by K. D Clark
She was tempted to ask him about Alison but she figured it would make things awkward. Instead she decided to ask him something that had been bothering her since the party.
“You asked people to keep an eye on me?” she asked
“Ah weren’t drunk enough to forget that huh?”
She stayed quiet.
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I asked a friend to look out for you. I know how people at this school are. They see a pretty girl hanging out with me and they start to make assumptions. I just don’t want you involved in any drama. And like I said there are some creeps at this school.”
She was still stuck on the fact that he’d called her pretty to realize they had parked.
He took her silence for hesitation. “Hey, if that’s not ok I can tell Luke to not look out for you… I just thought…”
She shook her head. “No, no that’s fine. Thank you.”
He nodded, and they both got out of the car and went their separate ways.
It seemed that for the first time since she’d got to this school all eyes weren’t on her. Probably because everyone was too busy whispering about Alison. She heard it in every class that apparently Alison hadn’t even shown up to school today. Some people thought Jayce was too harsh while others thought she deserved it. At lunch she sat with Wendy, Alyssa and Chad, and luckily they didn’t have anything to say about Jayce and Alison. After school, she couldn’t keep her mouth shut any longer.
“So I heard some gossip today.”
His eyes flashed from the road to her. “Oh yea?” He instantly looked tense and he was clenching his jaw. She wanted to slap herself for saying anything but it was too late now.
“Yea about you.”
He nodded but didn’t say anything, keeping his eyes on the road.
She continued. “I heard you went off on someone.”
He sighed allowing his shoulders to drop. “Not my proudest moment but she deserved it. Me and Alison had a thing for each other a long time ago but it never went anywhere. Since then she’s been scaring girls off like a guard dog. Usually doesn’t bother me, I just ignore her, but now…” His eyes flickered to Sabrina.
“But now, what?” she asked.
He shook his head. “Nothing.”
They pulled up to her house but she didn’t get out right away.
“I saw you last night, you looked mad.” She wasn’t sure why she was being so bold all of a sudden.
He nodded. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Sabrina.”
She took the cue and got out of the car.
Jayce
As soon as Sabrina had got out of the car, he let out a breath of relief. He didn’t want her finding out anything about him and the things he was messed up in. He watched her as she walked up to the front door. She was gorgeous and innocent, and he had to remind himself that that was why she was off limits. His phone rang and he tore his eyes away from the house to answer.
“Jayce.”
“Hey, I found a place you can get into and unload some of that stuff,” Mason said.
Jayce smiled to himself. This was the breakthrough he needed. If he could get into a club of any kind he could unload a good amount of product.
“You’re not so bad, man. Text me the address. When should I be there?” he asked.
“Let’s say eight. It’s a Monday night so it won’t be too busy and you’re going to need all the time in there you can get.”
“Bet.” Jayce hung up the phone and headed to the apartment to try to get some sleep before going to the club tonight. He would probably be there almost all night but he also needed to bag up his coke before he left. The more pure cocaine he could sell, the less he would have to break down with Albert later in the week. When he’d first got involved with Cosa Nostra he’d worked under Mason, and everything had already been bagged and ready to go. But once he’d become a solider he’d realized he had to measure out each amount and scrape it into the bags. It took a lot of time and Jayce hated doing it but it was the price he was going to have to pay to be a made man. Being a made man meant protection and enough money that he wouldn’t have to rely on anybody else.
*****
The club was downtown next to empty business buildings. Jayce parked the Camaro a block away from the club. He usually tried to park further away so he had a getaway if something went down. Nothing would be worse than the cops having you and the car surrounded. Plus he kept enough coke in his car to send him away for a while but Cosa Nostra wasn’t stupid. Mason showed him how to scratch the VIN off his car at the chop shop and get plates that weren’t connected to his name. Mason told him to come through the front and tell the bouncer his name. There wasn’t a line waiting at the door like the few other clubs Jayce had been to. He walked straight up to the bouncer. A guy with tattoos covering his arms and neck towered over him.
“Name?” the guy asked.
“Jayce.”
The bouncer waved him in without asking for any type of ID. Mason must have a good connection here. As he walked inside the club there was barely anyone inside. There was the typical club lighting, big dance floor and the DJ was attempting to get the few people who were there to dance. Jayce walked across the dance floor and spotted Mason in a booth next to a redhead. Jayce slid in across from them. Mason reached across the table and slapped his hand.
“How’d you get me in?” Jayce asked.
“The owner doesn’t work on Monday night and the bouncer was looking for some coke. I told him I had a friend that could bring some.”
“Thanks, man. You didn’t want to sell what you have for some reason?” Jayce asked. Mason was a good friend but business was business and at the end of the day you had to put yourself first.
Mason shook his head. “All out, man.”
Jayce’s eyes bulged. “What the fuck? Are you serious?”
Mason nodded and slung his arm across the back of the booth around the redhead who looked too skinny and like she’d had enough of whatever drug she was on. Jayce didn’t judge but that was the kind of girls Mason usually fell for. The ones who didn’t know when to say enough was enough.
“Fuck, man, I gotta get rid of this stuff.” Knowing that Mason had already sold everything he had put Jayce on edge. That meant that all the other soldiers were probably close to getting rid of their shit too.
“Better get to work, man,” Mason said as the redhead leaned close to his ear and whispered something.
Jayce had no intention of watching them fondle each other so he got up from the booth and headed to the bouncer. After he’d sold to the bouncer, it was to the bartender and then after that word was out. He sat at the bar and waited as people started to come to him. Another thing he liked about the club was that he didn’t have to be so secretive. Everyone was either drunk, high or trying to be. After a couple hours of Jayce sitting on the bar stool and selling what he had, Mason and the redhead left. He watched as the girl leaned against Mason as they walked to the door and he grabbed her ass. Jayce shook his head—he would never understand it. By 3am the club was dead, only a few stranglers were left and Jayce had decided he’d sold all he was going to for the night. He was exhausted. His body felt like it weighed a hundred extra pounds and all he could fantasize about was his bed. He knew he was wearing himself out but there was nothing he could do about it. He just hoped it wouldn’t be long until he got made. He couldn’t imagine doing this year after year. He was walking down the street when his phone vibrated in his pocket. He groaned, not even looking at the caller ID.
“Jayce,” he greeted.
“I got a job for you tonight. Are you up for it?” Lucas’ voice sounded through the phone. He’d phrased it as a question but Jayce had no say in the matter. You couldn’t say no and it wasn’t often he got a call from the man himself.
“Yea what’s up?” Jayce asked, trying to hide his yawn as he opened the door of the Camaro and climbed inside.
“We got someone we need to collect from. Meet at the restau
rant in an hour.” Lucas hung up.
Jayce checked his phone. One hour—that gave him 30 minutes of sleep. He set his alarm before falling asleep right there in the car.
Sabrina
“I asked Jayce about Alison,” she said to Wendy as they cleaned the last couple of tables at the diner.
Sabrina was on her first shift at the diner. Wendy had trained her on making drinks and taking orders. Waitressing was harder then she’d thought but luckily all the customers had been older and had given her words of encouragement and stories about their first job. The diner had got busy around dinner time but then everyone had left and it was just her, Wendy, and the cook Jose. Jose was a Hispanic man that often liked to grumble Spanish curse words when he thought nobody was listening.
Wendy’s eyes widened. “You did?”
She nodded.
“You guys are getting pretty close huh?”
She shrugged. “Not like that but I have known him since I was a kid.”
“What was Jayce like as a kid anyways?” Wendy asked.
She thought about it for a second. “He was sweet.”
Wendy scuffed. “Of course he was. What did he say about Alison?”
She told Wendy the story as they finished cleaning and sat down at the counter.
“I didn’t know they had a ‘thing’ going on at one point. That makes sense why she’s so crazy about him now. I mean look at the guy—he could make any women go crazy.”
Sabrina didn’t argue with her—she was right, Jayce was good looking. He had sculpted his body into what it was today and his cute childhood face had morphed into something more adult and sensual with a hard chiseled jawline, and the frown he always wore gave off the bad boy vibe that girls lusted over. She wasn’t sure if he was aware of the way girls batted their eyes and smiled at him whenever he walked by.
“We have a few minutes, let’s finish up and then we can go,” Wendy said.
Wendy dropped her off at home around 9:30pm once they’d finished at the diner. She thanked Wendy and got out of the car. Jayce was sitting on his porch. He looked exhausted. She was noticing more and more how tired he looked each day.
“Hey,” he said, his voice coming out deep and gruff as if he was getting a cold.
“Hey.”
He tilted his head. “Come over here.”
She stuffed her house key back in her pocket and walked over to Jayce. He scooted over so she could sit next to him on the step. He smelled like a bonfire.
“First day at work?” he asked, eyeing her name tag.
“Yea I like it, lots of old people.”
He laughed. “What, do you work at a nursing home?”
She shoved him playfully, rolling her eyes. “No it’s a small diner in the old part of town.”
He nodded. “I think I know which one you’re talking about—your grandpa used to go there a lot.”
“How do you know that?”
He shrugged. “I drove him sometimes. I think he got lonely after you and your mom moved out. My dad would invite him over for dinner too. Your grandpa was an interesting man.” He smiled as if recalling their time together.
She was surprised to hear that Jayce used to drive him to the diner. Most people their age were too busy to even think about driving the old man next door to his favorite place to eat.
“So really, can you get me free slices of pie?”
She smiled. “Now why would I do that?”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Well not to guilt-trip you but I do drive you to school every day.”
“Oh, so now I have to pay you for rides in pie?”
He shrugged his shoulders. “I mean it wouldn’t hurt.”
“Do you have a job?” she asked.
“Something like that.”
They sat there in silence for a moment just looking out onto the street.
“What happened after I left?” she asked quietly.
“What do you mean?”
“With you. What happened?”
Jayce dug in his pocket before pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. He took a deep inhale.
“My mom split. After my aunt died I think she went through a lot of emotional shit and just couldn’t handle it anymore. She drank a lot. Dad had to work a lot more since there was only one income. He still works a lot but I don’t know why.” Jayce shook his head, letting the smoke blow out of his mouth.
“Is he ok?” she asked. Sabrina hadn’t seen his dad since she’d moved in which was odd because she remembered him being a pretty big presence in the neighborhood when they were younger.
“No. He has been avoiding it. When I come to visit it’s always an argument. He hasn’t moved on.”
She kept quiet, not wanting to pry any further into his personal life.
He took another puff of his cigarette. “What about you?” he asked.
“Huh?”
“After you moved away what happened? Did you ever meet your dad?” He peered into her eyes waiting for an answer.
“No. Me and mom don’t really talk about him. We moved to an apartment. I went to a small high school.” She shrugged. “Nothing really exciting.”
“Boyfriends?” he asked, eyebrow raised.
“A couple but nothing serious,” she said. She wondered if she could even count the first boyfriend she’d had considering it was middle school and they’d only dated for three weeks. The second boyfriend had been a tool who’d pretty much dumped her after she wouldn’t let him in her pants after a month of dating. The wind blew the leaves in a small circle by their feet.
“I used to think about what it would have been like if I would have stayed here. Finished growing up in Falcon Haven.”
Jayce took a final puff before putting the cigarette out on the concrete. “I thought about that too. I missed you after you moved.”
She stared into his brown eyes and he stared back into hers. He was sincere. This was the Jayce from her childhood—honest, sweet and thoughtful.
“Well I guess I have one year to enjoy it…or hate it.”
He smiled. “It looks like you’re already liking it. You made friends faster than most new people.”
She nodded. She was happy to have meet Wendy on the first day—it had made transitioning easier. Jayce ran his hand through his hair before resting back on his elbows on the step behind them.
“Do you know what you’re going to do after graduation?” he asked.
She shook her head. Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She took it out to see a text from her mom.
Are you still at work?
“I should go. I’ll see you tomorrow?”
He smiled. “See you tomorrow.”
Jayce came over to see if she wanted to play basketball with him. His dad had got him a hoop. She said yes even though she knew she was going to be really bad at it. She and Jayce took turns trying to get the ball in the hoop. Tommy Davis from the brown house down the street came over and showed them how to play a game called Horse. She lost first and had to sit on the curb while Jayce and Tommy kept playing. Jayce was really good and she figured out he was going easy on her when they played by themselves. They played until it started to get dark outside. Each time she was the first one to lose until Tommy had to go home.
“I know you were faking earlier,” she said once they were alone.
Jayce was dribbling the ball in the same spot. “What do you mean?” he asked
“Before Tommy got here you were faking like you didn’t know how to play.”
His cheeks turned a bright red and he shrugged.
“You don’t have to do that you know?”
His eyes were focused on the concrete. “I know but I want you to have fun and it’s not fun to lose all the time.”
“Thank you,” she said.
He opened his mouth to say something else but the screen door to his house opened.
“Jayce, its time to come inside,” his mom yelled.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Brina?”
Chapter Five
Sabrina
The rest of the week passed by quickly between school and a couple more shifts at the diner. By the time Friday rolled around, Sabrina was ready for a weekend of binge reading. She’d found a bookstore not far from the diner and she planned to walk there and pick up a few new books to add to her collection.
“Tired this morning?” Jayce asked next to her in the driver’s seat. He was wearing his leather jacket and jeans with one hand hanging out of the window.
She yawned.
“There’s a game tonight,” he suggested
She rolled her eyes. She was not in the mood to be surrounded by people and there was no way she was going to another party this weekend. She just wanted a quiet night at home and she only hoped Wendy didn’t know about a party and would try to drag her to it. When they parked in their usual spot in the school parking lot she quickly used the ponytail holder on her wrist to throw her hair in a bun. Jayce was staring.
“What?”
He shook his head. “Nothing.”
She smiled to herself realizing she’d just caught Jayce checking her out.
At lunch Wendy and Alyssa had heard about an after-game party and tried to convince her to go. She told them about her plan to sit her butt on the couch and read and they took the liberty to invite themselves to a Friday night sleepover. She had planned to be alone but she wasn’t mad. Plus she couldn’t remember the last time she’d had an actual sleepover. Once Wendy got off work they were going to come by. It was 9:30pm when a knock sounded on her front door. She opened it to see both Wendy and Alyssa dressed in pink, matching footie PJs, each with a small duffle bag on their arm and various snacks in their hands.
Sabrina laughed. “You guys went out and got matching pajamas?”
“Oh don’t start laughing too fast,” Alyssa said, making her way inside and setting all her stuff down in a pile on the living room floor. “We made it to the mall just in time before they closed to pick up not two but three matching pajamas!” she exclaimed, pulling another pair from her bag and holding it up for Sabrina to see.
