And do you know what Beth Ann did? She went right up to ole Derek and this girl and asked him what he was doing and he looked at her like she was a stranger. He called her today and said that maybe they should both see other people for a while.
God.
It’s funny, but if this had happened a week ago, I probably would have been happy in a very mean way. But now I feel sorry for Beth Ann, even if she has been acting like a real snot. I mean she was really upset, sobbing and all. I was afraid she was going to go completely hysterical.
The only thing was she didn’t even ask me about Alex, and I have to admit that even though I wasn’t ready to tell her any details or anything, I did sort of want to brag about him a little. But I could tell she didn’t exactly want to hear how happy I was and how wonderful Alex was when she was suffering this enormous tragedy.
I read Books Seven and Eight of the Odyssey but I can’t remember any of it. I haven’t been able to concentrate too well lately. I keep thinking about Alex right in the middle of reading.
Well, this evening was almost a complete disaster.
Alex came over at six thirty. We were going to walk to the movies. But first he had to come in and my parents had to do their how-very-nice-to-meet-you routine and check him out and all. They made such a fuss that it was embarrassing. You could tell that they thought he was an okay kind of guy, and I have to admit that if I was a parent, I would think so too. He just looks so clean and all. He didn’t talk much, just “hello” and “yes” and stuff, but I think they liked that about him.
Anyway, there they were going on and on about how nice it was to meet Alex and where were we going and when would we be back, and in the middle of all this, there sits Carl Ray watching TV, and Maggie walks through in her curlers and bathrobe, and Dennis and Dougie are gaping over the stairway, and Tommy is putting his finger in his nose. Honestly. What is Alex going to think?
I couldn’t wait to get out of there.
But just as soon as we walked out the front door and I was about to breathe an enormous sigh of relief, who comes following us out but Carl Ray, the Shadow. He says, “Want a ride?”
Alex was surprised because he’s not as used to Carl Ray sneaking up on people as I am, and I was surprised because I couldn’t believe Carl Ray was actually offering to do us a favor. But I figured he just wanted to show off his car and it would be nice to have a ride. So we said sure.
It was kind of strange, Alex and I riding in the backseat and Carl Ray driving us like our chauffeur. Alex was sitting way over near his door, and I was way over near mine. Carl Ray kept looking at us in his rearview mirror.
So we get to the movie theater and I’m wondering why Carl Ray is pulling around the back instead of dropping us in front, but I didn’t say anything. And I did think it was kind of funny when he pulled into a parking space. And I started to get a little uneasy when we got out and he got out too.
Sure enough, ole Carl Ray drops the big bomb: “I think I’ll come too.”
Alex gave me this horrified look and I gave Alex a horrified look. I said to Carl Ray, “You’ll come too?”
And he said, “Yup. Might as well. Long as I’m here.”
I wonder if my parents paid Carl Ray to do this.
He stood with us in line and bought his ticket, and stood in line with us while we bought popcorn, and the whole time I was sweating like crazy trying to think how in the world we could get rid of him and I couldn’t even say anything to Alex because Carl Ray was right there, the Shadow, the whole time.
I thought I was going to die.
He followed us to our seats and sat right next to me! I was in between Carl Ray and Alex. I gave Alex one of those I-don’t-believe-this-is-happening looks and then I gave him a how-in-the-world-are-we-going-to-ditch-him? look and he gave me one of those oh-well-what-can-we-do? looks and then the movie started.
I won’t go into all the details, like how Carl Ray watched every move Alex made and every time Alex moved his arm, Carl Ray turned and looked at his arm like it was a snake or something. I won’t go into that.
I will just say that I was a complete wreck and I couldn’t wait to get out of there.
But Alex and I must have both been thinking the same thing, because when it was finally over and we got outside and started walking to the car, Alex said, “Hey, Mary Lou, why don’t we walk home?”
I said, maybe a little too quickly, “Oh, great idea! It’s sooooo nice out.”
Alex said to Carl Ray, “Thanks a lot for the ride! You don’t mind if we walk home, do you?”
For the eternity of about five seconds, I thought Carl Ray was going to find some way to get us in his car, but all he did was give us this little sad look and say, “Naw. Go ahead.”
I almost felt sorry for him, but then I figured we were entitled to a little privacy, weren’t we? Do you think Carl Ray is lonely?
Alex and I had the greatest time walking home. We were both in such a good mood. The closer we got to my house, the slower we walked. Then I started getting a little nervous, thinking he might try and kiss me or something. I don’t know the first thing about it. I need some practice. But he didn’t do anything like that.
I wish this summer could go on and on and on, and I wish I could always be this happy. It seems that whenever you are sad or just normal, you’re always wishing you were happy, but when you’re happy, you start worrying about when all this happiness is going to end. At least that’s the way I am. Already, I’m worrying that I’m too happy, and I’m either going to have to pay for this or it’s all going to end real soon.
It reminds me of the wheel of fortune that Mrs. Zollar talked about. She said that Shakespeare and all his buddies believed in the wheel of fortune, that your luck kind of went round and round, and when you (or your luck) were at the top, everything would go right. But that it was inevitable that the wheel had to keep spinning, and sooner or later, you’d be at the bottom of the wheel, when everything would go badly. The only thing that kept people from jumping off cliffs when they were at the bottom of the wheel was knowing that sooner or later they would be at the top again.
I feel as if the gods are going to spin my wheel any minute. Oh, pleeease, let me stay where I am for a while!
I also wish everyone’s wheel was at the top at the same time. Beth Ann, for instance, is at the bottom of her wheel and she’s driving me crazy. She must have called me ten times today to tell me about Derek. First she said that he was a complete creep and she never wanted to see him again and she cried. Then she called back and said that she loved him sooooo much and maybe she should call him and tell him how much she missed him, and she cried. Then she called back and said she figured out why he was doing this: to make her jealous because he liked her so much, and she cried. Get the picture?
And, of course, she never once gave me a chance to say one word about Alex.
Alex, by the way, called at lunchtime (I don’t know how he was able to get through, what with Beth Ann calling all the time) to say he couldn’t come over today because he had to go to his grandmother’s house with his parents. It was his grandmother’s birthday and a whole bunch of relatives would be there.
Since I didn’t have too much to do today and since it was raining like crazy, I stayed home and read some more of the Odyssey. I think I’m getting to the good parts.
In Book Nine, Odysseus starts telling about all these great adventures he’s had. There were two I really liked.