Chapter 17

Tracey and I spent nearly the entire Christmas weekend working. I was either at Hardesy's or waiting tables for Tracey. It wasn't the most fun I'd ever had over the Christmas holidays, but Tracey was very, very happy, as she must have catered a half dozen Christmas parties over the four day weekend. Plus, I knew Missy was going to be gone until school started again in January, so I made sure Mr. Hardesy knew I was willing to work as many hours as he would give me. I could see the finish line here at Ridgemont, and even though tuition and books were paid for at State, I wanted to save some money to help Tracey pay for our room and board in University Park.

"Incoming," someone shouted as I stepped out of the Bronco. A snowball burst into a shower of soft powder against the door. I saw Bobby smiling and grabbing another handful of snow. I closed the door and waved as Tracey pulled away.

The next snowball hit in the middle of my back. Bobby's aim was improving. He saw me bend down to grab a handful of powder, and he ducked behind his truck. I launched the snowball so that it came down right on the front edge of his hood, showering him with powder.

We shook hands and walked into the school laughing. Betty Lou and Amy Sue fell in beside us. Betty Lou grabbed Bobby's face and planted a steamy kiss on his lips.

"Get a room," I said loudly. Bobby flipped me off without breaking the kiss, and then blew me a kiss of my own as the four of us broke up to head for our lockers.

I looked around for Missy, but I didn't see her, so I headed for class. Missy was already in her seat, and she slipped a note into my hand as I sat down. I started to say something, but Mr. Hayes started in on his lecture, so I just gave her a smile and turned to pay attention.

Missy disappeared out of class before I could even gather my books, and I sighed in frustration. Something was definitely wrong. I paused just outside of class and took a deep breath. I had a feeling the note Missy had given me would explain what was going on, but I was also sure I wasn't going to like what it said. I shook my head, sighed, and finally unfolded the note.

"John —

I'm sorry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't know what else to say. Momma insisted that I go out with Henry Longmoore last weekend while we were at Grandma's house. I don't really like Henry, didn't want to go, and Momma and I wound up in a huge fight. The long and short of it is that she doesn't want me dating anyone exclusively. So I won't be able to go out with you on Fridays for a while. I don't know what to do. Momma wouldn't even let me call you so I could tell you personally. Please don't be mad.

I'm sorry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Missy."

There was no heart over the i this time. I rocked back against the wall. The fears I'd had at the dance had borne fruit; my buoyant mood was gone.

"What's up, Robinson," Bobby asked as he sat down across from me.

"Well, you're in a good mood, Bobby."

"As it should be," Betty Lou smiled and sat down next to Bobby. "Santa was good to Bobby," she said with a wink.

"Oh, yeah," he said, beaming.

The happy mood was pretty contagious as the rest of the gang wandered in and began the usual chatter. I looked over Betty Lou's head toward Missy, Gail and Jackie. Missy had her back to me and Jackie was chattering away. Gail, however, was staring at me.

Suddenly, the cheerfulness was just too much, and I had to hustle out of the cafeteria. I saw Jesse and Mary Jo exchanging puzzled glances, and I heard Mary Jo call my name, but I didn't, couldn't, stop.

I walked to the narrow strip of concrete behind the school that held the HVAC equipment. I sighed as I scraped the snow off the concrete and slid down the wall until my butt was on the cold concrete. Part of me wanted to scream and cry, another just to understand. I wiped away an unwanted tear, shaking my head with a sigh. I needed to figure this out, first. I could also cry later.

I stared at the air handlers pondering Missy's note. Should I call her? Would her mother let me talk to her? Did Missy even want me to call her? It was obvious that she wasn't going to try to talk to me. Her behavior in class and at lunch made that plain. Was she even worth it? Was I tilting at windmills here?

Damn, I had a lot of questions and not many answers. A little voice inside wondered if it was now time to scream and cry, but I couldn't even get up the energy for that. I felt numb.

I'm not sure how long I sat there, staring at the fan blades spin in the air handlers, before I heard footsteps approaching.

"I thought I'd find you here, John," Mary Jo said. "What's up? You bolted out lunch early, and Amy Sue said you skipped class seventh hour."

I shrugged.

"Come on, John. It's me, Mary Jo. I know something's bugging you. We saw you split out of lunch."

I frowned and handed Mary Jo the note Missy gave me.

She read the note and handed it back to me. "I'm sorry, John," she said gently. "You've always seemed to be there when I needed someone with all the right words to make things better. I wish I knew how to help you now."