Paullina Simons - Tully

Jack did not reply, but he did not look at Jennifer, either.

‘Okay,’ she said, getting up out of bed, still completely naked. ‘I understand totally.’

After she got dressed, Jack, clad only in a pair of shorts, walked her to the car. His hand rested on her shoulder. ‘Listen,’ he said. It was freezing cold. ‘I apologize. I really needed and wanted to do this. I’m glad we did. I hope you understand.’

She understood. Of course. She stretched her lips into what she hoped was a smile and not a grimace, and Jack bent down and kissed her on the cheek. ‘I’ll call you,’ he said. ‘Be careful driving back.’

Jennifer drove off, and drove and drove. Instead of going home, she drove to Lawrence, drove around the Kansas University campus, drove to Eudora, drove to De Soto, where she sat in front of a barren cornfield, lost in a timeless vacuum. Then she drove to Tully’s house. Came around back and threw rocks at Tully’s window until one of the rocks hit the sleeping-at-her-desk Tully on the head.

‘Come on, you light sleeper, let me in,’ said Jennifer from below.

‘You almost killed me,’ said Tully, opening the front door. ‘Where have you been? Your mother is frantic.’

‘Okay, I’ll call her,’ said Jen. ‘After we sleep. Let’s sleep.’ Jennifer undressed to her underwear and climbed into bed.

Tully spooned Jennifer and softly said, ‘Jennifer, I know that smell. I recognize it. You smell of a guy.’

‘Tully,’ whispered Jennifer, ‘ask me no questions and I’ll tell you no lies.’

Tully said nothing and lay there for two hours wide awake until Hedda came into the room, saying there was a half-crazed Mrs Mandolini on the phone. Jennifer talked to her mother for a few minutes and then climbed back into bed and pretended to sleep.

In February, Mr and Mrs Mandolini went to a parent-teacher conference and sat grimly with Jennifer’s math teacher, Mr Schmidt, while he told them about the ‘big problem’ with Jennifer and about Jennifer’s performance in school.

‘There is nothing wrong with our daughter’s work, Mr Schmidt,’ said Lynn. ‘She is under a lot of pressure,’ she continued, not giving him a chance to interrupt. ‘You know she applied to Stanford, and you’ve seen her SAT scores; it’s just too much for one teenager to take.’

Mr Schmidt was shaking his head. Tony flared up a little. ‘What? Problem, problem! Why are you trying to make some kind of a big deal out of this? I don’t get it. Is it personal?’

Mr Schmidt took a deep breath before speaking. ‘Mr and Mrs Mandolini. Lynn. Tony. I’ve known you now for the three years Jennifer’s been with us – you know how I feel about her. No, of course it’s nothing personal. The only personal thing I feel toward Jennifer is affection. However, her work and her lack of interest in her work gravely concern me.’

‘Well it doesn’t concern us,’ said Tony. Getting up, he turned to his wife. ‘Let’s go.’

‘Tony,’ said Mr Schmidt, cracking his knuckles. ‘Wait. Do you understand, that Jennifer’s math grades have slipped from a ninety-nine average last year to an eighty-two in the beginning of this year, and by the second quarter…’ he paused again, ‘well, you saw her report card, I gave her a sixty-five, because I like her and am concerned for her. However, you must know that she failed all of the tests I gave last quarter – that’s four exams, six quizzes. Failed every single one of them. Jennifer could do math while asleep standing on her head in nine feet of water. She used to correct me , for God’s sake! I’ve been a teacher for twenty years and have never known anyone to get a perfect score on their math SATs.’ He paused for breath. ‘I’m just trying to tell you, her performance is a cause for concern.’ He looked at them, sitting there with their eyes to the floor. ‘I’m sure this is not the first time you are hearing this,’ he said gently. ‘I’ve spoken to her other teachers. This is a running problem. She is not doing well.’

‘Mr Schmidt.’ Lynn looked up at him. ‘It’s Senioritis. Senioritis! Have you forgotten about being young? Young, eighteen, a cheerleader!’ She swallowed. ‘You know, we’ve done nothing all her life but push and encourage her.’ Lynn looked at her husband, who was nodding vigorously. ‘But,’ she went on, ‘this is her senior year! Let’s ease off her a little. Right, Tony? She is going to Stanford next year; let her have a good time before she has to work so hard. Right, Tony?’

‘Absolutely!’ he said.

Mr Schmidt sighed. He made one more attempt. ‘She was valedictorian of her middle school. Now, how is she going to be valedictorian of Topeka High, having failed everything?’

Tony got up. ‘You know, Mr Schmidt, we are proud of our daughter no matter what she does, and the most important thing to us is that she is happy. If she is happy not being valedictorian because of her own personal reasons, then it’s okay with us.’

‘Is her…’ Mr Schmidt began carefully, ‘is her, hmm, problem, her, hmm, withdrawal…is she having withdrawal symptoms? Like she did when she was young? Is it coming back? She is nearly mute in class.’

‘Jeeezzus!’ Tony exclaimed. ‘You’re not a doctor! You’re a math teacher.’

They did not want to talk to him anymore and left. Mr Schmidt looked after them and then went next door to Miss Keller, who taught biology, and asked her about Mr and Mrs Mandolini.

‘They don’t want to hear it, Jim. It must be really hard for them. She’s always been such an excellent student.’

‘Well, I’ll tell you this. I’ll bet we won’t be seeing them at the spring parent-teacher conference,’ said Mr Schmidt.

Tony and Lynn still had two more teachers to see, English and history, but without saying a word to each other, they just walked out of the school, got into their car, and drove home in utter silence.

‘Should we?’ asked Lynn, chain-smoking in the middle of the Sunset Court kitchen.

Tony was making himself and Lynn a drink. ‘No, absolutely not. She’ll think we’re ganging up on her. Let’s leave her alone for a while, okay?’

Two hours later, Lynn said, ‘She hasn’t come down to see us.’

‘She’s probably on the phone or listening to music. Let’s leave her alone, okay?’

At midnight, when Lynn and Tony walked past Jennifer’s bedroom on the way to bed, their daughter’s light was off and there was no music. Lynn couldn’t help herself. She knocked and quickly opened the door.

‘Mom,’ said Jennifer’s voice from the bed. ‘What’s up?’

‘Nothing, babe, nothing,’ said Lynn. ‘Sleep tight.’

The following night at dinner, Lynn said carefully, ‘Jennifer, the teachers seem to think you are not doing too well in school.’

Jennifer looked up and stared at her mother. ‘Mom,’ she said. ‘Didn’t you see my report card a week ago?’

‘Yes, honey, of course we did,’ said Tony. ‘But the teachers said you were actually doing even worse than what the grades showed. They said you really haven’t passed anything at all this quarter.’

‘That’s true, Dad. I haven’t.’

‘Honey, is anything the matter?’

‘No, Daddy, why should anything be the matter? I just didn’t have a good quarter, that’s all.’ She added, ‘I’ll do much better next report card, you’ll see.’

Lynn and Tony smiled tensely. ‘Oh, we’re glad to hear that, honey,’ said Lynn. ‘We’re so glad! We want you to do so well!’

‘I know you do, Mom. I’m sorry if I disappointed you.’

Lynn reached out her hand to Jennifer. ‘Jenny, you cannot disappoint Daddy and me,’ she said seriously. ‘We’re just concerned. We want you to be happy, that’s all.’