Tutor Me

by Hope Stillwater

  After hitting the restroom we waited for the boys in the large white lobby. We were both wearing jeans and ballet slippers and I had on a black t-shirt while she was wearing a red tank top. The boys finally showed up and they were slurring their words enough that clearly they’d done more than two shots each. Bryce threw his arms around me in a sloppy hug. Some girls were checking him out and I was happy he was with me.

  We reached the floor of the arena after the opening act had finished. When Katy Perry finally came on the stage I was excited and ready to dance. Truthfully, although I’d defended her to Callum I didn’t love her music. I was happy to see a performer at the top of her game though. We got pushed around a bit as the crowd rushed toward the stage, and I got separated pretty quickly from the others. After trying to spot them in the dark and crowded space, I gave up and let myself get carried away by the music, figuring I’d find them after it ended. It was a good show and I sang along and danced my ass off. I kept my eye out for Lacey and the others when I thought about it but never did see them.

  When the concert finally ended after her encore, I moved with the crowd to the lobby, looking around expectantly for my friends. There were loads of people but Kai and Bryce were tall enough that they would have stood out. I texted Lacey but got no response. Same with Bryce, and I didn’t actually know Kai’s number. Very frustrating indeed! It was close to 11 and I was really ready to go home now, and the extra wait was pissing me off. It was hot in the lobby with all the people pouring out and so I walked outside to get some fresh air. I remembered that I didn’t know where Bryce had parked so I was really and truly stuck. Goddammit.

  I’d seen Kai and Bryce continue around the corner after they dropped us off before the concert so it occurred to me that the Suburban could be somewhere around the side of the building. They should be there by now. I strode down the street, turning right on 3rd Street. I glanced down the first cross street but couldn’t see Bryce’s Suburban in the distance, so kept walking down 3rd. Things got really quiet, and I was at the train tracks. This couldn’t be right. I tried Lacey and Bryce again, but got no answer. A beat up pick-up truck drove past, slowing right down as the driver and passenger, two sketchy looking guys, looked me over. I started to get creeped out. I did the only thing I could think of. I called Callum.

  Please answer please answer. After three rings he picked up. Relief flooded me. “Are your ears bleeding?” There was loud music in the background.

  “Ha ha. Are you still near the Center?”

  “I’m a couple blocks away. What’s up?” He sounded concerned, perhaps picking up on the panic in my voice. Now it was quiet on the phone, and I figured he must have stepped out of the bar.

  “I’m really sorry to bug you but I lost my friends and I’m standing on 3rd Street and feeling a little freaked out right now. It’s really dead around here.” My voice cracked.

  “Jesus. OK stay put. I’m coming to get you. You’re on 3rd south of Jackson?”

  “Yeh right by the tracks.”

  I hung up, feeling better, when I saw headlights coming towards me down the street. I knew somehow it was that truck again. I started to walk back up 3rd toward the Center but had only taken a few steps when the truck pulled up next to me. I glanced over as the passenger, a thin reedy guy with long hair and lots of tats, climbed out. The driver had turned the engine off. Oh shit.

  “Hey darlin’, where you goin’?” He was moving toward me on my left as he talked, slowly but steadily.

  I edged away, not wanting to turn my back on him. “Leave me the fuck alone,” I said firmly. I read somewhere you shouldn’t show fear in such a situation.

  Then the driver got out and started coming toward my right side. He was taller and meatier than his buddy, with a shaved head and a determined look on his face. That’s when I got really panicked.

  “Comin’ for a ride with us?” Skinny guy’s voice was coaxing but had undertones of something more sinister.

  He had been moving slowly but he suddenly rushed me and grabbed my arm, hard, yanking me in the direction of the truck. I struggled to shake him loose and tried to take a swing at him with my free right arm, but he dodged me, holding on with a punishingly tight grip. His big buddy was just about to grab my right arm when headlights appeared in front of us and a car pulled up fast right behind the truck. Callum’s car. A spark of hope shot through me.

  The guys swung around to look at the car and I kneed Skinny Guy in the balls. He doubled over groaning and let go. I scurried out of reach. Callum meanwhile had sprung out of the car with a crowbar which he immediately whacked hard against a metal telephone pole, causing a loud banging sound that made me and Skinny Guy jump, though big guy was unfazed.

  Callum strode forward with the crowbar and shouted, “Get the fuck away from her and get the fuck out of here! NOW.” He didn’t pause, striding toward them and raising the crowbar over his head, clearly with no qualms about using it on them. The guys saw the same thing I did and scurried to their truck, clambered in, and, after stalling out once, drove off.

  I was shaking uncontrollably. Callum dropped the crowbar on the sidewalk with a clatter and took me in his arms, holding me tight. I buried my head in his chest, and the tears started pouring.

  “I’m so sorry,” he murmured, his head in my hair.

  “Why are you sorry? You saved me!” It came out muffled as I was still burrowed in his chest.

  “I should have gotten here sooner. I shouldn’t have told you to stay put. I should have said walk back to the Center.” His voice sounded distraught.

  I had to reassure him. “Those guys had already scoped me out before I called you. I never would have made it back to the Center before they stopped. Please, I mean it, you saved me, maybe even saved my life.” I’d put myself in this ridiculous situation, and dragged him away from his friends’ show. I realized I was pathetic after all.

  I started crying again, and he hugged me tight. We stayed like that for a few minutes, until the shaking stopped and I was no longer crying like an idiot.

  “We’ve got to go to the police.” His voice was muffled by my hair.

  I pulled away to look at him. “I really just want to go home.”

  He took my shoulders, the look in his eyes steady and his voice firm. “Jenny, we have to report this.”

  He was right and I knew it. I had to man up and do this. I had been lucky: those guys might find some girl to prey on who couldn’t get away.

  “OK, but I didn’t even notice the license plate.”

  “The truck didn’t have one. But at least we can describe it- and them.”

  I followed Callum to his car. He opened the door and I climbed in. I was staring at my lap when he got into his seat. He looked over at me.

  “Can I just ask, where in fuck’s name are your friends?”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know. We got separated as soon as the concert started and I couldn’t find them after. I haven’t been able to reach them.”

  “Unfuckingbelievable,” he muttered as he started the engine.

  Just then my phone rang. Lacey.

  “Jenny oh thank God we’ve been worried sick. Where are you?” She sounded genuinely upset.

  “Its OK. I’m fine now. What happened to you guys? I’ve been trying to reach you ever since the concert ended.”

  Her words came out in a rush. “Kai and I had lost you and Bryce during the show and we figured you two were together, so after the concert when I couldn’t find you I wasn’t too worried. I had forgotten my cell in Bryce’s car and Kai didn’t have your number, and we couldn’t reach Bryce. We went to Bryce’s car to see if you were there but you weren’t, and of course it was locked so I couldn’t get my phone out. We waited there and then Bryce finally called Kai from a McDonalds and that’s when we all realized that you were missing. I’m so so sorry Jenny. Where are you now?”

  “I’m with Callum. Luckily he was nearby and was able to get to me before two pervs pulled me into their truck.�
�� I said icily. “Put Bryce on please.”

  Lacey let out a squeak and handed the phone to Bryce.

  “Jenny. You OK? We’re coming to get you.” He sounded way too mellow for what I’d just been through.

  “Don’t bother,” I snarled. “Why didn’t you check on me?” I was not happy to be going through all this with Callum next to me but it couldn’t be helped.

  Bryce’s words were slurring. “Come on, babe. I thought you were with Lacey and Kai. I was –am- kind of turnt and I stumbled into McDonalds to sober up while I waited for you guys. I sent you a text.”

  “Bullshit.”

  “I did” he insisted. There was a pause. “Oh shit. I typed it but forgot to hit send. I’m really really sorry babe, you gotta believe me. Let me make it up to you.”

  “Bryce we’ll talk tomorrow when you’re sober. Put Lacey back on.”

  He protested but I said, “Now” and he finally handed the phone back over.

  “Lacey, you’ve got to drive. Bryce is trashed.”

  “I know. Now where are you?”

  “Callum is taking me to the police and then home”- I paused, realizing I didn’t actually know that so I glanced at him inquiringly. He nodded firmly. “so just go home yourself.”

  “How did you end up with that asswipe?”

  Callum smirked at that, revealing that he could hear the other side of the conversation.

  “When I couldn’t reach any of you I called him because I knew he was at a bar nearby. I’m not kidding when I say he got me out of a really dangerous situation. Lacey I’ve gotta go. We’re almost at the police station.” We weren’t there yet but I was still too pissed at her to chat any more.

  “I’m coming to your house tomorrow morning with bagels to beg your forgiveness.”

  Her contrition melted the last of my anger. “It’s ok, I forgive you. It was just unfortunate. Talk tomorrow.” I hung up, leaning back in the seat, suddenly feeling very tired. I closed my eyes.

  Callum interrupted the silence that followed. “What a shit show. You’ve picked some real winners to hang out with there.”

  Without opening my eyes I said, “Shut it, Caldwell. I don’t want to hear it.”

  We pulled up at the police station. We were there for an hour, filling out paperwork and talking to a sympathetic but weary looking detective. He gave me his card and said he’d call with an update if anything came of it. From his tone, the odds seemed against it. But Callum was right, we had to do it.

  When we got back to the car it was close to one in the morning.

  “Are you ok? What do you need?”

  “Um, well, I’m ravenous actually. Could we stop somewhere to eat?”

  He glanced over at me. “Sure. Any requests?”

  “While I was on the phone I noticed a taco stand in a parking lot a few blocks back that looked really good.”

  Callum looked surprised. “That’s unexpected, but hey, an awesome choice. Mexican Coke will be great for you.”

  “Why’s it unexpected?” I turned in my seat.

  He glanced over at me. “I don’t know, I’d have thought you’d want to go somewhere more mainstream like Chipotle.”

  I shrugged. “I love Mexican street food. And if we’re talking about most of Phoenix, not just our narrow little high school world, then a taco truck is mainstream.”

  He smirked. “Point taken.”

  A little while later we were seated at a plastic table under an awning in the parking lot waiting for our tacos when I spotted the condiments stand. I jumped up, returning with several little plastic containers of salsas and a paper plate of green chiles.

  “Careful, those are hot,” Callum said, pointing at the chiles.

  “Oh you can’t handle them?” I looked at him innocently.

  Callum must have detected the underlying challenge because he grinned and replied “I can handle them all right, I’m just not sure you can.”

  I leaned forward, causing the table to wobble on the uneven asphalt. “Wanna bet? Whoever is the first to take a sip of Coke after eating one has to pay the check.”

  “You’re on.”

  We each grabbed a chile and popped it in our mouths whole, removing only the stem. We chewed, watching the other’s face, and man were those chiles hot. We both started sweating and I could feel my face flushing, but I chewed and swallowed and I knew I would be OK. I had been doing this kind of competition with my family for as long as I could remember. My mother and her brothers were always trying to outdo each other on their tolerance for hot food. Callum clearly had less experience with spicy food because he was struggling. He swallowed the chile down but he was in serious pain, I could tell, his face bright red.

  I giggled at him. “You ok there, big boy?” He just shook his head, giving me the finger. Just as the tacos arrived he broke down and chugged half his Coke in one gulp.

  “Aah” he said, relieved.

  “Yes!” I pumped my fist, before taking a sip of my own Coke.

  “I don’t care. It was worth losing the bet to soothe my poor mouth. And I would have paid for the food anyway, you know.”

  “No way, I owed you since I ruined your night. I would have paid if it hadn’t been for the bet.”

  Callum suddenly got serious and took my hand across the table to get my full attention. “Jenny, I want to make a few things clear. The first thing is, you didn’t ruin my night. I’m horrified about what probably would have happened if I hadn’t arrived. The second thing is, your friends, and especially your boyfriend, suck. I loathe Lacey but I kind of accept that there was a misunderstanding there. Bryce on the other hand should never have let this happen. He should never have gotten shitfaced on a date with you, should never have lost you at the concert and then gone to a fucking McDonald’s instead of searching for you; should have been calling you off the hook instead of messing up one text. Third, walking down that dark street was not a great idea but it was not your fault that those guys attacked you. They were really bad people. His eyes were stormy.

  I nodded mutely, pulling my hand away to rub a tear I felt coming.

  He sat back. “OK let’s just eat our tacos.” I didn’t feel like them anymore but I made myself swallow them.

  In his car he put on some mellow music and I leaned back. Feeling warm and safe, I fell asleep. I woke with a start to the touch of Callum’s hand on my arm. “Jenny, wake up, we’re at your house,” he was saying gently. I sat up, blinking my eyes. The events of the evening came flooding back but what stood out was his role in it. My heart squeezed painfully as I realized I was falling hard for him.

  “So before you go, you’re OK, right? What are you thinking?”

  “’She may contain the urge to run away, but hold her down with soggy clothes…’”

  He looked concerned. Ignoring my game, he said “are you really freaked out?”

  I gave a half smile to reassure him. “Nah, it was the only relevant song lyric I could think of.”

  His hands went up in mock frustration. “Are you kidding me? What about, ‘you’re my angel, come and save me tonight’.” He sang the lyrics rather than saying them, with a passable impression of Steven Tyler’s voice.

  I smiled. “Not one to hide your light under a bushel, apparently. So I guess I’m going to owe you one for like, forever, I’m thinking.”

  “That’s about right. And as your newly appointed guardian angel slash super hero, I’m walking you to your door.”

  I allowed him to help me out of his car and then follow me up to the porch. I got out my key and, turning it in the lock, opened the door. The house was quiet but the hall light was on. I hoped I hadn’t woken my dad.

  On the threshold I turned and said, “Goodnight Callum.”

  He was just standing there, watching me, looking irresistible. I almost hugged him but held myself back. Instead I headed inside, hearing him say “goodnight Jenny” quietly as I shut the door.

  Inside, my dad was reading. “It’s so late! Did you
stay up waiting for me?” I was astonished.

  He shrugged. “Isn’t that what fathers of teenage girls are supposed to do?” He paused. “So, it must have been an interesting evening.” He had arched his eyebrow.

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Well, you left with one boy and came back with another.”

  “You’re pretty observant for a bookish academic type, Ian.” I plopped down on the couch next to him. I hadn’t intended to tell him anything about the night but I ended up giving him a mild version of it, leaving out the near-kidnapping and just saying I’d called Callum to get a ride home and that we’d stopped to eat.

  “I would have come to get you if you’d called me, you know.” His words surprised me. It hadn’t even occurred to me to ask him.

  “Yeh well I remember how Freya would forget to pick me up from ballet all the time because she was so busy with work, and you forgot a few times too. It sucked having to scrounge rides off the teacher.”

  “Come now, you survived.” My father wasn’t one to admit error. “We were a tad neglectful, weren’t we?” Until now. That was something.

  Chapter 14

  Sunday morning as promised a very contrite Lacey showed up with bagels and coffee. By then I really had forgiven her and I wanted to put things right quickly so I hugged her and told her not to worry, that it had worked out alright in the end and it was all a series of unfortunate events. She looked relieved. We sat at the dining table eating.

  “Now, tell me the whole story,” she commanded. Her eyes narrowed when I talked about Callum’s rescue.

  “Sounds like he was a real hero,” she said dryly. “Anything you’re not telling me?”

  I blinked innocently. “You spend an hour a week with a person, you get to know them. I guess we get along now. We’re just friends though.” She dropped it but I doubted she was convinced.

  Forgiving Bryce wasn’t so easy. He came to my house that evening after I got home from the Y to apologize. I was polite but didn’t invite him inside, still feeling grumpy with him. He then brought me roses at school on Monday, presenting them to me very publicly in the cafeteria. He leaned in and spoke quietly in my ear. “Please forgive me babe.” I don’t like holding grudges and it was impossible not to melt at his puppy dog eyes so I relented then and gave him a hug. It was meant to be quick but Bryce responded by burying his head in my neck and nuzzling me there, holding onto me tight. One of the lunch monitors made an “ahem” sound near us and Bryce finally released me.