Lips of an Angel

Michelle sighed as she followed the moving truck into West Chester Pennsylvania. It had been years since she had been here and she made a promise to herself that she would never come back, but things happen in life that aren't planned. She had recently been laid off from a floral shop in New Jersey. She lived there for nearly ten years. The owner of the shop was an older woman. She was starting to get sick so she decided to close the shop. Michelle was going to look for a new job in Jersey, but with the news of her parents split her mom really needed her.

After almost thirty years of marriage, her parents Diane and Charles had grown apart and Charles had been having an affair with another woman. Michelle couldn't believe the news. She didn't know if she should be pissed at her father or not. How could he do that to her mom? Diane decided to let Charles have the house and most of the furniture's. That's why Michelle was moving back; to live with her mom in a small house and help her out with bills.

The moving van pulled into a neighborhood with cute little rock houses that looked like cottages. Michelle gave the driver the address so he knew where he was going. He pulled to a stop in front of a house that looked exactly like something her mother would pick out. It was built with light colored rock and blue shutters. Michelle let the van back in while she parked her black mustang in front of the mailbox. Diane rushed out with Michelle's twenty-six year old sister Andrea. To Michelle, her mom looked extremely happy. She had her hair fixed, makeup to perfection, and her clothes looked new. Michelle got out of the car to receive a hug from her mother.

"I wish you would've came back on better circumstances." said Diane. "You look great!"

"Thanks mom! So do you." Michelle smiled over at Andrea. "Hey sis. How have you been?"

"Good. I'm working at a new bar in town and I'm living with my boyfriend Peter."

Michelle nodded. "I can't wait to meet him. So, is Duffers still the hang out spot?

"Everyone hangs out at The Note. That's the bar I'm working at."

Diane gave her younger daughter a sideways glance.

"Hmmm, maybe I'll apply there as a waitress. It's been years since I've been one, but I have four years experience."

Michelle made mental note to go apply there tomorrow. She had money saved, but not much. She needed a job and fast.

"Well, come in and let me give you a tour."

Diane quickly told the movers to put everything in the living room which was empty, the kitchen was empty too. The only room that had furniture in it was Diane's room along with her bathroom. Michelle thought the house was really cute. She just hoped it was weird her living with her mother. Once the movers were finished putting everything in the living room Michelle paid them for their time. She then helped her mom and sister put everything in the right place. Michelle had a bunch of boxes in her room and she decided to unpack them tomorrow.

"Tell me about this bar," she asked Andrea as she began putting the plates in the cabinet. "Is the owner a good person?"

Andrea softly bit her lip. She didn't know how her sister would feel about her working for her ex. She decided not to tell her. She would find out eventually.

"He's a great guy. I think you'll really like him."

"Girls, I'm going to order some pizza for dinner. What topping to you want?"

"Cheese!" Michelle and Andrea said at once.

Diane smiled then called in the pizza. Later that night, Michelle began to unpack a few of her boxes. She didn't have time to go through everything when she was packing so she thought now would be a good time. She found an old scrapbook from the late nineties in one box. As she flipped through the photos all the memories came back to her. The scrapbook was filled with photos of her and Bam, notes that he wrote her in school, and movie stubs from all the movies they went to see together. The last photo was of them kissing at the skate park and sadly that was the last photo ever taken of them.

She closed her eyes as tears fell down her cheek. To this day, she regrets not listening to her heart. Instead, she listened to her parents. What if she didn't go through with it? Would her and Bam still be together? She tossed the scrapbook on the floor and dug through the box again. She found a book with Bam's photo on it sitting at the bottom. she hadn't had the guts to open it until now. She flipped the book open to the calender sessions and began to read Bam's handwriting. She flipped to one page and froze when she saw a photo of her and Bam kissing. She couldn't believe he put that photo of them in the hot tub in his book. She then turned to another page to find a calender from September 1997. She softly smiled when she saw that Bam wrote he had fucked her, picked her up from school, and he even marked the day when he said he loved her. She closed the book and put it back in the box.

Michelle and Bam had been inseparable for four years, but things happened which tour them apart. She knew Bam still lived here and it scared her. What if she ran into him? Would old feelings come back to her? She decided to forget about Bam and go to sleep. Tomorrow she would finish up her room and go to The Note to apply for a well needed job.