The Choice (a Painful Past)

4

     Kat was the one who held every secret that I had ever had, comforted me when I was sad, or boosted me up when I talked down about myself. 

She gave me a weird look when we walked into her room but didn't say anything. I dropped my bag in the corner of the room, like I always had before, then stood there awkwardly. I hated feeling this way with her, and I was scared that it would be this way forever now. 

"You can sit down, ya know?" she said, then smiled at me. I returned it, relief flooding my system. I sat down next to her on the bed and turned sideways, bringing my feet up. 

"So, what are we doing this weekend?" I asked. "Weeelll, you know Mitch? He's gonna come pick us up after he gets off work and we're gonna just ride around and hang out," she said, as she picked up the nail polish that was on her bedside table. 

Oh no, not Mitch. He was my most recent crush, that became one of my best friends because he liked Kat. I wanted to bail so badly. I really didn't want to be around those two flirting all night.

 "Oh...that sounds like fun. Doesn't he get off work really late though?" I asked, hoping that he really did get off too late for us to go. She rolled her eyes at me. "Duh," she said, as she started applying the deep purple polish that matched her bedroom walls. "He'll be over around midnight." "I thought your mom said your curfew was 11," I replied. "So?" she responded, before blowing on her nails a little to dry them quicker. "We're sneaking out the window." 

She pointed to the massive window that was in her bedroom. The glass slid sideways to open it. It was the weirdest bedroom window that I had ever seen. Honestly, it was like it was made for sneaking out. My own curfew was midnight, but I knew my mom wouldn't find out, so I wasn't really worried about that. 

"We're going to say goodnight around 11, turn out my lights, talk and giggle for a while, then lock my bedroom door and go out the window when he gets here. I've got it all figured out."

 "Kat...you know your mom will kill you, if we get caught. She might even tell my mom," I replied, hesitantly.

 I wasn't a total spaz. I mean, I had gone out, smoked weed, hung out with older people that my mom didn't know about, maybe even drank a little, but I was always home when I was supposed to be, so she didn't ask questions. My mom trusted me. That made me feel guilty quite a bit when I knew I had been doing something wrong, but I was 16. I was supposed to made mistakes and learn from them. 

She shrugged again. "Whatever. What's she gonna do? Ground me? No big deal," she replied. "There. How do they look?" She held up her finished nails for me to see. "Perfection," I answered, with a smile. "Want me to do yours?" she asked. "Oooofff course," I said, laughing and holding out my hand. 

We sat there, with her doing my nails, talking about things that had happened the year before. When our friendship had been at its strongest. We laughed over things so hard, that we could barely breathe. This would usually end up in her snorting and me squeaking, which just made us laugh harder. It almost felt like old times. 

"What in heaven's name is going on in here?" Kat's mom was at the door, smiling at us. "Mooom, don't you knock?" Kat exclaimed, huffing out an annoyed breath. I didn't see what the big deal was. We weren't doing anything so what did it matter. Her mom was just saying hi. 

"Sorry, sorry," Mrs. Haire replied, holding up both hands. Yes, Kat's name was Katherine Haire. So, Kat Haire. This was a joke that never got old to our friend group. 

"What do you want?" Kat asked her. "Just letting you know that I'm home, dear," her mom replied. "Don't forget about these snacks that you have laid out in my kitchen. If you're not going to eat them, then put them away." "Oh yeah, I forgot about the snacks! Thanks Mom," she replied, jumping to her feet. "Come on." She motioned for me to follow. 

When we made it the kitchen, my mouth dropped open. Now, Katherine's family was obviously way better off than my own, but this was too much. On the large family table sat bowls of different types of chips, multiple dips, a veggie platter, a cheese and cracker platter, different fruits, cases of different sodas, and to top it off, two large pizzas from the local place in town.

 "Wow," I breathed out, taking in the scene. "I know right," she laughed, as she sat down in one of the chairs. "I may have gone a little overboard, but Sherri is coming too. She should be here soon, actually." 

"Wait, Sherri is coming?" I asked, as I pulled out the chair across from her. She nodded, as she fixed a paper plate with different assortments of food. "Yeah, she didn't tell you? I figured she would. Whatever though, you guys are all good now, so no biggie." "Yeah, no biggie," I murmured. 

I started fixing my own plate, and made sure to add two slices of extra cheese pizza. The cheese was so gooey, that I had to use my finger to break the strands that were connected to the rest of the pizza. Sherri and I were good now...but I didn't want to be around her and Kat. They were really close now, and I always ended up feeling left out of things. Dread formed a knot in my stomach, when I heard the doorbell. 

"She's here!" Kat exclaimed, jumping up from the table. I stayed put, while she went to answer the door. I heard squealing, quiet voices, then laughter before they appeared in the kitchen.

 "Hey Cal," Sherri said, smiling at me. "Hey," I replied, returning the smile. "So, did you fill her in on what we're doing tonight?" Sherri asked Kat. Kat took her seat at the table and Sherri pulled out the one next to her. "Yeah, but shhh! My mom is here," she replied, quietly. "Oh, my bad," Sherri replied, then grinned at me. "You ready to party?" she asked. I cocked my eyebrow in confusion. 

"Party?" I said. "I thought we were just gonna ride around or go hang at the Lot."