Dear John
"Don't come any closer! I'll jump!"
"Okay. I just want to talk."
The young girl moved a quarter of a step closer to the edge of the building. She looked over the edge. Then slowly turned to look at the man standing by the door that led onto the roof, as she wrung her hands nervously.
"My name is Jon."
Two hours later, Jon hit the back of the ambulance door, signaling to the driver that the patient was in and the doors were closed.
"Oh man. I really thought she was going to jump." Ponch shook his sadly as he watched the ambulance pull off into the distance.
"So did I partner, so did I."
"What was it all about anyway?"
Jon shrugged his shoulders. "She had a fight with her best friend. Her best friend asked her boyfriend out. She got hurt."
"She's only a kid."
"I guess that's the problem," Jon said philosophically. "She couldn't relate the hurt to anything, and doesn't know that things get better with time."
"You missed your calling, Dr Baker, you know that."
"I don't know about that Ponch." Jon smiled relieved to be able to indulge in some lighthearted teasing. "I'm still trying cure you."
Although the rest of the day passed by uneventfully, Ponch couldn't help feeling angry that a young girl had tried to take her life over a squabble with friends. The incident had also left his partner quieter than usual. Jon liked to handle his emotional turmoils on his own, and the expressive Poncherello wasn't sure that that was the best way to go about it.
"Hey Jon," he called over the roar of the motors, "what do you say you come to my place for dinner tonight?"
"What are you making?" Jon asked distrustfully.
"Take-out!"
"In that case, I accept."
The two men sat on the balcony, breathing in the night air. Although Ponch had tried to get the young girl out of his mind, he couldn't. Eventually he stopped trying.
"I can't get over that kid today. What would have happened if no one had seen her standing up there, or if she had jumped?"
"But some one did see her Ponch. Maybe she wasn't meant to die today."
Ponch felt himself getting angry all over again. "But over friends," he through his hands into the air. "Man, I don't understand it."
"I guess she was heartbroken."
Ponch turned to look at his partner suspiciously. "Have you ever been that heartbroken, Jon?"
Jon smiled. "Heartbroken? Yes. That heartbroken? No."
"So, who was the first girl to break your heart?"
Jon laughed and smiled bashfully. "Now that was along time ago."
"Yeah. I'm all ears."
"Ponch." Jon rolled his eyes. "No."
"Come on, Baker. You know everything there is to know about me. You hardly ever tell me anything personal. What was her name?"
"Lilly Morewood."
"You got dumped by a girl named after a flower?" Ponch asked amused.
"Ponch." Jon said dragging his name out slowly.
"Okay, I'm sorry. I won't interrupt again. Ponch made himself comfortable in one of the chairs, still grinning broadly.
"I'm going to regret this aren't I?" Jon shook his head and smiled.
"I met her in my history class at school. She came from the city, her father, who was a minister, ask for a rural transfer." Jon paused to look at Ponch, who was about to say something, but decided to bite his tongue instead. Jon carried on talking, allowing his memory to take him back in time.
He had been reading his history book when the principal had brought the new kid to the classroom to introduce her to the teacher. He hadn't even seen her until Mrs. Henderson, the history teacher, had called for attention to introduce the girl to the rest of the class. It was only then that Jon had looked up. He could still remember that strange feeling that had started in the pit of his stomach and worked its way up, until he had felt quite jumpy and light headed at the same time. She was beautiful. Her hair was the color of corn, and it hung midway down her back. Her glasses had slid down her nose when she turned to face the class, giving her an air of sophistication and innocence all at the same time. Jon sighed deeply. He didn't even notice she wore braces. His eyes had followed her every movement until she had taken her seat on the opposite side of the room. He had tried to go back to reading the book, but the letters and the words on the page no longer made any sense.
"Jon. Jonathan! Jonathan Baker I'm talking to you."
"Huh," he replied casually, before realizing that Mrs. Henderson was peering down at him. "Ye...yes ma'am."
"I have been asking you if you mind helping Lilly catch up with the history notes. Perhaps you can make an arrangement to meet during the lunch breaks, or an afternoon after school."
"Yes ma'am! No problem," he said enthusiastically unable to believe his good fortune.
"Thank you, Jonathan."
"Why aren't you eating?" Cole Cutter asked as he slipped beside Jon at the lunch table. "Are you sick or something?"
"I don't know," Jon replied never taking his eyes off the girl siting 4 tables away. "I feel kind of queasy. I'm not hungry."
"Suit yourself," Cole replied scraping Jon's food into his own plate. "You coming to shoot tin cans this afternoon?"
"Can't. I've got to help the new kid catch up with history notes."
Cole wrinkled his nose in disgust. "You've got to help her? Nick says she's a straight A student. She knew everything in math. Why don't you give her your history book and let her figure it out on her own."
"Firstly Cole, I promised Mrs. Henderson I'd help."
"Secondly," Cole asked shoveling a large helping of food in to his mouth.
"Chew with your mouth closed."
Jon sat in the seat opposite Lilly, his head resting on his hands, grinning broadly. "If you can't read any of the words, just ask."
"Your book is very neat. I'm sure I'll manage fine. You don't have to wait for me if you want to go home. I could give you your book back tomorrow in school."
"That's okay. I'll stay to explain, in case you don't understand. Not that I'm saying you're dumb or anything," he added hastily. "Only...um...maybe you..."
"Thanks I'd appreciate the company."
As the days had turned into weeks, Jon's friendship with Lilly had blossomed. He no longer ate lunch with Cole and the rest of the guys. Instead he found himself making excuses to sit at Lilly's table. Life was good, except for the fact that his grades had started to drop, and in history they were dismal. Jon wasn't overly concerned however, he was sure that once he could start concentrating again everything would come right.
The problem was, try as he might he no longer seemed able to concentrate. During one of his history periods, as he anxiously waited for the bell to ring, signaling the beginning of break, his poor performance in school finally caught up with him.
"Jonathan!" Mrs. Henderson called him back. "Before you go out to break, I would like to speak to you for a few minutes please."
"Yes ma'am," he said starring at Lilly as she walked out of the room.
"Do you have any idea what I want to talk to you about?"
"No." Jon stood silently for a minute. "It's about my grades isn't it?"
"Yes. I afraid so. You've gone from being one of my better pupils to one of my worse. Right now you're failing. I've spoken to some of your other teachers, and they're as worried as I am. I'm thinking about calling your parents in."
Jon's head shot up in horror. "Mrs. Henderson, I promise I'll start doing better."
"Jon, it's not about doing better, most of your teachers are very worried about you. You don't participate during the lessons anymore; you're rushing through your homework. I'm aware that everyone is having a hard time with the drought. Is everything all right at home? Are you working longer hours on the ranch?"
"No, ma'am," Jon said softly, feeling terribly guilty, because his parents had reduced his chores so that he could spend more time on his schoolwork to improve his grades.
He had gone home that day feeling depressed and disappointed. He had let his parents, teachers, friends and himself down. That night at the dinner table he had barely looked at anyone.
"Jon?"
"Yes, sir."
"Mrs. Henderson, spoke to your mother this afternoon. She's worried about you, and says you won't tell her what's wrong. You want to tell your mother and me what's going on."
Jon looked up horrified. "I'm going to start doing better. And I'll help out more around here."
"I know that, because your mom and me are going to keep an eye on you. But I want to know what's going on?"
"Nothing," Jon said as pushed his potato around the plate for the third time.
"You not in any kind of trouble with that Cutter boy are you?"
Jon's mother caught Caroline raising her eyes in disbelief.
"Caroline, if you know what's going on, I'd appreciate you telling your father and me."
Jon shot his sister a deadly look.
"Look at him. He plays with his food, he's moody, and he if he's not daydreaming outside he's spending hours in his room, doing I don't know what. If you want to know my opinion, I think he's in love."
"Oh." His father had said trying to hide his smile, as Jon blushed furiously.
"Why don't you tell the whole world Caroline. I don't think they know in Australia," Jon fumed. Embarrassed, he excused himself and stormed off to his bedroom.
A half an hour later his father was sitting next to him on the bed.
"Your mother...and I...think it's time we had a...father-son chat," his father said resting his hand on Jon's shoulder.
Jon suddenly felt very uncomfortable.
"Of course," he continued, "if you feel uncomfortable about discussing this with me, maybe you can talk to the new minister, what's his name... Morewood."
If Jon felt uncomfortable discussing the birds and the bees with his father, he was mortified at the thought of having the same discussion with the minister, especially since the object of his desire was the said minister's daughter.
The next day, Jon decided to put things right. He would force himself to pay more attention at school, spend more time with the guys and help out more at home. Maybe even get a part-time job. He thought if he could keep himself busy, he would be able to stop thinking about Lilly all together.
But all his good intentions had come to an end when she had invited him home for a snack after school.
After spending the day at school daydreaming, Jon was now nervously swinging his legs backwards and forwards under his chair at her kitchen table.
"My folks won't be home for awhile. They've gone shopping." Lilly looked at him coyly. "Do you want to kiss me?"
Jon nearly choked on his sandwich. "Ah...ah," he stammered. "Yeah." He wiped the breadcrumbs off his lips with the back of his hand, stood up and tenderly kissed her on the cheek. He kissed her twice more on the cheek before she turned her face to kiss him on the lips.
"I'm...I'm going to be...to be late getting home," he babbled feeling flustered.
Lilly responded by deepening the kiss. Jon had never felt so good before. His head started swirling and he felt as light as a feather. The youngsters became so involved in what they were doing; they didn't even hear Lilly's parents come in.
One minute Jon thought he was floating on air, the next, a pair of powerful hands lifted him up in the air by his shirt collar. Jon got such a fright, that in trying to disentangle himself from Lilly, he got his tongue got caught on her braces. By the time he managed to get free, the minister had delivered several sharp stinging blows to the back of his head, and his tongue was bleeding profusely.
The next day Jon had walked around in a state of constant embarrassment, being teased endlessly. To make matters worse, although Lilly had sent him a Dear John letter explaining that she was no longer allowed to speak to him, he had seen her kissing the captain of the football team behind the school building.
"Ope e ets is ongue aught oo," he muttered miserably as he walked passed.
"Oh man! A minister's daughter," Ponch said doubled over with laughter.
"At least my grades improved and I didn't have to go to church for awhile." Jon said laughing loudly. "Come to think of it, I never kissed another girl with braces either. What's your story, Ponch?"
"I think," Ponch replied wiping tears off his cheeks, "I'll save my story for another day." He started laughing all over again. "I don't think I can beat yours."