Julie's seventeenth birthday fell on a Wednesday. It was late February, and the day dawned cool and grey. Nothing could dampen Julie's mood, though – she felt like seventeen was going to be a big year.
Her parents drove her to school in the morning after dropping Gracie off at daycare, the three of them discussing where they might go for Julie's birthday dinner that night. At lunch, Tyra surprised her with cupcakes and a pretty bracelet of turquoise glass beads, which she promised had not been shoplifted. Because of their schedules that day, Julie didn't get to see Tim until the end of the day, when he got out of practice. She waited for him by the fieldhouse, her jacket zipped tightly around her, and her iPod keeping her entertained.
"Hey," Tim greeted her, emerging from the locker rooms with damp hair and a smile on his face. He came to a stop in front of her and dropped a kiss on her lips. "I hear it's your birthday or something. That true?"
"Yes, the rumours are true," she replied, smiling when he reached down and grabbed her hand, tugging her towards his truck.
"Coach said to go on ahead to your place, and he's gonna meet us at the restaurant," Tim said, digging his keys out of his pocket with his free hand.
"What restaurant?" Julie asked eagerly.
"Applebee's," Tim replied. Julie stopped and gaped at him, glaring when he began to laugh. "I'm kidding. Your mom said you wanted to go to that Italian place."
Julie elbowed him gently in the ribs before hurrying around to the passenger side of the truck. When she was settled, she reached into her bag and pulled out the old margarine container in which Tyra had brought her cupcakes to school. She opened it and held it out to him. "I saved you one."
"Thanks," Tim said, pleased. He took it and ate one-handed as he started the truck and pulled out of the lot. "You gonna bake for me before my games next year?"
Julie scoffed. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I didn't make these. Tyra brought them for me."
Tim stopped chewing and shot her a look. "Were they all poisoned, or just this one?"
"Tyra wouldn't poison you," Julie replied, giggling. "Besides, she didn't know I was going to give you one, and she would never poison me, so you're safe."
Tim shoved the rest of the cupcakes into his mouth and glowered at her, although the intimidating effect was somewhat ruined by the purple icing on his face. Julie fell into another fit of giggles as Tim tried to clean himself off and keep an eye on the road.
"Seriously, though," he said, licking icing off his thumb. "Are you gonna make me brownies or something before games?"
Julie arched a perturbed eyebrow at him. "Isn't that why the rally girls exist? To make sure you all get your requisite four thousand calories on game day?"
"Sure, but I'd rather eat cookies you made," Tim said.
"Unfortunately, I don't share this town's antiquated assumptions about gender roles, Timothy. Why don't you bake me cookies before one of my dance recitals?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about, but yeah, maybe I will," Tim replied, grinning. "Just don't blame me if all that spinning makes you barf chocolate chip cookies all over the stage."
"Gross!" Julie complained, whacking him on the arm.
They bickered playfully the rest of the way home, stopping only when they arrived and Tami gave them a withering sort of look before gathering Julie into her arms and wishing her a happy birthday.
Julie changed into a mom-approved dress, and emerged from her bedroom to find Tami helping Tim knot the navy blue tie hanging around his neck. He had changed into a somewhat ill-fitting dress shirt and pants Julie recognized from various Panther functions. She smiled at the discomfited look on his face.
"I wish your father was here," Tami muttered, casting a glance at Julie. "He'd do a much better job than I'm doing, here. Sorry, Tim."
"S'okay, Mrs. Taylor. Usually I get Billy to do it for me."
"Well, you're just gonna have to make do. At least you don't have to look at it, even if the rest of us do," Tami said, pulling the knot tight. "You ready, Jules?"
"Yup, all ready to go," she replied, watching Tim expectantly. He looked up and took in her appearance, a slow smile spreading across his face. Tami disappeared into the kitchen to call her father, and Tim took a step towards her.
"You're looking pretty good tonight, Julie Taylor," he said, his eyes travelling down her body and back up again to meet her gaze. She shivered. This was downright unfair.
"You too. You look good in a suit." Tim grimaced at that, prompting Julie to laugh. She was prevented from embarrassing him further by Tami, who came out of the kitchen with her purse slung over one arm.
"All right, y'all. Your father's gonna meet us at the restaurant, Gracie's next door with Mrs. Kelleher, and what we're gonna do is take my car, and then you two can drive your father's truck home later," she explained breezily, leading the charge out the door.
Julie was relieved to find that the drive to the restaurant was relatively short, as her mother had insisted that one of them had to sit up front with her, because she wasn't a chauffeur, which left Tim in the back seat. He spent the whole ride talking to Tami about his grades while reaching around the side of Julie's seat to poke her in the ribs while she pretended it wasn't happening.
"You're such a pain," Julie griped under her breath as they walked into the restaurant. Tim merely grinned at her, reaching down to take her hand as Tami spoke to the hostess.
Her father arrived after they'd gotten their drinks, and as the evening progressed, Julie was again struck by how much Tim came out of his shell in the presence of her parents. Before they got together, she would never have imagined this, a nice dinner out together. While she wasn't exactly thrilled about all the quality time with her parents, she had to admit that Tim's efforts had smoothed the way considerably.
After their meal was cleared away, their waitress brought out a large serving of tiramisu with several birthday candles and a bright sparkler stuck in it.
"Happy birthday, sweetheart," Tami said, beaming at her.
"Yeah, happy birthday, hon," Eric echoed, a grin on his face.
Julie glanced across the table to see Tim watching her with a smile on his face, his eyes glowing in the flickering light of the sparkler. He caught her staring and his smile widened.
"Make a wish, Taylor," he said, nodding down at the dessert. Julie didn't really believe in things like wishing on birthday candles anymore, but still – it couldn't hurt, could it? Closing her eyes, she thought of all the things she wanted, and what she wanted most of all right now.
I want Tim to show me he loves me. Julie blew out the candles, and opened her eyes as the lone sparkler extinguished itself in a tiny wisp of smoke.
"Yay!" Tami cheered, clapping her hands. "Now, before you go digging into that thing, which you're sharing with us, by the way, your father and I have a little something for you." She reached down to her purse and produced a small wrapped package and a card.
"Woo hoo, presents!" Julie exclaimed, taking the gift from her mother. She opened the card to find a sweet note from her parents, and a gift card for the book store in the mall. She ripped the paper artlessly from the package, revealing a blue velvet jewellery box. Glancing curiously up at her parents, she opened the box. Inside was a silver chain with a tiny green stone hanging on a teardrop-shaped pendant. It was a necklace of Tami's; she'd seen her wear it hundreds of times for as long as she could remember.
"My mother gave me that necklace on my seventeenth birthday, and I thought that maybe you might like to have it on yours," Tami explained softly, her eyes shining.
"I love it," Julie breathed. "Thank you so much."
"I love you, too, honey," Tami replied, gathering Julie into a tight hug. When they parted, she blew out a sigh and dabbed at her eyes with her napkin. "What say we dig into that dessert, y'all?"
Julie picked up her fork and cast a glance over at Tim, wondering despite herself if he had anything for her, too. She smothered the thought as quickly as it surfaced; she knew perfectly well that he was broke most of the time.
Later, as they strolled out to the parking lot, Tim held her hand in his and pulled her close to his side.
"Don't worry, I've got something for you," he said softly. Julie blushed, feeling a little foolish that she was so easy to read. Tim smiled. "Just... it's not finished, so I'm gonna bring it over tomorrow night. Okay?"
"Okay," she replied, pleased. They arrived at her father's Explorer, as her father had already given Tim the keys. "We've got the car, and it's not too late. You want to go somewhere? Like, by ourselves?"
Tim climbed into the driver's seat and buckled his seat belt. He started the engine and began to pull out of the spot. "We got school tomorrow, and your parents are expecting us. We probably shouldn't."
"Yeah, I guess not," Julie acquiesced, watching him. She sighed and smiled wryly, looking out her window at the town, quiet now that night had fallen.
She wondered whether, when wishing on her birthday candles, she should have been more specific about how she wanted Tim to show her he loved her.
The following night, both of her parents had meetings after school, leaving Julie in charge of picking Gracie up from daycare. After an uninspiring dinner of leftovers, Julie was lounging in front of the TV, procrastinating on a history paper, when she heard a knock at the door.
She opened the door to find Tim standing on the front stoop, hands shoved into the pockets of his sheepskin jacket.
"I didn't order any pizzas," she deadpanned.
Tim grinned. "I've got something for you. Go sit down on your bed and close your eyes, okay?"
"Gee, this is sounding more and more like the beginning of a porno."
"What would you know about it?" Tim laughed, stepping back off the stoop. "Go cover your eyes already, I'll be there in a minute."
Julie obeyed, practically skipping back to her bedroom to sit down on the edge of her bed and cover her eyes with her hands. Moments later, she heard the front door open and close, and smiled when she heard Tim shuffling down the hallway. She struggled to keep her eyes covered when she heard him place something that sounded heavy on the floor in front of her.
"Okay, you can open your eyes."
Julie removed her hands and gasped in surprise. Before her sat a low bookshelf with several shelves the perfect size for the numerous paperbacks currently stacked against the wall underneath her desk. It was sanded to a satin finish, and stained a beautiful peacock blue.
"Did you... Did you make this?" Julie asked, looking up at him in astonishment.
"Yeah," Tim replied, scratching his head. "I've been working on it for a while. I was just gonna get you some books, but then you mentioned that you were running out of room on your shelves, so..."
Julie ran her finger along the edge of the top shelf, admiring the grain of the wood, which still showed through the stain.
"It's beautiful! I mean, it's totally perfect," she said, smiling up at him. "I love it." Julie took his hands in hers and leaned up to kiss him.
Tim kissed her back, pulling his hands loose to hold her close. Julie gave him a gentle nudge and he sat down on the edge of her bed. She insistently pushed her way into his lap, tilting her head to the side to deepen their kiss.
For once, he didn't object, so Julie gripped her hands in his hair and continued to push until they were lying on her bed, her body half on top of his. Julie shivered as he pulled his mouth from hers to kiss along her jaw and down her neck. He dragged his teeth across her collarbone and she shivered again, her hips pressing into his and her thigh pushing between his legs to brush against him. Tim gave a funny little groan and Julie did it again, sliding a hand down to press against the hard weight she felt there.
Tim shuddered hard and wrapped a hand around her wrist.
"Jules –" he began, pulling away.
"My parents won't be home for a while still," she urged, pressing her lips against his. He kissed her back for a moment before pulling away once again. He pushed her off, sitting up and turning away from her.
"I should go," he said softly, running a hand through his hair.
"Why?" Julie asked, sitting up and glaring at his downturned head. "Why should you go?"
He was silent for a long moment, and then he cleared his throat. "Because," he muttered, and she could hear the resolve in his voice.
Julie just stared at him, hurt and angry for reasons she could barely articulate. He wouldn't even look at her. She manoeuvred around him and stood up, brushing her hair out of her face.
"Okay, whatever. Just... Whatever. You can let yourself out," she said, not turning back to look at him as she left the room. She walked across the hallway and into the bathroom, closing and locking the bathroom door behind her. She sat down hard on the closed toilet, swallowing hard to keep her tears inside.
There was a soft knock on the bathroom door, and then his voice. "Jules, please. Come on."
"Come on what?" she snapped, crossing her arms over her chest and hating herself a little for the way her lip quivered and her voice wavered.
"Just – come on," he replied, sounding somewhat exasperated himself.
She chewed on her bottom lip, glaring up at the ceiling and willing herself not to get any more upset. She sighed. "It's fine, Tim. I'm just not feeling well. Thank you... Thank you for the bookshelf. It's beautiful. I love it... I really do, I'm just... I'll see you at school tomorrow, okay?"
There was another lengthy pause. "Okay," he said quietly. "See you tomorrow."
Julie listened as he left, sniffling when she heard his truck rumble out of the driveway and down the street. She wiped angrily at the tears that slid down her cheeks.
She felt bratty and ashamed of herself for her behaviour, but she was angry, too. She couldn't help the frustration that was starting to overshadow every minute they spent together. She simply didn't understand – why didn't he want her? Why was he working so hard at being the perfect boyfriend, when he would barely let her touch him? How long was she supposed to believe he'd gone without sex, anyway?
Tim wasn't much of a talker. He was more of a "show-er," as he'd once said to her. So if he wasn't saying he loved her, and he wasn't showing he loved her, where did that leave her?
After what happened with Tim and the sleepless night that followed, Julie was in no mood to deal with anyone. She silently trudged her way through her classes on Friday morning, snapping at anyone who tried to engage her. Even Tyra gave up, merely raising her eyebrows at Julie's bristly attitude and drawling, "Jeez, it's called Midol, Taylor," over her shoulder before abandoning Julie at her locker.
Julie decided it was probably best to avoid people altogether for the rest of the day, which was how she ended up at the top of the bleachers on her lunch, huddled in her jacket and poking listlessly at the cold sandwich sitting in her lap. She was so lost in her unhappy thoughts that she didn't realise she wasn't alone until she heard a voice.
"Been looking for you everywhere," Tim said. Julie looked up. He was standing several levels down from where she sat, squinting up at her. "What the hell are you doing eating out here? It's freezing."
"It's not that bad," she lied, wrapping up the remains of her sandwich and shoving them into the messenger bag at her feet.
Tim climbed the last few steps and sat down beside her, propping his feet up on the bleacher in front of them and shoving his hands into the pockets of his worn old sheepskin jacket. "The view's pretty good from up here," he commented after a moment.
Julie turned and looked at him, taking in his profile. Her annoyance faded, giving way to her real problem – complete bewilderment.
"Tim, can I talk to you about something?" He turned to her, a wary look on his face. "How come we never go out to the cliffs or the lake anymore?"
Tim frowned. "I don't know. Weather's been crap lately."
"I guess," Julie replied, scuffing her sneaker against the metal bleacher. "I just... I don't know. I feel like we don't spend much time alone together."
"Yeah," Tim nodded. "It's hard, with your parents and all."
"It's not like it's that hard to sneak around a little," she said. "We can just say we're going to a movie and then head back to your place. Or last night – they weren't going to be home until late. You could have stayed for a while."
Tim didn't reply, just stared silently out at the field.
"I mean, when we were first getting together, whenever we were alone, we took advantage of it," she mused, watching him. When he didn't respond immediately, she continued. "Tim, do you even like me? As more than a friend? Really?"
He turned and stared at her, dumbfounded. "Yeah, of course."
"Good to know. I was starting to wonder."
"Why would you -"
"Because you barely come near me! Do I not do it for you, or something? Like, are you not attracted to me? Is that it?"
"No," Tim scowled. "That's not it."
"Okay, then what is it?" Julie asked.
"I thought I shouldn't rush things... Shouldn't push you."
"That's insulting. I can make my own decisions. I don't need you to protect me, Tim."
"I know that," Tim insisted, frustration colouring his tone.
"Good," Julie huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. They sat in tense silence for a long time before Tim finally sighed, and stood up.
"Come on," he said, holding a hand out to help her up. "Let's go in."
"You know what? I think I'd rather be alone," Julie snapped, wrenching her arm away from him. She grabbed her bag and stomped off down the bleachers, ignoring Tim when he called after her. She knew she was being juvenile, but she couldn't help it. She was so frustrated. Their talk had done nothing to relieve her confusion.
More than ever she wondered if perhaps Tim was only with her because he'd turned a new leaf and wanted everyone to see what a good guy he is. What better way to do that than to date little Julie Taylor, straight-A student, the coach's goody-good daughter?
It was Friday night, which, football season having ended months earlier, had come to be date night for Tim and Julie. As he drove his truck through the streets of Dillon to the Taylors', Tim hoped it still was, even though they'd had a fight.
Not that Tim relished the idea of spending time with Julie if she was in the same sulky mood as she had been that afternoon. He was kind of pissed off about it, actually, but he knew spending the night drinking with Billy wasn't going to solve anything.
Tim pulled into the Taylors' driveway and turned off the engine, grabbing his cell phone out of his jacket pocket. He tried Julie's cell for what felt like the thirtieth time that night, but it went straight to voicemail as it had every other time. Sighing, Tim got out of the truck and walked up to the house, knocking on the front door.
Mrs. Taylor answered, looking at Tim with surprise. "Hey, Tim. What are you doing here? Jules isn't here, honey. I figured you'd be with her."
"Uh, I think we kinda had a misunderstanding earlier," he said, scratching his head. He didn't want Mrs. Taylor to think anything was wrong, but he wasn't sure what to say otherwise. "She say where she was headed?"
"Well, Tyra picked her up a couple of hours ago, and she said they were going to a party, but I don't know whose. Have you tried her cell?"
"No," Tim fibbed, shrugging his shoulders ruefully. "I'll do that. Thanks, Mrs. Taylor."
He turned to go, stopping when Mrs. Taylor called out to him.
"I'm sure I don't even need to say this, but no drinking, Tim. If you have anything to drink, you make sure you call us, you hear? That's why they invented cell phones," she said with authority.
Tim smiled. "I will, Mrs. Taylor." He waved and got back into his truck, starting the engine and pulling out into the street. If Julie thought she could hide from him at a house party on a Friday night in Dillon, she underestimated his God-given gift for sniffing out house parties.
It only took Tim two stops to find the right party. He parked half on someone's lawn and strolled down the block, letting himself in the front door of a house whose driveway was already littered with beer cans. The music could be heard halfway down the street, and it didn't take an experienced partygoer like Tim to know that it was going to get busted by the cops in the next hour.
Tim spotted Tyra right away, leaning against a wall, deep in conversation with Landry.
"So no, I don't see how a western set in outer space actually makes a lot of sense, so you're going to have to prove me wrong on that one," she said to Landry, who sputtered in apparent disbelief. Tim rolled his eyes impatiently and cleared his throat. Tyra turned and raised an eyebrow at him. "Nice of you to show up," she remarked.
"Where's Jules?"
"Good question," she said, turning and looking pointedly across the room and into the dining room, where Julie was standing with a bunch of his teammates, playing beer pong. Tim frowned.
Greeting people distractedly as he went, Tim wound his way through the crowd and into the dining room. He came to a stop at Julie's side, watching as she laughed at something one of the guys said before lifting a red Solo cup to her lips.
"Hey," he said softly, touching her waist to alert her to his presence. She turned and looked at him, blinking as though to clear the haze from her eyes.
"Hey," she replied, taking another sip and turning back to the game. He stared at her profile in frustration as she continued to watch the game, studiously ignoring him. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes glassy, and her voice was loud as she encouraged the next player as he took his turn. She was definitely drunk.
"Come on," Tim said, reaching down and grasping her hand. "Let's go get some fresh air."
"No," she replied, pulling her hand back. "I'm watching the game. My turn's coming up."
"Yeah, I don't know if that's such a good idea."
"Oh, really?" Julie snarked. "I guess you're the expert. Which means you get to make all the decisions, huh?"
A couple of the other beer pong players glanced over at them as the volume of Julie's voice began to rise.
"Yeah, I am the expert, and this party's gonna get busted any minute now. I'm thinking your parents won't be too happy about having to bail you out for underage drinking tonight."
"Right," Julie snapped, turning to face him. "Why don't the three of you just find like, a glass case or some kind of, you know, super tall tower to put me in, so nothing real ever happens to me. God forbid I do something normal like go to a party and have a drink."
"Yeah, a drink. Or six," Tim grumbled, grabbing her hand and pulling her forcefully from the room. She struggled a little, but given that she was drunk and Tim wasn't, he had little trouble manhandling her out of the party.
"God," Julie hissed once they got outside. She wrenched her arm away from him. "You're even worse than my dad."
"Least you got people looking out for you," Tim shot back in aggravation as he led her to his truck. She allowed him to help her in, wobbling on her feet as she began to feel the effects of that last beer. Tim went around the truck and climbed in, starting the engine. Julie was leaning forlornly against her window.
"You know what you are?" Julie complained as he steered them through the dark streets of Dillon.
"What am I, Jules?"
"You're a bully. You just have to get your way all the time."
Tim scowled out at the road in front of him, trying to remember that she was drunk and obviously pissed off at something he'd done or hadn't done. He knew better than most people how to deal with someone when he or she was in this state, but that didn't make him any less irritated. "I think you're the one who wants to get her way all the time," Tim muttered, turning onto Julie's street and parking down the block. He leaned over the wheel to see if the Taylors were still up. The house looked dark, but he couldn't be certain.
"Right, okay, I'm so horrible because I want to be close to you," Julie sputtered. "If I'm so repulsive, why don't you just break up with me?"
Tim's head snapped around to look at her. Julie was on the verge of tears, her eyes shining wetly, her face flushed. "What?"
"Why won't you touch me, or let me touch you? I don't understand. You'd make out with a garbage can if it was wearing a cheerleading uniform. What's wrong with me?" Her voice hitched and tears began to stream down her face. She shook her head violently and reached for the door. "No – don't even tell me. I don't want to know."
She got out of the car and began making her way to the house, rummaging in her bag for her keys as she walked. Tim got out of the truck and followed her, grabbing her elbow to steady her weaving steps.
"Don't touch me," she shouted tearfully, pulling out of his reach and stumbling a little.
"Quiet, or you're gonna wake up your parents," Tim said, taking her keys out of her hand.
"Don't tell me what to do," Julie hissed, shoving fitfully at him. "You're not the... the... boss of me."
"Shh," Tim hushed her, trying to get her key into the door while keeping her from tumbling into her mother's shrubs. Tim wondered briefly how many times he was going to be responsible for getting a drunk Julie safely home without her parents finding out.
He succeeded in unlocking the door and Julie pushed past him. She turned and stood in the doorway, blocking his entry into the house. She glared up at him.
"Don't call me until you figure out how you feel about me," she ground out, wiping angrily at her tear-stained cheeks before closing the door in his face.
Stunned, Tim stared at the closed door for a long time before turning back towards his truck.
He didn't understand girls one bit, and Julie the least of all. After everything that had happened in the few short months since they'd become friends, how the hell could she not know how he felt about her?
Julie woke up on Saturday morning with a terrible headache, a few regrets, and a lot of frustration. When Tyra had called her the night before to see if she wanted to go to a party, Julie had jumped on the opportunity. Anything, including a Panther party, beat her alternative: spending the night reading a book and ignoring Tim's persistent calls.
Now, Julie wished she had opted for anything except beer.
Miraculously, she avoided getting into trouble for drinking, largely because she was home before her curfew. As she found out the next morning, her mom got up to deal with Gracie before midnight, and, seeing Julie was home and asleep, didn't investigate further. Julie was grateful she only had to deal with a hangover, and not a grounding as well.
She spent most of Saturday moping around the house, blaming cramps when her mom asked what had her in such a bad mood. She worked half-heartedly on a chemistry assignment and ignored the text she got from Tyra, which demanded to know what the hell was going on.
Julie sighed. She wished she knew.
She was sitting cross-legged on her bed, idly flipping through her chemistry text and considering taking a pre-dinner nap when there was a quiet knock on her door.
"Come in," she said. The door opened and her dad's head appeared.
"Hey honey. Phone's for you," he said, holding out the cordless phone.
"Who is it?"
"It's Riggins."
Julie's eyes narrowed. Very clever of him, calling the house instead of her cell phone so one of her parents would answer. Sighing, she stood up and took the phone, muttering her thanks and ignoring the curious look her father gave her. He left, closing the door behind him.
Julie sat down on the edge of her bed, staring at the phone in her hands. After a beat, she held it to her ear. "Hello?"
"Jules, it's me."
"Yeah, I know. What do you want, Tim?"
"I want to talk to my girlfriend. She there?"
Julie rolled her eyes heavenward, refusing to cave to amusement. "I'm busy, Tim. I have a lot of homework this weekend."
"Come on, Jules. I don't get it. How come you're so pissed off at me all the time? What did I do?"
Julie didn't respond right away, chewing her bottom lip in contemplation. Finally, she spoke. "Do you even want to go to college?"
"What?"
"I said, do you even want to go to college?" she repeated, her tone measured and deliberate.
"Well, it's... complicated," Tim replied. "I mean, it's worth looking into, you know? Coach says-"
"Oh my god. I knew it. This was all my dad's idea, wasn't it? Wait, no. This seems more like my mother's handiwork."
Tim huffed in exasperation. "I can't decide to go to college on my own? You don't think I could do it?"
"I didn't say that! I just don't want them interfering–"
"Maybe I want them to interfere. You ever think of that? Or am I supposed to just be the dumb jock you make out with until you get bored and find a real boyfriend?"
Angry, Julie pounced. "'Make out with'? I wish! You barely come near me."
"Never expected it'd be all about sex for you," Tim said, annoyed.
"Why? Because I'm the coach's naive virgin daughter? I'd certainly never be interested in sex on my own, not unless one of you manly football players came along and corrupted me, right? That's one of the most insulting, regressive things I've ever heard!" Julie nearly shouted, remembering just in time that her parents were only in the living room and might hear her.
"Regress...? Jules, I don't even know what we're fighting about right now," Tim replied, suddenly sounding less aggravated and more confused.
"We're fighting about you, and me, and the fact that you're pretty obviously in this relationship because of my dad, and probably my mom, and that I'm just... convenient," she said, tears welling up the moment the words were out.
Tim said nothing, his silence as good as a confirmation as far as Julie was concerned. She squeezed her eyes shut and a tear rolled down her cheek. "I just wanted to be with you," she whispered, trying not to let him hear how upset she was. "I wanted to be close to you, just be a normal girlfriend and boyfriend, but I guess the feeling isn't mutual. My mistake."
"Jules –" he began, but she did not let him finish. She ended the call, angrily tossing the phone aside. She flopped backwards onto the bed, clutching her pillow tightly to her chest, and tried to stifle the feeling of light-headed nausea that suddenly overcame her.
She hadn't intended to break things off, but in the abrupt pressing silence of her bedroom, it seemed that was exactly what had happened.