ATLANTA GEORGIA
24th March 1981

JAE

“Are you drinking pee?”

Jae jumped, her hand on her chest, her breathing laboured and nearly dropped the glass of whiskey on the faux wood tiles of Rowan’s house. “What? No! Why would anyone in their right mind drink pee?”

Riley, Rowan’s nerdy eight-year-old sister, peered at her from behind her schoolmarm glasses. They even had those straps that went around the neck. “Then what is that?”

“Not pee.” Jae answered and took another sip of the whiskey while Riley shrugged and went back to reading a novel that seemed too adult for her. There was a woman bound and gagged in a sexual position on the cover. That was all you needed to see to know that there was probably smut in it.

Jae was in Rowan’s parents’ dining room, sipping a too-full glass of whiskey. Rowan had left her to watch Riley while he went out to run some errands, but she’d given up after ten minutes and had decided to indulge herself in some whiskey. Riley Atkins was too smart for her own good. She could handle herself. Jae was still checking on Riley occasionally, though. Just to make sure that she didn’t burn the house down while Rowan was out. Riley was perfectly capable of that, what with all her scientific experiments. Once, she’d caused a mini-explosion in her bedroom with nail polish remover, bleach, and hair dye.

Riley snapped her novel closed and followed Jae to the gazebo. Rowan’s parents had this really aesthetic gazebo in their backyard that was painted white and was encompassed by climbing honeysuckle plants that gave it a fairy tale-esque feel. From Jae’s position, she could now see the title of the book Riley had been reading: The Allure of a Submissive Woman. Yep, definitely smut in it.

“Is that one of those adult drinks that taste bitter and feel hot going down your throat  and make you act all funny?” Riley asked.

“Are you still on the pee thing?” When Riley nodded, her dark pigtails bobbing with the movement, Jae sighed. “Fine. Yes, it’s one of those adult drinks.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be at least nineteen to be taking that stuff?”

“I’m nineteen.”

Riley looked at Jae dubiously, then smiled. “Liar. You are not yet eighteen. You will turn nineteen next year on October 3rd.”

A muscle under Jae’s eye twitched. “Listen, girl. There is this thing called minding your own business. It’s trending nowadays. You should try it sometime.”

Riley sighed like Jae had just said the most absurd thing in the world. “I don’t do things that trend. Only simpletons are moved by the desire to fit in with the trends. Besides, trends are dynamic. This year high-waisted jeans, leg warmers, ripped denim and leotards are trending. Next year, it will be something else. Why limit your creativity to just what’s trending? Set your own trends instead.”

Jae massaged her temples to ward off a budding headache. Sometimes it was difficult to believe that Riley was only eight. Which eight-year-old used the word, simpleton? “What I meant is that I would like some peace.”

“Peace is a relative concept. Peace is not found in the quietest of places. Peace is found in one’s inner self. All the people with the highest IQs can find peace in even the most noisy of places.”

Riley was never going to stop talking so Jae tuned her out and turned up the volume on her radio. The first notes of Bohemian rhapsody spouted out of the radio and Jae felt herself calming down. Finally, peace. That peace only lasted for about seven minutes before it was interrupted by Riley insistently poking her shoulder.

“What?”

“Did you know that Bohemian Rhapsody is one of the most intricate and classic rock songs ever written? The band added operatic vocals in the middle movement which was quite risky and brilliant as well. It’s musically rich and harmonically far more adventurous. It also modulates different keys which is something uncommon in pop music.”

“Huh?” Riley might as well have been speaking Hindi. Jae wasn’t understanding anything she was saying. Jae didn’t love songs because of their operatic vocals or their modulated keys or whatever the heck Riley was saying. There was no Science to the songs she liked. She liked songs that appealed to her. It was as simple as that. “Look, Riley. Just thirty minutes of silence would make my day.”

Riley’s lower lip jutted out and she went back to reading her very mature novel. She looked like she wanted to cry. Jae felt bad. Poor girl just wanted some company. Jae was about to apologize then thought better of it. She’d come here for the peace. She would make the most of it while it lasted.

Ten minutes later, Riley poked her again. Jae was internally screaming. “Yes, Riley?” Jae said louder than she’d intended.

“It’s an important question.” Riley pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “How come you and my brother no longer bring Samantha here?”

Because Samantha is now dating my ex and I cannot stand to hear her gush about her new boyfriend, Jae wanted to say then stopped herself. If she told Riley that, Riley would ask a bajillion more questions.

“Because Samantha and I have drifted apart.” Jae answered.

That part was true. Ever since Jae had found Sam and Tyler kissing, she’d found it difficult to look at Sam the same way. Every time she tried to initiate a conversation with Sam, she would remember the kiss and she would feel irrationally betrayed, considering Sam had not known that Jae and Tyler had been dating. Tyler and Sam’s new relationship had exacerbated things. The whole school knew about “the cutest new black couple of Shadowside Prep” and it had become increasingly difficult to be around Sam without feeling jealous. It was unfair that Sam got to have an open relationship with Tyler while she’d had to meet with him under the cover of darkness.

Riley looked genuinely shocked. Like the idea of two best friends drifting apart was new to her. “Why?”

Jae stared at Riley, then chugged the rest of the whiskey until she almost gagged. “Hey, enough of the questions, okay?”

Riley mumbled something and went back to reading her pile of pornography.

Staring at the dregs of the pee-coloured whiskey, Jae allowed herself to imagine how things would have been like if she hadn’t broken things off with Tyler two weeks ago. She would probably be out now doing something fun with Tyler instead of hanging out at Rowan’s house, drinking Rowan’s parents’ whiskey in Rowan’s parents’ Glencairn crystal glasses. She would probably be the one getting all the “cutest new couple” spotlight that Sam was getting.

Or not. Because her classmates would probably not approve of their interracial relationship. Stupid white supremacists. Stupid racist bastards. Stupid, stupid, stupid. The tears were lingering and Jae blinked them back. Why was she such a weepy mess, lately? She’d cried more in the last two weeks than in her whole life combined.

It was at that moment that Rowan zoomed in on his motorcycle, took off his helmet, his curls falling over his face, and ran towards Riley, scooped her up in his arms and swung her around. Riley giggled and squirmed in his grasp. It was cute, their relationship. They were so close even though there was a ten-year age difference between them. Her and her sisters on the other hand. . .

That was all it took. The tears burst free. She began to run to the bathroom, but Rowan quickly put Riley down and grabbed her hand.

“What’s wrong, Jae?” The concern in Rowan’s voice elicited more tears.

“I. . .I just got something in my eye. I’ll just go wash it away quickly.” When Rowan didn’t let go of her immediately, she yanked her hand away, ran to the bathroom and locked herself in before she exploded into a puddle of water and salt and whatever else tears were made of.

Jae slid down the wall, buried her face in her lap and cried until she heard the frantic banging on the door. She couldn’t even cry in peace.

“Jae! Open the door. Please? I’m not leaving here until I see you. I’ll sit outside the bathroom if I have to.”

Wiping her tears with her dress, Jae stood up and opened the door. And Rowan hugged her. At first, Jae resisted, but she soon gave in. She hugged Rowan back, burying her face in his chest and basking in his scent. She cried on his chest for what felt like an hour but was really just five minutes, then she pulled away.

“I’m sorry,” Jae said wiping her face once again. “I got your shirt all wet and snotty.”

Rowan laughed, running his hands through his dark curls. “It’s just some tears and snot. Nothing a good wash can’t fix. What happened to us? We used to be so close. You used to share everything with me. And now you are here crying in the bathroom. You are not even crying in the good bathroom.”

Reluctantly, Jae let out a sob-chuckle. “My goodness, Rowan. You still know how to make me laugh.”

Rowan sat on the edge of the bathtub. “So, what is wrong? Who made you cry? Who should I be giving a drop-kick? Tell me. Tell me everything.”

And she did. Jae told him about meeting Tyler in Mr. Valencia’s office, about their clandestine relationship, about riding bikes together, about the pictures, about the Samantha kiss and finally about their breakup two weeks ago. She did not leave out any detail. That was the extent of her friendship with Rowan. She could share anything without fear of reproach.

“My goodness, Jae. You are just a high school student but you are already living the life of a reality TV star. Someone should make a movie about you. The Tales of Jasmine Walker. Out in cinemas on June 5th.”

Jae punched him on the shoulder. “Stop joking. I’m being serious.”

“Well, at least you won’t have to worry about the pictures anymore. I will take care of it.”

“You know who is sending the pictures?” Jae turned to face him, wiping the remnants of snot from her face.

Rowan’s mouth curled in disgust. “Yeah, it’s Loise.”

“Why would she do something like that?”

“Because Loise hates you. She is jealous of you. That day at Giuseppe’s we had a huge fight about how I was focusing on you the whole dinner and I stormed out, leaving her there. She saw you two and took the pictures, then showed them to me. I told her to delete them, that it was not right for her to blackmail you and then we had another huge fight. I broke up with her after that. I thought she’d let things go. I guess I was wrong.” Rowan held her hand. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”

Hope filled Jae’s chest. “Really? Thank you, Rowan.” Jae hugged him. “You are the bestest friend a girl could ever ask for.”

“No need to thank me. I would do anything for you.”

Jae believed it. Rowan would really do anything for her. Because he loved her. He really did.

Rowan remained silent for so long, Jae thought he’d fallen asleep, then he said, “Did you love him?”

Jae wanted to lie because the honest answer to that question would hurt him. But she couldn’t. The problem with knowing someone since childhood was that they could always tell when you were lying. “Not yet. But I was on my way there.”

A profound sadness overtook Rowan’s features. As quickly as it had come, the expression vanished. Jae would have thought she’d imagined it if she didn’t know Rowan so well. “I wish I could say that I am not hurt about the whole Tyler thing, Jae. But I can’t help but feel hurt. I want to get over you. I really do. You are all I think about and I don’t think that’s healthy.”

Jae touched his stubbly cheek. She’d meant it as a gesture of comfort, but Rowan turned it into something else by leaning into her touch.

Rowan was a really good guy. The best of the best any girl could ever find in this world. He was the guy people dreamed of having futures with. He was the guy grandmothers and mothers recommended to their daughters for marriage. He was the perfect guy for her. Even Lily had agreed. They loved each other, albeit in different ways. They trusted each other completely. They knew everything about each other. Maybe a relationship between them wouldn’t be such a bad idea. There was even a saying that the best relationships start as friendships first.

You know what the best part was? She and Rowan were compatible. Jae was a Libra, which was an air sign. And air signs were compatible with other air signs like Gemini or Aquarius. Rowan was a Gemini. What other sign did she need?

Looking up at Rowan, her hand still on his cheek, Jae said. “Kiss me.”

Rowan’s Adam’s apple bobbed. “What?”

“Kiss me, Rowan.” Jae tugged at the collar of his shirt, bringing his face closer to hers. “Help me forget about Tyler.”

And he did.

★★★

I know what you are thinking. Okay, maybe I don’t know exactly what you are thinking. But I definitely know what I’m thinking. I’m thinking that Jae is a disaster waiting to happen.