The Girl Next Door

36.

"She stole how much?!" Daddy whisper yelled into the phone. My back was turned and he was behind me but I knew he was talking to Estelle.
"Yeah, yeah, come over. Where is she?" He paused. "Of course. I'll unlock the door. Stacy princess, I need you to go upstairs." Daddy said to me as soon as he hung up. Quickly, he went to unlock the front door and then dashed upstairs. A few seconds later, he returned to the living room wearing an unwrinkled black button down shirt and jeans.
"Stacy, go upstairs."
"Why?"
"Because Estelle is coming over and she needs to talk."
I rolled my eyes, grabbed my Spanish two textbook and book bag and chose to go upstairs without arguing because I wanted to see Gisella. I needed to know what was going on.
Twenty minutes later, when I was upstairs pacing the floor anxiously, I heard daddy close the front door. I wanted to scream from anticipation eating me alive. Without my phone, I wasn't able to text Gisella like I wanted to. She poked her head in my room and smiled sweetly.
"Bonjour, mon amour." Her smile gave me so many butterflies.
"Hi babe. What happened? How did your mom find out?"
Gisella rolled her eyes as she flopped on my bed. She had on jeans and a yellow t-shirt and her hair was sprawled all over my comforter.
"She saw it on the credit card bill." Gisella bit her bottom lip.
"Are you in trouble? Was she mad?"
"Oui." She nodded. "She is very mad but I am not grounded." I couldn't believe Gisella's words. If I stole $4,000 from daddy, I don't know what he would do. He would probably kill me.
"She is angry because of the things I said to her, not about the money. It was Tony's credit card, I guess."
"What did you say to her?" I asked as I turned the TV on. I made myself comfortable and then put my eyes on her soft facial features. If I could, I would look at her for hours.
"We argued at first. I told her I only did what I learned from her."
"Which is what?"
"My mother leaves after she gets what she wants from a man. Since we're leaving Tony and moving in with you and your dad, I took what I wanted. I don't see why she is so upset." Gisella sighed. "I did the same thing she does all the time." I didn't know what to say back to Gisella. So I grabbed her hand, squeezed it and nodded my head.
"$4,000 is a lot of money babe."
"Oui, I know. But at least I stole money, which can be replaced. I did not steal and break anyone's heart like she does over and over." She had a point.
Gisella and I watched Good Girl's for almost two hours before daddy came upstairs. He knocked on the door and came in right away. Thankfully, we weren't kissing or holding hands because he would have caught us in the act. We were laying together with our eyes glued onto the TV.
"Hey you two...your mom and I um..." daddy stuttered as he rubbed his hand over his head. "We're going to dinner. There's leftovers in the refrigerator."
"Is Gisella staying the night?" I asked, feeling happiness vibrate my chest. If Gisella was in trouble and I was still grounded, I knew daddy and Estelle would want to blow off steam together and for once, I was fine with that. I wanted to be alone with Gisella.
"I don't think Tony wants either of them to come home tonight."
"So yes?" I beamed happily. Daddy rolled his eyes and shrugged his shoulders.
"Guess so. Behave girls..."