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He pushes past her into the room, closes the door and locks it, takes her hand, and holds her. He is pleading. “I don’t understand,” he says. “I just don’t understand. Why did you do that to me?” He’s broken.
And so is she. “I can explain,” Janie says. And she buries her face in his shirt and cries. “Just get me home.”
They fall on the bed, and they just hold each other quietly.
That’s all they do.
And then, it’s time to go home.
2:00 p.m.
Janie and Cabel are in the back seats again. Carrie and Melinda sit in front of them. Across the aisle, Savannah and Kyle are making out. Janie reminds herself to start taking bets on these things.
In front of Savannah and Kyle is Shay, or at least her baggage. Shay appears to be furiously ignoring Janie. She tries to strike up a conversation with Cabel by sitting on the aisle floor, next to him. Cabel is cool and mildly disinterested.
This makes Shay try harder.
Carrie and Melinda turn around in their seats to chat. Cabel makes small talk and jokes, while Janie looks out the window. He slips his hand into hers.
The other girls notice.
Carrie winks.
Melinda looks at Carrie with burning eyes.
Shay shifts in the aisle and leans against Cabel’s leg, batting her eyelashes madly. Frighteningly.
At the front of the bus, kids are roaming around and laughing, singing, chattering. Awake and buzzing. Janie slips into a grateful coma, her head propped against the window.
7:31 p.m.
They are back at Fieldridge High School. Cabel shakes Janie awake, gently. She sits up, wondering where she is. Cabel grins at her. “You made it,” he whispers. He gathers their bags and follows her off the bus. He walks with her to Carrie’s car.
“Come on, Cabel,” Carrie says. “Let me give you a ride, at least. Unless you want Shay to—hey, here she comes now.” Carrie titters, her eyes dancing.
Cabel’s eyes grow wide. He slips into the backseat of Carrie’s car without a word. “Get me outta here. Fuckin’ creepy cheerleaders.”
Carrie laughs. She pulls out of the parking lot and eases onto the road ahead of the pack, and turns to Cabel. “So where do you live?”
“Waverly. Two blocks straight east of your house. But I’ll walk from Janie’s, if you don’t mind. Janie has a superstition about my street.”
“What the hell?” Carrie snorts.
Janie laughs. “Nothing! Shut up, Cabe.”
Carrie pulls into her driveway. It’s cool outside. Crisp. The harvest moon shines orange on Ethel’s roof in the Hannagan driveway. Carrie grabs her things and yawns. “I’m turning in. Catch you guys later.” She clops to her front door and lets herself in, waving as she closes the screen door.
Janie takes her bag and waves to Carrie. She looks at Cabel. It feels awkward, now that they are in Janie’s front yard. They walk to her door. “Can you come in for a bit?” Janie asks, trying not to sound anxious.
“Sure,” he says, his voice relieved. “I, uh, figure we have some things to talk about. Are the ’rents home?”
“My mother’s probably passed out in her bedroom. That’s it, just me and her.”
“Cool,” he says, but he gives her an understanding look.
They go inside. There is no sign of Janie’s mother, except for an empty fifth of vodka on the kitchen counter and a sink full of dishes. Janie throws the bottle in the trash. “Sorry about the mess,” she says in a low voice. She is embarrassed. The house was spotless when she left it yesterday morning.
“Forget about it. We can clean it up later, if you want.”
Janie waves her hand at the living room. “Well. This is it,” she says.
“You sleep out here, huh?” He isn’t teasing.
“No, I have a bedroom. Come.” She shows him. It’s sparse and neat.
“Nice,” he says. He glances at the bed, and then abruptly turns around and they walk back to the living room.
“Hungry?”
“My stomach’s growling,” he says.
“Let me see if we have anything.” Janie searches the kitchen cupboards and refrigerator and comes up empty-handed. “Good grief,” she says finally. “I’m sorry.” She turns around. “We got nothin’.”
He’s been watching her, she realizes.
“Maybe we could get a pizza.”
“Sounds good.”
“You want to go out?”
Janie sighs and scratches her head. “Not really.”
“Good. Let’s order delivery.”
Janie finds the number for Fred’s Pizza and Grinders and orders. “Thirty minutes.”
Cabel tosses a twenty-dollar bill on the coffee table and sits down.
“Cabe.”
“Yes.”
“What is that?”
“It’s twenty dollars, Hannagan.”
Janie sighs. “Let’s be truthful with each other here, mmmkay?”
“Of course. Our whole relationship is based on it. Right?” He’s smiling sardonically, and looks down.
She cringes as the words hang ominously in the room. “Look, I’m sorry,” she begins. “I have a lot of explaining to do. But I know you don’t have any more money to spare than I do. So how about I pay for this?”
“No. Next question.”
Janie sits down next to him. Shakes her head. “Fine,” she says, giving up. She draws her legs up under her and turns to face him.
“Okay,” she continues. “How did you get in the dream twice?”
He looks away, and then back to Janie.
“Well, let’s just jump right into it, then.”
