Pieces of Love

by PJ Sharon

  “Well, let’s get one thing straight. There will be no calling me ‘Grandma,’” she said as she zoomed onto the highway, cutting off a tractor trailer truck and ignoring the blare of his horn. “You can call me Maddie like everyone else. I’m much too young to be a grandmother.” She grinned.

  She was almost seventy, but I didn’t argue.

  The conversation shifted to her plans for me for the next six weeks, and it suddenly felt like I had been shipped to a summer camp for wayward teens, which I guess in a way, I had. “...up by nine—no sleeping the day away. You’ll have a few chores. Mitch said no more than two hours a day on the computer or phone. I suggest an hour in the morning and an hour at night. And don’t forget, you have your classes three times a week.”

  She continued reciting the rules, but I tuned out her voice and watched the cars fly by on the coastal route. A sign ahead read Malibu, 27 miles of scenic beauty. Palm trees lined both sides of the highway, and the sky was a perfect cloudless blue. At least the weather was nice. I wondered what her new house would be like. The last time I had visited, she lived in a sprawling ranch style house in Monterey. After my grandfather died and left her a boatload of cash, she had closed up the old place and moved to the beach. It seemed the shoe business had been lucrative.

  Petite, a little on the curvaceous side, with hair cut in a stylish bob and enough makeup to dull the lines in her face, my grandmother looked like senior Barbie or an ad for a retirement magazine. Come to sunny Malibu and live out your golden years in comfort and serenity. My assessment was confirmed when we pulled into the driveway of her Malibu beach house a half hour later.

  “Wow,” was all I managed as she gave me the tour. The house wasn’t overly big—only two bedrooms, each with its own bath. Despite its outward appearance of being small though, it felt spacious with its high ceilings and full length windows overlooking the Pacific. Any place with this view must have cost a fortune. I stared out at the waves crashing onto the white sand beach, observing the hordes of bared bodies that lounged in chairs or on blankets a little further down. I dropped my bags in the bedroom and went straight to the refrigerator. Condiments, a half-gallon of outdated milk, a quart of orange juice, and a bottle of wine, nearly empty. Maddie didn’t eat in much, apparently. I opened the cupboards, each one more sparsely stocked than the last.

  “I didn’t get a chance to shop,” she said, noticing my disappointment. “I’ll order us some lunch.” She dug out a cell phone and hit a single key, speed dialing a local delivery place. She put her hand over the phone and glanced in my direction, “Burgers okay?”

  “I’m a vegetarian.”

  “Oh? What on earth for? No wonder you’re so skinny.” She uncovered the phone and said, “Two burgers, two orders of fries and a salad. Yes. Thank you. Twenty minutes? Perfect.” She hung up and grinned. “We’ll put some meat on those bones and you’ll feel much better.”

  I cringed and my stomach tightened at the thought of a greasy burger. Since the time I puked my guts out after eating a piece of bad ham and watching one too many documentaries about the treatment of livestock, I had a general rule about not eating anything that once had eyeballs and had started out as a baby. I wondered if it was too late to escape and take a train cross-country back to Connecticut.

  “After we eat and you’ve unpacked, why don’t you take a little walk on the beach and get a feel for the place. We aren’t far from the pier. There are some shops and restaurants you should check out, and I see kids your age hanging out there all the time. Maybe you can meet some new friends.” Her tone was full of encouragement, as if I were here on vacation rather than some sort of punishment. “I have some calls to make this afternoon, but I’m sure you can keep yourself entertained for a while.” She eyed me curiously. “You do like the beach, don’t you?”

  Wish someone had asked me that before they shipped me off to Exile Island. “Yeah, I like the beach,” I said politely. No sense in starting off on the wrong foot.

  She let out a breath, a look of relief washing over her face. “Good. Make sure you use sunblock. Your skin is so pale. Don’t they have sunshine in Connecticut?” She smiled, obviously trying to be amusing while simultaneously being critical. I remembered my mother complaining about her “lack of verbal filters.” She means well, Mom would say after my grandmother cut her down.

  ∞∞∞

  I ate salad and fries for lunch and changed into shorts, a “Razerbacks Rule” tee shirt from our high school football team’s pep rally, and flip flops. Maddie was caught up in a phone conversation when I slipped out through the sliding glass door. She waved and caught my attention, covering the phone. “Be careful, have fun, and be back by five-thirty for dinner. I’ll order Chinese...and stay out of trouble.” She was already back to her conversation before I closed the slider.

  I strolled out onto the beach, happy to be free from adult supervision for half a minute. The day was hot, but the breeze made it feel dry and pleasant—different from the beaches on the East Coast, where the humidity could make you feel like your face would melt off at any second. I walked along the beach toward the pier in the distance. Hot, white sand sifted through my flip flops and bunched under my arches, forcing me to walk like I was kicking some invisible dog at my feet. People lay sprawled on towels and beach chairs soaking in the cancer rays. Couples holding hands passed by and little kids ran into the splashing waves with carefree abandon that filled me with sadness, envy, and a longing for a simpler time. A time when Amanda and I played and laughed together. It seemed like so long ago.

  My mind was about to take a dive into the depths of self-pity and despair when a flying object flashed into my field of vision. I reacted and grabbed, catching the Frisbee before it collided with my face.

  “Nice catch.” A male voice caught my attention.

  “Lousy throw,” I snapped back, caught off guard and annoyed.

  “Sorry about that.” A deeply tanned, shirtless boy with Hawaiian style board shorts and bare feet approached, his hand held out for the Frisbee. Shoulder length, sun-bleached hair hung in his face, but he promptly tucked it behind his ears and grinned.

  I handed him the flying saucer that had nearly decapitated me and returned a quick smile—friendly, but not desperate, I hoped. “No harm done, I suppose.”

  Then we stood there smiling stupidly and not saying anything.

  He broke first. “You’re new around here.”

  “Yep.” Being that I was ghastly under-tanned and over dressed for the beach—the only teenage girl in the vicinity actually wearing clothes—I must have stood out. I shuffled my feet, dumping another pound of sand out of my flip flops.

  “I’m Seth.” He glanced over his shoulder at a bunch of kids who were impatiently awaiting his return and calling him names from a distance.

  “I’m Ali.”

  “Well...Ali. Where you headed?”

  “Taking a walk to the pier. I just got here so I don’t really know my way around yet.” Awkward butterflies fluttered in my stomach. I stared at my feet and avoided the pale gray eyes studying me.

  “Why don’t I walk with you, then? I’d hate for you to get lost on your first day.” He didn’t wait for me to answer. With an easy flick of his wrist, he turned and zipped the Frisbee across the beach to a brunette who looked none too happy that Seth was abandoning the game. “I’ll catch you guys later,” he called and turned his attention to me. “Let’s go. I’ll show you around.”

  Five minutes and I’d already made a potential friend. Maybe this summer wouldn’t be so bad after all. Guys back home weren’t this forward, or mature. Seth wasn’t super good looking or anything, but he seemed nice enough and he was interested—which was more than I’d gotten in three years of high school in Somerville, CT. If I wasn’t exiled because of my obscurity and my attachment to mediocrity, I was labeled as that weird girl whose sister died. Here, I had no history.

  “That would be great. Thanks.”

  Seth turned out to b
e a great guide. We reached the pier where crowds of people strolled, skated, or boarded along, laughing and smiling like California life was all a big party. He showed me some cool shops along the boardwalk and the local burger joint where Maddie had undoubtedly ordered our lunch. I still couldn’t believe she put away both of those burgers by herself. That couldn’t be good for a woman her age. Seth drew my attention to an ice cream vendor and pulled out his wallet.

  “What’ll it be? My treat.” His goofy grin was kind of nice—comfortable like he already knew me. Lucky him, since I felt totally clueless about that mystery.

  I looked over the menu, still thinking of Amanda. I ordered her favorite. “Coconut chocolate chip...on a waffle cone.”

  The pretty blonde at the counter eyed Seth like he had rabies. “Anything else?” she asked, her tone as biting as a Doberman.

  “I’ll have the usual.” Seth smiled sweetly at her. “You know what I like.”

  The girl rolled her eyes and spun off to fix our order. Seth stuck a thumb out toward her and whispered. “We used to date. It didn’t end well...”

  The girl returned and Seth paid for the cones. I dove into my ice cream as we walked away.

  “That’s what I like to see,” he said, checking out my ice cream selection and taking an unexpected bite. “Someone who knows what she wants.” Seth put his hand on my lower back to lead me off the boardwalk. An uncomfortable flutter hit my belly. Maybe all Californians were this touchy feely. I didn’t want to seem like a prude or anything, but I wasn’t used to any boy touching me in such a familiar way. Most of the boys I knew from school kept their distance. It wasn’t like I was hideous, but no one wanted to be around the dark and twisty girl who always looked so sad. Other than a few close friends—all girls—I hadn’t even had a real date yet. I shrugged off the shiver that crawled across my skin. What did I know about normal teenage getting to know you rituals?

  “Where are we going?” I licked my melting ice cream and followed his lead.

  “I know where there’s a party this afternoon. A bunch of my friends are there.” He glanced down at me. “You do party, don’t you?”

  Now he had my full attention. I shrugged and nodded, playing it cool.

  Summer was definitely looking up.

  Chapter 3

  Seth dragged me through a crowded house, not too much different than Maddie’s. Only this one was decorated in bright patterned Southwestern furnishings like something you’d see in a ranch house in Arizona or New Mexico, manly but chic—probably owned by some rich bachelor who hired out the decorating and rented the place while he was off traveling the world. Without an actual adult anywhere to be found, the place was loaded with half-dressed teens, packed shoulder to shoulder, drinking, dancing, and shouting over the bump and grind music pumping through some rad stereo speakers.

  “Are you sure I can’t get you a beer?” Seth pulled me along through the maze of bodies.

  “I don’t drink,” I yelled above the noise, which garnered a few stares as we passed through into the kitchen and out onto a deck at the back of the house.

  The pounding became muffled—enough to hear without yelling.

  “I thought you said you partied.” Seth eyed me with brows furrowed like he was sizing me up to determine if I was worthy of meeting his friends.

  “I smoke weed, but I don’t drink or do hard drugs.” I tried to make it sound like I was the same girl who knew what she wanted. The girl who knew her favorite ice cream without thinking about it, or the girl who hooked up with strangers on a beach two thousand miles from home. Brave and confident—that was me. I stared him down for a minute before a smile curved the edge of his mouth.

  “I know exactly where to get what you’re looking for.”

  Five minutes later, I sat in a wicker chair in a small courtyard behind the house, a hidden sanctuary surrounded by a tall hedge of fragrant flowering shrubs. Seth passed me a fat stogie. I took a hit and held it, the sweet herby smoke curling around me as my lungs expanded and a pleasant fuzz hit my brain. I passed the joint along to the guy next to me who took a huge hit and snorted back a coughing attack. Around the circle went the joint, several guys and a couple of bikini clad girls a little older than me, each taking a hit and passing it on. I didn’t catch all of their names, but it didn’t matter. I was in my element and the stuff we were smoking was awesome. A few hits already had me feeling good and stoned.

  “Better than that crap you get back east, right?” Seth had his arm around me. I didn’t really feel comfortable with the closeness, but I wasn’t about to set conditions on our friendship when he was my new supplier and his show of ownership was keeping all the other wolves at bay. I figured I could manage Seth before things got out of hand. An arm around my shoulder was a small price to pay for this most excellent smokage. I took another hit and held it. My lungs burned and my head grew fuzzier.

  A second joint came my way. I took it, wondering whose endless supply I was tapping and how I could get my hands on some for later when I would sneak out of Maddie’s place at night to take a few hits here and there. Maddie...oh, crud. I pulled my phone out of my back pocket to check the time. Dead as a doornail. I’d forgotten to charge it.

  “Hey, like, does anyone know what time it is?” I asked. Pot smoke filled the air and music thumped in my head, drowning out my words as another joint passed under my nose.

  “It’s party time!” A girl with streaky blonde hair and a killer tan squealed as she danced in circles, drawing stares and dopey grins from every guy within twenty feet. Everybody laughed, including me, and my concern about getting back to Maddie’s for dinner faded into the haze of smoke and the rhythm of the drums pummeling the air.

  It was some time later, after I’d smoked more than my fair share of ass-kicking weed, eaten a bowlful of chips and guacamole, and drank a half gallon of lemonade, that I found myself sprawled on a beach blanket in front of the house with Seth. All worries about time disappeared with a stunning sunset, the most beautiful shades of orange, pink and purple I’d ever seen, changing before my very eyes. The darkness slowly descended, the ocean swallowing the sun like deep blue quicksand. Within minutes, the stars shone brightly against a black sky and the party died down to a dull roar in my head a short distance away. While I was in this state of foggy bliss, Seth made his move.

  “I really likes you,” Seth said, laughing at his own slurred speech. He leaned up on one elbow and hovered over me, the stench of beer strong on his breath.

  “I like you too, man. But I’m not really interested in...”

  He didn’t let me finish. He leaned down and planted a wet, sloppy kiss on my mouth, his tongue diving between my lips before I could squirm away. I pushed against his chest, but he resisted. He grabbed my hands and pinned me to the ground. His mouth on mine stole my breath and stifled my efforts to protest. Panic set in. I struggled against him and finally managed to bite his tongue. With a gasp, I broke free of his slobbering assault. “Get off of me!”

  At that moment, a flashlight beam blinded us. “Everything okay over here?”

  I rolled to sitting and shielded my eyes from the light. It only took a second to register that the flashlight belonged to a uniformed police officer.

  Seth sat up and swayed, giving the cop a salute. “Yes, sir, occiffer, sir!” Then he busted out laughing.

  The light shone on me again. “You wouldn’t happen to be Alexis Hartman, would you?”

  My heart jumped to my throat. I climbed to my feet, sobering immediately. “Yes, sir.”

  “Your grandmother is pretty worried about you.” He flashed the light on Seth. “With good reason, I see.” He spoke into a radio attached to his uniform. “I found her, Cummings. Call it in.”

  “Roger that,” a voice crackled from the other end of the radio.

  The music suddenly stopped and people poured out of the house, running in all directions like ants escaping the nest during heavy rain. I could hear police yelling inside. “The party’s
over, kids. Get home where you belong and don’t come back.”

  The officer with the flashlight took my arm and escorted me to a patrol car, pushing my head down as he deposited me into the back seat. A half hour later he and his partner, the invisible radio voice, Cummings, drove me back to Maddie’s house, lecturing me on the dangers of drugs and hanging out with the likes of Seth and his friends. It wasn’t my first time hearing this lecture or my first ride in the back of a cruiser. But it was the first time I was glad to have been picked up by the cops. I didn’t want to think about what might have happened if they hadn’t shown up.

  When the door opened, my relief fled.

  “Thank you, Jerry. I knew I could count on you boys to find her.” Maddie gave a tight smile to the cop without taking her eyes off of me. The look on her face made my stomach plummet to my feet. With her chin quivering ever so slightly and her eyes watery pools of unshed tears, I knew I’d gone too far.

  “No problem, Maddie.” Officer Jerry released my arm and glared down at me. “Don’t hesitate to call if she gives you any more trouble.”

  “I assure you, she won’t.” Maddie drew in a deep breath, still staring at me like I had drowned a kitten. Then her face softened as she shifted her gaze to the brawny Jerry. “You tell your father hello for me, won’t you?”

  The cop touched two fingers to the visor of his hat in a half salute. “Yes, ma’am.”

  I dragged myself through the door and expected to hear it slam behind me, but worse, the latch clicked with a soft, defeated clink. I kept my back turned, not sure if I should run and hide in my room or turn and face the music head-on. Maddie decided for me by saying the most dreaded words an adult could say.