Chapter 7 Good Night, Jack
Good Night, Jack
The next morning, I pulled the blanket tight around me and reached over for my phone.
It was nine, and I had a message from Curtis from the night before.
He’d been at Lana’s party and heard I was there, but he hadn’t seen me.
He wanted to know if I was OK. Word had gotten around that I’d been fighting with someone.
He added, with the obligatory eggplant and peach emojis, that he’d hooked up with some girl in the education program.
I’m great, I wrote him. I just woke up. I wasn’t feeling well last night and I decided to go home early. Lying to my friend. What a way to start my day.
He asked if I was better.
Yes ?, I wrote. Really? he asked. I told him to quit beating around the bush.
I knew what he wanted was to tell me about his hookup.
He sent me a GIF of a dancing monkey and told me all the gory details before inviting me to breakfast. He wasn’t dumb, so he had to have known Jack was the person I’d been fighting with, and he probably wanted to offer me an escape hatch in case I didn’t want to deal with it.
I told him not to worry, I was supposed to have breakfast with Naya. That was my second lie of the day.
I just wasn’t hungry, and I didn’t want to get out of bed. But I needed to wash my face. I had gotten into bed fully dressed without taking off my makeup, and when I turned on my phone camera to take a glance at my face, all I could think was: You look like a hungover raccoon.
I groaned and changed into a pair of pajamas.
On my way to the bathroom, I noticed Will was talking in the kitchen and stopped.
I knew that tone. The tone of a concerned father.
I didn’t want to eavesdrop, but I was curious about what he might be saying.
I heard Jack’s voice: “She still hasn’t come out yet? ”
“No,” Will said.
I heard what sounded like a spoon stirring coffee. Jack expelled a breath in frustration. “I figured she’d be out for a run.”
“Nah. She’s given that up since she’s been back. I don’t think it’s really her thing anymore.”
“Something’s up. She used to be a fanatic.”
“Ross,” Will said, “I know you’re not going to like to hear this, but it’s not your business anymore. She can run or not run, she can sleep in, she can hang out with other guys, it doesn’t matter. It shouldn’t concern you. You should just focus on your things.”
“Yeah…”
They talked a bit longer, but I missed most of the rest of it, deciding I should really go to the bathroom instead of trying to get into their heads.
I undressed, wiped off my makeup, and took a long, hot shower.
When I was done, I wrapped up in a towel and put on my pajamas.
I recoiled when I opened the door and saw Jack there, about to knock on the door.
He stood stiff for a moment before letting his arm drop.
For a moment, it seemed as if we were both about to ask each other something, but then I looked at the floor.
He realized I wasn’t in the mood to talk and walked past me into the bathroom without saying a word.
Will was gone, which was a relief, because he must have known everything that had happened the night before, and it was too early to get into something that serious.
Mike and Sue were in the living room jabbering, and when he saw me, Mike said playfully, “Jenna! I heard you put on quite a performance last night!”
“What are you talking about?”
“Your argument with my brother.”
“What do you know about it?”
“I’ve got a mole,” he said, pointing at Sue, who grinned and rolled her eyes. Sue the snitch… I sat on the couch between them and they both looked at me like children greedy for a treat.
“Aren’t you going to give us the deets?” Sue asked.
“Why do you two care?” I asked. “I thought you hated gossip.”
“This is a question of self-interest,” Mike replied. “The sooner Ross starts sleeping with you again, the sooner I can have my place on the couch back. It’s not easy, you know, having to find a new place to crash every night.”
“I don’t know why you think he’d want to sleep with me,” I said. “Things got pretty uncomfortable between us last night.”
“Yeah, we know that much,” Mike replied. “Your future husband didn’t even want to let me in. There was quite a bit of tension in the air.”
“There’s nothing new for me to tell you, though,” I continued. “I mean, I guess the argument touched on some deeper things. I told him he was still in love with me. He didn’t take that well.”
“I don’t know why he’d be so upset,” Sue said. “You’re clearly still in love with him, too.”
“I don’t know,” I responded. “Maybe.”
Why was I talking about my inner life with those two? I liked them, but they certainly weren’t the most understanding people I’d ever known. It was comfortable, though, natural, even if they kept grinning at me like a couple of morons.
“You know what I think, Agent Susie?” Mike asked.
“I don’t, Agent Mike. But if you call me Susie again, I will gladly chop your balls off.”
“That’s affirmative, Agent Sue. Now as I was saying, this looks like a job for the Drug Squad!”
When I didn’t react, Mike snapped his fingers in my face. “Hello, Earth to Jenna! The Drug Squad! Don’t you remember?”
“Yeah, I remember when you guys convinced me to smoke weed and then Ross got all pissed at me. How could I forget?” I said.
“That was just one time,” Mike objected. “The Drug Squad is about much more than smoking weed. The Drug Squad has magic powers. We can brighten your day, and even my cranky brother’s, too. Maybe we can help bring you guys closer. It’s obvious you both want it. You just need a little push.”
“I don’t know, I’m grateful for your help, but, uh…” Happily, I didn’t have to keep making excuses, because my phone rang. Unknown number. I usually let those go to voicemail, but I needed an excuse to get away from those two. As I heard them chatting behind my back, I stood and picked up.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Jenny.”
Monty. I don’t know if it’s because I was tired or emotionally drained, but Monty’s voice didn’t even scare me. It was more like an annoyance. I couldn’t believe I was still dealing with him after all this time.
“Are you seriously calling me?” I asked.
“Easy, Jennifer. I don’t want to fight.”
“If you don’t want to fight, leave me alone. Otherwise, I’ll call the cops again.”
“I just wanted to see what was going on,” he said. “A year’s passed. I’m a different person now. I’m starting a new phase of my life, and I don’t want there to be bad blood between us.”
I had the urge to curse at him, to tell him to drop dead, but the most important thing was for our conversation to end as quickly as possible. “Great, bye,” I told him.
“Wait! I wanted to know when you’re coming back.”
“Who said I was coming back?”
“I just figured because of your grandmother…”
“What about my grandmother?” I asked, suddenly consumed with worry. “What happened?”
“I don’t think it’s anything too bad. But you should call your parents.
I was hanging out with them yesterday, and you came up.
They miss you, Jenny. You shouldn’t be so hard on them.
Anyway, I just thought I’d let you know something had happened, and if you need anyone to talk to, no matter what, my door’s always open… ”
I hung up. I’d wanted to tell him to shove off, but what was the point? He wasn’t all there, and that would probably never change.
“Is everything OK?” Sue called out.
“I don’t know, I need to talk to my sister.” Thank God, Shannon is one of those people who always have their phone on them. She picked up on the second ring.
“Hey there, little sister!”
“Hey,” I said, sounding more upset than I meant to. “What’s up with Grandma? And how come nobody’s told me?”
“Did Mom call you?” she asked.
“No, Monty.” That opened up a can of worms. Shannon screamed about how dare he call me, and she’d sic Spencer on him and he’d beat his ass, and I had to struggle to get her back to what mattered—my grandmother.
She told me not to freak out, that it wasn’t as grave as it sounded, but Grandma had just had a heart attack.
I started yelling. It probably burst her eardrum, but I didn’t care. I needed every single detail.
“Jenny, it was a scare,” she said. “She’s fine, I promise.
Spencer took her to the hospital and is staying by her side.
We got her there on time, and they’re taking great care of her.
When he has to go to work, I usually go in to relieve him.
Grandma’s complaining about it, but we insisted.
She isn’t going to be alone, and when she gets to go home, we’ll look after her, too.
I was planning on telling you, but I didn’t want you to drop everything, and… ”
I yelled, “Was that shit about water aerobics and her new friends even true?! I thought it was weird that she would never pick up when I called…”
“I’m sorry, Jenny, but that was her idea. She didn’t want you to be scared. Please don’t be mad.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. I knew she wanted me to make her feel better, to tell her everything was fine and I understood. But I also remembered what my therapist had told me, that I shouldn’t hold back my feelings just to please others. And it was true. I’d had all that I could take.
“Well, I am mad,” I said. “And I don’t care why you decided not to tell me.
She’s my grandmother, too, and if something happens to her, I deserve to know.
I’m not a little girl, and if I want to go down there and spend a week with her, I will.
I can make my own decisions, and you don’t have the right to do it for me.
So from now on, you are not to hide anything else from me. Understood?”
Shannon was silent for a few seconds, then responded, “OK, you’re right. I’m sorry. I really am. I promise I won’t do it again.”