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Maddox Kelley's forlorn face appeared in Sailor Kent's window. Sailor pushed the window up, and Maddox crawled in. She sat at the end of the bed, plucking the thick comforter.
"What's wrong?" Sailor asked, touching her friend's hand. She knew the look, knew something was troubling her best friend.
"I don't know," Maddox frowned. She thought for a moment and then continued, "I'm not sure."
"Tell me," Sailor said, leaning against her pillow. Although she hadn't spoken to Maddox in ages, she still felt friendship toward her. She wanted to help if she could.
"Jack's always hanging around the trailer," Maddox began. "He's there all the time now. Mom likes him, I think. He makes her laugh. I haven't seen mom laugh so much in a long time. It's like she's different when Jack's around."
"What's wrong with that?" Sailor inquired, sitting up straighter.
"I don't know. That's the problem." Maddox lapsed into a long silence. Her brow wrinkled in thought. "I want mom to like Jack. He's my boyfriend. I just don't understand why they hang out so much."
"Well, maybe he has nothing else to do," Sailor suggested. "He quit school, right?"
"Yeah, he's sixteen and still in middle school." Maddox shrugged. "He's not stupid—not really," she offered suddenly. "I mean, he talks to mom like he knows stuff. Only school is so stupid, and he got left back twice. I get why he quit."
Sailor sat back again. She didn't think Jack knew stuff. She thought he was stupid. He certainly didn't apply himself to anything, least of all school. Jack Meadows seemed to hang around like an unwanted pimple. He cracked stupid jokes and pushed the other kids around. There was nothing funny or intelligent about him.
"There are other boys, you know," Sailor remarked, hoping to persuade her friend to drop Jack. "Didn't Morris Filbert ask you to Bethany Copley’s Halloween party?"
Maddox's eyes slit, and she glared at Sailor. Morris Filbert had asked her to the party. She turned him down. Two other boys had asked her since she changed her wardrobe. Three new outfits hung in her closet, along with a new dress. They all came courtesy of The Wilcox Store and a five-finger discount. Maddox wouldn't attend the party unless Jack asked her.
"Jack isn't interested in kids' parties, Max," Sailor said, reading her friend's mind. "He wants to hang out with kids his own age."
"Like Gabby and Buddy?" Maddox asked, folding her arms across her chest.
"Well, maybe not Gabby and Buddy." Sailor thought a moment. She couldn't see her sister wanting anything to do with Jack Meadows. "Maybe other kids more like Jack." The lazy ones flittered through Sailor's mind.
"I'm not going with anyone other than Jack." Maddox's determination crossed her face. "That's cheating. Would you cheat on Clyde?"
"No."
"I wouldn't cheat on Jack."
Sailor almost said, 'but you're not dating Jack.' Instead, she held her tongue.
Maddox leaped off the bed and flung the closet door open. She drew out a pirate costume with a raggedy black skirt, white blouse, and puffed sleeves. Holding it against her, she stood in the mirror. Sailor's mother beautifully sewed the dress. Maddox loved it.
"Let me borrow it," Maddox exclaimed, sliding the pirate outfit off its hanger. She pulled it over her head without asking.
"That's my Halloween costume," Sailor gasped. "Take it off. You're not borrowing it."
"I'm taking it," her friend hissed, heading toward the open window. "Get your mom to make you something else."
"NO!" Sailor screamed, lounging toward her departing friend. She grabbed the dress's back and pulled.
Maddox stopped wiggling through the window. The collar pressed against her larynx, strangling her. Her fingers pulled against the fabric while Sailor continued to yank from the back. The bodice tore. Maddox fell to the ground. She struggled to unwind the fabric from her flailing legs. The dress flew through the window when Maddox freed herself. Sailor sat on her bed, holding it in her lap and wailing.
"What's going on?" Sailor's mother yelled, thrusting open the door. She discovered her daughter hugging her Halloween costume. Tears streamed down Sailor's face. "What happened, honey?"
Matilda's heart went out to her sorrowful daughter. Sailor usually kept her emotions in check. Something bad happened to break her down.
"Maddox tried to steal my pirate outfit," the distraught girl cried. "I got it back, but she ruined it."
Sailor thrust the costume into her mother's hands. Her lips quivered, and she could not control her emotions. The party and costume meant a lot to her. She and Clyde planned it specifically.
Matilda Kent turned the dress in her hands, studying it carefully. The rip ran down the seam. She showed the long tear to Sailor and explained that she could fix it. Sailor beamed with pleasure. She hadn't lost her costume after all.
"Don't let that girl in your room ever again," Matilda Kent admonished. "Every time she comes here, there's trouble."
"Yes, mama." Sailor cast her eyes downward. She remained silent for a long time, then blurted, "There are things I don't understand about Maddox."
"What things?" her mother asked.
"Well." Sailor drew the word out. "Jack Meadows, for instance. He's disgusting. He's sloppy fat, and his lips are like rubber bands. Maddox is wild about him. She says he's her boyfriend, but she's not dating him."
Matilda Kent frowned. The Meadows were always odd people. Gertie kept to herself and snarled at anyone who crossed her path. She loved her cats and admonished anyone who came near them. Once, she turned the hose on the mailperson because she stooped to pet a calico on the front porch.
Matilda went to school with Gertie's daughter, Dolores. She was sexually promiscuous in grade school, always lifting her dress and letting the boys look. By the time she reached high school, she changed her name to Lolita and was sexually active with multiple students, both male and female. It didn't surprise Matilda when she ran away and became a prostitute.
Gertrude Meadows' hatred deepened after her daughter left. She became more reclusive than ever and spat venom at anyone who approached her. It didn't surprise Matilda when Jack arrived. An unwanted child cast off by a whore. Jack frightened her. He was a combination of Gertie's negative attitude and Dolores' promiscuity.
"Maddox says Jack hangs out at her trailer when she's not at home," Sailor continued, plucking at her bedspread. "She says Enola likes him. Is that good?"
Matilda Kent pursed her lips. Rumors flew around town about Enola Kelley and Jack Meadows. People noticed everything in a small town. Jack hung around and did laundry and chores for Enola. He did her grocery shopping and gathered small flower bouquets from other people's yards. Something was going on between them that Maddox was not involved in.
"Never mind, Sailor." Matilda knotted the dress in her hands. Whatever happened between Enola Kelley and Jack Meadows was not her daughter's business. She wouldn't discuss grownup issues with a young girl. "Try to avoid Maddox. Don't get wrapped up in her problems." Kissing her daughter's forehead, she bade her goodnight.
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24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDcfZXFwQ5D
Maddox walked along the sidewalk with her head hung down. She loved Sailor and looked up to her if she thought honestly. Sailor remained her best friend forever. They did everything together: sleepovers, birthday parties, and summers at the lake. Now, Sailor seemed cold and disinterested. Maddox wondered what went wrong. What changed?
She felt like the same Maddox. Other than growing up, there was nothing different about her. The only thing that changed was her relationship with Jack Meadows. Sailor had Clyde Martin, and Maddox had Jack. There wasn't much difference between them both having boyfriends. Sailor's attitude changes after Maddox became involved with Jack.
Maddox concluded that Jack was the problem. Her best friend was jealous and showed it by becoming disinterested. Maddox didn't care. She decided she loved Jack; he was more important to her than any old friendship.
When she returned to the trailer, Jack was there with Enola. Maddox plunked into his lap and wrapped her arms around his thick neck, trying to kiss him. She remembered seeing her mother kiss her father the same way a long time ago. Jack turned his head, and her kiss landed on his cheek. Maddox wove her fingers into his hair. She felt sexy and desirable.
Enola stretched out on the couch and watched. She found the encounter amusing. Jack did not. He pushed Maddox from his lap. She thumped on the floor and frowned up at him.
"What was that for?" she asked, leaping to her feet.
"I don't want you on my lap," Jack hissed.
"Why not?" Maddox asked. "Don't you love me?"
"No." Jack's answer was blunt.
"You don't know how to do it," her mother cut in, rising. She stretched her sinuous body and dropped onto Jack's lap. Pushing her hands into his hair, Enola kissed Jack. He returned the favor with passion.
Maddox watched dumbfounded. Tears clung to her lashes, and she took a step backward. Jack's hands pushed Enola's shirt up. He caressed her back and then cupped her naked breasts. Enola clung to him and then pulled away. Standing, she faced her daughter.
"First lesson," the older woman stated, rising and moving back to the couch. "You're turn."
Maddox spun on her heels and raced into the bathroom. She vomited before she reached the open toilet. Watching her mother and Jack caress each other made her sick. Maddox still didn't understand why. Perhaps they were just teasing her. Mocking and teasing her gave them pleasure.
Was Maddox finally beginning to understand the situation? She didn't know; she wasn't sure. There was something more than friendship happening between Enola and Jack. Maddox understood that. Grabbing a towel, she squatted and mopped up the mess at her feet. When she felt sick again, she vomited into the toilet.
Enola swung open the door and leaned against it. Maddox washed out her mouth and spit into the sink. She noticed her mother when she looked in the mirror.
"Does Maxi want to come out and play?" Enola asked, a malicious grin covering her face.
"Play? Play what, mother?" Maddox asked, shrinking back.
"Lesson two?" Enola swayed and gripped the doorframe.
"You're drunk," Maddox exclaimed, realizing the truth. "So's Jack. Is that what you do? Drink together?"
"Maybe," her mother slurred.
"Stop it! That's disgusting. He's my boyfriend!" Maddox suddenly shouted. "Why are you getting him drunk? You're…you're sick!"
"Who says he's your boyfriend?" Enola wanted to know. She grabbed Maddox by the arm and pulled her close. "Is he your boyfriend, Maxi?"
Enola encircled Maddox's arm with her strong fingers and yanked her into the living room. She pushed her daughter before Jack and then plunged onto the couch.
"Go on." Enola waved both hands at Maddox. "Prove it."
"Prove it? How?" Maddox screamed, turning back to her mother. She was perplexed.
"Give yourself to him," Enola smirked. "Take your clothes off and see if he'll take you."
"Take me where?" Maddox didn't understand. Her mother talked funny and slurred her words. She turned frantically from Enola to Jack. Jack grinned and stretched out his hands toward her.
"Stupid child!" Enola Kelley enunciated each word. "He'll take you if he likes what he sees. Take them off."
"You're drunk," Maddox stammered. "You're both drunk. You don't know what you're talking about. You don't know what you're doing."
Spinning on her heels, Maddox ran toward the door. Jack leaped up and, seizing her, dragged the fleeing girl to the floor. Turning her over to face him, he ripped her blouse and lowered his mouth to her tiny breast. Maddox wiggled beneath him. Releasing an arm from his grip, she swiped her long fingernails across his fat cheek.
"BITCH!" Jack howled, sitting up. Maddox squirmed from beneath him and ran through the door. Her mother's evil laugh followed her into the woods.
Maddox ran through the woods and climbed into the tree fort. Curling up into a corner, she wrapped her arms around her knees. Her body shook with her sobbing. She couldn't understand her mother and Jack's behavior. They were both drunk; she knew that. It seemed incredible to her. Finally, she crawled into a ball and tried to sleep. She was tired; her eyes grew heavy, but she could not sleep.
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