Don't Hate the Player...Hate the Game(24)
After I got settled, Pastor Dan stood up again. “I’ve been asked by the Nelson family to say a few words about Jake. You know, it’s never an easy thing delivering a eulogy, especially for one so young. Jake and I came to know each other under some interesting circumstances,” Pastor Dan paused and smiled as a murmur of laughter rang through the crowd. Everyone remembered that a drunken ride on a lawnmower had brought the pastor and the hell raiser together.
“But I have to say the Jake I knew was quite a remarkable young man. During those two years, I saw him grow and change. He was truly evolving into a spiritual warrior.”
I slowly swiveled my head to look at Alex. He wore the same dumbfounded expression on his face as I did. Did Pastor Dan know the same Jake we did? Jake a spiritual warrior? He was more a Viking warrior—you know, pillaging and raping through villages. But with Jake, all of his women came willingly.
Yeah, it was true in the last few weeks that Jake appeared to be changing, but it would be hard for me to say I saw some ‘spiritual warrior’ in him.
Pastor Dan continued on. “I’ll never forget the smiles he brought to the faces of the children on the Pediatric Oncology floor, or the pride he felt when he helped rebuild homes in Mississippi damaged by terrible storms.”
I turned back to Alex. “What the hell? He told me he went to Mississippi to hook up with this college girl he’d met through Jason,” I whispered.
Alex nodded. “Same here.”
I didn’t dare look around at the other guys. I knew they were all experiencing the same “WTF?” moment I was, and if I saw their faces, I might lose it and start laughing hysterically.
Admittedly, in the last six weeks Jake had suggested he was turning over a new leaf. Making a vow to give up drinking and partying was one thing. But to work with sick kids on the cancer floor and rebuild homes in Louisiana was completely out of my realm of understanding and belief.
Pastor Dan did manage to hit upon some “truthful” things about Jake. He mentioned his gift at sports, his charming smile, and his ability to make girls swoon. I guess saying swoon was as g-rated as Pastor Dan could make it. I guess deep down he knew that Jake was a manwhore, but I’m pretty sure he would never admit it. I’m not sure why he ever let a guy like Jake spend so much time with his very unworldly daughter.
“And now, Mr. and Mrs. Nelson have asked my daughter, Maddie, and myself to sing Go Rest High On That Mountain.” Pastor Dan motioned behind us where I assumed Maddie was sitting.
At the mention of Maddie’s name, I straightened up on the pew. She came by me in a cloud of Noa perfume. I waited to see who would be joining them on the piano or guitar, but no one did. They sang the entire song A capella, and it was amazing. Their voices blended with such harmony that you felt like you were listening to seasoned professionals—not just a preacher and his kid. As a musician, I was floored, as a grief-stricken friend, I was totally moved, and as a red-blooded male, I was moved in an entirely different way by Maddie.
By the time they finished, the chorus of sniffling had returned. “Now we shall move on to the Rolling Hills Cemetery where Jake remains will be interred,” Pastor Dan said.
The funeral director motioned for the congregation to rise. Then he motioned for us. We all quickly hopped to our feet and started down the aisle. As I glanced at the faces, I was amazed at all the different groups of kids who had shown up for the funeral. I’d heard Dr. Blake had made an announcement that all students attending the funeral would be excused without penalty. I don’t know if some of the kids were there truly because of their feelings for Jake or if they were really there just to get out of school.
As we came out of the double doors, sunlight blinded our eyes. Even though I was outside in the fresh air, I still couldn’t get the sickening sweet smell of funeral flowers out of my nose. We were ushered to the car the funeral home provided for us.
The moment we pulled into traffic, Blaine cleared his throat. “So, uh, that was a nice funeral, wasn’t it?”
All of stared at him. I guess he was one of those people who couldn’t stand silence. I decided to take pity on him. “Yeah, it was.”
“Noah, I gotta ask something,” Andy Hiller said.
“What is it?”
Andy looked at the other guys before he responded. “Uh, did Jake really do all that stuff that Pastor Dan said, or was he trying to make Jake sound better—you know cause he died?”
Alex and I glanced at each other before I responded. “I really can’t answer your question. I mean, Jake never told me about any of that stuff, but Pastor Dan is a religious dude, so he wouldn’t have lied.”
The other guys nodded their heads in agreement.
“Maybe there was a lot about Jake that we didn’t know,” Alex suggested.
“He seemed pretty straight forward to me,” Tyler Mitchell mused.
“Yeah, parties, girls, and good times—that was the Jake I knew,” Blaine replied. He looked around at the other guys and shook his head. “I’m not sure I’d even want to believe that Jake Nelson was doing all those things Pastor Dan claimed he was doing. Hell, I liked him just the way he was!”
A chorus of “Damn rights!” rang through the car. Next to me, Alex remained silent, obviously overwhelmed by the drama of the ‘Two Jakes’. I kept my mouth shut as well, and so did Bubba, aka Sean and Ryan. I guess we all realized that driving home the point about Jake’s transformation would be meaningless to this crowd.