Saturday morning bloomed warm and sunny. The 60º weather at only five in the morning promised a warm day ahead. I was dressed and ready at Brad's house by 6. The night before, I had gotten Olivia to convince my father to let me stay in Tulsa with them for a "field trip." It didn't take much convincing on our part, because Daddy was trying to entertain his new girlfriend. His idea of entertainment: playing Scrabble.
"I am sitting on a step, waiting for Ike. I am still sitting on a step, it is really early in the morning..." I sang, making up the words as I waited. Brad sat down beside me, a bagel and a steaming cup of coffee in his hands.
"Calm down, you're an hour early. Want a sip?" He offered his coffee to me. I declined politely, making a hideous face at the cup.
"No. Don't you know that stuff stunts your growth?" I inquired, standing up and walking to the door. I peaked out the window quickly, then turned anxiously and started pacing.
"Not me, I'm all done growing. But you, my fresh little victim, can still be stunted." He shot me an evil grin and held out the coffee cup menacingly. I was not in the mood for his games.
"Olivia!" I screamed. She stuck her head out of the kitchen and gave me a questioning look. I pointed to Brad. "He's taunting me again," I whined.
"Brad, leave your little sister alone!" Olive reprimanded, smiling playfully.
"Aww, do I have to?" he complained in a small voice. Then he smiled and stood up, escaping into the kitchen. At exactly 6:58, the Hanson's van pulled into the drive. I grabbed some money out of Brad's coat pocket, yelled goodbye and dashed out the front door.
"Hi Willow," Ike greeted, jumping out of the van. He held the door for me to climb in, and I sat beside Taylor. He grinned at me. Ike closed the door again, sat in the empty seat behind me, and we headed towards the capital.
"So, what is Zac doing for his birthday?" Willow asked as we sat at the kitchen table with a bag of chips in front of us.
"I think he was bugging my parents about a coed party this year. I dunno," I replied, tossing a few chips into my mouth. I chewed for a little before grinning at Willow, showing her the remains of the food in my mouth. She made a disgusted face.
"Eeew, Isaac! That's so nasty," she commented, hitting my arm.
"Oops, I know what I did wrong. I was supposed to ask if you're ever seen seafood before. Get it? Seafood, see-food? Ha ha!" I cried. She groaned at my lame joke, then laughed. Zac strolled stealthily into the kitchen and leaned his elbow against the counter. Willow and I both looked at him. Zac smiled and flipped some hair behind his ear.
"What's up, Zac?"
"You know, Will, my 12th birthday is next week." He grinned at her. "Mom and dad agreed to let me have a boy/girl party."
"Hey Zac, let's play a game," I suggested. "It's called fill in the blank: 'she cares because...'?"
Zac stuck his tongue out at me, then turned back to Willow, who was trying hard not to laugh. "Will, you are invited, you know," he told her.
"Thanks Zac. What do you want for a gift?" she questioned. A thoughtful look crossed my little brother's face.
"I'm not sure right now. Maybe we could think of something together?" he suggested. Willow smiled politely, but shook her head.
"That sounds sweet, but I think I'll leave the choice up to you this time," she replied. She looked sheepishly over me. I shrugged.
"Oh, well, okay. That's fine. I'll let you know." He winked at her, then smiled and left the room. Willow looked at me in surprise.
"How can someone with a personality like that come from parents like yours?" she asked. I laughed.
"I'm not sure. Maybe this is a classic 'milkman syndrome'," I suggested. Willow looked shocked as she tried not to laugh.
"Isaac! That's terrible," she giggled.
"I know. Don't you just love it?" I teased.
"What's the milkman syndrome?" Zac called from the hallway. Willow and I burst out laughing again.
"Miss Carter! Miss Carter?" our housemaid, Louisa, called to me, knocking lightly on my bedroom door. I opened my eyes, slightly annoyed at having my nap interrupted.
"Huh?" I mumbled. I glanced at the clock and gasped. The short nap I had intended had actually been nearly four hours. It was now six o'clock in the evening.
"Miss Carter! There is someone on the telephone for you," Louisa called from the hallway. I scrambled out of bed and picked up my telephone.
"Hello?" I asked tiredly.
"Well, it's about time you woke up. I've called about four times. I was beginning to think that you went into some type of hibernation or something!" Isaac's voice rang out cheerfully. I rubbed my eyes and stretched.
"No, not exactly," I yawned.
"Well, anyway, I wanted to ask you if you could come over for a little bit. I know it's really short notice, I'm sorry. Katie can't baby-sit tonight; do you think your father will let you?"
"Sure, I'd be glad to baby-sit. My dad is out of town, so it doesn't really matter."
"Oh, okay. Mom says that you can spend the night in our guestroom. That way, you won't have to come back here for Zac's party tomorrow night."
"Okay, it sounds like a plan," I agreed.
"Great!" Ike exclaimed. "I'll come pick you up. Be ready in 20 minutes, okay?"
"Alright. Bye Isaac." I hung up the phone, then rushed to through some things together and put them in a bag. I grabbed Zac's birthday card and dashed down the stairs.
"Louisa?"
"Yes?" Louisa stepped into the hallway from the den.
"I'm going to a friends house tonight, I won't be back. Dad won't be home until Saturday, right?" I asked her. She nodded. "Okay, good. I'll probably stay in Tulsa until then."
"Alright, Miss," Louisa replied. She smiled politely, then went back to her work. I stepped out of the house and closed the door quietly behind me, then sat on the front steps as I waited for Isaac.
"It's really no problem," she insisted. I tried to keep up conversation on the ride back to my house, but Willow didn't seem to be in a talking mood. When we were stopped at a red light, I looked over at her. She was looking out the window, the headlights from the car behind us reflecting on her face.
"Willow? Are you okay?" I asked.
"Huh? What'd you say?" She seemed to wake from a trance as she reacted to my words. I reached over and rested my hand on her knee for a moment.
"You're being so quiet. Is something the matter?" I questioned, concern showing in my voice that even I didn't recognize. Willow just shook her head, keeping her face turned away from me. We continued on towards my house, but didn't get out once I stopped in the driveway. I turned to her again.
"Willow?"
"Yes?"
"Talk to me. I'm here, and I'm a good listener. Trust me," I said, attempting to make her smile. But when she looked at me, there was everything but a smile on her face.
"I want to trust you, I really do. It's just so hard. Everyone that I trust has seemed to hurt me in one way or another, and I don't know if I can take it anymore," she said softly. She blinked a few times, then turned away from me again. I put my hand on her shoulder.
"I promise that I won't hurt you," I said quietly. Willow sighed.
"I know." I pulled her into my arms and gave her a friendly hug. "I feel like such an idiot," she commented, her voice muffled by my shoulder.
"You are not an idiot," I assured her, brushing some of her hair back. Willow pulled away from me and kissed my cheek, then smiled.
"Thank you, Isaac."
"You are most welcome," I replied. I squeezed her hand lightly before we got out of the car and walked up to the house. Avery practically jumped all over her when we got into the living room.
"Guess what, guess what, guess what?!?" she shouted.
"Avery, don't shout," my mom scolded, coming in from the hall and taking Willow's coat. She smiled at my friend. "Hi Willow. Thank you so much for watching the kids tonight."
"Anytime, Mrs. Hanson. Your children are so fun to be around. They're all so..."
"Psychotic?" I offered. Mom and Willow laughed, then mom went to hang up Willow's coat.
"Well, that wasn't the exact word I was looking for, but it works," Willow replied.
"Hey, you!" Avery called, annoyed that all the attention she had been getting was now elsewhere. Willow turned to my youngest sister and smiled.
"Hey you what?" she returned anxiously.
"Tomorrow is Zakky's birthday!" my sister shrieked. She grabbed Willow's hand and started dragging her towards the stairs. "Come see what I made him."
"Alright. You go on up, I'll be up in a minute," Willow replied. My sister dashed up the stairs, and Willow turned to me, smiling. "Your siblings are so animated."
"Yeah, they are a regular Saturday morning cartoon," I replied comically. Zac and Tay thundered down the stairs moments later, all ready to go. We bid farewell to Willow and my mother, then headed out the door and to our interview.
"Be good," Walker instructed. Taylor and Zac both nodded.
"Don't make any big messes," added Diana, looking at Ike.
"Why are you looking at me?" he asked innocently, giving his mother an angelic smile. Diana patted her son's cheek gently.
"I didn't mean it only for you," she insisted. Ike and I grinned at each other. Zac glanced at his watch.
"Okay mom, dad, everyone. The guests are gonna start arriving any minute now. So, we'll see you later," he rushed, hurrying them towards the door. Diana paused and kissed Zac's cheek.
"Mom!"
"Happy birthday sweetie." She hurried to the car. Zac blushed, embarrassed, and glanced at me. Just as he had said, his party guests started arriving soon after. Taylor and I started to bring out the food that had been prepared earlier that afternoon. Zac was greeting each of his friends as they approached the house, directing them where to put the gifts and where the basement was. I was somehow fascinated at the amount of friends that Zac already had.
"Willow? Hello?" Taylor waved his hand in front of my face. I blinked a few times, then turned to him, blushing.
"I'm sorry, did you say something?" I asked. Tay nodded.
"Yeah. Ike is downstairs looking for you. Zac's friends are all here and they are getting restless," he informed me. I followed him down the basement stairs into the rec. room, where all the pre-teens were. There were 8 boys, including Zac and his brothers, and 7 girls, including me.
"Okay, who wants to play what?" Zac asked, clapping his hands. A few suggestions were shouted from around the room, then Zac grinned evilly. "How about Spin-the-Bottle?"
"Yeah!" a few people cheered, while others groaned.
"Ike, you go get the bottle." While Isaac went to get the bottle, everyone sat in a circle on the floor. I didn't feel like playing, as did a few others. We sat on a couch across the room and watched, When Ike returned, he had an empty IBC Rootbeer bottle in his hands, and Katie was following him.
"Look who dropped by to say happy birthday," he said, grinning.
"Hi Katie. Wanna play Spin-the-Bottle with us?" Zac invited. Katie smiled, then looked at Isaac.
"Sure. Are you playing too, Ike?" she asked innocently. He nodded, then sat down with her by his side. And the game began.
"Um, I think I hear the phone ringing," I stated, trying to stand up. Zac grinned, holding up the cordless telephone and shaking it at me. I stopped. One of Zac's friends laughed.
"What, are you chicken or something?" he challenged.
"No," I defended. Quickly, I leaned over and gave Katie the tiniest little peck on the cheek ever imagined, then sat back, glaring at the carpet. The game went on as if nothing had happened. I sighed.
"Willow, please play," Zac whined. Willow shrugged a little and sat down between Isaac and me. After a while, Zac's friends started to get bored with the game. A few of them left the circle to get something to eat. "Wait! One more round. It's Will's turn."
"Thanks, Zac," Willow mumbled, spinning the bottle in a quick circle. She turned her eyes away, as if afraid to see whom it stopped on. I heard a little huff come from Zac's direction, then looked at the bottle. It was pointing at Isaac. Willow looked around uneasily.
"Hey, good pick," Isaac joked, laughing. Willow smiled a little, her uneasiness disappearing. She leaned up and kissed him lightly, then sat back on her heels. Ike grinned.
"You've had practice," he teased as the partygoers all stood up, the game officially over. Willow rolled her eyes and laughed.
"Yeah, right," she replied. Zac glared at our older brother, then turned and walked over to a small group of his friends. Ike and Willow exchanged quick glances, then shrugged. Katie and Isaac went upstairs to get some soda, and Willow stretched out on the couch. I sat down beside her, and she smiled. "I think Zac got a little jealous."
"Don't mind him, he'll get over it," I assured her. Willow nodded, and we continued watching the party around us.
After I finished writing this, I dragged myself up off the couch and into the basement. Zac and his friend Bonnie zoomed past me up the steps. I tossed a ball of red wrapping paper at Taylor, who had his back turned to me, and hit him in the back of the head. He turned to me, scowling. I grinned.
"What was that for?" he demanded, then bent down to pick it up and throw it into the black trash bag in his hands. I shrugged.
"Just trying to help," I replied innocently. Taylor rolled his eyes. "Do you know where Willow disappeared to?"
"Last I saw, she was in the backyard," he replied, crawling behind the couch on all fours.
"In this rain?" I questioned, looking out of the small window at the top of the room. Taylor responded, his words muffled behind the furniture. I watched him for a moment, then he crawled back out with a disgusted look on his face and threw a half eaten piece of pizza into the trash. I just shook my head at his cleanliness, then ascended the stairs once again. I grabbed my sweatshirt from a kitchen chair on my way out, a lazy drizzle falling from the gray cloudy sky. The yard was empty. I looked over and saw that the window in our tree house had been closed. I hurried across the yard and up the tree, knocking lightly on the door before pushing it open and crawling in. Willow was sitting on the floor, reading a book she had brought with her the night before.
"Hi Willow, what's up?" I asked, sitting beside her.
"Umm, the sky is up," she offered, turning a page without looking up. I peeked at the page she was reading, then pulled it from her hands. She made a face. "Hey!"
"What kind of book is this?" I turned the book around in my hands, holding it out of her reach.
"It's just a book!" she insisted. "Now will you give it back to me?" I stood up and turned to her, reading from the book in an overly dramatic voice.
"Oh Romeo, Romeo; deny thy father and refuse thy name. Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, and I'll no longer be a Capulet," I quoted, then sighed dramatically and grinned.
"Cut it out, Ike. You're embarrassing me."
I laughed. "I am embarrassing you? Who is the one who actually borrowed this from the library?" I retorted. Willow just gave me a cross look and hugged her knees to her chest. I tilted my head to the side and looked at her innocently. "Aww, did I hurt your feelings?"
"No," Willow defended, snatching the book back when I offered it to her. I laughed, sitting beside her again. Willow tried to look hurt, but she smiled. "You're such a jerk."
"Me? A jerk? I'm hurt, really," I teased, putting my hand over my heart. "Right here. See? Pain." I laughed as she punched my arm.
"Be quiet," she commanded. I put my arm around her shoulders.
"Really, Willow, I only tease you because you make such an easy target," I explained with a smile. Willow gave me a playful glare. I removed my arm from her shoulders and we sat quietly for a moment, listening to the stray water droplets falling down from leaf to leaf in the tree around us. Thank God we had a nice, sturdy roof over us.
"Does Zac always play kissing games at parties?" Willow asked, breaking the silence. I shook my head.
"Not that I know of. They may play these games at other people's parties, but this is the first coed party our parents have allowed him," I answered. Willow nodded. "Why?"
"Just curious."
"It was that fun, huh?" I asked sarcastically. Willow smiled slightly.
"Oh yeah, the best," she agreed, equally sarcastic. We were quiet again, then she turned to me. "You were wrong, earlier."
"What?"
"When we were playing Spin-the-Bottle. You said that I'd had practice. You were wrong."
"Was I?" I asked quietly, suddenly loosing my humorous sense of attitude. Willow nodded, looking away from me. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say that; I didn't know it was a tender subject."
"It isn't," she assured me. "I don't even know why I brought it up. I'm so lame."
"You're not lame," I argued. I put my hand under her chin and turned her face towards me. "Willow, you're not lame," I repeated. She smiled.
"Thanks, Ike."
I don't know what happened next. I lost complete control of my senses. All I know is that one second, we were just sitting there. The next, my lips brushed over hers slowly. Willow never closed her eyes, just stared into mine calmly. I blinked a few times before our lips clumsily meshed together. I wrapped my arm around her waist, kneeling in front of her awkwardly. Her hands massaged the back of my neck gently, her fingers twirling in my shoulder length hair. It happened before I could even think, although I doubt I would have stopped myself if I had had the chance to. Our mouths separated and she brushed her lips along my jaw, leaving behind a trail of skin as hot as fire. I held her tightly, pressing my face against her neck and inhaling her sweet scent. A thousand emotions shot through me at once, sending my mind into orbit and making the small room around us spin.
"Isaac," she whispered. I opened my eyes, adjusting to my surroundings again. Willow ran her palms over my shoulders and down my arms. I opened my hands to take in hers, and pulled away slowly. She looked up at me cautiously. Her eyes were filled with tears, and my heart hammered in my chest.
"Oh, no, Willow don't cry. I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking..." I trailed off as she pulled her hands away. She hastily wiped at her eyes.
"No, I'm sorry. It's not your fault," she told me quickly. She laughed bitterly. "God, what is wrong with me? I always screw everything up."
I didn't say anything, but watched her stand up and step away from me. She shivered. I pulled my sweatshirt off and reached up to hand it to her. She looked back down at me, her blues eyes piercing through me.
"Thanks." She put the sweatshirt on, pulling the sleeves out so that her hands were completely hidden. My clothing was too large for her, the thick fleece changing her thin form and hiding it from external vision. I stood up and approached her slowly. "Please don't hate me."
"I don't."
"I'm just scared, a-and confused," she explained. I put my arms around her from behind and hugged her.
"Don't be. I was out of line," I said quietly, secretly screaming at myself for stepping over the invisible line that separates friendships from intimate relationships. I had gone too far, not even knowing my feelings for her, too fast. Willow took a deep breath, her body rising and falling gently beneath my arms. I looked out the small window and saw that the clouds were breaking, then let go of her. "We should go in and help clean up before Taylor thinks we've been abducted by Zac's other relatives."
Willow smiled at my joke and nodded, then followed me down the tree and back into the house.