Carmen came home from her date to find that the door was already opened. David wasn't home, and neither was her mom. She was frightened to say the least. Grabbing Jack's hand, she pushed him inside first. He started to laugh. "Carmen, it's only Stephen." Carmen sighed. Stephen stood up when she came in. Carmen walked over and hugged him. "You can't do that! Why didn't you call me?" Stephen shrugged. "It's ok…I got a ride over here." Carmen was confused. "Did you take a taxi all the way over here?" Right when Carmen said that, a girl who seemed to be the same age as Stephen, walked out of the hallway bathroom. Carmen looked from Stephen, to the girl, and then back to Stephen. "And who is this?" She said slyly. Stephen's eyes got wider. "Oh no! Um…Carmen…this is my friend Zahra. She lives in London." Zahra smiled. "Hi." 'She definitely does have the accent down,' Carmen thought to herself. Zahra was speaking again. "I've known Stephen since we were in diapers. When I saw him on the plane I had to talk to him! And when it turned out we were coming to the same place…it had to be fate, and since I had a ride already …and he needed a ride…I hope you don't mind he invited me in?" Carmen laughed. "Oh no Zahra…you are fine…I do have a question though…may I ask?" Zahra nodded her head. Carmen went on. "Do you always wear that?" Zahra looked down at her brightly colored apparel. "Oh…this! My parents are full blooded Hindi…and they are ambassadors for India…I was on my way to meet them at the White House for dinner. I just got dressed. I hope you don't mind that I used some of your eyeliner that was sitting on the counter." Carmen laughed. "No, that's fine! And that would explain the government car sitting right outside!" Stephen kissed Zahra on the cheek and hugged her. "I'm sorry I haven't spoken to you in a while…call me tonight when you are finished. I'd love for you to meet my new friends." Zahra hugged him back. "I will call you. Wish me luck! Valin is going to be there tonight. You remember him right?" Stephen couldn't control his laughter. "You mean Monkey King?" Zahra laughed at Stephen. "Ok, I need to get going. I can't be late…again!" The two hugged again. Zahra shook hands with Carmen and Jack and then let herself out. Carmen turned to Stephen.
"She seemed nice…but how exactly do you know her?" Stephen sat back down on the couch. "We grew up together. My mom may have been shunned from her family, but she still had close ties with Zahra's parents." Carmen walked into the kitchen to get a bottle of water for herself. "How long is she going to be in the states?" Stephen stood up and walked into the kitchen where Jack had already taken a seat at the table. "Umm…about two weeks. She'll only be here for a few more days. She leaves for New York City on the 17th." He rubbed his palms together. "Zahra is one of the only reasons I stayed in London. I would have been in the states a long time ago…plus my mom…she was sick. But things have changed. And I'm actually thinking about moving out here." Carmen ran over to Stephen. "Are you serious?" Stephen nodded his head. "Yeah…I mean I love London…but I feel like a change. And I have family here." He winked at Carmen. Carmen was smiling.
Jack had let Carmen walk him out to his car. "How's your mom gonna deal with that?" Carmen leaned into Jack and laced her fingers through his hands. "I don't know…I'll see you later." Jack pulled her in and kissed her lightly on the forehead. "I'll see you…tomorrow. I'll come by work. How's three?" Carmen nodded her head and hugged him. "I'll see you then." Carmen walked back inside. 'I kind of like this whole having a boyfriend thing!' she said to herself. Stephen had already made his place on the couch. She walked over and sat down beside him. He was flipping through the channels. She looked from the television to him. He looked from the television to her. They both laughed. Carmen stood up and pulled her car keys out of her pocket. "Late night snack?" Stephen stood up and followed her out the front door. "I'm going to get fat if you keep feeding me like this." Carmen hit his stomach with the back of her hand. "Nope…still hard enough to break a rock." Stephen laughed as she started her car and pulled out of the parking lot.