I pull out my chair and slump into my seat at dinner. I haven't gotten any food, I'm not feeling very hungry right now. To busy thinking about what's going on with TJ, I guess. She seems really cool at times, but other's she's just down right nasty.
"So, how's things going with TJ." Fulton asks, stealing a French fry from Portman's plate. I've got to say, he's nervy, I would never come between Dean and food.
An undecipherable mutter comes out of my mouth and the rest of the team looks over at me.
"That good huh?" Guy queries.
"I've decided the girl has more then one person living in her head." I say. " She goes fun and friendly to ice bitch in 3.5 seconds."
"I'll talk to her for you." Jesse's girlfriend Maryann volunteers.
"No thanks Maryann, she can be rough, she made Alicia cry."
"Luis, no one makes me cry. You can't out bitch, the world's biggest." She retorts.
"Jesse man, where did you find her?" Russ laughs.
"I'm serious, which one's TJ?" Maryann bounces agitated.
"Maybe you should let Luis handle this." Jesse tells her, which earns him a dirty look. "Okay, or you could go talk to her."
"Thanks Hun, who is she?"
"The only girl at the football team table." Portman responds as she gets up and crosses the lunch room.
From where we sit, we're getting a pretty good view of everything that's going on. Maryann's standing above Tricia-Jean with her neck moving back and fourth and her finger wagging. I can't tell what she's saying but for the way her lips are moving, I assume it's not something very nice. I've got to tell you, I hope Jesse never cheats on her or something, cause she can be one intimating girl when she wants to.
As Maryann spins on her heels and waltzes back over to us I notice the expression on TJ's face. She looks upset, not crying just unnerved, like she didn't know what hit her. I guess she met her match and doesn't like it.
"What did you say to her?" Jesse asks, as his girlfriend sits back down beside him.
"You know, I don't really know." She replies "Whatever it was had her saying 'Look Maryann, I don't want any trouble with you.' But it was basically along the lines of Luis being one of your good friends, and one of your good friends is one of my good friends and I will hurt physically anyone that hurts mentally one of my friends."
"You realize she's the captain of the football team right?" Charlie looks at her in disbelieve.
"I'm aware." She shrugs "Oh yeah, she said she'll see you in her room at the usual time for Spanish lessons."
"Oh boy," I groan "that isn't going to be fun."
I knock on her door, just like I have been for days now, this time however instead of opening it to me she yells
"Come in."
I push the door open and look around her room, she sitting at her desk with her back to me and it appears she's reading. I walk up behind her and lean over her shoulder, she is reading JRR Tolkien's The Fellowship Of The Ring.
"Is the book better then the movie?" I query and she jumps.
Of course she snaps at me.
"Do you make a habit of sneaking up on people?"
"I knocked, you knew I was here." I defend myself.
"Whatever. So you don't have your bodyguard with you, I'm impressed."
"Bodyguard?"
"Yeah, loud mouth brunette, about 5'7". You know who I'm talking about."
"She's my buddy Jesse's girl, it's not my fault she doesn't like people to screw around with her friends."
"I'm not screwing around with you Luis." She sighs.
"What would you call it then? You're hot one minute, you're cold the next. Damn it TJ, I can be with you for hours and you make me feel like you actually like me, the next day I say hi to you and you treat me like I've got the plague. Just be straight with me for God's sake."
"What do you want from me? You want me to tell you, how incredibly attracted to you I am? That every time I'm with you it takes everything in me not to jump your bones! Damn it Luis I can't do that!" Tricia-Jean yells. "I've grown up being told that people like you are worthless, that you take jobs from hard working white people, that you're the reason the crime rate is so high in the USA. I know you're family works hard and I know you're not a drug dealer, but I just can't change who I am, who I've always been because I may want to be with you."
I smile and run my hand through my hair.
"So you do wanna be with me."
"Luis…"
"Tricia-Jean…"
"I never said that."
"You never said you didn't either."
"I've got something going with Mark, right for me."
I shake my head.
"Yeah you keep telling yourself that TJ. Look I don't feel like tutoring you today, I'll be in my room if you come to your senses."
"Luis please…" She calls out as I exit. I'm about to turn and go back in when I realize, it doesn't make a difference, no matter what she's still just going to be a bigot. Something I'll never be able to get past.
"So, how's things going with TJ." Fulton asks, stealing a French fry from Portman's plate. I've got to say, he's nervy, I would never come between Dean and food.
An undecipherable mutter comes out of my mouth and the rest of the team looks over at me.
"That good huh?" Guy queries.
"I've decided the girl has more then one person living in her head." I say. " She goes fun and friendly to ice bitch in 3.5 seconds."
"I'll talk to her for you." Jesse's girlfriend Maryann volunteers.
"No thanks Maryann, she can be rough, she made Alicia cry."
"Luis, no one makes me cry. You can't out bitch, the world's biggest." She retorts.
"Jesse man, where did you find her?" Russ laughs.
"I'm serious, which one's TJ?" Maryann bounces agitated.
"Maybe you should let Luis handle this." Jesse tells her, which earns him a dirty look. "Okay, or you could go talk to her."
"Thanks Hun, who is she?"
"The only girl at the football team table." Portman responds as she gets up and crosses the lunch room.
From where we sit, we're getting a pretty good view of everything that's going on. Maryann's standing above Tricia-Jean with her neck moving back and fourth and her finger wagging. I can't tell what she's saying but for the way her lips are moving, I assume it's not something very nice. I've got to tell you, I hope Jesse never cheats on her or something, cause she can be one intimating girl when she wants to.
As Maryann spins on her heels and waltzes back over to us I notice the expression on TJ's face. She looks upset, not crying just unnerved, like she didn't know what hit her. I guess she met her match and doesn't like it.
"What did you say to her?" Jesse asks, as his girlfriend sits back down beside him.
"You know, I don't really know." She replies "Whatever it was had her saying 'Look Maryann, I don't want any trouble with you.' But it was basically along the lines of Luis being one of your good friends, and one of your good friends is one of my good friends and I will hurt physically anyone that hurts mentally one of my friends."
"You realize she's the captain of the football team right?" Charlie looks at her in disbelieve.
"I'm aware." She shrugs "Oh yeah, she said she'll see you in her room at the usual time for Spanish lessons."
"Oh boy," I groan "that isn't going to be fun."
I knock on her door, just like I have been for days now, this time however instead of opening it to me she yells
"Come in."
I push the door open and look around her room, she sitting at her desk with her back to me and it appears she's reading. I walk up behind her and lean over her shoulder, she is reading JRR Tolkien's The Fellowship Of The Ring.
"Is the book better then the movie?" I query and she jumps.
Of course she snaps at me.
"Do you make a habit of sneaking up on people?"
"I knocked, you knew I was here." I defend myself.
"Whatever. So you don't have your bodyguard with you, I'm impressed."
"Bodyguard?"
"Yeah, loud mouth brunette, about 5'7". You know who I'm talking about."
"She's my buddy Jesse's girl, it's not my fault she doesn't like people to screw around with her friends."
"I'm not screwing around with you Luis." She sighs.
"What would you call it then? You're hot one minute, you're cold the next. Damn it TJ, I can be with you for hours and you make me feel like you actually like me, the next day I say hi to you and you treat me like I've got the plague. Just be straight with me for God's sake."
"What do you want from me? You want me to tell you, how incredibly attracted to you I am? That every time I'm with you it takes everything in me not to jump your bones! Damn it Luis I can't do that!" Tricia-Jean yells. "I've grown up being told that people like you are worthless, that you take jobs from hard working white people, that you're the reason the crime rate is so high in the USA. I know you're family works hard and I know you're not a drug dealer, but I just can't change who I am, who I've always been because I may want to be with you."
I smile and run my hand through my hair.
"So you do wanna be with me."
"Luis…"
"Tricia-Jean…"
"I never said that."
"You never said you didn't either."
"I've got something going with Mark, right for me."
I shake my head.
"Yeah you keep telling yourself that TJ. Look I don't feel like tutoring you today, I'll be in my room if you come to your senses."
"Luis please…" She calls out as I exit. I'm about to turn and go back in when I realize, it doesn't make a difference, no matter what she's still just going to be a bigot. Something I'll never be able to get past.