"Carnation! I'm home!"
"Be down in a minute!"
I quickly finish scribbling down the last few problems of my math homework. As soon as I finish, I run downstairs and into our little kitchen.
"I want to hear all about your day at school!" My mom's getting out the ingredients for grilled cheese- my favorite.
"It wasn't so bad. My classes are okay so far, but I already have homework. I also found out that the school lunch is disgusting, can I pack tomorrow?"
"Good luck finding something," she says. "So what else? No one gave you a hard time, did they?"
The jerk who made sexual comments and his encouraging goons cross my mind. But I perish the thought.
"Nope!"
"Great! Now tell me about these new friends!"
"Oh wow! I made a lot; they're all part of one group. There's Bill, Eddie, Richie, Beverly, Ben, Stan, and Mike! They're all really nice, except Stan doesn't talk much... and Mike's homeschooled so I didn't meet him till after school. We just hung out and talked at the quarry," I ramble for awhile about them.
Heating up a can of tomato soup, she asks if I want to invite them over for dinner on Friday.
"Yeah, that would be great!" I grin. "How was your day?"
**********************************
'"Do you guys want to go up to my room?"
The Losers, who came to my house after school, agree and follow me upstairs.
"Look ginger, it's you!" Richie tells Bev, pointing to Claire on my Breakfast Club poster.
"I see the resemblance," I giggle.
"Yeah, they're both beautiful,' Ben agreed. Beverly responds with a kiss on his cheek, and he turns redder than her hair.
Stan plops down in my big comfy chair.
"How are you holding up?"
He shrugs.
"You haven't been sick lately, have you?' Eddie asks , making a point not to touch anything. Laughing, I shake my head.
"Okay," he shrugs, sinking to the floor next to Mike.
Ben goes to my bookcase, studying them all. "You have so many books."
I can tell he's impressed, so I feel a little proud of myself.
"Yeah, well, I love to read."
"Do you d-draw?" Bill asks, picking up my journal.
"No, but I love to write..."
"Let's read it!" Richie grabs it. I look away, but Eddie notices.
"Come on Richie, put it back."
"Sorry, Carn."
I scrunch my nose.
"Don't like the nickname?"
I think for a minute. "It'll grow on me. I've never been Carn before."
"C-C-Carn. I l-like it. It suits y-you," Bill puts an arm around me.
There's a comfortable silence.
"So how was school guys?" Mike asks. He's an all-around nice guy.
"Fine," we all respond monotonically.
"How was your day, Mike?"
His response is sarcastic. "Forced to kill more animals, pressure from my grandpa, the usual."
My jaw drops. "Forced to kill animals?"
"Yeah. We live on a farm. I have to kill the lambs. Not really fond of it, I refused to do it at first. I just do it as to not disappoint my family."
"I get that. I just don't like... ending the lives of animals, you know?"
"Yeah. I get that too."
"Hey Carn!"
I guess the nickname stuck.
"Hm?"
"Can we see your Catholic uniform?"
"You want to see it?" I raise my eyebrows. Richie nods enthusiastically, and the rest encourage it.
"Okay, but just a warning- it's not sexy in the least bit." I say honestly.
"I'll be the judge of that."
"Can you go five minutes without making some stupid comment?" Stan rolls his eyes.
"No, I cannot darling," he responded with that cheap British accent, to which Stan flips him off.
"Wow, you're all so mature," Beverly chimes in.
"Why, I don't think I asked you Molly!"
"Why, shut up, Tozier!"
"What was that, princess?"
I listen to the bickering from my closet, and begin searching through my hangers of nice clothes. I grab white button down and my oh-so-gorgeous plaid skirt. I change out of my black bralette into my favorite cream one before sliding the shirt over and buttoning it up. Zipping it up the skirt and hooking the little button on the side, I'm hit with a strong sense of deja-vu.
A little humiliated, I turn open the doorknob. All heads whip in my direction. And then, in perfect unison, the whole Loser's Club- even Stanley and myself- burst out in laughter.
"YOU LOOK LIKE A BRUISE!'" Richie gasps. This I cannot deny, for my skirt is not a seductive scarlet but black and dark purple. Pretty by themselves, but hideous together.
"It goes to your knees," Eddie giggles.
"I know! It's the ugliest thing ever!"
"I don't know what you're talking about. This skirt is really making me want to...."Mike grabs my hand and gives me a twirl. We're all dying. I can only think one thing- this, right here, is friendship.
"Dinner's ready, guys!" my mom calls up, interrupting us.
With whoops and yells, almost everyone tumbles down our staircase. They very well may have been animals that hadn't been fed in weeks.
The only ones left in my room are Stan and me. He was curled up in that chair, looking off into the distance.
"Come on, Stan. Let's get some food," I reach my hand out. He just gazes absentmindedly at it for a few seconds before taking it. I lead down to the dining room, but we quickly drop hands.
Our faces look like tomatoes, but luckily no one notices. My mom does do a double take when she sees me, though.
"Carnation?"
"Yes, mama?"
"Is there a reason you're wearing your old uniform?"
We all lose it again.
"It's a long story," I reply when we all calm down, taking a seat.
Dinner goes great! My mom and Bev are getting on well. Richie and Bill are laughing hysterically. Eddie and Mike are conversing deeply. And Ben was just really enjoying his cheesy potato casserole.
"No chicken for you, I'm guessing?'"my mom ask as I load my plate with fruit, potatoes, and bread.
"Unless I turned omnivore today, no thanks."
"You're vegetarian?" Richie asks, mouth full. I nodded.
"Don't talk with f-food in your mouth," Bill scolds.
Richie swallows, adding, "Are you vegan?"
"Well, there's cheese on my plate, so what do you think?"
"Oh. True."
After wolfing down our dinner, we all head back upstairs. Stanley, looking lonely, seats himself back onto the comfy chair. Sighing, I follow him.
"Scoot over?"
He looks at me in disbelief, like I may have been joking, like no one ever cares about Stanley Uris. But my expression of sincerity and gentle smile may have been the impetus for him to move over. I squish next to him and cuddle up against his side, my face heating up.
"Hey Eddie?" I ask, not wanting to address how physical I'm being with Stan.
"Yeah?"
"I think I'm going to call you Eddie Spaghetti. Cause it rhymes and you kind of look like spaghetti."
"Wow, thanks," he says, before sighing, "but fine."
"Yay!" I yawn.
Bill notices.
"Tired?"
"Mhm. Hey Bill?" I close my eyes.
"Y-yeah?"
"How's Georgie?"
No one says a word. I can't read anyone's expressions, as my eyes are shut.
"He's d-doing w-w-well..."
"Hm. Good to hear," I say before dozing off on Stan's shoulder.
"CARN!" someone obnoxiously shouts in my ear, waking me up. Six guesses who.
I rub the sleep from my eyes. "What's up, Richie?"
"What's this necklace? And how come you have so many of them?" he points to one of my Rosaries, hanging around his neck.
"What the hell?! You shouldn't be wearing that!"
"Why not?"
"Because it's a Rosary. You don't wear it, you pray it."
"Oh."
"Please take it off."
"Is it sacreligious to wear it?"
"Well, yeah, it is."
I thought for sure he'd leave it there, just to be funny. But he respectfully takes it off and places it back on my desk with the rest of them.
"Do you have those weird prayer necklaces too, Stan?"
"Rosaries."
"I'm Jewish, you dweeb."
"So?"
"Do you not see the crucifix on it?"
"Yeah..."
"We don't worship Jesus, dammit!"
"Well, shit Stan. Sorry."
"Yeah, only Catholics pray the Rosary," I explain.
"Oh," Richie burns up.
Mike picked up the Bible from my bedside.
"Read this, Richie. You need it."
We all have quite a laugh on that one.
"Are you reading the Bible?" Ben asks curiously.
"Yeah, I read a new chapter every night."
"Wow," Bill looks impressed.
A light breeze blows through my window, letting strands of my long hair fly in my face. He beams at me, and I reciprocate it.
He has a beautiful smile.
