Jessie�s Girl
The last notes of Van Halen�s �Dreams� wind to a close, and for a few brief seconds unusual silence fills the small bar. There is only one customer left, but I am reluctant to ask him to leave. That, and I�m enjoying 80s Variety Hour on the radio, and a relaxing drink.
Then, the strains of a familiar song start. Surprisingly, the blonde guy sits up and looks directly at me. Even more surprising, his blue eyes are clear and a small smile comes over his face.
�I know this song,� he tells me. �This song is me.�
Jessie is a friend
Yeah, I know he�s a been a good friend of mine
But lately something�s changed
And it ain�t hard to define
Jessie�s got himself a girl
And I wanna make her mine
�The guy�s name isn�t Jessie though,� he informs me. He sighs, slumping onto the bar.
This sounds like your usual run of the mill �I�m-in-love-with-my-friend�s-girl� story � as the song goes � but something in his face makes me think that there is something a little different here, a little twist of some sort.
�The guy�s not even a friend,� he continues. �He�s the man I hate more than anyone�and I want his wife.�
And she�s watching him with those eyes
And she�s loving him with that body, I just know it
And he�s holding her in his arms
(There) late at night
He smiles again, but this time there is a hint of bitterness. �You know, they only married out of convenience, but you wouldn�t think so. She does watch him with her eyes, she does love him with her body. But I don�t even want to know about what they do late at night.�
You know I wish that I had Jessie�s girl
I wish that I had Jessie�s girl
Where can I find a woman like that?
I want to ask him a question, ask him how he ever managed to get into such a situation, but I don�t want to interrupt him. I�m loath to admit that, despite how little I know, I�m already hooked. I want to know more, and so I don�t say a word.
�God, help me, I want her,� he says in an almost inaudible whisper. I think he�s momentarily forgotten that I am still here. �She�s like no other woman I have ever met.�
I play along with the charade
There doesn�t seem to be reason to change
He looks up again, and focuses on me. �She hates me though. And I act as if I dislike her as much as she does me.�
You know I feel so dirty when they start talking cute
I wanna tell her that I love her
But the point�s probably moot
�But I don�t.�
He actually laughs, but without any humour. �And if I ever told her I loved her, I�d get my face slapped faster than you can say �I�m just kidding�. And most probably a beating for my trouble. An added bonus if you will.�
Cos she�s watching him with those eyes
And she�s loving him with that body, I just know it
And he�s holding her in his arms
(There) late at night
Although the chances of me ever seeing this guy again are a million to one, I begin to feel something for him. Not the �I-want-to-spend-the-rest-of-my-life-with-him� kind of feeling, but more like a strange sort of �I�m-sharing-the-most-intimate-detail-of-my-life-with-you� bond.
As we listen to the chorus of the song in silence, a sad look comes over his face. He shakes his head. �Am I screwed up or what?�
Like Jessie�s girl
I wish that I had Jessie�s girl
Where can I find a woman�
Where can I find a woman�
Like that
�I want my most hated rival�s wife. I want a woman who can�t even stand the mere sight of me.�
And I�m looking in the mirror all the time
Wondering what she don�t see in me
I look at him a little more closely, and I do wonder what this mystery woman doesn�t see in him. He�s obviously got the looks, and he seems like such a nice guy. A little charming even. You can�t help but like him. And from the very little I�ve seen, he�s got an amazing smile.
I�ve been funny, I�ve been cool with the lines
Ain�t that the way love�s supposed to be?
He laughs again, still without much humour. �And I�ve tried to be funny, but in a way that anyone but her would find amusing.� He shakes his head. �I called her the ugliest names I could think of, just so she�d notice that I�m alive.�
He pauses, looking introspective. �Just so she�d see me.�
Tell me, where can I find a woman like that?
You know I wish I had Jessie�s girl
You know I wish I had Jessie�s girl
I want Jessie�s girl
He takes a deep breath as the song begins to fade. He stands, and he smiles at me. �How much do I owe you?�
I look at him closely. Despite his disarming smile, there�s a permeating sadness in his eyes. It makes me want to know who this woman is, just so that I could find her and slap some sense into her. Anything to make her see this man standing in front of me, make her realise that this man would do anything for her. If only she�d ask.
I smile back. �It�s on the house.�