Moose and Goose

Chapter Seventy-two

Jerome's sitting at his desk with his back to the door. His friends crowd around the Apple computer in front of him. Above the machine is her painting; a crying figure in the foreground, a windstorm, and a volcano in the background.

They watch in awe as his fingers peck the keys like a chicken to seeds, the screen's background black to accentuate the neon green letters appearing as he types.

"Jerome?" He turns his head, and they look at Judith under his door frame. She hugs the sweatshirt to her pounding chest, and Manuel rolls his eyes onto the screen.

"Did Xavius let you in? Xavius," he yells out before she can respond, and she flinches, dropping her head.

Apologize.

"I walked her up here, 'Rome," Eric says, and Jerome darts his eyes to him. She opens her mouth, taking shaky breaths that pierce the back of her teeth. "I know you said you didn't wanna see her, but she was downstairs, and your brother was going batshit; I couldn't leave her alone with him."

"Okay, then you walk her out." Jerome spins in the chair to face her, then pushes himself up. They watch him approach her, and she closes her mouth when her heart jumps into her throat. He's towering over her as he usually does, but at that moment, she feels intimidated.

"I brought your sweatshirt." Judith slams the garment into his chest, and he sits his hands over hers, stopping her before she retracts her arms. Licking her lips, she says, "I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you, just like I don't mean to hurt myself."

"Then why fuck your ex," Khalíd asks, and Jerome gives him a dark look. Judith alternates her gaze between them, phantom sweat gliding off her neck as each breath becomes a chore.

"Cut it out," Jerome tells him, and they focus on the computer. Judith's fluttering eyes burn at the same intensity as her chest and stomach. She turns on her heels, and when she dashes into the hall, he groans and trudges after her. "Judy, I'm sorry about him."

He follows her to the bathroom between his room and Justin's. Standing under the frame, he flicks the light switch with the sweatshirt in his left arm and watches her drop to her knees in front of the toilet.

Judith tucks her hair behind her ears as she lifts the lid, and fluid expels from her mouth. Jerome leans against the frame and watches her cough up bile.

"You need to eat something," he says. Judith leans away from the porcelain bowl, resting her head against the wall and gulping labored breaths. Greenish-yellow saliva sticks to her chin, and he glances at his socks to avoid staring.

"You get a kick out of this, don't you," she breathlessly asks, glaring at him. He darts his eyes onto hers, then downward again. His eyes flutter, and he shakes his head. "You know, I'm gonna be candid with you. When you called me fat, I felt like shit."

"Wait, when'd I call you fat?" He furrows his brows at her and her accusation, but she merely rolls her eyes.

"Before I left your room – on campus." Jerome looks from his left to his right. Noticing his confusion, she continues, "You said I'm fuller."

"Judy, that was a compliment." She scoffs, then rips off squares from the tissue roll mounted to the left of her head. "I would never call you or anyone else fat, and so what if you were? Who cares?"

"I do," her response is muffled under the tissue she wipes across her mouth. She cleans her chin, and Jerome narrows his eyes at her. "I don't – I told you how I feel about my body after you found the Ipecac in my bag. I wouldn't expect you to understand. I mean, you're perfect."

"Uh, well, thanks." Jerome lets out a dry chuckle as he steps toward her. She draws her knees to her chest, and he sits beside her. "I'm sorry for offending you, okay?"