4 V 4
The next day, I slid out of my bed and slammed my head on the bed frame.
"Von!" someone shouted from downstairs.
I held the back of my head, whimpering.
"Von!"
My bedroom door busted open and my mother and father ran in. "The hell happened? I thought you bust yo head op- Oh," my father ran to my side. "Are you bleeding?"
"I don't think so, but it hurts real bad. I was getting outta bed and my foot got caught on something and I fell," I said, still clutching the aching part of my head.
"Girl, you got school today. You can't be losing no brain cells," my mother said, crouching down to examine my head. "Ima bring you some ice and some pain killers. If you don't start to feel better, I'm not letting you go to school. You could have a concussion," she stated.
"Ughh," my parents helped me up together, sitting me on my bed. My mother went off to get what she had said, leaving my dad to peer through my bonnet to get a better look at my head. "I mean, I woke up thinking about the good day I was finna have. I was gonna try and be more social. Enjoy school. And then this is what happens," I complained.
"You might still be able to go if you're okay," my dad gently reminded me. "But if you feel any discomfort, call me. Or your mother."
My dad looked at me like I was his baby all over again. That's one thing I could say about him: It's like everyday he had with me, he cherished it. I'm not saying that my mother wasn't the same way, but he just seemed to have always kept that "new parent" look on his face. I was forever his joy.
My mother came back in, her arms loaded with the jumbo first aid kit that I remember always rested at the top of their closest. As a kid, I wasn't outdoors-y much, and that shows. The first aid kit's barely been touched after all. I don't have the faded ant bites, the scabbed elbows and knees, or the overrated allergies to show that I had an adventurous childhood. I was always the loner, the kid who preferred to draw during recess or maybe even paint if Ms. Smith let me.
Even now, I barely talk to anyone at school. I go there for my schoolwork and that's about it. I don't even know what my classmates think about me. Maybe they think I believe I'm too good to hang with them, or maybe they believe that I'm lame as hell. But I truly do want to make more friends and learn more things about people (especially my people), and today I had already wrapped my mind around being more social at school.
Who would have known I'd wake up to wrap my head damn near around a metal bed frame?
"Wash up, and take things easy. If you're not feeling better by the time you're all cleaned up, then you're staying home," my mother ordered. Shit, you don't have to tell me twice. I might want to start a new beginning as far as my junior year social life, but I also don't want to do that quiz that we have today.
"Okay," I winced in pain.
My parents left my room, and I shakily stood up. The pills should kick in any moment now. Hopefully I'll be feeling better sooner rather than later. I got my clothes out for school: a black Avenger's t shirt, some hole-y jeans, and my black Croc's.
After I got myself together for the day, I was putting on my socks when I slowly started to realize I was feeling better. Good. Now I can go and reclaim my social life. Admittedly, I'm a bit hesitant. I mean, in all honesty, how often is it that you make friends other than at the beginning of the school year?
What if today is a fail? And the days after that continue to be a fail? I don't want to be the kid nobody remembers at the high school reunions who inherited her mother's boutique business. Do you know how many boutiques and stores are in Aster Waters? There's like a million different people they could get me confused with at a high school graduation.
For example, we got A'livia Ronalds at my school. Her mother owns a boutique/store. Then there's a few others. Aster Waters is literally known as the spot to shop in Texas, nestled in between Houston and some small city nobody ever remembers the name of. I mean, I want the business but I don't want that to be the only thing people know me by.
Knock. Knock.
"Yeah?"
"You feel any better?" my dad asked through the door. "Yeah. I just have like this horrible background headache," I complained. "Feels like a hangover?" my dad asked. "What-
"Ahhh, just joking. Tryna see if I could catch you slipping," my dad laughed. "I'm taking you to school today. Your mother has to run by a few orders and get some things together for that event you know she's planning."
"Okay. I'm almost done," I told him, sliding on my Croc's and grabbing my backpack off of the floor.
"Carmela!"
"What?" my mother hollered back at my dad.
"She's feeling better!"
"Why are you yelling, boy, we only a few feet away from each other," I could hear my mother say.
"Ha, I just like pissing you off."
I opened my bedroom door to find them getting all lovey dovey at the bottom of the staircase. I rolled my eyes and walked down past them. "Save the PDA for the hotel room," I told them. Well, I guess that wouldn't really be PDA then, huh?
"You buying?" my mother asked, making a big show of hugging my father. "No," I laughed. "Then mind ya business, kid," she smirked.
"What's this about some event coming up?" I asked her, once they finally broke apart.
"I'm hosting a little something for the fashion business owners of Aster Waters," she did a little happy shimmy, but then a defeated look crossed her face. "And it's taking a toll on my business. I'm behind on orders trying to chase down food tasters and-
"I can do it," I immediately offered. And no, it wasn't because I love food more than anything in the world. It was because I could see how stressed my mother was. "Oh thank you, Vonna. But, if you can, I'd need a second person to do it with you. To make sure everything is really perfect."
"I'll do it too," my dad offered, putting his hands into his back pockets. Typical dad shit, huh?
"I need you two to food taste, look at a few floral arrangements, along with-
"Whoa, whoa," Dad pretended to look at his watch, "Sounds like Vonna's gonna need to find a friend to accompany her." He made a big show of leaving the house quickly and I rolled my eyes again. "Men act like they can't appreciate the natural beauty in things," I commented.
"Well...if any of your friends don't mind accompanying you, I'm fine with that," my mother smiled gently. I gave her a convincing smile back but in my heart I knew that I usually only talked to a handful of people daily and I wouldn't really consider any of them my friends. Much less, consider inviting them to come do something like this with me.
"And Vonna? Would you be up for inviting the guests in? Basically being a mini host. You know, smiling at them, directing them different places. The venue is about medium-sized, but people could get lost amongst the booths, and the event is on a timed schedule so that all the owners can come up and present equally," my mother added.
"Sure. I don't mind," I shrugged.
"Great! Then that means we'll have to get you a dress," I rose an eyebrow at that, "or a suit."
"Okay," I nodded.
My dad honked from outside.
"You have to be really dazzling. Hair on point, makeup, if you want, on point, outfit on point. I'm thinking a red and black theme. That seems the most fanciest. And maybe have your outfit have giant sequins in a nice crimson red-
"Mom, I gotta go," I laughed, kissing her cheek.
"Alright! Enjoy school! Try to have a partner to the event by the end of the week too!"
I was almost out the door when she said that last part but my dad was impatiently waiting on me in his SUV. A partner? So my mom basically was asking me to find a date to this event? Oh boy.