Jen and Jonesy oozed through the front door wearily. Jonesy closed the door behind them, leaned against it and slid limpidly to the floor. On the way down, his foot hooked Jen's and she, too, fell gently backward onto the door and began her own slow descent to the ground. Finally, the two settled on the welcome mat. Jen could only see the 'me' of 'Bless Our Home' peeking out from behind her left knee.
"Today…" Jonesy began.
"…was awful." Jen finished. She let her head fall on Jonesy's shoulder and , in turn, felt the weight of his own head on top of hers. "What happened to you?" she said, closing her eyes.
"Wyatt and I had ten points deducted from our original score because I was late, I forgot my hockey mask at home which meant major drills, and Caitlin was acting suspicious all day. It bothered me. You?"
Jen pretended not to notice the bit about Caitlin's behavior. Stealth had never been her blonde friend's forte. The less attention she gave the situation, the more likely it was that Jonesy would forget all about it. "Rough history class, rough French class, rough every class really. Plus, I almost got detention for wearing a tank top to school. Stupid dress code."
"Forgot your blouse, eh? I've had that effect on girls before. Don't worry about it. You're completely normal." Jonesy smirked.
"Ugh, and YOU'RE completely disgusting. No, I was just in such a rush this morning my mind was thinking 'dressed' when it should have been thinking 'where in heaven's name is the rest of my shirt'. At least it's over now." Jen and Jonesy heaved a simultaneous sigh.
At that moment, Jonesy's father rounded the corner whistling his favorite show tune. He paused in surprise at the sight of his two eldest children draped over each other like blankets, both sporting matching feelings of desolation. "Tough day?" He asked.
"I can't even describe it." Jonesy replied. Jen groaned in agreement.
"Wait right here. I've got just the thing." Mr. Garcia held up a finger and retreated to the kitchen, where Jen and Jonesy could hear him rummaging in the cabinets. Jen found just enough strength in her to look up at Jonesy who returned her gaze with a don't-ask-me-I-have-no-idea expression. Moments later, their father returned with two glasses of orange juice. "The perfect pick-me-up. Vitamin C works wonders."
"Is this why you and mom always have orange juice when you get home in the afternoon?" Jen asked, taking one of the glasses from him.
"Yup. I wouldn't go a day without it." he replied. "My own father would bring me orange juice when I was feeling down. Enjoy!" He ruffled their hair and left them sitting silently in the entryway.
"…Orange juice also has Vitamin D." Jen said finally, taking another sip. It was the only thing she could think of to say at that moment. Jonesy had already chugged his and was contemplating having another. He stared at the bottom of his glass intensely. "Well, don't burn a hole through it." Jen remarked.
"Hey Jen?" Jonesy asked.
"Yeah?"
"You remember what I said earlier? About being worried about stuff?" Jonesy attempted to use gravity to acquire the final drops of his drink.
"Yeah…" Jen knew she was treading dangerous ground. "What about it?"
"Well, I don't want you to worry about me or anything. I'm okay. I know you're the type to freak out and spend countless hours brooding over what could be bothering me and what you can do to help, and I know that you do it because you care, but seriously, don't worry about it. If something was really bothering me, I'd come to you first, anyway." Jonesy had given up on the final drop of juice. It obviously wasn't meant to be his.
"You would? Why?" Jen sat up a bit.
"I dunno. I just would. I guess I just… value your opinion more than anyone else's." Jonesy stood up abruptly causing Jen to fall suddenly sideways. She hurried to catch herself. "I'm getting more juice. Dad was right. It totally works." With that, Jonesy ambled out of the entryway, leaving Jen to wonder what he meant.
Sometimes, Jonesy Garcia could be the most complicated person in the world.
***
"Let's all go out tonight." Jonesy said to Jen, who was working out a crossword puzzle at the kitchen table.
"It's a school night, Jone." Jen said, shortening his name out of laziness.
"I know what day of the week it is! All that I'm saying is to look at it this way: we've had a rough day and I'm sure everyone else wouldn't mind getting to hang out and all that and I reeeally want to go play some pool." Jonesy pulled up a chair and sat facing the back of it, his arms crossed over the top. He looked at Jen with big eyes. "Please?"
"You're plan would be flawless if everyone but you and I hadn't signed up for AP Government. They've got a project due tomorrow that they aren't going to want to mess up. It's only worth half their grade." Jen smirked, feeling triumphant.
"Boo." said Jonesy. "I guess you and I will have to go by ourselves."
"Yes. I guess we wil-- woah, woah, wait a minute, I've already got plenty of stuff to do around here and--" Jonesy had grabbed her hands.
"Jen, Jen, Jen, don't act so seriously!" He now stood on his chair, treating it as if it were a soapbox. "You've got to learn to live a little! Take life by the horns! Live like you've never been hurt!"
"I believe the expression is 'Love like you've never been hurt'." Jen corrected.
"Whatever!" Jonesy brushed away her comment. "The point is, you can't just sit around the house all day worrying about your stupid French verbs and your impossible crossword things."
"My French verbs aren't--"
"Yes, they are." Jonesy stepped down and gave her a serious look. "Jen, do you want to wake up one day and realize that everything you've done was safe and boring?"
"Well, no, but I think you're being a little dramatic." Jen said.
"Exactly! I'm enjoying my dramaticities!" Jonesy said, grinning.
"I don't think that's a word…" Jen said.
"Make up your own words, I say. If fact, you can make up your own words tonight. Over pool." Jonesy decided.
"I'm not going with you." Jen crossed her arms. Jonesy could be so stubborn sometimes.
Jonesy sighed. "You're right. What was I thinking?"
"Thank you! I knew you're see it my way." Jen smiled in approval.
"I mean, I certainly wouldn't want to lose to me in front of a whole pool hall full of guys, either."
"Psh. I wouldn't lose. I never lose." Jen said confidently.
"Well, not when you're playing someone else you don't. But against me…" Jonesy trailed off.
"I could totally beat you!" Jen said defensively. "I'd beat you in a heart beat!"
"Then prove it." Jonesy challenged.
"Okay, I will!" Jen said, standing up. "Tonight, I'm going to annihilate you at pool!" she declared.
"Ok! See you there!" Jonesy said in a chipper voice, prancing (yes, prancing) out of the room. Jen was, once again, speechless. She'd lost count, but it must've been the third or fourth time he'd left her mind devastated that day. And honestly? It was starting to wear on her. She sighed and tried to concentrate on her puzzle again. A nine letter word for trickery? Somehow, she felt Jonesy might know the answer to that one…
***
"Rack 'em up!" Jen ordered, as Jonesy slipped two coins into the pool table. The table lit up briefly around the edges, then presented them with fifteen pool balls. The balls rolled spastically around the table before they finally settled.
"I believe you know how to play?" Jonesy said, as he deposited the balls into the rack and carefully positioned it.
Jen leaned against her pool stick. "I'm pretty sure I proved that when I beat you in our practice round."
"I'm still getting warmed up. No one takes a practice round seriously."
"We'll see. I wouldn't want you to 'lose to me in a whole pool hall full of guys', though. Might be pretty embarrassing," Jen smirked.
"Don't bet on it." Jonesy said casually.
Jen rubbed her chin. "Hmm… actually, why don't we? Bet on it, I mean. It would certainly make this whole thing way more interesting. I mean, I win, you lose, you have to do something you don't want to while I sit back and laugh… seems like a fun time to me."
Jonesy looked intrigued. "What's your wager?"
"If I win, you have to wake up at 5:30 every morning next week and make me tea." Jen proposed, rubbing chalk on the tip of her pool stick.
Jonesy pondered for a second. An expression of glorious revelation appeared across his face. "Okay, I can agree to that. But, if I win, you've got to kiss me."
"What?!" Jen exclaimed.
"The way I see it, you hate admitting that I'm attractive. But, if I've got it on record that you've kissed me, your whole defense goes out the window. Deal?" Jonesy looked unequivocally triumphant.
Jen weighed the pros and cons in her mind. If she agreed and lost, Jonesy's ego would be uncontainable. But at the same time, if she didn't agree, she'd never hear the end of how she'd been 'wise to quit instead of humiliating herself'. Really, it was a lose-lose situation. Her only possible win option was to, well, win. "Deal." Jen sighed.
The two shook and started their game. It started off very much in Jonesy's favor. He pocketed two balls (both solids) on the break, followed by another right after. Jen dreaded what seemed to be her impending loss. She'd never hear the end of it. However, a streak of luck (or skill maybe?) ended up winning her four sunk balls in a row, putting her in the lead. Jonesy seemed to have lost his game. He continuously scratched and missed his shots, which ultimately gave Jen another two pocketed balls. Only one was left.
"Looks like your going to win." Jonesy said, wistfully.
"I guess so. I hope you're good at brewing tea." Jen said. 'I should probably go easy on him. It's better to give him at least a fighting chance.' she thought to herself. She let herself scratch on her next shot, which allowed Jonesy to place the ball wherever he wished within rules.
"I am. Well, I may as well give it my best shot." Jonesy took aim… and sank two balls at once. "Well, would you look at that? I've gotten two in! I wonder if I can keep it up?" Jonesy took aim again as reality sank into Jen. He hadn't been having a bad game, after all. Another ball in the pocket for Jonesy. "Looks like this is my last one, aside from the eight ball. What a run of luck, huh?" This one, too, went in and was soon followed by the game-winning eight ball. "Hey, I won! Who would have thought it?"
Jen punched him in the arm. "You totally hustled me! You didn't really scratch all those times did you? It was all a sham to make me feel bad for you and mess up on purpose to make you feel better!"
"Jen," Jonesy said, placing his hands on her shoulders. "Do I really seem like the type to do that to my dear, darling stepsister?"
She pushed him away. "Of course you are!"
Jonesy shrugged. "You caught me. Now, about our bet…" He grinned, crossing his arms over his chest. He was totally loving this.
Jen groaned. "Let's just get this over with." Jonesy turned his cheek to her and pointed to it, raising an eyebrow. Jen looked confused. "You're not going to make me kiss you on the lips, like you want me to?"
"I'm not a completely bad guy. Consider it a consolation prize." Jonesy replied.
Jen rolled her eyes. "Some prize." She leaned towards his face and cautiously pecked his cheek.
"Oh, come on, that was weak. At least give me a real one for my troubles." Jonesy complained. Jen rolled her eyed a second time, but complied none the less and let her second attempt linger a moment longer.
"Happy?" she asked, grumpily.
"Quite." Jonesy said, beaming. His phone beeped in his pocket. He checked the message then grabbed Jen's hand. "It's Emma and dad. They're freaking out because we're not home yet and it's a school night, plus we didn't tell them we were leaving in the first place. We've got ten minutes to be back home before we're grounded for life." He began to lead her out of the building and into the fresh night air.
"I told you so." Jen sang, as the bartender waved and wished them a good evening.
"Yeah, yeah, just come on. I don't need to be grounded on top of everything else that's happened today."
Jen squeezed his hand a bit tighter as they reached his car. "Whatever. I had to kiss you. It may have been on the cheek… but still." Jen fiddled with the zipper on her jacket, while Jonesy fumbled with his keys.
"I'd say that was the only enjoyable part of my day." He finally got the car unlocked and dropped into the driver's seat. "Are you going to let go of my hand so I can drive?"
Jen blushed. "Sorry-- I didn't even realize--"
"Just get in." Jonesy grinned smugly.
Jen did so, sheepishly. They rode the whole way home in silence, with only the radio DJs ("What could be lurking in your gas tank? Well, we'll tell you! Right after the break. Stay turned!")to fill the emptiness their lack of conversation had created. Jonesy parked in his usual space right behind Jen's mother's car. It had taken them seventeen minutes to get home. They were screwed.
"I don't want to go in." Jonesy complained, sounding like a child.
"The most enjoyable part of your day, huh?" Jen had obviously been thinking about this the entire car ride.
"Yeah, basically." Jonesy replied, picking at his fingernail.
Jen put her feet on the dashboard. "I can't imagine your day was THAT horrible."
"It wasn't. Circumstances have just lead me to appreciate such things." Jonesy continued to fiddle with his nails.
Jen raised an eyebrow. "Circumstances?"
Jonesy sighed and, unexpectedly, lost control of any sort of common sense he may have had. "I like you, Jen. It's weird, and awkward, but I do, and it's kind of something I'm not used to dealing with." Jonesy hurriedly shut off the car. "But, um, yeah, I think, uh, we probably shouldn't keep them waiting… or anything." He tossed the keys in her lap. "Lock the car up, okay? I'll go see if I can't chill them out a little bit or… something like that… maybe." Jonesy stuffed his hands into his jacket pockets and walked briskly across the lawn, leaving Jen in the car alone. She sat there for a moment, with the dashboard, letting what had just happened sink in. Jonesy… liked her? Like, for real? But she was his stepsister! Not to mention they fought all the time. Oh my goodness! It had just dawned on her. It must be totally true that when guys always gave you a hard time and picked on you constantly that meant they liked you! It all completely fit! No wonder people had been telling each other that for years, it was totally true! Jen jumped out of the car and locked it quickly as possible. She raced across the lawn and up the stairs, wallowing in her brilliant revelation to the extent the she forgot all about the fact that Jonesy had feelings for her. That is, until she saw him sitting on the couch, listening quietly to their parents scolding him. This, Jen realized regretfully, was not going to be a simple situation. Not in the very least.
***
Can anyone figure out the nine letter trickery word Jen's looking for for her crossword puzzle? I'm just curious to see who'll get it… Anyway, I'm having a lot of fun with this one. Teehee. I like working with pairings that haven't been explored very much.