“Oh, yeah. No, I don’t have anything going on. I honestly forgot until you just reminded me. Why? What are you doing?”
The devious smile on his face made me nervous. “I have a plan. Karl mentioned having everyone stay the night at his house and doing the bonfire tonight instead of Saturday. You could tell your mom that you’re staying with Deanna and then you’d be able to stay too.”
AJ obviously didn’t know what it was like to live with parents who had you on constant lockdown. “My mom doesn’t even know Deanna. She’ll never go for it.”
“Just try. The worst she could say is no.”
Under normal circumstances, I would’ve just dismissed the idea altogether, but I thought about it and decided to give it a try. “Ok, but don’t be disappointed if it doesn’t work.”
He smiled reassuringly. “I have faith in you.”
*****
If my homework was done before my mom came home, my chances of getting out would be much better. The second I slammed my History book shut I heard the garage door open. It was time to put on my game face and do my best to convince my mom that I was going to be spending the night with Deanna – which wasn’t a total lie. After all she’d be there too.
I took a deep breath and ran downstairs to meet her at the door. As soon as it flung open I started begging. “Mom, my friend Deanna from school wanted me to ask if I could stay the night at her house tonight. Remember we don’t have school tomorrow? I’ll here alone tomorrow bored if you say no. Can I go? Pleeeeeeeeeeeease?”
She looked confused. “Wait. Slow down a bit. Who is this Deanna? Do I know her?” She inquired.
“No. She’s a new friend, but I’ll call her if you want to talk to her,” I offered.
She stared into my eyes for a long while before responding. “That’s not necessary. Just let me run it by your father when he gets home.”
That frustrated me because I knew that tonight was Daddy’s late night at the office and I honestly wanted to be long gone before he returned. I had to do something. “Well, she wanted me to come over soon. Couldn’t you just call him and see?”
She stared at me again before finally giving in. “Give me a minute to at least take my shoes off and I’ll try him.”
I smiled as she rolled her eyes at me. She was obviously annoyed by my impatience, but it seemed like the plan was going to work. I ran upstairs and started thinking about everything I’d need to pack: a pair of clothes for tomorrow, a pair of pajama pants and a t-shirt to sleep in and my pillow. I’d have to pack my toiletries after I showered again. The sound of my mother’s footsteps startled me. Not wanting her to know that I was anticipating getting my way, I flung the bag into the closet and slammed it shut just as she walked in.
She looked at me curiously as I leaned against my closet door, but she dismissed it quickly. “Well, I spoke with your father and he said that it was fine as long as your homework was done before you left.”
I smiled. “It’s done already.”
“Then you’re free to go. What time are you coming back tomorrow.?”
“I’m not sure, but it won’t be late.”
She nodded and left the room. As soon as I knew she was gone, I jumped around excitedly. I couldn’t get my phone out fast enough. I scrolled sown to AJ’s name, hit ‘send’, and only had to hear it ring three times before he answered.
“She said yes!” I whispered eagerly, but there was silence on the other end. “Is something wrong?” I asked.
“No, it’s just that I talked to Trevor and……..he and Leila are going too, so I’d actually decided to just stay home.”
“What? I don’t care about her. Come on. I actually got my mom to agree to it.”
AJ deliberated for a moment before answering. “Fine. If you still wanna go…..then we’ll go.”
“Good. So what time should I meet you there?” I asked.
“Karl said about 7.”