Perfectly Wrong

4. Three Questions

Sofia and Aaliyah run out of the house followed by Sinu as Camila and Shawn take the last handful of groceries out of the trunk of her Jeep. The two girls run across the street to check out Aaliyah’s bedroom and Shawn politely extends his hand for Camila’s mother to shake.

 “ You must be Camila and Sofia’s mom. I’m Shawn. We live across the street.” He says.

 “ Sinu.” She says. “ You’re Aaliyah’s older brother?”

 “ Yes, Ma’am.” He replies. “ Older by twelve years.”

 “ So that makes you… twenty-one?” She turns around and winks at Camila, who glares at her. “ I’m glad Sofia and Camila were able to make friends so fast.”

 “ Me too.” Shawn says.

 Sinu turns to head inside, purposefully nudging Camila with her shoulder as she passes. She doesn’t need to speak a word for Camila to know what she’s saying. She’s giving her approval.

 “ So, Camila.” Shawn leans against her car and crosses his arms. “ Aaliyah and I are going out of town on Friday. We’ll be gone until late Sunday, family stuff. I was wondering if you had any plans for tomorrow night, before I go?”

 “ Are you really going to make me admit that I have absolutely no life here?” Camila says, leaning against the door and facing him. She’s trying to keep her cool, but inside she’s screaming with excitement.

 “ Great! It’s a date then. I’ll pick you up at seven-thirty.” Shawn says and immediately turns around, walking across the street to his house as she realizes she never actually agreed to it.

••••

 The next day, Camila is picking out what to wear, but realizes she doesn’t own many winter shirts besides the ones she already worn the last few days. She settles for a red long sleeved, smelling it before deciding it’s clean enough, then sprays some perfume through it just in case. After brushing her teeth, Camila touches up her makeup and curls a few sections of her hair, letting it loose around her shoulders. She’s putting on some silver earrings when she hears a knock on the bathroom door. Her mother enters with a pile of folded towels and places them in the cabinet next to the shower.

 “ Going somewhere?” Sinu asks, sitting down at the edge of the tub while Camila continues to get ready.

 “ Yes, somewhere.” She tries to hide the smile on her lips. “ I’m not really sure what we’re doing. I never even agreed to the date.”

 Sinu stands up and walks to the door, leaning up against the frame while watching her daughter in the mirror. Camila notices how her mother has aged so much since her father passed. She has dark circles under her eyes and she looks tired and sad.

 “ Well, you’re eighteen now. I already gave you enough advice for a lifetime.” Her mother says. “ But I’ll provide you a quick recap just in case. Don’t order anything with onion or garlic, never take your eyes from your drink and always use protection.”

 “ Ugh, Mom!” Camila rolls her eyes. “ You know I know the rules and you know I don’t have to worry about the last one. Please, don’t give Shawn a recap of your rules.”

 “ So tell me about Shawn. Does he work? Is he in college? What's his major? Is he a serial killer?” Sinu says.

 Camila walks out of the bathroom and back to her room to look for her shoes and her mother follows her and sits down at the edge of the bed.

 “ Honestly, I don’t know anything about him. I didn’t even know how old he was until he told you.”

 “ That’s good.” Sinu says, making Camila look at her.