In the Middle of Nowhere (21 page)

“What do you think?” she snapped, as if I
should always be up to date on her parents’ whereabouts.

“I’ll have to ask my mom. You may have to
come in and meet her, especially if I’m gonna sleep over.”

“What am I,” Tessa asked sarcastically, “your
babysitter?”

“Forget it then!”

“Fine, fine,” she huffed. “I’ll make sure to
wear something professional, too. Maybe I’ll borrow one of the
outfits my mom wears to her charity events.”

“Ha, ha. Funny. You have to act mature and
tell my mom that your parents will be home if she asks.”

“I’m always mature, Willow,” she said and
blew her smoke into the phone.

“And,” I added, “don’t smoke before you come
here. I don’t want you smelling like it.”

“Are you serious? Am I gonna have to take a
Breathalyzer, too, for Christ’s sake?”

“Then forget the whole thing!” I yelled.

Tessa relented. “Alright. Calm down. I’ll act
all proper and shit and behave like a young lady and won’t drink or
smoke until we get back to my house.”

“Okay. See you at seven,” I said and hung
up.

I stood and walked over to my mirror and
studied my reflection. I looked pathetic, like I just rolled out of
bed. I turned toward my closet. First I wanted to pick out a cute,
but comfortable outfit and then I’d shower.

In the meantime, I had to think about how I
was going to convince my mother to let me stay overnight at
Tessa’s, when I had never even mentioned her name before. I didn’t
know why my mom would care where I slept. Sometimes it seemed like
she cared too much about what I did or with whom I did it, but
other times I felt as though my mother was so wrapped up in her own
little world, she didn’t care about me at all.

• • •

Tessa rang the doorbell promptly at seven. I
ran down the stairs to answer it. I wanted to take a whiff of her
to make sure she didn’t reek of smoke or booze, for that matter. I
just never knew with her.

I was surprised earlier when I had asked my
mom if I could go over to Tessa’s and spend the night. I told her
that Tessa would come inside so she could meet her first. I felt as
if I was going on a date.

My mom had said, “yes,” so easily. What was
up with her, I wondered? Maybe she felt guilty for making me stay
home with James the Saturday night before or because she knew how
unhappy I was that she was planning a future with Mr. Roberts.
That’s what I felt like calling Brian from now on; Mr. Roberts,
just to show them both how much I disapproved of their impending
union.

I should take advantage of her guilt and ask
her if I could get my driver’s permit soon. I had already asked her
a bunch of times and she had said, “no,” each and every time.

Tessa looked nice. Thankfully she didn’t
follow through with her threat and wear one of her mother’s suits.
Again, I never knew with her. She had on a down jacket, pair of
jeans and UGG boots. I too settled on my UGGs, a comfy sweater and
pair of yoga pants from PINK.

Tessa followed me into the kitchen where my
mom stood, baking cookies.

I cleared my throat. “Mom, I’d like you to
meet my friend Tessa.” I sounded so ridiculous, like I had just
finished interviewing Tessa for a position at a company where my
mom was the head of HR.

Respectfully Tessa stuck out her hand. “It’s
a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Flynn.”

My mother surveyed Tessa from head to toe
before she wiped her hand on her apron and reciprocated. “Nice to
meet you, too.”

My mother smiled. “Will your parents be home
tonight, Tessa?”

Without missing a beat, Tessa answered. “Yes,
they will be, Mrs. Flynn. Would you like me to call them, now, so
you can speak with them?”

I almost keeled over. Why the hell did Tessa
say that? We both knew very well that her parents weren’t going to
be around. Why would she offer my mother the chance to talk to
people I had never even met?

My mother put up her hand and shook her head.
“No, that’s alright, dear. Maybe another time.”

Tessa looked over at me and smirked. She was
a piece of work all right. Somehow she knew my mother would say,
“no.”

“Gotta go,” I said as I spun on my heels and
headed for the front door. Tessa was right behind me. I grabbed my
overnight bag and my North Face and practically ran to Tessa’s car
so my mother wouldn’t have the chance to ask any more questions
that could potentially incriminate us.

CHAPTER
TWENTY-NINE

As we headed toward Tessa’s house, we talked
about what we would do once there.

“We can rent a movie,” she suggested.

I shrugged. “Sounds good to me.” I didn’t
care what we did. I was just grateful to be away from home.

Tessa took a sharp right into the parking lot
of a convenience store and stopped.

“Gotta get some cigarettes. Want
anything?”

I shook my head. “No thanks.”

Tessa climbed out and I stared out the window
at the other customers while I waited. I looked far to my right
and, even though it was dark, I could have sworn that I saw Brian
Roberts chatting with a woman. They were standing outside an
unfamiliar car. I was certain it was Brian because this man was so
tall, as tall as Brian, whom I was convinced was the tallest man on
the island.

The man and the woman embraced and then
kissed each other on the lips. It wasn’t a quick, “it was nice to
see you long-lost-friend,” kinda kiss. It was a long, lingering
kiss, the kind reserved for lovers.

I was shocked. I rubbed my eyes to make sure
I was seeing clearly, yet was careful not to smudge the little
makeup I had on. The woman got into a car and drove off. Brian
stayed and waved as she did. He then walked to the side of the
building and disappeared. I saw car headlights go on as their
reflection bounced off the side of the store. A few seconds later,
that car backed out and drove off in the opposite direction of the
mysterious woman.

Because it was so dark outside, I couldn’t
tell for sure whether or not it was Brian’s car. It seemed much
smaller than the car he normally drove, more of a sports car than a
sedan, but I could swear it was Brian. He’d been at my house enough
times for me to know what he looked like, even in a dimly lit
parking lot.

I was speechless. Tessa got back into the car
and did a double take when she looked over at me.

“What the hell’s wrong with you? You look
like you saw a ghost!”

“No. I’m, I’m fine,” I stammered.

Tessa pulled out and we drove to her house. I
stared straight ahead as my brain tried to process what had just
happened. Was that, for sure, Brian Roberts or was it someone who
looked a lot like him? If it was Brian, why did he hug and kiss
another woman? If he was intimate with someone else, why was he
engaged to my mother? Hundreds of different questions and scenarios
bounced around in my head as we headed east on Shoreline Drive.
Maybe Brian’s being unfaithful to my mom was the best thing that
could happen, I thought. She would surely break up with him and
call off the engagement once she found out. I had one small, yet
crucial obstacle, however. I somehow had to prove it.

• • •

We pulled up to Tessa’s and I got a rush of
anxiety when I saw her brother’s truck sitting in the driveway.

“Are you sure your brother won’t bother
us?”

“Why are you so afraid of him, Willow?” Tessa
rolled her eyes. “Trust me. He’s harmless.”

We walked into the house and it seemed as
though no one else was there. Hopefully Jaques was in his drug cave
and wouldn’t feel the need to emerge all night long.

Tessa and I went into the family room and she
turned to the television channel that allowed you to rent
movies.

“What do you wanna watch?” Tessa asked
me.

“I don’t really care. What about you?”

Before she could answer, Tessa’s phone rang.
She picked up. “Nothing, asshole. What about you two?”

Tessa laughed. “Just me and my friend,
Willow.” She smiled. “Hey, be nice. Sounds good. See ya!”

“Who was that?” I wanted to know. “And what
mean thing did they say about me?”

“It was Connor and, chill, he didn’t say
anything mean about you.”

“What did he want?”

“He and Rocky are coming over.”

I panicked. “Where? Here?!”

Tessa looked at me as if I was insane. “Of
course, here, unless you want to meet up with them somewhere
else.”

I needed to stay cool, calm and collected. I
kicked off my boots, put my feet up on the coffee table and leaned
back. “Whatever.”

• • •

Tessa and I had just finished ordering a
newly released comedy when her louder-than-hell doorbell rang. I
jumped.

Tessa extinguished her cigarette and stood.
“They’re here.”

I stayed and sat while Tessa answered the
door. I couldn’t believe that we were going to hang out with Connor
and “The God.” I hadn’t really seen Rocky since the time Tessa and
I sat at his lunch table. I was mortified because he had obviously
remembered me from his party after all. I was so embarrassed about
what had happened between us, I tried my best to steer clear of him
from then on. And now, I was going to be in a room with just him
and two others. I was beyond nervous.

I barely put any effort into getting ready
for the night because Tessa said it would be just the two of us
hanging out. I shook my head and scolded myself. Why did I even
care how I looked in front of Connor and Rocky? I didn’t care what
either of them thought about me. I would have taken more time with
myself if I were going to be seeing Michael, which made me then
think of him and get sad because I imagined him alone in a hospital
room somewhere.

My sadness quickly changed to dread when I
heard the three of them walking down the hallway. The minute they
entered the family room, I could feel my face getting flush. I
tried to compose myself and took long, deep breaths.

I turned around on the sofa, gave a slight
wave and a casual, “Hello.”

Connor spoke first. “Hey! What’s up, Willow?”
He smiled and waved. “Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you, too.” I said. Nice to meet
you, I thought to myself. I’ve been in the same school with you for
the past five months, traveled the same crowded hallways, dined in
the same stinky lunchroom and even had a mutual friend, Tessa, in
common, and he was pleased to meet me? Whatever. On second thought,
I was okay with it and wished the circumstances were the same for
my familiarity with Rocky.

Rocky gave me a nod. “How’s it goin’?”

I smiled. “Good.”

I hated to admit it, but Rocky looked hotter
than ever and Connor wasn’t actually as ugly as I had thought.
Freckle-faced Connor seemed friendly and outgoing, which kind of
made him seem cuter and less gangly. They both had on long-sleeved
polos and cool, tight jeans.

Tessa plopped down on the couch across from
me and Rocky and Connor on either side of her.

“Whatta ya gals watching?” Connor asked.

“We just rented Beach Bums,” Tessa
answered.

“That movie was hysterical,” Connor said,
“and you know what made it even funnier?” Connor looked at Tessa
and then over at me. We both shook our heads.

“What?” Tessa playfully whacked him in the
arm. “The suspense is killing me.”

Connor reached into his coat pocket and
pulled out something that looked like a cigarette, a big, fat
homemade cigarette. It took a minute for my mind to register what
he was holding. Tessa grabbed it and smelled it.

“Is it good shit?”

Connor smiled. “The best shit. Ask
Rocky.”

Rocky nodded. “Yeah. It’s pretty good.”

Tessa popped up. “Hold on. Let me get my
lighter.” Tessa raced into the kitchen, quickly grabbed her lighter
and pack of cigarettes off the island and joined us.

“Who wants the first hit?” Tessa offered.

Connor motioned to her. “Be my guest.”

Tessa lit the joint and inhaled deeply.
Connor moved closer to her and she blew the smoke into his mouth.
They both chuckled. Connor took the joint from her, took a long,
deep drag and held his breath. Tessa leaned toward Connor and she
took in his expelled smoke. They kissed afterward.

Connor turned toward Rocky, “Waste not, want
not.”

Rocky took the joint. “What the hell is that
supposed to mean?”

Connor laughed. “Forget it. Just toke,
man.”

Rocky took a drag and held his breath. Oh my
God! What was I going to do? I assumed he was going to pass it to
me next. I had never smoked pot in my life, let alone been in the
same room with people who were getting high off of it. The next
thing I knew, Rocky stood up and handed me the joint.

I didn’t know what to do! I had one of two
choices. I could pass it along to Tessa and give a, “No thanks, not
my thing” response and come off like a complete and total nerd or I
could just take the joint, mimic how the rest of them smoked the
damn thing and hope for the best.