"Are you sure it's a good idea, Gracie?" Mama says, "You and Taylor just broke up, you're sick, is it the right time to be getting into a new relationship?"
"Woah, who said anything about a relationship, it's just one date," I say, "With a really sweet girl who likes me, even with my cancer, when is that ever going to happen again? I have to take a risk," I took Mariana's advice and I'm going to say yes to the date, now I just have to convince moms to let me out without supervision.
"I still don't think you should go," Mom says.
"What if you meet her first?" Moms have met my exes before any of us started dating, except for Rachel, but we don't count her as an ex anymore, we don't count her as anything. It's not ideal for me, and it'll be embarrassing, but I want to go out with her, so it has to be done.
"It's not just the dating thing, Gracie," Mom sits down at the kitchen table next to me, "I don't want you out alone, when you're so sick,"
"Mom, the chemo hasn't hit me yet, I feel better than I have in months, we're just going to a café downtown, you can drive us and pick us up, it'll be two hours, tops," I plead, "Please, moms, I'm begging," They look at each other.
"Let us talk about it," Mama says.
"Okay, okay," That's all I can ask of them, they've done so much for me, "Thank you," I pretend to go upstairs, but I linger outside the kitchen, I need to know what they're going to say.
"I don't want her to get hurt again," Mama says, "After losing her best friend and her girlfriend,"
"I know, me neither, we don't know how sick this Katie girl is, what if she's-,"
"Dying?" Mama says. Dying. There's no way, Katie's not even as sick as I am.
"Her brother died last year; her ex-girlfriend killed herself right in front of her, that put her in a mental health institution, I can't watch her go through that again," She's not dying, I want to run in there and set them straight, but I don't want them to know that I'm eavesdropping.
"And what if she gets an infection from this girl," Mama says, "We'd be putting her in danger," They're being so dumb, but I know they're only trying to protect me.
"She could get an infection from anywhere," Mom changes her tune, "Can we really keep holding her back from living her life?" Finally, a reasonable response.
"That's a good point," I sneak quietly upstairs, they're going to say yes, they have to.
"Hey, Gracie," I call Katie back, "I didn't think I'd hear from you so soon," She says.
"Yes," I say simply, "I'd love to go out with you," I say.
"Wait, what?" She says, "That's great, um, tomorrow good for you?" She asks.
"Yeah, take me to that café, my mom wants to drive us, you know how parents can be, cancer and all that,"
"Yeah, yeah totally, um, text me your address and I'll come to yours, say, two o'clock?"
"Sounds good, see you then," I hang up, I'm smiling from ear to ear, I can't believe I'm actually doing this.
Callie comes into our room; she flops down on her bed.
"I'm exhausted, there's not one paid internship available in this whole city," She says, "Why are you so smiley?"
"She has a date," Mariana says, "With her chemo buddy," She's smiling almost as much as I am.
"What?" Callie sits up, for a second I'm worried she's going to mad about this, she can be as protective as moms sometimes, "Oh my God, yay!" She surprises me, "Which one, Katie or Daisy?"
"Katie, anyway moms haven't exactly said yes yet, but I'm sure they will,"
"Gracie," Mom comes into our room, "It's a yes," Mariana and Callie squeal, but I know there's going to be a catch, "But for one hour, and you're staying here for the date," Staying here? Seriously?
"What? How are we supposed to have any privacy?" I ask.
"You can sit out on the back deck, no arguing on this, okay? You're lucky we're agreeing to this at all," She's got her stern face on.
"Okay, fine, thank you mom," I get up to hug her. I text Katie, giving her the address and the unfortunate news of our date relocation, and she seems fine with it. Everything is all planned out, except for one thing. What the hell am I going to wear?
"None of my clothes fit me right now, all I can wear are sweat pants and even they fall off of me," I say to my sisters, holding up my skirt around my waist, I've lost so much weight not to mention how pale I am, my makeup doesn't match my skin anymore. I kick off the stupid skirt and get back into my robe, I flop onto my bed and try not to start crying.
"Gracie," Callie comes and sits with me.
"It's not the clothes, I don't care about that, it's me, I'm not who I was, it just sucks,"
"Hey, you've changed a little yeah, but you're still you," She says.
"Yeah," Mariana joins us on my bed, "If anything you're more you, since getting sick, you've only gotten kinder and more understanding, and I'm not saying that it's good to be sick, it's just made you stronger," She says, seriously, when did she become an agony aunt?
"Mariana's right, you're a fighter, who cares about your outfit," I love my sisters, even though Callie is going through a crisis trying to find a job, and Mariana is deep into studying for the SATs, they're still here for me, no matter what.
"I love you guys," I hug them.
Mariana found me an old dress of hers, and it's a little baggy, but she puts a belt on me and it almost fits, I put one of my plaid shirts over the top, to make a little more me, and I kinda like how the outfit came together. Besides, we're only going to be in the backyard. Callie went to the drug store to find some concealer that's light enough for how pale I've become, she does my makeup for me, Mariana wanted to do it, but I don't think a smoky eye and red lip is appropriate for this kind of date. Jude and Jesus even went to the grocery store to get us some chemo-friendly snacks, crackers, fruit, that kind of thing. I'm feeling okay, but Katie mentioned on the phone that's already starting to hit her, so I want to make sure I have something she can eat, if she wants to that is. Moms agreed that they would meet Katie and then they would stay in their room for the rest of the date. So now all that's left to do is wait for her to show up.