Julie smiled at me, and then winked. I really felt embarrassed by then.
“So you will come?” Julie asked.
I nodded. “Yeah. I'll come back tomorrow, if you want me to,” I told them, but I was mostly talking to Julie. She was the one that I really wanted to want me to come back.
“Of course. We can always use the extra help,” Liam said.
Julie nodded. She then covered the side of her mouth. “Because Liam doesn't help at all,” she told me.
“What did you say?” he asked, grabbing Julie's shoulders as she laughed. “Girl, I asked you a question!” he said, shaking her.
Julie kept laughing until Liam wrapped her in one of his large arms and rubbed his knuckles in her hair. She slipped out and punched him, and I watched them both with a smile on my face.
“We need to get going before I kill him,” Julie said, sparring off with him. Liam waved her off and rolled his eyes.
“All talk, this one is. See you tomorrow, Falon,” he replied, and waved.
“You too,” I told him, but I wasn't sure if he knew. His head had already been turned.
Julie smiled, and stood there for a moment. I thought maybe she was waiting for me to say something. I suddenly had a fluttering in my stomach that kept me silent.
After a while, she sighed and waved her hand. “Bye, Falon,” she told me, and turned to leave.
I cursed under my breath and called her name. She turned around, brow raised, and waiting.
“If you don't work tomorrow, I was wondering if maybe you might want to come over?” I asked, my voice in a rush. I then wet my lips at her expectant gaze. “You know, to help me with my school work and all? That self-teaching stuff hasn't been helping much,” I replied.
Julie smiled, and then nodded. “Sure. How about seven?” she asked.
I nodded.
She nodded, and tilted her head. “I'll see you then,” she replied, and then turned around and ran to her car, leaving me with a permanent smile on my face.
Maybe basketball lotto really worked.
♥
“Pizza is in the kitchen!” Ava's voice called out from her bedroom as I walked into the house. I could smell it as I walked in, along with her perfume and that familiar doctor scent.
I thought maybe all doctors smelled the same. All the ones I knew did. Death, and sickness and a splash of peppermint.
“Found it!” I yelled back, opening the box. Half of the pizza looked like a colored mess, the other covered in pepperoni. I took a slice of the pepperoni, and closed the box.
I started thinking about tomorrow, and about Julie coming over. Staring around our kitchen, I knew that what we lived in wasn't a shack, but it wasn't as nice as where she probably lived.
Anyone who would adopt an older child couldn't be hurting for money, and her mother was the head nurse. I didn't know what her dad did, but somehow, I just knew it was something important.
She may not be accustomed to painted cabinets and second-hand furniture. Not that she would say anything. Julie didn't seem like the type to rub her wealth in someone's face.
Ava came from her room in a baggy shirt and her candy cane pajama bottoms. Her face was clear of make up and her hair was up in a messy bun. She looked like herself again.
“I don't get why girls do that?” I told her, shaking my head.
She grabbed a slice of her side of the pizza and narrowed her eyes. “Do what?” she asked. When she took a bite of her pizza, some of the sauce drooled on the side of her mouth, and she wiped it up and sucked it from her finger.
I looked her over and then gestured toward her. “That. I don't get why girls go and get all dolled up on dates, and then come home and turn into slobs,” I told her.
“I'm not a slob. I'm comfortable,” she said quickly. “And besides, guys don't need to see all this. This is my hiding clothes.”
“Hiding clothes?”
Ava rolled her eyes. “I feel comfortable in this, so when I go on a date, I don't want my clothes to make me feel comfortable. I want him to. If I went out like this, I'd be hiding,” she replied.
“That makes absolutely no sense,” I informed her, grabbing another slice of pizza.
She hit me. “Shut up. It makes perfect sense,” she told me.
I had to laugh at her, even though it didn't make sense to me at all. Maybe it didn't need to. I didn't get dolled up for dates.
Not that I went on any.
“Did you have fun with Julie?”
I looked at her with a glare. “I was helping out,” I told her again.
“Helping Julie out,” she cleared up. She laughed when I rolled my eyes. “Are you going back tomorrow?” she asked.
“Yes, and Julie was going to come over here tomorrow too,” I told her. “Are you okay with that?”
“Of course! Yes, yes, yes,” she said, smiling brightly. It was as if a wave of happiness had suddenly flooded her out.
“It's just so she can help me with my schoolwork. It's not a date or anything,” I informed her.
She shrugged. “So? You're still having a friend over. That's all that matters to me. You actually have a friend,” she said, sighing in relief. She was still smiling at me, and it made me want to laugh.
“That date did a number on you, didn't it?”
“Everything just seems so great right now, you know?”
I nodded, thinking about the basketball. Then I thought about Julie's smile. Everything
