OK, this is the chapter that should probably merit me moving the story's
rating up to R (for language), but I'm not going to move it, because after
this, it's going to go back down to PG-13. Let's just say that you should
consider this an R-rated chapter. Thanks for reading, and again, thanks to
Charligirl for beta-ing.
Littler readers- shoo. Come back for Chapter 8.
Chapter 7
It was hot.
That was the one thought running through everyone's head that August day. School was in three weeks, but no one cared- because it was hot. Hot beyond anything anyone in Castle Rock had ever experienced.
Gordie and Chris walked down Main Street. They passed Mrs. Robinson, who owned the flower shop. She had a watering can but seemed to have forgotten the flowers in favor of getting herself a little wet.
They had been sent by Teddy, Vern, and Justi to go get ice for the tree house. They'd been more than happy to oblige- the grocery store had just gotten air conditioning. They were the first building in all of Castle Rock to get it, and now there were a ton of people there, not buying anything, just soaking up the cool air.
"Oh, shit," Chris said faintly, catching sight of the line leading to the icebox. There were a good hundred people in line for it, grabbing bag after bag of half-melted ice. It was a futile attempt- Chris and Gordie could see, from where they were at the front of the store, that there were only about fifteen more bags.
A sweaty, shorts-clad woman with straggly blonde hair grabbed the last bag, paid, and positively ran home so that the ice wouldn't melt before she got there.
"Well this sucks," Gordie commented, looking at the line and watching the disappointed people dissolve into different parts of the store.
"Ice cream," Chris said, not seeming to have heard Gordie. "We'll buy lots and lots of ice cream." His eyes had that manic glint to them that people get when they've been in the sun too long.
"No, Chris," Gordie said, wiping his forehead with his arm. "Do you know how much that shit costs?"
"You don't think we deserve it?" Chris returned, looking at all the people almost crying with heatstroke. "Now or never, Lachance. If we don't get it, these people will."
Gordie sighed. "I've got two dollars," he said, resigned to the fact that as long as Chris was here, all the money between them would be spent.
"I've got thirty cents," Chris contributed. "That's enough for a gallon!"
"Indeed," Gordie agreed, shaking his head. "What flavor?"
"Chocolate, of course."
"Of course."
They paid for their gallon of ice cream and sped back to the tree house. Despite their efforts, though, the treat was a little bit melted when they got there.
"Eat! Eat quick!" Chris said, producing five plastic spoons and slamming the carton onto the makeshift table the three left behind were all playing cards around. "Before it melts!"
Vern, Teddy, and Justi's eyes all widened when they saw the ice cream. Ice cream was an expensive treat, so unless it was a holiday, you rarely got to have it.
"Yeah, man!" Teddy cried enthusiastically, brandishing his spoon like a knife. "Way to beat the heat, guys!"
Chris smiled, feeling very appreciated as he watched his friends dig into the ice cream. Within ten minutes, the whole carton was polished off.
"Well," Vern said, reclining back in his chair, looking very satisfied, "good choice, guys."
"All my idea," Chris said proudly. Gordie nodded and muttered something.
"What, Lachance?"
"Nothing."
Vern moved closer to Justi and put an arm around her, missing altogether the increasingly uncomfortable look on her face. "Justi and I are going to a movie tonight," he announced. "Anyone want to come?"
"I'm in," Teddy agreed instantly. It seemed everyone had caught on to the situation between Vern and Justi except Vern himself. Justi shot Teddy a grateful look and mouthed 'Thank you'. He gave her an almost imperceptible nod.
"I can't," Gordie explained. "I've got an essay to finish up if I want to get into the college courses next year."
"I've got to get Gordie to help me out on an essay," Chris added, and they all laughed.
"Have fun," Teddy said dryly.
"Gordie and Chris alone? Of course they'll have fun!" Justi put in.
But later that night, when Chris had been at Gordie's for about half an hour, they were not having fun. At all. The heat had gotten to each of their heads, and for the past half hour, they'd been annoying each other dangerously. They were both tense and on edge, but there had been a heavy silence. When it was finally broken, all hell broke loose.
"I'm so hot," Gordie complained, for the third time in five minutes.
"Shut the fuck up, Lachance," Chris snapped irritably, without even looking up from his essay.
"You shut up, you asshole."
"Why, so you can whine more? 'It's sooo hot,' " Chris mimicked viciously.
"No, so I can work on my fucking essay, retard."
"Your essay's a piece of shit."
"You're a piece of shit," Gordie returned, looking at Chris with something a lot like loathing.
"You're a piece of shit who fucks his mother," Chris said angrily, meeting his gaze.
"You're just angry because I won't fuck you," Gordie said, and struck a nerve.
"I would never fuck you!" Chris screamed. "You could pay me a million dollars and crawl to me on your dirty fucking hands and knees and I still wouldn't fuck you! You understand me?"
"You wouldn't fuck me because you aren't good enough for me!" Gordie yelled back. "You've never been good enough for me, and you know it! Why the hell do you think your father beats the shit out of you all the time?"
"Why do you think your dad hates you more than anything in the goddamned world, Lachance? Why do you think he went to watch the fucking ball game when Ace and Eyeball brought you home that night?" Chris's eyes glittered with malicious anger.
"How the fuck do you know about that?" Gordie demanded, a fresh wave of anger crashing over him.
"Eyeball told me about it," Chris answered, his voice dangerously soft and edged with something Gordie had never heard before. "And I remember thinking that my dad would never do anything like that. I remember thinking that it must be awful for you." His voice got even softer. "But you know what?"
"No, what?"
"Now I see why he did it."
A flood of anger, hate, and shame threw Gordie into overdrive, and he heard himself saying things he never in a million years would have said to anyone, let alone Chris. "For someone who acts so tough, you sure can be a pussy at times! You're such a loser, Chambers! Everyone knows it! Everyone knows you're never going to get out of here. You're going to live here; you're going to do absolutely fucking nothing. You're going to be the one people pass and say 'Wow, is he a piece of shit.' You're going to do nothing here, and you're going to die here. And no one's going to remember the littlest Chambers boy, because no one's going to care! No one!" That isn't true, he heard the little voice in his head say. That's not true at all. I care, Chris, I love you. You will get out, because you're a brilliant, beautiful, smart, wonderful person. But he couldn't bring himself to say that out loud.
Chris glared daggers at him, and for a second Gordie thought he was going to hit him. But his arms remained at his sides, as, eyes blazing, he screamed, "Oh, yeah, you're right, Lachance. Because everyone's going to remember you! Everyone's going to remember you and your stories! Yeah, right! YEAH FUCKING RIGHT. Lachance, people might not care about me, but at least I don't claim to have talent! You and your stories, that's all you've got! And you know what? Let me let you in on a little secret: You can't write! You've never been able to write! Your stories suck ass!" I love your stories, Gordie. You can write better than anyone I've ever seen. Please, don't believe this. . . I can't stop saying it, but it isn't true. I love you.
Gordie's eyes darkened with rage. "I hate you, Chris Chambers. I hate you more than I've ever hated anyone in my life. I hope you go home and Eyeball beats the shit out of you for no reason at all." No! I don't hate you! Please, Chris, please don't believe that. I'm sorry, I really am. . .
"Your father was right," Chris snarled. "All those dreams you've had, I've always told you they were wrong. But they're not at all. You're dad's absolutely right, Lachance. It should have been you. It should have been goddamned-fucking you." Chris stood there, as if daring Gordie to retort, lip trembling with anger. Gordie, look into my eyes. . . look into my eyes and see that that's not true. See that I would never mean that. Please.
"Get out," Gordie said through clenched teeth. His voice was low, grating, and angry- it scared Chris beyond anything either of them had said all night. "Get the fuck out of here. I don't ever want to see you again, Chambers. Curl up somewhere and fucking die, why don't you? Do us all a favor."
"Gladly, Lachance," Chris said, his voice a little quieter now. "I'll gladly remove myself from your presence, as long as you promise me I'll never have to see you again." He was regretting everything he'd said intensely now, but couldn't find the words to tell Gordie, who was blind with anger, rage, and pain. He turned on his heel and slammed Gordie's bedroom door. Gordie heard him run down the stairs and slam the front door as well.
"I hope you fall and die, Chambers," he hollered out the window to Chris's shadowy figure. His voice cracked and strained with effort.
"I won't, Lachance," Chris yelled back. "I wouldn't dream of dying without getting you first. Somehow you'll pay. I promise you that you will need me. You'll need me someday, and I'll spit at you and laugh."
"The only thing I'll ever need you for is as someone for my dog to fuck if she ever gets lonely," Gordie screamed, and slammed the window shut.
In a daze, he stumbled over to his bed and sat down, replaying the entire argument in his head. He'd never said that many things he didn't mean to anyone.
He lay down, turned the light out, and cried himself to sleep.
On the other side of town, Chris did exactly the same thing.
End of Chapter 7
Chapter 7
It was hot.
That was the one thought running through everyone's head that August day. School was in three weeks, but no one cared- because it was hot. Hot beyond anything anyone in Castle Rock had ever experienced.
Gordie and Chris walked down Main Street. They passed Mrs. Robinson, who owned the flower shop. She had a watering can but seemed to have forgotten the flowers in favor of getting herself a little wet.
They had been sent by Teddy, Vern, and Justi to go get ice for the tree house. They'd been more than happy to oblige- the grocery store had just gotten air conditioning. They were the first building in all of Castle Rock to get it, and now there were a ton of people there, not buying anything, just soaking up the cool air.
"Oh, shit," Chris said faintly, catching sight of the line leading to the icebox. There were a good hundred people in line for it, grabbing bag after bag of half-melted ice. It was a futile attempt- Chris and Gordie could see, from where they were at the front of the store, that there were only about fifteen more bags.
A sweaty, shorts-clad woman with straggly blonde hair grabbed the last bag, paid, and positively ran home so that the ice wouldn't melt before she got there.
"Well this sucks," Gordie commented, looking at the line and watching the disappointed people dissolve into different parts of the store.
"Ice cream," Chris said, not seeming to have heard Gordie. "We'll buy lots and lots of ice cream." His eyes had that manic glint to them that people get when they've been in the sun too long.
"No, Chris," Gordie said, wiping his forehead with his arm. "Do you know how much that shit costs?"
"You don't think we deserve it?" Chris returned, looking at all the people almost crying with heatstroke. "Now or never, Lachance. If we don't get it, these people will."
Gordie sighed. "I've got two dollars," he said, resigned to the fact that as long as Chris was here, all the money between them would be spent.
"I've got thirty cents," Chris contributed. "That's enough for a gallon!"
"Indeed," Gordie agreed, shaking his head. "What flavor?"
"Chocolate, of course."
"Of course."
They paid for their gallon of ice cream and sped back to the tree house. Despite their efforts, though, the treat was a little bit melted when they got there.
"Eat! Eat quick!" Chris said, producing five plastic spoons and slamming the carton onto the makeshift table the three left behind were all playing cards around. "Before it melts!"
Vern, Teddy, and Justi's eyes all widened when they saw the ice cream. Ice cream was an expensive treat, so unless it was a holiday, you rarely got to have it.
"Yeah, man!" Teddy cried enthusiastically, brandishing his spoon like a knife. "Way to beat the heat, guys!"
Chris smiled, feeling very appreciated as he watched his friends dig into the ice cream. Within ten minutes, the whole carton was polished off.
"Well," Vern said, reclining back in his chair, looking very satisfied, "good choice, guys."
"All my idea," Chris said proudly. Gordie nodded and muttered something.
"What, Lachance?"
"Nothing."
Vern moved closer to Justi and put an arm around her, missing altogether the increasingly uncomfortable look on her face. "Justi and I are going to a movie tonight," he announced. "Anyone want to come?"
"I'm in," Teddy agreed instantly. It seemed everyone had caught on to the situation between Vern and Justi except Vern himself. Justi shot Teddy a grateful look and mouthed 'Thank you'. He gave her an almost imperceptible nod.
"I can't," Gordie explained. "I've got an essay to finish up if I want to get into the college courses next year."
"I've got to get Gordie to help me out on an essay," Chris added, and they all laughed.
"Have fun," Teddy said dryly.
"Gordie and Chris alone? Of course they'll have fun!" Justi put in.
But later that night, when Chris had been at Gordie's for about half an hour, they were not having fun. At all. The heat had gotten to each of their heads, and for the past half hour, they'd been annoying each other dangerously. They were both tense and on edge, but there had been a heavy silence. When it was finally broken, all hell broke loose.
"I'm so hot," Gordie complained, for the third time in five minutes.
"Shut the fuck up, Lachance," Chris snapped irritably, without even looking up from his essay.
"You shut up, you asshole."
"Why, so you can whine more? 'It's sooo hot,' " Chris mimicked viciously.
"No, so I can work on my fucking essay, retard."
"Your essay's a piece of shit."
"You're a piece of shit," Gordie returned, looking at Chris with something a lot like loathing.
"You're a piece of shit who fucks his mother," Chris said angrily, meeting his gaze.
"You're just angry because I won't fuck you," Gordie said, and struck a nerve.
"I would never fuck you!" Chris screamed. "You could pay me a million dollars and crawl to me on your dirty fucking hands and knees and I still wouldn't fuck you! You understand me?"
"You wouldn't fuck me because you aren't good enough for me!" Gordie yelled back. "You've never been good enough for me, and you know it! Why the hell do you think your father beats the shit out of you all the time?"
"Why do you think your dad hates you more than anything in the goddamned world, Lachance? Why do you think he went to watch the fucking ball game when Ace and Eyeball brought you home that night?" Chris's eyes glittered with malicious anger.
"How the fuck do you know about that?" Gordie demanded, a fresh wave of anger crashing over him.
"Eyeball told me about it," Chris answered, his voice dangerously soft and edged with something Gordie had never heard before. "And I remember thinking that my dad would never do anything like that. I remember thinking that it must be awful for you." His voice got even softer. "But you know what?"
"No, what?"
"Now I see why he did it."
A flood of anger, hate, and shame threw Gordie into overdrive, and he heard himself saying things he never in a million years would have said to anyone, let alone Chris. "For someone who acts so tough, you sure can be a pussy at times! You're such a loser, Chambers! Everyone knows it! Everyone knows you're never going to get out of here. You're going to live here; you're going to do absolutely fucking nothing. You're going to be the one people pass and say 'Wow, is he a piece of shit.' You're going to do nothing here, and you're going to die here. And no one's going to remember the littlest Chambers boy, because no one's going to care! No one!" That isn't true, he heard the little voice in his head say. That's not true at all. I care, Chris, I love you. You will get out, because you're a brilliant, beautiful, smart, wonderful person. But he couldn't bring himself to say that out loud.
Chris glared daggers at him, and for a second Gordie thought he was going to hit him. But his arms remained at his sides, as, eyes blazing, he screamed, "Oh, yeah, you're right, Lachance. Because everyone's going to remember you! Everyone's going to remember you and your stories! Yeah, right! YEAH FUCKING RIGHT. Lachance, people might not care about me, but at least I don't claim to have talent! You and your stories, that's all you've got! And you know what? Let me let you in on a little secret: You can't write! You've never been able to write! Your stories suck ass!" I love your stories, Gordie. You can write better than anyone I've ever seen. Please, don't believe this. . . I can't stop saying it, but it isn't true. I love you.
Gordie's eyes darkened with rage. "I hate you, Chris Chambers. I hate you more than I've ever hated anyone in my life. I hope you go home and Eyeball beats the shit out of you for no reason at all." No! I don't hate you! Please, Chris, please don't believe that. I'm sorry, I really am. . .
"Your father was right," Chris snarled. "All those dreams you've had, I've always told you they were wrong. But they're not at all. You're dad's absolutely right, Lachance. It should have been you. It should have been goddamned-fucking you." Chris stood there, as if daring Gordie to retort, lip trembling with anger. Gordie, look into my eyes. . . look into my eyes and see that that's not true. See that I would never mean that. Please.
"Get out," Gordie said through clenched teeth. His voice was low, grating, and angry- it scared Chris beyond anything either of them had said all night. "Get the fuck out of here. I don't ever want to see you again, Chambers. Curl up somewhere and fucking die, why don't you? Do us all a favor."
"Gladly, Lachance," Chris said, his voice a little quieter now. "I'll gladly remove myself from your presence, as long as you promise me I'll never have to see you again." He was regretting everything he'd said intensely now, but couldn't find the words to tell Gordie, who was blind with anger, rage, and pain. He turned on his heel and slammed Gordie's bedroom door. Gordie heard him run down the stairs and slam the front door as well.
"I hope you fall and die, Chambers," he hollered out the window to Chris's shadowy figure. His voice cracked and strained with effort.
"I won't, Lachance," Chris yelled back. "I wouldn't dream of dying without getting you first. Somehow you'll pay. I promise you that you will need me. You'll need me someday, and I'll spit at you and laugh."
"The only thing I'll ever need you for is as someone for my dog to fuck if she ever gets lonely," Gordie screamed, and slammed the window shut.
In a daze, he stumbled over to his bed and sat down, replaying the entire argument in his head. He'd never said that many things he didn't mean to anyone.
He lay down, turned the light out, and cried himself to sleep.
On the other side of town, Chris did exactly the same thing.
End of Chapter 7