The Book Of Joe by Tropper Jonathan

Author:Tropper, Jonathan [Tropper, Jonathan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Humor, Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary
ISBN: 9780385338103
Publisher: Delta
Published: 2005-01-25T00:00:00+00:00

Twenty-Two

I’m almost disappointed when there’s no car chase. It’s distinctly possible that the guards haven’t phoned in the incident, swearing a solemn oath of secrecy rather than choosing to explain how a band of high school kids with paintball guns overpowered them. Whatever the case, we make good our escape and are soon parked in the woods overlooking the Bush River Falls.

I look at my nephew peering pensively at the churning waters. “Jared,” I say. “I just want to be friends.”

He laughs. “Was this the place in your time too?”

“My parents probably screwed around here too.”

Jared fumbles through the many pockets of his cargo pants and, after a moment, triumphantly fishes out a slightly bent but wholly intact joint. “Join me?” he says, punching the dashboard lighter.

“Believe it or not, that’s the second joint I’ve seen tonight.”

“Good,” Jared says, firing it up. “Then you’re already primed.” He takes two short tokes on the spliff to get it lit

right, and then one long, meaningful drag, before passing it to me as he holds his breath. I am about to refuse, but the throbbing in my injured ankle is fast becoming excruciating and I think of something Wayne said earlier.

“Okay,” I say, taking the proffered joint. “But strictly for medicinal purposes.”

“Whatever floats your boat, man.” Jared leans back and closes his eyes.

I take a long drag, coughing slightly at the acrid dryness of the weed, and then take another, this time pulling the herb down deeply into my lungs. I pass it back to Jared as I exhale, my smoke all but invisible in the darkness of the car. We pass the chubby joint back and forth a few more times and then lean back in our automatically reclining seats, turning down the roof so we can stare up at the stars. “I lost my virginity here,” I say, apropos of nothing.

“No shit,” Jared says. “Me too.”

We enjoy a primitive male moment, high-fiving over our shared sexual triumph. I have a brief, vivid flash of Carly’s milky white thighs as she pulled her skirt down her legs, smiling affectionately at my clumsy, sophomoric excitement. “Are you sure?” I asked as she pulled urgently at the waistband of my underwear. “I want this,” she said. “I want it with you.”

“I loved her very much,” I announce to the universe swirling above us like a studio backdrop, vast and intimate, my sudden, piercing sadness amplified by the weed.

“That’s nice,” Jared says. “I just wanted to get laid already.”

I open my eyes a short while later to discover that during my brief nap, our location has changed. We are now parked outside a large brick colonial set back on an impressive front lawn. “Where are we?” I ask.

“I just wanted to see something,” Jared says, peering intently out his window.

I lean across the seat and look out over his shoulder.

“What are we looking at?”

“Her.” Jared points to a lit window on the second floor. A girl periodically passes in and out of the window frame as she moves around her room, getting ready for bed.

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