Chapter 9
Cinema kissing
We meet the rest of the group in front of the cinema like we planned. As a group, we walk in and purchase seven tickets altogether. While we're waiting for the rest of the group to buy their tickets, Josh and I walk over to the candy bar and purchase popcorn and Coke. I love eating popcorn in the movies. But me, popcorn and a scary film is a very unwise choice. I went to see The Spider wick Chronicles with Nat and we were sharing popcorn. I jump really easy in frightening bits; anyway let’s just say the popcorn went flying everywhere.
"Can I ask something random, kind of like your Pepsi question?" I wonder what he's going to ask that is as random as my Pepsi thing.
"Sure, shoot away!" I'm really interested in what he has to say.
"Do you think popcorn and chocolate can go together?" now that is totally random, it's almost like he is plucking these things from my mind. Spooky!
"Definitely I do it all the time! I just didn’t want to look like a freak in front of everyone!" this is totally true. I can look like a real geek sometimes, but I’m glad I’m not the only one who does eat popcorn and M&M’s together.
"You’re not a freak. You’re actually really cool. Plus you’re…" he looks down into my eyes and I really want to know what he’s about to say but before he can say it, Ash calls us over.
"You two would never believe this," she gives us this look that says try and guess you’ll never get it. "My parents said I could have a sleepover and it can last the whole weekend! PLUS, my dad said we could go out clubbing or something!"
Now I’m really surprised. This is totally awesome. Don’t tell anyone this, but I’ve been going out to clubs since I was fourteen. But this is still cool, because all the times I’ve been out to clubs, I’ve been with my mum and she uses me to pick up guys for her. I know that she hasn't been the most responsible parent, but I can say that it has been an interesting ride.
So when Ash told us her big news, she was extremely offended when I didn't make the right reaction. You know, the, ‘Oh that's so cool, I wish I had your parents they are so awesome!!’ one. I was a bit too passive about it, so she thought I was being a bitch or something.
"What's your problem, Kaila? Isn't this great news?" She started staring coldly at me, but that just made me want to laugh at her; she was acting so snooty. It's really unbelievable how people can be so childish about things like this.
"There's no problem, Ash. I just thought that it wasn't that big a deal!" It's what I do every second weekend, so it isn't a big deal for me; it's something I'm used to.
"Ladies, ladies, I hope you're not fighting over me again, because I told you!" Nathan comes walking towards us with his popcorn and drink, pointing at himself and motioning for our attention, "I told you girls that I don't have to choose. I can have both of you!"
Ash just glared at him, but Josh and I couldn't stop laughing. It was so unexpected and he acts like he truly believes what he says. Maybe Josh is laughing for the same reason I am Maybe the aspect of Nathan having both of us just makes him want to laugh at his friend's fantasy.
"Nathan, you know as well as I do that Ash is way too fiery for you!" he looks at Ash as if to check that she isn't going to go mental.
Then Nathan looks at me and grins. He can see that Josh didn't mention anything about me. I sigh mentally. This means that I'm the easiest one to hook up with. I don't like this and I still haven't figured out who Josh's girlfriend is, I've got a feeling that she's one of the popular girls.
I walk calmly over to Flick. I really want to ask her the question I want answered the most. "Hey, Flick?" she nods in acknowledgement while tracking Mike's every move. "Does Josh have a girlfriend?"
She looks up at me startled by my question. This disturbs me. "Haven't you heard, Kaila?" she looks at me like I know what she's talking about and then explains, "Josh is dating Ali. She's one of the most popular girls in this year level. She is also probably the prettiest. She's too skinny and she has an inferiority complex, but don't say that to Josh. He didn't talk to Ash for three weeks when she mentioned it."
"Wow, that's a long time not to talk to one another."
"Don't sweat it. They're on the verge of breaking up. Josh doesn't like the way she treats us and her friends. That's why she's not with us today. Give it a week and the relationship will be over."
"Wow, so…what's happening with you and Mike?" I noticed before the way she was watching Mike.
"I like Mike I think he's sweet but he doesn't want anything other than friendship. It's a shame, really. Oh, and Ash has the hots for Nathan. And Sam, poor Sam, no one ever goes for him. All the girls at school think he's gay. I told him if he wasn't so stylish he could get a girlfriend but his sister basically dresses him."
"Poor Sam, my brother would hate it if I tried to dress him!"
"So would mine! Besides, if I taught them what is fashionably acceptable, they might want to steal some of my stuff. And that would be horrible!"
"I so totally agree. That would be nasty!" seeing my brother in some of my guy jackets would be horrifying.
Nathan is moving towards us with a cheeky grin plastered on his face.
"Look out, here comes trouble!" I whisper to Flick.
She laughs and points at Nathan's smile "That grin always spells trouble, remember that, Kaila. Never forget that smile!"
Nathan reaches us and quickly snakes his arm around my waist, pulling me towards his body.
"Nathan, I like you, but not that much!" I tease him. He sees my expression and realises that I'm only joking with him.
"Well in that case I'll put my attention somewhere else. No point wasting my time on you!" he lets go of me and sidles up next to Flick pulling her into the hold he had on me before.
"What about you, Flick? Do you like me in that way?"
"Of course I don't. You're not my type!" Flick and I laugh at his expression. He’s clearly not happy with the answers we gave him.
"It's your own fault, man. You shouldn't have asked them. You know how cruel women can be!" Josh says from behind us, making Flick and me jump.
"You’ve got to be kidding; her only type is tall, muscular, dark haired, olive skin, sporty, likes skate boarding, very intelligent and likes tinkering with car pieces. Actually, he would be a lot like Mike." Ash explains.
Everyone, except for us girls turns their heads to look at Mike. While they look at Mike, Flick shoots Ash a look that clearly says, ‘I so hate you right now.’ They don't realise I am watching them until I start to laugh at their poisonous expressions.
"That's funny. As if Flick would fall for a guy like Mike. That would be like dating your own brother!" I say. Flick looks at me with appraising eyes.
"You are so right there, Mike is definitely too much like my older brother Adam!" Flick says like she's totally grossed out by the idea.
"Gross! It would be disgusting dating someone like your brother." I say adding my silent EW at the idea.
"You're right there." Flick says confidently.
"So what's your type, Kaila?" Nathan asks winking at me.
"The usual kind, he must be tall, dark haired, handsome, sporty and funny." I look at him. Yeah, he could fit in as my type but Josh is more my type than Nathan.
"Josh is more your type, Shame he has a girlfriend, although you and I could be great together!" I raise my eyebrows at him in mock surprise.
"What do you reckon, Josh? You have the second hottest girl at school and I'll have the hottest. Are you jealous yet?" Nathan cheekily asks. He's just trying to rile Josh up.
"Nathan, as I said before, you wouldn't be able to handle a girl like Kaila." He raises an eyebrow at me, inviting me to argue with him.
"What makes you so sure you would be able to handle me, Josh?" I reply.
He moves closer to me and pulls me into his body, making me catch my breath. Oh my god, Josh is actually holding me in his arms, holding me there in another world, it's so intense. He's staring into my eyes, daring
me to look away.
"What makes you think that I can't handle you, Kaila?" He asks me ferociously staring me down.
"I admit that you could handle me, but I'm afraid I'm not your type." I try to drag my eyes from his but I am mesmerised by his grey eyes.
"Not my type, are you crazy? You're the most my ‘typed’ girl at our school." He looks at me evenly trying to discern something in my eyes.
Nathan walks up to us and nudges Josh in the rib cage. "She's right, man. She's not your type. She's way too good for you. Actually I think she would be best with me."
I look at Ash, pleading with her to get between them, but for once it's Flick who saves me. "Guys, cut it out. You both have girlfriends and I don't think Kaila wants to be with either of you."
"We are acting kind of stupid, aren't we?" Nathan finally says after a very long pause.
"You can say that again," I say under my breath, not meaning for anyone to hear me, but I forget that Josh is still holding me in his arms.
I feel him breathing on my neck, and then I feel his mouth trace my neck to my ear. I hear my gasp of shock from a faraway place because all I can concentrate on is his uneven gravelly voice whispering into my ear. "I'm sorry I was being a jerk, Kaila, I hope I didn't ruin anything between us."
I find his ear and gradually my voice whispers back from a faraway place, "It's cool Josh, it was all just a bit of fun, wasn’t it?" But it's not really cool, because now I want him badly.
He doesn't get a chance to answer because Sam comes over and tells us that the group is going to go into the theatre and are finding a place to sit. We start running towards our friends.
During the film I sit between Sam and Josh. I hold Sam's hand in the scary parts, but during the whole film I am excruciatingly aware of Josh and how close our hands are. Every now and then his arm brushes up against mine. I'm pretty sure it was unintentional, though.
We walk out of the theatre when the credits come on with everyone else. Just as we are all exiting the cinema and heading towards our cars, Josh grabs my hand just before we get to the exit to the street outside and steers me away from the rest of the group. He pulls me towards an empty hallway. Josh leans towards me, forcing me to lean backwards. Our foreheads touch. He closes his eyes. I don't know what to do. For me it's extremely awkward, but it looks like he is enjoying just standing with me quietly. It's almost like he's taking pleasure from my company.
"Are you ok Josh?" I can hear how uneven and worried my voice sounds.
"Kaila, if I kissed you right now, would you punch me?" Why is he asking me this?
"Probably not, but in all likeliness you probably wouldn't kiss me." I hope he kisses me. I hope he kisses me! Oh, I sound so lame! What a loser, a guy like him doesn't go for my type. He goes for the fabulously hot and the gloriously stupid type of girl.
"You're wrong! I am going to kiss you! But Ali and I haven't actually broken up…yet!" Oh no, I am not going to kiss a guy that still has a girlfriend.
"Josh, I don’t think you're thinking straight. Besides, I don't kiss guys who already have a girlfriend. It's not my style," I say agitatedly. I look at him angrily I will not let a guy use me because he wants a little fun on the side.
"Come on, Kaila. I know you're into me! Why don't we just get it over and done with?" he says, in a nearly sexy way. It would have been sexy if he didn't say ‘get it over and done with’!
"You make it sound like I'm a Band-Aid!" Now I'm angry, I glare at him coldly and say, "Well, do I have news for you Josh? I am not someone you can just "get over and done with"! I don't do one night stands or one offs!"
"Sorry, Kaila, I didn't mean it that way! I guess I let all the fun before get to my head." He looks sad as he's saying it. I just want to reach out and hold him, but that would be weird after me going off at him.
"Let's just go home, alright?" I really don't want to hurt his feelings but this car ride might just be the hardest thing I'll ever have to do.
"Yeah, let's get going." He looks so serious it makes me feel so bad for acting like that.
We walk out of the cinema and back to his car in the car park. The whole time we don't utter a single word to each other. It's really awkward now, neither one of us wants to speak to the other. It's the most awful ten minute car ride I've ever had! There is no music playing, and there aren't really a lot of things we can discuss. Talk about ruining the best day ever. I am so good at doing that. He finally drives into my street and pulls up in front of my house. I hurriedly climb out of the car, but he gets out before I can make a run for the door. Bugger! Now I'm actually going to have to talk to him. Damn. It's just so awkward! I didn't mean for it to get this bad. I just didn't know what to say in the car.
I start walking up the drive way to the house, only to discover that he's walking alongside me. "Don't you want to be getting home now?"
He clears his throat quietly and replies, "I was hoping we could talk…"
"Sure. We can hang in my room for a while," I nod dumbly.
"Um…sounds good to me." He slowly looks up the steps then says slowly almost uncertainly like he's afraid someone will over hear him. "Would your dad be ok with that?"
"Why wouldn't he be alright with that? Aren't we just going to talk?" I look at him sideways. Dad has never had a problem with me having friends in my room. Why start now? "Dad, I'm home! My friend and I are going to be in my room if you need me." I listen for his response but I hear no reply.
I walk into his bedroom but he's not there. So I then walk into the kitchen and find him slumped over what looks like a scotch bottle. I know he drinks a lot but he never gets this bad unless something happens between him and Mum.
"Dad, wake up! Come on. Don't do this. Has mum been around? DAD…!" I shake his arm but there's no response, it's then that I notice the letter next to his hand. It's hand written and very neatly done. I pick it up and it reads:
I am sorry to inform you, Mr John Jenson, that your former wife Katie Bradshaw has requested to have custody of Mitchell Jenson, (eighteen) and Kayley Jenson (seventeen).
She also wishes for you to have restricted joint custody of said children. The request has not been formally accepted as of yet but the possibility of you retaining your children is slim.
As your lawyer I would suggest that you only contend the restriction on custody.
Yours Sincerely,
Maxwell Williams.
OH. MY. GOD! What a bitch, she was the one who abandoned us, not the other way round! She was the one who ran off with Mr Fancy Lawyer Dude. Like, come on. She can't have us back now! She left us for him! She can't have it both ways. I thought she felt ‘old’ when she was around us. That's why she had an affair with a really young lawyer. He's basically fresh out of university. Of course he dumped her; probably for a younger woman, too. That would make her feel old and probably want us back, or maybe she wants to use me to pick up more guys for her. How can I call her my mum? She does no parenting at all! She just sits around at work and then goes home to party. It's almost like she's trying to be young again, but the difference is, she is totally not down with the here and now.
I turn around and realise that Josh is still here with me, in the kitchen watching my dad drown his sorrows in what looks to be scotch and rum. Oh. My. God! What if he tells everyone at school? What happens if he goes into school on Monday and says, ‘Guess what, everyone? Kaila's dad is an alcoholic! And her mum is forty-six and trying to act twenty-six!’? What if the whole school finds out? What do I do then? It would totally kill my dad. It’s not as if he isn't going through enough right now! He doesn't need rumours circulating around school as well.
"Josh, can you please not tell anyone about this?" I swear I will scream if he says ‘No, I'm going to tell the whole school’. But he wouldn't do that, would he? After all, I only just became friends with him.
"Yeah, sure I won't tell anyone. Your dad must be going through hell right now." He looks at me sadly and nods. "Well, I think I should let you b
e alone for now." He gets to the door before he turns around and says to me, "By the way, Kaila. I'm sorry about before at the cinema. I guess I got a bit carried away."
And with that he walked out of my house. I'm not sure why, but my heart felt like it was blown into smithereens and then put back together with the pieces of debris still in it. I've never felt this way before. Just by seeing his retreating figure my heart began to throb unevenly. And the way he looked when he was talking to me made me catch my breath. Although I try not to I think of it, I might have fallen for Josh.
I. Am. So Dumb! He's one of my friends! How on earth can I feel this way for him? He has a girlfriend! There's no way he would dump her to go out with me! He wouldn't even want to go out with me. I'm just one of the girls his friends decided they would befriend. There's nothing about me that he could possibly be interested in. I'm not the supermodel hot that I know his girlfriend is. I'm not supremely sporty. Well, it's more like I look disgusting when I exercise. Actually, I am good at sport, just not at looking good when doing sport. What could I possibly offer him? Maybe he would be interested in my huge swimming pool.
What. Am. I. Doing? Doubting and putting myself down, is so not helping the situation right now. My dad is drunk and doesn't look like he's going to become sober anytime soon; my mum has decided that she wants us back (for real? I'm still not sure!); my brother has run off to his pain in the ass girlfriend’s house; and I just ruined a really good day with Josh! This can't get any worse! For now, I'll pray for better things to come. Maybe if I go watch a movie, something might be looking up when I get back.
I barge my way into the lounge room and grab the remote. I aim the remote at the TV and press the ‘on’ button, but nothing happens. I try again, but it still looks like nothing is happening. I turn around and flick the light switch but the light doesn't turn on. I walk over to the stereo and switch it on but it doesn't turn on either. Oh this is great! Just fantastic! The electricity isn't working either! Well, this is just superb! I look out the window. Well at least I know the cause. There are giant storm clouds hanging over our house, not to mention a lot of lightening! Oh this is brilliant! A power outage! Now I have to go and find the stupid torches. I don't even know where Dad keeps them! I think I might just give up now and run over to Nat's place and sleep in her room!
I am so not in the mood to find torches! I can't believe my dad drank himself silly! If mum hears about this, they're just going to hand us over to her automatically. Actually, now that I think about it, Mitch can decide which parent he wants to stay with because he's eighteen, where I have no choice and they're going to drag me to my psychotic mother's house! All of this is just another kick in the guts! Today has ‘sucked in’ written all over it.
I hear a groan in the kitchen. Great, he's going to puke. I am not going to clean that up! I have to stay here to make sure he doesn't drown himself in the pool. What's with this situation? This is so whack, it should be me lying across the table groaning and feeling like I'm going to puke. Not my forty-seven year old, ‘I'm too old to go out’ dad! Just for a second I'm impressed that he can drink that much before passing out. Even Mitch can't beat that and I've seen him when he was playing the drinking game with his friends.
"Dad…? Can you hear me?" I have to get him sober somehow. I need to find those torches and he's the only one who knows where they are. "Dad…? Can you walk? You need to get into the shower." If I have to I'll chuck him into the shower, even with his clothes on.
"Kaila, Kaila, Kaila. Haven't I told you you're my special one, not like that dumb brother of yours?" Dad slurs. My god, he sounds really hammered.
"Come on, Dad. Let's get you into the shower." Man, he reeks of alcohol. It's disgusting. He's breathing on my neck. I think that next time I go out I will lock the liquor cabinet just to make sure that he doesn't get alcohol poisoning before I get back.
We reach the bathroom and I can't be bothered trying to undress him. He'll understand once he's sober. Anyways, he's only wearing his sweat pants and a t-shirt. It's not like it's something that is dry clean only. He stumbles into the shower, not realising that he's still dressed. I turn on only the cold tap. I have to get some pay back out of this! He jumps and yells but I just stand there waiting for him to go back to normal. This is why I think he should get out more, or at least get a girlfriend who can do this instead of me!
I'm only talented at sobering up people because Mitch used to come home after a big night and dad hadn't gotten in yet so I would have to make sure he was at least a little sober before dad got home. The next step is to give him black coffee but the only problem is that the power's out.
I decide that it's about time for me to turn on the hot water because he looks like he's freezing. Whoops, are his lips supposed to be that shade of blue? Probably not... Well, let's see what I can do about that… I'll find some aspirin for him too, but even with that he's still going to have one hell of a hangover in the morning! I'm going out for coffee with Nat tomorrow. At least I'll be out of the house so he can stay at home and suffer.
I pull him out of the shower and hand him a towel, I suppose that even in his drunk state he will still be able to use a towel to dry himself off. "How're you feeling, Dad?"
"I feel like crap. No, worse than that!" he's already clutching at his head.
"No doubt you are. After all, I came home and found you out cold on the table." I stare at him, trying to see if he will tell me the truth about why he was drinking in the first place.
"I'm sorry you saw me like that. Maxwell sent me a letter informing me that your mother wishes to have you back. I felt so hurt and angry and I just wanted it to go away." He looks at me, almost crying.
"It's alright dad, I understand. I read the letter," I sigh, wishing Josh had never come into my house. "Dad, my friend Josh came home with me. He went home when he saw what was happening. He said he won't tell anyone about it."
"So you trust him?" he looks at me strangely.
"Yeah, I guess I do." Actually, I'm not sure if I actually trust him. I just don't want this to get out.
"By the way, why are the lights turned off?" he looks really perplexed.
"The power went out." I can't be bothered explaining further.
"The torches are in the cupboard next to your room." Finally! Something is going my way. I'm just hoping for no more disasters.
"Thanks Dad, I think I'm going to go to bed now." After all, it is around eight o'clock.
"Night, Kaila. See you in the morning," he yawns.
"Yeah… Good night Dad, see you in the morning." I walk down the hallway to my room. I pull out my phone and dial Nat. I hope she isn't too busy. I need to talk to her.
I dial her number. It rings twice before she picks up. "Hey Nat, it's me."
"Um…who is this?" a male voice replies.
"Oh this is Kayley, um…is Nat there?" I reply hesitantly.
"Um…you mean, my sister Natalie?" he sounds kind of strange.
"Yeah, I need to talk to her." I desperately want to talk to her, actually!
"Oh yeah, well I'll go find her." He sounds kind of annoyed.
"Uh…thanks."
"No problem, I think she's out right now, can you call her back later?"
"Sure, can you tell her that Kayley Jenson called and ask her if coffee tomorrow is still on?"
"Yeah, I'll be sure to mention it to her." The phone goes dead again. There goes my one chance to talk to someone. This really sucks! Nat has been my friend since year seven. We tell each other everything.
I can't believe all this stuff is happening to me. First the whole thing with Josh, then coming home only to find out that my mum's taking custody of Mitch and me, and then finding my father drunk and unconscious in the kitchen. I can't just write this off as a bad day. This is an extremely bad day, a supremely horrible day! It started off as ‘good’ but it has slowly deteriorated to ‘really bad’. I can't believe this. Since when has my life been so exciting, so plagued with disaster?