County Line Road (3 page)

That night Double A admired himself in his bedroom mirror, smoothing down his new shirt, hoping Anna would like it. He combed his hair once more and gave up on it. He set his computer to sleep mode, put his latest gaming box on top of his childhood bookshelf of warlock and wizard stories, picked up his cars keys, and left.

Allison leaned in and out of her bedroom closet, selecting then rejecting one item after another, tossing them behind her, piling her floor and bed with shirts, jeans and skirts.

Her mother knocked on her door and asked, “Allison, what are you doing in there?”

“Getting dressed for that party, remember? You wanted me to go out, so I am.”

Jimmy slipped out the kitchen door when Linda went to the bathroom. He scaled the wall in his backyard, the short cut to Double A’s house. A stack of plastic milk crates piled against the wall formed steps. Jimmy swung himself over the wall easily and dropped down in the grass on the other side. He landed a few feet from a drive-up window of a fast food restaurant, surprising the cashier. Jimmy jogged around the drive-up lane, past the gas station and convenience store and headed up the street. He arrived at Double A’s just as Double A stuck the key in his Cutlass.

“When you gonna’ get this thing painted?” Jimmy said.

Double A jumped.

“Where did you come from?’ Double A said. “Don’t jump out of the bushes like that. And shut up about my car. I don’t see you forking over any money for the paint job.”

“A little touchy,” Jimmy said. “Relax. What are you so nervous about anyway?”

“What if Anna isn’t there? Or what if she is?”

“You think you got problems,” Jimmy said. “I didn’t find the baseball. I looked everywhere, even her closet. She almost caught me.”

“Maybe I should stay home,” Double A said.

“No. We have to go. I need to talk to Jeff. Maybe that girl will be there. And besides, you need to go talk to this girl. Just don’t talk about Mars or anything like that.”

They drove out of their neighborhood to Jeff’s house in The Ranches, out past the I-75, leaving behind well-lit roads for dark and narrow two-lane streets and acres of pastures and barns.

As Double A slowed down for a stop sign, Jimmy peered up a long driveway to glimpse the house on the right and wondered who lived there.

“These big houses that probably cost millions and all I smell is horse shit,” Jimmy said. The smell came in the open car windows, thick and pungent, like clouds of dust raised by a herd of horses running across a plateau in an old Western movie.

Double A turned left onto Palomino Drive to Jeff’s house. Even if they’d never been to Jeff’s house before, it was easy to tell where the party was. At the end of the long street, cars gathered around one of the gates to Jeff’s driveway. Jimmy searched among the parked cars for Allison’s blue Mustang. Broncos, Blazers and pick-up trucks were grouped together on the grass. Hondas and Acuras lined the edge of the pavement on the other side of the street, with their chassis extra low and spoilers extra big.

“No Mustang,” Jimmy said.

“No place to park,” Double A said. Double A pulled up near the front gate and squeezed in next to flower beds that ringed a flag pole. Above them as they got out of the car, the American flag flapped in the humid breeze. They could hear music coming from the house, even though the house wasn’t visible yet behind the trees. One of the guys leaning on a pick-up truck called them over.

“Double A,” the guy said. “What’s up with your car?”

“Hey, Kurt,” Double A said and walked over. “I’m going to put in a bigger cam shaft. What the hell did Jose screw that into his trunk for?” Double A pointed to a big spoiler on the back of a little car next to Kurt.

“He wanted the biggest spoiler they had,” Kurt said. “Must be trying to compensate for a tiny little dick.” The guys laughed.

Jose stubbed out his cigarette and stalked over to them. “You talking about my dick? Jealous? Wanna’ see it?”

“I ain’t got no microscope,” Kurt said.

While they were laughing, a single headlight bobbed up the street. Jimmy knew right away it was his brother, Rich.

Rich pulled up on his motorcycle and skidded to a stop right in front of Jimmy. Rich flipped his tinted face mask up and said, “Are you here to show off the baseball to your friends?”

“Are you here to trade it for drugs?” Jimmy said.

“I’m trading something, but that ain’t it,” Rich said. He parked his bike and locked his helmet to it. “You’re not as dumb as you look.”

“I’m going to Clemson no matter what you try to do,” Jimmy said.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Rich said.

“You know,” Jimmy said. “I can’t believe you’d join up with her. I thought you were better than that.”

“I ain’t done nothing with her,” Rich said. “She’s been trying to get her hooks into you since she moved in.”

“I’ll get her for this,” Jimmy said.

“Be careful. She’s a pro,” Rich said. “And you ain’t.”

A car rumbled up the street. Rich, Jimmy and Double A turned to look. It was a dark green 1969 Z28 Camaro.

“Here’s my man now. See ya, boys,” Rich said and walked away from Jimmy.

“Who’s that?” Double A asked. “Nice Z28, who ever he is.”

“I don’t want to know,” Jimmy said.

Two guys in the Z28 nodded at Rich as they pulled up next to him and his motorcycle. “Nice bike. The eleven hundred?” the guy in the passenger seat said.

“Yeah,” Rich said as he lit a cigarette. “Look, but don’t touch, or I’ll have to kill ya.”

Rich walked around the Z28 and shook hands with the driver who parked the car and got out. He didn’t look big sitting, but when he stood up, he was the tallest guy there. His cowboy boots gave him an extra inch, but he didn’t need it.

Jeff cruised up to Jimmy and Double A in a golf cart. It had a cup holder with a beer that sloshed side to side as he drove down the long driveway from his house to the street.

“Hey, Jeff!” Jimmy called out. “I gotta’ ask you about something.”

“Free shuttle to the party, my friends,” Jeff said to Jimmy and Double A in his warm Southern drawl.

Before Double A or Jimmy could step up on to the golf cart, Jeff saw Rich and swerved toward him. “Rich! Long time.” Jeff drove across the street to Rich. “Be right back, Jimmy.”

As he slowed the cart to a stop next to Rich, Jeff lifted his beer cup as a salute and with a finger, moved a lock of hair that curled down in front of his green eyes. Jeff wore a college t-shirt, khaki shorts and Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville brand sandals.

“What’s up, college boy?” Rich said.

“Auburn’s the place to be, my friend,” Jeff said. They shook hands. “Plenty of girls and business opportunities.”

“I’m always interested in more business,” Rich said.

The man in the cowboy boots leaning on the Z28 nodded in agreement.

“Jump on,” Jeff said, motioning to the seats of his cart.

“Nah,” Rich said. “I’ve got some business to take care of, but I will catch up with you later.”

Jeff waved and headed back over to Jimmy and Double A who jumped on the cart. Jeff maneuvered his way slowly through the crowd of people.

“What’s up, Jimmy?”

“Who was that girl you were talking to at the gas station today?”

“Which girl?” Jeff said. “I meet so many.”

“The blonde with the blue Mustang.”

“Oh, yeah,” Jeff said. “Allison. New in town. Nice.”

“I thought you were dating Jeanie,” Jimmy said.

“I am, I am,” Jeff said. “I can still look. If you haven’t met her yet, I can provide a formal introduction. I invited her.” He exaggerated his Georgia accent to sound like an old southern gentleman from a bygone era.

“I usually do fine on my own,” Jimmy said. “But since you say it like that.”

“My pleasure,” Jeff said. “What else is going on?”

“My step mother is trying to set me up,” Jimmy said.

Jimmy explained the situation.

“That baseball sounds valuable,” Jeff said. “Maybe she’s trying to sell it on ebay.”

“That’s it!” Jimmy said. “I bet she is.”

“We can check on my computer back at my house,” Double A said.

“I got wireless right here.” Jeff pulled his iPhone out of his pocket.

They all bent over it like it was a campfire in the darkness. After searching a while and not seeing the baseball listed, Jeff put it away.

“I’ll set up an alert for anything like it and let you know,” Jeff said. “Yeah, that’s what I’d do – sell it. That will bring in big bucks.”

Jimmy sat back in the seat of the golf cart, disappointed, as they continued up the driveway.

They pulled up to the front door of Jeff’s house, a Georgian style mansion of red brick with white shutters and white columns forming the massive entryway. Music and people filled the grand living room. A band played rock and roll in the corner. The Pepsi 400 NASCAR race was on the big screen television.

“The race is on,” Jimmy said. “Let’s get some beer and sit there.”

Jimmy joined a group of guys on the couch watching the race.

“Where’s Junior?” Jimmy asked.

“In fifth place,” one guy said. “He started in third. He had to pit.”

“He’ll work his way back up,” Jimmy said.

Double A scanned the crowd and kept checking the door.

“I wonder if Anna’s here yet,” Double A said. “I don’t see Jeanie or anyone.”

Just then Jeanie descended the staircase as if on cue. Kris followed closely behind. They both wore short jean skirts and tops and knew they looked good.

“Speak of the bitch, and she appears,” Jimmy said.

Jeanie saw Double A and zeroed in on him.

“Looking for somebody?” Jeanie said to Double A. “Anna’s not here. She’s not allowed to go to parties like this. And, even if she was, I wouldn’t let her talk to you.”

She flipped her hair at him and walked off, laughing with Kris.

Double A put his beer cup on the coffee table. “I’m leaving,” he said to Jimmy.

“Wait,” Jimmy said.

Double A kept walking.

“Keep my spot,” Jimmy said to the guy next to him as Jimmy got up.

Outside Double A reached his car. When Jimmy caught up to him, Double A started talking. “She is such a bitch.”

“I know,” Jimmy said. “Don’t let her bother you. She says shit to me all the time, and I just give it right back to her.”

“Yeah, I know,” Double A said.

“Don’t you get the Internet on your phone? I want to check ebay,” Jimmy said.

Car headlights came into view, bumping up the rough asphalt.

“Who’s that?” Double A said.

Jimmy turned around. He recognized the car right away. “No introduction necessary.”

It was Allison in her blue Mustang. She pulled up alongside Double A’s 442, put the car in park but left it running and sat up on the door frame, drumming her hands on the roof to the music on the car radio.

She looked straight at Jimmy and said, “Want to go for a ride?”

Jimmy stared at Allison. It took a second for it to kick in that she was talking to him. Her gaze was leveled at him like a rifle. With her eyes zeroed in on him, he felt as if this was the first time in his life anyone had really looked at him.

His legs released him, and he jumped into the Mustang, forgetting about everything else.

Allison slipped back down into the driver’s seat, shifted the gear and turned the car around. The other guys watched her maneuver the car.

With the car in the middle of the road, Allison gunned the engine. Jimmy could feel it suck up gasoline into the engine and spit it out the exhaust pipe and hurtle the car forward. Allison turned a corner and headed out west, away from everything and everyone.

Jimmy saw the two lanes of blacktop spotlighted in the headlights racing beneath the car. Jimmy could barely sit in his seat as she sped through the dark, narrow streets. He didn’t even know what street they were on any more and didn’t care. This was the best thing to happen to him all night. The faster she drove, the better he felt.

He tried to talk, but the music was so loud that it looked like he was mouthing words instead of talking. Allison looked over at him and laughed, not turning the music down to hear him.

He thought she was even hotter and prettier up close than he’d imagined. She was wearing a cropped red t-shirt with a white star in the middle. But that wasn’t the only thing that caught his eye. The tight shirt showed her curves perfectly. Her eyes and lip gloss sparkled at him.

She roared around a corner, blasting through a stop sign without even pausing, the Mustang almost lifting off two wheels. She punched the gas again, the force throwing Jimmy against the door. He felt like a ship breaking away from where it had been stuck on a sand bar, stranded too long until one wave after another bashed it, freeing it.

He was burning with the rising feeling of freedom and desire as Allison pulled off the street onto a dirt road alongside an orange grove. Jimmy could smell the oranges mixed with the heavy humid air of the hot Florida summer night pouring in the windows.

She stopped the car.

Allison was on him in a second. She ripped her seatbelt out of her way and climbed on top of Jimmy and started kissing him before he could even speak.

Her lips were strong and her tongue explored his with as much desire as he had. He caught up to her and grabbed hold for the ride. He’d finally met a girl who felt like he did, not hesitating, not negotiating or pushing him away. He wasn’t nervous but thrived on how fast she was on him.

Allison pulled her shirt over her head. She was so close to him, the t-shirt rubbed his chin on its way up. Her breasts were in his face. Then her hair dropped down, obscuring his view so his hands took over.

“Wait,” he said. “I don’t have anything, you know, a condom.”

“I’m on the pill,” she said.

They crawled over into the cramped back seat and shed more clothes. Jimmy could barely breathe but didn’t care. He was drowning and free and alive all at the same time.

Later, as they drove slowly up Jimmy’s street, Jimmy sat up from where he was lying back in the seat.

“Stop here. The lights are out. I don’t want anyone waking up,” he said. “My house is down there, the third one. See?” He pointed, his body tired but tingling. His ears were ringing and he wasn’t exactly sure of his footing as he opened the car door and set one sneaker on the asphalt.

“Wait,” he said. “Where do you live? I’ll come over tomorrow. Can I see you tomorrow?”

“Maybe,” she said. She smiled at him a smile that made him willing to accept anything she said.

“Can I call you? What’s your number? I’ll remember.”

“My parents took my cell phone – bill too high,” she said.

“Oh. Too bad. Then come see me,” he said. “Tomorrow. Third house. Don’t forget.”

“Maybe,” she said. She reached over, grabbed him by the shirt, and kissed him. Then she gave him a push out the car door. Allison turned the car around in the street as he stood there. She lowered her window.

“Nice legs,” she said. “I’ll be around, Jimmy.” She sped off.

He raised his arms in the middle of the street, reaching up to the stars. Bursts of fireworks exploded in the night sky behind him, just above the tree line. For the first time in his life he felt like the universe was on his side.