Turn To You

Turn To You: Chapter Twelve

Betsy

I was feeling a little down and out when Glenn came over to see Ben the next day. I had already called Asha twice with no answer and she hadn't called back. I felt idiotic. I wanted to know how things went, what Rhonda had told her and most of all, I wanted her to answer some questions for me.

Ben was slumped in my brown beanbag chair reading my latest issue of Sassy and I was pacing to the sounds of Cyndi Lauper on the radio. I was sure I was about to drive him bonkers, but Ben was pretty polite. He remained quiet as he flipped the pages of the the magazine. Over the time we'd spent together, Ben had started to feel like family - the brother I'd never had. It was nice, but since we sometimes argued for use of the bathroom or I found him using my nail polish I wasn't about to admit it to him.

"Betsy," Ben said in an even tone, "please calm down. You're going to make yourself sick with worry. You know, that literally can happen. Give the girl time."

"Aughhhh!" I growled, annoyed.

"Glenn's coming over later. Maybe you guys should practice or something. You have that gig later this week. And didn't you say Asha wants The Windows to play at her prom. Shouldn't you get the girls together to practice, then?"

"The problem," I hissed, "is that I have no idea what Asha wants now. Does she want me to play music for her big night with Todd? Does she want to be my friend? Is there...god-help-me-for-hoping, but is there maybe something else she'd like to be? Don't you see, Ben? I'm going nutty!"

"Yeah," he said. "You're cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs, alright."

The door to the bedroom flew open just then and Glenn waltzed in.

"Do you know what your mom just asked me?" Glenn said. "She wanted to know if I was sleeping over?"

"Sheesh," Ben said. "She's come a long way, baby."

I just slumped to the floor and put my head down on a heap of my clothes. Bad idea. Something smelled like sour milk and I gagged, sitting back up. I got up and threw myself on the bed instead, burying my head under a pillow and screaming into the mattress to muffle me.

"What's with her?" Glenn said.

"One Word. Asha," Ben said.

"What did she do to her?" Glenn said.

"Nothing. I think maybe that's the problem."

I uncovered my head to glare at them.

"You know I am right here. I can hear you both."

"Then you tell me," Glenn said, turning to me with a hand on one hip. "What happened?"

"She went on a double date with Asha and her boyfriend," Ben said, shaking my magazine in the air to emphasize each word.

"Um, Ben? He's asking me!" I said through clenched teeth.

"Sheesh," Ben said. "Crabby!"

I exhaled loudly.

"Drama queen," Glenn whispered to Ben.

"I went out last night," I said finally. "And yes, it was with Asha and her stupid jerk of a boyfriend."

"Wow that is mature," Glenn said.

"I wasn't finished," I said. "Asha brought her cousin - sort of like a date for me."

"Yikes. Guess that was basically her way of blowing you off? An 'I-just-wanna-be-friends' statement?" Glenn guessed.

"I thought so at first, too," I said. "But then we had this moment. Asha and I, I mean."