Lia knew her mother was going to be furious. Her father had to work late, so she thought it would be a little less yelling, but she was two hours late of curfew. Why had she had to talk to that stupid-yet attractive-boy? Of course, she enjoyed listening to his words about the world or stupid things that were practically irrelevant, but Lia enjoyed her time with the boy and she wanted to scream at herself for the fact. Once she pulled into the driveway, she had come up with an excuse as to where she had been, having text Ellie to even tell her what the plan was. Of course, it may not work, but she was sure it would. Shaking her head she parked the car, getting out her Sedan. Walking to the passenger's side, she reached in, getting her jacket and backpack. Lia but her lip wondering what her mother was going to say to her. If she was overly worried, she would have called, right?
"Mom?" Lia called out. "Mom, I'm home."
Her mom came around the corner, running toward Lia. She wrapped her arms around Lia who was barely through the door. "I was so worried," Lia's mother said, her voice near hysteria. "You should have at least called me...do you know much trouble you're in, young lady?"
Lia's mom had let her go and shut the door before Lia was pushed into the foyer. Lia's eyes welled with tears when she realized that her mother was incredibly furious. Lia watched as her mother grew closer, knowing that the woman wouldn't slap her, but still she was frightened at the thought of how aggressive her mother could be at some points.
"...At Ellie's..." was all Lia could get out of her mouth. She cleared her throat. "I was at Ellie's and we lost track of time, mom." Her voice was wavering. Her mother's facial expression became less harsh. "It won't happen again without your knowing, mom. I promise."
Lia's mother stepped back, her light eyes grew less cold. She took a deep breath and said, "All right, Lia. But if it happens again, I have every right to take away your car, of your phone, or your weekend privileges."
"Okay," Lia said, nodding in agreement instantly. "And if I know I'll be later, I'll call."
"Good girl," she smiled, her mother kissed Lia's cheek. "Now, get upstairs, Lia. I want you reading a book or studying."
"Yes, ma'am."
Lia headed upstairs to her room, getting there just in time for her favorite show to start. She knew that her mother want her to study, so she did....on the commercials-which was when her mom checked on her and said good-night.
~ ~ ~
She didn't see Harry for the rest of the week. It was Friday now. Right after school Lia had a meeting for student government. It was about prom and what fundraisers they would have to start organizing for money. Lia said her dad would probably be able to get a donation from her family or the bank. She could see a few people groan or roll their eyes at the idea, but then a few other kids did the same and didn't like that they were annoyed with her for wanting to help.
On her way home, Lia thought about stopping by Bookman's, but figured it was not a good idea after Wednesday night. Then she realized she needed a novel for her English class and she knew she needed to stop by.
Walking in, she felt relaxed. The scent of coffee and warm pastries made her smile. But she quickly found herself frowning when the curly haired boy didn't pop up from behind the counter. Sighing, she headed back to the classics section, looking for The Great Gatsby. It took a few minutes, but Lia finally found the book, jumping when she felt arms around her waist.
"Finding everything, all right, love?"
Lia knew that British accent from anywhere. She blushed, her jaw tightening when he rested his head on her shoulder.
"I got a warning the other night," she stated matter-of-factly, knowing that Harry would know what she was talking about. "My mom said if it happens again, I just need to give her a call and all is well."
Harry let go of the girl, stepping away. Lia turned around to look at his face-his brow furrowed. For a minute, she wondered if he was going to just storm off, but all he said was, "I apologize if I got you in trouble." His voice was soft, slow as she imagined it should be. "It was my fault, I should have paid-"
"It was my fault too," she offered, walking toward the boy. "I was the one with a curfew."
"Yeah, but-"
"There you are!" someone shouted, though the voice did not sound familiar at all to me. "I have been looking all over the store for you."
Lia's eyes drifted over to a woman that looked to be a decade older then herself. She had bright green eyes and brown hair that was rather wavy. It took a minute for Lia to piece together who the woman was. She knew that harry didn't live with his parents, so it wasn't his mother-though the woman looked a lot like she could be. Then she figured it out . . .
"Not here, Aunt Kate," he began. "I happen to be working at the moment."
She raised an eyebrow, glancing over to me. Obviously she had seen the two of us interacting . . . even if it was only a small bit, she had seen it. "Then who is this lovely girl?" she inquired, seeming much more perky than someone should have been for a Friday. "Harry, is this your girlfriend?"
"Kate!" he whined, red flushing the curly-haired boy's cheeks. He seemed embarrassed when he glanced at me, his green eyes meeting mine for a few moments before he turned back to his aunt. "Just wait up front for me, all right?"
"I need-"
"Please," he begged gently, his eyes doing more of the pleading than his words. "Just wait up front."
"You are really pretty, sweetheart," his aunt murmured to me before walking off, turning down an aisle of books.
Harry just stared at me, seeming annoyed at the interruption. Honestly, I found it rather amusing that he had gotten so frustrated with the woman. He sighed, saying, "Sorry about her."
"No worries," Lia said. She smiled at the boy, pushing his hair back out of his face. "She seemed lovely."
Harry laughed. "When she wanted to be. Kate can be a quite the bitch if I do say so from experience . . ." He shook his head from the thought, his fringe falling back into his eyes. "And it gets really awkward when I bring a friend-that's a girl-over. She always assumes and says the most embarrassing things."
Lia giggled, shaking her head. She found Harry to be rather amusing, and wished she could spend time with him tonight-but she recalled that she was going to a dinner party with her parents. Lia then remembered the boy Carter Parks that was supposed to be there-one of the other bankers children that went to Lia's school. Her parents had tried to make her date the boy-her mother especially-seeing as they were good friends with the Parks. Shaking her head, Lia knew they were mutual on terms of liking one another, but she was not sure if there was a future there. Either way, she had to leave, and she had to leave now if she wanted time to get ready.
"Uh," Harry shifted on his feet, his hands moving to his pockets. "I'll give you my number if you want?"
Smiling, Lia nodded. She gave Harry her phone and he quickly put his number in as a contact, then texted himself. Harry said he would ring her up for the book, and she grinned at the idea. Quickly, she finished up, Harry thanking her and telling her to text or call him whenever. She left then, thinking she could call him or text him later this evening if things got awkward between Carter and her. Shaking her head from the thought, she got into her car, feeling giddy with the idea of having the British boy's number.
xxx ~ Bacardi
