Chapter Seventeen

                                    

                                          

	The moon rose in the night sky and I lounged in bed,  in the dark, staring at nothing and listening to the soulful music of Leonard Cohen.   I played one song over and over and over again.  It was a piano piece and it made me feel sad.  I could have turned it off, or listened to something more upbeat, but the melancholy notes drifting from the speakers felt right.
It was past one in the morning when I looked at the clock and realized I was hungry.  My father's pancakes and omelets were a distant memory and my stomach was beginning to make noise.  I got out of bed and went downstairs.  The house was dark and quiet and I was glad because I didn't feel like looking at anyone right then.   I'm sure everyone thought I was being a spoiled brat.   
  It normally wouldn't have bothered me so much.  With my family there was a certain level of comfort because I knew they had to love me no matter how immaturely I had acted.  There was no such comfort zone with Joey and he probably thought I was an idiot.  I told myself I didn't care what my brother's friend thought about me as I wrenched open cabinets and peered inside for snacks.  
I heard a sound coming from the family room and quickly abandoned my search of the cabinets to investigate.  Standing on the threshold of the other room, I peered inside.  After a moment, I saw an indistinct figure on the ground.  I glanced at the couch and saw another. It was Ryan, my rat-faced brother, and Joey, the clever cheater.  I watched, horrified, as the shape on the ground moved and then sat up. In the pale moonlight, Joey's red hair was a muted beacon.  I groaned, spun on my heel and strode back into the kitchen.
Although I was no longer very hungry, I opened the refrigerator and studied the contents.  Before long, I heard the sound of muffled footsteps followed by that of a chair being dragged across the floor.  I wondered if the board-game-cheater had come to gloat, but didn't turn around to find out.
I stood there, staring into the fridge, for what seemed to be many minutes.  I didn't say anything and neither did he.  When it became apparent he was prepared to outwait me, I turned around to face him. 
"What?" I demanded.  "Can't you sleep?"
Joey rubbed his eyes, and for some reason I thought that was weird.  Then I realized what it was – he wasn't wearing his glasses. 
"Nah," he said.  Much to my surprise, he didn't seem to be gloating.  Now, if this had been Ryan he would have done a victory dance right then and there.  Apparently, unlike my brother, Joey was a good sport.
"Why?" I asked, albeit reluctantly.  I pulled out the milk.  Then I got the Lucky Charms, a bowl and a spoon.  I turned back to Joey.  "Want some?" I asked.  
He nodded. "Sure," he replied.  
When we were both seated at the table, our bowls full, we began to eat.  "So, why can't you sleep?" I asked.  
He continued to eat in silence for a moment, and seemed to be carefully weighing his words.  When he finally spoke, he said only one word. 
"Marissa," was his answer.  
"Marissa?" I asked, confused.
"Yeah," he said.  "Marissa, my girlfriend.  Well, I guess she's my girlfriend.  I don't know – we've been seeing each other for a month or so –that makes her my girlfriend, right?"
"Sure," I said, looking down at my bowl.  I don't know why I was surprised he had a girlfriend, but I was.  It seemed that everyone had someone – everyone except for me, that is.  
"So what's the problem?" I asked.
Joey shrugged and shoveled a spoonful of Lucky Charms into his mouth.  "I don't want to bug you, or anything," he began, not quite meeting my eyes.   "And I know Ryan really gets on your nerves, but I hoped, since you were a girl and all, you might be able to help me figure some things out."