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Finding Love
my book in progress
Ch. 4 Blood vs Water
Monday August 28, 2006
7:00am


"Jordyn, it's time to wake up. You don't want to be late for your first day of high school, do you?" Shawn Grace's voice was muffled through the closed bedroom door. "I made blueberry waffles. Your favorite," he coaxed.

Jordyn Grace had come to love her new life! Her parents were amazing: loving; compassionate; fun to be around; honest; fair; everything she had once loved about her birth parents before they changed. And her two years at Carlsbad Elementary had been the best two years of school she'd ever had. She made friends with everyone, her teachers were very nice, and the work was actually tolerable.

"I'm up." Jordyn opened the door, "I'll be there in a minute." She had taken a shower and picked out her clothes the night before.

But now I'm going to a new school. A bigger school! Her excitement about the new year gradually turned into fear as she got dressed. What if the kids at Oceanside don't like me? I mean, sure, a lot of my classmates from Carlsbad are gonna be there, but... and what about the teachers?! What if they're mean, and the work's too hard?! What if...

"Jordyn, are you ready? Your waffles are getting cold!"

"Coming." Jordyn said as she turned off the light in her bedroom and shut the door.

On the way to the kitchen, Jordyn passed her mom in the bathroom, washing her hands.

"Morning sickness, again?" Jordyn asked, merely as a conversation-starter. Lyndsay Grace hadn't gone a day without getting sick since her doctor told her she was pregnant, almost three months earlier.

"Yeah, well... hey, so today's the big day; the day you enter adulthood!" Lyndsay attempted to jump up in victory, but when nausea threatened to overpower her again, she merely raised a fist a few inches in the air.

"Yeah. I'm a little nervous, though," Jordyn said as she and her mother walked into the dining room. "I mean, what if they don't like me at Oceanside?"

"Bologna," Shawn concluded from the kitchen. He entered the living room and handed Jordyn a serving tray, with a glass of grape kool-aid, a plate of waffles topped with maple syrup and powdered sugar, an apple, and a napkin lying to the side that had bright pictures of purses all over it.

"Thanks, Dad," Jordyn spread the napkin over her lap and hurriedly consumed her breakfast.

"Well, nerves don't seem to have affected your appetite." Lyndsay chuckled as she stole a small bite of the apple.

Jordyn smiled. After she finished eating, she set her dishes in the kitchen sink, and ran upstairs to brush her teeth. While getting ready for school, she decided that everything would be fine. I have nothing to worry about. I look great, I feel great, and after all, it's not like I'll be alone. I'll have my best friend, Jenna, and my boyfriend, Kirk, with me every step of the way.

~~~~*~~~~


When Jordyn's bus arrived at school almost an hour later, Jordyn's nerves had returned. She couldn't wait to find Jenna and Kirk. She walked quickly and quietly into the wide hallway, so she wouldn't be noticed by the older teens. She finally found her locker and stuffed her books inside. After closing her locker door, she looked everywhere for Kirk. She peeked in his homeroom, in the gym, outside by the picnic tables, and she even asked another guy she had met at Carlsbad to check the restroom. When she'd tried everywhere she could think of that Kirk might be, she hurried to the lunchroom, where Jenna could always be found in the mornings at their old school, and she was certain Oceanside would be no different for Jenna. Jenna was a very social butterfly, and school cafeterias were always the place to socialize, in Jenna's opinion. Jordyn entered the crowded room and looked around, recognizing the familiar morning cafeteria smells of eggs, sausage, and... cigarette smoke? Jordyn followed the smell of burnt nicotine back out into the hall. Who in their right mind would smoke at school? Don't they know how much trouble they can get into if they get caught? Jordyn continued to follow the smell until it became unbearably strong. It had led her outside the girls' bathroom. As she went to open the door, she stepped on something. She looked down to find Jenna’s book bag laying on the floor.

What? No. It can’t be… She suddenly remembered what Jenna had told her on the phone the evening before. Jordyn and Jenna had just finished discussing what they would wear to school for the entire week:

"So, what have you been up to?" Jordyn had asked Jenna, "I haven't seen you since your party in June."

"Yeah, it's been way too long. I've really changed! We'll talk about it tomorrow, but I have to go now. See ya!"

"Okay... later." Jordyn hung up the phone, 'Really changed'? In two months? I wonder what she meant by that?

Now Jordyn was afraid she knew what Jenna had been talking about. The day of Jenna's party, her mom had dropped her, Jordyn, and three other girls off at the theater. After the movie, they saw a guy smoking in the parking lot. Jenna had thought he looked cool and joked, or at least Jordyn had thought she was joking, about stealing some cigarettes the next time she went to the store. "Just to get a better understanding of what all the fuss is about," Jenna had explained when Jordyn gave her a questioning look.

Jordyn walked into the bathroom. Above the stall, she saw smoke rising, and she could hardly breathe because of the smell.

"Jenna... is that you...?" Jordyn prayed she was wrong, but then she looked below the stall door, and recognized Jenna's shoes as a pair she had gotten on her birthday.

"N... no," came Jenna's voice, slightly warped in hopes she'd sound like someone else.

"Jenna, what are you doing? You'll get in so much trouble if a teacher catches you! Plus, smoking is totally gross! Weren't you the one that said that when we were at the beach last year?

"Yeah... well... people change!" Jenna snapped as she opened the stall door, sprayed perfume throughout the room and all over her clothing, then left the bathroom. Jordyn followed her out the door and watched her walk casually to class.

What just happened? Jordyn kept asking herself as she grabbed her backpack from her locker, and went to class.

~~~~*~~~~


Not even ten minutes into first period, the intercom came on, "Jordyn Grace, please come to the principal's office. Jordyn Grace, to the principal's office, please."

As Jordyn stood to leave the room, everyone started whispering, and she could feel every eye staring at her.

~~~~*~~~~


"Miss Grace, do you have anything you wish to tell me?" Jordyn was sitting in a chair in the Principal's Office. Mr. Jones, the Principal, was leaning back against his desk, staring Jordyn directly in the eyes, trying desperately not to blink, in fear that he might miss a sign of weakening in her.

If I tell him that Jenna was smoking, she'll get suspended, and she'll never talk to me again. She's the best friend I've ever had! I don't want to lose her... but if I don't tell him, and he finds out some other way, then I'll get suspended, as well! I can't get in trouble. I've tried so hard to stay out of trouble. If I start lying, the Graces might decide they don't want me anymore, and they might take me back to the orphanage or dump me in a different one! I love them so much! I can't disappoint them... I just can't... Maybe Jenna will forgive me... maybe... someday.

"Yes, Sir," Jordyn took a deep breath. "Jenna... Garcia... was smoking. In the girl's bathroom."

"Jordyn, Mrs. Rush, the Algebra teacher, said she saw you come out of the bathroom right before she went in, and she smelled perfume and cigarettes the second she opened the door."

"Yes, Sir, but..."

"Mrs. Rush also said there was no one in the bathroom when she went in. Now, if you were the only one seen to leave the bathroom before the cigarette smell was detected, I have no choice but to assume that you were the one that was smoking. Now, since it is the first day of the school year, I'll give you an ultimatum: just tell me the truth, and your punishment will be less severe."

"But, Sir, I did tell you the truth. You have to believe me," Jordyn pleaded as calmly as she could, but inside, she was panicking. I can't get in trouble for this! I didn't do it! "Please... bring Jenna in here. Smell her breath. Smell mine. I didn't smoke. I swear." Jordyn couldn't believe what was happening. She was starting to lose her calm demeanor.

*Knock**Knock*

"Yes?"

"Umm... Mr... Mr. Jones? I... I'm sorry to interrupt. My name's Kirk. Kirk Kingsley."

"I'm sorry, Son, but I'm kind of busy right now. Could you please come ba...?"

"Sir, it's about the cigarette smoke in the girls' bathroom," he said with a little more confidence. "My locker is right across the hall from the girl's bathroom, and I saw Jenna Garcia walk in there with something, looked like a pack but I couldn't be sure, in her hand. Then, a couple minutes later, Jordyn went in, but before she even opened the door, I could plainly smell cigarettes."

"Are you telling me the truth, Son? You know, I'd hate for you to get in trouble where you weren't involved in the first place."

"Yes, sir. Honest. I saw Jenna trying to hide it in her hand while she walked into the bathroom, then I smelled cigarette smoke when Jordyn went in... and no one else went in the entire time. I was still at my locker a few minutes later, when they came out."

"...Miss Grace. Mr. Kingsley. Wait here, please. I'll call Jenna in here right now and see if we can get this straightened out."

~~~~*~~~~


"No, Sir. I would never! Smoking is totally disgusting." She's lying, Jordyn thought as she sat beside Kirk in the office listening to Jenna and Mr. Jones.

"Miss Garcia, you do smell strongly of cigarette smoke," Mr. Jones looked tired. He was ready for this to be settled.

"Y... Yes, well... that's only because... I had to go to the bathroom, and... when I went in there, someone was smoking in the handicap stall. When I asked who was there, Jordyn answered and tried to disguise her voice, but I knew it was her. It was totally obvious," Jenna looked at Jordyn with a very slight smile. "The smoke... must have soaked into my clothes."

"...and your breath," Mr. Jones humored her.

"What? Oh, oh yeah. Exactly."

"Miss Grace, would you please say something?" Mr. Jones moved a little closer to Jordyn.

"Yes, sir. What should I say?"

"That's sufficient," Mr. Jones smiled at Jordyn, "you and Mr. Kingsley may go back to your classrooms. Thank you, Mr. Kingsley, for coming forward. I'm sorry for not believing you, Miss Grace."

"But, I told you... I didn't do it! It... it was Jordyn! I saw her myself." Jordyn and Kirk could still hear the conversation from the hall, even after they closed the door and started toward their classes.

"Then explain to me, Miss Garcia, how your breath smells like cigarettes, while Miss Grace's doesn't, if she was the one that was smoking and not you."

~~~~*~~~~


"Thank you SO much, Baby," Jordyn made sure no teachers were around, then quickly kissed her boyfriend, "I thought for sure I was..." She quickly changed gears from relieved to angered, "I can't believe Jenna did that! First, she starts smoking... and at school of all places! Then, she lies to the principal and tries to frame me! What's wrong with her? We've been best friends since my first day at Carlsbad Elementary. Why would she want to get me in trouble?"

"Jordy, breathe. Maybe Jenna just has a lot on her mind, or maybe she's trying to change her image since she's starting a new school. I don't know. Let's just get some lunch. You can try calling her tonight to see what's up."

"Ok... you're right. Let's eat lunch. I'm starving! Almost getting suspended takes a lot out of a girl," she cracked a weak smile and put her hand in Kirk's as they entered the cafeteria.

~~~~*~~~~


For the rest of the afternoon, Jordan tried her best to concentrate on her teachers and her schoolwork; however, it was impossible. She could distract her mind for awhile by listening intently to the lectures and taking unnecessarily detailed notes, but some time during the five minutes between the end of a teacher's lecture, or her finishing her assignment, and the bell ringing that signaled the end of the class, she'd get consumed with thoughts of Jenna.

By the end of the day, Jordyn was so confused and frustrated, that when the final bell rang, she nearly missed it. On her way to the bus, she let her attention return to thoughts of Jenna, and started pacing around the picnic tables outside the front entrance, trying to answer the same questions she had asked Kirk at lunch. What's wrong with her? Why'd she want to get me in trouble? I'm her best friend! Aren't I? Maybe she has a new best friend. Maybe she doesn't want to be friends with me anymore... and she decided it would be easier to make me mad at her than to tell me she doesn't want to be my friend anymore. Maybe she thought that if I was mad at her, I wouldn't even want to listen to her and she wouldn't have to explain anything. She looked out the window and suddenly realized what time it was. She ran as fast as she could to her bus, and made it just before the driver closed the door. She took a seat near the back of the bus. But, that wouldn't explain why she started smoking. If she didn't want to be my friend anymore, I'm sure she would have told me. She speaks her mind. She tells me everything, whether I want to hear it or not. No, I guess Kirk was right. I just need to call her and talk to her. Maybe he's right about her wanting to change her image too. Jordyn continued to wonder the entire fifteen minutes to her house.

~~~~*~~~~


Jordyn stood between the front seats as she waited for the bus driver to stop and open the door. She couldn't wait to get home and call Jenna. She had so many questions, and her mood had changed again, leaving anger and fast approaching worry. What IS wrong with her? Is everything okay at home? Her grandma went to the doctor a few months ago, I hope she's okay. Jenna loves her grandma. If anything happened to her... Jordyn walked slowly to the house, coming up with many possible excuses for Jenna as to why she might suddenly start smoking and lying. By the time she opened the front door, she was worried sick about Jenna. She ran to the wall-mounted phone in the living room and tried to call Jenna's cell, but she didn't answer. Then she tried the home phone and her mom said she wasn't allowed on the phone for three weeks. Jordyn asked Mrs. Garcia about her mother's appointment a few months earlier.

"It went very well, thank you for asking. The doctor said she's doing very well for her age. Why do you ask?"

Jordyn decided to tell Mrs. Garcia about her worry for Jenna.

"Well, that is beyond sweet of you, Jordyn. Honestly, if someone blamed me for something I didn't do, I really don't think I would have come to those conclusions as to why they did it, and I certainly wouldn't have been able to call them to find out. You truly are one of a kind. No, I think whatever is going on with Jenna is only known to her. I really don't think she has anyone or anything else to blame but herself... and maybe a new desire to fit in with a different group at school, but that's just my assumption... and that's still no reason for smoking... or for turning on you."

Jordyn thanked Mrs. Garcia and said goodbye. Well, at least I know her grandma is alright, but that still doesn't explain anything... Jordyn felt like she was on an emotional see-saw. Her anger was rising again, well above her worry.

She placed the phone on the hook to lie down on the couch. I have a headache. I really need someone to talk to.

"Mom," she said, hoping her mother would be near so she wouldn't have to scream and make her headache worse. After a few minutes of nothing but quiet, she called again, a little louder. When no one answered, Jordyn got up and walked around the house. "Mom?! Dad?!" now she was yelling, despite her splitting headache. After walking around the entire house twice without seeing anyone, Jordyn decided to call her father's cell phone. She walked into the living room and started to dial the number, but had to quit when the pain behind her eyes was unbearable. She walked into the dining room and grabbed a couple of Tylenol pills from the top of the fridge, where all the medicine stood. When she turned to get a drink of water from the faucet, she saw a note on the counter, Jordyn, gone to hospital with Mom. Lock the front and back doors and go to the Thompson's next door. Mrs. Thompson will bring you to hospital. Love, Daddy.

"Oh My Word! Mom's in labor!" she exclaimed. Jordyn gulped down the pills and the water, grabbed the key and locked the back door, then she grabbed her purse and ran out the front door, having to turn around when she realized she forgot to lock it. But wait, there's no way she's having the baby. She's only three months pregnant. Jordyn concluded halfway to the Thompson's house. She felt foolish that she'd thought it could be labor, and a little disappointed; she couldn't wait to be a big sister!

But if she's not having the baby, then why is she at the hospital? Jordyn started running faster than ever, trying to focus all her attention on her running rather than the answer to that question.

~~~~*~~~~


Fifteen minutes later, Jordyn Grace, Shawn Grace, and their neighbor, Rebecca Thompson, were sitting in the waiting room, silently wondering what could be taking the doctor so long, and silently praying that both Lyndsay and her unborn son, Adrian Shawn Grace, were alright. When Jordyn had entered the hospital waiting room with tears streaming down her face, Shawn quickly reassured her and Mrs. Thompson that Lyndsay had simply tripped on the bottom step of the front porch and fell to her knees. They were merely there as a precautionary.

"Everything will be okay, Jordy." Shawn put his arms around his daughter and held on to her. While Shawn had seen what happened, and was certain that everything would be alright, something deep inside him tried to convince him otherwise. "I think I'm going to find the doctor and find out when we can see Mom," Shawn kissed Jordyn on the forehead, smiled at Mrs. Thompson, and walked down the hall to the nurses' desk. When he came back about ten minutes later, he had a doctor with him.

"Mrs. Thompson. Jordyn. This is Doctor Hansen, Lyndsay's obstetrician. Doctor Hansen, this is my daughter, Jordyn Grace, and our neighbor, Rebecca Thompson.

"Nice to meet you," Doctor Hansen shook Jordyn's hand, then Mrs. Thompson's. He saw Jordyn's tear-stained cheeks, "Don't you worry, your mom and baby brother are perfectly fine. She had a pretty nasty fall, which did a number on her knees, but it's nothing to fret over. I'm sorry to keep you worrying," Doctor Hansen had turned back to Shawn, apparently continuing their conversation from before they approached Jordyn and Mrs. Thompson, "Adrian appeared to be quite shaken up when we first did an ultrasound. We assumed the reason was because Mrs. Grace was so worried that she'd hurt him, and he sensed her worry. So, we let her rest for awhile, and, after she settled down a bit, we did another ultrasound, and just as we'd expected, Adrian was calm as well.

"Thank you, Doctor. Umm... when will Lyndsay be able to go home? Does she need to stay here tonight?"

"No. Actually, I think she's getting ready to leave as we speak." He looked behind Shawn, "In fact, here she comes right now." Doctor Hansen pointed down the hall, where a nurse was pushing Lyndsay Grace in a wheelchair, her knees covered in white bandages and her ponytail askew. He turned to talk to Jordyn, who was silently crying all over again, but this time with tears of relief. "Now, as I've already told your parents, I'm putting your mother on bed rest until her knees heal up, just to make sure she doesn't strain them under Adrian's weight and cause more damage. That means she can't stay on her feet for more than 10 minutes at one time, and absolutely no more than 2 hours collectively in a 24-hour period, so you'll have to help your dad take care of her, okay?"

"Yes, Sir," she said while running to give her mother a hug, nearly knocking the nurse backward in the process. I can't believe this. I come home fully expecting to vent to Mom about Jenna, and here she is, fighting her own battles, she thought, while smelling her mother's sweet perfume. I can talk to Dad about it later. Mom doesn't need anything else to worry about.





 
 
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