She bumps me with her shoulder, draping the dress over her forearm, covering all of the other clothing items she’s planning on buying.
Once she’s done looking, we join the line to checkout. I glance out the window, my eyes catching onto someone walking past the large windows, drinking a personal bottle of the juice I poured myself the other night.
I’m immediately reminded of the somewhat conversation I had with Canon.
“What kind of person is he?”
His question floats around in the air. I hope I didn’t fuck up Mr. P’s chances of getting to know his other son.
“Um, Earth to Demi?” Amy’s voice calls from my right. My head shoots over to her curious face. “You ready?”
She holds up her shopping bags, indicating that she already checked out and is ready to continue the day.
“Yea, sorry. Let’s go.”
We head down the busy sidewalk, walking past teenagers with cameras pointed at their face and saying stuff to their vlogs, families out sight-seeing, and just people going about their normal Saturday mornings.
“What has you so spaced out?” Amy asks as we step into the small coffee shop a couple feet away from the boutique.
“Nothing, just random daydreaming.” I lie, hoping she won’t see past that. She eyes me carefully before shrugging and looking around for an empty table. Once she spots one, she grabs my elbow, her shopping bags slapping me in the thigh as she drags me to the small circular table by the windows.
Blowing out a harsh puff of air, she takes out her phone to scan the QR code on the table that’ll show us the virtual menu.
“Well, I feel a tiny bit better. Don’t you?” She asks with a smile.
“Yea. Glad I didn’t blow the money I already don’t have,” I joke, shaking my head at her. She works her bottom lip through her teeth in a nervous tell. “What?” I ask, already sensing she’s about to say something big.
“It’s only temporary, and I promise it won’t be –” She rushes out, but I cut her off.
“What is it, Amethyst?”
“I was wondering if you could, I don’t know, maybe stay with me…for the summer? It’ll be like old times!”
My head rears back as if she slapped me.
“Stay with you? For the entire summer?” This is nothing like old times. Before, I could spend the whole summer chasing sunsets, and playing hide-and-go seek in her garden for hours on end, then eat ice cream in her giant comfortable bed. We aren’t naïve little girls anymore, and she didn’t have a new older brother who looked like he needed a few minutes in a rage room back then.
“Yes! You’ll be all alone in your big empty house anyway, and besides, I need the distraction. I need you to keep me company because I can’t deal with my parents arguing all the time.” She pokes out her bottom lip, pouting like usual.
“Whoa, let’s back track. For one, my house is nowhere near big,” she rolls her eyes, “and two, what do you mean your parents are arguing all the time? I’ve been to your house thousands of times and not once have I heard them arguing.”
“Yea, well, you would’ve never guessed I had another brother out there either. Shit’s changing, Dem. And I need my best friend now more than ever. Connor is barely home now, so I can’t even bother him if I wanted to.”
I crack my knuckles, peering out the window trying to come up with a better solution.
“What if we stay at my house instead? That way, you don’t have to hear any arguing and I can be there for you in the peace and quiet of my room.” I nod approvingly at this option, picking up Amy’s phone to look at the menu now that it’s settled.
“One problem, though,” Amy pulls her phone down from in front of my face so I can meet her eyes, “my dad has gone all jail warden and won’t even let me stay out late anymore. I know once Connor finally shows his face again, he’ll get ripped a new one.”
“Aren’t you basically twenty now? I’m pretty sure you’re capable of making your own decisions.”
Even though this statement is very true, I know that she doesn’t want to upset her parents and get in their bad graces. She already spent her whole life trying to be perfect for them.
“Please, Demetria? I don’t beg for anything ever, but I’m begging you now.”
This was a lie, she begs all the time, and I concede…all the time.Everytime.
“If I say yes, you have to order me a large strawberry milkshake from in-n-out. Wait, make thatextralarge.”