Foster's Choice

by Jake Williams

  Jake, welcome home! Paul and I had to go to LA for some last minute revisions to the screenplay, and Maria and Vince are out of town until Monday. Daniel should be home after practice around four. I left some money for you guys to grab some food. There’s some beer in the garage, Daniel wants us to keep it out there now for some reason. Please spend some time with your brother, we can’t seem to figure him out these days and I think he’s gotten into to something weird, like a cult or something. We’ll be back next week and catch up, have fun here at hom!. I told Pete and Betsy and some of your other friends from school that you’re going to be here and they’re all excited about it! And I know Bo will be thrilled to see you!

  Love, Mom

  I was a little pissed that she wasn’t here for my homecoming or whatever. And I had been looking forward to seeing Paul, who was without a doubt the coolest stepfather of all of them. I wandered upstairs and went into my room and threw my shit on the bed. The room looked exactly as it was my senior year at Reagan; it was spotless so I figured Maria still cleaned it on a regular basis. I went through the door to the bathroom Daniel and I shared and pissed for about five minutes, then I glanced into Daniel’s room. There was an enormous cross hanging on the wall that I didn’t remember and the whole room looked really stripped down—just the bed, the dresser, no TV or anything else on the walls. I walked in to check it out some more and other than the pile of sports gear in the corner the room was spotless. I peeked into his closet and the only things in there were a ton of white button-down shirts and some plain khakis hanging, and there were a few pairs of running shoes and some plain brown shoes on the floor. I didn’t see any black candles or any kind of serious shit like that in the room so I figured my mother had it wrong as far as her cult theory. I passed back through the bathroom and noticed a big package on the counter with a big Post-it note from Mom.

  Foster, the pharmacy called and said you weren’t refilling your prescriptions, you need to take better care of yourself! If this doesn’t get you caught up let me know and we’ll order more.

  I looked in the box and there were enough meds to stock a small CVS.

  I walk backed into my room and flopped down on the bed. I opened the drawer of my nightstand to grab the ashtray I kept there and found a huge bag of weed that smelled like good Cali stuff. There was a Post-it note stuck to it from Paul telling me to enjoy my weekend. There was also an economy-size box of condoms with a Post-it from Vince telling me to do the same. I pulled the weed, the ashtray, a lighter, and a little bowl out of there. I smoked some of the pot and rolled a few joints for later.

  I wandered around my room checking out the rest of it. The closet was packed with new jeans, shirts, athletic shoes still in the boxes, and a couple of new suits from that place in London I liked. There was another note from my mom telling me the suits were for, hopefully, a good red carpet season for her in Hollywood. There were a few FedEx boxes on the floor and I opened them. One was from Under Armor and had a ton of compression shorts and t shirts and whatever packed in it, another box from some other store had a ton of jeans and casual shirts and shit. Another box was full of fitted dress shirts from Italy. Maria had left a Post-it on top of the box telling me to try on everything before she cleaned or ironed the stuff. Across from my bed there a newer, bigger TV on the wall but the shelves under it still had all the old stuff on them—trophies that wouldn’t fit anywhere else in the room, a few framed pictures of me on various teams and getting various awards, all of my favorite DVD’s, and a framed copy of my acceptance letter to Hawthorne.

  I grabbed a joint and the lighter and wandered back downstairs. I decided a beer by the pool would be good so I cut through the kitchen and grabbed a six pack out of the fridge in the garage. While I was in there I noticed a brand-new silver Porsche parked in one of the bays and I made a mental note to give it a test drive this weekend. I walked back through the house and went out the back door to the pool. I had only made it about two steps before a giant black blur came charging at me. “Bo!” I yelled as the big black lab started barking and jumping all over me. Bo was a two-week anniversary present from some girl I dated my freshmen year at Hawthorne. We broke up a few days later and neither of us really had time for a puppy that just chewed on everything, shit on everything else, and always seemed to want attention. I shipped him home after I just couldn’t deal with it, my mother wasn’t there at the time but Maria and Vince promised to take care of him for me until I was able to take him back. Bo started running around the pool and picking up tennis balls, Frisbee’s, and other assorted toys and dropping them at my feet. “Okay Bo, we can play for a while but I’ve got to jump in the pool first!” I grabbed a towel out of the pool house and looked around for a bathing suit, then I realized I had the whole place to myself so I stripped out of my jeans and shirt and took a flying leap into the pool.

  The water felt awesome and I started swimming some laps, then I realized Bo was tagging along beside me with a ball in his mouth. I wondered who had taught him how to swim. I stood up and he released the ball in front of me, paddling and looking at me like he was waiting for me to do something. I grabbed the ball out of the water and tossed it to the far end of the pool, he took off and brought it right back, and every time I threw it he’d do the same thing. “Somebody has really taught you all kinds of tricks, haven’t they boy?”

  I swam over to the edge and hopped out long enough to wipe my hands dry on the towel, light the joint, grab a beer, and then eased back into the pool. I leaned against the wall and Bo came across the deck with another toy in his mouth, I threw it and he would dive in, get the ball, climb up the steps at the shallow end, and run right back to me. We did this until we both were worn out. Bo lay down on the deck by me and fell asleep on his back, all four paws up in the air and a goofy smile on his face. I climbed up on the deck and sprawled out on my towel, the sun and my buzz had me drifting off in no time.

  I’m not sure how long I slept but I felt a shadow over me and looked up, Danny was staring down at me. Bo woke up and went ballistic, whimpering and rubbing against him, tail wagging furiously.

  I squinted up at him and grinned. “Hey, Danny! It’s great to see you!”

  He kind of frowned down at me, patting Bo on the head the whole time. “Hello Jacob, how are you?”

  “Fan-fuckin’-tastic, Bro!” I realized he was wearing his practice shorts and a t-shirt covered with dirt and sweat, “You just getting back from baseball practice? No offense but you smell a little ripe.” I hopped up and ducked into the pool house to grab another beer and walked back over to him. “So why didn’t you shower and change at school, were the locker rooms closed or something?”

  “No, they weren’t, I choose to shower at home where there’s privacy. Reverend Jim says modesty is a virtue.” He glared at me and I remembered I was buck naked. I wasn’t sure why that would bother him since we shared a bathroom the whole time we were growing up, but I eased back into the pool. He seemed a little more relaxed and pulled a chair over and sat on the deck, his hand shielding his eyes from the sun.

  “Well I don’t know who this guy ‘Reverend Jim’ is but he obviously never played sports, bro. Everybody on the team always takes a shower at school after practice, at least they did when I was there. I never really thought about privacy in a locker room being an issue,” I shrugged, “but whatever.”

  He started frowning and quickly changed the subject. “Maria and Vince are off for the weekend. I know Mom left some money on the counter for groceries. I don’t suppose you could take me to the store after I get cleaned up?”

  “Well sure Dan, I can take you, go on up and get dressed, I’ll just finish my beer and then we can roll.” I was happy that we could do something together, but I was beginning to think that my mother was right about something being off about him.

  “Well, I’m not sure—and it’s Daniel, not Dan—but I’m not sure you should drive, how many of those have you had? Are you sure you should drive?” He looked down at
the beer and then his eyes widened, and I think he noticed the joint and the lighter.

  “Man, I’ve driven a lot more fucked up than this. Besides, what’s the worst that can happen out here? We hit a fucking cow or a rabbit or a beaver or whatever? I think I can manage, but if you have any doubts about me my keys are on the counter in the kitchen, just take the Rover.”

  “I saw that thing in the driveway; I bet it cost a fortune. Don’t you think spending all that money on a car is a little sinful? You could have spent a lot less on the car and given the rest to a charity, to the church. You could have made a difference in a lot of lives! I know you have money, I’ll get my trust fund soon too, but I plan on giving mine to the church. I just need enough to go to a good Baptist college, get a reliable car, and set aside some money for when Mary and I get married.”

  “Whoa, Dan—Daniel—Bro, what’s the talk about marriage? You’re in high school and you already knocked up some fucking girl, don’t you use—”

  “Don’t YOU talk about Mary that way, Jacob! We’ve both taken a pledge, pre-marital sex is a sin!” He stood up and looked down at me, his fists were all balled up and I was afraid he was going to try and beat the shit out of me.

  “Hey, Daniel, ease up okay, I’m not sure what’s gotten into you but I just don’t remember our church being this uptight about things. I think you might be drinking a little too much of the Kool-Aid, Bro.”

  “I don’t go to our old church, to Mom’s church. I go to the Baptist church with Mary, now. And Reverend Jim is a good man, he’s taught me a lot about the way to redemption, I’m proud to be a born again Christian!” I wondered what this cult he had gotten himself involved in would think if they heard that.

  “Fine, whatever, fuck it! Just take my car to the store or take that Porsche in the garage. I really don't give a shit! But I don’t think I can handle any more time with you right now.” I studied his face. “You seem a little tense, do you want a beer?”

  He shook his head no but I thought he may have considered it for a second. “No, I can’t, Jacob. I don’t drink, I’m too young to drink. But you obviously do, and I guess you do worse, too.” He pointed at the joint and kept talking, “Mom says you may be here all summer. If you are then you need to understand that I don’t drink, I don’t do drugs, I don’t have pre-marital sex—basically I don’t do any of the things you seem to like so much!” He started stomping off and Bo followed close behind him. He stopped for a second and looked at me over his shoulder, “And another thing, you clueless moron. I can’t drive to the grocery store! I only have a learner’s permit!”

  That confused me, “Well how the hell are you going to learn if you don’t drive, dumbass?” I thought maybe that logic would calm him down. I climbed out of the pool, remembered his new-found thing about modesty and wrapped my towel around my waist. “Daniel, you’re my brother, I love you, man. I don’t want things to start out like this, not if I’m going to be here all summer.”

  “All summer, really?” He seemed pretty flustered about something to me. “I don’t even think I can handle you being here this weekend! I don’t want to live here with someone so committed to living a life of sin! Just look at you, you’re running around here naked, drinking beer, smoking marijuana, and Lord knows what else! You’re an athlete, Jacob. You should treat yourself better. Reverend Jim says the body is a temple!”

  I could tell this was a lose-lose conversation so I went for the thing I figured would piss him off the most. “Well if your body is a temple, Daniel, then this,” I dropped my towel and stood there with my feet apart and my arms spread and looked down at myself and then back up at him, “this is a cathedral.” He started freaking out, trembling and mumbling some kind of shit I couldn’t understand. I wondered if that’s what they meant by speaking in tongues or whatever as he slammed the door to the house shut.

  I stood out there and smoked the rest of the joint and grabbed another beer. I threw the roach into one of the flower beds and admired how Vince always kept the grounds spotless. I headed inside and realized that Bo had followed Daniel in, and I felt a little hurt that my dog had abandoned me.

  When I got back up to my room I threw the towel on the floor and flopped down on the bed. I heard the shower running in the bathroom and I figured I owed Daniel an apology so I got up to apologize, but the door was stuck and I couldn’t get in there. I looked at it for a minute before I realized that he had locked the door, and I couldn’t remember when either of us had ever done that. I knocked on the door but he didn’t answer. I could hear him in the shower singing something to himself, and I wasn’t so much of a heathen that I couldn’t recognize a hymn when I heard one.

  I walked over to the TV and looked at the DVD’s trying to find the stack of porn videos that I kept right behind the regular movies. I reached back to where they normally were and pulled out a Post-it note that read “I took these away and burned them for your own good. It’s never too late to repent!” All of these people coming in and out of my room and leaving Post-it’s and shit was freaking me out a little, it seemed like there were no boundaries in this house.

  Friday, 7pm

  I woke up from my nap and stretched and realized I hadn’t eaten anything all day. I got up and showered before I went downstairs. I went to get some deodorant out of my medicine cabinet and the bottom two shelves were packed with more prescription bottles. I looked all around but there was no note explaining why they were in there. I grabbed all of the bottles and tossed them in the duffel and figured I would sort them out later. I went to the dresser and found that all of my old underwear had been replaced with tons of new stuff, all folded neatly. It wondered what was more awkward, that I was 21 and Maria was still folding my underwear, or that my mom was still buying it for me. I grabbed a pair of boxer briefs and liked the way they felt and looked so I put them on. I was about to go ahead and get dressed and head to the store for some food but my stomach was just growling and shit so I headed downstairs to raid the fridge.

  I walked into the kitchen and there was a blender out on the counter, it looked like somebody had made some kind of frozen drinks. I wasn’t big on daiquiris or shit like that but I figured what the hell and poured some into a glass. I took one sip and spit it out in the sink, it tasted like oatmeal and cut grass and some other shit.

  “Jacob, that’s mine!” I jumped at Daniel’s voice and then shrugged, “Don’t worry little brother, that shit is nasty! What the fuck is that crap?”

  “Stop. The. Swearing. Now. There’s a lady present!” He looked over toward the door and I saw this really hot chick—all blonde hair, pouty lips, huge tits—like a porn star, standing there.

  I walked over to her and offered my hand, “Hi, I’m Foster, and you are….?”

  She turned her head and looked like she was talking to the wall, “I’m Mary, Daniel’s girlfriend. Nice, uh, nice to meet you. But wait, I though Daniel said your name was Jacob?”

  “Yeah, it is but everybody calls me Foster, I got the nickname in high school ‘cause they all said my—”

  Daniel cut me off, “Enough Daniel! Mary does not need to know your nickname or what it means!” He was turning red, fast. Your given name is Jacob and that’s what she’ll call you! And you shouldn’t be standing there practically naked in a woman’s presence!”

  “Okay, Okay, bro, just chill. Sorry Mary, I didn’t know you were here. Are you two going out tonight?”

  “Oh no, Jacob! Friday night is our date night. We usually hang out with my parent’s and play board games or watch a movie. But tonight is, well, special. I’m staying here tonight—”

  I winked at Daniel and said “you go dawg! I thought you two were waiting—”

  “Shut the hell up Jacob!” I knew he was pissed when he started cursing and I was secretly a little proud of him. Mary gasped a little. “Just, I mean, just shut up. Mary is staying here because we’re heading out early in the morning to go on a church trip! The Pattersons from church are driving us, and Mar
y lives too far out of the way—we need to leave at 5am. Her parents have given their blessing for her to stay here. They know you’re here to chaperone and Mom told them it was okay for her to stay here. She’ll be in the guest room and everybody knows we’d never take advantage of this, this situation. Her parents trust us, and thankfully they’ve never met you! Nothing sinful will happen here tonight!”

  Mary cut her eyes over to Daniel, and I thought I could see a little disappointment on her face. I winked at both of them and said, “Okay, I gotcha little bro! I’ll be the best chaperone ever, I’ll make Reverend Jim proud of all of us.” I glanced in the fridge and couldn’t see anything I wanted, so I shut the door and leaned back against the counter. “What do y’all say, let’s go get some real food, some steaks, anything other than this crap! My treat, I’d be neglecting my chaperone duties if I didn’t take you two little love birds out for dinner on your ‘date night’.”

  “We’ve already had dinner, Jacob, so no thanks. We’re just going to have our shakes and watch some TV, and then we need to go to bed early.” I winked at him again and he turned a deeper red. “I mean we have to get up early for the trip, that’s all I meant!”

  I noticed Mary had stopped staring at the wall and her eyes locked on to my crotch. I realized I was scratching my balls. Daniel had noticed and he glared at me, “shouldn’t you go upstairs and get dressed, or just go away or something? What’s with you anyway? You don’t wear clothes at your college?”

  I shrugged and looked at Mary and she was studying my body so hard that I just had to keep my brother squirming a little longer. I stretched and then turned sideways to give her a profile shot. “So, what exactly is this trip about?”

  Mary snapped out of it and exclaimed, “Oh, you should come with us Foster, I mean Jacob! We’re going to meet some folks from the Westboro Baptist Church and help them with a prayer vigil at a soldier’s funeral!”