Chapter 60

Something new happened in three of my classes. I was asked to stay after class. In each case, the teacher had an assignment for Sara. But I did get some looks and a couple of comments from other students, especially in Physics, the third class I was asked to stay after for. And a couple of guys had some derogatory comments when Miss Beevers had me stay after English. She had a list of books and Sara was to chose two to read and write reports on. She also had to write 500 words, the subject to be determined by Sara. Well, she said she wanted something to do besides watching TV.

This week's swim meet was at home against Highpoint. They were leading the district in football, and were in second place in swimming. Right behind us. They were our most serious competition and I wanted to make sure we came out ahead at the end of the day. I gave the team a pep talk before we made our way out to the pool.

There was the usual applause for the team when we were at home as we entered. I was surprised to hear my name yelled out. Actually, it sounded like the cheerleaders were doing one of their routines with my name as the subject. Since the swim team doesn't have cheerleaders, I looked over where the sound was coming from and saw Jill, Mary and Sara along with John and Mom. The three girls were standing up, chanting their cheer.

I blew them a kiss and put my attention back on the meet. This was the only time Jill had come to one of our meets. She usually had a volleyball match; I wondered what was up with that.

I was matched up against their star swimmer in all three of my events. I outdistanced him in each. I was a half lap ahead at the end of our closest race. The rest of the team did just as well. Highpoint won two of the eight events. We retained our number one position. I was pleased to hear my cheerleaders each time I won an event.

I swam my best yet. These days I spent most of my practice sessions working on one aspect of my swimming. At least once a week I'd work on my turns. I'd spent two periods this week working on breathing. It's not something you think about but it can slow you down if it's not done smoothly. I'd also changed from taking a breath every three strokes to every four.

Since we were at home, I didn't have to run to catch a bus after the meet. I made my way up to the stands and gave Jill a kiss.

"Boy, this is a surprise. I've never had my own cheering section before."

Mom said, "The girls were going stir crazy. None of us have ever been to one of your meets so I figured it would be a good way for us to get out."

"Well, I'm glad you did." I looked over at Jill. "Did you skip volleyball to come?"

"No, Jack, we had our meet earlier this afternoon. You should know that."

I felt like putting my tail between my legs. Here was an activity my girlfriend was really into and I didn't know anything about it. And I'd never made the effort to find out.

"How did your match go?"

Sara answered. "They creamed us."

Jill added, "We're number one in football and volleyball."

"What position do you play?"

"I'm the center."

Mary said, "She's tough. If she gets the ball, she shoves it down the other team's throat."

"My girlfriend, the killer."

"You better believe it."

"So, Mom. Can I get a ride home?"

"I'll give you five minutes, then I'm leaving."

"What's up, Mom? Got a hot date?"

"Well, I don't know how hot it is, but John and I are going out to dinner."

"But I thought..."

"It's dinner, Jackie. I fed him last night, he wants to feed me tonight. That's all."

"Shakespeare had something to say about that. 'I think she doth protest too much.'"

"You've got four minutes, Jackie."

I hustled to the gym and threw on my shirt, carrying the rest of my clothes. Once I got to the parking lot I searched for the Chevy for almost a minute before I heard a honk. I looked over towards the sound and saw a Lexus SUV with four arms waving out the windows. I looked closer and saw that Mom was driving it. We met half way.

Mary was in the front passenger seat and Jill and Sara were in back. I got in next to Jill.

"What's this?"

"My new car. I decided it was time to treat myself. I work hard, I deserve it. I checked with the credit union yesterday morning and picked it out after work. They had to prep it so I picked it up this morning."

"So, when do we go off-roading?"

"We don't. This isn't recommended for off road driving. It's a hybrid."

"Wow. So you aren't destroying the planet by driving it?"

"Fraid not, Jackie. I probably did more planet destruction driving the Chevy. By the way, here are the keys."

"Thanks Mom. You're the best."

"I know."

"It sure drives smooth."

"Yes, it does. Don't get any ideas. You've got your own car now."

We pulled into the driveway. John was already waiting at the curb. The guy was sure persistent. I wondered if he'd ever wear Mom down.

He came up to her door and opened it for her. He was holding a garment bag.

"Thank you, Sir." She gave him a quick kiss.

"I'll have to open doors for you more often."

"That would be nice."

Everyone went in the front door except Jill and me. I took her hand and headed back to the garage.

"Let's see how the construction's going."

I was surprised when I walked in the garage. The platform had been dropped down about a foot and they had put all the stuff they pulled this morning back. Everything was covered in thick plastic. The mattresses and the wardrobe were where they'd been this morning. Both of those were covered, as well.