We'd just sat down on the couch under the big black down comforter when Cherie stood.
"I, forgot to do something. Cmon," she said.
I stood too; "it's not like. Weird is it."
"Um not like. S&m weird no though I don't know what you consider weird."
"Oh. Well I think you're pretty cool."
I followed her down the hall and into the bathroom where she flicked on the light. She went in I stood at the doorway. She bent down and opened the wood cabinets under the sink. She stood having closed the cabinet doors and set whatever it was on the sink next to a plastic cup of water and paintbrush which was on top of the cup.
I now saw that what shed taken out of the cabinet was face paint.
She opened it and started painting her face putting blue dots along her eyes above the teal eye shadow she'd been wearing previously. I watched her in awe.
"Wow," I said.
As her hands moved I noticed there was body glitter on her hands.
"Yeah it's something I always do right before. Well. You'll find out," she told me; "I could do yours too if you wanted."
"No not today."
"Ok."
"You're so, cool with all of this."
She paused holding the paintbrush. She looked at me.
"Do I look like I'm trippin out?" she said.
"No."
"Right exactly," she turned back to the mirror, "the more you do the less you trip out the less you worry. And care. Not, in a bad way."
"Oh."
The more you do of what? I wondered.
"Hey what's that white stuff?" I asked.
"White stuff?"'
"Yeah on the coffee table."
"Oh that's coke."
"Coke?"
"Yeah."
"So you just…leave it out?"
"Yeah why not? It's not like Mom cares and Marie does the same thing."
"Oh."
"Listen. Don't think me a bitch for saying this. But. You really need to be les….timid. I'm sorry to put it this way. And I'm sorry to be annoyed w/ you when you've done nothing."
"Yeah but…why maybe that's why you can be," I mused.
"Yeah. Exactly. Anyway wanna lude?"
"Lude?"
"It means do drugs. it's a '70's term. Its actually short for Quaaludes a '70's, drug. Which I don't think you can get any more. Not that I know of."
"Oh."
That's right she liked the '70's.
"Cuz I'm going to. I mean you don't have to."
"Oh. And no."
"Alrite that's fine."
She put the finishing touches on her makeup and put the brush in the cup of water.
"There done," she said turning.
"Wow," I said looking.
Her face was all done up.
"I like the blue."
"Thanks. The glitter queen, is back. As she is every night," she proclaimed dramatically, "now cmon lets get started."
I followed her out of the bathroom and into the living room.
-XXX-
We'd settled onto her couch and were watching the DVD. Her small place was astonishingly quiet.
"Wow it's so….quiet," I said.
"Yeah it's always this quiet. Well. Unless Marie and her friends are here and then it's crazy and loud. So ok not always," she said.
"Yeah my house is like never quiet. Its really. Wow."
"Another thing you're surprised by."
I smiled.
"You know you don't much about your family," she observed.
"Well. My mom's not really there centering her life around my younger sister Kate who has cancer."
"So you know."
"Yeah I do. And when it's not Kate I'ts my twin Mandy. Who has an eating disorder. I have 8 other siblings 1 brother. He's the oldest. Anna's the youngest at 10."
"Wow. Sounds interesting."
"Yeah never a dull moment at our place."
"And what about your dad?" she asked.
"He always tries to make sure he has time for us."
"Wow."
"But he's….he's not really the one I need. He's not the one any of us needs. I mean I love him obviously being my dad. It's just. He's not Mom."
"Yeah I know. So that's why you cut."
"Yeah. And apparently that's why I'm drinking now too."
"No I get it. Let me know if you get sick or something," she told me.
"Ok."
Again I smiled.
"4 of us are adopted. Rose, Hannah, Lily, Alexa and Ashley. Rose is from England Hannah's from Boston as is Alexa. Ashley's from New York. We really don't know much about Lily," I said.
"s
S o you got family from all over," Cherie said.
"Yeah."
"I'd love to meet them sometime," Cherie said smiling.
"Maybe you will."
We were watching a scene in which the actual Cherie Currie played by the amazing Dakota Fanning was getting her period. It was at the very start of the movie.
"This is kindof a gross scene," I commented.
"Yeah I know. But it's a great scene too an important one. It shows her becoming a woman," Cherie said.
"Yeah but some of us become women before we're ready," I said thinking of Mandy.
"Yeah. I know."
