Taking It All Read online

  "You do tonight," said the man. "There's black coffee and coffee with shitty creamer- you aren't gonna find any rooibos or chamomile in this joint."

  And as he settled into his seat, Leon finally threw back the hood of his sweatshirt.

  Jade had to hold back a gasp when she looked at his face. Just as she'd thought from seeing him from a distance, the man was gorgeous. His face was stunning, his full, sensual lips, slim nose, and narrow blue eyes set among high cheekbones and a strong chin. His hair was a shock of brilliant blonde, a few strands hanging attractively over his forehead. His features were so radiant to Jade that he seemed like an out-of-place contrast to the gray of the urban wasteland that surrounded them, like an angel walking among a fallen earth.

  "I'm Leon," he said, his voice brusque.

  "And... how do I know that's your real name?" asked Jade.

  "I guess you don't," said Leon, scoffing. "But I suppose it doesn't really make any difference, now does it?"

  "I guess not," said Jade, looking down.

  At that moment, the man approached from behind the counter and placed two mugs of steaming, black coffee in front of the two of them. Jade looked down into the thick, ink-black liquid; it seemed to her more like industrial sludge than any coffee she'd ever had. Steam coiled above it and disappeared into the air.

  "So," said Leon, sitting back in the booth and draping one arm across the back of his seat. "You gonna tell me exactly what the hell you're doing here?"

  Jade felt immediately very silly. She knew well and good that her reasons for being in this part of town were about as silly as they get, and after being chased down my Leon she was already scolding herself for placing her life in danger for something like a writing class assignment. But, it was the truth. And even if she were any good at lying, just looking into Leon's stunning blue eyes made her feel like he'd be able to detect any falsehood as soon as it came out of her mouth.

  "Well?" asked Leon, his tone now more impatient. "Let's hear it. You said a writing assignment?"

  "Um," started Jade as she wrung her hands, "it's really stupid."

  "Cut the preamble," said Leon. "Just get to the point."

  "It's…for school, like I said."

  "Yeah, that much I know," said Leon. "I still can't believe you're coming to this part of town for a goddamn assignment. But tell me more."

  "Well," said Jade, "I, um, have to do an assignment about an interesting place I know. And I started thinking about just where I'd been in my life, and the place where I grew up, and I realized that I hadn't really been anywhere interesting. I grew up in a nice house in a nice neighborhood, and I've never, you know, had to deal with anything more difficult than getting school assignments in on time. So, my roommate suggested that I come to the bad part of town and see what it was like here."

  Leon looked at Jade with disbelief, his gorgeous mouth slacked open just a bit.

  "That's gotta be about the stupidest goddamn thing I've ever heard," he said. "Your roommate told you to come here? Does your roommate live in this part of town? Does she know anything about this neighborhood other than it's the ‘bad part' of the city?"

  Jade's stomach tightened. She didn't think it was possible for her to feel any stupider, but Leon had pulled it off.

  "I don't think so," said Jade. "She's from the same neighborhood where I grew up."

  "And what neighborhood is that?"

  "Cherry Estates," Jade admitted.

  "Cherry-fucking-Estates," said Leon, shaking his head in disbelief. "Of course you're from a place like that. Fancy fucking houses, immaculately-managed lawns, a pair of Mercedes in every driveway, and a big fence around the whole place to keep guys like me out. About as fucking far from my hood as you can get."

  "Yeah," said Jade sheepishly. "I know."

  "So," said Leon, taking a sip of his coffee. "This place ‘interesting' enough for you?"

  "Well," said Jade, "when I came here, I didn't know what to expect. But as I looked around, I started to notice the way people live here, and it made me want to do something about it."

  "'Do something about it'?" asked Leon, raising his eyebrows slightly. "What the hell is a girl like you going to do about all this?"

  He made a sweeping motion towards the scene of urban decay just outside the diner window.

  "I don't know," said Jade. "I want to be a writer someday; maybe I could write about everything I've seen here, maybe make people more aware of how, um, the other half lives."

  Leon stared at Jade hard, and she felt his eyes cut into her, slicing her up into insignificant little pieces as she sat there. Finally, after a time, he leaned forward and spoke.

  "You need to leave here, and never come back."

  Chapter Four

  It took all of Leon's restraint not to yell at Jade at the top of his lungs. Anger boiled inside of him as this silly, stupid girl told him about her rich girl dreams to write a goddamn book about where he grew up, as if shoving out a few thousand words in some magazine f would do any good.

  "What?" asked Jade, seemingly surprised by the harshness of Leon's response.

  "You heard me," said Leon. "Once we're done here, your skinny ass needs to get right back in that fancy car you drove here in and never come back. Go back to the apartment that your parents are paying for, and take your classes that they're paying for, too. Stay in that nice, safe little college bubble girls like you live in, and never come back to this neighborhood ever again. I'm fucking serious."

  "But…" said Jade, still clearly off-kilter from Leon's aggressiveness, "I just thought that I might be able to do something. I mean, maybe if I wrote something, maybe got it in a magazine, then people with money might be able to help."

  "Listen," he said, "you think this place lives or dies by how much charity rich assholes decide to kick our way? You think a few investment bankers who read the New York Times just need to open their checkbooks and their hearts and then the ghetto can be saved, and all of the little fucking street urchins can get together and build a statue to the amazing, wonderful girl who wrote her special article that reminded the world that poor people exist?"

  Leon shook his head. Then he snatched his coffee cup off the counter and brought it to his lips, figuring that he needed something to block the flow of invectives shooting out of his mouth.

  Jade was clearly stunned. And as she looked at Leon with a totally dumbfounded expression, he couldn't help but notice just how good-looking she was. Her forest-green eyes were wide open, her blood-red lips were slacked just a bit, and all of this was framed by thick, chocolate-brown hair done in a simple style. And he'd long since noticed her slender but curvy frame, enticing even in the non-descript clothes she'd chosen to not draw attention to herself.

  She's a looker, that's for damn sure, but she's gonna end up in a shallow grave somewhere if she doesn't stop being so goddamn naïve.

  Then the last thing Leon wanted to have happen happened: tears began welling in Jade's eyes. She sniffled just a bit and shoved her hand in her purse for a Kleenex to wipe her face with.

  "Oh, come on," said Leon. "Turn off the damn waterworks. You have to know just how ridiculous you sound right now."

  "Well," said Jade, sniffling again, "that doesn't mean you have to be so mean about it."

  Leon couldn't help but laugh, a dry chuckle escaping his mouth.

  "Listen to you," he said. "You want to really get to know this neighborhood, really find out about how the other half lives, and here you are crying as soon as anyone takes a tone with you. What do you think that says about you?"

  "You're being a real jerk," said Jade, doing her best to compose herself.

  Leon decided to ease up a little bit; her sniffling was already attracting the attention of Leon behind the counter.

  "People in this part of town would do a lot worse to you than be a real jerk if you caught them on the wrong day."

  Jade dabbed the last few tears from her eyes and took a deep breath. After a time, she was back t
o something like normal. Leon felt relief wash over him; few things were more annoying to him than women who'd gotten their feelings hurt over one thing or another and turn into blubbery, crying messes in public.

  "Well, you made your point," said Jade, stuffing her Kleenexes into her purse. "But I still need to do my assignment. And I need to see someplace interesting, or dangerous, or something like that."

  Leon shook his head.

  "What is it with you rich girls?" he said. "You know what's interesting to me? Something that would really grab my attention? A nice, warm house in a good part of town. Maybe a pantry full of food? That would be really interesting. Maybe a home-cooked meal that I got to eat with a family that communicates to one another in something other than drunken screams. I swear, you people glamourize how people like me live; it's fucking bizarre."

  "I'm sorry," said Jade. "It was stupid of me."

  Leon held back saying anything else.

  Realizing how dumb she's being is a start. A small start, but a start nonetheless.

  "But I'm already here," continued Jade. "And I need to find something to write about."

  Leon took in a slow breath.

  She's stubborn; I'll give her that, he thought to himself.

  "Why do I get the impression that if I told you to get the hell out this neighborhood the first thing you'd do is come back and do exactly what I told you to not do?"

  "Because I would," said Jade, an attractive, sly smile forming on her lips.

  "I guess you rich girls are used to getting whatever you want."

  "Hey," said Jade. "I'm not that rich."

  "Please," said Leon. "Every rich kid thinks they're not rich. They look at the people richer than they are and think ‘I can't possibly be rich; it's those people, the ones with a little more than me; they're the rich ones'. See it all the time. You've got a nice car, your tuition's paid, and I bet if I rooted through that purse of yours I'd find a credit card or two with Daddy's name on it."

  Jade said nothing, instead crossing her arms across her chest in a way that inadvertently drew attention to the undoubtedly full breasts hidden under her baggy shirt.

  Focus, Leon, he thought.

  "OK, OK," said Jade. "You've made your point- I'm a dumb rich girl who doesn't know about anything and is doing stupid poverty tourism. I feel really stupid and I regret coming here. Are you happy now?"

  "See?" said Leon with a smirk. "What wasn't so hard, was it?"

  Jade scrunched up her nose in a way that Leon couldn't help but find charming. Against his better instincts, his protective nature was beginning to kick in; he knew that if left to her own devices this girl would just wander around until she got mugged – or worse.

  "OK," said Leon. "Here's the deal: I'll take you someplace that's interesting and also a little dangerous. It'll be someplace you can write about for your little assignment. But the terms are that I go with you and that once you've seen what you need to see, you get in your car and leave. And never come back here."

  "'Interesting and dangerous'?" asked Jade. "I'm intrigued."

  "Is that a ‘yes'?" asked Leon.

  "Fine," said Jade. "If it'll give me something to write about, then sure."

  "Good," said Leon, gesturing to Lenny for the check. "Then let's get to it; I got shit to do tonight."

  "Such a charmer," said Jade, flashing another sly smile.

  "I'm not here to charm," said Leon. "I'm here to make sure you don't end up on the nightly news."

  Once Lenny brought the check, Leon tossed down a ten and the two of them were off. Leon led Jade down a few more blocks until they came to his motorcycle.

  "This yours?" asked Jade.

  "Nope," said Leon. "Here in the hood we just carjack whatever's nearby whenever we need to get somewhere. Think of it as a ghetto ride-sharing program."

  "Cute," said Jade.

  Leon hopped on the bike and handed Jade his helmet.

  "What…what do I do?" asked Jade.

  "You've never ridden on one of these before?"

  Jade shook her head.

  "Just get on, grab hold, and that's it," said Leon. "I'm doing all the hard stuff."

  Jade hesitantly got on the back of the bike and put on her helmet.

  "And hold on, too," said Leon.

  Jade then wrapped her arms around Leon's midsection. Once Jade was secure, Leon gunned the engine and they were off. They whipped down the streets of the neighborhood, and Leon felt Jade's grip on him tighten the faster they went. After a time, they left the city limits and arrived at a forested area. Leon found a place to park and came to a stop, killing the engine as he did.

  "Out in nature?" asked Jade, looking over the dense forest in front of them.

  "The city's not the only dangerous place," said Leon.

  "What're we doing here?" asked Jade.

  "There's a pretty decent view up here, if you don't mind a little hike," said Leon.

  "A hike?" asked Jade. "I thought we were going to see someplace dangerous?"

  "Wait until you see it before you run your mouth," said Leon. "Come with me."

  "Wait," said Jade, "how do I know this isn't all some kind of, um, trick or something."

  Leon let out a bark of a laugh.

  "Please," he said. "If I wanted to try anything I could've done it already and been back home in time for dinner. Now get a move on."

  Leon headed into the woods and Jade followed after him. They weaved through the thick trunks of the trees, and Leon took the opportunity to enjoy the fresh smell of the forest air; he spent so much time in his neighborhood that sometimes he forgot there was a world beyond that. After about fifteen minutes of walking, they arrived at a nearly sheer rock face that went up around a hundred feet or so.

  "Where now?" asked Jade.

  Leon pointed up.

  "Wait," said Jade, "are you serious? We're gonna climb up that?" No way; it's too dangerous."

  This is exactly what Leon was hoping to hear. He was down for a climb, but he figured that if he could get Jade to chicken out, then he could discourage her from trying to get thrills in whatever stupid way came to mind for her. The city's dangerous, and nature's dangerous, so the best thing she could do would be to stay in her safe little bubble. At least, this was the conclusion to which Leon was hoping Jade would come.

  But instead, what she said next surprised him.

  "Well, fine," she said, looking up. "Let's do this."

  Not the answer I was expecting, thought Leon. Maybe there's more to this girl than I'd thought?

  Leon grabbed onto the nearest solid rock grip and began climbing up. It wasn't a true climb, as there were plenty of places to walk, but it was taxing nonetheless. After about fifteen minutes of climbing and hiking, Leon heaved himself over the precipice. Looking down, he could see Jade struggling to make the last few feet. He reached down and she grabbed his hand. With a heave, he pulled her up to the top.

  "Holy shit," said Jade as soon as she caught her breath and turned her attention to the view.

  An amazing vista was spread before them of rolling hills, endless forests, and the city far off in the distance. By this point, the sun was setting and the sky was filled with dramatic salmon and cream colors, the clouds curving wisps among it. And directly up above the night sky was beginning to show, the first twinklings of stars visible in the dark of the expanding night.

  "This is…pretty fucking cool," said Jade, walking over to the cliff edge and taking in the sights. "How did you know about this place?"

  "This was one of my favorite places to come as a kid," he said. "Back when things at home would get too…hard to deal with, I'd come here for some peace and quiet. Still do, every now and then."

  Leon took a seat on the edge of the cliff, the majestic view almost overwhelming. A flock of blackbirds rose from a patch of trees far off in the distance, and Leon watched as they took off into the sky above. After a moment or two, Jade sat down next to him.

  "So, rich girl," said Leon. "Te
ll me about yourself."

  Jade's fair skin reddened a bit, and Leon could sense that she didn't really care for being in the spotlight like this.

  "Um, not much to say," she said. "I mean, you kind of had me pegged."

  "I doubt you're that much of a cliché," said Leon. "You want to be a writer? That's not exactly par for the course for girls like you. Most of the ones I've met want to get some job in New York working for some fashion magazine."

  "And you've met a lot of girls like me?" asked Jade.

  "Let's just say college girls who want a taste of the rougher side of life aren't that hard to come by, especially since I go to the same school as you."

  "Really?" asked Jade. "I didn't know that."

  "You sound surprised," said Leon.

  "I mean, I am, a little," she said.

  "I don't blame you," said Leon. "Not many people in my part of town are thinking too much about higher education. Most of them just want to be able to pay their bills at the end of the week. But we're not talking about me."

  "Oh, right," said Jade. "Well, I want to be a writer. I don't know why, really; it's always just appealed to me."

  "Just out of the blue like that?" asked Leon. "Just one day, poof, ‘I want to be a writer'?"

  "Well," said Jade. "I think it goes back to when I was little and I found my mom's old copy of Pride and Prejudice. I think I was around eight at the time. I'd never been much of a reader, but for some reason, something about that old hardcover, red and worn just a bit, the letters on the front a beautiful gold, it just called out to me. So, one rainy Saturday afternoon, I picked it up, plopped down on the couch, and started reading."

  "And before I knew it, my mom was telling me it was time for dinner. Hours flew by, just like that. I insisted on bringing the book to the table, barely eating as I flipped through the pages. Then, of course, when bedtime came I hid under the covers with a flashlight and didn't sleep a wink until I'd finished it. And from then on, all I could think about was being able to write like that, to be able to create a vivid world with nothing more than words and imagination."