“He’s going to hold her tight and do whatever it takes. That means buying the pills. Thinking he can control her taking them and shit. It’s not going to work though.”
“He’s going to get himself hurt,” Hil said. “And Jas will end up taking off.”
“Which makes me wonder what our care actually is,” Ash said.
“Ash,” Belle said. “It’s really sad.”
“Is it though, beauty?” Hil asked.
“It is,” Belle said.
“So we’re supposed to give a shit about every sad story in life?” Ash asked.
“Fuck, man, take a breath,” I said.
Belle looked ready to cry.
The situation was tense.
I started to pace a little.
“I think we have to do something drastic,” I said.
“Which is what?” Ash asked.
“I think we need to go flirt with her,” I said.
“I’ll do it,” Hil said without hesitation. “I’ll take this one for the team.”
“Aaron is going to lose his mind,” Ash said.
“Good,” I said. “Fuck him. Fuck the entire team. We need the name of the pill guy.”
“And how is Hil going to get that?” Belle asked.
Again, without hesitation, Hil went to work.
He slid right up to Belle and looked down at her. “Listen, beauty, I don’t know why I’m telling you this shit… but I just… I know what it feels like. Okay? I know you know about Them and all that bullshit. In reality, we hate each other. Don’t let appearances fool you. I don’t let appearances fool me with you. I know who you are, Jas. How this works. I’m looking for the same thing. And you know who I am and what I can do. I can protect you. I’m not looking to get into your panties either. Unless you want me there, beauty. I need to make a call for myself. You know? Or maybe you can set something up. I’ll pick you up on my motorcycle. Ever been on one? It’s fucking awesome. All that wild power… between your legs…”
Hil touched Belle’s jaw.
Ash moved forward and punched Hil in the shoulder. “We get the point.”
Belle’s cheeks flushed for a few seconds. “Yeah… that should work.”
Everyone was silent.
Then Belle pointed to my guitar. “New song?”
“Maybe,” I said.
“Should we break it out tomorrow?” Hil asked.
“Not sure,” I said.
I grabbed my guitar and walked toward the door.
“Where are you going?” Ash asked.
“I’m leaving,” I said. “I have to go see how many more nurses my mother got rid of.”
“Yeah, right,” Hil said.
“Let him go,” Belle said.
“We’re good here,” I said. “Let Hil work his magic. Do it after the show. Shit, maybe even have her show up to the show. Work it from there. The only other thing I would do is make sure nobody else is visiting this pill guy.”
“On it,” Ash said. “The warning has been issued. Nobody will be fucking around with that shit.”
“Then we’re really good,” I said.
I carried my guitar by the neck out of the shutdown cafe and walked to my car.
I tossed the guitar across the backseat and ripped my beanie off my head.
I ran my hand through my hair.
When the fuck have I ever been jumpy and almost excited to go see my mother?
Hint, Uly, it’s not because you’re going to go see your mother…
* * *
I saw Mara sitting on the porch sideways, a book in her lap, her head back, eyes shut, and earbuds in her ears.
I lit a cigarette and sat in my car, watching her.
Too much running around in my mind about Hil, Penelope, Belle, Ash, and now fucking Aaron and Jasmine with some pill guy.
And then there was Mara.
Still trying to worm her way around as a rebound. Not even a physical rebound. But an emotional one. I wanted to give her my attention because she needed it. Even if she said she didn’t need it, I wanted her to need it. I wanted to find this Adam guy and smash his face into the pavement while Mara watched. So she could see what it meant to be taken care of. Because she would appreciate it.
Not like Penelope. Not like Belle.
After a minute of deep thinking, I saw Mara’s nose twitch.
She opened her eyes and looked right at me.
She gasped and swung her legs to the steps and took the earbuds out of her ears. She pulled the cord from her phone and left the earbuds in her book as she closed it.
She was wearing jean shorts again. This time regular old blue jeans. With little frilly strings dangling down, tickling her skin.
She was in a spaghetti-strap top with a zip-up hoodie over that, except the left side of the hoodie fell down her left shoulder.
Skin… showing fucking skin…
Not to mention showing something else too.
A few of Adam’s asshole texts to her made more sense to me.
I had usually only ever seen Mara in hoodies or baggy type clothes. Even that ugly, orange, long-sleeve shirt she wore hung loose on her.
Adam made fun of her chest size.
Because she wasn’t tipping forward from the size…
I opened my car door and chased the thoughts away.
Last thing I needed was to tell Mara that she was perfect the way she was.
“You know how gross that is?” she called out to me.
“I do it just to annoy you, doll,” I called out.
I took another deep drag and blew smoke all around as I dropped the cigarette and walked to the porch.
Mara pinched her nose and waved her hand.
“Damn, you’re such a baby,” I said.
“Me?” she asked, her green eyes wide. She pointed to the door. “She’s the baby.”
“Bad day?”
“Two nurses left in tears and another one quit,” Mara said. “She called your mother a devil cunt and ran out of the house.”
I laughed. “Wow. Your mother is a saint.”
“Yeah, well, if she calls me an alley bitch again I might hit her,” Mara said.
“She called you names?” I asked.
“Yeah…”
I hurried up the steps.
Mara dove toward me. “Uly. Stop.”
“No,” I said.
I pulled myself away from Mara and rushed into the house. Off to the right and around two archways was a large sunroom. Floor to ceiling windows and even the ceiling was made of glass. My mother turned that into her new bedroom while she healed.
Two nurses stood at her side.
“If I wanted to eat the meat raw I would have just ran out and grabbed an animal off the beach!” my mother yelled. “How dare you do this to me. Get out of here.”
One of the nurses turned holding a plate of food.
Paula came into the room next, a smile on her face. “Amanda… what can I get you?”
My mother looked ready to bark fire, then she saw me.
Her eyes lit up. “My son is here. Ulysses. Come here.”
All for show.
I walked to the bed.
The nurses took their chance to slip away.
“I want them fired,” my mother said.
“Stop it,” I said.
“No,” she said.
“I’ll go talk to them,” Paula said. “Let me handle this.”
“Fine,” my mother said.
I leaned against the bed and looked at her leg. “How’s the leg?”
“Hurts,” she said. “I’m so happy you’re here.”
“Where’s your phone?”
“Don’t need that. I wanted you to meet someone.”
“Oh?”
“Calvin,” she said with a smile. “Things got so crazy… I told him to stay away for a minute.”
“What?”
“I’ve been seeing someone, Ulysses,” my mother said.
“Seeing someone?”
/> “Yeah. It’s been great. I was hoping you’d meet him soon. But then the leg thing happened and it’s been hectic.”
“This is serious?” I asked.
“Serious enough. Don’t worry about me. I deserve to be happy, right?”
I nodded. “Yeah. Right. Sure. Calvin, huh?”
“Yeah. He’s the best.”
I stepped away from the bed. “I’m going to go talk to Paula. Hey, I have to say something.”
“What?”
“If you’re happy with Calvin, kick some ass,” I said. “But leave Mara alone.”
My mother’s face turned white. “What?”
“You heard me. Leave her alone. She has nothing to do with your pain. Or even Paula. She’s here to help. She doesn’t ask for money either.”
“Ulysses…”
“Listen to me,” I said. “She’s not some kid wandering around here. She’s an adult. Treat her like that.”
“I do,” my mother said. “I talk to her the same way I talk to anyone.”
“Then make a fucking exception for her,” I said. “She’s having a tough time. Think about your leg… she’s… her legs are okay but…”
My mother turned her head. “Wonderful. Now I can cry about my son hating me as I wait for Calvin to show.”
“I’ll meet that guy some other time,” I said.
I walked to the kitchen and heard my mother’s loud, dramatic weeping.
Paula stared at me.
“I’m sorry,” I said to her. “I’ll buy you pizza or something.”
“What did you do?”
“Told her the truth,” I said. “And what’s this, she’s got a boyfriend?”
“Calvin,” Paula said.
“I had no idea.”
“I don’t know much about him. It’s her life. I just clean up the messes.”
Paula went back to the sunroom.
I went to the front porch of the beach house.
Mara was still standing there.
Biting her nails.
“Uly…”
I walked down the stairs and Mara chased me.
She grabbed my shoulder and I turned.
She was taller than me.
I stepped up a step and was then eye level with her. “New rule, doll. She even talks to you like that again, you text me.”
“Uly…”
“Done,” I said.
Mara swallowed hard. “Okay.”
“Do you have a car?”
“A car?”
“A car,” I said.
“Yes, I have a car,” she said.
I touched her cheek. “I’m playing a gig with Hil tonight. I’ll text you the address. Get you away from this shit.”
Mara smiled. “I’m supposed to want to get away from this shit to be with you?”
“Could be worse.”
“Could be better.”
I moved closer to her. Tasting her breath. Wanting to taste her lips.
“Do you know about Calvin?” I asked.
Mara stepped back and up the steps. “What?”
“Calvin. Have you met him?”
“You stopped that moment between us for that?”
“Just a question.”
“Take your question and leave then,” Mara said. “I’m not your mother’s spy. Or caretaker. Or whatever you want me to be.”
“Shit, doll, I wasn’t saying that.”
“But you did,” Mara said. “Leave me out of it. All of it.”
She grabbed her book and hurried into the beach house.
I stood there, alone, a little stunned.
It wasn’t the first time I said the wrong thing and had a girl take off on me.
But I kind of wanted to wait there for Mara to come back out.
Chapter 7
The little cafe was packed tight.
It was fun to see.
Plenty of faces from BFH. Plenty of other faces too.
There were two guitars on stage, two barstools, and two mics.
That’s all Hil and I needed to do our thing.
A long time ago we thought about bringing in an actual band. Making the sound bigger. Louder. There was even some guy in a fancy suit named Toby who wanted us to work with him. He managed the band Filthy Line. They were one of the biggest bands in the world at the time. And even now.
But Hil and I didn’t want to fuck around with the sound.
We weren’t sure about adding loud guitars and louder screams for the hell of it.
Truthfully though… we were both too far locked on Penelope.
These girls are driving me crazy, making me mess up my life.
I stood near the back of the cafe, watching the people come in, order something to eat or drink, and then look for a seat. Or just sit in the wide windowsill at the front window.
A hand touched my arm and I scanned the crowd.
Waiting for someone.
“This is exciting,” Belle said. “I’m nervous for you.”
“Stay calm, doll,” I said. “Never a reason to worry.”
“Is that why you’re staring the way you are?” she asked with a grin.
“Just taking the moment in,” I said. “I’m going to have a smoke. Join me.”
Belle didn’t object.
Not like Mara would.
The way she’d stand there and wave her hands, pinch her nose, make comments… what a pain in the ass.
Maybe I could tell my mother to fire Paula.
Then I’d never have to deal with Mara again.
Or I could just stop going to see my mother. A quick call every day or every other day… or better yet… keep Paula and have her call me if something bad happened.
Perfect.
“Wow, you’re not even here,” Belle said.
“What?” I asked.
“Are you high?”
“No,” I said. “Not even close.”
“What the hell is on your mind, Uly?”
“Nothing,” I said. “I’m just thinking about the songs. The music.”
We stood facing each other in the pale light that hung off the back of the cafe.
Smoking cigarettes.
Trying to feel each other out.
“Let it go, doll,” I said.
“I can’t. If you’re hot on her, do something about it.”
“Who?”
“Mara.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Did you invite her to come tonight?” Belle asked.
“I mentioned it. Whatever.”
Belle shook her head. “You were so quick to jump at me, Uly. But now with Mara you’re acting almost shy. Does that mean that what you felt for me was a lie?”
“What if you’re the reason I’m all of a sudden looking at Mara?” I asked. “I want to rip her heart to shreds the way mine feels.”
I dropped my cigarette and stomped on it.
Belle reached for my shirt. “Don’t hurt her. I’m sorry. I didn’t… mean…”
The back door opened and Ash came walking out.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
“It’s perfect,” I said.
I walked away and Belle didn’t stop me.
Inside the cafe again, I found Hil near the bathroom.
Holding a flask.
He put his fist out for me to hit.
I hit his fist and turned to get away before I grabbed the flask, downed it all, and really turned the night into a show.
Then I saw something worse than booze.
Mara was entering the cafe.
* * *
We were just Them.
That was always the best part of Hil and I playing music together. We didn’t need some fancy name. We didn’t need to catch anyone’s attention other than just jamming out. Playing guitar the only way we knew how to play it.
Real.
I stood up on the stage as everyone clapped.
I looked at Hil and we both nodded.
It was time to play.
<
br /> We didn’t do introductions. We didn’t flirt with the crowd. This wasn’t a show or anything like that.
It was just us playing music.
My eyes scanned the cafe, knowing exactly what I was looking for.
When I saw Mara come into the café, I didn’t hurry to go after her. I didn’t hug her and thank her for showing up. I didn’t get her a good seat or get her a drink.
I didn’t do a damn thing.
As though she wasn’t even there at all.
She had disappeared into the sea of people and that was that.
Until I was on that stage, looking for her.
And I fucking found her.
Huddled up in the corner where the brick wall met the front window. Wearing a big hoodie with her hands tucked into the sleeves. It was the classic Mara kind of look. She always looked like a mix of comfortable, hidden, scared, and maybe even a little homeless.
I locked onto her and she smiled at me.
Then Hil and I tore through some songs.
How can I breathe when everything I see
Seems to be coming for me
All the echoes hitting the walls
All these hearts taking these falls
I looked to Hil and kept playing the song.
He put his mouth close to the mic and shut his eyes.
And where the fuck did you decide to run to? You picked a night and just walked away for good. And now you’re walking down a road that you don’t even know where the fuck it goes. And I’m not going to follow you this time. I hold my broken heart and bent ring and scream words to anyone who wants to hear. Begging you to turn the fuck around. I’ll stand in place and watch for you to show up because my head is that fucked up… because of you…
Hil gasps for breath into the mic for effect as I took over the song again.
Because of you we walk this fine line
Because of me I’ve wasted all this time
Because of us we’ve lost everything…
It was the only time Hil and I could actually get along. Trading off guitar sounds and lyrics that we both wrote on our own. We could tear each other apart over the songs but when it came to the words, we knew to leave the other alone.
When we finished that first song, the cafe erupted into applause.
I looked for Mara again.
She clapped and smiled.
It really hit me then that she had never heard me play guitar before. Or heard me sing. Or understood what music meant to me.
ULY (Bay Falls High - Them Book 1) Page 6
