Heart of Wade – Ch. 4 – In Havoc and In Heat -
Would you rather live in an environment that is hot all the time or cold all the time and no amount of layers (or lack of layers) matters? You still end up being very hot or very cold. The heat waves that Bluebell experienced sometimes made Wade wish he could live in the "very cold" environment. Like Canada. Or Greenland. But then he would miss out on the fun that comes with the heat waves.
Something about the heat makes people do crazy things. Things they wouldn't normally do. You might take a risk. You might do something stupid. Whatever happens, though, Bluebell generally absolves you of the consequences, blaming the heat for your lack of judgment.
Wade woke up one morning in the middle of October sweating like a pig. "Ah," he thought to himself, sitting up in bed and pulling off his thin, cotton t-shirt, "Another heat wave. Time for some fun."
Getting dressed, he thought about Zoe. He'd been thinking about her a lot recently, but not just because she was, well, incredibly beautiful...anyway, he was thinking about her this morning because he couldn't wait to see what Zoe would do in her first, genuine Bluebell Heat Wave. The rest of the town had gotten used to the effects of a heat wave, and some had even gotten good at stifling those effects, but Zoe had never been in the kind of heat that can't be fixed with a little NYC air conditioning.
"Ambitious? You betcha," he heard Zoe say as he opened the door to Lavon's kitchen, letting the temporary relief of the indoor climate flow over him, "But I don't do crazy."
"Why not?" he asked, closing the door.
"Since when did breakfast become clothing optional?" Zoe asked no one in particular. Wade grinned at walked over to the sink to grab and wash an apple from the basket sitting on the counter next to it. He had a pair of cut off jeans on, with his shirt stuffed in his back pocket. Lavon, too, was only half dressed.
"Since there's a heat wave, baby," answered Wade, doing his signature handshake with Lavon.
"Trust me," said Lavon, "Bluebell get's a lot more fun when it's 105 degrees out. And, since Didi and I are going out on our first date tomorrow night - "
Lavon stopped at that moment to do another celebratory handshake with Wade. Wade looked over at Zoe just in time to see her roll her eyes in apparent disgust at the two men she spent most of her time with.
"I don't understand how you people are happy about this weather," exclaimed Zoe showing complete confusion behind her dark, chocolatey brown eyes, "My contacts have literally melted onto my eyeballs."
"Heat wave's like a free pass to do whatever you want," said Wade through a mouthful of apple bits, leaning against the counter, "What's not to like?"
"I'm assuming that's a rhetorical question," said Zoe, tilting her head sideways, "I'm also assuming that you don't know what rhetorical means."
"I think it means you haven't answered the question," said Wade, brushing off her little jab at his ego.
"I know all about free passes," said Zoe, sitting up, "See, it's like my mom and champagne. When she drinks, she thinks that nothing counts. My mom used to throw these huge parties for her celebrity clients at our house. Okay, so the champagne would flow and the next day, someone would be arrested, someone would have lost their pants, and my mom would be found, passed out behind the couch, with one of her friend's husbands and a Calvin Klein model."
"Exactly," said Wade, standing up, "Your mom knew how to enjoy a free pass."
"Yeah," said Zoe, narrowing her eyes, "So much that she went on a Greek cruise, had sex with some guy, and now I live in Alabama."
The boys were silent, staring at her.
"Point is," continued Zoe, clearly on a roll, "I don't do crazy. I have seen crazy and crazy comes with consequences. There's no such thing as a free pass."
"Mhmm," rumbled Lavon, looking at Zoe with narrowed eyes, too, "Well, we'll see. Weather this hot, you cannot fight your inhibitions, girl. You'll see."
Lavon walked away and Wade strolled over to lean against the counter near Zoe.
"You know, you could look at this as an opportunity," he said, moving in closer, his eyes boring into hers, "What's the one thing you've wanted to do since you got here that you haven't done? Just go right ahead and do it."
He smiled, biting into the apple. She looked at him, smiling, too.
"No judgments. No inhibitions. Just do it," he continued, taking another bite of his apple, "Know what I mean?"
He watched her eyes go from his, down to his lips, and saw her smile slightly.
"Okay," she said, ever so softly, "Maybe..I do."
"Yeah!" laughed Wade, getting excited. Could it really be that easy to get her to kiss him? All he had to do was suggest it and it would happen?
Before he finished that thought, she grabbed the pitcher of ice water next to her and dumped it over his head. Cold, wet streaks ran down his back as he jumped away from the counter. He could here Lavon laughing at him, saw Zoe laugh at him, and couldn't help laughing, too.
That afternoon, before his shift at the Rammer Jammer, Wade was sitting down after having cleared out all the clutter in the pond when he saw Zoe gingerly sticking her toes in the water. It might have just been the heat making his imagination soar, but he couldn't sworn he'd seen her earlier, staring out the window at him, running her hands along her chest. That must be the egotistic male side of him talking, right? He'd love to find out if he was wrong.
"Jump in!" he called to her, accidentally startling her.
"No, thank you," she called back, awkwardly standing there, obviously wanting to jump in.
"Why not?" he asked, "'Fraid you might have too much fun?"
"No," she answered, sounding like a little girl, "But I think my version of fun is a lot different than your version of fun."
Too right she was. If she jumped in, that would require her talking off some articles of clothing, and he didn't think he'd be able to stop himself from joining her if she did that. And doing things that he deemed very 'fun'.
"Yeah?" he called, coming back to himself, "What's your version look like?"
"My first solo surgery. Gallbladder removal. I got to use a laprascope."
Wow. Buzzkill. He just blinked at her, so she continued, "You had to be there."
"Sounds epic," said Wade, though he sounded very uninterested, "Tell you what. There's nothin' more freein' than jumpin' into a cool pond on a hot day."
"Lovely," said Zoe, "But...no...not for me."
"Why not?" cried Wade, snapping.
"One: I just blew out my hair," said Zoe, wrapping said hair around her hand, "Two: I can't be late for work. And three: I am pretty sure there are snakes in there."
Getting frustrated, he decided to dive in without her. Swimming underneath the water, without the sound of the world, he watched shadowy figures slide in and out of focus. Maybe there were snakes, but he didn't care. If she would just jump in, he'd protect her from whatever watery creatures lurked beneath the surface. Coming back to the top, Wade laughed and whooped.
"Now I know there are snakes in there," he heard Zoe say, before she walked away.
Later, while bar tending, Shelley wobbled up to the counter. The smell coming off of her told him that she'd been doing tequila shots on the job again.
"Waaade. Wade, Wade, Wade," she drawled, practically laying across the bar, "You're just so cute!"
He chuckled, "Why, thank you, Shelley. You're not so bad yourself."
She giggled and hiccupped, "Why don't you have a girlfriend? I mean, every woman just throws themselves at you! It shouldn't be that hard."
Wade's smile faded and he looked away.
"Oh...I get it," she said. He looked up and saw she was wearing a smug, all-knowing look on her face, "You're gay."
"What? No! I am not gay," he said hastily.
"Well, then, what else could you be waiting for? You have to be gay!" she exclaimed, throwing up her hands. Unfortunately, her hands on the bar were all that were holding her up. She collapsed to the ground and Wade quickly ran around to her. Crouching down next to Shelley, he explained himself.
"Look, Shelley, I'm not gay. I just happen to like someone who doesn't like me back right now," he whispered. Her eyes widened suddenly.
"You like Zoe Hart," she almost yelled. Luckily, the Rammer Jammer was pretty much empty except for a man in the far corner singing softly to himself.
"Shh! Shelley! You have to keep this a secret!" Wade said urgently.
"Hehe, you sound like a girl, Wade. But don't worry. I'll keep your secret," Shelley giggled into her hands. Wade sighed and helped Shelley stand up.
"You know what, Shelley," said Wade, "Your shift is over in a bit. Nobody's here. Why don't you clock out a half hour early. And go sleep in the back a while. I don't want you driving home."
He helped her up (which consisted of him picking her up) and carried her into the break room. There was a couch in there and he gently set her down, throwing his coat over her. He backed out of the room, turning off the lights.
"Hey, Wade," Shelley's voice came out of the darkness.
"Yeah?" asked Wade, standing in the doorway.
"For what it's worth, I think you and Zoe would be great together," said Shelley. Wade smiled.
"'Night, Shelley," he whispered as he closed the door.
Hours later, Shelley walked gingerly out of the back room, holding her head.
"Hey, sleepyhead," called Wade, picking up the trash bag.
"Ugh," she groaned, taking one hand away from her fragile head to wave Wade silent, "Don't yell at me, Wade. I've got a bitch of a hangover."
Wade grinned at her, heaving the bag over his shoulder, "Well, maybe you shouldn't drink on the job, hm?"
Shelley glared at him through squinted eyes, "Okay, okay, I gotta go see Zoe. Maybe she's got some sort of "magic hangover cure"..thingy. Hopefully she's still at the practice."
"Okay, Shelley," he called to her retreating back, "Good luck with that."
The door slammed shut and Wade was left alone in the Rammer Jammer. It was closing time for the medical practice. Would Zoe still be in when Shelley got there? Well, maybe she would be. She had to do as much work as she could in order to get the 30% of the patients she needed to keep the practice.
Wade threw the bag over his shoulder again and walked out to the back alley. A dark fence ran alongside the narrow road, with the high school on the other side. Normally, there were lights shining from the football field to help Wade see, but, because of the heat wave, the coach had canceled practice. They didn't need any players collapsing from heat stroke, what with Homecoming right around the corner. Today, however, there weren't any lights, so Wade had to fend for himself. Now, where the hell were the trash cans?
He carefully felt his way down the alley with his arm running along the fence. They were up against the fence somewhere, he just didn't know where. Out of nowhere, a sharp pain cut him right above his left ribs.
"SHIT!" yelled Wade, slapping a hand to his side. He felt something warm and realized he was bleeding. "Damn it," he muttered to himself. Quickly, he located the trash cans (of course they were only a few more feet in front of him), threw the bag inside, and walked swiftly back to the Rammer Jammer. Once inside, he went to the bathroom, pulled off his shirt, and surveyed the damage.
"Damn," he said. It looked like someone had stabbed him. Blood was quickly running down his stomach, so he pulled on his shirt again and grabbed a rag from the basket. Time to go see Dr. Hart.
The bell tinkled as he opened the door and Zoe looked up as Wade began walking down the long entrance hall.
"We're closed, Wade," she said like she was talking to a two year old, before adding to Shelley, who looked, if anything, worse than when she left the Rammer Jammer, "Here's the acetaminophen. It's the best I can do."
"Hey, look, I'm sorry to barge in after hours, but, uh, I was takin' out the trash over at the Rammer Jammer and the fence kinda jumped out and got me. Y-you think it needs stitches?" he asked apprehensively. Ever since he was a kid who had fallen off his bike and needed stitches, he hated them with a passion.
Zoe's face softened, "I'll have to clean it up and see. Why don't you go sit down in there and I'll take a look."
"Alright," he said, taking a deep breath. He walked into the examination room and sat down on the padded bed. A second later, he heard the bell tinkle, telling him Shelley had left. That meant – Yep, Zoe walked in the room just a moment later.
"Alright, Wade, let's see what you did this time," she said, walking over to stand by him, "I can't see much so, uh, I need to be able to see all the damage that was done, so, I, um..I need you to...take off your shirt..."
"Oh, o-okay," said Wade, totally oblivious to Zoe's discomfort. He was just as nervous as she was, but for a completely different reason. He whipped off his shirt and balled it up in his fist. Zoe didn't say anything as she looked at the cut, but a moment later she glanced up at him again.
"Yep, it's gonna need stitches," she said. Wade's eyes widened, but he nodded, taking in another deep breath.
"Alright, Doc, just get it done quickly. But don't do a bad job. I don't want to come in again to get it redone if the stitches come undone. Say, do I count as a patient in your 30% thing? Even if it's afterhours, it should still count. It does count, right?"
"Wade," she said, cutting off his rant. While he was blabbing, she had gathered the necessary supplies, "I need to be able to focus. So, shut up."
"Right you are, Doc, so I'll just be quiet now, oka-," he cut himself off at another withering look from Zoe.
They were silent for a few minutes. Except for the occasional "ow!" from Wade. He really didn't like stitches. When she was finished, she didn't say anything, just took off her gloves. Wade watched her. The pain had passed and the threat of more stitches was gone. They both seemed to be focusing on the same thing now.
"You sure are taking your time with that, Doc," he said softly, referring to how slowly she was pressing the bandage over the stitches. She looked up at him through her eyelashes and sped up.
"There. You're all good to go," she said breathlessly. He looked down at the wound area.
"I appreciate all the fine work you did," he said, smiling at her. She smiled back, albeit less enthusiastically.
"If there's anything I can do to repay the favor," he said roughly, "I'll be at the Rammer Jammer later." He smiled, "You know where to find me."
He stood up and walked out the door, feeling Zoe's eyes on his back. Once outside, he leaned against the building, eyes closed and heart hammering against his chest.
All night, Wade kept looking up at the door every time someone came or left. Not once, though, was it Zoe. He had started to lose hope. Maybe she wasn't interested in him. Maybe he had just made a complete fool of himself. He wouldn't be able to look her in the eyes from then on.
Half an hour before closing, the door was still opening and closing a lot. Wade had stopped looking up, though. He heard heels clicking across the floor, coming straight at the bar. With the last of his hope, he looked up and saw Zoe making a bee line for him. For him! She was smiling and wearing the sexiest dress Wade had ever seen. It wasn't skimpy, but it fit her in all the right ways.
She pulled out the bar stool and sat down...then fell. Wade's mouth dropped open and he leaned over the counter to look down at her. She was rubbing her head and wobbly getting back up.
"Wha-?" he laughed, "Are you alright down there?"
She scrambled into the bar stool she had completely missed, nervously giggling, "Little slippery."
"Yeah, um," said Wade, trying to make his eyes stay on her face and not travel downward, "Can I get you something?"
She leaned toward him, "I think you know.."
"Wine."
"No."
"Uh, beer?"
She looked at him like he was an alien, "Uh, y-yeah, beer. Fine."
Wade stared at her for a moment, trying to figure out what she meant, then went to get her beer. Before he got very far, Zoe stopped him.
"Wait, wait, no. I don't want anything to drink," she said shaking her head and smiling nervously.
"Oh," said Wade, "Okay.."
"So...," said Zoe, leaning in even more, looking intently at Wade. Then, she did a sort of blink thing. She did it again.
"Do you, do you got a sort of contact lense situation?" he asked, completely confused. She took a deep breath and spoke.
"Your place, 11:30," she whispered. Wade looked taken aback for all of 3 seconds. Then, he smirked at leaned forward.
"I'll be there," he whispered back. She contentedly got to her feet, smiled one last time, and left.
You know in movies how girls jump up and down screaming when they get the guy after a shit ton of work? Wade had to resist doing that in the middle of the Rammer Jammer.
"Oh, my God!" yelled Shelley, running outside. Wade looked through the front window and saw Zoe sitting on the ground, holding her head. Polly Parker, whose mother had died recently, was stumbling away holding a rather heavy-looking purse. Before Wade had made it halfway across the Rammer Jammer, Shelley came back inside.
"Where's Zoe? Is she okay?" Wade questioned Shelley, bobbing around and looking over her shoulders.
"Calm down, Wade. Jeez. Try not to make it so obvious. She's fiiine. But she did say she'd be a few minutes late," Shelley wiggled her eyebrows at him, "Whatever that means!"
Wade was sitting at home. And waiting And sitting. And waiting.
He had raced home to get his bedroom cleaned up, the kitchen, the living room, the bathroom, EVERTHING ready for Zoe. He had gotten it done so quickly that he was done at 11pm.
So, now he was sitting. And waiting. And sitting. And waiting.
Footsteps sounded on the porch outside. Slowly, Wade got to his feet and made his way to the door. He opened it and Zoe stood there, her dark hair rustling in the slight breeze that cooled the incredibly warm night. Neither of them said anything, just looked at each other. It should have been awkward, but weirdly, it wasn't. Both of them were anticipating what was to come.
Wade took a small step forward at the same time she did and the corners of her lips turned upwards slightly. They both were hesitant to make the first move, inching closer and closer, but never taking the giant leap.
Right as their lips were millimeters apart, the sky opened and water poured over them. Zoe pulled back and turned her face up, a different look coming over her. Wade knew what she was about to say. He wished she wouldn't say it. He hoped she wouldn't say it. But he knew she was going to say it.
"Looks like the heat wave broke," he said, desperately trying to save the situation, "Doesn't mean you can't come inside."
"Actually, it does," she said, her voice breaking. Wade looked down at his shoes. There. She said it. "I guess I'm just not that kinda girl." She added, shaking her head, pleading with him to understand. She looked at him for a moment more, then turned, and ran back down the stairs. Wade watched her go, biting his lip and wishing he could run after her. But if she wasn't that kinda girl, she wasn't that kinda girl.
He watched her for as long as he could, then turned, and advanced back into his impeccably clean house, closing the door behind him.
There you go! Chapter 4! :) I actually really like how this one turned out...(:
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Annnddd that's it! Thank you to all! And to all, a good night! -yeah, merry belated christmas, everyone! :)
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