Jayson: A New Adult / Coming of Age Romance

by Hughes, Nicole

  “Watch and learn, my man. Watch and learn.” Using skills garnered from the Internet at the public library, Monty eventually hotwires the vehicle and gets the cold engine to turn over. He pushes his glasses up the bridge of his red nose. “It worked!” he says in awe.

  “Wow! Neat, dickwad,” I praise him in amusement. I reach over and tousle his hair, and he beams at me. I used to soak that shit up but now it’s just embarrassing. Still, I laugh at his exuberance as I throw the car in gear and get it to move.

  The homeless watch us with knowing head shakes, but it’s not like they’ll call anybody. “No fucking way! Hey, you wanna go somewhere? Let’s ditch this place.” I chortle as Monty eggs me on. Revving the engine, I throw the car in reverse and power through the empty lot, fishtailing on the slick iced pavement.

  Monty slaps on the radio, finds a station. Guitars scream from the speakers. Monty cocks his arms at odd angles and plays air guitar, his long lank brown hair making him look exactly like a rock star. My heart hammers beneath my chest and I giggle anxiously while I try to keep in control of the spinning car. My palms are sweaty but I grip the steering wheel with both hands.

  It doesn’t take long to get bored with playing in a parking lot. Lamont coaxes me to get on the road. Even though I’m seeing double of everything, I don’t let on. In Monty’s eyes, I’m tough enough to handle a whole pint of liquor by my damn self—at least, that’s the impression I’ve given him.

  I manage to keep the car between the lines. I barely know how to drive, but this? This makes me feel like a man. Not babysitting. Not helping my mom. Not going to school. Not getting bullied for being poor. Not waking up day after day in the same crowded apartment and knowing that’s what my future will look like. I’ll marry some girl who’ll look forty when she’s twenty-five and work a factory job to take care of whatever offspring I have the misfortune of bringing into this miserable world.

  I push the accelerator and watch the dark city streets become a blur, as if I can outrun my fate. Beside me, Lamont’s words slur together in a drunken catcall to danger. The reckless joy ride (going barely forty-five miles per hour swerving down mostly empty streets) lasts a full fifteen minutes before cop cars finally come onto the scene after I accidentally run a stop sign.

  “Oh shit!” I shout. There’s more humor in the exclamation than fear. I cut the wheel to shoot down a narrow alley, and Lamont slides toward me, laughing and holding onto the door to keep from being thrown around like a rag doll. I speed up, flashing lights behind me trying to close in.

  “Let’s dust these bitches!” Monty crows. He throws the bottle out the window, and I hear tires squeal as the cop car behind us tries to avoid getting hit by the projectile. I hear a crash and look back, laughing when I see the cop that was closing in on us climbing out of a smashed police car.

  “Yeah! One down!”

  In the foreground, I’m not thinking anything. No thought required to go full throttle. But, in the back of my head are a billion thoughts screaming calamity. My mom is going to kill me for this. She has no idea I left Castiel in charge of Dev and Ash. She thinks I’m home doing a project for the science fair. I’m barely passing science, much less worried about a project. She has so much faith in me, and that’s a lot to live up to. I think she’s a crazy lady with dreams. Nobody gets out of Tenderloin without a good dose of luck. The Zephyrs aren’t lucky people.

  The gas needle teeters closer to empty, and I know the night can’t go on forever. At some point we’ll get caught. I know I’m already in trouble. I know I’ve fucked up big time. I want to pull the car over and get out, pray to God the cops don’t pull guns on us. But what for? Nobody’s listening.

  The rock music blaring from the stereo clashes with the sound of sirens and Lamont’s hysterical laughter, and when I glance at his face he looks just as scared as me. We’re two people on a rollercoaster who know the next bunch of loops will be the worst flip-flop we’ve ever experienced. But this isn’t an amusement park, and there’s no getting off this ride when we’re ready.

  Time slows. I see everything hanging in the balance. Ahead of me is an intersection. Behind me three more cop cars have joined the fray. Beside me is my best friend. A younger boy who looks at me as a role model, whom I have no business putting in danger like this. Someone in the same boat as me, actually a worse boat—with an alcoholic dad and a mom who’s always out partying. He’s got the same kind of future as me. We’re nobodies and this is nowhere.

  “Monty,” I say over the cacophony of my life out of control. “You ever…think about just saying fuck this?”

  “Wha-what?” he stutters. “Watch the road, man! We can shake these fools!” Lamont assures me, nodding false encouragement.

  Unexpected and very unmanly tears cling to my eyelashes as I stare at him, and I guess he sees something in my eyes that makes him nervous. Lamont snaps on his seatbelt at the last minute. I’ll always remember that—the drunken, clueless kid making a snap smart decision. Putting his safety first for a change. When I turn back to look at the road, I see the yellow light switch to red. I don’t slow down. I watch the intersection fill with cars crossing, and I press the gas pedal to go even faster. I faintly hear Lamont screaming, telling me I’m crazy. I squeeze my eyes shut and grip the wheel tighter.

  By God’s grace, the beat up car hits a deep pothole and leaps a few feet off the pavement, which slows us dramatically before we plow into traffic. As Lamont and I shout in disbelief, awe, fear, terror, excitement, it coasts through the air a brief distance that feels like a mile. The red light flips to green at the last minute. When we hit the ground again, the battered vehicle swivels around five times, sliding through the intersection unharmed. The last thing I see before the crash and black out is a light pole, flashing lights and stars. It’s possible the seatbelt saved Lamont’s life.

  * * *

  “Jayson, what’s wrong?” Kitrina’s voice cuts through the black silence. I open my eyes and her pale face swims into focus. Tiny snowflakes drift down around us. I see I’m in the backyard. The blue-green shrubs by the back door look as if they've been frosted with sugar. The flagstones are damp. The rest of the garden is enchanting, planted with hardy seasonal plants that can withstand the cold and enclosed by a red brick wall.

  Kitrina slides a comforting hand down my back and examines my haggard face. Lamont’s presence has thrown a wrench in my plans to keep the whole mess under wraps. I can’t stick around to watch Candace tell Kit what I should’ve told her from the very beginning, which I’m positive she fully intends to do. Why else would she tell Kit it was okay for me to be here when she clearly doesn’t want me here?

  “I’m so sorry for bailing on you like that,” I mumble sheepishly. “I felt sick. I thought I was about to throw up. I think I should go. I need to lie down for a while.” I gaze into her concerned grey-blue eyes scanning mine for answers I can’t give her. I cup her cheeks and linger instead of walking away because I can’t fathom leaving her for good.

  She looks like Christmas in her green dress, her jewels, her pink lips parted in confusion. She’s smells like heaven.

  Maybe I can fix this. By now, though, any belated confession would seem a dark secret, and Kit has already explained how she feels about dark secrets. The idea of her eyes changing as she looks at me, going cold…No, there’s no fixing it other than for me to disappear before she learns to disdain me as much as she thinks she loves me now.

  “Of course we can go,” Kit murmurs, heading for the door.

  I shake my head. “No, not back through there. Can I just…um, is there no way to cut around the side of the house and get back to the front? I think it was all the people inside that overwhelmed me. I don’t know. Crowds don’t usually bother me. I just…” I stumble over the lie.

  Kitrina apologetically shakes her head in answer to my question about a detour. She lays the back of her hand on my forehead, an instinctive touch that practically kills me with its sweetness. “I hate that you’re
not feeling well, but we’ll have to soldier through to the front door. Mom usually keeps areas blocked off when she hosts a gathering so she can keep track of what parts of the property people have access to.”

  So I have no choice. With growing dread, I follow her inside. For her part, Kitrina tries mightily to ensure we encounter as few people as possible, but it’s not the rest of the guests I’m worried about running into. “Let me just go say goodbye to my mom. I want her to know we stopped in,” Kitrina says over her shoulder.

  “I’ll wait in the truck for you—.” Before the words can clear my lips, we step around a corner, and come face to face with them. Candace Schneider and Lamont.

  “Sneaking out so fast?” Candace pins me with a look. There’s a challenge in the cold depths of her blue eyes that puts me on guard. I straighten to my full height. The truth is Candace Schneider is a concerned parent, doing what concerned parents do. We both want the same thing for Kitrina, which is to make her life as trouble free as possible. I’ve done my part by keeping what would hurt her most to myself. Of course, Candace has to reveal the very things I kept secret to do her part.

  “Mrs. Schneider,” I reply coolly.

  Chapter 27

  KITRINA

  “In the flesh,” she purrs.

  Mom and the young man cling together beside the branching double staircase before the foyer. She has her hand on his chest, and he has his arm around her with fingertips resting on the curve of her buttocks. I squint in distaste. It’s so unlike my mother’s usual decorum that I find it a shock to see up close.

  “Actually, we were just looking for you. It seems we have to beat a hasty retreat. Jayson’s not feeling well, unfortunately, but I didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye and wishing you a Merry Christmas. This is for you.” I manifest a small gift box. “It’s not much, but I immediately thought of you when I saw it. Mom, I’m sure you remember Jayson.”

  “Indeed,” she sneers.

  My eyes surreptitiously sweep the room to see how many people play audience to the scene. The small group of us squares off tensely, and I swear I hear the theme music for a Wild West duel. A server passes and Mom grabs another cocktail, depositing her empty glass and the gift I just gave her on his tray—disposal, I guess. I smack my lips in irritation. But it’s not like her to drink anything other than wine at a party.

  “Well, aren’t you going to introduce me to your friend, Mom?” There’s censure in my voice that I wish wasn’t so obvious.

  Candace chuckles, as if the entire situation tickles her to death. I scowl, knowing she’s getting a kick out of turning the tables. It’s quite apparent that, no, I don’t approve of this stranger standing next to my mother. I look him over.

  He isn’t a very tall man, and his physique is rangy and unimpressive, which means my father’s favorite suit had to have been altered to fit him so well. Thin gold chains peek from the collar of his white shirt, and I notice a gaudy gold watch and outdated pinky ring. In my unforgiving eyes, he looks like a pawnbroker or a pimp. Truthfully, he isn’t unattractive. His long chestnut hair is swept back from a handsome face. His smooth, gaunt cheeks and soft chin make him appear younger. Up close, I’d place him closer to Jayson’s age than mine.

  “Hi, I’m Lamont Stephens.” He slithers forward and grabs my hand, squeezing my fingers a second too long. I jerk my hand away, and he chuckles in amusement. “Forgive me if I seemed rude for not introducing myself sooner. I didn’t want to barge in, what with all the…well, I’ve been dying to meet you! Your mother talks about you endlessly. Imagine my surprise when I found out my girlfriend’s daughter is dating my best friend from high school.” None of his pleasure to meet me reaches his calculating light brown eyes.

  “Oh, darling, they’re not dating,” Candace interjects. “No, he did some work on her house for her, and Kitrina’s such a bleeding heart that she invited him along. Or so she says.” Her gaze collides with mine, and I realize Mom wasn’t fooled in the slightest by my attempt to play my relationship with Jayson off as a friendship.

  I open my mouth to comment, but the words dry up at the look shared between this Lamont guy and Jayson. There’s a threat in Lamont’s eyes that has Jayson on edge. Wait—did he say his best friend from high school? What’s going on here?

  “Well, don’t stand there like you don’t recognize me, buddy. Bring it in!” Lamont damn near shouts each word and gestures broadly when he talks. If nobody was paying attention to us before, they definitely are now. Jayson gets pulled into a stiff hug. Pumping Jayson’s hand enthusiastically, Lamont says, “Me and this cat used to run the streets together. Man, he was like a brother to me. Hard to imagine, right? I mean, me, owner of the biggest tech startup in America, and this guy.”

  Mom sips her cocktail, eyebrow raised mockingly. “Small world.”

  “So, what do you do now, Jayson?” Lamont asks.

  “I’m sure my loving mother would be happy to fill you in on all the details about Jayson’s illustrious career, Lamont, but we have to go now. As I said before, he’s not feeling well. Come on, Jayson,” I coax.

  Jayson clears his throat in the middle of my grand attempt to extricate us from the conversation and answers for himself. “I own a construction company.” I look down, wishing we could disappear. This is Mom’s attempt to make Jayson feel inferior, flaunting his childhood friend in front of him like a show pony to contrast Lamont’s position in life with Jayson’s.

  “Why are you doing this?” I ask her quietly. My eyebrows come together in anger.

  Candace shrugs carelessly. “Whatever are you talking about, dear? Jesus, what time is it? I should be getting everyone to the dining room.”

  “You’re drunk,” I accuse in a whisper for her ears only. Mom titters dismissively.

  “Did you say construction?” Lamont bellows. “Ha! I can see how that fits. You were always good with your hands.” He holds up his fists and throws mock punches.

  “Congratulations on your success,” Jayson mumbles in a rush. “If you all will excuse me, I really need to get going. I don’t want to ruin your lovely floors, Mrs. Schneider, but it seems something has really turned my stomach.” Jayson pulls away from me and heads hurriedly towards the front door. My attempt to follow him is met with protest. “No, you should stay, Kitrina. I don’t want to drag you away from the party. Let me send someone around to get you when you’re ready to go home.”

  “What?” I pull back in surprise. He looks at me pointedly, as if now isn’t a good time to counter him, but none of this was in the plans. All the while Mother watches me shrewdly, a knowing smirk on her face. “No, I’m leaving with you.”

  “Kit, don’t make this an issue, not here, not now,” Jayson says quietly. “I told you from the beginning I had a bad feeling about how things would go if I showed up. I should never have come here. Hell, Candace is probably right that I shouldn’t be in your life at all. Damn it, Kit!” He cuts short his frustrated rambling and runs a hand over his face, wiping away his ire. I want to hold him. Behind that blank expression has to be embarrassment and God knows what other unspoken thoughts, but we have to show solidarity in this.

  “Jayson, don’t let her get under your skin like this, please.” I blink back tears. I know he’s not going to let her win. After everything we talked about, everything that’s at stake. If I let Jayson walk out of that door without me, it will make Mom think I’m not strong enough to stand up to her. I’m not about to let that happen. “We’re in this together, right?” I remind him plaintively.

  Jayson shakes his head, once. It’s enough. “Just stay, okay?”

  My mother crudely cuts in, “Oh, screw him! Let him go, Kitrina. Darling, never, never beg a man for anything, especially one who isn’t even on your level. Now, come on with me. I cooked your favorite, too. Have you tried these cocktails? The bartender is a hit, let me tell you!”

  She paws at my arm as Jayson continues to the door. Lamont watches it all like it gives him great joy to be p
rivy to this entertaining little family spat. I’m torn. I can’t let Jayson leave without me, but seeing Mom flat-out drunk at her own party is alarming. Has she been drinking like this since I moved out? I don’t want to leave Candace behind in the state she’s in, and one look at Lamont tells me he won’t protect her from herself. He’s too busy reveling in the madness.

  “Jayson, wait!” I order in frustration. He halts and I turn to Candace.

  At my words, Mom flings her glass to the floor angrily. It shatters, making everyone jump and stare at her in alarm. Mom jabs a finger in Jayson’s direction. “Don’t you dare walk out that door with that bastard. If you choose him over me, I will never forgive you, Kitrina Anne.” The pleasant buzz of conversation in the other room dies down. A few bewildered guests peek out to see what’s going on.

  “Mom, it’s not like that.” Raising hands in surrender, I take a cautious step toward her, trying to calm her down. “Look, I know you’re upset. Let me clear the house for you before I go. Please? I’ll tell everyone you’re not feeling well. Your friends will understand. I don’t think you’re in any condition to be entertaining. You’ve had too much to drink.”

  Mom crows with laughter that spears at me like daggers. It doesn’t matter that I know she’s drunk. In vino veritas, right? “Oh my god, you’re priceless, Kitrina! What do you care what condition I’m in? You haven’t called me or come to see me in I don’t know how long, and now you want to play the doting daughter in front of guests? Are you people seeing this?”

  A gasp slips free as I stare at Mom in disbelief. I’m imagining what she’ll think in the morning at the same time that I feel belittled and shamed in front of her guests. My eyes dart around to our audience. Some look away uncomfortably. These are people we’ve known for years, and nothing like this has ever happened before in our house. I can imagine the gossip that will fly when this is all over. Please, let them just leave, I pray.