Stripes In The Devil
Chaptah Eighteen: "If You Lie"
I flicked through the phone book on my phone and mobbed off my dripping forehead with a little hand towel. With the last of my strength I tossed half my body fluid into the hamper across the room and collapsed on the couch. Three quarters of the way through the list of names I paused, looking at Spencer’s. Next to his number a little picture of him flashing a cheesy grin brightened the little screen. I still hadn’t talked to him since Saturday since… well you know. It was weighing a lot on my mind.
I dismissed the idea of having him over to talk. I was soaked in my own little pool of filth and how weird would it have been to have a serious conversation while I was sitting there wearing a sports bra and soffe shorts? Let me tell you going for a ‘little jog’ in Vegas is no joke (I was way too hot to put any more clothes on). I was used to the cracked sidewalks and cool air of my corner of Chicago.
I kept clicking past his name and back to the beginning of the alphabet again till the blue bar hovered over Aaron’s name. He was supposed to be coming home that day – it was July 26th. Right as I was about to push the send button my phone flashed colorfully and Spencer’s picture popped up again this time in the form of him calling me.
“Hello?” I answered, my voice sounded a little bit more distressed and out of breath than I intended. “Hey kid… what’s wrong?” Spencer said. “Oh nothing just got back from jog and I was thinking. And buddy ps: I’m older than you” I returned. Spencer laughed and said “Hmmm thinking’s never good… how do you know you’re older than me anyway?” I reasoned that although I was only seventeen years old I would be eighteen in a couple of weeks and besides he still had another year of high school. “Oh bull” he said “you’re like two weeks older than me. Anyways you sound a little stressed, what’s on your mind?”
This is where I start to crumble…always. I sniffed back the heaviness in my voice trying to keep cotton candy on the mind. “Actually” I replied trying to sound off-handed "I was hoping you that maybe you could come over and we could talk… about what’s on my mind.” “Okay” he replied a little too quickly "I mean when do you want me to come over there?” I glanced down at my watch to see that it was about one o’clock. “Oh come over as soon as you can cause I’ve gotta get Aaron around six thirty.”
Spencer told me he’d be over ‘in a few’ so I grabbed I bite to eat. That turned out to be saltines and peanut-butter because my last grocery store run had been weeks ago. I laid in wait for him on the linoleum that shadowed the floor near the door. When he got there I was up and opening the locks by his second knock. He slid fluidly in the door before I clicked all three locks shut tight. “Jesus, anxious to keep me here?” Spencer joked.
“You just never know with me now do you?” I replied mysteriously. I plopped down on the couch and Spencer followed my lead. “So” I said. “So” he replied. “So” I sighed again. He placed his hand lightly on my knee and gave a look. I watched guilt trace its way across his face. “When were you planning on telling me about her?” I asked. Her. She. The other one… I guess I was the other on. This had been on my mind since Saturday more than the events of the day itself.
Spencer in took a harsh gasp and broke our gaze for the apparently more appealing floor. She was the girl who he giggled, sighed, and cooed to over the phone when the guys and I were talking. She was the girl who he walked out to her car as I pulled in his driveway to watch band practice. She was the one who waited out in the car with him kissing his neck when Ryan dropped something off for me at work. She. Her.
His eyes slowly made their way back up to mine. “Her name is Hayley” he stated “I met her last year and we’ve been dating for about six months now.” A silent tear rolled down my cheek. “Go” I whispered. Spencer flinched even though there was no harshness in the command. “But can’t we just-” he started but I cut him off. “Please just go” my voice came out strong and clear this time but still calm. “Okay” he said leaving me with my empty apartment. He sounded like he could cry too.
I dismissed the idea of having him over to talk. I was soaked in my own little pool of filth and how weird would it have been to have a serious conversation while I was sitting there wearing a sports bra and soffe shorts? Let me tell you going for a ‘little jog’ in Vegas is no joke (I was way too hot to put any more clothes on). I was used to the cracked sidewalks and cool air of my corner of Chicago.
I kept clicking past his name and back to the beginning of the alphabet again till the blue bar hovered over Aaron’s name. He was supposed to be coming home that day – it was July 26th. Right as I was about to push the send button my phone flashed colorfully and Spencer’s picture popped up again this time in the form of him calling me.
“Hello?” I answered, my voice sounded a little bit more distressed and out of breath than I intended. “Hey kid… what’s wrong?” Spencer said. “Oh nothing just got back from jog and I was thinking. And buddy ps: I’m older than you” I returned. Spencer laughed and said “Hmmm thinking’s never good… how do you know you’re older than me anyway?” I reasoned that although I was only seventeen years old I would be eighteen in a couple of weeks and besides he still had another year of high school. “Oh bull” he said “you’re like two weeks older than me. Anyways you sound a little stressed, what’s on your mind?”
This is where I start to crumble…always. I sniffed back the heaviness in my voice trying to keep cotton candy on the mind. “Actually” I replied trying to sound off-handed "I was hoping you that maybe you could come over and we could talk… about what’s on my mind.” “Okay” he replied a little too quickly "I mean when do you want me to come over there?” I glanced down at my watch to see that it was about one o’clock. “Oh come over as soon as you can cause I’ve gotta get Aaron around six thirty.”
Spencer told me he’d be over ‘in a few’ so I grabbed I bite to eat. That turned out to be saltines and peanut-butter because my last grocery store run had been weeks ago. I laid in wait for him on the linoleum that shadowed the floor near the door. When he got there I was up and opening the locks by his second knock. He slid fluidly in the door before I clicked all three locks shut tight. “Jesus, anxious to keep me here?” Spencer joked.
“You just never know with me now do you?” I replied mysteriously. I plopped down on the couch and Spencer followed my lead. “So” I said. “So” he replied. “So” I sighed again. He placed his hand lightly on my knee and gave a look. I watched guilt trace its way across his face. “When were you planning on telling me about her?” I asked. Her. She. The other one… I guess I was the other on. This had been on my mind since Saturday more than the events of the day itself.
Spencer in took a harsh gasp and broke our gaze for the apparently more appealing floor. She was the girl who he giggled, sighed, and cooed to over the phone when the guys and I were talking. She was the girl who he walked out to her car as I pulled in his driveway to watch band practice. She was the one who waited out in the car with him kissing his neck when Ryan dropped something off for me at work. She. Her.
His eyes slowly made their way back up to mine. “Her name is Hayley” he stated “I met her last year and we’ve been dating for about six months now.” A silent tear rolled down my cheek. “Go” I whispered. Spencer flinched even though there was no harshness in the command. “But can’t we just-” he started but I cut him off. “Please just go” my voice came out strong and clear this time but still calm. “Okay” he said leaving me with my empty apartment. He sounded like he could cry too.