Chapter Ten

The sound of a stone hitting Gordie's bedroom window startled the both of us.

I had been idly tossing his old baseball while he was sprawled out on the floor editing his story.

"Who in the hell-" Gordie got up o investigate. He lifted up the window and leaned out for a second, before pulling his head back inside, a look of disgust on his face.

"It's Ace."

Rolling my eyes, I got up from the bed and went to the window. Gordie dropped back to the floor, muttering something under his breath.

Ace was standing impatiently under the window in motorcycle boots and a leather jacket. Against my better judgement I couldn't help but think how good he looked.

"What?"

"Whaddya mean what? Get out here. We need to talk."

I glared down at him in the dim light.

"Just get outta here, would ya? Before Gordie's parents hear you."

He scowled.

"So? Hell, if you don't come down here, I'll knock on the damn door."

I looked at him for a few seconds before casting a look back at Gordie. Gordie was pretending to be engrossed in his writing but couldn't resist glancing back at me as I bit my lip.

"You're fucking crazy if you do."

Sighing, I bent down and began pulling my boots on. Picking up my jacket from the end of the bed, I went over to the window.

"I'll be back," I told Gordie, putting one leg out of the window and onto the shingled roof. In response, he mumbled something I didn't quite catch.

I was an expert by now in climbing up and down from Gordie's window. The guttering and porched roof made the bedroom easily accessible and I was down from there in less than a half a minute.

When I landed lightly on my feet beneath the window, Ace glanced up at the roof and then back down at me.

"You wanna be careful you don't break your damn neck."

"Your concern's overwhelming," I hissed. "What d'you want?"

Ace threw another glance at the house. The den curtains were shut but we could both see flashing light from the television evading the gaps. Gordie's parents were oblivious to my comings and goings but they weren't deaf. Ace nodded at the house.

"Not here. Come on."

We didn't exchange another word until we were off the Lachance property. Ace had left his car out on the dirt road and we got in automatically, slamming both doors to keep out the cold.

Neither of us spoke for a while. He lit up a cigarette and stared out of the window while I fiddled with the hem of my jacket. Finally I lost patience.
"Come on, Ace. Spit it out."

"Me?" He thumped the steering wheel. "Nina, I been trying to talk myself into ditching you all day but I'm here, ain't I?"

It was my turn to get angry. In fact, I was downright outraged.

"You ditch me?"

"You got no fucking idea, do you? No idea that you made a complete fucking scene at the diner today, that you sided with some other punk in front of Eyeball? That I'm losing my fucking head over you!"

My mouth fell open. He was talking as though he were some lovesick puppy, the exact opposite of what he was. Ace was a rude unaffectionate meathead most days, and if anything, it was me that was left looking like an idiot.

"Nina, just listen to me, would ya? The Cobra's are my gang, I'm their leader. I gotta set an example, you dig? I'm supposed to be in charge of shit, of them, of how we're run. And I can't keep control over my own fucking girl."

"Control?" I retorted. "I'm not one of your fucking gang, Ace. Nobody gets to control me."

"You think I don't know that? You think if I didn't I'd be letting you sleep over at some other guys's house, climbing in and out of his window whenever you feel like it?"

"Letting me?"

He groaned loudly, bit down on his smoke and punched the steering wheel repeatedly until I finally grabbed his arm.

"Would you stop it?"

"Me? Me stop it? Look, I know you think you're this independent women who I can't control. But trust me, Kid, if I wanted to, I could. I might not be able to keep you out of Lachance's room but I sure as hell could make sure his folks find out. Can't say the thought hasn't crossed my mind from time to time, but I haven't done it. The same way I've let you crash at my place for the best part of a week when spending that much time with somebody reminds me of-" He unclenched his jaw and took a pull on his cigarette. "Let's just say it reminds me of something I don't want to remember. "

I tried to digest everything he'd just said.

"Are we talking about Pearl?"

Besides me, Pearl was the longest relationship Ace had ever had.

"What? Fuck, no. You think I'd take this sort of shit from Pearl? Pearl did as she was fucking told."

"And you were bored as shit,"I pointed out.

Ace wound down his window and tossed his cigarette outside.

"Maybe there's something to be said for boredom."

I was quiet. He was quiet. Outside, it started to rain. The two of us watched the droplets splash the road, turning the dust to mulch as it grew harder.

"Are we done here, Ace?"

He stared out through the windshield.

"I don't want that. As much as you drive me fucking crazy, well….ya know."

That was as much as a compliment as I was going to get out of him and I knew it.

"So spending so much time with me…" I prompted.

He continued to stare out at the rain before he snapped at me.

"It reminds me of home, okay? Of growing up, of family shit. People being there day and night, my old man beating the tar out of my mother. My kid sister-" He took a deep steadying breath but I didn't expect any more. He didn't talk about Charlotte. Not ever.

"I'm sorry," I said.

Again, the quiet. And then he finally looked sideways at me.

"Come home with me."

I hesitated, throwing a look towards Gordie's house and then back at his expectant face.

"I'm sure Lachance can amuse his fucking self for the evening," he snapped.

"Now, that's an image I'd rather not entertain."

He couldn't help it. A ghost of a smile touched his lips before he all out grinned at me and started up the car.

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"There you are." Gordie tapped me on the shoulder as I was rummaging through my locker.

"Oh. Hey." I was frantically trying to find my history book. Problem was since I'd been homeless my locker was filled with all kinds of crap I didn't want to cart back to Ace and Gordie's places. That meant looking for anything was like going on a treasure hunt.

"Don't hey me. Look, I don't wanna sound like your old man or nothing, but I was worried when you didn't come back last night."

"Worried? Why? You knew I was with Ace."

"Oh, damn, that's reassuring," Gordie said sarcastically.

"What is?"

I glanced up at the new voice to see Chris standing behind Gordie.

"Nina, disappearing with Ace last night."

I didn't give a damn what Gordie said and thought about me and Ace, but for some reason, I felt incredibly guilty when Chris looked at me. He didn't say anything- he didn't have to-but I still felt shitty.

"He apologised," I said defensively. Which wasn't strictly true.

Chris shrugged and hitched up his backpack. I buried my head in locker and went back to digging about for my history book.

"Uh-Chris?"

The voice was female and for a second I thought it was Jeanette Carmichael. It wasn't. It was Lucy Rowe. Lucy Rowe was a pretty blonde who was on the debate team. She was forever fund raising and doing charity work for some obscure cause.

"Hey. What's up?" Chris' voice was friendly.

Lucy cast an awkward look at me and Gordie before I went back to my locker.

"Good God, woman. You ever clean this out?" Gordie pushed his head above mine into the rubble of my locker.

"You can talk. I'm falling over your underwear every fricking morning." I finally spied the history book and swooped down on it.

"Will you keep it down?" Gordie hissed. "People will think we're dating or something, you'll kill my mojo."

"What mojo? And nobody would ever be stupid enough to think I'd go near you."

Gordie gave me a playful shove into the locker which clanged dramatically. I shoved him back before slamming the locker closed. Lucy was just wishing Chris a smiley goodbye.

"What was that about?" Gordie asked, rubbing his arm where I'd shoved him.

"Spring Dance," Chris answered. He pointed to a newly appointed banner over the stairwell. "Tickets go on sale today."

"So did you ask her?"

"Nah. Think she wanted me to though. Can think of better ways to spend my money."

"What's your problem? Lucy's cute," Gordie said.

Chris rolled his eyes.

"Then you take her."

I couldn't help but look up at the Spring Dance banner again. It was kind of cheesy but I loved the idea of a dance. Guys and girls dressed up in their best, couples on the dance floor, floral corsages…

"If Violet White turns me down, I just might take her," Gordie responded.

"Violet?" Chris and I said in unison.

Gordie looked a little embarrassed.

"Yeah. I've been tutoring her in English."

That was news to me. And obviously Chris.

"So when you gonna ask her?"

"Hell, I don't know. What's this? Twenty questions? What about you? And you?" Gordie asked Chris then me. "Why don't you two concentrate on your own love lives?"

"Gordie's got a crush…" I said mockingly, squeezing his cheeks. "Are you gonna pick her some flowers? Aw, Gordie, you're just so damned cute."

He slapped my hand away irritably.

"Oh be quiet, Willis. Just because your boyfriend wouldn't know chivalry if it punched him in the damn face."

"Ouch," Chris said quietly. Gordie looked at me a little guiltily but I shrugged.

"He's good to me in his own way. And at least he'll be an exciting date. Violet's dull enough to put me to sleep."

"Date?" Gordie echoed. "You don't think Ace is gonna go to the Spring Dance with you, do you?"

I hadn't really thought about it. But now I did, I could see a number of issues with this. One, Ace didn't dance, two, he hated everything to do with school, and three, he wasn't really the kind of guy who would turn up at your door in a tuxedo bearing a corsage.

"He might." I shrugged. Gordie started to laugh.

"Oh, yeah, sure. I could just see him rocking up to the school in a wife beater, cobra tattoos on show and a smoke hanging out of his mouth."

"Gordie…" Chris said warningly, but Gordie wasn't done yet. I found it oddly disconcerting that the two of them had swapped roles as antagoniser and referee.

"Even if he made it past Mr Farrell, who let's face it, would love a good reason to man handle Ace Merrill out the door, there's still the issue of half the student body being scared to be in the same room with him, and the other half having slept with him. Think things would get mighty awkward for you, don't you?"

I don't know how I didn't slap him. Instead, I issued a 'fuck you' and stormed away.

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It felt like we were never gonna get rid of the Cobra's.

Ace didn't have them over that often; he liked his own space, but after a brawl at Irby's around lunch time that day, the testosterone had been high and the group were keen to talk the scene to death in the hours that followed.

Even when Ace picked me up from school, he had the Cobra's in tow. He made Eyeball squash in back beside Billy, Vince and Charlie so I could have the spot next to him but all I wanted was for him to drop the four of them off somewhere. Instead, they all came back to Ace's for a beer.

I tried staring at Ace for a long time once we were back at his, hoping that he'd pick up on my cues and get everybody to leave. It didn't happen. He barely looked at me as he drank his beer and smirked as the guys retold their drunken brawl over and over.

"So then, Ace has got his pool cue and this guy is backed up into the corner, his mouth bleeding. He puts his hands up and says 'C'mon, are you really gonna hit me with that?' And Ace says," Billy has to pause to stifle his own laughter. "He says 'yeah' and then smashes the stick in two over the guys face!"

The Cobra's laughed all over again even though this must be the twentieth time someone has told the story.

Finally, I nudged Ace meaningfully with my foot.

"What?" He was sat in the armchair while I shared a sofa with Eyeball and Vince. I moved over from the sofa to Ace's chair, slipping my arm around his neck and putting my lips to his ear.

"When are we gonna be alone?"

I said it quietly and Ace smirked down at me, his eyes running over my body.

"Alright, fellas, time to leave."

It was totally rude and even though I had wanted them to leave I felt awkward as the guys downed the remainder of their beers and started putting on their jackets.

Ace pointed to the empty bottles they'd left on the coffee table.

"You waiting for a fucking maid? Take those with you."

Everybody obliged and in a matter of seconds, the door slammed shut and we were alone.

Ace pulled me towards him and kissed me hard, pushing his tongue into my mouth. I responded dutifully before I pulled away, even though his hands were sliding down my thighs.

"Now we're alone, I wanted to ask you something."

Ace threw back his head and groaned.

"That's why you wanted to 'be alone'? I could think of better things to do." His mouth was on mine again and he slid his body round so he was pinning me to the armchair.

"Ace," I gasped between kisses but that didn't deter him.

His hands went under my shirt and he gripped the back of my neck as he kissed me deeper.

"Will you go the Spring Dance with me?"

He kinda chuckled before his mouth went to my neck, but I struggled up, gripping his arms and looking into his eyes.

"Will you, Ace? I really wanna go and I think we'd have a good time."

Ace pulled away in disgust.

"You're fucking serious?"

When I nodded, he climbed off of me and threw himself onto the sofa, picking up a carton of smokes from the table and fishing in his jeans for a light.

"You're really something, Willis, you know that?"

I watched him, feeling involuntary tears build up behind my eyes.

"What'd you mean?"

"Look, I know you're trying to turn me into the perfect fucking boyfriend but it ain't gonna happen, okay? I ain't never gonna be pussy whipped or house trained and the sooner you fucking learn that, the better."

"But I just wanted-"

"You wanted me to get dressed up like a fucking monkey and go to some faggoty dance with faggoty high school kids. Then you could parade me around in front of all the girls I've banged. 'Look girls, I tamed him'. Well fuck that, and fuck you."

My mouth literally fell open in shock.

"But I-"

"But nothing, Nina. You knew who I was when we got into this. You knew I wasn't a hearts and flowers pussy. You know I ain't setting foot inside that fucking high school. You wanna turn this into me being an asshole then do it. But we both know I'm telling the truth."

I flopped down on the armchair for a few breathless moments. I literally felt like the wind had been knocked out of me. He was an asshole. But he was right. What was I even thinking, thinking that he would take me to a high school dance?"

I got up quietly and picked up my jacket. Ace didn't say anything so neither did I. Instead, I let myself out quietly and started walking towards Gordie's place. I hadn't wanted to see or speak to Gordie five minutes ago but right then his bedroom was the only place that felt safe.

It took me a long time to get there. By the time I dragged myself inside Gordie's window, I was frozen and sobbing.

"Hey." Gordie got up from the bed where he was reading and I fell into his arms. "Christ, Nina, you're frozen." He swept up the blanket from his bed and wrapped it round my shoulders before drawing me back in for a hug. "What's happened? What's Ace done to you?"

"Nothing," I wept. "You were right. About him not wanting to take me to the dance. I feel like such an idiot."

Gordie patted my back comfortingly.

"Nah, he's the idiot. And I'm one too. I'm sorry I said that stuff to you earlier. I was nervous about asking Violet to the dance but it's no excuse for me acting like a jerk."

"Is this it for me, Gordie? Am I never gonna get corsages and dances and all the proper couple stuff?"

Gordie held me tight for a moment, maybe conscious of how abrupt his earlier words had been.

"I guess if you stay with Merrill then no," he said into my hair. "You won't get to do those things."

The thought made my heart ache.

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