Heaven Is

Cousin Karlie

"Love, I'm telling you, you can't go around fighting all the time at this school." Karlie tells me as we walk around the grocery store.

"I didn't start it, honest." I say tugging at my school uniform. I hate it.

I go to a catholic school and I have to wear this stupid uniform consisting of a blue sweater, over a white blouse, and blue and green plaid skirt. I hate wearing skirts or dresses or anything girlie. I'm a hockey player for Christ's sake.

Karlie is my mum's late brother's kid, she's ten years older than me and lives with my grandparents as well. Karlie was raised in England so she speaks with a thick English accent. She's a lot of fun and isn't like my grandmum at all. She just wants me to have fun here.

"You know what I don't understand?" Karlie asks me.

"How I went to a catholic school in Montreal but didn't have to wear a uniform?" I wonder and she smiles.

"We've had that conversation. But I don't understand why you had a boy in your room last night and didn't tell me about it?" She questions.

"What?" I try to lie.

Sav had come back to the house last night after they walked me home. We kissed (a lot) and ended up in my room and well I bet you can guess where it went from there.

"I know what shagging sounds like, Molson. And I can see your love bites." Karlie points at the hickies on my neck and I fix my hair quickly, hiding them again. My cousin laughs at that.  "Does he go to your school?"

"No." I say simply.

"The how'd you meet him?" She wonders.

"He's in a band with my friend Rick." I say again as simply as I can.

"What's his name?"  Karlie hints for more information.

"Sav." I say and she looks at me.

"His mum hate him or something?" She wonders and I laugh.

"No, his name is Rick Savage. They call him Sav so they don't get confused with Rick." I explain.

"Rick's younger than you, is Sav?" Karlie questions.

"No."  I admit.

"Older!" She squeals alerting the people in the isle with us. "By how much? You're eighteen, nobody can say anything."

"Three years." I reluctantly admit. "But his birthday is late in the year and my mine is early so not even three years, more like two years and a month."

"Fair enough, do you like him?" Karlie wonders.

"Of course I do." I say and she smiles.

"What does he look like?" She wonders curiously.

"Curly dirty blond hair, blue eyes, about six foot." I think back in my head and smile.

"You really like him, huh?" Karlie smiles.

"Maybe." I admit.

We walk around the store a bit longer without buying anything but end up going to Karlie's car. One thing I hate about England is how they manufacture their cars and how they drive them. Everything is backwards. They drive on the left side of the road and they driver's side is the right. I think something got lost in translation.

She drives me back to the house so I can get changed for work. I pull on a pair of jeans and an Aerosmith shirt. I lace up a pair of Chuck Taylor's and head down the stairs. My grandad is sitting in his rocking chair in the living room, I say hi to him as I head to the kitchen to get something to eat. My grandmum sits at the table reading the paper. Karlie has already started to raid the fridge.

We're small enough to squeeze into the opening of the fridge at the same time and we open up all the drawers looking for something to eat.

"You know, if you ate your dinner you wouldn't be this hungry." Grandmum speaks up.

"We do eat, grandmum." Karlie answers as we find apples.

We eat our snacks like we're in elementary school and then Karlie drives me to work. Today she doesn't drop me at the door like usual. Today Karlie parks her car and follows me into the the studio.

"What are you doing?" I wonder as I grab the paperwork I have to file.

"I want to see this Sav guy." She admits looking around.

"You're going to get my fired." I complain.

"Nonsense, I fit in fine." Karlie insists but I shake my head.

Karlie doesn't listen to music or at least good music. Not that she doesn't like it, she just knows nothing about it. She wears blue jeans and a blue shirt with the Union Jack on it. She doesn't exactly look like she belongs in a recording studio. But she follows me around closely.

I walk past the studio that the boys were recording in yesterday, the door's closed so I can't tell if anyone is in there. I walk into one of the offices and start to file the paperwork. Karlie watches me.

"Is this all you do?" She wonders.

"Karlie you're going to get me into trouble. You have to go." I say and she brushes it off.

I'm going to get fired today and go to prison for murdering my pain in the ass cousin. I'm just praying Mutt or my boss doesn't walk in and see this ditsy little blonde that followed me to work.

"Don't you have work today?" I wonder and she sighs.

"Right, come on, show me out." Karlie says disappointed.

I lead her back out to the lobby when I see Rick and the other boys. Karlie recognizes Rick right off the bat and walks over to them, dragging me along with her. We reach the boys and starts conversation with Rick. Rick introduced her to everyone and I caught Sav's eye. He smiles as soon as our eyes make contact, I smile back.

He's been in my head all day, I can't stop thinking about him. I want to be his girlfriend. Yeah, that's the first thought I've hand where it makes sense and sounds right. I want to be Rick Savage's girlfriend after a day of knowing him. God, it sounds ridiculous but it feels right. But at the same time, I'm eighteen years old and he'll be twenty one. What if he doesn't want an eighteen year old, what if he wants an adult? I can't be an adult, I'm still in high school are work part time as a studio hand.

"Molson." Karlie bumps me with he shoulder, I look up at her. "Don't you have work to do?"

"Right." I smile. "I'll see you guys later." I call as I walk back over to the desk to get more papers.