The Great High School Love Game

by Marcia Carrington

  “I can’t Franci, I can’t,” he admitted. Francine had never seen Jake so upset, and was a little guilty for what she and Chad did, but, remembered if she really wanted Jake, this was the price to pay to get him. Gain never comes without pain of some kind, Francine considered.

  “Jake, you’ll forget about Amy,” Francine said, speaking softly. Francine again took the shattered Jake back into her arms, eyes flying with passion in all directions. “Time’s the only thing that’ll get Amy out of your mind — trust me Jake, you’ll see.”

  * * * *

  Shortly after leaving Jake’s house, Amy ran over to see Chad, as she believed he would understand her, and be able to help her. After seeing Jake hug Francine at his house, Amy had never felt so lost before in her life, today’s experience not helping matters any. Amy impatiently banged on Chad’s door, saying, “Chad, please open up, I need to speak to you.” Chad quickly opened the door to Amy, alarmed by the commotion she was making.

  Chad witnessed Amy in tears, and quickly motioned for her to come in. He had never seen her this emotional before, and was a little distressed. Chad took Amy by the hand, and led her over to his sofa, where they sat together in silence. As Amy continued to cry, Chad handed her the tissue box, which she gratefully accepted. Amy dabbed her eyes, and looked at Chad like a lost puppy dog.

  “Amy, what’s wrong?” Chad asked, seeing that Amy had calmed down slightly, and was now in more of a mood to speak.

  “I just saw something I can’t believe,” she said, choking back some tears.

  “What?” Chad asked, a little tense seeing Amy this way. Chad and Amy moved closer together on his sofa, and he provided her with some more tissues to wipe her eyes, as the tissue box he had given her had run out. “Can I help some way?”

  “I saw…I saw Jake hugging Francine at his home,” Amy wheezed. “And it seemed like he was enjoying himself. Anyway, I’m not surprised. First Jane, now Francine…who next?”

  “Oh,” Chad intoned, quietly happy at this turn of events. What luck, to actually see Jake caught in the act with Francine — this would only drive him and Amy closer together — Francine could not have planned it any better. As Amy was still crying, Chad beckoned her to accept his embrace, which she did without a qualm. Amy felt so safe in Chad’s firm embrace, and better than she had for days.

  “Come on, it’s not as bad as you think,” Chad said, stroking Amy’s long, blonde hair. Chad felt very comfortable with Amy in his arms, and wished he could have her like this forever. He believed that he was holding an angel, and with Amy in his arms, all was well in his world.

  For Chad, Amy was the most beautiful, kindest, gentlest, sweetest person in the world. Now that Jake seemed stranger for Amy to understand than ever before, Chad could finally get what he wanted. Chad let go of Amy for a moment, to her surprise, and looked her in the eyes.

  “Let me know if I can do anything, anything at all, even if it’s the smallest thing you can think of.”

  “Dunno what I would’ve done without you,” Amy said, smiling at Chad. After a few seconds, tears again sprang in her eyes, to Chad’s distress. “Please, just hold me Chad,” Amy begged, falling back into his arms.

  With a wry smile, and much anticipation in his heart, Chad told Amy, as he stroked her hair,

  “Don’t worry Amy, everything’ll be okay from now on — I’ll make sure of it.”

  * * * *

  After leaving Chad’s house late in the afternoon, Amy went home, and headed straight upstairs to her bedroom. She sat down on her bed, and was still for a few moments. Amy recalled seeing Jake hugging Francine through his windows, and how devastating it was to actually see Jake doing this. She also heard the letter from Jane to Jake repeatedly rehashed in her mind, and slammed her fist on the bed in anger. Amy, though, felt like she was getting nowhere stewing about Jake, and what he did to her, and arose from the bed, approaching her bedroom window. She looked outside, thinking about everything that had happened, and what her next move would be.

  “I’m gonna forget about Jake — what I had with him’s in the past — it’s now the future that counts,” she sighed, nodding her head, thinking about Chad, and how supportive he had been at this difficult time. Amy walked back to her bed, and again sat on it. She leant over to her bedside table, and opened the drawer little by little.

  Amy took out some photos of her and Jake from the gala, and looked at them blankly. Amy and Jake were dressed as Cinderella and Prince Charming, and they were positively glowing with delight. It was the best night of her life, or so she thought at the time. Amy flicked through some more photos, and copious tears began filling her eyes. Amy quickly put these back into the bottom of her drawer, and let out another sigh. After finally closing the drawer, Amy whimpered,

  “It was too good to be true.”

  * * * *

  Jake was in his bedroom, seated at his writing desk. He was intently looking at a framed photo of himself and Amy taken several months earlier. Amy and Jake had been out one day at the seaside, and were wearing matching caps in the photo which they had bought at one of the stalls.

  They had been to the carnival, and played on all the games, and attempted many of the rides that day. It was such a good day for him and Amy, but, one of their last together. Jake groaned heavily thinking about this, and, feeling it was doing him no good to dwell on this, put the frame back into his desk drawer, and arose from his seat.

  Jake walked towards his bedroom window, and looked outside. Although the weather was beautiful, with flowers all in full bloom, and lawns as fresh and greener than ever before, this scene was inconsistent with the heavy gloom he felt inside. Jake thought again about Amy, and her angry behavior towards him, and shook his head.

  “What went wrong with us Amy? Why’d all this happen?”

  Chapter Nineteen

  With the arrival of winter, it was now the season for colds, and general ill health began to dominate the school scene. Classrooms were filled with students only too ready to reach down and grab their tissues, with sneezing and coughing becoming standard school fare. Many absences occurred at school in this period, with staff and students unable to do anything to avoid this. It was not the best time of the year for this to be happening, though.

  The majority of students were preparing for their final year exams, and studying anxiously for these. The cold and flu season was most unfavorable to the students of Years Eleven and Twelve, whose results at these exams were really important to them. Without these extra hours of study, their grades may not have been as great as they wanted them to be. Unfortunately, Amy was now in this position, as she had been off sick from school for a week.

  Amy was worried she would fall behind in her studies, and whenever she felt a little better, did some work. Her family doctor suggested she take the time to get better, and rest all she could. She had been in bed for several days now, and this was getting to her a bit. Amy was tired of watching TV, and lying down, and remembered she and Chad had spoken on the phone together yesterday. She was happy with his concern for her well-being, and smiled in memory of their talk.

  Amy had also received a text message from Jake on her cell phone, but, had mixed feelings about it. She thought about Jake, and how she secretly wanted him to ring her, but, knew this was not going to happen. Amy really wanted to hear Jake’s voice again, and have everything how it was before, but, remembered how she saw him hugging Francine. She almost began to cry thinking of this, but, did not want to do so, as she was down enough in the dumps as it was. Amy wanted Jake out of her mind, and arose from her bed, sitting on its edge for a few moments.

  Amy wanted to ring Carrie to see how she was going, as they had not seen each other for several days. Carrie had rung Amy every day since her absence from school, and their talks were one of the bright spots of Amy’s day. Apart from Chad and some other friends, Carrie was one of the only people from school who took a real interest in her. Amy smiled at having both Carrie and Chad as friends, as t
hey both meant a lot to her. Amy was in the mood to talk a little, and picked up the cordless phone, about to dial Carrie’s number. She was a little startled when her phone rang before she had a chance to dial, but Amy pressed the button, and put the receiver to her ear.

  “Hello.”

  “Hi Amy, how’re you going?” Carrie asked, sounding upbeat.

  “Hi Carrie,” Amy said chirpily.

  “You sound better today.”

  “Yeah, feel better. I’ve been resting so much — haven’t done anything else,” Amy said, coughing slightly.

  “Well, it’s not so bad after all. You could’ve been at school like a zombie, unable to concentrate. Hope you’ve caught up on all the daytime TV shows,” Carrie said cheerily. Carrie knew Amy, like her, especially liked the daytime dramas, and would be watching these at home.

  “Yeah, being sick does have its good side,” Amy said. “But not too much of it.”

  “Know what you mean,” Carrie replied, both Amy and Carrie sharing a mutual chuckle. After this, Carrie wanted to ask Amy something that had been on her mind for days, and, which was bothering her.

  “Ames?”

  “Yes Carrie?”

  “Now you’re a bit better, I need to know something.”

  “Like what?” Amy asked, intrigued by Carrie’s comment.

  “When I saw you last time, we talked about Jake. Did you see him?” Carrie asked. Upon hearing Carrie’s question, Amy burst into tears, thinking about Jake, and what she saw him doing with Francine. Amy did not reply immediately to Carrie, and Carrie sensed Amy was crying.

  “Amy, what’s up?”

  Amy reached over onto her bedside table, and pulled some tissues from the box. She dabbed her eyes, and tried to regain her composure.

  “After you left that day I went to see Jake,” Amy admitted, speaking miserably into the receiver.

  Carrie’s eyes widened in excitement, and she smiled broadly.

  “Is that why you’re crying? I’m so happy you saw him! How’d it go? Is everything great again?” Carrie fired, her curiosity reaching its peak. Amy, though, paused, and sighed deeply into the phone. Her voice sounded hoarser now, and Carrie could sense Amy was crying again — but not out of happiness.

  “Amy, what’s wrong?”

  Again, Amy paused before speaking to Carrie, all the while seeing flashes of Jake and Francine together.

  “Carrie, I saw Jake hugging Francine through the windows of his house — and he didn’t look like he hated it, either.”

  Carrie’s eyes boggled at what Amy told her.

  “What!” Carrie said, mouth wide open, unable to believe what Amy was telling her. “Amy, are you sure what you saw? Did you really see Francine with him? Maybe…maybe it was his mom, something like that?” Carrie asked.

  “No Carrie, I’m positive what I saw. Jake was definitely hugging Francine, and she wasn’t putting up a fight at all.” Amy groaned miserably, and nodded her head, thinking her judgment had failed her, yet again. “And just think, I went to his house to give him a second chance, I can’t believe how dumb I am …” Amy’s voice trailed off, and she was unable to continue.

  Carrie was astounded by this latest twist, her mouth still open in shock. In her right mind, Carrie could not believe Jake wanted Francine, after being with Amy. Something here was not making sense, and Carrie scratched her head in disbelief.

  “I can’t believe it, I really can’t Amy. Jake isn’t like that. This is just too weird,” Carrie said, looking more confused than ever before.

  Amy shook her head at Carrie’s comment, and scowled.

  “Carrie, this does make sense to me. First Jane, then me, now Francine. Don’t you see what Jake’s up to?” Amy pleaded. Carrie thought about everything Amy had said, and considered how both Chad and Francine were recently both figuring much more prominently for Amy and Jake. It was all too fluky for Carrie to believe.

  “Amy, if you want my honest opinion, I think something else’s going on, but not with Jake. It’s got nothing to do with Jake, but, with Francine and Chad.”

  Amy’s eyes expanded in surprise at this announcement.

  “Why’d you say that, Carrie? I don’t understand. Chad’s been nothing but a friend for me lately,” Amy said.

  Carrie murmured at this statement, and rolled her eyes.

  “Yeah, mmn. And Francine’s taken your place with Jake — some friend she was,” Carrie stated, confident she was moving closer to the truth. To Amy, though, everything was crystal clear.

  “Carrie, you look at it this way. How could Francine reject Jake, if he sweet talks her like he did with me?” Amy said.

  Carrie again muttered at Amy‘s words, and said,

  “But…”

  “No Carrie,” Amy said, abruptly cutting Carrie off. “Jake’s broken my trust, forever. Anyway I’ve gotta go now Carrie, I’ll see you soon.” Before Carrie had a chance to respond, Amy put down the receiver, not wanting to hear Carrie defending Jake anymore.

  After putting the phone back into its cradle, Amy thought about Carrie’s defense of Jake, and her suspicions about Chad. Amy cheerfully recalled how Chad had helped her over the past few weeks, and that Carrie’s statements were not making much sense.

  “No Carrie, you’re wrong – Chad’d never do anything to hurt me — he’s not like Jake.”

  Amy pictured Jake’s smiling face in her mind, but tried to forget about it. She restlessly shook her head, and arose from her bed, and went to the bathroom to freshen up.

  Carrie was taken aback by Amy closing the phone on her, and shook her head in disbelief. She knew, though, that Amy had not been thinking properly lately, her new-found friendship with Chad an example of this. As Carrie sat on her sofa, she recalled everything that had happened over the past few weeks to Amy and Jake. She had a niggling sensation in the pit of her stomach that something was up, and believed Chad and Francine were the cause of the problem. Carrie nodded her head, and pursed her lips determinedly.

  “I know something’s going on with you two, Chad and Francine. Whatever you’ve done, I’ll find out.”

  * * * *

  After washing her face, Amy returned to bed, as she was a little drained after being on the phone. She gradually got back into bed, making herself comfortable, and pulled the covers over her. Amy had recently put her wool quilt on her bed, as the evenings had become colder in the last few days, and she felt the cold. As Amy settled into bed, she thought about Francine. She was concerned Jake was using Francine like he did with her, and was a little uptight at this.

  Amy remembered her newfound friendship with Francine, and how they had become close over the past couple of months, and arose from her sleeping position, resting her back against the headboard. She picked up the phone, and quickly dialed Francine’s number. Francine took a short while to respond, and Amy thought for a second maybe Francine had the phone switched off. Amy was rewarded, though, for her patience, as Francine picked up the phone just as Amy was about to hang up.

  “Hello.”

  “Hi Franci.”

  “Hi,” Francine said, glowering, and staggered to hear Amy’s voice. “What do you want?” Francine said. Amy was startled by Francine’s snappy attitude, and that she did not even ask how she was, as she would have been aware of her illness from school.

  “Well, I wanna talk to you about something.”

  “I don’t have much time,” Francine said, rolling her eyes.

  “I won’t take much of your time,” Amy said, feeling out of place with Francine. “I want you to know something about Jake.”

  “What do you wanna tell me?” Francine said, angry at Amy’s comment. “I’m just about to head out,” Francine said, sounding annoyed at Amy. Amy could not work out why Francine was being hostile towards her, as she thought they had made great strides at starting a friendship.

  “I want you to be careful of Jake, ’cause he did something horrible to me, and I don’t want the same thing to happen to you,” Amy said.r />
  Francine chuckled ominously upon hearing this, and said, in a bitchy voice,

  “I don’t think you’re in any position to say anything about Jake.”

  “What’re you talking about?” Amy said, becoming increasingly baffled by Francine’s attitude. “Why’re you talking to me like this? I…I thought we were friends,” Amy said. Amy felt a bit of a headache coming on again, and put her hand on her forehead. Francine, though, was not in any mood to talk to Amy, as she had gotten what she wanted from her, and Amy’s purpose in her life had now come to an end.

  “You treated Jake like crap, now you come out to tell me to be careful of him. Are you really so worried about me, or are you just still hung up about Jake?”

  Amy could not believe her ears, and that Francine was being so openly mean to her.

  “No, that’s not true — Jake was really mean with me, and I’m just worried he’ll do the same to you.”

  Francine sniggered sarcastically at Amy’s comment, and shook her head.

  “No Amy, Jake’d never do that to me, ’cause I wouldn’t let him. I’m not you. By the way, don’t ever call me again about Jake. You and him’re over, and that’s how you wanted it, and, from what it seems, he does, too. I can take care of Jake, so I wouldn’t worry about me. Just don’t do to Chad what you did to Jake either — he deserves better.” Francine irately slammed down the phone, shocking Amy.

  Amy considered what Francine had just said to her about Jake, and began to cry, her head throbbing with pain. Amy could not understand Francine’s sudden coldness towards her, as they had become close over the last few months. Francine was prone to diva-like outbursts at times, and people sometimes felt just when they were getting close to her, she would snap back at them. While Amy was insulted by Francine’s antics, she chalked these up to her impulsive personality, and how one could never predict where they stood with her.