“Who do you think you are passing a judgment like that on me? You don’t know me. You’ve never bothered to find out if I was the same Elliott or not. You don’t like to be judged by your appearance or actions and yet look at the massive contradiction that is you judging me by mine! I was trying to get to know you again Jules. I wanted to know more about you and not because I had ulterior motives but because I was sincerely interested in you. You should know this. This” I said gesturing with my free hand around us, “should be proof enough.”
I let go of her arm and we both relaxed from the release of the lit tension. She stared seriously into my eyes.
“I’m.....I’m sorry Elliott. You’re right. I, I did judge you unfairly.”
“Well, good,” I said, running my fingers through my hair, “and I’m sorry if I ever gave you the impression that I was anything like the idiots just beyond those doors.”
She smiled and sniffed.
“So?” I asked.
“So, I think that maybe you should call me tonight.”
“Seriously? That would be really nice.”
“Alright. Here.”
She grabbed my hand and took a pen from the inside pocket of her bag. She wrote her number on my palm then looked up at me and smiled before releasing our grip.
“If this were a movie, this would be where we break away from one another and the gooey music would be cued, but....” I said.
“But we still have like twenty minutes of lunch together? And third period next?”
I moved next to Jules at the lockers. We slid to the linoleum floor in unison.
We ate and passed back and forth simple questions like, what’s your favorite color? Things like that. We had things in common that didn’t really matter much on paper but, to me, were an indication of the things to come.
Also, we shared birthdays. I had forgotten about that. Growing up we were always aware that we’d have to plan our parties around the other until, that is, Jules no longer threw them. It didn’t seem that significant then but intimidated me now. I wondered what it meant. Feel like adding weirder to the already weird? Our birth date was February, 29th, leap year.
We talked music, food, movies, books and when they bell rang, much, much too soon, we headed for third period. Without even skin contact, I could tell her heart was lighter and that mine beat in rhythm with hers.
That night, I asked my mom if I could borrow her cell. I borrowed it all the time to talk privately in my room because Maddy had a tendency to get on the other line and eavesdrop, so my mom thought nothing of it. I picked up the phone and ran up the creaky kitchen wooden stairs to my room. My hand shook as I nervously dialed the number written on my hand. Three rings. Her dad answered.
“Hello? Jacobs’ residence.”
“Hello? Mr. Jacobs? This is Elliott Gray. May I speak with Jule, uh, Julia please?”
“Just a moment.”
The silent wait was torturous. My bouncing knee would have kept time with a hummingbird’s wings.
“Hello?”
“Hello? Just hello?”
“Hi Elliott.”
“Jules.”
She didn’t correct her name. My heart swelled.
“Can you talk?” I asked.
“Just a sec,” she said and laid her hand over the receiver before continuing, “Pop, please? I’m beggin’ you.” There was a ruffling sound and a chair scooting backward. “Thank you! I hereby retract calling your love for ‘Tiny Dancer’ lame!”
She yelled the last part then laughed.
“Okay Gray. It’s not true, by the way. I love that song, especially after ‘Almost Famous’, but if I let him know that, he’d never let me live it down.”
“You’re funny Jules.”
“Nah. So, did you get all your homework done?”
“What are you my mother?” I teased.
“Um, no. That would be gross.”
I laughed.
“Why would that be gross? My actual mother doesn’t feel that way. At least, I don’t think she does.”
“Because that would mean we’d have to change your name to Oedipus and mine to Jocasta.”
“Yup, that would be gross. Those names are hideous.”
“Hardy, har, har.”
“We wouldn’t have to change names, just yet, anyway. We’d have to marry first, then have children who also happen to be my siblings,” I said.
“You’re right. What was a I thinking?......Uh, this conversation has taken a turn down ‘I never thought I’d talk about something like this’ lane. Serious change of subject por favor?”
“Hey, you brought it up Freud,” I said, both of us laughing. “How about we start over by you telling me something about yourself that no one else knows.”
“Um, I have nothing to tell,” she said.
“Um? You hesitated. Besides, everyone has secrets. Are you afraid to tell me?”
“Well, I’ve got one but I’d never tell it, especially not to you.”
“Come on! I’ve got to know now. Would it help if I told you one about me first? Then, would you tell?”
“Nope.”
“Oh come on Jules! Now that you’ve piqued my interest you’re just going to leave me dangling on your hook? That’s some cruel bait there Jules.”
“Alright, fine but if you so much as think of letting it pass your own lips, even on your death bed, you’re a dead man Gray.”