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“Where’s Luke?” Carly asked Claude once she’d taken a seat at the bar.
She looked around, not wanted to spend an extra minute in this place.
Claude disappeared in the back and reappeared a moment later, Luke in
tow. “Caroline baby! So nice to see you again!” Luke
bellowed, waving
his arms toward her as he approached.
Carly rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in front of her, resting
them
on the bar. “What’d you have to tell me that was so important
you
couldn’t do it over the phone, Luke?” she asked, her tone of
voice
reeking with boredom.
“What?” Luke asked, pretending to be hurt. “I can’t just call
as ask to
see my niece whenever I want?”
Carly dropped her head in exasperation, then narrowed her eyes as she
looked back up. “My life sucks because of you,” she admonished,
winking
at Claude as he put a bottle of water in front of her.
Luke dropped his jaw and put a hand over his heart. “Caroline!
That
hurts!”
“You’ll get over it,” Carly mumbled dryly, completely disinterested
with
this conversation.
Luke teetered his head back and forth and chuckled a bit. “Yeah,
you’re
right. A lot of people’s lives suck because of me. What’s
one more!”
Carly smiled briefly, then concentrated on opening her water.
All she
wanted was for Luke to get that damn tape from Tommy Nelson.
And so
far, Luke hadn’t even asked where Tommy was staying. He kept
saying he
was still planning.
“So what do you—“ Carly began her sentence but stopped short when Luke
placed three video cassettes in front of her.
“Don’t say I never gave you anything,” Luke drawled, tapping the tapes
with his finger.
Carly’s mouth dropped open and she slowly put down her bottle of water,
her eyes never leaving the tapes. “Are those what I think they
are?”
Luke nodded, looking jubilant and definitely pleased with himself.
Carly ran her finger along the top tape, then lifted it up and looked
at
the identical one underneath.
“Are you sure these are it? I mean, there’s no more?”
“I’m sure,” Luke said confidently, pulling a cigar out of a cigar box
and lighting it.
“But how do you know? Are you sure?” Carly’s voice was at
a high
pitch, almost nearing panic. She looked at Luke, searching his
face for
any sign of doubt. There was none. “Why do you look
like the cat that
just swallowed the canary?” she asked, her voice dropped to its
normal
tone but sounding skeptical.
Luke shrugged, puffing lightly on his cigar. “We had a little
chat, me
and old Tommy. They’re all there, I promise.”
Carly’s eyes widened and she leaned forward on the bar. “You told
him
you know? Jeez, Luke! He’s gonna come after me!”
Luke chuckled, opening his arms. “With what, Carly? He has
nothing.
He bothers you and Jason will kill him. He knows that. He’s got
nothing
anymore. Far as I know, he’s on his way back to Florida.
He’s gonna
have to run far from Moreno for botching up the job on Sonny.”
Carly looked shocked. She didn’t try to hide it and blinked at
Luke.
“How do you know all that? You got all that out of him?!”
Luke closed his arms back over his chest and grinned. “Yep.”
Carly chuckled, then let it turn into a full-blown laugh. She
shook her
head, smiling at her uncle. “Well I guess I owe you one,” she
admitted,
pushing the tapes back toward him.
Luke picked them up and pulled the tape from the inside of each one,
destroying them. “You owe me three, Caroline.”
Carly took on last sip of her water and slid off her barstool.
“What’s
that saying?” she mused, gazing at him as she placed her purse on her
shoulder. “This could be the be beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
Luke scowled at her but Carly flashed her brightest smile as she headed
for the door. “Don’t push it kid!” Luke yelled as he watched
his niece
disappear outside. “And your welcome,” he muttered to no one
in
particular, taking another puff of his cigar.
*~*~*
Jason rechalked his pool cue and tried to ignore Keesha and Karen
watching every move he made. The man Jason was playing with stared
at
them and grunted.
“Looks like you have two admirers over there.”
Jason ignored him, stetting up for the shot. He coasted the nine ball
smoothly into a corner pocket.
“They’re cute. You not gonna talk to them?” the man pressed, watching
as Jason sunk another ball.
“Nope.” Jason chalked his stick, calmly observing the cue ball’s
position when it settled. He moved around the table and effortlessly
ended the game, sinking the eight ball on a difficult ricochet maneuver.
The man Jason was playing with threw his pool stick nosily on the table,
obviously annoyed at losing the game.
“Looks like you’re not going to have a choice,” he muttered, tapping
his
fingers on the side of the table as Keesha approached.
“Jason, can I talk to you a sec?” she asked, sounding slightly nervous
as she watched the man who was eyeing her.
The man grunted again, clapping Jason on the back. “I was
leaving
anyway. Thanks for the game. Remind me never to play with
you again,
kid.”
Jason smiled a bit and began to retrieve the balls from the pockets,
throwing them into the plastic triangle at the end of the table.
“What’s up?” he mumbled, barely pausing to give Keesha a glance as
he
racked the balls.
Keesha glanced back at Karen who shrugged her shoulders helplessly.
“I
heard about what happened at the hospital ball,” she began quietly,
fidgeting nervously with her fingers.
Jason stood upright and put his hands on his hips. “And?”
Keesha dropped her gaze then shyly looked back up, fixing her eyes on
his. He looked empty, cold. His eyes revealed nothing.
Keesha
shivered, remembering how he used to look at her. She longed
for him to
look at her that way again. He had to be in there somewhere.
Keesha
knew he was. The old Jason. Her Jason. It was just
a matter of
pushing the right buttons.
“I’m just—I’m glad you’re okay.”
Jason sighed, standing his pool stick upright and leaning against it.
“Thanks.” His voice was unattached, his tone, polite.
Keesha stepped forward, closing the space between them. She kept
her
gaze on him, her eyes boring into him. Her hand skimmed his forearm
and
rested near his bicep. Jason looked down at her hand, then back
at
Keesha, his brow furrowed. Keesha blushed slightly, but kept
her voice
steady.
“Jason, we used to be so good together. I know you don’t remember
now
but I think you could. If you just*”
Jason shook his head, cutting her off in mid-sentence. “We used
to have
sex?”
Keesha blushed again and smiled shyly at his directness. “Yeah,
I mean,
didn’t you figure*?”
“I didn’t know.” Jason’s voice was flat, matter-of-fact.
“I could walk
past girls every day I’ve had sex with and I wouldn’t know,” he added
honestly.
Keesha swallowed hard, removing her hand from his arm. “It was
only me,
Jason. We were each other’s first. And it was special.
You used to
tell me it was magic.” Keesha’s voice was quiet as she reveled
in this
memory. The truth was, she had wanted to marry Jason Quartermaine.
To
spend the rest of her life with him. She loved him with all her
heart.
She still did. Most people that knew him now considered him dead.
But
Keesha couldn’t. It hurt too much.
Jason cleared his throat, taking a single step back putting several
more
inches of air between them. He’d be lying if he said he didn’t
find
this woman attractive. She seemed really nice. Soft and
gentle.
Probably really into pleasing her man. But he didn’t want her.
Not
with his heart. He wanted Carly. While she was gone, other
women had
come on to him. And some he’d really wanted to have sex with.
But he
heart always wished for Carly. His heart and his body.
She was the
whole package and all that he needed.
Keesha stepped forward, closing the space between them once again.
She
reached up, placing her hands around Jason’s shoulders and lacing her
fingers together at the nape of his neck. Her face was just inches
from
his. “Let’s go upstairs,” she whispered huskily, closing her
eyes and
breathing in his scent.
“You want to have sex?” Jason asked incredulously, reaching behind
him
and pulling her hands from his neck.
Keesha faltered a moment, a look of resignation passing over her face.
Without a moment’s hesitation, she pulled him to her again, kissing
and
nuzzling his neck. “I want to make love, Jason,” she corrected,
breathing hot breath into his ear. “It’ll only take one time
for you to
remember.”
Jason grunted and pushed Keesha away once more. A tumble of fury
invaded him and his mind clouded in frustration. “What is your
problem?” he hissed, his anger clearly evident. “What do you
want from
me Keesha? Huh? Is this what you want?!” Jason pulled
Keesha roughly
to him, crashing his lips onto hers in a furious kiss, causing Keesha
to
gasp in pain.
“Is that what you wanted?!” he repeated, pushing her roughly back and
throwing his pool stick on the table. “I don’t remember a damn
thing!”
Jason stormed past Keesha, leaving her standing there, her hand touching
her lip, a shocked, hurt expression on her face. Jason stopped
at the
table Karen was sitting at, supporting his weight by resting his hands
on the back of a chair. “What about you?” he asked, crudely,
anger
flashing in his eyes. “We used to go out right? You think
I owe you
something too? You think you can make me remember?!”
Karen leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Don’t even try it, Jason,” she warned, her voice cold
Jason stared at her for a moment, then picked up the chair he was
leaning on a few inches off the ground and slammed it back into the
table. He stormed past Keesha and up to stairs to his apartment.
Keesha and Karen looked at each other wide eyed as they felt the
reverberations of Jason’s door slamming shut.
*~*~*
Carly leaned against the door of Jake’s, feeling her knees give out
from
under her. She bit her bottom lip and crumpled to the ground,
a sob
escaping her throat. She’d slipped into Jake’s, expecting to
celebrate
Luke’s success in getting the tapes with Jason. Instead, she'’
seen in
wrapped up in Keesha’s arms, kissing her roughly. Passionately.
Normally Carly would confront a situation like this, but with Jason
it
felt different. She was hurt. Genuinely disappointed.
And she wasn’t
going to cry in front of Keesha and give her the satisfaction.
Carly was angry too. They’d never claimed to be exclusive but
God! He
said he loved her! What else did he expect?!
Carly picked herself up, tears stinging her eyes, and stumbled into
the
parking lot. She tripped, her heel catching on the sidewalk,
and fell
into someone’s arms.
“Let go of me!” she commanded, pushing the perpetrator away and wiping
her eyes hurriedly. Her breath came in short gasps and she choked
on a
sob when the arms encircled her again.
“Carly, it’s me, AJ!”
Carly stopped struggling and looked up, catching AJ’s concerned gaze
in
her own. “Oh, AJ, I’m sorry,” she whimpered, allowing him to
help her
up.
Carly dusted herself off and tried in vain to pull herself together.
The tears would not stop falling.
“Carly, what’s wrong?” AJ demanded.
Carly smiled bitterly and let out a cold laugh. “Come on,” she
said,
pulling him by the hand back to his car.
*~*~*
Carly looked at the door to her apartment, then back at AJ’s.
“My place
or yours?” she questioned, her voice still cracking with emotion.
She’d
demanded AJ take her back to their apartment building, ignoring AJ’s
pleads to find out what was wrong first.
Before AJ could answer, Carly put a thoughtful finger to her chin.
“Mine. There’s alcohol there.” She fished her keys out
of her purse
and unlocked her door, throwing it open with a ceremonious bang.
AJ loitered at the door, then finally came all the way inside when Carly
began to check her cupboards for some liquor. “I know I’ve got
a bottle
of tequila around here somewhere,” she muttered, completely oblivious
to
AJ’s hardened stare.
Successful in finding the tequila, Carly pulled it out and held it up,
grinning triumphantly. Her smile faded when she finally realized
the
look on AJ’s face. “You don’t have to drink any with me,” she
admonished, making her way around the island in the middle of the
kitchen and sitting on one of the stools near the counter.
AJ still regarded her curiously, but took the stool next to hers,
turning his body to face her. “You want to tell me why you are
determined to drink yourself into oblivion in front of a recovering
alcoholic?”
Carly frowned, twisting the cap off the bottle. She looked at
it, then
at AJ, and took a small sip straight from the bottle. “You can
go if
you want,” she said, watching AJ watch her with intense interest.
“What I want is to know what’s wrong,” AJ repeated, crossing his arms
over his chest. “I was supposed to pick up Keesha from Jake’s
and you
dragged me back here.”
Carly nearly threw up at the name. “I don’t think you’re going
to have
to worry about Keesha needing a *ride*,” she muttered, taking a bigger
sip from the bottle. “She’s probably getting one hell of a ride
right
now, I’ll tell you that.”
AJ widened his eyes in surprise at Carly’s crude statement. “What
do
you mean?” he asked hesitantly, as though he wasn’t quite sure he wanted
to hear the answer.
“I saw her and Jason, okay?” Carly spit out bitterly, tipping the bottle
back and letting the potent liquid flow freely into her mouth.
AJ’s arms uncrossed themselves from his chest of their own volition.
He
reached up slowly and pulled the bottle back from Carly’s lips.
She
sputtered a bit, a small amount of tequila trickling down her chin.
She
didn’t protest, only looked at AJ incredulously.
AJ handed the bottle back to Carly, but was relieved she wasn’t chugging
the damn thing anymore. “Don’t make yourself sick,” he warned,
gesturing toward the bottle.
Carly blinked quickly, probably to avoid tears. AJ put a hand
on her
shoulder and looked into her eyes. “What do you mean you saw
Jason and
Keesha?”
Carly laughed bitterly, throwing her head back and letting a few tears
escape her lids. “They were kissing okay? Intensely.
Do I need to
draw you a picture?” She wiped the stray tears away impatiently
and
tipped the bottle back again, taking in only a tiny swallow.
AJ dropped his hand from her shoulder and put them in his lap.
He
wasn’t sorry to hear it, as much as it hurt to see Carly so upset.
Every instinct inside told him not to take advantage of the situation.
And he wouldn’t. He’d be a friend and a confidant if that’s what
Carly
needed. And maybe when she was ready to move on, she’d remember
who was
there for her all that time.
Maybe.
AJ silently admonished himself. It didn’t matter how Carly felt
about
him! What mattered was that she make it through the night without
drowning herself in a bottle of unforgiving tequila.
“God, AJ!” Carly snapped, breaking him out of his revere. “Don’t
you
have anything to say?!” She was already climbing off the stool
and
heading for the sofa.
AJ followed her, feeling completely at a loss for what to do.
“Not
really,” he admitted honestly, flopping himself on the couch next to
her. “I’m sorry that you’re hurting.”
Carly chucked mirthlessly. “Hurting is one way to put it.
This*” She
held up the bottle of tequila and pointed vaguely at it, “*is going
to
take that right away. But I’m*I’m*lets just say if life got any
worse
I’d be dead*only*that’d be better, depending on how you look at it.”
The tequila was already beginning to take effect. AJ calculated
she’d
had the equivalent to about four or five shots already.
“Have you
eaten, Carly?” he asked gently.
Carly shook her head, taking one final sip of the alcohol before putting
the bottle on the table. AJ thanked heaven for small miracles.
“Let’s
order pizza!” she exclaimed, bounding from the couch to the phone table.
AJ watched her with dizzying clarity. Her moods were like a roller
coaster. He knew that this would be a long night. Once
the pizza was
ordered, Carly collapsed back on the couch, her eyes now brimming with
tears.
“AJ, I can’t*” she whimpered, covering her face with her hands.
“I
can’t pretend I’m okay because I’m not.”
AJ scooted closer to her, his hand hovering over her back for several
moments before he finally brought it down to stroke her in small
circles. “You don’t have to do that, Carly,” he soothed, swallowing
hard as he felt her shudder with sobs under his hand.
“I love him. And he said he loved me too,” Carly moaned, trembling
all
over. She let out a short burst of disparaging laughter that
surprised
AJ. “What a joke, right?”
AJ stopped the circles he was drawing on her back and brought his other
arm around the front of her body. “Come here,” he commanded,
pulling
her to him in an awkward sideways hug. “It’s not a joke that
someone
would love you,” he assured, breathing in the sweet scent of her hair
as
she pulled on his shirt with gripped fists, her crying becoming more
hysterical.
Carly felt her tears dampening AJ’s shirt beneath her face but she
didn’t care. She squeezed her hands into fists, twisting his
shirt in
her anger, feeling wave upon wave of sadness taking over her.
AJ just held her, having no idea what to do or say. When her sobs
finally began to subside, she pulled back of her own volition, looking
at AJ with an expression he couldn’t quite read.
“I’m sorry,” she muttered, wiping her face impatiently and pushing her
hair back off her forehead. She was suddenly exhausted,
and hot. Her
lips curled into an apologetic smile and she pointed at his shirt.
“You’re almost as much of a mess as me,” she observed, reaching over
to
straighten his shirt out and brush her hand against the wet spot as
though it would magically disappear.
“It’s no problem,” AJ said, catching her hand in his and squeezing it
tightly. He looked into her bloodshot eyes, almost as though
he was
searching for some indication as to her state of being. “Are
you okay?”
Carly laughed slightly, leaning forward to pick up the tequila bottle,
drinking a few swallows in quick succession. “For now,” she allowed,
leaning back into the cushions and breathing a heavy sigh.
*~*~*
Jason paced around his room like a caged animal. He was frustrated.
And mad. There had to be some way to rid himself of this sudden
wave of
energy. Without fighting. Sonny told him he needed to keep a
low
profile and picking a fight at Jake’s was not the way to do it.
He hesitated before finally picking up the phone.
Carly’s voice calmed him the minute he heard it.
“Hi, you’ve reached Carly. I’m not here so leave a message!”
Jason went to return the receiver to it’s cradle but in an instant
changed his mind and held the phone to his ear again as he heard the
beep.
“Carly, it’s me, Jason. Give me a call.”
*~*~*
Carly rolled her eyes as she heard the message. She swallowed
hard
before turning her attention to AJ again. Glancing at the half-eaten
pizza and the bottle of tequila still open on the table, she suddenly
felt sick again.
“You okay?” AJ asked, rubbing a hand absently down her shoulder.
They’d managed to talk about everything except the situation at hand
since the pizza had arrived. They’d even laughed a bit, and AJ
felt
like maybe he was doing the right thing by just being a friend to her.
“Yeah,” Carly murmured, smiling slightly and looking at her watch.
“I
mean, they probably just got done and he feels guilty or something,”
She stopped herself, biting down hard on her bottom lip to keep from
crying again.
“Carly, don’t,” AJ warned, putting his other hand up to her face and
cupping it gently.
Carly released her bottom lip from her teeth and a small trickle of
blood swam down her chin.
“You’re bleeding,” AJ said, obviously surprised, jumping up from the
couch to retrieve a tissue from the bathroom.
Carly licked the cut on her lip and winced. She hadn’t meant to
bite
herself that hard. AJ returned to the couch and replaced his
hand
against her face, this time to guide her to him so that he could wipe
the blood off her lip. AJ felt his heartbeat quicken once their
faces
were only an inch apart. He tried to concentrate on his task
at hand,
but Carly was searching his face with her eyes and AJ found it extremely
distracting.
Carly felt tears spill over her lids as she looked into AJ’s eyes,
silently wishing he’d turn into Jason. She knew that was cruel,
as AJ
had been nothing but sweet and generous to her since the day she met
him. She could barely feel him tending to her cut. She
could barely
feel anything but his quick breaths brushing against her face.
She was
numb. Completely and totally numb*and about to surrender to something
she knew she shouldn’t do.
AJ began to pull back once the bleeding on her lip had stopped.
But
Carly reached her hands out unexpectedly and held his face there.
She
stared at him, as though she was desperately looking for something
in
his eyes. Something that wasn’t there. Or perhaps, some*one*
who
wasn’t there. AJ knew who she wanted him to be. He knew
she was
pretending he was Jason. But he didn’t stop her. He couldn’t
do
anything except let her pull him in.
And finally, her lips were on his, in a soft kiss, not hungry or
desperate but probing and innocent. She explored his mouth with
her
tongue, sending small chills down AJ’s spine and throughout his entire
body. AJ wanted to get lost in the moment. He wanted to
surrender.
But something kept pulling him back. Reality was insistent in
staying
at the forefront of his mind. Carly wasn’t kissing him.
Not in her
mind. Not in her heart. She was kissing Jason. AJ
couldn’t ignore
that.
AJ began to slowly, reluctantly pull away. Perhaps it was this
small
movement that sent Carly reeling back into the present. Perhaps
it was
an entirely different realization. But whatever caused
it, Carly
pulled back violently from AJ as though she’d been bitten by a snake.
She held a hand to her injured lip and stared at AJ as though seeing
him
for the first time. She said nothing.
AJ was wracked with guilt. He could see the disappointment in
Carly’s
eyes at who she was looking at. It was AJ, not Jason. Not
the man she
was in love with. AJ swallowed hard. He opened his mouth
to speak but
shut it quickly when Carly beat him to it.
“I’m sorry,” she exclaimed, the words tumbling out of her mouth along
with a new torrent of tears. She tried to keep herself calm by
taking
deep breaths and impatiently wiping the tears away. But she hiccuped
instead, the sobs rising in her throat like an impending torrential
downpour.
“AJ, I’m sorry,” she said again, the words coming out as fast as the
tears that spilled form her eyes. “I didn’t mean to do that.
Please
don’t be mad. I wasn’t thinking, I was...just don’t be mad, okay?”
AJ smiled and reached out for Carly, but this time she didn’t come.
She
stayed huddled at the other end of the couch, watching him as though
she
was scared to come any closer. His smile faded and he dropped
his arms,
folding them in his lap, his gaze directed toward them.
“It’s okay, Carly,” he murmured, refusing to look at her, a little more
than slightly embarrassed. “I’m not mad.”
It was all that was said. Carly watched AJ for a few moments longer,
then lifted herself from the couch and wandered into her bedroom.
She
curled up on her bed in a fetal position and began to cry. AJ
stayed in
the living room alone for a few moments longer, touching his lips and
remembering exactly how Carly’s felt on his. Exactly how they
tasted.
He swallowed down a lump that was forming in his throat and somehow
pulled himself up from the couch and found her in her room.
AJ stood at the door of Carly’s bedroom, unsure of what to do.
He
wanted to hold her, at the very least sit on the edge of her bed and
rub
her back, but right now, he couldn’t bring himself to touch her.
He
shoved his hands in his pockets and leaned against the doorframe,
feeling completely hopeless as he watched Carly’s back raise and lower
with each wracking sob.
AJ watched her until she became still. He silently moved around
to the
other side of the bed and set eyes on her face. Her eyes were
closed,
her breathing even. AJ reached over and brushed a stray lock
of hair
from her face. She didn’t move. He watched her sleep for
a while,
noticing how angelic her face looked when she wasn’t mad. She
looked
almost peaceful. AJ let his legs bend beneath him, and he slid
down to
the carpet against the wall. He sat, his knees brought up to
his chest,
arms crossed over them, and watched Carly sleep.
*~*~*
Carly awoke to a severe pounding in her head. She groaned
and rolled
over, opening her eyes just a slit to check the clock on her nightstand.
9:30 already! She swung her legs over the side of the bed, trying
to
remember how things had ended up with AJ last night. She remembered
kissing him. Oh god, she kissed him. How could she be so
stupid?
Carly nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt herself kick someone.
Why was there a body on her bedroom floor?! She slowly peered
down and
breathed a sigh of relief when she saw it was just AJ.
Oh god, AJ. What the hell was she supposed to say to him in the
light
of day?
“AJ get up.”
AJ stirred but didn’t really open his eyes until the pain in his back
set in. “Ahhh,” he groaned, trying desperately to sit up amidst
the
cracking bones and aching muscles pervading his back.
When he finally did open his eyes to the light of day, he set his gaze
on Carly who was sitting cross-legged on her bed, rubbing sleep out
of
her eyes.
“Hey,” he muttered, yawning as he stood, stretching out his legs.
“I
guess I fell asleep on your floor. I’m sorry.”
Carly nodded and got off of her bed, pulling her brush off the bureau
and raking it through her hair. “I kind of flipped out on you
last
night. I’m sorry.”
AJ went to stand behind her, watching as she brushed her hair until
it
looked like spun gold.
“Carly, it’s okay,” he said, connecting his eyes with hers through the
mirror. “I wanted to be there for you.”
Carly smiled a bit, but frowned quickly, remembering the events of the
night. “I just*I’m not going to avoid it. I had no right
in kissing
you like that. It was out of line and I’m sorry.”
AJ looked at his feet, trying to suppress a smile. AJ loved her
kissing
him like that. He wished she’d do it again and again. He
forced
himself to stop thinking these thoughts. It was only going to
make
things worse for him.
“It’s okay, Carly,” AJ said instead, reconnecting his eyes with hers.
“We never have to mention it again. Okay?”
Carly smiled ruefully and nodded. “Thanks,” she whispered.
Her stomach
growled, and she looked down, embarrassed.
“Sounds like you could use some breakfast,” AJ said, pulling her out
of
the bedroom by the hand.
“No, AJ, I don’t--” Carly began to protest but stopped when AJ let go
of
her hand and picked up his coat off the couch.
“Shower and change, and I’ll meet you back here in a half an hour,
okay?” he said, smiling at her and nodding his head as though that
would
somehow convince her to agree.
Carly didn’t know why, but it worked. She couldn’t help but be
hooked
in by his enthusiasm. And she supposed it was the least she could do
after practically seducing him last night. Carly giggled at the
thought
as she watched AJ disappear out her door. He was so sweet, and
generous, and just an all-around doll. He would make a wonderful
husband to a very lucky girl one day.
*~*~*
As Carly and AJ entered Kelly’s an hour later, Carly was relieved to
find it relatively empty. They chose two seats at the counter
near a
girl that looked vaguely familiar to Carly.
AJ approached her and Carly realized she was an old friend of his.
They
chatted while Carly pretended to be interested in the menu. Finally,
AJ
introduced her.
“Carly, this is Karen Wexler. She went to high school with me.”
Carly held her hand out for Karen to shake, and smiled before the name
sunk in. When she finally realized, she was reminded of Keesha
and
Jason and tried hard to suppress her automatic frown. It didn’t
work.
“Something wrong?” Karen asked, watching Carly curiously.
“So I guess that makes you Karen of ‘Karen and Jason’ fame?” Carly
muttered, casting a woeful glance toward AJ.
Karen glanced at AJ as well, furrowing her brow in confusion.
“We used
to date..” she allowed, not sure where Carly was going with this.
Carly snorted, tossing her head back and looking down her nose at Karen
with an accusatory stare. “And I suppose you want to jump his
bones
too?”
There was a period of complete silence between the trio until Karen
softly gasped. AJ cleared his throat nosily and addressed Karen.
“You’ll have to excuse Carly. Sometimes it seems like the only
reason
she opens her mouth is to take out one foot and insert the other one.”
Karen chuckled at this and shook her head. “To tell you the truth,”
she
said, leaning in toward Carly as if telling her a secret. “After
last
night, I don’t want anything to do with Jason Quartermaine.”
“Morgan,” Carly muttered absently, scowling at AJ for the comment he’d
made.
AJ laughed. “What? Oh come on, Carly. That was pretty much
true!
Karen’s...”
Carly cut him off with a question directed to Karen. “After last
night?” she asked, as though Karen’s words were just sinking into her
conscious. “What do you mean?”
Karen took a long sip of her coffee before answering. “The way
he
treated Keesha and I,” she said matter-of-factly. She offered
no other
explanation, causing Carly to sigh in impatience.
“What do you mean?” she repeated.
Karen sighed and looked at AJ who only shrugged. She took another
sip
of her coffee and shifted in her seat. “Last night, I guess Keesha
came
on a little strong with Jason. She wouldn’t take no for an answer
is
what it looked like to me. Jason got mad and started yelling
at her,
saying stuff like “is this what you want?” He kissed her, roughly,
and
pushed her away. Then he screamed at her that he still didn’t
remember.
He came over to me, asking if I was going to start in about him
remembering me. I told him to take a hike.”
Carly’s mouth dropped open and she stared at AJ. Her mind was
racing a
mile a minute. Was that really what had happened? Would
Jason really
do something that cruel? She supposed he would, especially when
someone
like Keesha pushed him too far. She tried to think about the
kiss she’d
seen. Could it really have been him trying to make a point?
She
supposed, if she thought about it, it could have happened that way.
She
still wished he hadn’t kissed Keesha at all. But now, who was
she to
talk? She kissed AJ and meant it! Well, sort of meant it.
A loud squeal interrupted Carly’s thoughts.
“Karen! AJ! What a surprise to see you both here at one time!”
It was Ruby. Carly knew that much. The woman was dedicated
to this
place, that was for sure. Ruby was looking at her curiously,
as though
she'd seen her but couldn’t place the face.
“Ruby, this is Carly Roberts,” AJ offered.
Carly smiled and shook the woman’s hand. “I’ve seen you in here
before,” Ruby mused, still seemingly trying to place Carly’s
face.
“With Bobbie?”
Carly nodded shyly. “Bobbie’s my mother,” she revealed, finding
extreme
fascination with the tiled counter top.
Ruby’s mouth dropped open and she rushed around the counter to envelop
a
shocked Carly into a hug. “I practically raised Luke and Bobbie!”
she
announced, holding Carly at arms length by her shoulders. “You
are just
the spitting image of your mother, you really are!”
Carly smiled politely but cast a wayward glance at AJ who just grinned
and shrugged his shoulders once again.
When Ruby had finally unhanded her and retreated back around the
counter, she began to fill two cups of coffee for Carly and AJ.
“Gosh,
seeing you two in here reminds me of the old days,” she rambled,
gesturing toward AJ and Karen. She turned her attention back
to Carly,
who was suddenly like newfound family for Ruby. “They used to
come in
here after a soccer game whooping and hollering and scaring all the
customers.”
Carly laughed politely, but threw AJ a strange look. Karen caught
this
and leaned in to whisper to Carly.
“Jason used to play soccer.”
Carly looked over at Karen and laughed. Her first genuine, big-hearted
laugh of the morning. “He did not.”
Karen nodded, her eyes wide and solemn. “Oh yeah. He did.
Trophies
and everything.”
Carly laughed again. She was beginning to like Karen. “That’s
hysterical. When I first met him, we went to the park and I tried
to
explain little league baseball to him, and he thought it was the dumbest
thing in the world.”
It was Karen’s turn to laugh. It faltered when she began to realize
just how different Jason was now. She always seemed to guess,
but never
really *know* how much he’d changed.
“I um, I had no idea how different he is now.” It was more of
a
statement directed toward AJ, but Carly felt the need to defend him
anyway.
“He’s not that bad, Karen, I mean, I know what you said happened last
night and that’s awful and all, but he’s not mean all the time like
everyone thinks.”
AJ felt his heart sink. He knew Carly had already forgiven
Jason for
what she thought she saw the night before. Not that he had a
chance
with Carly anyway. But it was a nice possibility there for a
while.
“Carly, we’ve heard this speech before,” AJ reminded, trying not to
sound annoyed. “Maybe he’s nice to you but he’s not to us.
That’s just
the bottom line. He doesn’t want anything to do with us.”
Carly swallowed some of her coffee and debated whether or not to
continue to defend him. She decided against it. She opened
her mouth
to say something else when Karen interrupted her with a question.
“Are you and Jason together?”
Carly nodded eagerly at first, then pursed her lips together, thinking.
“Well, I think so. Jason’s not really the expert on relationships
so
it’s hard to say what he thinks about us. We spend a lot of time
together.”
It was the only accurate explanation she could come up with. Karen
seemed satisfied and smiled genuinely at Carly.
“Well, I’m glad he has someone,” she said warmly. “I mean, no
matter
what, Jason’s special, right?”
Carly glanced at AJ, widening her eyes. She felt ultimately guilty
about kissing him the night before. It was sinking in more and
more as
time went by. She had to come clean with Jason. It was
the only way.
“Karen,” Carly began, a contemplative look taking over her features.
“Are you busy later?”
Karen shook her head, thinking for a bit before answering. “I’m
free
for a couple hours this afternoon, why?”
Carly smiled a bright smile and got off her stool. “Would you
be
willing to help me with something?” she asked hopefully, her
tone of
voice higher than usual.
Karen smiled in return and nodded. “Sure. Name it.”
Carly glanced at AJ, then back at Karen. “Can I just meet you
here, say
two o’clock?”
Karen nodded again and AJ cast a suspicious glance at Carly. “Should
I
be worried?”
Carly laughed, leaning over to give him a kiss on the cheek. “No.
Not
every plan I have ends in disaster!” She hesitated after saying
this,
thinking deeply. “Okay, well I’m due for a non-disaster ending
plan,
right?” Without waiting for an answer, she put her purse on her
shoulder and flipped her hair back. “I gotta go. I’ll see
you later
Karen. And you,” she paused, looking sweetly at AJ. “Thank
you for
everything. I’ll make it up to you I promise.”
AJ blushed, looking down briefly then back up at Carly. “I’d do
anything for you, and you know it.”
Carly seemed surprised at this statement but didn’t respond. She
threw
them both a quick glance again before hurrying out the door.
Karen raised her eyebrows at AJ and giggled. “I’d do *anything*
for
you?” she teased, patting him gently on the back and smiling
knowingly.
AJ gave her a sideways glance, then heaved a large sigh and stared into
his coffee cup. “Shut up,” he muttered bitterly, shaking his
head as
Karen’s laughter floated through the diner.
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