Tailored Hats, Cats and White Rabbits Original

23// "You Can Always Take More Than Nothing"

Just like always there was an elderly man watering his petunias on the front lawn when we pulled up. I groaned and sunk lower into my seat as suddenly a large influx of people began to file towards our house.
“Do these people know the definition of privacy?” I groaned trying to hide.
“Sweetheart you were away for three months, people noticed” Mom added as she got out.
“No—” I was cut off as she got out and greeted one of the neighbours and dove straight into a conversation. If only Alisa was here, she would stare at them all so intensely they’d all be scared out of their wits and not bother to annoy us again.

However I had to face the inevitable and get out. Keeping my head down and avoiding the hi’s and hello’s from the neighbours I trudged inside when I realised that Mom still hadn’t stopped chatting and she had the key. I’m sure there was an extra key around here somewhere, in the pot plant or under a brick or a loose tile. Racking my brain to try and remember where the spare key was hidden, a girly voice came up from behind me.

“Looking for this?” I jumped so high I nearly hit my head on the roof as I whirled around to face a girl with hazel pigtails and wearing all black except for a red love heart in the middle of her tank top. She had the spare key in her hand, an unidentified liquid in a plastic cup in the other. Oh god…Mary-Anne Rosenblatt. The fifteen year old Catholic girl who decided to turn rebel against her parents, become Emo and call herself Nebula. Those pigtails were not helping her rise to becoming deep and dark though, they made her look like she was five. Not to mention she has the biggest, obvious, most undoubted crush on me since we were in the same English class in eighth grade. However no matter how far I seem to push away, our moms are good friends and so I’m always dragged to dinners and forced to socialise with her. I mean she’s a nice girl but…

“Mary-Anne” I said, pulling my face into an almost forced smile. My face wasn’t used to unforced smiles, this was just pure torture.
“Oh come on Michael, everyone calls me that” she giggled like it was the funniest thing in the world, “You can call me Nebula” her girly smile did not suit the name it spat out. I gave her a wry smile.
“Where have you been for the past few months?” she gave a puppy dog pout. It looked adorable on Alisa, but she was just try-hard.
“You just disappeared on me” she moved closer till we were inches apart. Oh god, Mom stop talking and help me out!
“You didn’t even tell me you were leaving, Mike. I missed you” she tip-toed closer till I was backed against the screen and I felt Mary-Anne’s hand brush mine. Her nickname for me made me want to puke.

“Can I have my keys now?” I asked, my teeth grinding together.
“Not until you tell me where you’ve been, Mike” she smiled again and it made me sneer. She saw and immediately her face fell.
“Don’t call me that” I snapped at her. Her brow furrowed like she thought I was joking around.
“I’ll call you anything you want me to” she bit her lower lip, glancing over my body like she wanted to rip my clothes off. Holding back the vomit that threatened to explode all over the place I snatched the key from her dainty hand not all too softly and wrenched open the door.

“Where did you go Michael?” she asked again, “I was so worried about you.” Alisa I really need you right now, I thought. A light bulb went off in my head as Mary-Anne put her foot between the door and the frame so that I couldn’t close it.
“Mary-Anne, I have a girlfriend” I blurted out, not even thinking that lie through. Mary-Anne’s mouth fell open in complete shock.
“What?” her entire face slacked like I had just said that I was Superman. “You have a girlfriend?” her voice had raised a decibel or two and screeched in my ears. What? Was the idea of me having a girlfriend that crazy and out there that it had to be questioned by this girl? Or did she just think that I would wait around for her to mature and grow out of those pigtails? Whatever it was it hurt my ego.