On the Ropes

by Christa Cervone

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt your day.”

  “You didn’t,” she touches my forearm lightly and my heart begins to race at her touch. “Why don’t you have a seat? I’ll turn on the TV for you,” she motions toward the couch, “I’ll only be a few minutes.”

  “Okay.”

  “You want a sports channel?”

  “Sure,” it doesn’t really matter what channel she turns on, I won’t be paying any attention to it. I’m nervous as hell sitting here in her home. I feel like a school boy going home to meet his girlfriend’s parents. Yet, there are no parents here, and she isn’t my girlfriend.

  “Here’s the remote just in case. I’ll be out in ten minutes, tops.”

  “Ten minutes? Ha!” a voice says from the other room. “Who the hell do you think you’re fooling? More like thirty to forty-five minutes.”

  Salem forces a smile and mentions, “That’s my other lovely roommate, Jocelyn.”

  Jocelyn pokes her head around the corner, “Hello, tall, dark, and handsome. It’s very nice to meet you.”

  Salem shakes her head at her.

  “Hi,” I say shyly. Roommates are popping out of the woodwork.

  “Who’s this good looking man? Are you trying to keep him all to yourself?” Jocelyn asks, making her way into the living room.

  “This is Gabriel,” Salem answers her politely.

  “Ohhh, so you’re Gabriel,” she teases.

  What does she mean by, “So you’re Gabriel?” Did Salem tell her about me?

  “Gabriel, this is Jocelyn,” she keeps our introduction brief. “Maybe you should sit in my room and wait for me.”

  “Well that’s not nice, keeping your guest from your best friend,” Jocelyn scowls at Salem.

  “That’s not…”

  “Oh, lighten up, Salem. I’m just kidding. She’s always so serious,” she turns towards me.

  “Yeah, and you never take anything seriously,” Salem snaps back.

  “Why don’t you come and wait in my room instead of out here,” Salem motions for me to follow as she begins to walk down the hallway, and I scurry behind her.

  “At least you’ll have peace and quiet in here,” she opens the door to her room, and I follow her inside. I carefully inspect her bedroom, and the first thing I notice is that it’s spotless, pretty much what I would’ve expected from her. Naturally, her bed is already made and everything is in its rightful place. Her pink and mint green paisley comforter shares the same pattern as the curtains that adorn her windows, even the window seat cushion matches. There are a few doors in the room; the entrance, then one leading to what I assume to be the bathroom, and the other, to a closet maybe.

  “Okay, well, make yourself at home and I’ll be back in just a few minutes.”

  “I’ll be here,” I say, still trying to learn as much as I can about her from her bedroom.

  Closing the bathroom door behind her, Salem is in full-on panic mode. Oh God, why is he here so early? I probably look a mess. Rushing the few steps to the mirror, she looks at her reflection. “Ugh, it’s worse than I thought!” she fidgets with her unruly bedhead then frantically reaches for the washcloth that’s sitting on the vanity. “Why are you being so hard on yourself?” running the washcloth under the faucet, she continues muttering to herself. “He saw you bawling your eyes out last night, and there’s no way you can look any worse than that,” the warm sensation is calming as she wipes the tear-stained streaks of makeup from her face. “Waterproof my ass,” she applies more pressure to remove the hardened mascara that is clumped on her lower lashes. “God, he’s got to think I’m hideous right now.”

  “Maybe this wasn’t such a great idea,” she states, as she stares at her reflection. “You don’t want to give him the wrong impression about you. He’s going to think you’re easy,” Salem continues to have a full-blown conversation with herself. “You’re not easy. Hell, it took Blaine almost three years to get into your pants!” She leans into the shower and turns the water on, then slips out of her pajamas.

  After taking the quickest shower of her life, she reaches for her robe, and as she puts it on, she tries to give herself a boost with a little pep talk. “Everything is going to be just fine,” turning back towards the mirror, she slicks her hair back. “You’re going to go have a little lunch, make some small talk, and drop him off at his place. It’ll be just like going to lunch with Jockey.” Except Jocey isn’t hot and sexy, and she doesn’t smell so damn good. “Now, pull yourself together. You can do this!”

  Once she leaves me alone, I begin to take a closer look at some of her items. The desk that sits next to her window has quite a few huge books stacked on top of one another. Upon taking a closer look, I realize they are law related textbooks. Holy shit, is she in law school? No wonder why she was freaking out about studying for her exam.

  Next to the stack of books are a few pictures in frames. I pick up the first picture; it’s Salem and what must be her parents at her graduation. She obviously gets her red hair and looks from her mother, but her blue eyes definitely come from her father. I carefully put the picture down where I found it and pick up the next one. This one is Blaine and Salem. They look to be in their teens and are dressed formally; I can only assume it’s a prom or other formal dance. That means they’ve been dating since high school. My heart sinks. How can I compete with a first love? “What the hell are you talking about? Competing with a first love?” I say aloud.

  “What?” Salem’s voice from behind startles me.

  “Huh? What?”

  “Did you say something?” she’s standing in the middle of her room in a pink fuzzy bathrobe, her hair all slicked back.

  I just stare at her, taking her all in. It takes everything I have in me not to walk up to her, untie the knot that holds her bathrobe together, throw her on her perfectly made bed, and have my way with her.

  “No, I didn’t say anything,” I try to play it off. “So, you’re studying to be a lawyer?” I raise an eyebrow and pick up one of her books.

  “Yes, I only have a few more weeks of this semester; one more year of school, the bar exam, and then I’m a lawyer,” she smiles proudly.

  I stand there, speechless and smiling.

  “Why are you looking at me like that?”

  “Like what?”

  “Like you just found out something amazing.”

  “I dunno, I guess I’m impressed that you’re in law school, that’s all.”

  “Why, because someone pretty can’t be smart too?” she says defensively.

  “No, that’s not what I meant.”

  “Well, what exactly, did you mean?” her voice begins to rise and she crosses her arms over her chest defensively.

  “I didn’t mean anything by it. I think it’s great you’re in law school. I just took you for an accountant or something.”

  “An accountant? Oh God, no. I’m horrible at math,” she laughs.

  “What kind of lawyer do you want to be?”

  “Since I was a little girl, my future has been practically laid out for me. My schools were chosen for me, my profession, heck, even my boyfriend.”

  I give her a strange look.

  “No, not like that,” she smiles, shaking her head. “What I mean is, my parents have always wanted me to go into corporate law, like my father. They knew which schools were the best for me to follow that dream,” a devilish grin grows on her face. “To be completely honest, I find that type of law extremely boring and, little do my parents know, I’m planning on becoming a guardian ad litem. I didn’t decide to go into law to become rich; I chose law because I want to make a difference.”

  “A guardian ad what?”

  “A guardian ad litem. Basically, I’ll represent children or the mentally ill; people that are unable to adequately represent themselves. I’ll be their voice and make sure their best interests are being considered.”

  I can’t help but think back to my childhood and wish someone like that would’
ve stepped in for Jase and me. “That’s a great reason to become a lawyer,” I say. “Too bad there aren’t more of you out there.”

  “There are good people out there, Gabriel, you just need to know where to find them.”

  “And your boyfriend, is he something you may change your mind about, like you did with your major?” I know I’m really pushing the boundaries with this question, but my curiosity has gotten the better of me.

  She turns and looks over her shoulder at me. “Well, you never know now, do you? If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to get dressed.” She glances down at herself then walks over to the door, steps inside, and disappears.

  “Oh my God! Why do I always come off like such a bitch?” Salem whispers to herself as she enters her closet. She begins rummaging through her extensive wardrobe, looking for the perfect outfit, but coming up with nothing. It would help if you knew where he was taking you. Okay, pull a few of your favorite outfits out and go ask him.

  Of course she has a walk-in closet, why wouldn’t she? I try not to be judgmental of her. It’s not her fault her parents have money. No more than it’s my fault that my parents were poor.

  “So where are you taking me?” her head pops out of the closet.

  “It’s a surprise.”

  “Well, I need some sort of an idea so that I know how to dress.”

  “Dress casual.”

  She disappears again.

  A couple minutes later, she walks out in dark blue skintight jeans, a cream colored sweater with an oversized scoop neck, and black high heel boots up to her knees. “Will this work?”

  “I said casual.”

  “What? This is casual,” she says, as she steps in front of her full length mirror to look at her outfit.

  “I thought you’d be wearing sneakers and a T-shirt, that’s all.”

  “I can change,” she points to her closet.

  “No, you look great,” I reassure her.

  “I just need to do my hair and makeup then I’ll be ready to go,” she walks back into the bathroom.

  “I’ll be waiting,” I murmur as I hear the blow dryer come on in the bathroom.

  Jesus, how long does it take for one woman to get ready? I’ve never actually had to sit and wait for someone, so this is all new to me. Usually, the girl is ready and waiting by the time I get there. Returning to her desk, I look at the last remaining picture. It’s a picture of Salem and her two roommates. The three of them are lying on beach chairs, in bikinis, with margaritas in their hands. My eyes go straight to her in the picture. Man, she can certainly fill out a bikini.

  The blow dryer turns off. I place the picture back on the desk and sit on the corner of her bed, waiting for her to come out. I hear a light tap on her door, and then it opens. “She still has you waiting?” Jocelyn steps into Salem’s room.

  “It’s okay. I don’t mind.”

  “Well you’d think she’d hurry it up since you’re sitting here all by your lonesome,” she teases and sits down next to me. “So, Salem tells me you’re a boxer. Is that why you have a black eye?”

  I gently touch my cheekbone with my fingertips. “Yes, I fought last night.”

  “How does the other guy look?”

  “Probably worse… I won,” I smile at her.

  “So, are you a champion or something?”

  “No, not yet, but I’m hoping to be someday.”

  “Salem said something about you and Blaine partnering up?”

  “Yeah, he’s sponsoring me as ‘the face’ of his gym.”

  “You’re actually going to work with that piece of shit?”

  Her statement catches me off guard. “He seems alright to me,” I shrug my shoulders.

  “Well, thankfully you’re not his girlfriend,” she responds sarcastically.

  I give her a strange look.

  “He cheats on her left and right,” she huffs, “he’s actually hit on me before. Like I’m going to fuck my best friend’s boyfriend? Puh-leeze.”

  “Does she know he cheats?” I say softly, just in case Salem can hear us talking. I try to play it off like I don’t know even though I saw it with my own two eyes last night. I want to find out as much information as I can.

  “I’m sure, deep down, she knows. But Salem is very loyal. She loves him and is expected to marry him.”

  “Expected to marry him?” I blurt out, not hiding my disbelief. “People still do that?” with the conversation I just had with Salem fresh in my head, I figure, why not get a friend’s point of view.

  “It’s not an arranged marriage, or anything,” Jocelyn explains, “but his parents and her parents are very good friends. Salem and Blaine practically grew up together. Their mothers have been planning their wedding for years.”

  “They’re not engaged, are they?” my heart drops into my gut.

  “No, he hasn’t asked her yet, but I’m pretty sure it’s coming soon. He’s been hinting around. And after last night…”

  “What about last night?” I play dumb.

  She raises her eyebrows at me, “I know you know. Salem told me about last night. How you were at the club and that you brought her home.”

  “Yeah, so, I was helping a friend out.”

  “Pfft… yeah, okay.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “All men have ulterior motives and those motives usually involve their dicks.”

  I give her a double take, “Excuse me?”

  “Don’t give me that look. I know how men work; I grew up with three older brothers. Your dick rules you.”

  “Jocelyn!” Salem reprimands as she re-enters the room.

  “What? It’s true,” she smiles at the both of us.

  “Goodbye, Jocelyn,” Salem looks at her and then at the door.

  “You never let me have any fun,” she puts on a fake pout and stomps her way out the door.

  Salem is laughing. “Please, excuse her, she’s a piece of work.”

  “Nah, she’s fine. But you’re right; she is a piece of work.”

  “I heard that,” Jocelyn yells from the hallway.

  “We don’t care!” Salem yells back.

  It’s actually nice to see Salem in her natural element, laughing and smiling with her friend. I’ve only seen her with Blaine, where she’s tense, or last night, in tears.

  “You should smile more,” I suggest, watching her.

  “What do you mean? I smile all the time,” she gives me a look.

  “Not like that, you don’t.”

  “Like what?”

  “Just then, when you were teasing Jocelyn, you looked so happy and carefree. It’s nice to see you like that.”

  “Well, how did I look before?”

  “I dunno. I don’t know how to explain it,” I’m getting flustered. I shouldn’t have even said anything; I’m just going to get myself in trouble.

  “Well, I disagree.”

  “You can disagree all you want. I’m just telling you; I haven’t seen you smile like you just did with Jocelyn.”

  “Maybe I just didn’t have anything to smile about when I’ve been around you before. You ever think of that?” her face gets very solemn.

  Now she’s making me feel bad, “I’m sorry.”

  “I’m just teasing,” she laughs. This is a side of Salem I haven’t seen, and it makes me want her even more. She actually has a sense of humor.

  She crosses her arms and taps her toe on the ground, “Are you ready to go or what?”

  “I’ve been waitin’ on you, doll,” I stand up. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Once we’re in the car and driving she asks again, “So, are you going to tell me where you’re taking me?”

  “Don’t worry about it,” I give her a smirk.

  “That makes me worry even more.”

  “All you need to know is that you’re going to have fun.”

  “If you say so,” she sighs heavily.

  “Don’t worry, no one has ever been killed where we’re goin
g.”

  “Well, that’s reassuring.” She puts her sunglasses on and stares out her window.

  We ride quietly. I’m trying to come up with a way to bring up Blaine without seeming nosey. All I can come up with is, “Sooo… you and Blaine?” Yeah, not very savvy.

  “What about us?”

  “You guys have been together for a while?”

  “Since our sophomore year in high school.”

  “So how long is that?”

  “Almost nine years.”

  “Nine years?!” my head shoots over in her direction.

  “Yes,” she looks at me, smiling.

  “So, he was your first?”

  “My first?” she cocks her head.

  “Yeah, your first boyfriend, first love, first sexual partner,” I’m hoping I’m not pushing my boundaries too far.

  “My only,” she answers in a soft voice with her head bowed.

  “Your ONLY?!” I can’t control my outburst.

  “Yes,” she hisses, shaking her head and rolling her eyes. “I’m sorry, I’m not like one of your sluts.”

  “Don’t you want to experience…” I’m searching for the right words since I obviously pissed her off with my lasts ones.

  “I know what you’re going to say,” she interrupts me.

  “How do you know that?”

  “Because I already get enough crap from Jocelyn about Blaine.”

  “And why is that?”

  “She thinks he’s a douche.”

  Though I just met her, Jocelyn definitely made her feelings perfectly clear, and I’m beginning to like her more and more.

  “And what do you think?”

  “I think he has his moments, just like everyone else,” she pauses and a slight look of pain flashes across her face, “but deep down inside, I know he loves me.”

  “Do you think love is enough?” I push her further.

  “What else is there?”