Chapter Six
It's a regular Friday evening and I am at my parents' house for dinner. Nothing looks particularly different. It feels a bit roomier now that Beatrice and I have moved out. I took a brief tour of what our rooms are like. Our beds are still there and the tables and lamps and desks. Our closets are empty now, which feels odd even though all of my clothes are in my dorm.
Beatrice's room is similar. There are no clothes in her closet or drawers. A lot of her belongings are gone. She took all of her pictures, except one. I step into her room to get a closer look at it. It is a picture of the two of us with our parents. We are in the park that we made a habit of going to after church on Sunday. Mom is kneeling beside me and Dad is next to her, behind Beatrice. I smile, the nostalgia hitting me in the chest.
I wash my hands in the bathroom and walk back downstairs for dinner. I help Mom set the table.
Once dinner has started, Mom brings up Beatrice's wedding. She asks me if I'm excited. I tell her I am. Dad makes a comment on how he wishes she was older, but he is not displeased overall. I retell the story of how when her boyfriend would come over, I would sit in the kitchen and watch them to make sure nothing happened. Dad smiles and while Mom admonishes me, she smirks too.
"Are you going to bring a date?" she asks innocently. Suddenly my chest begins to throb and the pain swells over my heart. I want to bring Makenna, but that idea is hardly appropriate. As I have told myself a million times since our last study session in the library, I can't date her. I'm her teacher. It's illegal.
"I don't have one at the moment, but I think it would be nice. It's my sister's wedding."
"You have a while to think about it. It's still April," Dad says.
"I know, but she needs to save the date too. I don't want to wait for a year and then this time next year, she's planned a trip to the Caribbean or something."
"Good point," he says. "If you want, I could set you up with someone. My coworker's daughter is a very sweet girl."
"You know my friend Erin right," Mom says, "her niece is available I'm sure. She's looking for a relationship."
"Thanks Mom, Dad." I'm about to decline, but I find an aching memory of Makenna and I think maybe seeing other girls will be a good idea. "Sure. I'll see them."
Next Saturday (not tomorrow, the following week)
My crush on Makenna is not getting better. Every time I look at her, my breath shortens and I have to look away. She hasn't asked for my help again, but her grades are better. The painful thing about that is that she might not need my help anymore. Every time I think about that, that aching feeling reappears and I have to remind myself I'm her teacher. It's wrong and illegal and I can't lose my job.
I try my hardest to push the thoughts of her aside. I should focus on my date. Dad's coworker's daughter. Isabella Romero. Isabella has nice skin that is complimented by her dark hair that she has done up in tiny ringlets that are falling out. She is a very... interesting woman. She makes great conversation, very intelligent. She was in the running to be valedictorian. She doesn't like to talk about how she lost. Her sass reminds me of Makenna, which makes her an impossible candidate for my plus one. But maybe it's not her personality that makes her impossible, it's her strange leather fetish. She is wearing nothing but leather. Her dress is very tight and very short and her boots stop just below the knee. I don't believe she would be a good person to bring to my sister's wedding. I think Beatrice would have a heart attack.
"Do you like leather?"
"It's okay. To be honest I think of that one Friends episode, which shows me the downside." She frowns and downs the rest of her coffee. If it scalds her tongue, she doesn't let it show.
"That's just leather pants," she snaps.
Nope. Not taking her out again.
Next Friday
Man, if Isabella was strange... This week is Erin's niece, Lisa. She isn't terrible looking. But looks aren't the most important thing. She has short hair and bright eyes. She has a weird smile. I think she's a few years older than me, she's twenty six, but she has the voice of a ten year old. She claims she speaks French and when she tries, it's incorrect. And she talks about jewels so much I'm beginning to think she's a diamond thief. And when I shook her hand upon meeting her, I learned she is freakishly strong. I am horrified she could knock me out with one swift blow to the head.
"Your birthday is in January?" she squeaks. "Mine is in February."
"That's cool," I say. What else can I say? "When?"
"February thirtieth." So she's insane too? I'm glad I'm learning this now. I don't respond. I just nod and look away. When I glance back, she is smiling like a creepy clown. I have to look away again.
After dinner, she walks a little closer to me than she did earlier. She casually brushes up against me and I try not to flinch because I'm afraid she's going to pickpocket me. Luckily we met at the restaurant. I walk her to her car and wait for her to unlock it.
"Do you want to see what the inside of my house looks like?" Her eyes are trying to project coy and her smile looks like her creepy clown grin from earlier.
"I'm okay," I say. "Thanks."
"You sure?" She sounds disappointed.
"Yeah. I'm gonna go. It was nice meeting you Miss Ostrum." I hurry away to my car a few blocks away. I sit with my forehead on the steering wheel. I don't know if it's such a good idea to let my parents set me up anymore. I can find my own date. My own of age non high school student date.