The Girl Who Wanted Everything

Should be fun

My mum had made chicken casserole for dinner, and we were forced, by the dictates of social etiquette, to all come together for the meal. Adam was holding Jamie's pinkie finger with his own under the table (vomit) and eating scrambled eggs with a fork in his other hand.  

"Oh gosh, I'm sorry Adam,'' my mum looked tragic. "I forgot you don't eat meat. Do you want me to fix you something else?"

"It's really not a problem at all Mandy. I am happy to get myself whatever I need. I actually quite like cooking. I'm used to fending for myself at home.''

I caught his eye. 

"Not a problem at all Mandy,'' I mouthed at him with exaggerated prissiness. He muffled a laugh against the back of his wrist, and an unfamiliar thrill ran through me at our secret joke.

"You know,'' Jamie began self-importantly, "Adam's quite right. We shouldn't be eating so much meat, for um, the environment, and like ethics and stuff. From now on, I am also going veggie.'' She pushed away her dinner plate, looking very pleased with herself. "Can I share your eggs, Hun?" she asked Adam, shuffling her chair up towards him. He pushed his plate agreeably in her direction. 

You probably shouldn't, like, um, waste and stuff I thought sarcastically.

"Did you have a good surf lesson this afternoon Sam?" Giselle asked, and before he could answer she turned to Jamie. "Thanks for showing him the ropes love. Surfing seems like such a great pick-me-up.'' Jamie smiled winsomely, showing off her increasingly summer-blushed cheeks, but neither of them said anything.

"Oh, I forgot,'' I broke the silence. "I saw Tyler when I was walking this afternoon. He says he and Steff are having a bonfire party or something on Friday? He wants us to go.'' There was a general murmur of approval. 

"Who is Tyler?" asked Adam.

"Local kid,'' Jamie told him. "They are nice guys. We will go right? Should be fun.'' She smiled and I saw there was no way Adam would deny her. "You're in right Sam?" Sam looked awkward, but he nodded anyway.  

Ronnie slumped in her chair and started snoring. Was it just me or were the wheels coming off here?

My mum helped Ronnie to bed and Sam and I cleaned up the dinner. I washed dishes and he dried in what might have been quiet companionship had my heart not been pounding thunderously in my ears.  

I watched his hands as he worked the cloth around the plates and glasses. The palms were broad and the fingers long. They were strong hands, beautiful hands: the hands of an artist. Eventually, I worked up the courage to ask him some of the things on my mind.

"Why does your mom think you need a pick-me-up?" I ventured. "Is everything ok?" I stopped washing and looked at him.  

His eyes were so dark and impenetrable. I felt like I was grasping around for understanding of the person he had become. Perhaps it was just his shyness, like my own. Of all people, I knew how that could make one seem. I didn't feel like he intended to be aloof or was trying to be mysterious. He just was.  

He sighed and flipped the drying cloth around.   

"It's just...," he looked about awkwardly: up to the ceiling, down at the floor, anywhere but in my face. He is going to actually talk to me, I thought. "... nothing.'' He finished. "It's been a hard year, that's all.''   

He had closed right up again. Dammit.

"You didn't really seem that keen on the party on the weekend,'' I began again.

"Mmm,'' he was non-committal. "Yeah, I don't usually do big gatherings,'' he said.

"You don't have to go, you know.'' I was secretly delighted. "I also hate those things. We could stay home together?" He paused and for a moment I thought he was going to agree.  

"Naah, that seems rude,'' he replied.    

Rude to whom? I wondered. He had never even met Tyler – in fact, Tyler didn't even know he existed. I was about to tell him that when he clarified the matter.  

"I think Jamie would want us to go,'' he said. Jamie? Really? I wanted to yell. Jamie wanted him there to fill out the quotient of her man-harem. She could have Adam and Sam and Tyler, and probably Steff too all falling over themselves to please her. So of course, she would want Sam to go to the party. There was no winning here.

Sam and I made our way off to bed. My room was already in darkness. Once again, through the wall I could hear muffled pounding, rocking, gasping sounds from Adam's room. I got into my pajamas and brushed my teeth. The noise reached a crescendo and concluded.    

I brushed my hair and climbed into bed. The noise started up again. Good God woman! I thought. Aren't you tuckered out from your afternoon of surfing? The whole scenario seemed a rather ironic reflection of the entire direction this holiday seemed to be taking. It was no longer enough for Jamie to have everything? Now she also had to have it twice.