Lucy dialed the number to her parents house. Simon picked up the phone.
"Hello?" Simon answered.
"Simon, it's Lucy. Is Ruthie there?" Lucy asked.
"Yeah, hold on. How are you?" Simon asked as he walked up stairs where Ruthie was in her room.
"I'm great. I've got an hour between classes and thought I'd say hello to my favorite little sister," Lucy replied.
"Must you rub it in?" Simon joked. Lucy grinned at his sense of humor. She missed it. She heard Ruthie's voice.
"Hello?" Ruthie said.
"Hey Ruthie. How are you? How are things?" Lucy asked.
"Things are fine," Ruthie replied.
"Really?" Lucy asked.
"Yeah. Things are fine. Fine meaning, not the beat, but better than I was," Ruthie explained.
"What about Jake?" Lucy fearfully asked.
"We had one special encounter and now, he's gone," Ruthie replied, beginning to cry.
"What do you mean?" Lucy asked. She had a horrible feeling in her bones.
"I mean we, we. It was a stormy night and I was afraid. Mom had left me alone to baby-sit the twins while she went to help a friend move. Dad was at the church with Chandler," Ruthie choked, "I called Jake to come over. He came over and we went in my room and locked the door. Then the electricity went out. I lit some of those candles that you left me and put on some music through my battery powered stereo. It was love music. We danced. Then I fell. He came to the floor and for the first time in my life, I kissed him. An actual French kiss. Actually, I began to make out with him. We talked and then made out. He was there late into the night. The music was long gone by then. Mom and Dad didn't know he was in there. They just figured I was in bed. We accidentally fell asleep and the next morning we were found and he had lipstick all over his face."
"Ruthie," Lucy said.
"They grounded me for three months. I thought it was pretty extreme, but they didn't. Then they had a long talk with me," Ruthie replied.
"What were you doing making out at your age?" Was all that Lucy could say.
"I'm thirteen. Linda was known to have made out with a boy at twelve," Ruthie explained.
"Did you do this because you wanted to keep up with Linda?" Lucy asked.
"No. I did this because I just felt like a teenager. You know, you, Mary, Matt, and Simon haven't been good at giving me lessons for being a teenager. I mean Matt was smoking, Mary got in lots of trouble, you, well, you were pretty good except that one time, Simon has been getting girlfriends since forever," Ruthie replied. Lucy froze when she heard those last few sentences.
"Yeah Ruthie, I know how you feel. Just, don't, don't ever do it again. Bye," Lucy said as she hung up the phone, partly in shock. Lucy knew she needed to stop this little "habit" that she had. She needed to stop it and fast. It was interfering with her studies, not to mention her family, and her sister's life.
"Hello?" Simon answered.
"Simon, it's Lucy. Is Ruthie there?" Lucy asked.
"Yeah, hold on. How are you?" Simon asked as he walked up stairs where Ruthie was in her room.
"I'm great. I've got an hour between classes and thought I'd say hello to my favorite little sister," Lucy replied.
"Must you rub it in?" Simon joked. Lucy grinned at his sense of humor. She missed it. She heard Ruthie's voice.
"Hello?" Ruthie said.
"Hey Ruthie. How are you? How are things?" Lucy asked.
"Things are fine," Ruthie replied.
"Really?" Lucy asked.
"Yeah. Things are fine. Fine meaning, not the beat, but better than I was," Ruthie explained.
"What about Jake?" Lucy fearfully asked.
"We had one special encounter and now, he's gone," Ruthie replied, beginning to cry.
"What do you mean?" Lucy asked. She had a horrible feeling in her bones.
"I mean we, we. It was a stormy night and I was afraid. Mom had left me alone to baby-sit the twins while she went to help a friend move. Dad was at the church with Chandler," Ruthie choked, "I called Jake to come over. He came over and we went in my room and locked the door. Then the electricity went out. I lit some of those candles that you left me and put on some music through my battery powered stereo. It was love music. We danced. Then I fell. He came to the floor and for the first time in my life, I kissed him. An actual French kiss. Actually, I began to make out with him. We talked and then made out. He was there late into the night. The music was long gone by then. Mom and Dad didn't know he was in there. They just figured I was in bed. We accidentally fell asleep and the next morning we were found and he had lipstick all over his face."
"Ruthie," Lucy said.
"They grounded me for three months. I thought it was pretty extreme, but they didn't. Then they had a long talk with me," Ruthie replied.
"What were you doing making out at your age?" Was all that Lucy could say.
"I'm thirteen. Linda was known to have made out with a boy at twelve," Ruthie explained.
"Did you do this because you wanted to keep up with Linda?" Lucy asked.
"No. I did this because I just felt like a teenager. You know, you, Mary, Matt, and Simon haven't been good at giving me lessons for being a teenager. I mean Matt was smoking, Mary got in lots of trouble, you, well, you were pretty good except that one time, Simon has been getting girlfriends since forever," Ruthie replied. Lucy froze when she heard those last few sentences.
"Yeah Ruthie, I know how you feel. Just, don't, don't ever do it again. Bye," Lucy said as she hung up the phone, partly in shock. Lucy knew she needed to stop this little "habit" that she had. She needed to stop it and fast. It was interfering with her studies, not to mention her family, and her sister's life.