"Oh. Wow," Kristy said, trying to gauge her mother's thoughts and project a desired reaction. "I guess I didn't really expected that."
Elizabeth sighed. "Lisa and Seth have been having some problems for awhile now, so we have known that it could be a possibility. I just didn't think that it would happen so soon…"
Kristy could tell that her mother wasn't totally comfortable with the situation at hand. And neither was she. Even though she loved Karen and Andrew, they were a lot to handle, Karen especially. And she couldn't imagine adding two more kids to the house right now. She didn't know what was going on with Lisa and Seth, but who could say if the kids weren't better off staying in Chicago?
"But everything will be okay, right mom?" Kristy asked carefully. She didn't even know if she wanted to hear a response. She couldn't imagine that anything said would be sufficient.
Elizabeth gave a weak smile. "Of course it will honey. We're just having a few problems right now. It might even be better to have the whole family back together again."
Kristy smiled back, even though it sounded that Elizabeth was speaking more for her benefit, and not Kristy's.
Before Kristy could think of anything supportive to say back, Elizabeth rose from where she was leaning against the counter.
"I need to go talk to Nannie," she said absently.
As Elizabeth walked out of the room, Kristy let out a sigh of her own. She had no idea what was going on, and apparently her mother didn't either. Her mood seemed to change from moment to moment, which she forgave, given everything that was going on. But still, someone had to hold the family together. Last year, Kristy had thought that she would be able to fix any problem with a little hard work and her friends at her side. Now she understood that some problems were too big for her. And even though this made her feel powerless, she also felt relieved. She didn't really need or want any additional responsibility right now.
Kristy listlessly sipped the glass of apple juice that she had poured herself. Ten minutes ago she had been set to go to Abby's and fill her in on everything. Now she had no desire at all. She didn't want to tell Abby what was going on until she had fully worked through the details on her own, but new things kept coming up so fast that she couldn't possibly do this. There was so much happening that she couldn't possibly make sense of it all. Kristy made a silent wish that things would settle down, at least momentarily, so that her family would have time to breathe. They needed it.
As she leaned against the counter, Sam poked his head into the kitchen.
"Oh, it's just you," He said, noticing Kristy.
Kristy rolled her eyes. "It's so nice to see you too."
"Cut it out Kristy. Is mom in here?" Sam asked.
Kristy furrowed her brow. "She just left, why?"
Without answering, Sam left the room. He reemerged a few moments later, with Stacey in tow.
Kristy looked to Sam, then to Stacey, and then to her watch, which confirmed that it was still relatively early in the morning.
"What's she doing here?" Kristy asked Sam. Sam had on pajamas and a rumpled t-shirt, but Stacey was still wearing her clothes from the night before.
"I couldn't go home last night, after, um, the party," Stacey said weakly. "So Sam said I could stay here."
Kristy narrowed her eyes. "What did your mom say about that?"
"She didn't mind," Stacey responded, averting her eyes, and leaning closer to Sam.
"I find it hard to believe that your mom didn't mind you spending the night with your boyfriend." Kristy asked, not trying to hide her doubt.
Stacey hesitated. "I told her I was spending the night here. Which I did, obviously. But I kind of told her that I would be spending the night with you. Like a sleepover."
Kristy crossed her arms over her chest. "So you tell off everyone because you are drunk and stupid, and then you expect me to lie for you? That's asking a lot."
"It's not a big deal Kristy," Sam interjected. "You don't even have to say anything unless mom asks, which I doubt she will. She hasn't noticed anything that I've done in the last month." He continued: "And besides, it's not really Stacey's fault. She didn't bring anything to the party, the Taylor's had the alcohol."
"Nice try Sam, I almost buy that." Inside, Kristy was fuming. What a pathetic excuse. She had no respect for alcohol use, especially in light of recent events. What could Sam have been thinking?
The sound of a horn beeping caused all three of them to look out the window, where Mrs. McGill had pulled into the driveway to wait for Stacey.
"I'm going to go now," Stacey said, eager to get out of the uncomfortable situation. She turned to Sam and gave him a kiss, causing Kristy to roll her eyes and look away. "Thanks for everything," she said softly.
"No problem," Sam said, squeezing her shoulder.
Stacey walked towards the door. Placing her hand on the doorknob, she stopped and turned back to the siblings.
"Thanks Kristy. And sorry, too, I guess."
"Bye Stace," Kristy said, in a tone that could have either been dismissive or forgiving. Even Kristy wasn't sure what she meant. There was way too much going on inside of her.
"Don't tell mom, okay Kristy?" Sam asked, almost pleading. He didn't sound tough anymore. He was just her brother asking him to cover up for her, as he had done about a million times before.
Kristy rolled her eyes. "Fine. But only because mom has enough other things to worry about. I guess Karen and Andrew are moving back here."
"What? Why?" Sam asked, alarm and concern in his voice.
"I don't really know," Kristy said, shrugging. "Lisa and Seth are fighting I guess. But that's not all of it. Have you talked to mom yet?"
"No, not since yesterday."
"Patrick will in New York for some sort of business thing. He wants to take us out to dinner on Friday."
"All of us?" Sam asked.
"Tthe two of us, and Charlie, if he's not busy with school," Kristy explained.
"What about David Michael?" Sam asked.
"Mom says he's too young, I guess. She and Patrick agreed."
"What does that even mean?" Sam asked angrily. "Yeah, maybe he was too young to come out to California with us, but there's no reason that he can't come out to dinner with us. It's not like he's never been to a restaurant before."
"I don't get it either." Kristy said, shaking her head slightly. "He's going to be crushed."
"I'm going to call Charlie," Sam said. "He needs to know about this."
"I don't know," Kristy said hesitantly. "He was just here, and he didn't really do anything. I think that he is more concerned about school than anything that is going on at home. He doesn't care anymore."
Sam shook his head. "He's our brother, Kristy. He'll be there for us if we need him."
With that, Sam walked out of the kitchen and upstairs, and Kristy was left alone once again. She took a final swig of her apple juice, and set the glass down on the counter. Sighing to herself, she left the house and walked over to Abby's. It wasn't that she really wanted to go over there, but more like she didn't really know what else to do. She always went to Abby's.
Standing on the Stevenson's porch after ringing the bell, Kristy hugged herself tight. The air was getting colder already. It wouldn't be long until winter took over completely. She was wishing that she had worn warmer clothes when Mrs. Stevenson answered the door.
"Kristy," She said, "It's so nice to see you! Come on in."
Kristy stepped into the entryway, a little surprised by Mrs. Stevenson's warm reception. Though she was always nice enough, she had never really been this friendly. And that was when she was here, and not living her life in New York.
"Is Abby upstairs?" Kristy asked.
"She's in her room. I swear, she never leaves it. I'm glad you're here, though, because I was just leaving. I'm headed to the city to get some work done at the office, and then get dinner with James," Mrs. Stevenson said, zipping up her coat. "You girls have fun. And if you get hungry, order a pizza, it's my treat."
"Thanks," Kristy said weakly, as Mrs. Stevenson headed out the door. Alone in the entryway, she jogged upstairs to Abby's bedroom. The door was closed, and music was playing loudly. She didn't bother to knock, and just walked right in the room, which was a mess, Her bed wasn't made, and was piled with clothes and schoolbooks. Abby lay on her futon, clutching a pillow and staring at the ceiling. It was strange for Kristy to see Abby, her high energy best friend, so still.
Kristy plopped down on a beanbag chair. "I need a break from life," she announced.
"You can take one with me," Abby said, moving over slightly to make room on the futon.
"Okay," Kristy said, settling in next to Abby. No words passed between the two of them, and the silence felt comforting. It didn't have any expectations to it. They stayed that way well into the afternoon.