Forever Altered (7 page)

“In
the kitchen, Dad.”  Hopping off the stool, I run over and throw my arms
around his waist as soon as he comes around the corner.  “Thank you for my
new room!  I absolutely love it!”

“I’m
so glad you like it.”  Since he’s so much taller than me, he kisses the
top of my head.  My dad and I have always been very close and I’m so
grateful for that.  “But I’m even happier you decided to come home. 
I’ve missed you, Kiddo.”

“Me
too.”  I squeeze him one more time before he goes over to say hello to
Jill.  Seeing the two of them together always makes me happy.  It’s
nice to know that even after all we’ve been through, my dad was able to find
his soul mate.  There may be hope for me, yet.  

We
spent the rest of the night talking, laughing, and relaxing on the patio while
my dad kept a fire burning in the fire pit.  It’s not until after my
parents had gone to bed that my mind drifted to what had been troubling me over
the last month, as well as the things I tried to block out.  Being friends
with Jeff for years before he stepped in to chase off the jerk who was
harassing me.  Our first date when he took me to dinner down the shore
before spending hours on the boardwalk.  When he kissed me for the first
time as we stood with our feet in the ocean.  The times he would watch
‘chick flicks’ because he said he’d do anything as long as it meant he could
spend time with me.  How when we made love, he would make me feel like the
most beautiful girl in the world.  That night I walked in on him in his
room and the pain that flooded my chest.  How he never noticed me standing
there as he destroyed our future together.  Then he tells me to get over
it so he can propose to me.  Did he really expect me to just say
yes? 

Instead
of going to sleep, I start my laptop and decide to reactivate my Facebook
account.  The first thing that needs to be done is to change my
relationship status.  Leah and I would make fun of people who did this,
but it’s my way of admitting in public that it’s over.  There is no more
hiding.  Facebook is the easiest way for me to keep in touch with some of
the little family I have left and friends I don’t see very often. It’s only
spiting them to keep it deactivated.  It doesn’t take long before the
notifications of people commenting on the change start to pop up.  There
is no way I’m reading any of them right now.  As my laptop powers down, my
cell phone buzzes with a text from Leah. 
I’m proud of you
.   

The
rest of the weekend flew by just as expected.  My dad kept us so busy there
was no time to get any of my homework done, so I headed back to school right
after breakfast Sunday morning.  I could only hope that a great weekend at
home would transfer to a great week at school.      

Rocco

The
gym is where I’ve spent most of the last few days.  Friday morning when
Erin said Alyssa went home, my mood went to shit.  We had such a good time
Thursday night after getting rid of that dickhead.  I was hoping maybe she
was starting to get over him.  If she is ready to move on, then maybe we
could…Damn it!  What am I thinking?

“Rocco. 
What the hell are you doing here, again?  And why the fuck are you not
answering your phone?”  Shane’s voice catches me by surprise causing me to
almost drop the weights which are currently suspended over my chest.

“Couldn’t
sleep.”  I reach back to set the weights down.

Shane
grabs the bar from me.  “It’s after twelve.  How long have you been
here?”

“Not
sure.”  What time did I get here this morning?

“Want
to talk about whatever is up your ass?”

Doesn’t
he know by now that it wouldn’t take much for me to beat the shit out of
him?  “Nothing to talk about.”  I get up from the weight bench
grabbing a towel to wipe the sweat off of my face and shoulders.

Shane
tosses me a bottle of water.  It only takes seconds for me to drain
it.  Between the workout and the amount of beer I drank last night, I’m
probably starting to dehydrate.  “Is this about Alyssa?”  If looks
could kill, Shane would be a goner right now.  “Rocco, if you like this
girl, give it a shot.  She seemed to be interested the other night.”

“She
left and didn’t even say anything to me.  Not even a text.”  The
words are out of my mouth before they can be stopped.

“Seriously? 
That’s your problem?”  I can’t look at him.  “The girl had a rough
couple of weeks and the person responsible for it showed up out of the blue
rubbing it in her face.  I’m sure she just needed a break from this place
and didn’t realize she had to clear it with you first.  Have you talked to
her all weekend?”  I don’t respond.  “Dude, you’re such a
girl.”  He’s snickering at me.  “Stop being an ass and ask her out.”

“No.”

“Why
not?  And your excuse better not have anything to do with Vicki.”

Since
Shane is pressing the issue, I may as well get it off my chest.  “Vicki is
part of it, but I also like that Alyssa and I are friends.  The other
night when we were all hanging out, she was laughing and having a good
time.  She’s someone I actually don’t mind being around.  Usually, I
just sleep with a girl and move on, but there’s something about Alyssa that
makes me see shit differently.”  I throw the towel on top of my bag.

“You
cannot let Vicki control your life.  Damn it, Rocco!  Will you spend
the rest of your life alone because you’re afraid that psycho bitch will find
out you’re dating someone?”  He’s leaning against the weight rack behind
him.

“What
if she did?  You saw what she did to Melanie’s car last year and I only
went out on a couple of dates with her.  It was never anything serious.” 
My hand is running through my hair.

“It’s
fucked up that just because her dad is some political big shot, they won’t
arrest her.  She needs to be locked up and put in a straitjacket.”

I
gather my shit and head to the locker room.  “That’s how it works, man.”

“I
still think you should give this thing with Alyssa a shot.  She’s good for
you.  Did you even notice how many girls you pissed off last night?” 
What’s he talking about?  “Did you forget how trashed you were and ended
up in bed before midnight
alone
?”

“Fuck
off.  I’m jumping in the shower.”  

Shane’s
right.  I very rarely turn down any chance at getting laid.  Talking
about Vicki has me on edge now.  I cannot believe I let my mom talk me
into dating her a couple of years ago.  She has been nothing but a pain in
my ass.  We dated for a couple of months because my stepfather was
chairing some charity with her dad.  She kept asking about me and my mom
thought she was sweet.  That was the first time my mom was ever wrong
about anything.  When I decided to break it off, Vicki let me know she’d
never let me be happy with anyone ever.  Last year, I took Melanie, a girl
from my hometown, out a few times.  When Vicki found out about it, she
took a baseball bat to her car one day while it sat in my driveway.  She
was caught on the surveillance camera, but her dad paid off Melanie’s parents
and the case was dropped against her.  That concerns me since she has no
fear of any repercussions.

My
head isn’t any clearer after emerging from the shower.  The question of
whether or not I should pursue anything other than friendship with Alyssa has
been bothering me for a few days.  I’m not even sure I’m capable of
anything more and she definitely needs someone who will give her exactly
that.  A major concern is definitely whether or not Vicki is over her
bullshit.  Alyssa does not need to get mixed up in that mess. 

I
wasn’t expecting to see Shane waiting for me outside of the gym.  “Let’s
go grab Logan and Troy.  We’ll get something to eat.  How about we go
somewhere off-campus?”

“Whatever,”
I reply.

Shane
is quiet until we reach the stairs leading to the apartment building. 
“Look, man.  I wasn’t trying to piss you off earlier.  You’ve only
known Alyssa for less than a week and she’s already getting to you.  This
isn’t normal for you.  I’ll back off, but if you aren’t interested in her,
I’m going to ask her out.”

“Like
hell you will.”  I almost knocked him down the concrete steps.

“I’ll
give you a week, Matthews.  Figure your shit out.” 

He
better be busting my balls.  “You aren’t serious?” 

“I’ve
never been more serious in my life.” 

“That
is the most fucked up thing you have ever said to me, Shane.”  I’m too
stunned to be angry.  

“Deal
with it, Rocco.  One week.” 

We
reach the bottom of the steps and immediately notice Alyssa and Leah hanging
out in the grass on a blanket behind the building.  It looks like they
might have started out doing homework, but now they are just lounging around
talking.  Instantly, I’ve forgotten all about my douchebag friend of ten
years and walk over toward them.  The overwhelming excitement that is
building in my chest is undeniable.  I definitely have feelings for this
girl, but have no idea what to do about them.  This is all new to
me.  Leah sees us first and she must say something to Alyssa because she
turns right around looking in our direction.  Alyssa’s hair is pulled up
again, but this time a few of her soft curls are blowing in the wind. 
She’s smiling as I make my way over, drop my gym bag in the grass, and plop myself
across the bottom of their blanket.        

“What’s
up, girls?” I ask making myself comfortable in their space.  Shane remains
standing. 

“Hey,”
Alyssa says tucking a curl behind her ear and pulling her bare feet up to give
me room. 

“I heard
you went home this weekend.  Did you have a good time?” At least I’m able
speak to her this time.

“It
was okay.”  She shrugs one shoulder.  “I just hung out with my dad
and my stepmom.  How was yours?”  Shane chuckles next to me. 
Alyssa looks over to him.  “Shane, are you sitting down or are you just
going to stand there?”  Leah tells him she will make room for him on the
other side and he walks around the blanket to sit down. 

“Not
bad,” I answer leaving out that she’s been on my mind the whole time.

“You
have a tattoo?”  How the hell did she see that?  My right hand
instinctively goes to the left side of my chest and I nod.  “Let me see
it.”  She looks serious as she shifts to tuck her legs underneath her.
 She’s waiting for me to show her. 

“Really?”
I ask curiously.

“Really. 
Come on, let me see it.  I want one, but I’m too afraid to get it.” 
I glance at Shane and he’s trying not to smile. 

“Don’t
be such a baby.  If you really want one, go get it.  It’s not that
bad.”  I tell her.   Then I pull my shirt down by the neck
revealing the tattoo I got about three years ago. 

“Is
that a police badge?”

I
nod at her.  A girl has never asked me about my tattoo.  “It was my
dad’s badge.”

“Was?”
she asks reluctantly. The smile leaves her face.  Damn it.  I don’t
want to make her upset, but decide to tell her the truth.

“My
dad was shot by some guy out on parole he helped put away a few years
before.”  She doesn’t need to hear the rest of the gruesome story.

“Tell
her the whole thing, Rocco,” Shane blurts out.  Alyssa looks over to him
and then back to me waiting to hear the story. 

I
sigh looking away.  She won’t let this go, now that Shane opened his
mouth.  “When the guy got locked up, the state took his kid away, so he
had it in for my dad and his partner.  One day when I was seven, my dad
had the day off and we went fishing.  The scumbag somehow found out my dad
was there.  He actually tried to shoot me, but my dad took the
bullet.  He died while he was in surgery.”  I wait for the look of
pity that everyone gives me but it doesn’t come.  She tilts her head to
the side a tad, her eyes glass over, and the most amazingly beautiful lips I’ve
ever seen give me a small smile.

“He’s
your
super hero,” she says making me smile. 

“Yeah,
I guess he is,” I tell her letting my shirt go, so it covers my tattoo back
up.  The sound of her cell phone ringing next to her ends the discussion.

“Shit. 
It’s Lori.”  She exchanges a look with Leah.  “She must have seen my
Facebook account was reactivated.”  I make a mental note to find her
later.

“You
may as well answer it.  She won’t stop until she talks to you.” Leah says
and Alyssa sighs.

“Hello?”
she answers the call putting her head on her other hand.

“Who’s
that?” I whisper to Leah.  She whispers back that
it’s
Jeff’s sister.  No wonder she didn’t want to answer.
      

“No,
Lori.  No one hacked my Facebook account.  It’s not a joke.  We
broke up over a month ago.  I have no idea why the hell didn’t he tell
you.”  Hearing one side of this conversation is annoying.  She’s
looking to Leah for help, but Leah just shrugs at her.  “Uh, no.  It
was no mistake.  I saw it with my own eyes.  I walked in on him with
some girl.”  Damn this girl for making Alyssa go through this again. 
Shane is looking at me trying to get me to walk away.  Not a chance. 
She starts fidgeting, so I lean over putting the palm of my hand on the top of
her foot then wrap my fingers around her tiny ankle.  She stills right
away and looks at me with gratitude.  My hand stays put. 

Shane
tells Leah he is going to get the guys ready to go out.  She tells him the
door outside of their apartment is propped open if he wants to use it.  He
thanks her and heads inside. 

“No. 
No way.”  Alyssa is shaking her head now.  “What?  Why the hell
are you getting married Thanksgiving weekend?  That’s a month away.” 
Her eyes get wide and a sad smile crosses her face.  “You’re
pregnant?  Congratulations!”  Leah’s mouth drops open at the
news.  “Really, Lori.  That’s sweet of you to ask, but I cannot be in
your wedding now.  It wouldn’t be right.  I know we’ve been friends
since before we started dating.  What do you mean you already bought my
dress?  You’re kidding me, right?”  She’s glancing at Leah for help
again and this time Leah is practically falling over she’s laughing so
hard.  Some friend.  Alyssa starts laughing at what Lori is now
saying.  “So, what you’re saying is that you want me to be in your wedding
and you want me to bring a date?  Where the hell will I be able to find a
date?” 

My
brain doesn’t even process what I’m about to do.  I tap her on the side of
the leg to get her attention.  When she looks up, I say, “I’ll take
you.”  The girl on the phone must have heard me because Alyssa shot
daggers at me.  What did I say earlier?  If looks could kill.

“It’s
a friend of mine.  I doubt he wants to really go, Lori.  He’s just
being nice.” 

“I
would love to take you to your friend’s wedding.”  I’ll take her because
there is no way in hell I’d let her go face her ex alone.

“Please
don’t do this to me, Lori.”  She is so adorable when she rolls her
eyes.  “Okay.  Fine.  I’ll be there, with a date.”  She
gives me a harsh look then continues, “as long as I don’t have to walk with,
talk to, or be anywhere near you know who.  Book me a room.  Yeah,
yeah.  You better love me and you do owe me
big
time.”  She
disconnects the call and exhales.  “I don’t know which one of you to stab
first,” she says looking at both me and Leah. 

“I
cannot believe she got knocked up before the wedding.”  Leah ignores her
threat and starts to laugh again.  Alyssa stands up and slides her feet
back into her flip flops that were placed in the grass behind them.  They
both start packing up their stuff as Shane and Logan walk toward us. 

“Troy
said he’ll meet us at your car in about ten minutes,” Logan says.  “Hey,
girls.  You coming out to eat with us?”