Paul watched as two of his friends plotted a scheme behind another friend's back, but his mind was elsewhere.
Since the cops caught them last year, they had moved their parties to a spot between the tennis courts and the train tracks that was dark enough and far away from houses enough that they hadn't been caught since. It was a wooded area with lots of sticks and twigs. The boys collected them and built a teepee to hide empty beer bottles in.
Paul checked his phone.
him: What r u up to?
He sent that text at 11:49 pm. It was 12:15 am now and still no response.
He was distracted by the annoyed cry of his friend who was the victim of a beer blast. If you tap the bottom of a beer bottle on top of another beer bottle, that bottle will foam up and spill out. The guys who planned it were out of breath from laughing so hard. Paul didn't want to think it was funny but he found himself unable to control his own laughter as the victim wrung out his beer-soaked sleeve.
Adrienne responded at 8:02 am the next morning.
her: Sorry I was asleep
"What the fuck do you think I'm doing at midnight on a Wednesday?" She muttered out loud.
She and Paul texted on occasion. She had thought about texting him the day after their coffee. Now she couldn't remember if she was the one who texted him first or if she'd just imagined it was. She could've just scrolled up on the message thread to check but she didn't want to know the answer. She hoped it wasn't her, because she decided that it would be creepy if it was.
Nothing they ever spoke about was interesting. It was TV show recommendations, lockdown complaints, and how was your day's? But Adrienne kept her phone in her pocket wherever she went and found herself eyeing it every few seconds as she applied to jobs.
He didn't respond to her until 11:40 am.
him: All good
her: What were you doing?
him: I was at Meade with the guys
her: Isn't that the place where you got in trouble?
him: Yeah
him: Guess we didn't learn our lesson. lol
Adrienne started to type "and isn't it the same place your black friend feels unsafe going to now?"
She deleted it. She didn't want to lecture him, it wasn't her place. That said, she ran her tongue against her teeth like she was ridding a sour taste. He was immature, but he was eighteen. He was allowed to be.
Ten minutes later, after no response from Adrienne, Paul sent another text.
him: I felt weird being there
her: I get it
him: They're going back tonight but I don't wanna go
her: Then don't
him: We could hang out instead
What do I say to that? she wondered. She looked around the room as if it would give her an answer. She took a deep breath and asked herself, what do I want?
her: Yeah I'm free
Adrienne couldn't believe that it was mid-September. The bugs weren't biting as badly, but the air was still humid. Paul picked her up and said he wanted to take her somewhere but it was a surprise. They drove north, deep in the woods where streets were narrow and nauseatingly windy.
YOU ARE READING
EMOTIONAL DISTANCE
Teen Fiction*a pandemic romance with a 19 year old college student and 29 year old unemployed woman It's 2020. Paul should be off to college, Adrienne should be engaged in London but instead they're both stuck in Connecticut and cross paths thanks to a harmless...
