A few weeks later...
Jake had literally made sure that I would no longer be left alone again after that day, so Jesse had to leave me alone after that. Not that I would ever complain about the system he set up to make sure I was never alone. He was so clever. I was still bothered by Jesse's never-ending glares and the way he watched my group of friends. Without Jake, everything could have turned out differently. I am indebted to him for all that he has done to help me.
During our walk home from a church activity, Suri and I talked about our experiences at the activity and all that we had learned. In order to get home, we had to pass Ruben's house. I tried not to care because I wasn't alone, and I wasn't currently out with Trinity right now. Trinity never cared about what Ruben said about her, and she never stopped stalking him, so I began spending more and more time with Suri and Jake. She never seemed to be concerned about what Ruben said about her.
When I saw Ruben's sister walking toward us, I was surprised. She mumbled something to us, but I wasn't able to understand what she was saying. "I'm sorry, but what?"
"I've seen you around here. What are your names?" she asked as she stopped in front of us.
"Hi, I'm Makena, and this is Suri," I tell her.
"Oh, so you're Makena!" she says, glaring at me. "Well, he's not home right now, so you can just turn around and head back home. But I want to know something... Why do you enjoy stalking my brother and his friends so much?" I find that question to be infuriating. We don't stalk people.
"Excuse me? I don't stalk your brother or his friends! Another friend of mine likes him... I don't like them much. She's practically obsessed, but I stopped hanging out with her because of it. The only thing I'm doing right now is walking my best friend home after our church activity! It is time for you to learn to mind your own business!" I snap back, moving up the hill toward Suri's house.
As she yells some choice words back at me, I ignore her and walk away, hoping Suri will follow suit. I wondered whether she would inform her brother of our brief encounter. Maybe she will tell Jesse. Most likely, but I didn't have to worry about it now. It was just odd how she said, "So you're Makena?" Suri caught up and asked, "What was that about?"
"Honestly, I don't know and I don't care. That was Ruben's little sister... I have had it with them." I say as I approach her front door. After hugging her, I turn and decide to walk the long way around to avoid another run-in with his sister. I really didn't like being viewed as a stalker.
In deep thought about what had happened, I walked home with my head down, staring at the sidewalk when I heard a car pass by. I didn't care who it was until I heard the engine and realized it had pulled off the road right in front of me. As I glanced up, Jesse stepped out of the driver's seat. I had to take a second look since I wasn't expecting to see him. My heart skipped a beat as he approached. I tried to calm my anxiety since I wasn't sure what he wanted and was afraid he would hurt me again.
"Well, I just heard something pretty interesting from Ruben's little sister. According to her, you don't like Ruben at all. So tell me, Makena, why do you constantly walk by his house?" he asks, coming to a halt right before me. "Do you have a crush on Ruben?" he asked. The smile on his face was sinister. Upon glancing over at the car, I realized it was the same one he drove over to my house almost a year ago. He owned this car, and I wondered silently to myself if the gun was still in it.
"I don't have a crush on Ruben!" I admit to him, trying to prepare myself to run away if the need arises. "You know that Trinity likes him. Why are you even concerned about whether I like him?" I ask, squinting at him and standing up a bit taller to show him that his presence didn't affect me.
As he stepped toward me, I stepped back a few steps to give us some space. By his look, I could tell he was upset, but I didn't care if I offended him. I just didn't want him to touch me again. Today, I wasn't in the mood for his torture. "Stop backing up. Do you think I'm going to hurt you?" he asks, taking a few more steps toward me.
"Jesse, I know you're capable of hurting me... just tell me what you want. I want to get home. My mom is waiting for me." I mumble as I take a few more steps back. Backing up, I accidentally backed into another stone chest as I tried to maintain distance between us. In an instant, a pair of hands were holding me in place with their grip on my arms.
As I stare wide into Jesse's brown eyes, I hear a deep voice whisper into my ear, "Just let him talk to you!" Suddenly I was in a state of panic. It made my anxiety skyrocket to be held in place. By stomping on his foot as hard as I could, I yanked my arms from his grasp. In surprise, he let out a curse and I ran away from them as fast as I could. When I tried to escape, I heard their footsteps pounding behind me. My foot got caught on something and I fell. When I saw a hand in front of my face, I knew they had caught up with me.
As Jesse grins smugly down at me, I accept his hand and he helps me up. Turning to face him, I wipe my clothing off. "Fine, you've caught me. What do you want?" I ask, bracing myself for whatever might follow.
"Well... I'm not really sure what to say here. But what exactly do you have against me?" he asks as he grips my hand tighter. After realizing he was still holding on to it, I tried to pull it away from him. He, however, tightened his grip. I was further held in place and forced to speak with him.
"To be honest, you scare me!" I replied, keeping it simple. Instead of looking into his eyes, I kept my face level, glancing down the street.
"I don't mean to," he replied solemnly, his grip loosening ever so slightly. "I do not intend to hurt you, Makena. My intention is never to harm you. Honestly, I was hoping you would consider attending homecoming with me." He spoke softly, almost in a whisper, as if he was trying very hard not to be intimidating.
In shock, I asked, "What?" Did he really invite me to a dance?
He kicked at a woodchip that had fallen out of the flower bed as I watched. I wondered why he would want me to accompany him to the first dance of our senior year, out of all the girls he could ask. What made him so nervous? The school year hasn't even begun. "Could you please consider it..." he pleads.
"I'm sorry, I can't!" I say, watching as he jerks his head up and glares at me.
"What? Why not?"
"I am actually grounded," I confessed softly to him. As my hand sat in his, I couldn't understand the warmth that came from him. Even though I hated being grounded, it helped me avoid attending a dance with him.
"Really? What's the deal with being grounded?" he asked, surprised.
"Does it really matter? Plus I don't have a dress..."
Then he smiled at me, "Well, I would have gotten you a dress. Damn, I sure was hoping this would run smoothly. I wanted you... I wanted a second chance here with you." he confessed, which surprised me.
"Can I ask you a question?" I ask, causing him to glare at me with a raised eyebrow.
But he shrugs his shoulders, "Sure..."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why would you want to take me to a dance? Don't you hate me or something like that?" I asked him, and my body started to shake as I was doing something that I hadn't done before. He probably felt me trembling, and I was surprised he didn't mention it.
"No, I don't hate you, and I could never hate you. Why would you even think such a thing?" He looked shocked, maybe hurt.
"Honestly, Jesse, it's how you treat me," I say, and try to pull my hand out of his. He releases my hand this time.
"Makena, I don't hate you... in fact, it's the complete opposite!" he says as I stare up at him. Looking over at Ruben, he growls, "Let's just leave. I got what I came for. I got an answer, and I don't see anything else here for me."
My heart pounded at the last statement he made, but I stood there holding my breath until I saw them get in their car and drive away. In a moment of clarity, I realized I had survived another confusing encounter with Jesse Campbell and began walking to my house. Today felt completely different from every other time I saw Jesse, and I was confused by it.
I got home in seven minutes. Upon entering my door, I noticed my mother had already returned from work and was cooking dinner. I decide to tell her everything I learned at my activity at the church. "How awesome, honey! I'm glad you had fun!" she says as she turns back to the stove.
"So what's for dinner? Where's Morgan?" I inquired.
"Oh Morgan, she's over at Amber's playing. She'll be home in time for dinner." She chuckles softly. "I'm making spaghetti for dinner, your favorite." She smiles over her shoulder as she stirs the pot.
"Thanks, Mom," I mumble as I walk toward my room. Recently, my older sister moved out with some of her friends because she was attending college and wanted to be independent. The day my mother gave me her room, I was overwhelmed with joy. After living with one of my sisters my entire life, I was finally able to have my own room. As I laid my backpack on my bed, I let out a long sigh. Boys were beyond my comprehension. Why would Jesse be so rude to me and then ask me out on a date?
After throwing my clothes in the hamper, I grabbed some clean pajamas and a tank top and headed into the bathroom for a shower. Standing under the water, I realized Jesse Campbell would always be a mystery to me. I wasn't sure what to do about him, and should I tell my mother what had happened?
When I am done showering, I brush out my hair, put on my comfy gray cotton PJ pants, and top it off with a light pink tank top. While humming quietly to myself, I throw my hair back into a ponytail to tame any flyaways. Hearing his laughter stopped me in my tracks. Looking up, I saw him sitting on my couch with my mom. The two of them laughed about something. My cheeks flushed when I realized I was braless and in my pajamas.
He smiles at me, and I frown awkwardly for a moment. "Oh hello, nice of you to join us!" he says. As he stands, he hands me a bouquet of white daisies and a sunflower. My favorite flower? How did he know that?
"Jesse, what are you doing here?" I snapped at him, crossing my arms across my chest to conceal the fact that I was braless.
"Well, I actually came here to ask you again about the homecoming dance. I know it's not for a few months, but I'm proactive. So I thought I'd talk to your mother and see if she would let you attend the dance!" he says sounding so hopeful, it made me even more confused about what he was doing. My mother smiles back at me as I glance over at her.
"And did she? Can I come?"
My mother replied, "Yes, sweetie. This boy seems like a nice guy, and he came here to explain what he was doing. He's a keeper!"
Angry, I glare at him. Why is he using my mother as leverage here? Apparently, he thought he would win a date by playing nice. I don't think so. As I turned to my mom, I wondered, "Did he tell you exactly who he is?"
"No..." she replies, pausing next to me.
"That's Jesse, Mom! He's the one who showed up after threatening to strangle me, and not only did he show up banging constantly on the door, but he also had a loaded gun in his car!" I snap out, glaring at Jesse.
"Makena...I totally forgot that gun was in the trunk. I didn't mean for it to be there..." He starts to plead, but my mother blocks his view.
"The answer is no. It is absolutely unacceptable for you to come back here after what you did to my daughter weeks ago. My daughter is off limits to you, boy." She rips into him, poking her finger repeatedly into his chest as she talks to him. "Now get out of my house, and never come back here again!"
Slowly making his way to the door, he looked shocked. Watching him leave the house silently, he closed the door softly behind him as he stepped outside. As I glanced up at my mother, a wave of respect washed over me. Honestly, I knew she could be mean, but I never expected something like that. Therefore, I silently reminded myself not to get on her wrong side.