Paradise

Chapter Six

Choir broke for lunch at 11:35 am.

The fear of being trampled to death by hungry students caused me to remain in my seat until the majority of the class had left for the cafeteria. Kendall was standing near the door talking to two other girls. When the other girls excused themselves and left the room, Kendall turned to me with a big grin.

"So, are you going to stay after school?" she asked, taking a seat next to me and crossing one leg over the other.

The question had only just occurred to me. My parents weren't really open to me staying after school. Once they got home from work, that was it; they didn't want to go anywhere else. I shrugged. "I'd like to, but I don't know if my mom will want to drive all the way up here to come get me."

"Don't worry about it," Kendall said, waving a hand dismissively through the air. "I'll take you home."

I perked up. "Are you sure?"

Kendall grinned. "Yeah. We can get some dinner afterward, and catch up."

I returned her grin. "That would be great! Thanks."

"It's no problem." She winked. "We're practically sisters, remember?"

I stood up, and Kendall followed suit. "Yeah, well, thanks again. I'm just going to go call my mom, and make sure it's alright."

Kendall was already starting toward the door. "Sure. I'll just be in the cafeteria. Let me know what she says, okay?"

"Okay, see you there," I called.

When the hallway was clear, I made my way to the office to call my mother. She would be surprised to receive a call from me that didn't involve going home early. I almost had the urge to trick her that I was calling to be picked up, but I didn't dare. That would just be wrong.

Amber-Lynn Walker looked at me as I came into the office. She offered me a smile. "Phone?" she asked, knowing exactly what I was here to do (or at least she thought she did).

I returned her smile, nodding. "Yes, please."

She set the phone on the counter, and I picked up the receiver. I had memorized my mother's work number sometime last year when I was a Sophomore, so I never needed to look at the slip of paper my mother had written it on for me.

Someone answered on the third ring. "Mornington. This is Alice. How may I help you?"

"Hello. May I please speak to Deanna Springfield, please?" I asked. "She works on line 5."

"Yes," Alice replied, and there was some shuffling on the other end of the phone.

I watched the clock on the back of the wall as I always did. After I had counted three minutes my mother's somewhat reluctant voice came on the phone. "Hello."

"Hey, mom," I said, "I was wondering if--"

My mother sighed noisily. "Penny, I can't--"

"No, not that," I said, wanting to laugh. "I want to audition for a solo, but it's after school. Kendall said she'd take me home-- if it's okay with you."

"Oh," my mother said, sounding more than a little surprised. "Okay, that's fine. Just be home before 8. It's a school night, remember? You need enough time to clean up and do your homework before bed."

"Okay. Thanks, mom. Love you," I said, before hanging up.

Before I could walk out the door, Amber-Lynn called, "Good luck on the solo, Penny!"

"Thanks!" I called back, feeling a flutter of excitement. I always got a scary kind of thrill prior to auditioning.

I pushed through the office door and smiled.