supernova

35

The doorbell rang just as I was about to answer. He went over and opened it.

"Good-morning!" Amukta greeted. "Arabella, I want you ready in twenty minutes we're having a girls day."

"Yes ma'am," I responded and rushed to the bathroom. "Wait what do I wear?" I yelled out.

"Something cute, we're going to the mall!" she yelled back.

I threw on a pair of black and white plaid shorts with a black top and a black belt. I threw on black van look a likes because I wasn't spending forty dollars on shoes, and looked in the mirror.

I looked good.

I walked back into my room and looked around.

I felt like I was forgetting something, but I didn't know what.

I saw the cabinet.

Mom left a letter for my first day of senior year and I didn't even open it. I had another one for my eighteenth birthday too.

Tomorrow night.

Tonight, I was going to tell Atlas.

I was going to talk to Amukta about it before telling Atlas.

I left the room to see Atlas and Amukta talking and they turned to look at me.

"Amukta, you wanna wait in the car? I'll be out in a second," I gave her a knowing look which she understood immediately.

"Cool, be out in five," she instructed and walked out.

I looked over at Atlas, "Don't do anything stupid, or come to stupid conclusions. We'll talk tonight. I don't wanna avoid this." He nodded.

"Okay, we'll talk tonight. Just letting you know, I'm nervous."

"I don't know why I am too. I'll talk to you tonight."

"What time will you be home?"

"I'll be home before five thirty, bye!" I confirmed and left.

I rushed out after remembering the rules.

No touching, no kissing, no sex.

The second I got into the car, Amukta was bombarding me with questions.

"What the hell happened last night? Did you guys fuck afterwards? Why was he so jealous? Did you sit with Giovanni because you were jealous?" Question after question after question after question.

"Oh my god, shut up!" I clamped my hand over her mouth and we burst out laughing.

"Girl, I need answers," she demanded.

So I told her everything. Well, almost everything. I left out the bit about me and the pills and Atlas's stepsister, because it just didn't seem like the time and space to tell her and that's Atlas's business to tell, not mine. I did tell her it was important and we would be talking about it, the pills, maybe soon.

"Oh. You needed a shopping a day. You need a day with no stress and no boys, just me," she concluded.  I liked that she didn't drag on the topic. She just knew exactly when I wanted to end certain conversations and she was always mindful of that, and I did the same to her. Being best friends doesn't mean forcing things out of each other because you have a right to because your best friends, and I like how we both silently understand that.

"Let's get coffee," she said and we went through the drive through of Dunkin for delicious caffiene.

"I'll take an Iced Caramel Coffee with cream and less sugar and a Black Iced Caramel Coffee," she ordered for us.