The Last Girl (22 page)

He rolls his eyes. “Come on.”

I follow him out the door.

Chapter 32: Visiting

“Can you please tell me where we are going?”

“Patience is a virtue, Jenna,”
Luke says in a monotone voice for the hundredth time.

“If you say that one more time,
Luke, I swear I’m going to kick you.”

“Peacefulness is a virtue as well, you know,” he smirks.

“I swear, sometimes, Luke…” My voice trails off as we pull into a big, empty parking lot in front of a large grey square building.

“Why are we at an old folk
’s home?” I ask, suddenly completely bewildered as Luke pulls into a parking spot.

“You ask too many questions,” he smirks again and turns off the engine.

I remain seated in the car, staring at the dull building, until Luke opens my door.

“You coming?”

“Not until you tell me why we are here.”

“Come on, don’t act five years old. You’re about to find out,” he reaches over and clicks the red button, unbuckling the black seat belt around my wa
ist.

“I’m not decent enough to go out in public right now.”

Luke looks at me strangely.

“I’m not wearing any makeup,” I explain. “I’ve been in bed crying all day and I’m still in the same clothes I slept in.”

“You look fine,” Luke sighs as he leans against the door.

“Says the guy who told me I look
ed like shit a few hours ago.”

“Jenna, we are about to walk into a place with billions of old people. I doubt anyone will care what you look like. No is not an answer anymore.”
Next thing I know, Luke has me hanging over one of his shoulders. I hear him slam the car door behind me.

“Hey,
let me down!”

“Never.”

The walk from his car to the entrance of the home is a bumpy one. With every step he takes, his shoulder presses deeper and deeper into my stomach. It is around seven o’clock but it looks like nine. The autumn weather is very bipolar. Right now it is chilly and the leaves on the nearly bare trees in the surrounding lot are rustling loudly. The wind bites at my face, making my cheeks numb. Finally, I feel a blast of cool air as two sliding glass doors open and Luke sets me back on the ground. I look around at the white room. In the back corner there is a desk with a lady in a pink uniform and beside her are two big doors leading to a long hallway. It smells exactly how you think an old folk’s home would smell; like old people. Old people and old perfume and medicine and floor cleaner and whatever they served for dinner all mixed into one smell. Luke makes his way up to the lady behind the counter and signs his name on a piece of paper attached to a brown clipboard. I stand behind him, reading over his shoulder as he signs “Luke Parker + 1 to see James Parker.”

What?

Luke turns around and gestures for me to follow him and we make our way through the white doors and down the long hallway. We make a right halfway down the hallway and begin to walk down another long hallway. After walking for a few more seconds, Luke stops and knocks on a white door labeled 9.

After a few more seconds, a grouchy voice on the other side of the door calls, “Who is it?”

“It’s me!” Luke talks loudly back.

I hear some rustling. “Geoff?”

The door opens and an old man with grey hair hunched over a cane appears. He looks disappointed as his eyes land on Luke. “Oh, it’s you.”

Luke
laughs, “Hello to you too, Grandpa.”

The old man turns around and walks into his room.
Luke follows and I follow as well.

“Who’s this?”
Luke’s grandpa asks. “One of your little groupies?”

Luke
looks puzzled, “No. This is my friend Jenna. She is not one of my groupies and I’ve never had a groupie before. I don’t understand where you got that from.”

“What’s she doing here?” James
Parker asks in his apparently usual grumpy tone. He plops down slowly on the edge of his bed and Luke sits in a chair near the window. I remain standing awkwardly near the door. The room is small and crowded with only three people in it. It smells like the rest of the building and is the same pale white color. There is a door near the entrance leading to the bathroom, a small hospital looking bed, a TV hanging on the wall, and a desk on the other side of the window to Luke.

“She came to say ‘hi,’”
Luke answers.

James looks at me.

“Hi,” I answer quickly, hoping it will take the attention off me.

“She comes to visit me but your dirty, rotten, no-good father won’t?”

Luke sighs, “He’s busy.”

“Too busy to visit his own father. That’s just great-”

“You told him never to speak to you again,” Luke interrupts. I stand still, wanting to be anywhere but here as Luke’s voice increases in volume. “Did you forget about that part, Grandpa? How you slammed the door in his face when he put you in here. Does that ring any bells?”

“What kind of person puts his own father in a home?”

“He did it for your own good! You needed help, Grandpa.”

“All I did was have a beer a day-”

“A beer a day?” Luke laughs. “You had six beers a day.”

“Small difference.”

Small difference?  It’s a huge difference! Dad did it because he cares about you!” Luke stands up.

“If he cares about me, how come you’re the only one who comes to visit?”

“You told him you never wanted to see him again.”

“I didn’t mean it,” James mumbles.

“You have a phone; Call him.”

The old man pauses to catch his breath. His breathing had become rapid in the last few minutes. “I can’t.”

“Why?”

James looks up at
Luke and I can see his already red eyes begin to water. “He won’t take my calls.” He looks about seventy years old, but the way he said that last sentence he could have passed for an 8 year old; He sounded helpless and melancholy.

“What makes you think that?”
Luke asks concerned.

“I know my son.”

“Well, I know my dad.” Luke pauses before adding, “He asks about you a lot.”

If James was a dog, I’m sure his ears would have perked up. “He does?”

“Every time I come home from visiting you.”

“What does he say?”

“Just asks how you are doing and if you’re any better.”

I see James slump down a little more. “Well, if he cares so much why doesn’t he call and ask me himself.”

“Because he’s your son! You both have too much pride.” Luke sits down slowly beside his grandfather before continuing, “I know you’re afraid he won’t pick up, but you have to be the bigger person here. No more wasting time. All you have to do is click one button.” Luke pulls his phone out of his back pocket and unlocks it. After clicking the screen a few times, he holds the phone in front of James. “Just click his number and it will call him.”

James looks at the phone and then slowly up at
Luke. He opens his mouth as if to protest but stops himself. After what feels like an eternity of awkward silence and staring, James takes the phone from his grandson’s hand, clicks the screen, and holds it to his ear. Luke smiles and stands up slowly. He walks past me and opens the door and I instinctively follow. He closes the door behind me.

“I’m surprised that worked,”
Luke smiles.

“What the hell just happened?”

“We visited my Grandpa.”

“I got that part.”

Luke smiles and then starts to explain, “My grandpa started to live with me and my family when Grandma passed away.” He pauses thinking about the memory and I want to comfort him but I am not sure how. He continues, “He quickly became an alcoholic and my dad realized that we couldn’t take care of him anymore, so we sent him here. The rest I think you figured out.”

“What does this have to do with me? Why did you bring me here?”

“This is what Lance and I were talking about that night at McDonald’s. My Grandfather is my secret girlfriend.”

“Oh.”

I’m a dumbass.

“This is also why I got you to stay at other people’s houses on those certain days during the first week of
the Slave Auction. So I could visit him.”

“
Luke, I’m sorry. I’m an idiot.”

“You’re not an idiot. I should have told you earlier. It’s just hard to talk about, I guess.”

I am about to say something more when the door opens and James appears and hands Luke his phone back.

“That was fast,”
Luke comments. “How did it go?”

James just nods. “Thank you,
Luke. For making me do that. I needed that.”

He smiles, “No problem, Gramps.”

He wraps his arms around the grey haired man and he stiffs up. After a few moments, he returns the hug. “Thank you.”

“Well,”
Luke pulls away. “We should get going. I will see you soon.”

“What are you two anyway? Are you guys dating?” James asks.

“No,” Luke smiles and looks at me. “Not yet.”

His grandfather raises his eyebrows, “Well, no more wasting time,
Luke.”

Luke
laughs realizing he had used his own words against him, “Goodnight, Grandpa.”

With that, the old man nods at
Luke, then at me, and shuts his door.

We pull up in front of my house and the clock in Luke’s car reads eight. It was a silent car ride back. There were just too many things going on in my head to be able to actually put them in words.

“Here we are,”
Luke says as he puts the car in park, unlocking the doors.

I unbuckle and turn towards him, “
Luke?”

“Yes?” he asks, head facing me.

“When your grandpa asked if we were dating. What did you mean?”

Luke
smirks for the thousandth time and my heart rate picks up 100%. “Patience is a virtue, Jenna.”

“Are you trying to get me to kick you?”

He laughs, “Let’s save that for another time.”

“But what did you-”

“Another time,” he interrupts. “Goodnight, Jenna.”

Not really knowing what else to do, I get out of the car and shut the door behind me. He rolls down the window.

“You better not cancel on me for Saturday.”

“What’s Saturday?” I ask, shivering from the cold.

“Laser tag,” he smiles again. “I’ve been waiting for this rematch for weeks.”

“You’re just going to lose again.”

“Hey, that was when we were on the same team. I won when we were against each other.”

“Well, things are about to change.”

“We’ll see about that,” he puts the car into reverse. “Now go to sleep, I bet being awake for more than two hours must have really worn you out.”

I laugh, “Shut up.”

“Goodnight, Jenna.”

“Goodnight,
Luke.”

I watch in the cool night air as he reverses and drives through the darkness to his house one street down, still feeling warm from the words he told James earlier.

“Not yet.”

Chapter 33: Being Back

I step out of the small Toyota in boot-cut jeans, a grey hoodie, and black sunglasses to cover my still puffy eyes.

“Thanks, Linda, for the ride.”

“No problem, honey,” my kind brunette housekeeper replies. “Have a nice day at school.”

Yeah, fat chance.

I slam the door behind me and hear the loud engine fade off as she drives up the hill. It feels weird to have Linda drive me to school after three weeks of being driven around by others. Until this morning, I had completely forgotten that Hayden wouldn’t be driving me to school as usual. I had to call Linda, which I felt bad for doing since I could tell I had woke her up even though she swears I didn’t, and ask her if she could drive me. Then I had remembered why Hayden wouldn’t be driving me as usual and cried the entire time I was getting ready- hence the grey hoodie and sunglasses. I made myself stop crying as soon as I stepped out of my house to get in the car because I didn’t want Linda to know something was wrong, and because I knew I would have to take these sunglasses off once I got to first period.

I walk to my locker
without really thinking about it, my mind on other things, and I instantly dread it. Jessica and Daisy are there waiting for me. I have to tell them what happened between me and Hayden. If I replay the memories in my head, I might start crying again. And everyone will know I’m the idiot for dating Hayden Sharpe while not expecting to get hurt.

Because I am the idiot.

“Are you okay?” Jessica asks instantly.

“What makes you think something is wrong?” I ask, nervous that maybe our break up got out somehow.

“Daisy is dressed better than you are today!”

“Aw, thanks!” Daisy smiles.

Jessica rolls her eyes. “What happened?”

A sniffle escapes from me. “
Hayden and I broke up.”

Jessica and Dais
y gasp simultaneously like I am in a bad sitcom or something equally ridiculous.

“When?” Daisy asks.

“Why?” This was from Jessica.

I breathe
in, preparing myself for the story. “We went to a party Saturday and I caught him grinding with Victoria.”

“That douche bag!”
Jessica exclaims angrily.

I nod
and continue, “Then I left the party and next thing I know he’s pounding on my door, completely drunk, and tries to get me to have sex with him.”

“That major douche bag!”
Daisy yells. I blink a few times to make the tears disappear. “How could he do that?” Daisy asks, quietly this time. A tear escapes my eyelid and slides from beneath my sunglasses. I quickly wipe it away and shrug.

“The next morning I told him I just wanted to be friends.”

“Screw being friends! Never talk to that asshole again!” Daisy’s voice is loud again.

I
make my voice quiet, hoping it will make hers do the same. “I don’t want to make any enemies. I don’t want to have to avoid him when I pass by him in the hall, you know?”

“Bu-”

“Whatever, it’s done. And he seemed pretty mad about it so I doubt the whole friend thing will happen anyway.”

“Hey,”
Nolan says happily as he walks up. I instantly stop talking about it and I try to urge the others with my eyes to do the same, forgetting that my eyes are being shaded by the glasses. Luckily, my friends drop the subject anyway. Nolan kisses Daisy gently on the cheek and I instantly become jealous; I see the same look on Jessica’s face as well. “What’s up with the shades, Jenna?”

“Oh, my eyes have just been killing me lately- wind and pollen and stuff,” I reply
, quickly making up a stupid reason.

Nolan
nods.

J
ust then, two girls walk by, one of them accidently bumping into Jessica. She stops and turns to apologize, “Oh, my ba-” She pauses midsentence and looks Jessica up and down. She smirks. “Never mind.” The girl continues to walk away with her friend trailing close behind.

I
hear one mumble, “What a slut.”

The four of us are silent
and I take the time to look at Jessica’s outfit. Her hair is up in a neat ponytail, something I am unfortunately never able to accomplish. She’s wearing blue skinny jeans and a purple tank top with ruffles and a cheetah pattern; nothing that was unusual.

Why would they call her a slut?

Daisy is the first one to let curiosity get the better of her. “What the hell was that?”

Jessica rolls her eyes as if to show she didn’t care, but it
wasn’t very convincing. “Just bitches being bitches.”

“Jessica, can you please tell us what is going on?”  I ask impatiently.

“Nothing is going on. Now can I enjoy my lunch in peace?” she asks angrily.

“People having been calling you a slut and a whore all day, you can’t expect us to believe that nothing is going on,” Daisy says as her short legs try to keep up with our fast pace as we walk to our lunch table.

Jessica stops walking and Daisy and I practically bump into her. “If you must know, everyone found out that I slept with
Lance and so now of course everyone thinks I’m a slut.”

“You are a slut,” a girl mutters as she walks by and her friends beside her giggle.

“Mind your own business!” I yell after them.

“
You slept with Lance?” Daisy asks emotionless.

Jessica and I just stare at the ground
as I stupidly remember that Daisy never knew.

“So, you’re telling me, you had sex with my brother,
and the whole school found out about this before I did?” She’s is no longer emotionless; she’s pissed.

“Daisy, I’m sorry, but I knew you would freak out-”

“You’re damn right I would freak out. But, I’m freaking out even more knowing that you didn’t tell me!”

“But, I just did!”

Daisy laughs in a way that I had never heard before. “You’re unbelievable, Jessica. You really are.” Daisy pushes past her angrily and joins Nolan at the table.

“Well, that went well,” Jessica says sarcastically.

“She just needs to let it sink in, don’t worry,” I reassure, hoping what I say is true. “How did everyone find out?”

“He must have told some guys on his soccer team or something. I mean, the only people I told were you and
Hayden.” She pauses. “You don’t think Hayden-”

“No,” I interrupt, “I don’t.”

Cue another group of girls calling Jessica rude names.

“She has ears you know!” I yell angrily, knowing perfectly well how Jessica feels.

“Jenna, it’s fine. I’m just going to go eat in the library.”

“I’ll come with you
.”

“No. I just, kind of want to be alone right now. Get my head straight, you know?”

I nod. “Yeah, okay.”

Jessica smiles weakly and walks out of the room.  I slowly walk to the table joining
Nolan, Daisy, and Luke. I quickly glance around to see Hayden is nowhere to be seen (not surprising), Lance is sitting with Kelsey (as usual), and Zac is sitting with a new cheerleader (as usual). Today’s cheerleader of choice is a girl named Brianna. She has long brunette hair, like mine, and dark brown eyes. She is one of those girls who are naturally photogenic. She is also probably the smartest girl on the cheer team and has probably never spent a second in detention. I have English with her and she always argues with the teacher- and always wins. She is the total opposite of Zac.

I walk up to him. “
Zac? Can I talk to you for a minute?”

Brianna looks at me and smiles, “Hey, Jenna.”

“Hey,” I smile back.

Zac
gets up and we walk out of ear shot from the table.

“Can we call a truce?” I ask.

“A truce?”

I nod. “I’m d
one playing this game with you; I’m tired of it. It’s not going to work out between us and we both know it. I need to focus on other things and you need to find someone better. We need to just be friends.”

Zac
smiles, “You’re right.”

I stick out my hand. “So, friends?”

He shakes it. “Friends.”

“Good,” I laugh. “Now, can you stop messing with these cheerleaders? It really is terrible,
Zac.”

He nods, “I know, I’m done with cheerleaders.” He looks over at Brianna. “Except for that one.” She catches him staring and playfully waves.

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“
She makes me act like how I was when I was a freshman. Before my motorcycle and my jacket and before everyone thought I was a ‘bad boy.’ Back when I was just Zac. I can be normal around her.”

“She’s very different than many other girls you’ve dated,” I say
, surprised by what he said.

“I know. I really like her.” He smiles
again.

“Well, good luck with that
, Zacie-Pooh.”

He laughs, “Thanks.” He turns to walk back to his table but stops again. “I’m sorry about what happened, between you and
Hayden.” I look at him confused and then he answers my question, “He told me.”

“Oh,” I say. “Well, thanks.”

He nods and sits back down next to Brianna.

“Hey, lazy,”
Luke says as I sit at our own table.

“For the last time,
Luke,” I laugh, “I’m not lazy!”

“
So says the girl who slept all day yesterday.”

“I was up for
those two hours,” I point out.

“Great progress, Jenna, great progress,” he says sarcastically.

“How long have you known, Jenna?” Daisy asks me, clearly still referring to Jessica and Lance.

I don’t want to tell her, but I can’t lie. “A week.” I pause. “Maybe two.”

Daisy groans. “I can’t believe she didn’t tell me. And now, my brother is ruining my best friend’s life and I can’t do anything about it.”

“Daisy,”
Nolan says. “You couldn’t do anything about it even if you had known earlier.”

“I know,” she sighs. “I just feel like I should do something. But I’m still so pissed.”

“Just stay out of it,” Nolan says. “You do not want to get involved. Besides, you have me, so who cares about anything else?”

“Oh right, how could I forget I have
Nolan the pig?” she says jokingly.

“I am not a pig,” he laughs.

“Says the boy who ate 3 whole McDonalds’s Big Macs in ten minutes.”

“Hey, that was just
plain impressive,” he argues.

“It was unsettling.”

“Oh, shut up,” Nolan says before grabbing her by the chin and kissing her.

They are kissing for about five seconds before I interrupt, “Can I leave?”

Daisy pulls away from Nolan and laughs, “Jenna, please, you were doing the exact same thing for the past two weeks.”

I laugh because I know she is rig
ht and I am being huge hypocrite, but the comment makes me a little sad as well. “Fine, you may proceed,” I sigh.

They continue to kiss and after a while of awkward silence and me and
Luke just sitting there, Luke turns to me with a glint in his eye like he is about to tell a funny joke.

“So, Jenna, want to make out?”

Daisy and Nolan pull apart to each give Luke horrified looks, causing me to spend the rest of lunch laughing my ass off.