11 – Complications

Chad turned the radio on, heard the familiar song, and turned it off the next second. He shot an apologetic glance at his sister, who was pretending not to have noticed the song she had skated to just three days ago.

'How about we stop by Fred's and get some pancakes?'

'I'm not al-' she stopped mid-speech, reconsidered her words, then spoke again. 'I don't feel like it.'

'Is there anything at all that you'd like?'

'Nothing is going to make me feel better about this, if that's what you're asking.'

'Look, kid, if you're going to make yourself miserable, you'll get nowhere. You could at least try to see the full half of the glass here, because you need to live with this choice. You might actually get a life there.'

'I have a life here!' she protested.

'Sure you do. Goes like this: skating, school, skating, homework, workout, sleep. Rinse and repeat.'

Chad glanced at his younger sister, saw that she wasn't going to reply, and went on. 'You could even meet some boy there.'

'What, you want me to go out with some snob?'

'There might be some normal guys there too, who knows.'

'Chad,' she said sternly, 'this day will go down in history as the day you told me you'd actually like to see me go out with a guy. What the hell came over you?'

'Language, please.' he said casually. 'Thing is, kid, you're 16. At your age, normal teenagers have loads of fun. Go to movies. Go hang out at the mall. Go out with their boyfriends. Not pound their bodies in an ice rink or in a gym for 7 hours a day, 5 days a week. You and the rest of the Six Pack must be the most bruised kids in this state. And I don't know about their families, but I'd honestly feel more at peace knowing you're out on a date than at the rink. You slashed an artery once, I can't help but wonder what you'll slash next.'

'It's better than ballet.' she grumbled. 'That damn thing took away six years' worth of memories from me!'

'You're not missing anything important,' he replied quickly. 'So what happened at the rink?'

She stared out the window, at the house they were approaching.

'Let's drive around for a bit longer, I don't want to go home yet.'

Chad sped up in response, and they passed their house and made a turn into the next street.

'I ran into Maurey.'

'Wasn't she supposed to be away?'

'That's what I thought too. She made me leave the ice. Then she confronted me about the letter. Then we had a talk. Then I left.'

'How did she find out about the letter?'

'I left it on the rail, like an idiot.'

'What did she say?'

'She said that...' Jubilee sighed and began chewing on her thumbnail. 'That I should go. That I have a better shot at life going, than I have staying here. She also said I'd probably never be a champion, which is another reason why I should go.'

'So you decided to go.'

'Yeah.'

'I don't get it.'

She looked up at him.

'I mean, I'm happy you're going, but I don't understand you. I tell you almost the same thing, and you tell me to – pardon the language – go screw myself, then you talk to her, and do what she says. Why?'

Jubilee took her thumbnail away from her mouth, looked at it, then resumed chewing it. 'She's been more of a mother to me than Mom ever was, remember?' She slumped in her seat a little, a faraway look on her face. 'She drove me around for all those years, she spent five hours a day with me almost every day, gave me a shoulder to cry on, saw me fall apart and helped me put myself back together so many times... she's my hero. She was also the one who talked to me when I hit puberty, and it was her that I had my first serious conversation about boys with.'

'I thought you had that one with me,' he said quickly.

'I said serious conversation' she grumbled. 'You told me boys were bad, that they had cooties, and that I should stay away from them.'

He grinned. 'Well, I had to give you an answer. You were very curious at that age. You still are now, only less funny. You were wearing that little pink tutu from your Nutcracker exhibition, remember? What were, you, eight?'

'Seven,' she corrected. 'I had overheard some older girls talking about boys in the locker room, and I couldn't see what the big deal was.' She turned to look out the window again, and touched a finger to her lips as the awkward memory of Martin's kiss returned. 'I still can't see it.'

'Maybe you need to grow up a bit more then.'

'Meh,' was her reply.

'Your pocket's singing,' Chad pointed out. She immediately dug her phone out of her pocket, the chorus to “Dream On” filling the car.

'Hello?'

'Hi, honey!'

Jubilee glanced at her brother, who raised his eyebrows in return.

'Mom? Where are you?'

'Vegas, dear! Didn't your father leave a note?'

'I thought you'd leave the note!' came her father's comment from somewhere on the other end.

'Oh, never mind,' said the woman with a giggle. 'Sorry about that. We'll be back on Saturday. I'm sure you and Chad are having a great time.'

She rolled her eyes.

'Yeah, you know us... partying all night long and stuff...'

Her mother ignored the sarcasm. 'Well, just don't wreck the house, you two.'

'Yeah, whatever. Hey Mom, Rutherford is offering me a full scholarship. Can I go?'

'Sure, honey! Just be home for Christmas!'

She showed disappointment for a long moment, then replaced it with a blank expression.

'Yeah... thanks, mom... I need to hang up now. Have a nice trip!'

'Thanks, dear! Have fun!'

She ended the call and shoved the phone back in her pocket.

'Am I the only one who thinks she has a mother for nothing?' she mumbled, slumping even further in her seat. Chad wondered if her back wasn't hurting her from being in that unnatural position.

'I thought you'd be used to it by now.'

'No, every time I try to get used to it, they do something new. Like Vegas. Freaking Vegas. They leave for Vegas and don't tell us anything. Some parents we have...'

Chad nodded.

'They're worse than teenagers. I know kids who are more responsible than they are. Like you and the rest of the Six Pack.' He stopped the car to let an old lady cross the street at snail's pace. 'That's why I'm sure you'll do a great job at Rutherford.'

Jubilee counted the small steps the old lady was taking. Twenty-seven steps, from one sidewalk to the other. She briefly wondered if she'd be physically able to cross the street in that many steps when she'll be as old as that lady, taking all her injuries into account. Then she wondered if she'd even make it to that old lady's age. Chad was right, she'd be safer at Rutherford. Safer from pretty much everything, including her biggest passion. Then, another thought crossed her mind, and a tremor ran through her body. She clenched her fists to stop her hands from shaking, and she looked up at her brother with teary eyes.

'Chad, how am I going to tell the guys?'