Junior Year Box Set

“Hey, I think there’s an empty coffin in the basement,” she teased me.

I pulled her into my arms and kissed her. That was when Halle and Zoe found us.

“Me next,” Zoe said, so I kissed her too.

“David’s giving out kisses!” Brook called.

Sometimes it’s tough being me, but someone had to kiss all the cheerleaders, drama helpers, and Granny. Yep. Even Granny wanted a kiss, to the delight of everyone. I have to tell you that if my grandma kissed me the way Granny did, I would be in trouble.

Shortly after I arrived, everyone else started to show up. I had a great time until a worried Mona found me.

“I think we have a problem,” she told me and showed me her phone.

It had a text message from her dad that said they knew there was a party going on. The text had a picture attached that had to have come from their security system. It warned that if she didn’t shut it down, there would be consequences. I sent them a text back that said there was no alcohol and we would clean up, and forgot about it.

About a half hour later, I noticed it had gotten hot in the house.

“Can we turn the air on?” I asked Mona.

“I tried, but the thermostat has me locked out,” she told me.

“Mona, the toilet doesn’t have any water,” Tracy said as she joined us.

“Did your parents get a new security system?” I asked.

“I remember my dad talking about something like that,” Mona said.

She had barely finished her sentence when the lights went out. I started to laugh. Her parents were trying to drive us out of the house. Most everyone had gone to the backyard already because the patio lights were on and it was much cooler outside.

Then what every teen dreaded happened: the alarm went off. Floodlights came on to surround the house. It had the desired effect as everyone began to take off. Mona watched in horror as her party emptied out. I found a security camera and bowed to my betters. That caused the alarm to turn off. I helped the cheerleaders clean up. I looked at the clock, and it was midnight. It was probably a good idea to end the party then anyway. Up until the end, everyone had had a great time. The best part was that almost everyone was sober.

The lights, water, and thermostat were all put back to normal. I had to hand it to Mona’s parents, they had warned us.

◊◊◊

Chapter 33 – I Got the F-ing T-Shirt Sunday November 1

I woke up to find Tami seated on the edge of my bed. I rolled over and found Duke stretched out next to me. When he saw me, his big tail began to thump against the mattress.

“Get down,” I said.

That just made his tail wag even harder. I acted as if I’d attack him and he just put up a paw and swatted me. I don’t think he was scared.

“I see he’s getting you trained,” Tami said.

Then I heard the thunder and knew why he had crawled onto my bed. I gave him a stern look and pointed. He did the slow death march off my bed. It was all I could do to keep a straight face because of his sad act. Tami took his place and put her head on my shoulder.

“When were you going to call me?” she asked.

I knew what she really wanted to know. I think she had sat on the sidelines, waiting for me to call to ask her to help me with my problems with Pam. This was probably killing her, but I didn’t want or need her advice. Today wasn’t someday.

“What about?” I asked, playing dumb.

Tami rewarded my answer by sticking her index finger into my ribs. I jerked back and found myself falling out of bed. I grabbed her and pulled her after me.

“David!”

I was, of course, naked. Tami had already seen it all, so I just stood up, went to the bathroom, and took a shower. She followed me in and sat on the toilet.

“I guess it never occurred to me to call,” I confessed.

“I talked to your mom, and she said you had everything under control. I just stopped in to see if you needed to talk about it,” she offered.

I turned off the water, reached out, and grabbed my towel. As I dried off, I wondered what she really wanted. If I knew Tami, this was something about her. I wouldn’t be surprised if she came over to announce she had found someone. Nothing like getting kicked in the nuts when you were down.

“Why are you really here?” I asked.

“Can’t I just want to make sure my best friend is okay?” she asked.

“I call bullshit. Just tell me,” I said.

She got a sad look on her face and walked out of the bathroom. When I finished in the bathroom and came out to get dressed, Tami was gone. Maybe I had misjudged why she was here. I realized that I was indifferent about it. I guess I really was over her.

◊◊◊

The sky opened up, and it began to rain, so I passed on the morning run. Duke and I hurried to the house. It was remarkable how quickly he could do his business if he got wet doing it. I might have to turn the sprinklers on him if I were in a hurry. Mom and Dad weren’t up yet, so I made Duke stay in the kitchen with me.