I believe I may have unintentionally given a false impression. Several perhaps. Making myself out to be Sherlock Holmes, while Crystal and Andy were my Watson doubles. That's far from the case. Thanks to the public school system I'd learned to turn that switch in my head off. The constant observation and examination of others was something I no longer did. Oh I could turn it back on again. For example I did it a lot in any new situation. Such as when I first attended high school. Studying the intricacies of all those interconnected parts. Those parts being individuals as well as groups. Andy had this thing called instinct. I suppose he'd inherited it from his parents. Where I'd gather data, he'd use feelings. His system was quicker. Both our systems were far from perfect, although they kept us from making too many mistakes.
As with my detective skills I'd also learned to switch off my lie detector. Unless it started blaring at me loudly. A lot of the time, knowing someone is lying doesn't give you anything. So the person told a lie. Was it a white lie? Was it a concealment? Was it simply that they didn't want others to know the truth, for reasons such as being ashamed or embarrassed? Knowing something is not true rarely shows the truth. You need to investigate and dig more deeply most of the time. For example neither Andy nor I ever told anyone we'd taken dance lessons prior to the junior prom. I'd taken Heather as my date by the way. I did a few of the dances with her, basically being her support around the dance floor. I also had a couple of other partners. Andy had taken Jennifer, having asked her entirely out of the blue.
Then there was the mysterious, enigmatic Crystal. The drop out who then graduated top of her class at college. The woman who knew me far better than I knew myself. I'd be in my room studying or working on something and thinking, hey I could do with a coffee. Then I'd turn and find her standing at the door with one for me. How did she do that? I might have had limited accuracy by studying the statistics over a period of weeks or months. She did it intuitively. Not even being in the same room. That wasn't the only super power she possessed. As evidenced by a little talk she gave me before I started my senior year the following day. We'd hired a DVD of a chick flick and bought some popcorn. Next time I got to choose which movie we watched. Stunningly she actually watched them. Even when she didn't like my choice. There we were on the big sofa. Her head resting on my shoulder and my head resting on hers.
"You're going to be a fine young man." She stated, reaching for some more popcorn.
I had no idea where that had come from. In the movie one of the main characters had been diagnosed with cancer. It certainly wasn't connected to that.
"What makes you say that?" I inquired with a small smile.
She twisted her face towards me.
"What you did for Heather."
Was this a set up? How did she know? Crystal had been working at the bar or one of her many other part time jobs. Did she know? Perhaps she was referring to something other than me taking Heather's virginity.
"What I did for Heather?"
I asked as nonchalantly as I could. Refusing to be drawn into any admission of anything.
"You know. You and her." She grabbed some more popcorn. "When you two had sex. It was really sweet. Especially the way the two of you handled it."
Deny until you die? It would have been pointless as well as dishonest.
"How did you know?"
"I thought something was up when I saw the way she looked at you afterwards. So I asked her. I didn't want either of you to get hurt. She didn't have your experience. Heather might have thought it was deeper and more meaningful than you did."
There were bombs going off all over the place.
"I was more experienced? How so?" I probed.
"You'd already been intimate with Becky and Camille."
What the hell? How much more did she know about my sex life such as it was? It sounded like she had photographs or video evidence.
"Oh come on." I exclaimed. "Where are you getting this from?"
She looked smug for a moment.
"Becky told me a few days after when I saw her. Said you were a great guy. Gave her hope there are at least a few decent men out there. With Camille I could smell it on you."
"I showered." I protested.
"Yeah, but with different soap. There weren't a lot of options other than her."
"I could have just been cleaning up after doing her yard."
"How many people do you know who let a workman wash himself at their house?"
Damn, she was almost psychic. I had to have a comeback.
"Isn't that my business?" I countered confirming it by not denying or confirming it.
"Not when half the town knows." I cried out in exasperation. "Relax. I'm kidding. I've hardly told anyone about it... I'm kidding again. I'm responsible for your moral well being. I knew about it, but I didn't interfere or dig into it. Besides the rules only apply to me when I want them to." She giggled.
We play fought until we were both laughing. I got her pinned on the sofa. Stared deep into her eyes. Flickering shadows on a rippling pond. I kissed her on the forehead then let her up. We one arm hugged and rewound the movie when we'd calmed down. Because I'm a stupid fucking idiot, I then changed the subject.
"Are you going to start applying to colleges? You know you could get into one easily. Probably with a scholarship."
I'd already started, even though I was undecided what to do after I graduated.
"I'm happy with what I've got right now. A diploma and you... Until you head off into the world. I'm proud of you, you know."
"I'm humbled by you Ms Crystal Goodbody. You're the best friend I've ever had."
"Don't tell Andy that." She cautioned.
"He already knows he's a distant second to you in my affections. No one could replace you."
"Shouldn't that be supplant me?"
"I knew it was a mistake when they started educating women. Using dictionary words. Whatever next?"
She laughed then suddenly became serious.
"I know about Christine Novak as well."
I'd forgotten about her. Or rather I'd buried it at the back of my mind. She'd been placed with us when her mother OD'd on Percocet. The first night the 15 year old had been placed with us, she'd tried to climb into bed with me. Fending of a naked 15 year old was an experience I never wanted to repeat. Drop me back on the mountains again please.
"Nothing happened. Although I did get handful of her boob when I carried her back to her own room."
Crystal settled back against me.
"I know. Why do you think she was out of here in less than 24 hours? She told me what happened after I found her sobbing. Christine thought you hated her. To her having sex with a man is like shaking hands or hugging."
"Shit. It's a wicked world we live in."
"Apart from you Luke. There are good decent guys out there. They allow me to hope."
That evening is engraved in my memory. There were those hidden layers there. Meanings I was incapable of understanding. I fetched more popcorn. Turned off my inquiring mind. I'd never understand women. I should have tried a lot harder though. Then maybe I would have worked things out. Saved both of us a lot of pain. But perhaps it was meant to be. If I'd taken a different route I might not have arrived at the destination. I want to believe I missed something. That the alternative path would have been better all round. It's impossible to say.
Monday morning I was officially a senior. Entitled to whack freshmen's asses with a paddle. Andy and I didn't partake. It was beneath us. As Jennifer had been beneath Andy by all accounts. They'd broken up by then though. Amicably I hoped. They still acknowledged one another and smiled. Our final year before heading off to college loomed. I'd resolved to put some effort into my studies. Heather was going to get the competition she desired. Although, according to her, she'd been going easy on me. I was also doing far easier subjects than her science route, so she claimed. In some of my courses there were no right answers. There were only different opinions.
It was mostly the old familiar faces. Though now the majority of them looked a lot more cheerful. We were on the home stretch. Those that would go out into the workforce were planning what to do with their wages. Those who were planning on continuing their education were more uncertain, but no less excited. If you couldn't get your degree you could always get a job in the field of your choice and either work your way up or try again. Those with rich parents were set. The rest of us would have to worry about financing our education. Andy was definitely going to go to college. His mom and dad expected him to. And the pressures of expectation are far more powerful than you'd think. No one wants to disappoint those they love the most. I was still very much undecided as to what I wished to do.
When I'd reached the age of 18 I'd received an official letter from my parents executors. A law firm in England was handling things. The details were scant. All I knew was there were several trust funds set up for me. One financed by the life insurance on them. The main one wouldn't be accessible until I was 25. The first one was for my college education or any other purpose I chose. Twenty five thousand dollars doesn't go that far where education in the States is concerned. I could afford to buy a car now if I'd wanted. I had enough money already, as I've mentioned my needs are few and my wants are fewer still. Crystal told me to buy a cheap clunker. She'd service and maintain it for me she said. That was when I'd asked a question I'd asked before. Why didn't she do anything about the starter motor of her old Cherokee? And as before, when I asked she gave me that enigmatic smile instead of an answer.