not another girl next door

rainy days

I struggle to get my old, beat up pick up truck going while he quickly gets his car going, despite it being just as old as mine.

I turn on the radio and drive fast to the shore. Tori's house is only a few miles away. She is a few slim years older than us, and always lets us swim at her lake house. Her dad even owns a run-down lighthouse. I drive fast, since no one is ever on the roads in little Lilith anyways. I go a faster route, losing AJ's tail. As I drive past a green light a pink fiat pulls in from the side and- my front hits the side of the car. We skidded to a stop as the pretty blonde looked astonished.

She steps out of her vehicle, getting on the phone. "Give me your insurance information," I ask as she throws a nasty look. "Please." I add, trying to nicer up my tone. She makes a catty expression that makes me think I should know something. She shuts her foldable phone and tucks it in her plaid pink Prada bag which I hate to admit, is pretty cute. She fixes her curtain bangs. "You don't know me?" She asks. I know her. "Lacy may?" I hold back an eye roll.

Her name would be better if she just picked one instead of using her first and middle name. "How is Warner?" I ask. I'm guessing just as douchey as he always has been. She frowns. "Why do you wanna know?" She snarls. I sigh. "Just give me your insurance, I think we both know small talk is pointless." I say. She sighs and pulls out her phone again. She shoves it onto my ear. "Carmen?" My veins run cold.

"Mr. Hawthorne?" I say into the phone. Me and Lacy used to be best friends, her parents loved me. "Carmen, how did this happen?" He asks. "Well I was going to a friend's house," he interrupts me. "Say yes if it was Lacy's fault, just go along with it, I'd rather you not have to deal with her temper." He says. I say yes and he tells me he'll pay for the damages. I give her her phone and look at my wrecked car. "Your mom would kill me if I didn't give you a ride," she says, getting into her car. I hesitate before stepping inside.

White interiors, frilly decorations, it matches her to a T. I try not to admire it for too long. She turns on the cure. "You like the cure?" I ask skeptically. She looks at me and shrugs. She eventually caves after I glare. "Warner loves the cure. He plays their stupid-" she pauses and sighs again. "He plays his stupid songs all the time and I can't stand it but I would never tell him." She says. I pause the music, feeling sorry for the poor thing.

"Must be hard to date a knucklehead," I say. She scoffs. "Wouldn't you know," she says. I scrunch my brows. "What do you mean?" I ask. "You and Ajax have known each other since birth, correct?" She says. "Yes." I confirm. She honks at a slow car. "Well, have you ever noticed that you're the only person who calls him AJ?" she asks. I think about it. "Well, no." I admit. She continues. "He must be a real knucklehead, because he either doesn't have the balls to ask you out or he is blind." She says confidently.
         
I cross my arms. "Blind about what?" I ask. She exhales. "Oh, goody, you're blind, too." She groans. I straighten. "What do you mean?" I ask again. "Carmen, you like a boy, that boy likes you. He is number one, blind because you're gorgeous and a great person and two, you clearly like him back." She concludes. I trace my phone case nervously. I'm not sure how to respond. Is it bad that the only thing I can think about is how she spoke so good of me? She completely ghosted me after she got popular. I guess I'm only interesting when her friends aren't around.

I disregard her comments. "Why did you cut me out like that? They aren't even your real friends," I say. She darts her eyes before bringing them back onto the road. "You don't know that," she says. "You aren't denying it." I tell her. She searches for an answer. "You always liked Ajax, anyways. You treated me like a third wheel." She says. "That's not true. Even when we would hang out with AJ, back then it was always 'ooh he has cooties' so we never hung out as three." I say. She rolls her eyes. "I didn't do anything. You cut me out. You wanted to be friends with Trix, Cassidy, and Jackie and you did that. You slowly hung out with them more and said it was because I was always busy. And then, they helped you get Warner. And then you just stopped talking to me." I say.