Chapter 4. The Perfect Day
Bex stood in the bathroom doorway, her arms crossed over her chest. She watched her mom towel off her newly dyed hair. "Well, well. What do we have here?"
Celia turned from the sink. "What are you talking about?"
"You yelled at me for dying my hair, and you're dying your hair right now," Bex told her mother. "You're such a hypocrite!" She pointed her finger accusingly.
Celia sighed with annoyance. "Stop being dramatic, Rebecca. I'm just covering the grays. And I don't need your permission to do so, because I'm an adult, and you're a child."
Bex watched her mother thoughtfully. She'd never really noticed that many grays in Celia's sleek black hair; honestly, her mother's hair had looked the same throughout her whole life. But she knew her mother was more than a little vain, and afraid of getting older. It was kind of sad, in a way. She decided to let up a little. "I'm sorry, mom."
Celia gave her a quick nod as she dabbed some concealer under her eyes. "Mrs. Choi called this morning. She needs you to babysit Brittany Friday night."
"Friday?" Bex cried, her eyes widening. "I can't!" She and Bowie had plans that night. But she quickly shut her mouth. She couldn't very well tell her mother she had a date with her secret boyfriend.
"What do you have to do that's so important?" Celia asked her suspiciously.
"Nothing, I guess," Bex sighed, feeling that her mom could see into her very soul and sense any guilt she might be hiding. "I can do it."
"Good, because I already told her you would be there," her mom told her. "I'd rather you do something constructive with your time, instead of sitting around watching cartoons all night. Babysitting will teach you responsibility."
"You're absolutely right, mom," Bex said. Brittany was a little monster, but even Bex realized she had a good thing going with her babysitting job. Might as well get paid to watch cartoons and eat the snacks the Choi's always had in their cupboard. She was sorry she wouldn't get to go out with Bowie, though.
"I have to get to school," she said. She hurried off, grabbing a small shopping bag on her way out.
"Got a present for you!" Bex chirped, meeting Bowie at his locker as soon as she arrived at school.
"A present?" Bowie smiled, turning to her. "What's the occasion?" He shoved his books in his locker and turned to her, giving her his full attention.
"Just because," she said. "I was thinking of you yesterday, and I wanted to get you something." She'd bought his gift at a new little shop on Main Street the day before, The Fringe. She bounced excitedly on the balls of her feet. "Close your eyes."
Bowie's eyes closed, his long lashes fanning out. Bex was about to put her gift in his hand when she was one eye flutter open. "No peeking!"
He chuckled, closing his eyes tighter.
"Okay," she said. "Hold out your hands and say... cowabunga!"
"Cowabunga?" Bowie scrunched up his nose as Bex laid a puka shell necklace in his open palms. He opened his eyes and smiled, studying the necklace. "This made you think of me?"
"Yeah!" she said. "It'll look hot on you! Like a surfer dude."
"I didn't know you liked surfer dudes," he winked, fingering the smooth white shells.
"You don't like it, do you?" Bex frowned. "You don't have to wear it if you don't want to."
Bowie's face brightened. "Are you kidding? It's totally tubular," he said in a fake California accent. "I love it, Bex. Put it on me?"
She took the necklace and fastened it around his neck. Then, she stepped back, enjoying the effect. "There. I knew it would look awesome on you."
"I'm glad you think so," he said, taking her in his arms and kissing her nose. "Because I'm never taking it off."
Bex craned her neck to kiss him on the lips.
"Thanks for thinking of me," he told her. He gave her a tight hug. "Hey, do you have anything important going on today?" he asked, once they parted.
"No, I guess not. Why?" She looked up, into his eyes. They were sparkling with mischief.
"I'm planning to leave school a little early today," he said quietly, so only she could hear. "I was practicing with the band pretty late last night, and I didn't have a chance to study for my math test. I was thinking if you're up for a little adventure... you could play hooky with me?"
She narrowed her eyes, studying him carefully. "And how might we do that? Not that I'm not interested, because I am."
"It's easy," he said. "Meet me before lunch, and just follow my lead."
Bex's stomach fluttered a little with excitement. She'd cut class many times over the years, but those times were spent hiding out in the girls' bathroom or the library. She'd never actually left the premises.
"All I want to do is spend the whole day with you," he told her. "Maybe you could show me around town?"
Her eager smile brightened. "Bowie, you had me at adventure."
Just as Bowie had said, sneaking out of school was surprisingly easy. Soon, they were walking down Main Street.
"It's like we have the whole town to ourselves," Bex observed. "There were few people on the streets, and no one paid them much attention. As long as they didn't draw attention to themselves, or run into anyone they knew, they could just relax and enjoy the afternoon.
Bex felt light and cheerful as they passed familiar shops and restaurants, hand in hand. There was something exciting about being away from school; a sense of danger, despite being perfectly safe, like watching a horror movie or riding a roller coaster.
"What do you want to do first?" Bowie asked her. "You're the native Shadysidean."
Bex looked around. Despite being totally free, they were still limited by Shadyside, itself. There wasn't a lot to do in the town at eleven-thirty am on a Wednesday. "Beats me." Her stomach growled loudly. All she'd eaten for breakfast was a bowl of soggy muesli, most of which, she'd dumped down the sink when her mom wasn't looking.
"Sounds like we're getting lunch first," Bowie teased. "What's a good place around here?"
"The pizza place is good," she told him. Her stomach growled again, and her mouth watered at the thought.
"Pizza it is, then," he agreed. "Lead the way."
They walked the short walk to the restaurant. The pizzeria was dimly lit, with cozy red booths, and smelled like heaven. Bex didn't get to go out to eat very often, so this in itself was exciting. Her mother was a health nut, and refused to feed her family junk. Bex savored every chance she had to eat food that didn't contain tofu or beansprouts.
She and Bowie chose a booth in the corner, away from the door, in case anyone they knew should walk by. While they waited for their waitress to take their order, Bowie reached across the table and took her hand, stroking it softly with his thumb. Bex looked over the menu, occasionally glancing over her shoulder.
"You okay?" Bowie asked, once their food was ordered and brought to them. "You seem kind of nervous."
"Maybe a little," she shrugged. "I've never done this before."
"Are you sorry you came?" he asked her, looking a little bewildered.
She shook her head, managing to smile. "No way. There's nowhere I'd rather be than right here with y-." Her eyes widened as she heard a familiar voice near the front of the restaurant. She could feel the color drain from her face, as she sneaked a peek behind her. "Oh no."
"What is it?" Bowie asked, following her gaze. "Who is that?"
"It's my dad," she hissed. "My dad is here." Panic rose in her chest. "He can't see me."
"Get under the table," Bowie said. "Hurry."
She slid down the booth and under the checkered tablecloth. She huddled on the floor, near Bowie's feet. Her heart sounded like a stampede of horses as her father walked past their table, to the counter, and ordered two slices of meat lover's pizza and a large soda (even though she was in panic mode, she silently applauded him for rebelling against Celia in his own way). She crossed her fingers he would take his lunch out, instead of eating in. And she let out a sigh of relief when he did leave.
"Hey," Bowie finally said, peeking under the tablecloth. "The coast is clear. Come on out."
She crawled out from under the table, still a little on edge. "That was a close one," she breathed. She and Bowie looked at each other from across the table, and they burst into laughter.
"So, what do you want to do now?" Bowie asked, after they'd eaten and left the restaurant.
Bex shrugged. "I could go for ice cream."
"Ice cream sounds good," he nodded.
"There's a good place down the street," she told him. She pointed down the block to a small shop. Despite still being a little shaken from her close call with her dad, she was still in a good mood. "They make the best vanilla."
"I never took you for a vanilla kind of girl," Bowie said.
She gave him a curious look. "What do you mean?"
"Vanilla's kind of boring," he told her. "And you're definitely not boring."
She laughed. "Do you ever wonder why vanilla flavored things are always white, when vanilla beans are black?"
"I actually never thought about that," he said, scratching his chin. "But wouldn't black ice cream be kind of unappetizing?"
"Yeah, I guess you're right," she agreed. "But trust me on this, their vanilla is amazing."
They got to the ice cream parlor and ordered two vanilla cones. They licked them as they walked down the street.
"Hmm," Bowie frowned.
"What's wrong?" Bex asked. She turned to look at him.
"This tastes funny," he said, staring at his cone and sticking his tongue out.
"Mine tastes fine," she told him, taking another cautious lick. It was cold, rich, and sweet, like always.
"It smells weird too," he said, sniffing it and making a disgusted face.
She stopped, furrowing her brow. "Really? Let me smell it."
Bowie held the cone up to her nose and she sniffed it. The next thing she knew, her nose was covered in ice cream. "Bowie!" she cried. "What the heck?"
"Gotcha," he laughed.
He handed her a napkin, and she cleaned her face, giggling. "Is it off?"
"Yeah," he nodded. He frowned. "Wait, you missed a spot."
"Where?" she asked, touching her cheek.
"Right here," he said, dotting her chin with the cone.
"Bowie!" she gasped through laughter, as melted ice cream dripped down her chin. She lunged for him, but he was too fast. "I'm going to get you for that!" she shouted, trying to catch him.
"Not if I get you first," he teased. He grabbed her in his arms and tickled her.
"Bowie," she laughed. "Stop! I'm gonna pee my pants!" She'd never laughed so hard in her life. Her ribs ached, and she was out of breath. "Truce!"
He stopped tickling her and wrapped her in a hug. "I'm sorry," he winked. "I couldn't resist. You're too easy."
"It's okay," she said, rolling her eyes. "I like that we can tease each other."
He cleaned the ice cream off her chin and gave her a soft kiss.
"Don't get too comfortable though," she reminded him. "Because revenge is imminent."
"Do your worst," he said, leaning in to steal another kiss.
After getting ice cream, Bex and Bowie went to the mall. It was a relatively safe place to hide out; Celia hated shopping at the mall, and Ham hated shopping in general, so there was little chance of running into her family. They bought tickets to a movie, as well as a popcorn and a soda to share, and found seats in the empty theater. It was the perfect place to lay low; it was such a weird hour that no one was there but them, other than an elderly couple, and it would be dark when the movie started.
That sat toward to middle, and took turns answering the trivia questions on the screen. Bowie cracked her up by throwing popcorn in the air and trying to catch it in his mouth. And she impressed him by actually being able to do it.
Finally, the lights grew dim and the movie started. Bex reached into the popcorn bucket and popped a kernel in her mouth. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Bowie pretend to yawn, and discreetly slip his arm around her. "Smooth," she whispered.
"I thought so," he chuckled.
She leaned into his embrace, laying her head on his shoulder, as he leaned down to kiss her.
When the movie ended, Bex and Bowie left the theater. It was getting dangerously close to three o'clock, when school would let out. "I have to go," she told him. "My parents will kill me if they find out I cut school today. I have to beat them home."
"Okay," he said, reluctantly.
She understood how he felt. It had been a perfect day, from getting pizza, to making out in the movie theater and nearly getting kicked out by the usher. She hated to see it end. She wished she could tuck it all away in her memory box. At least she had her ticket stub to remember it by. And she had a feeling there would plenty more adventures coming her way, with Bowie in her life. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. "Thanks for an awesome day."
"Any time," he smiled, kissing her again. He had a smudge of her lipstick on his face from their make out session.
She wiped the lipstick away with her thumb. "See you tomorrow?"
He nodded. "I'll meet you at your locker." He pulled her closer, hugging her tight.
"Okay, I've really got to go," she said, once they finally parted. She started to walk away, then paused, and turned back to him. "And Bowie?"
"Yeah?"
She smiled. "Don't think charming me will make me forget about paying you back for that ice cream stunt."
Bowie laughed. "I wouldn't dream of it."
Bex ran home as fast as she could. She was relieved when she arrived at her house, and neither of her parents' cars were in the driveway. Her plan was simple. All she had to do to protect her secret was check for a phone message from the school office, and delete it before her mother heard it, then forge a note for the nurse for the next day.
She went to the kitchen. The red light on the answering machine was blinking like crazy, signaling a new message. She sat at the counter, and played it.
"This is Jefferson High School calling the parents of Rebecca Mack regarding your daughter's absence..."
Without bothering to listen to the rest of the message, she hit 'Delete.' Then, she went upstairs to practice Celia's signature.
Everything was going smoothly until she heard her parents' cars pull in the driveway, and the door open. Her mother and father's voices echoed loudly from the kitchen.
"Rebecca!" her mother called. "Get down here this instant!"
Bex groaned. They knew. But how did they know? She slid off her desk chair and dragged herself down the stairs.
Celia stood in the kitchen, her arms crossed over her chest. Ham stood beside her, looking disappointed.
"What's going on?" she asked, trying to seem nonchalant, hoping maybe her parents were angry about something else she'd done.
"That's what we'd like to know," her mother said. "Care to explain why you weren't in school today?"
"I was in school today!" Bex lied, grasping to the hope that they still didn't know, and were only bluffing. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"We know you weren't," Ham sighed. "The school called."
Bex glanced back at the answering machine.
"You erased their message," Celia surmised with a sigh. She turned to her husband. "She erased the school's message, Ham!"
"Bex!" Ham scolded. "Why would you do that?"
"I don't know," she said quietly.
"Luckily, the school also has my cell phone number," Celia told her, with a satisfied look on her face. "And they called me at work."
Bex looked down at her feet. What could she say? There was no way to get out of it.
"We're very disappointed in you, Bex," Ham sighed. "You know better than to do something like this."
"I'm sorry," she mumbled, her eyes burning. She was dangerously close to crying.
"You're only sorry you got caught," Celia told her, which wasn't untrue. "I don't know what's the matter with you lately, but you're worse than you've ever been. If this attitude of yours is a phase, I wish you'd hurry up and grow out of it!"
"I said I was sorry!" Bex said, raising her voice a little louder than she meant to. "Geez, get off my case!"
"You're grounded," her mother told her. "Two weeks."
Bex shrugged. "Whatever."
"Is that all you have to say for yourself?"
She shrugged again. "Who cares if I'm grounded? What difference does it make? I already can't go anywhere or do anything, anyway. What are you going to do to me, withhold food and water? Deprive me of oxygen?"
"You watch that smart mouth, young lady!" Ham scolded, pointing his finger at her. Her dad hardly ever yelled at her, and it stung.
"Go to your room, and think about what you've done," Celia told her in a no-nonsense voice. "You aren't welcome downstairs until you can act like a member of this family."
"Why said I want to be a member of this family?" she snapped. "And I was going to my room anyway!
She ran up the stairs and slammed the door as hard as she could. Tears stung her eyes as she dug through her desk drawer and pulled out a can of Pringles. She ate them in bed, still fuming. The last thing she wanted was another fight with her parents, but that seemed to be unavoidable. No matter what she did, she always managed to screw up. But if she could go back and do it again, she would. She and Bowie had had a great day together, and she wouldn't trade it for anything, not matter what punishment her parents threw at her. Because, the truth was, she was falling in love with him.
