Ch 116 Breathe again

“Thank God he’s gone. Now I can breathe again.” Wendy sighed and placed the last of the dessert dishes into the dishwasher.

“Who? Mr. Sebastian?” Janet said, coming noiselessly back into the kitchen, making her mother jump.

“Janet! I wish you wouldn’t do that,” Wendy snapped.

“Sorry,” Janet replied, frowning.

“Thought you went up to bed. Is everyone gone now?”

“Yes, Wes, Cindy and Mr. Sebastian went home,” Janet said. “Mom, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing…just tired,” Wendy answered, avoiding meeting Janet’s eyes while drying her hands. She hung the towel on the oven handle and forced a smile. “I’m going to bed.”

“Mom, we have to talk…about Dad and...”

“Not now, Janet. I can’t handle anything else tonight,” Wendy said, leaving the kitchen after turning out the lights.

Janet followed her upstairs. “What do you mean handle anything else? What happened?”

“It’s…it’s been crazy tonight is all,” Wendy replied.

“Did you and Dad talk? Did he tell you anything?”

Wendy sighed, ignored the question and kept going.

“Please, Mom. It won’t take long. Just a few minutes and…”

Wendy acted as if she heard none of this and went down the hall and knocked softly on Stevie’s bedroom door.

“Yeah?” Stevie said through the door.

“Just saying good night, Honey,” Wendy said.

“Good night, Mom,” Stevie said.

Janet followed her mother down the hall to her own room. “I can prove that Dad…”

“Janet, I don’t want to hear it now,” Wendy snapped, standing just outside Jasmine’s bedroom door.

Janet glared at her mother for a minute. “Fine, but now it’s on you, not Dad,” she angrily said. “Good night.” And she went into the room next door and shut it.

Wendy shook her weary head and pushed the urge to cry down. She then knocked on Jasmine’s door. “Jasmine?” she said, opening the door. “Just wanted to say good…”

She had expected to see her other daughter sound asleep or reading a fashion magazine in bed, but not like this. Troy’s jeans and t-shirt were in a heap beside the bed, and Troy himself in the bed-- wrapped around Jasmine--stared up at her with a deer-in-the-headlights look on his face. Needless to say, Wendy was a bit more than a little surprised.

“Uh…” Troy mumbled, rolling off of Jasmine. “Oh, shit.”

“Mom, what the …how about knocking?” Jasmine shrieked, holding the sheets up to her chin.

“I don’t think you belong here, Troy,” Wendy said, in a dangerously quiet voice. “You may consider not returning for a good long time as well… especially when Jeffery hears about this and he will hear about it. Got me?”

“Yes, Ma’am,” he said, reaching for his scattered clothes.

He cast a furtive glance at Wendy, but she was glaring at Jasmine. He then held his jeans in front to cover himself and the shirt in back to cover his butt then he fled into the adjoining bathroom and almost ran into Janet whose eyes widened to their full extent as he appeared. Her mouth fell open—or perhaps it had been opened already. She held a toothbrush as if she was just about to use it.

They stared at each other, Troy looking terrified and she astonished. As soon as she came to her senses she looked away.

“I’ve always teased you for being dumb, Troy, but I never really thought you were…until now,” she said, resolutely looking at the green and white striped toothpaste. “Go through my room, get dressed, leave the house and don’t come back…like ever… unless you want your parents crying over your grave earlier than they should….cuz when my dad finds out…”

Troy didn’t need to be told twice nor did he have to hear the rest of it.

Janet stood in the bathroom waiting for an explosion next door. When nothing came after a minute she brushed her teeth as quickly as she could and went to bed, turning out the lights and starring into the dark. That’s when she heard more than she needed to hear.

“I thought I raised you better than this,” Wendy said, in almost a whisper.

“It’s no big deal, Mom,” Jasmine said, rolling her eyes. “You did it too at my age. Don’t deny it. I can do the math. Me and Janet were born seven months after you and Dad got married and we weren’t preemies. You got married ‘cause you had to, ‘cause you got pregnant. Well, I’m not that stupid. I’ve been on the pill for…”

“You’re what?” Wendy screamed.

Jasmine rolled her eyes again. “I’m not stupid. I wasn’t going to just do this without protecting myself. You think I want to end up like you? A miserable woman who hasn’t done anything valuable in her life ‘cause she’s got kids and the man of her dreams turned out to be a nightmare? No thanks.”

Wendy stood stunned. “That’s what you think of me?”

“Is there another way to see it?” Jasmine angrily retorted. “You can’t stand to talk to Dad anymore and he didn’t even do anything. Yeah, he got drunk and he puked all over his old girlfriend’s house. Big deal! Turns out he didn’t even have sex with her. If you’d bother listening to Janet you’d see that for yourself, but none of that matters to you.”

“At this moment, no. This situation has nothing to do with me and Jeffery.”

 “Doesn’t it? It took me a while to figure it out, Mom, but now I understand. You never loved Dad and this is your way out. Dad had an affair. Fine, there’s your excuse for getting rid of him and if you really wish to be free then let us, me, Janet and Stevie live with Dad. Take your chance then, but don’t you dare tell me I can’t do what you did. I’m much smarter than you were, so don’t worry. That’s why you’re ticked right now. You can’t turn back time and get on the pill so you wouldn’t have me and Janet to ruin your life.”

“I never regretted having you and Janet,” Wendy said, on the verge of tears.

“Whatever, no worries,” Jasmine said, leaning back on her pillows as if she truly had nothing to worry about. “You don’t have to freak out. It’s not like this is the first time, anyway, and it won’t be the last. Sex is nothing special.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Wendy said.

“I know more than you ever did. I have no intention of getting stuck with some baby or with Troy or any other loser.”

Wendy stared in shock, then silently turned as if in a trance and left the room before Jasmine was done speaking. She couldn’t bear to hear anymore. She felt quite sick, because some of what she said had hit a very sensitive nerve.

*****

Janet bit down on her bottom lip, trying not to cry. It didn’t work. She used the corner of the pillow case to wipe at her wet face. Was Jasmine right? Was that why her mother didn’t care about the evidence, didn’t even want to hear it? Was her mother determined to divorce her father no matter what really happened?

Oh, how she wished Wes was here! He would know what to say to make her feel better. She reached for her cell phone and had been about to dial his number, but shook her head. What if he was already in bed asleep? But she so needed him right now. She could send a text instead. She never had before to him, except at school. It was just so much easier to talk to him…and more fun.

She typed, “U awke” and instantly she got back a reply.

“Y” was all he wrote, which confused her. Was he asking her why she wanted to know or was that a Y for yes?

“I hate texting,” she mumbled, just as her phone rang. Her heart leapt with joy. She put it to her ear and leaned back on her pillow. “Hi, Wes.”

“Something wrong?” he asked.

“A little bit,” she replied, tears threatening again.

“You okay?”
          “My mom just caught Troy in Jasmine’s room,” she whispered.

Stunned silence followed this pronouncement.  “Holy shit,” he muttered. “Were they…”

“Seems like it since he burst into my bathroom while I was brushing my teeth, trying to escape.”

“Was he… dressed?”

Janet didn’t know why, but she didn’t want to tell the truth about that. “I didn’t see anything, if that’s what you mean,” she replied, kind of skirting the issue. Frankly, she saw far more than she ever wanted to see of Troy.

“So he was naked?”

“I only saw as much as I usually do,” she lied.

“How much do you usually see?” he shrieked.

“Are you actually making this about you and your jealousy?”

“I’m just asking, how often do you see Troy naked?”

“I don’t! But he has a pool and since we were little we spend most of the summer over there swimming. He never wears a shirt, you know, but he always has shorts on.”

There was silence again. “So, you like his abs?”

Janet almost laughed. “No, I like yours, remember?”

“His are better than mine,” he said, sounding rather grumpy.

She did laugh that time. “And yet I don’t like them nearly as much as I like yours.”

“Good to know,” he said, slightly appeased. “So…they were actually… doing it?”

“Well, I don’t know for sure. I wasn’t in there with them, but…I heard Jasmine and my mom after Troy bolted outta here and she said….”

“What?”

“Jasmine said…Wes, you have to promise not to tell anyone, not even Troy, okay?”

“What?” he asked again.

“She said this wasn’t even the first time,” Janet whispered.

“Everybody knows that,” he said, before he could stop himself.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Janet said. “Did Troy…”

“Janet, you have to know the rumors going around school about her.”

Janet gulped. Yes, she had heard them and every time she had she told whoever was spreading such vile talk that it was a complete and total lie, especially when those kids thought she was Jasmine and started coming on to her. But what about now? She didn’t know what to think anymore.

“Janet? You still there?” Wes spoke in her ear.

“They’re just rumors…no truth to them at all,” she said, although with not half the conviction she normally had.

She could hear Wes taking a deep breath and waited for him to say something. When he didn’t she prodded him. “So, what did Troy tell you then?”

“He didn’t tell me anything, not about your sister. He’s not the one doing the talking. He really likes her. Guys only talk about girls they…”

“Then who is?” she said, even though she had a clue, several clues.

“Damon Marlin is the one I heard it from first.”

“Damon? But he’s going with…” She thought of her best friend, sweet, wonderful Tara. Had Damon…with Jasmine? Did Tara know?

 “Heard what exactly?” Janet snapped. “What did Damon say?”

“Janet, don’t get mad at me because of what other people are saying. It’s not like I had sex with her even though…Bet she’s in big trouble with your mom, huh?” he muttered, swiftly changing the subject.

“Even though what?”

“Nothing.”

“Are you lying to me again? You told me you wouldn’t lie to me ever again, so are you?”

He clamped his mouth shut, cursing himself. He couldn’t lie to her now, since he already was telling a particularly big lie about the gala.

“Jasmine is one of those girls,” he reluctantly said.

“What girls?” she asked, trepidation running up her spine.

“I don’t think you really want to know.”

“Wesley,” she said through clenched teeth.

“Please, don’t make me say it.”

“Wes, tell me what you know. I have a right to know.”

“It doesn’t matter anymore. She’s with Troy so maybe…it’s a moot point. She’s got one boyfriend now…unless…do you think your parents will make them break up or something?”

“Not sure. Maybe. What else can Mom do but that or ground her? Take her phone away? Take away her clothes and makeup? That’s all she cares about.”

“I’m surprised they didn’t get caught before this.”

There was a long silence again.

“Did…Wes, tell me the truth,” Janet said, gripping the phone tightly. “Did Jasmine and you…”

“No! Never!”

“Did she hit on you?”

Wes sighed. “Yeah, but I told you I never liked her or any of her skanky friends.”

“Did you kiss her?”

“No! I told you I never liked her.”

“Then why do you like me?”

“Cuz you’re nothing like her!”

“But we look exactly…”

“Yeah, but your personalities are completely opposite. This thing with Troy proves it. If a naked guy walked in on Jasmine while she was brushing her teeth, he’d be lucky to get out of there unmolested. You probably just told Troy what an idiot he is and told him to leave fast.”

Amazed, Janet looked at the phone wondering if he somehow had seen it all. “Actually, I told him he was dumb, but how in the world did you know that? I didn’t tell you I said that.”

Wes chuckled. “Cuz I know you, Janet, and you are nothing like your sl…like your sister.”

She sighed. “So you think the rumors are true,” she said and it wasn’t a question. She plainly heard what he almost let slip.

“Not for me to say.”

“Okay,” she said, suddenly feeling like crying again.

“Janet, I’m sorry.”

“Not your fault I have a screwed up family,” she whispered.

“Your dad’s gonna go ballistic, isn’t he? And he’s already mad at me. Is he gonna take it out on us?”

“What do you mean?”

“He might think we’re doing the same as them.”

“But we’re not! I already told him that.”

“He might not believe you. He certainly doesn’t trust me any more than he would a politician with a sack of money.”

“That’s stupid. Why should I get punished because of what she did? It’s like…like if Stevie took the car for a joyride and then I don’t get to drive for a month. How is that fair?”

“Parents don’t always care about fair when they think they’re protecting their kids from stuff.”

“I won’t let them break us up. You’re mine,” she said fiercely.

Wes grinned. “Good to hear you’ll fight for me. I’ll fight for you too.”

“Of course I will. You’re my boyfriend and…”

“And?” he asked, hopefully.

“Wes?”

“Yeah?”

She bit her lip not quite knowing what she wanted to tell him.

“Janet?”

“Thanks,” she whispered.

“For what?”

“Talking to me tonight.”

“Instead of texting, you mean?”

“No, instead of ignoring me.”

“I don’t think I know how to ignore you, Janet” he said, laughing. “Or maybe I just don’t want to.”

“You’re not a typical boyfriend, are you?”

“Maybe I just like you extra.”

“Me too,” she said, before she could stop herself. “Wes?”

“I’m still here.”

“I think my mom wants a divorce even if my dad didn’t do anything.”

“Did she…you talked to her and she understands that he couldn’t have done it?”

“No, she won’t listen to me. Maybe my dad talked to her, but I don’t know. Maybe they talked but they must have fought or something and…Jasmine thinks she never loved my dad, that she only married him cuz…cuz she got pregnant with me and Jasmine.”

“You don’t believe that!” he shouted.

“It’s possible, Wes,” she said, miserably.

“No, it’s not. I see the way they look at each other. Even tonight when we came in. They looked annoyed that we interrupted them. Maybe they were making up, not fighting, and we got in the way. Your mom looked embarrassed…like when you catch someone kissing. Oh, that reminds me. I didn’t tell you cuz Cindy begged me not to tell my dad, but I caught your brother kissing her.”

“I told you they liked each other, but I didn’t do that! I swear! That was all them, on their own. Some kids don’t need a yenta.”

“I wasn’t blaming you. I just want to make sure you tell Stevie to keep his distance,” he said.

“Excuse me? And will Cindy keep away from him? It goes both ways, Wes.”

“No, she said, he kissed her.”

“If you want to believe that.”

“What? You think Cindy kissed him?”

“I wasn’t there, so I wouldn’t know. I just know they like each other. It’s obvious. I don’t think it’s anything to get all weird about, though. So, they like each other, so what? They’re just middle school kids. They’ll hold hands for a week, kiss two, three times and they’ll break up and do the whole thing over again with some other kids.”

“Well, I don’t want my sister turning into yours!”

There was a long silence in which Wes knew he’d gone too far, but this time he was too ticked to care.

“I’ll pretend you didn’t say that and just say good night,” Janet said quietly.

“Janet...”

“Thank you for talking to me tonight, Wes. It helped.”

“I’m glad.”

“Wes?”

“Still here.”

“I wish you were here,” she whispered.

There was silence for several seconds. “So you can punch me?"

She giggled. "No, so you could hug me."
"You mean in bed with you right now?” he asked, obviously stunned.

She giggled again. “Um…No. You got the wrong sister if that’s what you want.”

“No, I have the right sister no matter what evil desires and thoughts she conjures up for me.”

After a moment she said, “I’m not ready for that, Wes.”

“I know. You told me and I haven't forgotten. I’m willing to wait for you.”

“Definitely not a typical boyfriend,” she muttered.

He chuckled. “No, you said I was the best ever, remember?”

“Yeah. Now I kinda believe it.”

“Helps that I’m crazy about you.”

“Good night, Wes,” she said.

“Good night, my pretty girl. I love you,” he said.

She pressed the end call button several times before she added in the tiniest whisper, “I love you, too.”