Part 24 (2/2)
”Come on. Let's get you in the car.” He wraps an arm around my waist and helps me into the car.
While he makes a k-turn, he asks, ”What was so bad you had to leave the house?”
”Nothing. It's not a big deal.”
”It's not a big deal it's silly? Or it's not a big deal you don't want to talk about it?”
”Both. Kinda.”
He nods as he keeps his eyes on the winding road. I feel silly about why I walked out, but it feels wrong not to tell him why I stormed out of my house again. ”What kind of music you like? I'm not sure what stations work up here,” Ben says, fussing with the k.n.o.bs on his radio.
”Pretty much nothing works up here.”
”I can put my CD back on...”
”I b.i.t.c.h-slapped my sister last night.”
Ben turns off the radio and takes my hand. ”Let me guess...Terri?”
”Correct.”
”Oh boy. She must have done something bad to cause you to lose your temper.”
”I'm no angel, Ben. I do get mad. I usually don't resort to violence, though.”
”So...what made you resort to it this time?”
Leaning my head against the pa.s.senger window, I close my eyes and sigh. When I open them, Ben's eyes are on me, not the road.
”Ben. The road.”
”Oops.”
I laugh and then tell him. ”She called me a cripple.”
His shoulders droop and he closes his eyes for a second, shaking his head as he opens them.
”You better keep your eyes on the road, Falco. I can't afford to lose another leg,” I joke. Kinda sorta.
”Sorry. I can't believe she called you that. What was she thinking? And why the h.e.l.l would she say that?”
”Evidently,” I say slowly, ”my sisters resent me.”
”All of them or just Terri?”
”Patti and Terri.”
”Why would they resent you?”
”Right? Ol' Peg-leg here.”
”Oh no. I did not mean it like that. I only meant...you're having a hard time. Why would they resent that?”
”They resent my parents' treatment of me. And Terri's sick of hearing all about me.”
”That sucks.”
”Yeah. This morning there was this huge fight. Terri was yelling at my mother, saying she didn't even make a big deal about her making the honors band or something at school, 'cause all she could talk about was, 'Poor Rose, she can't even dance anymore,' 'Poor Rose, she's afraid to go to school,' 'Poor Rose, blah, blah, blah.'”
”I'm sorry, Rose. What's your dad say about it?”
”Well, he doesn't help, 'cause I've always been kinda his...not really favorite, but...we have a bond. Maybe it's 'cause I have red hair like him. I don't know. But...he made them cut it out this morning.”
”Them?”
”Well, Terri got Patti going. Terri told them I slapped her and Mom didn't defend her. Instead, she asked what Terri did to get slapped.”
Ben starts cracking up. ”So what happened when you told her what your sister called you?”
”I didn't.”
He looks at me longer than a person driving should.
”The road, Ben.”
”Right.” Bringing his attention back to the two-lane highway in front of him, he asks, ”Why didn't you tell?”
”There was no need. I know she only said it because she was mad. Besides, I slapped her. She wanted to punch me, but she thought better of it. Which made me more mad, because I bet if I had two legs, she would have.”
Ben says nothing, but he does nod.
I'm not quite comfortable sitting in silence yet with Ben, but I'm also uncomfortable sharing more of my drama, so I think of the first thing that comes to mind. ”So did you really break up with your high school sweetheart because of baseball?”
He shrugs. ”She hated how much time it took away from her. I mean, I was a teenage boy. I enjoyed the time I spent with her, but...she wasn't worth giving up my dream, so...”
”You dumped her.”
”Actually, no. She dumped me. I was willing to stay in the relations.h.i.+p. I liked her. A lot. But she gave me an ultimatum, and I couldn't give her what she wanted.”
”So you haven't had a girlfriend since?”
”Not really. I've had dates. I go out with girls here and there, but until...” He takes his eyes off the road again to look at me, ”Well, until you, I haven't really been too interested.”
Okay. I'm not blus.h.i.+ng too much right now. Hopefully he can't tell. I gaze out my window until I feel the warmth in my cheeks dissipate.
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