Phone Calls From a Rock Star (25 page)

We let go of each other and all started
talking at once. Annie laughed and pushed me to my bed. She yanked
Cammy down next to her on the other one. “Tell us what
happened.”

I took a deep breath and explained to them
about the parties and Thanksgiving break when I spent the night at
Lance’s. I told them about the hotel room and how he broke up with
me because I wouldn’t sleep with him.

“
Oh, Bella,” Cammy cried.
“I’m so sorry.”

I stood so I could pace. “I screwed a lot of
things up, I know. I’ve been paying for it, let me tell you, but I
want to fix things with us. That’s so very important.”

“
We’ll be all right,” Annie
promised. “We’ll get there.”

“
Of course we will,” Cammy
agreed. “Now tell us how you and Jake hooked up!”

I sank back to my bed with a goofy sort of
smile plastered to my face. I explained how lonely I was during
Christmas break and about Krysti’s phone call. I told them how I
drove and drove, ending up on the hill and finally decided to go to
Jake. I blushed when I spoke about how he held me and let me cry. I
ended my story with how I met the others and my New Year’s Eve
kiss.

Annie’s smile was wider than the Grand
Canyon. “Didn’t I tell you he wanted you?”

I cracked a grin. “Maybe you were right.” My
smile slipped as I told them about all the time I’d spent with him
and what happened tonight.

“
And it’s frustrating, even
though I know he’s right. So I have to wait three weeks until I get
to see him again. And I don’t know how I’ll get through it. I mean,
it’s awful enough trying to sleep at night because I miss him being
here.” I exhaled and slumped my shoulders. Annie and Cammy
exchanged a glance. “What?”

“
You got it bad,” Annie
teased.

“
Got what bad?” I asked,
totally confused.

“
Think about it,” Cammy
said. “You two were good friends for a while. When you finally got
it together, the sparks were really flying. You can’t stand to be
away from him. You think about him all the time, and you totally
miss him.”

My jaw fell to the floor as I stared at
their smug faces. Oxygen fled my body and my hands flew to my
throat. My heart beat tripled as my eyes felt as though they’d jump
out of the sockets.

“
I love him, don’t
I?”

“
Sounds like it,” Annie
said.

Panic seized me. “But it’s too soon,
right?”

“
I hate to bring this up,
but didn’t you think you were in love with Lance after a short
period of time?” Annie asked.

I waved her away. “That wasn’t real. Jake
is.” I got up to pace in front of them. “What do I do?”

“
Sit back and enjoy it,”
Cammy suggested.

“
But shouldn’t I tell
him?”

Annie laughed and hugged me. “Our sweet
Bella is back!”

I edged back and tapped my foot. “You didn’t
answer my question!”

“
Bella,” Annie began,
placing her hands on my shoulders. “When you’re ready and you think
the time is right, you’ll tell him.”

Just wonderful. That meant I’d blurt it out
at the most inappropriate moment.

***

School, for the most part, was better that
week. People still whispered behind their hands when I walked past
but no one harassed me like they had those two horrible weeks I’d
endured on my own. And now I had Annie and Cammy by my side.

A few people approached me and asked me
questions about Jake and the others. I tried to be as polite as
possible but couldn’t bring myself to be friendly. These were the
same people who’d shunned me and laughed when I tripped and joined
in on the insults. I didn’t think I owed them anything.

Lance and his group treated me coldly—like I
didn’t exist. That was perfectly fine with me as I wanted nothing
more to do with them. The twins still smirked and whispered a
little too loudly what a loser I was, but I didn’t care. The only
thing I felt that made me a loser was the desperate way I’d wanted
to fit in—the way I wanted to belong to their little clique.

Play practice continued, and things were
coming along swimmingly. The sets were nearly constructed, costumes
were sewn, and everyone was learning their lines. I had mine down
already. When you’re a social outcast, you do whatever it takes to
make time go by faster.

Jake and I talked just about every night.
When we didn’t speak on the phone, we’d email or send text
messages. I was desperate to show him that we could make this work
even though we were separated. And each time I spoke to him on the
phone, my heart would beat so erratically, I just knew he could
hear it on his end. I was smitten—totally head over heels. Problem
was, did he feel the same? I knew he cared and really liked me, and
that was enough for now. I didn’t want to screw things up and scare
him away.

The college tour was
winding down, and we had a four day weekend a week after that. Jake
asked me to spend that weekend with him. He wanted me to meet his
family, and that sent a shiver of panic up my spine. I did want to
be with him, and I also wanted to meet his family, but I was
nervous all the same. Would they like me? Would they approve? I was
hardly a movie star, like Monique. I knew Greta, Jake’s sister, was
the same age as me. I imagined her being far more sophisticated
than I, but I
couldn’t
imagine her as a snob. She was Jake’s sister, after
all.

I discussed my extended weekend plans with
my mother. I knew she wouldn’t mind, seeing as she was sort of a
free spirit. But she surprised me when she insisted that I bring
Jake home that Thursday night so she and my dad could meet him.
That was terrifying. I had to screw up my courage to ask Jake but
when I did, he agreed.

Valentine’s Day was fast approaching which
set me off into another fit of panic. I had no idea what to get
him. I’d never had a real boyfriend before on this pesky,
over-rated, commercial holiday. Well, except in third grade when
Tommy Carrol gave me a homemade valentine and a lizard from his
brother’s collection. Talk about true love. I wonder why we ever
broke up.

“
We’ll go shopping this
weekend,” Cammy reassured me. Although she didn’t have a steady
boyfriend, she still had plenty of admirers and lots of
ideas.

Annie had a pile of loot for Zach and
smacked my hand every time I tried to paw through it. All I wanted
to do was see if Jake would like any of it so I could run out and
buy the same thing.

“
Be original,” Annie
chastised.

So we hit the mall in Portfield exactly one
week before V-Day. We nicknamed Valentine’s Day V-Day because the
girls were tired of me calling it VD. I thought it was quite clever
myself, because I heard some of the girls at school carrying on
about their V-Day plans—blushing in my stall in the bathroom—and I
was certain they might contract an STD. Annie and Cammy told me
that was disgusting. It was, I agreed, but it was also funny. They
have no sense of humor.

We walked around the mall for an hour, me
growing more and more frustrated. Annie spotted a lingerie store
and dragged me inside kicking and screaming. My face was scorching,
and I prayed no one from school would see me.

Racks and racks of bras, panties and
nighties with red and pink hearts lined the front of the store. I
gawked at them, wondering who would want to wear such things.

“
This is hilarious,” Annie
giggled. I turned to find her standing near a V-Day display. I
peeked over her shoulder and gasped.

“
What is that stuff?” I
whispered, glancing left and right.

“
It’s hot oil massage,” she
said with a shrug. “You warm it in your hands and rub it on your
lover’s back. It’s supposed to be relaxing.”

“
Is that stuff even legal?”
I demanded, eyes so wide they dried out in a second.

Cammy wandered over and took the bottle from
Annie’s hands. “Oh, my parents have some of this stuff. I saw it in
their bathroom.

“
Ew. Thanks for that,” I
muttered in disgust and hurried away. I didn’t want to get caught
looking at stuff like that. And I wasn’t going to let Annie even
attempt to talk me into buying it, either.

“
Jake would think it’s
funny,” Annie called out to me.

“
No,
you
would think it’s funny how
embarrassed I would be,” I said, eyes narrowed, daring her to
challenge me. She shrugged and set it back on the shelf.

“
Oh how adorable!” I heard
Cammy exclaim from somewhere in the store. My heart pounded as I
closed my eyes and groaned. What now?

I pushed through the racks and found her
standing near a bin of stuffed bears. She held a fluffy white one
to her chest. She smiled at me and held it up for my inspection. It
was dressed in a t-shirt, holding a guitar and had a red, white and
blue bandana on its head, just like Jake wore in one of his
videos.

I grabbed it skeptically and frowned.
“There’s nothing…you know…embarrassing on this thing, is
there?”

“
No,” Cammy said as she
took it from me. She pointed at the t-shirt. “Did you read it?
Isn’t it adorable?”

The black shirt had big red letters that
spelled out ‘You Rock My World.’ It was very cheesy, to say the
least, but also strangely perfect. I had to buy it for him. It
would give Ronnie something to tease him about.

“
I found something else,”
Annie said with a mischievous glint in her eyes. She held up a
slinky red nightie with spaghetti straps. “I bet Jake would love
this.”

I gaped like a fish, struggling for breath,
face turning the same shade as the nightie. “That would never fit
him!” I narrowed my eyes suspiciously. “Do you know something about
Jake that you’re not telling me?”

“
No,” Annie laughed. “It’s
not for
him
to
wear, you idiot, it’s for
you
to wear for him.”

My mouth formed a perfect O as I gawked at
the offending thing. “I…oh no…Annie! I can’t wear that! I…we’ve
never…” I stuttered. I tried to snatch it from her hands but she
moved it out of my reach.

“
If you don’t buy it, I
will, and I’ll send it to him.”

I knew she’d do it. I knew she’d have no
qualms whatsoever. She had his cell number, and all she had to do
was call and ask him where to send it.

With a sigh, I yanked it out of her hands.
“Fine, I’ll buy the stupid thing.”

I hid it carefully and hurried to the
counter before Annie could find something else embarrassing for me
to buy. I paid with cash, even though I did have a credit card. My
parents kept track of my statements and I definitely didn’t want a
charge from this place on the bill.

We finished shopping, grabbed some junk food
and headed back to school where we vegged in our room. Annie had
moved back in, though we sort of rotated so we all stayed in the
same room. I wanted to call Jake, but a glance at the clock told me
that he was on stage and a voice message just wasn’t enough for me
tonight.

I didn’t know how long I’d been dozing when
my cell rang. I squinted at the clock; it was close to one in the
morning, and answered the call.

“
Hello?”

“
Hey, angel, did I wake
you?” Jake asked.

A smile flew to my face and a soft sigh
escaped my lips. “Hi, Jake. No, you didn’t wake me.” I yawned and
he chuckled. “Where are you?”

“
Texas. Our manager booked
another lame after party, and I’m trying to sneak out so I can go
back to my room.” I could hear voices behind him including a
woman’s loud laughter.

“
Make sure those women know
you’re taken,” I ordered in a firm, sleepy tone.

“
Don’t worry, Iz,” Jake
laughed. “I’ll fight them off.” I snorted and his tone softened. “I
mean it, angel, don’t worry. You’re the only one I
want.”

“
Okay,” I squeaked, my
heart flipping over and over.

“
Everything still going
well?” he asked.

“
Yeah. We went shopping
today. It was interesting.”

“
I bet,” he laughed. “I’m
glad things are going good with you three again. It makes me feel a
lot better knowing you’re not alone.”

“
Me, too,” I agreed as I
yawned again. Loudly.

“
Get some sleep. I’ll call
you tomorrow from the bus. We’re hitting the road again in the
morning. Only a couple more shows, and I’ll be back in
Chicago.”

“
Will do. Be
safe.”

“
Night, angel.”

I sighed happily as I ended the call.

“
You’re so smitten,” Annie
mumbled in the dark.

“
I know.” I closed my eyes,
Jake in my head and a smile on my face.

***

The next week at school was nothing short of
pure torture. Everywhere I went, girls were going on and on about
what they hoped their boyfriends, crushes, secret admirers or
stalkers were going to get them. They chattered excitedly about
romantic dinners and bouquets of flowers. It was enough to gag
me.

I’d mailed the bear and a card I’d gotten
for Jake to an address outside of Chicago. I wasn’t sure if the
address he gave me belonged to his dad or to one of the guys. I
didn’t much care as long as Jake was the one who opened it and not
someone else. I didn’t send him the nightie, of course, but it was
still a little embarrassing.