Jude

A Story by quirkycakes

A young woman contemplates her troubled relationship with her boyfriend, Jude.

Jude will be upset that I’m late.

That’s all I can really think about as I trudge up the sidewalk, my calves aching with each uphill step. Well, I also keep wishing I had brought my umbrella with me. The middle aged man with the toupee and polyester suit on channel eight lied to me about the clear blue skies and eighty degree weather. It’s his fault that my dress is soaked through and uncomfortably clinging to my skin like saran wrap no matter how many times I peel it off. My hair is plastered to my face in thin clumps, tiny streams of rain trickle over my eyes, blurring my vision, and every step is an arduous task with my flip flops getting weighed down under puddles of rain and flicking up specks of mud on my ankles every time they slap the soles of my feet.

Cars roll past, mocking me with their windshield wipers and roofs. Tires spray murky water everywhere as the cars fly by, the drivers probably staring at me in my drenched, yellow dress and asking themselves “What on earth is that crazy girl doing outside in this weather?” It’s a valid question. It’s one of those storms where the clouds are so big and gray it almost feels like it’s night, and the wind is so strong I’m afraid that if I jump up into the air I’ll be carried away with it, and the rain beats down at an angle so even if I had brought an umbrella, it probably wouldn’t do much good. Why would anyone be walking around in this storm? Because Jude told you to.

“You should come over,” Jude said.

“I can’t. I have things to do.”

“Like what?”
“Homework. Chores. My mom is dragging me to some dinner at the Cardones’ house.”

“The Cardones? Like Russell Cardone from school?”

Crap. “Jude�"”

“No, I don’t want you hanging out with him, Ava.”

“It’s just dinner�"”

“No. I know Russell and I don’t want you around him. Just come over here instead.” His voice was gruff and uncaring so I couldn’t even fool myself into thinking that maybe, just this once, he was inviting me over because he really did just want to hang out with me. But it’s never like that with Jude.

“Will you at least pick me up?”

“Just walk. It’s not far.”

I sighed, making sure to move the phone away from my mouth so he couldn’t hear. This dinner was really important to my mom. Mr. Cardone is some important client at her firm and she needed this dinner to get on his good side. She’d never forgive me if I skipped it.

But I’d rather Mom be mad at me than Jude.

I leaned my head back, suppressing a groan. “Fine. I’ll be there in twenty.”

That was thirty minutes ago. My phone vibrates in my hand for the ninth time since I’ve left the house. I don’t bother checking it. I already know it’s from Jude. He’s just getting angry because I’m taking so long. He won’t care that I could have been to his house over twenty minutes ago if he had just picked me up like I asked.

I wrap my arms around myself, running my fingers over the goose bumps on my skin. I flinch as I accidently press the spot above my elbow where there’s an ugly blue and purple mark twice the size of a quarter. It’s been there over a week. I actually forgot about it. If I had remembered then I would have worn something with sleeves that covered it. He’ll get mad when he sees it and yell at me because he’ll think I’m trying to make him feel guilty. He’ll insist he hadn’t pushed me. We had been arguing because I wanted to go to college four hundred miles away and he wanted me to go to the local community college with him. Then I stumbled, all on my own, and banged my elbow on the table. Afterwards, he got me ice wrapped in paper towels, wiped away the tears in my eyes, and I told him I’d think about community college.

I hear a soft trilling coming from my phone. I look at the screen. He’s calling now. I’m fifteen minutes late.

“Hey, Jude.”

“Where the hell are you? It only takes twenty minutes to walk here from your place.”

“I know, but it’s raining.”

“So? You said you’d be here fifteen minutes ago.”

He rambles on some more, complaining about how late I am. I open my mouth to interrupt him but no sound comes out. His harsh voice make my head hurt so I lower the phone and just stare at the screen where his name flashes in bright, white letters. I could stay like that for an hour and he probably wouldn’t even realize I wasn’t replying.

I hold the phone tightly in my hand and shut my eyes. Why does he have to be like this? It wasn’t always this way. Things were different in the beginning and then one day he just changed and I don’t know why.

I open my eyes slowly and look down at my shaking fingers. Then, without even thinking about it, I press the end call button and his name disappears from the screen. I hardly even realize what I’m doing. I’m just watching myself like I’m watching a movie.

I can’t believe I just hung up on Jude.

Part of me wants to throw the phone at the ground and watch it shatter just for extra satisfaction. Instead I grip it even stronger in my hand and take off running in the opposite direction, away from him. My phone sings loudly in my hand but the sound of it just makes me run faster. I lose my flip-flops along the way. They fly off my feet and into the street, getting flattened by rubber tires, but I don’t even care. My dress flaps wildly behind me. I brush the hair out of my eyes and dart down the sidewalk, hardly even noticing the rain anymore. Cars honk and tires screech as I dart carelessly across the street. I wave my hands at the drivers, smiling widely at them as they scowl and tell me to get out of the road. My phone is still chiming over and over in my hand. I don’t answer. I just run, farther and faster with each step.

“Hey. Hey! Ava, are you even listening to me?”

I jump, nearly slipping in the puddles of water around my feet. His voice is so loud I can hear him clearly even though I’ve lowered the phone. I watch my thumb, trembling as it hovers above the end call button. Is it even possible for me to be that girl?

“Ava, are you there?”

No. It’s not.

“Ava!”

At least not today, I think, rocking back on the heels of my flip-flops. I sigh and bring the phone back up to my ear.

“Sorry. What?”

“Where are you?”

“I’m like two blocks away. I’ll be there soon.”

I hear him saying more but I ignore him and just hang up. I pick up my feet, my flip-flops sloshing through the rain water, and continue forward.