put my head between my legs.

  Jeremy comes over and sits down next to me. Rubbing my back, he says, “Just breath. It’s done with. You don’t have to see her again if you don’t want to.”

  “She is my mom and the only family I have,” I sigh. “As awful as she is.”

  “Sometimes, friends are better than family,” he replies, taking my hand. “You can pick your friends, but you can’t pick your family.”

  I take a deep breath and look at Jeremy. “Can I ask you a question without you getting mad?”

  “Uh oh,” he laughs. “Go ahead.”

  “Do you have any family?”

  There is silence as Jeremy looks at me thoughtfully. “One day, I promise I will answer that question, but for now I will say that I can sympathize with how you feel.”

  “All I have ever wanted was a loving family,” I mumble. “I don’t think I will ever have that.”

  Squeezing my hand, Jeremy says, “You will. You will be a great and loving mother and wife. You will give your entire heart to someone. I just know it.”