Jackson

"Jackson! Get down here now! I need you to do something. Hurry! This is important! An emergency." He ran down the stairs and stopped dead.

Looking at her, "No, Mom. The answer is no!"

"What do you mean, no? I haven't even asked you anything yet."

"You don't have to. Whenever I see that look on your face...Well, things don't turn out well. At least not for me."

Mopping her eyes with her sleeve, "Well, I would have asked one of your darling sisters or wonderful brother, but..." tears filling her eyes and using a pain filled voice. "But they all went to college so far away instead of nearby. And they never come home. And they never call... And Autumn's married. And it makes me so sad. And your dad is at that stupid hospital computer conference and..."

"Oh, geeze, Mom. For the love of God. They call all the time."

"And you're the only one I can count on..."

"Yeah, and that's why I'm applying to the University of North Korea."

"Oh? They have a good wrestling team there?"

"Sure. And there's no one there to ask me to do crazy stuff."

"Funny, you ass. Just like your friggin' father. No, seriously. You have to do this. Mrs. Spencer just called. Aria just went out on a date with Matt Webster."

"Matt Webster? The quarterback? He's a beast when it comes to dating. They say he never takes no for an answer and...well, it's not good. Why would she do that?"

"Because she's a stupid sophomore and he's a cool senior and quarterback. It gets worse. They drove directly to that dead end in the woods and the phone isn't moving. Her mom thinks she's in way over her head and may be in trouble.

"So your assignment, if you choose to accept it, Agent 004, and you will accept it or you'll hate yourself and Santa won't bring you anything for Christmas..."

"So you want me to drive there and do what?"

"Just kind of park there close by and listen and look. You know, all that woodsy stuff your dad's taught you. Kinda stealthy. Like you're stalking an elk or something.."

"....And then?"

"So, if everything seems okay. And she's just being a dumbass, then she'll have to learn from her mistakes. But! If there are signs that bad shit, I mean crap, is happening, then you need to make it stop."

"Mom! He's like 6'4" and you managed to give me your mini person gene. I'm 5'9". Remember? Heck. What did Autumn say to me, 'I was was just like a real person, only smaller?'"

"Your sister was just giving you crap."

"...And, as I said, your plans don't end well for me."

"I think I feel a tear."

"Another one, Mom?"

"God, I should have never married your father or stopped after three like I wanted to. But, oooooh no..... I swear, having kids is like being pecked to death by chickens. Look. He's big," and she did some crazy karate moves, "but you're a hot shot wrestler. You've got moves. Right? And oh so big in that heart of yours. It'll give you strength. Now go. I have a bad feeling about this. Please! And hurry! It may already be too late."

It was dark, but he switched off his lights as he went around the last bend. Standard protocol for this well known make out spot. He parked not far away from the Mercedes, opened his window, and opened his ears and senses. Lots of motion in the car.

"Let me go! Get off me! No! Don't! Matt! Let me go!"

"You know you want it. That's why you got into the back seat with me. So get ready for the time of your life. Here we go." He continued to hold her arms with one hand. She felt some pain, but was struggling so hard she wasn't really paying attention. He came closer.

"NOOOOO! HELP! STOP!"

The rear car door swung open and Jackson reached in and grabbing Matt by the hair and shirt, pulled him out of the car and threw him face down in the dirt. Matt scrambled up. Brushing dirt off his cock.

"You little, short piece of shit. What.." Without finishing his sentence, he swung and connected. Jackson felt the fist hit him in the side of the face and he staggered for just an instant, but it wasn't as bad as a head butt in wrestling and reflexively entered a wrestler's stance. Balanced, ready to move in any direction. Matt moved forward and swung.

Jackson side stepped the blow and punched straight, hitting him in the face. Blood started flowing from his broken nose. Matt roared in anger and charged. Jackson used a traditional wrestling take down. Step to the side, swing behind, trip your opponent, and drive him face first into the dirt.

But instead of working to pin him, Jackson kept him face down, shifting his weight and sweeping Matt's arms so he couldn't get up. Riding him like any opponent. Then punched him twice, hard, in the back of the head. Matt stilled.

Watching for a trick, Jackson climbed off and turned to the car. "Aria! Aria? Are you OK?" She was curled into a ball on the seat. Curled as tightly as possible. Crying. "Come on, Aria. Let's get you out of the car. I've got my truck..."

"Oh, Jackson. How could I have been so stupid? I'm always so darn stupid. What's wrong with me? I always pick the wrong guys. Thank you. Thanks for helping me. I...I couldn't make him stop...He wouldn't stop, Jackson! He was too strong." She cried and hugged him fiercely. Lowering her head and sobbing into his shoulder. He held her while she sobbed.

Taking a deep breath, she pulled back and stared into his eyes. She felt a shift as the door to her heart opened to him. The vague, unclear feelings she'd had for him for the last few years came sharply into focus. Crystal clear. He's the One! The door closed. The lock was locked. But this time, Jackson was locked inside. Her heart would never open to anyone else. She knew it.

She leaned forward and kissed him. Deep, passionate. She moaned in the back of her throat. Yup! He's the one! She pulled back suddenly. "Oh. I'm sorry, Jackson I...I...Well, thank you." She hugged him again. "You saved me. Another minute and... What the heck are you doing here anyway? Are you with someone?"

"No. Your mom, called my mom and....you know the drill. Let me check on Matt and make sure he's doing alright. Do you want me to call the police? I heard you yelling at him to stop and all that."

"No! Please don't. God. That's all I need is to get my name all over the news and his dad will just buy him out of it anyway. He'd strut around like some cocksman. And I would be harassed by every guy there. I'd have to transfer to a different school. So, I guess I'll just take my dumbass self home and hope I don't become the main topic of everyone's socials.

"Jackson? I'm so humiliated. And so pissed at myself. I....How could I have been so stupid?"

"Aria. Don't be too hard on yourself. He's the ass. No way should you have expected this to happen. Some wrestling and groping, maybe. But not that. You're the victim. Come on. Let's go. He's doing fine. Although his nose is a little the worse for wear," he chuckled and a grin filled his face. Just seeing him smile brought joy to her heart.

He started the truck and began the drive home. She started sobbing. "I didn't want that to be my first time. Not like that! It wasn't. I'd know right? I mean, I have zero experience and I was fighting so hard...It's supposed to be so wonderful. So I'd know, right?"

"Seems like you would. I mean, not sure how you could've missed it."

"They say it's a thing you always remember. Well, I'll sure as hell remember this night no matter what. I'll have nightmares about it."

He stopped the truck and reached over and pulled her into a hug. She bent her head down and put her head on his shoulder and cried. She cried so hard she shook and moans of pain escaped her throat. He gently stoked her hair and told her over and over that she'd be okay and things would be fine.

The Mercedes roared past, just about the time and something heavy hit his door. She pulled away. "What was that?"

"A rock, I think. Must be pissed at me for some reason." He chuckled again.

"Thank you, Jackson. Could you turn on the cab light?"

"Sure."

"No! Oh, God, no. Jackson! I have blood on my skirt and on my legs and stuff. Crap! What's it from? I'm sure you were in time, right? Probably just when he ripped stuff off. Right?" He shrugged his shoulders. "And my shirt is ripped! I can't go home like this. I can never go home again. My mom..." And the tears began anew.

He hugged her again. "Tell you what. What if we go to my house. My mom is there. She can get you cleaned up and take care of things and then I can take you home. You could tell your mom that you ended up with me instead, or something. I don't know, Mom'll have the right answers. She'll be able to help you a lot more than I can. She...well, she knows about these things."

Pulling in the drive, "Here we are, Aria. Tell you what. Will you be alright if I leave you here in the truck for a minute and go in and talk to my mom?" She nodded.

He ran up the steps and burst in the door. "Mom! Mom!"

"What, Jackson? Oh, your face? Here let me take a look." He stopped her.

"Mom. Aria's in the car. I was, well, I think I was in time, and she does too, but she's not sure. She was fighting so hard to get away. And she doesn't think he did...anything. But...She has blood and..God, Mom? What kind of a guy would do that? Anyway. She can't go home like this. Could you, I don't know. Clean her up or something..."

Without answering she ran out of house and skipped the steps altogether. She opened the truck door and hugged Aria. "Oh, my poor dear. You're safe. We can help. Let's go inside and get you fixed up."

"Oh, Mrs. Turner..."

"It's OK, Aria. We can talk about it as we get you fixed up." She hugged her closely as they went in the house and to the bedroom. Aria burst into tears.

"He was so strong. I fought, I fought to get away. I yelled and screamed, but he had my arms pinned and...and. Oh. Mrs. Turner you can't know what it's like to feel so helpless. I..."

"Well, actually I do understand. I was thirteen. Thirteen when it happened to me.

"What?" She nodded. "Really? Oh, goodness."

"Soooo, I will be happy to talk to you any time of day or night. I'm always here to help. It does get better." Until it happens to you again, she thought. And again. No, you never really get over it. Just deal with it and go on.

"That must have been awful."

"It was, but you can get over it. Don't let one episode like this wreck you or stop you from being the wonderful woman and person that you are. Just use it as a learning experience. Do your homework before you go out with someone. Now, before we get too far...Did he? I mean, Jackson said you weren't sure. I mean do I need to send Jackson for one of those morning after pills?"

"No. I'm sure he didn't, but there's blood on my clothes. He was just getting ready to start when Jackson yanked him off me. He was so brave, Mrs. Turner. And then so nice to me. He helped me a lot. Just like you are."

"Yeah, he's a great kid. So, come on. Let's get those clothes off and get you in the shower. Rinse all of him and all of what happened off. Forever. Take as long as you want. I'm going to use a little peroxide on your skirt. A little advice. Don't wear a skirt or a dress on the first date, ever, especially if you don't know the guy. OK?" She nodded. "Don't get your hair wet. And, if you feel up to it, check things out down there. Feel if anything's changed and make sure things are alright. Figure out where the blood came from."

She cried and hugged Ali. "Oh, Mrs. Turner. What am I going to do? How can I go home? What will my mom say? What...."

"It'll all work out. You'll see."

"But everyone at school?"

"Yup. You can count on the fact that Asshole will spread it all over. The dickheads will be dicks about it. Your real friends will be supportive. And they can help. You're on the volleyball team right?" She nodded. "Rumor has it that one of them went through this last year. But worse. No rescue for her. So, you could talk to her and you two could support each other. Now, clothes off, into the shower, and let me work on this skirt of yours."

It was time to make that phone call. "Emily. This is Ali. Aria's here. In the shower. You were right. Matt had her pinned when Jackson yanked him off. I know, I know. No, she was fighting him, but he's so stinking strong. Yes, she's physically alright. Just really shaken up. I can't tell, but I don't think so. I told her to check down there, but I'm not sure she will. I think Jackson got there just in time."

Frowning as she talked, "She'd know, right? Surely she would know, I mean, hard to miss it. I sure as hell knew. So I'm pretty sure Jackson stopped things in time. Could be something other than penetration, she felt something tear and has some blood, but it's not like I can check and I don't know if she will or not. We'll keep our fingers crossed. She probably needs a check by a Gyn for a general check anyway, right?

"Anyway, she's in the shower right now and I was about to clean up her skirt. But before I did....I talked to her about calling the police. Jackson did too. She is worried sick that she would have to be examined, give reports, the police, the paper, etc., etc.

"It's your choice, of course, but...Em, I was actually raped when I was thirteen. Yea, on my birthday. So, I understand what she's going through, kind of. So, I would probably follow her lead on this. She's afraid to go home. Scared to death about what you'll say to her or do to her.

"Yeah, I know, but I was thinking....I'm going to tell Aria that I didn't tell you and that she could tell you that things weren't going right with Matt so she hung out with Jackson instead. You can do whatever feels right. And if you want to tell her I called you, then do it. No. No problem.

Except, I would like to be available to help her with this, if you agree. And if she knows I lied to her...Well, that option for her is gone.

"OK. So no police, at least for now. Wash the skirt. I didn't call you. She was with Jackson? Agreed. God, I know. This is awful. She's such a sweet girl. I've always liked her. Young and so much to learn. So, keep me posted. Oh, she just got out of the shower and I need to work on this skirt. Oh, and her shirt is all kind of ripped so I'll give her a new one and you pretend you didn't notice, okay? Talk to you soon. Damn!"

Hanging up and knocking on the bedroom door. "Aria? Alright for me to come in? You look better. No! Pitch those undies. They're ripped anyway. I pulled out some of Autumn's and I think you're about her size. And here're some sweats to wear until I finish this skirt. And a new top. Here give me a hug and I'll pitch your skirt in the wash for a quick cycle." Aria cried again and bent down to bury her face on Ali.

"Why am I so damn stupid? I should have known. Too young to know better, but not too young to get herself into trouble."

Stroking her jet black hair. "You're not stupid. You're a kid. They may teach you all about sex in school, but they skip the parts about real life. Matt was a bad choice, but there's no way you could have known things would end this way. So don't be too hard on yourself. Remember, he's the asshole. You're the victim. I'm just glad Jackson got there when he did. So, here's what I thought...."

A week later: "There you are, Jackson. The boys and I would like to talk to you a bit."

Looking squarely at Matt, "Sure. Too bad you missed the game yesterday."

"You little piece of shit. Just like that junkie whore of a mother of yours." Jackson clenched his fists and bristled. "You got me on the concussion protocol for at least another week. If that makes me lose my scholarship, well, let's just say things won't go well for you.

"So come on guys, let's have some fun." The five of them rushed him and the fists started flying.

"Mrs. Turner!"

"Aria! Great to hear from you."

"No! No it's not. Is Jackson home?"

"No. Why? What's up?"

"God, Mrs. Turner..."

"Ali?"

"It's all over our socials! Apparently Matt and a bunch of guys jumped Jackson after wrestling and beat him up. Three of them are in the emergency room, but Jackson had to go too. Apparently Matt hit him with a stick or something. And...and I can't find out anything about Jackson. I'm so worried. It's all my fault!"

"No, Aria. It's not your fault. Why don't you come over and we'll try and track him down."

"Hi, Aria. Thanks for coming over. He's eighteen so the emergency room couldn't really say anything, but Maya over there said, unofficially, that he had a broken arm and left quite a while ago. Wait, I hear that old Tundra of his."

Jackson walked through the front door. "Where the fuck have you been, Jackson?"

"Wrestling practice was a little tougher than usual, Mom. I got kinda banged up."

"Jackson! That wasn't wrestling practice! Out with it. Now!"

"Oh, I just got together with a few of the guys to see how many times we could hit each other. Just for fun. You know. Good times. Good times. I won, by the way. I got hit the most."

"Oh, my Jackson." She put her hands to her face and started to laugh. "You look like you had an awful lot of fun." Laughing more. "You look....you look like one of my special steaks. You know the ones you hit with that hammer thing over and over. Looks like they got to hit you a lot. Come here my baby. Let Momma hold you. You were so cute as a baby and now you're ugly like your father."

He laughed as his mom hugged him. Aria watched. Mouth open. Dumbfounded by the interaction. How could she be talking to him that way? She was freaking out and they were laughing about it. "I told you your plans never work out well for me, Mom."

"So what about that arm of yours. Just a short arm cast, not that big ugly thing you had a few years ago."

"I guess he hit my plate with that stick of his or whatever he had. It's cracked at either end but not out of position. So, no surgery or anything. Just this cast for a month to six weeks. Just long enough to knock me out of wrestling for the year." Holding up his arm. "And there goes my scholarship."

"Oh, scholarship smallership. Your dad's loaded. And tuition's cheap in North Korea. Besides, you rescued this fair damsel over here who's been very worried about you."

Jackson looked over. Aria was holding her face, crying."Jackson. I'm sorry. I am so, so sorry. It's all because I was stupid. Too young, too stupid. My mantra."

His mom locked eyes with him, gave him a stern look, and nodded her head slightly towards Aria. Mouthed, "Go!"

He went to Aria and took her hands and looked up to her eyes through his swollen slits. "Aria, it's OK. It's not your fault. I was glad to help. I feel bad about not getting there sooner."

She reached out and touched his face. "No, Jackson. Please don't ever feel that way. You rescued me. You got him off me. That's how I remember it. But now I got you all hurt! Does it hurt much, Jackson?"

"Only when my mom makes me laugh." Mom and son both laughed again and he grimaced.

"Aria. Come to the kitchen with me and let's get some ice to put on that ugly face of his before both eyes swell shut. And thank you."

"For what?"

"For being here. For caring."

"He's just...."

"Yes he is."

A week later, Matt's Mercedes pulled into Aria's driveway. She opened the door and left. "See you later, Mom."

"Alright. Have fun." She looked out the window. What the hell! Matt Harper? Was she nuts? And what kind of outfit is that! She got ready to intercede, but then... No, she needed to probably just watch. Aria had had that glint in her eye like when the shit was about to hit the fan.

"Hi, Matt." She gave him a kiss on the cheek and stroked his arm. "I'm sorry about last week. I just kinda freaked or something and then that dumbass Jackson messed everything up before I could relax and enjoy it. Maybe we can pick up where we left off." She swung in and seated herself.