My Fair Lady
Chapter 22
Billie Joe was sitting in the living room when Jakob came home. It wasn't too late, around eleven o'clock and Billie Joe was enjoying the latest edition of the Rolling Stone and had just finished a beer when Jakob shuffled in, puffy eyed and looking like he had been mugged.
"What happened?" Billie Joe threw the magazine down as Jakob sat heavily in the chair.
Jakob did not say anything for a moment, but slowly shook his head before he spoke. "I lost her Dad, I lost her."
"Who?" Billie Joe's eyebrows had come together and he was leaning on his knees, worried about the state Jakob was in. "What are you talking about?"
Jakob looked down at his shoes and looked back up, his eyes were watery and rimmed in red. "Chloe. She broke up with me tonight and it's all my fault."
Billie Joe nodded in understanding and scooted closer to his son. "Okay, why?"
Jakob bit his lip and took a deep breath as a tear slid down his cheek. "I cheated on her with Katrina back in February and she found out about it tonight. But I didn't. . . . I was drunk and Katrina was wearing Chloe's perfume and I really wanted Chloe to be there and I thought it was her and. . . . I don't know." Jakob buried his face in his hands.
Billie Joe crossed over to him and rubbed Jakob's back soothingly.
"And she won't answer her phone and Lauren won't let me talk to her. Fuck, Dad. I love her so much I never meant for any of this to happen." He met his father's light eyes. "I really thought she was the one. I could see myself being with her. Yeah, we fight, but it's nothing serious and we always get over it within a few hours or so. But I can't fix this."
Billie Joe sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Jake, I know exactly what you're going through. Your mom and I went through it."
"Really?"
Billie Joe nodded. "Except I was kind of the one in Chloe's shoes and your mom was in yours. She was still in Minneapolis and I was here in California for a few months. We weren't necessarily together-together, but we kind of had an unspoken rule that we wouldn't really be with anyone else, you know. Well, the months turned out to be longer and longer than we expected and I guess your mom got tired of waiting and she got engaged...to her ex-boyfriend. You know she was engaged before we were, right?"
Jakob nodded quietly.
"Yeah, well, he was a bastard and that's not the point. Well, when I found out, I was devastated. I called her and we fought like you wouldn't believe. But in the end, we both loved each other. There's an old saying that says 'If you love something, let it go and if it comes back, it's yours to keep.' Whoever said that was right. Maybe this is a good thing. Maybe you and Chloe needed a little space to re-evaluate your relationship and yourself. It's hard, I know and it sucks ass to do, but you gotta do it. Give it some time. If she loves you like you love her, you'll get back together because love isn't just something you throw away on a whim."
Jakob was quiet when his dad finished. "Maybe you're right." He sighed. "But I just want to talk to her and tell her I'm sorry. I know I don't deserve her after this but I just want to tell her that and that I do love her."
"I know, I know." Billie Joe kissed the top of Jakob's head and hugged him as Jakob continued to cry silent tears.
Jakob jerked away and threw something on the glass top of the table. It was a small ring with a precious stone embedded in it. He ran his hands through his hair just to grab it and pull in distress. His face was screwed up in forced concentration.
Billie Joe slowly picked up the ring and circled it between his index and thumb. "You were going to give her this?"
Jakob nodded, the tears flying freely down his cherried cheeks. "Yeah." He croaked out, his voice hoarse from emotion. "It's a promise ring. Her dad gave her mom one and I think deep down she always wanted one. A promise that we'd be together and that I'd never hurt her but I guess I've all ready broken that one."
Billie Joe crossed to Jakob and placed the ring firmly in his hand. "Keep it. Like I said, if it comes back. . . . it's yours to keep." He patted Jakob on the back and kissed the side of his head and left the room and Jakob with his thoughts.
------------*------------
The next day, Jakob didn't leave his room. He didn't eat, he didn't speak, he just laid up there in personal confined isolation. He didn't bother to answer his cell phone, which rang obnoxiously from it's charging perch on his desk. If it wasn't Chloe's specific ringtone, he wasn't going to answer it. Jakob laid on his unmade bed still in his sleep clothes, even though it was well past two in the afternoon, and absently threw a soccer ball in the air and caught it without thinking in repetition.
His phone rang again. It was the third time in half an hour that Lauren had called and her ringtone was really beginning to irk Jakob more and more. Didn't anybody understand that he didn't want to talk to anyone or see anyone unless they were Chloe or a magical fairy that could take him to her with the wave of her pointy wand?
"Jakob?" His mother's voice wafted from downstairs.
She seemed to be acting very delicately towards Jakob and it was beginning to be another thing that bothered him.
"Are you hungry? Do you want me to fix something for you?"
"No." Jakob mumbled no louder than a sigh. He dared a look out the window and rolled his eyes. The sun was shining and there was an actual bluebird sitting in the tree outside his window chirping merrily. It was such a contrast to his mood it made him sick.
He wanted Chloe so badly it hurt, but he couldn't bring himself to call her and deep down he knew she wouldn't answer. Fighting the tears that threatened to start falling again, Jakob threw the soccer ball against the wall. It hit the wall with a loud bang, followed by the crash of an award that had been hanging in the victimized spot.
Not feeling any better, Jakob looked at his cell phone that was ringing from Lauren again and refused to answer it.
------------*------------
"Where's Chloe?" Jakob asked Lauren the following day at school. Jakob still looked no better than he had the other day, but he had at least showered.
Lauren slammed her locker shut and looked at him with a disbelieving look. "I tried to call you 38 times yesterday Jakob Danger. 38 If you had picked up your phone, you would know where she is and you may have had the chance to say goodbye." Lauren turned on her heel and walked away, her heels clicking madly with her.
"What? Goodbye? Where did she go? When is she coming back?" Jakob followed behind her like a confused puppy who had messed on the floor without realizing it was wrong.
"New York." Lauren answered curtly as she wheeled into her class but stopped and turned in the doorway so quickly, Jakob almost ran into her. "And she's not coming back...ever."
"Ever, never? But, why?"
"Mr. Armstrong, this is not your class." The teacher interrupted as she began to close the door on him.
"No, no," Jakob had his finger raised and was staring at Lauren. "Lauren, why? Why is she there and why won't she talk to me?" Jakob beat on the wood of the door that was in his face. He turned and slid down, miserable again. He hit his head against the door. "I'm so sorry Chloe, so, so sorry."
"What happened?" Billie Joe threw the magazine down as Jakob sat heavily in the chair.
Jakob did not say anything for a moment, but slowly shook his head before he spoke. "I lost her Dad, I lost her."
"Who?" Billie Joe's eyebrows had come together and he was leaning on his knees, worried about the state Jakob was in. "What are you talking about?"
Jakob looked down at his shoes and looked back up, his eyes were watery and rimmed in red. "Chloe. She broke up with me tonight and it's all my fault."
Billie Joe nodded in understanding and scooted closer to his son. "Okay, why?"
Jakob bit his lip and took a deep breath as a tear slid down his cheek. "I cheated on her with Katrina back in February and she found out about it tonight. But I didn't. . . . I was drunk and Katrina was wearing Chloe's perfume and I really wanted Chloe to be there and I thought it was her and. . . . I don't know." Jakob buried his face in his hands.
Billie Joe crossed over to him and rubbed Jakob's back soothingly.
"And she won't answer her phone and Lauren won't let me talk to her. Fuck, Dad. I love her so much I never meant for any of this to happen." He met his father's light eyes. "I really thought she was the one. I could see myself being with her. Yeah, we fight, but it's nothing serious and we always get over it within a few hours or so. But I can't fix this."
Billie Joe sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Jake, I know exactly what you're going through. Your mom and I went through it."
"Really?"
Billie Joe nodded. "Except I was kind of the one in Chloe's shoes and your mom was in yours. She was still in Minneapolis and I was here in California for a few months. We weren't necessarily together-together, but we kind of had an unspoken rule that we wouldn't really be with anyone else, you know. Well, the months turned out to be longer and longer than we expected and I guess your mom got tired of waiting and she got engaged...to her ex-boyfriend. You know she was engaged before we were, right?"
Jakob nodded quietly.
"Yeah, well, he was a bastard and that's not the point. Well, when I found out, I was devastated. I called her and we fought like you wouldn't believe. But in the end, we both loved each other. There's an old saying that says 'If you love something, let it go and if it comes back, it's yours to keep.' Whoever said that was right. Maybe this is a good thing. Maybe you and Chloe needed a little space to re-evaluate your relationship and yourself. It's hard, I know and it sucks ass to do, but you gotta do it. Give it some time. If she loves you like you love her, you'll get back together because love isn't just something you throw away on a whim."
Jakob was quiet when his dad finished. "Maybe you're right." He sighed. "But I just want to talk to her and tell her I'm sorry. I know I don't deserve her after this but I just want to tell her that and that I do love her."
"I know, I know." Billie Joe kissed the top of Jakob's head and hugged him as Jakob continued to cry silent tears.
Jakob jerked away and threw something on the glass top of the table. It was a small ring with a precious stone embedded in it. He ran his hands through his hair just to grab it and pull in distress. His face was screwed up in forced concentration.
Billie Joe slowly picked up the ring and circled it between his index and thumb. "You were going to give her this?"
Jakob nodded, the tears flying freely down his cherried cheeks. "Yeah." He croaked out, his voice hoarse from emotion. "It's a promise ring. Her dad gave her mom one and I think deep down she always wanted one. A promise that we'd be together and that I'd never hurt her but I guess I've all ready broken that one."
Billie Joe crossed to Jakob and placed the ring firmly in his hand. "Keep it. Like I said, if it comes back. . . . it's yours to keep." He patted Jakob on the back and kissed the side of his head and left the room and Jakob with his thoughts.
------------*------------
The next day, Jakob didn't leave his room. He didn't eat, he didn't speak, he just laid up there in personal confined isolation. He didn't bother to answer his cell phone, which rang obnoxiously from it's charging perch on his desk. If it wasn't Chloe's specific ringtone, he wasn't going to answer it. Jakob laid on his unmade bed still in his sleep clothes, even though it was well past two in the afternoon, and absently threw a soccer ball in the air and caught it without thinking in repetition.
His phone rang again. It was the third time in half an hour that Lauren had called and her ringtone was really beginning to irk Jakob more and more. Didn't anybody understand that he didn't want to talk to anyone or see anyone unless they were Chloe or a magical fairy that could take him to her with the wave of her pointy wand?
"Jakob?" His mother's voice wafted from downstairs.
She seemed to be acting very delicately towards Jakob and it was beginning to be another thing that bothered him.
"Are you hungry? Do you want me to fix something for you?"
"No." Jakob mumbled no louder than a sigh. He dared a look out the window and rolled his eyes. The sun was shining and there was an actual bluebird sitting in the tree outside his window chirping merrily. It was such a contrast to his mood it made him sick.
He wanted Chloe so badly it hurt, but he couldn't bring himself to call her and deep down he knew she wouldn't answer. Fighting the tears that threatened to start falling again, Jakob threw the soccer ball against the wall. It hit the wall with a loud bang, followed by the crash of an award that had been hanging in the victimized spot.
Not feeling any better, Jakob looked at his cell phone that was ringing from Lauren again and refused to answer it.
------------*------------
"Where's Chloe?" Jakob asked Lauren the following day at school. Jakob still looked no better than he had the other day, but he had at least showered.
Lauren slammed her locker shut and looked at him with a disbelieving look. "I tried to call you 38 times yesterday Jakob Danger. 38 If you had picked up your phone, you would know where she is and you may have had the chance to say goodbye." Lauren turned on her heel and walked away, her heels clicking madly with her.
"What? Goodbye? Where did she go? When is she coming back?" Jakob followed behind her like a confused puppy who had messed on the floor without realizing it was wrong.
"New York." Lauren answered curtly as she wheeled into her class but stopped and turned in the doorway so quickly, Jakob almost ran into her. "And she's not coming back...ever."
"Ever, never? But, why?"
"Mr. Armstrong, this is not your class." The teacher interrupted as she began to close the door on him.
"No, no," Jakob had his finger raised and was staring at Lauren. "Lauren, why? Why is she there and why won't she talk to me?" Jakob beat on the wood of the door that was in his face. He turned and slid down, miserable again. He hit his head against the door. "I'm so sorry Chloe, so, so sorry."