Stupid Fast - By Geoff Herbach Page 0,42
Clooney?”
“Maybe she was tearing it up.”
“Don’t think so. She gave George a kiss while I was standing there.”
“Maybe she’s scared of real-life men. Flesh and blood men. Real big hairy and muscley men.” The conversation was actually making me nervous.
“You’re not that hairy.”
“I’m pretty hairy. You should see my belly button.” Okay, I was sounding stupid. Shut up, Felton.
“I don’t know. I saw two male orderlies in that place, and they were both plenty big and hairy, I’m sure.”
“Do you think I did something to her?”
“I’m just saying she specifically doesn’t like you.”
“Can’t win ’em all, I guess.” I felt sort of pissed. I looked down.
“It’s very important to me to figure out the mysteries of life,” Aleah said.
“Sometimes, it’s better not to know.” I continued to look down.
Aleah reached up and put her hand under my chin, raising my face so we made eye contact.
“I specifically do like you,” she said. “Specifically a lot.” She smiled.
“Why?” I could feel intense heat in my face and ears. I must’ve been blushing like a Christmas bulb.
“I don’t know yet. But it’s a mystery I’m interested in figuring out.”
“Me too,” I smiled. Then I’ll write Gus to tell him why, the jerk.
“But that lady sure doesn’t like you.”
“Shut up!” I laughed.
We teeter-tottered home, nearly hitting the curb and nearly straying out into traffic. But we didn’t crash again, which sort of sucked because I wanted another excuse to roll over to her. I did consider intentionally crashing, but I didn’t want it to be forced and for me to seem like too much of a dork (after all, I’d already told her I have a hairy belly button).
When we got back to her house, we expertly slid off the bike.
“We’re good,” I said. Aleah and I fist-bumped. “And that was so dang fun.”
“Yes. It was great,” she said.
“Maybe I can stop by tonight?”
“Oh, well, actually, I wanted to say that I can’t really do anything at night except for Fridays and Saturdays because that’s my weekend.”
“Why?”
“If I want to be a professional pianist, I have to act like one. I couldn’t focus very well after last night. I kept thinking about you. I need to focus.”
“No, okay. That makes sense.” I felt a little sad. I don’t know what I was expecting. That we’d spend every last minute with each other for the rest of our whole long lives, I guess.
“You can come in for breakfast if you want though. Daddy’s probably left for school.”
“Oh, crap. What time is it? Oh, shit,” I said.
“What?”
“I’ve got weights. It’s late, right? Cody’s coming to pick me up.”
“What’s weights?”
“Weight lifting. Weights.”
“You lift weights?”
“Football.”
“You play football?”
“Uh, yeah. I’m a D-I prospect. That’s the only reason I can even talk to you.”
“What?”
I stopped my scrambling, looked Aleah straight in the eye, and said, “I like you specifically. A lot. I can’t say any more without making a total dipshit out of myself, okay?”
“Very mysterious,” Aleah smiled. “See you soon, my football player.”
That’s right! That’s it! I’m not a football player. I’m her football player. I’m Aleah Jennings’s football player! I’m very close to acting like a complete retard! Go! Felton! Now!
I totally bolted.
“Well, maybe you can watch me practice sometime,” Aleah shouted after me.
This is turning into a great summer, I thought. I biked home bursting, without any consideration of what I might find there.
CHAPTER 24: THE DAY BEFORE WAS NO DREAM—THE HOUSE WAS UNWINDING
It’s 4:02 a.m., but we’re into this thing.
Okay.
Really, I should have been prepared for it, but I wasn’t. Jerri’s quietness the night before and Andrew’s little boy snores made me think everything was going back to normal.
But Andrew sat in a lawn chair in the driveway as I biked up to the house. Oh, no. I rode my bike up to the garage and got off. Andrew stood and spun the chair around and then sat back down so he was facing me.
“What’s happening now?” I asked.
“Good news, Felton.”
“Really?”
“Jerri won’t let me play piano in the house.”
“That’s not good news.”
“Yes—and more good news. Jerri has also informed me that she’s given away her entire life to us boys and she has nothing left to give.”
“What?”
“She doesn’t want the responsibility anymore.”
I was stunned. Then I was pissed off. Not at Jerri exactly but because I had stuff to do and was tired of the drama.
“Unfortunately, Andrew, I have no time for this crap.”
“It’s crap, huh?”
“Yes.”
“That our mother has decided that she’s got nothing left to give to us?”
“Right.”
“Do you know I’m thirteen, and legally