Robbers

twelve

// twelve //  

        On Monday, Ella had managed to pull herself together completely. She’d had the entire weekend to make up for what had happened on Thursday with both her parents and Rosie, and even though the atmosphere in the house was still a little uncomfortable, it was ten times better than it had been previously. She hadn’t bothered to ask if she was still grounded, since there was virtually nowhere for her to go after school anyway aside from home.

            Ella had practiced out the most sincere apology she could manage for Nina and Mindy. There was no way she could tell them what she’d actually been doing with Ryan Hunter, so Ella had decided she would just admit that she’d been hanging out with him that night. It was the only excuse she could think of that wouldn’t require a second lie.

            But when school rolled around Monday morning, Nina didn’t seem interested in bringing up what had happened last Friday. Ella had half-expected Nina to ignore her completely, but she entered the chemistry classroom and gave Ella the tiniest of smiles. She’d asked about the homework as she sat down, and Ella had answered her somewhat awkwardly.

            Unable to contain herself, Ella shakily began, “Listen, Nina, I wanted to apologize about last – ”

            “Ella,” Nina interrupted with a small sigh, looking across the desk at her tiredly, “I really don’t want to talk about it again. Okay?”

            Ella had nervously agreed, but she desperately wanted to tell Nina how sorry she was. She felt horrible for having lied to one of her best friends, and she was still upset over what Nina had said to her last week. But, rather than face it head-on and force Nina to listen to her apology, Ella decided not to bring it up again. Even as Nina and Ella eventually laughed together quietly at the sight of their chemistry teacher’s newest sweater vest, Ella knew she would regret it later on.

            At home, Ella did her best to make up for missing Rosie’s dance recital. She always offered to help her mom cook dinners, and she helped her dad wash the dishes every night after eating. Rosie had signed up for a ballet class just weeks before her last recital, so when the lessons began, Ella always drove her without complaint – and nearly every time, they’d get ice cream afterwards. Two weeks went by, and Ella kept herself in line with both her family and her closest friends.

            Of course, this meant she didn’t speak to Ryan Hunter for over two weeks. Ella would see him sometimes in the hallways at school, or during their lunch period when they would accidentally make brief eye contact across the room before hurriedly glancing away. Ryan’s contact name on her phone had remained untouched.

            Ella was trying not to allow herself to miss him. They had only been talking to each other for about two weeks before they had agreed Ella should stop helping him, and Ella still wasn’t sure what Ryan was to her. ‘Partners’ simply sounded vague and stupid, and ‘friends’ didn’t feel right, either. Friends didn’t kiss each other at red traffic lights – but then again, friends didn’t usually help each other rob strangers’ homes.

            She supposed it didn’t really matter anymore. Ryan hadn’t spoken to her since the night she’d missed Rosie’s dance recital, and Ella didn’t attempt to contact him again. She didn’t intend to speak to Ryan ever again, because helping him steal money was only going to ruin her relationships with every single other person she cared about. As far as Ella was concerned, a life without Ryan Hunter would be a safe one.

            This philosophy, however, didn’t last.

            Ella came home from school Wednesday afternoon, two and a half weeks after Rosie’s recital. Her sister was splayed out on the carpet with their mom leaned back on the couch behind her, a thick pillow tucked under Rosie’s stomach so she could look up at the glowing TV screen. Ella tossed her wallet onto the dining table before entering the living room, waving to her mom as she dumped her backpack beside the couch.