The Boys of Summer (12 page)

He grabbed a bottle of water, popping the top
with his teeth.

“This might sting a bit, okay, Tess? But I
need to clean it.”

My heart fluttered every time he said my
name, I liked the sound of him saying it. I had never, in all my
life of pining over Toby Morrison, heard it from his mouth before
today. It had stopped me in my tracks when I had heard it through
the open window earlier; I had suspected, but couldn’t quite
believe it to be true.

“It’s okay.” I smiled down at him and then he
tipped a slow stream of water on my grazed knee.

SON-OF-A-BITCH!!

My entire frame locked up with the flash of
pain; Toby’s eyes darted upwards to watch my face.

“Sorry.” He grimaced.

I tried my hardest to maintain my dignity as
I clenched my jaw and forced a smile.

“It’s okay.”

Toby worked methodically, gently dabbing at
the cut with cotton wool and Bettadine. I came to believe this was
how Toby approached all things in life. Not to say just because he
was ludicrously handsome that he must be a perfectionist in
everyday life. It doesn’t work like that. But everything he did was
carefully thought out. Planned. Whether it be choosing a song on
the jukebox, taking a shot at pool, or cleaning a clumsy girl’s
scraped knee, everything he did, it seemed, everything he touched,
he did with great care.

The sting ebbed as I concentrated on the
pressure of his fingers placed intimately under my knee, his
butterfly touches of dabbing on the ointment. Once satisfied, he
tore the package for the plaster and with intense concentration
slowly placed it on my knee. Oh, he was a perfectionist alright.
And he was damn good with his hands.

“Done.” He stood back to eye his
handiwork.

“Thanks, Doc!” I said. “Will I dance
again?”

“You will dance, ride and serve meals better
than ever before.”

I arched my brow and examined my knee.

“Bionic leg ointment?” I teased.

I loved to make his face change, his smile
was so transforming, it was the thing I loved about him the
most.

I held my breath when he reached to help me
down from the bed of the ute. He placed me gently onto the
ground.

“Thanks,” I managed to breathe. We stood
there a moment. I realised I was still gripping his upper arms and
quickly let go, trying not to blush deeper in the process.

‘You good?” he asked.

“Yeah, thanks!”

I pushed my hands into my back pockets. Toby
lifted the back tray with a thud, locking it in place, and moved
towards the driver’s door.

Say something, Tess, say something funny,
bring back that smile, give him something to take away and make him
remember you.

Instead, I said, “Thanks again.”

Brilliant.

He grinned, exposing all of those perfect
teeth.

“You’re welcome.” He fired his ute to life,
leaning his arm on the open window as he checked the view behind
him. He looked at me.

“When are you working next?”

I was startled by the question. I must have
sported an idiotic expression because he just stared with an amused
look on his face.

“Oh! Uh … Saturday! I work again on Saturday,
12 till 2 and then 6 till 9, depending on how busy we are, and then
again on Sunday, same hours.”

Was that too much information? It was. Shut
up, Tess. It was a simple question, you babbling idiot.

He nodded thoughtfully as if trying to take
it all in. I’d overloaded him, I knew it.

“Well, might see ya there?” He began to
slowly edge back out of the drive.

“Unless there’s a giant K shining in the
sky,” I threw back.

He let out that wonderful laugh again and
looked at me, really looked at me, and smiled that smile.

“Well, then I’ll know.”

As I stood for what felt like the longest
time, staring out into the distance where his car had disappeared,
there were some things I knew for certain.

I really wanted to hear that laugh again, and
I couldn’t wait for Saturday.

“
SHUT UP!”

This was Ellie’s usual reply to things that
she was dumbfounded by, and my afternoon (okay, so it wasn’t an
entire afternoon) spent in Toby Morrison’s ute was something to be
dumbfounded about.

“You total slut!” Another term of endearment
from Ellie.

I just smiled and stirred my iced
chocolate.

“So what did you talk about?”

Milk spilt over the rim of the tall glass as
I faltered at the inevitable question.

“Umm …”

Superheroes, guns and dirty sheets!
Superheroes, guns and dirty sheets
, my head screamed.

I shrugged. “You know … stuff.”

Ellie slumped back in her seat and folded her
arms. “You lucky biatch!”

Yes I was. I straightened, trying not to
smile like the Cheshire Cat.

“And the girlfriend?”

And there went my smile.

I knew about the girlfriend alright,
painstakingly so. Last night was my first actual exchange with her
other than brushing by her in the halls of Onslow High.

I sighed. “Yeah, he’s still with perfect
Angela.”

“We totally hate her, right?” Ellie said.

The worst thing was I didn’t hate her so much
as I envied her. The way she walked in and captivated a room, how
she completely owned it. She ordered a glass of house wine with
grace. Stood and chatted, even flirted with ease with Sean as her
designer sunnies held back her sun-bleached fringe. In fitted jeans
and killer heels she presented a cool, casual style all of her own.
What little did it matter if she had snake eyes and a matching
reptilian personality. Everybody loved her. Toby loved her.

Sensing the change in my mood, Ellie set down
her own iced chocolate after a long draw.

“Spill. I want every single detail.”

Ellie half choked on her drink when I
mentioned the first aid incident. As I waited for her to catch her
breath, she sipped more, with a frantic wave of her hand for me to
continue, hanging on every word. I could see her mind ticking over
frantically and knowing Ellie as well as I did, it was
unnerving.

I tried not to even let myself feel giddy as
I thought back on every look, every smile, every touch. He had a
girlfriend. It had meant nothing more than Toby being a nice
person. He’d only done what anyone else would have done, which kind
of took the buzz out of the moment.

“This is huge!” Ellie said, nodding.

Oh no, no, no … just as I had come to the
conclusion that it was nothing, she was going to read all sorts of
stuff into it. I watched Ellie, her mind whirring as she plotted
and schemed in front of me.

I needed an exit strategy. “So did you get a
chance to speak to Stan on Sunday night?”

I relayed his effort of sticking up for me
when Angela called me ‘bar-keep’. Her scheming eyes clouded over
with a dreamy, swoon-like quality as she melted in her chair before
my eyes.

“He’s so sweet.”

Too easy.

“He is really nice, I think Operation Stan is
a goer,” I said, adding fuel to the fire. “So the fact that Stan is
older doesn’t bother you?”

Ellie straightened. “Pfft, no! Think of all
the idiots I have dated that were the ‘appropriate age’. They
sucked.”

She was right; Ellie didn’t have any problems
landing boys, but finding a nice, respectful one was a whole other
story. Maybe she did need someone older; someone that would treat
her with respect and tame her wild ways. Then I wouldn’t have to
worry about sitting on bonnets of cars with her latest conquest’s
grotesque best friend. It would be a win-win situation.

“Why? Does it worry you?” Ellie asked.

“Age difference?”

I thought of Scott, his clumsy fondling hand
under my shirt, greedily grabbing at me. I never enjoyed any of his
touches. I usually steered them away so as not to go too far. I
wonder what he would have done if I had ever needed him, like
today? I couldn’t even imagine him being anything other than
grouchy and put out, like he had been whenever I had my period and
wouldn’t let him put his hands down my pants. He was too dense to
figure it out, but I had my period a
lot
when we were
together.

I thought back to Toby; he was a boys’ boy,
sure, he could rough house and swear like the rest of them, but I
could never imagine him being cruel. He never even seemed to get
loud or obnoxious, not even with a few beers around his mates.
Instead, he was always quiet and understated. And the guys seemed
to respect him for that. But he was twenty-two. Five years my
senior. That had worried me as recently as yesterday. But now …
although he was older and his mere presence turned my mind to mush,
I didn’t feel anything other than really safe with him. How could
that be bad?

“No,” I decided, “no, it doesn’t bother
me.”

The gurgling slurps of Ellie’s iced chocolate
were loud in the café (and embarrassing) as she finished.

“That’s settled then. Operation Stan for me,
and Operation …”

“
No
!” I cut her off.

“What?” she tilted her head innocently.

“Don’t even think about it.”

She blinked at me, like she didn’t have a
clue what I was talking about.

“What I was going to say, before I was so
rudely interrupted, was Operation Summer Fun!”

I didn’t believe a word of it. I folded my
arms and curved my brow in disbelief.

“Fine! Have it your way … Operation Dull and
Boring.” She slumped back in her seat.

“Why do we need to be Operation
anything?”

Ellie gasped in mock horror. “What are you
saying? You mean just … go with the flow?”

I shrugged “Why not?”

She smiled sardonically. “Could be fun?”

“With you in tow, I have no doubt.”

Operation “Go with Flow” had us pick up our
pays from Uncle Eric at the hotel, followed by stalking the clothes
racks at Carters. I held up a pale green summery halter that I had
had my eye on for weeks. I pressed it against me, tilting my head
in the mirror and admiring the sheer fabric. I shouldn’t buy it. I
needed the new bike chain. But it was so pretty … surely I could
have both? I checked the price tag and gulped. No, no I couldn’t
have both. My heart plummeted as I placed the halter back onto its
rack.

“What are you doing?” Ellie asked. “You have
been mooning over that for weeks!” She passed me on her way to the
changing room, her arms piled high with clothes.

“I don’t have to have it. I can get more for
my money with other things.” Other less expensive things, less
beautiful things.

We shopped in mind for the next weekend’s
shift, knowing that we didn’t have to wear our Guinness tops
anymore. Instead of the gorgeous halter, I bought a boat neck style
top that was a bit clingy for my taste, but Ellie squealed and
insisted that I
had
to wear it Saturday night. I also wanted
to buy a new Lip Smacker lip balm, and some Impulse body spray. Our
afternoon of blowing our wages actually perked me up for the
weekend to come, and I was even surprised at the disappointment of
realising it was only Monday.

I had ten bucks left over, allocated to
Operation Bike Chain, though I didn’t know if it was even nearly
enough. What do I know about bike chains? And once my parents found
out it had, in fact, taken me a mere three hours to blow my first
pay, there would be no sympathy for my cause. My bike would be
garage bound for another week until the next pay day. So I would be
pounding the pavement as I didn’t think it would be a good look to
have Ellie dink me on her handlebars. We weren’t thirteen
anymore.

When I got home I lay all my purchases out on
my bed, planning for a fashion parade. I had a thought that had me
going into the lounge room and rummaging through dad’s tape deck,
all segmented in order. I shook my head at some of his rather
disturbing choices in music but then I found what I was looking
for. I padded barefoot back to my room, popping the cassette into
my tape deck.

Don Henley started to blare out of the small
speaker and I smiled to myself. I hung out in my room for the rest
of the day, trying on different outfits, adjusting hairstyles,
experimenting with make-up, all whilst dreaming the day away. I
allowed myself this small luxury in the privacy of my own heart,
because I knew that as soon as I stepped out into the real world,
all my wants didn’t count.

To: tessmcgee

Are you ready for your mind to be fully
blown?

Something so big, so EPIC it will change your
life forever?

Sender: Adam I can jump puddles
Henderson

To: Adam I can jump puddles Henderson

You’re coming Home???? :)

Sender: tessmcgee

To: tessmcgee

What if I am?

Have you fainted? Do you need to sit
down??

I know how your life has been barren and
lonely without me.

Sender: Adam I can jump puddles
Henderson

To: Adam I can jump puddles Henderson

I cry myself to sleep every night.

WHEN?????????

Sender: tessmcgee

To: tessmcgee

Soon my pretty. Soon!

Don’t know the full details yet, but I think
they might be releasing me for a weekend for good behaviour. It’s a
small mercy. But I will take whatever I can get.

Excited much?

Sender: Adam I can jump puddles
Henderson

To: Adam I can jump puddles Henderson

I wait with bated breath.

Let me know! xox

Sender: tessmcgee

***

A strip of light streaked through the
darkness of my closed eyes. I would not let the pesky sun disturb
my slumber, so I rolled over, away from the offending beam. I had
managed to kick off my blanket during the night and the oscillation
of the fan still didn’t threaten to chill me. I remembered that the
irritatingly bubbly weatherman had promised a scorcher, and I had
fist pumped my way to the fridge to grab a Coke, thinking ‘
do
your worst weather dude
’. But as the sun lifted and the breeze
stilled, humidity was at its sticky worst and I changed my mind and
cursed the summer and all who gloried in it.