Chapter 13

At lunch, Meredith calmly claimed a seat across from Brock--much to Jen’s consternation.

“Hi, Meredith,” Brock said as Jen watched carefully. “Welcome to the Loser Table.”

Meredith laughed. She had a rich, full laugh, not a little girl giggle like Brock had suspected.

“Loser my ass,” she said. “The line for a visit with the King is usually a mile long. And everyone here calls me Merie.”

Brock nodded.

“The Cherry,” Merie added with a grin. “As I’m sure you know.”

Brock burst out in a fit of laughter.

“Actually, I learned that fact only today,” he said. “I guess I must be known as Brock the Bashful or maybe Miller the Misanthrope.”

Jenny watched the interplay like a ping-pong match, her head turning from one rejoinder to the other.

“And she will soon be known as Jenny the Drooler if she doesn’t learn to close her mouth,” Brock added with a nod toward Jen. “Sure, it isn’t as poetic as Merie the Cherry or as alliterate as Miller the Misanthrope but it certainly paints a picture.”

Jenny tried to scowl but she found it humorous, too.

“Knock it off,” she said. “It’s not funny.”

“To you,” Brock and Merie chimed in unison.

“Brock, I was wondering, with football season over and all, if you might be free Saturday?” Merie asked and Jen’s jaw dropped again.

Brock looked at Merie questioningly.

“I’m not sure,” he said. “It’s complicated. I might have a girlfriend, but I’m not really sure. I know this sounds stupid but can I check and get back with you tomorrow?”

It was Merie’s turn to look unsure.

“Would you mind explaining your comment before I give my answer?” she finally said. “It’s rather cryptic. Most people would recognize if they had a girlfriend or not.”

Brock nodded and glanced at Jen.

“What do you think, Jen?” he asked. “Is Mel my girlfriend or not? I’m truly not sure and it hasn’t been an issue until now.”

Jen still sat in stunned silence.

“What? Is Mel your fuck-buddy?” Merie asked with a sly smile. “Because fuck-buddies don’t count as girlfriends.”

“Uh, no,” Brock answered slowly. “Mel is, um, well, she’s Jen’s sister. That I know for sure. And she’s kissed me a couple of times and, well, that’s where it gets complicated. I’m not sure if she likes me or if she just hangs out with me just to piss off Jen and her Mom.”

Jenny shook her head to clear the cobwebs.

“No,” she said finally.

Brock and Merie both looked at her.

“No, what?” Brock finally asked when he ascertained that nothing further was coming.

“No, I don’t think she considers herself your girlfriend,” Jen said. “She asks about you every time she calls home but ... Has she kissed you more often than what I’ve seen? You know, just on your porch?”

“Well, no,” Brock confessed. “Sort of. Let’s just say she’s only kissed me when either you or your mom were watching. See, Merie, complicated.”

“How do you consider her?” Merie asked. “That is the more important question. Do you consider her your girlfriend? And when did Jen stop being your girlfriend? I missed a few weeks of school and when I left you were still dating.”

“I don’t really consider Mel my girlfriend,” Brock admitted. “But at the same time I consider her my friend and I wouldn’t want to hurt her feelings if she considered me her boyfriend. The Miles family is weird. For all I know, in their pagan/naturalist rituals, I might be married to both Jen and Mel because I’ve kissed them both.”

Jenny slapped Brock’s arm lightly.

“We are not pagans or naturalists--whatever that is,” Jen said. “And a kiss does not a boyfriend make.”

Merie was enjoying this conversation more than she had any other in ages.

“So, you don’t worship trees and you don’t walk around nude,” she kidded Jenny. “Are there any other quirks that might lead Brock to already be betrothed?”

Jenny was getting flustered but Brock kept up the joking.

“Oh, she walks around nude plenty,” he said. “I can see into her house from my bedroom. You should see some of the shows I’ve gotten.”

Jenny’s eyes went wide before she realized Brock was playing.

“Fuck you, Miller,” she hissed. “It’s a sad testament to your life that your only entertainment is spying on teenaged girls in their bedrooms.”

Brock winked at Merie.

“Teenaged girls hell,” he said. “I’ve been watching your Mom. She has this two-foot long rubber thing that I think she’s gonna have to marry.”

Jenny suddenly realized that she had rarely heard Brock joke--and he certainly had never made an off-color remark about anything remotely sexual.

“Yeah,” Jen said. “I’ve already starting to call it ‘Papa.’”

The three teens were sorely disappointed when the bell rang for fifth period. Merie casually slipped in beside Brock and Jen on the way to her next class.

“Check with your maybe-girlfriend,” she said as they parted. “Let me know if she says it’s OK. Maybe she’s heard the other rumor about me and will want to tag along.”

Brock chanced plugging his phone back in later than evening and managed to catch Melanie in her dorm room.

“Hey, stud,” Mel said cheerfully. “I hear you’re getting a regular harem together.”

He knew immediately that Jen had filled her sister in on the day’s events.

“I don’t know that I’d call it a harem,” he said ruefully. “How about I’m gathering a group of pains in my ass.”

“Same thing,” Mel answered. “Listen, as you can guess Jen called me before she even took her coat off. I tried to call you a couple of times but your damned phone is either busy or ringing off the hook.”

Brock told Melanie about his night before.

“Oh, yeah,” she said. “I should have guessed. Anyway, she told me about Meredith Van Landingham. Isn’t that a hoity-toity name.”

“I’m Meredith Van Landingham of the Essex Van Landinghams,” she said in a terrible British accent. “We make money the old fashioned way--we wait for our parents to die and inherit it.”

Brock chuckled.

“Actually, she said her family hit the lottery a few years back,” he told Melanie. “So I think her money might be just as new as mine. But I guess Jen told you my dilemma.”

Melanie got serious.

“She did,” she told Brock. “I’ve thought about that for a couple of days now. I think you’re wonderful and I am attracted to you. But I think our dating days are a couple of years away--if they come at all. But I’m extremely flattered that you considered my feelings in the matter. Of course you had to with my little sister the snitch sitting next to you. She probably would skip her afternoon classes to call me if she thought it would piss me off.”

“She might at that,” Brock agreed. “I’m not sure of her sometimes. I mean, we’re neighbors so I want to be friends with her. But I don’t want to be her boyfriend. I’m sure you understand why.”

“That’s what the harem comment was about,” Mel said with glee. “You’ve got two girls chasing you in Corbly and three in Wilkins. Put us all together and you’ve got the makings of quite a group.”

Brock groaned.

“Who are the other two in Wilkins?” he asked but he was pretty sure he knew the answer. Melanie confirmed it.

“Tara and Suzy, of course,” she said. “Suzy calls me about every evening. She can’t wait to get up there and live beside you. Tara is jealous as hell and is trying to convince her mom to move to Corbly, you know, with property taxes going through roof down here for some odd reason. I have heard through the grapevine that Tara and her mother are going to scout houses in our neighborhood over Christmas break. Won’t that be exciting?

“By the way, thanks for not mentioning my proposed living arrangement in front of The Snitch. Mom is going to shit when I talk to her about it anyway. But if she heard if from Jenny first, well, I think it would be ten times worse. We’ll cross that bridge when I get home. You’re still coming to get me next Friday, right?”

“I’ll be there,” he told her. “I checked on a U-Haul on the way home from school. It gave Jenny the time she needed to make her call.”

“If things go well this weekend, bring Meredith with you,” she said and Brock hoped she was joking. “I’ve got some interesting gossip to share with that girl. Suzy has been telling me a lot of stories about some kid named Jordan that used to run around in the woods without his pants.”