Living Backwards

by Tracy Sweeney

  “Hey, honey,” my dad greeted.

  “Dad, why aren’t you home? And where’s mom?” I asked, clutching the bottle to my chest.

  “That’s why I’m calling,” he began. “She got stuck at the hospital because one of those yahoos called out sick. I’m gonna pick her up after my shift and head over to Capanelli’s for dinner. You want to come along?”

  I did a little dance in place. Capanelli’s was in Tacoma. They’d be gone for hours.

  “Oh Dad, I wish I could,” I replied, sounding as disappointed as I could. “But I asked Danielle Powers and Megan Dunn to come by and study for our World Lit final.”

  “Don, who?” He snapped into the phone.

  “Relax, Dad. Megan Dunn. Megan’s a girl.”

  “Oh. Okay. Well, we’ll miss you, but we’ll try not to be late.”

  “No worries, Dad. You’ll just be coming home to a bunch of giggling, obnoxious teenage girls. Take your time.”

  “In that case, we should probably go to a movie too!” he laughed.

  It didn’t surprise me that he wasn’t concerned leaving me alone. I had never given him any reason to believe that I wasn’t one-hundred-percent trustworthy. I felt a twinge of remorse as I realized this would be the first time I broke any of their rules. But it was only a twinge.

  “Have fun, Dad. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

  “Have a nice night, honey.”

  Hanging up, I looked at the clock to see that it was almost five. I grabbed a large pan from the kitchen cabinet because I knew they wouldn’t have a wok and began my preparations. Fortunately, part of my prep was to sample the rum to make sure it was suitable for my guests. I was a thorough hostess.

  At five, the doorbell rang.

  “Jillian!” Danielle beamed, embracing me in the doorway. “You know Megan.” Meg walked through the door and gave me a half smile, her eyes narrow. I knew that look well. It was the look she gave Val every time we’d run into her. My best friend just gave me the Val Smile. This was not good.

  “Hi Megan,” I said, pretending I didn’t know she was obviously unhappy to be there. “Come on in. I was just having a beverage.” I raised the bottle of rum, and I thought I saw something spark in her eye, but it was probably her body’s automatic response to its proximity to alcohol. She was partially to blame for my corruption in college, after all.

  Handing them each a rum and coke, I began cooking.

  “So Megan, you like Pad Thai?” I asked goading her into a discussion.

  “It’s all right,” she shrugged. “There’s a good place in Tacoma we go to.”

  “Please, Meg,” Danielle interrupted rolling her eyes. “Spice and Rice is the worst. There’s almost no taste to it! Jillian, I can’t wait to see how you make it!” she added enthusiastically.

  It didn’t take long to pull all the ingredients together and serve up the noodles. Unfortunately, Megan’s foul attitude was making me feel very uncomfortable. I needed to break the ice, but my idea was risky. Megan and I had bonded over a common enjoyable pastime: making fun of Danielle. It sounded mean, but Meg and I were a little dark and cynical. Danielle, on the other hand, was like an adult version of Pollyanna. How can you not make fun of a real live Disney character? But I needed to tread lightly.

  “My parents are in Tacoma for the evening,” I explained. “I think my dad wanted to avoid a house full of giggling teenage girls. But I’ll level with you. I’m not braiding anyone’s hair or playing Truth or Dare. In fact, I think we need to keep giggling to a minimum.”

  “I had no intention of braiding your hair,” Danielle replied defensively. “But I brought my make-up case. You should totally be wearing darker colors. You’re a winter.”

  “Sorry,” I added. “Let me restate the ground rules. No giggling, braiding, truth or daring and no makeovers. Other than that, let’s enjoy our girl’s night!” I looked over to Meg and noticed that her scowl had morphed into a small, tight-lipped smile. I was making progress.

  After finishing our dinner and wowing the girls with my culinary prowess, I suggested we bring our drinks upstairs and watch the movie in my room just in case my parents decided to come home early. It was mostly for my benefit. Since I had now reconciled with Captain Morgan, I felt that we should spend some quality time together. Danielle pounced on my bed, flopping against the pillows like a ragdoll.

  “So, I booked a limo for the prom last night,” she began with a dreamy look in her eyes. “I just can’t wait. It’s going to be the best night of our lives.” It was amazing how we truly believed those things in high school. “And you, Megan, need to decide who you’re going with,” she added, shooting Megan a pointed look.

  “It’s just the prom, Danielle,” Megan replied unimpressed.

  “It’s not just the prom, Danielle,” she imitated. “It’s The Prom, with capital letters. Right, Jillian?”

  “Well, prom really isn’t my thing,” I replied cautiously. No use pretending. I was well aware that no one was going to ask me, and I was psyched that I’d get to relive that humiliation again. Really I was.

  Danielle gave me a strange look. “You’re the second person to say that. Wait!” she shouted.

  “What?” I replied nervously.

  “Do you see what I see, Meg?”

  “See what?”

  “Jillian.” She motioned to me like I was the prize in some game show.

  “Yes, I see Jillian. Are you already drunk?”

  “Of course not. This is perfect!” She wasn’t making any sense, even for a possibly drunk person.

  “I agree. I’m pretty awesome,” I replied confused. “But perfect? No.”

  “I meant for Luke Chambers!”

  “Luke?” I replied incredulously.

  “Yes, he said those exact words to me yesterday.”

  “He told you he was awesome?”

  “No, silly. He doesn’t think prom is his thing either. You should go together and be all anti-disestablishment together.”

  “That’s not a real word, Danielle,” Megan added.

  “Yes, it is,” she countered.

  “Irregardless,” I interrupted rolling my eyes. “I think we’d kill each other if we were forced to go to the prom together.”

  “Speaking of killing each other,” Megan interrupted with a look that screamed she had a good story to tell. I was just grateful for the diversion. “Major girl fight in the cafeteria today. Did you hear that Mike Wakefield asked both Karen Larson and that freshman Jen to the prom? Instead of kicking his ass like they should have, they started scratching and pulling at each other’s hair. Karen’s extensions came out. It was amazing!”

  I snorted. “I don’t understand the lure of Wakefield. He’s a mouth breather.”

  “A what?” Danielle asked.

  “You know…someone who doesn’t breathe through their nose so they always sound like an obscene phone caller when you talk to them.” I was startled by the belly laugh that escaped from Megan.

  “She’s right! He sounds like he’s run a marathon every time he talks to me,” she mused. “And sometimes he gets this gross spittle in the corner of his mouth.”

  “I know!” I squealed. “I was paired up with him for a project once and I spent the whole time trying not to look at him because the spittle on his lips made me gag.” While it didn’t last long, I got a small smile out of her, and it wasn’t the one that looked like she smelled something bad. Fess up, Meg. You like me. I rock.

  “Getting back to Jillian,” Danielle began. “I think you and Luke would look so good together. He’s a winter, too.” I needed a new diversion.

  “Danielle, what did you mean when you said that Meg needed to decide who she was going with? Is there a waiting list?”

  “She’s had five different offers,” Danielle explained. “Three of which are pretty decent, but she has yet to answer any of them.”

  I was fairly certain that I knew why Megan hadn’t accepted any of the offers. I just needed her to
confirm it. I couldn’t let the opportunity to ask about Nate pass by.

  “Is it because you’re waiting on someone else?”

  “No, no,” Danielle answered for her. “She’s just stubborn and likes to torture me. So, you need to pick one, Meg. I say you should go with Grant. He’s always been very sweet and he’ll look great in a tux.”

  Meg was either extremely uncomfortable or found the laces on her Reeboks fascinating. I think my buddy Captain was working his magic on her, as well. Tell the truth.

  “I’m right, aren’t I?” I added. “Who is it?” Danielle’s head shot up and she furrowed her brows.

  “Megan Dunn, are you seriously holding out on me?” Danielle chimed in.

  “It’s nothing,” she replied, picking at the soles of her sneakers.

  “It’s not nothing, Megan, if that’s the reason you clam up every time I mention the freaking prom.”

  Megan took a deep breath before looking up, clearly not wanting to discuss this with us.

  “Who?” Danielle asked softly. “Why can’t you tell me?”

  “Because it’s embarrassing, all right? He doesn’t even acknowledge my existence! I’ve tried everything and he doesn’t even glance my way. I feel so stupid.”

  “Maybe you’re just going about it wrong,” I offered letting the alcohol do the talking.

  “Jillian, I don’t need any advice on how to land a date,” she snapped. I had to remind myself to tread lightly.

  “Is it Kurt?” Danielle asked still trying to pry the truth from her.

  “No,” she sighed burying her head in her hands. “It’s Nate Barrett.” Her response sounded muffled, but we heard her loud and clear.

  “Nate ?” Danielle gasped.

  “Yes, I-love-nothing-but-football Nate. I’m-too-busy-to-think-about-girls Nate. I-don’t-even-notice-when-Megan-is-wearing-a-see-through-top Nate,” she muttered.

  “Wait a second,” I added. “Maybe that really isn’t the way to get his attention.”

  “Jillian, I’ve tried talking to him and he’s still completely uninterested.”

  “Have you tried talking to him about football,” Danielle asked. “I told Josh that I was into Weezer even though I only really liked the lead singer’s glasses. It still worked like a charm.”

  “I think Nate would figure it out if Megan was faking her way through a conversation about football. You don’t know anything about the game, do you?” I asked, knowing full well that Megan won the football pool at the bar in our neighborhood almost every year. The girl was a football encyclopedia.

  “I love football. I just don’t want him to see me as one of his buddies.”

  “Guys dig girls who like sports. We just need to grab his attention.”

  I hadn’t really planned to get involved in altering another aspect of the past, but if Megan and Nate would eventually meet and fall in love, I wasn’t technically changing anything. Just speeding it up a bit. I didn’t have a plan in place yet, though. I had to think quickly. “Meg, I’m not calling you a stalker or anything, so don’t get mad, but do you happen to know Nate’s schedule?” You’re totally lying if you say you don’t know the schedule of the boy you like. Every girl does; it’s a fact. Meg began to blush. Of course she did.

  “He has western civ, gym, trig and chem in the morning. I think he has third lunch, then auto shop and Spanish.” The plan was forming quickly thanks to an image in my head of Megan Fox in Transformers. I was sure that Megan wouldn’t mind this Megan stealing one of her moves.

  “I hereby decree that Operation Nate will commence at 0800 hours on Monday. Are you with me?” I asked putting my hand out. Danielle quickly put hers on top of mine. Megan looked like she was going to throw up, but slowly put hers on top of Danielle’s. “That’s what I’m talking about!”

  I began filling them in on my plan until we all started to yawn. We hadn’t even watched the movie, but I felt that the study date was a tremendous success. I convinced the girls to spend the night with very little effort. Even though I was the one drinking most of the rum, I didn’t want to take any chances. Once I heard their steady breaths from the blankets on the floor, I padded over to my desk to take one last pull from the bottle. On my desk sat the calendar and its Word of the Day. I pulled off April 30th to reveal the word for the May 1st.

  Ineluctable: 1. incapable of being evaded; 2. inescapable: an ineluctable destiny.

  Tomorrow’s word seemed appropriate for Meg considering our plans. I already knew my destiny. I knew what the future had in store. There wasn’t anything here for me. I needed to focus on Meg and Danielle, and make things right for them. That was my destiny.

  CHAPTER 6

  Luke

  “Luke,” Scanlon called from the doorway of the teacher’s lounge. He was sipping from a mug that said “Mechanics Do it Better” which was kind of inappropriate. “The parts for your bike arrived this morning. Swing by after school and we can get started.”

  On Friday, after running some diagnostics, he figured out that there was more going on with my bike than I thought. We had to rebuild the clutch. Fortunately, his buddy who worked with vintage cycles could get the parts pretty quickly.

  Instead of feeling relieved, though, I was pretty irritated. Mrs. Dupont had finally cornered me and sentenced me to detention all week in her Dungeon of Misinformation. Torturing me was probably going to be the highlight of her week.

  “I can’t after school, Mr. S,” I explained. “I have detention with Dupont all week.”

  “Three weeks to graduation, Luke,” he replied with a disapproving tone, “and you’re spending one of them in detention. Was it really worth it?” I know he didn’t really want me to answer that question. While it may have been stupid to storm off like I did, I still thought her grading sucked. And Scanlon knew that Dupont and I didn’t have the best relationship. I was sure he’d heard her complain about me as well. I could see her ranting about “that Chambers kid” who thought he knew everything. I may not know everything, but I was pretty sure I knew more than she did.

  I shrugged my shoulders because while it may not have been worth it to lose time in the shop, given the chance, I’d probably do it again.

  “Well,” he began, rocking slowly back and forth on the balls of his feet, “I have a class during second lunch that’s mostly seniors. I’m sure they wouldn’t mind learning a thing or two about vintage cycles. Isn’t that your lunch period?” he asked with a raised brow.

  “Yes, it is,” I replied, my smile broadening. “I actually have a free period, then lunch.”

  “I’m monitoring the cafeteria for first lunch so I can’t meet you any earlier, but come by during your lunch break and we can get started,” he offered patting me on the back.

  “Thanks, Mr. S,” I replied as I turned to leave.

  “And Luke,” he called back to me with a smirk, “lay off Mrs. Dupont, okay?” I nodded grudgingly. Scanlon had been good to me and if that was all he asked in return, I could try to silently put up with her ignorance for just a little longer.

  As I made my way back to my locker, I noticed Mike Wakefield trying to molest another unsuspecting victim next to my locker. His back was to me and he was practically leaning on top of the poor girl. I’d never understand what girls saw in the guy. I wanted to bring in a stun gun and zap him in the nuts to keep him away. As I got closer, instead of being assaulted by the cooing and baby-talk that I normally had to endure, I heard a voice laced with venom.

  “Let me get this straight,” the girl sneered. “I’m supposed to be flattered that you’ve never found me attractive before, and now suddenly you think I’m hot? Do I have that right?”

  “Don’t get upset, baby,” he replied. “Maybe I didn’t notice you then, but you sure have my attention now.” I could see his hand sliding up and down her arm.

  “Let me make this abundantly clear, Mike,” she snapped. “I am not, in any way, interested, and if you don’t take your hands off me, I will kick you square in the
balls.”

  Smart girl.

  “Jillian, come on.”

  I turned quickly because if he was touching her, and she didn’t want him to, I’d gladly take the opportunity I’d been waiting for to pummel him. As I grabbed his shoulder to pull him away, true to her warning, Jillian brought her knee up forcefully right into his nuts. Mike immediately doubled over into a drooling mess on the tile floor.

  “Bitch!” he howled cupping his junk as he rolled around on the ground. I winced, shifting uncomfortably.

  “Expect company today, Chambers,” she said as she breezed past me. “It’s been another shitty day.”

  I watched as she walked down the stairs and through the front door leaving me speechless while Mike rolled around on the floor in agony. It wasn’t often that someone surprised me, but I was standing there staring at the door like an idiot, totally caught off guard. Whatever it was that had gotten into her was kind of hot in a crazy-girl kind of way.

  I looked down at Mike who was still swearing and groaning as he crawled onto his knees. I held out a hand to help him up, but as he regained his balance, I pulled him up to me by the collar of his flannel.

  “Don’t you ever let me catch you bothering her again,” I growled into his ear. “You hear me?”

  He pulled away, brushing the dirt from the floor off his clothes.

  “You can have her,” he sneered.

  And I don’t know what it was. Maybe it was the fact that he was acting like an asshole. Maybe it was because I had spent the last eight months watching him grope Karen Larson’s boobs against my locker. Maybe it was just because of Jillian. Whatever the reason, I drew back and punched him, sending him careening backwards into the lockers on the other side of the hall. I turned around to leave as I saw Karen run from the other end of the hall to help him. As I walked down the stairs, I wondered if he’d tell her why I punched him. If he were smart, he’d keep his mouth shut then he could keep on grabbing her boobs and I could avoid more detention. Regardless, I couldn’t find it in myself to feel sorry. He deserved it.