I held the phone and looked at the message. It wasn’t a question. It was a statement. There was no assumption I wouldn’t go. I wasn’t sure how I felt about his confidence. Or was it arrogance? But who was I kidding? Of course I was going out with Asher. The opportunity to go out with the hottest guy in school didn’t fall into my lap every day. Or, really, any day.
What are we doing? I texted back. I at least needed to know how to dress, not that my wardrobe was extensive. It was generally some combination of jeans and t-shirts, but I needed to know how dressy that t-shirt should be.
Surprise was all he texted back. Great. A surprise. I hated surprises. But I decided to just go with it. K. I debated putting a smiley face or something but decided against it.
I got up out of bed and noticed it was already getting dark. I couldn’t believe I slept that long. If Alex was here he would make me start getting ready now. He would go through every item in my closet creating an endless permutation of outfits that I would never have time to try on, and then insist on debating various shoes, hair styles and makeup techniques. Luckily, he wasn’t here, so I went downstairs to get something to eat instead.
I could hear voices as well as the sound of pots banging coming from the kitchen. “What’s for dinner?” I sniffed the air as I walked in. Something smelled good.
“Fried chicken and mashed potatoes.” My mother smiled at me as if she was awarding me a prize.
But I knew the deal. I looked at her apprehensively. “Real fried chicken? With the skin on it? In batter? And then put in hot oil? Or your version?”
“It’s oven fried. I skinned it, coated it in organic whole-wheat breadcrumbs and sprayed it with olive oil. It will be delicious.” My mother was bustling around the kitchen as she talked to me.
I wasn’t sure about the delicious part, but I wasn’t stupid enough to say something like that in front of my mother.
“And the mashed potatoes?”
“Okay, okay. Mashed cauliflower,” my mother conceded. “But I did put one large potato in it.”
“Oh, so close,” I mumbled. Despite the lack of oil, butter and starch that would be included in this meal, my mouth started to water as the fragrance of the chicken filled the kitchen. I went to the cabinet to get the plates so I could set the table.
“What are you guys doing?” I asked Nona and Tony.
“We’re online shopping. I need a dress for my funeral,” my Nona replied.
“Estate planning and now your funeral? Do you know something we don’t? You planning on going sky diving or something?” I asked. Although my grandmother was old and frail, thanks to me she wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon, but she didn’t know this.
“I’m old. It’s inevitable. And I don’t want your mother dressing me in that God-awful blue dress that’s hanging in my closet.”
“That blue dress is brand new! I helped you pick it out. For your funeral! I told you we were jumping the gun on that purchase,” my mother said.
“That blue dress may still have the tags on it, but we bought it years ago and now it’s out of style. If I have to wear something for eternity, it’s not going to be something with shoulder pads,” my Nona shot at my mother.
