In Too Deep

Jackie was lying on the guest room bed, staring at the ceiling, when she heard Mrs. Leopold’s angry voice from downstairs.

“You’re dripping everywhere, Maxwell! Move! What on earth possessed you to jump in the pool with that girl?”

“We fell in, Mom…”

“And in the pouring rain, at that!”

“It was sprinkling…”

“And then you kept Carter from cleaning for practically an hour because you just had to talk to him! Did you tell him everything that’s happened to you this year or something?”

“We haven’t seen each other in awhile, and he’s my friend…”

“I don’t want to hear it, Maxwell! Your father’s protégé will be here in a few hours. Go upstairs, dry off, and at least try to look presentable!”

“I’m going, I’m going…”

Jackie sat up with a sigh and walked to her suitcase, looking for something to wear for dinner. Her yellow dress was hung up over the guest bathroom shower rod, drying off, and she was currently clad in her ducky pajamas, since she didn’t expect to see anyone until she changed….

Knock, knock.

“Oh, great,” Jackie muttered to herself. She opened the bedroom door and came face to face with Max, who was still very wet. They looked at each other in silence for a moment.

“You really like those pajamas, don’t you?” Max said finally, smirking.

“Yes,” Jackie said shortly, moving her gaze to the floor. After initiating the almost-kiss in the pool, she was finding it hard to look at Max without launching herself at him. She honestly considered it for a moment, but something in the back of her head told her to keep her gaze on the floor and her feet firmly in place.

“So…” Max trailed off, trying to catch her eye. When she refused to look at him, Max cupped her chin and brought her focus to his face.

“What do you want?” she asked, almost harshly. Anything to make him leave so she didn’t have to resist pouncing on him.

Max dropped his hand and frowned. “I was just… what’s wrong with you?”

“What’s wrong with you?” she retorted, unable to come up with anything better. Her eyes dropped to the floor again. Please leave, Max, she thought desperately. I hate this feeling. Please leave.

“What the hell, Jackie?” Max said quietly, putting both hands on the doorframe and leaning forward a little. Jackie didn’t take a step back. She didn’t want to appear affected by him.

“What?” she snapped, crossing her arms over her chest.

Max moved his face even more forward, and she could feel his breath on her forehead. “I don’t understand you at all,” he said in a low voice, before swiftly turning on his heel and trudging to his bedroom.

Jackie slammed her door shut and collapsed on her bed with a groan. “Fuck you, Max Leopold,” she muttered angrily into her pillow. “Fuck you for making me like you so much.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Jackie and Max sat beside each other at the large and fancily decorated dining room table, but neither one spoke to or looked at the other. On a regular night, they’d quietly chat between themselves, since no one except Melody ever paid them much attention. Tonight, however, they sat and ate in silence.

Mr. Leopold had called to say that he and his protégé had to run to the office and would be late to dinner, so everyone was to go ahead and start eating. Jackie was absolutely starving, but she just couldn’t eat the lasagna in front of her. It was made of layers, which made her think of winter coats, which made her think of the freezing weather in Paris, which made her think of Bartolin Lycée, which made her think of Max’s surprise visit, which made her think of him kissing her, which made her want to start making out with him right then and there at the dinner table.

That, however, was not an option.

The sound of the front door opening was heard from the dining room, and seconds later, Mr. Leopold appeared in the room, smiling brightly.

“Everyone, our guest has arrived,” Mr. Leopold announced. “This is my protégé, Charlie Brighton.”

Both Max and Jackie’s heads snapped up from their plates. A young man stood before them, with tan skin, black hair, and gray eyes that looked almost hollow. He was incredibly tall, almost as much as Mr. Leopold.

“Charlie, this is my wife and these are my sons Steven, Jason, and David. This is Steven’s wife Jessica and their daughters Emma and Annie. This is Jason’s wife Melody and David’s new wife Nikki. Oh, that’s my other son Max, and his friend from James Academy… uh… Jackie… something.”

“Jackie Bodello,” Melody corrected him, smiling.

Charlie’s empty gray eyes stared into Jackie’s brown ones. She was frozen—stuck staring at the new guest. An image flashed across her mind.

A teenage girl with curly brown hair, laughing loudly. A teenage boy with black hair, his arm draped over the girl’s shoulder. “Jackie, this is my boyfriend Charlie. This is my baby sister, Jackie.” The teens looked at each other, grinning, so in love…

Max was also staring in shock. He remembered the words Jackie had said to him just last semester before she had left James Academy…

”She had this boyfriend—Charlie. I think they really liked each other….. He got himself out of the passenger seat, but she couldn’t get out…. I could hear Charlie’s hysterical crying in the background…. He didn’t come back to JA for his senior year. No one heard from him after that summer….”

The fork in Jackie’s hand slipped from her grasp and made a loud clanging sound against her plate. The noise brought Jackie back to her senses and she immediately stood up from her seat. “Bathroom,” she explained hurriedly, before walking swiftly out the dining room door. Charlie Brighton watched her as she went.

“Come, take a seat, Mr. Brighton!” Mrs. Leopold exclaimed excitedly, pulling out a chair for him. Charlie smiled politely and did as he was told. As he sat, Max caught his eyes and saw nothing but sadness.

Max cleared his throat. “Maybe Mr. Brighton would like to wash up,” he suggested. “I can show him to the bathroom.”

Charlie immediately stood up from his seat and nodded, his eyes boring into Max’s, and they both left the dining room.

“Come back soon!” Mrs. Leopold called, obviously upset that Charlie was leaving the table.

As soon as they were out of the room, Max grabbed Charlie’s shirtsleeve and pulled him down the hallway. He wasn’t going to let Jackie hide from this. She had done too much hiding already.

They reached the bathroom, and Max released Charlie, giving him a small nod. He turned to the door and knocked twice. “Jackie, open up,” he said sternly.

“Go away, Max,” she mumbled through the door.

“Stop being ridiculous. Open the door.”

“I can’t, Max!” Jackie exclaimed, sounding slightly hysterical. “That was Charlie Brighton. That was the boy who was with Michaela when she died.”

“I know,” Max said, glancing at Charlie, who was looking down. “But you can’t just run away like you always do…”

“Yes, I fucking can!” Jackie snapped.

Max gave a frustrated groan and banged on the bathroom door twice. “Damn it, Jackie! Stop being a bitch and open the door!”

The door was pulled open immediately and Jackie stood before him, looking livid. “Stop telling me what to do!” she said. Max didn’t answer, but instead took a step to the side, revealing Charlie. Jackie’s face went blank. The atmosphere became tense. No one spoke.

Finally, Charlie cleared his throat. “It’s been awhile,” he said, giving a small, sad smile. Jackie nodded in response.

“Speak, Jackie,” Max ordered.

She glared at him. “Don’t order me around,” she muttered.

Charlie chuckled. “She hated that too,” he said softly, his eyes staring at the wall.

“What happened to you?” Jackie said suddenly, her hands gripping the sides of the bathroom doorframe.

Charlie seemed to struggle with his answer. “I came here,” he answered. “I couldn’t stay at James Academy.”

Jackie nodded, understanding. “I tried that,” she said.

“How’ve you been? You know, since….” Charlie trailed off.

Jackie stared at the floor, but a small smile crept onto her face. “I was terrible, but someone helped me.”

Max, who stood awkwardly between them, smiled to himself.

Charlie nodded. “It’s been a rough couple of years,” he said, sighing. His eyes, which had been stuck on the floor, finally moved upward. “You look so much like her.”

“She loved you,” Jackie blurted out suddenly, as if she’d wanted to shout it all evening. “I know she did. And I know she wouldn’t want you to feel guilty. It’s not your fault.”

Charlie dropped his head in his hands. “I killed her,” he muttered.

“No. No, you loved her, and she loved you, and it was an accident,” Jackie stated firmly, though Max could hear her voice shaking.

Charlie looked up. “I want you to know that I was in love with Michaela. I won’t ever forget her for as long as I live.”

Jackie nodded. “Good plan,” she responded, her voice small. Charlie moved forward and wrapped his strong arms around her, and she rested against him. He kissed her forehead.

Max shifted uneasily as Charlie hugged Jackie for much longer than a normal hug would last, but one look at Jackie’s face as they separated eased his discomfort. Jackie’s eyes were boring into his own, as if the time she spent against Charlie Brighton’s chest had made her think of Max Leopold.

“I’m happy I got to see you,” Charlie said, “even if it never happens again.”

Jackie nodded in agreement, and Charlie began to make his way back toward the dining room. “Coming?” he asked as Jackie and Max remained firmly rooted by the bathroom door.

“I think we’ll skip out,” Max answered for the both of them.

Once Charlie was completely out of sight, Jackie’s face scrunched up in contemplation before she took a step forward, bringing her right in front of him, a mere inch separating their toes.

“I’m sorry about earlier,” she said, keep her eyes trained down. “I–I… I was…” She trailed off, shifting uneasily from foot to foot. Their faces were too close.

“What?” Max asked.

Jackie bit her lip, debating what to say next. She could continue to be mad at him for no reason, or she could tell him that she was having trouble resisting him. Honestly, neither one sounded good to her.

“I’m PMS-ing,” Jackie said suddenly, inventing an excuse. “You know… mood swings.”

Max stared at her. “Mood swings?” he asked slowly.

“Yeah, it’s part of the whole girl thing,” Jackie said quickly. “But you don’t want to talk about that, do you? Because boys usually think it’s weird.”

Max sighed. “Wow, Jackie,” he said sarcastically. “As if that wasn’t the most blatant excuse I’ve ever heard. Mood swings. Right.”

He turned on his heel and stomped up the entrance hall stairs. Jackie shut her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath.

It was really turning out to be a stressful night.