As the car finally rolled into the driveway the clock read 1:23am. Rachel saw her parents standing in the window, looking outside.
“Bye Rach, I’ll text you tomorrow, maybe we can go to the movies, you have your ID!” Emily said.
“Uh huh, have a good night,” Rachel said.
The second she entered her house, she heard her parents’ voices.
“Rachel, come here right now!” her dad said.
“Coming,” Rachel replied.
Rachel approached her parents who were red with anger. They looked tired and mad, and Rachel had never seen them quite like this before. She was scared.
The three walked into the living room and sat down on the couch.
“What happened?” her mom said.
“I um, lost track of time.” Rachel said trying to get out of the punishment that awaited her.
“The movie ran over, and then Taryn wanted to stop by a friends house: I couldn’t say no.”
“What do you mean you couldn’t say no? Who’s house was it anyway?” Rachel’s dad replied.
“Jessica, my other new friend,” she replied quickly.
“You are two and a half hours late, do you realize that? Your mother and I were worried sick.”
“I’m sorry. I said I was sorry. I don’t know what else you want.”
“You are grounded. No TV, radio, or hanging out with friends for the rest of the weekend. You need to think about what you did tonight,” said Rachel’s dad.
“And no more riding with that girl Taryn, she is clearly bad news,” said Rachel’s mom.
“She is not. She’s a nice girl, what do you know?” Rachel screeched.
“That’s enough out of you! Get to your room!” her dad said.
As Rachel got up from the couch and walked past her parents and headed for the stairs, her dad said, “Get back here.”
Rachel slowly walked near him.
“Come here, he said, “closer,”
“Were you smoking?”
“NO!” Rachel said.
“You smell like an ashtray, do you smell that?” Rachel’s dad said.
“Rachel, tell us the truth, were you smoking?” Rachel’s mom asked again.
“I am telling you the truth, I wasn’t smoking.”
“It was probably your new friends. They’re bad influences on you. You need to find new friends,” her mom said.
Furious, Rachel turned and headed upstairs. She knew her parents didn’t believe her, but the funny part was she didn’t smoke. At least that wasn’t a lie. Rachel felt guilty for lying to her parents, but if they found out that she had gone into NYC, she would have been grounded for life, not just the weekend. Rachel was also mad because she knew that tomorrow (well, today) was her big date with Rob and she didn’t want to miss it, or miss the first party of the year. This was turning into a real disaster.
Exhausted, she took off her Nirvana tee and slid under the covers. Rachel feel asleep quickly, forgetting to write in her journal for the first time since she began back in 7th grade.
Rachel woke up the next morning feeling groggy and exhausted. Her late night was all a blur as she tried to run its events back in her mind. She felt upset that she’d worried and disobeyed her parents, but on the other hand, she felt her curfew was too early, and they were being too hard on her. Compared to most of the girls in her grade she had the earliest curfew and the most rules.
Thinking about this upset Rachel, and whenever Rachel felt upset she liked to write in her diary to get her thoughts out. She reached for her diary, and then suddenly remembered she had forgotten to write in it last night. This was the one thing Rachel was strict with herself about: she never wanted a day a to go by without documenting it.
Rachel opened a page, backdated it, and wrote about her crazy first night out with the girls.
When she finished writing, she locked it up. If her parents ever saw this entry, she knew they would be pissed.
The time was 10:15am and Rachel’s stomach began to growl. She was a little nervous to face her parents but knew she couldn’t stay in her room all day. As she headed into the kitchen, her parents were sitting there, still in their pajamas, reading the New York Times and drinking coffee. They looked up at her but didn’t say anything. Their stares made her feel guilty all over again.
Rachel’s parents sat there quietly and Rachel could tell they were still mad. She went over to the cupboard to get out the Golden Grahams, some milk from the fridge and then sat quietly across from them at the kitchen table. The room was still, and nobody said anything.
She felt torn; she desperately wanted to tell her parents the truth, but feared their response. She wished she could have a more open relationship with them, but they were so overprotective, she figured it was best to shelter them from the truth.
As she tilted the bowl back to sip the remaining drops of milk into her mouth her dad finally spoke.
“Don’t forget: no TV, or radio today -- and don’t even think about going out with your friends tonight. You are grounded until Monday morning.”
“I know, I know, I’m sorry,” Rachel said, trying to be sympathetic.
She thought about her punishment and realized they had forgotten to take away her cell phone away. Usually, when they grounded her, her cell it is the first thing they held hostage.
Before they could remember Rachel cleared her dishes, put away the cereal and milk and headed upstairs. If she sat there any longer she was sure they would have remembered her cell.
Rachel unplugged her cell phone, charging on her nightstand, and looked at it.
1 New Message:
Hoping it was Rob texting about their date tonight, Rachel opened the phone.
Dana: Hey Rach, went to the movies last night, we missed you.
Reading this, Rachel felt sad. She remembered how simple her life was back in Pennsylvania. She rarely got in trouble, and hanging out with her friends never turned into a crazy ordeal either. She wished she could be back with her old friends now, doing the fun things she used to do: but now she was thrust into this different world she knew little about.
Rachel didn’t feel up to rehashing her whole night over a text message, but she didn’t want to be rude and not text back, even though Dana had been remiss about contacting Rachel the past few days.
Rachel: Hey! Sounds so fun, wish I could have been there, I went out, too. Let’s chat later.
Rachel had hoped that Dana’s text was Rob texting her instead. She was anxious for Rob to text her about the party, but she also didn’t know how she would respond. Could she really tell him that she had been grounded for staying out past her 11pm curfew? She couldn’t bear to do that. She knew that if she told anyone that she was grounded, her friends would think she was lame. Not to mention, they would hate her parents, and Rachel didn’t want that.
Rachel pondered her options. She had to find a way to get to Jordan’s party and to see Rob, but she didn’t see how that would ever fly with her parents. Rachel knew if she tried to reason with them, they would get angrier and might ground her for longer -- so she knew that wasn’t an option.
She wondered if she had Rob show up and ring her bell, that maybe her parents would feel bad and let her go out. But she didn’t think that would work because she knew she wouldn’t get the sympathy card tonight.
Suddenly, Rachel had an idea. Today was Saturday, and she knew her parents always went out on Saturday nights for dinner. Rachel could sneak out. She had never snuck out of her house before, but tonight was not just another night out with the girls -- this was her BIG date night with Rob, and she couldn’t miss it for the world.
The one hiccup in the plan was that Rachel wasn’t sure if her parents were going out this Saturday, because it was their first Saturday in the new house and they might still be unpacking, or have other things to do around the house. They might also be too tired after the craziness she had put them through last night. She had to find out.
But how?
/> Rachel knew that if she asked them straight out, they would know something was up; Rachel never inquired about their plans before, so why would she start doing it now? Especially when she was grounded?
Suddenly, a stroke of genius entered her brain. She figured out the perfect way to find out their plans, while not letting on that she was really trying to find a way to sneak out.
Rachel felt torn about her idea. She knew if she went forward with it, she would have to tell a lie -- but if she didn’t go through with it, she may let the love of her life slip through her fingers. The battle in her mind went on for a few minutes, and then she decided she couldn’t miss her date with Rob, she had to lie to her parents.
Rachel left her room and headed to find her parents. They were sitting in the living room, sorting through boxes. As she entered the room, her parents stopped and looked up at her.
“What are you doing down here?” asked her dad.
“Well, I was going through my homework and then I realized that part of my science homework was to watch an episode of Planet Earth.”
“You’re grounded. No TV,” her dad replied.
“But, how will I do my homework? I can’t go in without it and it’s due Monday morning, 3rd period.”
Rachel’s mom looked at her, then turned towards her dad and said, “I think we need to make an exception, Dear. She isn’t watching it for pleasure -- it is her homework. We can’t let her grades slip because she is grounded.”
“What time is it on?” her dad snapped.
“It starts at 8:30 tonight.”
Rachel knew that there was a Phillies game on tonight and her parents were huge fans: arguably, their number one fans. She knew that if they were not going out for dinner, they would be sitting in front of the only TV they had in their house, watching the game. They wouldn’t let anything get in the way of their beloved baseball team.
Rachel knew her plan was working. Here parents looked at each other and looked at the clock hanging in the corner of the room.
“That will be fine,” said Rachel’s dad.
“The show is two hours though, is that OK?” she asked, looking at her parents.
“It shouldn’t be a problem,” her mom interjected. “We’re going out to dinner tonight at 7 o’clock with the new neighbors. They said they might want to go to the movies after, so we probably won’t get home until around then anyway.”
“Oh, OK,” Rachel said, trying to sound indifferent. She didn’t want them to hear any excitement in her voice.
Rachel knew that Sarah was still at Skidmore and Mark was having a sleepover with one of his friends so she would have the house all to herself.
Rachel had done it. Her plan worked. She figured out all the information she needed. She felt a little bad for lying, but she couldn’t think of any other way.
Rachel headed back upstairs to her room. She looked at her watch. 1:15pm. She checked her phone.
No New Messages
Rachel knew the party started at 8 o’clock, and she only had a few more hours to go. She wondered why Rob hadn’t texted her yet. Maybe he forgot? Maybe he was standing her up?
Many options crossed through her mind.
Should I text him?
Rachel continuously checked her phone thinking that maybe Rob had texted and she didn’t hear the buzz. Still nothing.
She began to like him even more and let her mind wander, thinking about their date. She wondered what the party was going to be like and who was going to be there. She wondered what she and Rob would do together -- she even let herself think about kissing him.
Rachel had only kissed one guy before, and that had been a random guy at one of her sleepaway camp socials. It was more of a peer pressure kiss, and meant nothing to her: she didn’t even remember the guy’s name. So this would be Rachel’s first “real” kiss.
Another hour went by with no text from Rob. Rachel’s hopes of them getting together begun to fade. She was a little annoyed, too, because she had already lied to her parents and had come up with an elaborate plan to get out of the house. She started to feel that maybe she liked him more than he liked her.
All of a sudden, Rachel heard a buzz. Her heart leapt into her throat as she reached for her cell.
1 New Message:
Rob: Hey Rachel, psyched for tonight. I’ll pick you up around 7.
Rachel waited a few minutes to reply, so she wouldn’t seem too eager. She didn’t want Rob to think she had been sitting by her phone all day waiting for his text, and she wanted to play it cool. Having never had a boyfriend, she had many years of analyzing and overanalyzing her friends’ relationships and guy drama.
Rachel: Great. Can you come around 7:45 instead?
Rachel didn’t want Rob to accidentally run into her parents as they were leaving the house, and she also knew that her parents were chronically late for everything, and they probably wouldn’t end up leaving until after 7.
She was also a little puzzled that Rob wanted to pick her up an hour before the party started. She knew it was only a five minute drive to everything in Bedford, so 7 was way too early. Then she thought maybe he wanted to take her somewhere first, so they could be alone. She loved the idea of, but realized tonight was not a possibility. If she wanted any shot at sneaking out, it would have to wait until her parents were long gone.
Rob: Yeah, that’s fine. See ya later babe!
BABE! Did he really just call me babe? Rachel had never been referred to as babe before, or for that measure, any pet name or term of endearment.
She felt awesome. It made her even more excited for her night. Now the thought of lying to her parents and sneaking out all made perfect sense. This was going to be the love of her life. Rachel daydreamed about her and Rob dating, and then becoming boyfriend and girlfriend. She thought that this was going to be her high school sweetheart, and she hoped that the two would get married. She could see them going to college together, or at least to schools close to one another.
Rachel’s thoughts were interrupted when she heard her phone buzz again. Was it Rob again? Rachel wondered what he could have forgotten to say.
1 New Message:
Emily: So crazy last night Rach! Glad you came out. You have fun?
Rachel: Yup! Totally. What are you up to?
Emily: Figuring out my plans for tonight, want to see that movie?
Rachel: Oh, I can’t. I’m going to Jordan’s party with Rob.
Emily: YOU ARE? Why?
Rachel: Rob’s cute, I kinda like him.
Emily: Yeah, but he hangs out with the worst people. You are going to hate it.
Rachel: Want to come?
Emily: Never.
Rachel: Ok, well, I’m going to go for a little bit. Let’s see the movie next weekend, K?
Emily: We’ll see. If I haven’t already seen it by then. Bye.
Rachel: Cya
Rachel worried that maybe Emily was mad at her. She liked Emily a lot: she was her favorite of the group, but she didn’t like how Emily was so opposed to Rob and his crew. Rachel didn’t like being told what to do or how to feel and she resented this about Emily. Even though Emily had been in school with them forever, Rachel still wanted the chance to figure things out on her own. She didn’t want Emily to tell her she was going to hate the party or put a damper on her excitement. Rachel knew she was going to go to the party and have the best time. She couldn’t possibly have a worse night than last night.
Rachel looked at her watch; the time had crept up on her; it was nearing 5 o’clock, and she had to start getting ready for her big date. She felt glad that Sarah wasn’t home because she wouldn’t have to fight for the shower, and she could even borrow her cute Gap denim skirt.
Rachel and Sarah rarely shared clothes, mostly because their tastes were very different. But Rachel did admire a few of her things, her denim Gap skirt being one of them. She thought a skirt would be subtle and sexy for tonight. She didn’t want to go too over the top, though,
so she figured she would wear her converse sneakers with it.
Rachel snuck into Sarah’s room and opened her closet. There it was, hanging perfectly on a hot pink plastic hanger. She took it off the hanger and made a mental note to put it back exactly as she’d found it. She walked back to her room through their adjoining bathroom and looked through her closet for a shirt to wear with it.
Blouse, tee, long sleeved, short sleeved, black, blue, baby pink? She had a lot of options, but none of them felt right. She started digging in her drawers, and pulled out the tight white halter-top she had thought she lost in the move.
She tried it on and looked in the mirror. She felt good and knew that she would look hot at the party.
Rachel took off the outfit and hopped into the shower. She used her sister’s Bath and Body Works coconut lime breeze body scrub so her skin would be extra soft, in case Rob held her hand or touched her arm. She wanted to be perfect for him. She took an extra long shower -- getting herself cleaner than she had ever been before.
When Rachel got out of the shower, she put back on her comfy clothes, so that her parents wouldn’t suspect anything. She’d also wait to put on her makeup and perfume until after they left. If they saw her sitting in her room with a perfect face of makeup and smelling like perfume they would know she was up to something.
As 7 o’clock neared, Rachel took out one of her textbooks and began to read. She wanted to be deep into her homework when her parents walked in to say goodbye. At least she wanted it to look that way. As she sat there, staring at the pages, a wave of guilt passed over her. Maybe she shouldn’t go through with this. She didn’t recognize the person she was turning into and she wasn’t sure if she liked it.
Suddenly, Rachel heard her parents’ voices coming down the hall and then a knock on her door. Rachel looked at her watch: 7:15pm.
“Come in,” Rachel said, as she sat on her bed, staring at her Earth Science textbook.
“We’re leaving now. We are going to Mr. Chen’s Chinese restaurant and then to the movies. We’ll be back around 11:30-12pm,” Rachel’s Mom said.
“It’s nice to see you doing your homework,” her Dad added.
“OK, have fun. Say hello to the neighbors for me,” Rachel said.
“We have the Phillies game taping so don’t hit any buttons when you watch your show. This is a big game,” her dad said.
“Don’t worry, I won’t.”
As her parents turned and walked out of the door, a rush of excitement came over her. She peeked out of her window to watch as they drove their Station wagon out of the driveway and down the street.
She had done it. Her parents were gone, and she had half an hour until Rob was coming to pick her up.
She scurried into the bathroom to put on her makeup. She decided she would do natural makeup tonight. She didn’t want to go overboard on their first date -- plus, she didn’t know what the scene was going to be like. The last thing she wanted was to show up with too much makeup, or overdressed. She wanted to fit in subtly.
She put the finishing touches on her makeup and gave herself two spritzes of her CK 1 perfume. She headed downstairs and grabbed a Nature’s Valley bar. She didn’t have time to eat dinner, and figured a granola bar would do.
As she sat in her family room, dressed and ready, she couldn’t help but peek out of the window to see if Rob was there. She watched and waited patiently. A few minutes later, she saw a black Jeep Grand Cherokee pull into her driveway. The horn honked. She jumped up from the couch.
Rachel locked the front door and headed towards his car with a pang of excitement and nervousness. Her palms were sweaty as she reached for the passenger-side door handle.
Rachel opened it and got inside. She was impressed by his car and was even more impressed when she saw his outfit. He was wearing grey jeans with a white polo shirt, the collar popped. His arm muscles bulged through the tight sleeves and she couldn’t help but think about touching them.
She composed herself and said, “Hey!”
“Hey Rach, you excited for the party?” he asked.
“Yeah, it’s gonna be fun,” she replied.
As Rob backed out of the driveway, she felt relieved. She had successfully snuck out of the house for the first time ever and she was with the hottest guy in school.
What could be better than this? she thought.
As Rob drove her to Jordan’s, they talked about how their weekend was going so far. Rob told her that he went into town with some of his friends last night. Apparently it was cool to hang out behind all the stores on Main Street in Bedford. Rachel couldn’t see any fun in it, but said, “ Cool! Rachel told Rob all about her time in the city with the girls but omitted that she was grounded for the rest of the weekend, or that she had even gotten in trouble.
“Wow, that’s sick,” Rob said. “It’s so cool you went into the city. I love the city. “Have you ever been to the clubs?”
“Nope, not yet,” she said, “ but I’ve got my fake,” she said proudly.
“That’s pretty sweet,” he said. “I’ve got my older brother’s ID: it works every time. Maybe next weekend we’ll go into the city so I can take you to one of my favorite dance clubs,” Rob said.
“Yeah, that’ll be fun,” she replied.
Rachel was thrilled at the prospect of making a future date with Rob. The night was going perfectly so far, she thought.
As the two pulled up in front of Jordan’s house there were at least fifteen cars parked on the side of the street and in his driveway.
“Wow, there’s a lot of people here,” she said.
“This is only a quarter of the kids that are supposed to show tonight,” replied Rob. “Almost the whole school knows about this -- well everyone who anyone knows.”
Rachel felt so cool. She was part of the “in” crowd. This was a new thing for her; she had never been part of that crowd in Pennsylvania, even though she secretly wished she had. She had only been to one house party, and it had been pretty lame. She imagined that party nothing next to the one she was about to enter.
As Rob parked the car and turned off the ignition, he turned and said, “Wait there, I’ll get your door.”
Rachel was shocked: she had never had a guy open her door for her. “OK!” she replied.
Rob came around the front of the car and opened up Rachel’s door for her. She hopped out and they walked side by side into Jordan’s house.
“Hey man!” a voice said from inside.
“Jordan, my man! What’s up bro?” replied Rob.
Jordan stopped and looked at Rachel. Rob said, “This is Rachel, she’s new, not sure if you two have met yet.”
“Nope, haven’t met. Hey Rachel welcome to the par-tay!” said Jordan.
“Thanks for having me,” Rachel replied.
“Want a brew?” Jordan asked, holding up two cans of Budweiser.
“Yeah man,” said Rob. “You want one?” Rob turned and asked Rachel.
Not wanting to look like a loser, she said, “Sure, I’ll have one.”
Rachel couldn’t believe this was happening. She didn’t really drink: she had only drunk a few times before with her friends in Pennsylvania, but never out at a party. She decided that this was going to be her only drink of the night, especially because she had to sneak back into her house and pretend that she was doing homework when her parents arrived.
“Cheers,” Rachel said, clinking their beer cans together.
Rachel smiled and took a sip. She realized she didn’t like beer that much. She took a few more sips and then held it in her hands. She figured if she carried it around with her, it would look like she was drinking even though she really wasn’t.
Rachel looked around at all the people at the party. Most of them were drinking and she saw a few of them on the back porch, smoking. Everyone looked liked they were having a good time. She secretly wanted to get in with the popular crowd and she knew tonight was going to be the night. She wanted to be popu
lar partially because she thought it would be cool, but mostly because she wanted Rob to really like her. She thought that if she were in with all his friends, it would be easy for him to fall for her.
Rob took Rachel around and introduced her to most of the guys on his football team. Rachel thought the guys were nice, and was excited that they were talking to her. Rachel had never had any guy friends before: all of her friends at home were girls. She didn’t mind this, but always wanted to be in with the guys, too.
The radio was blasting an Eminem song and some of the kids started dancing and singing to the music. Rachel watched on the outskirts of the room as she continued to talk with Rob. Rob was giving Rachel the low-down on all the kids, bringing her up to speed on who was dating who, who played what sports, who drove what car. Rachel’s brain was starting to hurt with all the information.
The party started to pick up and get really crowded, and Rachel and Rob decided to go out on the back porch. As Rob opened the sliding glass door and motioned Rachel through, she was surprised to see that nobody else was on the back porch. Rachel had seen a group of kids out there smoking a few minutes ago, but figured they must have gone back inside.
Rob walked over to a rocking love seat and sat down on it, and Rachel followed him. The two sat there, rocking back and forth together, talking.
“So, you liking it so far?” said Rob.
“You mean, Bedford or the party?”
“Well, both,” said Rob.
“The party’s cool and I’m warming up to my new life in Bedford. It’s a bit of an adjustment, but it’s better now.”
“I’m glad you’re here,” Rob said, as he stared into her eyes.
“Me, too,” Rachel said, as she looked back at him, and then looked away.
Rachel didn’t know what was happening. Was Rob going to kiss her? Tonight? At Jordan’s party? Rachel’s heart started beating faster as she sat there next to him.
“There’s something different about you, Rach. I don’t know what it is, but I really like you,” Rob said, still staring into her eyes.
“Thanks, I guess,” Rachel said, as she smiled.
Rob reached out and put his hand on her leg. Rachel’s heart leapt. He turned to her and started leaning in. She was leaning towards him and as her eyes began to close, she heard the sliding door open and a group of girls ran onto the porch.
“What are you doing here, new girl?” asked Arielle.
“Yeah, who invited you?” asked one of Arielle’s friends.
“I did,” Rob said, sticking up for her.
“What did I tell you the other day?” Arielle said, staring at Rachel. “I hope you didn’t forget.”
Rachel looked back at her but said nothing.
“You better watch it,” Arielle said, as she walked back into the house.
“I think I’d better go,” Rachel said to Rob.
Rachel looked at her watch and didn’t realize she’d been at the party for two hours already. It was a little after 10pm and she knew she wanted to be home by 11pm so she could settle in and get out of her party clothes before her parents arrived back home.
“Let’s grab another beer and then I’ll drive you back home,” Rob said to Rachel.
Rachel didn’t know what to do. Part of her wanted to stay at the party with Rob, but the other part wanted to run. She was terrified of running into Arielle and her friends again.
“I really don’t want to stay here,” Rachel said back.
“Fine, let’s leave, but I want to take you somewhere before I drive you home,” Rob said.
“Where?” she asked.
“You’ll see,” Rob answered, “It’s a surprise.”
Rachel liked surprises and thought it was sweet of him to leave the party with her. Rachel didn’t want to disappoint him by telling him she had to go home, so she decided she would go with him. Rachel also hoped that he would try and kiss her again; they’d been so close to kissing on the porch, she knew that if it were ever going to happen, it would be tonight.
Rachel snuck out of the party without bumping into Arielle or her friends. She was worried she might see them on her way out, and she didn’t want them to know t she was leaving with Rob or that he was driving her home. She was a little scared of them now, but it felt good that the guy they were fighting for wanted her.
As they got back in the car, Rob said, “Do you like water?”
“Water?” she asked R.
“Yeah, water, boats, docks?” Rob replied.
“I guess so,” she said, “never really thought about it.”
Rob drove for about ten minutes until they came upon a quiet pond. Rachel looked out of the windshield and saw a few people standing on a dock by a well-lit pond. It looked like a very romantic and beautiful spot.
“Here we are,” said Rob. “The duck pond.”
“It’s beautiful.”
Rob got out of the car and walked over to let Rachel out of her side. Rachel hopped out and the two started walking together towards the dock.
Rob put his hand out and touched Rachel’s hand. Rachel took his hand and they walked out to the end of the dock. Rachel worried Rob could feel her nerves jolting through her body; she was sure her hand was clammy and sweaty.
As they neared the end of the dock, they came upon a group of kids from a neighboring high school, hanging out chatting and having a cigarette. Rachel could tell that Rob had hoped it would be just the two of them; she could tell by the way Rob was looking around that he was trying to find a quiet place where they could be alone together. But there was nothing.
Rob looked into Rachel’s eyes again but did not lean in to kiss her. Rachel’s mind was running wild. She didn’t know if he was going to kiss her now, or if he was going to wait until the other kids left the dock.
“This is my favorite spot,” Rob said as he looked at Rachel.
“It’s nice…peaceful,” she replied.
Rachel suddenly remembered that she had to get home. It was 11:15 and she knew it was going to take fifteen minutes to drive all the way back. She wasn’t sure what time her parents’ movie was letting out, but she knew she had to get back right away.
“I have to go,” Rachel said abruptly, letting go of Rob’s hand.
“Why?” said Rob.
“My parents expect me home at 11:30 tonight,” Rachel said.
“Why so early?” Rob asked.
“Big day tomorrow,” Rachel said, “Some family things to do,”
“Ok, I’ll take you home now,” Rob said as they began to walk back to his car.
“Thanks, sorry,” Rachel said.
“No worries,” Rob said.
As they drove back towards her house, she began to get really worried. She hoped desperately that her parents weren’t back yet, and she hoped that she could make it into the house before they arrived. She imagined herself pulling up at the same exact time and then having to face their wrath. They would be furious with her and she didn’t even want to let her mind think about what they would do.
The minutes felt like hours as they continued driving down the back roads of Bedford.
“So, when am I going to see you again?” asked Rob.
“I’ll see you in Mr. Allen’s class,” she laughed.
“No, I mean, really see you, I want to hang out more.”
“Oh, well, I guess I’m free after school on Monday,” she replied.
“It’s a date,” Rob said, in a cute voice.
“Great,” she said, trying not to sound too excited.
As the car pulled down Pine Road, Rachel was shocked at what she saw. Her parent’s car was in the driveway. How could she have gotten home later than them? They were supposed to be out at the movies until 11:45ish. Rachel wondered how long they’d been home, and she hoped they hadn’t gone up to her room to say goodnight. Rachel told Rob to let her out on the street and not to pull into her driveway.
Rachel quickly said goodbye to Rob giving him a hug and
hopped out of the car. She quietly shut the car door and headed around to the back of her house. She knew she had a better shot of getting back in without getting caught if she went in the back door.
She crept up the steps of the back porch and saw the kitchen light on, but nobody was in the kitchen. She quickly walked across the porch and opened up the sliding glass door.
She was inside. She heard her parents’ voices coming from the basement and quickly ran up to her room. She took off her party clothes and changed quickly into her pajamas. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail and walked back out of her room to the staircase.
“How was the movie?” she yelled down to her parents.
“Rachel?” her parents shouted. “Where were you?”
“What do you mean?” Rachel said.
“We’ve been looking everywhere for you,” replied Rachel’s mom.
“I was in the bathroom,” said Rachel.
“No you weren’t, I checked your bathroom,” said Rachel’s dad.
She racked her brain trying to come up with a response.
“I was in Mark’s bathroom,” Rachel said. “Mine was all out of toilet paper.”
“Oh,” said Rachel’s mom. “I thought I checked there, but I must have been wrong.”
“Well, I was in there, sorry I didn’t hear you guys.”
“It’s OK, sweetie,” said Rachel’s mom. “We thought something happened to you, that’s all.”
“Nope, I’ve been here the whole time,” Rachel said.
“How was your show?” Replied her dad. “You didn’t mess up the Phillies recording, did you?”
“Nope, it’s fine, should still be recording,” Rachel said.
“Well, I’m heading to bed,” Rachel said, as she began to turn and walk towards her bedroom.
Rachel heard her parents’ footsteps behind hers. She didn’t want them to get close to her, because they would definitely smell the alcohol and smoke on her. Rachel didn’t know what to do. She started walking faster and then shut the door to her room as she said, “Goodnight!”
Rachel waited, as she stood with her back to the door. She heard the footsteps get closer, and closer and then stop. She hoped they weren’t going to come in. Then all of a sudden she heard her parents whisper something to each other and the footsteps started going down the hall.
Chapter Eight