"Hmmp, might be good practice...losing sleep. That's what parents do you know?" Nadine grumbled.
Sage shrank from the sting of her barb. She noticed. Immediately she turned contrite and dropped her head in shame at the low blow she’d leveled him with.
"I'm sorry, Sage. That wasn't called for. I know you feel bad. You don't need me to make it worse."
"No, Ma. I deserve it. We did something really stupid," Sage choked up.
Nadine rushed over and hugged him.
"Yes, you did. But what you deserve is love and support. And you've got it. Okay?"
Sage was on the verge of tears. "Thanks, Ma. That means a lot coming from you."
Nadine rubbed his back. She padded over to the coffee pot. She smirked at the thoughtful presentation Sage had laid out, then filled her mug and leaned against the counter. She studied her son over the rim of her cup.
Sage polished off his cereal. He took his bowl to the sink, rinsed it, and put it in the dishwasher. Amused by all the considerate gestures, Nadine chuckled to herself.
“So, this is what it takes to get you to pamper us a little, huh?"
Sage, astutely aware she could quickly swing back to the dark side, allowed himself only the teeniest of smiles.
"What can I say? Guilty as charged," he cracked.
Nadine took her usual seat at the table. The morning paper rested next to her place mat. She picked it up and pointed it at him.
"Didn't miss a detail, did you?" Sage smiled again, shrugged. He collected his backpack and keys from the counter.
“I have homework to finish. Thought I'd hit study hall early.”
Nadine nodded. "That's fine. Make sure you come straight home after school. And stay away from that girl," she said.
"I will, Ma. See you this afternoon."
"Bye, baby."
Sage cringed a little at the sound of the “b” word. His mother gestured for a hug, but he had already turned his back and was out the door. Nadine shook her head and sighed.
Sage pulled up to the school parking lot. He juggled a large cup of coffee, and the steering wheel. Peyton lounged in the passenger seat, unbuckled as usual.
"Since when do you drink coffee?" he asked.
"Since my parents kept me up half the night screaming at me. I spent the other half counting dots on the ceiling panels because I couldn’t shut my brain off enough to fall asleep. Man, I almost crashed in study hall."
"They're really on your ass, huh?"
"Yep, like a bad rash," Sage said.
"So…you really think it's your baby?" asked Peyton, fixing Sage with a long stare.
"It’s possible. I mean, we did have sex. And we didn’t use protection. But I keep thinking about the way she was after me all of a sudden. Like the movie. That was her idea, right?"
"Yeah, she asked Tia to set it up. Said she was feeling you. Wanted to check you out," Peyton said.
With his attention diverted by the conversation, Sage accidentally jostled the cup of coffee. The lid popped off and the cold liquid splashed onto his jeans. When he dropped the cup, he took his eyes off the road for a split second to tend to the mess.
At that instant, a little dog ran in front of the truck.
"Oh, shit!" yelled Sage. He slammed on the brakes and tried to throw an arm out to brace Peyton.
Peyton gripped the dashboard. He squeezed his eyes shut.
Sage overcorrected the wheel, swerved onto the sidewalk. He hit a utility pole. Both boys whipped forward. Sage's airbag deployed. Peyton's didn't. He flew into the windshield. The whole chain of events took just seconds to unfold.
A bunch of students sprinted to the crash site, including Jasmin at the head of the pack. She yanked the driver’s side door open. Neither boy moved. Peyton's head was nestled in the windshield. Tiny cracks in the glass fashioned a crude crown around his battered and bloody face.
"Call 911!" Jasmin screamed. Somebody whipped out a cell and punched in the numbers.
Sage lay in a hospital bed. He had a bandage over one eye, and a cast on one arm. Nadine and Halloran perched on the edge of their seats. Ready for action if their boy needed anything.
Peyton dozed in a bed across from Sage. His entire head was bandaged. Cuts crisscrossed his face. There was a cast on his wrist. His mother, Gail, sat next to him holding his good hand.
Jasmin stood near the doorway. As pained as she looked, she could have easily been mistaken for a third victim of the accident.
"You know how lucky you two--" Halloran started to say, but he choked up and couldn't go on. His wife comforted him with a tender squeeze of his hand.
"How's your head feel, baby?" asked Nadine.
"Like you finally made good on that threat," said Sage.
Nadine scowled, clueless to what he meant.
“What do you--“
"Heads will roll, Ma?" Sage smirked. Nadine swatted his shoulder. Then she got a little teary-eyed.
"When the school called, I thought it was some kind of prank. All this in two days. What’s next?" She broke down. Halloran pulled her to him.
Jasmin took a step forward. She reconsidered. Backed off.
"Don’t worry, Ma. It's just a bump and a broken arm. It could have been a lot worse. I'm fine. Really."
Just then, Peyton stirred a little.
"Yeah. He could have hit the dog," Peyton croaked.
"Baby!" cried Gail. She kissed Peyton’s hand.
"Oh my god, you had me so worried. I thought you were--" And she broke down. Peyton tried to soothe her with his good hand.
"It's okay, Mom. Don’t cry," he said.
"Um-hmm, I always said that boy's head was hard as a rock," said Halloran. He left Sage’s side, went over and squeezed Peyton’s shoulder.
"You got that right, Mr. G.," said Peyton, grinning. Sage turned to his friend, smiled at him.
"Man, you know I hate the sight of blood! Why’d you do that to me? You okay for real?" Sage said.
Peyton raised his broken wrist.
"Yeah, I'm cool. And this thing's definitely going to be a magnet for the ladies. I already got my eye on two fine nurses I want to sign it," Peyton said.
His mom gave him the side eye.
“Alright, boy. Pump your brakes,” Gail kidded. “Lots more important things you need to be worried about.”
Peyton probed the bandages on his head.
"I’m fine, Ma. They checked my head out. It's all good up there," he said.
"Really? Then maybe somebody should check their equipment," joked Halloran.
That cracked them all up. Even Jasmin, who looked like she’d been trying to make herself invisible.
"Hey, Jas," said Sage.
She moved closer to the group.
"Hey. Hope you don't mind me being here. Your folks said it was okay."
"No, I don’t mind. You were at the crash, huh?"
“Thank goodness she was,” Nadine beamed at Jasmin.
Jasmin blushed, nodded her head.
"I heard you yelling for an ambulance. Thought I was dreaming," Sage said.
"No dream. That was me," Jasmin said.
The two of them shared an awkward few seconds of silence that was thankfully interrupted by a fresh-faced doctor who came in the room.
“Hello, folks,” he said. Everyone acknowledged him.
“So how are my two lucky patients feeling?” He glanced at the clipboard he held.
"Sore,” Sage said. “My head's pounding."
"Mine, too," Peyton added.
"We can give you something for that, but first, I want to look you both over. Miss, do you mind stepping out?" he asked, turning to Jasmin.
“No, not at all,” she said. She waved a hand at everyone and backed up toward the door. “I’ll see you guys later. Feel better soon.”
Chapter 19
Sage slept. Occasionally he would murmur some gibberish, or his legs would jerk under the covers. Peyton was propped up in his bed. He looked much more alert than he did the previous day.
Jasmin sat between the two of them. She couldn't quite figure out what to do with her hands. She shifted uneasily in the chair, fussed with a particularly unruly lock of her hair. She’d never had much contact with Peyton, and wasn’t really sure what to say to him.
Peyton felt equally awkward. He checked the clock on the wall one too many times, drummed his fingers on his cast, played with the position of his bed like he was maneuvering a construction crane.
"Do you need any--" Jasmin started to say, just as Peyton opened his mouth to speak.
"My mom should be back soon,” he said, cutting her off.
They laughed nervously.
"Sorry," they both said.
The two of them laughed again. It was looser this time, more natural.
"I know it’s kind of strange…me being here and all,” said Jasmin. “I thought I’d convinced myself I didn’t want to have anything else to do with Sage. And he definitely didn’t seem to know what he wanted. One minute he seemed to be feeling me, the next he was all over Raven. Your boy is so hard to read.” She smiled to soften her words.
“Yeah, I hear you,” Peyton said, glancing toward Sage. “We’re close as brothers and I couldn’t even figure out what he was doing. Try not to hold it against him, though. He’s been through some crazy stuff. I’m talking things that could make a nightmare seem like a wet dream.” Peyton’s face clouded and his voice trembled a bit. “Drama that changes you forever,” he softly added.
Jasmin’s eyebrows rose, signaling her curiosity for more details, but Peyton didn’t elaborate.
“He should really be the one to tell you. Trust me, though. It’s deep.”
“Okay, I respect that. Can you at least tell me what the deal is with Raven? Were they a couple? Is she really pregnant by him?” Jasmin asked.
Peyton whipped forward, clearly agitated.
“Hell no! Why? Is she spreading that lie? They did it one time. That’s it.”
Jasmin seemed to deflate right there in the chair.
“So they did hook up?” she asked.
“Well, yeah. But it didn’t mean anything and it was just once,” said Peyton.
“One time is all it takes, Peyton.”
“I know. Still…something just doesn’t add up. Raven’s sneaky. She’s real good at running game. Not as good as me though. I’ll catch her ass. I’m gonna prove she’s lying. That’s not Sage’s baby.”
Peyton slumped back against his pillow, like defending his friend had taken a toll on him.
“But what makes you so sure?” asked Jasmin.
“She got too thirsty for him all of a sudden. She’d never blinked an eye at him before. Always chattering about how bougie he was. Next thing you know she’s on his nuts like a damn squirrel.”
Jasmin tittered at his colorful analogy.
“Really? So you think she’s trying to trap him or something?”
“No doubt,” Peyton said, with a firm nod of his head.
“So how could anybody prove it? A paternity test? Don’t they have to wait until the baby is born to do that?” asked Jasmin.