Counting Down

Chapter 26: Snobby town, snobby houses

I'm so sorry I haven't been updating! I swear I'll be updating Tuesdays and Fridays again. I was just busy because I was hearing back from schools and some of the girls in my grade and I were invited to model (like walk down the runway) for Saks Fifth Avenue so I haven't had much time to update.

"Dad, I'm sleeping over at Gabi's house." I announce. I arrived back in JFK airport two days ago and now I'm spending my week with my dad

"Who the hell is Gabi? Is he a boy? " He groans, supporting his head with his hands. Another Hangover. Surprise? I think not

"My female friend from school." I sigh. I never talk to him so I don't expect him to know who my friends are. He's too busy partying and sleeping with younger woman to ask me about my life. "She lives in Connecticut though so I'm gonna take the train. Can I have money?"

"Yeah" he digs into his pants pockets and pulls out his wallet from which he takes two twenty dollar notes from "Here you go. Be safe"

"Whatever, dad" I roll my eyes and walk out the door. It's not that I don't like my dad or anything, it just bothers me that he doesn't even at least try to heal our father-daughter connection we used to have. And whenever he does try, (which is incredibly rarely) he always makes some lame attempt in front of his stripper-girlfriend-of-the-month.

When I get to Connecticut I call a taxi so they can drive me to Greenwich, where Gabi lives. Greenwich is a small, uptight town which is home to most of the rich snobs in the area. Although Gabi isn't snobby, she is rich so that gives her a right to live in a house in Greenwich. My mom lives in Stamford. It's more city-like than open-space, grassy, forest-like Greenwich.

The taxi driver was yelling something in spanish into his cellphone the whole ride, and the cab smelt like tobacco. I look out the window watching the blurry scenery move past me. I scrunch up my nose at the ginormous, overly decorated gardens in front of large mansions that are also overly decorated. Snobby town, Snobby houses.

“Why are you going to such a snobby town?” the taxi driver asks, catching me off guard. He’s an old man with breath that smells like tobacco, there is dandruff all over his fragile, thin, light grey hair, and his teeth are a weird shade of yellowish-brown.

“Um, I’m visiting my friend…” I say trailing off.  Who does this guy think he is? Getting all up in my business

“You’re friends with someone in this stuck up town?” he half laughs but ends up coughing. Must be all that smoke in his lungs. I don’t answer him. I just look out the window and watch the leafless trees roll by. “I used to live in that town you know…” he starts.

“Really?” I ask curiously. If he lived in that town for people with — well, money — then how did he end up like… this?

“No not really.” He says sarcastically “Look at me, do you think that I could’ve ever lived in that town?”

“Can you please just hurry.” I beg impatiently. He’s making me feel uncomfortable

“You know, you look like my daughter.” He says ignoring my impatience. I lean back into the chair and roll my eyes, sighing. I guess I’m in for a story. “You have that same untamable brown hair that she would refuse to brush”

“Hey! I brush my —“

“And the same attitude.” He cuts me off. I cross my arms and lean back again. I feel bad for his daughter if she looked like me. Hell, I feel bad for anyone who has the same hair as me! “She was around your age when I lost her. Sixteen.”

“I’m not 16 I’m —“

“She never saw that car coming.” He says in a small voice. This shuts me up. “And you will never believe who was driving that car.” He half laughs but I can tell it’s to mask the fact he’s on the verge of tears “Her friend Angela.” I bite my lip in the irony of the situation. “It was what you call a hit and run” This guy’s daughter was run over by her friend name Angela if I might add, and then she just left. She didn’t care.  I hear the old guy gulp.

“Her name was Arabella.” He says. I hear him smiling at the memory “She hated her name though. Said it sounded too preppy. She went by Bella.” I keep quiet, feeling guilty that I assumed he was some creep. This Arabella girl literally had the same life as me, except I didn’t gotten run over my back stabbing friend. Although my situation isn’t as serious, it still is awfully similar. Angie hurt me, not as bad as hitting me with her car, but she still hurt me. After hurting me, Angie just left me and didn’t care. She didn’t care “Is this the street?” he asks

“Yeah.” I reply in a shaky voice looking out at Gabi’s street

“Same street I lost her in five years ago.” He says so quietly, nearly don’t hear him.  He pulls over to the side of the road in front of Gabi’s house.

“Thanks for the ride, I’m sorry about your daughter.” I say handing over the money.

“It’s fine. She was a good kid.” He smiles showing off his stained teeth, his mind obviously in another place in memory of Arabella. He drives off and I walk up to Gabi’s front door, replaying the story in my mind over and over again

“That was so sad!” Gabi sobs dabbing her eyes with her fingers. “Best but saddest movie ever!”

“It was your idea to watch the Perks of being a Wallflower!” I accuse.

"Yeah well you went along with it" she shoots back

"Only because I didn't want to be rude!"I laugh

"Fine, fine. So are you gonna tell me about what happened in Miami with those two?" she wiggles her eyebrows

"Whatever." I roll my eyes

"You say that a lot" she says

"Say what?" I ask with a puzzled expression

"Whatever" she mocks me with a deep voice and a weird face. I can't help but laugh

"To come to think of it, i do don't I?" I chuckle. 

"So are you going to tell me?" she asks

"Tell you what?" I ask

"You the memory of Dory from finding nemo." she rolls her eyes "tell me how Miami was, duh!"

"Oh you know, I had sex with Blake and I'm pregnant with his child." I say with a straight face

"WHAT?!" she chokes on her own spit

"I'm kidding!" I laugh "I'm disapointed you would think that of me." she hits my arm

"YOU SCARED THE HELL OUT OF ME!" she yells in annoyance but quickly ends up laughing along with me "But seriously tell me the truth, and don't even try to tell me you slept with Derek..." she warns me

"Um I told these girls who asked Blake and Derek to play volleyball with them that they were gay for each other." I say with a shrug and a small smile playing on my lips

"Are you serious?" she cracks up

"Dead serious." I widen my smile "and then I played against them in volleyball and kicked their asses so they ended up buying me Derek and Blake ice-cream." she raises her eyebrows in a motion that says 'and then...?' "the next few days I didn't really hang out with them." I continue "I just said hi when they walked by." I leave out the part of me and Derek swimming in the ocean in our underwear. I can't believe I actually did that! It was so scandilicous... definately not what I would do on a regular vacation. Gabi would probably use that part of the story against me and say it's proof that I like Derek. Why does she even think that? Jake and Carl think so too but seriously. If anything I'd probably like Blake... actually, after he tongue raped me I'm having second thoughts...

The doorbell rings and we both straighten up like dogs hearing the word 'squirrel'. Gabi and I look at each other before looking at each other and screaming "PIZZA!"

We get up and run to the door feeling our stomachs growl in hunger