The Special Girl Read online

  We all go to Joe’s, a burger place in town. I make sure to sit away from Piper, not that she is even looking at me. She is unusually quiet. I guess she is mad at me. Oh well, at least she will stay away from me. I don’t know why I’m so repelled by her. I was always open to her before, but lately I don’t feel it.

  We order food and sit around talking. As the group continues bantering with each other, I notice out the window a familiar girl heading out of the ice cream parlor across the street. The sun is setting but I can see she is wearing a form fitting waitress uniform with a short-flared skirt. She heads to the adjacent parking lot. I watch as she stops by a black car and inspects something on it. She seems crestfallen. I get up and go over to the window to get a better look. From my vantage, it looks like she has a flat tire. I walk right out of Joe’s without a word to my friends.

  I cross the street and approach Maura. She startles and then seems relieved to find me standing there. I ask her, “Can I help?” She smiles hopefully and says, “Only if you have a spare tire. Because I know for a fact that there is no spare tire in that car. This used to be my dad’s car, and something happened to the spare years ago.” “Well I don’t have a spare tire, but I do have my bike and I could give you a ride,” I offer. “I never rode on a motorcycle before,” she says nervously. “And I’m wearing a skirt!” she chuckles. I look down at her long smooth legs pouring out of her uniform. “I have an extra helmet. I always keep one strapped on the back. And you will be tucked behind me and no one will know you have a skirt on, besides it is getting dark out,” I reason. She seems to ponder this a moment and then shakes her head and says, “Okay.”

  We cross the street back to where I parked my bike, in front of Joe’s. I see my friends glaring at me through the window. They are probably wondering how I even know her. I never told any of them about our pairing in cooking class. I realize I didn’t pay for my food. I ask Maura to wait for me a second. I go inside and hand Benny some bills. “Sorry dude. This is for my food. I’m out,” I say to a stunned looking Benny. Max stands and says, “What the fuck is going on man? How did you get her to go with you?” he laughs. “I got to go. We’ll talk later,” I say as I turn to leave. Max yells, “Hell yeah we will!” And I walk out the door feeling all their eyes boring into me and Maura.

  I pull the extra helmet off my bike. I tell Maura to put her bag across her body. After she does that, I ask her if she has one of those hair things to pull her hair up. She tells me she does and pulls one off her wrist smiling as she holds it up to show me before pulling her wavy blonde hair up and secures it. She gives me a big smile and says, “Now what?” I put the helmet on her head carefully and snap the strap under her chin. We are face to face and I can smell her floral scent and minty breath. She looks at me sheepishly with those blue eyes like I have all the answers in the world. I give her a smile and get on the bike. I ask her where she lives so I can drop her off. After she tells me her address, I tell her to get on behind me. She climbs behind me and I feel her trying to cover up with the skimpy skirt she is wearing. I show her where to put her feet and tell her to hold on tight. I feel her bare thighs on my ass. Thank God I’m wearing jeans. Even so, I feel myself reacting to her touch. This is going to be a difficult ride.

  As I pull away from the curb, I feel her tighten up her grip on me. Her head is turned, and her cheek is leaning on my back. I am enjoying this way too much! At a red light, she relaxes a bit and says in my ear, “This is great!” I smile to myself. Is she enjoying this as much as me? As I pull onto her street, she yells to me, “Third house on the right!” I pull in front of a nice two-story colonial. It looks well-cared for with its lush landscaping, neatly trimmed grass and bright wreath on the front door adorned with lots of potted flowers. It looks like a loving family lives here and I suspect they do. I help her climb off the bike and she removes the helmet and hands it to me. “Do you want to come in?” she asks. “Really?” I ask surprised at her question. I glance over to the house and look back at her. “Yeah! Come on,” she grabs my hand and pulls me towards the house. “Don’t worry. No one is home,” she says as she opens the door. “My parents are at my sister’s piano concert and my brothers don’t come home until next week,” she says.

  Maura

  I open the door to my house and lead the way in. Zack follows behind me as I walk into the house. The ride home on his motorcycle was exhilarating. The feel of him that close to me, seated between my thighs did wicked things to me. I didn’t want him to just drive off after that. So, I invited him in on a whim. When I saw him hesitate, I grabbed his hand and pulled him inside. This was dangerous, seeing how I knew nobody was home. Having him with me in my house alone was asking for trouble. However, I was sure that this … whatever this was; a crush, an attraction, well whatever it was, it was one sided. He didn’t like girls like me. Did he? He was treating me like he cared about me, coming to my rescue and leaving his friends at Joe’s to take me home. I saw them peering at us in question out of the window at Joe’s. Piper was there too, and she witnessed him leaving with me on the back of his bike.

  I head into the kitchen with Zack trailing behind. There is a plate on the table covered by a sheet of aluminum foil. There is a note next to the plate that reads:

  Maura,

  Lasagna for you. More in frig.

  Put in microwave for 2 minutes.

  Be back by 9.

  Love, Mom

  XOXO

  I read the note and look at him and smile. I open the refrigerator and pull out the pan with the leftover lasagna. I cut a pretty hefty slice and put it on the plate with the piece my mom left for me. I put the plate in the microwave. I tell Zack to take a seat and tell him I will be right back and run out of the kitchen. I run up to my room and quickly change into shorts and a t-shirt. When I return, he has already removed the plate from the microwave and has it cooling on the counter.

  He looks at me and says, “It smells amazing!” I smile, “Yeah, my mom is an awesome cook. Her lasagna is epic!” I get out two forks and hand one of them to Zack, then I get out two bottles of water and head over to the table. I motion for him to take a seat at the table with me and I place the plate between us and start eating. He hesitantly approaches the plate with his fork and carves off a portion. He puts the piece in his mouth and moans. “Oh my God! I have never had a home-made meal this good EVER!” he says. I laugh. “We eat like this almost every night. I don’t know how I’m not as big as a house! I hate when I miss dinner with my family, especially when my brothers are home from school.” We continue devouring the lasagna, eating from the same plate. I catch him watching me and I smile. There is something intimate about us sharing a plate of lasagna.

  “How many brothers do you have?” he asks as he takes another bite. I swallow my food and take a gulp of my water. “Two brothers and a younger sister. My oldest brother Liam is a Junior at Weymouth. My other brother Brenden is a Sophomore at NMU, and my little sister Ava is a Freshman at our school.” “Wow that’s a big family!” he says. “Are you guys close?” “Yes, very close. I mean we argue and get into tussles but there isn’t anything we wouldn’t do for each other!” I confess. “How about you? Any brothers or sisters?” I ask. “No, just me. My parents got divorced when I was in 4th grade. My mom moved to New York City to live with her sister and ended up meeting her husband there. He is very successful and they live in a really nice building overlooking Central Park. I go and visit sometimes. Her husband is nice enough to me. My dad is a construction contractor. I work for him sometimes and so do some of my friends. He has a girlfriend, Dana, I like her, but they mostly stay at her place. My dad doesn’t bother me too much but he’s good to me. So that’s my family story,” he shrugs. “What about your parents? Are they still together?” he asks. “Yeah. My mom works part-time for a lawyer. She’s a paralegal. My dad is a CPA. He has an office nearby. My parents are great for the most part. As long as we stay out of trouble, they leave us alone. Easier for me and my sister than m
y brothers though! We used to live in Cranford, but we moved here the summer before my 8th grade. It was scary moving to a new area and school, but I made friends quicker than I expected,” I say. He looks up in realization, “Yeah I don’t remember you in grade school. I guess that’s why. But you should have looked harder for new friends,” he adds looking annoyed. “Your friends are stuck-up assholes! I actually thought you were too,” he fires at me. I look curiously at him, “How about now?” He sweeps his hair out of his eyes and looks deep into mine. He whispers, “Now, I…” He lingers a moment and I almost feel like he will kiss me.

  “Hey Maura, who’s motorcycle is parked in front of the house?” I hear as my dad walks into the kitchen. I don’t know how we didn’t hear the front door open. I startle and Zack jumps up from his seat and looks pensively at my father. My dad surveys the scene before him, looking back and forth between us. He settles on Zack and holds out his hand saying, “Well hello there, I’m Jack McDevitt, Maura’s dad.” Zack shakes my dad’s hand and says, “Hi I’m Zack Deaton.” My mom and Ava pile through the doorway next. My mom smiles wide as does Ava when they see me and Zack. My dad says to them, “This is Zack, Maura’s friend.” “Hello Zack. I’m Erin and this is Ava. Did Maura offer you anything to eat or drink?” my mom asks. He answers, “Yes! Thank you! I just had some of your lasagna. It was wonderful!” “I’m so glad you like it!” my mom smiles. My dad asks Zack, “By any chance are you related to Brian Deaton, the contractor?” “Yes sir. He is my father. I also work for him sometimes.” “Oh, that’s great! He has done work on my office space as well as this kitchen here. He was a really nice guy and great to work with! Small world!” “Yeah, it sure is. Well I better get going. It was great to meet all of you,” Zack says as he moves from the kitchen towards the front door. I get up and follow after him, but he is moving quickly and gives me a wave as he turns and closes the door. I stand at the closed door feeling disappointed. My mom and dad come up behind me as they watch out the window at him pull away on his bike. My mom says, “Where is your car?” “Oh, I had a flat tire at Sprinkles and Zack happened to be there and he offered me a ride home.” “You rode on a motorcycle?” my mom screeched. My dad perked up to this thought. “Yes. It was no big deal. I wore a helmet and he was careful,” I argue. “So, who is this guy?” she asks smiling. “Just a classmate. He is my cooking class partner. He doesn’t hang out with my group of friends,” I say. “He is hot!” Ava yells. My dad rolls his eyes and my mom chuckles, “Well he has good taste in food!”

  Chapter 5

  Zack

  The day after my impromptu visit to the McDevitt residence, I wish I could craw under a rock and hide. I managed to avoid speaking to Max, Benny and Aidan. They all tried to contact me last night after I left them at Joe’s with Maura on my bike. Max was relentless. He called and texted until well after midnight. He started texting me when I was still at Maura’s house. Good thing my phone was on mute. Piper and Lindsey passed me in the hall and Piper looked at me like I was pathetic. Lindsey smiled and gave me a wave. I smiled back.

  The guys finally cornered me at lunch. Max got in my face and said, “Start talking fucker! We want deets now!” Aidan asked, “Dude how did you get her on your bike?” They all stared at me in anticipation of what I would tell them next. “She is my partner in cooking class. I saw her looking upset in the parking lot across the street. I went over, saw she had a flat tire and offered to give her a ride home. That’s it.” “Wait Maura McDevitt is the muffin whisperer?” laughed Max. “Yeah I guess so,” I laughed shaking my head at his idiocy. “And you failed to mention this to us all this time? I think something more is going on here!” Benny bellowed with a grin. Aidan smirked, “ Holy shit, leave it to Deaton to get cheerleader ass!” I corrected, “No there is nothing going on! She is really nice but I’m not doing anything with her!” Aidan pointed his finger, “Yet!” Max chuckled, “I bet she’s nice!”

  I was also hesitant to see Maura. Did we open up something new last night? When she asked me how I thought of her now, I didn’t know how I wanted to answer. I wasn’t sure if I should tell her that I thought she was great, that I think about her all the time and can’t wait until cooking class every school day. Or should I play it cool and tell her she isn’t as bad as I thought she was originally? As I thought about that, I remembered last night looking at her expectant gaze and how I felt drawn to her. I wanted to taste those beautiful pink lips and devour her mouth. Thankfully, her father walked in and prevented me from making a fool of myself. She probably would have slapped me and told me to go fuck myself.

  As I enter cooking class, I notice she is not here yet. The bell rings and Mrs. Lingle closes the classroom door. But then it opens back up and Maura steps in. She looks defeated. She walks over to our area while apologizing to Mrs. Lingle for being late. Mrs. Lingle tells the class that we should just bake the cinnamon buns we put together yesterday and placed in the refrigerator to set overnight. I already turned on the oven to heat up and retrieved our cinnamon buns from the refrigerator. As we wait for the oven to heat, we take a seat at our table. I wait for her to say something or even give a hint of how she is thinking after last night. She looks so down.

  Then she looks up at me as if she just realized I was there. Well that is not good for me. “I’m sorry Zack. I am just upset over my calculus class,” she explains. “What is it?” I ask. “I have to get a B on my next test or fail for the year!” she sniffles. “ I can’t fail!” she says. “OK well what is the test on?” I ask. She answers, “Parametric, Vector and Polar functions.” I offer, “No problem, I can help you with that.” She looks at me quizzically, “Really? You are good at this stuff?” “Well actually yes I am. Do you have Wells?” I ask. “Yes,” she answers. “I had her last year. I know how she tests. I will help you! We got this!” I laugh.

  We spend the rest of class going over her calculus and baking our cinnamon buns, which were unbelievably delicious. When class ends, I tell her she is getting a handle on it already and tell her I can help some more if she would like. “Wow! Thank you! Can we meet after school today?” she asks. I agree and set up a time to meet at her house. I ask if she needs a ride again. She assures me her father was able to get her car to a tire shop for repair. She was driving her mom’s car as her mom had off from work today. We part ways after class until we meet at her house in an hour.

  As I am leaving school, Lindsey stops me. “Zack I just wanted to tell you something about Maura,” she says. I get annoyed expecting more grief or even a dig about her from Lindsey. She continues as we walk towards the parking lot. “I know you have a friendship or maybe something else going on with Maura. Piper and the guys have been talking non-stop about you and her,” she laughs. “Lindsey, I don’t even know what is going on with her yet,” I say. “It’s really no one’s business until you want to talk about it. I just know that Piper and the guys think Maura is a certain way and I want you to know how I feel,” she says. Unsure where this going, I say, “OK.” She continues, “Last year I was in gym with her and her snotty friends. The other girls were taunting me about my hair and piercings. They were calling me a dike and said I looked hideous. Maura stood up to them and told them to shut up and leave me alone. This caused the girls to all gang up and taunt Maura for going against them. She didn’t seem to care. She asked me if I was alright and walked with me out of the locker room. I am sure she paid for it later! Anyhow, she is a good person and she still smiles at me whenever we pass each other.” I did not expect that story! “Thank you, Lindsey. I am so sorry they spoke to you that way but I’m glad Maura was there to stand up for you,” I offered. She hugged me, said goodbye and left.

  I was left there unable to move. Lindsey is so quiet and rarely gives an opinion. She has a lot of baggage. I know her life has not been easy. Yet those conceited bitches had to screw with her! She wouldn’t say a mean thing to anyone. I am glad Maura came to her rescue but why does she continue to spend time with them? What kind of pers
on is Maura really if she chooses to be in that crowd? This information makes me like her more at the same time doubt her as a person.

  Maura

  I get home quickly after school. I need to get ready for Zack. My mom is waiting for me and lets me know she needs to take her car for some errands. I tell her okay as I am not working today, and a friend is coming over to help me with calculus. She tells me there are fresh-baked cookies in the kitchen and she leaves. Ava is at her lacrosse practice and my dad is at his office. I go up to my room and freshen up by brushing my teeth, checking my face and applying more lip gloss and perfume. I come downstairs to find the treats my mom left. Oatmeal raisin cookies await me on the counter. Before I grab one, I hear a motorcycle approaching my house. I run to the front door.