"Why'd you wanna take me home?" Julie cautiously asked as he pulled out of the driveway. It wasn't a very long drive home, so if they were going to talk, it needed to start now. Jack stayed quiet for a second, obviously thinking about what he should say. She sat anxiously, waiting for him to finally start talking. Talking never seemed to quite be Jack's strong suit.
"I'm sorry for giving you the cold shoulder," he finally said. Julie looked to him, eyebrows raised.
She was obviously waiting for more of an explanation. He didn't sigh out loud like he wanted to.
"Was there a reason for it?" She finally prodded.
"The boys were giving me crap the other night and saying that I like you, so I thought I would just back off a bit," he finally blurted out. Julie stared at him for a second. It was awkwardly quiet for a minute too long. Jack was shocked when he heard her laughing.
"That's it? The boys were teasing you?" Julie laughed. Jack was not nearly as amused, which was evident in the look he gave Julie. His blue eyes blazed with embarrassment. He decided to be vulnerable with her, and this was the thanks he was going to get?
"I'm glad this is funny to you. Really, I am," he scoffed. He immediately regretted telling her.
"Jack, it is funny," she sighed. "Who cares what they think? I love them all dearly, but let's not forget what a childish group of buffoons they are."
Even Jack cracked a grin at that, nodding in agreement. He was still annoyed with her reaction, but it made him chuckle just a little.
"Don't forget that you're a buffoon, too," Julie reminded him. He rolled his eyes at her.
"I'm glad I could give you your comedy fix for the night," he told her, accidentally sounding more bitter than he had intended to.
"Jack, I'm not laughing at you. I'm laughing at what our dumb friends think," she promised, but she stopped laughing anyway. "They used to tease Mac about it, too."
"How'd he get them to shut up?" Jack wondered. There had been a part of him when he first met Julie-after she and Rob made up from their fight, of course-that had wondered why no one seemed to question if their friendship was something more.
"I guess he just ignored them. You know Mac, the boys like to tease him for just about everything," Julie pointed out. She was right. Rob was often the butt of the jokes in the locker room, but he seemed to know how to take the jokes.
"What did you say to the boys when they teased you?" Julie asked, but if she knew Jack at all, he probably reacted a little harshly. Jack didn't take his eyes off the road, following whichever way Julie pointed him back to her house.
"We were all drunk, so it was really stupid. I just told them I didn't like you and then they started to give me shit about how I implied that liking you would be stupid. That offended them," Jack was laughing now, remembering how the boys had been so defensive.
"And rightfully so! What would be so wrong with liking me?" Julie questioned, her voice going up and her brows furrowing, the telltale signs that Jack was successfully getting under her skin.
"Not this again," he shook his head. "There would be nothing wrong with liking you, don't worry."
The air in the car suddenly grew thick with tension. They both stared out the windshield, Jack keeping both hands on the wheel while Julie twiddled her thumbs.
"I just mean that..." Jack struggled to find the words. Julie turned her head towards him, eyebrows raised.
"Yeah?"
"I just mean that I don't, is all," Jack said quietly. Julie couldn't admit to herself that her heart sank a bit at his words.
"No, yeah. I mean, we're just friends," she agreed quickly. She prayed her voice sounded more confident than she felt.
"Yeah, friends," Jack nodded. "Plus, you have David."
"David! Yes, David," Julie said, almost too enthusiastically. The tension in the car hadn't subsided.
"Are you gonna see him again?" Jack asked her, glancing over to her and finally meeting her gaze.
"Yeah, Friday. He wanted to see a movie Wednesday but you guys have a game in Salt Lake City."
"You're going to our game?" Jack questioned. She raised an eyebrow at him as he pulled up in front of her house and turned the car off.
"Should I not?" She asked him carefully, watching him to see his reaction. He just shook his head and sighed.
"That's not what I meant, but clearly I just keep sticking my foot in my mouth," he laughed. "I just didn't know if you were gonna hang around here with David."
"Nah, he's great and all, but I'm not done bugging you guys yet," Julie laughed. Jack smiled when she laughed. It really did come so naturally for them to laugh together. It didn't last long before Julie was suddenly sad.
"Why do we always seem to be butting heads?" Julie asked quietly into the silence of the night. Jack just shrugged. The quiet in the car was deafening.
"I don't know, Jules," he finally sighed. Before anyone could speak again, the porch light suddenly turned on. The two of them jumped, feeling suddenly exposed and uncomfortable.
"I should get inside," Jules spit out quickly, fumbling with her seatbelt. Jack followed her actions, and the two of them raced out of the car. They both walked up to the door, feeling like they were being watched. There was an uncomfortable silence that fell over them when they stopped in front of the door. Jack rubbed the back of his neck, before he eventually spoke.
"I'm sorry, Jules."
Julie sighed, not even totally sure what he was apologizing for. It seemed like all they did anymore was argue and makeup and argue again. She wasn't even sure which one they were doing at the moment.
"I'll see you later."
She went inside quickly, leaving Jack standing alone on the porch. Patti and Herb sat awake in the kitchen, watching her as she came in.
"Hi," she said sheepishly. She wasn't sure why, but she felt like she was in trouble.
"How was your night?" Patti asked her with a forced smile.
"It was okay. We just went to Maureen's," Julie shrugged from the kitchen doorway, itching to get away from them and go upstairs to her room.
"Who brought you home?" Herb asked, looking up at her over the rim of his glasses. She knew Herb must've been the one to turn on the porch light after hearing the car pull up. Whether it was out of some suspicion or just being nice, Julie was too scared to ask.
"Jack," she told him, trying to remain as casual as possible. Patti raised an eyebrow at her.
"I thought the two of you were fighting?" Patti questioned. Julie just shrugged, trying her best to avoid the question.
"Who knows with him? I'm gonna head up to bed," Julie stated, turning around and attempting to escape before they stopped her.
"Hold on a second there, Julie," Herb said, stopping her in her tracks. She cursed under her breath before turning around to face her uncle. She stood waiting for him to speak, her heart racing.
"Your mom called again today," Patti started, and Julie groaned out loud. "Apparently her kids have been begging to see you."
Julie clenched her fist. This was a new level of low. Using her kids to try to get to Julie? She had to have known that it would've made Julie feel bad.
"Okay. And?" Julie scoffed, as if she didn't care in the slightest.
"She wants to bring your little brother and sister here to Minnesota to visit you."
Rizzo, Jimmy, Silky, Mark, Bah, and Robbie sat around the kitchen table playing poker when Jack stormed in, a glare on his face that was usually reserved for opponents on the ice.
"What's got your panties in a twist?" Silky chuckled upon seeing his friend. Jack directed his glare toward Silky. The rest of the boys turned their attention to the cards in their hands.
"Nothing," Jack snapped, storming to his room and closing the door behind them. Rizzo laughed quietly, shaking his head.
"Wonder what that's all about," he said sarcastically.
"Probably about the ride home," Robbie interjected.
"They're ridiculous," Jimmy sighed.
"Who's ridiculous?" Bah questioned. The boys looked at him impatiently.
"Jack and Jules," Mark explained.
"What's wrong with them?" Bah asked.
"They're always fighting anymore, they're awkward around each other," Mark looked at Bah, wondering if he would have to spell it out for him. Bah just raised an eyebrow, still oblivious.
"They like each other!" Silky finally told him with an eye roll.
"Jack said the other night that he doesn't," Bah pointed out.
"And you believe him?" Rizzo asked doubtfully. Bah thought for a second and shook his head.
"They are really awkward around each other all the sudden," he agreed. His eyes suddenly widened. "But Julie likes Jack?"
All the boys looked to Robbie, who just shrugged.
"Can't say we've discussed it. And she's dating David, so I can't see it happening."
"Jimmy's a goalie, doesn't mean people don't score on his net," Silky said with a laugh.
"Mac, find out if she likes him," Bah prompted.
"No way, I'm staying out of this," Robbie said, staring at his cards. "I fold."
"Have we ever figured out if that David guy is cool?" Jimmy questioned.
"I think he's fine. It's not like it'll be that serious, she's not gonna stick around here," Robbie shrugged.
"When's she gonna leave?" Mark asked, raising the current bet of the poker game.
"I don't know. She tried to convince Jim to let her go home after she saw her mom in D.C., but he said no. He's kinda in charge, so she's gotta wait until she gets the okay from him."
"I always forget she's gonna leave," Bah said sadly.
"You get used to it," Robbie chuckled. "She'll be on a plane the second they say she can come back."
"Why is she still here? Not that I'm mad about it, but wasn't the point for her to stay until she cleaned up her act?" Mark asked.
"Yeah, she's fine here, around us. But who knows what would happen if she was back at all those parties surrounded by drugs? She'll probably be here for a while."
The boys didn't talk anymore about Jack and Julie, focusing the attention back on their game. Meanwhile Jack stewed in his room, wondering why he regretted telling Julie he didn't like her. She was dating someone else, she was going back to California eventually, and they were just friends.
Hi everyone! Sorry my updates are slower, but I'm back to work full time. I appreciate everyone who reads, votes, and comments. Thank you!