J. A. K.

J. A. K. ©

by: Jim Caswell

"WLVU, 97.7 FM, playing the best in 80's love ballads. Stay tuned as we run ten straight songs with no interrup…"

"Shut that thing off!"

Jasper's mom had gotten a divorce from his father two years ago. It was six months later that "uncle John" was upgraded to "dad". Not that Jasper would ever call him that. John Franks was the biggest butt-munch Jasper had ever had the misfortune of meeting. Because of him, Jasper had to move from Hawkeye, Iowa, where he was born and raised, to Chicago. Since then, his life was miserable. Despite the fact that his mom had pushed through adoption papers, Jasper insisted on keeping his last name, Kaminski.

"Fine! I was leaving anyway!" Jasper hated his step-dad, and John made it perfectly clear that the feeling was mutual.

On his way to school, Jasper could mail his weekly letter to his dad. Five weeks left and he would be graduating and able to leave the big city behind. Eighteen and free to make his own decisions, and his decision was to spend the summer with his father and then attend Iowa University. He couldn't wait. John was counting the days.

Jasper knew what was in store for him at school. The same as every other day since arriving in his new school, the only thing changing over time being the order in which it took. In first hour, Gym, Jasper would find himself concentrating on Ginger Roberts and, once again, Bart would catch him looking at his girlfriend. Bart Williams was the school's star quarterback and big man on campus, and seemed to take an unusual enjoyment out of pounding on Jasper. Bart's buddies would then all have a big laugh. It never failed, and the day just goes down hill from there.

Jasper had liked Ginger from the first day he transferred in and believed, deep in his romantic heart, that she could love him. While his heart said yes, however, his mind and his well-beaten body said no. She was a girl from the rich side of town, popular, gorgeous, and had Bart as a boyfriend. What more could any girl want.

When Jasper got home, he went straight to his room and turned on the radio. John was in the living room, his butt continuing the month-long job of creating a butt-grove on the couch, so Jasper quickly set the volume at a lower level to keep from picking up the argument where it had left off. Jasper practically lived in his room, and nobody typically complained as it cut down the arguing.

"Tune in tonight when Rockin' Rob Edwards brings the dedication hour at eight, giving you the chance to show the one you love how much you care." Jasper was a rarity for his age group, preferring to listen to the music of his parents youth rather than his own. Of course, it helped that eighties was his father's favorite and that John hated the stuff.

Jasper had wished, almost every night, that he could call and dedicate a song to Ginger. If Bart caught him, however, he'd be six feet under by morning. Besides that, neither of them would even be listening to WLVU. If he could pull it off, however, it would be worth it just to let he know how he felt. Friday nights would be perfect. John and his mom went out to the bars every Friday night, but he would need to ensure Ginger would be listening.

The next day at school, Jasper went to fifth hour study hall with a plan. He dropped a note near Martha Collins, the school's talking bulletin board. She was an expert at gossip and Ginger's best friend. Seeing that Martha's best informant was seated nearby, she thought nothing of the note on the floor, telling of a big surprise for Ginger, Friday night at eight, on WLVU. As per Jasper's plan, Martha took it straight to Ginger.

Jasper had only one trouble left. He couldn't take credit for the dedication for two reasons: Ginger wouldn't stop long enough to hear his message, as it wouldn't look good for her to acknowledge a normal nerd, and Bart would play football with Jasper's head come Monday morning. He would have to use an alias, but something still connected to himself. He considered using his middle name, Albert, but that still wasn't masculine enough. He blamed his mother for the wimpy names. His father wanted to name him after himself, Marcus. That was a strong name, but too close to home for him to use as a tagline. He then considered his abbreviated name: J from Jasper, A from Albert, and K from Kaminski. J.A.K. would become Jake.

Friday morning, Jasper could hardly hold back his excitement. It seemed like after every class, he saw Ginger and wanted to tell her what he had planned. He actually came close to telling her after school, but instead just said hello and kept on walking. Next thing he knew, Bart had walked up behind him and Jasper was face down in the grass. As he looked up, however, Jasper could have sworn he saw a look of concern on Ginger's face.

At 7:30, Jasper picked up the phone and started to dial. He wanted to call early to be sure to get on the radio. He knew that everyone at school would be listening, so he had to do it right. No goof-ups would be allowed. After a half hour on hold, he heard a deep voice say hello and "name your poison."

Lowering his voice as much as he could without sounding odd, Jasper said "I'd like to dedicate Endless Love to a very pretty lady by the name of Ginger Roberts."

"And to whom does Ginger owe her undying gratitude?"

"Her secret admirer, but you can call me Jake."

"OK, Jake. This one's for you, Ginger, with all of Jake's endless love."

He had finally done it. Jasper had told the world of his love for Ginger, and now he had to wait for the results on Monday.

The plan had worked perfectly. The entire school was talking about Ginger and her mystery man Jake. All of the girls were swooning while Bart and his thugs questioned every Jake in school. Best of all, though, was that they were so busy looking for Ginger's secret admirer that they left Jasper alone.

On Tuesday, however, things had almost returned to normal. Bart had decided to keep closer tabs on Ginger, and whom she talked to during the day. He looked like a lost puppy, the way he was following her around. Jasper had managed to escape persecution up till sixth hour, when Bart and his boys struck. They managed to arrange themselves in the class so that Jasper was surrounded. Then, after class, they pinned Jasper in the hallway. "Jasper, buddy. I've missed ya. What's it been, a couple of days since I last beat ya up?"

"About that. It looked as though you were keeping busy, though."

Frank, Bart's center and right hand man, said "Could Jasper here be the guy we're looking for? He's always droolin' over Ginger."

Bart smiled. "Don't be stupid, man. Jasper's too much of a freak. Besides, he knows that whoever is doing this is dead."

Now it was Jasper's turn to smile. This was going to be fantastic. Bart had just ruled him off the line of suspects completely. It was then that he knew that Jake would have to call in again.

"This is Rockin' Rob. Who's graced my phone lines this glorious Friday night?"

"Its Jake."

"Jake, my man. What song is going out to Ginger tonight."

"You remembered?"

"Of course, man. So what's it gonna be tonight?"

"Earth Angel."

"Nice. By the way, Jake, I got someone who wants to speak to you."

"Hi Jake." It was Ginger. He was caught. "Can you and I meet sometime? I've never had a secret admirer before and I want to see what you're like."

Jasper had to think fast. This could easily be a setup by Bart to catch him. "Actually, you've had one for a very long time. But if we meet, I won't be a secret anymore." What if this wasn't a setup, though, and he was blowing his big chance with the girl of his dreams? Jasper knew that he couldn't let her know that it was he, at least not yet. "Keep listening every Friday night. I'll give you clues to my identity, and in three weeks, I'll tell you who I am."

The DJ took the opportunity provided to jump in. "Thanks for the free plug, Jake. You heard the man, tune in every Friday night to Rockin' Rob Edwards to listen to this drama as it unfolds."

In three weeks, Graduation would be behind them and he would never have to see Bart or Ginger again. She had the right to know who he really was, but he would be leaving for Iowa on Saturday. There would be no way for Bart to get at him. Besides that, Jasper liked Jake's popularity around school.

All that week, Ginger was overflowing with excitement and Bart was on the verge of exploding. Neither one of them could wait for Friday night. They were both waiting for her clue, but Bart wanted it so he could figure out whom to pulverize. Little did Bart know that Jake was none other than his favorite punching bag.

When Friday night rolled back around, Jasper was patched through to Rockin' Rob immediately. "So Jake. What's clue number one?"

"A riddle. You see me every day, but never see me. I'm invisible, but yet always there to be seen."

"Kinda vague, don'tcha think?"

"Hey Rob. Don't want to give away the whole load in the first night."

"You got a point. What song are you going to dedicate tonight."

"Waiting For You by Richard Marx."

Bart was doing nothing but helping Jasper. The harder he pushed to find out Jake's identity, the madder Ginger got at him. As an added bonus, she started to publicly notice Jasper, taking the occasional hellos he would throw out as a chance to talk to him. He had been around for a year and a half, but she had never seemed to notice him.

One day, while Bart was harassing a sophomore who had hung "Jake Rules" on his locker, Jasper took the opportunity to ask Ginger what she saw in him. All she could think of was the fact that he was popular, and even admitted to liking brains over brawn. Jasper couldn't believe it, that his dreams could actually have a chance.

Jake almost didn't make his appearance the next Friday night. It was the weekend before finals, and Jasper was studying when he realized it was 8:15. Luckily, WLVU was waiting for his call.

"Two things separate us: A wall and a gorilla. I'm scaling the wall, and avoiding the gorilla. All I ask is that you are waiting on the other side."

"That it?" Rockin' Rob sounded disappointed.

"That's it. Please play Unchained Melody for her."

That Tuesday, Bart finally pushed Ginger one step too far. No one knew what exactly occurred, but as everyone was exiting the gym after first hour, Ginger threw Bart's class ring at him, yelling that she never wanted to see him again. It was then that the thought occurred to Jasper; what would Ginger think, after breaking up with her boyfriend, to find that Jake was really Jasper? How would it make her feel? Would she be angry? Jasper was shocked to find that for some strange reason, for the rest of the week, Ginger started to pay more attention to him.

Graduation was filled with excitement. The idea of moving on with their lives was energizing, which was to be expected. Surprising enough, however, many were anticipating the true identity of Jake even more. Ginger was her normal easy-going self on the outside, something was in her voice that didn't seem right to Jasper. He hoped that it was just nerves.

As he peered out into the audience, he noticed two sets of parents sitting next to each other. While this wasn't odd, the fact that they were high society was evident by the glow of superiority they radiated toward those around them. One of the pairs was Bart's parents. Jasper recognized Bart's father from the multiple campaign posters around town. He did not, however, know who the other set was until they waved at Ginger. It wasn't a friendly wave, however, but more of a "your still in trouble, young lady, but we're trying to be nice" wave. That was when Jasper realized the whole story. Bart and Ginger's parents had pulled them together, and now she was in trouble for breaking up with him. It all made some sort of weird sense. After all, she had admitted to Jasper that she really wasn't drawn to the likes of Bart.

Jasper looked over at Ginger and found her looking back at him. Did she know? She wasn't stupid, but if she did know, why hadn't she said something, either to him or to someone else? Unless, of course, she didn't mind that it was Jasper, and was waiting for the game to finish. If so, he had doomed himself to fail, even if he won, because he was leaving the state in two days.

Friday rolled around. "Before I tell my identity, Rob, I'd like to dedicate one last song."

"Sure thing, Jake. What song?"

"Because I Love You, and I really mean it." One way or another, Jasper was going to make this a night to remember. Stalling would either extend the excitement or postpone the disappointment; either way he figured it would be a benefit to Ginger. His suitcase was packed, the plane ticket in his jacket, and John was waiting impatiently for the morning to arrive.

Jasper listened to the song, thinking of ginger, wishing a dreaming of what could have been. "OK, Jake. Everyone's waiting. Who are you?"

Jasper lowered his voice back to his normal speaking voice. "My name is Jasper, Jasper Albert Kaminski." He paused. "Now that everyone who knows me has had a chance to close their mouths from shock or laughter, I'd just like to say one more thing. Ginger, I will always carry you in my heart. I really do love you."

* * * * *

After spending the entire summer with his dad, Jasper was ready to hit the books again. He had to make sure that he concentrated hard on his classes, as his scholarships held steep requirements. It was always said that he would make a great scientist, a point that his father had spent a great deal of time reassuring him of. In fact, his dad had concentrating on building Jasper up in all areas; a pleasant change of pace from the previous two years. He had even started calling him Jaz, just to add a level of encouragement. Now was his chance to prove his dad right.

The dorms were gorgeous. Each "house" was divided in two halves, male and female. Jasper's room was on the second floor and he had already noticed at least twenty women wandering about, but he had already set his mind on just his studies. He wasn't about to get hurt again.

He was in the process of unpacking when he heard a knock at the door. "Yes?"

From behind the door, he heard a female voice. "Is this the room of J. Kaminski?"

"Yes. Who's there?"

"I live over in the female dorm. A friend said that I should look you up."

"Who?"

"A guy named Jake." As Jaz opened the door, he found Ginger standing in his doorway.

Well, he thought, I don't have to concentrate that hard on classes.