Even though she was expecting it, Sandra was a little caught off guard when her parents started yelling at her as she walked through the door. She knew she was supposed to feel guilty for breaking the rules, but she was having trouble feeing anything the past few days.
"Where have you been?" Her mother said, throwing a dish towel on the table and putting her hands on her hips.
"It's past eleven!" Her dad yelled, pointing at the clock on the wall.
"I was hanging out at Katie's house and I lost track of time." Sandra said defensively. She wanted to tell her father that she knew how to tell the time, but refrained.
"You're grounded for a week, go to your room." Her mom said with quiet anger.
Sandra brushed past her parents. She didn't care that she was grounded. Jimmy wasn't going to be hanging out with her and Katie was going to be in Puerto Rico. She would have stayed in the house anyway. The only reason she didn't tell her parents all this is because she knew it would only add fuel to the fire.
Sandra had her war dream again. It was shorter this time. This time, though, Sandra felt anxious. She felt as if it were a sure bet that her side was going to lose. She craned her neck looking for the commander, who was was nowhere in sight.
"I don't know what to do." Sandra said aloud, trying not to cry from frustration.
"All you can do is fight." Said a faceless soldier who slowed down while running by.
It was nine p.m. on Sunday night. Jimmy sat on his shabby sofa in his shabby studio apartment. He stared at the cheap television that sat on top of the cheap rolling TV stand. Cradling his head in his hands, he took a deep breath and exhaled sharply. He picked up his Nextel beside him and scrolled through the numbers. It landing on Sandra. Jimmy stared at the phone with his finger hovering over the call button.
He wanted to talk to her, but he also wanted to give her space. Remembering his decision to give her time to cool off, he tossed the phone behind him over his shoulder. It landed on the hardwood floor and slid under his bed. He considered going to get it, but decided against it. He got up to make himself something to eat; he'd barely eaten since Friday.
As he stood at the counter on the opposite side of the room from the bed, he began to make a roast beef sandwich. He spread the mayonnaise on the bread while trying to take his mind off Sandra. After putting four slices of roast beef on the bread, he picked up the sandwich and took a bite. Just as he was about to swallow, his phone rang.
He inadvertently dropped his sandwich and sprinted toward his bed. Pushing the TV aside, he tried to hurdle over his couch, but his foot hit the back of the couch. He twisted and landed on his back, letting out a loud grunt as the wind was expelled from his lungs. The couch tipped over, landing with only an inch of space between Jimmy and the top of the couch.
His phone rang a third time. He pushed himself up and crawled the few extra feet to his bed. Reaching for his phone, he realized 'of course it's just out of reach.' He pushed the bed a few inches and snatched the phone. Without looking at the caller ID he opened the phone and hoped they hadn't hung up.
"Hello?" Jimmy answered desperately, coughing on the piece of roast beef that had become lodged in his throat.
"Hey Jimmy. It's Courtney." The voice on the phone informed him.
"Oh, hey." Jimmy responded, disappointedly.
"I'm downstairs. Buzz me up!" She demanded in a chipper voice.
Jimmy hung up his phone. He laid back on the floor for a moment, trying to adjust to the pain he was feeling. He put his hand on his face, trying to catch his breath. Noticing a tiny piece of roast beef plastered to his face with a glob of mayonnaise, he wiped it off and got up. He walked to the door, pushed the buzzer, and walked over to clean up his sandwich.
Courtney walked in and surveyed the room.
"What the hell happened in here?" She had her eyebrows raised as she noticed the floor lamp that had been tipped over, the couch that lay on its back, and the bed that stood askew from its normal position.
"I was rushing to the phone." Jimmy explained as he dropped the uneaten sandwich into the trash.
"So I'm that important, huh?" Courtney said in a flirty voice as she picked up the floor lamp.
"Yepp." Jimmy said, not wanting to tell her he was hoping she were someone different and was disappointed to hear her voice.
Jimmy picked up the couch and pushed the TV stand back its original position. Courtney sat on the couch and turned on the television with the remote. Jimmy sat beside her, wishing she were Sandra. Jimmy put on a sitcom and barely paid attention to it, even though he was staring at the television. He noticed Courtney kept inching toward him.
"I heard you and your girlfriend broke up." Courtney said, putting her hand on his knee. "It must be very hard for you."
"It's just a temporary thing." Jimmy said, slightly pulling his knee away from her hand.
Courtney sat next to Jimmy and looked at the TV. She pretended to be very focused on the show, but Jimmy knew she wasn't because her eyes were slightly glazed and she was biting her lip as if she were thinking. Jimmy ignored it and began watching the show. All of a sudden, Courtney was on top of him, kissing him.
All he could see besides her face was her black hair. Courtney took off her glasses and put then on the table beside the couch. Being in shock, Jimmy's reaction time was delayed. He pushed Courtney away and tried to push her off him. She struggled to stay on him.
"It's not like I'm looking for anything serious. I just want to be with you in any way that I can." Courtney said as she squeezed her knees to lock herself on to him.
"I'm with Sandra." Jimmy kept his hands on her shoulders, keeping her at arm's length.
"She obviously doesn't want to be with you." Courtney pulled her black hair up into a ponytail. The words stung Jimmy. He loosened his grip a little.
"She's a teenager, all teenage girls are drama queens at some point or another." Jimmy tried not to sound so unsure.
"So you admit that she's probably too young for you!" Courtney exclaimed. "Just let this happen. You don't even know if she's going to come back to you. Has she answered any of your calls?" Courtney knew the answer.
Jimmy didn't answer, but he dropped his gaze. He kept his hands on her shoulders but wasn't holding her back anymore. Courtney leaned forward and kissed him. Jimmy didn't fight it. He didn't fight it when she was grinding herself against him. He began to give in, before the television reminded him why he fought so hard in the first place.
Courtney accidentally hit the remote with her knee, changing the channel. The movie "Wicker Park" came on. Just as Jimmy put his arms around Courtney, Matthew Lillard said, "The moment you make a decision, decide on anything, along comes temptation." Jimmy realized if he really wanted to be with Sandra, he would have to deny temptation and wait as long as it took. He pushed Courtney off of him and stood up.
"I can't. I don't want to do this." Jimmy said, buttoning his shirt back up.
"That's what your mind says, but your body seems to disagree." Courtney said with a smirk as she glanced at his pants.
"Please, go." Jimmy said, pointing at the door.
"You are such a dick!" Courtney cried, her face turning red.
"I throw myself at you and you tell me I'm not good enough for you? I hope that bitch never comes back to you!" Courtney shouted as she slammed his front door.
Jimmy went and sat on the edge of his bed. He laid back with his feet on the floor. His eyes grew heavy and the next thing he knew, everything went black.
The next day, Sandra noticed that there was no Chrysler Lebaron parked on her street. She felt her heart drop a little, but kept walking. She never realized what a long walk it was to get to school until she had to do it by herself. She hugged her books to her chest as she walked and started to feel nauseous, but ignored it. As she got to the front steps of the school, she threw up. She ran to curb and kneeled down, hoping no one saw her.
That day in school it felt like everyone was staring at her and whispering as she walked by. She sat down in her Calculus class and tried to focus on her school work. Imene came running in as Sandra was waiting for the bell to ring.
"So, has anything new happened?" She sat down and stared at Sandra. She must have run up the stairs because she was out of breath.
"No. I left my phone at home and off all weekend while I was at Katie's house. Katie went to Puerto Rico for the week." Sandra said, half heartedly.
"Aw, well if you want, I'll hang out with you." Imene said, giving Sandra a small smile.
"Well I'm grounded for the week, too." Sandra hoped it didn't seem like she was avoiding Imene.
"Oh," Imene sounded disappointed. "Well, if your parents change their mind, here's my phone number." Imene wrote her number down and handed it to Sandra.
"Thanks." Sandra smiled as she put the piece of paper in her purse. "But, the bell's about to ring and I can't afford to get kicked out of class again." Sandra said, hoping Imene would get the hint.
"Okay, just make sure to call me later!" Imene said right before the bell rang.
All day Sandra tried not to think about her appointment. It was on Wednesday. Just thinking about Wednesday, the first of October, made her stomach feel like it was flipping around. Half way through class, Sandra got up and walked out.
She walked to the nurse's office. She sat outside, waiting for the nurse to call her in. When she did, the nurse beckoned her to sit in the chair next to her desk. She was tall and skinny with dirty blonde hair. She spoke with a lisp but had a very kind voice.
"So what brings you here today?" She asked, pulling out her notepad.
"I just feel really sick. I think I may throw up soon." Sandra said, trying to keep her nausea at bay.
"Mhm," the nurse said, writing it down. "And, how long have you felt this way?" She had a puzzled look on her face.
"A few weeks, I've been throwing up everyday." Sandra explained.
"Oh my!" The nurse said worriedly.
"Oh no," Sandra interrupted her, laughing at her mistake. "I know why I'm sick. I'm not here to find out what's wrong." Sandra explained with a smile.
"What is it?" She asked curiously.
"I'm pregnant." Sandra couldn't help but smile.
"I'm guessing from your reaction that this is a good thing?" The nurse asked, also smiling. "Do your parents know?"
"I guess it is, and yes they do." Sandra said, starting to realize that she really truly wanted the baby.
"So what can I do for you then?" the nurse asked, putting her pen down.
"Can I just sit outside your office until I feel better?" Sandra asked with a sweet smile.
"Of course! I'll check on you every 15 minutes to see if you need any water or anything." She led Sandra out to the hallway outside her office. "If you start to feel really sick, lay on the bench with a wet paper towel over your forehead okay?" She said as she walked back into her office.
Sandra sat there for the whole first period. A few times, she went running to the bathroom beside the nurse's office. A few minutes after the bell rang, Imene and Stacey showed up.
"Are you okay?" Stacey asked, worried.
"I just keep throwing up." Sandra said, feeling her face turning green again.
"Aw!" Stacey hugged her. "Do you need anything? I can take notes for you." She said, trying to be helpful.
"Okay, thanks." Sandra tried to smile, but felt too sick.
"I brought you some chips, someone told me it helps." Imene said, unsure of herself. She held out the bag of chips.
"It's worth a try." Sandra said, taking the bag.
"Well I have to go to class. Talk to you later!" Stacey said quickly as she got up and walked away.
Imene sat down beside her. After a few seconds, she walked into the nurse's office and asked her a question. She came out and sat back down. She pulled out a book from her backpack and started to read.
"What are you doing?" Sandra asked, confused.
"I asked if I could keep you company." Imene said without taking her eyes off the book. "Whenever you want to talk, let me know."
Sandra smiled. She loved how Imene knew she just wanted quiet company. She leaned back in the chair and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath and tried to think of anything other than her own life. She thought about how Katie was doing.
She couldn't wait to get home to read her email. It brought her spirits up to know that she'd hear from Katie. Then, she felt like her spirits were thrown right back down when she remembered she was grounded. She wasn't allowed to use the computer or the phone when she was grounded.
"Actually," Sandra turned to Imene. "There is something we can do."
