Waking Up! – Chapter 8

"So how did the dinner go?" Billy asked. Tim looked at him from the couch he was sitting on and didn't say a word. Yesterday had been tough. "C'mon kid, I want some details." Billy handed him a plate with some bacon and egg stuffed into some sort of weird looking roll and looked at his expectantly. Billy stuffed his own roll into his mouth and sat down with a thump next to him. He figured he couldn't avoid it. It was time to dig deep and dish.

"The dinner?" Billy asked, leaning forward obviously enjoying watching his little brother squirm uncomfortably.

"Well it didn't start well, Mrs Coach saw me with my hands on her daughter's ass in the hall," Billy shook with laughter, bits of egg and bacon flying across their dusty floor.

"Dude, Coach is going to kill you."

"Well he didn't," Tim gestured at his presence. "But it got worse..." just thinking about the conversation he had had after that was almost giving him hives.

"Worse, how? Tami tie your balls to her car?" Billy was finding this way too amusing.

"No, Matt Saracen came to have a talk. Just stormed up to me after Julie and the other guys left. "

"A talk? That little knee knocker? Warning you off huh?" Billy chucked at the thought of Matt saying anything to Tim.

"Well no, not really. He just came up to me and was like – Julie's different. And I am like yeah. He's like no, she's really special Rigs and you can't treat her like that. And I am like huh, what? I had no idea what the hell was going on at all. Then he hits me with this – she hadn't uh um been uh with ahhhh anyone Rigs." Tim tried to do his best Saracen impression even thought the memory stung a little.

"What? The V-card's intact?"

"No Billy, it was. Until the party and the truck and me. Except it took me a lot longer to work out what he was trying to tell me between the um's, the ah's and the vagueness. So she lost her virginity to me, in the back of the truck with every teenager in Dillon hearing what was going on. I suck. She lost her virginity to the biggest man whore in Texas in his bed on wheels. No wonder she cries a lot."

"Well I'd cry, that's for sure," Billy thumped him on the back, laughter filling up the space of their living area.

"Why is she making me do this fake boyfriend crap then?" He looked at Billy trying to get some answers.

"I think you know why, she's scrambling right now and you are her lifeline." Billy had a moment of clarity and Tim was shocked.

"Me? I am no one's anchor. I devirginised her."

"Is that even a word?"

"Who cares Billy? I did. Why she putting this on me?" Billy just shrugged. "Why am I so worried about what she thinks of me now?

"So about the dinner?" Billy's segue was not subtle. Tim plopped his head into his hands that were upon his knees.

"So I have been given this huge news by Saracen, so I decide to really pull out all the stops for her parents. I am standing at the door and there she is, I could barely see her over the 

flowers I brought for her mom. She smiled at me and I was thinking, why is she being so nice to me?"

She held out her hand, clasping it firmly within his own and brought him into the living area he was well acquainted with. There was the spot he'd accidentally put porn on, there was the spot he'd made Gracie move like a machine part and there was the place where Julie had fallen against the wall when he had tried to sneak her home that time. He'd been the protector, the big brother type then. So much had changed and he only had himself to blame. He had ruined her and her family's trust in him and now he was lying to them some more.

Her hand was tiny and he looked down at it, the ultimate symbol of trust and their loyalty to one another in this moment.

"Mom, Dad. Tim's here," she walked him in and there were the two scariest people on the planet walking around the kitchen stirring chilli and having a good old time. Coach had a dish towel tossed over his shoulder stirring the pot and Mrs Taylor was rocking Gracie. They were the perfect depiction of a typical, regular, traditional American family and he felt at home. Just like he had when he lived there, this is what he didn't have and wanted. Maybe some day down the track...with Julie? He didn't know where that thought had come from. This was a farce, trickery. Could it be something real?

"So how was the Coach?" Billy was prodding him with his elbow as he continued to eat.

"Ah civil but his jaw was twitching the entire night. There was a smile on his face but his eyes were yeesh," Billy nodded understandingly, well versed in the Coach's dangerousness.

"And Mrs Coach? She forgiven me for messin' around with her pump that time?" Billy asked earnestly.

"I don't know Billy. It really wasn't something I wanted to bring it up again to be honest." Tim said groaning, his hands combing through his long locks, his face contorted.

"Yeah right, guess not. So it went well?"

"No Billy, Julie was pretty much the only one to speak all night. Her dad just stared at me the whole time, anytime Mrs Taylor said anything the Coach would shut her down with a look. Julie was working overtime just to make us seem normal and I couldn't talk. There was something jammed in my throat cause I am was strugglin' Billy. She's going to be mighty pissed off at me."

"So Dad, Tim's looking pretty good for a scholarship I'd imagine?" Julie asked her father trying to get some semblance of the conversation started. She was struggling and she kept looking at him for help but her father's tightly wound jaw and the knowledge that she'd lost her virginity to him made him shake in his chair.

"Hmmm," the Coach was chewing through his reply. His eyebrow raised and he pointedly stopped and looked at Tim. He ran a gaze over him and shrugged. Tim had never known anyone to be as non-verbal as him at that dinner, even he would normally put on a better show for a guest. He looked at Mrs Taylor and attempted to say anything –

"Gracie's grown so much since I lived here. She's definitely growing out of that alien phase," all three people sitting around him stared in various stages of shock and horror. Julie kicked him under the table. "Not that she isn't adorable..."

"I think it's time for Tim to leave now," Julie said with eyes asking him what the hell he was thinking. He wasn't lying but criticising a baby was pretty darn harsh, where was his freaking brain? She stood and grabbed his upper arm to lead him out. The Coach rose from his chair-

"Ah Julie, don't bother. I'll walk Tim to his truck." Julie looked at Tim helplessness written all over her face.



She lifted her eyebrows "See you tomorrow?" he nodded and swallowed awkwardly. She leaned in and cupped his cheek with her hand and pecked him quickly on the lips to continue the charade. Then her eyes were straight back on her father.

"Uh thanks very much for having me Coach, Mrs Taylor." Coach started to gesture for him to start walking. The father walked behind him step for step and the hair rose on the back of his neck. This wasn't good, he didn't know did he?

"Tahnks for the flowers Tim, they are beautiful," Tmai called as he was being walked like a man on death row.

As they stepped outside, Eric Taylor looked behind him as if checking for eavesdroppers. He then guided Tim towards his truck.

"I don't approve of this relationship purely because of your reputation. But you've proven to me before that you will take care of her but you weren't interested in her then. I will be watching you. I like you but I will not have my daughter hurt in any way, got that?"

Tim swallowed. "Yes sir." He was waiting for the axe to fall.

"You won't tarnish her reputation, you will not talk about her in the locker rooms, you will treat her with the utmost respect, you will only see her on weekends and you will have her home by a parent specified time." It sounded all pretty reasonable but Tim was very scared.

"And if I hear about your hands being anywhere near my daughter's derriere again, I will break everyone of your fingers. Are we clear?"

"Crystal." Tim sighed. Coach stared at him for some long moments, sighed and then strode back towards the light filled doorway.



"Whoa, he can be one scary motherfu..." Tim held a hand up to cut his brother off.

"It wasn't a great night but I can't disagree with anything he said. They are putting up with me and they don't like it at all. They are waiting for me to screw up."

"So screw up and have this thing be over," it was quite possibly the most sense Billy had uttered.

"I can't do that to her, especially now."

"So what price is there on one's maidenhead?" Billy chuckled.

"Apparently one Tim Riggins served up for eternal slave-dom." Billy cracked up laughing, he knew Julie had him cornered. Although, he didn't mind spending so much time with her.

"What I can't figure out is why she slept with you and not Matty boy?" It hurt hearing that, that he didn't measure up to 7. He knew it but being reminded of it kinda sucked.

"I know it's weird huh? I got to know her pretty well when I crashed there. She doesn't make big decisions rashly. She chose me. She actually chose me for a reason." The realisation ping-ponged through his brain. "She may have been trashed that night but she made the conscious decision that it would be me. And you know what?" Billy looked at him unsure as to what Tim was going to say next. "I'm glad, I think I like her."

"Like her like her?" Billy gasped.

"Yeah. I think I do," Tim realised. He liked her a lot. Her hair, her sweet scent, the way she'd call him on his crap, the warmth of her skin, her laugh, her plotting. He liked her, the entire package and he had gone about this relationship in a real bad way. He need to ... knock, knock.

He raised himself from the couch, wiped his greasy fingers on Billy's shirt and went to the door.

Author's Notes – We need some more review love people, updating is becoming a little more challenging and we require some external motivation.