The Choice (a Painful Past)

3

     When we went to American Outfitters in the mall to shop, I couldn't even buy my jeans there. Their sizes only went up to a 5, so my thick 9 had no hope of getting anything in their store. Kat, on the other hand, wore a 0-2. I kind of hated her for that, not gonna lie. 

I threw some clothes into my bag, along with my toiletries, and some leftover schoolwork that I was positive Kat, and I, would not get around to doing. When I was finished, I zipped the bookbag and threw it over my shoulder, then grabbed my small purse. 

"Hey Mom," I said, walking back into the living room. She was still on the phone. "Just a sec," she told whoever she was speaking with, then put the phone down against her lap. "I'm gonna head over to Kat's. I'm spending the weekend with her, remember?" She nodded, so I continued. "Okay, I just wanted to say bye and I'll call you when I get there. I have my phone." 

I held up my basic LG G2, in it's periwinkle blue case. I wanted an iPhone, but we couldn't afford one, so I got my mom's hand me down android. I was really just thankful that I had a phone at all. 

"Okay baby," she said, leaning up for a kiss goodbye. I pressed my lips to her cheek and made a loud smacking noise, then wrapped my arms around her neck. "Bye Mommy, I love youuuu," I said, squeezing her. She laughed and I leaned back, happy that I had accomplished what I meant to do. "Love you baby. Have fun, but please be extra careful. Do you girls plan on going out tonight?" she asked. 

I shrugged, even though I knew we were. "I don't know. Maybe. Probably just to the local Dairy Queen or something to hang out, if we do. Nothing major." "Still," she replied, with a knowing look. "It's Friday night. There will be drunk drivers on the road. Just remember to watch the other drivers. Okay?" 

I let out the kind of exasperated sigh that only a 16 year old girl can do. "I promise, Momma. Can I go now?" She rolled her eyes at my theatrics but nodded. "Yes, you can go. I love you." "Love you too!" I yelled, already heading out the front door. "Don't forget to call me!" I heard her yell, after I closed it. I loved the lady to death, but sometimes, it was annoying how many times she 'reminded' me of things. 

I got into my little 99 burgundy Ford Ranger truck, that was also passed down to me, and started it up. It was so old that it still had roll up windows and a tape deck in it. I actually still used the tape deck a lot and listened to my uncle's old rock tapes that he had given me. I had everything from Metallica to Tesla. 

Since I was one of the first of my friends to actually have my license and a truck, they had to deal with my old 'hunk of junk,' as Kat liked to call it. That always annoyed me, because I loved my truck, but I brushed it off as a joke. 

I popped in an old Bon Jovi tape, turned up the volume, and rolled down my window, before pulling off onto the road. Now, my musical taste varied from old rock to new pop and everything in between. It just differed with my mood. Today felt like an old rock kind of day. 

I drove through the old back roads of my hometown, enjoying the wind and the sun on my face. The closer I got to Kat's house, the more nervous I got. This was the first entire weekend that I would be spending with her since the fight. I drove past all the nice two-story homes in her subdivision, until I reached hers. 

After I pulled into her driveway and killed the engine, I sat there a few minutes, gathering my courage. I felt stupid that this was making me so nervous, so I pulled my visor down to look in the mirror. "Stop being a bitch," I said to my reflection. 

"Talking to yourself?" I shrieked and looked up to see the kid from a couple of homes down, Colby Brock. "Do you make a habit of sneaking up on people?" I asked, annoyed with myself for acting so silly. 

"Wasn't sneaking," he replied, and smiled at me. He had an adorable smile. I could see how cute he was going to be when he was older. Right now, his 14 years felt way too young to me. 

opened my door, making sure that I didn't catch him with it, then turned and grabbed my bag from the front seat. "Here, I'll take that," he said, holding out his hand for the bag. "Um, thanks," I replied and passed him the bag. He threw the bookbag on his back, completing the little kid look. "No problem," he replied, with another one of those smiled. Honestly, girls his age were probably already eating out of his hand with that smile. 

"Colby, why are you bugging Callie? Can't you go annoy someone your own age?" Katherine said, coming out the front door. "He's not bugging me," I said, feeling bad for the kid. "He's just helping with my bag." She stopped a few feet away from me and raised one eyebrow. "You can't carry your own bag? Gotta get a kid to do it for you?" I rolled my eyes and held my hand out for my bag. Colby looked disappointed but he passed it over. "Sorry about that," I whispered to him. "No problem. I'm used to her being a bitch now." I let out a laugh, then started coughing to cover it up. I didn't think I was fooling Kat though. She had this eat shit look, with her face tilted up. 

"If you're done flirting with the 13 year old, I've got some snacks in the house," she replied, haughtily. "I'm 14," Colby yelled out, as we started up her walkway into the house. "Whatever, still a little shit!" she yelled back, when we stepped inside. She emphasized her point with a slam of the front door. 

"God, that kid is so annoying," she exclaimed. "I don't know," I replied, as I followed her to her room. "He seems nice." 

I really didn't know what had happened to Kat over summer break, but this was more than just our fight. She used to be the sweetest person ever. It seemed like, after she got a lot of male attention over the summer, she turned into this snob that thought she was better than everyone else. I didn't like this version of her at all, but I kept looking for the girl that I used to know.