Rated R for language,

C

(39) Table Manners, Frozen Peas

Chloe shoved a love note into Jason’s hand and gave him a quick kiss before he headed into his English class. He gave her a chin up and watched catwalk away to her class down the hall. He cupped her note firmly, and entered the class, finding the only empty seat next to Philip and Jan of all people.

He disregarded their suspicious glares and opened Chloe’s note under his desk once the coast was clear. He smiled at her familiar, elegant print…

Peanut,

I don’t have much time to write this. I just finished my lab experiment. I’m staaaaarving. I got a swimsuit shoot on Saturday and your mother wants me to lose 5 lbs before then. I don’t know if I can take it any more. I’m so freaking hungry it’s not even funny. Lets go out to eat after your game. Pizza, Pizza, Pizza. And then back to my place for… whatever comes to mind. ;)

Don’t worry, we’ll be alone. Mimi is helping Brady move into his apartment, and Ginny is working.

XXXXXXOOOOO,

C-Nut

PS: Pizza, Pizza Pizzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzza

Jason chuckled to himself, and waited until the teacher slipped in the second half of The Scarlet Letter movie. A few times when he looked up to gather his thoughts and pretend to be watching the movie, he caught Jan staring at him. She knew what he was doing. He ignored her, looking away every time.

And then Jan, being classic Jan, decided to write her own little note. She handed it over to Philip, and thus began their handing back and forth for the rest of the class. He knew she was doing it to make him curious, and possibly to piss him off. Instead, it amused him. It was petty actually, and her intentions failed. Jason continued and completed his note affectionately, unaffected by the games surrounding him.

C-Nut,

Baby, no can do. The pizza, that is. Don’t forget my game is in Bay City. My parents and Matt are going. Afterwards, we’re supposed to go to a favorite restaurant of my mother’s there. We went last year, and the year before, so it’s like a tradition now, or some shit. Ride with them to the game so you can join us. Maybe wear something nice, like a dress, with no underwear underneath. Just kidding. Not really. Liiiiiiick!!!! As for us hooking up after dinner, I’m all for it. But I won’t be able to stay for too long since it’s a school night. But I’m sure we’ll have no problem making the most of it, if you know what I mean.

Anyway, back to Demi Moore and her Scarlet Letter…

XXXXXXXXXXOOOOO right back atcha,

Peanut

He folded the note, and slipped it in his pocket. Jan was in the midst of tossing the famous note back to Philip when she dropped it on accident. It landed near Jason’s foot. Jan reached for it, but Jason covered it with his foot quickly. Jan plead for mercy with her eyes. Jason gave a powerful smirk.

He pulled it towards him and picked it up. He contemplated reading their little exchange, but then thought better of it. He rolled it up into a tight ball instead. When the teacher seemed absorbed in the movie, and looking nowhere in Jason’s direction, he lobbed it into the trashcan by the door. It entered in a perfect swoosh, and Jason smiled in satisfaction.

Jan glared at him furiously, and Philip sunk into his chair, not appearing to care either way. Jason pit his pen cap to keep from laughing outloud. When he felt relatively composed, he broke out Chloe’s note again, and scribbled some silly hearts on the outside of it…

******************

Chloe rode with Jason’s family as suggested, and sat with them during the game. As Jason continued to give a stellar performance, his brother Matt became a bit friendly and flirtatious. Chloe tried to blow it off as his nature, and assumed he met nothing by it.

It proved to be more than that two hours later when they sat in Jackie’s favorite Italian restaurant. Chloe was seated in a booth between Matt and Jason, across from Michael and Jackie. Under the table, Matt squeezed her left knee and thigh shamelessly. She gave him a sidelong glance, and found him actually smiling. This guy really had some nerve!

She tensed up and signaled to Jason that something wasn’t right, nodding in Matt’s direction. When Jason didn’t catch on right away, she grabbed his and lead it to the source of commotion on her other thigh.

Jason turned red in fury and swiftly reached over, landing a solid punch on Matt’s shoulder “Knock it off shitface,” he growled in warning. He gave another merciless punch in the same spot. Matt gave his brother a dirty look, to which Jason responded with another threat, “Next time I’ll punch you in the face.”

Michael Wells dropped his fork, pointed to Jason and boomed a grim, “Outside, NOW!” Jackie scowled, “Jason, how could you? We’re in public for god’s sake!”

“You too,” Michael said through gritted teeth, pointing to his oldest son.

Chloe sat with her heart pounding as the three men vacated the table. A minute later, Jackie stood up, apologized to Chloe, and followed her clan. Chloe stared after her in shock. She looked out the window and noticed the trio arguing in the parking lot only 10 yards away, with Jackie stomping after them.

A waiter came up and asked if everything was ok. Chloe nodded reluctantly, then peeked out the window again. She was transfixed on the arguing family until she caught a glimpse of her reflection, and the scrumptious loaf of bread the waiter just sat down in the middle of the table. Famished, Chloe lunged for a piece, dipping it graciously into the olive oil and basil mix.

She scarfed three slices before the family returned. She wiped her mouth and took a swig of water. She looked up innocently when they returned. Dinner resumed quietly.

********************

On the drive home, Chloe sat next to window, with Jason to her right. Matt was on the other side, away from Chloe reach. Chloe leaned against Jason, resting her head on his shoulder. They glasped hands in the darkness, occasionally bringing their fingertips to each other’s lips.

Jason leaned down and whispered, “I can’t wait to go back to your place.” Chloe smiled in knowing agreement, and teased him by gently nibbling on his fingernail.

In the front seat, Michael turned off the interstate to the Salem exit. When they come to a stoplight, and Jackie broke the silence by asking Michael something Chloe couldn’t quite make out. Suddenly Matt murmured, “Déjà Vu.”

Jason gave a clueless, “Huh?” and Jackie turned around to regard her son.

“I’m serious, I just had a Déjà vu right when Dad got off the interstate,” Matt explained.

“So?” Jason mumbled under his breath.

“It’s just like last year when we went to your game with mom and dad and Jan, and then to the restaurant, and the drive back.”

Chloe’s face fell at the mention of Jan’s name. Jason shook his head in embarrassment and said, “Shut up Matt.” Neither Michael or Jackie said anything.

Chloe looked at Jason with questioning eyes. Was this a repeat of last year, only with Jan? And here she thought she was having a “special moment” with Jason and his family, something they could call their own. Apparently not.

Chloe dropped Jason’s hand and stared out the window, contemplating how many other similar situations she shared with the ex. For some reason, it really bothered her. Same role, different actress. She avoided Jason’s gaze all the way to his house.

When the reached the drive-way, Jason grabbed her hand and told her to wait a second. Michael and Jackie vacated the vehicle and asked why they weren’t getting out as well. “Just give us a second,” Jason snapped. “I got to talk to Chloe.” They shut the door and went into the house after giving Matt a brief goodbye.

“Chloe, I’m sorry about my brother. He’s just being a competitive asshole, that’s all.” Chloe uttered a curt, “I don’t care.” She opened her door and stepped out. Jason followed her as she stomped past Matt, who was fumbling with the keys to his Jeep. He looked up and winked, uttering a “Night Chloe” when she passed him.

Jason stopped following Chloe. He shoved Matt up against his Jeep and punched him in the ribs and kidney in a sharp sequence of blows. Matt returned a more powerful crack to Jason’s left eye and cheek. Chloe watched in horror at the arguing brothers.

She spun on her heels, running to the Volkswagon parked on the street. She heard them grunt “Fucker” to each other. She slammed the door and struggled to turn the engine. It finally roared to life on the fifth try, and she sped off, not noticing Jason jumping into his own truck to follow her.

**********************

Once in the apartment lot, Chloe ignored his truck creeping into a vacant visitor tall. She raced upstairs and entered her apartment quickly. She turned around, surprised to find Brady and Mimi there in the living room, eating pizza of all things.

Unfortunately, her appetite for pizza was gone thanks to both the J-word and a couple of infantile squabbling brothers. She grumbled hello, kicked off her shoes, and threw her coat in the closet. When she heard the knock at the door, she said, “I’m not here,” and slammed her bedroom door shut behind her. She heard Mimi ignoring her advice, opening the door and inviting Jason in, “She went into the bedroom.”

Chloe rolled her eyes and turned her back when the door opened. She went into the bathroom and went about her nightly ritual of flossing, brushing, washing her face, and applying her moisturizer. Jason stood in the bathroom doorway for awhile, waiting for her to say something. When she didn’t, he left the room.

Chloe looked after him curiously, floss hanging from her teeth. She listened intently, the breathed a sigh of relief when she heard him talking to Brady and Mimi in the living room. She began the laborious task of braiding her hair. She drew a part down the middle of her scalp, and created a French braid on each side.

Once finished she shut out the bathroom light and changed into a pair of athletic shorts and t-shirt. She turned on her nightstand lamp and went to shut off the bedroom’s main light. She paused near the door, and cracked it open slightly, peeking into the living room. Jason looked up, catching her in the act.

She closed the door quickly and scrambled to her bed, diving under the covers. She turned and faced the wall. Jason crept in quietly. She waited for him. He sat down on the bed, his back to her. “Are you going to ignore me all night?”

Chloe didn’t respond.

Jason grunted in frustration and stood up, “Fine, forget it. I’m leaving.”

Chloe turned over and spat out, “Can you blame me?”

Jason looked over his shoulder to her, “My brother was flirting with you right in front of me. What was I supposed to do?”

“You figured hitting him was the best solution?”

“No, I just reacted. He pissed me off. He has no business hitting on my girlfriend. I swear, he thinks he’s some gift to the female gender or something. He’s so damn cocky about it.”

Chloe struggled not to laugh at the irony of his statement~ Jason obviously got his skills from none other than Matt himself. “It was embarrassing Jason. I should have never said anything. If I knew you were going to do something that stupid, I would have just kept my mouth shut.”

“I’m sorry, I just reacted without thinking.”

Chloe turned to face the wall again, mumbling, “Ok, forget about it.”

“Then why are you still mad?”
”I’m not.”

“Yes you are, I can tell.”

Chloe sighed, “It’s nothing.”

“Bullshit.”

“Whatever,” Chloe muttered in frustration.

“Do you want me to leave?” he asked.

“It didn’t help hearing about Jan either.”

Jason paused, absorbing this. “So that’s why you’re really mad.”

Chloe sat up and crossed her legs Indian style. “I just get sick of the constant reminders, that’s all.”

“Constant?” he said with a face that implied she was exaggerating.

“That’s what it seems like sometimes. I feel like I can never get away from her when I’m with you. It’s like she’s always there.”

“She’s in my past.”

“So is Philip!” she shouted. “But you don’t hear me constantly talking about him.”

“You don’t have a history with him like I do with her though.”

“Why, because we didn’t date as long as you two did? That doesn’t have anything to do with it. I had very strong feelings for him. I loved him! But at least I respect you and make a point to not let my feelings for him get in the way of us.”

Jason set his jaw at the proclamation. Chloe’s eyes blazed wildly. She looked away almost regretfully. Even though she wanted him to know how she felt, in a small way, she knew she admitted too much. It wasn’t really necessary for Jason to know that.

“You still have feelings for him?” Jason asked. “Or are you just saying that to even the score?”

“Yes, I mean no. I mean, I don’t know.”

“Just tell me.”

“All I’m saying is that you’re not the only one that had feelings for someone.”

“Do you still ‘love’ him? I mean, you pointed that out for a reason, right?”

Chloe shook her head and looked up to her bedroom door. “I don’t love him any more. But that doesn’t mean I have any feelings for him at all. I made a sacrifice too.”

“You didn’t have to,” he said defensively.

“Neither did you,” she responded matter-of-factly.

“I chose to be with you,” he said passionately.

“So did I,” she said, echoing him.

Jason threw up his hands in defeat. “You lost me. You totally lost me.”

Chloe shrugged and looked up to him. “Look, I didn’t mean to make a scene. I just get… jealous sometimes.”

Jason sat next to her. “Are you having second thoughts about being with me?”

Chloe shook her head, “No, I don’t.”

“Are you going to bring up Philip every time her name comes up?”

“Maybe,” she said in all honesty. She knew it was childish, but it still seemed to make a point. She was just sad that it had to even be that way.

“Fine, I will go out of my way to not bring her up. And I’ll remind my parents and brother to never bring her up either.”

“When you put it like that, it sounds so drastic.”

“But that’s what you want, isn’t it?”

“I guess so.”

“But I can’t guarantee that it’s foolproof.”

“I know.”

“Since you make an effort to keep your Philip past, feelings, and whatnot on the down-low, then I’m sure I can do the same. It’s only fair.”

Chloe stared into his green eyes and immediately softened. “Did I ever tell you how good looking you were?”

Jason smiled, caught off guard. “I’ve gotten the idea.”

“And that you’re incredibly understanding?”

Jason blushed, “Ok, enough is enough.”

“And that you’re the sexiest guy on this hemisphere?”

“Only a hemisphere?”

Chloe smiled, “I mean the world.”

“That’s more like it,” he smirked.

Chloe rolled her eyes, “Not too mention your humility.”

She reached out and touched the swelling and redness near his eye. She went into the kitchen and grabbed a bag of peas from the freezer. She returned, placing it on his eye to reduce the swelling. He laid back and allowed her to nurse him, grateful for her tenderness.

“What’s that noise I hear?” he asked a minute later. Chloe perked her head up and looked at the door. “It’s the cat. She wants in.” Jason sat up, finding a set of paws reaching from underneath the door.

Jason stood up and went to the door, opening it slightly. Igea looked up in her exotic, flat-faced beauty. Jason scowled at her, “What do you want?” She meowed meekly. Jason held his hand on the doorknob. “Get out of here, you’re ugly, I’m not interested.” He shut the door and hesitated.

Chloe watched in amusement when Jason opened the door again and Igea pranced in. Jason shut the door and watched the Himalayan with interest, “That cat is the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen.”

“She likes you.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. Your good-looking I guess.”

Jason laid down between Chloe’s legs allowed her to resume nursing. She looked down to him, and gave the first kiss of forgiveness. He returned it with enthusiasm, innocently at first, and then with more tongue. Igea hopped onto the bed to join the crowd. She wandered up Jason’s leg before choosing his belly as a suitable resting place.

“What the?” he asked. Chloe gave out a laugh, and Igea blinked, purring amorously. Jason mumbled, “Get off me,” to Igea. He picked her up and sat her on the floor. Poor Igea seemed offended. She jumped onto Mimi’s futon across the way and regarded them scornfully.

Jason returned to Chloe, joining her under her covers. “Damn girl, you’re warm down here.” Chloe moved the frozen peas from his cheeks to his forehead, “This will cool you of,” she laughed.

He grabbed the peas from her and tossed them across the room. It landed on Mimi’s futon, right next to Igea. The feline sniffed the hurled object in wonder.

Jason reached over to click off the night lamp. He pulled Chloe on top of him and began kissing her. A little too into the moment, they didn’t hear the phone ringing in the other room. The sudden knocked on the door startled them. Before Chloe could inquire who it was, Mimi opened the door and mumbled “Phone, it’s for you Jason… oh.”

She walked over to the bed, attempting to cover her eyes. “It’s your mother,” she whispered.

“Thanks, I got it,” he said, taking the phone from her.

Chloe held her tongue and listened as Jason spoke apologetically to his mother. “Yes, I know. Ok, OK, All right, I’m leaving now. 15 minutes mother, I swear.” He hung and let out a breath, “I got to go, she’s pissed.”

Chloe pulled him down to her. “No, I want you to stay.”

“I can’t.”

“Just stay five more minutes.”

“I can’t.”

“Come on,” she pleaded in her sexiest voice.

“Hey, you’re the one that wasted all this time being pissed and ignoring me.”

Chloe frowned, “I’m sorry.”

“We’re both sorry.”

“Kiss me.”

Jason kissed her.

“More,” Chloe said in a husky voice.

Jason smiled, “I can’t, otherwise I’ll want to stay.”

“That’s was my point,” she whispered.

“Do you want me to be grounded? Cuz that’s what will happened if I’m not there in 15 minutes. That’s what happens to those of us that still live under our parents roof, or don’t you remember that?”

“Being grounded?”

“Yeah.”

“Not really. If Nancy would have grounded me, I would have just laughed in her face.”

“Then I guess that’s why you’re here and not there.”

“I still want you to kiss me.”

Jason gave her one last kiss goodnight. Chloe’s eyes drooped in satisfaction when he crawled off her. She smiled, “Promise you’ll come back again.”

“You know I will,” he said, going to the door.

She propped up on her elbows, “Tomorrow night?”

Jason smiled, “We’ll see.”

“Kisses tomorrow,” Chloe commanded one last time before falling back into bed.

Jason gave an obedient nod and closed the door behind him.

~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 40 preview: Jan, Philip, and Shawn

Chapter 41: Belle and Paulie