When Wednesday morning rolled again, I was getting more upset that I wasn’t going to get the job and Pacey was avoiding me, trying to figure out the best way to tell me. I nursed my morning tea and just stared at my toast in front of me, I really wasn’t it the mood to do anything, let alone eat breakfast.
“Staring at it won’t make it disappear!” mother wasn’t even watching me, but she knew everything. She turned the page of the newspaper.
“Yeah, but it would be nice if it did!” I signed getting up and putting it in the trash.
“Haven’t heard from Pacey?” I shook my head and went to get ready, I heard my mother sign, and she was just as worried but this week as I was. I reappeared ten minutes only to find that she hadn’t moved an inch. I frowned I didn’t want my mother dwelling on him; it wasn’t fair.
“Aren’t you meant to be finding a job too?” I asked she raised her eyes to met my.
“Jo, I already have a job!” she went back to reading the newspaper.
“Yeah but not one that has a regular pay check coming in every week,” I whined sitting down at the table again.
“Jo, my writing is what I do; I thought you were ok with it?” She asked not letting her eyes leave the newspaper this time.
“I am, but wasn’t the whole point of moving here to get you a more stable job!”
“I thought it was for inspiration, my mistake!” She glanced at me before smirking to herself.
“Mother, do me a favour and call Boston, tell them you want your job back, coz then at least we are both happy!” I said, she put down the newspaper, she didn’t look too happy about my suggestion, “What?”
“You just think, it’s that easy to do that, a phone call!” She defiantly wasn’t happy, “Everything isn’t black and white Jo, trying seeing things in gray, there are other things I could do, we left Boston, because they fired me, remember?”
I bit up lip, when I didn’t reply she went back to reading the newspaper. I got up again said goodbye, she didn’t reply so I left. I stepped on to the porch only to find someone waiting for me. Pacey was sitting on the hood of my mother’s truck, just waiting for me to appear, he tried to smile when he saw me, but I knew he was upset.
“What are you doing here?” I asked as he jumped down when I came close to truck.
“I needed to talk to you about a few things!” He looked worried for a moment, like I wasn’t going to like what her had to say.
“Work related?” I asked trying not to laugh as we started walking down the driveway.
“Amongst other things!” He didn’t sound like his usual self at all.
After a long silence I asked, “I didn’t get the job did I?”
“You got the job, there was know doubt in my mind that they wouldn’t hire you!” he didn’t look happy at all, his hands were stuffed into the pockets of his jacket, his shoulder slumped, his eyes focused intently on the foot path and he wore a faint smile.
“What is it?” I pulled on his arm to stop.
“It’s nothing!”
“Pacey,” not letting his arm go, when he tried to let go. He bit down on his lower lip, like he was contemplating whether or not to tell me, “Please?” He rubbed his eye with his free hand. Then brought his other hand out of his pocket, I looked down as he turned it over. It was red and swollen, there was a scar lashed across the middle, I went to touch it, and he flinched, “Pacey!”
“I told you it’s nothing!” he took his hand away again and stuffed it back into his pocket again.
“He did it didn’t he?” he just nodded, “What happened?”
* * * * * *
“Pacey get your sorry arse in here right now!” his voice bellowed from his chair as soon I got in the door. I walked into the room, his eyes were burning into the back of head, as I put my bag on the floor, and the smell of alcohol and cigarette filled the room, there was no surprise when I turned around and found him drunk off his head, beer in one hand, cigar in the other.
“What is it this time Dad?” I asked sitting down on the coach way from him.
“Don’t take that tone with me boy!” I shrugged, I didn’t want to get in worse trouble then I already was, he took a swing of his beer before he spoke again, “Now what this I hear, you and some Potter girl?” my head shot up, hearing this.
“What?” I was surprised he could even think straight.
“This women came down to station today, worried about her abusive husband getting out jail next week, and she brought up the fact that you had been hanging around her daughter lately!” he took another swing and puffed.
“So?” I was now glaring at him.
“Don’t you think she has been through enough already, without you making it worse!” I couldn’t believe what he was telling me, “I told her I would take care of it!”
“You what?”
“I don’t want you hanging around that girl, bringing down the family name with that trash,” my eyes widened at his words, “You hear me!”
“No!” I stood; I wasn’t going to let this slide.
“No, I warning you, you stay away from them!” he was now yelling from his chair, to lazy to get up.
“No dad, I won’t!” at that when he throw it, he throw the beer bottle, it shatter when it my hand, I crumbled to the floor.
“Get out and don’t come back!” I just clutched my hand; he leaped from the chair and kicked me in the stomach, “get out now!”
* * * * * *
“I got up, as best I could and left, I have been staying with Gretchen’s place ever since, haven’t been back.” We reached the car park of the school by now.
“I’m so sorry!” I reached for is arm again, turning him to face me, “I’m so sorry, you had to go through that because of me and my family!” he shook his head.
“It’s my fault, I shouldn’t of let him get to me like that!” he turned and started to walk away.
“Pacey, don’t say that!” I begged trying to make him listen.
“Forget it Jo, it’s over!” and he ran off, before I could say anything else.
* * * * * * *
The next thing I know I’m being pulled into what seems like the janitors closet.
“What the hell!” I mutter, until realize that Pacey was the one that pulled me in.
“Shhhhh!” he whispered putting a hand over my mouth, I glared back at him, but he continued, “Do you want get caught?”
I shrugged, I wouldn’t mind it right now, just as long as I wasn’t stick in here another second with Pacey!
“What is this all about?” I asked looking around, the skylight was the only source of light, the shelves were packed with cleaners’ equipment, and there wasn’t much space to move between one side of the room and the other, a metre and a half at most, which meant we were standing close together.
“I need to talk to you!”
“Can’t this wait, till maybe after school!” I suggested heading for the door, but pulled me back.
“No, it can’t!”
“I thought you were done after this morning!” I said trying not to look at his face as I moved away from him.
“I’m sorry about this morning; my father isn’t something that I talk about openly to many people!” He shrugged and slides down so he was sitting down on the floor, his back on one of the walls.
“Yeah, Jen told me as such!” I slid down next to him.
“I saw Jen hit you!”
“I bet the whole school did!” I rubbed the place where her hand had made contact with my face; he chuckled, “But she apologized afterwards.”
“Yeah, what were you fighting about?”
“You!” I nudged my elbow into his side.
“Me!” he asked innocently as possible, “I know I have a cute ass, but I didn’t think I would have to choose!” I bit my lip trying not to laugh, “You think that’s funny, oh I will give you something you can really laugh about!” when he leant over and started tickling my side, I burst out laughing, I couldn’t stop as his hands roamed my sides. He was practically on top of me when the door opened; we both froze on the spot.
“What do you think you are doing in here?” I looked up, trying to see whom had we been caught by, I frowned when saw it was the same teacher from the cafeteria, “Detention after school today!” Pacey stood pulling me with him, “Joey I thought you had better sense then this!”
“It’s not what it looks like miss!”
“I highly doubt that Joey, now get to class, I will see you both after school!” she said before leaving us in the corridor again.
“Good one!” I shoved his shoulder.
“What? It is as much your fault as it is mine!”
“You pulled me into the room in the first place!”
“You were the one that was laughing loudly”
“Well, it was your roaming hands that were making me!”
“Oh you were loving it and you were just waiting for me to kiss you!” he spat back.
“If that’s what gets you to sleep at night!” I shook my head; I needed to get to class, before anything else happened. It took me a while to register what had just happen, it happened way to fast. As I tried to walk away, pulled me back and shoved me against the wall, I hit my head but that wasn’t what put me in a daze, it was when his lips connected with mine. I pushed him back, it wasn’t that I didn’t want to be kissing him in the middle of the hallway, but right that second it didn’t feel right, “What was that?” he shrugged.
“I can I tell you something?” he looked sad; he ran his hand through his hair.
“What?” I asked crossing my arms across my chest, raising an eyebrow at his quietness. He took a deep breath before looking at me fully.
“I like you,” his hands reached forward to my sides, “I like you a lot!” I could feel a smile appearing on my face, “I know that crosses the lines of friendship, but-” I stopped his babbling when I placed my finger on his mouth.
“Pacey shut up!” I said before kissing him and wrapping my arms around his neck. Now this was more like it.
* * * * * *
“Pacey you are going to have to stop kissing me right this second,” I said between kisses as we stood on my porch.
“You say it but you don’t mean it!” I laughed and stepped back.
“I’m going to go now!” I kissed him again as I stepped backwards and opened the door, never losing contact. I stumbled in clinging to Pacey’s’ shirt as I went, to stop myself from falling over. I bumped into the hallway table, and Pacey crushed into me, we both started laughing.
“Jo, is that you?” I could hear the quiver in my mother voice as she called for me from the living room.
“Yeah just me and Pacey!” I said trying to compose myself. Pacey stepped back a step, so I could properly stand again, “You are so bad you know that!”
“Me,” he hugged me, “I highly doubt that,” he kissed my nose, grinning from ear to ear. I giggled as my mother called again.
“Joey, come in here a minute please!” She had fear in her voice.
“I think you’re in trouble!” Pacey said letting go of me and holding my hand. I shook my head, squeezing his hand.
“I would only be in trouble because of you!” I whispered back, rolling my eyes as we stepped into the living room. My mother wasn’t alone in the room; my father sat in the armchair, the armchair I would curl up on a rainy day on and read a book. I narrowed my eyes at my mother as she stood at the sight of us. I could see pain and hurt written all over her face, I shook my head in disgust and hatred. “How could you?” My father laughed at my question, my mother covers her mouth with her hand, “After everything!”
“I’m so sorry!” she said over and over as she collapsed on the couch, in tears. He laughed again, I had still not seen his face, but I could tell he was drunk. His head rolled and he passed out.
I turned and faced Pacey, he looked quiet surprised at what was happening.
“Pace, do me a favour and call your dad or someone, before he wakes up and this gets worse!” I let go of his hand as he nodded, I watched him walk into the kitchen. I couldn’t be here right now; I didn’t want to be here right now. So I left.
