As she kissed him softly, she tore something from his jacket. A souvenir. She looked him in the eyes, all the while knowing it may be for the last time they ever shared a moment like this. She wasn't stupid; she knew that once they all returned to the real world of Shermer, Illinois the chances of the five remaining friends, or whatever, were slim to none. Once the euphoria of that Saturday afternoon faded, they would all go back to being strangers who just so happened to breathe the same air.
Without another word, she climbed into the back seat of her parent's car. As she sat down, sighing heavily, she looked out the window. Andy was sitting shotgun in his dad's ford and it looked like he was getting heck from his old man. As his dad continued to chew him out Andy had the same aura around him when he told them all how he had landed today's detention. Though he wasn't crying, he looked just as vulnerable, just as resentful as he had describing the humiliation he had inflicted on Brian's friend. He looked up and over at Allison, locking eyes with her. This seemed to brighten him up a little bit, but Allison could see his dad's expectations weighing on him.
Her mother started to pull out of the parking lot, and instantly Allison longed for him again. Their time together had been cut to short, and their future was hazy and uncertain. She half-heartedly hoped for a miracle to happen, because it would take one for them, all of them; Stupid loudmouth Bender, Prissy rich-girl Claire, Dorky, loveable Brian not to drift apart. She wanted to see them again, to talk to them. She wanted to laugh with them, cry with them, and to just be real with them. That most at-ease she had felt in a very long time. It felt good to let her guard down, especially when everyone around her had theirs down as well. But Allison beat those thoughts from her mind, the less hope she had for things like that, and the less disappointment she would feel when it didn't happen.
"Who was that boy, Allison?" Even though it was her own mother who asked this, her words startled Allison. It dawned on her she couldn't remember the last time either one of her parents said her name.
She wanted to lie and say he was just some dumb jock who went to her school, but she knew her mother saw them kiss. That could be the only reason she was showing any interest.
"Andy." Allison said flatly, looking out the window to the shanty suburb where she had spent most of her days.
It was a silent the rest of the way.
Her mother parked the car in front of their small, beaten house. Turning around in to face Allison she gave her a good, long look. Allison stared back at her wondering if she was going to ask her about him. A part of her wanted her to ask and wanted to tell her about how it felt to know he had chosen her, even when he knew enough not to.
Instead her mother abruptly said, "Look boys only want one thing, and they will tell you anything to get it. Don't go thinking that he loves you."
With those words, her mother exited the car.
Her mother's words had disappointed her, but that wasn't uncommon. Allison, starting about four years ago today, had become accustomed to setting the expectations for her parent's involvement in her life low. Her parents had never especially been what you would call the "touchy-feely" type, but she hadn't always felt the cold shoulder of neglect.