The Anything Friend

by Michela DiMarco

CHAPTER 14

  “Sometimes you meet somebody, and you know that whatever you did before, it must have been right. Because nothing you've done could be too bad, or have gone too far wrong, because it led you to this person.” Anonymous

 

  Elizabeth and Jack studied every night before the Calculus test. Mrs. Benson left Elizabeth alone for the most part because Mrs. Bennett agreed that they would study at the kitchen table and she would keep a close eye on them. Neither of them talked about the previous Friday night. Even though Elizabeth knew her mother liked to exaggerate, she was surprised that her mom had overreacted the way she did by accusing her daughter of being pregnant in front of the Jack’s parents. The Bennett’s weren’t just another family that you might run into at the grocery store or church, they were neighbors which brought the embarrassing actions of her mother to a higher level.

  It was Friday morning, and the Calculus test was already here. Elizabeth felt well prepared. Jack was nervous but said he felt good about the test. Ms. Petrova gave the same speech she gave before the first Calculus test. She once again passed the tests out to each person in the front row and they handed them back.

  “Begin,” she said before taking a seat down at her desk.

  Elizabeth looked over at Jack. He was pushing the buttons on his calculator at warp speed and filling in answers just as fast. She smiled to herself and started on her test. Jack was going to be just fine. She was sure of it.

  After her morning classes, Elizabeth went to get her Calculus test score and sit outside for lunch. There were only a few more weeks of perfect weather before she would have to settle on eating inside the cafeteria again. She walked into Ms. Petrova’s classroom.

  “You’ve been working with a study partner like I suggested, haven’t you?”

  “How can you tell?” Elizabeth asked. Ms. Petrova handed her the graded test. “I got a 98? I got a 98!” she shouted.

  “Keep up the good work.”

  Elizabeth grabbed her lunch from her locker and walked to her lunch spot. She leaned against the wall and closed her eyes in the mid-day sunshine. “Is this where the cool people eat lunch?”

  She could tell it was Jack without even opening her eyes. “No, they’re all waiting for you in the cafeteria.”

  “Very funny,” he mocked.

  “I’m serious. They’re looking for you. They might not know what to eat if you’re not there to tell them.”

  “We’re celebrating tonight,” he said. “After my football game.”

  “Another game? Sounds like fun, but I’m still grounded.”

  “Come on,” he pleaded. “You never listen to your parents. Football game and then a party and we won’t be out late.”

  “I’m guessing you got a B or better on your Calculus test?”

  “I got a 93. It’s an A!”

  Elizabeth stood up to hug Jack. “That’s so great! I knew you could do it!” He picked her up and spun her around. “Hey, don’t hurt yourself, you have a game tonight.”

  He set her on her feet. “I have an idea,” he smirked. “Why don’t you invite your family to the game? That way they’ll be with you so they won’t say you’re sneaking around and they can sit with my parents.”

  “Are you nuts? That’s the worst idea ever! Our parents should not be socializing.”

  “How are we supposed to be friends if every time we hang out your mom wants to chop my head off?”

  Elizabeth laughed. “It’s probably not your head that has a face that she wants to chop off.”

  Jack jabbed her in the ribs. “You’re probably right. They both sat down against the wall. “How are you supposed to come to the party with me then?”

  “Okay, don’t take this the wrong way because I was really joking around about your people looking for you, but I don’t think I belong at an A-list party.”

  “You’re fine,” he said. “Nobody would care. They just don’t know you.”

  “Can my friends come?” Elizabeth asked wondering if her parents would actually let her go.

  “For sure,” he answered. “I gotta run. I’ll be home after the game to shower and change. Nick’s coming to pick me up so have your friends come to your house and he can drive us all.”

  “Mom?” Elizabeth called walking in the front door after school. There was no answer. “Colby?” She walked through the first floor finally spotting her mom pushing Colby on the swing set. She walked out the sliding glass door in the family room, down the stairs to the deck to the swing set. “Hi.”

  “How was school?”

  “I got a 98 percent on my Calculus test.”

  “How did Jack do?”

  Elizabeth was surprised she asked about Jack. Her mom was probably secretly hoping he didn’t get a good grade so she could stop Elizabeth from studying with him. “He did great. He got a 93 percent.”

  “Good,” she said pushing Colby. “I presume you’re going to ask me to go to the football game tonight?”

  “With Angela and Kate. Is that okay?”

  “Higher!” squealed Colby.

  “Have you cut yourself anymore?” Elizabeth shook her head. “Well, I suppose you can go to the game with your friends.”

  “Thank you,” smiled Elizabeth. That was easier than she thought. Her mom was in a pleasant mood. “Mom, there’s one

  more thing and you can say no if you want but after the game there’s a party and Angela and Kate are going and Jack and his friend and we’ll come home after the game because Jack’s friend is driving so he’ll pick us up here so you can meet him if you want and we won’t be out late and then maybe Angela and Kate can spend the night because I haven’t done that in forever and I know I’m still grounded and you can say no it’s just that…”

  “Stop,” said Leighton. “Just please stop. You’re giving me a headache.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said putting her head down. “I’ll just go to the game.”

  “Who is driving you to the party?”

  “Jack’s friend Nick.”

  “You’re not grounded anymore,” her mother said calm and collected. “Your father convinced me that you’ve reached your limit on being cooped up in this house and that I should give you some space. You can go to the party. And, your friends can spend the night.”

  Elizabeth looked at her mother as though she had been abducted by an alien. It must have taken her father hours to convince her mom to back off for a little bit. She couldn’t believe it. Elizabeth had just been witness to a miracle. She leapt towards her mother and threw her arms around her. “Thank you so much!”

  Leighton awkwardly took a step back and removed her daughter’s arms from around her. “You’re welcome,” she said without much conviction.

  Angela and Kate were in Elizabeth’s room helping her wear something cute but not too fancy for the game. Angela was busy blowing up the air mattresses while Kate was invading Elizabeth’s closet.

  “Did you get another Marc Jacobs bag, Kate?” Angela asked.

  “Well, I had to get a fall color. Oranges are in right now.”

  Elizabeth glanced out her other bedroom window that overlooked the backyard. She saw her mom talking to Mrs. Bennett. She tried to make out what they were saying through her open window but could not hear the exchange of words. It looked as though Latasha was comforting her mother in some way. “What do you think they’re doing out there?” she asked her friends.

  “Planning your wedding,” Angela said. Kate started laughing.

  “I found the perfect outfit to wear tonight.” Kate laid a cream sequin tank top out on her bed next to a pair of dark skinny jeans.

  “No, come on. That shirt is too low in the back and I can’t wear a bra with it. And, those jeans are skin tight. They don’t even move.”

  “That’s the point,” said Angela. “Looking go
od isn’t easy. We need to start your hair and make-up.”

  Elizabeth looked out the window again. “You guys don’t get it. My mom hates Jack’s mom. She thinks Mrs. Bennett is too much a free spirit and gives Jack too much freedom. What could they possibly be talking about?”

  After the football game, the girls rushed home to change for the party. They had been to parties before, but never a party thrown by one of the A-listers at their school. They double checked themselves in the mirror before heading downstairs. Elizabeth covered the red scar on her arm with make-up. The three girls sat with Elizabeth’s parents talking about the game while they waited. Finally, the doorbell rang.

  “Do you want to come outside and meet Jack’s friend?” Elizabeth asked her mom. Leighton shook her head. “Okay, we’ll be home later.”

  “Come on!” said Jack enthusiastically before Elizabeth had opened the front door all the way. They walked across her front lawn and then the Bennett’s to the older teal Oldsmobile Achieva in the driveway. The girls opened the back door and Elizabeth climbed in first. Jack’s friend, Nick, did a double take at Elizabeth.

  “Cutter girl is coming with us?” he asked confused.

  “Hey,” said Kate defending her friend. “She’s not cutter girl. Don’t ever call her that again.”

  “Fine, sorry,” he looked at Jack again. “Tutor girl is coming with us?”

  “She’s my friend,” defended Jack. “Her name is Elizabeth, not tutor girl.”

  “Whatever.” Nick rolled his eyes and put the Achieva in reverse. “I’m Nick Strauss,” he said looking at the girls while he backed out of the driveway.”

  “We know who you are,” said Angela.”

  “Really? Do you go to my school?”

  “You transferred in sophomore year,” mentioned Kate.

  “Great, so everyone knows me and I don’t know everyone.”

  It took less than four minutes to get to the party at Zack Soldano’s house. The girls followed Jack and Nick into the party. Elizabeth was nervous about going to her first A-list party. She would have been content ending high school never knowing what it was like to party with the kids at school that barely knew anything about her. Her nickname was now ‘cutter girl’, a name she despised.

  “Beer,” Jack said. “I’ll go.”

  The girls hovered around the foyer of the massive house trying to see who was already at the party. They recognized everyone at the party and were confident that Elizabeth was the only one recognized back due to what happened in the locker room a few weeks earlier.

  Jamie Johnson walked into foyer with a beer, headed to the bathroom. “Wow, cutter girl and friends. When did this party become open to the public?”

  “Her name isn’t cutter girl,” Kate defended again. “It’s Elizabeth.”

  Jamie smirked. “I know who she is smoker girl.”

  “Do you have nicknames for everyone?” asked Angela.

  “Yes, it’s not like I can remember everyone’s real name. Is that mean of me?” The girls stared at her while Jamie pondered. “Anyway, welcome to the party. How did you get invited anyway? It’s not like we broadcast our parties all over the school because we don’t want, well we don’t want everyone to know.”

  “We came with someone,” said Elizabeth.

  “Who?” Jamie asked.

  “Me,” said Jack carrying four bottles of beer.

  Jamie looked shocked. Jack handed the girls a beer each and took a sip of his beer facing Jamie. “Is that a problem?”

  “No,” she answered. “We just don’t want to run out and three extra people are a lot.”

  “Nick brought a case of beer with him. That should be enough.”

  She flipped her long blond curly hair over her shoulder. Elizabeth realized she was wearing the same halter top as Jamie in different colors. “Can I talk to you for a second Jack?”

  “I’ll be right back,” he said to Elizabeth. “Feel free to walk around. Nobody will say anything to you.” He followed Jamie to the back of the house.

  “Wow,” said Angela. “She’s usually nicer in school.”

  “That’s because she wanted our votes for class president,” added Kate. “She doesn’t have to kiss ass outside of school. These people already like her.”

  “If I hear the name cutter girl one more time I’m going flip,” mentioned Elizabeth.

  “Flipping will do wonders for your reputation. Let’s walk around,” suggested Angela.

  “No, let’s have a smoke first,” answered Kate.

  The girls walked out the front door with their bottle of Miller Lite still in hand. They made their way along the sloping side of the house until they were in the back under first floor deck.

  “I’m surprised nobody is in the basement,” said Angela looking into the house through the walk out sliding glass door. “It’s a really nice house.”

  Kate looked at Elizabeth. “Your mom must have been abducted by aliens. Or possessed by a demon, no an angel.”

  “At first I thought it was my dad but now I’m not so sure. What if it’s Mrs. Bennett?”

  “Jack’s mom?” asked Kate. “Why would she talk to your mom? She has no interest in your family drama.”

  Elizabeth pondered what Kate was saying for a few seconds. “You’re right. I just can’t figure it out.”

  “You don’t need to,” said Angela. “She let you out. Who cares what the reason is.”

  “I’m talking to you!” shouted a voice from the balcony above. The girls immediately stopped talking and tried looking through the beams on the wooden deck above them to see who was yelling. “You’re wrong. I don’t care that you brought cutter girl to the party.” The girls knew immediately it was Jamie Johnson. “I care that I asked you to come with me and you told me you were grounded.”

  “I was grounded,” defended Jack. “I got ungrounded when I got home from school.”

  “Why didn’t you text me?” She sounded distraught.

  “I’m here aren’t I? Isn’t that what you wanted? Who cares if I showed up in another stupid car? What do you want from me? You’re up and down all the damn time.”

  “I care,” demanded Jamie. “I want you back.”

  The girls didn’t hear anything for about a minute. “Are they kissing?” whispered Angela.

  Elizabeth thought she was going to be sick. She wasn’t even sure why. It was Jamie Johnson, possibly the most perfect female teenage specimen. Jack was her male version. It only seemed to make sense that they had gone out.

  “I’m going for a closer look,” whispered Kate. She slowly walked out into the dark yard. The fall leaves were crunching underneath her feet. Suddenly, she bolted back under the cover of the deck above. “They’re on opposite sides.”

  “I don’t,” Jack finally answered.

  “What?”

  “I don’t want you back. Not now. I have a lot going on and I don’t have time for a relationship. I need to get my stuff in order first.”

  “Are you going to keep seeing cutter girl?”

  “Get off her case. She helps me in Calculus, alright? That’s all there is. I’m not dating her. She helps me out. You just need to calm down.” Elizabeth felt nauseous. It’s not that she liked Jack, but she liked that he was her hero and the possibility that he could someday be something more. Latasha Bennett thought they could have something, why didn’t Jack?

  “But she likes you,” said Jamie frustrated. “What are you going to do about that?”

  “It’s not like that. It’s harmless. Nothing will ever happen between us.” Now, it was final. Elizabeth had heard enough.

  “There you guys are,” Nick said turning the corner. “I saw Jack outside and I felt kind of bad like maybe we ditched you guys.” He was staring straight at Kate.

  “We’re fine,”
she said flipping her curly hair. “Thanks for coming to find us.”

  “Some guys are inside playing flip cup if you want to join us.”

  Kate and Angela nodded agreeably. It was something to do other than eavesdrop on Jack and Jamie. They followed Nick back around to the front of the house, through the front door and foyer into the kitchen. Jamie was right, the party was pretty small. There were only about twenty people there. Three extra people were a significant number to such a small social gathering.

  “This is farther than we made it last time,” Kate said to Nick.

  “I’m really sorry about that,” he turned to Elizabeth. “And, I’m sorry I called you cutter girl. I accidently stabbed my arm with a sharp pencil once. The lead broke off and I had a terrible infection. It bubbled and there was puss and it was pretty gross.” Elizabeth felt like she was going to throw up. “Was that what your arm looked like?”

  She shook her head. “No, it wasn’t as bad as yours,” she confessed. Maybe he actually believed it was an accident.

  The flip cup table was set up. There were six boys on the football team standing around the table. “I got three more. Now we’re even with five on each team. The boys introduced themselves as if they had no idea they went to school with any of the girls, except for one boy, Bob, that couldn’t stop staring at Elizabeth. Elizabeth and Angela were on Bob’s team with Chase, and Damon. Damon seemed annoyed to have two girls on his team so he suggested they both start so the boys could catch up if they were behind. Kate was on Nick’s team. Elizabeth looked for Jack, but saw no sign of him. She assumed he was still outside with Jamie.

  Elizabeth, Angela and Kate all filled in admirably even though it was their first time playing flip cup. Elizabeth’s team did lose the first round so after the rotation, Bob took her place to start the team off. After that, they won the next ten rounds giving Bob a chance to talk to her after they chugged their quarter cup of beer and flipped their cups.

  “You’re pretty good at this,” he complimented.

  “Thanks,” she smiled. She was starting to feel the buzz from the beer. “This is my first time playing.”

  “No way,” he said. “That’s really good, then.”

  She couldn’t help but smile. Bob was pale, his skin almost colorless. He had light blond hair and grey-blue eyes. Physically, he was the exact opposite of Jack. Bob was on the thin side. He didn’t play football, but he was part of the team as the home game announcer. His arms were toothpicks compared to Jack’s. Physically, his body was closer to her small frame. Elizabeth suddenly realized she was comparing Bob to Jack. She turned back around to focus on the game.

  Angela began nudging her closer to Bob. “Say something to him or I will,” Angela encouraged her friend. Elizabeth looked across the table where Kate was now hanging on Nick. She quickly scanned the room for Jack but he was nowhere in sight.

  “Can we please have a smoke break,” begged Kate. “I really need to pee and smoke.”

  “I love this girl!” exclaimed Nick.

  “Keep your pants on,” said Kate stumbling out of the kitchen towards the bathroom. Elizabeth and Angela followed Kate. They rotated going to the bathroom, washing their hands and fixing their hair and make-up. “I’m glad we came. Nick is pretty cool.”

  “You’re so hooking up with him tonight,” said Angela egging her friend on.

  “Nah,” said Kate. “Not tonight. He’s going to have to work harder if he wants all this,” she said pointing to her amazing body.

  “I need an ass,” Angela said looking in to the mirror. “Can’t I take some from my chest and put it in my ass?”

  “I love your ass,” Kate said spanking her friend. “Besides, flirty betch over there is going to get some before either of us. Bob wants you so bad. Not even in like he wants you, well he does, but he likes you. He’s can’t stop staring at you.”

  “He’s awkward. Let’s go smoke,” Elizabeth said quickly. She was in a hurry to see if Jack was still outside with Jamie. To her disappointment when they reached the balcony neither Jack nor Jamie was outside. Elizabeth quickly feared they had gone somewhere in the house to hook up. Bob quickly approached her and she walked over to the railing away from the table where the rest of the boys were sitting that had been playing flip cup. She quickly lit her cigarette hoping that the smoke would offend him.

  “Ahh,” he smiled. “You’re a smoker?”

  “Yeah, a pretty big smoker,” she lied. “Okay, I don’t smoke every day or all the time, just when I feel like it, for no reason.”

  “I gotcha,” he said reaching into the pocket of his khaki pants to retrieve his own pack of cigarettes. “Camels,” he said smiling.

  “Parliament Lights,” she said showing him her pack. “So, have you seen Jack around here lately?”

  “Nope,” admitted Bob. “Not for a while. I saw Jamie was on his case earlier.”

  “Oh.”

  “You guys came with him, right?”

  “Yeah, he’s my neighbor.”

  “Probably a good neighbor to have. He could beat up anyone trying to break into your house.” Elizabeth started laughing. Jack was strong physically. He was an incredibly fast runner, as well. No burglar would stand a chance against him. “Listen, I’ve been meaning to ask you something for a long time, now.” Elizabeth’s eyes widened. It was coming, the big question about whether or not she tried to commit suicide? “You’re the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen,” he said sincerely. “Will you go out with me?”

  Elizabeth didn’t know how to respond. Bob was an A-lister. Elizabeth was used to having boyfriends on the B-list and none of them were significant. She tried to think of a name, any name of any girl that Bob had dated in the past but she couldn’t come up with any. She looked over and saw Kate laughing and kissing Nick on the other side of the deck.

  “Go out with you, like do something sometime?” she asked confused by his sudden interest in her.

  “No, well yeah, obviously but I want you to be my girl.”

  Maybe if she was with Bob, it would get Jack’s attention. “Yeah,” she said thinking it was a good plan. Bob liked her. Maybe the other A-listers would grow to like her, too and her she could go back to being herself, instead of cutter girl.

  Suddenly, Bob kissed her on the lips. Elizabeth froze. There were people around and this was happening too fast. She pulled away. “Sorry,” she said. “I wasn’t really expecting that.”

  “That’s okay,” he said kissing her on the forehead. “I didn’t mean to scare you off. I just really like you and I’ve liked you for a long time now.”

  “Bob, you’ve never talked to me before tonight.”

  “I didn’t think you would talk to me if I tried to talk to you.”

  Elizabeth was confused. Her head was spinning between the beer and Bob. “I think it’s time for me to go home,” she confessed.

  “Wait, what’s your number?” Elizabeth rattled off her number quickly. She felt her phone immediately vibrate in her pocket. “That’s me, texting you my number.”

  “Ok,” she forced a smile. Angela was sitting at the table between all the boys. “I’ve had enough,” whispered Elizabeth. “Can we go home?” Angela nodded. Elizabeth walked over to Kate and said the same thing.

  “We’re out of here,” said Kate.

  “Wait, you came with me. I’ll take you guys home.”

  “You’ve been drinking genius,” said Kate. “It’s like two miles. Besides, we need to walk off this beer.”

  The girls started the two-mile walk home. All three of them took off their high heels to make the journey less painful. The first mile was virtually silent. Angela finally demanded Elizabeth tell them the real reason she wanted to leave the party.

  “Were you having any fun?” she asked her friends.

  “Nick is
adorable,” said Kate. “I wouldn’t have minded making out with him a little longer. I saw you kiss Bob.”

  “Yeah, that was weird,” she said grossed out. Her phone vibrated. It was the sixth text Bob had sent asking how the walk was going. Elizabeth didn’t text him back. “See what I mean? He doesn’t stop. We’ve been together for like ten minutes and he’s sent seven texts since then. Clearly, I made a mistake.”

  Angela and Kate laughed at their friend. “Don’t get mad, I’m just suggesting that maybe you’re a little frustrated because you really wanted to hang out with Jack tonight.”

  “Nope, that’s not it.”

  “What happened to that jerk anyway?” asked Kate. “He invited us to the party and then ditched us.”

  “He didn’t ditch us,” defended Elizabeth. “You heard what Jamie was saying. He was probably just…he’s probably just talking to her and figuring things out. If you liked a guy and you told him that wouldn’t you want him to talk to you?”

  They both agreed. Elizabeth was just friends with Jack. He was right. There was no chance they would ever be more than just friends. It was confusing. One minute he was holding her in his bed and the next he was acting like she was just a girl down the street.

  When they got home, Elizabeth’s parents were thankfully asleep. All three girls were pretty drunk. Elizabeth and Kate sat on the front porch to smoke while Angela went upstairs to change into her pajamas and get ready for bed.

  “What a night!” exclaimed Kate. “Hey,” she said grabbing her friends arm. “There’s Jack. Go talk to him.”

  “I don’t really have anything to say,” muttered Elizabeth.

  Kate stood up. “Don’t make me,” she threatened.

  “Fine,” she whispered back. Elizabeth didn’t have to say anything. Jack had already walked past his house and was making his way across her front lawn.

  “I could smell you smokers from a mile away.”

  “Yeah, well this smoker gets the bathroom next. Thanks for the invite tonight. That was pretty cool of you.”

  Jack nodded. “No problem.” Elizabeth sat down again and Jack sat right next to her. He was fidgeting with his hands.

  “Jack, what’s wrong?”

  “You looked really pretty tonight,” he said. “I forgot to tell you that earlier. I guess I’m used to seeing you in your uniform or hanging around out here in everyday clothes. I really like your eyes.” He was staring at her.

  Elizabeth was nervous. “Yeah, well I was wearing the same shirt as Jamie.”

  “I didn’t notice her shirt,” admitted Jack. “So, you and Bob Olsen, huh?”

  “Oh…I…”

  “I saw you kiss,” he said. “It’s no big deal. He’s liked you since last year.”

  “I…that doesn’t really matter. I barely know him.”

  “Yeah, sometimes it just doesn’t feel right with someone and then it’s like other times….” Elizabeth was staring at Jack, staring at the grass. “I meant to say thank you, for last weekend

  when you were saying all that stuff about believing in me and how I make you happy.”

  Elizabeth cleared her throat. “Well, it’s true.”

  “Do you really think I’m going to change the world someday?”

  She smiled genuinely. “Yes. I thought that the first night you came over out of nowhere. You’re amazing. You know that, right?”

  “Only when I’m with you because you make me believe I’m wonderful.” Elizabeth felt a lump form in her throat. She wasn’t sure why, but she wished it was Jack Bennett she had kissed instead of Bob. “I should go. It’s late and I have practice in the morning.” Jack leaned over and hugged Elizabeth. “Thank you,” he said smiling.

  Before he reached his porch, Elizabeth called out to him. “Jack,” she shouted. He turned around. “Ebony Mikle once said, ‘To the world you might be just one person. But to one person you might be the world.”

  “I don’t know who Ebony Mikle is but that’s a great quote.”