The Fast Times

Pete had eaten dinner over at Nancy's with his mother's permission. He spent the majority of the evening getting to know Nancy. Darla told funny stories of Nancy's youth and Norman made jokes. Pete never felt so relaxed and comfortable with people he had just met. When 9PM rolled around, he hated the thought of leaving, but he had to.

Nancy had finished helping him with AP Art History and walked him to his car. He said goodnight to her family and led the way out. He and Nancy walked down the drive way to the curb, Pete rocked on his heels, "So..."

Nancy giggled, "Did you have fun? I hope my family didn't weird you out too much."

"Nah, your family is great, really," he said earnestly. "I had fun."

Nancy smiled, "For real?"

Pete chuckled, "For real, Cy."

She exhaled now, "I'm glad. Tomorrow we'll go over to yours and maybe do some more homework? I'm sure Darla won't let me leave the house unless I've finished my homework."

"Sure thing," he nodded in agreement.

Nancy closed in, giving Pete a hug, then a soft kiss on the cheek, "I'll see you tomorrow."

Pete couldn't stop grinning, "S-see you tomorrow."

Nancy giggled quietly, watching Pete walk to the driver side, slip in and start his car. She began to walk up the drive way and go inside before he drove away. She bit her bottom lip hard; she too was falling hard for Pete.

Pete grinned the entire drive home. He was sure he'd die with this smile because of Nancy. He parked, climbed out and headed inside. Just as sweetly as the smile filled his face, a frown took over without much force.

His father was on a rampage, yelling angrily at his mother. He leaned against the door, hearing his father yell about Pete being out and not having dinner with the family. Pete's stomach tangled and he knew he'd get chewed out; "Better late than never," he mumbled under his breath.

His mother was defending him, saying she allowed him to go. His father asked who he was with, to which Pete answered as he entered the living room, "I was with my friend Nancy," he said over the shouting.

His father shot his eyes over at him, "Nancy?"

"Nancy Durden. She goes to my school--"

"I know who she is!" His father snapped, "Her aunt hired me to sue the driver that killed her parents."

Pete stepped back, "Yeah, well I had dinner with them, and then she helped me with my homework."

"Homework," his father scoffed, muttering sarcastically, "I'm so sure you're not screwing her."

"I'm not! I just met her!" Pete exclaimed.

"Don't you dare talk back to me!" The elder Wentz shouted. "Get upstairs! Tomorrow, you better cut that dirty mess off your damn head, you hear me?!"

Pete took a few steps back, tone flat as he spoke up, "Yes, I hear you."

His father exhaled and turned to leave to his study. His mother coursed her graying hair back and began to apologize to Pete, but he ignored her and went straight upstairs to his bedroom. The anger in him was undying fiery in his veins.

Pete balled his fists, fighting the urge to punch a hole in the wall. Instead, he tossed his jacket off and went to the bathroom, grabbing scissors. Under the sink was the clippers his grandfather, on his mother's side, had given him. They were passed down and Pete thought it was gross and dumb to pass down old clippers, but at that moment he was thankful.

He took the scissors in one had and began to chop the thick dreadlocks off his head. One by one they pile in the sink until a ratty mess was left of his head. He turned on the clippers, hearing the buzz of what could have been mistaken for a swarm of bees and shaved the thick ends, leaving just a thin layer of dark and course hair. When he was done, he barely recognized himself. He hated the sight, he didn't like how exposed and vulnerable he looked.

"I look like shit," he grumbled to himself.

He began to clean up his hair, sweeping up the hairs on the tile and dumping them into the trash. He almost teared up when he took another look at himself. Pete got into the shower, washing any hair from his head and then got out, avoiding the mirrors. He dressed, putting on anything without a thought and then climbed into bed. He couldn't help but to feel uncomfortable in his own bed, he tossed and turned until sleep finally pulled him down.


Nancy could hear her aunt and uncle talking softly to Alma about a nursing home. The words alone grabbed her attention and caused dread to fill her gut. She listened as they spoke quietly, making sure she couldn't hear.

"Mom, you're getting older," Darla pointedly said, "so is Cy and she needs to--"

"Nancy is just fine," Alma said shortly, "I love having her here. She helps me."

"Mom, Nancy won't always be here to help you. She has friends now and a boyfriend, so--"

"Pete is just her friend," Alma said with a smile.

"Mom," Darla hissed, "this is serious. I want you to be well taken care of and we both know Nancy can't always be here to help you. She'll be going off to college in 2 years! What'll happen then?"

"I'll go into a home," Alma grumbled sadly. "I'll miss my sweet Cy-Cy, but I want her to go to college and not worry about me."

"You're 73 years old," Darla sighed, "me and Norm think it's best if Nancy moves to St. Louis with us."

"No way," Alma said, "Nancy was born and raised here in Wilmette, her parents--your big brother, are buried here. She will not leave this town."

Darla and Norman remained silent, looking at Alma with frustrated glances. Nancy bit at her lip, wondering what they would say next. Norman sighed, "We're just looking out for Cy."

"Cy is fine here. You can ask her if she wants to live with you and if she does, I'll be fine with it."

"No you won't, mom. Who'll take care of you?" Darla shook her head.

Alma tilted her head, "Like I said, I'll go into a home."

"Oh, mom--"

Alma cut her off, "I don't want to talk about this, you're upsetting me."

She got up, leaving the living room; she went around the corner hall and caught Nancy at the edge of the stairs. Nancy jumped slightly, caught like a deer in bright headlights. Alma smiled, continuing over, "You should be in bed."

"Yeah--yeah, I am--I'm sorry. I was just--I heard--"

Alma stopped her, placing a palm up, "Lets go upstairs, Cy-Cy."

Nancy stood and did as she was told, leading the way upstairs to their bedrooms. She stopped at the landing, turning to her grandmother, "Gram, I won't leave you."

Alma giggled, "I know that, baby."

Nancy felt a wave of relieve wash over her when Alma kissed her forehead. The two said a soft goodnight and headed to their rooms. Nancy did her nightly ritual of washing her face and braiding her hair back. She climbed into bed, sighing softly, falling to sleep easily. Not a single pound of anxiety weighed her down.


The following morning, Pete's family was shocked to see his shaven head. His mother placed her hands over her mouth, Hilary and Andrew's jaws dropped and his father wore a smug smile on his face. Pete pretended that nothing was and went to grab a pop-tart from the cupboard.

"What the hell happened to your head?" Hilary exclaimed.

"Hilary!" His parents both scolded.

"What happened?" Andrew asked more genuinely.

Pete shrugged, refusing to speak. He had a smart aleck remark aimed towards his father, but held it in. He put his pastries into the toaster and waited for them to warm; once they popped up he carried them in a napkin and left the house.

Pete put the hood of his sweatshirt on his head, feeling uncomfortable. His anger towards his father only rose. He arrived at Nancy's, honked, and prayed to himself that he wouldn't snap at her.

Nancy didn't speak to anyone as she left; everyone was still asleep. She exited her home and hurried to Pete's car, slipping in without a word. She instantly felt the tension in the air; "You alright, Pete?" She asked innocently.

"No," he mumbled.

Nancy looked at him as he drove, "You can tell me if you want. Or not, it's okay...I'm just--I can tell you aren't feeling too happy this morning."

Pete pulled his hood off. Nancy gasped, "Whoa."

"Yeah, whoa," he spat, "my dad kept riding my ass about my hair so I just chopped the shit off last night."

"I'm sorry," she said sincerely. "But, can I be honest?" Pete looked over at her, nodding, "You look hot."

That put a grin on his face, "Thanks, Cy."

"Nah, I'm being honest with you, Pete. You look drop dead sexy, all the girls are gonna be all over you."

Pete blushed and spoke without thinking, "The only girl I want all over me is you."

He swore he thought it, not said it put loud.

Nancy looked at him with wide eyes, "What?"

The color drained from Pete's face, "W-what? You heard that?"

Nancy giggled, "Yep."

He groaned, "Oh my God, I'm sorry I'm such a creep."

She kept giggling, "It's cool! I never heard a guy be so forward before."

Pete's entire face was burning red, "I'm really sorry."

"Don't be," Nancy patted his shoulder. "It's okay."

Pete looked at her, "I never meant to say it out loud."

"Well, no duh," she smiled, "is it how you really feel?"

Pete sighed, "Yeah...I um, I really like you Cy."

"That's good because, you know, I really like you too, Pete."

Pete pulled up in front of Andy's house, parking before looking at Nancy fully. He swallowed before asking, "Can I kiss you?"

Nancy smiled, nodding slowly, "Yes."

Pete leaned in, tilting his head to the left and pressed his lips against hers.