by Silva Hart
At lunch, I make my way through the halls to the alarm-free door. Outside, the bracing air clears my head. Anna is waiting in the dugout. I get out the pack and light two. After I hand her one, she takes a drag and says, “I saw there’s a dance coming up.”
“Yeah, some girl tried to give me tickets to it.”
“Really? Do you have them?”
“Why, do you want to go?” The words are out before I even think about them. I’ve never been to a school dance. Going with Anna might make it fun. I imagine her sweet little body pressed up against me with her arms around me while we slow dance.
She exhales a cloud of smoke. “God, no.”
Okay, I get it. School dances probably suck. But I’d have thought she might at least consider the idea since it would be me she’d be going with.
“The dances in California were awesome though. Me and a bunch of friends would go and dance our asses off then hang out at the beach and drink beer around a fire. It was so fun.” She flicks the ashes onto the dirt floor of the dugout. “I can just imagine what they’re like here though. All the cafeteria tables pushed up against the wall with the lingering smells from the gross lunches stinking up the place and everyone awkwardly standing around. Everyone is so uptight here. So, did you take the tickets?”
Her words are so sour that I do a double-take. Dark circles hollow her eyes. She must not be getting much sleep.
“Nah, I didn’t know why she was giving them to me so I didn’t take them.”
Anna throws her head back and laughs. I love making her laugh, but I’m not sure how I did it this time.
“You don’t know why some random girl would come up to you and offer you free tickets to a dance? Let me guess, there were two tickets, right?”
“Looked like it.”
She flips her hair and gives me a lascivious look as she affects a high-falsetto and purrs, “Hi, Jett. I have these two tickets to the dance that’s coming up and wanted to give them to you.”
“It wasn’t like that. It was more serious. Like she was trying to sell me something.”
“Yeah, herself. She wanted you to take her to the dance.”
Right, I figured that part out. “But why did she do it like that? Why not just ask me?”
Anna gets a patient tone as if talking to a toddler, and I don’t appreciate it. “Because, by doing it the way she did, you wouldn’t be rejecting her, you would be rejecting the tickets.”
“Why would she think I would want to go to a school dance with her? I don’t even know her.”
“Most people take anything free that’s handed to them. And most people would then have felt obligated to take the gift-giver with them. That’s how normal people operate, Jett.”
Her condescending tone nips at me. I get that she’s having a hard time adjusting to living here, but she’s changed since she started hanging out with Galloway’s group.
I shake my head. “Whatever.” I’m about to get up and leave.
As if sensing this, she sighs and says, “Sorry, don’t mind me. I’m in a mood today.”
I settle back somewhat mollified but still irritated. I’d been having a decent day, but this entire conversation has brought me down and left me feeling knotted. It’s still lingering with me by the time I go to meet Lexi sixth period, and I’m in a grim mood.
As soon as she sees me, Lexi gives a smile that could increase global warming. It’s spectacular. “Let’s not sit in that room again with the nosey librarian.” She takes my arm and steers me through the book stacks to a table I didn’t even know existed in the back corner. A skinny kid is sitting at it. “Mind if we join you?” Lexi asks brightly, as she tosses her backpack onto the table.
“Uh …” The kid’s eyes bulge at me. “It’s okay. You can have it.” He sweeps his things up in his toothpick arms and hurries away.
Lexi laughs. “You’re such a bully, Jett.”
“What did I do?”
“You looked at him like he was the one who killed John Wick’s dog.”
Did I?
She comes to me and smooths the hair from my eyes with gentle fingers. “What’s wrong, babe?” She asks softly. “You look like you had a bad day.”
I didn’t really, except for the conversation with Anna. Why did that get under my skin so much? And why the hell can’t I shake it? Gazing into Lexi’s concerned eyes, the cloud inside me slowly melts away. I imagine this is how it feels to stand in front of a crackling fire after shoveling snow with the sensation of life returning to numb fingers. “It’s nothing.” And it isn’t.
We sit next to each other, and she places a hand on my knee, leaning toward me, her blue eyes sparkling. Sitting near her like this with her eager attention nearly takes my breath away. She’s more beautiful than what the northern lights must look like in their shimmery brilliance. It makes me want to sink into all her warmth, to feel her around me.
“So, spill it, Jett. Why did you ask me if I knew Mia Ward? I’ve been dying to know all day.”
“This kid who goes to Willow Run started coming to my gym. He was in a foster home with her.”
Her eyes go wide. “Really? I would never have guessed she was in a foster home. She plays the flute in the school orchestra.”
Why didn’t he mention that? It could have made finding her a lot easier.
“So then what?” she prompts.
“The foster dad, or whatever you call him, caught them going at it in the bathroom.”
“Seriously?”
It feels wrong to be telling Dair’s story to someone like I’m a gossip, but I’m doing this to help him. “They were in love, and the guy split them up after that. They got sent to new homes in different school districts. Dair wants to find her. He wants to marry her.”
Lexi clasps her hands together. “That’s so romantic. You want me to introduce you to her? She’s sweet.”
What would I say to her? “Nah, let me tell Dair that she’s here and see what he wants to do.”
“Okay. If there’s any way I can help, let me know.”
I feel better as Lexi gets out her math homework. We go over it with me explaining things and her working the problems until the bell rings. Her hand rests lightly on my leg, but for the first time she doesn’t try getting it into my pants. I’m not sure how I feel about that.
After school, as I’m walking out to the car, Lexi appears by my side. “So I talked to Mia, and it turns out she signed up to play in the talent show.”
“When’s that?”
“The twenty-fourth. A few Saturdays from now. You want to go together?”
“Sure.”
She gives a little gasp. “Oh, I just got a fun idea. You know what we should do?” She’s bouncing against my arm. “What if Dair–that’s his name, right? The guy?”
I nod.
“Okay, so what if Dair surprises her by coming to the talent show and watching her then going backstage after it’s over? Can you imagine how surprised she’ll be? That would be so fun to see.”
It’s a good idea.
“If anyone asks who he is, we’ll just tell them he’s on the newspaper of another school and came to the show to write an article about it.”
That’s getting elaborate, and it’s best to keep things simple. But it’s amazing to watch her brain work. She’s more creative than I’d given her credit for. “I’ll run it by him.”
She claps her hands. “I feel like Cupid.”
Chapter 19
We’re in the Mustang and driving before I even realize that Lexi got into my car and I left school. I was so caught up in what she was saying. Where was Anna? Did we pass her?
“You want to go to The Overlook?” she asks.
“Sure, why not?”
The whole way there, she chatters about the plan, tightening up the details to make sure everything goes flawlessly. I park and gaze over the skyline.
“What’s Dair like?”
“He’s had it rough, but he’s kept his sense of humor. H
is boxing needs work, but he’s jacked.”
Her hand slides up my arm. “Not as jacked as you I bet.”
I glance at her and find lust in her eyes. When I slide the seat back, she climbs over the center console to straddle me. Her silky hair cascades around us. It’s like the night I rescued her from the party but also very different.
She bends forward and covers my lips with hers. Their gentle softness stirs me. Our tongues meet and dance. My euphoria is shattered when another car parks next to ours. Really? They have the entire parking lot and they park there?
Lexi crosses back over to her seat. “I know where we can go.”
We leave The Overlook, and she directs me to a ritzy neighborhood.
“Here,” she says. “Park.”
I pull along the curb, wondering where she has in mind along the house-lined street. We get out of the car and she takes my hand and leads me to a McMansion. A “Brought to You By Architectural Designs” sign is stuck in the front lawn.
There’s still plenty of daylight for anyone to see us, but Lexi feels comfortable walking around the side of the house where a flap of plastic sheeting hangs loose. She slips under it, pulling me along with her.
Lumber and power tools line the sunroom addition. Stacks of tall, arched windows and drywall lean against one roughed-in wall. Two sawhorses stand in the middle of the room with a sheet of plywood set across them like a table top.
“How did you know this was here?” I ask.
“Carlton or one of his friends found out about it. We came here a couple nights ago for the hell of it.”
Why does it surprise me every time she tells me she hangs out with him? Does she like him? Is anything going on between them? And why would that bunch slum it in a shell of a construction project?
Lexi walks to the makeshift table and presses on the area over one sawhorse, testing its strength. Turning, she gives me a lecherous smile as she wiggles her finger for me to approach her.
I do. Of course I do.
Her arms wrap around me. Her fingers twine in my hair. Her lips press against my neck. And that body–that oh-so-perfect body–arches against me.
After the blissful sensation of complete release, she seems content to press her cheek against my chest with her arms wrapped around me. And I can’t say I’m unhappy.
“Oh my God, Jett,” she finally sighs. “You are the best. You have no idea how much I’ve been thinking about you all day.” She looks up at me and brushes the hair from my eyes, gazing at me with such open affection that I have to look away. “You’re so beautiful.”
I lift her off the makeshift table. Yeah, she could have hopped down herself, but it seemed like the right thing to do.
In the car, our fingers twine on the center console as I drive. We’re coasting down her winding driveway when I ask, “Have you always lived here?”
“No, we moved here about five years ago after Daddy made it big selling the beer he makes with his brother.”
“He makes Moores beer?” I ask, incredulous. I knew it was a local brand but never put two and two together.
“Yeah,” she says. “He works a lot and is almost never home.” She sounds sad. “He’s a lot more fun than my stepmom. How about you? What do your parents do?”
Shit. Okay, so I asked her personal questions. I wasn’t thinking it would come back on me. I don’t think she has any idea how far apart our lives are. I’m embarrassed after learning who her dad is. Here’s where she realizes how low my life is, comes to her senses, and ghosts me. How long did I think I could keep it from her? She’ll probably find out sooner or later if I don’t tell her now. To get it over with, rip off the proverbial band-aid, I say in a rush, “I never knew my dad. And my mom’s a waitress. I have a stepdad. He’s an asshole.”
She doesn’t say anything to this, which makes me feel worse somehow.
I roll to a stop. She leans over and stares intently into my eyes. “I know I already said it tonight, but you are amazing, Jett Dixon.” Her hand tenderly caresses my cheek as she kisses me.
The front door opens, and the butler steps out and folds his arms across his chest.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Lexi whispers and gets out.
She sure as hell didn’t react to hearing about my wretched excuse for a family the way I thought she was going to. But she still doesn’t know that the home I’m heading to is a tiny room in a smelly gym in the wrong part of town. The day she finds that out will be the day I never hear from her again.
In homeroom, Anna’s taken to coming in, sitting at her desk, and putting her head in her arms. She also hasn’t met me at the Mustang after school for a ride home for a week now. The only thing we have left is lunch smokes in the dugout.
That afternoon, we’re sitting next to each other in silence. The twelve inches between us may as well be twelve miles.
“So, you been hanging out at Carlton’s after school?” I ask.
“Yeah, I don’t really care what I do as long as it’s not sitting at home.”
“Is it just Carlton and Drew?”
“No, lots of people hang out there. Some of the kids aren’t too bad. There’s a lot to do too. He has a basketball court in his house. There’s a tennis court outside, and a pool that’s half-in-half-out with a hole in the wall to swim through. Like I said before, he’s stupid rich.”
Great. Not only are Carlton and Drew getting to spend so much time with her, but they get to see her in a swimsuit. I bet she wears a bikini.
How do I get her interested in hanging out with me again? What can I offer against everything Carlton has? I mean, I know one thing I can offer, but Anna doesn’t seem interested in that at all. It’s a first for me, and I have to admit it stings.
I don’t think it’s because I’m losing my touch. If I was, Lexi wouldn’t keep coming back for more the way she has been. So, what is it? Why doesn’t Anna want me the way every other woman does? For as much as I think about it, I can’t figure it out.
I don’t see Dair again until Wednesday after school. I’ve been jumping rope for thirty minutes, when he comes in, picks up a rope, and starts jumping next to me. He’s a lot slower, but he’s already getting better than he was.
When we take a break and go outside, I tell him, “Mia does go to our school.”
“Really? Did you talk to her? How is she? What did she say?”
I have to laugh. “I didn’t talk to her. A friend of mine knows her.”
“Your California girl?”
I shake my head. “Different one. Lexi.”
“Damn, bro, you seriously have it coming out your ears.”
I ignore that. “She’s playing in a talent show on the twenty-fourth. It’s a Saturday.”
“Lexi?”
“No, Mia.”
“Really?”
Why is he so surprised? “She’s playing the flute.”
“Oh, yeah, she’s good with that thing. So, you haven’t met Mia?”
“No.”
“That’s probably a good thing. I don’t want to have to fight you for her.”
What kind of friend does he think I am? “I told you, I’m not like that. You want to go to the talent show and surprise her?”
“What? You mean go to your school?”
I let the idea sink in for him for a minute before saying, “We’ll get you a ticket and meet you in the lobby. You can watch her then go backstage after the show.”
His face lights up. Hell, his entire body lights up. “Oh, man.” He rubs his palms on his sweatpants. “Shit. Oh man.”
“You want to think about it?” I’m surprised it’s not an immediate “yes.”
“No, I want to do it. But, damn bro, I just got nervous as shit. Does she have a boyfriend?”
“No idea.”
“Can you find out?”
“Sure.”
“Oh man.” He sucks on the cigarette like an asthmatic sucks on an inhaler.
When we go back inside, he attacks the heavy bag with
a passion I haven’t seen from him yet.
Friday afternoon, Anna and I are sitting in the dugout smoking when she turns to me and says, “Let’s go to the game tonight.”
There’s a spark and a warmth in her eyes I haven’t seen in a while. She wants to hang with me again over Carlton and the others? I’m curious as to why but don’t ask. “Sure, why not? What time you want me to pick you up?”
“How ‘bout seven-thirty? I heard it starts then, but let’s be fashionably late,” she grins.
Chapter 20
She’s not waiting for me after school, and I don’t ask her about it when I pick her up at her house. We smoke on the way to the game. When I try to pay for her ticket, she won’t let me. Inside the open-air stadium, it’s a seething swarm. It’s worse than school because it’s nearly the same amount of bodies squeezed into a tighter space.
“God, does everyone go to these things?” I mutter.
“Let’s go to the top,” Anna says, pointing up at the stadium seats.
I follow her past the packed benches. It’s standing room only, and we press against the metal safety fence that lines the top of the bleachers. Looking out over the crowd and the field, the ground sways beneath my feet. Between the metal bouncing under the impact of all the stomping feet and how high up we are, my senses are swimming. I clutch the solid metal behind my back.
The cheerleaders start a chant, and I instantly spot Lexi among them. Her golden hair has curls as large as sausages that bounce with every jump. As soon as I see her, I forget all about how high up I am and how unsteady the floor is. She looks so cool and confident standing there in front of hundreds of people, a lot of them her peers.
The girls prance and flip. One does a series of back-handsprings down the entire length of the stadium, and the crowd goes wild. They’re good. I’ll give them that.
The girls gather into three groups. The ground level girls hoist a second tier onto their shoulders. Some girls link arms to create a sling that Lexi leans back into. The linked girls bend then stand, shooting Lexi into the air. She flips and lands on the bent knees of two of the second tier girls, her arms raised in victory. She looks so proud and strong, as if she could conquer the world if that’s what she wanted to do or become president or anything, really.
