Read Online Fancy White Trash by Marjetta Geerling - Free Book Online Page B

checking my arm for details, squishing up letters tight on the page. “I know.”
    â€œYou could tell me what’s bothering you.”
    I scribble. He waits. Ignoring him, I finish transferring words from my arm and move to the first leg. It’s hard to see the side of my thigh, so I twist myself around.
    Jackson kicks back in his chair, turning sideways so he can throw his legs over the side. “Or not. I could tell you what’s bothering me.”
    I raise my head and our eyes lock. I don’t want to know, but I do.
    â€œThere was this girl,” he starts. Disgusted, I turn away. He goes on. “This girl, she lived next door and I was crazy about her.”
    I am slightly more interested. I live next door to him, but then I remind myself he could easily be talking about one of my sisters. Or, God forbid, my mom.
    â€œBut my brother was in love with her. I tried to stay away, but I couldn’t. I was always hanging out at her place, doing stupid stuff to make her laugh.”
    True. He used to be at my house as much as Cody. And he did act stupid, bragging about his football season or how much some other girl liked him. He was pretty insufferable, actually.
    â€œSo this girl, she had an older sister. Not as hot as she was, but my age. We ended up at the same party right before Thanks-giving break where we both had a few too many Wild Turkey shots. She was cute, friendly, flirty—a little of this led to a little of that. I thought maybe it could work, but after we saw each other a few more times, she acted weird. All mysterious. Said what happened between us didn’t mean anything because she was in love with someone else. You know who that was?”
    I nod. Kait and the Guitar Player, who else?
    â€œBut then that jerk dumps her and goes for her older sister. Next, he moves on to her mom. It’s pretty outrageous, but the upside is that the girl, the first one that I liked so much—suddenly she’s always at my house. Watching TV with my brother, staying for dinner. Even spending the night. She’s everywhere I go—home, school—and the more I get to know her, the crazier I am about her.”
    I have to admit that I’m liking this story more and more. Smiling, I wait for him to continue.
    â€œAnd then I start to panic because months have gone by. Sometimes I think I don’t have a shot. Sometimes I think what a rotten thing it would be to steal her away from my own brother. But even though I try, I can’t stop thinking about her.
    â€œSo I talk to my brother and I say dude, if you love this girl, go for it. What’re you waiting for? And get this, he says, ‘She’s my best friend. I don’t love her like that.’ I’m like, whoa, maybe I do have a chance. But I better move fast because graduation’s less than a month away and then I’m going to Nicaragua for the summer.”
    As he talks, I’m drawn closer to him. I’m sitting on the floor. My leg brushes his chair.
    Jackson swings forward so his knees are outside of mine and he’s staring down at me. “Do you remember that night? When I talked you into studying for our finals together?”
    I swallow. I remember, too well, his lips against mine, his hand in my hair. Our first kiss. We never did make flash cards.
    â€œA week. That’s what’s bothering me, Abby. A week wasn’t enough for us.”
    I want to agree with him. I want to lunge into his arms and let him hold me until my sister is okay. Kiss me until I forget we’re in the hospital. But that is what a soap-opera heroine would do. She would let the passion of the moment sweep away her judgment, plunge her back into a relationship that can never work. It’s a good thing that I have my Plan. The Rules will save me.
    â€œJackson,” I stall. “Shelby says you’re the father of this baby. Is it possible?”
    His big hand reaches down and cups my chin.