It had been exactly one week since those few days in Baltimore and now I was back home in my one bedroom apartment in sunny San Diego, California. I had said my farewell to Sierra and shed a few tears, but I was glad to be home. Besides, I had Sarah with me and I liked to keep my friend circle very small.
I spent my first day unpacking and cleaning, my Paramore CD on full blast. I probably disturbed the neighbors and I honestly didn’t give a fuck. I paid rent just like they did – deal with it. The second day was spent catching up on all of my bills. I still had money left over from a couple student loans, which helped me greatly in this particular situation. That was one thing I always worried about; money. Merely thinking of it too much caused my stomach to turn unpleasantly.
There was one positive thing that happened on the third day back – Mike called. Since I now knew who he was, I knew that he lived in San Diego with his other bandmates. He had called to asked if I would be his guest at a family barbecue that was happening on Saturday. I agreed and asked if Sarah could come. He had laughed and said yes, which I had then let out a mental sigh of relief. Sarah was just one of those people that was at ease everywhere and I was the complete opposite. There were moments when I let loose and those were mostly times when I was drunk, but all in all I was awkward and quiet.
Now it was Saturday and I was beyond worried about what to wear. I didn’t want to dress too fancy, but I also didn’t want to look like a slob either. This is where Sarah comes in. I walk over to my nightstand and pick up my iPhone, unlocking it and selecting her name, putting it up to my ear and waiting while it rings.
“Hey bitch, what can I do for you?”
A small laugh escapes my lips at her greeting and I shake my head slightly. She sure had a way with words, eh? “I need your fashion expertise, b. Can you come over and help? Oh, and are you even ready? You know the barbecue is today.”
“Whoa, whoa, hold up. Please erase and rewind. Repeat yourself.”
I let out a sigh, rolling my eyes in the process. “I need your fashion expertise, b. Can you come over and help?”
She shuffles around on the other end and then speaks. “Yes. I can be over in about ten minutes.”
“Oh, and are you even ready? You know the barbecue is today.”
“Listen here, smartass; when I said repeat yourself, I didn’t mean say the exact same thing over again. Either way, yes, I am ready. I’ll see you in ten. Bye.”
The line goes dead and I pull the phone away from my ear, exiting out and setting it back on my nightstand. Sometimes I wondered why we were even friends. We were polar opposites, but when we were together it felt right. There were people that didn’t understand it either. We had our similarities and we had our differences. Although, lately, it did feel like the differences were outweighing the similarities and I felt like I was the only one who was noticing. I didn’t want that to be the case because she meant more to me than ninety percent of my family and that was huge. I told her anything and everything, as did she with me. Sarah was the one person that I could trust with anything and I knew that it wouldn’t be broadcasted onto the internet the next day. She was part of my heart and I was hoping and praying that it would stay that way.
~
She had told the truth and was knocking at my door exactly ten minutes later. I let her in and look her over, nodding in approval. She had decided on wearing white denim jeans and a red tank top with a black and grey flannel over it. My black Vans were on her feet and I silently told myself to get them back as soon as possible, and her hair was down and all natural. Her make-up choice was what she called her “every day look” and her plump lips had a light coat of clear lipgloss. She looked great, as always.
Her blue eyes appease me and her top lip curls, which was never a good thing when it was Sarah. “You look like shit. Come on.” She grab my right hand with her left one and pulls me down the hall and into my room, releasing me once we’re inside and heading straight to my walk-in closet. I hear her moving hangers around and I begin to get impatient. It was just a barbecue for crying out loud.
“Sarah?”
“Hm?”
“How did it go with Chase?”
There isn’t an answer for a moment and I open my mouth to ask again, but she comes out holding a pair of very short dark denim shorts. I furrow my eyebrows, looking up at her, only to get cut off as she speaks. “We had sex. Drop the towel.”
I comply with her order and she searches through my dresser drawers, grabbing a pair of yellow boy shorts, tossing them to me. I pull them on just in time to catch a matching yellow bra. “Is that all you guys did?”
“Well, there was foreplay. I just figured you wouldn’t want to hear that.” She looks at me, a small smirk on her lips. I roll my eyes and take the shorts from her, pulling them on and then turning to look in my full length mirror. My ass had always been nonexistent, but it sure as hell wasn’t now. I look over at Sarah and smile, my sign of approval.
“I’m a genius, I know. I need to find you a cute shirt now, but it’s basically impossible because you have no taste in clothing whatsoever. It’s quite annoying.”
“Well excuse the fuck outta me. Next time, I’ll make sure to waste my money on clothes that I’ll never wear in a million years just to satisfy you.”
A laugh comes within my closet, followed by a flying blur of green. I catch the piece of fabric before it hits my face and hold it up in front of me, seeing that it’s a bandeau top. I groan loudly and shake my head fiercely. “Sarah, what the fuck is this? For one, I’m wearing a bright yellow bra and for two, I am not wearing this! It’s basically a bra in itself!”
She walks out of my closet and rolls her eyes. “Just put the damn thing on. I’m gonna give you something to put over it.” With that, she walks forward and hands me a white flannel. I narrow my eyes and turn around, going into my bathroom and quickly applying deodorant before I put it on. I then walk back into my room and look in the mirror, tilting my head slightly to the side. Sarah was right – I looked damn good. I read down and play with my bellybutton ring, chewing on the inside of my cheek.
“I’m already ahead of you, b.”
I then feel something cold in my hand and look down, seeing another bellybutton ring with a dreamcatcher charm attached. I smile and remove the current one, replacing it with the other one. I reassess my appearance and nod once.
“Now, it’s time for your hair and make-up. Oh, and let me tell you one thing, someone’s gonna have to carry your ass home.”
