28 days of Flash — 24 of 28 — Part 1 — Boundaries
Jayne sat in the front passenger seat of the RV and stewed. She couldn’t even look at Katie, right next to her, chomping on popcorn. Katie just kept pointing and reeling off names.
“Look, there’s Gina the Prom Queen. Oh my god, is she still with John? What a mess! The NFL sure did a number on him. Look, Jayne.” Katie pointed again. “Isn’t that funny that they’re still together after all these years.”
Jayne wished she had stashed the bottle of vodka in her purse, but she would have had to switch purses and it didn’t go with the dress she was wearing.
“Look, there’s Bryce! Of all people, did you know he became a pastor? An actual pastor responsible for people’s souls?” Katie laughed so hard she couldn’t speak. Jayne finally had it.
“He’s actually my pastor, Katie.” Katie didn’t hear her. “Don’t you want to go in and talk to these people?”
Katie laughed and shook her head. “Why?”
“Katie, we are sitting in a parking lot in your RV at our class reunion! There are people in there that I’d like to at least say hi to. This wasn’t what I signed up for when you asked if I’d come to this with you.” Jayne yelled.
“Well, hello Jayne’s backbone,” Katie sneered. “Glad you finally decided to join the party thirty years late.” She stood from the chair and headed towards the bathroom at the back.
Jayne stood and squared her shoulders, stepping out of the cab. “Running to the bathroom again, Katie?”
Katie stopped, turned, and screamed. “You know my digestive system is sensitive to stress!”
Jayne laughed. “Your digestive system, your brain, your EVERYTHING is sensitive to stress. You RUN EVERY TIME. And I am so tired of being the person who explains you to everyone.”
Katie put her hands on her hips. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Jayne crossed her arms in front of her. “Who the hell do you think defended you to all these people every time you showed up at a dance dressed like Rambo? Or rolled your eyes when we had to do community service projects in Key Club? Do you know how many times I had to explain you to everyone in Key Club?”
Katie took a deep breath and glared. “I was only in Key Club for YOU because YOU didn’t want to go to the meetings alone!”
Jayne rolled her eyes. “That’s rich. You asked me to get you into Key Club!”
Katie said, “That’s not how I remember it at all.” She turned and walked into the small bathroom, closing the door with as much restraint as she could muster.
Jayne grabbed her purse from the counter. She wanted to scream a parting shot that would keep Katie from ever talking to her again, but she was too angry. While Katie emptied her stress into the RV’s non-soundproof bathroom, Jayne walked out, got into her car, and left. As she drove by Rob’s Hummer, she paused long enough to get his cell phone number off his realtor decal on the back window.
She put her car in park and fished out her cell phone. She sent him a text she knew he wouldn’t ignore. Hey man, Meet me in the RV in the parking lot. I’ve got some property and I need a realtor.
Katie waited until the next Monday to call Jayne to talk about hooking up with Rob again.
Jayne had blocked her number.
