One Detention Saved My Life

Chapter 29-Tim

   My head is literally pounding for reasons I can't explain. Everything is dark and my ears pick up on what sounds like a million voices. A voice booms close by,"Tim, wake up. . . God, please be okay." I know that voice. It's Amy's. My eyes snap open rapidly, the light hurting them. I pick my head up off Amy's lap, her hand falling from previously stroking my head.
   "What happened? Where am I?"
    "You're in the lunchroom and everything is fine."
    "Is he back?" Jeremy asks.
   "Of course he's back," Amanda snaps. "Do you see that he has glowing eyes?"
   I reach up and touch my face in alarm. I don't feel the slick texture of my shades. I don't remember taking them off.
  "Monster," I whisper. "Monster."
  "Nobody's a monster," Amy says, in a sweet voice.
   "I am."
  "Is someone going to tell him what happened?" Kim shouts, getting impatient.
  "What happened?"
  "Chelsea possessed you," Kim says, when nobody else chimes in. My memory starts flooding back. I remember Amy rejecting me and then going to Chelsea for help. Chelsea took matters into her own hands and possessed my body.
     "Did it work? Do you still hate me?"
"I never hated you to begin with. I  just was afraid that you'd hurt me."
  "I'd never do that."
  "I know that. You're dead ex-girlfriend said that she could feel your emotions, and said that she could feel that you'd never hurt me."
  Creepy. Did she have all my memories too?
   "She was never my girlfriend."
  "You sure about that," Kim snorts. "Because in fifth grade I remember yot holding hands."
  "That was Abigail not Chelsea."
  "Who's Abigail?" Amy asks, confused.
"I thought I told you about her. Long story short she was the biggest dead bitch alive."
  "Oh, yeah. Now I remember you telling me about her."
   I look down at the table, pick up my sunglasses, and slide them back on my face. Amy frowns. "I wish you wouldn't do that. You have such pretty eyes."
  I laugh. "Yeah, right. They're all bruised and disgusting looking."
  Amy looks down at the tray of untouched food. "You should really eat something. Chelsea demanded that when you woke up you should eat something."
   "I'm not hungry. I feel dizzy, lightheaded, and nauseated."
  "You have to eat. I'll tell you what, you eat something and I'll kiss you on the lips."
"How do I know you're not lying?"
  "Because I want to kiss you badly."
  I look down at the gross hamburger and gross fries, and take a big bite of burger. It tastes like cardboard in my mouth, but I force myself to wolf it down. I open up the carton of chocolate milk and chug it down. For some reason I don't feel dizzy, or nauseated anymore.
    "Do you feel better?"
    "Yes. . . Can I have my kiss now?"
    "I thought you'd never ask."
   Amy leans down and my lips meet her soft ones. An explosion of flavor explodes inside my mouth. It feels wonderful and warm, unlike when I kissed Kim. Guilt swells in my chest. You shouldn't have kissed Kim.
  When Amy pulls away I want more. I want to kiss Amy until I'm blue in the face. Amanda giggles,"Tim and Amy are officially back together."
   I know who I am now. I'm Tim Hemlock and I'm not nothing. I'm whole again. It's like Amy put the puzzle pieces back inside my heart. Now I just have to make sure that those pieces never break again.

  When I get home from school, I hear the TV blaring from the living room. Mom's home. I walk happily inside the living room and I feel myself frown. Jimmy's arm is draped around Mom's shoulder and they're staring at the TV screen watching the Walking Dead.  One of the main characters, a man in his thirty's with greasy dark brown hair, and sweat running down his forehead, aims his crossbow at a zombie and hits it right in the head, causing blood to go everywhere. I cringe at the bloody scene.
   "Do you guys have to watch that?" They jump.
  "Oh, Tim, you're home."
   "I see you're not sucking face with him."
"Do you always have to be so rude to Patrick?"
  I'm about to respond when Mom darts into the kitchen and throws up in the sink. She comes back in five minutes later, her face looking pale and cold.
   "Mom, are you okay?" I ask, looking down at her stomach. I notice that it looks like she's gained five pounds.
   "Yeah, the baby takes everything out of me."
"What baby?"
  "Teresa, you didn't tell Tim that you're pregnant?"
     "You're pregnant?! Patrick, how can you be so fucking cruel?"
     "Tim, we talked about this last night. You said you were fine with me having a baby."
    It hits me like a ton of bricks. Mom told Chelsea that she was pregnant. I don't know how that could not be in my memory.
  "Oh yeah, that's right. I've been so busy with school work that I'm forgetting things."
   "Honey, I think you need to see Dr. Roberts."
    "I'm fine."
   "Clearly you're not. I'm making you an appointment for as soon as possible."
    She picks up her phone off the coffee and dials her number. "Dr. Roberts? Oh, hi. I would like to make an appointment for Tim. Tomorrow would be great at four. Thanks, bye."
   Mom hangs up the phone. "You have an appointment with Dr. Roberts tomorrow."
  "I know. I heard the whole conversation. I need to be left alone right now."
    I dart out of the living room and into my bedroom. I look around for Chelsea, but she's not there. I don't even feel her presence. I put my hands together and pray. Nothing happens. Chelsea's gone. I can't believe she didn't leave a note. She left me without a trace. I can't believe she wouldn't warn me that Mom was pregnant.
   I dial Amy's number. I need to talk to someone who understands what I'm going through right now. Mom would surely label me insane if I told her Chelsea possessed my body.
   "Hey, you okay?" Amy says, answering the phone.
   "No, I'm not. Can you come over?"
   "Yeah, my parents are both working, but my brother, Tyler can drive me."
"You have a brother?"
"Yeah, he's nineteen. We moved here because my mom and dad wanted to be close to him. He attends the University of Erie."
  "Okay, see you then."
"Wait, I just remembered I don't know where you live."
  "I live ten minutes from the lake at nine-sixteen Pinewood drive."
  "Okay, I'll tell my brother to program it into his phone."
   "Sounds good. And can you bring your backpack over so it looks like you've come over to study?"
   "Will do," Amy says, hanging up my phone.
  I go out into the living room. Mom  and Jimmy have resumed watching the Walking Dead, his arm around her shoulder. I want to yell at him to stop it, but I know I can't because that would risk my chances of getting to see Amy.
"Mom, I invited a friend over to help me get caught up my school work."
   "What friend?" Mom asks, keeping her eyes on the TV.
  I take a big gulp of air. "Amy."
   "I thought you two broke up."
  "We did, but we agreed to still be friends," I lie.
    "I don't think that's a good idea."
    "Too late. She's already on her way here."
  "How many times have I told you to ask before having people over?"
  "Never. I haven't really haven't had a lot of friends over."
  "Oh," is the only thing she says.
      Five minutes later, the doorbell rings. I get up off the couch, relieved. I had to put up with Jimmy's arm around Mom's shoulder. It took everything in me not to puke and that was even with the added zombie guts. I open the door and am greeted by Amy's brother, six foot, blue-gray eyes, eccentric blue hair where his head isn't shaved off. Amy looks embarrassed beside him.
  "It's so nice to meet you, man. Amy talks about you all the time."
  "Tyler!"
  "What? I have every entitled right to tell your boyfriend that you moped about him when you broke up with him. She also has a picture of you above her bed, in which sometimes she makes out with right before she goes to sleep."
  "Tyler, that's enough!"
   I can't help but laugh. Amy punches me in the arm, surprisingly it's pretty hard. I never thought Amy was weak, but I never thought she was that strong either.
  "I should be heading home now. Call me when you need a ride back home. You two love birds have fun."
  Amy's cheeks blush as soon as Tyler takes off for his black Mercedes. I don't know how the kid affords that car. College isn't cheap these days.
   "Let's go inside," I suggest, slipping my hand in hers.
   Once we are inside I take Amy to say hi to Mom.
"Mom, this is Amy." Mom pauses the TV and she and Jimmy both turn their heads. I can tell Mom's looking at her from head to toe.
  "It's nice to finally meet the girl who broke my son's heart. I don't know why he still wants to be friends with you."
"Mom!"
  To my surprise Amy doesn't flinch or start to tear up at Mom's comment.
  "It's nice to meet you, Ms. Hemlock. I can't believe I'm meeting the person that raised Tim."
  She looks at Jimmy. "Do I know you? I could have sworn---"
  "No," Jimmy blurts out, rather too quickly.
"Well, it was nice meeting you. . ."
"Patrick," Jimmy says.
"Well, I have a lot of studying to do. Amy and I are going to head for my bedroom."
   I glide Amy out of the living room and into my bedroom. I glance around my room and notice that I have plates and cups scattered all over the place and my clothes are strewn all over my bed. I quickly throw them onto the floor.
    "Boys and their messy rooms," Amy comments, taking her backpack off her back and placing it on my bed. Amy sits on my bed and pats the empty spot next to her. I take her invitation and sit down.
   "What's wrong?"
   "When Chelsea possessed me my mom told her that she was pregnant."
  "With that guy I recognized on your mom's couch?"
  "Yeah, his real name is Jimmy and he's my dad's ex-assistant manager."
   "That asshole was always trying to get you in trouble with your dad.
    "Yeah, that asshole is using my mom and now she's pregnant with his  child."
The tears I've been trying to hold back explode out of my eyes. Amy rubs my back.
  "Tim, everything is going to be all right."
"No, it's not," I whale.
  "I know this is hard for you, but you have to look on the bright side."
   I laugh. "Bright side?"
  "You're going to be a big brother to a lucky little boy or girl."
  "I don't want that child to be an asshole."
  "You can't help who the father is, but you can certainly teach the child how to behave and how to act right."
"You're right."
My hands reach up and cup Amy's face. She leans in closer and we're kissing passionately on the lips. Her back falls directly on my bed and I move so that I'm directory on top of her. Amy's hands move from my face to my messed up curly hair. I don't even hear the door creek open.
  "What the---"
  Amy and I freeze on top of each other. The voice is definitely coming from Jimmy's mouth.
  "Teresa's gonna want to see this." I still can't will myself to move.
  "Don't you tell her."
  "Poor little shithead, it doesn't feel good when people tattle on you. You got my ass fired with your tattling."
  "Don't call my boyfriend a shithead!"
  "Shut up you poor little crippled girl."
"Don't call my girlfriend crippled!"
  "I'm sure your mother would like to know that you lied to her. It seems to me that you guys are doing more than just homework."
   "You wouldn't dare."
   "I would unless. . ."
   "Unless what?"
  "Unless you make a double date with me and Teresa and Kelly and Greg."
  "Fine. Sunday night at seven at the Great Pizza."
  "Sounds good to me," Jimmy says, leaving my room.
   "That guy is a fucking loser."
   "Amy! You shouldn't talk like that."
   "I learn from the best," Amy says, kissing me again with her very soft lips. "Tim, I think it's time that you get off of me. I don't want to lie to your mother about not doing any homework."
  I slide off of her and pull her up to a sitting position. "Did I mention I'm also an awesome tutor?"
   "No, you did not."
      By the the time the clock strikes nine Amy has helped me with five math assignments, two of Mr. Kelsak's retched english assignments, and one history assignment. I don't really want Amy to leave as I walk her out to the front porch, where Tyler waits patiently.
     "Thanks for coming over," I say.
     "No problem."
    There's a slight pause. "Can you go to the lake on Friday night at six p.m?"
  "Yeah, why?"
  "Brett and Chad are up to something. I don't know what. A couple kids at school know more about it than I do, so we were going to discuss and make a plan on how to attack back."
  "Kind of like a rebellion?"
  "Yeah, kinda like a rebellion."
  "I'm definitely in."
   Amy leans  slightly on her toes and kisses my lips. When we pull away Tyler says,"Man, my sister knows how to put the moves on you."
   "Tyler!"
   "Sorry, sis."
   "See you in school," Amy says, walking with Tyler towards his Mercedes.
"See you," I whisper.
  As Tyler's Mercedes drives away I find myself thinking about what's going to happen this Friday. Will this rebellion finally help get rid of Brett and Chad for good? I honestly don't know. What I do know is that Brett and Chad are planning something awful, and I have to find a way to fight back. Why does fighing and violence lead to peace? Maybe some day when I die God can answer my question.