Girlfriend

7. Don't Stop

The only thought that went through my head as I walked Cathy Jean to my room was Joseph. He was home and I didn't want to get involved in an argument with my only shot for friendship around to witness it.

While walking her to my room, I instructed her to keep the noise down. She complied, stifling her tears with my sweater sleeve. Once in my room, I let her know it's okay to cry and she resumed her sobbing. For about 5 minutes she wept and her tears showed no signs of stopping.

"A-A-And sh-sh-she hit m-m-m-me!" Cathy Jean sobbed.

"Your dance teacher?" I asked.

She nodded, wiping her golf ball sized tears. I sat down next to her on my bed and pulled her in close to me. I felt so honored that she came to me out of all the people she could've went to.

"No one bothered to help you?" I asked, massaging her shoulder.

"My fr-fr-friend D-D-D-David."

Him? I see him as competition. I can't believe he just stood there and let this evil dance instructor hit my only friend. He must not really care about Cathy Jean if he lets her be pushed around like this.

"You should tell your mom," I said.

"No," she whispered, suddenly recoiling from our embrace. "She's never known. Ever."

"You mean the dance teacher always hits you?"

"Maybe?"

"Cathy Jean! You can't let her abuse you and get away with it! Why is she hurting you?"

"Michael, I don't want to talk about it," she mumbled, her tears seaming to temporarily cease.

"Tell me."

"Why are you beginning to be so nosy? You're just like my mom," she pouted.

"I care about you. You're my friend. Come on, please?" I begged with a smile.

"Later."

She fell onto my chest and squeezed my torso tight. I loved the feeling of her being in my arms. Maybe she likes me! All I have to do now is get rid of this David character and I'm all set.

It was sad to see Cathy Jean so upset. It's bad enough that she doesn't smile. She doesn't need a rude dance teacher to get in the way of her passion. It only takes one bad experience to ruin someone's point of view. If this keeps happening, Cathy Jean may never want to dance again.

"I've never seen you dance before. Let me see how amazing you really are," I said, standing.

"Fine. But I'm picking the song."

I led her to my dance studio and introduced her to my collection of records. She scanned each and every one of them before choosing my album.

"I love this record," she sighed, her eyes still red from crying.

"Are you sure you want to listen to this? I've got some Chaka Kahn and-"

"I want to listen to this, I'm sure. The first song is a real toe tapper," she replied.

Cathy Jean lip synced to the dialogue in the beginning of "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" before mimicking the woo! that kicked off the song. She cracked her knuckles and clapped along to the beat.

"Gotta warm up first," she said rolling her neck.

"Take your time," I said, crossing my arms.

When I began to sing, Cathy Jean came to life. Her footwork was flawless. She's definitely been dancing for a while.

"Join me," she said, motioning me toward her.

Once I got on the floor, she took my hands and incorporated me into her dance. Though she didn't smile, I could see the happiness in her eyes. When I twirled her around, she spun so gracefully. That led me to thinking what she would look like when she was ballet dancing. No wonder she's got the lead part in the recital.

The song was nearing an end. It made me sad that we had to quit soon. I pulled her in close to me but my pull was more like a yank. Cathy Jean ended up closer to me than I had intended. Cathy Jean slammed into my body and struggled to regain her footing. Her eyes widened once she realized that her hands were near my chest. Cathy Jean played with the fabric on my sweater before her hands came to a shaky stop. She stared at her hands as if she was surprised they existed.

I was trying not to panic. I don't think a girl my age has ever been this close to me. A pretty girl my age that is.

I bet David's never had a moment like this with her.

I refused to make eye contact with her. Cathy Jean continuously attempted to meet my stare but I shifted my eyes every time so mine wouldn't meet hers. I was highly embarrassed about this awkward moment and wished I wouldn't have yanked her so hard.

She's so beautiful up close.

She'd never like you, Michael, don't even waste your time.

We were both stuck there for a while as if we were frozen in time. I panicked more after every ticking second on the wall clock. It seemed as if we had been standing here for eternity.

After millions of vain attempts to make eye contact with me, Cathy Jean finally succeeded. The look in her eye was very calming and soothed me instantly. It was as if she knew I was having a mini panic attack.

"Michael," she whispered, her voice quivering.

"Yes?"

"I can't tell you how much this friendship means to me. Honest. You're everything I could've asked for."

"I feel the same way," I replied.

She really doesn't know how much her presence means to me. For years I've been cut off from the outside world with no one but my brothers to talk to. I've longed for some kind of companion outside my family for a long time but I can't even go anywhere without being recognized. Since I was five years old I've been onstage performing, touring and making records, which is my passion, but I need a break. I never got breaks. Therefore I never got friends. Friends that have been with me since my humble beginning in Gary. Friends that love me for who I am and not the fortune and the fame. The days of finding those types of friends easily have long been over.

Cathy Jean wrapped her arms around my abdomen and leaned her head on my chest. I returned the favor by embracing her again. I prayed that she didn't notice my beating heart.

"Can I ask you a question?" Cathy Jean would not come out of our embrace.

"Sure."

"It's going to sound really weird but-"

All of a sudden, the door flew open, interrupting Cathy Jean mid-sentence. A breathless LaToya started to scream, "Michael, come get all your nasty animals out of...my...oh my..."

I tried to pull Cathy Jean away from me but she didn't budge. LaToya just stared at us, multiplying the awkwardness by 100. I cleared my throat and Cathy Jean understood it was time to let me go.

"Sorry!" LaToya squeaked.

"It's okay," I said turning the music off. "We were just finishing."

"Yeah. Bye, Michael." Cathy Jean swept her things off the floor and bustled passed LaToya.

"Wait!" 

LaToya stepped out of the way when she saw me start up to run. Cathy Jean had already shown herself out the door and left it ajar when I got to the foyer. I sighed and turned to Mother whose eyes were wide.

"What happened?" she gasped.

I sighed and rubbed my face, recounting the previous events. "I don't know."