Schooled

by Deena Bright

  “Girls want the same thing that guys want, Leo.” I explained.

  “Miss Garrity, that is the farthest thing from the truth, trust me.” Cracking me up, Leo explained that he spent some time trying to figure out what really made women tick. He even went as far as to read theTwilight series, Fifty Shades of Grey, and even The Hunger Games to figure out how a woman’s mind worked. “And believe me that was the most confusing research I’ve ever done, contradictory in every way.” He said.

  I couldn’t help but laugh my ass off at him. Surprisingly, he didn’t take offense at all, laughed right along with me. “Leo, those books are fantasies, well Fifty and Twilight are, The Hunger Games isn’t even a love story, you moron.” I said, smacking his arm. Wow, his really solid arm.

  “Well if women want a guy to tie them up, beat them with sticks, and suck the blood out of their necks, then I really don’t think I’m the guy for them.” Leo said, jokingly. “But I could fight off predators who wanted to the kill the woman I loved, and even sacrifice my life for hers.” Man, I loved a well-read guy. What a turn on. Why weren’t women flocking to this man?

  “You’re missing the point,” I said, getting into full teacher mode. “Take Edward Cullen for example, if he and Bella were a real adolescent couple, she’d freak her shit if he started telling her where to go, who to talk to, and snuck in at night to watch her sleep. She’d have a restraining order on him in 10 seconds flat.” I argued. Trust me, I knew how women worked, especially adolescent girls. They would never put up with that type of control freak.

  “The same with Christian and Anastasia; she’d deem him a crazy-ass freak job, and she’d spend hours making fun of him with her roommate and hot artist friend.” I felt like I really needed to convince him. Continuing, I said, “It’s the fantasy, Leo. The fantasy of the forbidden, having what you cannot, should not have.”

  He smiled, and said, “Money, they also love a rich man.” I couldn’t deny that. Women did love a man with money.

  Wasn’t I doing the same thing? I wanted Briggs. I wanted Leo, but I know that there was no way that actually having them would be a well-thought out plan. “That shit’s not reality. Reality is falling in love with the best friend, the one who saved you, gave you bread, wanted to eat poisonous berries with you, kept you warm at night.” I explained to him. Women wanted someone who loved them unconditionally. “Women want a man to take control, not be in control; that’s the flaw in those stories.” I desperately wanted him to believe me, and in turn, believe in his own desirability.

  He looked at me, studying my face, my reactions. “I think you’re wrong. How could they be so popular with women if those stories aren’t dead on?” There was something refreshing about arguing with a man when it didn’t turn into a full out battle. He argued his case, calmly and rationally. He was intelligent and well-spoken. “Nobody wants the Jacobs and Peetas; women nowadays are pining for the rich, dreamy Edwards, and Christians.” He argued. I do. I do. Arguing sensibly with a man without either person getting offended or hurt was always a hard task. However, arguing lightly and easily with a man about literature and life was refreshing, fun, and a turn on too.

  I really loved a well-read man, especially a well-read chick lit man! “Dreaming Leo, the key word is dreaming. “ How could I explain this in a way that made perfect sense, made him agree with me? “Okay listen, suppose I got into bed tonight, what would I rather have in my bed, a cold, cement-like statue, or a warm, soft puppy dog?” I questioned, trying to analyze this in a way that he saw my point and agreed with it.

  Feeling compelled to continue to try to convince him, I said, “Nobody on this planet sleeps next to statues, but many women sleep next to their loyal puppy dogs.” Why did something make perfect sense to me, and not to him, or anyone else for that matter? “We dream of the unattainable bad boy, but when we go to bed at night, we want the warm, predictable, puppy dogs, the Jacobs and the Peetas, not the hard, cold vampires and dominants.” I said.

  He just shook his head. “I’ve been the loyal best friend, the good guy, and I’ve never gotten the girl,” he said. I looked at him, frowning. “Don’t look at me like that; I’m not looking for sympathy. It’s a cold hard fact; girls dream about and want the bad boys, asleep or even awake.” I knew he couldn’t be convinced; his mind was made up.

  “Well hon, I see I can’t change your mind here, but I do have some good news, we have a book club meeting coming up next month, and we’d love to have you there,” I joked, “We read The Help this time; you should come.” I shoved against him, trying to make him laugh, flash those dimples.

  Laughing, “No thanks, I’m out. Someone should’ve just killed that Miss Hilly, bitch. I would’ve.” He smiled, dimples showing. I was dying, laughing so hard I could barely see through the tears rolling down my face. “I’m surprised you’re just getting around to reading that one.” He said, seriously.

  Still laughing, I said, “I was only kidding you idiot. I’m not even in a book club. I just tried to think of the girliest book I could come up with to tease you. I didn’t know you freaking read it.” I couldn’t stop laughing.

  “Hey, don’t make fun; it’s a good one, that poor Mae-Mobley.” He stood up, wiping off his pants. “She was such a sweetheart. Well, I gotta get going Miss Garrity. You make me laugh. Thanks.” He started walking away; I watched him walk. How could this guy be single? What was wrong with women today?

  “Leo,” I called after him. He turned around; he looked beautiful standing on the sidewalk, with the sunset behind him, so pure, so innocent, and so perfect. “I just wanted to say…umm…have a good week. I’ll be in New York until Wednesday.” Okay that wasn’t what I wanted to say at all.

  “Have a good trip; I’ll probably see ya next weekend then.” He left, walking with a little skip in his step to the backyard.

  Phew. That was a close one. I was so glad that I stopped myself from saying that I have always been Team Jacob and Peeta. He would’ve thought I was coming on to him for sure. But, I would take Peeta and Jacob any day over Edward and Gale. That was the truth. The real question was, what if I had to choose between the strong, beautiful, fun, and loving Jacob and the loyal, reliable, equally beautiful and self-sacrificing Peeta?? Now that would be a serious problem. How could anyone make that kind of choice? To choose between Jacob and Peeta would make any girl a sobbing, crumbling mess; they were two perfect men, too perfect to choose between.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The next morning, I had to race to the terminal. I couldn’t seem to get ahead of the clock that morning. It took me forever to find my pills; I always needed something to knock me out when I flew. Flying wasn’t my thing, would never be my thing. But, I recognized it for what it was, a necessary and efficient way to travel. A few narcotics took care of my fear, allowing me to reach my destination without freaking out each person aboard the aircraft with each dip or jerk the plane made.

  Once on the plane, I downed a few pills and a Tangueray and tonic to get comfortable, hoping the pills would kick in pretty quickly. It was pretty comfortable too; I loved Jasper for booking my flight in first class. Well, loved his secretary for booking my flight, I wasn’t even sure Jasper would know how to book a flight. It had been a long time since he was one of the commoners. Jasper has had money for as long as I could remember. As soon as he was old enough to figure out that working meant making money, Jasper has been a workaholic. I felt myself drifting off thinking about how I hoped that he’d slow down someday and find a good girl to marry. I’m sure he’d make a fine husband, but he’d be a great dad, the best father any kid could ever want.

  ******

  “Miss Garrity, we landed.” She was shaking me lightly. Did the stewardesses know my name? Wait, isn’t that a sexist title now? I think they’re flight attendants. Yeah, that was right. Did they know my name? My boarding pass said “Flowers,” so that couldn’t be right. I couldn’t open my eyes. I probably shouldn’t have taken two pills, the flight from Ohio to N
ew York wasn’t really that long. I needed to open my eyes. Oh my God, I was tired.

  Slowly, I opened one eye, hating myself for how I felt, and for how I must look to these people. She was cute. Not a flight attendant. Wait a minute. I knew her. Oh shit. What was this girl’s name? Uhh, shit. Sarah, Sarah somebody. I couldn’t remember. Of course, I’d be passed out and end up knowing someone on the plane. Oh wait, not just know someone. Correction, would be awaken by someone, a former student someone. That’s who she was. Sloane. Sarah Sloane.

  I tried to swallow, moisten my very dry mouth. I attempted to say “Hey Sarah,” but it came out more like “Hey rah rah.” She just laughed.

  “Your brother said that you usually knocked yourself out to fly, and I should be prepared.” She said as she gathered up my carryon and purse. My brother? What did that mean? She knew Jasper?

  “Jasper? You know Jasper?” How could one of my old students know Jasper? My head wasn’t clear at all. I had to shake myself out of this. She handed me an unopened bottle of water.

  “This will help, so will walking it off. We have some time to kill before dinner, so you can crash at the hotel.” She knew a lot, but I had no idea what she was talking about. I just followed her, while I allowed myself to wake up. Definitely should’ve only taken one pill.

  After we got off the plane and used the restroom, I felt a bit better, but still couldn’t figure out why Sarah Sloane was with me in New York. I had to suck it up, face the humiliation, and just ask her.

  “Sarah, why are you here, in New York, with me?” It sounded so rude, but I was clueless.

  She looked surprised and a little embarrassed. “Didn’t Jasper tell you that I was coming?”

  “I don’t know how you’d even know Jasper.” I explained.

  “I work for him, his new account rep. Miss Garrity, you gave me a reference.” Now she looked really confused and embarrassed.

  “Oh shit, I mean shoot, Sarah, I forgot, Oh my God, totally forgot. Yes…yes.” I groaned, humiliated by my own stupidity. “I remember now. You moved back to Ohio and was looking for a job; I told you to apply at Garrity Advertising. I’ve been so wrapped up in Everything Garrity that I completely forgot. I’m sorry.” She just laughed and kept walking toward the baggage claim as I stood there baffled by my own forgetfulness and self-absorption.

  Sarah was a great student of mine my first year teaching. She’d gone to James Madison University in Virginia. She’d written to me a lot that first year, forwarding me her papers to edit and proofread before turning them in for professor evaluation. I enjoyed hearing the stories of her freshman year. After a bit, I stopped hearing from her, up until last year. She’d finished her degree in December and wanted to move back to Ohio. She contacted me and asked if I knew of any entry-level job openings. Jasper said that he could use her, and I forwarded his information on to her. Apparently, he hired her, via a video chat interview. She sent me a fruit and wine basket thanking me for the job, but I hadn’t heard from her since. Jasper never mentioned her. I should’ve remembered when he said the other day that his new account rep from JMU was going with me to New York, but I wasn’t in the best frame of mind when he told me. Again, I wasn’t in the best frame of mind. I didn’t particularly want to spend the next few days babysitting one of my old students. Well, as it started, she was babysitting me.

  In the cab on the way to the hotel in Times Square, I asked, “Did you say we had dinner reservations?” I didn’t know we had plans in New York. I thought I was just going to wander around the city, pretending to be rich.

  Reaching into her bag and pulling out the itinerary, Sarah said, “Oh yeah, we’ve a full two days planned.” Glancing at the agenda and skimming the information, Sarah nodded excitedly. “We have six hours to kill until dinner; your brother figured you’d need to go shopping for clothes for tonight and tomorrow. We have reservations for dinner at Nobu and then tickets for Wicked at 8:00 p.m.”

  I screamed, scaring the cab driver. “Nobu!? Wicked!? Holy Fuck, seriously?” I just snapped out of it. Jasper was the greatest brother. He knew that I’d been dying to see Wicked. Growing up, I was a crazy Wizard of Oz fan. I was the only person I knew who hadn’t seen Wicked yet. And Nobu? Howard and Beth Stern loved Nobu. What if they were there? I couldn’t’ wait to tell Leo; he’d be so jealous.

  “Miss Garrity, I am so glad you’re excited. It’s all I could talk about this past week,” she said, excitedly. “I can’t believe I get to do all this. Thank you for getting me this job. This is exactly what I needed. I’m loving it.” She was beaming. She looked so young and naïve. This was going to be fun; I was glad Jasper convinced me to go.

  We went to the hotel to unpack and freshen up. I told Sarah I’d meet her in the lobby in an hour for an afternoon of shopping. I needed to grab a quick shower to wake up. I felt a headache coming on, so I wanted to get a hot shower and rejuvenate before my fun day in the city. The shower felt warm and relaxing, calming my recent flight anxiety. I was excited about the itinerary for the next two days. I couldn’t believe that Jasper surprised me like this. We didn’t talk much about Marcus and me or my feelings, but this just proved he knew that I needed a pick-me-up. Jasper was a good guy. Maybe, I’d start running with him once a week. Maybe.

  When I met Sarah in the lobby, she said that there was only one thing that she really wanted to do while she was in New York and that was get an infamous cupcake from the Magnolia bakery, the original bakery. She said that was all anyone talked about when they went to New York; I’d never heard of it. I figured that I’d enjoy a cupcake just as much as anyone. We decided to skip lunch and just go straight for the cupcakes. I was floored when I saw the line, three blocks long. She wouldn’t change her mind; said that everyone claimed it was worth it. Standing in line for 30 minutes for a red velvet cupcake was not how I wanted to spend my afternoon in NYC, that is until I bit into the scrumptious dessert. I wasn’t sure how one cupcake, a silly stupid cupcake, could be so satisfying and delicious. I thanked Sarah profusely for forcing me to sample this delightful pastry. Magnolia would definitely see me again and again.

  Taking full advantage of shopping in New York, I bought a one-piece jumper-like pants suit for our dinner and show, figuring that I would never have another opportunity to wear something as chic and trendy as a silk, charcoal-colored, one-shouldered, one-piece pants suit again. I switched out the silver chain belt it came with for a red thicker belt to complement a pair of sexy red strappy sandals that I fell in love with. Alright, so I didn’t really need, Jimmy Choos, but I deserved a little splurge, and they were slightly on sale. Since Jasper gave me a grand to blow, plus there were 250 thousand dollars waiting on me, I could enjoy this trip a little more than I normally would. The pants suit was perfect. But the dress I got for the gala was stunning; it even looked stunning on me. Char was going to cry and beg to have it.

  Normally, I dress rather modestly, and this dress looked modest, until I turned around. It was a deep plum color, long-sleeved, and form-fitting the whole way down my body, stopping right above mid-thigh, shorter than I’m comfortable with. The back, what little there was of it, had a small line of fabric across my neck and shoulder blades, and then the entire back was cut out, dropping to the very top of my ass, preventing me from wearing a bra or underwear. It was sexy, too sexy, perfect for a formal gala in New York City. I planned to wear my hair in a low ponytail to the side, swooping around to the front of my body to accentuate the opening in the back. I even bought a small silver clutch purse, light gray bootie heels, and silver jewelry to accessorize. I spent nearly $3,000.00, but enjoyed every minute and penny of it, promising myself that I wouldn’t have buyer’s remorse as soon as the plane touched back down at the Cleveland Hopkins airport upon my arrival home. I hoped I could keep that promise. I was already remorseful that Briggs would never see me in this dress or be able to take it off me of me. Or Leo.

  Sarah bought a simple black cocktail dress from a small boutique. The dress was short, ru
ched along the side, and strapless. She wasn’t much of a shopper, but was a wonderful shopping sidekick, complimentary and helpful. Sarah enjoyed purchasing the touristy things in New York: knockoff purses in Chinatown, a Yankees hat at a shop in Times Square, and fake Chanel sunglasses from a stand in Greenwich Village. She wanted to go to a lot of places, but was fast at each destination. I only wanted to go to a few places, but took an eternity at each place. We complemented each other well. I was impressed that we pulled it all off in five hours and still had time to kill and get ready.

  Chapter Sixteen

  When Sarah and I walked into Nobu, heads turned, which was beyond flattering since it was a celebrity hot spot and gorgeous people ate there daily. Loving anything peach flavored, we both ordered the Bellini Martinis. The martinis were strong, but thirst-quenching and delicious.

  “Sushi? Japanese! I thought this place was a steakhouse.” I said when I looked at the menu. All this time, I had been dying to go to Nobu. I’d thought it was an upscale steakhouse. How could I have missed that one important fact? “I hate sushi.”

  Sarah was choking on her martini. “Are ya kidding me? Nobu? Did you think it was American food?” I didn’t know what I thought. “Have you ever even had sushi?”she asked.

  “No, but I know I hate it.” I was so pissed. We could’ve gone to Serendipity instead, another celebrity favorite. Hell, that place could be Indian or Tai food for all I knew. Every day, I was realizing how little I truly knew about things.

  Sarah said that she loved sushi and was as equally excited about Nobu. I figured it would be smart to just let her go ahead and order for both of us. She ordered the scallops with spicy garlic sauce for me and a sushi sampler dinner for her. I was happy that my meal would be thoroughly cooked and that I could pronounce and understand each item I’d be eating. Sarah was a little more cultured than I remembered her.