fucking—aw, fuck!” Q. punched the console again. “Fuck fuck fuck!” he yelled, punctuating each fuck with another punch. Plastic cracked. Something went flying. When Q. reached up to the rearview mirror, Jasper could see a line of blood snaking down the back of his hand and smearing the thick gold face of his new watch.
Q. fixed Jasper’s eyes in the mirror.
“You fucking fucked my girlfriend last night.”
Jasper thought about telling Q. he hadn’t meant to, that he didn’t even remember it. Somehow he didn’t think that would help. In the silence, Sila whispered, “We didn’t fuck, okay?”
“Damn, Q.,” Jasper finally said. “I’m sorry, man. Really sorry.”
“Aw, don’t worry about it, Jasp,” Q. spoke as if all he’d lost was a round of bingo. “You were just acting like it was your last night on earth, right? Nobody wants to die a virgin. I guess my girlfriend’s just easier than yours.”
“Q.,” Sila said exasperatedly. “We didn’t —”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Q. cut her off. “Whatever, babe, it’s the thought that counts.” He looked back at Jasper, and when he spoke again there was a strangely melancholy note in his voice, as if he were almost sad his best friend and girlfriend hadn’t actually hooked up. “Sil tells me you passed out before anything could happen. Normally I’d be insulted on her behalf, but considering the circumstances I guess I should say thanks for following in your old man’s drunken footsteps.”
The car was approaching the tollbooth to the Rip Van Winkle Bridge. The Hudson rolled lazily in the moonlight, rent here and there by the wake of a late fisherman heading in for the night.The dark water reflected the white fishhook of the moon so sharply that Jasper felt he was racing high in the sky, the earth receding below him like a pebble dropped into the infinite ocean of space.
“Hey, why don’t you stop at that Stewart’s where Jarhead works? He’ll sell us another six, we can park somewhere, get buzzed, what do you say?” Jasper didn’t mention that Jarhead was probably still drunk on his dad’s property on the other side of the river. If he could get Q. to stop the car, he’d call up Michaela’s dad. Mr. Szarko would come pick them up, no questions asked. He was good about that kind of thing.
Jasper could see his friend’s eyes sharpen in the mirror. “Nah. I don’t feel like getting drunk.” He had to wipe blood off the face of the Patek Philippe to see what time it was. “We’ve only got a few minutes left. I wanna have all my wits about me.”
“Yo, cut it out with the twenty-four hours thing. It’s seriously not funny anymore.”
Suddenly Sila turned to Q. “Jesus fucking Christ. It’s your fucking fault all this happened. I had no idea it wasn’t you until Jasper said Michaela’s name. You told him she would be in that closet, didn’t you? You set the whole thing up. Why in the fuck would you do something like that?”
Again, silence filled the car. Jasper could see that a muscle in Q.’s cheek was twitching.
“Maybe I wanted to save him,” he said in a funny voice. A voice that didn’t sound like Q. at all. “Maybe I didn’t want him to suffer my fate.”
“What the hell are you—”
Sila was cut off by a snuffling, snorting sound, and Jasper realized his friend was fighting back tears. Sila’s eyes widened. She put her hand on Q.’s cheek and he shrugged it away, but the gesture was more petulant than angry. She put it back and this time he let it stay. A few seconds later, she took off her seatbelt and leaned over to hold Q. “Baby,” Jasper could just barely hear her over the engine. “Oh, my stupid, stupid baby.”
A second snort broke from Q.’s mouth, followed by a loud guffaw, and in a voice Jasper almost didn’t recognize Q. said,
“Suck it, bitch.”
“What the—”
“I said suck it .” A half-scream escaped Sila’s mouth before Q. smashed it into his crotch. “Don’t
Q. fixed Jasper’s eyes in the mirror.
“You fucking fucked my girlfriend last night.”
Jasper thought about telling Q. he hadn’t meant to, that he didn’t even remember it. Somehow he didn’t think that would help. In the silence, Sila whispered, “We didn’t fuck, okay?”
“Damn, Q.,” Jasper finally said. “I’m sorry, man. Really sorry.”
“Aw, don’t worry about it, Jasp,” Q. spoke as if all he’d lost was a round of bingo. “You were just acting like it was your last night on earth, right? Nobody wants to die a virgin. I guess my girlfriend’s just easier than yours.”
“Q.,” Sila said exasperatedly. “We didn’t —”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Q. cut her off. “Whatever, babe, it’s the thought that counts.” He looked back at Jasper, and when he spoke again there was a strangely melancholy note in his voice, as if he were almost sad his best friend and girlfriend hadn’t actually hooked up. “Sil tells me you passed out before anything could happen. Normally I’d be insulted on her behalf, but considering the circumstances I guess I should say thanks for following in your old man’s drunken footsteps.”
The car was approaching the tollbooth to the Rip Van Winkle Bridge. The Hudson rolled lazily in the moonlight, rent here and there by the wake of a late fisherman heading in for the night.The dark water reflected the white fishhook of the moon so sharply that Jasper felt he was racing high in the sky, the earth receding below him like a pebble dropped into the infinite ocean of space.
“Hey, why don’t you stop at that Stewart’s where Jarhead works? He’ll sell us another six, we can park somewhere, get buzzed, what do you say?” Jasper didn’t mention that Jarhead was probably still drunk on his dad’s property on the other side of the river. If he could get Q. to stop the car, he’d call up Michaela’s dad. Mr. Szarko would come pick them up, no questions asked. He was good about that kind of thing.
Jasper could see his friend’s eyes sharpen in the mirror. “Nah. I don’t feel like getting drunk.” He had to wipe blood off the face of the Patek Philippe to see what time it was. “We’ve only got a few minutes left. I wanna have all my wits about me.”
“Yo, cut it out with the twenty-four hours thing. It’s seriously not funny anymore.”
Suddenly Sila turned to Q. “Jesus fucking Christ. It’s your fucking fault all this happened. I had no idea it wasn’t you until Jasper said Michaela’s name. You told him she would be in that closet, didn’t you? You set the whole thing up. Why in the fuck would you do something like that?”
Again, silence filled the car. Jasper could see that a muscle in Q.’s cheek was twitching.
“Maybe I wanted to save him,” he said in a funny voice. A voice that didn’t sound like Q. at all. “Maybe I didn’t want him to suffer my fate.”
“What the hell are you—”
Sila was cut off by a snuffling, snorting sound, and Jasper realized his friend was fighting back tears. Sila’s eyes widened. She put her hand on Q.’s cheek and he shrugged it away, but the gesture was more petulant than angry. She put it back and this time he let it stay. A few seconds later, she took off her seatbelt and leaned over to hold Q. “Baby,” Jasper could just barely hear her over the engine. “Oh, my stupid, stupid baby.”
A second snort broke from Q.’s mouth, followed by a loud guffaw, and in a voice Jasper almost didn’t recognize Q. said,
“Suck it, bitch.”
“What the—”
“I said suck it .” A half-scream escaped Sila’s mouth before Q. smashed it into his crotch. “Don’t
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