Chapter Two: Friends
Jimmy was just about to go to bed when his phone rang. He reached across his bed to his bedside table and grabbed it.
"Hello?"
"Um, can I speak to Jimmy?"
"This is Jimmy. Who's this?"
"H-hi Jimmy. It's um...."
"Manny?" Jimmy asked.
"Yeah." She replied.
"Hey, what's up?" Jimmy asked, settling down on his back.
"Nothing really...I didn't wake you up, did I?"
"Nah. I was just about to go to bed, actually."
"Oh." A pause. "I guess I'll talk to you later then..."
"Manny, it's fine." Jimmy interrupted. "Really."
"Okay." Silence on the other end.
"Did you wanna talk?" Jimmy asked.
"Today has just been a very tough day for me." Manny replied.
"Yeah, I noticed. Wanna tell me about it?" Jimmy asked.
"I don't really know where to begin..." Manny said softly.
"The beginning's a good place." Jimmy cracked.
"Okay. The beginning. You know, I guess it really all started back in ninth grade, at the senior's 80's flashback dance." Manny said thoughtfully. "Emma's mom had gone out on a date with Mr. Simpson, so Emma and I decided to crash the dance. And Craig snuck us in."
Jimmy listened to Manny's story intently. About the very beginning of her crush and dancing with Craig in 9th grade, to him rejecting her because she wasn't mature enough. Then to Craig cheating on Ashley with her in 10th grade, and telling her he cared about her. Finally she got to the point about Craig getting her pregnant, and being faced with the hardest decision in her life, and finally going through with the abortion, and the pain she felt when Craig rejected her yet again for Ashley.
"All this time I thought he cared about me was a total lie." Manny said softly.
"Wow." Was all Jimmy could say. Beneath the heavy lipgloss, sexy clothes, big hoop earrings, and horrible reputation was a living, breathing girl with feelings.
"Let me guess, you think I'm a huge slut, just like everyone else." Manny replied with a bitter laugh.
"No, I think you're just really misunderstood and gave your all for a guy who didn't really care in the first place." Jimmy replied.
"Really?" Manny responded.
"Yeah. And I can sort of identify. Not with the whole pregnancy thing, but I really, really cared about Ashley, and she just rejected me. In front of everyone."
Jimmy could practically hear Manny roll her eyes on the other end of the phone. "What does everyone see in her?"
"I think you mean, what DID I see in her? Looking back, I don't really know. She takes everything way too serious, holds grudges to other people, but doesn't understand why other people hold grudges. She's a hypocrite."
"Yeah..." Manny agreed.
Jimmy looked at the clock. 1:26. "Whoa, shit! Manny, it was great talking to you and all, but I really gotta get off the phone. If I'm late one more time my parents are gonna kill me. But I'll see you at school, okay?"
"Okay. It was nice talking to you, Jimmy." Manny said.
"You too. Later, Manny." Jimmy hung up.
Manny laid back on her bed and sighed. Finally. Someone understood what she was going through.
~*The Next Day*~
Craig, Jimmy, and Spinner were all hanging out by their lockers, waiting for Paige and Ashley to get out of class, when Manny walked over to them.
"Hi." She said.
"Look, Manny, I told you to leave me alone." Craig said.
She gave him a Look, similar to the Look one would give a bug...the one that seemed to say, "You are insignificant, and I really don't care about you."
"I wasn't talking to you, I was talking to Jimmy." She responded.
"Uh, Manny, Jimmy doesn't talk to sluts." Spinner spoke up.
"Spinner shut up!" Jimmy said, shoving him into the locker.
"Sorry, geez. What's gotten into you today?"
"Not important." Jimmy responded. "Did you wanna talk to me, Manny."
"I just wanted to thank you for what you said to me last night." She replied, eyeing Craig. "It meant a lot, because most people have a tendency to only think about themselves and treat me like shit." Craig rolled his eyes and turned back to Spinner.
"You're welcome Manny, and you're right about that, because some people are assholes." Jimmy said, noticing Craig giving him a surprised look. He turned back to Manny. "Tell you what. Why don't you meet me in the quad at lunch, and we'll talk some more."
Manny smiled, and nodded. "Okay. See you then. Bye."
"Later." Jimmy said, giving her the famous Jimmy Brooks smile. She smiled and walked away.
"Jimmy, what was that about?" Craig asked. "Why'd you diss me like that?"
"After I found out what you did to that girl last night, you deserve to be dissed." Jimmy responded.
"Jimmy, are you sure you want to hang out with Manny Santos? She kind of gets around."
"One person hardly qualifies as getting around, Spin. I gotta get to class." Jimmy slammed his locker door shut and headed down the hallway to class.
Craig gave Spinner an incredulous look. "Please don't tell me he's getting involved with Santos the Slut."
"I believe he is." Spinner replied. "It has been awhile since he had a date, so maybe he's just playing her."
"Man I hope so...and either way, he's just nailing my leftovers." Craig replied.
Jimmy was just about to go to bed when his phone rang. He reached across his bed to his bedside table and grabbed it.
"Hello?"
"Um, can I speak to Jimmy?"
"This is Jimmy. Who's this?"
"H-hi Jimmy. It's um...."
"Manny?" Jimmy asked.
"Yeah." She replied.
"Hey, what's up?" Jimmy asked, settling down on his back.
"Nothing really...I didn't wake you up, did I?"
"Nah. I was just about to go to bed, actually."
"Oh." A pause. "I guess I'll talk to you later then..."
"Manny, it's fine." Jimmy interrupted. "Really."
"Okay." Silence on the other end.
"Did you wanna talk?" Jimmy asked.
"Today has just been a very tough day for me." Manny replied.
"Yeah, I noticed. Wanna tell me about it?" Jimmy asked.
"I don't really know where to begin..." Manny said softly.
"The beginning's a good place." Jimmy cracked.
"Okay. The beginning. You know, I guess it really all started back in ninth grade, at the senior's 80's flashback dance." Manny said thoughtfully. "Emma's mom had gone out on a date with Mr. Simpson, so Emma and I decided to crash the dance. And Craig snuck us in."
Jimmy listened to Manny's story intently. About the very beginning of her crush and dancing with Craig in 9th grade, to him rejecting her because she wasn't mature enough. Then to Craig cheating on Ashley with her in 10th grade, and telling her he cared about her. Finally she got to the point about Craig getting her pregnant, and being faced with the hardest decision in her life, and finally going through with the abortion, and the pain she felt when Craig rejected her yet again for Ashley.
"All this time I thought he cared about me was a total lie." Manny said softly.
"Wow." Was all Jimmy could say. Beneath the heavy lipgloss, sexy clothes, big hoop earrings, and horrible reputation was a living, breathing girl with feelings.
"Let me guess, you think I'm a huge slut, just like everyone else." Manny replied with a bitter laugh.
"No, I think you're just really misunderstood and gave your all for a guy who didn't really care in the first place." Jimmy replied.
"Really?" Manny responded.
"Yeah. And I can sort of identify. Not with the whole pregnancy thing, but I really, really cared about Ashley, and she just rejected me. In front of everyone."
Jimmy could practically hear Manny roll her eyes on the other end of the phone. "What does everyone see in her?"
"I think you mean, what DID I see in her? Looking back, I don't really know. She takes everything way too serious, holds grudges to other people, but doesn't understand why other people hold grudges. She's a hypocrite."
"Yeah..." Manny agreed.
Jimmy looked at the clock. 1:26. "Whoa, shit! Manny, it was great talking to you and all, but I really gotta get off the phone. If I'm late one more time my parents are gonna kill me. But I'll see you at school, okay?"
"Okay. It was nice talking to you, Jimmy." Manny said.
"You too. Later, Manny." Jimmy hung up.
Manny laid back on her bed and sighed. Finally. Someone understood what she was going through.
~*The Next Day*~
Craig, Jimmy, and Spinner were all hanging out by their lockers, waiting for Paige and Ashley to get out of class, when Manny walked over to them.
"Hi." She said.
"Look, Manny, I told you to leave me alone." Craig said.
She gave him a Look, similar to the Look one would give a bug...the one that seemed to say, "You are insignificant, and I really don't care about you."
"I wasn't talking to you, I was talking to Jimmy." She responded.
"Uh, Manny, Jimmy doesn't talk to sluts." Spinner spoke up.
"Spinner shut up!" Jimmy said, shoving him into the locker.
"Sorry, geez. What's gotten into you today?"
"Not important." Jimmy responded. "Did you wanna talk to me, Manny."
"I just wanted to thank you for what you said to me last night." She replied, eyeing Craig. "It meant a lot, because most people have a tendency to only think about themselves and treat me like shit." Craig rolled his eyes and turned back to Spinner.
"You're welcome Manny, and you're right about that, because some people are assholes." Jimmy said, noticing Craig giving him a surprised look. He turned back to Manny. "Tell you what. Why don't you meet me in the quad at lunch, and we'll talk some more."
Manny smiled, and nodded. "Okay. See you then. Bye."
"Later." Jimmy said, giving her the famous Jimmy Brooks smile. She smiled and walked away.
"Jimmy, what was that about?" Craig asked. "Why'd you diss me like that?"
"After I found out what you did to that girl last night, you deserve to be dissed." Jimmy responded.
"Jimmy, are you sure you want to hang out with Manny Santos? She kind of gets around."
"One person hardly qualifies as getting around, Spin. I gotta get to class." Jimmy slammed his locker door shut and headed down the hallway to class.
Craig gave Spinner an incredulous look. "Please don't tell me he's getting involved with Santos the Slut."
"I believe he is." Spinner replied. "It has been awhile since he had a date, so maybe he's just playing her."
"Man I hope so...and either way, he's just nailing my leftovers." Craig replied.