Night Sky

by Jolene Perry

  I swim…and then swim some more…and then swim some more. It works my body and keeps my brain from wandering to places I don’t want it to go. I almost won state last year in the men’s freestyle. I have to do it this year. It gives me an excuse to spend hour after hour in the solitude of the pool.

  I’m still getting sympathy stares from Mom, and Dad’s been working every shift he can get his hands on. Maybe he wants to update his Porsche.

  I’m mad at myself for not asking Sky for her number, and wish I could erase Sarah from my mind.

  FOUR

  There have been a lot of mornings—especially Mondays—that I haven’t wanted to go to school. But they don’t compare to this Monday. Not even a little bit. I think about being sick today. Mom and Dad don’t care if I take a day off every once in a while. I keep my grades up. I’m a part of the Honor Society and student government and all that. But if I don’t go today, I’ll just have to go tomorrow…or the next day. One extra day at home isn’t going to change anything. Which sucks.

  I put on my Green Valley High School t-shirt, Diesel jeans and old school Asics. Something normal, something I’d wear any day. I run my hands over my head, thankful I don’t have any hair to deal with. Sarah hasn’t called for a ride so I’m assuming she’s getting one from someone else. I take a deep breath before my lungs cave in.

  There’s a student government meeting this morning. I have time for a Cliff bar and nothing else. I take my first bite as I step out the front door.

  “Shit, shit, shit!” I hear a girl’s voice.

  I stop next to my car and see Sky, a few houses down, kicking the tires of a worn down, red Honda Civic. Where has she been this past week? Because I’ve looked toward her grandparents’ house more times than I care to admit.

  “Problem?” I yell.

  “No!” She laughs. “Everything’s freaking perfect!”

  I climb into my car and back out of the driveway. I watch her face fall and then brighten as I stop next to her. Most people look better in the dark—their faces lit up by the street lamps or backyard pool lights. But not Sky, her deep skin is even more incredible in the sun.

  “So…this is actually your car?” She places her hands on her hips, but all I can see from the driver’s seat is legs that go on for miles.

  “This is my car.” I smile at her through the window.

  “It’s a Golf. An old one.”

  “An on and off lifeguard job at the local pool doesn’t quite pay for a Porsche.” I open my door and stand up, resting my hand on the doorframe.

  “Guess not.” She shifts her backpack higher on her shoulder. “So, what does?”

  “My parents work in a casino.” It’s funny that no one really questions that. They know there’s good money to be made there, if you have one of the right jobs.

  “Oh.”

  “Can I give you a ride?”

  “Don’t you need to get to school?”

  She’s pointing out my age again, I’m sure of it.

  “Don’t you?” I ask.

  Her smile widens. “Yeah, but are you sure you don’t mind?”

  “Not at all.” A corner of my mouth pulls up into a smile—something that seemed impossible only a few moments ago.

  “Thanks.”

  Sky is wearing her tiny shorts, hoodie, and old chucks with her long hair flowing behind her as she walks around the front of my car.

  I climb in at the same time she does.

  “Don’t look at me like that, Jay.” She purses her lips together, but I can see she’s trying to hold back a smile.

  “Like what?” I let myself smile back as I put the car in drive and head toward her college campus. This is probably going to be the best part of my day.

  “Like you’re trying to earn your real kiss.” She crosses her legs.

  I glance down.

  “Eyes on the road.” She laughs and pulls her backpack onto her lap. “Thanks for the ride. I’m not good with math, and it doesn’t help that the class starts at seven thirty in the morning.”

  “What kind of math are you doing?” The university is close, and I know I only have about three more minutes in the car with her. I want to make the most of them.

  “Just college Algebra.” Her shoulders slump.

  “I could help you, if you want.” College Algebra? I know I can help.

  “Well wouldn’t that be crazy?”

  As I study her face, I don’t think she’s that much older than me—a year or two tops. Much better, she might not be as far out of my league as I thought. Well, as far as ages go.

  “Come over later. I’ll make sure there’s Pepsi. We’ll work on math, and if you want, we could go for another swim.”

  “I don’t know what to make of you.” Her face looks more serious than I’ve ever seen it.

  Milk chocolate eyes, high cheekbones, thin lips. I want to run my finger down the line of her jaw, across her chin. I’m probably just putting whatever I felt…or feel…for Sarah onto Sky, which really isn’t fair. But then I remember our kiss, and I think about how much I’d like to do it again.

  “Whatever you’re thinking—stop.” She points at me.

  I resist the temptation to kiss the tip of her finger. “Stopping.” I put my car in park and wait for her to climb out.

  “Thanks for the ride, Jay.”

  “See you later. You know…for Pepsi.” I lean over the passenger’s seat so I can see her face.

  “And math.” She stops before closing the door. “If I need help.”

  The door closes, and I sit and watch her long legs walk away. What am I doing?

  ***

  I jog into the student government meeting about five minutes before it’s supposed to end.

  “Oh, there’s our student body vice president. Nice of you to show.” I hear as I walk through the door.

  Matt and I are friends, but he gets a power trip over being student body president.

  “Bite me, Matt.” I laugh and plant my butt on a desk placing my feet in the chair in front of it.

  “We were just talking about the next assembly.”

  Now all eyes are on me. I’m never late. I’m always early. Always. I ignore the looks being thrown my way and pull out my notebook. “Safety assembly, right?”

  “Uh… right.” Matt’s mouth pulls down, obviously annoyed that I remembered the agenda for the meeting.

  “I talked with our two speakers yesterday, and they’re good to go.” I glance down at my notes. “Mr. Forrester did a dry run with the projection screen in the gym. So the slide show that the police want to do should go off without a hitch.”

  The door opens again. Sarah. My mouth is dry. I’m pretty sure my tongue swells up to the size of a baseball and my heart is threatening to break free of my ribcage. Even the shape of her body shows her bubbly personality. She’s short with great curves and a big smile. This sucks.

  “What were you two up to?” Kaylee smirks at me tapping my foot with hers.

  Right. Kaylee’s not allowed to go to dances. She’s probably the only one in the school who doesn’t know our star quarterback has a new girlfriend. And then it happens. What I knew I’d have to face today. Eric appears behind her, leans down, and gives her a kiss before stepping away. Sarah’s lips…the ones I’ve stared at for…okay, I gotta get a grip or I’ll never make it through the day.

  She beams. It’s a Sarah smile. The one no one should be able to resist because it’s full of goodness and happiness. She half leans out the door as it closes. When she turns to face us, a look of pure happiness is still all over her face. It dances in her eyes and weaves its way through her body.

  The whole room is now staring at her.

  “Sorry.” She bites her bottom lip to hold in her goofy grin.

  Her joy stabs and pulls at my chest, but my mouth stays closed. I make no sound. I’m just amazed that I’m still in one piece.

  “Jameson will catch me up to speed later.” She sits on the desk behind me and does a q
uick, soft scratch on my back. She always does this. Today is the first day I haven’t loved it.

  “Well, we’re adjourned unless anyone has any objections.” Matt sighs as if in defeat. A whole five minutes of his meeting was disturbed. Fortunately, I’m used to him. Matt is an odd mix of overachiever and lazy jock. It only seems like a contradiction in terms if you haven’t met him.

  I stand up and Sarah throws her arms around me, hugging me tightly. “Thank you. You know, for everything.”

  “Are you moving or something?” I try to tease. I don’t want to let the warmth of her body next to mine affect me, but it’s hard. She feels so good. I lean my face down, just a little and breathe in. But I have to keep from choking. She doesn’t smell like Sarah, she smells like a guy’s cologne, like Eric.

  I drop my arms.

  “I gotta run.” She steps back, goofy grin still intact.

  “See ya.” And I stand in the room like an idiot watching her walk away.

  “You okay?” Kaylee asks, bumping my side with her shoulder.

  “I…I don’t know.” The classroom is empty aside from Mr. Carlson, who pretty much lets us run our own meetings.

  “You like her.” Kaylee’s voice is quiet.

  “Doesn’t matter.” I shake my head.

  “If it makes you feel better, I was just waiting for the day when you two walked in here holding hands. It felt inevitable.” Now she’s giving me the same sympathetic smile Mom does. If it felt inevitable to her, how come it didn’t feel inevitable to Sarah?

  “Jameson?” Mr. Carlson asks from his desk. He’s a good teacher and a great coach.

  “Yeah?” I whirl around.

  “Don’t forget the first official swim team practice is this afternoon.”

  “You know I’ll be there.”

  “Great,” he says adjusting his wire glasses before turning back to his computer.

  I’ll need the distraction.

  FIVE

  “Jameson!” Coach Carlson waves at me as I step out of the locker room next to the pool.

  “Hey.” I walk up to him and set down my bag. It feels like I’ll explode if I have to sit still any longer. The tension from my day—from watching Sarah and Eric, Eric and Sarah—is built up high.

  “You’re still up for this, right?” He holds a clipboard under his arm.

  “Being team captain? Of course.”

  “It’s a lot of work,” he warns again.

  “I know. I’m ready.”

  “Great.” He walks away to start practice. “Make sure you get a junior for your co-captain, okay? I need someone to take your place next year.”

  I laugh. “No one can take my place, coach.”

  He laughs with me over his shoulder. “You’re probably right.”

  Finally, something I’m good at. I can’t wait to get in the water.

  ***

  I pull into the driveway after spending a rigorous couple of hours in the school pool to hear Mom and Dad arguing. My good mood from practice vanishes. My parents aren’t perfect, and it’s not like they never argue. It’s just that they don’t argue very often. I spin around at the front door, and walk through the backyard instead. I open the slider door to my room and drop my backpack on the bedroom floor.

  Their voices die down and one of them walks out. It’s Dad, because the next thing I hear is the kitchen faucet. When Mom and Dad argue, Mom spends the next few days scrubbing the entire house and slamming cupboard doors harder than necessary. I’m sure her cleaning frenzy will eventually make it to my room so I sit down and start cleaning. Better to get some of it over with now.

  I’m in front of the TV as I start putting stacks of DVDs and Blu-Ray’s back into their cases. As I sit, I can see into my bathroom. It’s a mess, too. Mom insisted that a skinny little sink on some sort of post would make my bathroom look bigger. But really, all it does is leave me with no place to put my stuff.

  The problem is that cleaning my room won’t help me stop thinking about Sarah. She’s everywhere in here. Most of the movies that are out of their cases are ones we watched together. My desk has two chairs, because she’s here so often I just leave the two chairs by the computer. She helped me put up most of the posters in my room – all that weirdo music I listen to so much. I lean against my bed. How many hours have we sat together on my bed doing homework or watching a movie? Wishing I had the guts to press our lips together. Well, this is it. I’m officially moping. Does that make me pathetic? At this point, I honestly don’t care.

  “Knock, knock.” Mom’s voice carries farther than her soft knocks, like always.

  “Come on in.” My room looks good for a change. I can see the floor, the whole floor.

  “Wow.” Mom surveys the room as she steps inside. I forget how pretty my mom is because I see her every day. She’ll never believe me, but my favorite way to see her is clean-faced and in a ponytail.

  “I…” I start to say I heard you fighting, but suddenly that doesn’t seem like the right thing to say.

  “I heard you drive up,” she says sitting on my bed. “Your dad has been really distracted lately. It feels like something’s going on, but I’m not sure what.” I wonder if she meant to say that out loud. She’s staring out my window at the backyard. “I’m also not sure how to ask him.”

  I open my mouth to speak, but have no idea what to say.

  Her body jerks, as if suddenly aware of my presence. “Sorry, Jameson. Should we order a pizza tonight?”

  Pizza is sure to weigh me down for tomorrow’s swim practice, but I don’t need to give her any more problems. “Sounds great, Mom.” I want to ask when Dad will be home, but I stop myself. What does it mean that I’m afraid to ask? Is this fight different?

  She stands up and starts out of my room. “Your dad picked up an extra shift. He won’t be home ‘til late.”

  “Okay.” I do a good job of keeping my voice smooth, but my gut feels all twisted up inside.

  I’m not sure what to do with myself, so I sit in the quiet of my room until I hear Mom answer the door for our pizza. So, now I have to try and act normal, and pretend there’s nothing hanging in the air—nothing about Sarah and Eric, nothing about Mom and Dad. I take a deep breath and step into the kitchen.

  “Please not Valentine’s Day, Mom.” I really can’t handle that movie right now.

  “I suppose you want me to watch one of your British gangster movies where they drop the f-bomb every chance they get?” She cocks an eyebrow and hands me a plate with a slice of Hawaiian.

  “Mom, you’re too old to say f-bomb, and yeah, that’s what I’m in the mood for.” We stare at one another over the kitchen counter. “Alright, Valentine’s Day would be great,” I concede with a smile. I’ll be a good son and watch the girlie movie with her.

  Mom laughs. “How about Sherlock Holmes? It’s done by that same guy you like so much, right?”

  I nod. It’s a good compromise.

  We’re a third of the way into the movie, and I’ve managed to devour three slices of pizza. I’m slumped on the couch like the skinny teenage version of Homer Simpson when I hear a knock at the door.

  “I’ll get it.” Mom stands up. “I need another slice anyway.”

  I turn back to the movie. Rachel McAdams is about to come on. She’s hot, and the TV has my full attention. But then I hear her voice.

  “I’m Sky, I’m here for math.”

  “I’m Megan,” Mom says, “and I’m here because I live here.” She laughs. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  Like a shot I’m off the couch, my heart beating triple time. In two leaping steps I can see her and Mom talking in the entryway. I guess part of me figured she wouldn’t show. And part of me just forgot, which seems insane.

  “Hey, Jay. Offer still on?” She smiles this relaxed smile like her gorgeous form is always popping in for math and Pepsi.

  “Uh…” Snap out of it, idiot. “Yeah, we’re still on.”

  “Good, because matrices are kicking my butt,�
� she says, walking toward me.

  Mom’s eyes are wide as she stares at me. Then she mouths the word—wow.

  That pretty much covers Sky. Right now, I just want to breathe. One small step at a time and maybe I’ll be able to act something close to normal. Probably right about the time she leaves.

  “Oh, I love this movie.” She smiles as she steps into the living room. “I’m totally interrupting, aren’t I?” Her gaze slides between Mom and me.

  “Nope.” Mom shoves the last few slices of pizza into the fridge. “I was just about to go sort out my closet.”

  “Okay.” Sky’s lips are pressed together, her body twisting slightly from side to side, as if unsure of what to do. She glances between Mom and me several more times.

  Mom lets the fridge door close then heads for her room.

  “Everything okay?” Sky’s voice is quieter than a whisper.

  “Let me grab a couple of sodas and we can sit by the pool?” I offer in a normal voice. Okay, I’m doing better than I thought.

  “I’ll skip the soda, but the pool sounds nice.” Her deep brown eyes meet mine before she follows me out the back door.

  I pull out a chair for her at our table in the backyard.

  “Well, aren’t you a gentleman.” She gives me a half-smile as she sits.

  “I…” It’s just something I’ve always done.

  She sets her book down. “So, do you want to talk about it, and get it out of the way? Or would you like me to ignore it?”

  “What?” What’s she calling me on now?

  “The mood in the room when I walked in.” She leans toward me, and I breathe in. I can’t help it. She smells like vanilla.

  “Well, my day went about as expected…”

  “The girl?” She gives me a briefly sympathetic frown.

  “Yeah, it’s all anyone could talk about today.” But I really don’t feel like reliving all that. “And then my parents were arguing when I got home.”

  “Which explains the closet cleaning?” She has dimples under her cheekbones when she smiles. I didn’t notice them before. And even on her bronze skin, I can see light freckles across her nose and cheeks.