Chapter 6: Take Two and Don't Call Me in the Morning

I completed the new ten-mile route in just over an hour-and-a-half that Sunday morning, spending some of that time at the end of the pier meditating. This summer had seen a lot of changes, what with my growth spurt, meeting Christy, and my mother showing me how to kiss. Now the summer was coming to an end with the onset of school, tomorrow. As a sophomore, I had signed up for three AP classes (history, math and English) with no gym classes, and no study hall. I had planned this all last year, before all of the changes had taken place. I'd figured that my social life would continue to be the disaster it always had been. Although I had no real evidence to back it up, I had this feeling that this year was going to go very differently.

The next half-hour was spent in our home gym, as I continued to work to build muscle, particularly in the chest, shoulder, arm and back areas. My neck was now a 15½ with a 38-inch chest, but I was still maintaining a twenty-nine inch waist. I finished up the workout with some agility skills on a small course I had outlined with cones, in the back yard. My Sunday routine was much more intense than my daily, with Thursday and Monday set as my two rest days.

On most Sunday's, Mom would join me for a run, which was the only time during the week we could run together, but she didn't give me a positive response when I knocked on her door, so I let her be. I guessed the margaritas were treating her badly. The hangover she was sure I was going to get wasn't so bad this morning, especially after a few glasses of water, some Excedrin, and enough sweat to work off the alcohol. I still planned to moan and groan a little around Mom, while rubbing my temples. This was just to let her know that I got the message; and, possibly, elicit a bit of sympathy from her.

Mom was in the kitchen eating a small snack, the bottle of Excedrin open on the counter next to her. She looked disheveled, unkempt and ... wonderful. I gave her a quick hug and kiss on the lips (our new norm!) and asked her how she was feeling.

"Well, apparently not as good as you are. Don't you at least have a small hangover?"

Crap! I had forgotten my plan! I immediately dropped my head and started to moan and groan, making a halfhearted attempt at the Excedrin bottle. I snuck a quick peek at her – she wasn't buying. She smacked my arm away from the bottle.

"You suck. At least tell me you have a headache."

"I did, honest! But I took a couple of Excedrin, and ran it out. I was fine after the first mile or so."

She rolled her eyes and went to sit at the kitchen table. "What are your plans, today?"

"There are a couple of things I need to pick up for school. Mike should be over in another hour or so, to run down to the store."

"I'll give you a list of things to get for me while you are there. Do you have your card?"

I had a debit card from my own bank account. Mom also had access. In situations like this, she would transfer some money over to my account so I could purchase what I needed. I kept asking her for a card to her account, but that wasn't happening.

I headed into the shower, texting Christy first to find out if she was going to be out and about today. She responded quickly and said that she, Jessica and Wendy were planning to hit the mall for some last minute 'emergency' clothes shopping. After a few back and forth messages, we decided to meet for lunch at the food court at noon. Mike wasn't thrilled about having lunch with his sister until he got Alice to agree to meet us there as well. My social life was definitely on the upswing and school hadn't even started yet!

By noon, Mike, Alice and I had most of the items we thought we needed for school, including a new phone case for Mike, and some new earrings for Alice. I guess those were 'school-related' items? Who knows?

We met Christy, Jessica and Wendy at the food court. Christy and I shared a nice greeting kiss before we started to break away for our respective food choices. Jessica and I wound up at an Asian cuisine spot. I had a thing for pan noodles. Apparently, Jessica did, too. I believe, until that afternoon, Jessica and I might have exchanged a greeting - but little else - the entire summer. She had always been aloof, I'm sure because of our different social standings - she was the head cheerleader and most sought after beauty and I was ... not much. It had always been that way, and I had just learned to accept it. We weren't unpleasant to each other, we just didn't have a lot in common. We really didn't have much to talk about.

"You think I'm a bitch, don't you?"

I was simply shocked. I'm sure my mouth gaped open as my brain tried to figure out just what the hell to do with the information my ears had passed along to it. My brain's immediate response, other than shock, was to buy some more time.

"Uhhh ... what?" I was quick with the retorts.

"You think I'm a stuck up bitch, don't you?"

The delay gave my brain a little chance to catch up. When it engaged, it started using some of the training it had received earlier this summer from my grandfather and my mother. My grandfather had especially taken time to tell me his secret to handling women. I asked him if he meant understanding them, but he shook his head quickly and said that wasn't a lesson that he taught.

"What you need to learn is what to say to them that won't immediately result in them considering you to be a complete idiot. That means, you can't always bullshit them. That stuff smells bad and is really easy to detect. You can't always tell them the COMPLETE truth, unless you are determined never to hear from them, their families, any acquaintances and any of their relatives ... EVER! The key is a balance of truth and a dose of empathy. Finding that right combination takes time, and some social graces that you haven't learned, yet. Only time, experience and, occasionally, good advice will help you. Honesty is key, as long as you are able to deliver it without them trying to figure out a way to kill the messenger."

"I don't think you are a bitch, Jessica," I said as I paid the cashier and waited for her to do the same. We headed to the condiment stand to grab some soy sauce, chopsticks and plenty of napkins as I added, "I just haven't had a chance to really get to know you. You tend to keep me and many others at a distance. Maybe you can tell me why that is."

She stopped and looked up, studying me. I always felt like I was in trouble when this happened. My only response was to relax my face and look in her eyes as well. She broke the stare, apparently convinced enough that I wasn't trying to be a complete asshole.

"I don't know. We just never ran in the same circles, I guess. But you're different now, somehow, and I'm not sure what to think of you. You've been my asshole brother's friend for so long, I don't know how to stop thinking of you that way."

"Do you want to stop thinking of me that way?"

"I don't know. But if you are going to start dating Christy, we are likely to end up at the same parties and around many of the same people."

"Look, Jessica, I know we have never been close. Maybe we never will be. But our families have known each other for as long as I can remember. I think of your mom and dad as my second parents, and you, Christine and Mike as my extended family. Families don't always get along, but we are there for each other, if we're needed." Jessica dropped her head and nodded in agreement.

"Well ... I think maybe I haven't always thought of you that way. I guess what I'm trying to say is, maybe I should. Let me think about it."

The six of us were enjoying lunch and having a pretty good time. Jessica had loosened up a little bit, but still stayed mostly in the background. We were just about to leave when Bill Dolan and two of his buddies approached.