| Maria laughed at Michael�s devastated face. She had to pick up some groceries at the mall for dinner, and Michael went with her. When they passed through the arcade, his longing look caught her eye, and she agreed to go on an air hockey match with him. Before they started, he warned her that he didn�t want her to feel too insecure. �I�ve been practicing since I was a kid. The loss you�re gonna experience is in no way your fault,� he grinned. At that, she had merely shrugged and told him, �Just play, dorkbutt.� Over the next seven games, Maria wiped the arcade floor with Michael�s butt. He was not going to recover from this for a long time. �Did I mention that one of my mom�s exes was a game station repairman? I had my own private air hockey table by the time I was ten.� His face took on a look of utter shock and envy. �Do you still have it?� he asked reverently. �Asked for it for my eleventh birthday. It�s in the attic.� �Can I play with it?� Maria laughed out loud. �Well it�s not connected to the sockets and it�s already broken. It�s been a long time since I used it.� �Can I play with it if I fix it?� he asked again. �Sure thing, Michael. Now why don�t we grab the groceries and head back home? My mom�s waiting, I think, if she�s sober.� �Oh she�s sober,� he assured her. �You finished off anything in that house remotely alcoholic. She won�t be able to restock until the end of the month. What was up with that anyway?� To her credit, Maria managed to look contrite. �I wasn�t planning on getting drunk.� Michael winced. �How could you get that drunk unplanned? And why did you even drink in the first place?� He knew well how much Maria abhorred the stuff. Living with an alcoholic tended to make you run from spirits. �I just saw the bottle and thought I�d celebrate having cut off the useless limb�� �What useless� Oh.� �Yeah anyway, I thought I�d drink to my freedom. But the high of it was so good I just couldn�t stop. I learned my lesson though,� she related shame-faced. Michael grinned. �Idiot,� he muttered tenderly. And then he put his arm over her shoulders and pulled her close, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. When she looked up at him, he warned, �I�ll personally put you over my knee if you get drunk again.� Her eyes gleamed at the prospect. �Really?� And Michael groaned. ~~ �What was that all about with Kyle, Tess? I mean it�s great you�re standing up to him and all, but I thought you enjoyed him taking command. I was having the creeps watching how you followed everything he said.� �Oh please,� the smaller girl replied. She pulled a red gown from the rack and held it up to the light. �I�d follow him anywhere, but not in the expense of shopping night!� She ran the cloth between two fingers. �Is this a little thin to you?� �It�s kind of transparent,� Isabel noted. Tess grinned. �Perfect.� She waved her hand at the salesgirl. �Do you have this in powder blue?� Isabel nodded her approval. �So what are we gonna get Maria?� Tess frowned at Isabel. �What do you mean? Doesn�t she have a dress already?� �With Amy De Luca as her mother? I doubt it.� �Then why didn�t she come with us?� The tall blonde sighed. �Maria didn�t have any money. She probably thought she�d use one of the old gowns at her house. Amy doesn�t really give her much of an allowance. They�re very poor.� Isabel squealed and took a purple skirt from the hanger. �Okay this would fit her. Oh wait, I�m wearing purple.� She returned the skirt and looked around the boutique. �So you�re going to buy her a gown?� �Uhuh.� �You do realize Maria won�t be able to pay you if she�s that poor.� �Are you kidding me?� Isabel smiled at Tess. �This is my graduation gift for my best friend.� Her eyes lit up when she saw the gown they put on the mannequin at the display window. �Tess! That�s it!� She pointed to it. Tess followed the direction she pointed and gasped. It was a very light green satin dress, almost white in its paleness, with a low cut bodice at the front, a back so low it was past the curve of the spine, and a layered pencil cut bottom. �A mermaid gown. And that shimmer is wow.� Mesmerized, the two of them approached the mannequin. While Isabel inspected the cut and how it would look on Maria, Tess lifted the tag. She wasn�t rich, and it was a habit that she had automatically picked up over the years. Isabel�s face appeared over the mannequin�s shoulder, smiling brightly. �What do you think, Tess? Is this it or what!� �It�s very pretty, Izzy. But it�s kind of� expensive.� Isabel peeked at the tag. It was more expensive that the purple dress she�d picked out for herself a week ago, but it was reasonable. �It�s a fair price for something like this,� she shrugged. �Are you sure you want to give Maria a gift that costs this much?� Then again, Tess supposed, maybe she just doesn�t comprehend how the rich people thought. �Maria will love it even if you just gave her a card.� While she waited for the saleslady to pack the dress, she turned to Tess. �Maria has been my best friend for a long time, Tess. And it�s the last day of high school. She deserves it.� She handed her card at the counter. �Besides,� she continued, teasing, eyes sparkling, �I�d have to make up a little for the agony my brother put her through.� ~~ Amy had insisted that he have dinner with them. She was actually a pretty nice lady when she wasn�t drunk, Michael thought. He smiled as Maria sat down with them on the table. �So what are your plans after graduation, Michael?� Maria looked up, obviously interested too. �I�m waiting for the response of an art scholarship I applied for,� he replied. �I�m hoping to get into the government program that�s going to pay half my tuition fee. The other half I can work for. If that doesn�t come through, I guess I�ll find some odd jobs. I can�t afford to go on my own.� �Where did you plan to attend, Michael?� �New York.� Maria�s face took on a look of extreme happiness. �I�m going there!� �You are?� He�d always thought that Amy won�t be able to send Maria to college since they had such a hard time of it. It was Amy who answered his question. �Maria�s going to college,� she told him, with a hint of pride in her voice. �She�s not gonna end up without a fine education like me. Finally she can use the only good thing her father ever did. He got her a college plan before he up and left. Took a lot but I didn�t touch it so she can go when she has to.� �So I guess we don�t have to say goodbye at graduation,� Maria said lightly. �So you won�t have to cry.� Michael laughed. He was happy. TBC |
| Part 14 |
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