MORE THAN THAT
Chapter Twenty-Five
February 6, 2004
It was only a week away from the
prom. Jack had decided on escorting both Rose and Christina. As much as he
loved Christina, he kind of wished Rose would be his only date. However, he did
not want Christina to be alone and see her in misery on a day that was supposed
to be fun. He only wished that Tommy and Christina would get back together
already and that he could be friends with Tommy again.
He missed hanging out with his
circle of friends. It just wasn’t the same anymore since Christina and Tommy
broke up. With Fabrizio and Hannah being caught in the middle, it seemed as if
they barely wanted to hang out, either. Jack was, at least, glad to have Rose
by his side now.
He was pretty sure if she stayed
with that creature any longer she’d turn up dead. Jack didn’t like the thought
of that. What kind of person would do such a thing to a beautiful person? Jack
could not find the answer. It might take him years to figure out. One thing was
for sure. He’d never let Cal hurt Rose again.
"Valentine’s Day is a
fucking week from tomorrow! The first time I think I’m going to have a
Valentine, I destroy the damn relationship!" Christina complained as she
sat on her bed. Jack and Rose sat next to her, feeling sorry for their friend.
"The three of us will all be
each other’s Valentines, then!" Jack said, putting an arm around her and
Rose’s shoulders.
"Real sweet, Jack!"
Christina glumly said.
"You don’t sound too
thrilled, Chris!" Rose pointed out to her.
"I miss Tommy!" she
flat out responded. "I’m such an idiot! Why did I break up with him?
Especially for something so stupid! Most likely he is over me. We broke up
three months ago!"
"Come on, Christina! You
know Tommy loves you!" Jack told her.
"Do you not see the kid in
school? He looks miserable, as well!" Rose told her.
"Please! He’s been talking
to his slutty ex-girlfriend, Maria!" Christina yelled, and buried her face
in her hands.
"You saw them talking to
each other once, Christina," Jack informed her.
"Yeah, well, who knows if
they messed around? Anyway, it’s close to eleven and my parents should be
coming home soon. Would you guys rather stay or leave? Personally, as much as I
love your company, I think I need some time alone. Clear my head!" Christina
told them.
"Whatever you need,
girl!" Rose said. Jack and Rose got up from the bed and put their coats on
for the still cold winter that was awaiting them outside.
"We’ll hang out tomorrow,
Chris! Feel better!" Jack said, and gave his friend a huge embrace. Rose
did the same. Christina walked her friends to the door, seeing them out.
They still thought it was too
early to go home, not wanting the night to end. Jack and Rose, for the most
part, did not want to be without each other. Ever since they started hanging
out, Rose felt like a whole new person and a little bit of her old self. Jack
made her feel fun again.
Out of nowhere, Rose grabbed onto
Jack’s hand. He looked at her, blushing as she smiled. The pair were so giggly
they started to sing an old popular song.
Come Josephine in my flying
machine
And it’s up she goes! Up she goes
In the air she goes. Where? There she goes!
Not knowing the rest, they
fumbled with the words, both breaking out into laughter. It was a beautiful
night so far, as Rose looked up at the sky, seeing the stars.
"The sky is beautiful,
isn’t?" Rose asked, still looking up. Rose sighed, thinking about the
crowd she used to hang around with. "Cal and that crowd are such small
people. They think they rule the world or something. Like huge giants. They
aren’t even dust in God’s eye. They live in a beer bottle. One of these days
it’s gonna break."
"You’re not one of them. You
never were. They made a mistake," Jack told her.
"A mistake?"
"Yeah. You got mailed to the
wrong address." He smiled at her.
Rose chuckled and looked at the
sky again. "Look! A shooting star!"
"Wow. That was a long one.
My father used to say that a soul was going to heaven whenever you saw
them."
"That was cute. Aren’t you
suppose to wish on them?"
"Yeah. What would you wish
for?"
Rose turned to face Jack and
smiled. "I wouldn’t wish for anything, because my wish is already coming
true!" Jack smiled, and they inched closer to each other.
Jack placed his hands on Rose’s waist,
his face reading that he was madly in love with her, staring into her emerald
eyes. Rose, in return, had her arms wrapped around his neck. It was the perfect
moment. Rose and Jack’s lips met at that moment. It was the perfect kiss, if
there was such thing as anything being perfect.
Soon clouds covered the night sky
and it began to rain. At first it was drizzling, but then it was coming down
hard. However, Rose and Jack didn’t seem to mind at all. So you might say it
was the most perfect kiss in the rain.
*****
Rose and Jack laughed and kissed
most of their walk to Jack’s house. As usual, his mom was at work, so they had
the house all to themselves. They took their shoes off before they could go in
any further, to not dirty the carpet. The pair were drenched from the downpour
and it didn’t seem as if it was going to end anytime soon.
"So, do you have to be home
soon?" Jack asked.
"No. My parents won’t be
home until the crack of dawn!" Rose told him. "You have me all to
yourself!"
"That sounds wonderful,
coming from you! While we’re here, though, maybe we should change into dry
clothes. We don’t want to get sick!" Jack informed her.
"All right. That sounds
smart."
"Okay, last one up gets to
change in the bathroom!" Jack quickly said, and ran up the stairs.
"Hey, that wasn’t
fair!" Rose yelled, running behind him.
As they dashed up the stairs,
Rose behind, she grabbed his leg to make him fall. Then, quickly, she ran ahead
of him, but she didn’t get far. Jack placed his arm around her waist and
continued to run up the stairs.
They laughed as they reached the
top. Rose and Jack stared at each other, trying to catch their breaths as she
stood against the wall.
"So, who gets the
bathroom?" Rose asked.
"We’ll see!" Jack said,
leading her into his bedroom. Rose looked around, seeing his artwork displayed
all over the room. It was a very unique-looking room. The walls were painted
with an ocean-like scene, which Rose knew he must have done.
"This is a beautiful room,
Jack. Did you paint the walls?" Rose asked.
"Yeah," he simply
answered, just as Rose suspected he would.
She continued to walk around the
room and came across his desk, where she saw a sketch of her face. Jack was a
wonderful artist, she saw, getting the drawing down precisely.
"Looks like you found my secret
drawings!" Jack said behind her.
"Not much of a secret if you
kept it just laying out here for me to find. It’s beautiful, Jack!" Rose
said to him.
"Not as beautiful as
you," Jack said.
Rose laughed at him. "You
guys say the cheesiest things! You know that?" Rose continued to smile.
"At least I’m honest about
what I say," Jack told her. "I’ll never lie to you, Rose. I’ll never
do anything to hurt you."
Rose was touched by his sincere
words. Impulsively, she kissed him, the deepest she had ever kissed anyone.
Jack kissed her back, wrapping his arms tightly around his body. They moved
closer to the bed, finally collapsing on it.
Jack pulled away from Rose and
looked at her eyes staring back at him. They gave each other a warm smile as he
pushed aside a strand of hair. Both pretty much knew where this was leading.
"You nervous?" he asked
her.
"No," she quietly said.
"Put your hands on me, Jack."
There were no more words left to
be said as Jack kissed Rose. There, on that rainy night, Jack and Rose gave in to
their passion and shared themselves with each other.
*****
Jack and Rose lay there in his
bed, not wanting to tear themselves apart. It was so much better than her
experience with Cal. It was everything she hoped it would be. Having sex with Jack
was the most beautiful experience Rose had ever had. She was glad to share
herself with someone she cared for, and most of all, loved.
The connection was so clear, and
that was what made it even more special. Rose wondered if Jack could be the
one. On the other hand, she was only sixteen, and knew she had her whole life
to live.
"You’re trembling,"
Rose said to him.
"Don’t worry. I’ll be all
right." He laughed a little, kissed her, and placed his head on her
heaving chest.
"It’s nearly two in the
morning. I should get home before it gets any later." Rose moved away from
him and sat on the bed.
"Why don’t you stay?"
he asked as he wrapped his arms around her, kissing her face.
"Right, and then my parents
will have a search party after me! They freaked out when I didn’t come home
that weekend from Christina’s!" Rose said as she slowly put her clothes
back on.
"I’ll be forced to kidnap
you one of these days and have you all to myself," Jack said.
"You wouldn’t have to kidnap
me, because I’d run away with you!" Rose kissed Jack and got up from the
bed.
"I’ll call you a cab,"
Jack said.
"It’s okay. I wanna take the
bus home."
"This late? I’m coming with
you!" Jack said, and got up to put his clothes on.
"I wouldn’t have it any
other way." Rose winked at him.
*****
Every moment they shared with
each was filled with excitement. Something as simple as a bus ride was precious
to Jack and Rose. Throughout most of the empty bus ride, they either laughed or
kissed. Rose felt like he knew her much better then Cal ever had, and that was
really something.
She wouldn’t trade any moment she
shared with Jack to be with anyone else. He was the one who brought life back
into her soul. She didn’t think she could laugh again. She never even thought
she could be as happy as she was now.
Jack and Rose held hands as they
walked from the bus stop to her house. It was still raining hard, but they
didn’t care. Even though it was only a five minute walk to her house, it seemed
like a journey. They stopped often to kiss each other and laugh.
A block away from her house, Jack
stopped at the corner. "Do you want to dance with me?"
"Here? In the rain?"
Rose asked, puzzled. Her face lit up all of a sudden. "Why, I’d love
to!"
Rose placed her hand in his and
he spun her around. Even though there was no music, they could hear it in their
heads. Most of the time, Rose giggled, enjoying their little dance number. It
finished when Jack dipped her. They both laughed, having the greatest time.
They continued their laughter as
they stood in front of her huge house in Dyker Heights. The couple didn’t want
to leave each other, though they knew it was time to say good night when they
walked up to her door.
"Good night, Rose,"
Jack said.
"Good night, Jack," she
said back, her hands on his waist, and then gave him a powerful kiss. It was a
kiss that said more than what words could say, and it made Jack feel great
inside. When they pulled their faces apart, all Jack managed to do was blush.
"I’ll call you later,"
Jack told her, and Rose nodded as she opened her door. "Bye," he
said, and walked away backwards. He just didn’t want to take his eyes off her.
When she went inside, he turned around and started to run in the direction of
the bus stop.
"Jack!" He heard Rose
call his name. He turned around to see her at her window. "Sweet dreams!
I’ll be thinking of you!"
"I will be, too!" he
yelled back. Rose smiled and closed her window.
They both smiled as they went
their different ways that night, each thinking of the other. It was the best
they would ever remember.
Breathe in for luck, breathe
in so deep
This air is blessed, you share with me.
This night is wild, so calm and dull,
These hearts they race, from self-control.
Your legs are smooth, as they graze mine,
We're doing fine, we're doing nothing at all.
My hopes are so high, that your kiss might kill me.
So won't you kill me, so I die happy.
My heart is yours to fill or burst,
To break or bury, or wear as jewelry,
Whichever you prefer.
The words are hushed lets not get busted;
Just lay entwined here, undiscovered.
Safe in here from all the stupid questions.
"Hey did you get some?"
Man, that is so dumb.
Stay quiet, stay near, stay close they can't hear...
So we can get some.
My hopes are so high that your kiss might kill me.
So won't you kill me, so I die happy.
My heart is yours to fill or burst,
To break or bury, or wear as jewelry,
Whichever you prefer.
Hands down this is the best day I can ever remember,
I'll always remember the sound of the stereo,
The dim of the soft lights,
The scent of your hair that you twirled in your fingers
And the time on the clock when we realized it's so late
And this walk that we shared together.
The streets were wet and the gate was locked so I jumped it,
And I let you in.
And you stood at your door with your hands on my waist
And you kissed me like you meant it.
And I knew that you meant it,
That you meant it,
That you meant it,
And I knew,
That you meant it,
That you meant it.