Raise the Curtain

by Kirby Hall

  “I think you need to stay away from her,” his mom said as they turned into the driveway. “You know you have to stay out of trouble.” His mom flexed her fingers on the wheel and turned her face to his. “I called our attorney and she said as long as you stay away from Alexa things will be fine.”

  West fought the urge to punch a hole through a window and instead, remained quiet. He didn’t have to be told. He knew what he was supposed to do. They climbed out of the car and walked into the kitchen.

  He took a deep breath and rolled his shoulders. “I’m going to take a shower.”

  “Wait,” his mom said. She held out his cell phone to him. “You can have this back, but please don’t call her.”

  West didn’t respond one way or the other. He wasn’t making any promises. When he got to his room and shut the door, he saw he had ten texts. They were all from Alexa. He scrolled through them, each one seeming to grow more frantic and they were full of apologies. He hit the button to reply.

  I’m home now. Stop apologizing. It’s not your fault. I’ll see you at school.

  Chapter 24

  After taking a deep breath, she knocked on his door. It was beyond crazy to be at his house, but she had to take the chance while she could. She adjusted the scarf looped around her neck again with restless fingers. He probably hated her. Her heart squeezed at the mere idea of West wanting nothing more to do with her. Of never kissing her again. He’d gone from casual acquaintance to tutor to one of the most important people in her life in what could’ve been seconds. She guessed that’s why people called it falling in love.

  Nerves snapped to life inside her when the sound of footsteps could be heard on the other side of the door. When it opened, a woman in her early forties with dark circles under her eyes and wearing a sweatpants outfit stood before her. Startled it wasn’t West, Alexa forgot what she was going to say. It hadn’t occurred to her his mom would be home. And, she had no doubts she probably hated her, too.

  “H-hi, I’m Alexa Cross.”

  “I thought you might be. I’m West’s mom, Debra.” She stared at Alexa with an unreadable expression, making Alexa squirm. It’d be easier if she’d yell or throw accusations, but instead she kept watching her calmly. Maybe she didn’t know what to say, either.

  Alexa couldn’t blame her. This wasn’t the way she pictured meeting her boyfriend’s mom. ‘Hey, sorry about your son getting arrested. My dad’s a bit crazy.’ Not exactly an eloquent approach, even if it was true. She was beyond sorry.

  “Honey, are you sure you’re supposed to be here?”

  She adjusted her scarf again. “Probably not, but my dad’s in court and I need to speak to West. I need to apologize.”

  His mom’s face softened. “He’s sleeping right now. I don’t think he got much sleep last night.”

  Alexa’s heart took a nosedive into her stomach. If she didn’t see him now, she wasn’t sure when she’d get the chance again. “Oh.”

  “Why don’t you come in out of the cold and we can talk a few minutes?” His mom held the door open and let her pass into the kitchen.

  Alexa smiled. “Thank you.”

  The room wasn’t big, but it was clean and cozy. It was the kind of room you could imagine sitting down and drinking hot chocolate while you discussed your day. The appliances were old and the blue cushions on the chairs faded, but it was homey.

  West’s mom sat down at the four-person table and motioned to the chair across from hers. “It’s nice to meet you. West doesn’t say much to me about his personal life, but he did mention you.”

  Alexa could feel the heat creeping up her neck and into her face as she slipped out of her coat and draped it over the chair. “He was my tutor last semester.”

  “And now?”

  The heat escalated from a creep to a full-on burst into her cheeks. “Now he’s . . .”

  “Your boyfriend?” his mom asked.

  Alexa had never called him her boyfriend out loud. It seemed too lame a word for what he was to her, but she supposed that’s what he was. She nodded.

  His mom studied her with a watchful gaze. She didn’t look like West, but there was something in her attitude that was familiar. An expression here and there; a mannerism.

  Alexa took a deep breath and started to say what she’d gone there to say. “Ms. Howell, I’m truly sorry about last night. I didn’t know—”

  “I know you didn’t.” She waved her hand to the side, clearly annoyed by the whole thing. “And, I know West is a good kid.”

  “The best.” Tears threatened to spill as guilt filled her. She ran her fingertips along the bottoms of her eyes to try to keep from bawling. She’d cried more in the last twenty-four hours than she had since her mom died, and she was sick of it. She hated feeling weak and out of control, but that’s exactly what she was. Out of control of her own life.

  “This might be hard to believe, the way it always is for kids when it comes to their parents, but I was young once, too. I remember what it’s like.”

  “What what’s like?” Alexa asked.

  “First love. The boy you think you can’t live without.” His mom’s lips twitched at Alexa’s embarrassed expression. “We all go through it, usually without police involvement, but nonetheless it’s part of growing up. Now, I can’t tell West who to love any more than I can tell the clouds when to rain, but I want you to do me a favor.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “He can’t afford trouble. He’s worked hard to get his life on the right track and he’s finally in a good place, so I’m asking you to work things out with your dad for West’s sake as much as your own.” His mom leaned forward on the table, resting her elbows on a floral placemat. “I know my son and if he loves you the way I think he does, a piece of paper isn’t going to keep him from you.”

  Alexa swallowed. “I understand.”

  “What’s going on in here?” West asked from the kitchen doorway.

  His sudden appearance made Alexa jerk upright in her seat.

  “Alexa, stopped by to see you.” His mom stood and started to leave the room. “I’ll leave you two to talk. Alexa,” she paused to look at her, “please remember what I said.”

  She nodded, but stayed quiet since she didn’t trust her voice to speak. After his mom left the room, Alexa’s gaze returned to West. He was rumpled and puffy from sleep and she wanted to run to him. To bury her face in his shirt and hold him close.

  Just seeing him standing in his own kitchen sent relief washing through her. The night before in her room, she kept picturing West in handcuffs and being forced into a police car. She’d never seen someone she knew get arrested and the seriousness of the situation wasn’t lost on her. And, she’d caused it.

  West moved away from his place by the wall and crossed over to where she was sitting. She held her breath.

  “Do you mind if I get some breakfast?” He smiled.

  A nervous giggle escaped from her mouth. “No, but at this point, it’s more like afternoon snack.”

  “Cereal is good no matter the time,” he countered.

  She waited as he poured his cereal into a bowl with milk and grabbed a spoon out of a drawer. Then, he crossed over and dropped into the chair where his mom had been sitting earlier. Alexa shifted in her seat. He wasn’t close enough to touch, but it was possible he didn’t want to touch her. He was acting friendly enough, but it didn’t mean he wasn’t mad.

  He took a bite of his cereal and watched her. She continued to sit there as he ate half the bowl, and with every bite her shoulders became higher and tighter. His mood was impossible to gauge and it was driving her crazy. The slow crunching and chewing. Would he just say something already?

  “West, I’m so sorry,” she blurted out when she couldn’t take the silence anymore.

  He burst o
ut laughing. Eyes wide, she fell back against her chair. Why was he laughing? How could anything going on right now be funny? She wasn’t sure if she admired him for being able to keep his sense of humor or if she wanted to punch him.

  “I was wondering how long you were going to last before you cracked.” He laughed again and the deep sound filled the room.

  She picked a napkin up off the table and threw it at him. “I’ve been sick about what happened and you’re teasing me?”

  “Why not?” He shrugged. “You’re an easy target. The guys at the jail have no sense of humor.”

  The blood rushed out of her head leaving her dizzy. “West.”

  He pushed his chair back and moved to sit in the chair beside hers. “It’s better for me to joke than to get angry about it.”

  “Please don’t hate me,” she said.

  He grabbed her hands in his. “I could never hate you.”

  “How can you not? My dad had you arrested.”

  “Yes, I know.” West’s gaze dropped down their joined hands. “While I do think you should’ve told your dad about us, after last night I can see why you didn’t. And, just so you know, I don’t blame you for any of it.”

  “I’m still so sorry.” Tears threatened again.

  “It’s okay.” He smiled and ran his hand through his tangled hair. “I mean it’s not okay, but I mean, we’re good. Your dad did this on his own.”

  She slid to the edge of her chair and wrapped her arms around his neck. She wanted to remember the feel of his body pressed against hers.

  “I can’t stay.”

  “I know,” he said, his words muffled in her hair. “I’ll see you at school, though.”

  “Who knew I’d ever be one to look forward to school.” She pulled back and smiled. “I almost miss math with Mr. Guin.”

  He scoffed.

  “I said almost.”

  ~ ~ ~

  There was a knock on her bedroom door. Alexa didn’t bother to stop reading her history notes to answer. She knew who it was by the height of the knock and the volume of his footsteps in the hall. Finally, after another attempt at knocking, her door opened to reveal her dad.

  “Bekah’s downstairs,” he said. At least he was perceptive enough to know not to enter her room.

  They hadn’t spoken in a week. She had nothing to say to him. Seeing West at school tore at her heart. Glances across the hall and stolen moments before and after school weren’t enough. She missed being with him and talking to him every afternoon. And, every time she looked at her dad she wanted to scream. It was better she remained distant.

  “Can she come up or are you going to call the cops on her?”

  Her dad crossed his arms over his chest. “Alexa, when are you going to drop the attitude?”

  “Don’t know.”

  Her dad turned to go and a short while later Bekah appeared. “Well, it’s good to know you and your dad haven’t killed each other yet.”

  “Day isn’t over.” Alexa closed her notebook and set it aside. “So, what’s up?”

  “Nothing really, but I did hear something I thought you might be interested in.” Bekah sat down and grinned, but remained quiet.

  “Well, are you going to tell me?” Alexa reached over and picked her drink up off the nightstand and took a big swig. Bekah could be so dramatic at times.

  “I heard your boy tried out for the track team.”

  Alexa nearly choked. Bekah burst out laughing and hit Alexa on the back to help clear her lungs.

  “That can’t be right,” Alexa said coughing again. “West trying out for a sport. One that would require him to be around, and most likely speak to, other people?”

  “That’s what I hear.”

  “Who told you?” And, why hadn’t West mentioned it to her?

  Bekah rubbed at a scuff mark at the end of one of her Converse. “Jay.”

  “Of course.” Alexa said. “Wait, I thought you weren’t speaking to him.”

  Bekah held up her hands defensively. “I wasn’t. He showed up at my house the other day and we hung out a little while.”

  Alexa made a noise in her throat.

  She shrugged. “He’s my kryptonite.”

  “Kryptonite kills, remember? It would be better if he were your sun or something.”

  “This conversation couldn’t be nerdier if we tried,” Bekah said.

  “Sure, it could.” Alexa smiled, too. “I’m not sure how, but I’m sure it could.”

  Bekah stood. “I have to get going. The step is taking us to dinner tonight.”

  “Have fun with that.” Alexa pulled her notebook back onto her lap. She was determined to keep her grades up. She wouldn’t let her dad strip away the only thing left in her life she loved by giving him a reason to take away theater.

  “Hey, Alexa?”

  “Yeah?” Alexa looked up at Bekah who was fiddling with her gold doorknob and obviously stalling.

  “You okay? I mean really, are you good?”

  Alexa shrugged. “As good as I can be.”

  “He’ll wait for you. West, I mean. And, for your dad to come around. West is way too into you to walk away.”

  It warmed Alexa’s heart to hear Bekah say the words and she was reminded again of why they were best friends. Bekah seemed to always know the right thing to say. When Alexa’s mom had died, Bekah had been right by her side. She hadn’t tried to cheer her up or fill the void with words, she’d just been there. She’d played with Graham and helped clean up the kitchen when Alexa and her dad had been too tired to move. Grief stricken and raw.

  She smiled at her now and crossed over to where she was standing. In a rare display of emotion, Alexa put her arms around Bekah. “Thank you.”

  That night as she sat at the table with Graham and her dad, Bekah’s words about West played on repeat in her head. ‘He’ll wait.’ She hoped like crazy Bekah was right. The silence at the table was deafening. Graham’s eyes swung between her and their dad, who was hiding behind the newspaper.

  She felt bad for Graham, but she didn’t know what to say to her dad. Even if she wasn’t mad, which she was, she didn’t have anything to say to him. Sometime in the last year, she’d forgotten how to talk to him. He’d become more like a stranger than her dad, and her heart ached at the realization things between them might never be the same. It wouldn’t be long before she’d be out of the house. If they couldn’t find common ground when they were living under the same roof, she had no idea how they would have any sort of relationship once she was hundreds of miles away, when her choice of future career would make him even angrier than he was now.

  He wouldn’t understand when she moved to New York. And, she feared he would do everything in his power to keep it from happening. Unfortunately for him, she would be eighteen. She would finally be able to make her own decisions.

  Alexa moved the mashed potatoes around on her plate. It would be another fight for another day. She was exhausted thinking about it.

  “Alexa,” her dad said, pulling her out of her daydreams and back to the present, “why don’t you take Graham to a movie? Might be nice to get out of the house.”

  Graham snapped to attention, his face eager.

  “Sure.” Alexa turned her focus to her brother. “Wanna go this weekend?”

  “Yeah.” He all but bounced in his chair in anticipation. “I’m going to go upstairs and check out what’s playing.”

  “Pick something good,” Alexa called after him.

  “Yeah, yeah.” It was nice to see him excited. Going out with him would get her out of the house without her dad hovering and asking a hundred questions. It would be a nice change.

  With her brother gone, the kitchen seemed claustrophobic and the awkwardness between she and her dad esca
lated. To escape the table, Alexa began clearing the dishes. Her dad stood and crossed to stand next to her at the sink.

  “Maybe you could invite Josh to go along with you and Graham?”

  “Yeah, maybe.”

  “He’s a nice kid, Josh.”

  “Yeah, he is.” She fought the urge to roll her eyes. If this was her dad’s idea of smoothing things over he had another thing coming.

  “Alexa, I’m trying here. I don’t want you to feel like a prisoner in the house. You should be getting out more.”

  She placed one soapy hand on her hip and stared, wide eyed. “Are you serious right now?”

  At her dad’s confused expression, she continued. “You want me to go out, but it has to be with the friends you deem appropriate, is that right?”

  “Alexa, that boy isn’t right for you.” He jumped to West without her saying his name. It was always there between them.

  “Why? Because you didn’t pick him? Because his family doesn’t belong to the country club?”

  “That has nothing to do with it,” her dad shouted, sweat appearing on his brow.

  “And, you wondered why I didn’t tell you I was seeing him,” she said. “This is why I didn’t tell you sooner.” Alexa yanked the towel off the counter, dried her hands and tossed it down. The fight which had been brewing, arriving at last. The silence between them had been teetering on the edge the entire week, like storm clouds looming on the horizon.

  “I didn’t raise you to be a liar.”

  “No, you didn’t. You raised me to be like you. Focused, driven, able to make my own decisions. And, it worked. It’s who I am, but you won’t let me be who I am. You want me to stay this little girl forever, but it doesn’t work like that, Dad.”

  He flexed his hand and rolled his left shoulder. “Alexa, you may think you know what you want, but you don’t. You’ll change your mind a hundred times. And, that boy—”