by Lynn Hubbard
“I’ll help you.” Joanie offered getting up and following Jane out of the room.
“I’m sorry about April. I couldn’t tell my mom no after she invited her already.”
“That’s okay. I just wonder why she came.” Joanie said as she poured the hot chocolate mix into the cups that Jane handed her. Soon the kettle was hissing madly, and Jane poured the hot brew into the cups as Joanie stirred. They returned minutes later with the steaming cups.
“This is boring.” April said after a while. “Is this what you call fun?”
Joanie bristled. “What do you consider ‘fun’?”
“Slam books.”
“A slam book? What’s that?” Jane asked trying to keep peace in her house.
April smiled glad to have the attention turned to her. “It’s a book where you write your deepest thoughts, but it’s totally anonymous. You go by a number instead of your name.”
Sally hesitated. “I don’t know. What kind of things. How does it work?” Kate spoke up. “I’ve heard of them! You take like twenty sheets of paper and at the top of each sheet is a question. Underneath the question. It’s numbered to twenty. Everybody picks one number and puts their answer on the same line of each page. You cover the page so only your line shows. Then when everybody is done you read everybody’s answers.”
Joanie was unsure about this, but since everyone else seemed interested she went along. What harm could come from it. Jane ran and grabbed a notebook. She and April poured over the pages whispering and giggling to each other. Finally, they were done. They filled out their answers first and passed the book along to the others one by one.
Then Joanie had the book. She slowly opened to the first page. Who’s your favorite teacher? She picked line #3 and quickly entered her answer. She tried to change her hand writing so no one would recognize it. The first couple were trivial, and Joanie quickly answered each of them, then they started getting more personal. If you could go out with any boy you wanted, who would it be? Joanie hesitated before scrawling Eric Phillips. Done. She turned the page. Who’s the cutest guy in school? She wanted to say Eric again, but he didn’t go to her school. Sighing she wrote Chris. He was beautiful on the outside. Too bad his head was so much bigger than his brain. Next page. What base have you gotten to? Joanie looked around at before writing first. It wasn’t a complete lie. She would have gotten to first base if it wasn’t for Brad. Maybe more. Blushing she handed the completed book back to Jane.
“Alright fav. teacher. Coach, Coach, Mrs. Barnes, Mr. Redmond, and Coach.” Page by page she went. “Now it’s getting good ‘who would you go out with?’ Brad Caldwell,” Joanie choked on her hot chocolate who would name her brother? She looked around the group suspiciously. “Marc Johnson, Eric Phillips, Mr. Redmond?” She looked up with a disgusted look on her face. “And Chris Harper.”
“Alright prettiest girl Joanie Caldwell, Joanie Caldwell, April Miller, April Miller, Joanie Caldwell. Okay the cutest guy in school-Chad Phillips, my them Phillip boys are popular today, Chris Harper, Chris Harper, Mr. Redmond!?” Jane shook her head as the other girls made retching sounds. “and, once again, Chris Harper. Okay quiet now! Last but not least which base have you gotten to? Third base, third base, first base?! home run and second base.”
The girls were talking and arguing about the results when Jane’s parents came in Jane quickly hid the book under a couch cushion as the girls quieted down.
“Hello girls.” Jane’s stepfather said. “We’re gonna head to bed and let you have some privacy.”
“Well hello April! I’m so glad you could come. You are the spitting image of your mother. Well goodnight ladies.” Her mom said as they headed down the hall to their room. A chorus of goodnights followed.
“You look just like your mother.” Kate mimicked amongst the snickers. April glared at her.
The girls settled down shortly after and went to bed. Several hours later they were woken by April. “Hey come on wake up.” She whispered. Sleepily Joanie opened her eyes. The other girls were slowly coming awake also.
“What time is it?”
“Nighttime! Let’s sneak out and find some action. It’s Friday night for Pete’s sake.” April groaned. Sally giggled and slipped on her clothes.
“What?!” Jane squealed. “We can’t sneak out my parents would kill me!”
“Only if they find out!” Kate said excitedly.
Jane looked over to Joanie who shrugged.
“Alright but we can’t be gone long.” Jane said reluctantly joining the others.
Joanie sighed and slipped into her jeans. They quietly tiptoed to the front door and snuck out into the night. The air was cold, and you could see your breath. April pulled out a cigarette and took a long drawl. She offered it to the other girls. Sally took a puff and almost choked the others declined the offer. “Chicken shit.” She murmured.
Joanie spun around to face her. “I’m sick and tired of your jeering and mocking everything we do.” April’s face turned hard, and Joanie advanced. “We can have a good time without getting drunk, stoned or pregnant. If you dislike us so much then leave us alone!” She turned to Kate. “I’m heading back this is stupid. Anyone else coming with me?” And with that she headed back to Jane’s house. Jane and Kate quickly followed her.
“Well I see we separated the wheat from the chafe! We’ll see you in the morning.” April laughed as she walked off. Sally hesitated then scampered off after April.
Without a word, the three girls snuck back into the house and snuggled down under the warm covers. Thankfully they hadn’t been discovered. Morning came too soon. Joanie woke up with a start. She quickly looked around noticing that April and Sally weren’t there.
“Wake up!!” She whispered to Kate who was closest to her. She roughly shook her shoulder. The house had gotten colder, and she was reluctant to rouse from her warm cocoon. “They’re gone!” Kate sat up quickly as the words sunk in. They quickly woke Jane and decided to go look for them. The girls were dressing again as Jane’s parents came in.
“You girls are up awfully early. It’s Saturday you know!” Jane’s mom chided.
“Um we’re gonna go jogging!” Jane said finally looking frantically around the now smaller group.
“Well alright I guess, you girls have a good time.” Jane’s mom added as she headed into the bathroom to shower. The girls quickly ducked out the door relieved.
“Jogging?!?!!!” Joanie asked. “She’s gonna think that’s mighty odd.”
Jane sighed. “Well what the heck did you want me say? That we all snuck out last night, but April and Sally never came back? She’d KILL me!”
Joanie shook head and groaned. They had to find them but how? They decided to first head towards the school. Some of the kids had cut a hole in the fence, and they sometimes climbed on the roof to drink. As they were heading towards the school, they noticed two familiar looking figures heading towards them. The three girls slowed as the pair came nearer. April was helping Sally along.
“Where the hell have you been all night?!” Kate yelled. She wasn’t a morning person, and she resented the fact that they had to go out into the cold dawn to look for the reckless girls.
Sally groaned as she held her head and sank to the sidewalk. “Please don’t talk so loud.” she whispered.
April just grinned and looked over to the others coyly. “She can’t hold her liquor she’s been puking her guts out most of the morning.”
“No thanks to you!” Joanie said looking at them disgustedly. “Just where the hell were you last night?” She asked for the first time noticing the rather large fresh hicky on April’s neck.
April sighed. “If you must know we were over at Chris’s house, his parents were out of town, and he was having a party.”
“Looks more like a puke-o-rama.” Joanie muttered as Sally ran for the bushes.
“Well it was more entertaining than hanging around you creampuffs. I need more action than listening to your constant babble.”<
br />
“Thanks because our babble is way above your IQ level.” Joanie said standing taller as April came up to her face to face.
April stood inches away from her as her eyes narrowed. “I’m sick of your better than everyone attitude. All you are is a tease Joanie. Unlike you, I don’t start anything I’m not prepared to finish.”
Joanie smiled wickedly her green eyes growing darker with her anger. “Well April here I am let’s finish it.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Kate said grabbing Joanie as Jane grabbed April. “You two settle down! Come on Joanie trash like that ain’t worth fooling with.”
The girls helped Sally up and drug her back down the street towards Jane’s house as April turned to head home.
‘Damn goody two shoes! Who needs ’em? Not me.’ April muttered to herself as she lit a cigarette. She was shivering from the cold as she headed home and sadly knew that she would find no warmth there. A single tear slid down her face as she walked slowly away alone.
The chilled girls swooped into the kitchen along with the cold air. They were thrilled to find that Jane’s mom had hot chocolate waiting for them. Sally passed up the chocolate and instead lay gratefully down on the living room floor and soon fell asleep. Joanie and Kate decided to pack up and walk home after thanking Jane’s parents. Her father offered to drive them, but they turned him down they needed to talk. They thanked Jane and her parents as they left.
Chapter 11
The cold wind bit through Joanie’s jacket and sweater as the two headed home. It had started to snow and the tiny frozen flakes bit into their skin.
“So what number were you?” Kate asked as they headed down Jane’s street.
“Huh?”
“You know the slam book.”
“Oh, three.”
“Really you’ve only gotten to first base?”
“I guess so; I wonder who put down Mr. Redmond. That’s just gross.”
“At least it wasn’t Coach.” A mental picture flashed through Joanie’s head of Coach in a smoking jacket, and she broke into gales of laughter.
They had just passed the school when the snow turned to sleet. Joanie ducked her face deeper into her coat to avoid the tiny spears of ice hitting her face.
“This is horrible! Gosh it’s freezing out here! Maybe we should have taken Jane’s dad up on his offer to drive us home.”
Joanie shook her head no. “Uh uh, with our luck he’d ask us why Sally was passed out on the living room floor.”
Kate turned back to smile at her friend, and her smile broadened as she spotted a familiar car slowing down besides them. “Maybe our luck is changing.”
Joanie heard the car and turned to stare in surprise as Eric pulled up alongside of them. She felt her icy cheeks began to thaw and was grateful that the redness would be mistaken for wind burn instead of her blushing. He leaned over and rolled down the window. “You icicles want a lift?”
Joanie didn’t have time to answer before Kate yanked open the door and pushed Joanie through the opening where she almost landed in Eric’s lap head first. She sprung up quickly and sent Kate a piercing look. Kate looked at her innocently as she scooted into the front seat next to her shoving Joanie over so that her and Eric’s legs were touching. She felt electricity jolt through her body and pinned it up to numbness setting in and not the contact. She looked at Eric and forced herself to calm down.
“So where are you heading?” Eric asked. He turned a little bit sideways and had his elbow resting on the back seat gently pressing against Joanie’s shoulder. If it was on purpose or not Joanie couldn’t tell.
“Home.” Joanie chattered.
Eric reached out and grabbed her hands. He sandwiched them between his two huge, warm ones, and Joanie blushed even more. She knew that was no accident. Joanie felt herself heating up quickly, and she knew it wasn’t from the warm car. “Better?” He asked her, and all she could do was nod. He gave her a breathtaking smile and turned to shift the car into gear. Kate elbowed her in the ribs and Joanie refused to look at her knowing the smirk that she would find.
Joanie lost track of time as they drove. She almost sighed in disappointment as they pulled up in front of Kate’s house. Kate hopped out quickly and grabbed her bag. She gave Joanie a ‘you better call me or else look’ before she thanked Eric and ran to the house. With Kate gone, Joanie was more nervous than ever. She self consciously scooted over a little towards where Kate had sat. She was surprised at the coldness that seeped into her left side where her and Eric’s bodies were touching.
Eric looked over and grinned at her as if reading her thoughts. “Cold isn’t it?”
“It sure is. I wasn’t expecting this weather.” She said nodding down to her thin jacket.
Eric leaned forward and started taking off his leather jacket. “Here put this on.” He said holding it up for her to wear.
Joanie hesitated. “But you’ll be cold.”
Eric smiled. “Then you can scoot over next to me and keep me warm.”
Joanie was about to refuse and then thought of April’s words about her being a prude. She smiled shyly as he helped her into the jacket. It felt like she was in an oven his body heat had warmed it up and the leather held in the heat. She refused to look at him as she slid back over next to him.
“Better?” He asked as he headed back onto the road to take Joanie home.
“Much better.” She was shocked when after shifting into drive; he let his hand rest on her knee. Taken by surprise, she pushed it off nervously. He glanced over at her, but feeling uncomfortable she refused to meet his gaze. They were soon in front of Joanie’s house, and she was surprised when he pulled into a parking space instead of just pulling up and dropping her off at the curb. She started taking off the jacket, but he stopped her.
“How about I walk you to the door? I don’t want you freezing to death on me.” Eric said hopefully.
Joanie smiled and nodded. They both opened their doors and ran for her apartment doorway. Breathless they stumbled in together into the deserted hallway. Suddenly Eric turned her towards him, and he gave her a quick kiss on her lips. Before she could react, he grabbed her hand and they started climbing the stairs.
He kissed me! She thought and for once she wished she had more steps to climb to prolong the feel of him next to her as they climbed in sequence. At the top, they paused outside of Joanie’s door, and they turned to look at each other. He smiled as he saw his jacket hung almost to her knees and her hands were completely hidden from view.
She looked at Eric almost shyly. “Thanks for driving me home. It seems like all you‘ve been doing lately is rescuing me.”
“Anytime. Just think of me as your knight in shining armor.”
Joanie giggled at the thought.
He smiled as he stepped closer to her. “I love to hear you laugh.”
Joanie’s breath caught in her throat, as he lifted his hands, and tilted her face up to meet his for a warm, sweet kiss.
“Wow.” She breathed as he pulled back to stare at her again. She never thought it would be like that. It seemed silly to get so giddy over a kiss, a small one at that but Joanie knew that no matter how long she lived she would always remember that instant and how wonderful it was.
They were interrupted by a neighbor climbing the stairs and Joanie quickly fumbled through her bag for her key before they were caught in the hallway. She unlocked the door and stepped in with Eric following closely. They were greeted warmly by Joanie’s mother.
“Well hello dear! I was worried about you. I called the Madison’s but they said that you and Kate had already left.” She said as she eyed Eric curiously and then glanced at her daughter’s apparel.
“Mom this is Eric Phillips. He gave me and Kate a ride home.” Joanie said gesturing towards Eric.
“Well of course I’ve meet Eric before. I haven’t seen you around lately what have you been up to?” Carol asked none too discreetly.
Joanie wanted to crawl under the couch; her moth
er wasn’t usually that direct. She was grateful when Eric stepped up and shook her hand.
“It’s good to see you again Mrs. Caldwell. I have a job working construction, so I keep some odd hours. You’ll hopefully be seeing more of me soon.” He added as he glanced over at Joanie.
Joanie’s eyes widened. Had she heard him right?
“Well if that’s the case than you can call me Carol. And thank you so much for bringing her home safely, again. Why don’t you come and sit down and visit? I just got home from work a little while ago so, I have to rest my dogs.” She said gesturing towards her feet.
“I’m sorry I can’t I was on my way to work before I picked up Joanie. If I don’t get there soon, my super is going to kill me.” He nodded apologetically to Joanie and Carol as he moved towards the door.
“I’ll see him out.” Joanie said quickly as he started to leave. She followed him out to the hallway and shut the door behind them. “Thanks again for the ride.” Joanie said shyly. She took off his jacket and handed it to him. She was surprised when he held his hand up as if to refuse it.
“Why don’t you hang on to it?” He said moving closer to her and staring into her eyes intently.
She shook her head no ever so slightly. “I don’t want you to freeze to death on me.” She said repeating his words. He grinned as he quickly swung it on.
“Bye.” he whispered winking at her.
“’Bye.” She whispered back and then he was gone. She sighed as she opened the door and went back into her home. She shut the door behind her and locked it.
“He’s handsome. Do you like him?” Her Mom said. She was sitting on the couch waiting for her.
Joanie turned red as she went over to sit down next to her. “I do like him. But I don’t know. I haven’t had too much experience with boys before. I mean I’ve been thinking about him for weeks and then there he is and I’m acting like an idiot. I can barely even talk to him. He probably thinks I’m dim witted.”
Carol smiled knowingly. “Oh I don’t believe he thinks that at all.”