The Fast Times

Nancy woke up earlier before Pete. Her nausea was back, but was a lot more calmer than days past. Nancy got ready for school, and reluctantly sat and thought for a moment before waking Pete.

Pete had fallen asleep angrily and it made Nancy afraid to wake him. She didn't want to be yelled at, she didn't want to argue. She would much rather let him sleep and wake up on his own.

But, Pete could feel her eyes watching him as he slept. He woke up feeling intrusion on his skin; "What?" He asked tiredly.

Nancy jumped slightly, her eyes locked with Pete's, "It's time for school," she mumbled.

"Why are you staring at me?" His voice was sharp as last night.

Nancy shrugged, "I don't know. Sorry."

Pete waved his hand as he rolled over to get up. Nancy swallowed, her hand threading through her hair, her eyes still on him. Pete grabbed his jeans and pulled them on, feeling her stare again, "What do you want?"

"I..." Nancy couldn't think quick, her heart was beating so fast. Finally, it hit her, "What did I do? Why are you mad at me?"

Pete grew angry again, "Why shouldn't I be mad at you?" He spat.

"I didn't do anything," she muttered. "Was it because I didn't ask you to come to the doctor with me yesterday? I didn't know you wanted to go, I--"

Pete cut her off, "Like I fucking care," his tone was hard and cold. "Chip told me everything! He told me you were fucking him while we were seeing each other!"

Nancy's eyes widened and her jaw dropped, "What?! I was no sleeping with Chip! I wasn't even talking to him!"

"Don't lie, Nancy!" Pete growled, "I knew me and you was too good to be true. What were you using me for?"

"I wasn't--I'm not using you!" She shot up, "I wasn't sleeping with Chip! I was with you nearly everyday! You drove me and picked me up from school! I went to parties on the weekend with you!"

Pete was quiet for a minute, feeling doubt about Chip's "confession." Pete stared at her, still hard and angry.

"You really think I..." Nancy trailed, her heart sinking, "You think the baby is his?"

"That's what he said," Pete said shortly, emotionless.

Nancy's eyes burned with tears, "What do you think? Do you think I'm a whore and a slut like Darla and your dad?"

Pete didn't say anything, causing Nancy to believe he did. Nancy swallowed and walked around him, "Fine, I'll just leave you alone. I'm gonna take my car and deal with this."

"Deal with what?" Pete asked, "Where are you going?"

"Like you care," she mimicked his words.

"Nancy--"

Nancy grabbed her keys and flipped Pete off, "Go to hell."

Pete shut his mouth and watched Nancy pick up her bag and head up the stairs. He didn't do anything to stop her.

Nancy stormed out the house as quietly as she could, grabbing her coat on the way out. She got into her car, started it up and let it warm before driving off. She drove around to the local gas station to get to a pay phone; she wanted to call Darla and beg for anything, she'd do anything for some help at the moment.

Nancy dug through her bag for change until she had enough, then jogged over to the lone phone booth beside the building. She shivered in the freezing cold as she dialed Darla's number in St. Louis, hearing it ring and ring before someone finally picked up.

"Hello?"

"Uncle Norman?" Nancy bit at her lip.

"Nancy? Cy, is that you?"

"Yes!" She exclaimed, on the brink of tears. "Did I wake you up?"

"Nah, I just got off of work. What's wrong? Are you okay? Are you still mad?"

Nancy's eyes filled with tears, "I don't know. I'm...I need help."

"What's wrong?"

"Things aren't...I don't think it's gonna work out with me and Pete. I...I don't have anything and...can you help me?"

"Do you need money?"

Nancy hummed sadly, "Yes."

"Look," he paused shortly. "D doesn't know you're on the phone, she's asleep. I'll wire you the money Alma left you. It's $8,000, you can get you an apartment, or save it for later."

Nancy started to cry, "Really? You'd do that for me?"

"Yeah, I'm gonna do it. I'll wire it to your bank account in a few hours. You call me at this time tomorrow if it goes through, okay?"

"Okay."

"I'm sorry about everything with Darla, she's just...she'll come around."

"Thank you, Uncle Norm."

"Yeah, you're welcome, Cy. Please call me."

"I will. Thank you, again."

Nancy and Norman hung up; she returned to her car and sat there for a moment. She leaned back and thought for a moment, knowing that living with Pete and his family wasn't working out. She couldn't take the guilt and the tension and hated the fact Pete thought of her the same way his father and Darla had. Next, she knew she was going to rip Chip to shreds for lying; she wanted to kill him for lying and causing everyone to think ill of her. The last thing she needed to do was find her own home and try and rent it without trouble.


"What did you do?" Dale questioned Pete as she began to drive towards New Trier High.

Pete hadn't said anything that morning, other than Nancy got pissed and left him at home. Dale knew he had done or said something to upset her.

"I didn't do anything," he muttered.

"She's near 5 months pregnant, you can't upset her--"

"I didn't do anything!" He snapped.

"You did something!" Dale snapped back at him. "What did you say? She ran off because of you."

Pete kept quiet before he explained himself; "Chip told me he was screwing her while we were together."

Dale too was silent before she spoke, letting what Pete had said, sink in, "And? You believed him?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Pete exclaimed, "He hit me!"

"This boy is obviously trying to get under your skin, Pete!" Dale barked. "Did Nancy admit to it? I don't think she'd go through all this trouble of losing her family and dealing with people making her feel bad if she was just sleeping around."

Reality hit Pete, making his stomach knot uncontrollably. He felt terrible for thinking the worst of Nancy and for believing Chip, even for a minute.

"What did you say to her?" Dale questioned again.

"I just told her what Chip told me..." Pete was reluctant to tell her the rest.

"You need to fix this, Pete," Dale instructed angrily, "Nancy needs you more than anything right now, and you treating her like everyone else has."

Pete shut his eyes and sighed, "Fuck."


Nancy arrived at Chip's house just as his father left for work, meaning he'd be alone. She went up to the door and bang three times. It took a minute for him to answer, still groggy, "What the hell?" He was confused and near speechless. "Nancy?"

Nancy shoved her way in, "What the hell did you do?"

Chip smirked to himself, "What are you talking about?"

She faced him, "You know exactly what I'm talking about, Chipper! Don't play stupid! You've got a shit eating grin on your damn face!"

He rolled his eyes, "What are you talking about?" He repeated.

"You lied to Pete!" She shouted. "We never slept together when I got pregnant! Why are you lying? Why are you trying to mess up my life?!"

Chip could see the anger and sadness in her eyes, causing his whole demeanor to change. He swallowed thickly, feeling bad, "I...I'm sorry..."

"You're sorry?!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands up. "You...you made him--you made me look like I'm some sort of slut! You of all people, Chip! You used to be my friend--"

"Used to be," he muttered. "You just turned on everyone and turned into some sad goth bitch--"

"My parents died! My grandma died--"

He stopped her, "Alma? When?"

"Last week," Nancy's eyes filled with tears. "She was the only one on my side, and..."

Chip exhaled and stepped over to her, engulfing Nancy in a hug, "I'm sorry, Cy, I didn't know."

At that moment, Nancy didn't care what Chip had done, she craved attention. She wanted someone to hug her. She cried against his broad chest, holding onto his shirt.

Chip rubbed her back, "I didn't mean to...I was just mad, I...I'm really sorry, Nancy."

Nancy just cried, gripping Chip's shirt. She couldn't will herself to let go.