Hey Guys! Sorry this took like 3 months to get out, but this summer was a busy one. I've just started writing again, and if this chapter seems a bit off… well, sorry. Anyway, read and review!
Chapter 6
A Couple's Spat?
"Jamie! Wow, never expected to see you around anymore!" Kenny greeted, a false smile plastered on his pale face. "What happened, finally came to your senses and dropped the girl scouts at EMS?"
"No, it's my night off." Jamie replied. "Why? Feel like taking another nose dive off of the water tower?" He added, smirking as the barb hit home. Kenny's expression darkened, just as the four of his five socially challenged underlings snorted with laughter.
"What, so now you're mocking accident victims for people's amusement?" He shook his head in disapproval, and spoke directly to Val. "Cheerleader, your boyfriend's breaking EMT procedure."
"Jamie, that was a little mean." She said softly, keeping her voice low so that her chiding wouldn't be overheard, thereby adding fuel to Kenny's motor mouth. Jamie stared at her incredulously.
"Ok, he can insult you, me, not to mention anyone else working at EMS, without so much as a squeak of disapproval, but one crack about his inability to defy gravity, and I get the PC buzzer? Well, you know what, that's just wro-"
"Jamie." She interrupted warningly. "This isn't the time for this."
"Isn't the time for- it is the time for this! I mean, why would you waste your time defending a jerk like Kenny-"
"Hey, still here!" Kenny blurted, but clearly too fascinated by the interaction going on between Val and his friend to interrupt any more.
"- And all the while leaving him free to roast me?" Jamie finished angrily, moving on as if Kenny had never spoken.
"Because it's the gentlemanly thing to do!" Val snapped back, clearly exasperated, her voice rising. "You're supposed to take insults like a man, not engage in a name calling contest like a 5 year old!" She saw Jamie's shoulders tense, and his jaw line hardened.
"Oh, so I'm supposed to act like that pansy Tyler then?"
"This isn't about Tyler!" she sputtered.
"Oh, of course it is! Every time you open your mouth you compare me to him!" Jamie exploded, a time bomb of faded denim and spiked black hair. "'Tyler would give me his jacket.' 'Tyler's so great at math!' 'Tyler wouldn't make me listen to punk music while on the way to the mall!'" He mimicked.
"I do not sound like that!" Val raged.
"Yes! Yes you do! Not a day goes by without some token mention of Boy Wonder! You don't even have to say it outright, but the implication that I'm not as good as him is hidden in everything you say! Like a verbal 'Where's Waldo' or a hidden Mickey or something! Everyday you tell me how I'll never be good enough for you, not unless, by some stroke of joyous luck, God will answer your prayers and I'm magically transformed into that overachieving rock head!" Jamie yelled back. Kenny and his friends remained silent, watching the fight like an episode of Springer. It was evident, though, that if the two kept it up much longer, they were all likely to be tossed out of the video store, so Kenny took the unprecedented move of mediating the fight.
"All right, ok, hey now." He said, putting himself between the two halves of the feuding couple. "Come on, let's not be like that." Jamie and Val continued to stand nearly nose-to-nose, shooting hateful glares at each other.
"I hate you." Val hissed, narrowing further her already narrowed eyes. She ripped his jacket off of her shoulders and threw it to the ground, grounding it into the floor with the toe of her sandal. To an outsider, this move was rude, but it didn't really warrant the outright horror that greeted Val's latest act of defiance. Even Kenny was stunned at the profanation.
"Shouldn't have done that." He mumbled, secretly admiring Val's ability to defile Jamie's precious jacket like he'd never been suicidal enough to do.
"This folks, is the girl that I love. Sweetie," he cooed, "I love how you take care of the things I lend you."
"Honey, I hate this ratty old coat." Val sang back, kicking the heap of leather off to the side to emphasize her point.
"Baby," he said, spitting out the endearment like a mouthful of soot, "pick up my jacket."
"Like Hell I will! If you love it so much, pick it up yourself!" Much to Val's annoyance, Jamie did just that, scooping up his precious jacket and gently examining it for lasting damage. "You're such an ass." She muttered, staring down at him with contempt.
"Well maybe you should dump me then! Go on, leave!" Val's mouth dropped open as he continued. "Take a jockstrap boyfriend like all your other cheerleader friends- In fact, Tyler's probably free tonight, why dontcha give him a call eh?"
"Maybe I will." She answered haughtily, whipping out her cell phone and punching in Tyler's number. "It's ringing." She mouthed.
"Go for it." He challenged, turning his back on her to examine the selection of new releases. Val waited through the next 5 rings until his voicemail message come on.
"Hello Tyler? Yeah, this is Val. I was just calling to ask if you, you know, wanted to go out sometime. Just call me back when you get this message ok? Bye." She said rapidly at the tone. Jamie didn't even flinch, but Kenny finally detached himself enough to intervene once more between the angry duo. Ironic enough as it sounds, the rebel that started the conversation by criticizing the relationship of the couple in front of him now was using all his energy to patch it back together.
"Jamie! Val! Come on people, you don't want to do this!" Kenny pleaded. "You don't want to split up! You were so happy!" This time they both rounded on the blonde rebel.
"WILL YOU JUST BUTT OUT!?" They screamed at him in unison.
"If we want to argue-" Val began
"-we're going to sit here and argue!" Jamie finished for her, earning himself another annoyed glare from the blonde cheerleader.
"Will you stop doing that?!" She snapped, "I can finish my own sentences!"
"Oh, and I suppose Tyler would have never even thought of finishing a sentence for you. Because he's sooo perfect." He shook his head. "I hope you two are very happy together." He said bitterly.
"Will you leave Tyler out of this!" she yelled back at him. Once again they had squared off like two kick boxers, but dancing and fighting with words and screams rather than fists and feet. The cashiers at the front of the store, as well as the other 3 customers were staring tensely at the couple, wondering if police intervention would at all be necessary. By then, Kenny had seen quite enough.
"Guys, let's went." He ordered, looking weary as he walked towards the rental store exit. "Man, I just came out here to have some fun, not witness a bad episode of 'Divorce court." He muttered, walking out the glass door with his friends, still grumbling similar sentiments.
* * *
Jamie and Val stayed locked in each other's glares till they could no longer see the store lights reflecting off of Kenny's black leather jacket. Then they simultaneously let out a whoop of amused laughter, nearly falling into the Children's Rentals shelves in hysterics. The remaining customers and workers jumped at so unexpected a mood swing, and the manager finally took change and stormed up to them.
"Excuse me, but I'd have to ask you to take yourselves and your dramatics out of my store." She ordered sternly. "You've disrupted my staff, and your fellow customers with you're inconsiderate outbursts, not to mention, embarrassed yourselves!" Chastened, but not humiliated, Jamie grabbed their rental videos and lead Val out of the store, falling into yet another fit of laughter as soon as the door slid shut behind them.
"T-that was the greatest thing I've ever seen!" He hooted, doubling over and clutching his knees. "Did you see his face? 'You were so happy!' He looked ready to call a marriage counselor!"
"I can't believe I just did that." She said faintly, a little overwhelmed and out of it from the entire experience. "I-I was like…"
"You were like the evil bee-yatch girlfriend from Hades?" Jamie supplied helpfully. He pulled his jacket back over his shoulders. "You were great, but did you really have to do that abusing the jacket bit though? Was that really necessary?" Val blushed.
"Yeah, sorry, kinda got a little carried away there." She giggled. "But it worked though-your friend looked at me like I'd burned down a church or something, and you! You looked ready to kill!" She checked her watch and gasped.
"Oh God! We've been gone for an hour and a half! We've got to get home! Do you have the pizzas?"
"I'll pick them up- and, of course, we have the movies." He said with a smirk.
"Right, let's make like Kenny and 'went'. Tyler's probably frantic by now!" She said hurriedly, striding over to the pizza parlor. Jamie lagged behind, staring at her thoughtfully. Then he ran forward and grabber her arm, pulling her to the opposite side of the street from the pizza parlor to a little sidewalk café. "Jamie! What are you doing! We're late!" she said, a little panicked.
"Val sit down." He ordered, nearly pushing her into one of the chic metal tables that lined the sidewalks in his haste to get her settled.
"Jamie wha-"
"You made a date with Tyler tonight. I'm helping you keep it." He said by way of explanation.
"But what about my sister's party? The pizza? I have to baby sit!" she protested. "That message I left was a part of the act! I can't-"
"You can, I'm helping. Just wait here." Jamie answered brusquely, already running across the street towards the pizza restaurant. "Sit! Stay! No moving!" He called back over his shoulder. "Don't worry! I'll take care of everything!" Val sighed.
"Too late, witness the worry."
* * *
AN: Yeah, short chapter. But fun as anything to write. Did you understand what was going on? I told you it'd be a little off, but I hope it wasn't completely confusing. Sorry again for taking so long, but people stopped nagging me to write, and I just kinda stopped writing. See my profile for more details on that. Was it worth the wait? Review and tell me what you think!
Mabuhay,
Makatibird