I had started to think Alana was only kidding about the date and that was truly fine with me. I didn't actually want to go out with some Edward guy. To be honest, dating was the last thing on my mind. A few days have passed and I heard nothing from Alana. I wasn't waiting for her to text me... it was just something that I took note of. Then one day, I was tossing my jacket on the couch, preparing to fall into the couch to show just how draining those eight hours were after school when my phone vibrated are you busy? I didn't recognize the numbers so I hesitated before finally responding, no... who is this? Sitting my phone back down, I threw off my shirt and was wearing just a tank top and the jeans that I wore to school when I realized the person never responded. Reaching for my phone again, I saw that I had 2 missed calls and another text that simply said, Alana. I felt like I had messed up so immediately I dialed the number back curious to what made her finally text me out of the blue. We had spoken to each other every day in class this week. Some days we talked and walked in the halls together but mostly we just were cordial. The days we would talk would mostly consist of her venting about Nick and I was really glad that she trusted me enough to confide to me about her relationship. Dani wasn't on board but this was what friends did. They confided in one another and they would help each other out whenever possible. To Dani, it was almost like Alana was playing a victim but I knew better... she was dealing with things that we had never experienced yet and that was why I had to be there for her more. The phone rang twice before she answered. "Yo! You made me worried, thought you were ignoring me!" she yelled into my ear but it just made me smile, "Sorry, my phone was on vibrate. What's up?" It sounded like she was eating something as she took a moment to clear her throat before she spoke, "I'm at the mall... I wanted you to come hang out." She said, I could hear her shaking the ice in her cup as I thought about it, disappointed when I remembered my sister wouldn't be home until later. "I would but I don't have a ride." There was a loud smack in response, "If I have my car... you have a ride freshie. Are you ready?" More excited then I let on, I calmly told her I was and sent my location. Once we got off the phone I thought about what I could put on, running to my closest.
Since it was cold out, I had settled on something basic, a long sleeve sweater and I kept my jeans one because I didn't want it to look like I was trying too hard. *ding* I think that I'm outside. I peeked out the window looking for her car and realized she was one house down which made me yell out to her but she couldn't hear me. I grabbed the few things I carried on me and headed out to greet her.
"Wrong house but close!" I yelled as I approached, opening the door to her 2012 Mazda, "I'm just glad that I got the right side of the street because Siri be lying." I put my stuff down, taking in the smell of vanilla that clung to her and everything that she had and we laughed as she pulled off. "Why don't you get a purse?" She asked me, "Instead of carrying your stuff around like a guy." I looked down at my wallet, phone, lip gloss, keys and hand sanitizer, "For what? Most of these fit in my pocket and I don't have anything to put in a purse." She looked at me with pity, "Oh honey... but you do. Let's fix this today, I love a project!" she had that super happy smile on her face which made me more nervous, she must have been able to see the apprehension on my face because she shook her head before pulling off, "Calm down Kai, it's just a purse."
It was not just a purse.
By the time we left the mall, I had a Michael Kors vanilla and gold tone cross body purse. It was cute and I knew that I could convince my sister that I needed this since I was growing up, Dad was never mad when we splurged but sis always looked out for our family finances. I thought that we were going to go grab some food since I had appeased her and got the purse but I was wrong. Since she had already eaten, she wanted to go shopping and we went to every store in the mall. In addition to the purse, I purchased some Michael Kors shoes that we half off and told her that I was done. She laughed and dragged me along, things that I was iffy on but she liked for me, she would buy and give it to me. I wanted to tell her that most of this stuff was too frilly for me but she was so happy, it was like she was in the zone. She spotted the best deals before we entered the store. I'm not sure if that was her talent or if I was just that hungry and tired. Eventually, we separated because I just couldn't keep going without stopping by the food court. I got me a slice of pizza and fries with a large icy freeze to help cool down, "Who knew that shopping was such a workout."
"Did you window shop? Cause you don't have no bags." I recognized that obnoxious voice and turn to face Nick who was sitting at a table behind me with some other guys. "Of course I actually shopped" I said with a raise of my bags, turning back to finish my food when I felt his eyes still on me. "I can't eat if someone is watching me" I turned back to him with a smug look on my face. "I'm just repaying you for the other day..." he said, not turning away or even the slightest embarrassed. I didn't have a response that would justify that so instead I went with a common interest, "Did you come to meet Alana here?" I asked. He just looked at me puzzled, "Y'all friends?" I nodded and he turned back to his table with a small laugh. He is so weird.
Not too long after that him and his friends got up from the table heading towards the exit. I finished my food and went to catch up with Alana. She texted me that she was in Sephora and when I got there she was having the sales associate paint her face with all Fenty products. Waving me down excitedly she asked, "Which side is cuter? I want to surprise Nick later!" I took it that he must have come and seen her before he left, "I think he's gone now but the right side..."
"He was here?"
"Yeah, he was at the food court." She looked sad but then instantly bounced back, grabbing her phone to call him. "Kaia, when you saw him... why didn't you call me?!" I wanted to tell her that I assumed her boyfriend would do that himself but it didn't seem appropriate.
We left the mall after dark and it turned out that shopping was more fun than I ever realized, she had me try on a bunch of clothes for her and I felt like a doll. Her personal dress up Bratz. It was uncomfortable. After the third outfit, I was over it and told her that I was ready to go but she wasn't having any of it, "You don't even know just how pretty you are! Come on, one more outfit." Before I could protest, she was going to grab another outfit for me. I ended up trying on four more in total before telling her once again, I was not having fun. "The pretty ones never appreciate it." She walked up to me and pulled my face to hers, we were so close that I had to look away. "Don't ruin this for me Kaia! Just a few more... for me, please!" feeling flattered and flustered, I gave in and tried on another two.
Finally, we were leaving and she was telling me about how happy she was to have met me. "You're a good friend Kaia, I really am glad you're in my life." Placing her arm over my shoulder and bringing me into a hug, I felt her lips graze my forehead. Today was a really good day.
When school came back around, Alana and I talked more than ever and about a lot more. She would come over to me and Dani's table to tell me something funny she had heard and sometimes she would even text me throughout the day because her classes were so boring. One day she called texted me during Ms. Riley's class and asked if I wanted to skip again. Duh, was all I said in response. She told me to meet her out in the parking lot near the café after class. I told Dani that I wasn't going to make it to next period and she was looking at me with a smile. "I don't like being alone because it's boring but Xay is going to be there so I guess it's fine." We all started to mess with her about their obvious connection and how she wouldn't admit it but really wanted him to be her boyfriend. Once class was over, I tried my best to sneak out the building but I ended up drawing more attention to myself. Giving up on the act, I walked around like I was heading to the other side and was going to turn around and just walk straight out. Just as I passed the door I heard my name being hissed, "Kaia!" turning to the door I saw Alana laughing at me and ushering me towards her with her hands. I ran over to her and asked what was so funny, "You're so awkward! Why didn't you just walk out here, there isn't a rule saying we can't go outside crazy." I felt a little embarrassed but her laughter was infectious. We made it to her car and out the school parking area without an issue, "Is there ever a time that someone cares that we leave?" I was curious. She laughed and told me that the school wasn't aware that students were bold enough to just drive out. "Freshie, I'm going to take you to my favorite spot!" she said and I was sure we were going back to the mall. However, when we made it to downtown she kept driving. We were driving for about 10 minutes when I was getting curious, "Where is this place?"
"It's technically on the edge of town so outside city limits. It's so peaceful, nobody comes out there." I nodded and sat back in my seat, waiting to see this amazing spot. When we pulled up to the abandoned building with a large parking lot. Perplexed, I was. "Alana... this is it?" this was nothing more than an empty lot. "Really?! I thought you were the only person who would appreciate this place" I turned to face her and immediately regretted my reaction but I was going to have to be honest. "It just seems like a good spot that you can find in town and save the gas..."
"The police see a car parked in a lot, they ask questions. Out here, we're free. No questions and no annoying ass adults." I nodded and looked back out the windshield to see if any cars drove by. I heard the door open and Alana was outside, walking to her trunk. When she saw me looking out for traffic she winked at me and opened her trunk. I got out the car and walked back to her. She grabbed a bottle of liquor that was halfway full and handed it to me, "follow me pretty girl" I did as she instructed and we walked up to the abandoned building, sitting on the stairs and just faced the open field where the grass was relatively low. The open field seemed to go on forever & since we were on the stairs, we were able to see even further than normal... the grass was a lucid green and the way the grass swayed with the wind, it was a nice view. "I kind of get it." I told her, earnestly. She nodded her head and reached out for the bottle, "You don't get it until you're sitting here drunk and everything about the world is beautiful" she tossed the bottle back and took a sip, wiping her mouth she had a pained look on her face and passed the bottle back to me. "What is it like?" she shook her head like she was possessed but she looked me in the eyes and said, "not bad". I was nervous but I took a sip anyway. It tasted like I was drinking warm rubbing alcohol and it burned. It didn't have a good taste, at all. "Ew, why would you drink this?!" I asked, almost tossing the bottle back to her. She was laughing a lot today, "You'll see just keep drinking." I wasn't sure but she turned the bottle up again. "Are you friends with Nick?" she randomly asked me, "Of course not! I don't even lik.... Know him like that." Fully aware that saying I couldn't stand him would just lead to problems between us. "I wish you were, so you could talk to him." She said with another swig, no longer reacting to it like it was lethal. Looking at me she smiled, "If I didn't have you Kai, I'd be so sad" then she leaned her head on my shoulder and held the bottle to me. I decided to bare the taste in support of her because she was so close to me, the smell of perfume was stronger and something about this moment was making me want to feel the feeling she was telling me about earlier. I took a large gulp of the disgusting stuff and couldn't help but shake, she sat back up and we drunk until the bottle was empty.
Once the last sip was gone, I was sad that it was gone. So sad. "Noooo... it was too soon. The world isn't beautiful yet!" I heard myself saying and laughing at the same time, Alana was reaching for my arm to pull me up and dance. "There is no music, why are you dancing?" I asked with a burp. She just ignored me and kept swaying side-to-side, "Nick would dance with me. He is a good dancer." I waved her off because the sun was starting to set and the world did look beautiful. "You were right. It's all beautiful." She sat back down beside me and we just stared into the horizon, we probably looked ridiculous since we were drunk but nobody had passed by since we had been here. "I really wish you could talk to him Kaia, I just think that would make it better. Everything would be better if he was here." She said before she started hiccupping, it caught her off guard because she was looking at me for confirmation that the sounds came from her. I burst out laughing and she followed, leaning onto me again. "It's always better when you're here... Nick, where are you!" she stood up as I stared off, thinking.
The first thing I noticed early Sunday morning was the smell, it was hard to identify at first but it was so sweet and warm. The scent welcomed me into it and I allowed myself to let the smell awaken the rest of my senses. Slowly I opened my eyes, seeing all the window in my room was open allowing the sun to shine. The sun made my room really shine, making all the sparkles from the mermaid themes dance across the room. It was so pretty. In that moment if my dolls had come to life and sung me good morning, I wouldn't have been surprised. At 5 years old, the only thing I could compare it to was a Disney scene come to life. Suddenly, the scent of cleaning supplies wafted into my bedroom and nose. Lemon... this wasn't the sweet warm scent that woke me, instead it was being diminished by these new smells. Just like that, clouds came and the magic was over.
I was sad. I remember... being sad. That the smell was fading, I felt something from that smell but I didn't know what. It was familiar but rare. Yeah... I didn't get to smell it often. I got up, no longer excited about waking up. Instead, I wanted cereal and cartoons. Walking out of my room, voices started to come into focus. My big sister was complaining about something but when I saw her face, she was smiling. I figured dad must have told her to clean and if I was super stealthy, I'd avoid being seen. Turning back to hide in my room until the coast was clear, the person she was talking to spoke. The voice was the most calming sound I'd ever known. It made me happy every time I heard it. Just like her perfume...
Mom was home!
Why am I thinking about that day? Feeling myself being shook, I opened my eyes to see Alana standing above me. "We fell asleep! Let's go!" I felt like I had been hit by a truck, "Why does everything hurt?!" I asked but even talking was hard so I barely heard my own words. She slumped down beside me and I took in the sight, the sun was setting, the sky was starting to become more dark than light and I knew that my sister was going to kill me when I got home. I did my best to get up and push through the pain, Alana was much more mobile than me and she was quickly heading to the car, "come on!" I wanted to tell her to stop yelling but instead, I just covered my ears with my hands and got in the car. As soon as the radio came on, I turned it off. Glaring at Alana not able to verbalize my words but knowing that the world was too loud. She was trying to keep herself from laughing but her face was barely holding on, she placed her hand on my thigh and whispered, "You're such a freshman. It's ok, just stick with me and you'll be okay." I nodded and laid my head back on the seat, dozing off again.