Chapter Eight
Birthday Bonds
Song: Sister Golden Hair—America
I got out of bed, brushed my teeth, and removed my hair from the curlers I put in the previous night.
I thought about the girl at the creek, and how much effort she put into her looks.
I wanted to look that good for Darren. When I saw myself in the mirror I felt like Farrah Fawcett.
My hair had a bounce to it. I went through my bag and pulled out my green floral dress.
The dress lay just above my knees, had a fitted waist with a brown belt, and flared shoulders.
I applied lipstick to my bottom lip, rubbed my lips together in a circular motion, patted down my skirt, and entered the kitchen.
“Oh, my! You look so grown up. Happy birthday, my sweet girl,” my momma said with a huge smile.
“It’s nothing, Momma. I am the same old Penelope.”
“That’s not true. You are simply glowing! James! Get in here and take a picture of our beautiful fifteen-year-old!”
My stepdad entered the kitchen and stuttered, “You are really pretty. I am proud of you. You look like your mom.”
“Thanks, James,” I said, hugging him.
His strong arms grasped around me like a teddy bear.
My mom ran into her bedroom and came back with a small gift box. The box had a funky chevron print and a shiny bow on top. She urged me to sit down and open it.
I slowly undid the bow and removed the lid off the box.
Inside the box was a fragile locket in the shape of a peach.
The locket contained a picture of my mom, Fawn, and James inside.
The only place you could buy something so sentimental was in the peach gift section of the Peach Pot.
James and my momma must have had the necklace custom-made.
I had seen similar jewelry in their glass case, but nothing like what lay in the tiny box before me.
“You guys, this is the best gift I could have asked for. Thank you so much,” I said, pulling the chain up to put it around my neck. I wanted to wear it everywhere. It was stunning. “Could you help me close the latch?” I asked James.
The metal was cold against my bare chest when he draped the necklace around me. I lifted my hair out of the way as my mom clasped her hands together, gazing at me.
“What are you waiting for? Take her picture, for heaven’s sake. I have to remember this,” my mom commanded.
James backed away from me and picked up our Polaroid camera. “Cheese!” he said.
I smiled with my teeth as the flash blinded me. I was squinting in the photo. My eyes were strained and pinched together.
“Darren wants you to go over to his house as soon as you get up. He said he had some sort of surprise for you. You better go,” my momma told me.
“What does he have planned?”
“That is top-secret information,” she said, rushing me out the door as fast as she could so she wouldn’t tear up.
****
Darren opened his front door immediately as if he had been waiting by the door all morning.
He wore tan cargo shorts and his most excellent crimson button-up shirt.
Most of Darren’s clothes were worn until they couldn’t be worn anymore.
His parents got his clothes secondhand, or Darren’s father would give him the clothing he grew out of.
The crimson shirt he wore was in great condition. He must have bought it himself.
“Hey, birthday girl.”
“Hey. What’s up? My mom said I needed to be here when I woke up.”
Darren guided me inside his house. He led me into the basement and told me to sit on the couch because he wanted to show me something.
He grabbed his two drumsticks and sat down on his stool.
Even though I loved music, there was something awkward about having someone play or sing for you.
It was more intimate than seeing someone naked because they had to strip away all of their creative layers.
I rarely let other people read my writing because it was personal.
“Please don’t make fun of me,” he begged as he lifted the sticks. He started hitting the toms at a steady beat. Darren sang as he played.
“Pitiful Peaches are what I am to you.
We can swim at the beaches.
But my love is still true.
Pitiful Peaches keep me alive.
I would bleed for you.
Baby, we must survive.
Pitiful Peaches are sweet but tart.
Baby, baby, baby,
Please don’t squeeze my heart.
Pitiful Peaches are what I am to you.”
The song continued into a solo drum sequence. It sounded like rock n’ roll combined with a loving pop song.
I stared at him in awe. “Is that the sheet music from the library? That sounded great! You’ve got a knack for playing the drums.”
“Uh, thanks, Copper. I thought since it was your birthday, I would finally play it for you,” he said shyly, setting down his sticks and taking a breath.
“I don’t recall the sheet music having any lyrics or solos. Did you write those lyrics?” My heart palpitated. Did he like me too? It was ridiculous. This was Darren. The Darren I had known forever. I needed to get my act together and play it cool.
Darren would not look me in the eyes. He mumbled something under his breath.
I decided not to pry too much and asked him if he had any other plans for the day. Betsy told me to tell him how I felt, but I wasn’t ready to open that can of worms just yet.
“It’s your birthday. What do you think?” he said with excitement. “How’s that book you are reading about Margaret and God?”
“I finished it last night. It was a silly novel about puberty. I think it was really about identity. She struggled to fit in because she didn’t have a religion to guide her.”
“You don’t need to worry about that. You know who you are, but remember, you are a nice Christian girl at my dad’s house,” Darren reminded me with a foolish wink.
“I know. It’s just sometimes I wish I had something to follow and give me hope other than music.”
“My dad believes in God completely and still struggles. I don’t think religion fixes everything.”
The thing about religion was that it gave a person loose guidelines about basic morals, but a book or a church could not tell someone who to be. Only you can choose that. Daren was trying to choose his own path, but his dad suffocated him with his own beliefs.
We did our typical birthday traditions, including getting peach milkshakes, playing basketball in the park, and playing board games with his siblings.
Dusk was approaching, and Darren said, “We need to go to the creek soon. Your surprise awaits.”
When we reached the creek, I was shocked to see James was unloading his ruby-red truck. The brand-new pedal boat we won from the Peach Play Games was in the back.
“Thanks for the help, James,” Darren said.
“Anything for my birthday girl. I will leave you two to it. See you in exactly an hour,” James said, closing the tailgate and driving off.
Darren convinced me to get into the boat first. They unloaded the boat at a shallow part of the creek where the water went up to my calves. I carefully placed myself into the boat and put my feet into the holes to pedal.
Darren held the boat steady when he got in. He pedaled with his feet so we would propel into the broader part of the creek, which was more like a lake. Then he dropped a heavy rock with a rope tied around it into the middle of the water. Things were changing. It was just the two of us.
“What is that for?” I asked, raising my eyebrows.
“This is the best place to watch the sunset. We needed an anchor.”
It was perfect. The sky started turning into cotton candy.
Darren’s quiet presence made me secure. I occasionally glanced at him to see if he was looking at me, too.
Each time we made eye contact, we would look away from each other.
I didn’t want to say anything stupid, but I gained enough courage to ask him the question that kept popping up in my mind.
“Why did you do all of this for me?” I asked.
“At this point, I think it is obvious. I am sorry I could not bring your birthday present here. I will give you it tonight when I walk you home. I got you a portable 8-track of your own since I saw you eyeing mine,” he explained.
He liked me and I liked him. It wasn’t a figment of my imagination. It was real.
“Darren. I’m scared of doing something that will mess up our relationship,” I said.
He leaned in, grabbed the back of my neck, and gently stroked my hair.
A gust of pine trees and peach lip balm overcame me.
I had known Darren since I was six and never got as close as I was to him.
I could see every pore in his face, his three speckles of moles, and the crease of his smile.
My body shivered when his lips touched mine and we kissed.
“You can’t mess it up if I mess it up first,” he said, pulling away.
“What do we do now?” I asked, picking at my cuticles.
“Let’s figure that out some other time. Look at the stars.”
We stargazed for over an hour. I was happy I didn’t have to figure it out. I couldn’t lose one of my closest friends over a stupid teenage romance.
Darren cut off the rope and peddled us to the shore so I could get home and warm up, but James was nowhere to be seen.
“I’m sorry. He probably lost track of time,” I said.
“That’s okay. It happens.”
By the time James got there, my legs were completely frozen.
He didn’t explain why he was late or apologize, so I helped put the bikes and the boat in the back and didn’t talk to him.
I doubt he would’ve heard me, even if I spoke.
The ride back was silent. Then he dropped us off at Darren’s house, and I went to the door while they unloaded the bikes.
James finally broke the silence and asked us, “Did you guys have fun tonight?”
“Yeah, I think we did,” Darren said.
“That’s good. Take care of her like you always have. See you in a bit, Penny,” James said before speeding out of their driveway toward my grandma’s cabin, leaving Darren and me alone again.
Darren met me inside on his sun porch. He handed me a bag with the portable 8-track inside—this 8-track was avocado green instead of orange.
I couldn’t wait to use it. Although I loved my record player, it was bulky and stationary.
I could use it anywhere: at the pool, while I worked in my garden, at my friend’s house, anywhere.
I hugged him slightly too long, and he escorted me back to my cabin.
The cabin lights glared and masked my view of the front porch.
I couldn’t believe I was falling for Darren.
“You better go in. I hope you had a good birthday,” he said.
“The best,” I assured him.
He started staggering to his house, and I couldn’t help turning around and dashing toward him. He stopped in the darkness, unsure of what I would do. We stood there for a few seconds before I kissed him on his cheek.
“Thanks,” Darren said, blushing.
I jogged back toward the steps. For the second time in my life, my birthday exceeded my expectations because of Darren, but I was really worried about James.