“I don’t care what he does with it, Copper.Jesse Young likes my song.That’s enough for me.”
I nodded, understanding how he felt.Singing with Jesse was the single most exciting thing I had done other than going to a concert with James.Being around someone who could explode any second was riveting.Jesse could make anyone feel special if he wanted to.The Matches, Thomas, Betsy, Darren, and I lay on the turf waiting to be called upon.
“Is this the way he has always made songs?”Darren asked.
“No.The first album we made together was when he valued other people’s opinions.It didn’t sell many copies, though.Not a lot of people even know about it,” Keith confessed.
“Dive in was the first record I purchased for myself,” I said, revisiting a memory of James.
“No way.That album only sold two hundred copies.We didn’t even make back the money it took from ruining our instruments in the pool.Why we thought it was a good idea to throw them in, I don’t know,” Mason said.
“I am not kidding.I bought that record with my tooth fairy money.”
Tonya laughed.“That is the Bee’s Knees.I can’t believe you did that.You must be really young then.”
Everyone laughed and started pointing out the different constellations in the sky.It took me a minute to locate the big and little dipper.We joked about how aliens would abduct us, and no one would know where we went.I pretended I feared the green creatures to curl up with Darren.He wrapped his arm around me, and I played with the fabric of his shirt.Everything had happened so fast, but it was finally time for us to be peaceful.
My mind filled up with questions.Were my mom and James worried about where I was?Should I tell Darren I would be his girlfriend?What would happen to our friendship if I did?Would Darren be grounded?Was there a God in that night sky?And most importantly, would Jesse Young and The Matches be able to take care of Jesse’s “problem” forever?
My brain did not have enough power to answer any of the questions.I was used to having time alone to think through my problems, but Jesse hated leaving any silence because silence meant a person had to deal with pain, and after seeing Jesse’s outbreak, I thought he had a lot of built-up pain.
Jesse screamed, “Tonya, Mason, Keith, andyou guyshave to get over here right now!”
Darren shot up like a confetti cannon.He was ready to listen to his song be turned into a masterpiece.
Jesse was in his own world.He stuttered about how it was not perfected yet, and he needed the band to help him figure out how the music could complement his new lyrics.He was on a creative high.
“What do you got?”Keith questioned.
“Darry, you are the one who wrote it, right?”Jesse asked.
“Yeah, I am.Why?”
“Come here, read this, and tell me what you think first.Where are those peaches you guys stole?I’m going to need some if we keep working.I am starving.”
I snuck a glance at the notebook paper as Darren read.
Pitiful Peaches:
“When the peach flowers bloom
and the juice falls from your eyes
Remember that I don’t bite
There is no need for goodbyes
One day, we will reunite
When they grow out of my tomb.”–Jesse
“Pitiful Peaches are what I am to you.
We can swim at the beaches.
But my love is still true.
Pitiful Peaches keep me alive.
