Bending Under Pressure Read online

  I’ve been ignoring Mom and Walter since our little spat earlier this week. She wants me to focus my anger on her, so I have. After a silence-filled dinner, I retreat to my room as usual. I try calling Dad for the third time this week. My shoulders sag in disappointment when he doesn’t answer. Again. I was hoping he’d answer and maybe even let me come spend the weekend with him, but I guess not.

  My phone dings with a text.

  Keelan: Still don’t want to go? It’ll be fun. Promise.

  Why does he want me to go so badly?

  Me: Maybe next time. Thanks though.

  I turn my stereo on, grab a book, and put my phone on the nightstand. Everyone can go party; I’ll enjoy my book. My phone beeps, but I ignore it, lost in my fictional reality. About halfway through, my phone beeps again, and I decide to check it. Both texts are from Keelan.

  Keelan: It’s good you didn’t come.

  Keelan: Do you like banana splits? Have you been to Elsie’s yet?

  Me: Yes and who’s Elsie?

  Keelan: Not who. Where. It’s a restaurant that serves the best banana splits. Want to go?

  Me: Now?

  Keelan: Yeah, now. I can pick you up.

  He wants to take me out for ice cream? I can’t turn him down three times in one night, and ice cream does sound good. I glance at the clock; it’s eleven p.m. Mom would never let me leave this late, even on a Friday night.

  Me: I live down the road from you. Number 953. Don’t come all the way up the driveway; stay by the road and text me when you’re here.

  I lock my door, turn my music down just a bit, and put on my shoes. Then I go to my window. Thank goodness for one-story homes. I turn the locks before easing the window open slowly. I do it at a snail’s pace, too. I’ve only snuck out once before. Mom caught me as I was sneaking back in, and I was grounded for a month.

  Keelan: I’m here.

  With that, I climb out my window.

  A minute after sending her a text, I see her jogging up the gravel driveway, her blonde hair reflecting in tonight’s bright moonlight. When I pulled in, I turned off my headlights, figuring she was sneaking out since she asked me to stay by the road. At least the driveway is long enough that they shouldn’t hear the rumbling of my ‘67 Mustang.

  She looks surprised to see me waiting next to the passenger door. She flashes me a smile as I open the door for her and she climbs in, putting on her seatbelt. She’s wearing shorts that are banned at school because of how much glorious leg they show and a fitted maroon and orange Virginia Tech t-shirt.

  “I think I need to cancel.”

  There’s a tinge of disappointment, and her lips part slightly in surprise of her lips. “Why?”

  “Virginia Tech, really?” I glance down at her shirt and see her smile when our eyes meet again.

  “Hokies all the way.”

  I make a disgusted face as I shift. “You’re lucky you’re pretty.”

  She giggles and I swear, I’m done for. Just like that. When I sneak a peek at her, she’s looking back at me expectantly.

  “What?”

  “I asked where Elsie’s is.”

  “Oh, it’s right up here. I’m surprised you haven’t seen it yet.”

  “I haven’t bothered to explore.” She says it almost as if she doesn’t want to do it either.

  “Then Elsie’s is the perfect place to start,” I tell her, parking my car in front of one of the old buildings at the town’s only stoplight.

  “So this is a restaurant, huh?” I glance at her curiously. “I’ve been wondering what it could be since there are always so many cars here.”

  I nod in understanding. The only sign is on the door, and there’s no way to see it from the road. Haley waits for me to come around and open her door, smiling much like she did when she got in the car.

  “Your momma taught you well, Keelan.”

  In my best southern twang, I reply, “Thank you, ma’am.”

  Haley laughs, shaking her head as we walk in and take a seat at the bar. While the outside might not look like much, the inside is lively and decorated in 1950s fashion. An older lady comes up to us, her white hair pulled back into a bun, her wide frame glasses sitting on her nose, and a wide smile on her red lips.

  “Keelan, it’s good to see you again, dear. Who is this pretty girl with you?”

  “Mrs. Elsie, this is Haley. She’s new in town and is on the tennis team with Jess.”

  She pats Haley’s hand, which is resting on the bar. “It’s nice to meet you, dear. What can I get you two?”

  “Keelan seems pretty insistent on banana splits.”

  “Coming right up.”

  When she’s out of earshot, Haley turns towards me. “I thought you said where, not who?”

  “I meant both. So, are you ready for school to start Monday?”

  Haley shakes her head. “Not really. Do you like it here?”

  “Yeah, I do. You probably will, too. Do you know what classes you have?”

  “Um,” she thinks about it for a second. “If you hadn’t asked, I probably could’ve told you.”

  “That happens to me sometimes, too. How long have you played tennis?”

  “Since I was seven. You’re on the football team, right?”

  “Yeah, do you like football? That might help you gain some of the points you lost for being a Hokie fan.”

  She laughs and nods. “I do. My friends and I went to all the home football games.” She sounds sad at the mention of her friends.

  “Here you go. Enjoy,” Mrs. Elsie says, placing a banana split in front of each of us.

  “Thanks,” we both say.

  We’re quiet as we take those delicious first bites. Before I can ask her how she likes it, I hear my name.

  “Mom, Dad, what are you doing here?” I ask as they take a seat next to Haley.

  “It’s our date night; you know that. We always end it by coming to Elsie’s for a banana split,” Dad says.

  “Why aren’t you at the party with Cam?” Mom asks.

  Mom raised us to be honest about our whereabouts, always reminding us that if we were to get hurt somehow, she’d need to know where we were and she wouldn’t if we’d lied. We’re usually honest about it too. “It was boring. Hales, you remember my mom, Octavia, and this is my dad, John.” Haley shoots me a look before smiling at my parents.

  “Nice to see you again.”

  “You too, Haley. We’ll let you get back to your own ice creams. Make sure you have this girl home at a decent hour, Keelan,” Mom instructs.

  “I will,” I reply anyway.

  They head to a booth and Elsie automatically takes them one banana split, which they’ll share as usual. Haley turns on the bar stool, her knees brushing my thigh. I turn as well, so one of my knees is between hers. Unfortunately, she doesn’t seem to be as aware of this as I am.

  “Why do you keep calling me Hales?”

  Her question throws me off for a moment. “You don’t like it?”

  She shrugs, thinking about it as she eats another bite. “No one’s ever called me that before and I’m a fan of Haley, you know, my name.”

  I take a bite of my split, nearly done. “So, you don’t like Hales?”

  A slow smiles lifts her lips, lips I very much want to get to know. I’m almost certain she has no clue how much she’s turning me on. First her giggle, and now her smile. “I’ll allow you to say it.” She’s giving me the privilege of using a nickname. “Let me guess, you’re a fan of the Cavaliers?” she asks, jarring me from my thoughts.

  “Of course, I’m a fan of the University of Virginia,” I answer as if it’s obvious.

  “Hmm, maybe I should be the one thinking about canceling.”

  I chuckle, allowing myself the pleasure of putting my hand on her knee, giving it a little squeeze. “Too late. You’re already here.” I grin. God, her skin is amazing. With much reluctance, I remove my hand before I start moving it up and down her leg. My parents are here, and I think it
’s a little soon for me to start groping the new girl.

  She rewards me with a smile. “Thanks, Keelan.”

  “For what?”

  “Bringing me here,” she pauses, “and buying my ice cream.” There’s a mischievous glint in her eyes, as if she was going to pay for her own ice cream and she’s forcing me to do it. “Can I ask you a question? Well, two questions actually.”

  “Sure.”

  “How did you get that car?”

  Her question surprises me. “It was my dad’s, and I’ve always loved it. He let me have it once I turned sixteen.”

  “That’s cool. My next question is, which lunch do you have?”

  “Third,” I answer automatically, wondering where she’s going with this.

  Haley seems almost shy as she says, “Me too. Could you save me a seat? I’ve been way too worried about being an outcast Monday and having to sit alone or figure out a way to skip lunch all together.”

  “Yeah, sure. Cam and Jess sit with us and I can introduce you to some of our friends.”

  Her smile is grateful. “Thanks.”

  We’ve finished our banana splits, so I pull out my wallet to leave some cash for Mrs. Elsie. I wave to my parents as we leave, sighing internally that the night is already over. As a last ditch effort to spend more time with her, I scramble to come up with an idea. “Can I show you something?”

  “Like what?”

  “Are you scared of anything related to cars?”

  She glances over, confused. “No?”

  “Can I show you something?” I repeat. “You’ll either love it or hate it, but I’m hoping you’ll love it.”

  Haley shrugs. “Sure.”

  I turn down a road, driving away from our houses and closer to my destination. After a few minutes, I’m close to the county line and coming to a stop on the road I just turned on. Haley glances at me, and this time, she looks a little worried.

  “Why did we stop?” She looks around, but she won’t see much. There are fields on both sides and there are no painted lines on the road. It’s one of the true backroads.

  “Countdown from three,” I tell her.

  “Um, okay. Three, two, one.”

  On one, I press the gas, quickly shifting gears, and smile as Haley yelps in surprise. This poor road hasn’t seen any racing in a few weeks, but hopefully, next Saturday, we’ll be out here. I know this road better than any other. I love driving on it, especially when racing, because while it’s straight, there are some hilly parts that’ll cause your stomach to drop like you’re on a rollercoaster.

  I sneak a glance at Haley to see her pressed against the seat, eyes closed, but wearing a tiny smile. God, I knew she would be just the kind of girl I’d want around. I’m coming up on the deadly curve toward the end of the road, so I start downshifting.

  “Now I know why you wanted this car,” she whispers, causing me to laugh. “That was better than a rollercoaster.”

  “It’s nothing compared to how it can be.” I take the curve at the posted speed limit, fifteen miles an hour. It’s that sharp. There’s a reason the road is named Dead Man’s Curve.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Can you keep a secret?”

  “You trust me that much already?”

  I shrug, turning onto another road to track back. “You returned my wallet, so sure. A couple other guys and I race on that road.”

  Her eyes widen. “The road is barely big enough for one car! This town has a serious issue with that.” After a moment, she adds, “God, I bet it’s an adrenaline rush.”

  “It is,” I agree. Haley doesn’t say a word as I drive the rest of the way to her house.

  “Thanks for the ice cream.”

  “You’re welcome. Maybe we can do it again?”

  She smiles, nods, and pulls on the door handle to get out. Haley closes the door gently before disappearing down the driveway and down the side of her house. I’m already looking forward to seeing her Monday.

  By the time I make it to my first class, the only empty seat is smack dab in the middle of the room in the first row. Keelan, the lucky guy, is sitting on the outer edge toward the back. I spent the rest of my weekend avoiding Mom and Walter. I called my dad yesterday, but again, he didn’t answer. For the most part, I try not to let it bother me that he’s done a complete turnaround on me, but I can’t help it sometimes.

  I jump when the bell rings, dismissing class. It’s a good thing the first day is useless for learning because I was not paying attention whatsoever, too consumed with reasons why my dad isn’t answering my calls. I jump again when I feel a hand on my back; I look up and see Keelan.

  “Oh, hey.” I stand up and grab my bag, doing my best to ignore the watchful eyes as he leads me into the hallway. The new kids always get too much attention.

  “What’s your next class? I’ll walk you.”

  Pulling my schedule from my pocket, I glance at it and answer, “Math with Mrs. Phillips.”

  “Good. Jess is in there. You can sit by her.” He studies me for a moment when we stop outside of a classroom. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah,” I lie, catching sight of Jess, who gives me a small wave. “I’ll see you later then?” I ask, glancing back at Keelan.

  “Yep.”

  “Thanks for walking me.”

  He smiles. “Any time.”

  With no other choice, I enter the classroom and take a seat next to Jess.

  “How’s your first day so far? I see you’re already cozy with Keelan.”

  I stare at her for a moment. “I’m not cozy with him. He walked me to class.”

  “And you two went to Elsie’s for ice cream.” She wiggles her eyebrows and sounds way too excited.

  “How do you know about that?”

  Jess rolls her eyes at me. “I date his brother. How do you think?”

  So, Keelan told his brother? The bell rings, cutting our conversation short. I’m glad that I seem to have friends in Keelan and Jess. I’m assuming Cameron might turn into a friend by association as well.

  When class is over, Jess shows me the way to the cafeteria.

  “Hales! Jess!”

  Jess leads me over to Keelan and Cameron who are standing in line. I’m not one to cut in line, knowing it seriously pisses people off sometimes, but no one says anything as we step in next to the guys. Cameron kisses Jess’s cheek and wraps an arm around her waist.

  “How was math?” Keelan asks.

  “It was boring. I swear, Mrs. Phillips is the most boring teacher in this school,” Jess complains. “It’s the first day and I already wanted to take a nap.”

  “I’m glad I don’t have her until next semester,” Cam says.

  “I’d rather have her first thing in the morning; she’s my last class.” Keelan frowns before turning to me. “What’s your next class?”

  “Science with Mr. Roberts,” I answer, remembering what I saw earlier.

  “Awesome. We all have that one next.”

  The line has finally moved enough for us to get our trays, cartons of milk, and food. I follow the trio to a table. Keelan quickly makes introductions to the others at the table, most of which are football players and cheerleaders, according to him. They are all nice and welcoming, which makes me relax.

  The rest of the day goes well. After school, I drive straight to the tennis courts for practice. We have our first game Wednesday and Coach Spell is letting us know our seed positions today. When he announces me as first seed, I worriedly peek at Jess. She said she was hoping to regain that position this season. She’s smiling at me, though, and it seems genuine. Thank goodness. I can’t afford to lose a friend. Jess gets the second seed, so that’s a plus.

  When I get home, I see a missed call.

  Dad!

  I sit in my car to call him back since it looks like Mom and Walter are home already.

  “Hey, Haley,” he answers.

  “Hey, Dad! How are you?” I can’t help my excitement. It’s so good to hear
from him. I’ve missed him so much.

  “Good. Sorry I missed your calls. I’ve been working a lot lately.”

  “It’s okay.”

  “I was thinking I could come down and have dinner with you tomorrow.”

  “That would be awesome. I’d love to see you.” I can’t stop smiling. Yay! I get to see Dad. “What about around seven? That will give me time to shower after practice.”

  “I’ll be there. I need to go. I’ll see you soon.”

  “Bye, love you.”

  “Love you too.” He hangs up.

  I practically skip inside. Mom and Walter are in the kitchen cooking. They look up when I walk in.

  “School must have been fun for a smile like that,” Walter comments.

  “Dad called,” I say to Mom, whose smile disappears. “He’s coming to have dinner with me.”

  “Is he? When?”

  “Tomorrow.”

  She’s skeptical, I can tell. “I wouldn’t hold your breath,” she tells me gently.

  Okay, so Dad may have canceled on me twice before, but he won’t do it again. It pisses me off that she’s automatically doubting him. Shouldn’t he be given a chance? He’s my dad! “He’ll come,” I say firmly.

  “Do you want us to save you a plate, just in case?” Walter asks carefully.

  “No,” I snap.

  “Okay, well, dinner’s ready.”

  “I’m not hungry.” I stalk to my room. Really, is there any wonder why I don’t like Walter? It’s one thing for Mom to give her opinion, but Walter needs to stay out of it. I am hungry, but I’ll wait until later to sneak into the kitchen and grab something to eat. In the meantime, I’m going to read.

  Five chapters later, my phone buzzes with a text.

  Keelan: Hey

  I smile and quickly respond.

  Me: Hey

  Keelan: So, how did you end up here?

  Me: My mom remarried and then her husband got a new job nearby. I don’t know why they chose to live here instead of there though