No Title! (: part 1

Ok: so once upon a time there was a girl pathetically in love with her best friend. Fortunately, she thought morosely to herself, he was far far away in a mystical land called Texas while she inhabited the mellow suburbs of Chicago. She kept her mind off of him whenever she could, and she was sure he did the same.1

Until he called for – no joke – the twentieth time that day.2

She had been trying to sleep – she’d recently learned that operating on less than three hours of sleep each night could be hazardous to herself and others – when the cell phone that she’d forgotten to turn off exploded with one of those stupid annoying tunes that makes you want to shoot yourself before you hear it again.3

Someone irritable pounded on the other side of the thin wall and muttered something along the lines of, “Shut the hell up, I’m trying to sleep in here,” but she ignored them.4

Stretching out her arm as far as it would reach in the darkness, she grasped the smooth edge of her phone and ran her fingers along its chipped surface.5

She blinked back tears when the caller I.D. confirmed what her melodramatic mind already knew.6

Heaving a sigh, she flipped open the phone, if not just to shut it up.7

Nerves prickled in her stomach but her dead voice gave nothing away. “What?”8

Tyler’s was soaked with relief. “Jessa! Finally! I thought you’d finally figured out I was a shitty friend and tossed me out with the garbage where I should be!”9

Jessa smiled wryly, the tears fast receding. “You know, you’re not nearly as bad as you make yourself out to be.”10

“Oh, but I am,” Tyler said mischievously. “I thought you of all people would know that.”11

Feeling the first smile in what seemed like centuries break across her face, she felt her heart flutter at Tyler’s not-so-subtle hint to their patchy history together.12

“If you’re referring to the ninth grade, I’m sorry, but I have no recollection whatsoever of that year. Hell, I might have been in a coma for all I know.” Jessa knew she was slipping back, losing the ground that all her strenuous avoidance of Tyler had gained. But for now, at least, she didn’t care.13

“Really?” Tyler’s tone was incredulous. “I seem to remember my freshman year extremely well. It was… rather enticing.”14

Jessa burst out laughing, Tyler’s antics having blown the dark thoughts completely from her mind.15

“I thought I told you to shut up over there! It’s three in the morning!” her irascible neighbor shouted, his fist thumping the wall once more.16

“Tell that friend of yours over there to stop his all his yelling. It’s three a.m. and some losers might actually be trying to sleep.” Jessa smiled. Good old Tyler.17

In a better mood than she’d been all week, she once again ignored the man’s complaints and got out of bed to get a cup of coffee, because wow, it was three in the morning and her aching body was vehemently protesting the fact that she wasn’t fast asleep right now.18

As she moved about in the darkness, navigating through the hallway to the kitchen, Jessa yawned, rubbing the tiredness out of her eyes. She grabbed a probably unused mug from under the kitchen table and inspected it casually as she flicked on the lights.19

Apart from the usual wad of cat hair that stuck to 90% of the things in her house, the cup was fine, and Jessa started up the coffeemaker.20

“Wait,” Jessa said warily as she measured water before dumping it in. “You’re not drunk, are you?”21

“Me? Drunk? Whatever gave you that idea?” Tyler replied sarcastically. “Actually, no, I’m not. I figured I owed you a certain amount of respect to remain sober for this conversation.”22

Uh oh. Did that mean what she thought it meant?”23

“Tyler, if you want to talk to me about my dad, then screw you and you might as well hang up right now before I throw my phone and all thoughts of you into the cat’s litterbox,” Jessa snapped, her patience waning as clouds returned to batter her head.24

“No, Jessa, don’t hang up. That’s not what I wanted to—“25

“Click,” Jessa said.26

Tyler was silent for a moment, but she could practically hear his smile. “Ha-ha. Very funny, Jess.”27

The coffeemaker grumbled comfortingly and steamed.28

Jessa didn’t say anything, and neither did Tyler, but the silence wasn’t awkward – as it would have been with anyone else, Jessa thought.29

“So umm… What did you want to talk to me about?” Jessa asked, nerves returning. Does he want to talk about the ninth grade? Because I don’t have a problem with that. Or, does he want to sweep me off my feet and carry me into the sunset in some random beach in some random country I can’t actually pronounce the name of? Because I’m cool with that, too.30

“I found a place!”31

His voice was so childishly excited that Jessa’s heart longed to see him. But still, she didn’t understand. The coffee finished up and she poured herself a hot cup. “I thought you were living on that ranch in Northern Texas—“32

“Nope!”33

“What?”34

“I’m living in Des Moines now.”35

“Des Moines?” As if that needed clarifying, she’d heard him clearly enough.36

“Des Moines.”37

“As in Des Moines, Iowa?” 38

“No, that one Des Moines in Switzerland. Yes, the one in Iowa.”39

“Oh.” Iowa. That was less than five hours away. At leas while he was in Texas, she had a plausible excuse not to see him more than once or twice a year. Now… Now… I don’t know if I could stay away… And being around him was ambivalent. It depressed her and elated her. She loved his company – almost everyone did – but that fact that her feelings were not reciprocated left her feeling as dry and uninteresting as she supposed she was. Still, she didn’t like being reminded.40

The coffee cup was heavy and warm in her hands and she held the phone in between her ear and shoulder as she took a small sip.41

“Well that wasn’t exactly the reaction I was looking for.”42

“What were you expecting?”43

“More of an, ‘OHMYGOSH, TYLER!! WHEN ARE YOU COMING TOWN SO WE CAN HOOK UP??’”44

Not far from her thoughts, actually. “This is just for you, Tyler,” Jessa imitated a high-pitched girly voice that was bound to make him laugh. “Holy fuck, Ty! When the hell are you coming to Naperville? My apartment is empty and we can totally hook up!” 45

Tyler snorted. “Now that’s what I wanna hear.” He paused. “But in response to your question… I just crossed the state boundary a few minutes ago.”46

“YOU JUST CROSSED THE STATE LINE?” she nearly screamed. In shock, the phone practically sprang from her ear and leaped to the ground. Jessa tried to save it, but it was in vain. She ducked to catch it or bump in – anything to keep it from bouncing shut as she knew it would. Not only did it hang up on Tyler when it hit the floor, the battery pack popped out, slid under the stove, and Jessa spilled boiling coffee all over her hands.47

She put the cup down. “Shit.”48

Scrambling under the stove for the stupid son-of-a-bitch battery pack, she grabbed her phone and jammed the thing in. Then she had to wait while the piece of crap turned on. “Good morning,” her phone told her. In no uncertain terms was this a “good morning”.49

Jessa ground her teeth as she noted direly the new crack that had formed on its surface and redialed the number she knew by heart. 50

Tyler answered after half a ring.51

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hang up. I dropped the phone and the battery pack shot out and hid under the stove and I spilled hot coffee all over myself and—“52

He cut her off. “Now that was the kind of reaction I was looking for.”53

Humor evident, Jessa told him to shut up.54

“So anyway,” she said, “About this place you found.” Well hey, she was curious. And she didn’t want to think of the fact that Tyler was getting closer every second because that increased the risk of spontaneous combustion – whether from excitement or dread, she couldn't, however, she couldn't tell.55

“Well actually, it’s a rental. But the prices are good. And the woman’s letting me keep Joey.”56

“Did she actually meet Joey, the parakeet from hell?”57

“Nope. If she had, she wouldn’t have let me keep him.”58

“Duh. You should just let me feed him to my cat. I bet Fresco Jane-Tyger Jones would really appreciate it. Maybe then he’d refrain from clawing your face next time he sees you.”59

“Hey, you hypocrite. You can’t call Joey the parakeet from hell when you’ve got one of the devil’s own fatherlings yourself. And you call that thing a cat.”60

“It’s not my fault he doesn’t like you. You could at least watch where you sit.”61

“Yeah, well, you could at least watch where your lazy blob of worthlessness decides to stick his nose.”62

They both dissolved into laughter, the easy conversation flowing back and forth like it always had done. God, Jessa missed this.63

“But anyway…” Tyler said. He trailed off for a moment, deep in thought.64

“Hey, it’s starting to smell over here, is that you thinking?” Jessa giggled. She had aimed to keep the mood light, airy, give herself some leeway from her feelings. Maybe she could forget them. It would be near impossible to forget if he’s less than three hours away—65

“C’mon, I’m being serious,” Tyler said, and his voice was, for once, stern.66

Jessa could have cracked another joke, but it would have pissed him off. And she knew him well enough to know; he was serious. About what?67

“So the rent was such a great deal because I got two rooms,” Tyler began.68

Shit. Why was he telling her this? To rub it in? “Oh did that one girl from Texas—what was her name? Bertha? Betty? Beatrix?—come with you?”69

“It was Doris, Jessa, and no, she didn’t.”70

Jessa couldn’t believe this. He had a new girlfriend already? Well, she guessed someone of Tyler’s stature could get girls without even trying. “Oh. Then is there some other girl—“ 71

“No, Jessa.”72

She was at a loss for words. “A friend from college…?”73

“You, Jessa.” 74

She was so surprised she dropped the phone again.75

_____76

Jessa called back a minute later to apologize again, but Tyler stopped her before she could get the words out of her mouth. He observed the speed limit – which he was exceeding by no more than 20 mph – and said, “Jessa, it’s perfect. Like I said, the lady – Mrs. Kensington – is okay with pets, so you can bring Fresco Jane-Tyger Jones or whatever the hell his name is. There are two rooms.” After a split second of thought, he added, “one for you and one for me. And Des Moines is so pretty, Jessa, you’d love it. In the fall the leaves turn all sorts of colors and—“ Now he was rambling. Jessa hated rambling. He shut up.77

There was what he would have liked to think of as star-struck silence on the other end. “I can’t.”78

“Huh?” Confusion dampened his thoughts.79

“Tyler. Let’s think about this logically.”80

“Let’s not,” he responding, pushing harder on the gas pedal and honking at someone who by his standards was driving too slow.81

“No. I’m enrolled in college. My mom still lives here. So do my aunts and uncles and countless friends. You want me just to throw that all away to come and live with you?”82

“Well…” No point beating around the bush, Tyler figured. He shrugged, even though he knew she couldn’t see it. “Yeah.”83

“I can’t.”84

“Look,” he said, gripping the wheel perhaps tighter than necessary. “Face it. Your life sucks in Naperville. I can tell you’re not happy. And I’d only have to look at you to prove it again, as if I need to. What are you talking about, ‘your mom still lives there’? I know you hate your mom – hell! I hate her too. She’s a bitch. And what friends? When’s the last time you went out on a Friday night, Jessa?”85

Jessa was silent for a long time, but Tyler said nothing to take back his words. He knew he’d hit a nerve, but it was the truth. And he respected her, so he figured he’d give her the truth.86

“The last time you were in town,” she said in a small voice.87

“Well, then. I’d say Des Moines looks pretty good for you right about now.”88

“I just… I can’t, Tyler,” she persisted, and he could hear the desperation in her voice. She wanted too. Deep down, she did. And he told her so.89

She denied it, of course, that liar. Sighing and rolling his eyes, Tyler spoke clearly and slowly, so she couldn’t claim she hadn’t heard him tomorrow. “Listen up, and I’m not going through a tunnel. Tomorrow, at ten thirty, I will be knocking on the door of your apartment. You better be awake and ready. We’re going to pack your things.”90

“But—“91

“I love you, Jennessa Jones,” he said, and hung up.92