Driven to Distraction

That summer really had been filled with nothing but me being stuck alone in my house. I’d laze around on the couch in the living room, or on my bed, eating junk food until my stomach hurt, and watching endless amounts of television. That’s how it was, anyway, until the Fourth of July weekend came.

Kelsi’s family always barbecued every July fourth, and that year was no exception. She had called me early in the morning, telling me to make sure I wore a swimsuit under my clothes, as we would be swimming later on in the day. And with the temperature expected to reach nearly 104 degrees, I didn’t give the request a second thought.

I wore a simple white and purple bikini, with a pair of light blue denim shorts and a loose black tank over it. I slid my feet into a pair of black sandals, grabbed my keys, and I was out the door.

Halfway to Kelsi’s house, the blistering sun was already making me sweat. I wiped my forehead, sighing, before taking the black elastic from my wrist, tossing my hair up into a sloppy bun; I wasn’t exactly worried about impressing Kelsi’s family.

However, as I walked up her driveway, I realized that there were too many voices emitting from her backyard for Kelsi, Kennedy, and her parents to be the only ones there. I furrowed my brows in confusion and made my way to the back, where I suddenly felt my breath hitch in my throat.

Swimming in her pool and lounging around the yard, were Jared, Pat, Garrett, and John. They were all Kennedy and Kelsi’s friends, and although we all went to the same school, I had never really talked to any of them, save for John, before.

I timidly walked towards the picnic table where Kelsi was sitting, laughing with Kennedy. When she saw me, a large smile adorned her lips and she ran to give me a hug.

“Finally!” she exclaimed. “I was beginning to think you weren’t coming.”

“Uh, I had to walk,” I said, rolling my eyes.

“Oh, yeah. You should’ve just called me! Kennedy would have come to pick you up, K.”

I shrugged. “I’m here now.”

We both walked back to the table and took a seat opposite from Kennedy, who gave me a smile.

“Nice to see you again, Ketely,” he stated.

“It’s nice to see you, too, Kenny,” I smiled.

“Kelsi, Pat’s trying to break your chair!” Jared, a redheaded boy, yelled while laughing.

Kelsi’s father turned and pointed his finger at Pat, who could be compared to a child, with his antics and looks. “Pat, give it a rest will you!”

“Sorry, Mr. Jacobs!” the boy yelled, his cheeks flushing a shade of pink.

“You didn’t tell me you were inviting … them,” I said in a low tone, hoping Kennedy wouldn’t hear me.

Kelsi gave me a look. “I know. I’m sorry. I just figured if I told you, you wouldn’t come.”

“Why would you think that?” I questioned, quirking my brows.

She sighed. “Ketely, you’ve shut everybody but your dad and I out of your life. I thought if I told you I invited the guys over, you’d freak and wouldn’t want to come.”

I knew that what she was saying was true, but it sort of hurt hearing it out loud. Instead of saying anything more that could have potentially led into an argument, I bit my tongue and looked out at the pool, my eyes drifting to the boy in bright, yellow swim trunks. He was trying to dunk Garrett under the water, and as far as I could tell, Garrett was putting up a good fight.

“I’m gonna go in the pool. Join me soon?” Kennedy smiled at Kelsi as he stood up from the table.

She grinned. “Yeah, just give me a minute.” He placed a kiss on her cheek before walking away. “God, I love him.”

I laughed. “I can tell.”

She pushed me playfully before giving me a serious look. “So … have you been sleeping at all?”

I didn’t really want to answer her. I knew that if I told her the truth, she’d worry and lecture me about how important getting sleep was. But it wasn’t as if not sleeping was my choice; because believe me, the long nights and the lack of energy I felt, not to mention the dark bags that had begun to grow under my eyes, were not things I would choose for myself.

“Once in awhile,” I lied, not making eye contact with her.

She sighed. “I think you should see somebody, Ketely. It’s not heal-“

“Kelsi, can we not? I really don’t want to get into this right now,” I stated, finally looking at her.

I could see she was biting her tongue by the look on her face. She stood up and looked at me over her shoulder. “Let’s swim,” she said before walking towards the pool.

I placed my head in the palms of my hands, suddenly not wanting to be there anymore. Honestly, I was tired; both physically and mentally. I probably could have fallen asleep at right that moment, when the sound of something hitting the table snapped me out of my thoughts. I pulled my hands away from my face and saw a can of Mountain Dew in front of me.

“You look like you could use some caffeine,” he told me, that damn smirk lingering on his lips.

“I don’t know if I should be offended or not, but thank you,” I mumbled before popping the tab open.

He chuckled and took a seat across from me, where Kennedy had previously been sitting. “I’m just saying ...”

I rolled my eyes and took a sip of the carbonated drink. “How long have you been here?”

He shrugged. “Somewhere around two hours.”

“Wow. I didn’t know you and Kelsi were such great friends.”

“I’m not surprised. You haven’t exactly been around all summer …”

I casted my gaze downwards, looking at my hands. “I’ve been busy,” I lied.

“I’m sure,” he said, sounding unconvinced. “Anyways, I just came here to ask you for my sweater back. I left it with you that night at the park. You know, the blue one?”

I should have known he wanted something.

“Yeah, I’ll get it back to you as soon as I can.”

“Thanks, Morrison,” he grinned before getting up and walking away.

I rolled my eyes before standing up. I took off my tank top and shorts, folding them into a neat pile on the bench. I slid off my flip flops, and walked over to the pool. I dipped my toes into the water, testing the temperature.

“It feels good, K! Just get in!” Kelsi laughed as Kennedy tickled her sides.

The water did feel good, so I went around to the stairs, climbing into the pool.

“Look, the Ugly Duckling is joining us! It’s nice to see you be human, Morrison!” John teased, pointing at me.

“Yeah, you should try it sometime, O’Callaghan,” I glared, wading towards the deep end.

Before I could reach Kelsi, John sent a huge splash of water my way, wetting my hair and face. I groaned in irritation before pivoting towards him. “Do you always have to pick a fight with me?!”

He laughed. “It’s so much fun, Ketely!”

“Yeah, well I hope this is fun,” I smiled sarcastically before pushing a wave of water towards him. I could hear laughter behind me, and I smirked.

This seemed to infuriate John, because the next thing I knew, we were both pushing water towards each other, and soon enough, everyone else joined in, splashing water every which way. And although I wanted to be mad at him, I couldn’t be; I was having fun for the first time in a long time, and that – that felt amazing.

After we had been fighting for what felt like hours, Kelsi’s mother began taking the food inside and her dad turned towards us, after turning off the grill.

“The food’s done! Come eat when y’all are ready!” he shouted.

“Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs!” we all yelled before he laughed and went inside, shutting the glass door behind him.

“I’m starving, babe! Let’s go eat!” Kennedy whined, pulling Kelsi into him.

She laughed and gave him a peck on the lips. “I’m hungry, too. Let’s go, everybody!”

“We don’t have to listen to you,” Jared joked.

“Well then, stay out here and starve for all I care,” she teased.

He laughed. “Yeah, right.”

We all followed behind her and Kennedy and it wasn’t until I felt myself going under the water without a chance to take a breath of air, that I realized John was behind me. I groaned, causing air bubbles to form. He laughed and tried to swim away, when I caught him by his ankles. He tried kicking out of my grip, but I held on.

“Ketely! John!”

“We’re coming, Kels!” I shouted.

When I finally got a good enough grip on John’s left leg, I swam over him, yanking at the top of his trunks. I closed my eyes as I began pulling the fabric down, not exactly wanting to be mooned by him. When it was pulled over his feet, I began swimming away, laughing harder than I had in years.

“Are you fucking serious!?” he shouted, covering himself as he turned around to face me.

I climbed out of the pool, laughing as I held his trunks in the air. “Oh, I’m completely serious, O’Callaghan.”

“Come on, Morrison! This isn’t fair!” His cheeks were flushing a deep red, and I almost felt bad, but it was John, and I could never really feel that bad for him.

“Come and get it,” I smiled, dropping his trunks near the back door. “Have fun!” I waved before opening the door.

“You’re a bitch, Ketely!” he yelled.

And maybe he was right, but after years of having to deal with his pranks, he got what he deserved, in my opinion.