These Days

“No, please don’t give me that face! I have to go back to school tonight.” Karen covered her eyes with her hands. She and Sidney had woken up from a fun night and were heading to breakfast with his parents and his sister.

“But don’t you have so much fun here? Why don’t you just transfer to Carnegie Mellon? It’s right in the city.” Sidney whined.

“Yeah, but I love my family at school. I could never leave them. I’m like the momma duck and they’re my ducklings.” Karen smiled and Sidney shook his head.

“It’s not fair that I never get to see you.”

“You’ve got a busy schedule, Sid, and so do I. If we’re meant to be we’ll work out and one day we’ll have a real relationship and what not.”

“But until that happens you still live 3 hours and 45 minutes away from Mellon, and 4 hours and 1 minute away from me.” Sidney sighed. Karen smiled. Sidney knew the times exactly. It made her feel warm inside.

“Will your parents like me?”

“As long as I don’t introduce you as my girlfriend they will.”

“Well we aren’t exactly officially or anything so calling me a friend isn’t a lie.” Karen chuckled. Sidney felt a ghost of a smile grace his lips.

“Guess not.” Sidney pulled up to the breakfast place. He led Karen inside where his parents and sister were already at the table. “Hi everybody, this is my friend Karen, she’s visiting from Lancaster, Pennsylvania,”

“Nice to meet you, Karen,” Tina Crosby said, “So you’re from Pennsylvania?”

“Oh, no actually, I’m from Montana. I got to school at Franklin and Marshall which is in Lancaster.” Karen said, picking up her menu.

“Montana?” Taylor mouthed at her. Sidney sent her a stern look. Taylor sneered at him. Taylor thought Sidney could do better than some hick from the sticks of Montana.

“How are you, Tay? Have a good nap yesterday?” Sidney asked, looking on Karen’s menu with her while his mother continued to question Karen. A smile spread across her face, a secret smile.

“I had a VERY good nap yesterday.” Sidney shrugged a fan of naps himself, and went to look at the pancakes. When he looked up he caught sight of a dark mark on his sister’s neck. He pointed to it and stuttered over her words drawing Taylor’s attention. Taylor quickly covered it with her hair, muttering it’s nothing.

“No it’s not, what is it?” Sidney started reaching across the table to move his sister’s hair, gaining the attention of both of his parents and Karen. Karen watched the exchange and saw the frightened look in Taylor’s eyes. Karen knew immediately it was a hickey, and one that her parents shouldn’t know about. She stepped in.

“Ah, that looks like a bad burn! I always do that when I straighten my hair in a rush.” Karen said, laying a hand on Sidney’s arm, lowering it back to his lap. “You heard must’ve been somewhere else when you were in the bathroom this morning, huh?” Karen said. Taylor’s body relaxed and she sent a smile Karen’s way, regretting her judgment of Karen.

“Yeah, I was still sleepy this morning.” Taylor held up her menu in front of her face cutting off conversation with everyone. Sidney was staring at Karen. Karen held up her menu too, Sidney pushed his face behind and demanded to know what Karen thought she was doing.

“You can’t do that to her in front of your parents. Ask her about it later.” Karen hissed at him. “How would you feel if she called you out on a hickey? Leave her alone right now.” Karen put the menu down, cutting off Sidney’s reply. “I think I’ll have the French toast, it sounds really good.” Karen patted Sidney’s knee, calming him down. The rest of breakfast went smoothly, especially since Taylor liked Karen after that.

Sidney was driving Karen to the train station after breakfast so she said goodbye to his family outside. Taylor hugged her and whispered thanks. “Not a problem. You’ll have to talk to Sid about it though.” Karen gave the young Crosby a half smile and a pat on the shoulder. Taylor watched quietly as Sidney got into his car and drove Karen away, wondering what her big brother would say to her later.

In the car Sidney looked over at Karen and opened his mouth, but would end up shaking his head and looking back at the road several times. “Say what you have to say, Sid,” Karen said after the third time. “I don’t want to go back to school for three weeks and not see you and leave you mad or something.”

“Why did you say it was a hair straightener burn?”

“I’ve had to hide hickeys from my own parents before.” Sidney let his mouth hang open for a moment. “Not since I met you.” Sidney stopped the car at the train station. Karen opened the door and grabbed her bag. She stuck her head back in. “Have you never had to hide a hickey before?” Karen asked. Sidney blushed and shook his head. She laughed and leaned in, catching his lips with her own in a kiss. When she pulled away she waggled her eyebrows suggestively. “Well you’ll never have to.”

“Why not?” Sidney asked. Karen licked her lips and shouldered her bag.

“They’ll be places you can’t see…” She trailed off. Sidney began to stutter and she threw back her head in a laugh. She blew Sidney a kiss and headed toward the train, leaving her would-be boyfriend in his car all flustered and bothered.