"What party?", I asked sleepily."What party?", I asked sleepily. "At the town campground tonight....some of the guys from school...." "Naw", I said, "You goin?" "Yea...I got a bottle of whiskey from my dad's liquor cabinet, and some of the other guys have some stuff..." "Well, I don't think so...my folks are having a party tonite and they want me to stick around..." "Hey, too bad..." he said, "it oughta be a blast..." "Yea, well, I'll seeya..." I said over my shoulder as I headed toward the exit. The incredibly hot afternoon air washed over me as I left the cool theater lobby and headed for home. The heat rose in waves from the sidewalk, and I stepped onto the grass to keep the soles of my sneakers from burning. I became aware of a car approaching from the rear, and I glanced over my shoulder at it. It was my mom's car, and Sandy was driving. She came to a stop opposite me, and said, "Hey, we've been looking for you, where've you been?" "Oh, I went to a movie", I said. "Well, get in, you've had everyone worried." I climbed into the passenger side and we headed home. "You really ought to let us know where you're going, you know Are you ok?" "Yeah, fine", I said glumly, slumping into the seat. "You don't look so fine", she said, "what's the matter?" "Bored and hot, I guess." I said, "what's new with you?" "Welllll, guess what.....I got a date tonite!" she said with a grin. "My heart rate picked up, and I asked, "A date...who with?" "You'll never guess...", she said, her grin widening. "C'mon...who..." I said impatiently. "Jim", she said. "Jim from next door?", I asked incredulously. "Yup....I met him over the back fence yesterday, and he asked me out tonite..." A pang of jealousy stabbed at my stomach, but I quickly stifled it. "That's nice." I said laconically, "Where are you going?" "I don't know yet, he said he wanted it to be a surprise." "Well," I said, "have a good time". By this time we were pulling into the driveway, and I jumped out of the car and headed for the kitchen. As I pulled open the back door, I could see Auntie at the stove, her back to me. I hesitated for a fraction of a second, then entered. |