by Sarah Tork
Jenna: Greetings Earthling, it is I, Jenna, your long lost best friend whom you had decided to ditch tonight to spend time with your family. Hope all went well and if Boy Wonder monopolized your time instead I be angry like that. Laters Ho!
Annabelle: Greetings Alien creature. Not to worry, my boyfriend barely texted me tonight, and my family was their usual self. So there’s no need to be angry.
Shit.
What happened now? Her text didn’t sound happy. I’d left her alone for a couple of hours and now her life was supposedly back in turmoil?
Please God, if you’re listening, I hope it’s not true. I don’t have the mental strength to deal with all that tonight.
Jenna: Be real with me right now… are you okay?
Annabelle: Don’t worry, for reals. Everything is legit fine. I’m okay.
Jenna: Eeerk! Don’t lie to me.
Annabelle: Eeerk! I’m not. I’m fine.
Jenna: All right, if you say so.
Annabelle: Jenna!
Jenna: Annabelle!
Annabelle: Jenna Sabini
Jenna: Annabelle Simms!
Annabelle: Jenna ‘The Crazy Girl’ Sabini!
Jenna: Annabelle ‘The Boy Crazy Girl’ Simms!
Annabelle: Whatever. I’m so not boy crazy.
Jenna: You so are. Don’t even lie.
CHAPTER 3
*JENNA*
Friday November 2, 2012
“Huh?” I mumbled at the buzzing sound that woke me up.
I glanced at my alarm clock and cringed. It was just past five in the morning. Last night after finishing my homework and texting Annabelle in between assignments and revising my notes, I watched twenty minutes of a game show with my dad, who kept pulling his hair in dismay over the contestants’ inability to hear him shout the right answers. After an eventful day, I’d fallen asleep six and a half hours ago. If I had swim practice in the morning I’d be waking up in an hour, but practice was after school today, so it was sleep-in city for this girl this morning. Or was supposed to be. Someone texted me, and the constant buzzing rudely woke me up.
I reached for my phone and cursed. It had better not be one of my friends with a problem they needed help extinguishing. Jenna “The Greatest Friend Ever” Sabini was off the clock between 8:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. So someone I knew was about to get a text-full of scolding. How dare they wake their queen up at five in the morning for no reason but to appease their own selfishness? They obviously needed a reminder on the right way of doing things.
Looking at the screen, all my anger flushed away. It wasn’t a friend, it was my older brother, Robby.
Robby: Hey champion swimmer, get up and video chat with me, or face a horrible, excruciatingly painful, agonizing nightmare. The choice is yours, little one. Love, your older-yet-better-looking-much-wiser-genius brother, who orders you to wake up anyway and video chat. You have five minutes to respond before I take offense!
Jenna: Cool it master chef! Give a girl a break on her day off. No morning practice today…HOW…DARE…YOU wake me up this early!!!
Robby: You can scold me via video chat, sign in already I’m waiting!
Jenna: Fine.
It was a struggle, but with one eye still closed and a limp, I made it in front of my laptop. After logging in, Robby sent me a video chat request and I accepted.
“Let’s do this,” I mumbled as the video screen buffered. The screen turned black and then my big bro popped up, sitting on his desk chair in the room he rented in Miami. His brown hair was oily and slicked back, his usual look after a ten-hour night shift working in the kitchen as a line chef/pot washer. About to stick my tongue out in that annoying little sister fashion, I noticed the skin under his eye was bruised.
My eyes popped open and I brought my face to the screen. “What is that?” I growled quietly.
Robby shrugged. “It’s nothing.”
Incredulous, my jaw dropped. “It’s. Not. Nothing!”
“Keep your voice down.”
I pointed to him. “You have a black eye, genius. I think that allows for a high pitch!”
My brother looked annoyed, avoiding glares of destruction by rubbing his face. “It’s not a big deal. It wasn’t even about me.”
I scoffed and wagged my finger at him. “Well karate kid, that shiner on your face says otherwise, so spill, before I find forty dollars and fifty-two cents and buy a bus ticket to Miami just to kick your behind.”
Robby sighed. “Fights happen all the time when you work in a restaurant kitchen. One of the servers got into it with a sous chef about a last incoming order, things got heated, fists flew, I got in the middle to break it up, next thing I know someone’s fist hits my face accidently. Trust me, it’s not the first time I’ve had to break up a fight.”
“Maybe, but it’s the first time you’ve been hit in the face,” I mentioned, feeling my blood slightly simmer down.
“That you know of.” Robby smirked, squinting like he carried secrets. Before I could say anything else he waved the whole conversation away. “Enough about my black eye, it’s nothing, it’ll be gone in a couple of days. I’m not working tomorrow anyway, so it’s fine. This isn’t why I asked to video chat with you.”
I raised an eyebrow and motioned for him to proceed. “Well, big bro, do tell. Why on earth did you decide to video chat with me at five in the morning?”
“I just got home like ten minutes ago, I’m exhausted. But, because I’m such a good older brother I decided to check up on my little sis, see if all was good back at the Sabini mother ship?”
“And you couldn’t have waited till I woke up from at least seven hours of sleep?”
He grinned. “Me, older brother, you, little sister. We go by my schedule, it’s the rule of the roost, the way things go, boys rule, girls drool.”
I stuck my tongue out at him. “Screw that, I laugh in the face of a measly boy. Who’s got balls big enough to go against me, Jenna ‘The Rocket, Superstar, Amazeballs, Awesome sauce extraordinaire, faster than a dolphin swimmer’ Sabini? Now answer that, my good sir?”
Robby shook his head, giving me a look that screamed, “You’re unstable.” Unoffended, I shrugged. Sometimes, you just had to admit what you were, and I was definitely, more than likely, a bit cuckoo.
“You’re crazy,” he determined.
I grinned. “Well, we have the same DNA, so… pot, meet kettle.”
Robby chuckled, acceptance evident in the shrug he was giving me. “I guess so. Shouldn’t surprise me; the Sabini clan were always crazy.”
Before I could say anything else, my door creaked open. I looked over my shoulder and my dad was peering inside, looking confused with one eye closed.
“What’s going on? Who are you talking to this early?” he asked, coming inside my room and walking up behind me. “Who’s that? Robby?”
Robby grinned and leaned toward his screen. “Hey, Dad. Good morning.”
Like a lightning bolt had hit him, Dad leaned over me to get a better view of the screen. “Robby, chef extraordinaire, cooking them in circles in Miami like a pro, that’s my boy. What’s with the early video chat session… hey… hey!” Dad’s face went from pure joy to anger in a second as he pointed to the computer screen. “What is that on your face!”
I heard Robby groan, a here-we-go-again type of groan. “It’s nothing, just a little rumble in the kitchen between one of the cooks and a server.”
“Did you get a punch in too? You’d better have, if you got punched.” Dad began throwing air jabs, giving me Muhammad Ali at five in the morning. “Your old man could teach you a thing or two. Back in the day they called me the Sabini Stinger; one jab to the nose left them on the floor, booyah, a playah on and off the streets!”
“What’s going on?” Mom called from her room.
I cringed. “Uh-oh.”
Robby’s eyes widened in horror, because when Mom found out about his black eye, Dad would physically have to restrain her from driving to Miami and finding
the person who did it and kicking his buttocks back to the moon.
“Got some explaining to do to your mother,” Dad declared.
Robby looked uncomfortable. “Forget about it, Dad, just don’t say anything.”
Dad grunted out an incredulous laugh. “And risk your momma finding out later that I knew her only boy got a shiner and never told her? You think I have a death wish or something? Don’t let the biceps fool you, there’s no one more scared of the wrath that woman unleashes than me.”
“And me,” I added.
Dad leaned over me and unplugged my laptop from the charger. “Let me just grab this thing and take it to her, it’ll be easier this way.” He took the laptop and pointed the screen to me.
“Good luck, and may you survive the tornado that is our mom.” I chuckled, waving good-bye to my brother, who looked anything but relieved.
“Dad, don’t do this, I just got home from work,” Robby begged as Dad walked out of my room with the laptop and back to his room with Mom.
“Trust your old man, boy. He knows a thing or two about how to deal with overprotective women with tempers. Like a bandage, you gotta rip it off as quickly as possible,” Dad declared.
A minute later, after I’d decided a little nap was due before I officially woke up for the day, Mom’s high-pitched shriek filled our house. “YOUR EYE!”
I smiled, fading into sleep. Just another day in the Sabini household.
*~*~*
*JENNA*
“Surprised to see me?” I smirked, catching Annabelle unaware right in front of her locker. “Thought I was someone else. A certain baseball player?”
“No.” Annabelle blushed, slamming her locker shut.
I snorted. “Liar!”
My best bud was on the verge of exploding times a thousand. Her arms burst out in protest. “I was waiting for you, honest.”
“Liar!” I grinned, shaking my index finger in front of her face. “I’m like so disappointed.”
“Are we not having lunch together?” Annabelle exclaimed, shaking her head in disbelief.
I loved teasing her.
It’s just what I did.
I had the best friend pass.
I exhaled as if it exhausted me emotionally. “I don’t know anymore, kind of feeling like second place right now.”
“Really?” Annabelle asked, the sincerity in her voice catching me off guard. Did she really just believe me? It was kind of true, but I was so over it.
Kind of.
I snorted again, trying to deflect the subject to something less serious. “I’m just playing with you. Come on, let’s go eat. I’m starving.”
We headed down the almost empty hallway. There were a few people hanging around, but most of the students who had lunch right now were in the cafeteria. That meant there was probably a huge line outside the restaurant. That was not good. I was buying lunch today.
“Oh, and by the way, you’re forbidden to talk to, to look at, or fantasize about James while you’re with me in the cafeteria,” I reminded her, patting her lightly on the back. She went rigid, giving me a look that screamed “annoyed.”
“It’s not a problem.” Annabelle rolled her eyes, and shook me off.
I snorted louder. “Pulease, like you could. We both know how much willpower you have.”
My words were clearly affecting her by the way her eyes bulged out again. “You don’t believe I can do it?”
That would be a no.
But how could I tell her that without sounding mean? There’s no other way but the truth. Got to lay it on thick for her.
“He’s your, and I quote, ‘baby,’ and no, I don’t believe either of you can be without one another if you’re in the same room.”
“Watch!” Annabelle squeaked, walking faster. “Watch and see.”
“My eyes are open, ready to witness the impossible,” I told her, matching her pace.
“Prepare to have your Debbie Downer views shocked and shut down when you see what I’m about to do,” she declared, moving faster.
My jaw dropped. I snapped it closed and tried to match her pace. “Excuse me? Who did you just call a Debbie Downer?”
“You!” Annabelle grinned and made a run for the cafeteria.
“Girl, you better run!” I ran after her just as she burst through the cafeteria doors. I crossed into the cafeteria as Annabelle joined the restaurant’s line, oblivious of everybody staring at her rushing about. I joined the line, standing beside her. Annabelle had her back to James. He was sitting with the rest of the baseball team and was staring at Tom and Roy with a creased forehead.
“It looks like Boy Wonder’s in a mood,” I mentioned, jerking my chin in his direction. You’d think she’d twirl around in a jiffy and find her man to put his troubling thoughts to ease.
Baby I won’t be far, you’ll always be in my heart, I’m dying already being twenty feet away from you. Love is painful when it comes to distanceeeee, yeah!
She didn’t do that, though.
Annabelle kept her back to the entire cafeteria. It made me worry. I hoped that there wasn’t a problem between them again. Even though I didn’t really like her boyfriend, I didn’t want there to be any more fights between them. Hopefully, everything was still all lovey dovey. And they’d just gotten back together. If they had a falling out this early into reconciliation, maybe they were just not supposed to be together, destiny be damned and all.
She let out a deep sigh. Her shoulders hunched over, making her seem exhausted. “My back’s turned to him. He might be thinking I’m mad at him.”
“You want me to give Boy Wonder a signal, something to rest his mind from worry?” I suggested.
Her eyes widened, looking horrified. “No!”
“Too late.” I held up a pair of thumbs pointing up, and then gave the back of Boy Wonder a nod. “Okay, it’s all good.”
Annabelle’s eyes snapped up, looking happy as ever. “Really?”
I grinned. “Got you. Boy Wonder wasn’t even looking this way. He’s obviously too busy high-fiving his bros over an empty crushed can to notice his…. one and only. You’ve got a winner there, Anna!”
She shook her head at me with disappointed eyes.
And crap, went there again.
I’d said I wouldn’t, at least not vocally. In my mind, I could think he was a douche, but it had to stay there. This logic included every other fool in a relationship with one of my friends. If I didn’t get a handle on my outbursts, I could ruin a few of my friendships.
When was I going to learn to shut it?
I looked at Annabelle.
“Sorry. I had a tiny slipup. Don’t be mad at me please.” I grumbled, feeling like the crappy friend again.
“Jenna,” Annabelle warned, pointing her finger at me. “Be good?”
I raised my hands, surrendering. “Okay, no more, no more. I’ll be good. Promise.”
“Next ten!” The lunch lady yelled after bursting through the doors. We followed the line into the restaurant. I headed straight for the hot station, expecting Annabelle to follow me. I ordered a cheeseburger and while I waited for it to be prepared I turned around and found Annabelle standing in front of the candy bar station.
She looked frozen.
“Anna, you okay?” I touched her shoulder and waited for her to respond. Did she not know if she wanted to buy one?
Or was it something else?
Like that thing I’d been noticing for a while….
Someone lightly tapped my shoulder. I faced my shoulder tapper and blinked in shock. It was James, and he looked… concerned?
Boy Wonder actually cares?
“I got this,” he murmured, giving me a curt nod.
I stepped to the side and he took my spot next to her, instantly wrapping his arms around her. With her eyes closed, she nestled her head against his chest. He started whispering to her.
It’s like he knows her better than anybody.
Slap a donkey’s butt, for crying out
loud!
“Your cheeseburger’s ready,” the lunch attendant called behind me.
My heart pounded like crazy. The happy couple was frozen in time, but then Annabelle started to giggle like an idiot.
Boy Wonder was making her feel better.
For some reason, he knew more than I did about the issues she was dealing with. Issues I was still trying to figure out.
I hated that he knew more than I did.
He was her boyfriend and they loved each other. Their relationship was slowly, but surely destroying our close friendship. I was no longer her closest confidant, and that made me sad.
I picked up my cheeseburger and put ketchup on it, eyeing the “instant recovery.” As he nursed my best friend back to somewhat happiness, I saw him in a new light, but in the smallest way possible. He had much to prove to get me to not think of him as a douche bag anymore. We were heading in the right direction, but I’d probably change my mind about him in the next hour, hating him again.
I decided to let the happy couple be. I paid for my lunch and exited the restaurant, heading straight for the swim team’s table, to spend lunch probably without my best friend.
The table was missing a few of us and by few of us I mean at least half. Dana was sitting closely with Roy at the baseball team’s table. I glanced across the cafeteria, finding the “hot” girl table. Latisha was missing with her second-in-command, Stacey Two. She was probably in the bathroom somewhere, crying her eyes out that Roy was off the market.
