Chapter 2 #3
“You don’t have a cellphone!?” Julie screeched. “My mom would kill us if we let you leave this late on your bike. Seriously, call your parents and let them know we’ll take you home if they can’t pick you up.”
I could feel my lower back starting to sweat. There was nobody I needed to call, and hearing the words “your parents” caused a sharp pain in my heart.
Jackson and Julie were still staring at me, waiting for me to agree to the ride home.
“Okay, if you’re really sure it’s fine?” I tried my hardest to not sound as timid as a mouse, but I did not accomplish that.
“We’re so sure,” Jackson offered with a smile. “Do you want to use my phone?” He pulled it out of his pocket and held it out for me.
I shook my head no. “It’s all good.”
“Now that that’s settled, get ready to learn closing!
” Julie said, clapping her hands together.
“It’s kind of like a game for me and Jackson.
We each pick three songs, and try to get everything done before they’re all over.
We have to take off the last of the tablecloths, vacuum the floors, and mop the entrance, the kitchen, and the bathrooms. Sometimes we’ll roll silverware if we don’t feel like doing it the next day.
” She turned to Jackson, who was already plugging his phone into the speaker. “You pick three songs already?”
“We should each do two, let Addie pick, too.” He looked up at me. “We always leave the songs a surprise.”
“I don’t have to pick any. I don’t really listen to music.” I gave him a squeamish smile. I knew a lot of popular songs, but had no idea what their names were, or even who sung them.
“We are definitely going to change that,” Julie said as she took the phone from Jackson. “I’m a huge Swiftie.”
I laughed while Jackson audibly groaned. “I seriously have every song of hers memorized because of how much Julie plays her.”
Julie laughed wickedly, picking her three songs before pressing play.
A rap song started playing, and Julie and Jackson immediately started singing along.
Jackson was singing the main parts, and Julie was doing the background vocals.
I couldn’t stop laughing at the lyrics, and the fact that both of them were singing such a provocative song as we started the closing duties.
Julie and I started removing all the tablecloths while Jackson got the vacuum. “Don’t be shy, go ahead and sing!” Julie said as we carried the first pile of laundry to the back of the kitchen.
“I don’t know this song,” I admitted.
“You’ve never heard ‘No Hands’ by Waka Flocka Flame?” she gasped.
I furrowed my eyebrows. “Waka who?”
“Oh lord, that’s bad,” Julie said with a laugh.
The next song started playing, and this one I actually recognized. It was “Sing For The Moment” by Eminem. I mouthed the words, not confident enough to actually rap like Julie and Jackson were both doing while we all worked in tandem. I knew the next song after that, but didn’t know the name.
“‘Stronger’ by Kanye West,” Jackson called out over the speakers. “Have you ever seen the movie Never Back Down? This song is in it; it’s my favorite movie!” I shook my head no and Jackson playfully rolled his eyes.
While we were getting the mops ready, Julie’s song picks started playing, and she started shaking her hips as Taylor Swift’s voice blasted through the speakers.
“Please tell me you’ve heard ‘Enchanted’!” she yelled over the music. I laughed as I shook my head no. Even Jackson was singing, and I was laughing so hard at both of them that I had to clutch my stomach.
They were twirling around the room using the mops as microphones, and when the last bridge of the song began, both of them dropped to their knees to belt out the words. When it was done, I clapped dramatically for them as they stood and bowed for me.
Jackson cleaned the men’s bathroom while us girls cleaned the women’s, then we met in the kitchen to unplug Jackson’s phone from the speaker.
“And look at that, we’re already done with closing. We don’t even need to listen to the last song Julie picked,” Jackson said with a wicked grin.
Julie let out a long, exaggerated laugh. “Guess we’ll just have to listen to it on the way home! And you can sit in the middle!”
Jackson stuck his tongue out at Julie before grabbing my backpack off its hook and handing it to me.
“When he picks music first, he purposely chooses long songs so that we never make it to all of mine.” She bent down to whisper in my ear, “Jokes on him because the only CDs in my car are Taylor Swift.”
Julie locked up the back door, and I followed them to her truck.
It was one of those old trucks that didn’t have backseats, so Jackson really did have to sit between us.
Our thighs were touching, and I tried my hardest not to hyperfocus on that bit of contact.
Julie drove around to the front of the street where my bike was still leaning against the rack.
“I’ll get it,” Jackson said before I could open the passenger door.
He crawled over me to get out of the truck, and I felt frozen to the seat as his bangs swiped across my forehead on his way out.
I tried to act nonchalant, like that closeness didn’t send me completely off-kilter.
I looked over at Julie without moving my head, but she was just mouthing along to the song she had started playing.
I watched in the side mirror as Jackson picked up my bike and placed it in the bed of the truck.
His biceps were illuminated under the streetlights, and I swallowed in an attempt to get the sudden dryness out of my throat.
When I saw him walking back toward the car, I hurried to jump out for him before he could crawl over me again.
We didn’t speak on the way home; the two of them continued to sing along theatrically to the music, and I just pointed out where to turn when needed. When they pulled into my driveway, I was relieved to see that Peter’s car was gone. He was probably out at a bar. “Thanks for the ride.”
“We’ll see you tomorrow! Have two songs ready!” Julie said.
I hopped out of the truck but before I could shut the door, Jackson stopped it with his arm, jumping out after me and getting my bike out of the truck bed before I could even protest.
“Thanks,” I said as he followed me to the side of the house. “You can just leave it behind the gate.”
I crossed my arms as Jackson fixed his wavy hair.
“Have a good night, Addie. It was really nice meeting you.”
I nodded back, trying to calm down that fizziness that reappeared in my stomach. “See you tomorrow, Jackson.”
He smiled at me before walking back to Julie’s truck. I waved at both of them from the front porch as they backed out, and I could hear the faint sound of Julie’s music as they drove down the block.
I smiled—for the first time since Mom left, I felt like things might actually be okay.