Gravity (Free Falling) (23 page)

AJ
spoke up to introduce me.  “Sam, this is everybody; everybody, this is Sam.”  Their facial expressions ranged from shock to confusion and even genuine kindness. 

They greeted me with a “Hey,
” in unison.  AJ continued to go around the room telling me who everyone was.  “This is Deanna, Karl’s girlfriend. “  AJ pointed at the short, dark haired girl on the couch with a wide grin on her face.  I waved at her and then he moved on.  “This guy is Chris,” AJ said, and then shifted his gaze to the two boys I’d seen him talking to that day at the vending machine, one of which was Asian.  “That’s Randy, Trevor…..and Leila.” 

Before he
said her name, I’d been too nervous to focus on her.  But now, our eyes locked immediately.  She looked me over from head to toe and stopped as she took note of AJ and I holding hands.  Our eyes met again for a second, then she turned away and I saw a smirk cross her face.  I tried my best to shake it off.  AJ led me over to a couch that looked like it had seen better days.  Instantaneously, I found myself wishing that I’d kept my jeans on to protect my legs from whatever was living on it.  I sucked it up and plopped down between AJ and Deanna who was already seated there.  She smiled at me warmly again and started up a conversation almost immediately. 

“It’s really nice to meet you.  I think
I’ve seen you in school before,” she said cheerfully.

It was very easy to miss someone in our school of 3,000.  Another reason that my path had never crossed with any of
AJ’s friends was because of the fact that our school was socially divided by race.  There were the black people, and then there was everyone else.  There was no hatred, only a mutual understanding that the worlds would never mix. 

             
“It’s nice to meet you too.  Your face does look kind of familiar.  Maybe we’ve had a class together before.”

             
“Yeah maybe.  So were you nervous about coming here tonight and meeting all of us?”

             
“A little,” I admitted.  “I wasn’t sure what to expect.”

             
“That’s understandable.  We’re all pretty laid back though.  You seem pretty cool, so you’ll fit right in,” she said as she smiled at me again.  “You hungry?”  She asked, motioning toward a small table in the corner that had five pizza boxes stacked on top of it. 

             
“No, I’m fine for now, but thanks.”

Deanna
nodded and turned away.  AJ was talking to Randy about their upcoming game next Friday, so I sat there looking around the room.  I tried not to notice Leila staring at him as she sat in a chair against the wall.  Of course there was no way I could be exactly sure of her thoughts, but if I had to guess I’d say she looked as though she was desperate to be close to him.  I found myself feeling sorry for her again.  Putting myself in her shoes for a moment, I imagined how I would feel if AJ decided one day that I wasn’t what he wanted anymore.  The thought was unbearable and I hadn’t given myself to him as she had.  She turned to me as if she’d heard my thoughts, immediately causing me to look away as I became embarrassed for staring at her. 

             
“So, who’s up for a good old fashioned game of Truth or Dare?”  Karl asked.  Everyone piped up in response to his request.  They all seemed excited as they formed a tight circle with their chairs in the middle of the room.  We didn’t have to move because the couch where we sat made up one side of that circle already.  This must’ve been one of their rituals.

             
“Ok, I’ll start,” Karl blurted out.  “Let’s see…..umm Randy.  Truth or dare?”

Randy deliberated for a second before deciding. 
“Truth.”

             
“Fine,” Karl sighed.  He seemed a little irritated which meant that he must’ve had a good dare waiting for some unsuspecting victim.  “Is it true…..that you cried when we lost the championship last year?”

Randy turned red and
frowned before admitting it.  “Yeah…..but it was only because we would’ve won if you guys hadn’t played like a bunch of frickin’ idiots that day.”  The room exploded with laughter.  “Shut up!  It was only cause I was mad!”  When the laughter didn’t cease, Randy glared at Karl and went on with the game.  “My turn.  Deanna.  Truth or dare?”  He glanced at Karl before looking back at Deanna.

             
“Mmmmmm…….Truth,” she replied.

Randy rubbed his hands together and smiled devilishly.  “Ok.  Is it true that you had a crush on me
before
you hooked up with Karl?”  Randy looked at Karl while he waited for Deanna to answer. 

“We
ll, I guess I’d have to say true,” she admitted.

             
“I knew it!”  Randy yelled and then turned to Karl.  “How does it feel knowing that
your
girl secretly wants me?” He said as he stood and turned in a circle slowly.

             
“I’m talking about the crush I had on you in fifth grade, stupid,” Deanna amended.  “Get a life.  Moving on.  Chris.  Truth or dare?”

             
“Dare,” he said in a confident voice.

             
“Great! I dare you to go upstairs……and tell Karl’s mom that you wanna make sweet love to her while she’s wearing that old Barney costume Karl’s dad has in the storage room.  And you can’t tell her that it’s a dare either.”

             
“What?  No way.  I’m not doing it,” Chris protested.

             
“Ok…..fine.  You know the rules for refusing a dare,” Deanna said while smiling.

             
“Aw man, come one,” Chris pleaded, making me curious about what the consequences were.

             
“Nope.  You’d make me do it,” Deanna insisted.  “Assume the position.”

Chris sighed and stood to his feet
.  Shock crossed my face when he pulled down his pants and began to sing a very monotone rendition of the theme song to
The Fresh Prince of Bellaire
in his tighty whities. 

“And look!”  Deanna yelled in the midst of Chris’ solo.  “He even wore his
clean
underwear this time!”  She pointed a finger and nearly fell on the floor when she doubled over.  I didn’t know whether to laugh right along with everyone else, or to turn my head.  I quickly made a mental note to never refuse a dare.

Chris finished and had turned beet red from embarrassment
.  “Leila.  Truth or dare?”  Chris asked coldly.  I felt my body go rigid when he said her name.

             
“Truth,” she answered confidently.

             
“Fine.  How many guys have you had sex with?  And tell the truth because we’ll all know if you’re lying,” he warned.  It was clear that Trevor didn’t appreciate Chris’s prying when he rolled his eyes and let out a sigh.

Leila
looked in AJ’s direction with a hint of longing in her eyes and answered boldly, “Just one.”  There was an awkward silence that let me know that I wasn’t the only one who this was making uncomfortable.  I couldn’t understand how Trevor could be so blind to Leila’s advances and blatant attraction to AJ.  Everyone else was aware of it.  Did he think that it was a coincidence that she’d chosen to be with him, the only other Asian boy in their circle of friends?

             
“Whatever, Leila.  You’re a liar.  There’ve been at
least
10 that I know of!”  Chris exclaimed.  Deanna grabbed a pillow from the couch and threw it at him.  Leila sat there with her eyes fixed on AJ, completely ignoring Chris’s comment.

             
“Leila it’s your turn,” Karl interrupted.

Sh
e snapped her head toward me.  “Sarah.  Truth or dare?”

             
“Her name’s Samantha,” AJ corrected her.

             
“Whatever.  Truth or dare?” She repeated

I hesitated and t
ried to see what her intentions were.  Reluctantly I responded “Truth.”

She smiled.  “Ok……
is it true that you went after AJ when you already had a boyfriend?”

I
n that instant I realized that
my
friends weren’t the only ones who’d heard rumors about Antonio and AJ’s altercation on Tuesday.  AJ responded before I could.  “Shut up.  I pursued
her. 
You know……the opposite of what happened with you and me.”  There was dead silence in the room again as Leila snapped her mouth shut and looked at AJ like she could’ve killed him.  He stared back at her emotionlessly. 

Fin
ally Karl interjected.  “Ooookaaayyy.  Sam it’s on you.”

I couldn’t wait to get her back, so
I cleared my throat and tried to keep it together.  “Leila.  Truth or dare?”

She continued to s
tare at AJ when she responded.  “Surprise me, Sasha.”  I could see AJ’s body stiffen as he tried to control his temper.

              “Fine.  Is it true that you got dumped
after
you gave it up, which means that it couldn’t have been that good?” There was a smug grin on my face.  I could tell by the way she shifted in her seat that I’d hit a nerve.  “Don’t get mad.  It’s just a game,” I added.  I could hardly contain the laugh that was brewing inside of me.  It was so quiet in the room that you couldn’t even hear anyone breathe, except for Leila who was nearly panting in anger.  AJ stared at me in shock.  The corner of his mouth was turned up slightly as if he were trying to hold back a smile. 

After a few seconds Leila was finally able to speak. 
“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” was all she said in response to my question, but it was enough to make me uneasy.  What was that supposed to mean?  The implication that she and AJ’s sex life was anything but second-rate made me rethink my assumption.  My plan had backfired a little, but I still got under her skin which made it all worth it.

              Karl intervened again.  “I think that’s enough for tonight.  Let’s watch a movie.”

The next second he was on his feet setting up
the DVD player.  I glanced over at Leila and saw that her face was still twisted in frustration as Trevor rubbed her shoulders caringly.  Poor guy didn’t have a clue.  I leaned into AJ as he settled back on the couch and put his arm around me. Karl turned the lights off and started the movie.  I tried to force myself to focus on it, but I couldn’t.

Two hours later it was finally over.  Leila was still sitting in the same position as before, but I think she
looked even angrier than she did earlier.  Karl turned the lights back on and walked over to turn on the radio.  Everyone was talking amongst themselves, but AJ and I were off in our own world.  He lifted me from the couch and sat me sideways on his lap.  “Are you glad you came?”  He asked

             
“Yeah, everyone seems pretty cool.  Well…..
almost
everyone,” I amended.

             
He knew exactly who I was talking about.  “I hate when she’s like that.  Sometimes she alright, but then she ruins it and does something stupid. ”

             
“She’s probably just getting started, but I’m up to the challenge though,” I replied.  He smiled at me as he rubbed his hand on my thigh affectionately.  Goose bumps immediately rose up on my skin.  AJ watched me become more and more uncomfortable as his hand wandered upward until I stopped him abruptly.  His smile turned into a quiet laugh that didn’t call anyone else’s attention…..except for Leila who hadn’t turned away from us since the lights came back on.  She was near her boiling point.  Her face was almost as red as her crimson hair. 

Leila and Trevor sat back and watched everyone else have a good time from a distance
for pretty much the rest of the night.  Her stoic disposition hadn’t changed as the evening wore on.  Multiple times I’d caught her staring at AJ intently, but Trevor continued to coddle her despite the fact that she wasn’t responding.  I actually felt bad for him as I observed him desperately vying for her attention. 

It was nearly 11:30 and I had to be home by midnight
.  AJ looked at his watch, stretched before standing to his feet, and then reached for my hand to help me up from the couch. 

             
“Karl, everybody, it’s been real, but I have to get her home soon,” he explained.

Everyone except for Leila looked disa
ppointed that we had to leave.    No one other than me seemed concerned about getting home any time soon which made me wondered if any of them had curfews.  They all waved bye as we were walking to the stairs.  Karl spoke up.  “Glad you came, Sam.  You should come back next Saturday.  We’ll be here.  It’s not like we have anything better to do.”

             
“Thanks,” I responded. 

             
“Cool……see you around.”

I smiled and then followed
AJ to the steps.  Leila was planted there in her seat and made no effort to get out of the way.  AJ walked around her as if she didn’t exist.  As I passed, she looked up at me without lifting her head.  I glared back, matching her intensity.  She was going to have to learn that I wasn’t going to back down.  She’d met her match.