Awakened

Fourteen

I zoned out while Sam and Thomas discussed the party planning and watched as Beau and his father left the room. Something seemed off between then, like some unsaid tension. He hadn't said anything before exiting the living room, and with him gone I felt a little more relaxed. Cynthia and my aunt had relocated to the back porch and were sipping on white wine and gossiping. This all felt so foreign. Here is a group of teenagers trying to throw together a last minute party, and the adults just nod and smile. I imagine the look on my mother's face if she could be here to see this, and it makes me giggle. I pull out my phone and send her a text.

Hey mom. Missing you, tell dad I say hi.

"Katherine, are you listening?" Sam asks.

"Oh, sorry. I was just thinking. So what have you decided?" I reply. They excitedly explain that it will be great, and that they don't want me to worry about a thing.

Thomas opens the door and calls out to his mother, "Mom, is it alright if we do it here?" I see Cynthia talk to Shelly for a moment, and then she says yes. This makes me feel a little better honestly. I will be a few steps away from the house, so if I need to retreat for any reason it won't be a big deal.

"It can be something small," Sam offers. Thomas nods, and I smile at the two of them. "I don't really know many people besides you guys, so I am not even sure where you are going to dig up people to come. So yes, small sounds good to me." I laugh, and a small part of me is beginning to feel excited for this party. My first real party, and in my honor.

Mr. Dalton comes into the room and smiles at the three of us. "Well, it looks like you kids are up to something." His green eyes are gleaming. Thomas rises and wraps an arm around his father.

"Nothing too bad dad," he laughs. "Katherine's birthday is tomorrow, and mom said we could have a little get together here for it." His dad nods, and looks at me.

"Birthday girl, huh? How old will you be?"

I shift a little before answering, "Eighteen, sir. I'll be eighteen." He grins and holds out his hands.

"Oh that's a big one! Great idea Thomas, you kids have fun. I'll take the girls out for dinner at the club so we aren't cramping your style." He winks as he says that last part, and we all laugh in response.

"What are we laughing at?" Beau walks in and seats himself on a bar-stool.

"Dad is trying to be cool." Thomas replies as he playfully pushes his father's shoulder. Mr. Dalton's demeanor changes as soon as Beau speaks. The man who was just cracking jokes now straightens his tie and speaks much more sternly.

"Anyways, like I said we will be out of your hair for the night. I'll make reservations for seven." Then, just like that he leaves the room and joins his wife on the porch.

"What is he getting out of your hair for? I'm guessing they talked you into a party?" He asks, speaking to me directly.

"They didn't talk me into anything." I answer defensibly. He clenches his jaw and narrows his eyes.

"Yeah, we're doing it here. Nothing crazy though. Probably the same crowd that was here for the tournament, plus a few more." Sam grabs my hand and begins to lead me towards the front door.

"We need to make sure you have something to wear. How about you show me your closet?" she asks. Thomas protests our leaving, and Sam firmly tells him tonight is a girl's night.

He rolls his eyes and responds, "Fine, but be over here early tomorrow. We need to go to the store and shit." I wave at him as she pulls me outside, and we head next door.

Once in my room, Sam is rummaging through my closet like a woman on a mission. She does not look impressed.

"Girl, I know you are little miss perfect but where are your party clothes?" I laugh and throw a pillow at her.

"I think you must be forgetting our talk earlier. You know, when I mentioned I've literally never done anything before. I don't own party clothes." She pulls out the tiny black dress I had hidden in the very back of the closet.

"Wait a minute, this is what I'm talking about. Now THIS is a dress!" She raises her eyebrows a few times while dangling it in front of me.

"Absolutely not. That is not a dress, THAT is a piece of fabric." I shake my head and fall back onto the bed.

"Try it on!" she exclaims and tosses the dress at me.

"No! I would never wear that. There is no point!" She groans and keeps on pestering me about the dress. I cross my arms and stand my ground.

"Fine." she grumbles and drapes the dress over the back of my desk chair. She pulls a different dress from the closet, and says "I guess this is okay too." The light pink babydoll dress is much more my speed.

"Yes, this I can handle." She groans again and plops onto my bed.

We spend the next few hours watching a million reruns of Friends and raiding Shelly's pantry for snacks. While I have enjoyed stepping out of my box, having a basic 'girls night' has been just as fun. Sam is hilarious, and even though we are so different it just works. At some point we both dumped out the canvas bags from the bookstore and each chose one to read. Sam selected The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allen Poe and is laid out at the foot of my bed completely sucked into one of the stories.

I pulled the red novel out of the golden case, and opened the first page of Love in the Time of Cholera. The love between Florentino and Fermina seems like the kind that will survive the test of time, and I am flying through the pages of this Spanish romance.

"I almost forgot!" Sam exclaims loudly, and I jump. "Sorry," she giggles, "I wanted to do something and almost forgot about it!" She slides off the bed and grabs a pen and notebook from my desk. She opens to a fresh page, and looks at me excitedly.

"Okay... what are we doing?" I say.

"Remember the bucket list? I was being serious. Let's make one!" I thought she was just using that as an expression, not meaning make a literal list of things I had never done.

"We're going to need a lot more paper if you want to make a list of all the stuff I haven't done yet." I joke, but my voice shakes a little.

"It's not a list of what you haven't done, it's just a list of a few things you want to accomplish this summer." Her smile hasn't faltered once, and I know she has her mind set on this.

"Um, okay I guess. I don't really know where to start though." I shrug, but smile. The pen begins to move furiously across the page, and after a while we have the list. I look it over, and wonder if I will actually be able to cross these things off by the end of the summer.

Summer Bucket List

- Go on a date

- Sleep on the beach

- SKINNY DIPPING

- Shotgun a beer

- Parasailing

- Tattoo or Piercing

- One entire day of YES

Find a boy, and get to:

- First Base

- Second Base

- Third Base

- All the way

Sam looks over the list, and is clearly pleased with herself. It doesn't take long for her to fall asleep after that. My mind is racing a little as I look at each item she has written down. There are so many different emotions filling me. There is fear, but also excitement at the possibilities in front of me. My eyelids grow heavy, so I close them and allow myself to dream of  what is to come.