Grace.

Chapter 28.

One thing I found hilarious was Donna being a part of marching band. And since the Homecoming game was around the corner...she had practice almost every afternoon. I was so glad to see her by the water dispenser after Mathlete club. I really wanted a chance to talk to her.
"Hey!" I smiled at her.
"Hey, Grace. Heading home?"
"Yes. Are you?"
"Yep."
"Cool! Let's walk out together."
School was empty and there were about two or five cars parked outside, mine and Donna's included. It was the perfect setting! The perfect moment.
"So, how have you been, Donny?" I started.
"I've been okay. I mean this weekend I got time to sit and chill, you know?"
"You know what I've been realizing lately? We've just become so busy, we're slowly drifting away from our normal lives."
It was true. Mimi had her fiascos with Austin, and Lucy was on...something, all the time. Bebe, she was in love twenty-four seven.
"Nah. I think it's just a phase and eventually we'll be back to normal again. I hope it's only temporary," Donna disagreed.
"A phase ? No ways. Maybe this is the beginning of the rest of our lives. I mean next year we won't be together, it's kinda sad."
"Don't remind me. I have no idea how I'm going to survive without you guys. We've been glued together since forever."
"Yeah. It sucks. If it were possible, we'd all enroll into one college. But, we all want different things," I said.
"On the brighter side, we could still see each other after school. We could still hang, right? And to make things even better, we could have two chill sessions!" She grinned.
"That is not such a bad idea! We should totally tell the others!"
"The thing is, I don't even know what I want to do next year, Grace."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't have my act together. I don't have anything I'm interested in. I don't know what career field I'd like to pursue."
"Are you kidding me?! What happened to wanting to be a screen writer?"
"I don't know. I'm starting to doubt that's me." She shrugged.
"No, Donna! You can't give up before even trying!"
"I don't know, Grace. I'll see."
"Okay, but time is running out. Also, now that you've told me, you know I'm going to follow up on it."
"Yes, Mother!"
"Quit playing. On a much serious note...where were you that weekend, Donna? And no lies."
"Do you ever just leave things alone? I told you, I went to go clear my head."
"No! Where? And why?"
"Grace!"
"I'm your friend! I'm worried about you. Come on, Donna. You can talk to me. What's going on with you?" I urged.
"I don't want to talk about it. So please, can we drop it?"
I squinted my eyes and then shrugged. Of course I wanted to know, but if Donna wouldn't say anything, then it was best I left it alone...for now.
"Okay. I'll drop it. I've got to get home. Chores," I rolled my eyes.
"Wait!" She stopped me.
"Yeah?"
"You and Ethan. What's that about?"
"Nothing. He's uhm, we're actually going to Homecoming together," I choked.
"That is so hot," she smirked.
"What?" I chuckled.
"You two are a perfect match. I've always seen it."
"You've got a wild imagination."
"And you've got a crush on him."
"What?!" I cried out.
"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone, since everyone is blind. You like him, he likes you. The perks of being the quiet kid? You see and know everything. Okay, see you tomorrow."
And with that, she walked away. I literally just stood there with my mind scrambling in my head. Why would she say that?!
Of course, I thought about it, the entire way home. I didn't like Ethan. I found him cool, but I didn't want him. I had Edgar, now him I liked. I liked him very, very much. It was a bummer that our relationship had to be top secret, but I enjoyed every moment with him.
Every single one.
The only guy that Gloria had ever been with was Daniel. She was my role model. Like Bella! Bella fell for one guy, married him, lost her virginity to him, gave birth to his baby and then changed...into him! Say what you will, but that love story was just perfect.
Okay, jokes aside. What I'm trying to say is my idea of love was similar to my sister's and Bella's. They found their soulmates on the first try! And so did I! Edgar was my soulmate. He'd shown me that multiple times!
Papá was already on my side, even though he didn't know yet, I knew he was on my side. Next, my mom. She was going to freak out for a few months but eventually, she would've understood and ended up being best friends with Edgar. Then...Ria. To be honest, I wasn't sure how'd she'd handle it. I think she was the one I was most afraid of.
Gloria shared my dreams with me. My dreams were her dreams. It sometimes felt unbelievable. But it was genuine, she was! The last thing I wanted was to disappoint her.
Speaking of, I needed to do all my chores, or else she'd be breathing down my neck. As soon as I got home I dropped everything and started in the kitchen, then made my way to the lounge, followed by the garage and last but not least, emptying all the bins...the one in dad's study included. My bathroom was clean and I was not about to clean everyone else's. Laundry duty was Gloria's for that week.
After all that, I dragged myself upstairs to get busy on my homework. With everything else going on, I forgot the most important aspect of my life: School. I couldn't remember the last time I studied. Josh was right. Oh my gosh! Joshua! I quickly grabbed my phone and dialed his number.
"Hello," he answered.
"Are you busy? Can you come over?" I hurried.
"I'll be there shortly."
So, what was the "emergency"? Well...
He arrived in no time and rushed straight up to my bedroom!
"I'm here! I'm here!" He barged in.
"Josh!"
I quickly rushed to him, slamming my body against his, my arms looped around his neck. Luckily for both of us, he had good balance. I mean, he took a step or two back, I think holding onto me must've helped a bit.
"What's going on?" He pressed.
"Joshua, I haven't seen you in days! Are you okay? You're still alive!"
I cupped his head in my hands staring him right in the eyes! I did miss him. Seeing him in class didn't count. I missed having conversations with him.
"Wait, you called me over here cause you missed me?" He clarified.
"So much. Can I hold you for a few more seconds?"
"You saw me in class!" He chuckled.
"But we've hardly spoken. Don't you miss our talks?"
"I do, but you haven't been yourself lately. I figured you might like some space."
"You know me so well."
We finally let go of each other and I offered him a seat on the chair. My books were scattered all over my bed. I quickly and neatly shifted a few to make some space.
"So, what's been bothering you?" He questioned.
"Deep, crazy stuff," I sighed.
"I'll take that. But, just know that I will be asking you again."
"I know you will," I smiled.
"So, you're back?"
"Sort of."
"On a scale of one to ten?"
"Mh, a six."
"Well, that's good enough for me. I've really missed you."
"I've missed you more. Especially having you help me with my homework," I snickered.
"See? I knew there was something up. I knew it. What homework do you want help with?"
He stood up from the chair and joined me on the bed, my English book in his hand.
"I'm sorry! Actually, I don't need any help. You know it's always nice to do homework with a fellow dork. I like hearing your opinions and other theories on things," I confessed.
"So that you can use them against me. Nice move. I'm just kidding. Unfortunately, I have none of my books with me."
"I have an extra one. It's empty. You can write in it and...keep it!"
"Thank you," he chuckled. "So, which one would you like to start with first?"
"Our favorite topic: Drugs," I grinned, rubbing my hands together.
"You mean, our most favorite topic," he winked.
"We can start by saying, 'I take drugs, they're really not that bad'," I laughed.
"In fact, one could say that drugs, are an essential part of life. Take me for instance, I'm fueled by them!"
"We'd get a trillion F's if we ever did that!" I continued laughing.
"That's nothing. Davis would have us out and expelled immediately."
"That's true. Hey, do you want to stay over for dinner?" I invited him.
"Will Gloria be there as well?" His eyes lit up.
"Yes. Probably with Daniel, her boyfriend."
"Daniel doesn't scare me. He sounds soft."
"Oh, really?"
"Grace, I'm a man. You can't see that cause you're still young."
"Excuse me, what?!" I laughed.
"It's true."
My phone rang. It was Nayeli, I had to get it.
"Hey, pretty lady," I answered.
"Hey. I hope I'm not interrupting you."
"Of course not! What's up?"
"Okay, so, my mom wants to take me out to go get my hair and nails done for Homecoming."
"That is awesome!"
"Totally! And guess what? She wants you to tag along. She'll pay for everything, no problem. It's a treat from her."
"What? Are you being for real?"
"Yes! Say yes, Grace. Please? Pretty, pretty please!"
"Okay. Okay! I'd love too! Thank you so much, Nayeli! Thank your mom for me, okay?"
"Will do! Bye, I love you."
"I love you too," I smiled.
I hung up and got back to my conversation with Josh who was writing something in his new book.
"Did you just win a million dollars?" He teased, eyes still glued on to the book.
"No. Nayeli's mom just offered to do my hair and nails for Homecoming."
"You serious? That's really cool! Wow, nice! You honestly deserve it."
"You think?"
"I know. Hey, can I get you a pretty necklace to wear at Homecoming?"
"Haha, very funny."
"No, I'm being serious," he declared.
"You want to buy me a necklace?" I double checked.
"Yes."
"But, why?!" I questioned.
"It's a gift from me to you."
That was so sweet. Too sweet, in fact! It made me wonder...
"Hey, Josh? Why didn't you ask me to go to the dance with you?"
He finally put down the pen he was holding and looked at me.
"It's because I knew that someone better would."
"How could you possibly know what's better for me?" I scoffed.
"Because I know you. I'm probably the only guy at school who does. I won't lie, the thought did cross my mind, but then I quickly realized how selfish it would be of me to ask you to be my date."
"Why is that?"
"Because you need to be out there, Grace. I love our friendship and all but, you need to go out there and explore! Meet new guys and get to know them. You and I hang out all the time, you need to have your options," he advised.
"Even if that option is Ethan Byers?"
"Hold on, you like Ethan?"
"I'm going to the dance with him."
"Wow. I never took you for the 'I can fix him' type of girl."
"It's just one night, Joshua. It's not like I'm marrying the guy."
"Right, yet here you are, not answering a simple question. You're going to the dance with Ethan Byers. I asked if you like him, and you didn't answer that."
He picked up the pen again and continued writing. How dare he?! Why was every Tom, Dick and Harry on my case about Ethan Byers?! It was so annoying! Him and I hardly hung out. We were hardly seen together, but people were already assuming the worst! Argh!!!