Knight In Shining Armour

Chapter Five: "Tornado on a trail drive"

Chapter Five: Tornado on a trail drive

"What are you DOING here, Jackie?" Jackie sips his coffee, shaking his head at the price he paid for it- "Im here for our date...Howd I find you? Glad you asked...Amy dimed you out... What are you reading? How long you been coming"... Maria cuts him off: "You cant just SHOW UP uninvited, Jackie." "Well, you took too long inviting," Jackie grins. "Besides, I TOLD you, as sure as sunshine I was coming...And you got all the nerve, you came to my dang house!" Maria smiles and sips some coffee- "Youre pretentious, you know that? "Naw, I aint"...Jackie says looking around- "Who says Im pretending?" Maria laughs, almost spitting out her coffee- "Oh...She DOES have a sense of humor...You want to go outside with me?" She puts the book in her backpack, and Jackie grabs it for her- "I got it."

They walk outside, and Maria leans against the side of his Chevelle...

Maria stares at him...Like hes a puzzle and shes trying to figure out were to put the next piece...

"What do you WANT, Jackie?" He takes his hat off and puts it on her, then leans against the car next to her- "You."...She gets uneasy and annoyed by his answer- "WHY? I dont like you, and Im mean to you." Jackie laughs- "Honey, Im like pudding... Not everybody likes me, but aint nobody hate me either...And folks aint even know they like me...Until they try to me...And I aint worried about that, cause you like me." She adjusts the hat on her head- "Yea? What makes you so sure?" He pushes himself from the side of the car, and playfully pushes her shoulder- "A guy knows." "Oh yea? You dont know much...Besides, who knows...You probably do stuff like this all the time with other girls." Jackie bursts into laughter as Maria frowns: "And WHAT is so funny?!" He catches his breath- "Girl, if I was with somebody, how you figure Im here with you?!"

Shes not amused...

"Guys lie all the time, Jackie." He folds his arms and moves in front of her- "And yall dont? How you know so much about it anyway? All them boys you got, and all."

He is standing SO close to her...She starts fiddling with the buttons on his shirt-

"WHAT boys, Jackie? I-I dont want this...I mean I DO, I just"...She exhales: "Jackie...PLEASE dont play with me...Okay? Im not good with all of this, and if youre just looking to play around"..."Im not, Maria"...

Maria gets lost in the moment, and throws her arms around his neck...

"I want to believe you...I do."
Some obnoxious teens ride by and yell out the window: "Kiss her!"
"Dont...She whispers painfully with her eyes closed...PLEASE dont"...
"I cant anyhow...Now, if you were mine, thats another story...You know what I REALLY want?"
"What?"

He wraps his arms around her...

"Is it alien that I just want to hold you for a spell, and pretend youre mine?"
"No...Is it weird that right now, Im pretending that Im yours?"..

A car pulls up along side of them in the parking lot...

"Well, it looks like he found you," Amy yells from the passenger seat over Kevin driving-
They quickly break away startled-
"I gotta go, my rides here...But this WASNT a date."
She walks toward the car, as Jackie tries to get her attention: "Maria...My hat"...
"Uh huh," she smiles..."Its a nice one."
"No hon, thats a Stetson...That hat mean the world to me."
"I figured. Ill give it back when you take me on a real date...See ya , Jackie."
"WAIT! I aint got your number!" She scoots in the back seat to the window near him:
"[phone]!"
"Byeeee Jackieeee!" Maria and Amy yell teasing as the car drives off... (To be continued...)