Throw Away Teen (10 page)

“
Oss
, Sensei.” Ringo turned to me. “You can’t learn to punch until you’ve learned all of the blocks.”

“You mean there’s more than one? Talk about boring.”

“
Tell you what. Do ten more Rising Blocks, and I’ll teach you how to punch,” Ringo said. “Deal?”

I hesitated, trying to figure out what he really wanted. He just stood and waited. So, I gave up. “Okay.”

There was a right way to punch, too. I had to make a fist and not put my thumb inside it. Ringo said I could break my thumb if I did. I held my fists at my hips. I was supposed to bring up my arm and turn my wrist at the last moment and follow through with a solid hit. It didn’t take long before I got good at punching the air.

Sensei Nichols hadn’t reappeared when Ringo said, “Okay, you’ve got it. Now, try and punch me.”

“
Are you joking? What if you get hurt? Everybody will yell at me.”

Ringo laughed. “You couldn’t hurt me if you had help, little girl.”

That did it! I brought my fist up and followed through with a second punch. Ringo blocked both blows before they even landed. It was the same exact block I’d learned from Sensei, but Ringo made the Rising Blocks look easy.

When he continued to laugh at me, I tried to hit him again. I knew it was a rotten thing to do, but he brought his arm up and knocked away the punch easily.

“
That’s enough goofing off,” Sensei said as he returned.

I hadn’t seen him, but Ringo obviously had. He bowed to the teacher, and said, “
Oss
,
Sensei
.
”

I figured I’d better suck up to the teacher since he might be annoyed. “Ringo told me it was okay if I tried to hit him, but I couldn’t. I shouldn’t have even tried, but he made me mad.”

“
Why couldn’t you hit him?” Sensei
Nichols asked.

“
Because he blocked me.” I suddenly realized what Ringo had taught me. He was right. I had to learn how to block a punch in order to get past someone’s guard. “You could’ve just told me.”

Ringo looked at me and I felt my stomach jump. “A guy can’t tell a woman anything. I had to show you.”

I glanced back at the teacher and prayed my voiced sounded normal when I said, “Will you show me the blocks again, Sensei Nichols? I want to learn all of them. I need to get past Ringo’s guard so I can punch his lights out.”

“
I’ll teach you karate, but you can’t use it to beat up Ringo.”

“
Why not? Don’t tell me he’s one of the others I have to respect.”

Sensei frowned hard, but at the same time his eyes were gentle, like he was trying not to smile. “You have to be respectful of those beyond your level, B.J. Ringo is much farther along in his studies with me than you are.”

“
She couldn’t hurt me anyway.” Ringo tried to sound like one of those cowboys on TV. “She’s just a dainty little ballerina doll.”

I wanted to strangle him. Instead, I gritted my teeth and didn’t say a word. I realized Ringo only wanted to tease me, but it still pissed me off.

Sensei patted my shoulder before I could stop him. “The most dangerous of all
karate-kas
, Ringo, are the white belts.”

That made me feel a little better. “Why am I so dangerous, Sensei?”

“
Because I don’t know what you’ll do next, B.J. You could surprise me with a move done incorrectly that still connects. Oh, and most people show what they’ll do with their eyes. But not you.”

I tilted my head and stared up at him. “What’s that mean?”

“
You don’t telegraph your punches. You almost hit Ringo and he’s a senior brown belt. That makes you even more threatening.”

“
Really?” I asked. I couldn’t keep the smile off my face.

“
Oh, yeah! There’s no doubt about it.” Sensei smiled down at me. “So, no beating up Ringo. I don’t want to visit him in the hospital. Okay?”

I nodded, but I still had one more question. “What’s a
karate-ka
?”

“
A karate student,” Sensei said. “Now, show me ten Rising Blocks.”

While Ringo moved to stand against the wall, I bowed and said, “
Oss
, Sensei.”

CHAPTER 6

Between getting up early for church, breakfast at the café and then a heavy-duty karate class, I was wiped when we got back to the house. I took Guard out for a potty run then carried him upstairs for a nap. He might not need one but I did. We zonked out till almost three. When I went downstairs, Liz was in the middle of making spaghetti. I offered to help make a salad, but she said it could wait, so I took Guard outside for some quality time together. It’d been a crazy weekend.

Guard chewed on his leash instead of walking on it, but I didn’t give up.
Liz
had told
me that he had to be able to heel with and without a leash
if I wanted to show him with the 4-H club this summer. And Ted said that whether I showed him or not
, it was a good
lesson for Guard to learn. While they might be convinced I’d still be here this summer, I still had my doubts. But I wanted Guard to know how to stay safe, even when he was no longer my puppy.

Between lessons on the leash, I brushed Guard until his black fur gleamed. It was so much fun, almost like having a toy dog. But he still slobbered me with puppy kisses.
We’d been practicing and playing for about an hour
when a B.M.W. pulled up in the drive. I called Guard and he sat down next to me, right on my foot again.

Barely a moment after the
engine was cut, the back door opened and a
little girl popped out. She looked like she’d just stepped out of a store catalog. Her blonde hair hung in long
curls and she wore a blue velvet dress
with a lacy collar. Spotting me and Guard, the girl ran toward us. “A
puppy. A puppy. Grandma got me a puppy. “

“
Chance, don’t get dirty,” Jocelyn called, slamming the driver’s door of the B.M.W. Her clingy green dress and matching shoes made me feel like even more of a slob in my
old T-shirt and sloppy jeans.

The man that got out of the passenger side wore
a nineteen piece suit like one of the lawyers or
pimps that hung around the courthouse in Seattle.
I couldn’t believe it.
Were these people real? Or had they just stepped out of
some TV show?

“
I want to pet him,” the little girl skidded to a stop
in front of me and Guard.

“
Go ahead,” I said. “Just don’t scare him. His name is Guard-dog.”

Chance reached out to touch my puppy’s head. “His fur
is soft.”

“
I just brushed him.” I was glad that she liked my puppy but how was I supposed to tell a little kid that Ted said the dog was
mine?

“
Come along, Chance,” Jocelyn called again.

“
I want to play with my puppy,” Chance yelled back.

“
You have to say hello to your grandparents first,” Jocelyn
said, glaring at me like I was holding her kid prisoner. “Come on, Chance.”

“
I’m going to play with my puppy first,” Chance
insisted.

“
You heard your mother, Chance. Now come here.” The
dark-haired guy even sounded like the last prosecutor who’d
handled my case and told the judge I should be locked up
past forever. “Don’t make me come over there.”

Tears started to rain down Chance’s face. She cried the
same way that Terry did, without making a sound. I felt sorry for the kid. This was why I was better off without any
parents or just having Liz and Ted and Carol messing up
my life.

“
Go on, honey.” I said, trying to sound comforting the way
Liz did. “You can play
with Guard later.”

“
Okay.” Chance wiped at her face
. “Are you the
slut
my gramma has
visiting now?”

The word punched me in the stomach. True, Jocelyn and I had sniped at each other on Friday, but why did she have to talk trash about me in front of her kid? ’’

“
I’m not a slut.”

“
My mommy said you were and that’s why you had to come here. Is
slut
a bad word?”

I looked at the little girl. The little ones at the center copied everything they heard us say, too. “Yeah,” I said. “
Slut’s
a bad word and it hurts my feelings.”

“
I’m sorry.” Tears filled Chance’s eyes again and one slid down her cheek. “I didn’t mean it. I won’t say it to you again.”

“
It’s okay.” I bent and scooped up Guard. “You better go.”

“
All right.” She looked over her shoulder at her parents. “What’s your name?”

“
B.J. and you’re Chance. I know because your folks keep calling you.”

She heaved a put-upon sigh. What a little drama queen. “Can I play with Guard later?”

When I nodded, she trotted across the yard to her parents. A moment later, I heard her cheery little voice. “Her name’s B.J. and she’s nice, not a
slut
like you said, Mommy. B.J. says that
slut
is a bad word.”

I didn’t hear any more. Chance’s parents hustled her into the house.

I knew I shouldn’t have hoped for any more good things this weekend, but I had. I’d hoped Liz and Ted’s daughter would chill out. Obviously, she wasn’t going to and I’d be on the road again before long. But not alone.

No way would I leave my puppy with Jocelyn or her husband. They didn’t deserve him.

I hugged Guard tight. “We’ll be okay, puppy mine. I’ll take real good care of you. I promise.”

***

Jocelyn and her family stayed for dinner. Her husband’s name was Zach and I found out he really was a lawyer, I nearly snorted. While we ate, he watched me like he was afraid I’d steal the silverware. I’d been hungry earlier, but I couldn’t do more than push noodles around my plate. The air felt heavy with tension and all I wanted was out of the room.

Halfway through dinner, the telephone rang and Ted answered it. Then, he said, “B.J., it’s Ringo. He wants to talk to you.”

“
I don’t believe this,” Jocelyn said. “You never let me or Jessie have phone calls at supper on Sunday.”

Ted just waved for me to come take the receiver. “It won’t hurt B.J. to get a little special treatment. Your mom and I spoiled you a lot.”

Jocelyn just scowled into her spaghetti. Before anybody saw me smile, I hustled to the phone. “Hi, Ringo.”

“
I wanted to know if you’d like to come to Snohomish with me.” Ringo sounded like he expected me to turn him down. “We can take our dogs to the Centennial Trail.”

I wasn’t sure I wanted to spend time alone with him. I wasn’t ready to trust him yet and I was scared I’d get hurt if I did. But anything was better than hanging out here with Jocelyn and slowly suffocating. “I’ll ask.”

Liz nodded before I said anything. “You can go.”

“
Okay, Ringo. What time are you picking us up?”

“
In ten minutes. Before you change your mind.”

I couldn’t help smiling as I hung up. “Ringo’s taking Guard and me to Snohomish. Okay if I get back by nine?”

Liz nodded and pushed back in her chair. “I’ll get you my cell phone. Then, you can call if you need anything.”

“
Are you sure?” I took my plate off the table and started toward the kitchen.

“
I wanted to play with my puppy after dinner,” Chance said, pouting.

“
Next time you come, you can play with Guard,” I said. “But he’s my puppy.”

“
We’ll see, won’t we?” Jocelyn purred just like a cat. “Some pets aren’t kept for long.”

“
Enough, Jocelyn Denise!” Ted sounded like a drill sergeant, a real one, not an actor in a movie. “When you show an example of meanness to a child or an animal, don’t be surprised when they learn it. The puppy belongs to B.J.”

“
Chance can play with him when she visits,” I said. “That’s cool, Ted.”

“
That’s very generous. When she’s old enough to have one of her own, we’ll find her one.” Ted went around the table and scooped her up for a quick hug. “Okay, darling? But you can’t take B.J.’s puppy away from her. That wouldn’t be fair, would it?”

“
No, Grandpa.” She wound her arms around his neck and planted a smacking kiss on his cheek. “And Daddy says it’s not nice to take what’s not yours. It gets you extra-long timeouts.”

I continued on my way to the kitchen and put my plate on the counter. There was too much food to give to the dogs so I covered it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge. I’d eat later, when Jocelyn and her family were gone and my appetite came back. I’d barely finished putting away my plate when there was a knock on the back door.

Bull and Guard were at the head of the pack as they bolted over to attack Ringo when I opened the door. He petted each dog in turn, ruffling Samson’s fur and then Delilah’s. Even Fifi craned forward to be touched. “Hi,” Ringo said. “You ready?”

“
I didn’t change yet.” I checked out his blue T-shirt and faded jeans. His golden hair looked great and so did his smile. He should take up modeling, I thought and wondered if he’d sit for me so I could paint him. He had to be better than Guard who seemed to be afflicted with permanent wiggles. Why did I like Ringo so much? I barely knew the guy.