Chapter Seventeen
I woke up the next morning, briefly disoriented. I looked around, not remembering where I was, like most people do when they sleep at someone else's house, then I looked around and smiled--I was at Jesse's place! I rolled over, expecting to see Jesse there beside me, but he was gone. Which totally spoiled the romantic mood, if you ask me. But I wasn't disappointed for long. That's because I smelled breakfast--waffles and bacon. Jesse was in his kitchen, making breakfast.
Presumably for me. Oh my God. Breakfast in bed! How sweet of him!
I got up and went to comb my hair. I also rinsed my mouth out to get rid of morning breath. Why hadn't I made that Morning After kit I'd seen in an issue of Cosmo? You know, the kit you keep in your purse--a travel-sized toothbrush, a miniature tube of toothpaste, conditioner, face powder--for when you spend the night at your boyfriend's place. You put the toothbrush and toothpaste in there so you don't have morning breath (the toothpaste is also rumored to get rid of zits quickly in an emergency when you can't get to your Clinique face wash or whatever), and you put the conditioner and face powder in there because most guys don't use conditioner or facial powder. I'd also add waterproof mascara to my kit. And a hairbrush. My hair was a mess! And all I'd done was sleep! How was I going to keep my hair from looking like a bird's nest when I was married to Jesse? I mean, he'd see my hair every day! He could potentially see me looking like a complete wreck, and then walk down the street and see some other girl who'd had a chance to get out her blow dryer. He would see me every day, even on days when the marine fog won the battle for my hair day.
I crawled back in bed. I wouldn't want to spoil the, um, mood. I mean, it was really sweet, what he was doing. Why should I ruin it by getting up?
Just as I was thinking that, Jesse came in holding two plates of steaming waffles and bacon, with a bottle of maple syrup and two glasses of orange juice all on a tray, not mixed with his backwash because he knows better than to drink from the carton because bacteria from his mouth would build up in the carton and make him sick if he drank it, or so he'd tried to explain to Brad one morning when he saw Brad drinking O.J. from the carton. Needless to say, Brad didn't listen. Possibly because he didn't have a clue what Jesse was telling him, thanks to Brad's superior intellect and all.
"Good morning, Susannah," he said.
"Good morning," I said sleepily. I wasn't sleepy. I was wide awake. I should get an Oscar, I really should. I am a really good actress when I put my mind to it.
"I hope you are hungry," he said, handing me a plate and a glass and sitting down next to me.
"Of course," I said. Oh, my God, what kind of reply was that, anyway? I totally should have said something seductive and sexy, but all I was capable of saying was of course. It's a real wonder he loves me at all, what with my superior intelligence and all. I mean, that remark made me slightly more intelligent than Brad, who had barely managed to graduate in June.
But then again, was it really my fault that I was still a little under experienced in the romance department? I mean, I'd only been on dates with two guys before dating Jesse. I mean, Tad and Paul. What kind of Dating 101 was that?
"Good." At least he didn't seem to notice my oh-so-witty rejoinder.
We sat there eating in silence. Well, what was there really to say? Finally--after about five minutes--Jesse broke the silence by saying, "Did you sleep well last night?"
Of course I had! He'd been right there next to me, keeping me warm with all his body heat, and I could smell him, and I swear I think he leaned over more than once and kissed me on various places on my head. Ask me if I slept well…
"Yes. You?" Jeez. Such a scintillating reply…I have such wonderful communication skills. Not.
"Fine," he said, grinning. "Susannah, why did you listen in on my telephone conversation with your mother and stepfather?"
Dammit. Dammit. Dammit.
Now how was I going to get out of that one?
"Um…" I chewed on my lip, thinking of an answer to give him. "Because I wanted to," I said, smiling. I hoped my cuteness would make him not be mad at me. "But how did you know?"
And he busted out laughing. I'm serious. Like me asking him how he knew was the funniest thing he'd ever heard. Right. "Oh, Susannah." He cupped my face in his hand and kept laughing. God, he gets the biggest kick out of the tiniest little thing, but when I try to make a sarcastic remark that should be funny, he doesn't get it.
"Susannah," he said, trying not to laugh harder. He was really red in the face now. "I could hear you breathing, and I kept trying not to say anything that would indicate that I knew…"
"You KNEW?" I said. He'd known I was awake? And he hadn't said anything to me? He hadn't kissed me so that I could kiss him back?
"Yes," he said, starting to laugh again. "I'm sorry. I just found it rather amusing is all."
"Amusing?" I asked dubiously. I certainly didn't think it was funny.
"Yes, Susannah, I thought it was funny," he said, trying not to laugh even harder.
"You have a really messed up sense of humor," I said. This was not funny.
"Oh, Susannah…I love you. You know that, don't you?" he said quietly.
"Yes, I know," I said happily, about as happily as I had felt the night before. Oh yes, I knew it all right…
"I just think that some of the things you do--like spying on my telephone conversations--are terribly funny, that's all," he said.
"Okay," I said. "I suppose I won't be mad at you--" But I didn't get to finish that sentence because he leaned over and kissed me. I could seriously get used to that. I really could. You know, for two years, I could barely get him to kiss me, but now, it's like that's all he wants to do.
Suits me fine. I mean, he's totally polite about it. He doesn't go around jamming his tongue down my throat like he owns a season pass to it or something. He just kisses me lightly whenever the time is right, then if he thinks I'll be okay with it, he deepens the kissing a little. He loves me. It's the best feeling ever to be loved by him. It really is, let me tell you.
"Oh, wait, I forgot," I said a little while later after we were both breathless from all that kissing. I went into his living room and got my bag, where I had all of Gina's CDs. I went back to his room. "Gina wanted me to show you these CDs. She thinks you might like some of them." I fished around pulled out the Zwan CD. "Especially this one, but she seems to think you'll like the rest. She said you can borrow them all for as long as you'd like." I dumped the CDs in all their cases onto his bed.
He looked thoughtfully at the stack of CDs I had pulled from my bag and handed to him. He looked at the covers of each one--a Nirvana CD, a Smashing Pumpkins CD, the Zwan CD, and a few others and said, "Tell her I said thank you." He looked at the alarm clock beside his bed. It was nearly two in the afternoon. "You probably need to go home," he said. "Your mother will probably want to see you."
"Okay, I will. Bye," I said, turning to leave.
"Goodbye, Susannah," he said quietly.
"Oh, wait a minute. One more thing," I said. I swear he rolled his eyes at me. Men, I swear. "When do you want to tell them we're getting married?"
He shrugged. "They all ready know. We should wait, I guess. Whatever you want," he said.
"Okay. Bye then," I said, even though I didn't want to leave.
I drove all the way to my house with a stupid smile on my face. I knew how my mom must have felt when she met Andy. Disgustingly happy. But I didn't mind so much because I was the one who was disgustingly happy.
I knew that my mom and Andy were probably busy with some new project Andy was working on in the backyard, and I was glad. I didn't want to share my news just yet. I wanted to wait until Jesse was around so we could tell them together. I stuck my left hand--so they wouldn't see the ring; I had to pretend they didn't know. How embarrassing would it be to tell them I'd been spying on their conversation with Jesse?--in my pocket and continued up the stairs.
I found Gina for me up in my room. "What took you so long? I thought you were going out with coffee. This isn't Manhattan, you know, where coffeehouses stay open twenty four hours a day," she said boredly, flipping a page of the newest issue of Cosmo.
"Jesse and I went to his place last night," I said.
"And…?" she asked.
"Promise not to tell?" I said.
"Yes, on my honor," she said, holding up three fingers of her right hand, the scouting symbol.
I pulled my hand from my pocket.
"Oh my God," she squealed, grabbing my hand so hard I thought she was going to rip my arm from its socket. "Really? He asked?"
"Yes," I said, nodding vigorously.
"Oh my God!" she squealed again. "So did you…?"
"No," I said, turning--I'm sure--bright red. She was asking if Jesse and I Did It. Well, what was she to think? I'd been gone all night and half of the day. "But I almost can't believe it, Gina. I mean, we're getting married. I was so worried because he hadn't said anything, and then last night, he asked. Oh my God."
"So when are you telling your mom?"
"I guess whenever Jesse wants to," I said. "He wants to wait until we're both finished with school and have jobs, so it'll be a while before we actually tie the knot."
"Wow, it's great, Suze!" she gushed.
"But you can't tell. No one. Not until I tell my mom and Andy," I said.
"Don't worry, I won't. So, how did he like the CDs? Or did you even have a chance to show him?"
"Oh, I did, but we didn't get to listen to them. He made me come home. He's borrowing them," I said. "Hope that's okay."
"Girl, you know it is. He is fine. Oh, and he's your fiancé," she said.
"Gina. Don't say it so loud. I'm not ready to tell my mom yet! Even if she does know."
"Oh yeah. Sorry," she said. "Wait a minute…your mom all ready knows? Describe."
"He asked for their permission," I said, meaning that Jesse had asked Mom and Andy if he could marry me. "He called them last night to ask them if it was okay if I spent the night because I fell asleep. I woke up when he put me in his bed, and I listened in on their conversation. It was great." I proceeded to describe the rest of the conversation to her, and then I told her about the waffles and bacon breakfast in bed, and she squealed in delight.
"Oh, if only all guys were like that!" she said.
"Then you'd be arrested for polygamy," I said. This remark caused Gina to hit me with a pillow, and we proceeded to have a pillow fight.
Then my mom, who had apparently come in the house to get Andy a glass of water, heard the commotion and came upstairs to see what was going on. I quickly stuck my left hand in my pocket. But not quickly enough.
"I all ready know, Susie! And it's wonderful, isn't it? My baby girl is getting married someday," she said. She was way happy about it. I think she was happier than I was.
Gina, sensing that this was a mother/daughter moment, tactfully left the room.
"Oh, Susie. He's so good for you. You used to be so unhappy…then he came along and took you to that dance, and it's like your world completely changed…You've never had that many boyfriends, but I'm glad you found him, Susie," she said, hugging me and smoothing some of my hair. "You know, I would think that nineteen is a little young to be married, but Jesse explained to me that he thought it was best that you wait until you both are finished with college and everything, and that's why Andy and I agreed to let him ask you. It was so sweet of him to ask, you know. I doubt many guys now would even bother…Anyway, Andy didn't even think twice about saying yes to Jesse. Even Andy saw how good Jesse is for you…" She hugged me tighter. "Oh, Susie!"
"Mom," I said, struggling to breathe. "You're squishing me."
My mom pulled away from me and smacked me in the face with a pillow.
"Oh, and Suze? You got mail yesterday," she said, handing me a check from Le Sport Sac. A check for--get this!--fifteen thousand dollars--all the revenue the sales from my bags had brought in so far in the last month. They were apparently very popular. "You might want to put some away. I know you're all ready saving your baby sitting money, but I also know you want to see Jesse as much as you can. Getting a job full-time during the school year would take away from your time with him, no doubt," she said. "Congratulations, Susie!"
She turned to leave, leaving me alone to think about how my karma was so kicking ass right now.
A little while later, Gina came in to tell me that she was going to stay in California for the rest of her college career, since she could easily transfer schools and all. When I told her about the check, she insisted that we celebrate--with CeeCee, of course--both my engagement--even if it was a little early to announce--and the popularity of my bags with a shopping spree at the mall. I called Cee to see if she could come too. She said she could, and that she'd be more than glad to.