Jeffy's Choice

By CAP

A Daria fanfic in response to a PPMB Iron Chef Challenge

            The park was quiet. A warm breeze gently wove its way through the trees bathed in the affable light of the full moon. A couple of bats darted through the branches snacking on the insects attracted by the body heat of the three large mammals sitting below on the grass.

            Joey rooted through the rapidly melting ice in the small cooler.  He pushed aside the cans of soda and bottles of water extracting two beers.

            "Sorry, dudes," he announced. "Only two brews left. One of you is out of luck."

            "I don't want another one," Jeffy replied indifferently.

            Jamie quickly grabbed the can from Jamie. "What's with you tonight?" he asked pulling the tab from the can. "You've been awfully quiet since Jodie's party. Before that even."

            Jeffy sighed but did not bother to raise from the grass or even turn his head. "Just been thinking," he answered quietly after a moment. "Toss me a water, will ya?"

            Joey handed his friend a bottle of water before asking. "About what?"

            "Next year," Jeffy said.

            "Aw man, c'mon, dude," Joey whined. "Summer's just started. Don't be talking about school already."

            The redhead took a long sip before replying. "Naw, not the school year. Well, not exactly. I mean, next year. Next June."

            Jamie frowned in confusion glancing over to Joey who signaled his own confusion with a small shoulder shrug. "What about it?" Jamie asked turning back to his friend.

            "I'm scared," admitted Jeffy bashfully.

            Joey laughed. "Scared! Of what?"

            "Being the next Kevin Thompson."

            Jamie joined Joey in laughing but Jeffy remained serious. "Dudes, it's not funny. Come August, he'll be walking through the halls of Lawndale High knowing that he's the punch line to a hundred jokes. I don't think I could face that."

            "Yeah," Jamie said. "But you're passing."

            "Barely."

            "Hey, I'm barely passing but you don't see me crapping my pants over it," Joey said.

            "Well, I am," Jeffy countered. "Where am I gonna be next June even if I pass?"

            "We'll be celebrating the end of school with a kegger," Joey said.

            "And kicking back waiting to start playing college football," Jamie added. 

            "Yeah, maybe you two but not me," Jeffy shot back. "Not a single school has expressed any interest in me. Not even a freaking JC.  And I can't walk on anywhere. My parents are strapped to the limit paying for my sister's college. They can't afford to send me."

            Jamie rubbed his chin. "So, bust your ass this year. Have a good season and you'll get a football scholarship."

            Jeffy eyed his friend. "We've been tight too long to lie to each other. You watched Felix and Pete during spring practice. I was at the top of my game but they were both still better then me. I'm looking at being a third stringer this season and they don't give scholarships to benchwarmers."

            Joey chugged the rest of his beer. He tossed the can into the trash bin fifteen feet away. "Two points. So what are you gonna do?"

            "I'm gonna talk to Quinn for one thing. See if she can hook me up with that tutor she used last year," Jeffy answered.

            "I don't think you can cram eleven years of school into a summer," Jamie quipped.

            Jeffy chuckled for the first time. "No, I don't think so either but I might be able to at least get near where I should be. Maybe I can learn enough to where I can get some decent grades next year."

            "If you can't afford to go to college anyway why bother?" Joey asked.

            "I was thinking that I might learn enough to do okay on the military's basic tests," Jeffy answered. "My cousin learned electronics in the Navy, ya know. He's making decent money right now."

            "Dude, the military'll take any warm body," Joey said derisively. "Hell, we're finally gonna be seniors. Enjoy our last year of being young. Party. Chase girls. Play football."

            "I'm quitting the team," Jeffy replied evenly.

            "Oh, dude, no way," exclaimed a shocked Jamie. "Man, we're the three J's. We've been playing together forever."

            "Yeah, I know and I'm sorry but I'm not Mack," Jeffy said contritely. "I know that I'm not smart enough to do good in school and play football. I gotta pick one or the other and I'm picking school."

            "Dude, that's just flat wrong," Joey snapped angrily. "You can't walk out on us like that. You're part of the team."

            Jeffy snorted. "I don't think that wearing my letterman's jacket to a job interview is gonna help me more then being able to prove I got at least some intelligence."

            "You got your summer job 'cause you're on the team," Joey retorted. "All of us did."

            "Yeah, that's true," acknowledged Jeffy calmly. "And for a summer job it isn't bad but washing and waxing cars at a Ford dealership isn't exactly a career, ya know. We gotta think about the future. I don't want to be one of those creepy middle-aged guys like the ones that show up to our games always talking about their high school playing days because they haven't done anything else with their lives worth talking about."

            Joey leaped to his feet. "Let's cut the crap, okay," he said forcefully glaring at Jeffy. "I mean, who's kidding who? None of us are brains. So you get slightly better grades next year and I just scrape by. So what? We're still gonna end up working somewhere bitchin' and moanin' about our jobs just like everyone else. My old man got pretty good grades back in the day but he's on the same assembly line with high school dropouts. That's just the way it is so you might as well enjoy what little time you have left before you join the rat race. Playing for some college don't mean nothing really if you don't make the NFL but if it keeps us out of the factory for another four years, that's pure gravy." 

            "Joey's got a point," Jamie said quietly as he raised himself on an elbow. "None of us are exactly Einstein and like I said earlier, it's too late. You can't suddenly decide that grades matter after eleven years of blowing them off."

            Jeffy stood. He knocked the grass from his pants with a causal sweep of his hand before he sighed. "Yeah, it probably is too late but I'm gonna try anyway. I'll see you guys at work tomorrow."

            He nodded to Jamie and squeezed Joey's shoulder affectionately before turning away. His friends watched incredulously as he ambled away from them walking straight from the park before turning sharply when he got to the sidewalk. Without a backward glance, he disappeared from their view.

            "I can't believe he just did that," Joey grumbled grabbing a soda from the cooler. "Man, we need more beer."

            Jamie fell back to the grass. A small frown creased his forehead as he linked his hands behind his head. His thoughts wandered as he stared at the stars. A year suddenly seemed far shorter then it had just a few minutes earlier.