by Anne Carol
“Rachel!” I shouted, and as soon as we pulled up to the house, I hurried out of the car and ran toward my big sister to give her a long overdue hug.
“Hi, Beth! I’ve missed you!” she cried. I hadn’t seen her since her May graduation, and it seemed that a summer away from home agreed with her. She was gorgeous with the way her blond hair hung in loose curls and her blue eyes gleamed with happiness. Not to mention, she had a much better tan than her sister, who’d lived under a cloud all summer.
After we unloaded the car and headed inside, I relaxed on my bed and took a good look at my room. I was just rethinking my celebrity pinups when Rachel wandered in.
“So how are you? Was it hard coming home?” She sat down next to me.
“Honestly, yes. I mean, I love being home again. I just wish David could’ve come with me.”
“Now you understand why I stayed in San Diego this summer. I’m anxious to get back to Joey.”
“I’ll bet. You’ll have to fill me in on that.” I raised my eyebrows.
“And I want to hear about your dreamboat. I hope I get to meet him someday.”
“I’m sure you will,” I said as I fiddled with the silky edge of my pillow.
“So you’re going to try the long-distance thing?”
“Yeah, I have to. He’s the one, I’m sure of it.”
“Wow, sister. Does that mean you’ll apply to a school in London?”
“That’s my plan.”
“Carrying on the family tradition.” She grinned. “Oh, before I forget, something came for you in the mail. From your guy.” She hopped up from the bed and skipped into the kitchen, where the mail was piled up.
Already?
A few seconds later, a white envelope flew my way, landing on my side. Sure enough, it was from David. With the timing, I knew he must’ve mailed it long before our last meeting.
The note was short, but sweet. He said to call when I got in so he knew I got home safely. I hugged the note to my chest.
As if on cue, the phone started ringing. I wasn’t surprised when my mom told me David was on the line.
Rachel shook her head in disbelief. “You are smitten.”
I left my room and went to grab the phone from the counter. “Hi, baby.”
“Hi angel. It’s good to hear your voice.”
“I was just about to call you. Thanks for the note. Real cute.”
“Thought you’d enjoy that.” I knew he was smiling. “So how was your flight?”
“Long.” I paused for a moment. “How are you?”
“Lonely. I slept with your bear last night.”
“Did you? I don’t think I slept at all last night, though I made up for it on the plane.”
We spoke for a few more minutes before he said he had to go.
Before we hung up, we figured out a calling arrangement. His mom suggested once a week, on Sundays after I got home from church, if we took turns calling in order to share the cost. It didn’t seem like a lot, but I knew long-distance calls weren’t cheap, so we didn’t really have a choice. Most of our communication would have to be in written form.
I was hit with a bitter chill as the separation anxiety officially began.
When I woke up the next morning, Dad had already left the house and my mom and sister were still sleeping, so I enjoyed the quiet and flipped through a stack of magazines while I ate breakfast.
As I was rinsing my plate, my mom and sister dragged themselves into the kitchen.
“Wow, you were up early. Did you sleep okay, sweetie?” Mom asked in her best maternal tone.
“Like a rock.”
“Oh, good. Listen, I need to take Rachel to her eye appointment this morning, and then I was thinking after lunch we could all go school shopping. How does that sound?”
“Sure, sounds good. I might see what Susie and Melissa are doing this evening, if that’s alright.”
“Of course it’s alright.”
She must’ve known that I was driving home a point, that I wasn’t about to become a recluse in my room endlessly writing love letters to David. I actually planned on spending a lot of time with my friends.
After cleaning up the dishes and watching a little morning news, I went back to my room to finish unpacking and then shower. While I was showering, I belted out a few sappy love songs, not caring if anybody could hear me, though I imagined David was listening on the other side of the curtain.
After a while, my skin started to prune, so I shut off the water and stepped out of the shower into my plush robe. I sang loudly to my mirror image as I combed through my hair.
Okay, enough sap, it’s time for some Sex Pistols, I thought.
Tying my robe tightly around me, I headed to my room, intending to put my new LP on the turntable.
But as my eyes fell on the bed, I jumped back and let out a blood-curdling scream.
Hell, this has got to be an illusion.
But it wasn’t. There he was—his tall, muscular body parked on my bed, his giant hands covering his ears as he winced.
“What are you doing here? Get out of my room!” I screamed.
Ignoring my outburst, he held up my new record albums. “Since when are you into punk rock?”
“That’s none of your business! Just get out of here!” I shouted, pointing to the door.
He raised his hands. “Relax, Beth. I’m not going to touch you, but you owe me some answers, now.” His eyes suddenly turned dark.
Shrinking back, with my heart beating out of my chest, I nodded. “Fine, but can you go wait in the other room while I get dressed?”
“Yep.” He slipped off my bed and let himself out.
I shut the door and locked it, leaning against it as I caught my breath.
Rick. Oh, here we go.
I froze, fearful of the confrontation that was about to take place. There was no way I was ready for this, and the fact that we were alone in the house gave me a sinking feeling. David’s voice from the other day echoed in my head: “Just stay away from him.” He would die if he knew Rick was here right now.
After I got dressed, I reluctantly left my room to go find Rick. I shuddered when I spotted him on the couch, especially when he stared me down with his icy blue eyes.
Stay calm, Beth. But I couldn’t stop the tremors inside.
Wanting to keep my distance, I took a seat on the opposite end and coolly addressed him. “Can I ask how you got in here?”
“Door was open.” Oh? I made a mental note to give Mom and Rachel a hard time for their carelessness.
“Well, you scared me to death, showing up in my room like that. That was just rude,” I said.
“I’m sorry.” He looked away, shame-faced. “But when you didn’t return my call yesterday, I got impatient.”
My pulse sped up in apprehension. What is wrong with my family?
“I didn’t know you called.”
“Rachel didn’t tell you?” he snapped.
“No, but I’m not surprised she forgot. Yesterday was a little crazy.”
“Yeah.” He ran his hand along the back of his neck. “So who were you singing to in the shower?”
The hairs on my skin were standing on end. I couldn’t believe the nerve of him.
“Nobody,” I lied. “I was just singing. Am I allowed to do that in my own shower? I didn’t realize I had an audience.”
He looked at me speculatively.
“Why don’t I believe you?”
“I don’t know.” I was tired of his dancing around, so I asked, “What’s this about, Rick? Just spill it.”
He sat there, assessing me with narrowed eyes.
“I heard a rumor about you,” he said with a tight voice.
“What’s the rumor?”
“Did you meet someone else while you were in London?”
“I met a lot of people while I was in London, why?” I said, remaining distant. I knew I wasn’t being nice, but I was so annoyed with him after everything he’d put me through that I d
idn’t care anymore.
“You know what I mean,” he growled through clenched teeth, his eyes blazing with fury.
I silently panicked for a moment.
“Beth, answer me! Did you start dating someone while you were there?”
“And what if I did? What are you going to do about it?” I threw my hands up. “I’m already in love with him!”
There, I said it. I’m toast.
Like an exploding stick of dynamite, Rick jumped up from his seat and stood over me, red-faced and wide-eyed.
“You lying, cheating bitch!” Feeling the spray from his lips made me shake with repulsion.
Forgetting my fear, I popped up from the couch.
“Why don’t you try looking in a mirror? You’re the one who cheated!” I poked my finger on his chest.
“That was a stupid drunken mistake! I told you I was sorry and it meant nothing!”
“It was still cheating! Drunk or not, you slept with someone else!”
“I did not sleep with her!”
“Whatever you did, you crossed a huge line, and after that I had every right to go after David.”
“David, is that his name?” He wrinkled his nose. “So did you and David—?” He waved his hand in the air.
“What? Sleep together? No!” I responded. “You know how I feel about that. He respects me and is willing to wait.”
He shook his head. “That’s pretty easy when he’s on a different continent.”
I sucked in my breath. His comment stung hard and I found myself fighting back tears. And then he kept going.
“How do you expect this to work, anyway? You can’t possibly keep up a relationship with someone who lives on the other side of the world.”
“Stop! Just STOP!” I screamed. “It’s none of your damn business! I told you on the phone, it’s over!”
“Oh, yeah? Well, it’s not over for me. I’m not letting you go that easily! Eventually you’re going to get tired of having a boyfriend in another country. You’re going to miss this …”
He grabbed my face and tried to kiss me, but I quickly shifted, pushing him away. As soon as he backed off, I reached my hand up and slapped him across the face, hard.
“Just leave me alone!” I shouted.
“Dammit, Beth! How could you?” He shook me by the shoulders.
“How dare you come into my house and curse at my daughter like that!” Rick and I both jerked our heads toward the entryway, where my mom and sister were now standing, looking horrified. “You, sir, have caused enough damage to my daughter. Now, get out!” Mom pointed toward the front door.
“You’ll be back, just wait,” he whispered through clenched teeth, before dashing past my mom and out the door.
As I stood there, shaking, my mom came toward me and gave me a hug.
“What happened, honey? Were you expecting him?” she asked, her voice full of concern.
“No, he just showed up—while I was in the shower, no less. Someone left the front door unlocked,” I said.
My sister gasped and put her hand to her mouth. “I’m sorry, Beth. I didn’t realize! Are you okay? He didn’t hurt you, did he?”
“No, thank goodness.” I sighed in relief. “He just surprised me, that’s all. Why didn’t you tell me he called?” I demanded.
“I’m sorry, I completely forgot. What did he do?”
I gave Mom and Rachel a rundown of what happened while they were out. They both felt terrible about not locking the door, and Mom was livid that Rick had the nerve to sneak into my bedroom.
“I have a good mind to call his mother and tell her what he did,” she fumed.
“Mom, let it go, please?” I begged. I just wanted this to be over, but deep down I feared this was just the beginning.
“Alright, but I swear, if that boy upsets you again, he’s going to have to answer to me and your father!” Mom huffed, her soft wrinkles creasing with frustration.
Heaven, help me.
That evening, as I sat in the driver’s seat of my blue 1970 Chevy, a hand me down from my parents, I bounced with excitement at the thought of seeing Melissa and Susie again. My bag was full of pictures from the summer, while my memory offered plenty of stories to share. Of course, I wasn’t planning on doing all the talking as I fully expected updates on all the Garden Valley gossip.
As I pulled up to Melissa’s brick one-story house, two familiar figures were standing on the porch, watching for me. The sight of my two best friends was too much, and I jumped out of the car, barely making it two feet before they tackled me with warm hugs.
“Wow, I sure missed you guys!” I cried. “I wish you could’ve been there with me.”
“We can’t wait to hear about David! Come on!” Susie exclaimed, pulling me by my elbow toward the house. “Melissa’s making ice cream sundaes.”
Once we were in the house and I’d put my bag down, we made our way into the kitchen where the sundae fixings were spread out on the counter. As Melissa dished out the ice cream, she glanced at my neckline. She reached over and picked up the heart charm on my necklace. “So pretty. Is this from Mr. Rock Star?”
I chuckled over her name for David. “Yes, he gave it to me about week ago on a picnic in the countryside. It means we’re committed to each other, even though we’re separated by distance.”
“And that means no dating other people?” Melissa asked.
“Correct.”
“And if you guys can make this work, you’ll go to college over there?”
“Yep.”
Susie and Melissa had matching puppy dog eyes and slumped shoulders.
“We don’t like that part, but we’re so glad you met your true love. We want to hear everything!” Susie urged.
The three of us settled at the kitchen table, where we made total pigs of ourselves while giving each other updates. It was so much fun spending time with them. I loved how we could just pick up where we left off, and I silently vowed to make them a priority this school year.
We were gossiping about guys, commenting on who was dating whom, when out of the blue, I said, “So who’s Rick seeing these days?”
Susie and Melissa immediately exchanged looks.
“Uh, Beth, he’s going to try to get you back. That’s the rumor I’ve heard from Laurie’s boyfriend, Eric.”
I snorted. “Think he might’ve changed his mind after this morning.” I continued on to explain about Rick’s unexpected visit that morning.
“That jackass!” Melissa shouted. “Does he really think he has a claim on you after what he did?”
“Apparently so.”
“Hmph, wish I could’ve seen his face when you told him about David.” She grinned devilishly. “Bet that felt good.”
“Just like punching him in the gut,” I boasted.
“Yeah, I just hope he doesn’t pester you at school,” Susie said. “He could, you know.”
“You mean Mr. Arrogant Jock? No!” Melissa put her hand over her mouth in feigned shock.
“You’ll have to protect me, girls, on behalf of David,” I joked.
“You know we will,” Melissa said, sounding serious. “We’ll be your bodyguards.”
“Speaking of David … pictures?” Susie pointed to my bag. “Let’s see ’em.”
Our running dialogue changed tack from Rick to David in a split second. As I shared the photos, I went over the events of summer, trying to remember which stuff I wrote about in my letters. We talked for hours, until my eyelids started getting heavy.
“Alright, girls, I’m still on Greenwich Mean Time.” I yawned again. “I need to hit the sack.”
Melissa walked Susie and me to our cars. Before I opened my car door, Susie hollered from her dad’s truck, “Hey, there’s a big party next Saturday over at Ryan’s. Last one before school. You have to go, Beth. You’ve missed all the other parties and everybody wants to see you.”
My stomach did a back flip. Everybody, great.
“I don’t know, Rick’ll probably
be there, right?”
“Yeah, I’m sure he will.” She sighed. “Beth, you can’t avoid him all year. You might as well get used to it. There’ll be plenty of other people there. It’s not like you have to talk to him. Come on, it’ll be fun!”
“Hmm … I’ll think about it.” I stared at the ground, contemplating. After the terrible things he’d said to me that morning, it was too soon to even consider being around him, especially at a party where he’d be drinking. That didn’t sound like a brilliant plan on my part.
The three of us said our goodbyes, and I made my way home, taking with me a mixed bag of feelings. I was happy to be back with my old friends again, but nervous about how my social life would unfold as school started. Susie was right, I couldn’t avoid Rick forever, and I had every right to go to parties and have fun. He just needed to learn to stay away from me. The question was, would he?
I thought it was best not to mention the party idea to David; I didn’t want him to worry about Rick being around me, and I still wasn’t sure if I going to go, anyway. And I certainly wasn’t planning to tell him about Rick showing up in my bedroom—that would’ve killed him. However, the next time we spoke, which was only a few days later, he figured out that something wasn’t right.
We started off talking about what we’d each been doing since I’d left London, which we agreed had been the longest four days of our lives. I told him I was feeling nervous about school starting in just over a week, and he shared that he’d been writing new songs and rehearsing for his band’s next performance.
“I miss you so much.” His voice was sullen. “It’s not the same here without you.”
“I miss you, too,” I echoed. “So what are you writing about in your songs?”
“Oh, a few things. Long-distance love, loneliness, ex-boyfriends.” My heart sank at his answer, but I was puzzled by the last one.
“Ex-boyfriends?”
“Yes. You deal with your concerns by journaling, I deal with mine through writing lyrics.”
“Are you that concerned about Rick?”
“I wish I could tell you otherwise, but yes, I’m quite concerned. Have you heard from him?”