Chapter 5

If she hadn’t screamed, I surely would have. I pulled the covers to my chest and just stared at the Forbidden Planet poster that was over my dresser. I was in my bedroom.

“Baby?” I could hear my dad at my sister’s door across the hall, “What’s wrong Zoë?”

I felt cheated as I swung off my bed. I stepped on the heels of my flannel pajamas and dragged them off my legs.

“You shrieked pretty badly. Can I come in?”

I dug through my dresser. Most of my clothes were in blacks and blues and I avoided every item that was. I auto piloted out the door in a pair of green boxers and a red t-shirt. Dad must’ve been let into Zoë’s room. I couldn’t hear either of them. I got into the shower.

I felt happy when the water first hit me and terribly lonely by the time I turned it off. I toweled down and opened the door to my sister’s reddened eyes.

“Hey Zoë,” I greeted her, she wasn’t seeing an inch beyond her face. She flinched. She hurried back a few steps to let me pass. This was weird.

She was wearing a little babydoll t-shirt and baby blue pajama pants. If her shirt hadn’t read “Adorable Psycho” her clothes would’ve fit in my dreamscape. She had darker hair than me, her face was a blurry blend of tan skin and pale lips. I squinted at her, realizing my glasses were in my room. I turned back. Dad slapped my shoulder as he walked past me.

I hated my phone. Only 7 hours had passed since I had last gone to sleep but I truly remembered at least a day in that box. I pushed my homework into my bookbag and pulled on black socks and blue jeans under protest. I sighed. There was a knock at my door.

“Yeah Zoë?” I yawned.

“Dean, I’m sorry I woke you up early.” She wasn’t looking me in the eye. Zoë could stare down a charging rhino.

“S’OK, I wasn’t having a particularly good dream anyways,” I calculated, “Nightmare?”

“Really bad,” She nodded.

“Well, it’s over now.” I shrugged offering support. I gave her a hug. I didn’t realize I had reached around her until I squeezed her against me. This was not like us. She squeezed my guts back.

“Don’t be a--” She cut herself off.

“Oh! Cute!” And we both froze to hear our mother. Zoë had the thought “What if mom has her phone!” first and broke the hug before photographic evidence existed.

“Morning mom,” I grumbled.

“Dad’s making breakfast,” She told me, “Go help him. Zoë, do you want to talk?”

“I talked to dad,” She mumbled. Mom squeezed my arm as I walked by. My phone alarm starting going off in my pocket. I had it off by the time I entered the kitchen. The rest of the morning, I was left to my own thoughts. I had a few passing thoughts of Xiomara or Kia as Zoë scowled at my inescapable smiling.

“Zoë’s staying home today,” Mom told Dad and me as I put my dishes in the dishwasher, “Can you tell Xiomara to get her homework from--”

“I’ll text her, mom! God!” Zoë burned red. Her eyes still looked puffy. Reminded me of the look on Andrea’s face ... The look I must’ve never actually seen. Still felt real.

“Oh,” Mom grumbled. I left to brush my teeth without a word.

I was about three minutes early to the bus stop. It was cold out. Early November and the whole neighborhood was choked in fog. I kept looking towards Kia’s house. My palms were sweating. I was smiling like an idiot when she appeared as a golden shadow first. Her hair swishing and her taxicab yellow backpack swinging from her left hand.

“H-hu-Hi Kia,” I wanted to kick my voicebox in.

“Um, hey Dean,” She looked at me cross-eyed, “Where’s your sister?”

“Not coming today,” I grumbled.

“OK,” She dropped the backpack at her feet. She was wearing a tight leather jacket and baggy cargo shorts. She had on the biggest boots. The six rings in her ears and the stud in her nostril were just as I was supposed to remember them. The braces under her lips had red cement holding them to her teeth. She was Kia. I felt something was wrong as she caught me looking at her, “You OK?”

“Weird dreams,” I admitted.

“Oh, cool,” She said meaning nothing. I looked down the street the bus was one stop away. No, give me a moment, you asshole!

“I--” cut myself off.

“Jesus, your brain seems broken. What kind of dreams do that?”

“Um, you were in them,” She stopped laughing. Her eyes went wide. She looked to her feet.

“Oh,” She mumbled.

“It wasn’t one of those dreams!” I waved my hands panicking, “God, I’m an idiot.”

“I guess,” Kia grumbled.

“Will you go out with me?” I asked. And then felt I had to add, “Please?”

“Um, wow,” Kia brushed her hair over her ear, “I’ve never gotten a please before.”

“Oh,” I hardly heard words I just responded to her inability to look me in the eye.

“Yeah, um, I guess,” She offered me a really awkward smile.

“I got an I guess!” I shouted triumphantly and threw both fists in the air. She started giggling madly, “Should I come by after school?”

“It can’t be today,” She said. The bus was pulling in front of us.

“Well, tomorrow? Or Friday?” I suggested, “We could go to the movies?”

“You don’t have to point, I know where the theater is,” She laughed. The bus doors opened and she stepped onto the bus. I followed her up. I expected her to sit next to Laurie but she swung into the seat in front of her friend and dragged me in behind her.

“What’s going on Kia?” Laurie looked up at us.

“Dean asked me out!” She announced in a whisper. I blushed madly and looked away from Laurie’s smirk.

“Cool,” Was all Laurie said.

By the time we reached school I had my date all planned out for Friday night. I was king shit. I left Kia with a squeezed hand to her friends Laurie, Hannah and Wanda. The stark difference between dream Hannah and real Hannah was terrifying. There was at least a hundred pounds, the bulk of it makeup, on this Hannah. Still I said hello and left Kia to go find my friends across campus.

“Hey Connie.”

“Um, hey Dean,” She replied in exaggerated slowness, “I have no idea.” She was muttering to her friends before I could give thought to my aberrant greeting. I felt strange and giddy. I arrived at the annex and kicked my feet up next to my idiot friends.

“Dean, explain it to this idiot,” Reggie flipped off Dashawn.

“He’s right, New England Patriots fans are literally the worst people on Earth,” I dug at Reggie.

“Motherfucker,” He laughed.

“So, I asked out Kia Parker,” I steamrolled over whatever bullshit was on the table.

“Our little boy is growing up,” Dashawn knuckled away a sarcastic tear. He was a geek’s geek. A hundred forty pounds soaking wet. Almost 5’4’’ and wearing the squarest, thickest glasses out of anyone in the school. He was the coolest of the three of us.

“Why the fuck Kia Parker?” Reggie snorted.

“She said yes,” I shrugged, “It was the right play.”

“You think you could put in a good word with her friends?” Dashawn smirked.

“No,” I shook my head, “Those sweet delicate flowers would be trampled by you degenerates.”

“Can’t argue with that logic,” Snorted Reggie.

“Word to the wise,” Dashawn commented, “Don’t pull another Elizabeth.”

“No promises,” I laughed at myself. The last thirty minutes to first bell focused mostly on video games. I had to reinflate my ego when I walked into first period, art. The art lab was a big semicircle of two person tables around a bunch of workstations. I took my seat and waited. Marin was assigned next to me and I flashed a great big smile at her when she climbed onto her stool.