Chapter 3

It was Monday again, I was running late, again, and the masses were in an uproar about something, again. As late as I was, though, I didn't have time to find out what. I barely made it to English on time. Amy Sue smiled as I hurried past her to sit next to Missy.

I made it through the morning classes without finding out anything more. Bobby and Ken were arguing about something when I reached our usual table.

"Fuck off, Anthony!" Bobby said, grabbing his tray and heading out of the cafeteria.

"What was that all about?" I asked a very startled Ken.

"I was telling Bobby about the Lake party and he went off on me. I mean I agree that it's hard to believe that it was Betty Lou Cooper that took on the football team at the Lake, but I didn't think I deserved that."

"You are sure about Betty Lou?"

"Well, as sure as you can be about something like that. Hawkins was telling a bunch of guys about her before school started. Come to think of it, I haven't seen her today, and she's in my English class."

"Lay off Bobby, Ken. Apologize if you see him. Trust me on this. Bobby and I went out with the Cooper twins on Friday. I think he's serious about Betty Lou."

"Oh, crap! No wonder..." Ken frowned. "Damn, I better go find him. See ya later. Thanks, John."

Ken left and I contemplated the tuna casserole in front of me. I heard someone lay a tray gently on the table and looked up. Amy Sue sat down in front of me.

"Is it okay if I sit with you, John?"

"Absolutely."

Amy nodded and looked down at her lunch. She didn't say anything for a while. I looked around the cafeteria and noticed a bunch of stares and whispering.

When I looked back at Amy Sue, she was looking at me. "You heard about Saturday," she said matter-of-factly.

"Well, not really. Ken told me what this week's whispering is about, but he didn't go into any detail."

"Betty Lou," Amy Sue said softly. When I nodded, she continued, "It's true, I guess. Betty Lou didn't come with me to our cousins. When I got back home yesterday, she asked me to leave her alone. She hasn't left the room since, not even for dinner last night. I talked to her a bit last night. She's having trouble dealing with what she did. And she's worried about Bobby and his reaction, especially after how their date went Friday. Betty Lou likes him, maybe more than likes him. I'm not sure she knows exactly. I don't know what she did Saturday night, or why, but it's tearing her apart. It's not like Betty Lou to do something like that. It's not like her to shut me out either. I'm so confused. I want to help, but I don't know what to do."

I nodded. "I'll talk to Bobby some, but I think it would be best if Betty Lou talked to him. They need to get things straightened out between themselves. Maybe you could get Betty Lou to talk to Mary Jo Mason. She might be able to help with things."

Amy Sue nodded. "Um, I, um, shoot. I'll understand if you don't want to go out with me now."

I put my hand on Amy Sue's. She started and looked up at me. "I still want to go out with you Friday. Nothing your sister did would change that. Do you still want to go out?"

Amy Sue smiled. "Yes, very much. Thank you, John."

Tuesday came and Bobby was still out of sorts. Ken had apologized, but Bobby was still pissed off. I wasn't able to talk to him before class, so I resolved to see what I could do at lunch. Mary Jo grabbed me right before lunch and pulled me outside.

"What's up, Mary Jo?" I asked when the door closed.

"Things are so screwed up, John. I talked to Betty Lou last night. She made a big mistake and it's eating her up."

"Bobby isn't too pleased either."

"That's the problem, John. Betty Lou is scared that Bobby won't like her now. She was on top of the world Saturday morning. I tried to tell her what going to the lake with Peter Hawkins meant, but she wouldn't listen. She's just lucky it was only the three of them. You know, Heath, Peter and Junior. The problem is they didn't treat her nice. She thought it would be fun, like Friday night with Bobby. Well, she found out different. She didn't come to school yesterday, not because of the whispering, but because she's got a couple of marks from the Lake."

"What can I do? I'm not trying to hurt you, Mary Jo, but it sounds to me like she did to Bobby what you did to me two years ago. I know how he feels, and it's not too great. I don't know what they said to one another Friday, but I'd bet money that she didn't tell him about her plans for Saturday night."

"We got past it."

"Yeah, mostly because we both realized we weren't going to be a couple anyway. But it still hurt, bad, Mary Jo. Mainly I got past it because you made the first move, coming to apologize."

"I think I can get Betty Lou to do that, but I need you to get Bobby to listen and not freak."

"I'll do what I can. Is Betty Lou coming to school tomorrow?"

"No, she's coming back Thursday."

"Good. See if you can get her to come to the overlook after school today. I'll try to make sure Bobby is there."

"You really are the best, John." Mary Jo kissed my cheek and hurried back into school.

School ended and I hurried out. I needed to catch up with Bobby. He wasn't out when I got to the parking lot. His pickup was there, so I waited. Tracey had a meeting today, so I expected to walk home.

"Hey, Robinson," he said as he opened the door. "Missed you at lunch."

"Yeah, I got pigeon-holed, sorry."

"No big deal. Need a lift?"

"Yeah, if you don't mind, but not home."

"Sure thing, where?"

"The overlook."

"You meeting someone there?"

"You could say that."

We drove in silence. I tried to think of a good way to start this, but nothing came to mind. And then we were there. I could see Betty Lou sitting on the picnic table. So could Bobby.

"What the fuck?" Bobby stomped on the brakes and turned toward me, angry.

I put my hands up. "Just talk to her, Bobby. She knows she messed up, but she got hurt too, Bobby. She still likes you, and she's afraid she's going to lose the best thing she had. Trust me on this. I'm not asking you to do anything but listen and be nice, but you two need to talk. I'll walk on home. But trust me, even if you decide you don't want to see her again, listening to her is the right thing to do. That's all I ask, okay?"

Bobby's jaw was clenched tight. I knew I was pushing our friendship to its limits.

I opened the door and looked back in. "Think about it and what I said. I'm going to talk to Betty Lou for a minute and then I'm gone. I'll see you tomorrow."

Bobby nodded and turned to look at Betty Lou.

Betty Lou looked up as I walked toward her. I don't think I'd ever seen her this nervous. Her hands were shaking as she stood up and wiped them on the seat of her jeans.

"You okay, Betty Lou?"

She nodded. I opened my arms and she collapsed into my hug.

"I don't know what to say, John," Betty Lou cried.

I pushed her back and wiped the tear that trickled down her cheek. "The truth, all of it, even the parts that you are ashamed of. Bobby needs to hear it all from you. Anything short of that and he'll be gone. It may be too late already, but we won't know if you don't try. He is worth it, isn't he?"

"God, yes," she whispered. Betty Lou nodded to herself and straightened up. "Thanks, John."

I waved at Bobby as I walked away.

Wednesday came and with it some tranquility. Bobby and Betty Lou sat at the end of the table at lunch, talking and looking very much like they could work things out. Kenny and I gave them the space that they needed, feeling the need to needle Bobby only once or twice.

Nothing remarkable happened on Thursday and Friday was heading that direction as well. Bobby and Betty Lou were smiling as they headed to the dance after the football game with Kenny and his date Janet Farmer.

Amy Sue was quiet until we were seated in a booth at Toni's. She turned in the booth and got a serious look on her face. "John, I need to ask you something and I hope you won't be mad or anything."

I nodded.

"I really enjoyed going out with you last week and I'm having a good time tonight," she started.

"But?"

"But I, I'm not sure how to say this. I don't want to hurt you. You've been so nice to me and what you did for Betty Lou. I'll always be grateful for that."

I smiled. "You don't need to thank me for that. I was happy to do it."

"Mary Jo is right, you are the best, but I don't think you are my best. Wille Parker asked me to the game and the dance next week and I really want to go. I told him that I would tell him on Monday whether or not I will go with him. I wanted to tell you before you heard it from anyone else."

I smiled. "Thank you, Amy Sue. Go to the dance with him if you want. I enjoy your company, but I won't hold you back."

Amy Sue kissed my cheek. "Thanks for making that easy, John."

Monday rolled around again and like the past Monday's, this one was filled with whispers about the Lake party on Saturday. These whispers were worse. I didn't know the girl in question, Carly Marks, but the whispers had branded her a slut and whore, claiming she begged for more when the boys were exhausted. I didn't believe the whisperers for a moment, but it was apparent that most did.

The morning classes flew by in a rush. Lunch was a big let down. Bobby and Betty Lou were wrapped in their own world. Kenny was off sick. Amy Sue and Willie Parker were playing footsie. I was bored, so I left the cafeteria behind and wandered through the halls. I was restless and I was sure I knew why. My friends were pairing up, preparing for that next step in life and I was, at the moment, by myself.

I paused at the door to my Calculus class and was about to slide down the wall and wait for class to start when I heard a sob from other side of the hallway. I looked over and saw a small girl sitting on the floor with her hands around her legs and her head on her knees. She was quietly crying.

I didn't sit down. I sighed and walked over to her side of the hallway, leaned back against the wall, and let myself slide down until I was sitting next to her.

"Hi, I'm John Robinson," I said when she looked up at me. "I couldn't help but hear you crying. Is there anything I can do?"

She shook her head so hard that the tip of her brown ponytail almost hit her face each time.

"Are you okay? I mean you aren't hurt, physically, anyway?"

She shook her head again.

"So there's nothing I can do to make you feel better?"

"C-c-can you t-t-turn b-b-back t-t-time?"

"Not the last time I checked. And believe me I can think of a few times when it would have been handy."

She smiled, sort of. It was a wry smile, but it was nice to see.

I handed her my handkerchief. Mom had always told me to keep one handy. The girl nodded and wiped her face.

"I don't remember seeing you around here? Are you new in town?"