“I don’t want to end up being my mother,” I whisper. “I could never do that.”
“Izzy, you are not going to become an alcoholic. I don’t think you will ever touch alcohol, and if you do, it’s not going to be like that. Plus, I won’t let you get there.”
That makes me feel a little better. I rest my head on his shoulder. “When do you want to tackle that bedroom, because I don’t think you want to sleep on the couch much longer?”
“I thought I could sleep in the bed now,” Jeremy chuckles.
“Oh, one night we sleep next to each other and suddenly we are sleeping in the same bed?” I ask, trying not to laugh, too. “Why clean out the other bedroom then? I mean, geez, I can just put all my stuff in your room.”
Jeremy snickers and says, “No, I don’t think we can put all of our stuff in one room. Anyway, aren’t you a girl, don’t you need private space to do all your girly stuff?”
“Girly stuff, what kind of girly stuff am I supposed to do?”
“I don’t know. I am a dude, why would I know that?” Jeremy asks, looking at me with a smile. “You can have Cassandra over and you can giggle about boys on your bed.”
A snort comes out of me. “We have better things to do than talk about boys. We aren’t 12.”
“Yeah, but you are going to have to talk to someone about me. I mean, you already said how you love the way I smell. Imagine what else you will find that you love about me. Like, you may enjoy me walking around in my boxers.”
I shove him away. “You really think every girl wants you, don’t you?”
He just grins. “Oh come on, if I was a girl, I would be all about me. I am AWESOME!”
“Yes,” I sigh. “You are so awesome, I don’t even know if I can contain my impulses to jump you.”
“Jump me? Wow, I didn’t realize the draw was so big. I may have to lock my bedroom door at night.”
My eyes roll into the back of my head and I groan. “Jeremy I am not going to come into your room uninvited.”
“Hey, I don’t care if you do,” he says, pushing my hair behind my ear. “If you need me, come in.”
“If I have nightmares again,” I mumble sadly.
Jeremy runs his fingers through my hair. “Yeah, if you ever need me.”
“Thanks.”
“Well,” he exhales. “Let me go get a few boxes out of that room and then we can get started.”
Nodding, I reply, “Okay.” Jeremy stands up and I turn to watch him go into the spare bedroom, or my bedroom. I am not surprised to see him carry out the box with the photo album. I quickly look away, so it doesn’t seem like I am watching him. He goes back into the room and retrieves a second box, this one smaller. I am surprised to see a velvet jewelry box on top. That peaks my interest. What would he be doing with jewelry?
When he comes back out of his room, I look away and act like I was staring at the floor. “Alright,” Jeremy says. “Let’s get started.”
“Okay,” I exclaim. Wow, Isabelle, that isn’t suspicious. “What are we going to do with all this stuff?”
“A lot of it is trash,” Jeremy retorts. “I will get some garbage bags.”
With a laugh, I say, “We should tackle your room with a trash bag.”
“Whatever,” Jeremy drawls out. “We can clean my room next….I guess.”
“Go, get what we need. I will grab the vacuum.”
There is a lot of dust and I sneeze for, I swear, fifteen minutes straight. Jeremy tears down the boxes, as I clean. A good two hours later, you can actually see the bed and floor. “Hey, this is actually a really nice room,” Jeremy says, putting his hands on his hips. “Maybe I want this one instead.”
“Seriously?” I snap.
“No,” he laughs. “Man, you are gullible sometimes.”
I try not to smile. “You are mean. I am not gullible.”
“Really? Are you sure about that?”
“Shut up,” I laugh. “Naïve, not gullible.”
Jeremy shrugs, “You will learn you can’t take me seriously.”
“I think I have figured that one out already. I mean, really, who could take you seriously?”
With a devilish grin, Jeremy grabs me and throws me on the bed. I scream and try to squirm out of his grip. He just sits on me. “You should be nice when your best friend is so much stronger than you.”
“I will find your weakness one of these days!” I yell, laughing. “Anyway, we need to wash these sheets and stuff. Who knows how long they have been sitting underneath these boxes.”
Tapping his chin, Jeremy says, “Well, since I moved in a year and a half ago.”
“Oh!” I exclaim. “Gross! Get off of me! That is disgusting.”
“Wah, wah, wah,” Jeremy retorts. “Ooo, I am Isabelle, I can’t touch dirt. I will shrivel up and die.”
I cross my arms. “I can’t touch dirt, really? What have I been doing for the last two hours? This place was filthy.”
“I never needed this room. So, I piled junk in it.”
“Well, now it’s MY room. No more piling anything in it,” I retort, shoving him off of me.
“I won’t be doing anything to YOUR room. I won’t even come in here at all,” Jeremy says, plopping down on the bed. He puts his hands behind his head and just stares at me.
Rolling my eyes, I say, “You don’t have to stay out of here. If I can come into your room, you can come in here.”
“Nope,” Jeremy retorts. “You need your privacy.”
“What if you have nightmares?” I giggle.
A sudden serious expression passes over his face. Jeremy whispers, “Those stopped a year ago.”
“Well,” I say softly. “If YOU ever need me, you know where I am.”
“Thanks,” Jeremy replies, smiling. “Who knows, I may take you up on that someday.”
The sudden silence is overwhelming. We kind of just stay still, staring at each other. Finally, I reach down and start to pull up the blanket. “You need to get off, if we are going to wash this. I bet you want to sleep in your own bed tonight.”
“I don’t know. It was nice sleeping with you on the couch.”
That makes the corner of my mouth twitch up. “Yes, well, I still bet you miss your bed.”
“Yeah, I kind of do, though this bed is pretty comfortable. I mean the combination of a warm body and a soft mattress makes for a big temptation.”
“Do I have to worry about you crawling into my bed at night?” I ask, smirking.
Jeremy stands up and rips the cover off. “I don’t know. I guess you will have to sleep with one eye open.”
“Awesome,” I state sarcastically.
“Hey, remember you want to spray my scent on your pillow. What’s better than having the real life thing next to you?”
I groan and say, “I don’t know. I tend to wrap the blankets around me like a cocoon.”
“Ah, an Isabelle burrito, how cute. Enough repartee, let’s get your room ready.”
We do. The sheets are actually really nice….once they are clean. Jeremy helps me hang my clothes up in the closet. When we open the box with my underwear and stuff in it, Jeremy lifts up one of my bras from the lingerie store. “My, my, my Isabelle, what have we here?”
“Give me that,” I snap, grabbing it from him.
He just raises an eyebrow. “Who are you dressing all sexy for?”
“No one, but myself. A girl needs to feel good, even underneath her clothes.”
“Back to the subject of living together, if you want to walk around the house in your underwear, I am all for it. Especially those bras and panties, those I could definitely see every day,” Jeremy emphasizes with a huge grin.
My hand comes back and I punch him in the arm. “I will not parade around in nothing. Geez, I have barely been around guys. What makes you think I am going to be all naked around one?”
“Well, I will probably walk around half clothed. You will just have to deal with it.”
The images of
that start to run through my head. He says that like it’s a bad thing. Oh my gosh! I can’t be having these thoughts! He is your best friend Isabelle, YOUR BEST FRIEND. Stop gawking over him.
“I will need to get a dresser for some of this stuff,” I say, trying to change the subject.
“Yeah, I plan to buy you one and a desk, so you can do your homework and stuff. We can go tomorrow. Do you have any idea when you want to go back to school?”
That makes me reach for my throat. “Not until this heals a little more.”
“We should probably call your guidance counselor. They are going to wonder where you are and if they contact your mom, it may turn into a huge mess,” Jeremy points out.
“Okay, I will call now. She is usually in for a little while after school.” Turning I go into the living room and grab my phone. I dial the school’s number, it’s rings for a while.
“Hello, Jeffrey High, how may I help you?”
“May I speak to Miss Cunningham, please?” I ask nicely.
The receptionist replies, “Hold please.”
I hear a beeping for a bit and then Miss. Cunningham picks up. “Hello, this is Miss. Cunningham.”
“Hi, umm, this is Isabelle Nimon, I need to talk to you.”
“Yes, Isabelle, we were wondering what was going on. You haven’t been in school and we have not had any phone calls.”
Sitting down on the couch, I run my fingers through my hair. “Well, there is some stuff I need to explain to you.”
“Okay,” she replies. “Go ahead.”
“To start off with, I moved out of my mom’s house. See, she is an alcoholic. It’s been that way my whole life. I learned to deal with it when I was a kid, and honestly, it was horrible but I made it through, but the other night I was assaulted.”
“Excuse me?” Miss. Cunningham says, obviously concerned.
Taking a deep breath, I try really hard to not start crying. “My mom has, or had, this new boyfriend named Howard. Two nights ago, I was home and they were there. I guess my mom left to go to the liquor store and I was left alone with Howard. I…..I didn’t know that. Anyway, he came into my room and……assaulted me.”
“Did you call the police? Was he arrested? Did you go the emergency room?”
“He didn’t get far enough to actually….well, he didn’t get that far. My mom came in and he stopped and left.”
There is obviously a sigh of relief on the other end. “That is good.”
“Well, yes, it was, but the thing is, my mom doesn’t really care. She actually blamed me and said it was my fault.”
“You know it wasn’t right?”
I bite my lip and then reply, “Yeah, I know. I just can’t live there anymore, not after that. I moved in with my friend Jeremy.”
“Are you 18?” Miss. Cunningham asks.
“Yes, I am.”
“My concern is if you are going to be able to take care of yourself.”
My eyes drift to Jeremy. “I am worried about that too, but Jeremy says he can support me.”
“He can? Are you sure about this?”
“That’s what he says,” I retort.
Jeremy sticks out his hand, “Let me talk to her.”
“Hold on Miss. Cunningham,” I say, handing him the phone.
“Hi,” he says, “My name is Jeremy Stoll. I just wanted to reassure you that I can be responsible for Isabelle. I have more than enough money and the means to do it. She will be taken better care of with me than her mother. I can promise you that.” There is silence as Miss. Cunningham talks to him. “I will bring in financial records if you need me to.” That makes me raise my eyebrows. “Well, if it is necessary, I will.” He nods his head. “Yes, I will gladly come in with her. Okay, hold on a second.” Jeremy hands me the phone back.
Bringing it up to my ear, I say, “Hello.”
“I would like it if you would come in tomorrow, so we can go over everything.”
“Umm,” I mumble. “I would rather not, not yet. I have some injuries that are really visible, that I don’t want anyone to see.”
“It may be good if I come to where you are living anyway. To check it out and make sure everything is okay. You are 18, but there will be concern because you are still in school,” Miss. Cunningham articulates.
I look up at Jeremy. “Is it okay if she comes here?”
“Yeah,” Jeremy replies. “That is fine.”
“When would you be able to come?” I ask Miss. Cunningham.
She responds, “Tomorrow. I can come after lunch. I don’t have anything until 2.”
“Okay,” I say.
“Do I need to go to the police with you?” She inquires calmly.
“Oh!” I exclaim, “No, I went to the station yesterday and filed a report.”
Miss. Cunningham says, “That is good. Why don’t you give me Jeremy’s address. Do you need your homework? Would you like for me to collect it for you?”
“That would be great. My books are in my locker though,” I reply. “Can Jeremy come by and pick them up?”
“I will get them and bring them with me. Can I explain what happened to your teachers, so they know?”
Frowning, I ask, “Do you have to?”
“No, actually I don’t. This is something we can keep privately between ourselves. I will just say you will be having an extended absence,” Miss. Cunningham replies.
“Thank you,” I sigh. “I really don’t want anyone to know.”
“That is understandable,” Miss. Cunningham retorts. “Well, can you give me Jeremy’s address and I will come by tomorrow?”
I look up at Jeremy. “What is your address?”
“1864 Mariner Drive, tell her it’s the upstairs apartment,” he answers.
“Miss. Cunningham, it’s 1864 Mariner Drive. The side steps lead to the upstairs apartment. That is where we are.”
There is a pause, as Miss. Cunningham writes it down. “Okay Isabelle, I will be there, probably around 1. Does that sound alright?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, I will see you tomorrow then. Try and take it easy. We will get you through this,” Miss. Cunningham reassures me.
“Thank you,” I respond.
With a sigh, she says, “Bye Isabelle.”
“Bye,” I reply, hanging up my phone. My hands are shaking a little bit. I set my phone down and start to wring them. “Ugh,” I groan. “I shouldn’t be this upset. It is just too much.”
“You are handling it really well,” Jeremy states, sitting down next to me. He puts his arm around me. “I am proud of you.”
Turning I wrap my arms around him. “Thank you for everything you are doing.”
“Isabelle, stop thanking me. It makes me happy to help you. I appreciate you being thankful, but no more saying it, alright?”
I nod my head. “Okay.”
“I don’t know about you but I am hungry,” he mumbles. “We are ordering pizza, because I really want some breadsticks.”
That makes me laugh. “Okay, sounds good to me.”
So, Jeremy orders pizza, and I start to hang my artwork in my room. It is time consuming because I have to do it very specifically. Jeremy hangs out in the living room, to watch the news. I don’t mind, it is nice to have a moment to myself.
Later, after we have eaten and watched enough TV to make me sick, I yawn. “I am going to go to sleep.”
“Okay,” Jeremy replies. “I am going to leave my bedroom door open tonight. If you need to, come in.”
“Thanks,”’ I reply. I bend over and kiss him on the cheek. “You are too good to me.”
He grabs my hand and squeezes it. “If you need me, I am here.”
A smile creeps across my face, and I whisper, “Thanks.” Turning, I go into my room to get ready for bed.
That night, I do have nightmares again. I shoot up in bed in a cold sweat. Being in a different room throws me for a loop. I run my fingers through my hair and sigh. As much as I want to go crawl into Jeremy’s bed
, I don’t think I should. Getting up, I go into the kitchen to get some water. Afterwards, I turn the light off and walk back down the hall. Suddenly, Jeremy is standing there, and I scream.
Laughing, Jeremy grabs my arms. “Relax, it’s me. Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” I pant, holding my chest. “You scared the crap out of me.”
“I see that. Can’t you sleep?”
Shaking my head, I say, “No, nightmares. What are you doing up?”
“Actually, I haven’t really been sleeping much tonight. I have a lot on my mind,” he replies.
“Oh,” I moan. “I am sorry.”
Jeremy rubs my arm. “It is not necessarily all about you. Yes, I am worried about you a lot. Actually, before you got up, I was about to come check on you. I just…..well there is a lot in my past that keeps me up at night. It’s just a combination of things.”
“I thought I woke you up,” I mumble. “I just can’t get the nightmares to stop.”
“Do you want to come sleep with me?” He asks.
I shrug, “Yes and no. You are really comforting, and it makes me feel a lot better, but I don’t think I should get used to sleeping in your bed.”
“We can sleep in your bed,” Jeremy quips back.
That makes me laugh. “No, I mean, I have to get used to having bad dreams. I can’t run to you every time that I have one.”
“They will slowly start to stop as time goes by,” he says. “Trust me, I know this.”
“I sure hope so. I am just so tired and every time I close my eyes, I see him.”
Jeremy pulls me into his arms. “Come on, just come to bed. It is nothing sexual. Just having someone near you can help.”
“Fine,” I sigh into his shirt.
“We can sleep in your bed. That mattress is seriously comfortable. I forgot I bought such a nice one.” He grabs my hand and pulls me into my room. Jeremy jumps on the bed and lies down on the opposite side. “Come on toots.”
I get into bed and lie there staring at the ceiling. You know, we slept next to each other last night, but tonight is just as awkward. He rolls over onto his side and looks at me. “What?” I ask, turning to look at him.
“Nothing,” Jeremy chuckles. “You are acting like you are going to jump away from me again.”
Taking a deep breath, I exhale. “I am just overwhelmed.”
The Art of Life Page 24
