Violet didn't do much. She changed her shirt because of the Sprite spill. Then throwing her blouse in the laundry basket, Violet pulled out a pink cotton long sleeved shirt. Nope, she didn't want to put on Capri's. She liked the jeans and wanted to wear them. She took a brush and ran it through her hair for a minute before deciding it was fluffy enough. She tied it back in a ponytail. She put on a pair of white sneakers and tied the laces tightly. It wasn't enough. She pulled out a gold locket with her name engraved on it with an elephant above it. It was empty, but it meant a lot to her. It was from her best friend.
Maggie was lifting weights when Mike walked downstairs. His phone and his wallet were in hand. He was wearing jeans and a nice black blazer jacket. Underneath he was wearing a classic red shirt. Maggie put down the weight and looked up at Mike surprisingly.
"You look nice." She said. "Have I seen that jacket before?"
"Just bought it yesterday." Said Mike. "How does it look?"
"Looks good on you bro."
Mike looked at the weights that Maggie was lifting.
"Geez Mags." He said. "One hundred pounds?"
"Yep. I wanna keep my body and stay active and I don't want to end up in the ER."
"Cancer, I know." Said Mike. "I have my phone with me. So in case of emergency, give me a call."
"You sound like dad." Said Maggie.
"At least I'm not losing my vision or my hair." Mike laughed. "I'll see ya around midnight."
"Fine." Said Maggie.
Mike opened the garage door and then walked across the street. He took a deep breath before ringing the doorbell. Violet quickly answered it. There was awkward silence for a while.
"You ready?" he asked.
"Of corse I'm ready." Said Violet. They walked into Mike's garage. He handed her a motorcycle helmet.
"Put that on." He said before putting on his. He sat on his motorbike and backed out of the driveway. Violet then sat down behind him putting her arms around his chest. "Hang on tight!"
They rode off into the city together before coming to a halt by the city mall. Mike slowed down a little as he waited for a car to back out. Then, he calmly filled that space. They were parked near the back entrance. There were two dragon statues in front of a sign that said "P. F. Changs."
Right as they got in, the couple could see the crowd. Nearly every table and booth was swarmed with people. It was like a beehive, filled with drones, queens and workers. Mike went up to the front desk and told the woman his name. She took two menus and led him and Violet to a booth. They didn't expect to get a seat so soon. The restraint was filled with a lot of kids, some school. Some in groups, others on dates. They were fast and loud when they spoke because of the tea they were drinking.
"Say Violet, where'd you get that gorgeous locket?" Mike asked.
"Oh this? My grandmother gave it to me a long time ago."
"What does the elephant represent?"
Violet smiled. "I told her that I wanted to be a circus performer when I grew up and elephants are all part of the show."
"I remember years ago." Said Mike. "My pal Duke and I went to a carnival that came to Denver and he was peeping through a tent filled with circus girls."
"Does Duke like girls?"
"Like God." Said Mike. "We saw this one girl, smaller than all the rest who was way younger than the others that looked around their twenties and we saw a man come in and tell her to get onstage. We went into the circus tent to watch her and I admit she was great. I forgot her name but she danced like a professional. Then she took a stick and a plate, and spun it! Then she balanced it on her foot when it fell off and broke."
Violet sat there in shock.
"Her boss yelled at her and I stuck up for her. She nearly got fired that day."
"How old was she exactly?"
"I think nine."
"Wait a moment. That girl was me!"
"What are you talking about?"
"I remembered that! I was dancing on stage as the Georgia's youngest circus performer. It was at Denver and I did break a plate. I think it was you that stood up for me."
"Wow." Said Mike. "We've known each other from a long time but we didn't know that we've seen each other before."
"So, how much do you and your sister have in common?"
"Almost everything." Said Mike. "Besides eye color and sex. We were both pretty mean little kids and now were nice to about anybody who's nice to us."
"Like me?"
"Yeah, like you." Said Mike. "We never did drugs as much as it looks like but we are hooked on caffeine and technology. We went to Starbucks and played on our laptops every weekend."
"I love Starbucks." Said Violet. "Especially frappiccinos."
"Those are so good. One time, a friends of mine at school dared Mags and myself to stay awake for three days."
"Really?"
"Yeah. We accepted the challenge so our parents bought us truckloads of caffeine drinks. Cokes, coffee and tea. They said it'd be ok to do the dare because they wanted it to teach us a lesson about being crabby."
"Did you win?"
"Yes, we stayed up for three days straight. It was so much fun. We got to drink Coke after midnight. It was awesome."
"Speaking of caffeine, I'm ordering tea to drink just so you know."
"That's cool. I think I'll have some too. I've been drinking pop for the last three days already."
"Gets boring eventually." Violet agreed. "So do you get along with your parents?"
A waitress came by. The two stopped to order drinks and appetizers then continued their conversation.
"Their great parents." Said Mike. "But they can get annoying a lot. You know my dad works at our school."
"I have him in geography. He's so hard."
Mike laughed.
"I had him as a freshman." Said Mike. "He was really hard, even on me. He even gave me a detention for falling asleep in class."
"Really?" Violet asked. "I made the tiniest joke when he asked me a question and he gave me a lunch detention."
"What was the joke?"
"Are you sure you wanna hear it?"
"Is it mean?"
"No." said Violet. "It was playful."
"Tell me."
"So he asked me how old the Earth was. I looked at him and replied, 'younger than you.'"
Mike nearly fell out of the booth. Violet didn't expect to see him laugh.
"Now that's funny." He said. "Even if the joke was pulled on my dad. Eventually, I'm gonna lose my hair and get wrinkles like in my fifties."
"How old is your dad?"
"Old." Said Mike. "Fifty three."
"My mom is nearly fifty but she looks twenty." Said Violet. "She says that the women in the family stay young for sixty years."
"Just the girls?" Mike asked. "I thought your mom was thirty."
"Every guy in the neighborhood drools over her. They think she's prettier than Julia Adams who was one of the most beautiful actresses in the days."
"She was." Said Mike. "But I know one girl today that's more beautiful."
"Who's that?"
Mike smiled then took Violets hand. This startled her at first but then she rested it against his. She hoped that her palm wouldn't begin to sweat.
"You of corse."
Violet smiled at him.
"You're the first person to tell me that." She said. She didn't know what to say. She couldn't help but to smile.
"I'm really looking forward to taking you to Colorado." Said Mike. "You'll love the ski lodge."
"Well I'll warn you." She said. "I'm not the best when it comes to snowy weather."
"You'll be fine. Besides, there's a pool and a tennis court inside."
"Excellent." Said Violet.
"Oh and bring something really nice. My dad's taking us somewhere special."
"Great." Said Violet. "How nice exactly? Do I have to wear high heels?"
"If you want." Said Mike. "It's like prom I guess. I'm supposed to dress up myself and once again, Maggie and dad are gonna fight over the dresses she wants to wear."
"Refusal to wear a dress with a long shirt?"
"She hates those."
"Their ok." Said Violet. "So are you ready to order?"
The trip to Denver was short. All Violet and the Teavee's do was ski, eat, swim, sleep and eat. But Violet did have fun. Mike taught her CPR because in his previous years, he was a lifeguard. They also went dancing at the lodge disco and watched Leatherface vs. Hannibal on demand. But Violet's favorite part was sleeping. She had the softest bed and could just close her eyes at any hour of the day. It was one of the shortest trips she's ever been on but it was also her best.