{{"So, Kaida. What's going on with you and Little Joe?"}}
She stopped flipping the pages of her notebook and just stared at the page. I scooted a bit closer and lowered my voice. "Come on, really Kaida. Is he your boyfriend or, I mean, what do I call him? Are you two together?" And I waited impatiently for her answer.
A full agonizing minute ticked by, and she shrugged her shoulders. "I'll tell you as soon as I figure it out."
"I don't understand, you don't know if you're dating or not?" I opened my backpack and rummaged through it until I found her reindeer hat. I flopped it on top of her bag. She stared at it for a minute, then flicked one of the antlers. "I don't know. No, I suppose not. He's never asked me out, but at the same time, I don't feel like I'm single." She yanked the hat off her bag and crammed it on her head. "I just don't understand boys, you know?" She tossed the notepad on the table and crossed her arms.
"Well, yeah, I do. I don't get a lot of how they think or why they do half the things they do. But I'm pretty sure they feel the same way about the stuff we do." I smiled, hoping to make her laugh, or maybe just smile a little, but she didn't. "Want to tell me about it?" I patted her leg and she looked up, a bit sad, and at the same time, angry.
"Joe is crazy. Like he has a screw loose upstairs." She snorted and propped her feet on the table.
"Uh, crazy...... sure." I shoved her feet of the table before the librarian could see. I didn't want to get detention on the last day of school. Well, maybe not the real last day for everyone, but the seniors didn't really need to come back after today, unless they wanted to use the library for filling out college applications.
She glared at me, but not because I'd knocked her feet down, she was just upset. "He likes me, but he doesn't like me.... too much? Enough? I don't know how to explain."
She sat forward and folded her arms on the table top, resting her cheek on one arm. "He kissed me on the cheek when he walked me home from the dance, and he seemed really happy. I was happy. And then when we walked to Maggie's yesterday, he kissed me on the cheek on her porch before we went in." She sat up, her cheeks a bit pink.
"And this morning when we got to Maggie's to pick you two up, before we got out of the car, he looked like he was about to kiss me. REALLY kiss me. Then he just, I don't know, changed his mind I guess. Then he kissed me on the cheek again."
"Every time he looks at me it feels like my insides are all twisted upside-down. And he looks at me like, like I can't even explain. Like I'm his and then not his. Then he looks terrified, like he's going to be skinned alive or something. I love it when he looks at me that way, until he freaks out. Then its just really annoying." She turned her head and buried her face in her arms, and I heard a muffled mumbling sound.
"What?" I asked softly.
She turned and ran her fingers through her hair, propping her head in her hands. "How can I like a guy and want to maim him at the same time?" She shook her head and smiled sadly at me, "I mean, I'd never hurt him, but I really want to hurt him. Why can't boys come with instruction manuals, like a blender, or a toaster?"
I smiled and patted her leg again. "If it were that easy, we'd just unplug them when they didn't work right. And that would be boring." I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, "I'm not sure what's going on with Joe, but..... I was kind of hoping you guys were already dating and had just forgotten to tell me."
She sighed and smiled, though it wasn't a real smile. "I wish. It would make being around him a lot easier. He always looks like he wants to reach out and touch me, and he doesn't. If he was mine, he wouldn't have to second guess trying to hold my hand or kiss me." She shifted in her seat and started going through her pack. She pulled out a pile of papers and started filing them out.
After a moment of watching her, I started filing out my own papers. Different applications to different colleges and scholarships. Homer said I didn't need a scholarship, that he'd saved enough money for me to go wherever, but I didn't want to take his retirement fund. He was much too happy spoiling me when his money could be better spent somewhere else.
Kaida's voice interrupted my thoughts. "Do you think he's afraid that Konai will want to hurt him?"
I stopped writing and looked up. "Yes, I suppose so. It's obvious that Konai is protective of you, and even though they're just hollow threats, maybe Joe's intimidated my him. He is your big brother after all."
In fact, back in the car, Little Joe had seemed terrified. And Konai had warned him to stay to his own side of the car, meaning 'don't go near Kaida'. But Joe was his friend, and everyone knew that he was a really nice guy. If anything, Konai should actually want Joe to be Kaida's boyfriend. But as she'd just stated, sometimes boys made no sense at all.
"Maybe it's not Little Joe I should be trying to figure out, maybe it's my brother. If I can make sense of him, maybe this will all work itself out." She started scribbling faster, and actually smiled.
I smiled too, "Maybe."
The bell rang an hour later and Kaida started shoving books and papers back into her bag. "I'm going to go find Konai, he's probably still in metals class," She nearly tripped over her chair as she ran around the table, "I'll meet you at lunch okay?"
I laughed and handed her a book she'd forgotten, and she tucked it away in her bag, "Well, Konai wanted me to save him a seat, is it okay with you if he sits with us?" "Yeah sure, like I've never had to sit through a meal with him before." She grinned and ran out the library door. I finished my last page and headed off towards the metals shop. I had nothing to do until lunch time, so I figured I could watch Konai work on his project until then.
I walked out of the library and someone shouted my name. Surprised, I turned and saw Ben and another of Kaida's team members walking down the hallway towards me. "Hey Andrea, how's it going?" Ben smiled, his blue eyes sparkling as though he'd just been laughing. The second boy was smiling too. Ben's hair was short and blond, but this boys hair was such a dark brown that it looked black, and it was longer, and a bit curly. His eyes were also blue, but a much deeper shade. What was his name again?
As if sensing my thoughts, Ben looked at the boy, but pointed at me, "Gil, this is Andrea, the girl I was telling you about." The dark haired boy smiled wider, reaching out his hand, and I shook it. "Hi, I'm Gilbert. So you're the girl that beat up Konai huh?"
Oh good grief...
"I didn't beat him up! Oh my gosh Ben, are you the one going around saying that?" Ben just laughed, "Well, you kind of did, right?" "No, I beat him, I didn't beat him up." But the two boys were laughing now and I laughed too. "Just, don't say that to anyone else, I've had a hectic enough day as it is." Ben nodded his head but Gil was staring past me. I turned to see Harriet walking down the hall.
"Hey Gil, there's your girlfriend."
I whipped around and looked at Ben. "What did you say?" But Gil was already punching Ben in the arm, "Shut up Benjamin." He gritted through his teeth. Ben smiled and shook his head at Gil, "Sooner or later you're gonna have to say something to her, and since there's only about four hours left in the day, sooner would be the better option." I looked at Gil and his face was bright red.
Ben nudged me in the arm with his elbow and whispered, "He's had a crush on her all year. Actually, he's had a crush on her through most of high school..."
"Shut up Ben."
"But he's too shy to talk to her."
"Shut. Up. Ben."
"But being shy doesn't really get you anywhere, does it Gil?" He shoved Gil playfully on the shoulder and Gil backed up and looked down, then turned to stare at Harriet. "Look at her, she's like... well, look at her." His face was still red and the color was slowly creeping down his neck.
Harriet was walking down the hall, books clutched to her chest, she seemed to be mumbling to herself. Her eyes were focused on the floor, her light blond hair falling forward and framing her face. In a few minutes she would walk right past us.
Kaida appeared right beside me and all three of us jumped. "Hey Andrea, want to go to the metal shop with me?" She looked at us and laughed, then bumped her shoulder against mine, "I couldn't find Konai before, so I stopped by the office to drop off some papers. He might be back now, want to go?" "Uh, yeah sure." I turned to say bye to Ben and Gil, but a chorus of laughter from the other hall had me turning back towards Harriet.
A group of the tribal boys walked out of the hall connecting this one to the gymnasium. Little Joe was in the lead, and all of them seemed to be laughing about something.
My mouth dropped open in shock as Harriet turned, smiling widely, and walked right up to Little Joe. "Hey Joe, can I talk to you for a minute?" He smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah sure. See you guys later," He called over his shoulder, and the other boys waved and walked away in the opposite direction.
Harriet shifted from one foot to the other. "I'm, uh, going to The Blacksmith for lunch, and I was wondering if you'd like to go?" The Blacksmith was a barbeque style diner, and was decorated in all sorts of antique tribal weapons. The decorations always seemed a bit barbaric, but the food was delicious. Joe smiled, but shook his head, "Thanks for the offer, but I already have plans for lunch."
Her cheeks paled a bit, but she kept smiling. "That's okay, we could always get together some other time. How about lunch tomorrow, if you're not busy?"
My arm started to hurt and I looked down, realizing Kaida was holding onto me. She was squeezing so tightly it hurt. It was obvious she'd never thought about anyone else liking Little Joe either. I patted her hand and she let go, but slowly. She tucked her books up under her chin and stared at the them, they were standing only a few yards away.
Joe was fidgeting with his bag, then he looked up, his eyes widened in surprise. He must have realized that Harriet was trying to ask him out, in a 'more than friend' kind of way. "Oh..." He stepped forward and touched her arm lightly, "Thank you Harriet, for asking, but...... I'm kind of seeing someone." Her face fell but she tried to smile again. "Oh, of course. I'm sorry, I didn't know."
A soft thud had me looking back at Kaida, she'd dropped her books on the ground. Before I could pick them up, Ben bumped into me and was shoving Gil down the hall. About half way to Harriet and Joe, Ben shoved hard and Gil slammed into Joe. "Oh crap, I'm so sorry." Gil backed up immediately, but Joe just laughed, a sort of nervous strangled sound. "No problem man, it happens." That was Joe, ever the peace maker.
Ben walked back towards us brushing his hands together in a job well done. He shrugged and looked at me, keeping his voice low, "What? If he fails, at least he tried, right?" And he walked away whistling.
Boys WERE crazy, I thought to myself. But Harriet was blushing fiercely now, and Gil cleared his throat and spoke quickly, "I was thinking of hitting The Blacksmith for lunch, if you don't mind I could.... maybe go with you?"
She looked between Gil and Joe, then back to Gil. Joe smiled softly and patted Gil on the back, "I've got to head off to metals, see you later?" Gil nodded, looking at Harriet, who seemed to be in some state of shock.
"Harriet, I'm really sorry about lunch." She blinked and finally looked at Joe. "Uh, that's okay Joe, just thought I'd ask." She smiled slowly and turned back to Gil, "You... you'd go have lunch with me?" Gil swallowed hard and nodded. "Yeah, sure, if that's still okay with you."
"Yes, it's okay."
Gil smiled, showing off a set of dimples, and Harriet blushed again. "I just have to go run some things by the office, then I'm pretty much free the rest of the day." He started walking towards the office and she turned and walked with him. "Yeah, I finished everything last week too, I figure today's going to be pretty boring." She tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled at him and he nearly stumbled.
"How cute are they?" Little Joe asked, glancing backwards as he walked towards me. He paused just in front of Kaida, and nearly tripped on her books. He bent and picked them up, then handed the books to her slowly. "Hi." His voice was soft, and he just stared at her.
"Hi." She said, just as softly. He kept staring, but only for a moment, then reached up, as though he was going to touch her, but hesitated. Then he smiled and flicked one of her antlers gently. "Good thing you got your hat back, this one is my favorite." He stepped past her, but was still close enough to brush against her arm, "I'm headed to the shop, you guys going this way?" His voice was unintentionally low, and I knew he was asking Kaida, not me.
"Actually yes, I was heading that way to talk to Konai. But I don't need to right now, if you guys are going to be busy." Kaida tucked a stray hair back under her hat, and adjusted her antlers. At the mention of Konai, Joe took a small step back, his cheeks paling a bit. "Well, either way, I'm sure he wouldn't mind the company." He adjusted the bag on his back.
"I wouldn't mind the company." He added as he turned and walked away.
She sighed and flopped her arms at me and then pointed at Little Joe's retreating figure. "Yeah, I get it. Totally annoying." I threw my pack over my shoulder and looped my arm through hers, "Come on, we're going to metals." She only hesitated a moment, then let me pull her down the hall towards Mr. Meaner's shop.
Yes, Joe had definitely wanted to touch her, maybe even kiss her. But he hadn't. And then he'd gotten all weird. I could understand how that might upset Kaida, especially if he acted like that on a regular basis.
"He said he was seeing someone, but I know he doesn't have a girlfriend, what does that mean? Or was he just saying that to get out of having lunch with Harriet?" She didn't seem to be addressing me, just talking out loud to herself.
I shrugged my shoulders, not sure what to say. I didn't think he would lie, or say that just to get out of having lunch with her. He was too nice, and probably would have went to lunch with her anyways.
We walked down the hall, then out the huge double doors leading towards Mr. Meaner's shop. Music was blaring out one of the large open bay doors. Peeking around the corner, I could see Konai's Mustang raised up on a hoist, and a bunch of guys were tinkering underneath the front end. Little Joe was standing near another car, this one missing an engine that was laying on the floor and mostly taken apart. He smiled when he saw us and gestured to a bench against the wall.
She and I sat down, tucking our bags underneath the bench, and we watched as the boys fixed one car, while drooling over the other. After a few minutes Joe walked up and pointed back to the slightly dismantled car, "What do you think?"
Kaida and I stood and walked over to the car. It was obviously an old car, and it really needed a paint job. But other than that, the insides looked perfect. The body had been repaired and the engine, even being in parts, looked fairly new. "It's nice, what kind of car is it?" I touched the handle, then pulled gently and opened the door, almost afraid of breaking something.
"It's not a car, it's a Barracuda." He grinned and leaned against the door, then glanced towards Kaida, his voice low. "Do YOU like it?" He smiled expectantly at her. She ran her fingers down the body line, then looked back. "It's nice. I don't know much about cars, but it's really pretty." "Pretty?" He snorted and shook his head. "This isn't pretty, it's sexy, it's a classic."
She and I both laughed, and I settled down gently into the drivers seat, "Classic. What is it with you boys and old cars?"
Miki walked up behind Joe and flexed his arms, "It's all about the muscle." And he wiggled his arms up, then down, looking like a wrestler. I laughed again and Joe reached out and pinched his friends arm, "Yeah, one of these days you'll have muscle too Miki."
"Hey!" Miki frowned and rubbed his arm. I hopped out of the 'Cuda and closed the door. "It really is nice." I patted the door.
Miki smiled and stroked the cars hood, "Yeah, and it'll look just as nice as Konai's car when it's done."
I put my hands on my hips and shook my head, "It's not a car, it's a Mustang."
"That's my girl." Warm arms wrapped around me from behind and Konai hugged me tightly and kissed my cheek. Little Joe and Miki looked away quickly, and I tried to tug free as the other boys back by the Mustang started to whistle. Kaida just smiled at how embarrassed I obviously was.
He turned me in his arms and gave me a surprised look, "Getting bored already? There's still half the day left." He winked at me.
"I know, I just wanted to see what your project was." I smiled and took a step back as the other boys continued to whistle. "Alright guys, enough." He shot a dark look over his shoulder, and they turned back to the car. "I'm actually helping Joe rebuild his engine. It's done now, we just have to put everything back in." He pointed to the parts laying on the floor next to Joe's car. "If you give us a little while, we'll have it put back together, then we could go have lunch?"
I looked back at Kaida, who nodded in agreement. "Sure, but don't rush on our part, I don't think either of us have anything to do for the rest of the day. And I'd really hate to see Joe's car fall apart because you guys forgot a nut or bolt or something."
Konai looked injured, "I'd never do that." Joe smirked, "Yeah sure, just like you didn't forget that wing nut on that lawnmower that..." "Okay, enough stories." He grabbed Joe and pushed him towards the front of the car. "Lets get to work, as soon as we're done we can eat." His cheeks were pink, but I didn't dare ask about the lawnmower incident.
I lost track of time watching them work on the cars. Mr. Meaner only came in once during the first hour, to check to make sure everyone was still working. He glanced adoringly at Konai's car as it was lowered off the hoist, then he stepped out again. "Does everyone love Konai's car?" Kaida whispered to the side.
"Yeah, pretty much." Gil walked up to us, wiping down a greasy wrench. He looked happy, his eyes bright and his cheeks a bit flushed. He nodded to me and turned to put the cleaned tool away. He walked farther down the wall, grabbing another used tool off the countertop. I stood and walked over, clearing my throat, and spoke softly, "So, how'd your lunch go?"
"Yes Gil, how did your lunch go?" Little Joe patted him on the back and grabbed an air pressure gauge off the wall. He shrugged his shoulders, "Not bad. Harriet was really nice. She likes barbeque, trucks, and picnics. She loves dogs, is afraid of cats, and has a goldfish named The Duke." He hung up one tool and grabbed another, scrubbing the end. "Is that all you learned?" Little Joe studied him for a minute.
"No. I learned more than that." Gil's smiled so much that his dimples started to show again. "I... um, I learned she's going to Sheldon Jackson in the fall."
Joe smiled even wider, "Isn't that the college you plan to go to?" He bumped Gil's arm with his own as he reached for another tool. "Yup." Gil grabbed an auto creeper and laid it out, then slid under Konai's car. Joe walked away smiling and went back to his car. I watched as he checked the tires, then he leaned over and pointed something out to Konai, who was already leaning under the hood of the car, working on the engine.
Gil rolled out and looked around, then smiled at me. I leaned down and sat on the floor by his creeper, "So, anything else interesting about Harriet?" He rolled out, grabbed a tool off of the cloth next to me, then rolled back. "Yeah sure, lots of stuff, she's actually pretty interesting. Even more so that I thought." His sounded a bit awed. It was adorable.
He slid out slowly, then looked at me, trying hard not to smile. "Her.... her lipgloss tastes like watermelons." He whispered, then slid quickly back under the car.
I giggled, I couldn't help myself. "So why didn't you say more to Joe about it?" I tapped on the edge of the creeper. I knew I shouldn't pry, but I was curious. He slid out and wiped the tool on his jeans, then sat it down. He shrugged and looked at me, smiling softly, "Good boyfriends don't kiss and tell." He smiled again, then slid back under the car.