1980: You Shook Me All Night Long (Love in the 80s #1) (8 page)

I
closed my door
, and locked it thanks to my inherited paranoia and recently lost need to rebel against it. A tiny piece of torn out paper caught my eye. The edges on the left were shredded where the sheet had been torn from a spiral notebook.

I unfolded it and read:

Holy swoony moment.
I clutched the letter to my chest, grinning like a fool. I’d dated a few boys in high school, but they were only after one thing. Luke was different, not that he didn’t have carnal needs. Who didn’t? But he was making a real effort to get to know me.

I walked across the room and grabbed the cassette looking at the label. In Luke’s handwriting was scrawled “Our song.”

Was this guy for real?

I popped the tape into my boom box and listened. There was a pause and then a familiar guitar riff. Drums. They mixed together until Brian Johnson joined in, making it perfect. Our song?
You Shook Me All Night Long
by AC/DC. Hell. Yes.

My heart felt like it could fly away. And I knew one girl who would be waiting on Mr. Davis tomorrow evening. I liked this feeling, this wonderful soaring feeling, butterflies taking flight in the stomach and the incessant need to giggle feeling. It felt wonderful. And you know what, maybe sometime, my heart would get broken. Maybe I’d cry and curse the male gender and eat ice cream and poke needles into a voodoo doll after it happened. Maybe Luke wasn’t “the one,” but one of “the ones” that led to him. Why shouldn’t I experience love and like and everything in between? Because my mom couldn’t stick, didn’t mean everyone would run. It didn’t mean I would either. I could do this. At least, with Luke I thought I could give it a try. Life was about the journey. I was ready to take this step with Luke. I was ready to give my mama a big middle finger and run to my man!

Then panic set in. I needed something to wear! When the song ended, I rewound the tape and played it again. Hanger after hanger. Nothing. I brought sweaters. It was fall, for goodness sakes. Everyone knew it was cold in the Pacific Northwest. So, sweaters were all I had. No, I had a new friend. Maybe she could loan me something.

Skidding to the door in sock feet, I ran two doors down and pounded. Brittany answered with a shocked smile. “Hey,” I said, breathless. “So, I was wondering if you could help me.”

“Sure! Shakespeare?”

“Not exactly. Though, I do need to snag Romeo.”

Her eyes lit up. “Come in. Do tell.”

We sat up all night talking about the crazy circumstances that surrounded my relationship with Luke. She loved the tape and letter.

“He wants you, but you have to make sure you both are a good match.”

“Um-hum,” I said, pinching my bottom lip between my thumb and forefinger. We stared at the clothes in her closet. “Hey, where’s your roommate?”

I lifted an off-the-shoulder sweater out. Brittany scrunched her nose and shook her head.

“Oh,” she waved me off. “She spends the weekends with her boyfriend. She won’t be back until Monday morning. Okay! You need something hot but that says you are serious about giving this a try, right?”

“Right,” I nodded, my brows knitted together.

She held up a brown tank top with polka-dots all over it. I shook my head. I hated polka dots. Ick.

“What about this?” she said, lifting a shirt up for me to see. It was a shredded AC/DC shirt.

“Are you kidding me? It’s perfect!” We hugged and jumped up and down.

“Okay,” Brittany said, holding her hands out. “Jeans, this shirt and like, how are you doing your hair?”

“Like this?”

She shook her head. “Let me help you tomorrow.”

“Are you sure? I hate to bother you.”

She giggled. “It’s no bother, Tina. I like hanging out with you and this is an epic love story you and Luke are writing. Better than the English Literature I love to read.”

“Ugh. Bane of my existence.”

Brittany hugged me and told me she’d help me with the dead writers and their hidden meanings while she did my hair tomorrow. It was a girl date before my real date with Luke.

I hugged her t-shirt to my chest as I walked to my room. It was late and I was wired. Eyes wide, I stared at my ceiling with visions of Luke naked dancing in my head.

I
feel
asleep before dawn and slept until noon when my phone rang.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Tina.”

“How are you, Dad?”

He sniffed. “Got a cold, but I’m okay. I didn’t get to talk to you much this week.”

“Yeah,” I said, opening the blinds on my window. “I’ve been struggling with English Lit so I’ve been studying with a group. They meet in the library certain evenings.”

“You need money or anything?” he asked.

“I’m good for now. But thanks.”

“Alright. I was just making sure you were alive and hadn’t gotten into any trouble. Call me once in a while so I know you’re okay.”

“I will, Dad. I promise.”

“Alright.” Click. That was apparently the end of our conversation. Mental note: Call Dad. He’s lonely.

Two barely-audible knocks came at my door. “Coming!”

I ran to it and twisted the lock, easing it open. “Hey! I thought you could use some lunch,” Brittany said, holding up two bags of greasy goodness and matching cold beverages. Liquid yum.

“Oh, thank God.” I took the drinks from her and we giggled through our lunch. She felt like a real friend. And I felt blessed.

After we’d eaten, she ordered me to shower. I looked like a wet poodle when I walked out of the shower. But, after I had her badass shirt on overtop my hot pink tank top, tight acid-washed jeans and cross necklace, I felt better.

Brittany squealed when she saw me, clapping her hands happily. She had every hair product, comb and brush the two of us owned spread over my desk and the chair pulled out. “Sit. Let’s do your hair and makeup!”

It was only two o’clock, but what the hell. I sat down and let her work her magic. And she did. I had hair that was teased but soft and touchable. Imagining Luke’s hands running through it was too much.

She applied purple shadow, not too dark, but bold enough to be seen. Raspberry lipstick was next and a helluva lot of blush. I looked hot.

I just hoped Luke would appreciate the effort.

“What do you think?” Brittany asked.

I smiled and hugged her neck. “Thank you. It’s perfect.” She nodded once and gathered her things into a bag. “Are you leaving?”

“I guess, unless you want me to hang out until it’s time!”

“I’d love that.”

“EEEEP! I’m so glad to have a friend,” she said excitedly.

“Me too. You have no idea.”

I
stepped
out of the shower and wrapped a towel around my waist. Swiping the fogged up mirror so I could see, I tried to give myself a pep talk.

Would she show? Sure she would. The letter and song. Our song. She’d love it. Right? I sure as hell hoped so. I ran a towel over my dripping hair. I should get a haircut.

“What time is it?”

Joey responded after a pause, “Five o’clock, loser. Quit worrying.”

“Whatever,” I muttered. “I’m not a loser. He’s a loser.” Then I yelled, “You’re the loser!”

“Lame.”

I looked at my reflection. Was I lame? “I’m not lame.” Am I? Does Tina think I’m lame, or too old or weird? Maybe shoving a tape under her door was too stalker-ish. Damn it. I sound like a chick.

She might think I’m lame. She might think I’m too old or that she’s too busy for a relationship, but I was going to be in front of her dorm at seven. I just had to shave and dress.

“Buy her flowers. Girls love mushy shit like that,” Joey yelled as he walked down the hallway.

Flowers. Flowers were nice. It was a solid idea. “What kind?”

“Roses, asshole. Don’t be a chump! And take her somewhere nice, not fast food or some shit.”

“What if she likes fast food?”

He banged on the door. “What’d I say?”

“You sound like Dad!”

“Screw you, Luke!”

T
he clerk
at the florist checked me out. That was a good sign. I didn’t have much to wear, so it was my loose-fitting jeans, white t-shirt tight across the chest and arms. My hair was gelled and looked fly.

The girl, probably Tina and Joey’s age, blushed as she rang up a dozen red roses. “She’ll like them,” she said, almost inaudibly. “They’re lovely.”

I smiled. “Thanks for helping me choose. I didn’t know what to buy.” At all. But the deep red roses were flawless, long-stemmed and perfect.

The girl wrapped them nicely and added a red ribbon around the bunch. “Thank you.”

She blushed again. “Come back anytime.”

I nodded and took the bunch of flowers from her. Six thirty on the dot. I had thirty minutes to drive three blocks and wait for Tina’s decision. Why did time seem to slow down when you wanted it to speed up? Time was a bastard. That’s why.

And why did every red light between me and her stop me? Why did pedestrians jog across the road in front of my car when I had a green? Why was campus swarming with people, the roads were full of bodies. Fuck!

Six fifty-two. I was a parking lot away.

I decided to walk. It looked like some sort of protest or parade in front of her dorm. I pulled into the only free space I saw and threw the car in park. Grabbing the flowers, I jogged across the lot, shoving through the crowd until I found the sidewalk that led to Tina.

Panting, I was a mess, searching through the faces and bodies around me. Was she already here? Had I missed her? What if our clocks were set differently?

W
hat is going on outside
?
I peeked through my blinds. Students were everywhere.

Brittany burst through my door. “The animal rights activists are outside. There’s a huge crowd gathering. Some of them are naked and painted in animal prints.”

“How does that help animals?”

“It gets attention for their cause. But you need to go. It’ll be harder to find him in that mess.”

Shit
. I never thought of that. “You have five minutes and you’ll need every one of them.” I hugged and thanked her again. “Go. Get your man!”

“I will!”

Into the fray, I went.

“Save the Cheetahs,” someone yelled into my ear, holding a picket sign.

“Dude, back up off me. I haven’t hurt any cheetahs. Ever.” He gave me an approving nod and went to shout at the next unsuspecting passer-by.

“Luke!” I yelled, cupping my hands around my mouth.

“Tina?” A deep voice in a crowd of crazy.

“Luke!”

“I’m coming!”

Searching the crowd on my tip-toes, I looked for him. Heads of blonde, brown, black and red blocked my view.

But from the insanity, came a familiar shade of dark brown, and then his beautiful gray eyes locked on mine. He shoved his way through the protesters, ignoring the bull horns and chants. I ran toward him, pushing my way to him.

And when I found him, I pushed my lips to his, hard. His arms lifted my thighs around his middle and we only parted to laugh for a second before diving back in. “God I missed you,” he said, setting me down. “These are for you.” He cleared his throat. “They looked nice a few minutes ago.”

He handed me a dozen red roses wrapped in wrinkled cellophane paper. My heart melted into a gooey puddle. “Thank you so much. No one’s ever brought me flowers before.”

“I hope to have a lot more of your firsts. Ready for dinner?” He threaded his fingers through mine.

“Absolutely. What’s on the menu?” I waggled my eyebrows at him.

“Italian, but I’m definitely curious about dessert.”

Oh, me too.

We shoved through the crowd and made it to his car before attacking each other again. His fingers brushed the skin on my stomach. “Love your shirt,” he growled against my ear, tugging the lobe.

“Love our song,” I breathed.

“Damn, baby. Keep making those noises and we won’t make it to the restaurant.”

I giggled. “I don’t mind so much. Food is overrated.”

“Nah. I want to do this right.”

I smiled and kissed his soft, strong lips. “Fine. Feed me then fuck me.”

His pained groan filled the air as I pulled away from him.