Much Ado About Nothing (Shakespeare for Everyone Else)

  ***

  “How much would you be willing to bet that he’s going to talk to his father about Bea?” Donnie asked, watching him speed away.

  “Nah,” Clark said, “you know he doesn’t talk to his father about those things. I bet he’s going to talk to Andrew.”

  “Or Leo. He’s always liked Leo,” Donnie said.

  “He’s a good man,” Clark agreed. “But Leo hates it when he smokes on his property.”

  “Who’s a good man?” a new voice asked as Jason suddenly emerged from the sliding door of the house. “I take it you aren’t talking about me.”

  “How’d you get in here?” Donnie blurted out, standing up.

  “You know as well as I do that our father doesn’t hate me like you do, Don,” Jason said, taking a seat on the deck as Clark also rose from his chair.

  “I don’t hate you,” Donnie said, trying to remain sympathetic. “I want us to get along. Just because we’re on different teams and—”

  “And have different mothers,” Jason said.

  “Whatever,” Donnie said, “the point is that I’m tired of all this fighting. Do you want something to drink?”

  “I’ll get it,” Clark said, turning to go.

  “No, stay. This involves you,” Jason said.

  “What’s going on?” Clark asked, taking a seat again.

  “You’re still with Heaven, right?” Jason asked.

  “Yes,” Clark said, smiling.

  “Things are going well?”

  “They’re fine,” Donnie said warily. “What’s going on?”

  “Well, I’m afraid that things may not be going as well once you hear what I’m about to say,” Jason said.

  “If there’s anything I should know about Heaven, then you should tell me.”

  Jason stood up, walking casually around the deck in a small circle looking leisurely at his feet. “You guys may think I’m out to give you a hard time, but you know that I also tell the truth no matter how much it hurts. Don, I know you helped set Clark up with Heaven because you thought she was a good girl.”

  “And she is,” Donnie said, growling. “What’s going on? What did you hear?”

  “Heaven…” Jason said, “Apparently engaged in some extra-curricular activities over the summer.”

  “I don’t believe it!” Clark shouted. “What do you mean?”

  “There’s been some pictures floating around my campus—”

  “Of what?”

  “Of Heaven.”

  “You’re a liar,” Clark said, growing angry now.

  “Nothing too vulgar…” Jason said. “Though I didn’t know she was so large up top…looks can be quite deceiving—”

  Clark took a step forward.

  “Now listen,” Jason said, holding up his hands. “You have to understand that what she did over the summer was when neither of you were dating.”

  “So why bring it up now?” Donnie asked. “Not that I believe you.”

  “I believe she’s continuing to act this way and allowing men to take pictures of her,” Jason said.

  “My Heaven?” he asked. “Topless pics? I don’t believe it.”

  “Well believe me when I say she’s still acting like this.”

  Clark looked as though he’d been shot. “Cheating?” He lowered his head, his sharp features growing red. “Heaven’s a slut? She would let guys take her picture like that?”

  “You’re being kind when you’re calling her a slut,” Jason said, shaking his head. “But please, I don’t want you or me to say too much without proof.”

  “What proof do you have?” Donnie asked.

  “Come with me back to Heaven’s house and I’m pretty sure that you’ll see someone climb into her bedroom window. If you can still love a girl who’ll engage in that kind of stuff while in a serious relationship, then please, ignore me and hate me if you want for bringing this to your attention. However, I think your reputation could be salvaged if you would leave her afterward.”

  “I…I don’t want to believe it,” Clark said to Donnie, the color now quickly draining away from his face. He looked shaken. “Would Heaven really do such a thing?”

  “I can’t believe it,” Donnie said.

  “What right do you have to say you don’t believe when you won’t even come to see it? Take a quick drive with me and I’ll show you all the proof you can handle. Once you hear Heaven’s sweet voice call out another man’s name, then you can decide what to do about her…and me.”

  Clark quickly followed him to his car, his anger seething. “If I see anything like that, she’s dead to me. Topless pictures? How can she do something like this to me? What would she hope to gain from it?”

  “Popularity? Maybe she’s just insecure—”

  “Calm down, Clark,” Donnie said, quickly catching up to him. “We haven’t even seen anything yet.”

  “I feel it,” Clark said. “It makes sense. That would explain why she’s also so hesitant. She’s embarrassed about what she’s done. I want to see the pictures,” he growled. “I want to know who’s looked at them.”

  “Clark, come on…” Donnie said.

  “Are you coming?” Jason asked, opening up the car door. “Weren’t you the one who set them up in the first place? Did you know Heaven was like this?”

  “Yeah,” Clark said. “Did you know Heaven was like this?”

  “I didn’t,” Donnie said. “In fact, since it was me who set you up with her, if Heaven is doing anything as…unsavory as this, then I’ll have your back, Clark. Her reputation will be ruined.”

  “I don’t want you two to get upset,” Jason said, starting up his car. Instead of getting in, Clark and Donnie went over to his window. “I want you to withhold judgment until you see for yourselves. Please, I don’t know what time the guy shows up, we may be waiting for quite a while.”

  “I’ll wait until morning,” Clark growled. “I want proof that Heaven is innocent, but if she isn’t…”

  “Jesus,” Donnie said, rubbing a hand through his unkempt black hair. “Do you really think it’s possible?”

  “Do you think Heaven thought that I wasn’t spending enough time with her? We’ve been so busy with setting up Beatriz and Bennett,” Clark said.

  “Damn, that would be my fault too, then,” Donnie said. “Maybe we shouldn’t have spent so much time on that project. I didn’t want your relationship with Heaven to suffer because of it, Clark.”

  “At least you’re going to find out the truth now rather than six months later,” Jason said.

  “That’s true,” Donnie said. “Still though, I can’t believe that Heaven would do all of this just because she thought she was being ignored. Heaven seems so…nice.”

  “She went to band camp,” Clark growled. “I wanted her to stay, and so did Bennett. She could have practiced her damn music here and not have been tempted.”

  “She probably would have found some other loser to take her photo,” Jason said.

  “Leo’s the one who approved,” Clark said. “He always claims to see the good in others. Couldn’t he tell that his daughter was deceiving him?”

  “Now hold on, we don’t know anything for sure yet,” Jason said. “Don, I know that we can get a little competitive with each other sometimes, but I thought this was something you needed to know about. Our family honor means a lot to me.”

  Donnie frowned as Clark opened the front door and sat down next to Jason. “I’m not going to thank you. Even if you’re telling the truth, I don’t think gratitude will be in order, because Heaven’s reputation will be ruined.”

  “If what we hear is true, Heaven was already ruined to begin with,” Clark said, keeping his eyes straight ahead.