45 Days to Save the Bad Boy

Eighteen

Well this is awkward.  Right now I’m hiding in Peter Joel’s bathroom.  I told him I wasn’t feeling well.  Then I assured Mrs. Joel that it was just “lady problems” and not some disease.  So now here I am, locked in the bathroom.  It’s been about a minute, so I have at least a minute and a half before they become really suspicious.

I am freaking out right now.

Let me take a moment to consider this.  I am locked in the bathroom of the one person who used to be my arch-nemesis, and is now my best friend.  The reason I am locked in the bathroom is because the father of my best friend may or may not be my new arch-nemesis.  Because I didn’t want to sit in the presence of my maybe-new-arch-nemesis, I  stupidly locked myself in his bathroom.  To put it into strategical terms, I just backed myself into a corner and all guns are aimed at me.  This usually happens to me when I play Halo with my older cousins on Thanksgiving.  Thankfully, I know a way out.  Time to throw a grenade.

In other words, let’s launch the inquisition.

‘Haha, I never thought I’d get to say that.’

‘Focus!’

‘Right, sorry.’

Taking a deep breath, I flushed the toilet and washed my hands; if anyone was listening I didn’t want them to think I was a nasty, unsanitary person.  It’s always an awkward moment in the public bathroom when you see someone walking out without washing their hands.  Sanitation, less general health concerns, hygiene, this can all be accomplished with a simple scrub of the soap between your hands people!  Drying off, I take another moment to wonder if it’s as weird for the people whose bathroom I’m using to think of me using their hands towels as it is for me to use them. Then I opened the door and walked out, trying to remember where the dining room is located.  Was it a right turn from here, or a left?  Or maybe I just go straight down this hallway?

Decided to try them all, I go straight first.  After passing several closed doors and no familiar landmarks - a side table, pictures on the wall, a dent on the corner - I backtracked and took the right turn.  ‘Success!’ I mentally cheered as I walked into the dining room almost immediately after rounding the corner.

“Sorry,” I said, resuming my seat at the table amidst all the stares.  “I got a little lost.”  Cue the sheepish smile towards Mr. and Mrs. Joel, avoid looking at Peter.  I nearly blushed, thinking how stupid I must look, but I believe I managed to keep my cool.  Literally, by gulping down the ice water in front of me.

“Are you okay?” Peter asked.

I choked on my water, managing to keep from spitting the liquid across the table.  “Yeah.  Yes, I’m fine.  Why?”

“Well, you just came back from the ladies room, chugged a whole glass of water, and choked.  That’s not usually normal,” Peter replied.

“Thank you Peter, but you’re leaving one important factor out of your assumption.  I am most definitely not normal.  Now if you’ll excuse me, I would like to have a conversation with your father,” I retorted.

Turning to Mr. Joel, I opened my mouth.  Then I promptly closed it again, because the look he was giving me made me want to laugh.  Ah, the look of someone who just found out how weird I am.  I took a deep breath, then breathed it out.

“Hello Mr. Joel.  We haven’t been properly introduced.  I’m Georgie Talbot, Peter’s friend.  Is it okay if I ask you a few random questions?  Completely random, I promise.”  I felt like one of those evil villains, where you can totally tell they’re lying because of the evil glint in their eyes.  Peter must have recognized the glint as well, because suddenly he was talking before I could get another word in edgewise.