I rolled my eyes and sighed. My mom came over with a glass of some gross mixture of herbs that she swore kept her healthy.
“Clayton Reed? Who is that?” my mom asked, sitting on the stool to the other side of me. Great, she was preparing for a full-on gossip fest. This would take a while. I wanted to throttle Rachel.
“Nobody,” I evaded, drinking the last of my soda and getting up to throw the can into the recycling bin.
“Nobody, my butt! The new hot guy at school is who,” Rachel eagerly volunteered, giving my mom a dramatic raise of her eyebrows.
“Oh! Do tell, Maggie May! I want to hear all about him!” My mom was enthusiastic and really getting into the girl talk.
“Yes, do tell, Mags,” Rachel agreed, grinning at me. I turned my back on them as I rummaged through the pantry, trying to find something to snack on. I wasn’t really hungry; I just didn’t want to look at them. No sense in getting ragged about the bright pink blush I could feel on my face.
“Nothing really to tell. I spoke with him yesterday before leaving school. He’s pretty funny, though he didn’t have a whole lot to say,” I said, pulling out a package of Oreos and cramming one into my mouth. Yeah, it was my age-old defense mechanism. Eating so I didn’t have to talk. Amazing that I didn’t weigh two hundred pounds by now.
“That’s it? Come on, Maggie, what did you talk about? What does he look like?” my mom asked.
“Oh, he is really good-looking, Mrs. Young. He has dark hair and dark eyes. He’s pretty tall and has these awesome broad shoulders and cute-as-hell freckles on his nose and cheeks.” I was a little surprised at how much Rachel had noticed about Clayton. Considering he wasn’t Daniel Lowe, I didn’t think she’d pay him any attention.
“He sounds dreamy,” my mom said. I choked on my cookie.
I cleared my throat. “ ‘Dreamy’? Really, Mom? Did we enter a time warp and end up in 1950?” I asked her sarcastically. My mom rolled her eyes. Hmm, wonder where I got that particular facial expression from.
“Well, did he ask you out? Is he going to be your boyfriend?” my mom joked, getting up and throwing her arm around my shoulders, squeezing.
I squirmed. “Uh, no. I’m not even sure I’m going to be his friend. He’s pretty standoffish.”
“Maggie has a boyfriend,” Rachel teased. I threw my balled-up napkin at her.
“You are not helping here, Rache,” I muttered.
My mom laughed. “I’m just teasing, Maggie. But if this boy ever becomes something, you know we’d want to meet him,” she said seriously. I clenched my teeth. Yeah, I knew that. As much as I would love for Clayton to be something more, I didn’t want to go through that mortally humiliating rite of passage, otherwise known as “meeting the parents.”
“Sure,” I said dismissively. Rachel was trying really hard not to laugh at my discomfort. She would be getting an earful as soon as my mom decided to leave the kitchen.
“Well, you girls enjoy your afternoon. Dad and I are going to the farmers’ market in Charlottesville. If you go out, don’t forget your house key.” I nodded and was relieved when she left.
I whipped around to face Rachel, who had already put her hands up in surrender. “Don’t say it. You deserved it, stringing me along with the details like that,” she said. I frowned at her.
“Using my mother as your weapon was a low blow, and you know it,” I retorted. Rachel only grinned, not concerned by my irritation.
At that moment her phone went off. It vibrated across the countertop and she had to grab it before it fell off the edge. “What’s up, Mom?” she asked after answering it. I resumed my seat on the stool and picked at my bright-blue nail polish as I waited for her to get off the phone.
“Seriously? Do I have to?” I looked up, and Rachel did not look happy. She sighed heavily. “Fine, I’ll be there in ten.” She hung up and looked at me apologetically.
“You’re bailing on me?” I whined. Rachel got up and grabbed her purse.
“Sorry, Mags, but my mom needs me to take Caitlyn to some stupid birthday party. She was called in to work. Duty calls.” Caitlyn was Rachel’s eight-year-old half sister and permanent pain in the butt. Rachel lived with her mom and Caitlyn. Rachel’s dad had been out of the picture since Rachel was five, and Caitlyn’s dad had left a few years back. Her mom worked as a nurse over at County General and often got called in, leaving Rachel to play Mommy.
“That’s cool. Just call me later,” I told her, not wanting her to feel guilty for having to cancel our afternoon. She gave me a hug.
“I still want to hear all about your run-in with Clayton. I know there was more to that conversation than you’re telling me.” She wagged her finger at me and I chuckled.
“Sure, whatever you say,” I said, following her to her car.
I waved as she pulled out of my driveway. Mom and Dad had already left and I was stuck in the quiet house alone. I really didn’t feel like being by myself so I tried calling Daniel. I got his voice mail and didn’t bother leaving a message. Well, that exhausted my entire social circle; how sad. I was then faced with an endless afternoon with nothing to do.
Grabbing my keys, making sure my house key was on the ring to appease my mother, I got in my car with no real agenda. I headed over to Fayetteville, the next town over. Once there, I made my way toward the older part of town and pulled into a small parking lot. I looked at the beat-up sign in front of the tiny brick building and smiled. Ruby’s Bookshelf was my favorite store. I hadn’t been here in months and it seemed a great way to pass the afternoon.
The door chimed as I went through it and I breathed in the familiar smell of old books and incense. The owner had the best collection of eclectic and used books. At the front of the store were glass cases full of crystals and New Age jewelry. The shelves on the walls were lined with tarot-card decks and rune sets.
