Chapter Eight
One Week Until Homecoming!
I headed to class for my usual weekly quiz, but walked in to find the room virtually empty. The only person in there was Howard, who was hunched over his desk, writing on a piece of paper.
"Uh... Where is everyone?"I asked, walking up to him.
"What?"He looked up at me, surprised. "Didn't you hear?We're supposed to be 'studying' since it's the week before finals!... In fact, any homework you do this week counts as extra credit... It might be a good time to get your GPA up now... Just in case you bomb your finals like I always do."
"Yeah... Good point..."I couldn't help but notice that I seemed to constantly be left out of the latest news circle or something.
"Anyway, for now I'm going to throw some watermelons off the roof of the gym. Want to come?"
I grinned. "Definitely."
At lunch the next day, I was eating with some of the guys from the team when I saw Adam walk up and stand beside me.
"Hey, meat." He greeted. "You really came through for me last week. Thanks, man."
"Oh.. No problem."
Without another word, he walked off and left the cafeteria. I simply watched as he did and then turned back to my food.
"Huh... Most of the time, I think Adam hates my guts... But sometimes he's actually nice to me. I don't get that guy.."
"Adam?There's a lot you don't know about him." Bryce said.
"Like what?"
"His brother died in a car crash over the summer... Some drunk hit him head-on as he was driving home." He explained, shaking his head. "He was our age too."
"I... had no idea..."I said in shock.
"Well, you've got to understand,"Bryce continued. "Adam's still pretty messed up over that. He wasn't always so angry. When his brother died, something in him just snapped... Now the football team is the most important thing to him."
I rubbed my neck out of nervous habit. "I... I didn't realize... I thought he was just..."
"A jerk?Life's never that simple."
As Bryce went back to eating, I thought about what he said as I finished my meal and got up. On my way to class, I couldn't help but wonder how much more I had yet to learn about Adam.
The next morning, I was sitting at my table eating breakfast when my dad walked in and stood with his arms crossed.
"Son, I just got off the phone with your guidance counsellor..."
I nearly coughed up the orange juice I was drinking. "Ms. Lee called you?"
"That's right. She had some very interesting things to say about you!"He stared at me for a few moments, letting me sit in my own aura of confusion and nervousness before a grin came onto his face. "She said you've been pulling a 3.33 GPA!Way to go, son!"
"Wait..."I thought for a second, then smiled. "Does this mean I get the new car?"
"Don't get too excited. If you want those wheels, you better keep that GPA up 'til the end of the semester... and that means making it through finals!" He laid a hand on my shoulder and crouched beside my chair. "I've seen finals break far stronger men than you, son... Far. Stronger. Men."
I chuckled nervously as he said that and then left. I couldn't tell if he was joking or not.
Later on that same week, I grabbed lunch and sat down at my usual table, when Paula suddenly sat down across from me.
"Hey there, Jason... I heard you were thinking about trying to be Homecoming King."
I cursed Howard and his big-mouth. Now it seemed the whole school knew.
"Well, look,"She continued. "I'm in charge of the Homecoming Committee, and I just wanted to let you know... You really ought to just quit. The Homecoming King is supposed to be cool... And you're definitely not cool!"
"Come on, I'm not that lame.."
"Oh yeah?If you're so cool, tell me what happened on the season finale of 'Gossip Grill'!"
"Uh, I didn't really watch that..."I admitted. "There was a documentary on last night about the high score in 'Monkey Pong' and the vicious rivalry to obtain it..."
Paula just frowned. "I know you're saying words, but all I hear is 'Lame lame lame. I'm so lame. Please slap me because I'm the lamest guy ever'."
I raised an eyebrow as she got up and left. Man, that girl was just downright harsh sometimes. I seriously have not had one good run in with her ever since I got here.
Before I knew it, Thursday came and I found myself at practice. As I suited up and headed out to the field, I was met halfway by Adam.
"Hey, meat. I think it's finally time for me to show you Centerscore High's most closely guarded secret."He said. "... It's The Lizard Spiral Pass!This this thing leaves my hands and drops into the receiver's arms at four times the speed of sound. So only the strongest players can learn it! One day, long after I've graduated, you might actually become QB, so I'd better teach you this move... If you're good enough, that is. Here's the deal... Go long. If you catch it, I'll teach you how to throw it."
I nodded and quickly sprinted down the field. Adam threw it far and it almost hit the ground, but I managed to make a diving catch and snag it just in time. I jogged back and handed him the ball.
"Not bad, meat. I didn't think you had it in you." He said.
I grinned. "Don't you ever get tired of being wrong?"
"Look,"He frowned. "Do you want to learn this pass or not?Now come here...You have to hold the ball like this..."
We spent the next few hours going over the pass and trying to get me to perfect it. By the end of practice, I was throwing it over the goal post.
"You're a quick learner, meat..."Adam commented as we finished up and gathered our things. "I'm actually impressed."
"Thanks, man... Coming from you, that means a lot." I said.
With my stuff in hand, I headed to the parking lot. As I walked to my car, I noticed several guys crowded around Hector's van, some of whom I recognized.
"Dude, that is so sick!"Zach exclaimed. "You've got the speakers wired to the inside and hooked into your turntable!You're like a travelling DJ!"
Jacob ran a hand over his jelled hair. "This must've cost a fortune!"
"What can I say?No expense is too great for the Party Van!"Hector grinned.
Seeing them drool over his van made me a little impatient to get my new car and show it off. Of course, I'd have to pass finals first.
"So, what's the deal with Homecoming?Are you gonna DJ?"Zach asked.
"Naw, the principal says I can't. She thinks I'm too 'edgy' or something..."Hector frowned.
"Well dude, you did drive by her blasting Li'l Trayne's 'The No-Pants Society'.."Jacob shrugged.
The edgy DJ sighed at the comment.
A few days later and it was time for our next game. As I walked to the locker room with the rest of the team, I saw Jacob dragging the twins over to me.
"Hey!Where's Howard?"He frowned. "I found his sisters putting soap in our water bottles!"
Kel struggled against his grip. "Let go of us!You can't prove anything!"
I sighed. "Jacob, we're got bigger things to worry about. The game's about to start and Howard still isn't here. He said he had to run some errands before hand, but he should have been here by now."
Suddenly, my phone started vibrating in my pocket. I quickly pulled it out, putting it on speakerphone when I was the ID.
"Where are you?"
"Jason!"It was Howard. "I'm not going to make it to the game!"
"Why not?What happened to you?"
"Someone slashed my tires!"There was a pause. "I've got to go... The tow truck's here."
Adam scowled as I hung up.
"I know what's going on. It's Wilson High. They're messing with us."
"Howard's not coming?"Kel looked disappointed. "Because of some big dummies from Wilson High?"
"That's what it looks like, kiddo." I patted her head.
Kay frowned. "Come on, Kel. We're got some planning to do."
"I guess we're going to have to play this game without Howard..." I said.
"Since Howard's out,"Adam frowned. "We're not going to have many chances to get a receiver open."
"I guess we've got to make every play count..." Jacob sighed.
We quickly suited up and after making some alterations with Coach once we told him the news, the game started. Adam was right, We didn't have many opportunities to go long. Sometimes it seemed they would win, others us. Somehow though, yet even with the lack of a receiver, we pulled off a miracle and won with an impressive 21-7 lead.
"Good work, team." Coach congratulated us as we jogged off the field. "You really pulled together and tore that other team apart!"
"I'm so happy I'm going to try a double backflip!"Chuck exclaimed. He tried to do it, but ended up falling on his head instead. He quickly got up and rubbed his head. "Uh.. Don't worry... I'm fine. Luckily, I've got a thick skull."
"It was still pretty impressive, dude." Jacob said.
Chuck grinned. "What's going to be impressive is when we beat Wilson next week!"
"Yeah. I'm tired of those guys messing with us." Bryce scowled.
I was about to follow them into the locker room, but a kid ran up and stopped in front of me. It was the same kid from that one time.
"Hey, remember me?" He asked.
"Sure. My biggest fan, right?"I smiled.
"You got it!"He beamed. "Hey, would you mind signing my football?Here's a pen."
He handed them to me and watched excitedly as I signed it.
"To... Elmo... My biggest... Fan." I handed the ball back to him afterwards and he gave me a big smile.
"Thanks, Jason! You're the greatest!"
Out of nowhere, Taylor walked up and patted Elmo's head. He quickly told her what I did and she smiled at me.
"You made my little brother so happy. What a cool guy."
She took her brother and left, just as I turned to see that Howard had made it and was running over to me. He grinned as he saw Taylor walking off.
"Nice job, man!Taylor is one of the most popular girl's in school. This is going to do wonders for you socially."
I shrugged. "All I did was sign a football..."
Saturday, one of my favorite days. I went to the gym in the morning and after lifting for a few hours with Zach, came home to play some games. I was able to get in about fifteen minutes of zombie-killing action before my phone beeped with a text message. I picked it up and opened it.
"Hmm, a text from Raven... 'Meet me at 4th and Redwood Ave. Urgent!'... Guess I'd better hit the road."
I quickly pulled on a sweat jacket and hopped in my car. A few minutes later, I was downtown and looking for the address she gave me. I eventually found it, though. I parked on the curb and walked down a shady looking alley to a small shop at it's end. It's name was 'Bloody Ink', and I could only think of two reasons why I was here at the moment. Either Raven was going to start a squid farm, or she was planning on getting a tattoo. Figuring I was about to find out, I walked in.
"Jason!"Raven beamed once she saw me. "I'm so glad you're here... I'm really gonna need the moral support!I've never gotten a tattoo before!"
I raised an eyebrow. "You're serious?You're getting a tattoo?"
"Look, they say when you want to get a tattoo, you should think it over for two years first to make sure you like it... Well, two years ago I decided to get a raven on my lower back... And I still want it!"She smiled. "Are you with me or not?"
"I guess we're getting you a tattoo then." I shrugged.
"That's the spirit!Now, come on!"
She dragged me into the back, which was pretty much a small parlor with a flickering light bulb overhead. I started to rethink this whole thing, but Raven was already sealing the deal.
"Hi, I'd like to get a tattoo of a raven!"She told the girl behind the desk. The lady looked just as shady as the alley, with an eyepatch over her left eye and tattoo's all over her bare arms.
"Yeah, and I'd like to see some ID first!"She said.
Raven pulled out a card from her pocket and handed it to the lady. She glanced at it, then at Raven.
"Hmm... You're really 18, Ms. Yamaguchi?"
"Absolutely!"
"..." The lady stared for a few moments, then grinned. "All right... Let's get you set up!"
A few minutes later, Raven was lying shirtless on her stomach wearing an apron that covered her front half, but left an gap on the back for the lady to work. I pulled a chair up and sat in front of Raven, holding her hand as the needles met her flesh.
"Thanks for... Ow!... Coming... Ouch!...With me."She said in between the painful stings.
"No.. problem.."I said, trying to find other things in the room to look at. I was not good with needles. Just staring at one made me feel sick to my stomach and now I was starting to feel nauseous. Finding nothing useful to look at on the walls, I tried to focus all my attention on Raven. I was here for her. We were having fun. Fun, yeah. Think about having fun with Raven. Fun with Raven. Making out with Raven...
"Hey!What're you... Ow!... Grinning about?"Raven asked with one eyebrow lifted.
I just smiled. "Nothing, nothing... You really don't want to know."
"All right, weirdo.."
About half an hour later, it was done.
"Don't worry,"The lady said as she stood up. "It'll look better in a few days."
Raven got up and looked at her back in a mirror on the wall.
"Actually, I think it looks kind of cool, all bloody like that."She smiled.
"Uh, yeah, whatever. It's probably going to sting all night, so I'd recommend taking some pain killers."
I walked outside as she paid for the tattoo, glad to be out of there. A few moments later, Raven came out.
"You mind giving me a ride home, Jason?"She smiled shyly. "I took the bus to get here and pain killers make me kind of loopy..."
"You mean more than usual?"I asked innocently.
Raven just rolled her eyes and pretty soon, we were in my car and on our way to her house. By now, I had memorized the route by heart and took the right turns on instinct. I pulled up in front of her house and we both got out. She gave me a hug and as she turned to head up to her porch, she tripped and fell to her knees on the cement.
"Raven!"I quickly helped her up. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah.."She sighed.
"It looks like you're a little messed up."
"Help me inside, would you?"She asked.
I picked her up and carried her inside and up to her bedroom as quietly as I could. "Put me over there." She said.
"Shhh..."I hushed her as I obeyed and set her on her bed. "Don't be so loud. You'll wake up your parents."
Raven just laughed and I quickly tried to get her to quiet down, hoping we didn't wake them up yet. "What's so funny?"
"No one's home, Jason." She said. "My dad's been gone for years and my mom's at her boyfriend's place... As usual."
"Do you mean you just live here all by yourself?"I asked, surprised.
She shrugged, and I thought I was a hurt expression flash over her face. "A lot of the time, yeah... But it's not... so bad. I don't mind... Being alone..."
"Raven..."I noticed a few globes of water run down her cheek. "Are you...crying?"
As if not wanting me to see them, she quickly wiped them away and frowned.
"No!I'm fine!It's nothing."
"Raven..."I sat down next to her and smiled gently. "You're not alone... I'll always be here for you, no matter what."
She looked over at me, her eyes searching my face for some kind of reassurance so that she could believe my words. And she must have found it, because she smiled as a few more tears came down her cheeks.
"You're... You're so sweet, Jason... I never thought a guy like you would be out there..."She wiped her face. "I guess I should've dated more football players, huh?"
"Ha ha. Real cute." I grinned.
Raven reached out and took my hand, and I squeezed her's in return. We sat like that, in silence, for a minute or two before she spoke again.
"Jason..."
"What's up?"
"Will you..."She hesitantly looked away, then looked back at me. "... Stay the night with me?Sometimes, when it's dark... I get scared."
"Of course. Scoot over." I snuggled up next to her on the bed. We ended up face to face with only a few inches between us as we lay there and after a few moments of just looking into each other's eyes, Raven stirred.
"Jason,"She began. "I... I l... I lo..."
Before she could finish, I put a finger to her lips and smiled. "Shh. Just get some sleep, okay?"
Nodding, she pushed her head against my chest and closed her eyes. I kissed her head before wrapping my arms around her and just holding her close.
"Good night, Raven."
The next morning, I slowly woke up and yawned, stretching my arms above my head. I sat up and rubbed my head, seeing Raven going through some of her drawers. She turned around and gasped a bit when she saw me.
"Jason!you look exhausted!"
"I guess I had some trouble sleeping..."I admitted, throwing my legs over the side of the bed and straining to get up.
"Poor guy. Here. I'll make you some breakfast." With that, she walked out of the room and down stairs.
I stretched my back and followed her downstairs. Leaning against the door frame of the kitchen, I watched her make breakfast and within seconds, reality slapped me in the face with a wake-up stick.
"Oh man... What am I going to tell me parents?"I groaned as I ran a hand through my hair.
"Tell them you were hypnotized by a dark enchantress and that the spell didn't wear off until morning." Raven suggested with a grin on her face.
I shrugged and returned the grin. "It's kind of true, though."
An hour later, I quietly opened my front door and shut it in the same way. It was fairly early, so I held out hope that maybe my parents were still sleeping and I could get away with coming home late. But luck had a funny way of laughing at me. They were fully awake and waiting in the living room as I entered.
"Where were you last night?"My mom asked, wiping some tears from her face. It looked like she had been crying for a while.
"I didn't sleep a wink."Dad said, looking pretty exhausted himself.
"Uh... Sorry... I guess I should have... Called?"I rubbed the back of my neck.
My mom wiped her nose with a tissue she grabbed from it's box beside her. "I'm... Just glad you're... Safe."
I felt guilty for making my mom cry, so I offered what no other kid would've offered.
"Look... You should punish me. Ground me for a week!"
"Not this time, boy..."My dad said, frowning. "This time, your punishment is looking at your mother and knowing what you put her through."
"It's okay... Come here." My mom got up and pulled me into a big hug. I squeezed her and remembered how awesome my parents could be sometimes, when they're not crying that is.
After making up an excuse for where I was all night, my parents let me off and went about their daily things, leaving me to do my own thing. I decided to study for the day, to make it up to my mom if nothing else and... because I really wanted that new car.
End of Chapter Eight