This Is How You Remind Me

"Well Carmella, let's call it a day, okay? Your paint is probably barely dry," Adrienne decided.

"Are you sure?" I asked, knowing damn well that the paint would be dry in a good hour or so.

"Yeah, go have fun; explore the bay area," she smiled.

I made sure to thank her once more before I ran upstairs to go and change back into my clothes from earlier that day- my white Atreyu shirt and blue jeans.

Putting on make up as fast as possible, I managed to brush on mascara, draw on black eyeliner, and etch white eyeliner onto my top eyelids.

I ran downstairs to find everyone in the same place they were in when I left to head to my bedroom. "So, you're one hundred percent sure that you're okay with this?"

"Go before she changes her mind," Billie laughed. "Just be sure to be home at eleven, okay?"

"Alright, thanks," I smiled. I quickly shoved my feet into a pair of black and white striped flats and ran my ass out the door and over to Austin's, probably shutting the door a little too hard.

I hadn't taken notice of the several other cars in the driveway as I knocked on his door twice and waited for him to show up, but when the door opened, I saw a woman with light blond hair and gorgeous bright blue eyes.

"Hi, is Austin here?" I asked her with a smile.

"Yeah, he is. Come on in," she smiled.
After I stepped inside, she excused herself for a moment to go get Austin.

"Hey Carmella," he spoke as he walked up the stairs, the blonde not too far behind along with several others. "Ready to go?"

I nodded as I looked over his wardrobe: a green shirt, a pair of loose fitting jeans, and a black beanie. His feet were submerged in a pair of Docs.

I was shocked to see everyone walking outside along with us. I thought that it'd just be me and Austin, exploring the city. Or rather, him showing me the cool spots around the town.

"Hey, uh, Austin? I forgot, I have to go and unpack my stuff," I said, lying through my teeth. "Maybe we'll do this later, yeah?"

"Are you sure?" he asked, his arm slung around Blondie's shoulder. I nodded quickly, "Alright, well, uh, I’m pretty sure that Billie Joe and Adrienne have my number. Call when you want to chill or something."

"Alright, well, I'll talk to you later," I told him with a smile.

As I started walking away, back towards my home, I was trying to figure out an excuse as to why I was home so early. I hadn't even been gone for maybe five minutes.

I tried opening the door, and realized that I had forgotten my key that Adrienne had given me earlier. Sighing, I knocked on the door, not getting an answer. I knocked again, this time harder. I noticed the curtains beside the door swish to the side and I saw Joey's face in the window. He smiled as soon as he saw it was me and opened the door.

"Hi! Mom and Dad said you left…" Joey said as soon as I shut the door behind me.

"Yeah, I did. But I had to come home," I told him.
QUICK! Think up something!
"I'm not feeling too great. Do you know if you guys have any Advil, Tylenol, Ibuprofen or something?" I asked him, having no intention of taking anything. I had to keep up the act, though.

"Um, yeah, I think it's in the bathroom next to Mom and Dad's room," he told me, pulling a face.

"Thanks Joey," I told him, smiling. I ran upstairs to the second floor, heading down the hallway to bathroom with Joey following me, stopping in the living room to sit on the couch, watching TV. Walking into the bathroom, I noticed that it was fairly big, as well. The walls were decorated in a beige; definitely Adrienne's choice. I stood in there for a while, making it seem as if I was actually swallowing the pills and what not before I left.

Reaching the living room once more, I found Joey entranced with the TV, so I just let him know quickly, "I'll be upstairs if you need me."

"Alright, cool," he mumbled.

As I got halfway up the next flight of stairs, something hit me. "Hey Joey? Where's Jakob and Billie Joe and Adrienne?"

"Oh, um, Jake's in his room and Mom and Dad went out to get dinner. Mom said something about not wanting to cook tonight, so Dad said they were running to Taco Bell."

"Alright, well, if either of you need me, you know where to find me," I told him, then walking the rest of the way up the stairs.

Walking into the plainly decorated spare room, I sat on the bed, trying to think of something to do. I was about to call Lorraine, Beth, and Izzie, but I heard a door open and slam shut, and then someone yelled out, "BOYS! WE'RE BACK!"

Before I knew it, I heard two pairs of feet stomp through the house and go downstairs. Still not sure if I should go downstairs or not, I just stayed in the room, deciding on watching TV.

Moments later, I heard a knock on the door, "Carmella? Can I come in?"
Billie Joe.

"Yeah, come in," I spoke.

"Hey Kiddo. You're home early. What's up?" he asked, leaning against the doorframe.

"Oh, nothing, I just started getting a migraine and wanted to come home early so I wasn't bringing everyone down," I told him, feeling bad about already lying.

"Oh, I'm sorry," he told me, seemingly sincere. "Well, Addie and I just ran to Taco Bell for the boys, but we didn't think that you'd be home so early. We didn’t get you anything, but if you want, I can run back out…"

"Oh no!" I told him, not wanting to make him do extra work just to accommodate me. "It's fine. I'm not that hungry, anyway."

"You sure? Well, alright," apprehension filled his voice, "but if you do decide that you want something to eat, let me know. We can make you something here, or someone will run out to get you something. Do you wanna come downstairs? Or do you just want to stay up here and rest?"

"Um," I debated both things, not really sure which I wanted to do. "I'll come downstairs in a little bit," I told him, watching him nod and close the door behind him.

Turning the TV off and re-doing my ponytail, I headed downstairs, meeting up with everyone in the dining room on the main level.

"Hey Carmella," Adrienne smiled. "Glad to see you could join us. Do you want something to eat or drink?"

"Umm, would you mind if I went to go get some water?" I asked, still feeling out of place, considering it was only my second day in the house.

"I'll go get you some, you can sit down," Billie said, sliding out of his chair and making an awful screeching noise, everyone, including, Billie cringing at the sound

"So, you're not feeling too well, eh?" Adrienne asked. She looked at me as if she knew otherwise, but she wasn't saying anything. Thank. God.

"Yeah, I have a migraine," I told her, rubbing the left side of my head for extra effect.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Adrienne said, taking a bite out of her taco.

"Thanks," I said, clueless as to what else to say.
I repeated my thanks as Billie set a water bottle in front of me.

After dinner, we all sat at the table for a little while later, just talking. Joey and Jake were telling us about how they want to get a dog, and they'd take care of it, and feed it, and buy its shots and stuff. When their parents had entertained their idea for long enough, the boys started talking amongst themselves about the subject.
Billie was telling Adrienne about how he needed to head over to Mike's the next day to work out some new stuff.

And me? Well, I just sat there awkwardly, feeling then more than ever, an outsider.

After the awkwardness subsided, Billie took off for downstairs, Joey and Jakob ran up to the second floor, and Adrienne started taking the plates and what not off the table, bringing them into the kitchen. I wasn't sure what to do, so I left my water bottle in front of my chair and then grabbed the remaining plates to bring into the kitchen. I watched as Adrienne started to scrub the plates off and then loaded them into the dishwasher.

When her back was to me, I set down the pile that I had in my hands on the counter next to the sink, making a noise.

"OH MY GOD!" She screamed, placing her hand on her heart right after she saw me. "Jeez! You scared the shit outta me, Carmella!"

"I'm sorry," I said meekly. "I just thought that I'd help you. I didn't mean to scare you…"

"Oh, it's fine," she admitted, her hand still pressed against her chest. "I just…" she inhaled and exhaled, "wasn't expecting you. The help would be greatly appreciated, honestly."

"Yeah?" I asked her, happy that I could at least do something. "Well then, how about you do that, and I'll put them in the dishwasher?" I spoke, referring to the dishes she was working on.

"Sounds good to me," she said, handing me a plate. "So, why are you really home so early?"

"I told you, I had a really bad migraine earlier," I said, trying to not only convince her, but myself as well.

"That's really why?" she asked me, handing me a white plate to place in between the slots in the dishwasher.

"Yeah," it was starting to look like reinforcement was necessary. I wasn't sure if I had the wits to make some up…

"Alright, that's cool," Adrienne bought it apprehensively, if even that. "So, after this, do you wanna go up and chill? I'd love to learn a little more about you."

"Um," I wasn't sure how to answer her.

Did I want to? Or was I still feeling too awkward? They say sometimes it's best to dive right in, but sometimes people say that keeping to yourself is nice ,too.

Fortunately for me, I didn't have to answer her right at that moment since Billie Joe barged into the kitchen, "Hey girls! Um, I hate to do this, but can I steal you for a sec, Adrienne?"

She glanced at me before heading out, "I'm gonna go talk with him for a minute, you can just stop if you want."

"I'll keep going. You go talk," I spoke softly.

After a few minutes, Adrienne walked back in the kitchen, "So, it looks like it's just us tonight. Billie's heading out with Mike and Tre` and the boys are staying at their friends houses."

"Cool," I wasn't sure what else to say. I quickly dried the last plate and pulled the plug from the bottom of the sink, letting the lake drain from the basin.

"So, did you want to finish painting your room, then?" Adrienne asked, looking a little uncomfortable.

"Sure, if you want to," was my response.

"How about doing that tomorrow, instead," Adrienne spoke rhetorically. "Maybe we can start your bathroom then, too?"

"I was thinking…what if we keep the bathroom the way it is for a while? Save the bathroom idea for a different day? I'm getting used to the teal and white. It's actually really pretty."

"Sure, that sounds good to me," Adrienne replied. "I'm sure, if nothing else, the boys would love a newly painted bathroom or even one of their rooms to look how you were imagining it."

As soon as the last little drop of water had fallen into the abyss of the drain, I walked back into the dining room to grab my water bottle off of the table, taking a big swig of it.

Walking up the stairs to the third level, on my way to my room, I found Adrienne sitting in the chair nearest the window, a book in hand.

"What're you reading?" I wondered aloud, trying to make conversation.
Watching as she held the book up in the light, I read the title to myself. "Is it good?"

"Yeah, it is. Although, it's taken me forever to read it," she laughed. She took a quick glance at my water bottle, and then at her watch. "Hmm, it's only six o'clock. Do you want something better to drink than water? I say we should go somewhere."

Before that point, I had completely forgotten about the water bottle in my hands. I looked down at my water, then back up at her with a polite smile, "Sure, whatever you want."

"Alright, let's go. There are no guys here, let's just kind of go…have a girl's night out."