Chapter One
NeverMind © 2004
“So as far as I can figure, Johnny Cash took it with him to his grave.”
“You are so weird, you know that, right?”
“Hey, I shouldn’t talk, Hobbit boy.”
“Aw, come on, you know I hate it when you call me that.”
“You really shouldn’t deny your heritage like that.”
“Heritage my ass.”
“So did you like my fanfic?”
“You are a complete nut job! If you wanted to meet the elf that bad, I could’ve just brought him over.”
“Forget it. I can’t compete with Miss Baywatch there.”
“It’s Blue Crush.”
“Whatever. In case you’ve forgot, I’m no where near a blue-eyed blonde.”
“I haven’t forgotten.”
“I find that hard to believe. You haven’t been here in what, five, six years?”
“Has it been that long?”
“It sure has. I think I was, like, 16 the last time I actually saw you in the flesh.”
“16!? You’re kidding!”
“No, actually, I’m not. At any rate, you really have no idea what I look like now.”
“That’s only because you never send me any pictures. I still know you’re not blonde and blue-eyed.”
“Well, then you know I’m not the elf’s type.”
“How do you know what his type is?”
“Because you’ve told me several times before.”
“I have?”
“Yes, you tell me everything, remember?”
“Oh, right. What can I say? You’re my one dose of reality.”
“A voice over a phone who knows more celebrity shit than you do? That’s pretty sad, Lij.”
Elijah couldn’t help but laugh. His childhood friend Jocelyn Jordan never pulled any punches with him.
“Wait…I…give me the…phone…get off me…ow!” Jocelyn heard over the line.
“Allo love,” came a familiar voice.
“Hello, Dom.”
“And how are we this fine day?”
“Not too shabby. And yourself?”
“Not too bad at all. When are you coming to see me?”
“See you? You’re the one with the money, you ought to be coming to see me!”
“Well, I just might – if this ankle-biter here ever lets me.”
“Take him with you. He hasn’t seen me himself in way too long.”
“Iowa, though? Is it really true that if your dog runs away you can still see him for three days?”
“Yeah, that’s about right.”
“Of course I have. It’s completely maddening.”
“What? Why?”
“Because it’s full of vagaries and innuendoes and I can’t stand it!”
“Do you want me to tell you how it ends?”
“No!”
“See, what happens is that Jack and Kate and…”
“I’m not listening! Lalalalalalala,” Jocelyn chanted.
“Hey, get off…what the…don’t stick that there…I wasn’t finished…”
“Me again,” Elijah announced himself.
“Wonderful. Your friend there was going to ruin his show for me.”
“I figured. I’ve beat him into submission for you.”
“Aren’t you sweet.”
“Have you written any new songs?”
“What are you talking about? Of course I have. Being a waitress is not that fulfilling, you know.”
“Will you play one for me?”
“Now? No, hon, I have to go to my cursed work in ten minutes. I have no time.”
“How much longer?”
“I told you, ten minutes.”
“No, I mean until you come to LA.”
“I don’t know. I’m second guessing myself.”
“How come?”
“Well, Andy really doesn’t want me to go.”
“So you’ll stay in Iowa for a guy, huh?”
“I might. What’s it to you?”
“Oh, nothing. I just think you’re too young to let someone tie you down like that.”
“What if I want to be tied down?”
“Not just to the bed, I mean.”
“Ha, ha. Andy’s good to me.”
“If he were good to you, he’d let you live your dream.”
“He doesn’t want me to become like you.”
“What’s wrong with becoming like me?”
“I never said there was anything wrong with becoming like you.”
“But Andy did.”
“He’s just jealous.”
“Of my life?”
“No, stupid. He thinks if I move to LA you’ll take me away from him.”
“And that would be bad because..?”
“Shut up, you. We’re practically siblings.”
“But only practically.”
“Yeah, yeah. Only practically. I really have to go. If I’m late again, my boss will take another pound of flesh, and let me tell you, I’m starting to run low.”
“Okay. Call you in a couple days?”
“Please do. Oh, but not Friday. Me and the girls are going out and if you call while they’re there it’ll just start the night out on the wrong foot.”
“Why?”
“Because they get all moony over you and start complaining about how they had crushes on you when they were 6 but you never knew and now they’re jaded for life.”
“I do tend to have that effect.”
“God, you’re a brat today.”
“Oh, you know you love me.”
“Of course I do. Say bye to Dom for me.”
“Sure. Juggernaut.”
“Juggernaut.”
Elijah clicked off with a sigh.
“Juggernaut?” Dom asked.
“She hates saying good bye all the time.”
“So she came up with another word?”
“Yeah. It changes every year or so. Last year it was ‘pumpernickel’.”
“Pumpernickel. And the year before?”
“Persnickety.”
“Right. She’s an odd one, isn’t she?”
“She sure is.”
“How long have you been mates again?”
“Oh brother – since before we were born. Our moms were friends.”
“And how long have you been in love with her?”
“Since the summer of grade seven.”
“And you’ve never told her?”
“Nah. She’d just blow me off – say we’re ‘practically siblings’.”
“Pity, that.”
“She’s probably right, I guess. God, I hadn’t realized that it’s been that long since I last saw her.”
“But you’ve been back to Iowa lots, yeah?”
“Yeah, but we keep missing each other. Last time I was there, she was travelling Europe. The time before that, she was in New York. Oh, and the time before that she was in Australia.”
“Sounds like she travels almost as much as you do.”
“Only she does it for pleasure, not for work.”
“Must be nice.”
“Tell me about it.”
“And who’s this Andy fellow anyway?”
“Her current boyfriend. We used to go to school together. All I can remember about him is that he ate glue in kindergarten.”
Dom broke into a fit of laughter. “Oh, that’s bloody brilliant! Dating a glue-eater. I’ll have to rag her about that for sure.”
Jocelyn clipped her nametag to her shirt and adjusted the sizable bun on the back of her head. She hated that she had to wear her hair up at work all the time – she always ended up with a massive headache by the end of the night. She sighed heavily. Talking to Elijah always left her feeling so empty for some reason. No, not really empty – just restless. Normally she could ignore the feeling long enough to save up some money to go travelling. That would stave off the feeling for another few months, sometimes a year, but never for very long. If she were honest, she’d admit that she was envious of Lij’s lifestyle – that he got to travel all the time and meet new people. She, on the other hand, couldn’t seem to permanently escape the never-ending cornfields of Iowa.
Her dream was to become a singer/songwriter – not just because she could then travel, but because she loved music. She always had. She’d learned to play the guitar by the time she was six and had mastered at least three other instruments since then. Elijah had always promised her that he would start his own record company one day so that she could ‘make it’ in the industry. She’d always laughed at him and said she didn’t need anyone’s help to ‘make it.’ She’d do it on her own, thank you very much.
She grabbed her backpack off the stairs and headed out to her car. As she pulled out of her driveway, she couldn’t help but think that maybe Lij was right – maybe Andy was holding her back. He was a good guy – simple, a farmer’s kid. Besides, she always liked the country. She’d make a great farmer’s wife. She shuddered. The thought of being trapped on an Iowa farm for the rest of her life was suffocating, who was she kidding? She’d have an affair with Lij for sure if that were the life she was condemned to.
“Now why would I automatically think of having an affair with Elijah?” she wondered aloud. “For godsakes, woman, he’s practically your brother!”
“Only practically,” she heard his voice in her head.
“Oh, shut up,” she muttered at no one in particular.