The Second Virginity of Suzy Green (4 page)

“Hey Suzy,” he
calls after me. “Wait for me.” I glance over my shoulder and grin.

“Hurry up then,”
I say, making a concerted effort to refrain from punching the air.

He jogs over to
where I’m standing and we walk through the entrance and make our way toward the
private room at the back where the meeting is taking place. Guy holds the door
open and I walk in front of him into the room, where I come to an abrupt halt.

Holy crap.

Take me home
now. The room is packed. As in so full it’s standing room only. There’s got to
be way over fifty kids here probably closer to a hundred. All sitting in rows
on wooden seats and facing a small stage at the front. Where’s this low key
affair Lori promised?

“You okay?” Guy
whispers in my ear.

Okay, as in will
I get over the shivers racing up and down my spine caused by his closeness? Or
okay as in there’s no way on earth I’m pledging anything in front of this
amount of people?

I swallow hard.
“I’m not sure. I didn’t expect to see so many here.” I lean back against the
wall, welcoming the feel of its support. Guy stands next to me on one side and
Lori, Rachel and Jana on the other.

“It’s a great turnout,”
Guy says. “We don’t normally have this many. I think it’s because we’ve been
giving out leaflets at St Bartholomew’s School. I recognize some of them from
there.”

He must really
be into this virgin stuff if he goes around trying to convert other students.
Though I suppose convert isn’t the right word. You can’t convert from not being
a virgin to being a virgin. Apart from in special cases, obviously.

“So that means
there’ll be a lot of people pledging tonight then.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

That won’t be so
bad then, because I can hide behind someone else and no-one will be able to
spot the guilty look on my face. That’s if I decide to take the pledge. I
really haven’t decided yet. And that’s the truth. Though I must admit to being
swayed by Guy.

“Hi everyone,”
says a man standing on the stage, who Guy tells me is Jamie the President.

Something else I
couldn’t believe. The club is run by a full committee with elections, fund
raising and all those other things committees do. Not that I’ve ever been on a
committee before. Or belonged to a club for that matter. I couldn’t see the
attraction, despite Rosie’s attempts to convince me otherwise. Still, that’s in
the past. I’m open to anything now. Sort of.

“Good to see you
all. Sorry there aren’t enough chairs. We’ll fix that for the next meeting.
Okay, hands up the new people.”

Standing where
we are I get a full view of everyone putting up their hands and so gingerly put
mine up too. I am not comfortable with all this.

“It’s great to
have you here at ‘Wait For Love’. Where we believe in staying pure until we
take those sacred marriage vows.”

What? Lori said
it wasn’t religious. But ‘sacred’ and ‘pure’ sure ring religious bells with me.
Not that I’m against religion per se. But I’m finding it so hard, since Rosie’s
death, to come to terms with a God who could take away someone so perfect in
the prime of their life.

“No one is
twisting your arm,” Jamie continues. “But just know that if you take the pledge
tonight you will be a better person because of it.”

So what does
that make all the people who don’t pledge? Bad people?

“Because it’s
all about respect,” Jamie adds, after what seems like a well timed pause.
Clearly done for effect. I wonder if he’s had theatrical training. He certainly
gestures like an actor. And I know he’s not still at school. Unless he’s got
that premature aging disease.

“Respecting
yourself and others respecting you.”

I lean to the
side and whisper into Lori’s ear. “Who is Jamie exactly? Apart from being the
Pres.”

“He’s a youth
worker with the church,” she replies turning so I can see her face and, more to
the point, her eyes which are bright and shining. Oh no. She’s got it bad for
Jamie. It’s written all over her face. “He’s cute. Don’t you think?”

Um, in a word.
No. Creepy would be a far better description from what I’ve seen so far. I
don’t mean creepy looking. He’s dressed okay, and quite passable for someone
older. It’s more his voice and the things he’s saying that are freaking me out.
But let’s be fair. I don’t know him like she does. Which clearly won’t be in
the biblical sense as that is
forbidden
.

“Yeah, he seems
okay.” Like I’m going to tell her my true first impressions.

“So, are you
going to?” Lori asks.

“Am I going to
what?”

“Take the
pledge, of course. What did you think I meant?”

Well, there’s
the sixty-four thousand dollar question.

“I call upon all
people present to witness my pledge to remain a virgin until I marry, so I can
give my partner the most precious gift I have. Myself.”

I let out a huge
sigh and glance up to the ceiling, half expecting a loud clap of thunder and
the floor to open up and swallow me whole. There’s lying and there’s lying. And
this is definitely the latter. A shiver runs down my spine. I’m not
superstitious but this is truly unnerving. Where’s Maddie when you need her? And
what a mouthful I had to say. It sounded more like a marriage vow. Of course,
unlike with a marriage pledge, you don’t get to go to a top hotel for the reception
and honeymoon night. Not that I want marriage or anything remotely like it for
a long time yet. God no.

You know, I
can’t believe I’ve actually done it. Well, we’ve actually done it. There’s
about fifteen of us standing on the stage doing what Jamie called a ‘mass
pledge’. I wonder if that makes it more effective, or whether we’re doing it
together to save time?

This has got to
be the weirdest thing I’ve ever done, though. And what’s even weirder is that
everyone around me believes those words that fell so eloquently from my lips.
Well they do if the deafening cheers are anything to go by. So I must have been
convincing, even if I did mutter quietly. Not that anyone would have noticed,
the girl next to me more than made up for my lack of volume. She gave it her
all, shouting so loud I swear they could hear her two blocks down. I had to
hold myself back from shouting hallelujah once we’d finished.

On the other
hand, it is sort of cool as well. I mean, never before have so many people
cheered me on. In the past I’ve always steered clear of anything remotely
team-like. I might not actually deserve the accolades but it’s not like I’m
hurting anyone. And if I stick to the pledge from now on, however much
temptation is put in my way, then everything will be perfect. And I’m hardly
going to experience loads of temptation, if the past is anything to go by. It’s
not that I haven’t had boyfriends—clearly, or I wouldn’t be in this mess—but
there haven’t been many, and certainly none I’d consider sleeping with.

“Yay, Suzy.
Don’t you feel good?” asks Guy when I walk back to where he’s standing. “Now
you’re really one of us.” A broad smile crosses his face and he puts his arm
around my shoulder in a very protective like manner. My legs feel distinctly
wobbly at this precise moment, I hope they’ll hold me up. Though if I do fall
Guy can catch me. Mmm, now there’s a thought.

Surely I’m not
wrong in thinking he’s a little bit interested in me if he’s acting like this.

“Um, yeah. I
guess. But a bit over-awed by it all.” What sort of answer is that? Over-awed.
I ask you.

He gives my
shoulder a gentle squeeze then lets his arm drop to his side. Crap. I guess he
doesn’t want everyone else to realize he’s interested. Either that, or it’s not
appropriate behavior for the VC. Or am I kidding myself? Whatever. There’s
definitely some connection between us, that much I can tell.

“Suzy. Suzy,” Lori
hollers in my ear, distracting me for a moment. She gives me a huge hug. “You
did it. I’m so proud of you. We both are, aren’t we Rach?” Rachel, who’s
standing behind Lori, nods in agreement. “After the meeting we’ll go celebrate.
Everyone back to mine. Mom’s out for the night and won’t be back until really
late. Some boring dinner in aid of the hospital.”

A party. That’s
more like it. Can’t remember the last party I went to. Yes, I can. Nearly a year
ago, just after camp. Dani’s sixteenth birthday (this girl at my old school).
It’s a all bit hazy but I have it on the best authority (Maddie, who else?)
that we had a good time—though I suppose the less said about that the better
when you think about where I am at the moment.

Not that I did
it or anything. But whoever made the punch got a bit carried away and I was
truly wasted. Good job I stayed with Maddie that weekend. I’d have been
grounded for months if my parents had seen the state I was in—Maddie’s really
lucky because her parents are always so busy they don’t notice what she does.

Maddie asked
whether she should have a party for me when we moved away but I said no. Hardly
surprising under the circumstances. I just wanted to leave quietly.

I wonder if this party includes drink. I’ve
still got some allowance left even though someone else will have to buy it for
me. My fake id was ‘borrowed’ ages ago and I didn’t bother to get it back—what
with everything else going on. Maybe Lori’s older brother will get us some, if
he’s around. I’m sure he’s over twenty-one. Older brothers and sisters
definitely have their uses. Or did, in my case.

I shake my head
to try and rid the cloud of depression threatening to fall. I can’t think of Rosie
now. I’ll save it for later when I’m on my own.

“Sounds great.”
I say brightly (hopefully not so brightly they think I’m faking it). “You
coming Guy?” The words tumble out of my mouth before I’ve time to check them.

What did I tell
myself earlier? Not to come across as too keen. And what have I just done?
Correct. Come across as keen. Will I ever learn?

“Sure, I’ll try
and get there.” He shrugs and looks away—in a very shifty manner, if you ask
me.

I notice out the
corner of my eye a look pass between Lori and Rachel. The ‘poor-thing-doesn’t-have-a-chance’
sort of look that Maddie and I have been doing for years. Now I feel like a
right idiot.

“Whatever.” I
turn my back on Guy. See, I can do ‘who-cares’ like the best of them.

“So, what do we do now, Lori?”

The meeting
seems to have fallen into disarray, with everyone talking amongst themselves.
Unless that’s all the meeting is. I mean what else is there to do after we’ve
multi-pledged? Unless—nah. They wouldn’t do that
‘let’s-help-each-other-in-our-quest’ sort of thing. Would they?

“Jamie asks for
anyone to come up on stage who’s found themselves tempted and they talk about
their feelings and we support them in their drive to stay on the right path.”

Geez. I was only
joking. This is too much. I can’t believe that kids go along with this sort of
stuff. After taking the pledge that should be it. Who the hell would want to
get up on stage and tell everyone what they’ve been up to? No way will I ever
do that. It’s not normal.

“Surely no-one
will admit to it in front of all these people.”

“I thought that
when I first took the pledge,” Lori says, making me squirm her smile is so patronizing.
“But it’s okay. And if it helps you not to give in to temptation then it’s got
to be good, hasn’t it? Jamie says the clubs with the highest success rate are
the ones where everyone supports each other and they meet regularly.”

“Right,” I say
nodding my head. “Has Jamie been involved in these clubs before?”

“Oh yes,” Lori
says animatedly. “He set up one in the last city he worked. And he set up our
club about nine months ago. He says one of the most satisfying areas of his
work is knowing he’s helped young people realize they’re foolish to give in to
an instant thrill when they can have an eternity of pleasure with the right person.”

Creepy.
Definitely creepy. No other word for it. Even if Lori can’t see that. Or Rachel
either, by the looks of it—as the expression on her face suggests she’s just as
enamored with Jamie as Lori.

It must be me.
I’m not cut out for this serious, conforming business. It was a silly idea. I
don’t know why I even thought I could do it. Well, that’s a lie I do know why.
So Mom and Dad will forgive my past and be proud of me. And I always knew it
wouldn’t be easy.

What is it Dad
says? ‘Anything worth having is worth working for’. There’s no doubting I’ve
done a pretty good job at my new school so far. The hard work I’m putting in is
definitely paying off. Top marks. No detentions. In fact I doubt teachers from
my old school would recognize me. I don’t recognize myself half the time.

It’s like I’m
undergoing a whole personality transplant. Not that I mind. It certainly beats
constantly having to watch my back in case I get caught doing something I
shouldn’t. Though it’s got to be said, I do miss the kicks.

Okay. So I’ll
give this a chance. As long as I’m not expected to go up there and ‘fess-up’
I’m prepared to support the other mugs. Oops, I didn’t mean that. I meant to
say ‘those who need it’.