Project 438

Chapter Four: The Visitor

Dad, when you get the time, text me. I love you.

I felt better after texting my dad. I hoped he wasn't too angry with me to text me. I did miss him. I hated that my mom hurt him and had not said anything about being sorry. I wanted my dad to know I loved him even if my mom didn't. I took a long shower then slipped into my pajamas and sat on my bed. Ginger sat on the end of the bed sleeping. She was probably mad at me too. I slipped her an extra treat and grabbed my fashion magazine. I am not big into fashion, but some of the dresses in there were really awesome. Just for fun, I would cut the dresses out and place them on one of my pictures imagining me in the dress. I get bored sitting in my room by myself. My mom got rid of our TV since we spend most of our time out of the house. We mostly either talk soccer or play board games. I wasn't in the mood tonight for either, so I stayed in my room.

When I got bored of the magazine, I tossed it on my shelf and stroked Ginger. I really needed to hang out with Ally and Eric. I was completely bored. I grabbed my phone and texted Eric. He would probably be at home working out preparing for the football game on Friday. I knew he would be able to hang out. I waited for him to text back, but got no answer. I called him instead only to get the answering machine. That was weird. He always answered my calls. I called Ally next and thankfully she answered.

"Hey, Ally. I am bored. Let's go to the mall."

Yes. That is our conversation on the phone.

Ally was at my house in less than thirty minutes. We headed to the mall jamming to Brittany spears. The mall was not packed and mostly because it was Sunday. We went to our favorite store in the mall, Rue 21, and looked around not really wanting to buy anything.

"I called Eric and he didn't answer me. Have you heard from him?" I asked as I sorted through the clearance rack. Ally shrugged.

"He never misses any of your calls. Maybe his parents have him working or something. He loves working with his dad."

I nodded and dropped the subject. Eric and his dad were pretty close and he worked for him sometimes in the field at their house. Though I never really met his dad, he sounded like an awesome guy. Maybe that's why he isn't answering me.

"We should really pick out dresses to wear for the dance. It is Saturday and judging by the look on your face, you have not even thought about dress shopping. Or the beautiful red dress I told you about."

"How can I? My minds been on my parents. With my dad leaving and my mom acting like nothing happened, it's hard to think about anything else."

Ally nodded and rested a hand on the rack. "I get it. Your minds been worrying. You need to go to this dance. Get your mind off of it for a while. It will help. Eric and I will be there to support you."

I smiled knowing she would be there even if I didn't want her there. That's what best friends do. That is why I love spending time with her because she always cheers me up and looking at dresses was fun to do with her. She had her eyes on a beautiful, long, strapless, purple dress that was knee-high. I, however; found a beautiful, blue, sparkly dress that really caught my attention. I tried it on and was amazed at how well it fit. Ally whistled touching the fabric.

"Now that is a beautiful dress. You will definitely have all eyes on you. Maybe Tracy will feel bad she was even upset with you. But I do believe you would look good in that red dress I have." Ally said.

I smiled and shook my head no. Tracy never feels sorry about anything. But I didn't really care about Tracy. I was concerned about Eric. He was the one I wanted to impress. Red was not my color so I hoped she would forgive me if I bought a different dress.

When we both decided on dresses and finally paid for them, we slipped into the food court for a delicious corn dog. We ate in silence. I had convinced Ally that the red dress would probably be too much for me so she decided that the blue dress was perfect. Thank goodness.

Corn dogs are our favorite and each time we come to the mall, we buy a corn dog and one large soda. It's cheaper.

Ally was busy texting away and I knew who she was talking to. Her boyfriend, Max is a DJ (well, in school to become one) and was paid to play at the school dance. The guy is cool in an annoying kind of way. He only talks about music and after a while, that gets annoying. He is older and claims that he is responsible, but after going to his apartment once to hang out with Ally, I started to wonder. It looked like he threw a huge party and let the trash sit for weeks. The smell of rotten food was so strong, I nearly gagged. Disgusting.

"How is Max? Still trying to bore people with his lame stories?" I asked smiling. Ally smiled and slipped her phone in her purse. That is what is good about her. You can joke about hating her boyfriend and she never really cared you were actually being serious.

"He is actually getting paid more to play for clubs. Awesome, right? He could use a better car and maybe a maid."

I laughed as I covered my mouth making sure that soda didn't drop down my chin.

"That will be interesting. Dealing with college during the day and being a DJ at night. He will be really pushing it." I said.

Ally nodded and nibbled on her corn dog. "Your right. There will be no time for us. Oh well. Single life's great though." I smiled and sipped the soda.

"You are way too calm about that."

She smiled and picked at the bread on her corn dog. "I don't know. I know that I should be more worried about it, but he is in college and trying to make it big. I am still in high school with no plans for the future. We are complete opposites and if it happens, I will be ready for it." I was pretty sure no one was ever really prepared for a breakup but they pretended to be so people would not feel sorry for them. I could see Ally doing that so she would not get sympathy.

When we finished eating, we headed home not wanting to be out too late. Thankfully, mom was gone when I got home. I hung my dress up in the closet and shut it not wanting mom to see it. She loves it when I model my new clothes for her and honestly, I just can't stand it.

Ginger rubbed up against my leg wanting a snack so I slipped her one and tried to call Eric again. I really wanted him to answer and when I got his voice mail again, I was mad. I lay back on my bed and growled.

The next day was cold and rainy. Welcome to Oklahoma. I slipped my raincoat on and jumped in Ally's bug thankful she had a heater. Today, she was dressed in a long sleeved purple V-neck and jeans with holes in the knees with her cute purple rain boots. She looked nice compared to my jeans and t-shirt.

"Did you hear? We are having a visitor today during math. It's supposed to be really interesting. This woman works for the government. They say she is a recruiter. I have never heard of the government recruiting people, but I'm sure she has a lot of interesting things to say."

I was just thankful it was during math. Now I could get out of it and not stress over all the numbers. Though I was really interested in what this woman had to say.

The school gathered in the gym waiting anxiously. I looked around for Eric hoping to see him. He usually met me by my locker before class, but today he was nowhere in sight. I watched everyone gather in the gym and saw the football boys walk by. He was still not here. I could hear Ally talking away, but my mind was wandering about Eric.

The visitor ended up being a very beautiful woman in a black business suit and heels who looked like she was in her thirties. She had short dark hair and bright red lips. She shook hands with the staff and chatted away with principal Meyers. I looked over at Ally who was watching the woman with curiosity. The woman took the microphone and looked over at all of us twice before she spoke.

"Hello. My name is Paula Simpson and I am here to talk about some things with you guys." She held up a pamphlet like any of us could read it and held it there. "This is a little information about the government's role and how important they are. I am sure you all are already deciding what you want to do when you leave school and there are fliers here to help you make those decisions. It is important that we understand the government."

She went on talking about the government and I quit listening after a while. I was still upset that Eric was not talking to me. I wanted to know where he was and why he was ignoring me. And to miss this visit was very unlike him.