Where I Lay My Head
Gone
There in the doorway stood Scotti. I gasped and pulled Rachel up but held him tightly to me as I blindly felt the quilted bed behind me to find my shirt.
Out of the corner of his eye he spotted Scotti but didn't bother turning around to confront him. He held me tightly by the bare cushion of my hips and stepped further into the space between my legs. I soon realized why-- It was substantially obtrusive and poking against the seam of my pants.
"Dude, get the fuck out of here!" Rachel demanded thunderously, barely turning around to target Scotti as his adversary.
He glared at the back of Rachel's head with the same admonitory expression as he wore on our way to the beach. It was still confusing to me but soon enough I would be enlightened.
"Dude, back off!" he scolded. "She's Baz's job!"
Finally, the ribbed fabric of my shirt fought against my finger tips and I swiftly pulled it over my head, just in time. Rachel whipped around to face Scotti, woody and all.
"Job?" I whimpered, my thoughts muddled and doleful from the title Scotti had given me.
The pair spent no attention on my inquiry, much too drowned in the escalating quarrel.
"She's not a job, dude! She's a motherfucking human being!" Rachel boomed with anger, his voice and body trembling.
"That doesn't matter! Cecil chose him for her and not you! Fucking deal with it!"
"What?" I was bewildered with cluelessness now, but what had already been spoken led me to premature fury.
"No, you deal with it! She wants me and not Baz. And she can choose what she wants. Either way it benefits Cecil so I don't see the fuckin' problem!"
Now, I was far too confused and very tired of being ignored. "What?!"
They were knocked into silence and turned to me nervously, as did the three that were joining Scotti in the doorway-- Cecil, Baz and Snake.
"What are they talking about, Cecil?" I squeaked, pushing myself off of the bed's footboard and stepping forward.
At a loss for words, he looked helplessly at every surrounding face and then back to me.
"Addie... I guess there's something I should tell you." he hesitated but I was far too anxious to wait. "My mom wrote me a letter before you came. And- and it said that if you returned to Mullica HIll, your parents plan for you and Jonathan Truck to wed."
This hit me like a wrecking ball. Although arranged marriages were common in Amish communities, the idea never ran through my head. My parents were much too caring to put me through that. Jon Truck was nice, handsome and hardworking... but 27 and more importantly I didn't love him.
"You're lying! My parents would never do that."
Cecil looked at me sympathetically, as if I would be comforted from a single look. "I thought maybe you'd stay if you found a boyfriend."
Although I was struggling to keep the idea of arranged marriage out of my thoughts, that ship had sailed with what Cecil had said.
"And you decided to choose for me?! What's the difference between that and what my parents are doing?!"
"I just wanted you too stay here... I thought Sebastian would be the most persuasive."
"I'd rather be married to Jon Truck!" I yelped, tears swelling in my eyes with such burdensome information. "Fuck you!"
At that, all five of the boys stumbled. I never cursed until then. And to tell you the truth, it felt fabulous.
With my eyes squeezed shut and my hands balled into fists, I let loose.
"Fuck you! I am so fucking tired of this shit! I am not going to let you fuck around with my life just because I'm a girl! I'm fucking done FUCK YOU!"
Once that was settled, I couldn't stand being cooped up in that apartment with all of those faces for another minute. I was gone.
Out of the corner of his eye he spotted Scotti but didn't bother turning around to confront him. He held me tightly by the bare cushion of my hips and stepped further into the space between my legs. I soon realized why-- It was substantially obtrusive and poking against the seam of my pants.
"Dude, get the fuck out of here!" Rachel demanded thunderously, barely turning around to target Scotti as his adversary.
He glared at the back of Rachel's head with the same admonitory expression as he wore on our way to the beach. It was still confusing to me but soon enough I would be enlightened.
"Dude, back off!" he scolded. "She's Baz's job!"
Finally, the ribbed fabric of my shirt fought against my finger tips and I swiftly pulled it over my head, just in time. Rachel whipped around to face Scotti, woody and all.
"Job?" I whimpered, my thoughts muddled and doleful from the title Scotti had given me.
The pair spent no attention on my inquiry, much too drowned in the escalating quarrel.
"She's not a job, dude! She's a motherfucking human being!" Rachel boomed with anger, his voice and body trembling.
"That doesn't matter! Cecil chose him for her and not you! Fucking deal with it!"
"What?" I was bewildered with cluelessness now, but what had already been spoken led me to premature fury.
"No, you deal with it! She wants me and not Baz. And she can choose what she wants. Either way it benefits Cecil so I don't see the fuckin' problem!"
Now, I was far too confused and very tired of being ignored. "What?!"
They were knocked into silence and turned to me nervously, as did the three that were joining Scotti in the doorway-- Cecil, Baz and Snake.
"What are they talking about, Cecil?" I squeaked, pushing myself off of the bed's footboard and stepping forward.
At a loss for words, he looked helplessly at every surrounding face and then back to me.
"Addie... I guess there's something I should tell you." he hesitated but I was far too anxious to wait. "My mom wrote me a letter before you came. And- and it said that if you returned to Mullica HIll, your parents plan for you and Jonathan Truck to wed."
This hit me like a wrecking ball. Although arranged marriages were common in Amish communities, the idea never ran through my head. My parents were much too caring to put me through that. Jon Truck was nice, handsome and hardworking... but 27 and more importantly I didn't love him.
"You're lying! My parents would never do that."
Cecil looked at me sympathetically, as if I would be comforted from a single look. "I thought maybe you'd stay if you found a boyfriend."
Although I was struggling to keep the idea of arranged marriage out of my thoughts, that ship had sailed with what Cecil had said.
"And you decided to choose for me?! What's the difference between that and what my parents are doing?!"
"I just wanted you too stay here... I thought Sebastian would be the most persuasive."
"I'd rather be married to Jon Truck!" I yelped, tears swelling in my eyes with such burdensome information. "Fuck you!"
At that, all five of the boys stumbled. I never cursed until then. And to tell you the truth, it felt fabulous.
With my eyes squeezed shut and my hands balled into fists, I let loose.
"Fuck you! I am so fucking tired of this shit! I am not going to let you fuck around with my life just because I'm a girl! I'm fucking done FUCK YOU!"
Once that was settled, I couldn't stand being cooped up in that apartment with all of those faces for another minute. I was gone.