Ch 59: Crazy love

“See you at school, Steve,” Cindy said, hopping into the front seat of her father’s car.

“En Espanol, senorita,” Steve said.

“Hasta la vista,” she replied with a giggle.

“Um...I guess that’s right. I’m not too good at it yet,” he said, shrugging.

“You make sure I pass math and I’ll help you with Spanish, okay?” she said.

“Deal,” he said brightly. “Bye, Mr. Sebastian.”

“Don't think so. You have to come with us, kid. Your ride just left,” Donny said pointing at Wes’ tail lights, only just visible heading down the street. 

“What the heck!” Steve grumbled, just as Jasmine and Troy came out of the restaurant. “At least I’m not the only one left behind.”

“Where’s Wes going without us? He’s our ride home,” Troy shouted.

“I think you better come with us,” Donny said.

“Okay. Thanks, Mr. S!” Troy said, shoving Steve out of the way. 

"Hey!" Steve shouted.

“You go in the front. I need more room.”

“Plenty of room up here,” Cindy said, moving over.

“Thanks!”

“So, why did Wes leave you?” Cindy asked.

“Janet was acting weird, that’s why,” Steve said.

Truer words he had never spoken.

* * * * * 

“Are you going to talk to me at all?” Wes tentatively asked.

“About what?” Janet said, looking out of the car window until she saw her house flash past her vision. “Hey! That’s my stop!”

Wes continued down the block and turned the corner before stopping the car and shutting it off.

“What are you doing?” Janet asked. “My house is back there, you idiot.”

“I know and I’ll take you home after you talk to me.”

“About what?”

 “I think you know. Whatever it is that’s running around in your head. I can almost hear the gears turning in there,” Wes said, pointing to her temple. “Who were you talking to in the restroom? Was it that lady I saw leave before you ran into me?”

She nodded. “That’s Dawn. She’s my parents’ best friend,” she reluctantly said.

“And?”

“She just…she explained some stuff,” she said shrugging, her eyes fixed on her hands.

“About your dad?”

She looked up. “Why do you say that?”

“Cuz…you didn’t seem mad at him anymore, not as much anyway. I figured it was something she told you,” Wes replied.

She stared at him. “It was mostly what you said, really,” she said.

“Me? When?”

“When we were outside.”

He gaped at her. “I don’t even remember what I said.”

“About the Freudian thing,” she said, pressing her lips together.

He frowned trying to recall exactly what he had said. “About boys wanting to marry their mothers?”

“And girls wanting to marry their dads.”

“Um…okay,” he said, more than a little confused. “You don’t really want to marry your dad, do you?”

She shook her head.

“Then…what is it… exactly?”

She looked up at him and even in the near full darkness, Wes could see something like fear in her eyes. “What’s wrong, Janet?”

“I think you’re my Freudian thing,” she said, then she bit her bottom lip and looked down at her hands again.

“I am? How? I’m not your dad,” he said.

She rolled her eyes. “No kidding!” she snapped. “You know, for a genius, you’re kinda dumb. I mean, I like you because in some ways you’re like my dad.”

Stunned, he stared at her with his mouth wide open. “You…you like me?”

“Real genius,” she muttered irritably. “Hello, I’m here, aren’t I?”

“So, you’re not mad at me anymore?” he said, incredulous.

“I’m still mad,” she said, poking her finger into his chest. “You shouldn’t have done that to my computer. You scared the crap out of me. I thought I was gonna lose everything. It was mean and sneaky and...”

“I know. I’m sorry. I’ll never do it again. I swear it!” he said, grabbing her hand before she poked a hole in his chest or broke her finger--whichever came first.

“Better not or I’ll smack you upside the head,” she said through clenched teeth, ripping her hand out of his grasp and crossing her arms over her chest.

They sat in silence for a few minutes until Wes drummed up a bit of courage. “So…how am I like your dad?” he asked.

She shrugged and continued looking at her lap.

“Come on, tell me,” he said. “You can tell me anything, you know. We’re friends, aren’t we?”

“Thought you were my boyfriend,” she said in a peevish tone.

He grinned. “My mom used to say that you should be friends first and foremost before you can find real love, true love, crazy love,” he said.

“Stop saying that word, will ya?” she snapped.

“What? Love?” he said, laughing. “It’s not a curse word, Janet.”

“It’s a four-lettered word, isn’t it?” she retorted.

He laughed again and tugged her hand out of her tangled up arms. “You don’t have to be afraid of me or of love, Janet. I’m more in danger of getting hurt by it than you are.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Cuz I’m crazy about you and I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make you happy with me and you…well, you don’t give a rat’s ass about my feelings or possibly anyone’s.”

This hit her like a blow to the solar plexus. She would have liked to say it wasn’t true, but she couldn’t lie to herself any more than she could lie to Wes. Tears sprang to her eyes, but she blinked them back.

“But I understand why you do that. You’re just trying to protect yourself from getting hurt. You push people away before they can push you away first. You just gotta understand that people who would push you away, aren’t worth having around in the first place, so you’re better off without them. You’re twenty thousand times better than most people out there, Janet. Let people push you away. They’ll be doing you a favor and it’ll be their loss.”

Is he trying to make me cry? she thought irritably.

“Look at me, Janet,” he said, tugging at her hand.

She shook her head.

“Please?”

She resisted for as long as she could, then she looked up and instantly regretted it. He was so cute and he looked so sincere, all she wanted to do was throw herself into his arms and beg to stay there forever.

As if hearing her thoughts clearly, he opened his arms inviting her into his peaceful imaginary world. Like steel to a magnet she clung to him for dear life.

Crazy love? Oh, yeah, she was nuts!