As Time Goes By (The Californians 2) (2 page)

But even though Bobbie's family were hard workers and she was a nice girl, none of the boys in the Taylor yard had the desire to ask her to the outing at the lagoon. The six talked a while longer, and though most of them were overwhelmed with shame, they agreed to draw straws. The fact that this went on in the barn, out of sight from Bill and May Taylor, said much.

Jeff's brother Gilbert wandered into the barn, but he observed from a distance and was not one to talk about anything he had seen or heard.

The youngest boy of the group, Tom Freemont, was elected to hold the straws. Within seconds Jeff stood

with the long straw in this hand, trying to control the fury massing inside him.

"Well, that was easy enough," Richard smiled with cruel contentment. "Since we both wanted to ask the same girl, this makes it quite simple."

Jeff forced a smile onto his face. "That settles it all right."

The group dispersed a few minutes later, most of the boys thinking what a good sport Jeff was. Jeff stayed in the barn for a long time trying to calm down. Gil, who had seen the others off and gotten three more cookies, came back into the barn. He flopped into a mound of hay and spoke.

"You should have told Richard to shut up."

"'I don't need
you
to tell me what I should have said!"

"'You better hope Dad never finds out about those straws."

"Well, he's not going to find out from
me!"
The full import of that statement made Gil come straight up out of the straw. "I never snitch, Jeff!" Gilbert's eyes flashed angry fire and Jeff looked down at his shoes. He knew he should apologize. He wanted to, but Gil stormed out and Jeff was left alone.

23
Two

18

'1Did all the boys leave?" May asked Jeff as soon as he

walked in the kitchen.

"They're gone."

"Did they like the idea?"

"Yeah."

May was bent over a pot on the stove and missed the stormcloud on her son's face.

"How did you work it out? Are you asking Sylvia?" "No, Richard is asking Sylvia. I'm asking Bobbie Brad ford." This announcement was enough to spin May around to face her son.

"Why, Jeffrey!" May exclaimed in delight. "That's wonderful! Bobbie is the sweetest girl on earth." May went back to her cooking with a huge smile on her face.

'Maybe Jeff is growing up after all,' she thought to herself. 'Seventeen is such a
self-absorbed
age. It's nice to see him thinking of someone besides himself for a change.'

May was oblivious to the turmoil going on within her young son. Jeff sat a moment longer deciding what to do. If he went up to his room on a hot Sunday afternoon, his

As Time Goes By
19

mother would think he was ill. He couldn't go see Rigg because Rigg could read him like a book and would know instantly that something was wrong. If he went to find Gil, and Gil was still mad at him, his parents would want to know what they were quarreling about. Finally, with a small disgruntled sigh, Jeff went into the living room to hide behind a book.

"I can never beat you in checkers, Bobbie," Angie Stallsworth complained as Bobble jumped Angie's last two checkers and still had four more of her own on the board.

"That's all right, Angie, you can beat me in spelling any day of the week."

Best friends, the girls were sitting at the Bradford kitchen table on Monday afternoon. School had only been out a month and they were already restless for something to do. Angie had come over wanting Bobbie to go for a walk along the creek, but Bobbie's mother was working and she had strict orders to stay home with her younger brother Troy.

"What'll we do now?" Angie asked.

"Wel-l-l-l," Bobbie drew out the word as she rose silently from the table. "We could head in to town and rob the bank. Gottcha!" Bobbie flung the half-closed door wide open to capture her brother, who was crouched there listening to the girls' conversation.

"Troy Bradford, what were you doing back there?" Bobbie had her brother by the collar and stood looking down at him like an enraged warrior. She let go when she saw how red his face was. He scowled at her for embarrassing him. They apologized to each other and Bobbie spoke quietly.

24
Time Goes By
21

"Why don't you get a cookie from the tin?" "Thanks." Troy retrieved his cookie and glanced at Angie before going outside. Bobbie felt sorry for him. She knew he had a crush on Angie. 'But then who wouldn't?' Bobbie thought with a twinge of envy.

Angie was adorable with her dark curly hair and big dark eyes. She had a round little chin and a bright smile. And she was developing a figure--something Roberta Jean Bradford was sure would never happen in her own body.

Her mother kept reminding her that she was not yet 15, but Bobbie knew girls who were younger and who had more of a figure than she did. So the words were no comfort.

"Want to bake cookies?" Bobbie suggested. "It's too hot." 'q guess it is."

"I never thought I'd ever say this, but I miss school."

"Me too." Bobbie agreed. "I miss seeing all the other kids."

"All the
other kids?" Angie questioned her. "Or just one in particular?"

"Did you see that he was sitting with Sylvia on Sunday?"

"'Yeah," Angie
said with disgust. "Some guys. I mean, so what if she does have a great face and figure and gets good marks in school? What else has she got?"

Bobbie dissolved into giggles at the comical look on Angie's face. But both girls sobered a moment later; they knew what the other girl didn't have: Sylvia Weber was not a nice person. On more than one occasion Angie or Bobbie had been at the receiving end of her vicious tongue.

"I thought Jeff liked Sylvia," Bobbie commented suddenly.

"I thought so too. At least Jeff and Sylvia deserve each other. He's sorta stuck on himself"

"I've
noticed." Bobble agreed quietly. She didn't like to criticize people, and in fact she went out of her way to say nice things about even the hardest to redeem. "But Jeff is one of the best-looking guys in school."

"That's true. But never forget Bob---all men are fickle." The girls dissolved once again into shrieks of laughter because Angle herself was in love with a new boy every week.

The afternoon went by in a lazy fashion and the gifts ended up playing a game with Troy and having a great time. They parted company just before supper and made plans to meet downtown the next day to browse in the store windows. But Angie was back at the Bradfords' an hour or so before bedtime.

"Hello, Mr. Bradford," Angie said breathlessly when Bobbie's father opened the door. "I need to see Bobbie; can she come out for a minute?"

Bobbie appeared at her father's elbow and Angie nearly dragged her from the house.

"What is the matter with you, Ang?" Bobbie laughed as she was pulled along. Angie stopped under the tree in the yard.

"The church is having an outing at the lagoon and Deacon Briggs just asked me!"

The girls stared at each other for a full five seconds before they screamed in unison and threw their arms around each other.

"I
think he's liked you for a long time."

"You do?" Angie's face flushed with pleasure.

25
As Time Goes By 23

"Tell me everything," Bobbie pleaded, and her friend was more than willing to comply.

"'We
were just finishing supper when he knocked on the door and asked for me. My father made him sit for a few minutes in the parlor and I
know
he was embar rassed. But anyway, we sat on our front porch and he asked if I'd heard there was going to be a boat outing for the whole church."

"The whole church?" Bobbie cut in.

"Yeah, a week from Sunday. But the young people are going early to have a picnic and then boating when everyone arrives."

"Oh, Angie," Bobbie said. "I'm so happy for you. Deacon is one of the nicest boys at church."

"I think so too. He's not stuck on himself, either." The girls chattered until it was nearly dark and Angie had to go or face trouble at home. Bobbie went back into the house in a dreamy state. Angie's first date .... The next best thing to having it happen to
you
was having it happen to your best friend.., and with Deacon, too, who was so tall and quiet.

Bobbie took great delight in telling her brother about the boat outing, since he usually knew things ahead of her. But when she climbed into bed a short while later her mood wasn't quite so buoyant.

She carefully repeated her nighttime ritual of placing her glasses on the corner of her nightstand. That way she knew where they were even if she was half-asleep. When Bobbie was ten she had once left them on the plant stand in the hall. The glasses afforded her depth perception which she had sorely missed that morning, and she ended up failing all the way down the stairs.

Bobbie rubbed her nose where the spectacles had sat.

It was a relief to remove them, since they had a tendency to pinch.

'I wonder if someone will ask me on a date when I'm 15,' Bobbie wondered as sleep began to crowd in upon her. She fell into slumber visualizing the clothes in Angie's closet so she could tell her tomorrow what she should wear on her date.

26

The boat outing was only four days away when Jeff rode into the Bradfords' yard. They had an old house that they had painted and kept up. The swing that hung from the tree in the yard was just a piece of wood with a rope knotted in the middle.

Troy moved lazily on that swing, pushing himself in circles with one bare toe. As though embarrassed at being caught on the swing at his age, he jumped down the moment he saw Jeff.

"Hi, Troy. Is Bobbie around?"

"In the kitchen."

Jeff tied the horse's reins to a tree limb and moved toward the house in his long-legged stride. His knock on the door went unanswered, and for an instant he enter tained the idea of leaving without seeing Bobble.

"Just go in," Troy called from where he had sat down under the tree. Jeff glanced at the younger boy, hesitated, and opened the door. He found himself in the living room.

"Bobbie." His voice was hesitant and soft.

As Time Goes By 25

"'Bobbie.'"
Louder this time. Jeff heard someone move in the next room, and then Bobbie came out drying her hands on a towel.

"'Well,
hello, Jeff, how are you?" Bobbie greeted him with natural ease, smiling the smile that came so easily for her.

"I'm fine, thank you." Jeff sounded too formal, even to his own ears.

"My folks aren't here right now, but I can give them a message if you'd like." It never once occurred to Bobbie that Jeff was there to see her. She also knew that Troy was in the yard, and that if Jeff had wanted him he would never have come in the house. Her parents were the only ones left.

"I'm not here to see your folks."

"Oh." Bobbie took a moment to absorb this.
"'Why
don't you come in to the kitchen? I've got cookies ready to come out of the oven." Bobbie turned and walked away, taking for granted that Jeff would follow.

Jeff took a chair at the kitchen table and glanced around the Bradfords' kitchen. It was spacious and sparkling clean, but Jeff didn't really notice amid his reluctance to be there. A moment later Bobbie set a hot pan of cookies on the table.

"Help yourself, Jeff. I'll get you something to drink." Jeff thought the cookies might take his mind off the inevitable, so he picked one up and bit into it. It was delicious.

'I hope you like cider," Bobbie said as she set a cup before her guest and took a seat.

A moment passed before Jeff saw that Bobbie was waiting peacefully for him to state his business. He said the first thing that came to mind.

27
As Time Goes By
27

"These cookies are good." He sounded so surprised that Bobbie smiled.

"Thank you. Have as many as you like." "Thanks." Jeff ate a few more.

Bobbie continued to wait quietly, but began to feel distinctly uncomfortable. She didn't really know Jeff Taylor and couldn't think for the life of her why he would come to see her. He suddenly cleared his throat and spoke.

"I suppose you've heard about the outing at the la goon."

"Yes, I heard."

"Well, I came by today to ask you if you'd like to go with me."

Jeff watched the eyes behind those glasses blink at him even as he prayed she'd say no. It wasn't that he found her repulsive, because Deacon was right, she was very nice. But he was sure that if Sylvia saw him with Bobbie he would never hear the end of it--not to mention the fact that he didn't want to do anything to ruin the fragile thread upon which their relationship hung.