Ball of Fire
1960
"Come on, J!" Richard shouted out the window, honking the horn to get his friend's attention.
"Yeah, just a second!" Jonathan shouted back. He returned his attention to the lovely girl whose books he was carrying from the library. "Say, a bunch of us are headed to the football game and then a party after. Would you like to join me?"
Big brown eyes blinked up at him adoringly. "Oh sure. Do you wanna come pick me up?"
"My friend Richard is driving us. I don't have a car," he admitted, feeling the familiar clench in his stomach at having to confess that fact.
Her expression faltered. "What do you mean you don't have a car?"
And Jonathan knew he'd lost a chance with this one, too. There were too many pretty girls at Gresham Hall who would let him take them out or carry their books or accept help on their math homework in the library, but as soon as Jonathan had to tell them any of the awful things that went with him being an orphan—he was at school on scholarship, he had to work to have any pocket money, he didn't have a family to visit at holidays or to come see him for parents' day, he couldn't afford to go on weekend ski trips or summer beach getaways—their interest always waned. Jonathan couldn't blame them. They weren't being snotty. Well, some of them were. But the thing about prep schools like Gresham Hall for Girls and Brookfield Boy's School was that they existed for people of that class to mingle and get together. These girls were looking for a man who could give them a life they were used to or something better. Sure, Jonathan was nice to go out with for a while, and he flattered himself to think that some of the girls he went with were attracted to him and maybe a little more. But at the end of the day, he was not the right fit for any of them. Not seriously.
Jonathan handed back Trudy's books and said he'd see her around. He ran over to where Richard was waiting in the car so they could pick up Raymond and Morris.
"Are you gonna take Trudy Stephens to the party later?" Richard asked as Jonathan got in the car.
"I don't think so. No girl wants to show up to a party with a guy who can't even drive her," Jonathan said, trying not to let his disappointment show.
"Aw cheer up, J. Any girl who cares about things like that is looking for a husband right out of school. Don't waste your time getting caught in all that. Find someone who just wants to have fun," Richard pointed out.
Jonathan hummed in half-hearted agreement. "Well, maybe I'd like to be a husband right out of school," he posited. They were seniors now, so graduation was only eight months away.
Richard had his foot on the brake at a stop sign and turned to Jonathan in shock. "Really!?"
His expression was priceless. Jonathan laughed, "Of course not! Jeez, what do you take me for?"
The two men laughed together at the preposterous idea that any man would want to get tied down so soon. Sure, if he had to, but life was for living as freely as possible until the world grabbed hold and pinned you to marriage and family and all that boring stuff. Anybody smart put all that off as long as he could.
Still, in the back of his mind, Jonathan did wonder what it might be like to have more than just some fun with a girl. Someone pretty and smart and nice who actually listed when he talked and understood his jokes and enjoyed more than just being seen out with him or necking at Lookout Point. Oh he enjoyed that plenty, especially when the girls would let him get a little further than just necking. But surely there was more to life than just that? Richard was probably right, though. Plenty of time for all of that later. They were seniors at one of the best prep schools in the world. Now was their time to just enjoy.
Jonathan forgot all about Trudy and being an orphan on a scholarship when they got to the football game. All of Jonathan's friends were there, and Brookfield ended up winning, thanks to their star, Buckets Fenstermacher. An unfortunate nickname, but when you could throw a football like that, it hardly mattered what people called you.
And in between brilliant plays by Buckets, they had the pleasure of watching the Gresham Hall cheerleaders. This was the first home game of the season, so they hadn't had the chance to see the new squad yet. They'd all probably be at the party later, so Jonathan and his buddies started claiming the ones they were interested in taking out to Lookout Point, if they got the chance. There was a very nicely developed brunette that caught Jonathan's eye. She was a little short but certainly built. She might be some good fun to enjoy.
After the big win, the crowds filtered out of the stadium. Jonathan was talking to Morris, laughing and complaining together about their biology homework, and wasn't paying attention. And all of a sudden, Jonathan ran smack into someone.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Jonathan exclaimed. He leaned over and extended his hand to help up the poor person he'd knocked over.
"J, don't let the Clicker touch you. You might get infected with whatever weird thing he's got," Morris taunted.
Jonathan wasn't entirely sure what to do. The boy who he'd run into was sprawled on the ground in danger of being trampled, and Jonathan knew it was his fault for not paying attention to where he was going. But he also knew better than to stick his neck out and go against the grain with his friends. The fact that he had friends at all was the result of a lot of effort on Jonathan's part to make himself likeable and useful in spite of his disadvantages.
But the kid—who was probably a freshman or sophomore—was extremely overweight and had overlong hair and thick glasses. He probably had just as many obstacles in life as Jonathan. More, probably. So Jonathan stuck his hand out again. "Hey, sorry I wasn't looking where I was going," Jonathan said, grabbing the boy's hand and pulling him up as best he could.
"Oh gross, J touched the Clicker!" Morris jeered, backing away laughing.
Jonathan couldn't bring himself to tell Morris to knock it off, but he also wasn't going to be seen around this kid either. "You okay?" he asked. "What's your name?"
The boy smacked his gum, which was probably why Morris called him the Clicker, and mumbled, "Ford Beebe. I'm fine."
Assured that Ford at least wasn't hurt, Jonathan just nodded and hurried away to rejoin his friends. And, of course, they all gave him a hard time. Jonathan did his best to just laugh it off and let them have their fun as they made their way back to Richard's car.
There was a lull in the conversation which allowed Jonathan to overhear the sound of a woman laughing. It was somehow both high-pitched and husky. And full of joy. He turned to where it came from and saw a tall redhead throw her head back in her laughter. The sun glinted against her auburn tresses that fell around her chin. And for a moment, time stood still.
The girl turned so she faced Jonathan head on, though she wasn't looking at him. But it was just enough for Jonathan to see she had freckles and the most beautiful face he'd ever seen. And she was wearing a Gresham Hall uniform.
He blinked as Richard said something to break the spell. Jonathan turned back to his friends and pulled Ray aside. His younger sister went to Gresham Hall, so he knew a lot of the underclassmen better than Jonathan would. "Ray, who is that girl?" Jonathan asked, trying not to draw attention from Richard and Morris.
Ray followed where Jonathan pointed. "Which one? The brunette is Goofy Taylor and the redhead is Jinxy Edwards."
"Jinxy?" Jonathan asked in surprise. These prep school kids had the weirdest nicknames.
"Yeah, that's what Midge called her," he said, referring to his sister. "They were friends last year, too. I don't know what her real name is though. Why?"
"Oh just curious. Haven't seen her around before," Jonathan answered, trying to be casual. He wasn't going to say out loud that Jinxy Edwards was the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen in his life. Nor would he admit that he somehow already knew that Jinxy Edwards was going to fill his waking thoughts and his every dream for quite some time to come. He was going to have to find a way to meet her. Soon.