I woke up to the sun streaming onto my face. Again, memories from the night before when Dally was here rushed to me, filling me with happiness.
Nothing could ruin my mood today.
I decided to do some cleaning and make a few meals ahead of time so I could spend more time with Dally and less time working around the house.
Before we'd said our goodbyes last night Dally had promised to come over after dinner tonight. I couldn't help but wonder what it is that Dally does all day that would keep him occupied till after dinner…maybe I'd ask him tonight.
I also needed to make time for Soda. Lately since he found out about Dally and I our friendship just hasn't been the same as it used to be. But he had been, and still was my best friend—I just had to show him that I hadn't forgotten about him.
I was just about to start vacuuming when a knock at the door drew my attention. Wiping any dirt I'd already acquired onto my skirt, I went to answer the door.
Opening it, I was rather confused. It was a girl maybe a little older than I was, but the confusing part was that I'd never met her, or even heard about her from Soda. Random people had been coming and going since I moved in with the Curtis's, staying only long enough for me to remember them vaguely, but I'd never seen this girl before.
"Hello…?" I said first, not totally sure how to address this girl. She wasn't smiling and didn't really look all that friendly. Her facial expression reminded me exactly of the first time I'd seen Dally—tough, almost frightening.
"Is Dallas here?" the girl asked with major attitude I wasn't sure how to take—all I'd done was answer the door and say hello.
"No, he's not here right now, ummm…?" I trailed off. I didn't know her name, and I was unsure what, exactly, to call her.
"Sylvia," she prompted, filing in the blank I'd left.
"Okay, well…I can tell him next time I see him that you stopped by," I smiled, trying to be polite.
"Do that," she said in a clipped voice full of attitude. I couldn't help but wonder what her problem was, and if it with me or just everyone in general.
"Do you want me to tell him anything? Like…why you want to see him?" I asked, hoping I'd get a clue to how she knew Dally.
"I don't need a reason to see him," she sneered, "He's my boyfriend."
"Your…boyfriend?" I repeated without thinking, shocked by this new piece of information.
"Yeah, why? You got something to say about it?" she asked in anger. A light seemed to come on in her head, and… "Has he been seeing someone else behind my back!?" she yelled at me, eyes wild, "I'll kill her! Who is it?! Who's the slut who's been seeing him?" she hissed.
"No one," I answered quickly.
"No one." Her tone clearly said she didn't believe me.
"I just didn't know Dally had a girlfriend. None of the guys mentioned it, I'm sorry," I lied through my teeth for my own stupidity. I just wanted her gone.
"Oh! Okay, well just tell him I'm looking for him…?" she said, more nicely than she'd spoken this whole time.
"Rachel," I supplied automatically.
"Okay, thanks Rachel. I'm sure we'll be seeing a lot of each other seeing as Dally's over here all the time," she said with a kind smile.
"Yeah…I'm sure we will," I replied. But all I could think was that this girl had some major mood swings.
"We'll I'll see you later, Rachel. Don't forget to tell Dally I'm looking for him," she reminded as she began to walk down the front porch steps and onto the sidewalk.
"I'll tell him…" I said, my body numb and my voice mechanical as I closed the front door and stumbled to the couch.
Dally had a girlfriend. Sylvia was Dally's girlfriend…and she was tuff like Dally.
Dally had a girlfriend no one told me about. Not even the Curtis's told me about her! …How could no one tell me?
That explained where he is all day—with his girlfriend. And she was Dally's girlfriend. Which meant Dally wasn't mine. He was hers.
I was the other woman. He cheated on her—his girlfriend—with me.
I was the slut Sylvia was looking for.
And I wasn't Dally's. She was.
Because she was his girlfriend, and I wasn't.