Between You & Me

Chapter Nine

Galloping down the steps to the first floor, I keep my gaze toward the ground. Geez, and I thought they’d keep away from that subject completely. I didn’t think they’d be that perverted. Sure, some of my friends back at home were just that weird, but that’s because I knew them better than I do these guys.

While walking down the hall on my way to the lobby, I bump into some girl, clashing heads with her and stumbling backward. “Shoot, sorry,” she apologizes, holding me upright by the shoulders.

“It’s fine. It was my fault. I wasn’t paying attention and-” she slaps her hand over my mouth.

“Don’t say another word. It was my fault,” she says in a silly voice that makes me laugh. “Hi, I’m Daniella, but you can call me Danny,” she introduces herself.

“Lexi,” I point to myself.

“I’m a sophomore. You?”

“Junior.”

“That’s cool! I’m kinda tall for my age,” she motions to her height, which makes her taller than me by far. She smiles at me brightly, showing her sparkling white teeth. “I was just on my way up to my room. My parents decided to take a vacation here.”

“I live on the other side of town,” I explain. “I came here for snowboarding but we got snowed in.”

“Sucks, huh? So you like snowboarding?” She asks. Honestly, I love talking to her. I think it’s easier to talk to strangers because they can’t exactly judge you since they don’t know you personally. Without my knowledge we come to the third floor where she stops outside room three hundred twenty-four. From out here I can smell the pizza from inside.

“Mm… smells good,” I comment.

“Oh, yeah, we ordered pizza from Costa’s Pizzeria before the snow hit, so it’s a bit cold,” she tells me.

“I love Costa’s,” I admit.

“Want some?” She asks, opening the door.

“Danny, is that you?” A voice of a true mother calls.

“Yes, mom!” She shouts across the room, slamming the door shut after me.

“Who’s that?” Her mom comes around the corner. Her hair is really very curly, making it seem shorter than it really is. Her motherly features are heartwarming, and yet it makes me homesick for my own mom.

“Mom, meet Lexi. She got snowed in after going snowboarding,” she explains, and then gasps abruptly. “Do you have a place to stay tonight?” She asks me hopefully. I stammer for a moment.

“Ah, I, well… um, no… no I don’t,” I stutter. She squeals happily and turns to her mom.

“Can she stay with us the night?” She asks.

“Sure she can,” she smiles at me. “Hi, I’m Julie, but you can call me mom if you want.” I can’t help but smile back as I shake her soft, warm hand.

“Thank you,” I thank her.

“So you’re going to stay here with us for the night?” Danny asks hopefully, and I nod. “Yes!” She sounds so excited, it makes me want to party ‘till I’m purple!

That night we have a total slumber party, and it’s reassuring that I can act myself with no worries with some semi-stranger. I know I can trust them, and I’m sure they trust me, too. But usually people wouldn’t do this, but it’s like meeting a new friend on vacation for them. I know that’s happened to me before my dad died. We used to take trips to Florida the same time our friends we met there a while back would go. But of course it stopped when we moved in with Philip.