The Bed She Made Read online

  After examining it carefully for a moment, Steven tipped her chin up and lowered his lips to meet hers again. “It’s sexy,” he growled. He pulled back smiling. “Do you like it?”

  “Oh yeah,” she replied as she covered it back up.

  “Journey, you’re late for your own party!” she heard her mother call from the porch on the side of the house.

  “We’re coming, Mom!” she yelled back.

  Randall and Carol Durant belonged on the cover of a Hallmark card—or maybe a Christian Life magazine. Carol’s frosted blond hair was perfectly in place, and she wore an angel pin tacked to the front of her Sunday morning skirt suit. Randall matched his wife in pressed khakis and a summer sweater vest over a plaid button-up. There they were, stuffy and conservative, with smiles cemented in place, when Journey and her friends made it around to the back of the country house.

  Randall’s smile diminished momentarily at the sight of the questionable-at-best boyfriend whose finger was hooked in the waistband of his little girl’s blue jeans. However, in true Durant patriarch style, he extended a hand to Steven, though Journey knew he was silently contemplating throwing the boy over the deck railing.

  Carol stepped forward and embraced her daughter. “I’m glad you finally made it, dear,” she said with a slight twinge of annoyance in her voice. She smelled of discount department store perfume and peppermints.

  Journey wiggled free from her mother’s arms and backed up into Steven. “Hi, Mom,” she said.

  “Everyone, this is the birthday girl!” Carol announced. “And this is her handsome boyfriend, David…”

  “Steven,” he corrected her.

  Feigning embarrassment, she put a hand to her forehead and quickly laughed to cover her error. “I’m sorry, Steven. I lost my head for a second.”

  Journey gave an awkward wave to the crowd and then led her friends to the furthest point on the deck possible. “Sorry about that,” she told Steven, dropping her head onto his shoulder and hiding her eyes.

  He turned his head to playfully bite the bend of her neck. “I don’t mind as long as it’s not you saying it.”

  Steven Drake had attended their high school—when he bothered to show up. He was older than the rest of them, and he worked as a mechanic behind Barry's Bar & Grill where Journey was a part-time waitress. She had been crushing on him since her freshman year, and they had dated on and off after he dropped out. Since she started at the restaurant, he had made a regular habit of seeing her. She knew her friends didn’t care much for him, but he was attractive, fun, and old enough to buy alcohol. He was able to get pot from his brother, and he had his own apartment. She found the element of rebellion he emanated to be intoxicating. And best of all, her parents hated him.

  Journey looked up at Kara as she and Marcus joined them. “When is Justin coming?” Journey asked.

  “He’s supposed to be on his way,” she replied.

  Kara had begun dating Justin Kruse at the beginning of the school year, and their budding romance left a lot of holes in Journey’s social schedule. She filled those gaps with Steven, Marcus, and mostly with David.

  Much to the dismay of his parents, David hadn’t made use of any of the scholarship money he had been offered and decided to work at the local hardware store after graduation in lieu of going to college or joining the military. Journey was happy about it though. She looked forward to spending the summer with him even more so than with her own boyfriend.

  Steven didn’t understand her close friendship with another guy, despite her attempts at forcing the two of them to be friends. However, he didn’t usually complain much about it. Either he wasn’t the jealous type or he just didn’t care. Her friends suspected that he didn’t care—about her—and it was a driving cause of tension between all of them.

  “How ya doin’, Dave?” Marcus teased, nudging Steven with his elbow.

  Steven took a sip of his drink. “Kiss my ass, Marcus,” he said with a smile.

  “Where is David?” Kara asked, scanning her eyes around the crowded deck.

  Journey shrugged. “I thought he would be here by now. He wasn’t working today, but he said he had to run some errands with his parents.”

  “That’s weird,” she said.

  “I thought so too. He’ll be here sometime though,” Journey said. “He’d better be anyway.”

  Steven discretely tipped a flask over Journey’s glass of soda and winked at her. She giggled silently and sucked on her straw.

  “I saw that,” Journey’s Uncle Ray said as he walked toward them. He was her mother’s older brother, a retired Navy officer, and a fellow black sheep of the family.

  She laughed. “Are you going to tell on me?”

  He smiled and held out his glass. “Not if you share.”

  Steven laughed and passed him his flask. When Uncle Ray handed it back to him, Steven stood up. “Journ, do you want some food?” he asked.

  “I’ll fix it,” she told him.

  He shook his head. “It’s your birthday. I’ll get it.”

  She gave him a long kiss on the lips. “OK.”

  When Steven had gone, Uncle Ray bent and pulled Journey in for a hug. “Happy birthday, sweetie,” he said as he slipped something into her hand.

  She looked down at the $100 bill. “Thanks Uncle Ray.”

  “I know your parents are really sore about missing tomorrow,” he said.

  Journey just nodded politely, making it clear she had no interest in talking about her parents.

  He cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Your aunt and I will be at your graduation. It’s at five o’clock right?”

  She nodded. “Yeah.”

  “OK. Well, I’m going to go and get some of that pig before it’s all gone,” he told her as he turned to leave.

  She stuffed the money into her pocket, and Kara smiled at her. “It might not be such a bad thing that your parents are going out of the country. I wish my relatives would slip me some pity cash like that.”

  Journey smirked. “Ha, ha.”

  Marcus surveyed the older group gathered on the far end of the porch. “Do you know any of these people?” he asked. “It looks like a tent revival out here.”

  Journey looked around. “I recognize a few people from when I was a kid, and that woman in the polyester jacket always pats my hand and says ‘I’m praying for you, honey’ whenever she drops Christian tracts off at the bar. Other than that, no.” She paused and grinned at Marcus. “I’m sorry there’s not anyone worth flirting with.”

  “You think I’m that shallow?” he asked.

  Kara and Journey answered together. “Yes.”

  “Did I miss much?” a voice asked from behind them.

  They turned to see David smiling, dressed in a neatly pressed, dark brown button-up shirt and blue jeans. He had a fresh haircut, much shorter than Journey had ever seen on him before. It complemented him though and made him look much older than his nineteen years.

  “Your hair is finally shorter than mine,” Journey said with a smile.

  He laughed and pulled her into a tight hug, lifting her off her feet. He pressed a kiss to her temple before returning her feet to the floor. “Happy birthday,” he said.

  “I’m glad you finally made it.” She let her arm linger around his shoulders.

  “Hey, hey!” another voice called from the steps.

  Justin was taking the steps two at a time up to the deck. He was the only other person in their group that matched Kara in height. He was thin and lanky with blond hair that always fell down into his eyes. Though he had been a running back for the football team and was attending one of the most elite motorcycle mechanic schools in the country, Justin could only be described as adorable; he looked like the lost member of a boy band.

  Kara ran to greet him and exchanged the present he was carrying for her full plate of barbecue. She kissed him on the lips before he stepped over to give Journey a side-arm hug. “Happy birthday,” he said. “Sorry I’m late.”
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  Journey beamed up at him. “Thanks for coming.”

  Steven returned carrying two plates of food with napkins and two forks held in his mouth. “Need some help?” Journey asked, taking a plate and the forks from between his teeth.

  “Thank you,” he replied.

  “Let’s sit,” Kara suggested.

  David pulled a bottled water out of the cooler and sat down next to Journey.

  She looked at him with questioning eyes. “Are you not going to eat?” she asked.

  “No. I ate with Mom and Dad just a little while ago.” He patted his flat stomach. “I’m still stuffed.”

  “Where have you been all day?”

  “Just taking care of some stuff. Where have you been all day?” he redirected her question.

  “Oh!” She squealed and turned around in her seat. She slung her leg over David’s knees and reached down to uncover her tattoo.

  David bent over her leg, resting a hand on her thigh as he inspected the artwork. He squeezed her knee. “It’s beautiful.”

  She was beaming. “Thank you. Marcus had his shoulder done, too.”

  Marcus rolled his sleeve to show off his skull.

  David nodded his head. “I think I’m going to get one next.”

  “What are you going to get?” Kara asked.

  “Maybe an armband,” he said.

  Journey shook her head. “No. You have a great chest. A tattoo would look so good right here,” she said, placing her palm over his heart.

  Steven cleared his throat. “I’m still here.”

  She laughed and kissed his nose. “You have a nice chest too, baby.”

  Journey’s mother was handing out glasses of sweet tea with neatly sliced lemons perched on each rim. She paused to laugh politely at something the preacher’s wife said.

  Justin pointed his fork at her. “Journey, are you sure you’re not adopted?”

  Journey took in the sight of her 46-year-old mother whose maroon skirt suit was a size too big, six inches too long, and ten years too old. Then she glanced down at her own tie-dyed tank top, cut-off jean shorts, and worn out flip-flops. That day, Journey’s hair was platinum blond, with pink streaks in the front. She rolled her eyes and scooped up a heap of mashed potatoes. “I ask the same thing all the time.”

  As if on cue, Carol looked in their direction. “David!” Her mother nearly squealed with delight as she quickly crossed the porch, clapping her hands joyfully. “I was afraid you weren’t going to make it!”

  David stood and gave her a welcoming hug. “You know I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”

  Every mother’s dream, Journey thought. She knew it wasn’t by mistake that her mother had messed up Steven’s name during the introduction earlier. Carol had chosen David for her future son-in-law the very first time he had dropped Journey off after school. No amount of arguing would ever convince Carol Durant that they were just friends.

  “I like your new haircut. You look very handsome tonight.” She placed her hand on his chest. “Journey, don’t you think David looks very handsome?”

  David flashed her a straight-from-the-dentist smile and batted his eyelashes dramatically.

  Journey laughed. “Just dashing.”

  “Mrs. Durant, what do you think of Journey’s new tattoo?” David asked.

  Carol looked at her daughter with the same expression she had when Bill Clinton beat George Bush in the '92 presidential election.

  “Oh yeah,” Journey said to her mother. She stood and grasped David’s arm for support as she held up her leg to remove the bandage.

  Her mother looked at the tattoo sideways. “Why do you have a rainbow chicken on your leg?”

  David choked back a chuckle.

  Journey rolled her eyes and replaced the bandage. “It’s not a chicken. It’s a phoenix.”

  “A phoenix?”

  “It’s a bird that burns up and then is reborn from its own ashes,” Journey explained.

  Her mother stared at her like she had grown a third eye. “A what?”

  Journey glanced up at David and sadly shook her head. “I’m definitely adopted.”

  Carol dismissed the conversation entirely. “Well, you just help yourself to anything you want, David. Our home is your home, you know.” She turned on her heel and floated off to continue playing hostess-superior.

  As soon as she was out of earshot, Justin’s signature snorting laugh triggered the rest of her friends into hysterics.

  An hour later, Journey suffered through the obligatory ‘Happy Birthday’ song as Carol carried a chocolate cake to her table.

  What to wish for? she thought.

  She looked around the table at her friends and wondered what more she could want. She closed her eyes and blew out the candles.

  I wish for everything to stay just the way it is.

  When the party ended, most everyone went home. Her father retired to his recliner, David helped her mom clean up, and Steven sat on the porch playing with the new cell phone he had gotten Journey for her birthday. It seemed to Journey that Steven and David were trying to outlast each other as the night wore on. Finally, her parents went to bed, and David resigned himself to defeat.

  He got up off the couch and pulled his truck keys from his pocket. “Well, I guess I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”

  Journey stood up with him. “Are we still on for lunch with your parents?” she asked.

  “Yeah, absolutely. Just come over whenever you drag yourself out of bed,” he teased.

  She hugged him. “Thanks for coming.”

  “I wouldn’t miss this,” he said. They heard chimes coming from the grandfather clock. He smiled down at her. “It’s midnight. Happy birthday.”

  She giggled. “Thank you.”

  “Night Steve,” he called.

  “Bye Dave,” Steven replied, not getting up from the couch or even looking away from the television.

  Journey walked him to the front door. “Be careful driving home,” she said.

  He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek that made her stomach tingle. “Bye girl,” he whispered in her ear.

  When he was gone, Steven met her at the door and hooked his arms around her waist from behind. “Wanna smoke with me before I go too, birthday girl?” He dangled a joint in front of her.

  “Please!” She laughed and stumbled out of the front door with him.

  2

  No Sex, Drugs, Or Rock And Roll

  Journey woke up the next morning to the smell of coffee and bacon. Birthdays and Christmas morning were the only times of the year that Carol ever cooked breakfast anymore.

  Life hadn’t always been so tense in the Durant household. Journey could still remember being walked to the school bus every morning, having her lunchbox packed with cute notes from her mother, and having help with her homework after school. Her mother had even been a teacher’s aide for a while when she was in elementary school. All of that changed when her parents opened an antique and fine art store just after Journey turned thirteen.

  Business was flourishing but at the expense of their once close-knit family. Suddenly, Journey was coming home to an empty house each day after school, cooking late dinners for her parents, and spending most weekends at home alone or pawned off on family members. With her parents always working and her sister, Elena, living in Tennessee, Journey became dependent on her friends for attention, conversation, and advice. Before long, Journey rarely came home at all.

  By the time that the Durants sensed there might be a problem in their relationship with their youngest daughter, there wasn’t much control they could regain. Though they tried for a while to pick up the discarded role of parenting, their curfews were broken, their lectures fell on deaf ears, and their prayers were mocked. Every attempt they made to reel their wayward daughter back in was too little, far too late.

  After a quick shower and getting dressed in a pair of ripped blue jeans and debatably clean ‘I Dress This Way To Bother You’ t-shirt, Journey joined her p
arents for breakfast.

  “Happy birthday,” Carol said when she entered the kitchen.

  “Thank you,” Journey replied.

  Her father didn’t look up from the newspaper he was reading. “What time did your little friend leave last night?”

  Journey poured herself a cup of coffee and took a seat across from him at the table. “Steven?” she asked as she helped herself to a biscuit.

  “Yes.”

  Journey shrugged. “I don’t remember, but it was well before the sun came up.”

  Randall’s eyes rose momentarily. “You’re still under our roof, young lady. Don’t push it.”

  Journey rolled her eyes. “Right.”

  Carol awkwardly sank into the seat next to Journey. “You really like this boy, then?” she asked.

  “Yeah, I do.” Journey took a sip of coffee and turned on her new cell phone.

  “He’s a little rough around the edges,” her mother said trying not to sound too negative. “He’s certainly no David.”

  Journey rolled her eyes. “For the five millionth time, Mom—I’m not with David, and I’m not going to be.”

  “I’ve never seen him with any other girls except for you,” she pointed out.

  “Well, I’ve seen him with plenty,” Journey snapped, though she knew plenty was an exaggeration.

  The house phone rang and her mother got up to retrieve the cordless phone.

  Her father put down the paper and picked up his coffee. “You’re staying with Kara till we get back, correct?”

  “Yeah, of course,” she lied. They both knew better, but their relationship functioned best under plausible deniability.

  After answering the phone, Carol extended the receiver to Journey. “It’s for you.”

  Journey put the phone to her ear. “Hello?”

  “Hellllooooooooo,” a cheerful voice sang on the other end of the line. It was Journey’s older sister, Elena, who had escaped the dead end town of Emerson and moved to Nashville. Elena proceeded to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ in her best Opera style voice.

  Journey laughed when she finished. “Thanks,” she said.