THIS GIRL

8|

"Ryan, wake up." "What?" His voice deep and raspy. "We fell asleep in the car." "I know." He says. "Wake up." "What time is it?" I try to check my phone but it's dead. "I don't know." He digs around for his phone. "It's only seven thirty." He presses his cheek against the seat still half asleep.

"Come in, you can crash on the couch for a bit." I say. "I'm goin' to head home." He says. That's right, things are going to be weird after last night. "Okay." I say and quickly get out of the car with my shoes in my hands.

This feels like a bad excuse for the walk of shame.

At least Natalia's car wasn't here anymore, which meant I didn't have to deal with her.

"I'm going back to bed." I say to myself, sneaking in the back yard to my bedroom window.

Knocking on the front door wakes me up about an hour later.

"Good morning mija." Natalia says too cheery when I open the door. "Did I wake you?" she says petting my shoulder. "No." Yes.

"Good, I would feel so bad if I did. Listen, I just came to bring your dad his sun glasses before I head off to work." "Okay I'll give them to him." I say closing the door not letting her say more.

"Who was that?" dad says coming out of the bathroom tying his tie. "Natalia, she brought your sunglasses." "I must've left them in her car when she brought me from the funeral service. You left me stranded there." "Oh yeah, sorry about that dad."

***

"Are you going to school?" he says. "Have a good day at work dad." I say closing my bedroom door. "Emma..."

My ear buds go in on full volume.

I pull out all my paints and try to get started on my painting assignment, a skyline from an angle, whatever that means.

"Oh my god, what's wrong with you? You're going to give me a heart attack." I say opening my window for Ryan who was banging on it apparently, I didn't hear, I just saw him looking through it. "Sorry, but you weren't opening the front door and I knew you were home."

Don't make this awkward. Yes, he told you he's in love with you a two days ago and yes, you tried to have sex with him right before that, but no, this isn't that weird.

"How did you get back here anyways?" I say as he climbs in my window. "I jumped the gate and walked around your backyard." He says. "Wow." "What?" "You're kind of crazy." I say.

"I brought you breakfast. I figured you probably weren't feeding yourself well so..." "What's that supposed to mean?" I say. "You can't cook." "What? I'm a perfectly adequate chef." "Emma..." "Well I'm not going to let that one time define me." He laughs.

"So how are doing?" "I'm fine." I say. "Very convincing... Are you going to school?" "Nope."

"I have to go. I'm coming back later then, with your homework and you're gonna help me with the painting thing." Ryan says. "Okay." He looks at me like he's waiting for something for about ten seconds then disappears through my window. If he's coming back does that mean the other night is behind us?

I put the breakfast croissant sandwich Ryan brought me in the fridge for later and go back to painting.

It feels like twenty minutes ago I had just started on my painting but I've been staring at this one stroke of blue paint on a huge canvas for hours.

I figure since it's around twelve it's time for that breakfast croissant. I quickly it and back to "painting" I go.

Someone knocks at the door around three, I thought it could be Ryan who maybe left school early. It was Natalia.

"Hi sweetie, can I come in?" she says. "Surrrree." I open the door slightly. "Here." She hands me my schoolwork. "You went to my school?" "Your dad told me the school allowed you to take a few days off but you needed to keep up with your schoolwork. I also bought you cookies. Your dad said they are your favorite dessert. I bought peanut butter, sugar and m&m ones."

"Why is it so important that I like you?" I say. "I'm just trying to be your friend, Emma." She pauses "I want you to know his thing with your dad is getting real and I'd be coming into your guys' little family, I want to join it peacefully, not destroy it. I don't want to be one of those over bearing, wildly annoying step parents." She's one step ahead of herself.

"I don't want you to think I'm replacing your mother or that you have to see me as one, I could never be like her. I will be here for you and trust me if I see you falling off your track I'll tell you, but look at me like a friend." I stop her because she sounds insane. "Natalia you guys have been dating for, like, four months."

"I know its fast. We told each other we love each other and that's not something I take lightly." Maybe I should learn from that. "I'm not saying we're going to get married tomorrow or last like I hope we are going to. I just thought you should know that I've seen myself be detrimental towards your relationship with your father and I won't do that anymore. I love your dad, he's a great man. I need you to like me because this will be over if you don't." I give her a nice head nod because she sounds crazy.

"When you're ready to go back, do you want me take you to school?" She asks. "I have a car." "I know but we can have some girl chat on the way, we can talk about that cute boyfriend of yours," boyfriend "what's his name Ricky? Oh, oh I can buy you some coffee too it'll be fun." What about not being overbearing? "Um no it's okay." I say. "How about I pick up your homework for you again?" She says. "Ricky can bring it." She sighs loudly, hugs me "Have a great day today, okay mija." and clacks her heels away.

I get back to my painting, starting off with penciling in the building as if I were standing in the middle of a few looking up. I draw in lots of windows, and detailing on the buildings. Its pretty difficult to draw things from this perspective from the top of my head but I get through it.

I take a deep breath, pour some colors in my pallet and get started.

"Hey." "How did you get in my house?" I say turning to see Ryan. "You're covered in paint." He pauses. "Your dad let me in."

"What time is it?" "Six thirty." He says. I haven't been painting that long have I?

"The office didn't have your homework." Ryan says. " I forgot to tell you, Natalia brought it." "Oh." "Yeah, sorry." "I better go then, I forgot my canvas at school anyways."