Rockin' Romeo and Jammin' Juliet

One, Two, Three, Four, There's A Stripper At The Door!

Chapter 21: One, Two, Three, Four, There's A Stripper At The Door!

((Playlist: Crushcrushcrush by Paramore))

"Jeez, calm down, it's just your mom," Jackson said. "How bad could this be?"

Sophie's mom approached the car. Jackson rolled down the window and smiled. "Hi there. You're Mrs. Evans, I presume?"

"I am. And you would be?" Sophie's mom eyed Jackson with the suspicious gaze mothers give all teenage boys.

"Jackson Laine," he smiled. "Sophie and I are-"

"Friends," Sophie blurted out, blushing. "We're friends from school. I'm doing the project in music class with him, remember?"

A spark of recognition entered Sophie's mother's eyes. "Ah, I remember now! Sophie hasn't told me much about you." She looked accusingly at Sophie.

"Well, there's not much to tell," Jackson shrugged. "I have average grades, I have a car, and I'm in a band."

"A band? Is it the same one Jonah's in? That Albuquerque Junior Philharmonic?" Sophie's mom asked curiously.

"No, it's a rock band," he answered nonchalantly, which made Sophie quietly facepalm herself.

"Oh, that's... interesting," Sophie's mom said politely.

"Yep, it's all very interesting," Sophie said quickly, getting out of the car, "but Jackson has to be somewhere."

"Uh, yeah, I have a... dentist appointment," he shrugged, taking Sophie's hint. "It was nice meeting you. Bye, Sophie."

"Bye," Sophie waved, embarrassed. Jackson rolled up his window and drove off.

She felt her mother's eyes burning into the back of her skull. She groaned inwardly. "What?"

"I find it hard to believe that boy is going to the dentist at almost nine at night."

When Sophie turned around, her mother had her arms crossed over her chest. "Well, they have midnight church service, so why not midnight dentistry?" She suggested feebly.

She started walking into the house, her mother right on her heels. "Sophie, we have to talk about this!"

"There's nothing to talk about." She opened the door mechanically and stepped into the empty hallway.

"Nothing to talk about? Sophie, the boy is in a rock band, for Pete's sake."

She still didn't turn to face her. "That doesn't make him a bad person."

"I didn't say that-"

"No, but you thought it."

Her hand clamped on Sophie's shoulder from behind. "Sweetie, why didn't you just tell me you have a boyfriend, instead of lying?"

Crap. Sophie turned. She could already feel her cheeks turning a bright red. "Er, what?"

"Sophie, come on. I was a teenage girl once, too." Her mother's eyes stared into Sophie's with a 'don't play dumb with me' look.

Sophie sighed. "Okay, okay. He's my boyfriend. But only just. It only happened officially a few days ago. It's not a big deal."

"I just wish you had told me, rather than this running around behind mine and you father's backs," her mother continued.

"I didn't know what you'd think," Sophie shrugged sheepishly.

Her mother pursed her lips. "Well, he isn't exactly ideal..."