The Profile

Chapter 14

The next ten minutes were spent being questioned by my parents while Abbi glares at me from her seat.

"What happened to sleeping over at Lindy's? Mark's mom said you guys came home around one last night and Lindy wasn't even there." My mom has her head turned to face us in the backseat, I had no idea how to answer her without sounding absolutely ridiculous. I knew there was only way out and it was the truth.

"I actually went to a party last night." My mom's eyebrows raise slightly and next to her my dad lets out a little laugh.

"Why didn't you tell us?" He says, turning onto Munroe Drive.

"This isn't something to laugh about, Sean. Who's party did you go to?" 

"A friend of Lindy's, it was just an end of semester college party. We stayed for a few hours, but then Lindy wanted to stay longer, so Mark and I left and went back to his place. I would have been back home this morning, but I lost track of time." I feel my body relax as the words leave my mouth, I'm finally able to come down from this strange high that's lasted way longer than I wished. 

My parents go quiet and I look to Abbi for support. She shrugs her shoulders, but is still giving me a stare that means she'll be the one questioning me soon enough. Our little exchange is broken by my dad.

"Why didn't you just tell us that, Pay? You know we wouldn't have cared." My mom turns to face my dad, not sure if she's more angry or shocked. My dad smiles wide at my mom.

"Oh come on hon, don't tell me you never did that in college. I know you were the same way, even if you didn't drink you still went to parties. Pay didn't stay late, she and Mark stayed together and Lindy knew the host too, so it wasn't at a complete strangers house. I think she's allowed to start going to parties without hiding it behind our backs." Snow begins to fall and hit the windshield just as we pull into Nadina's Place, the nicest restaurant place in the city. It's right on the lake, but in the winter instead of boats our view is the frozen blue Lake Michigan that stretches for miles. Once we put the car in park my mom turns towards me once again with a different expression on her face, almost like a sadness.

"I guess I don't like the fact that my baby girl is growing up so fast." She puts her hand on my cheek and I giggle at her long nails tickling my cheek.

"I know mom, but I can't stay at home with you for the rest of my life watching Law and Order."

She gasps at my statement. "What do you mean? You love watching those with me!" We all climb out of the car and duck our heads into the purple awning of the restaurant.

"Of course I do, but I can't earn a college degree by watching Olivia arrest people left and right."

"I think you could find a way." We both laugh and she pulls me into a hug when the doors swing open to a thirty something old guy in a black suit smiling and ushering us into the warm restaurant.

The walls are white with blue accents down the hall. We walk to the main lobby that has a crystal chandelier hanging from center and members of the yacht club sit in soft white chairs with their fur coats hung around their shoulders. My family has a yearly winter brunch here with my dad's parents and his two brother's families. I always used to walk around the circular dining room with my cousins and would lean against the giant windows that tilted just enough to feel like you're falling. My dad talks to the hostess and she points towards two round tables seated with our family that wave us down. We walk up and my grand parents stand to greet and hug us. 

The tables are separated with adults at one and kids at the other. Even though my cousins and Abbi and I are all in high school or older, we will forever be banished to the kid's table.