Tangled Web Read Online Free PDF Page A
Author: Jade C. Jamison
something so different about
him. He seemed so poised, so confident, so sure of himself. He
played like a pro--she could hardly see his fingers moving at some
spots. And he kept posturing--moving, then pausing, facing the
audience so they could see what he was doing. He’d shake his head
and stick out his tongue “demonically,” then grin at the audience.
He was in his element, loving every second. And he had charisma
too. Everything that Katie had always loved about her friend was
amplified by ten onstage. Katie was certain he couldn’t see her
eyes and she was glad, because suddenly Johnny seemed like a
different person to her and she couldn’t pull her eyes away.
Never in the more than seven years that
Katie had been friends with Johnny had she felt this way. Watching
Johnny onstage forced Katie to see him as more than a friend. He’d
always been, in her mind, that gangly fifth grader with the quick
sense of humor and gapped-tooth grin. But onstage he was sexy. Yes,
sexy. He was manly; he was gorgeous. And so, for the rest of the
song, even though she tried to watch the entire band, she found
herself drawn to Johnny--her best friend who had now just become
her lust. She felt her whole body grow warm and tingly, and her
cheeks felt hot.
She’d had crushes on a lot of guys in high
school, but she’d never captured anyone’s interest. She had plenty
of male friends, but no suitors. She’d supposed it was because she
and Johnny were close friends. Either guys who might have been
interested thought she and Johnny were boyfriend and girlfriend or
they didn’t want to hassle with a girl who had a guy friend--he
might be overprotective and brotherly. It hadn’t bothered her much.
Sure, she’d always wanted to hold hands with a cute boy or kiss
someone, but she knew the time would come. She’d bided her time
falling asleep kissing her pillow, pretending it was her latest
crush, and then just waited. She knew it would happen someday.
But now it seemed so clear to her. It was
better this way. Maybe she and Johnny were just destined to be
together. And then she wondered if maybe Johnny had felt the same
way about her for a long time. He’d gone on occasional dates, but
nothing that lasted. In fact, the last date he’d had was at
Homecoming last fall. Katie was pretty sure that he’d also gotten
laid, but Johnny would never have said anything to her about
something like that. She suspected, though, because he just seemed
a little different after that--nothing bad, just different.
All it took was the six minutes of Johnny’s
band onstage (yes, it hadn’t escaped Katie’s notice that they went
over the time limit) for Katie to see with her own eyes what she’d
been missing all these years. Her best friend could be the ideal
boyfriend too.
After the song was over, the audience gave
Spawn of Satan a standing ovation. The audience had chosen its
favorite without being told to. Katie noticed that she wasn’t the
only one in love with the band. Johnny put the index and middle
finger of his right hand together and “saluted” the crowd,
something that--years later--would become a signature move. Riley
pulled the bandanna from around his neck and threw it into the
crowd, and a dozen eager girls pounced on it before one emerged the
victor. Yuck, Katie thought. All that fuss over a sweaty bandanna.
But she hadn’t failed to notice the band had “arrived.”
The judges conferred, whispers and huddled
shoulders, around their table, and the majorette stepped back up to
the stage. Johnny and crew stepped back to join all the other bands
on the left hand side of the gym. The majorette announced that the
judges were tallying their votes, but in the meantime, she would go
down the list of bands and ask for the audience to cheer for their
favorites. As she went down the list, all the bands got a decent
amount of applause--Katie was glad that none of them would go home
ashamed. But, ultimately, there was no question whom the
him. He seemed so poised, so confident, so sure of himself. He
played like a pro--she could hardly see his fingers moving at some
spots. And he kept posturing--moving, then pausing, facing the
audience so they could see what he was doing. He’d shake his head
and stick out his tongue “demonically,” then grin at the audience.
He was in his element, loving every second. And he had charisma
too. Everything that Katie had always loved about her friend was
amplified by ten onstage. Katie was certain he couldn’t see her
eyes and she was glad, because suddenly Johnny seemed like a
different person to her and she couldn’t pull her eyes away.
Never in the more than seven years that
Katie had been friends with Johnny had she felt this way. Watching
Johnny onstage forced Katie to see him as more than a friend. He’d
always been, in her mind, that gangly fifth grader with the quick
sense of humor and gapped-tooth grin. But onstage he was sexy. Yes,
sexy. He was manly; he was gorgeous. And so, for the rest of the
song, even though she tried to watch the entire band, she found
herself drawn to Johnny--her best friend who had now just become
her lust. She felt her whole body grow warm and tingly, and her
cheeks felt hot.
She’d had crushes on a lot of guys in high
school, but she’d never captured anyone’s interest. She had plenty
of male friends, but no suitors. She’d supposed it was because she
and Johnny were close friends. Either guys who might have been
interested thought she and Johnny were boyfriend and girlfriend or
they didn’t want to hassle with a girl who had a guy friend--he
might be overprotective and brotherly. It hadn’t bothered her much.
Sure, she’d always wanted to hold hands with a cute boy or kiss
someone, but she knew the time would come. She’d bided her time
falling asleep kissing her pillow, pretending it was her latest
crush, and then just waited. She knew it would happen someday.
But now it seemed so clear to her. It was
better this way. Maybe she and Johnny were just destined to be
together. And then she wondered if maybe Johnny had felt the same
way about her for a long time. He’d gone on occasional dates, but
nothing that lasted. In fact, the last date he’d had was at
Homecoming last fall. Katie was pretty sure that he’d also gotten
laid, but Johnny would never have said anything to her about
something like that. She suspected, though, because he just seemed
a little different after that--nothing bad, just different.
All it took was the six minutes of Johnny’s
band onstage (yes, it hadn’t escaped Katie’s notice that they went
over the time limit) for Katie to see with her own eyes what she’d
been missing all these years. Her best friend could be the ideal
boyfriend too.
After the song was over, the audience gave
Spawn of Satan a standing ovation. The audience had chosen its
favorite without being told to. Katie noticed that she wasn’t the
only one in love with the band. Johnny put the index and middle
finger of his right hand together and “saluted” the crowd,
something that--years later--would become a signature move. Riley
pulled the bandanna from around his neck and threw it into the
crowd, and a dozen eager girls pounced on it before one emerged the
victor. Yuck, Katie thought. All that fuss over a sweaty bandanna.
But she hadn’t failed to notice the band had “arrived.”
The judges conferred, whispers and huddled
shoulders, around their table, and the majorette stepped back up to
the stage. Johnny and crew stepped back to join all the other bands
on the left hand side of the gym. The majorette announced that the
judges were tallying their votes, but in the meantime, she would go
down the list of bands and ask for the audience to cheer for their
favorites. As she went down the list, all the bands got a decent
amount of applause--Katie was glad that none of them would go home
ashamed. But, ultimately, there was no question whom the