Read Online Home From Within by Jennifer McCartney, Lisa Maggiore - Free Book Online Page B

father’s ears, who knows what would happen to Paul.
    “So, do you have a special someone?”
    Jessica hesitated. “Well, there are lots of cute boys at school, but no, they’re not into me.”
    “What?” Aunt Lodi whispered. “Jessica Turner, you’re probably intimidating those boys with your smarts and looks. You know, boys who like girls are usually too shy to say so. They do all sorts of dumb things to get your attention.”
    “Like what?”
    “Oh, they take your mittens and hat, so you have to chase them down. They try to act too tough or too funny and end up looking idiotic. Is any of this ringing a bell?”
    Jessica thought about it. No one had ever taken anything of hers to make an impression. Plus a lot of what Aunt Lodi was referring to sounded like something that happened in elementary school, not high school.
    “No, none of that has happened, but I’ll keep my eyes open for that type of behavior.”
    Aunt Lodi laughed and squeezed Jessica tighter. “Yes, please keep an eye out for that ‘behavior,’” she said, playfully mocking her. “Then you’ll know for sure that a boy likes you.”
    It struck Jessica in a funny way. Since Aunt Lodi was around, she wasn’t having as many lonely thoughts or feelings. And while she did think about Paul a lot, she didn’t crave his company as much. She wondered why, but she shrugged it off as another way that Aunt Lodi and her contagious self worked. The brightness in her could fill a void in anyone’s soul.
     

     
    Springtime brought about a renewed love of the outdoors, so the lunch table sat empty of the seniors since many would walk two blocks to JJ’s Gyros for lunch, or go to someone’s house nearby. Eddie now had a girlfriend and would sometimes go to her house with their friends. He never invited the girls along, so one day Marilee asked him why.
    “Because you’re my little sister.”
    “What does that mean?” Marilee asked.
    “Well, things that seniors do aren’t the same things that freshmen do.”
    Jessica and Marilee looked at each other. “So you’re making out and drinking?”
    “That’s none of your business,” Eddie said and walked away. The girls watched Eddie and his girlfriend lean their heads together as they made their way outside.
    “I wonder what he’s doing over there. You don’t think he’s having sex, do you?”
    “I don’t know. What do you think of his girlfriend?” asked Jessica.
    “She’s nice, you know, one of those cheerleader girls. Always like, ‘
hi
’ and ‘
rahrah.
’”
    Jessica smirked, but then wanted to cry. “Speaking of cheerleaders, did you notice who Paul is with?”
    “No, who?”
    “Donna Double D. Do you think she’s pretty?”
    “Like
no.
Do you see how much makeup she paints on her face? Like a flippin’ clown.”
    Jessica smiled but felt sad around the edges. “I think they’re having sex. Donna’s in my computer class. I overheard her say that she and her boyfriend have sex all the time and that they went to the beach one night and did it like four times in a row.”
    “Is that even possible?” Marilee asked.
    “I don’t know.”
    “Jess, you know I think you and Paul would be great together, but I think you pining away for him isn’t good for you. You don’t have that easy feeling about you anymore.”
    Jessica felt tears come to the surface. “But I like him so much. Do you know how hard it is to like someone and they really like you back but you can’t be together because your father might kill him? And not just the
kidding
kill him but the
for real
kill him.”
    Marilee put her hand on top of Jessica’s. “I’m sorry. I wish you could live with me, but I can’t date until my sophomore year.”
    “Well at least that’s in a couple months. I can’t date until I’m twenty-one, which is in forever.”
    “Having a lover’s spat?” came a voice from the end of the table. It surprised Jessica to see Paul there with one of his friends. Marilee’s hand was