“I think it popped when Marla made an appearance.”
“Well, we need to get back to it and just relax for the last few days we’re here.”
“That’s not possible with everything that’s happened. Plus, I know you’re not going to relax, so why should I?”
He screwed up his lips.
“Touché. But,” he grinned, “I have a show tonight. Don’t you want me to be calm and ready for it?”
“Blackmail,” I said and giggled. “Really?”
“Whatever it takes,” he rebutted in amusement and pulled me into the freezing water.
His mom and dad were right behind us and surfed like pros. I gawked at Rachel in her little swim suit, so different from her slacks she always wore, and she could glide and paddle with gumption. Beck finally stopped whining and I heard her laughing several times as Ralph tried to teach her stay on the board. Dad swam around, forgoing a board, and got a workout. Kyle, poor Kyle, stayed pretty much to himself and eventually went and laid in the sand. Bish and Jen stayed on the beach the whole time, never once getting in the water.
“So, what’s the star for?” Beck asked Caleb, us four lying on towels on the sand. I was on the verge of sleep when Beck roused me with her question. Caleb kept a hand on my back as I lay on my stomach in case I fell asleep. It had been a long night.
Caleb rubbed his shoulder where the hollow green star was inked into his skin.
“Um…It’s kinda silly, I guess. I’m a night owl.” He shrugged.
“I get it. Cool. I like the other one too. The swirls are neat. I always wanted a tattoo. Maybe Ralph and I will get one before we leave for school.”
“Nuhuh,” Ralph said and put an arm over his eyes. “I’m not marring my pretty skin. No offense, dude.”
“None taken,” Caleb said bemused.
Kyle was walking by, heading to the house his mind said, so I stopped him.
“Come sit with us, Kyle.”
He looked between Caleb and me, ready to keep going, when Beck helped me, unbeknownst to her.
“Yeah, Kyle, you’re so sullen. Sit.”
He sighed and sat down, throwing the towel over his head and shoulders to shield himself from the sun. He was in my line of sight. I couldn’t help it as I looked over his chest and stomach, hard and tan like all the Jacobson’s were. He had a little trail of hair down the middle too. I saw something right under his navel, peeking out of the top of his swim trunks. I squinted to look closer and heard him.
I told you I had a tattoo in an interesting spot. It’s an eagle. I got it when I turned sixteen and it hurt like a mother.
I smiled and laughed silently. He liked my reaction and smiled too, his eyes showing a little bit of happiness that hadn’t been there in days. Caleb however gave me an odd look.
“Ok, everyone,” Peter called and I saw in her mind and felt Beck’s eyes bulge as she looked up at Peter with only his swimsuit on. Those Jacobson men had the no-shirt look down. “We better all go in and try to shower before Caleb’s show tonight.”
Everyone agreed as we trudged up to the house. Beck and I got dressed in the room where my suitcase was. Peter couldn’t get anyone to fix the shower stall yet but had bought a shower curtain at least. I still felt bad but he assured me everyone understood and it was all fine.
After Beck and I showered and were fixing our hair, I heard her internally debating how to bring up that she knew I was hiding something. She figured it had something to do with my kidnapping and had been waiting for me to explain it. She was done waiting.
“So…you never told me what happened with you being kidnapped,” she asked easily as she slid the flat iron down her locks.
“It was these guys,” I said, my mouth in a wide ’O’ as I put on mascara. “One of them was stalking me. They took me to their house and eventually I escaped. Caleb and his family had been out looking for me, combing the woods and he found me. That’s about it.”
“So you saved him then he saved you. You guys are so meant for each other,” she said in a swoony voice.
“Yes,” I smiled, “we are.”
“So…are you pregnant?”
“What? No!”
“Well, you’re just acting so weird and everything seems so secretive about you guys coming here and all. I thought your dad sent you away to have the baby or something.”
“No, we just came here because the guys never got caught that kidnapped me.” She gasped and her face scrunched. “I know. It’s ok, though. Caleb’s always with me and I’m perfectly safe.”
“You guys are sweeter than a sugar rush, Mags.” She pumped her lip-gloss and talked through her application of it. “Goodbye Chad, hello Caleb, mister meaty tanned tattooed boy.”
I laughed and sat on the bed to put my sandals on.
“Beck, jeez. So how are things with Ralph?”
I knew the answers but needed to be the friend right then. She spilled all the details. I mean all! I was blushing and eventually told her I’d had enough description for one night. She laughed and swayed her hips as she sang ‘Dream’ by Priscilla Ahn very badly and off key as she finished getting ready. Gosh, I missed her.
Ready, Maggie?
I smiled at Caleb and wished I could do something to ease him. His strain and nerves were coming to me from him, coating his words.
Yep. Be down in just a second. You’re gonna be great, babe, stop worrying.
I can’t. I’m freaking out, a little bit.
I can tell. I giggled inside. Be down in a sec.
“Beck, we gotta go.”
“Ok.” She made smooch lips to the mirror and then smiled at me. “It’s shameful to look this fabulous isn’t it?” she said, making me laugh.
“Absolutely, just shameful.”
The boys met us downstairs. Caleb was rubbing his chin and sucking his bottom lip in and out, making me sigh with the warm familiarity of it. He smiled when he saw me.
Gorgeous.
You look pretty good yourself. Very...rock star.
Ha. Ha.
He looked like he always did. Jeans and a black Foo Fighters t-shirt, his hair lay over his forehead and around his ears. I pushed my hand through it.
“It’s perfect. It’s you.”He grinned, shaking his head.
“Zeke told me to wear leather, lots of it.”
“And you’re rebelling?” I said through a laugh.
“I’m telling him subtlety to screw himself.”
I laughed again and turned when Peter entered the foyer.
“Ok, Caleb. We’ll come later, right before you go on stage, ok?” Caleb nodded. “In case I don’t see you before that, you’re gonna kill ‘em.”
“Thanks,” Caleb said and rubbed his neck in embarrassment. “Alright, If you’re riding with me, let’s go,” he said and pulled me with my hand in his, not giving me the option.
Beck and Ralph came with us. Kyle was coming early but said he was picking up Amber first. I didn’t know what to tell him about her so I said nothing. And Bish….well Bish said he had no interest in seeing Caleb play so he was staying home.
Everyone else was coming later after the opening bands were done. Caleb grumbled that opening bands were the future of music and mostly the best part to see in the show anyway. If they got famous, you could say ‘I saw them open for (Insert artist here) a year ago!’ He thought they were crazy for not helping to support small local bands. I agreed but didn’t understand why he didn’t just tell his parents all that. He didn’t ever do anything to disappoint them or upset them.
In the car, Beck and Ralph sat in the back. The club, Stage Fright, was across town so we had a little bit of a drive to get there. Caleb turned on a Weezer c.d. and blared ‘Say It Ain’t so’. I’m not sure who started singing first but we all joined in, badly I might add, screaming and singing at the top of our lungs, laughing. Ralph was drumming his hands on the back of my seat and Caleb was playing air guitar while he steered with his knees. Then ‘In the Garage’ came on and then the whole album played by the time we got something to eat through a drive-thru and made it to the club.
The parking lot didn’t have many people in it because it just opened. I shielded my mind from everything before we went in. Once again there was no hassle with the doorman and we went in, getting an “I‘m with the band” wristband in the process. As I stepped in, I looked around. The carpet was red and the walls gray with neon dragons and flames, shining under the black lights. The stage was short and shallow against the back wall with an open area in front for a mosh pit.
Caleb was using one of their basses in the show so he didn’t have to bring anything with him. There was one band going on before them and he needed to head in to the backroom to warm up as the opening band was about to go on already.
“You’re gonna be so great,” I told him and straightened invisible wrinkles on his shirt front. I could feel his unease about this. “I don’t know why you’re so worried. Remember when I went to see you practice?” He nodded and sucked his lip in and out. “Remember that look on my face that you love so much?” He nodded again and smiled a little. “Well, I’m gonna have that look on my face all night, because not only do I love you, but you are awesome on that bass. And you could tell if I was lying.”
He chuckled deep in his throat, his gratefulness sweeping over me. He looked at me, his eyes roaming my face with adoration. He pressed our faces together, noses touching, cheeks touching and spoke to me.