If Not For You

Chapter 12

They walked into school together and went their separate ways to their homerooms.  Ben and Jenna didn’t get to see each other again until lunch.  When Ben made his way to the lunch table, Paul was hovering over Jenna glaring at Ben.  Whatever she was saying to him wasn’t bringing him much comfort.  Lena sat between the two bickering cousins trying to make peace.  After what seemed to be neither of them getting the best of the other, Paul made his way over to Ben.

“First off that’s my cousin.  Second off she’s 16.  What did I ever do to you man?”  Paul looked at Ben as though he really was trying to understand but he just couldn’t grasp the concepts.  “What are you trying to accomplish?  You know if you touch her I’m going to have to kill you.  There are how many other chicks you can mess with?”  Paul sat there looking at Ben waiting for him to agree with what he was saying.  Paul was used to getting his own way.

“Look I don’t know what it is you think is going on but there isn’t anything happening.  I like talking to her she has a lot more to say than most people.”  It was hard for Ben to lie to Paul but there was no way that he was going to tell Paul that he had made out with his cousin and saw her naked, well practically naked.  At least there isn’t any reason to tell him now considering how they aren’t actually together.  He would wait until they had something before he was going to piss of Paul. 

Paul went back to his seat and finished eating.  Ben sat there listening to Jax talk about the football game against Central on Friday.   It was just a week ago that football had been Ben’s escape from his life and now that he was spending time with Jenna, football just seemed like a waste of time that he could be spending with her.

After lunch Ben and Jenna had math together, Ben hated math.  She sat next to him and Ben leaned across the aisle to ask her what Paul had said to her.  She scribbled something down on a scrap of paper and tossed it on his desk.  He unfolded the paper and read what was written inside.  “He told me to stay away from you.  He said that you were nothing but trouble.  Funny the way just a few days ago he was saying about Killer what he is now saying about you.”  He could feel her watching him read the note waiting for a reaction.  He just looked up at her and made eye contact.  He shrugged and gave her a small smile.  He was going to kill Paul.

When Ben walked into the boy’s locker room after the final bell rang, he walked past all his teammates in various stages of undress.  He made his way to the back corner and pushed past Jax to get right into Paul’s face.  “What the hell are you trying to prove?  Why are you talking shit to Jenna about me?”  Paul stood his ground not budging a bit and took a step forward.

“What difference does it make what I tell her?  You told me you would stay away from her.  So you need to back up.”  Paul and Ben were practically nose to nose and Jax knew that they could get suspended from football if this verbal altercation turned physical.  Neither Ben nor Paul could risk missing games.  Jax wedged himself between the two and told them both to cool off.  Ben went into his locker and changed into his practice clothes.  As he made his way through the aisle of lockers he walked past the showers that just a few hours ago gave him his best morning he has had in the longest time.

As he made his way out of the locker room and towards the field he saw Jenna getting into Lena’s car.  He trotted over towards them.  “Shouldn’t you be out there throwing balls, tackling each other and touching butts?”  Jenna looked up at Ben amused.

“Man, I’m super jealous of you getting to touch Jax’s butt.  Maybe I should go out for the team.  Although I get to touch his butt whenever I want.”  Lena looked off into space like she was reminiscing on some memory involving touching butts.

“Thanks for the visual, Lena.  Although he would never let you play because he already called dibs on your butt.  Where are you guys going?”  Ben asked looking over his shoulder to see if practice started yet.  It hadn’t but he definitely saw Paul glaring at him.  “Oh well he’ll get over it”, Ben thought.

“Why do you ask?”  Jenna said, “Are you stalking me?  Don’t make me sic Paul on you.”  She said all this while laughing.  “We are going to do girl stuff.  Is that okay boss?”

“I suppose so.”  He said it as if he were actually granting her permission.  “I just didn’t know if maybe after your girl stuff if you guys wanted to meet up with Jax and I?”

“Can Paul come too?  I think you may hurt his feelings if you don’t invite him?”  Jenna asked sarcastically.

“Hell no.  He will get over it, eventually.”  Ben said looking back at the field knowing he really should be heading down.

“Call when you guys are done and we will decide then.  You know us girls, always indecisive.”  Lena said all this looking at Jenna trying to be neutral, knowing it has to be awkward for Jenna to have to choose between a guy and family. She really just wanted everybody to get along.  “See ya later.” 

Ben stepped back from the car as the girls climbed in and pulled out of the parking lot.  As he went to turn towards the field, he noticed Kelly standing there staring at him.  He ignored her and sprinted to the field.

After practice back in the locker room, Paul was still giving Ben the silent treatment.  Ben wished that Paul would keep his mouth shut to Jenna too, but Ben knew that was a fat chance.  After their showers, everyone started leaving the locker room.  Paul made his way out still not saying a word to Ben.  Ben decided to give him a few days and then he would try to talk to him.  Paul was too good of a friend to let this ruin their friendship but Ben knew that no amount of talking would make Paul see something he wasn’t ready to yet see. 

“Hey Jax what are you doing tonight?” Ben said as Jax was pulling his shirt over his head.  “Nothing really, why?  If you’re asking me out on a date you’ll have to fight Lena for me.  And she fights dirty.”  He laughed to himself like there was a joke in there that only Jax and Lena knew.  “Good grief” thought Ben.  ‘Those two really have it bad for each other.’  “I was thinking that we could catch up with Lena and Jenna.  They said to call them after we get done with practice.”

“I don’t know Ben.  You really are going to piss off Paul.  I’m not too sure that I want to be in the middle of that.  You know you’re my best friend but Paul has a point, Jenna is his cousin.  How awkward is it going to be when this shit ends badly?”   Jax sat down next to Ben on the bench pulling on his shoes and tying together the laces.

“It’s like I told Paul as of now there isn’t anything going on to turn bad.  I just like talking to her.  I get it’s his cousin and if anything seems like it’s going to happen I will talk to him first.  Alright.  You guys are really giving me a complex, you both are just expecting the worst from me.  So will you go or not?  Don’t think of it as taking my side because you’re participating, look at it as in you’re taking Paul’s side and you’re making sure nothing happens.  If Paul asks, tell him that, as long as you know you are really on my side, I don’t care.”  Ben stood up off the bench looking down at Jax. 

“Alright, fine.  Let’s go.  Stop being a little girl and get in my truck.  You so freakin owe me.  And if Paul asks me anything I will totally throw you under the bus.”  With that they walked out to the parking lot and into Jax’ truck.  Ben unlocked his car and threw his gym bag in.  “Hold up I left my running shoes in your car.  I’m going running with Lena tomorrow.”  Jax reached into the backseat of Ben’s car and searched around until he found something more interesting than his running shoes.  “What the hell is this?”  Jax had in his hand Jenna’s thong from earlier today.  “Do I even want to know who’s this is?”

Ben really truly thought about the question before answering.  He knew his friend was implying that the thong belonged to a skanky girl and at this point as much as Ben wanted to clear his name he knew that there would be no way to explain that it was Jenna’s thong without losing all sympathy for his cause from Jax.  “Just leave it alone.”  Ben knew that his statement was open for interpretation.  He meant for Jax to drop the subject and drop the thong.