Holding On

With my three best friends, it was always a tradition to have a sleepover on the weekend before a new school year started. It wasn’t the usual sleepover. You know the one, where your friends get to your house and you order pizza and stay up all night watching movies and talking? That wasn’t us. We had a set way of doing things. My house was always the host house. Lacey, Mira and Emma would all come over at 11:30am. We would get our sleeping bags set up on the floor and then make our way to my huge closet. We would all choose an outfit to wear (we were all the same size) and then get dressed. Once we made sure that we all had something that matched (usually a head band or scarf) we were ready for the streets. Since we weren’t old enough to drive yet, my parents would drop us off at the nearest Office Depot. With the $65 dollars we had each gotten from our parents we would shop for school supplies together. This particular time we had no clue what we would need for school, so we were just getting the basics.

“Hey Mira!” Lacey called once we were inside the store.

“Yeah?” Mira asked in her sweet-as-sugar voice.

“Are you gonna get a magnetic frame for that picture of you and Kevin?” Emma teased, holding up a magnetic frame.

“Shut up,” Mira muttered walking past me. Everyone knew she was going out with Josh, but only the three of us knew how serious they had gotten over the summer. Nothing too serious, but they’ve kissed and between the four of us that was pretty serious. In ‘The Picture’ Mira and Kevin were in their swimsuits at the local beach, kissing. It’s her favorite picture, but only we know of its existence. For someone so quiet, Mira is the only one of the four of us with a boyfriend.

“It’s a cute picture. I just wish I had a guy like him,” I said wistfully. I had always wanted a boyfriend, but the boys in middle school were way too immature for my liking. I had been asked out many times, but turned them all down. I stayed single even when all my friends had boyfriends. I was waiting for Mr. Right, and would wait as long as possible.

“Just wait until next week!” squealed Lacey dropping seven three-subject notebooks into our cart. “High school boys galore!”

“Don’t forget homework,” Emma said glaring at Mira. Mira looked down at her feet, her long dark brown hair shielding her face from view. Thinking it was the best way to ensure we have classes together, Mira convinced us to take all Honors classes, except for Emma. Being her smart self, Lacey found a way to get Emma into all Honors classes without her knowledge, that is until schedules we sent out. I told Emma that it was actually Lacey’s workings, but she refused to believe it.

“Anyways,” I said trying to break up the tension. “Which color is better?” I picked up two random binders, one puke green and one baby pink. I knew they would definitely think the pink was better.

“Definitely the green one,” said a voice from behind me. I turned around to see Jennifer Phelps. I rolled my eyes, making sure she saw that I did and turned my attention back to my girls. Jennifer has forever been trying to be part of our group, well, more than everyone else. We were the ‘It’ girls of Arvada Middle School, and everyone (even the high schoolers) knew we would take that position in high school this year. I made a big show of putting the pink binder into the cart. Lacey snickered.

“Who are you talking to?” asked one of Jennifer’s friends from the other side of the isle.

“The Grace Sisters,” she answered back in an annoyed voice.

“Will you give it a rest?” Lacey scoffed. It was obvious Jen was just making it seem like she knew us. Following Emma’s lead, we walked away from Jen towards the check out.

With the money we had left, we walked across the street to the grocery store. We picked up ingredient for spaghetti and double chocolate chip cookies as well as Rocky Road ice cream, bread and eggs (for French toast). When we were ready to be picked up, I called my dad and he took us home.

Every time the four of us have a Before School Starts Sleepover we are totally self-sufficient. We make our dinner, desert and breakfast all by ourselves, perfect practice for when we share dorms in college. While we were waiting for the spaghetti to boil, and Mira was finishing off the sauce, my little sister, Courtney, walked into the room.

“Hey!” she said. She got a soda from the fridge then sat on the counter. If Courtney were the same age as me we would be identical, it’s already hard to tell us apart in baby pictures. We both have out Mom’s thin light brown hair and blue-green eyes, a combination of Mom’s blue and Dad’s green.

“It’s the twin!” teased Mira. She may be quiet in public, but when it’s just us and our family she’s pretty darn outgoing.

“Yup!” my 13-year-old sister chirped giving us her I’m-so-innocent look. I get along with her just as well as I do with my friends, even if she is my year-younger sister. “Need any help?” she asked Lacey who was draining the spaghetti. Lacey shook her head no.

“I do,” I said. She looked over to me. “Could you get the lemonade from the fridge?” Courtney got up from the counter and skipped over to the fridge. She got the lemonade and put it on the table then turned back around to close the fridge. Once the fridge was closed she spun around on the tile floor on one foot. I counted three twirls, and then she was on her butt on the tile floor. All five of us cracked up and I put the plates on the table before I dropped them.

“What was that for?” Emma asked, gasping for breath.

“It just felt like the thing to do,” laughed Courtney, still on the floor.

“What? The spin or the fall?” I teased.

“The spin,” my sister answered, getting up and brushing off her Capri’s. Once we all finished laughing, I gave everyone a plate. We each served ourselves and began eating.

“If you could have one wish, what would you wish for?” Courtney asked. I looked up and saw my three friends all deep in thought over Courtney’s question. I knew what I would wish for, but I wasn’t going to share first, or at all.

“I’d wish to be Valedictorian when I graduate.” I laughed to myself, typical Mira.

“I’d wish to be discovered by a modeling agent,” said Lacey who’s lifelong dream is to be a model and to be honest she had the flawless looks of one.

“I’d wish for the five of us to stay best friends forever,” said Emma. I looked up at her, smiling.

“You mean four, right?” Courtney asked. Before today she was never really considered one of us.

“No, five,” Emma said. Courtney smiled realizing she was officially part of our group.

“What would you wish for Court?” I asked using the nickname she hates. She play glared at me, but then gave us her answer,

“For one of my stories to get published.” It was a well-known fact that my sister was a writer, so it didn’t come as a big shock that this is what she would wish for. “What about you, Alie?”

“I don’t know,” I said quickly, “Do you guys think the cookies are ready?” I got up and walked over to the oven, checking how long the cookies were in there. When I saw that they were in there for almost thirteen minutes I got the oven mitts and pulled them out. I served one to each of my friends and put the rest on a cooling rack. We ate in silence, then made our way upstairs to my room. A movie was chosen and started on my TV as we each claimed spots on the floor, my bed or the couch. For the heck of it we watched The Clique, which was our favorite book series and movie. Emma whispered the words to herself having seen the movie enough times to memorize it.

“Natalie? What would you wish for?” Lacey asked halfway through the movie. I froze not wanting to answer the question truthfully, but knowing that I wasn’t about to lie.

“Yeah Alie, you didn’t tell us earlier,” chimed in Mira.

“Please tell us,” Emma and Courtney begged at the same time.

“Fine, but promise not to laugh.”

“Promise,” the four girls said at the same time. I took a deep breath then told them,

“I would wish to find true love.” I blushed and looked down and away from everyone else.

“Ehmygawd!” squealed Lacey, Courtney and Emma copying the Pretty Committee.

“That is so sweet!” Mira said hugging her pillow.

“So that’s why you turned down all those boys last year, none of them were Mr. Right,” stated Lacey. I nodded and Emma squealed more.

“You’ll find him, soon,” said my little sister with a knowing smile. Mira’s phone began to ring.

“Hello?” she answered. “Hey Kevin,” she said, smiling and practically gliding out of the room.

“That’s love,” I whispered to no one in particular.