by D. K. Wall
His pairing with Donna followed the pattern. They had been friends for years but had fallen into a relationship after hanging out together at a party over the summer. He liked her, had fun with her, and didn’t want to hurt her feelings.
But liking someone and being in love with them was very different. He didn’t go crazy thinking about her when they were apart. He never dreamed of them being old together. Never pictured their wedding. So he didn’t think he really loved her. Though he sure did love sleeping with her. “What about duty and responsibility? I can’t abandon her. That kid is half mine, so I sure can’t abandon him. I know how hard it is to be a kid without your parents around.”
When he tightened his grip on the handles of his bag and started toward the car, Charlie’s hand grabbed his arm. “I get it, really, but you can be there for the kid without marrying her.”
Nathan shrugged. “But ain’t marrying her the right thing?”
“Honest answer? No. At least, I don’t think so. Don’t go rushing to get married until you’re sure.”
“I ain’t in no rush. I just don’t know what else to do.”
“Talk to my dad about it before you do anything crazy.” Charlie paused before continuing. “But please do me a favor and let me know when you’re gonna tell him so I can be far away. He’s going to kill you and then lock me in a basement so I don’t get a girl pregnant too.”
A grin grew across Nathan’s face as he teased back. “Wow, way to back a friend.”
“I ain’t dying because you were an idiot and got a girl preggers.”
Nathan sighed and looked toward Donna, still absorbed in her chat with Hank. “Sometimes, I wish I could join Danny and Hank in the Marines—room, food, and they even help pay for college.”
“You forgot the part where people shoot at you. Just a minor detail.”
“Might be safer than marriage.” Nathan shuffled his feet. “You think Danny’s dad would hire me as a mechanic in his shop? Then I wouldn’t have to tell Ronnie.”
“My dad would kill you twice, once for being stupid, and then he’d resurrect you just so he could kill you again for not telling him you were stupid.” Charlie picked up his bag and shook the water off it. “If Danny stayed out of the Marines, he could take over the place and then hire you.”
“Let’s see you convince Danny of that. All he can think is Marines.”
“He and Hank better not go over there and get themselves blown up.” Charlie rolled his eyes. “Besides, what are you worried about? My dad’ll be furious, but he’ll still hire you at the plant. That way, he can keep a real close eye on you.”
Nathan groaned as they walked through the puddles to Danny’s car, the engine already running so that the heater could attack the chill inside.
Seeing their approach, Donna broke away from Hank, stood on her tiptoes, and gently kissed Nathan’s lips. “You and Ricky Ward become best friends tonight?”
Placing his hands on her hips, Nathan laughed. “Yeah, we had a real bonding experience. He’s coming to Hank’s party as my guest. I’ll introduce you.” He pulled her body up against his own and held her tightly. “You are coming, right?”
Donna leaned back and opened the coat she was wearing to reveal a drenched cheerleader’s outfit. “Maybe. Got to go home and change. I’m soaked to the bone and freezing.”
He slid his arms around her waist under the coat, his best come-hither look on his face. “Want me to come help you change? I like getting you out of that uniform.”
Donna playfully slapped his chest and pushed him away. “Yeah, sure. Mom would love that.” She leaned back toward him and spoke quietly so that the others wouldn’t overhear. “She was so sure you were hiding in my room last Saturday when she got home from work. Looked in the closet and under the bed and everything.”
“Good thing she didn’t look out the window.”
“Yeah, she would have loved seeing your bare ass run across the yard.”
He put on his best serious face, the one he thought got him out of trouble with teachers but really didn’t, and shook his head. “No, ma’am. She would never have seen it. I got dressed in the bushes before I took off running.” He leaned over and kissed her again before she pushed him back.
Hank moved to the front passenger door of the car, ready to climb inside. “Would you two mind not doing that while she’s wearing my coat?”
Nathan studied the letter jacket for a moment and realized it was too big to be his own, a coat she had claimed shortly after they had started dating. “And why are you giving my girlfriend your coat?”
“Just being a gentleman, like always.” Hank made a mock bow. “Your slow ass was still in the showers. She was freezing, and I always help a damsel in distress.”
“Oh, please, only if you think you’re going to get lucky.”
“Then she would know yet another thing I do better than you.” Hank’s eyes sparkled with mischief as he settled into the front passenger seat.
Donna blushed and shivered despite the coat, her lips almost as blue as her eyes. Nathan stroked the wet hair back over her ear. “You need a ride home?”
“Crammed into the car with your crew? No, thanks.” She nodded her head at a car across the parking lot, toward her best friend and fellow cheerleader. “Colette is driving a couple of us back to her house.”
Danny and his little sister, Colette, had cars to drive because their parents owned a small grocery and convenience store that had a multibay mechanic’s garage in the back where Danny’s dad did auto repairs and sold used cars. Nathan owned his father’s pickup truck, popular on sunny, warm days when passengers could crowd into the open bed, but not in miserable weather, so Danny was the designated driver when it rained.
“Is she coming to Hank’s?”
“Matt sure hopes so.”
Matt was leaning through the driver’s window of Colette’s car, chatting and smiling. They had started dating over the summer and spent almost all of their time together, much to the consternation of their older, protective siblings. Hank and Danny bantered endlessly about it, exhausting everyone.
Donna tightened her arm around Nathan’s waist. “You know us cheerleader types can fall under the sway of a football star.”
“Star? He’s a junior.”
“He scored two touchdowns tonight and won the game for us.”
“I’d like to think the defense—mostly me—stopping Ricky Ward won the game.”
“Oh, I like it when you get jealous.”
Red flushed across Nathan’s face. “I’m not jealous. Just…”
“Just team and all that, huh, Mr. ‘Mostly Me.’ But you better hope little Matty gets Colette to come to the party so I have a ride. You know she doesn’t like crazy parties. And she hates seeing Danny get drunk, and he always does. But she does think Matty is cute.” She turned and grunted in satisfaction, staring at Matt’s butt as he leaned through the car window. “And she’s right. He ain’t a little kid anymore. I would say he’s growing up fine.”
Most guys acted like jealous idiots when their girlfriends talked about other guys, but Nathan didn’t. Maybe he just thought of it as harmless talk, or maybe he just didn’t feel that possessive about Donna. “You know it’s killing Danny that Hank’s little brother is crushing on his sister.”
“I don’t think either one of them cares what Danny thinks.”
Nathan tried to pull her close again for another kiss, but she shook her head and stepped back. “I’ve got to go. Maybe see you later.”
“Tell Colette that Charlie and I have to be home by midnight anyway. That’ll give her an excuse to leave before it gets rowdy. Come on to Hank’s so we can hang out a bit, and then we can be gone before the crazy drinking starts.”
Her face brightened. “Midnight? Ronnie’s being harsh, but she’ll be happy with that.”
“Matt won’t like it.” Nathan pulled her forward and kissed her again as a horn blasted across the parking lot. He looked up to see Colette leanin
g on the horn and waving.
Matt had broken away, smiling and strutting toward them.
“Matty will live.” She disengaged from him and tightened the coat around herself. “And so will you. I got to go. I’m freezing. See you in a bit.” Donna took off across the parking lot, ruffling Matt’s hair as they passed. As she climbed into the car, she yelled over her shoulder to Hank, “Thanks for the coat! I’ll get it back to you.”
Matt slid his fingers through his hair, settling the mess Donna had caused, as he walked past Nathan and threw open the back door. He slid across into the middle of the backseat beside Charlie. Nathan slid in behind Danny and closed the door.
Hank turned from the front seat and glared. “Typical. You didn’t even get my coat back. Your girlfriend, and I’m the one freezing.”
3
“Midnight? Are you kidding me?” Hank’s face purpled as he scowled at Charlie.
“Sorry, dude. My old man was clear.” Making an exaggerated gesture with his hands, Charlie mimicked his father’s voice, “Midnight, boys. Not a minute later.”
“And you’re just going to do it?”
“Yeah, I like living.”
Hank stared out the front windshield at the line of cars exiting the high school parking lot and drummed his fingers on the dashboard. He twisted again in his seat and focused on Nathan. “What about you? You partying with us? He ain’t your old man.”
Nathan held up his hands in surrender. “No way. He’ll kick my butt just as fast. I get no slack from him.”
Hank exhaled loudly as he slumped in the front passenger seat. “Man, you would think there would be some benefit to being an orphan.”
As Charlie rapped his knuckles across Hank’s head, Nathan muttered, “Funny thing. Hasn’t worked out that way.”
Rubbing his head, Hank turned back around, the glower in his downcast eyes gone. “Sorry, man. I…”
Always the peacemaker of the group, Danny draped his arm across the seat, creating a barrier between front and back. “So what’s the problem, Hank? We just go get the keg started now.”
“Mom’s still home. Can’t pull the keg out until she goes to work.” Hank slumped in the front seat, crossed his arms, and stared out the window at the dwindling crowd.
Danny adjusted the knobs for the heat in the car, turning the defroster on high to chase the fog off the front windshield. “So let’s go do a preparty. We can stop by the store and get a case of beer.”
“And go where?”
“Up to the Point. No one will be there.”
Hank rolled the window down and extended his arm, letting the rain splash in his upturned palm. “Of course no one will be at the Point. No one else is that dumb. They would freeze their butts off.”
“I won’t,” Danny said. “I’m wearing a coat.”
The trio in the backseat chimed in. “So are we.”
“Oh, great. I’m sitting in the clown car.” Hank turned around and pointed at Nathan. “If we’re going to the Point, you’re giving me your coat. That’s your girlfriend wearing mine.”
Nathan feigned innocence. “But she said she’d give it back to you.”
“Oh, funny. And your fault we’re even thinking like this with your stupid curfew.”
Refusing to take the bait, Nathan leaned back in the seat and looked through the rain-coated side window.
Wanting to fight with someone, Hank turned his attention to his little brother in the middle of the back seat. “And you aren’t going with us to the Point.”
Matt leaned forward, always eager to battle his brother. “Not fair. Why not?”
Hank held up two fingers. “Two reasons, Matty. You ain’t a senior, and you’re my little brother.”
Danny leaned over to Hank and spoke quietly. “Let him come. He played a great game tonight.”
Hank crossed his arms and shook his head. “Nope, can’t do it. Besides, he’s got a job to do.”
Matt’s face crinkled in puzzlement. “What job?”
“Someone has to be home to make sure a bunch of crazies don’t show up too early for the party. Mom will kill us if she finds out we’re having another one. I told her just the usual crew.”
“So why can’t you do that?”
“Because I’m going up to the Point with my buddies to drink beer.”
“So you guys are going out partying, and I’m staying home with Mom?”
“You got it, little bro.”
Matt sat back in the seat and pouted. “Not fair.”
Nathan leaned over and said softly to Matt, “You can help me, though. Colette is bringing Donna to the party, and Donna won’t like it that I’m not there yet. So if you could be nice to them and keep them distracted, I would owe you.”
Matt broke out a wolfish smile. “Colette? Sure. Glad to help.”
Danny turned around and glared at Matt. “Watch yourself around my little sister. You better not get her pregnant, or I’ll rip your balls off.”
Hank laughed and hooked a thumb toward the backseat. “Don’t worry, Danny. I’ll let you know if the little twerp tries to get her into his room.”
Red in the face, Matt leaned forward. “Oh yeah? Maybe I’ll just tell everyone which girl you’ve had in your room lately.”
A chorus erupted from the other three. “Oh, this is getting good.” “Who was she, Hank?” “She must have been ugly if he doesn’t want us to know.”
His face flushed red, Hank grabbed a handful of Matt’s coat in his hand and dragged him until the brothers were nose to nose. “Nobody, right, Matty?”
Everyone laughed in the car except the two brothers as they glared at each other, neither blinking. To defuse the tension, Nathan put his hand on Matt’s shoulder. “Come on, relax. We don’t care who Hank is banging. I need you to help me with Donna. And you’ll get to chat with Colette, right?”
The tension drained from Matt’s face. Hank released his brother’s coat from his hand, and Matt settled into the back seat, a smirk on his face. “Fine. I’ll go home.”
Danny stared into the rearview mirror and caught Matt’s eyes. “And chatting with my sister means chatting. Out front with everyone else.”
Matt smiled and winked. “Of course, sir. I’m a total gentleman.”
Danny slipped the car into gear and drove across the now-empty parking lot. The headlights reflected in the falling rain as he turned onto the main road and accelerated. “Glad that’s settled.”
Abe’s Market was about as far from a modern-day convenience store as possible, and not just in distance though it was perched just outside the industrial zone, miles from Millerton’s lone interstate exit that the brightly lit stores clustered around.
Different from its well-lit, glass-walled counterparts, Abe’s was an older white clapboard building with few windows. The old gasoline pumps were turned on with a wave and a smile if Abe or Martha recognized customers. Otherwise, they had to trudge inside and lay a deposit on the counter.
Unlike the fast-food focus of his competitors, Abe’s inventory leaned more to regular groceries—canned and packaged goods, bread, baking supplies, and locally grown fruits and vegetables from area farmers, depending on the season. The coolers along one wall carried beer and soft drinks but also stocked milk, orange juice, butter, cheese, and a freezer of ice cream.
The proprietors greeted regular customers by name and inquired about the health of their families. Martha would make sandwiches in the small deli or discuss the selection of fresh flowers cut from her own garden.
Abe spent his days in one of the mechanic’s bays behind the store, working on customers’ cars. When a car reached an age at which more repairs made little sense, he always had a small selection of used ones for sale.
Behind those bays stood their house, surrounded by the flower gardens Martha tended when not working in the store. Locals knew that, in an emergency, the couple could be persuaded to open the store after hours.
The passing truckers hauling freight to and from th
e factories sometimes stopped on the road in front of the store, hazard lights flashing while they rushed inside, even though the truck stop better accommodated their large vehicles. Locals crowded the small store for its diverse inventory. Cars and pickup trucks parked haphazardly throughout the day though traffic dwindled as the smaller second shifts took over the nearby plants.
Without the nighttime traffic to support the business, Abe’s was only open fourteen hours a day, from six in the morning until eight at night, six days a week—never on Sundays. And never on football Friday nights.
Like much of Millerton, except those corporate gas stations and the fast-food chains by the interstate, Abe and Martha closed their store early on Fridays in the fall to go to the high school and watch their son play football and their daughter cheer. The rain and cold had not kept them away that night either.
Danny and Colette had grown up working in the store after school until closing, all day on Saturdays, and throughout the summers. They stocked shelves, made deli sandwiches, pumped gas, worked on cars, ran the cash register, and kept the inventory records—both preparing to one day run the store themselves if they chose.
Their friends envied that they had cars, albeit from the used-car inventory that Abe might sell at any moment. But long before that, their friends appreciated that they had keys to open the store on a hot summer Sunday for a soft drink or ice cream.
And those keys gave them another advantage.
If a teenager dared to waltz into the store and attempt to buy beer with a fake ID, no matter how carefully crafted, they would be denied. And, worse, Abe or Martha would pick up the telephone and dial the offender’s parents, a common courtesy in a small town.
But a teenager with a key to the store was a secret weapon in the never-ending teenage quest for beer.