Stork (30 page)

“Here it is.” My mom handed me the lapel corsage, expecting me, I supposed, to pin him. His eyes grew wide as I approached with the spinal-tap-worthy needle. He dodged one way and then the other to ward off my advance, and deserved — if you asked me — the poke he ducked right into.

My mom snapped a few photos. She scribbled down his parents’ e-mail address, promising to send them copies. She looked wistful as she watched us walk down the front steps and out to his truck. I knew it would be a hard night for her, one growing up, another growing in her tummy, and home alone.

“Have you heard about Hulda’s store?” I asked after we’d been driving for a short time. He hadn’t. And wasn’t entirely thrilled with the prospect of Starbucks coming in. He reiterated all his old arguments: the loss of their small-town individuality, non-local products, and another piece of history lost forever. I didn’t want to argue. Not that night, anyway. We pulled into the lot. He parked in his usual spot, cut the ignition, and then just sat there.

“Is something wrong?” I asked.

“Just the opposite.”

“Shouldn’t we go in? I mean, you are the king. I wouldn’t want to keep your queen waiting.”

He pulled me across the front seat, alongside him. “There’s no queen on earth who could tempt me over you.” His kiss had me numb and dizzy and seeing things — like the benefit to spending the evening in his truck. He stopped and held me at arm’s length. “There’s something I’m going to tell you tonight.”

“What?” Though I had a suspicion it would be the I-love-you declaration. It seemed a little soon, but maybe not after everything we’d already been through. Besides, what else could there be?

“Later. I need to get my nerve up.”

“Just tell me.”

He shook his head. “No, because now I’ve got the added advantage of keeping you waiting.” He opened his door. “Shall we?” He then helped me out his side, taking a good, long look at my outfit. “Simple and elegant,” he said. “I knew it would suit you. And red. You look great in red.”

Amazingly, we entered the gym through a giant whale’s mouth. Once through, I stopped to take in the transformation of the space. The decorations committee had really ramped up the whole Enchantment Under the Sea theme. There were nets and seashells dangling above us. Huge hanging cutouts of fish swam along a track in the ceiling. Murals of sandcastles, and coral reefs, and spiny sea creatures covered the walls. It was impressive. There were obviously some talented artists around here.

Penny and Tina came running toward me, with Pedro and Matthew following behind. There were compliments offered all around. Penny looked stunning in Grim’s vintage dress, and I wondered how on earth there could have ever been an occasion where Tall-and-Dour had worn seafoam-green chiffon. Tina confessed that her dusty-rose organza number had been the bridesmaid’s dress at her cousin’s wedding. It suited her. A muted pink was a good color against her auburn hair.

“So are we still on for Wade’s party after the dance?” Penny asked.

“That’s the plan,” I replied.

“My
amma
asked me about a thousand times if you and Jack were coming with us out to the barn.”

“Why? Because she didn’t want us hanging out?”

“I don’t know,” Penny said. “It’s like she needs me to map out every little detail of the evening. Especially if it involves you. It’s like she’s going crazy. It’s a wonder she didn’t want me to pre-schedule our trips to the bathroom.”

I made a decision then and there not to drink too much punch that night. And not just because the long gown would be an awkward bundle to hike up and over a toilet bowl.

A lot of kids were already on the dance floor. It was a song by the Black Eyed Peas that rocked.

“So are we going to dance?” I asked the group.

Matthew took Tina by the hand and headed toward the throng. Penny and Pedro followed.

I looked at Jack. He just stood there.

“I don’t fast dance,” he said.

I put my hands on my hips. “You asked me to a dance and you don’t dance?”

“I don’t
fast
dance,” he repeated as if it were clarification.

“Unbelievable.” I may have tapped my toe impatiently. “No exceptions?”

He shook his head.

“What am I supposed to do?”

He gestured toward the floor. “You can still dance.”

“Seriously?”

He shrugged.

I shook my head and turned to watch the dance floor. It was just too tempting. “I’ll be back in a few,” I called over my shoulder, dropping my shawl and clutch on a chair, and leaving Jack standing off to the side. The DJ played a series of fast songs. Pedro and Matthew hung with us for the first one, and then tagged off to join Jack. I kept an eye on him. It amused me. He stood with his hands in his pockets, watching me.

The next song was a rap number. Penny had some serious booty action, and I folded over with laughter. When I stood back up, Wade had joined our group. It made me uncomfortable, and I looked around for Monique, who I expected to be at his side any moment. At first he sort of danced with all three of us, but then made it pretty clear that I was the object of his attentions. I felt awkward, particularly with Jack watching, but I figured it was just a fast dance. At one point in the song he put his arms on my waist and kind of shimmied behind me. It didn’t seem like a big deal. Everyone was whoopin’ it up. I know I’d danced with guy friends like that back in LA. Next thing I knew, Jack took me by the hand and was leading me off the dance floor at a very, very brisk pace. We walked straight out one of the gym doors and into the evening air. Unbelievable. A cold front had picked up in the short time we’d been indoors. How could it change so suddenly? Winds swirled around us, lifting my hair and the gauzy overlay of my skirt. I shivered without my shawl.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Wade,” Jack said. “That’s what’s wrong. I didn’t like the way he was looking at you. And then when he grabbed you from behind . . .” Jack stood with his arms crossed, obviously trying to keep a lid on something. “I couldn’t take it.”

“Jack.”

He shook me off. “I know. I overreacted. I’m sorry.”

“You know I don’t like Wade.”

“I know that.” He seemed to be calming down.

I snuggled into him. “Let’s get something straight. I’m with you. Period. Everyone else is just wallpaper.”

He relaxed and put his arms around me. “You still don’t know.”

“Know what?”

“How vulnerable you make me.”

“Vulnerable?”

He took a deep breath, lowered his head, and spoke softly into my ear. “It killed me; your first day at Norse Falls almost killed me. I thought for sure you’d take one look at me and know me.”

“But you know why now. I didn’t remember anything.”

He pulled me into the contours of his body. “I begged my dad to let me deliver the apples that night. He didn’t want me to. Said it’d be best to let sleeping dogs lie.” Jack shuddered. “But I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t stay away.”

“I’m glad you didn’t.”

“I couldn’t believe my bad luck when that piece-of-junk truck broke down. I just kept thinking: What if I missed you? What if you’d closed up?”

“I hadn’t. Plus, we’d have come together somehow, right?”

“I don’t have to tell you how shattered I was when you still didn’t know me.”

I groaned. “I can’t believe I picked a fight with you that night.”

“It didn’t matter. It was contact. Better than nothing.”

“Are you calming down now?” I asked.

“Yes. But now you know.”

“Know what?”

“How defenseless I am.”

“I bet Wade doesn’t think you’re defenseless.”

“Good.”

“So is this what you wanted to tell me?”

“Not even.”

“So?”

“Soon. I think I’ve got some kingly duties to attend to first.”

When we got back into the gym, Penny came running toward us. “Where have you guys been? They’ve been paging Jack on the microphone for like five minutes.”

Once Jack was accounted for, the entire Homecoming court was assembled onstage. All ten of the senior royalty were introduced, but only Jack and Monique were seated on thrones. The DJ went into a slow dance and it was announced that the Homecoming court would have the first dance. I had to stand there and watch Jack dance with Monique, a slow dance, their crowns tilted together, his right hand at her waist, his left encircling her hand. I was beginning to understand just what had bothered him about Wade singling me out. He looked up at me a few times, feigning a pained expression. On his third glance my way, I tapped an imaginary watch. I could see his body shake with laughter. It helped to ease the tension, but still I was impatient. Finally, the song came to an end. Jack pulled away from Monique and walked over to the DJ, engaging him in a brief conversation. Then the DJ announced that the next song, another slow one, was “king’s request.” Jack walked over to me and pulled me onto the dance floor without a word. “Helpless” by Neil Young wailed from the speakers. I imagined there were kids who had never heard the song before. I only had because my mom was a big fan.

“This was your request?” I asked.

“Yes.” He pulled me into him, already closer than he’d held Monique.

“It’s old,” I said. “Old-Testament old.”

“I like it.” He pulled me closer still. “Plus, it’s fitting.”

“Helpless?”

“It’s what I am with you.” His breath tickled my ear.

“You are not helpless.”

“Yes. I am. And it’s not just a feeling. It’s a state of being.”

“Jack, you’re anything but helpless.”

He pulled me away a little, holding me by the shoulders. “I’m not lying to you. I’m incapable of lying to you. If I lost you again, it would . . .” He looked away. “I couldn’t . . .” He pulled me back into him and sang along with Neil. “Helpless.” He wasn’t much of a singer, but the whole baring-of-his-soul thing he had down to a science.

“You could have at least gone for the k.d. lang version,” I said. “A little hipper. A little more orchestra, less harmonica.”

“I’m impressed. You know the song.” He looked me in the eye. “But by now you should also know I’m loyal. A traditionalist.”

“I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

The next song was another slow one. I was onto him the moment he twirled me, quite effortlessly. Doesn’t fast dance, yeah, right. “If you can dance like this, you can dance to anything.”

“I said I
don’t
fast dance, not that I couldn’t.”

“I should have guessed. I should have known by what Penny said.”

“What did she say?”

“She said you were good at everything.”

He laughed, a big throaty
haw-haw
. “Did she?”

“Did you know she had a crush on you?”

“Yes.”

“And did you know that a lot of girls had crushes on you?”

He exhaled impatiently. “Yes.”

“And Monique last year?”

“Hard not to notice that one.”

“Penny thought you were oblivious, or above it all.”

He pulled me closer. “I am definitely not oblivious. Nor above anything or anyone.”

“What, then?”

“Nobody got hurt,” he said. “While I was waiting for you.”

“How could you know I’d come back? I didn’t know I’d come back.”

“I just believed. And held on to that for as long as I could.” The way he was holding me, both his arms now low and around my waist, I knew he was the kind of guy who could, and would, hold on for a long time, a very long time.

We danced one more slow number. With every step, the room spun off and the world fell away until we were entirely alone. The spell was broken when Wade and Monique danced into our view. I might not have noticed had Jack’s grip not suddenly become viselike. I tugged his ear with my left hand and nestled into the cleft under his chin in response. He relaxed, but still kept me close. It was a night I didn’t want to end.
Magic
was a term I had never used lightly. To say an evening was magic sounded corny, but it was. Anyway, I figured by now I, human Stork, had a little authority in that department.

When the entire dance floor broke into the “Cha-Cha Slide” and then a couple of ditties circa
Hee Haw,
Jack and I watched. I can dance to rap, rock, disco, and even show tunes, but I draw the line at country. The rest of the evening flew by quickly. Everyone was getting ready to take off for the party. We told the gang we’d see them there and headed to the parking lot. Just as Jack was backing up, Wade appeared at his window.

“Good thing I caught you,” Wade said. “Not sure if you got the directions around the detour.” He handed Jack a flyer. “There’s some construction out on the county road, so it will be faster to come in the west side of the property.” He leaned casually against the driver’s side of the truck. “You know how these large properties are. Access trails from every point of the compass.”

I didn’t know anything about the properties around here. My family’s lot in LA had been forty by one hundred — feet, not acres.

Jack took the paper, looked it over, and said, “See you out there.”

Jack pulled his truck onto the main highway north. After about a half hour, he pulled onto a smaller two-lane county road, which quickly became a gravel road, off of which we turned onto a private drive, and then were essentially four-wheeling down a one-lane trail with dense firs and pines slapping the truck from both sides. I hadn’t expected such a remote location for the party, and although I understood we were coming in on an alternate route, something didn’t feel right.