* * *
"What? You can"t be serious. Please tell me youıre joking."
But the look on their faces told Aldys that they were not joking. "The theme is "Meant for each other, famous couples throughout history." I don't think DNA double helix qualifies." She had tried to turn it into a joke, but they weren't laughing.
"We're serious, Aldys. This is the only reason we're going to the prom. To thrash it and to prove our point about proms being a silly and superficial thing that shouldn't occur in the modern society that we call ourselves." Aldys sighed. Both the sides at this school were stubborn and pigheaded and couldn't see the other side's reason for doing anything. "I'll go as a part of the double helix."
* * *
"You can't not sell me a ticket to the prom." Aldys was enraged.
Kristen and her fellow jock friend were clearly not happy with the prospect of having "geeks" at "their" prom.
Aldys decided to take the ironical approach. "Oh, I get it. You canıt give me the correct change back, that's why you wonıt sell me tickets to the prom."
They were both standing with their mouths open. "I am going to make it easy for you. I'll leave the correct amount of money, and take my ticket. That way I won't have to bother your little heads with it."
As she stood there, Josie walked past with Mr. Coulson; an adoring look upon both of their faces.
Aldys hoped Josie wouldn't get hurt, or that Mr. Coulson would do anything foolish and get suspended from his job, because he was the best teacher she'd ever had and she was sure that "seducing young girls" wasn't his style. All that said, the more she watched, the more it seemed almost as if they were on a romantic date instead of strolling through a school courtyard full of prom props.
But that was really not any of her business. So she just walked away. And as she went around the corner she bumped into the chest of someone.
She looked up. Guy Perkins looked down on her with a grin on his face. "Maybe an idea to look up when you walk around corners, hmm?"
She began to stutter. Aldys hoped that Guy hadn't stood there watching the whole interlude between her and the ticket salesmen. Especially since she had told him that she wasn't going to the prom with him. "I'll do it next time. Promise."
They both smiled; knowing she never looked where she was going and it would probably never change.
"Tyke, isn't it about time for your music lesson?" Aldys was babysitting Tyke after school again. She was tired and not really up for the nagging of Tyke when it came to homework and extra lessons and such. Tyke seemed to sense it and quickly took her violin case and got into the car, clearly expecting Aldys to drive her to her lesson, five blocks away. So she normally did it, but what was wrong with walking for once?
As they both were sitting in the beat-up old Volvo, the only car her father wanted her to drive. He was SO protective! And usually nothing was good enough for his two daughters, but he had read somewhere that a Volvo was the image of safety. They didn't own a Volvo at that point, but her father soon had bought one at a used car dealership. Apparently Volvo meant I roll in Latin. Well, Aldys thought, it couldn't mean I cruise around town. A Volvo wasn't quite the thing she had imagined when she had taken her driver's license exam.
When Aldys had dropped Tyke off, she was a bit unsure about what she was going to do. She didn't really want to head home to the silence, but Nana's was off-limits for her for a while. Having spent too many days there, using nearly all her money on cups of espresso and bowls of vegetable soup, she had to cut back.
She ended up driving through town. Stopping only slightly in front of Josieıs house and looking at it. There was only one light on inside. She wondered if she should go ring the bell and what would happen if she did. She decided to do it. Aldys went up the door and pressed her finger against the bell button. It lasted a few seconds and she could hear the shrill note going through the house. Reluctant steps were heard walking, and then they stopped out side the door.
Josie opened the door and Aldys was shocked to see tears on her friendıs face.