I woke up on Sunday morning with curly, auburn hair spread across my face. Penelope. I pushed her hair to the side and crawled out of bed, careful not to wake her.
When I arrived in my dining room, a plate of pancakes was spread out with a pitcher of orange juice. From across the room, Ana waltzed around in a flour covered apron.
"Try one!" She insisted.
"Ana! Tell me your secrets, you little chef," I praised, continuing to shove the mouth-watering pancakes in my mouth.
Ana's bright green eyes followed my mouth with every bite. Her eyes twinkled in the light, revealing how proud she was of her accomplishment.
When she poured more dough on the skillet, a chunk of her chocolate brown hair fell near the bowl of batter. "Ana, don't move!" I warned. I strolled over to her and pulled her elbow-length hair into a messy bun. When I was finished, I leaned down and kissed the top of her head, "Alright, you're good to go."
Moments later, Penelope awoke and joined us in eating pancakes. She had her long hair pulled back out of her face, revealing her lazy green orbs. I've always admired Penelope, she was so beautiful and she didn't even have to try.
Mrs. Ricorda and my mom joined us in the dining room for breakfast a half hour later. Everyone praised Ana for her delicious pancakes, leaving her with pink cheeks.
When Mrs. Ricorda announced that she and Penelope were going to leave, I helped Penelope pack up her things. Before she left my room, she stood frozen under the doorway.
"Pen, what's wrong?"
She turned around, her harsh green eyes staring right through me, ignoring my presence. Before I could repeat my question, Penelope's harsh stare melted as she began to cry.
I really did feel bad for Penelope. At least when my mom left, I had Ana. Penelope's an only child, so for the most part, she was always alone. I could totally relate to why she would act out, trying to get her mother's attention.
I hugged her until Mrs. Ricorda called up the stairs, announcing their departure. She recollected herself, wiping away the silent tears. I gripped her shoulders and reassured her that I would always be there for her if she needed someone to talk to. Then, I walked her to the door.
As soon as the Ricorda's left, my mother told me to clean the house, and then locked herself in her office. The thing was, my mom really wanted to get a maid. But I talked her out of it, insisting it would make us seem snobby. As a punishment for my decision, she made me clean the house. She always said, "I'm not going to clean it, so either you or a maid will."
Needless to say, I ended up taking on the responsibility. Fortunately, there was rarely a mess. Ana even cleaned the kitchen off after she made breakfast.
So, usually, I never actually had to clean anything. Sometimes, I would catch my dad vacuuming, sweeping, or dusting in his free time. My mom did our laundry and the dishes, so that didn't really leave any for me.
But that didn't stop my mom from complaining.
I did my homework and sat around my house until three in the afternoon. When I couldn't think of anything else to do, I decided to take Joey up on his offer.
I brushed through my blonde hair, threw on an outfit, and slipped my feet into a pair of white sandals. After deciding I looked fine, I walked across the street to Joey's house.
"Good afternoon, Emily. How are you today?" Joey's mom greeted me.
"I'm doing alright. How about you, Lauren?" I inquired, engaging in small talk.
"I'm swell, thank you. Are you carrying a message from your mom?" she asked innocently.
"Actually, I'm here to see Joey. Is he upstairs?"
"He sure is, dear." She smiled and gestured to the stairs, as if I forgot how his house was laid out. I thanked her and made my way up the carpeted steps. When I arrived to his room, I knocked until a "come in" was yelled.
"Hey," I greeted, smiling sheepishly.
I was probably the last person he expected to see, and based on the bewildered look in his eyes, I knew I was right. "Hey, Em. Was Penelope bothering you?" he asked, patting the floor beside him.
I told him about the restaurant and how Penelope and I made up, surprisingly. When I finished reciting my story, he looked up at me with his bright blue eyes. They displayed his excitement, which must have been contagious, because I broke into a grin seconds later.
"So what exactly are you working on?" I asked, eyeing his history project.
"A timeline from the 1920s until the end of WWII in the 1940s. I have everything typed out, I just need to glue it on."
"Wait, you're just gonna paste the black text onto the white cardboard?"
"Um, yeah?" I could see the confusion radiating off his eyes.
"Why don't you add color? Or pictures? Or at least colorful cardstock?" I grilled.
He glanced over his project before looking up at me in all seriousness. "Because I don't have a creative bone in my body."
"Well, luckily for you, I'm here now! Can we drive to the dollar store down the road and pick up supplies?"
A half hour later, we were back in his room with black cardboard paper, colorful sheets of construction paper, and a bottle of white paint. For the next two hours, I helped him spice up his project a bit. So much so that when he finished, it looked like he had worked on it for a week straight.
He had his timeline drawn across the cardboard in white paint. Each heading had been glued onto a square of construction paper and a picture was added to it. I even outlined the pictures in glitter.
"Do you think it looks too girly?" I asked, suddenly apprehensive.
"Nah, I think it looks sweet," he smirked coolly.
For the next three hours, Joey and I interrogated each other. I re-learned all of the little details that I had forgotten about him, and vice-versa. By the time I left his house that night, I knew everything about him from his favorite color to the brand of socks he was wearing.
When I got home, my mom was still locked up in her office and Ana was doing her homework. I noticed a plate on the kitchen table that was presumably mine. So, I heated up my Chinese food and quickly tamed my starving body.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
After school ended, I went to Jake's house. While Jake picked out some racing movie, I cuddled up in the recliner chair with his hoodie.
Jake wasn't really the type of guy who gave away his clothes much. He always said that he needed them more than I wanted them, which I guess I don't blame him for. But he gave me one hoodie, and by default, it became my absolute favorite. It was gray, and it had his school's logo on the front with a football in the middle. On the back it said his last name, Adonuski.
And luckily for me, the whole hoodie was drenched in his scent.
After gathering popcorn and drinks, we started the movie. To put it bluntly: it was terrible. I couldn't concentrate at all. Within fifteen minutes of the movie, I already had my phone out, texting Lillia, Joey, and Penelope. An hour later, Lillia had to run an errand with her mom and Penelope's phone died, leaving me with Joey.
"Sorry, am I interrupting you?" Jake scoured.
"Um, what?" I asked, slightly taken back.
"The movie's been paused, and you didn't even notice," he responded, clearly annoyed.
I blushed from my embarrassment. "Oh, sorry."
"If you didn't want to watch the movie, you should have just told me," he scolded.
"It's fine, really," I eyed the TV screen and continued, "there's only twenty minutes left of the movie. Let's just watch it."
He seemed to like my suggestion because he patted the area next to him on the couch. I quickly left my phone on the table and strode over to him, snuggling into his side.
"Who are you texting, anyways?" he curiously inquired.
"Joey," I replied with a shrug.
I could feel Jake tense under me as he said in a hard tone, "Yeah, I heard the two of you are all buddy-buddy now."
Although his comment may have irritated some people, I found his jealousy quite cute. "I guess. But don't worry; he's got nothing on you." I smiled a cute, dimpled smile to finish off my statement.
Jake softened and kissed my temple. "Good because I still like you."
"Good," I replied. "Because I still like you, too."
And with that, we finished the rest of the excruciatingly boring movie.
I hadn't realized that I fell asleep until I woke up feeling like I was being carried. Jake must've been carrying me home.
I wrapped my arms around his neck and hid my face in the crook of his neck. Jake always smelt good, but he smelt extra-good today. Maybe he was trying out new cologne? I definitely approved.
"Can we get food?" I mumbled groggily.
I heard a deep laugh that certainly did not belong to Jake. Despite my sleepy state, my eyes shot open and I quickly turned my face in order to get a good look at the stranger kidnapping me.
Realizing he startled me, he began to rub my back and whispered, "Relax, it's just me."
Joey.
"And sure, we can get food. Are you down for Italian?" he asked, smirking.
"Is that even a question?" I replied, my recent nap still evident in my voice.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"That was amazing," I praised. With my words, Joey broke out into a contagious grin that extended from ear to ear.
He nodded approvingly, pleased with my decision.
When we were sitting in his car after we finished dinner, Joey stared at the steering wheel with a flustered expression. Before I could say anything, he sighed loudly and drove his car in the opposite direction of our houses.
"I'm taking you somewhere I've never taken anyone else to."
We arrived at the city hall, which rested on a sparkling lake. Joey parked his car and led me into the building. To say that I was confused as to why we were entering city hall would be an understatement. But, I trusted that there was a good explanation. After all, I am the first person he has ever taken here.
Why me? Why not Lillia?
"Good evening, Mr. Blanzata," greeted the employee standing before the elevator.
"Hello, Kurt. This is Emily," Joey introduced. Kurt let us into the elevator, pressing the number corresponding with the twentieth floor.
Joey must come here often.
Moments later, we reached our floor. Joey silently led me to the last door in the hallway. He punched in the code "5681", twisted the doorknob and held the door open for me to enter a staircase. We climbed the two flights of stairs until we reached another door. Joey pulled the new door open again, revealing a small portion of the building's roof.
It was small and circular, and it overlooked the giant mass of water that outlined the city. There was a hammock, a cooler, and a small box that contains a few blankets, pillows, sweatpants, and hoodies. The cooler contained spiked drinks and bottles of water.
I walked to the railing lining the building and looked out over the city. You could easily see everything the city had to offer.
I couldn't even imagine how the clear sky would look when it was littered in stars.
Joey broke me from my trance by engaging in conversation. "So, um, what do you think?" I could tell that he was anxiously awaiting my response by the way he apprehensively scratched the back of his neck.
I looked at him with shining eyes, "It's breathtaking," I gawked. "How did you find this place?"
He walked over to me and rested his chin on my shoulder, wrapping his arms around my stomach. "My uncle used to work here and he gave me the code for the roof."
"Wow," I said, closing my eyes.
"Wanna check out the stars?"
"You read my mind," I answer with a smile.
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The next chapter will have answers and drama...yay!
What do we think about Joey's secret place? Why did he show Emily instead of Lillia?