The bell rings, I walk out of class and head toward Jason’s locker. I turn the corner and see him, all my thoughts disappear and I have to catch my breath. He is getting his chemistry binder; I smile and approach him from behind. Covering his eyes I say, “Guess who?” he laughs and places a hand on mine. His finger grazes over the ring he gave me a few months back. My arms drop to his side, as I hug him, he kisses my cheek.
Jason is so handsome. To this day I can’t figure out how I was so lucky as to have a chance with a guy so amazing. Bronzed hair with a matching complexion and beautiful piercing blue eyes; as quarterback of the football team, he is so strong. When Jason smiles, it is the type of smile that makes all the girls melt inside. Jason is sweet, handsome, charming, amazing, and the list gets greater every day. Jason opens doors every time, he is polite and says, “Yes ma’am,” and he always listens when he is being talked to or asked something. He looks and sounds like an angel. Every time he talks to me, my brain gets jumbled and my heart skips a beat.
“Hey you!”
I smile, “Hey Jase, ready for our quiz this period?”
“We have a quiz?” his facial expression said it all. He was not ready. I slide my hand in his; it seems as though my hand disappears engulfed by his huge hand. I giggle, which gives the joke away.
“We don’t really have a quiz in Chem, do we?”
I shake my head, “No, we don’t”
“Stephanie, you’re so mean to me!”
I giggle more and push him jokingly. He pushes me back and opens the door for me, leading to class. Tyler sees us and nods us over to his lab table.
“Hey Tyler, where’s Mr. Creepers?” I say looking around for the teacher and taking out my phone, when I notice he is not in the room.
“He must be absent” Tyler says as a little old lady that smells like soap and peanuts walks inside.
Mr. Creepers is what everyone calls our chemistry teacher. Mr. Creepers always wears Hawaiian looking shirts; he has these huge glasses that have to be at least three sizes too big for his face. Tyler walked in the first day of school, saw our teacher and said he has “creeper peepers.” The name kind of stuck with him. Honestly, I have no idea what Mr. Creepers’ real name is, we all call him Mr. C, so I doubt anyone really knows.
We sit at the lab table and talk the whole period about the week’s big football game. It was our very first home game, and we had a great chance at winning. Tyler is also on the football team, so they were both really excited. I sit there listening to them talk about it, and doodling in my notebook, when the fire alarm goes off. I look at Jason and sigh.
“Another prank?” Tyler says.
“Most likely” Jason replies.
“I wish the dang juniors would stop trying to act cool,” Tyler states.
“Hey, watch it!” I glare at Tyler and throw a pen cap at him jokingly.
He laughs and throws it back. I, unlike Tyler and Jason, am a junior. They are both are seniors, the mighty seniors. Yeah, right.
The substitute teacher wakes up from her elderly power nap when the fire alarm goes off. “Outside!” she yells, frantically, not knowing that fire alarms were a normal thing at our high school.
We all walk outside to wait for the “OK” to go back in. Jason takes my hand and I smile up at him. After five minutes, they give us the sign that it is all clear, we walk back into class and resume talking about the game.
A half hour later, the bell rings and we venture out into the hall. Tyler leaves us to go and meet with Lisa, his girlfriend. Lisa is my best friend, has been since the 5th grade. We met on the playground, when another girl pushed her into the dirt while they were playing tag. I ran over and helped her up, then went after the girl that pushed her down. We’ve been inseparable ever since. Lisa and Tyler introduced me to Jason.
Jason walks with me to my locker where I exchange my chemistry binder for my French workbook. I look up at him and smile, he takes my hand again and we walk to his locker.
“So, Lisa is throwing a surprise birthday party for Tyler tonight. She said we have to be there, no choice.” I bite my lip and smile.
Jason laughs and looks at me, “Then why are you telling me if I have no choice?”
“I just wanted to make sure you didn’t go and try to do something else.”
Jason laughs and kisses my forehead “Gosh you’re a butt-head. It’s my best friend’s birthday party, of course I’ll be there.”
I giggle, “Ok butt-face. Next time I won’t tell you.”
He smiles and walks with me to the cafeteria for lunch. We sit down and wait for Lisa and Tyler to get there. Lisa walks in first followed by Tyler who is walking with other football players.
“Jason heads up!” One of the players throws a football at him. He catches it, tosses it back and walks over to them. Lisa walks up to me and we get on line to get our lunch.
“Stephanie, do you think Tyler knows?”
“Knows about what, his party?”
“Yes! I keep getting this feeling that he knows.”
“Lisa, you’re just being paranoid. He doesn’t know” I laugh at how nutty she gets when she thinks things aren’t going as planned.
She half smiles, “yeah, I guess you’re right.”
I laugh, “Of course I’m right. I mean, who would tell him?”
She looks dead at me, “Jason would.”
I shake my head to defend Jason, a little hurt that she would think that, “not true. Jason didn’t even know about it until this period.”
“Oh” is all she says.
I hug Lisa trying to comfort her. “Relax it will be fine. Go out with him to dinner like planned. I will come over and set up for you, like I told you I would, and I’m sure Jason would want to help out too, and if not I’ll just make him.”
She laughs and nods as the boys walk over to us.
~~~~
“Stephanie lets go! We are finished!” Jason calls from the living room. “It looks great.”
“Just a few more touches” I say wanting it to be perfect.
Jason walks up to me and wraps his big bear arms around me. He hugs me from behind and kisses my neck. I sigh trying to relax and look around at what we did in two hours.
“It does look pretty good,” I say as Jason takes my hand, sliding his fingers through mine, and laughs.
“I told you,” he kisses my cheek. “Now relax!”
The doorbell rings, I look at my watch 4:56, you can hear numerous people outside. Jason opens the door and the party starts. Lisa’s car is heard coming down the block. I laugh to myself. She needs a new car; it’s a dangerous accident waiting to happen. Before we can see the car, Jason turns off the lights and everyone hides.
“Lisa why are you in such a hurry?” Tyler complains.
“I just have to go to the bathroom, now open the dang door” Lisa laughs.
Tyler opens the door and turns on the lights. Everyone yells “happy birthday!” and I walk out from the kitchen with his cake.
“WOAH! Haha, thanks everyone.” Tyler looks at Lisa, embarrassed and kisses her. He walks over to the cake and we all clap and sing happy birthday.
Tyler says good-bye to me and Jason, and closes the door behind us. I hold Jason’s hand as we walk to his car door. Next thing I know, I am being woke up by a kiss on my cheek. Jason opens my door, helps me out of his car, and walks me up to my house.
“Thank you for helping me decorate for the party Jase.”
Jason smiles, “don’t worry babe. I’m just glad I was able to spend time with you.”
I look down blushing. Jason puts a finger on my chin, lifting my face up to his. Though I should have thought of this as sweet, I jump, and freeze in place. Jason looks at me confused, but quickly disregards it. He leans in to kiss me goodnight, the door opens, and my step dad is standing there watching us, his arms folded. I shake my head clearing the horrible thoughts from my mind, I look down.
“Umm, hello sir. How are you on this fine evening?” Jason says his face bright red from embarrassment.
My step dad, standing 6 foot 5, is a tower. After my parents divorced, she met my step dad at a supermarket by the Army base. He asked her to his military banquet and she accepted. My mom was the person he fell in love with, though I can’t blame him, she’s gorgeous. I always love when people tell me how much I look like my mother, because it is one of the greatest compliments someone can give me. After 10 years in the military, three of which he spent dating my mom, he finally decided to settle down and marry her. He is loved by my family, but feared by everyone else.
My dad looks at Jason then me and nods. “Inside Stephanie, now.”
I look at him confused. “Dad!!!” I look at him then Jason.
“Now, Stephanie Michelle!”
I turn to Jason, my eyes tell him sorry. “G’Night.”
Jason nods and turns to leave. “Good night sir”
“Mhm” My dad walks inside after me and closes the door.
“Dad, why did you do that?”
“Where were you Stephanie?”
“I was at Lisa’s house, I told mom I would be there.”
“Then why didn’t you pick up the phone when I tried to call? Where is your phone? I even called her house, and no one answered!”
“We had music playing, no one could have heard it, and I forgot my phone here” I said, knowing that was a complete lie and hoped he didn’t catch it, or see the clear impression my phone was making in my pants pocket.
He rubs his temples and looks at me. “Next time you go out, you better not leave your phone home or you will be grounded.”
I nod “Yes, sir.” I look at him, waiting for him to let me go. He looks at me then the stairs, giving me my cue to leave. I let out a sigh of relief when I reach the stairs.
“Oh, Stephanie” he calls as I step up on the bottom step.
”Yeah dad?” I bite my lip hoping he didn’t just catch me in that lie.
“I need to go pick up your mother from work, will you please go out and get milk? We are low and you know how she gets when we don’t have much milk in the fridge.”
I laugh knowing my mother’s idiosyncrasies, “Yes sir. I’ll go right now.”
He nods, grabbing his keys and walks out.
I walk down the block to my house, my eyes glued to my phone, texting. As I am a house away, my eyes glance up and I freeze where I am, I drop the milk that my step father has asked me to pick up. My feet are suddenly glued to the cement sidewalk, milk covering my shoes. I stare at my house, in fear. I have no idea what I should do. No one is home, except for him, his car parked in the driveway is teasing me. Am I supposed to go inside, knowing my life is in danger? Should I run in the other direction? Something about it, the danger of the situation, lures me in. I know I shouldn’t but… but I have to. I must.
I turn to walk toward Jason’s house, but it is too late. I see him in the window, and I know he can see me. He is staring right at me, seeing through everything. He knows I am petrified. He waves me inside with one hand, the other holding a cigarette to his mouth.
“Of course” I think. He is always smoking a cigarette; either that or a beer is in his hand. I swallow hard and proceed with my death march into my house. He is smiling at me, something I haven’t seen in years.
“Hello Stephanie,” says the intruder. He smells like cigarettes, booze, and something familiar. The familiarity almost brings tears to my eyes, almost. He is wearing his favorite cologne, one he wore when I was a little kid, before all the problems. When he was with my mother and we were all happy together.
I nod, “hello father.”
“It’s been a while, don’t you think?”
I laugh, “yeah, because you were locked up for 10 months.”
His nasal passages flare up, “don’t you get wise with me young lady. I am still your father, no matter what your mother has drilled into your head.”
I quickly change my tone, knowing I have a chance of not seeing Jason again. Father, like a psychic, seemed to know I did it for a reason.
“So, what is his name?” he asks me bluntly. “Damn,” I think, “he knows me all too well.”
“His name?” I say, trying to play dumb.
“Oh Stephanie, cut the crap!” He steps toward me, and I step backward. “I know you are dating some guy named Jason.”
My heart stops at the sound of him saying my boyfriend’s name. “How’d you know I was dating anyone?” I ask looking like a deer in headlights.
Father laughs and begins to pace back and forth in front of me, making me very uneasy. He shakes his head, “Once again, Stephanie Michelle, you underestimate me.”
I start to feel my stomach churn, “You better leave Jason out of this.”
He laughs yet again, making my knees lock. “Haven’t you learned yet that this is solely between us?” He leans over, placing a hand on my cheek, as a dad would his young daughter.
I swat it away, which enrages him. He slaps me right across the face, leaving a mark that would stay there for a few hours.
As I fight back tears, he is looking out the window with a smile so huge it reminds me of a child who just received his dream Christmas present. Though, slapping me once wasn’t enough for him. Before I could come out of shock of being hit so powerfully, I am being picked up and thrown half way across the living room into the wall. I hit 3 picture frames and they all fall to the floor, crashing and smashing on the ground. Glass by my feet, I am frozen, thinking only of how to survive. I feel something round hit my face, it isn’t until after I taste my blood that I know he punched me. I take several hits to my face, before he starts to go lower. Blood and tears begin to stain the collar of my favorite pink shirt. Grabbing me, he pulls me over to the couch. He throws me down onto the comfy seat, and stands over me. I look up at him, this man that used to be my everything. All I can see is his once neatly shaven face, how disheveled it has become. I flashback to a time where my parents were together, and I would yearn for him to pick me up in his big strong arms. Now, I am afraid he will do just that.
He laughs, snapping me out of my memories. “You think you can ignore me and not be punished?” He backhands me, blood spitting from my mouth.
I look up at him confused.
“I asked you, have you and Jason had sex yet?” he continues.
I stare at him and say “no.”
He laughs to himself, making me even more sick. “Good,” he says. “Keep it that way, or I’ll be back.”
This pleased him all too much, as he backs off of me. I don’t move in fear of him returning to attack again.
He turns to face me, and raises his hand. I flinch, and this pleases him even more. He turns, facing the door and walks out of the house, flicking his half burnt cigarette on the grass. After I am sure he is far enough gone, I run to the door slamming it shut, and locking it.
~~~
As soon as I know he can’t come back in, and I am safe I collapse on the floor. Just managing to pull out my phone; calling Jason.
“Hello my love,” his voice says so happily.
My chest heavy, I can barely breathe.
“Stephanie? Are you there?” Jason sounds worried now.
I try to say something, but can only manage one word, “help.”
Thankfully Jason hears me. “I’m on my way.”
~~~
As I lay on the floor, all I can think about was my father before he served jail time. How him and I used to be best friends. Now, I can’t even think about him without shuddering.
Jason arrives a few minutes later.
“Stephanie, what happened?” Jason runs to my side.
My mom and step dad pull up to the house as Jason finishes that sentence. I am still in shock of it all that I can’t even get out one word.
My mom walks inside and sees us on the floor. She gives one look to my bloodied shirt and face, whips out her phone and calls the cops. Weirdly, this makes me smile a bit; the fact that my mom immediately knew what happened, that for that moment in time we were connected.
When the cops came, they did an interrogation, questioning me, like I was the bad guy. The cops put out an alert on father, for anyone to bring him in. Putting my mind to ease, within minutes a cop had seen him and arrested him. Since he had broken his house arrest, and the restraining order my mother had put on him, he would serve more than 10 months in jail. The police officers left, telling me to get some rest.
Jason walks me up to my room and we both lay on my bed.
“Stephanie?” Jason says, playing with my hair.
I look up at him, “Yes?”
“Why did your father do this to you?” he asks concerned.
I look away from him, trying to avoid this question at all costs.
“Stephanie, please tell me” Jason pleads.
I sigh, knowing I would soon start crying. I lean my head back on the pillow, turning toward Jason.
“He was my everything, my hero, my best friend.” I intertwine my fingers together with his, to try and distract my mind as I tell this treacherous story.
“One day I came home from school freshman year, and I went to find him. He is always in his office, so I went in there. There were so many beer bottles all over his office. He was drunk, overly drunk, and it was like I was a bad guy or something. It was almost like I told him to stop drinking. He had no idea who I was. I remember him yelling, and cursing at me. The next thing I know I woke up in the hospital and two weeks had past.”
I look at Jason, whose other hand was bunched into a tight fist.
“We had to go to court, to put him in jail. The last thing he had said to me was, “I’ll be back for you.” I didn’t think it would be possible, so I dismissed it.” I look down.
Jason puts his arms around me, pulling me tight to him.
“Baby, I love you.” Jason says kissing my forehead.
I smile a bit, trying hard to push all the memories into the furthest corner of my mind, and I kiss his lips.
Someone knocks at the door, pulling me back from a day dream.
“Come in” I say, holding Jason’s hand.
Lisa opens the door and runs to my side “Jason, you jerk! What did you do to her?” she says sarcastically.
“Hey, I would never do this to her” Jason says getting defensive.
I smile. “Lisa, it’s alright.”
Gosh, you have to love best friends. Even when you have a bloodied face and shirt, they can still make you laugh.
Lisa looks at us, “So, homecoming is coming up…”
“Ugh, Lisa! No. Don’t start this.” I say, turning over, hiding my face.
Jason laughs, “What is so wrong with homecoming, Steph?”
“Nothing is wrong with it; I just don’t like it, okay?” I snap.
“Whoa. Babe why did you just get defensive?” Jason asks, trying to calm me down.
I look at him, “It’s nothing, okay? Just drop it.” I stand up and walk into the bathroom to clean the blood off of my face. I can hear Jason and Lisa talk in whispers behind me. I walk out a while later, and go downstairs, waiting for them to finish talking. I skim through the channels in hopes to see a good movie. With a bit of luck I find one, and my favourite movie at that.
Jason and Lisa walk down, laughing.
“Shhh!” I say too far into the movie to become distracted.
Jason sits to my right, his cologne intoxicates me. I smile up at him, and then turn back to the television. Lisa sits on the recliner, near us.
After a few hours Lisa’s mom calls her home, leaving me and Jason alone in the living room.
I lean my head on his shoulder, and he moves his arm around me. I look up at him; he puts a hand on the back of my head, pulling me closer to him so he can kiss me. I start blushing as we kiss.
“What is it?” Jason asks.
I giggle a bit, “I just, I’m so glad to be dating you.”
He smiles, “As am I baby”
We kiss again, passionately. After a few minutes, though it seemed like a few hours, I heard someone moving around the house.
I push Jason back whispering “dad’s coming.”
My dad laughs “I heard that Stephanie.”
Like clockwork, my face turns red.
He walks into the living room where Jason and I are sitting.
“You two better cut it out, or I’m going to get the water gun,” my dad says jokingly.
Jason’s face turns red, matching mine.
My dad looks at Jason, “It’s getting late.”
“Uh, yes sir. I was just about to head home.”
“Mhm, and my name is George Washington.”
I sigh, “Dad, be nice.”
He glares at me, “Stephanie, you have French test tomorrow, do you not?”
Crap, that’s right. I do. I hate when he is right, but more so I hate when he knows when I have a test.
After Jason leaves I head upstairs, awaiting his call.
My phone rings and his name appears on my phone. I smile a bit and think of our first date. After a few seconds I am brought back to reality when my phone stops vibrating.
“Oh, shoot!” I open my phone and call him back.
“What are you doing Steph?” his voice sings out to me.
“Sorry,” I laugh “I got distracted.”
Jason laughs a bit “do I even want to know?”
I shake my head, and then say “no” and laugh.
“Stephanie, can I ask you something?” Jason says seriously.
“Yes, anything.”
“Why did you freak out when Lisa mentioned homecoming?”
I look down at the floor “okay, anything but that.”
“Stephanie please, tell me.”
“I just, I can’t alright,” I sigh. “Look Jason, it’s late I have to go.”
“No, Steph. Please, talk to me. I need to know.”
I sigh heavily, my eyes swelling with tears.
“Baby, please tell me,” Jason says softly.
I talk quietly, and slowly trying not to cry hard.
“I was going to get ready for homecoming, the day I came home from school and he was drunk. I ran upstairs, thinking he was working in his office. After I was completely ready for the dance, I had the best dress and I even did my makeup. I walked into his office to show him how I looked. That’s when he flipped. When I woke up in the hospital, I had completely missed my first homecoming. I swore, I wouldn’t get dressed like I did that day because that must have been what caused his hatred in me.”
Jason sighs hard, “Steph, you can’t possibly believe that.”
I nod, holding the phone tighter. “But I do.”
“Come over my house tomorrow,” Jason says. I agreed and he let me go. That night I slept through the night my mind at ease with the fact that my father is in prison.
When I get to Jason’s house the next day there are a bunch of cars in his driveway. I walk up and hear music. Jason opens the door smiling.
“Hello baby.”
I smile, confused. “Hi.”
He giggles and takes a hold of my right hand, “Welcome to two years’ worth of homecomings” as he says this he places a huge pink and red rose corsage on my wrist. I look at him “what???” I say nervously.
Jason smiles, and kisses my lips slowly. They taste like coke. “Relax Steph. Relax and enjoy yourself.”
He steps out the way and lets me walk in. His house was covered in streamers, and balloons. Music was coming out of the walls, and it felt as if his house was dancing to the music because of how loud it was playing.
Lisa runs up to me.
“Happy homecoming, Steph,” she kisses my cheek and I laugh. After a few songs of dancing with my best friend I look for Jason. When I can’t find him I walk back to Lisa.
“Lisa, have you seen Jason?” I scream over the music.
Suddenly, the music is cut off and Jason walks out from the kitchen, dressed in a full tuxedo. I laugh hard and he walks over to me, kissing me.
Jason gets down on one knee and I start blushing.
“Stephanie Winter, will you please be my date to homecoming?”
I look down, biting my lip, worried. Jason whispers “I’ll be right by your side the whole time.”
I smile and say yes. Jason stands up and kisses me slowly as music starts playing again.
We dance for what seems like hours. I can’t take my eyes off of Jason, and he doesn’t look away from me either.
We kiss again and I pull back “Why are you doing this?” I say.
Jason looks at me, smiling that smile that I can never resist. “Because, you of all people deserve to enjoy yourself and have the homecoming of your dreams, and I want to be right here by your side as you experience it.”
briannajoycee 