Fenton was
both excited and nervous about the coming semester. Father's last promotion had brought them to
another new town, and he wasn't sure what the kids at school would be
like. Every time he walked past them,
they seemed cold and unfriendly. One boy
in particular—Joel—was very scary to Fenton.
It seemed as if Joel knew all about Fenton even though they had never
spoken. Worse still, it seemed as if
Joel didn't like Fenton; as if Joel knew all the bad things there were to know
about Fenton. Fenton felt naked and
ashamed when he was around Joel—big and clumsy even though in fact he was
slight of build and certainly graceful enough.
He didn't
understand why Joel felt the way he did, but with all his heart and mind, he
was determined to make Joel like him!
His
opportunity was to come soon enough.
Clearview Prep was having a Get‑to‑Know‑Ye Soiree, and
it was Fenton's parents' turn to bring the "libations." Fenton felt comforted by that word because
it was featured on the invitations for all the parties they had to
attend. In its own little way, it
represented stability for Fenton, and he clung to it.
Joel's
parents were throwing the party, so he was sure to be there.
Fenton's
mother saw him pacing his ante room and asked after his state of mind. Fenton had been told often enough that there
was no profit in withholding information from her, so he laid out the full
story.
"Time
for a talk with Daddy," was the product of that meeting.
This was not
a bad deal for Fenton, and his heart soared at the prospect of seeing father's
office again.
Fenton
arrived early, the memory of the missed meeting still fresh in his mind. He briefly but accurately summarized his
problem with Joel. After a bit, his
father looked up from his desk and stared at Fenton for what seemed an
eternity. At last he said, simply,
"You blinked."
This was
shorter than most of their meetings, but Fenton was too preoccupied to worry
much about it. The day of the party was
at hand.
Having made
the required introductions, Fenton was shown to his post. It was his task to take coats from the guests
and to sort them. This, of course, would
also fall to the offspring of the host, so before he knew it, he was face to
face with Joel!
This was the
first time they had spent any time alone together, and Joel was clearly
uncomfortable.
"I'm
glad you could come today. I really hate
these parties," began Joel, dispensing with the pleasantries.
Fenton didn't know how to respond. It seemed as though Joel wanted something of
him, but he didn't know what.
"You know what a big bore they can be," Joel went
on, all those adults talking and talking.
Nobody ever listens to anyone. It's just like—I don't know—it's just
like..." His voice trailed off and
he looked away.
Now Fenton
was really stumped. He had learned from watching
the adults how they pretended to be doing something when they didn't want to
say anything, so he busied himself with the coats, as though that were all that
was required of him. Joel
continued. "I mean, look, you don't
have that problem, do you? You can say
things and your parents pay attention to you.
Probably your friends do too. I
don't know."
Joel was
flushed. Fenton now felt that he had to contribute
something. He hoped that whatever came
out would be appropriate and not make him look bad, but before he could utter a
word, Joel just went right on.
"I guess
it's obvious, but none of the other guys pay any attention to me. You seem to have more friends than I do, and
we are one of the oldest families around!
Every time I see you walking by, deep in your own thoughts, I want to
hurt you! I know it's not fair. Some people are just more confident than
others..."
Joel
continued, but for a while Fenton didn't hear a word. His head was spinning. He couldn't believe this. It was Joel who felt lonely and rejected. Joel was envious of him!
"...so,"
continued Joel, "hard as it is to say this, I really need somebody to, you
know, just somebody to talk to...to listen..."
Fenton was
transfixed. He saw Joel in a wholly new light. Joel was needy in the same way that he, Fenton, had been. And all of a sudden, Fenton was filled with
the most incredible feeling of understanding.
And warmth. He so wanted to rush
out to tell the "Old Man" (which is how he referred to father on
those special occasions). But first he
had to come back to earth and deal with Joel.
After what he
assumed must have seemed like an eternity, Fenton simply leaned over and
gently touched Joel on the knee. Playing
the silence like a delicate musical instrument, he finally offered:
"Having trouble making friends, then, are you?"
From that day
forward, Fenton all but owned Joel.