* All characters in this story are of legal age. *
The bus ride home was strained, as I sat there processing everything with the attention to detail afforded a crackhead. It was still hard to believe, yet impossible to deny what I'd seen. The causal disdain exhibited by Charity had me reeling emotionally. Her authoritative manner shut me down instantly as she never faltered from her default sunny disposition.
Still impossibly beautiful and out of my league, Charity had become a brick wall of tactile denial. It flew in the face of the sensuous creature who'd screwed the stuffing out of me the night prior. Every bit and moment was replayed in a continuous loop as I embarrassingly became aroused. Now, everything had been a ruse that she cleverly flaunted in my face with coy verbal cues.
I thought things were moving quickly for one day but never thought we'd hook up. My mind did flip flops going over every word spoken between us finding her decidedly haughty, overly judgmental. It was her world at all times, and I been allowed a moment in it at her discretion. I wondered if I were a momentary repast, but the revelation of that motherfucking Jay Stello left everything turned on its head. There couldn't be a worser nightmare as my bus reached its stop, the sky above overcast reflecting my growing despair. It was an odd bit of Deja vu standing in front of my house contemplating the savage mores of teen life at my high school.
I barely lasted until I made it sitting on the edge of my bed with my face buried in a pillow across my lap. The "mind fuck" perpetrated upon me was staggering coupled with my earlier discovery of Kimberly's infidelity and the first of two improbable hookups with Hope Arias followed almost immediately by Charity whose last name I realized I didn't even know. I glanced up from my pillow wet faced noticing something left on my desk.
"Ah shit, fuck me." My mother had taken it upon herself to leave a small box of Magnum condoms for my use.
I sat their reeling from the combined memories eventually noticing one of my yearbooks sticking out from under a stack of papers and comics on a nearby shelf. I snatched it down thumbing through it until I found Charity's photo.
"Charity Gilbert."
Once her last name was discovered it seemed to open a floodgate and wealth of information as I found her sporadically all over two subsequent year books until a smoking gun presented itself.
"You snooty bitch." The man upstairs gave me a karmic pat on the back as I discovered a pic of Charity and Jay Stello from our sophomore year.
They were definitely a preexisting couple predating his eventual coupling with my ex, Kimberly Bivens. She was even wearing his letterman jacket in the photo.
There was no doubt she'd used me to some nefarious end, perhaps using the photo of me to draw him back into her thrall. I thought about her as a person now seeing the red flags, the shallow nature of her being informed by words and actions.
Outside rain had begun to steadily pour, the droplets pinging against my bedroom window. I recalled the video Ricky had shown me on our first day of hell with that motherfucking Jay Stello publicly declaring his "love" for Kimberly Bivens. Charity Gilbert was way above my ex -girlfriend in looks and status. Charity's mile high opinion and ego wouldn't take kindly to such an afront. I met her in that library because she was looking for me.
"I was used." I admitted out aloud to myself. It didn't make me feel any better as I tossed the year books on the floor. The stress eventually claimed my conscious mind as I passed out face down in my bed.
There was no dreaming in this stress induced fugue state, only the sweet embrace of a nonjudgmental darkness that claimed me with open arms. It was a natural reset button in reaction to sensory overload to my experiences. Unfortunately, this mode was short lived as I was jolted from sleep slumber by the incessant ringing of my phone.
"Hello?" I answered still face down in my tear soaked pillow.
"YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT; I-HATE-YOU MOTHERFUCKER!!" The animalistic snarling that greeted me was barely audible with the person on the other end, half coughing and sobbing. I ended as abruptly as it began.
"What the fuck?"
I sat up on the edge of my bed, looking at the face of my phone. I'd received this call from a BLOCKED number. Someone wanted to remain anonymous, but I knew the voice belonged to a girl. I noticed a few texts on my phone from hookup #2, returning the call.
"Hey Jaleel, what's up babe?"
"Did you just call here?"
"Nope, was kind of busy getting it in if you know what I mean. Stefan's gone back to the dorm now; we could get in trouble if he's caught in here by my prude roommate." Hope sounded breezy like she'd just woke up.
"Well somebody called me-WHO'S STEFAN?!!"
"This really cool Economics major I met and my total rebound fuck. He's kind of cool and I might keep him around for a minute; so, what's going on Jaleel?"
My stomach flipped further upon finding out the world kept spinning regardless of my involvement in it. I could hear strains of SOUL SEARCHING by Me' Shell NdegeOcello playing in her background. That left no doubt she was getting her freak on earlier.
"Stefan, huh?"
"Hey sorry, I was being insensitive man; we've gotta get you that third lay so that you won't stay imprinted on me. But honestly, I'd rather end up the object of you misplaced teenage scorn than that fucking Kimberly bitch."
"Too late, already happened." There was a moment of silence on her end and the sound of ruffling bedding.
"You've gotten yourself laid; got that third lay, Jaleel?" I could hear her sniffling and coughing a little, but it was the kind people did when awakened abruptly out of a deep sleep.
"Yeah, I got myself fucked real good, and it was FUCKING SHITTY!!"
"Jaleel, I'm almost afraid to ask; did you go back and fuck that bitch, Kimberly Bivens, huh nigga?!" There was an edge in her voice that told me she was completely clueless and didn't call me earlier.
"FUCK NO!!" I yelled into the receiver without hesitation.
"I am so fucking relieved that you didn't undo all the good work I've been putting in on that whore. Man, you had me scared you sold out back to the simp plantation."
"What're you talking about Hope; what "Good Work" huh, girl?!!" A few seconds later I could hear my best friend's sister chuckling in familiar nerdy fashion.
"Oh don't worry about it; I got it handled."
"Hope, what are you talking about?"
"Oh I may have sent your girl another clip; don't worry about it though. So, guess I can stop slapping her up with those reality checks, huh? Hey, check it out Jaleel, I'll send you the clip...HEY, WHERE'S MY BURNER PHONE?!! Uhm, excuse me for a minute."
I sat there blank faced hearing a door slam in the distance followed by the sound of some scuffling and a loud crash. I didn't know what to make of that shit.
"HEY UHM, SHIT KINDA HAPPENED JALEEL; HOPE YOU GOTTA A GOOD SENSE OF HUMOR!!" Hope returned to the phone more lively than before worrying me.
"What have you done?"
"Just sent the first clip, kind of a buffer, okay?" My phone chimed with a message containing the seconds long clip which appeared to be almost a minute long. I took a deep breath opening it without a further word to Hope.
Nicky Minaj's "Good Form" with that imp looking fucker Lil Wayne, blasted from my phone speaker as I beheld Hope standing there in a fleece bathrobe rolling and popping her shoulders. She was not alone. The room was full of other adult looking college women surrounding her also bobbing their heads, swaying back and forth to the music with Hope. That fluffy robe fell away from her body revealing my best friend's older sister in all her semi-naked glory.
