Compromise
Heather Davis
“Which one?” JoJo asked, holding up two veils, as Keith pulled apart an Oreo cookie he had smuggled in. He liked eating the hard chocolate outside while carefully peeling the white cream off and saving it for last. He shrugged his shoulders indicating that he just didn’t care about the veils. That and his mouth was full of chocolately crumbs; he knew that talking with his mouthful of food was quite possibly the ultimate dinner-table sin.
“This is your wedding, too!” JoJo shrieked. “You have to help me decide.” Ever obedient, he pointed to the veil in her right hand, still chewing his chocolately goodness.
“This one?” JoJo said shaking the one in her right hand. “Yeah, right, Keith. This one is dumb. Do you even remember that I want my hair braided?” Keith shook his head no and unscrewed another chocolate cookie. “Well,” JoJo continued, “If I wear this one, no one can see my braid. C’mon, Keith. Pay attention!” Keith nodded his head and continued to crunch the cookie.
“Now,” JoJo continued, placing the veil in her left hand on the vanity that was situated under the window, “We need to decide on my new shoes. Stand up, Keith,” she ordered. As Keith worked his body from the sitting to the standing position, JoJo tried on the first pair of shoes then positioned herself directly in front of Keith. Her nose hit the top of his forehead. She kicked the shoes off with an exasperated grunt. Without uttering a word, Keith sat back down.
“What are you doing? Don’t sit down yet,” JoJo said between her gritted teeth, “I’ve still got more shoes to try on until I get the right kind for me to wear when I stand next to you,” then she paused for dramatic purposes before yelling, “WHEN WE GET MARRIED!” With the raised volume of JoJo’s voice, Keith bounded to his feet and even stopped chewing the creamy white center he’d been able to perfectly remove from the chocolate outsides.
After JoJo tried on every pair of shoes in the house, she declared that she would just have to go barefooted. Only at that time did Keith relax his shoulders and slowly – very slowly – lower himself to have a seat again. He was glad he’d smuggled the cookies in with him. It seemed like they might be in this stuffy, pink place forever and he figured it was getting pretty close to lunch. He let a big sigh escape as JoJo began pulling dress upon dress right off the rod.
“Keith?” JoJo said sweetly, although Keith was cautious concerning her tone, “Are you bored?” He froze. He knew it was a trick question. He knew that if he said yes, he’d get yelled at. But he also knew that if he said no, he could easily find himself sitting right in that very spot for the rest of the day. He did the only thing he knew to do: He stared right at JoJo and didn’t move a muscle. Still as a statue. No blinking. No breathing. No biting the cookie that was clutched in his sweaty little hand.
As his eyes locked on her dark chocolate eyes, he remembered why he was there. She was his best friend: laughing at all of his jokes, sharing his favorite foods, watching his favorite shows on TV, reading his favorite books, playing his favorite games. With JoJo’s thick red hair that she hated to brush, she was also the first girl he thought was as beautiful as his mom. That’s why he was standing there locked in a stare down with her instead of out with his friends.
“Because,” JoJo said, finally breaking from his gaze, “This is OUR wedding. And if you think you’re bored now, mister, you’d better think again. So you’d better just get unbored!” In response to his utter confusion, Keith slowly raised the cookie to his mouth as JoJo scratched her head looking as confused by what she had just said as Keith was. She spun on her heels and began holding dresses up to her petite body as she looked at herself in the full-length mirror.
She spun again and faced Keith. “Do you like this one best, Keith?” He nodded his approval. “Or this one?” He nodded his approval again. “Or this one?” He nodded his approval once more. “Keith!” JoJo hollered, “You’re being dumb again!”
JoJo dropped the dresses then dropped her head; Keith dropped his last cookie from his mouth. She slowly walked to Keith and sat herself down beside him. He offered her the cookie. She shook her head no and whispered, “Don’t you want to get married, Keith? Don’t you want to marry me?”
Keith shook his head and then whispered right back at her the first word he had uttered all day, “No”.
JoJo’s brows knit themselves together in the middle of her forehead. She chewed on the inside of her lips and crossed her arms in front of her chest; she turned her tiny frame away from Keith and toward the window. She saw some children outside playing kickball in the grassy lot. She let out a big sigh and turned back to her beloved.
“You really don’t want to get married?”
Keith shook his head no.
Not ready to give up her dream, JoJo pushed, “Really, really don’t want to get married?”
Keith chewed a few more chews and looked over JoJo’s shoulder to the carefree game being played outside and the beautiful late spring day he was missing before he shook his head no yet again.
“Then how about this,” JoJo said with a strange mix of resignation and readiness in her voice, “Today we go outside and play kickball until everyone goes in for lunch. Then after lunch, you come back over, and we get married. Deal?”
For the first time all day, Keith smiled. “Deal!” he shouted. Then they both hopped from JoJo’s bed, giggling as they dashed from her house into the grassy space that separated their families’ homes.