The Older We Get

Chapter 11

               "Sage?" I feel my body tense up a bit when mom steps into my room, eyeing the get up I have which is some dark red skinny jeans Reen insisted I keep, and a strange Panda Bear T-shirt under my hoody.

               Let's see. How do I explain this? Will she be opposed to me going to dinner with the Riggs? I doubt it. She was always good friends with them. But what if she hates the idea? I'm starting to feel torn between wanting her anger to bail me out of sitting in the same household with Chandler, but then again, I want to go.

               "Mom?" I cluck her title and smile before slipping my feet into some 1 inch ankle high boots with a discreet zipper. I fought long and hard to avoid the bling bling of modern society and thought that success was sweet since I got these while shopping with a troop of girly girls who went for leopard print everything.

               "Why are you dressing up? Another party?" She raises her brows and looks at my comfortable new tote, putting my cell in for me while sitting on the edge of the bed. "Josh picking you up?"

               Oh yeah. Damm. I still have to tell her about that. Her and dad.

               "No. I'm actually going to the Riggs. I ran into William and he invited me tonight." I begin to lean over so I can grab a pack of breath mints while my mom stares for a second. "What?"

               "Did you tell your dad?"

               "No." I reply to her cautious voice with sincere worry. "Why?"

               "Just don't. He wouldn't like it." She sighs, getting up and patting my back. "Be back by 12. It's school now ok?"

               "I will. Why won't he like it?" I don't believe in wasting time.

               "Uhhh...because, William and your dad, they don't like each other so much. They don't go well together in the same room. Chandler hanging around here was ok, but you're dad was just being sympathetic since Gina's not around."

               "Yeah. Chandler told me about that." I sigh and think about him being so little and alone when his parents divorced. How I wasn't there even through a screen to tell him something I wanted to say. I'm literally starting to hate myself for that. I'm beginning to wonder if he'd have been the same if I had kept speaking with him. If so, he wouldn't have confessed.

               He wouldn't have felt anything towards me?

               I would've just been his friend?

               "Hmm." I mumble to myself at the thought of Chandler just being a good kid to me, the relationship he pretends to want with me not even up for a joke when now...I-This is getting harder the more I think about it.

               "I was pretty shocked when I heard." My mom's red painted nails pinch the bridge of her nose before I nod and run a hand through my hair. "Honey, do me a favor. Wear the leather jacket instead. And stop binding your breasts. You have a healthy body that wasn't made for sports. Show it off. And tie your hair back. It'll look pretty." She smiles and kisses my cheek before walking out of the room. "Remember. Not one word to him." Her index finger points down towards the stairs, and I nod quickly while peeling off my extra top, my oh so comfortable hoody, I'll miss you loved one, and going to the closet for a leather jacket it with 'radical' zippers here and there just minutes prior to grabbing a slim hair bow and tying myself a pony tail.

               "Stop binding myself?" The full length mirror shows me what I'm doing to my figure that is not meant for sports according to my mom, and the more I look at myself, I see the healthy width of my shoulders, the fit limbs I use, the arms, I mean there's no thigh gap but I like that fine.