Jacky Hazardous by Jacob Long (fiction book recommendations .TXT) 📖

drink he said, “I’m not a fan of sweets.”
Joanie took a bite of her cake, and her face lit up. “Oh my god! They’re great! You’ should try it!” Indeed, everyone at the table seemed to be thoroughly enjoying John’s mother’s baking.
Joanie extended her cake toward him, but John only shook his head with a smirk on his face, as if she were adorable for even trying. It communicated that confidence he constantly exuded.
Joanie rescinded the cake.
Suddenly The front door opened and a child in a blue soccer uniform came running into the house. “John!” the boy shouted.
John’s face lit up with delight and he jumped from his chair. “Hey! There he is!”
John scooped the boy up in his arms and hugged him tightly. “Ohh! Ricky, how you doing?”
“Good! We won!” Ricky answered.
“You did? Awesome!” John turned to his guests. “Everyone, this is my little brother, Ricky.”
Jacky mused at Ricky’s appearance. John was mostly Italian, but his brother seemed to possess more Asian qualities. He might have been the product of John’s step-mother rather than a full-blood relative.
John lowered Ricky to the ground. “Hey, you wanna stay and hang out?”
“Sure!” Ricky smiled.
Melissa’s face became increasingly exasperated.
Suddenly Mrs. Demeo came back into the room. “Richard, honey. I think Jonathon’s friends would rather you go play in your room. You’re not supposed to have a lot of sugar, anyway.”
John sat down with Ricky on his lap. “Oh, they’ll be fine, mom. How often do I get to see my brother?”
Mrs. Demeo seemed sullen. “Oh, alright. He can stay. I’ll go get him some fruit juice.” She shuffled back out of the room.
Without much hesitation, Ricky grabbed up what was left of John’s tea and fired it down before John could stop him. The child immediately wretched and dropped the cup back on the table. “YYYUUUCCCKKK! How can you drink that?!”
A few people at the table thought it was pretty funny.
“Richard!”
Everyone turned to see their mother standing in the kitchen doorway with a child’s cup in her hand. She hurried over to Ricky, set the cup on the table, and proceeded to baby him.
“Oh, Richard. You shouldn’t be drinking any tea! Here, have some cake to get the taste out.” She began to shove a cake into his mouth.
While watching the whole scene, Jacky’s eyebrow arched in confusion.
Still chewing the cake, Ricky's mother began to rush him out of the room.
“Tea is not for children!”
John spoke after them. “Looks like you better go, bro. We’re in trouble this time.” The smug look still plastered his countenance.
After that whole scene, John simply tilted his cup over to look into it and said. “Only now I’m out of tea.”
Arthur chimed in once more. “It actually looks like a lot of people are out of tea. Me and Joanie can go in the kitchen and make some more.”
“Me?” Joanie asked.
John looked at her. “Yeah. Sounds like a good idea. My mother probably won’t be around to do it. Go with him, Joan.”
Joanie looked dismayed, but she got up and followed Arthur into the kitchen.
After a few minutes the two returned, each holding a tray of tea. Joanie looked irritated. They set their trays down on the table and everyone grabbed some more tea.
When Joanie sat down again she leaned over and whispered into Melissa’s ear. Jacky could hear it.
“He brought me in there so he could ask me out on a date. I said no.”
Melissa replied in a normal voice. “Hey, wow. That’s interesting. Can I talk to you outside for a second?”
She got up, opened the sliding glass door that led out to the backyard, and led the way outside. Joanie looked confused, but she got up and followed. After Melissa closed the door behind them, Jacky watched as the two girls walked off of the porch and stopped on the grass; still within sight.
He watched as Melissa pointed both fingers at the ground. She wanted Joanie to stay right where she was. Jacky took a drink of his tea and considered that. She wants Joanie and John to talk so she can leave. In another moment she’ll probably come inside for John.
After taking another drink, Jacky took the cup away from his face and looked at it. It was okay tea, but it definitely wasn’t as good as Mrs. Demeo’s. It didn’t have that almond aftertaste.
Suddenly a voice reached Jacky from the side. “You like Melissa, don’t you?”
Jacky turned to see John Demeo looking at him intently. Jacky didn’t answer, though.
After a moment, John sniffled and shrugged. After taking a swig of tea he said, “Well, too bad. You’re gonna have to go through me first, and I’m a senior. Do you really think Melissa would go out with a Junior? You’re like her funny little buddy right now, but once that teacher thing blows over, you’re not gonna be considered the boy hero anymore. You’ll have no appeal.”
Jacky raised an eyebrow. He had no clue why this guy was even telling him this.
Melissa opened the sliding door back up and took a step inside. Joanie was still outside.
“Joanie wants to talk to you.” Melissa said.
John sighed and threw his napkin on the table. “I suppose I should take care of this right now.”
He got up and walked outside. Melissa closed the door behind him and continued to watch. Jacky stood up and moved next to her to watch as well. The sun was beginning to set, and the sky was turning a velvet pink. It actually looked kind of beautiful with them standing in front of it.
“I don’t think this is going to be a conversation Joanie is going to want to hear.” Jacky said.
“Me neither.” Melissa agreed with a sigh.
Jacky watched as the conversation grew more and more heated. Joanie’s expressions became painful and John looked angry. In the middle of Joanie saying something, John looked over at the house. Next John grabbed her brusquely by the arm and led her around the house, out of sight. He must not have appreciated being watched in a situation like that, so he led her away in some pride driven effort to save face.
“He always treats her like crap.”
When Jacky and Melissa turned around to see who had joined them, they found that Arthur’s girth had somehow snuck up.
“It’s fine.” Arthur continued. “He’ll get what’s coming to him, soon.”
Jacky and Melissa exchanged creeped-out glances. Never being very subtle, Melissa tried to aid in their escape by saying, “Well, show’s over. Come on, Jacky. Let’s go make out in a closet or something.”
Jacky immediately looked shocked, and even a little afraid.
Melissa giggled at him. “Just kidding. I don’t think we’re there yet.”
Jacky couldn’t tell if she was kidding with the “yet” part, either.
Without warning, a scream rent the air from outside. Jacky was shocked, but Arthur was moving in an instant. He pushed Melissa and Jacky out of the way, tore the door open, and sprinted outside. Jack and Melissa followed in the next second.
When the group rounded the corner, they found Joanie knelt over John’s body, sobbing. John was motionless, and his eyes and mouth were still wide with pain and fear.
Arthur knelt down and tried to move Joanie away from him. “Joanie move! Joanie MOVE!”
Joanie finally stood up and stepped away, right into Melissa, where she nuzzled her face into Melissa’s neck. She was crying uncontrollably.
Arthur started pumping John’s chest, administering CPR.
The rest of the guests caught up and Melissa turned to them. “Call 9-1-1!”

A police detective arrived and examined the body. Due to the lack of physical wounds, and the smell still lingering in John’s gaping mouth, he determined cause of death to be poisoning. Potassium Cyanide; nasty stuff. Jacky had been hunched over the body for a while and already made that determination before the officer arrived. He told Ron his findings, and then said to keep him abreast of any new developments; after which he ran back into the house and hadn’t been seen since.
After making his determination, the detective asked all of the guests to gather around. John’s mother and brother were off to the side, crying all over each other.
Because everyone was required to attend, Ron fetched Jacky. When Ron found him, he was in the kitchen. He was holding a tea cup at his side in his left hand and smelling another cup in his right.
After getting a good whiff he dropped the cup into the sink and pulled out another cup. He smelled this one as well. When he was satisfied he dropped the cup back into the sink.
“That tears it.” Jacky muttered; then he turned to Ron. “Did the detective examine the body?”
“Yes.” Ron answered.
“And?”
“He said it looked like poisoning.”
“Alright. Let’s go.” Jacky continued holding the cup in his left hand as the two walked out of the house.
They rejoined the group that was huddled around the detective.
“Is this everybody?” the detective asked. “Alright. I’m Detective Stern with the Cyalume Police Department. Did anyone see anything?”
Jacky was about to raise his hand but Joanie immediately stepped out in front of the group and pointed a finger at Arthur. “He poisoned John’s tea!”
Arthur was outraged. “What?!”
“I saw him do something to the drink when we were making the second batch!” Joanie screamed.
Arthur looked dismayed. “Well, yeah. I spit in it. But I didn’t poison him!”
Melissa chimed in softly.