Confessions of a Teenage Caffeine Addict

18 // Nothing but a Northie

Most people are other people.

Their thoughts are someone else's opinions,

their lives a mimicry,

their passions a quotation. —Oscar Wilde

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JAKE

JANUARY // WEEK 6

To say I woke the morning after Ava's party feeling like a 747 had used my body as the runway for a crash landing would be one of the biggest understatements of the year. I rolled over to find a very angry Jules staring down at me.

"What time is it?" I asked her. I would have said 'good morning' but from the looks of it, Jules was not in a good mood.

"1:30."

I bolted up, only to grab my head with both hands. Blackness clouded my vision momentarily as I tried to steady myself from the sudden movement. I had missed basically all of school. Coach had a rule that if you missed school, you weren't allowed to practice. And if I missed practice... oh the trouble I would be in.

"Relax. You're lucky we got a foot of snow last night or else Coach would have killed you." Jules told me. I laid back down slowly. Thank God for snow days. "Want some water, baby?" she asked me, sweetly.

"I would love some, thanks." I replied.

"Well you can get up and get it yourself. Asshole." She threw my phone at me before storming out.

At least she found my phone. I was wondering where I put it last night. I was checking my texts only to see that Coach had sent a text to everyone. It still shocked me that he actually knew how to text people, but then again, he wasn't that old. I groaned when I read his text.

Coach H 1:06pm: I will see all of you ladies at 4:30pm today for practice. Snow days do not apply to varsity athletes.

I dragged myself to the shower, set it on extra cold, and tried not to collapse. Fifteen minutes later I choked down some toast, two Advil to subdue my aching head, a glass of water, and some Gatorade. By 3:30, I was feeling a whole lot better. Mom came down the stairs carrying a basket of laundry.

"Morning, Honey," she said to me before disappearing into the laundry room.

"Morning, Mom." I finished off the last of my Gatorade before tossing the bottle in the trash.

Dad walked by me wordlessly, carrying his hockey bag. "Guess I'm invisible to him," I said to her when she came back out into the kitchen.

"He's just having a hard time accepting it." Mom cut up an apple.

"Accepting what? The fact that I screwed up and got a girl pregnant?"

"It just thew him for a loop, Jake."

"Yeah, it threw me for a loop too! Why is he so upset? He's not the one having a child!" I yelled at her. I don't know why I yelled at her, because she wasn't the one who was mad at me. I felt horrible after. "Sorry..." I looked down at the counter.

"It's a lot for him to take in." Mom rubbed my back. "Jake, you should think about getting a job so you can support this baby financially. Diapers are expensive."

"Yeah I was thinking about that." I lied. That thought hadn't even crossed my mind. "I've got a few places in mind." I tried to reassure her and myself.

"Good. Now go to hockey. Maybe you'll feel better after that." She left the keys in front of me as her phone rang. "I have to take this. It's a client." She kissed my cheek before answering. "Hello...yes, this is she..."