Dressed up in Faded Costumes

5 more days before Prom night. Weekend.
While everything was looking up for me, mom hid a secret she never should’ve. I never would’ve even found out if I didn’t sneak into her room to get a coat she borrowed from me. Scattered all over her bed was a pile of bills and debts.
I picked up some of the paper and saw that some of them we owed up to 3,000 dollars. I heard my mom walking up the stairs so I ran into my room dropping them back on her bed, and never taking the coat in the first place. I sat on my bed grabbing a pillow and started hugging it. My eyes started to tear up as I thought about the hardships mom was going through, probably the time when I was just hanging out. It left me thinking of what I could do to help.
After a few minutes of thinking, my phone rang. Maria was calling.
“Hey,”
“Hey, Michelle. When are you gonna shop for your dress?” she said.
“Oh, I don’t know yet. I’m kind of in the middle of something,”
“What’s the matter?”
I told her a lie. I told her I was just sick and not really feeling well. I hung up the phone and stayed on my bed. I didn’t leave the house that day. I stayed in my room except for lunch and dinner, when I had to go downstairs. I was really affected about it.
That Saturday night, Liam called me and asked me how I was doing because as he knew, I was sick.
“How are you?”
“I’m… doing better, thanks,” I told him.
“That’s good, I’m glad you are.”
I smiled at his care but stayed worried about everything. I was quiet and I didn’t know what else to say.
“Hey,” he said. “We’ve been together for a while now, right?”
“Yeah,” I responded.
“So I know it when you’re going through something.”
“It’s nothing,” I lied.
“I’m not falling for it.”
“I told you, it’s nothing.”
“I like you even more than you think actually; I don’t like hearing your voice like you’re about to cry,” he confessed. “You can tell me anything.”
“I don’t know what I can do,” I told him as I started to cry. “We’re drowning in debts. We’re not rich; we’re not even close to it. I don’t know how to help her. Mom never told me just how much it cost to even move here.
“I feel guilty of putting her through things like this. It seems I asked for things more than we can take.”
“I want you to relax and breathe,” he said. “Stop crying.”
“I feel so guilty.”
“It’s not your fault. Shit happens; problems, troubles and bad luck. They happen. We’ll get through this.”
When we were already quiet, and neither of us was talking, I heard somebody knock on my door. I partly hid under my blanket but kept crying and faced away from the door. Somebody entered my room and sat on my bed.
“You need a shoulder?” Liam said, smiling weakly.
I turned my head and immediately sat up and hugged him tightly and cried even more.
“Shh, love,” he said as he cradled me.

He stayed there by me as I poured out everything I was upset about in life like a little drama queen. It was probably the first time I ever had a real boyfriend who cared and the first time I ever let anyone see me crying like that.
I was as vulnerable as a fragile little twig. I never let anyone see how weak I was. I always put on that brave mask for everyone, not thinking that it hurt me even more.
“I like it that I can read you now,” he said.
“What do you mean?”
“It’s nice knowing you,” he said.
I looked at him and he looked at me. It felt so comforting to have him around and I loved that certain feeling that I had a wall behind me to catch me whenever I broke down.
“I’ll pay for everything for prom; your dress, shoes, whatever you need.”
“Where are you gonna get that kind of money? Besides, I wouldn’t let you.”
“I want to do this for you, and help you with at least one worry you’re facing right now.”
“But,”
“No buts. I’m gonna pay for it, and you don’t have to worry about anything.”
I didn’t know what time he went home, because he left when I was already sleeping. I fell asleep while my head was on his chest, and we were both lying down on my bed and we just talked about stuff that made me laugh instead of cry.
The next morning when I woke up I saw a note on my bed.
“Do me a favor and SMILE today. –Liam”
I got out of bed with an awkwardly happy mood and walked downstairs to check if the rest were already awake. I walked into an empty downstairs. Nobody was there. I walked back upstairs and mom wasn’t there, and neither was Uncle Richard. Lea? Also gone.
I went back downstairs and searched for a note from them. I scurried back and forth until I found one beside the telephone; the writing barely legible.
“Went to hospital to take Lea. –Mom”
I ran upstairs and took my phone. My mom was on speed dial and I called her immediately.
“What happened to Lea?” I asked while finding some clothes in my closet so I could change and go to the hospital.
“Richard accidentally bumped her and she fell down the stairs.”
“I’ll be right there,” I said starting to become mad.
My eyes brimmed with tears and worry for both Lea and Mom. My happy mood ended.
I called Liam and asked if he could give me a ride. When we reached the hospital, I immediately asked which room my sister was in. I walked fast and when I saw my Uncle Richard outside the hospital room, I charged at him with fury.
“Who do you think you are, busting into our house and getting yourself drunk everyday with my mom’s money? Using our house as a freakin’ hotel.” I said. “Now you do this to Lea?”
I could smell the alcohol in the air as he breathed out.
“Hey, hey,” Liam held my arm as he restrained me from getting close to my uncle.
“Don’t even bother calling me your niece anymore,” I told my uncle before I walked in the room. Liam stayed outside.
I saw Lea on the bed sleeping with a cast on her ankle and a bruise on her right cheek.
“How is she?” I asked my mom.
“She has a concussion, a broken ankle and a few bruises.”
A tear trailed down my cheek and I wiped it off quickly; again not showing the vulnerability in me. I looked at my sister as she laid there helpless of what happened. I felt so bad that this had to happen to her; all because of a drunk’s accident.
“What did the doctor say?”
“She needs to be confined for a day or two more to check how she heals, and if there’s more they haven’t seen yet.”
My mom tried to remain calm as she probably thought about Lea’s safety and how she was going to pay for everything. This was LA. Everything was costly and a little overpriced. I looked at my mom standing roughly two feet away from me, and I noticed her start to cry. I walked over and hugged her.
“She’ll be fine,” I told my mom.
“I know she will be.”
After minutes of just staring at Lea while sitting down on the chair beside the bed, Uncle Richard entered the room.
I didn’t say anything; instead, I walked out of the room and went to Liam who was sitting on the bench outside. I sat beside him and laid my head on his shoulder. I cried again. He wiped the tears off my face and placed his hands on my cheeks. He kissed my forehead and told me everything will be okay.
Liam was kind enough to wait until noon even if I told him that it wasn’t necessary. He drove me home for me to get lunch I didn’t have to pay for and for me to just stop and take a breath. I was in my kitchen standing up and leaning against the countertop with my arms crossed. Liam stared at me while he sat on the stool beside the island.
“Things can’t get worse,” I mumbled to myself.
I spoke to soon. That was probably the worst weekend ever.
The house phone rang and I ran over to answer it.
“Hello?”
“Good morning, I’m looking for Chris’ mom. Is she there?” a guy said.
“I’m sorry she isn’t here, she’s at the hospital with our sister. Is there a problem with my brother?”
“I’m Sam. You see, Chris is my roommate in UCLA; we’re good friends. He’s in the hospital right now, and even though he didn’t want me to call you guys, I did.”
“What happened?” I panicked.
“It’s really nothing that serious. But it was fucking stupid what all the fuss was about. His shirt got caught on a taxi door when his girlfriend caused a scene out of nothing,” he said. “He got dragged a few meters along the pavement.”
“Do you know the whole story? Can you please tell me?”
“I’m really not at liberty to say anything but if you don’t say anything to Chris, which I’m sure you won’t, then okay.
“He and his girlfriend had a fight when she refused to be told what and what not to do. She caused a scene and slapped your brother. And then when she got on a taxi and made him pay for it, your brother being the gentleman that he is even closes the door for her and his shirt got caught.”
“Well, didn’t Janine notice that he was getting dragged?” I asked angrily.
“That’s the thing, she did. And she didn’t let the driver know until he noticed himself. We’ve told him so many times to break up with her. He won’t listen.”
“Well, is he okay?” I kept my voice calm but it was already cracking, and my tears went off again.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Liam looked at me worried and confused.
“He’s fine,” he said. “Just flesh wounds.”
“Thank you for calling,” I told him still crying.
“No problem,” he said. “I’ll be sure to try to knock some sense into your brother.”
I hung up the phone and I placed it onto the coffee table, and I slowly fell onto my knees and covered my face with my hands and cried even more.
Liam went to my aid and hugged me like he did last night.
“Shh… it’s gonna be okay.” he calmed me down.
“What’s next, huh? I said. “I can’t take it anymore.”
I shook my head in disregard and practically gave up.
“You want to hear a story?” Liam told me.
“What story? *sniffs*” I asked.
“Well, it’s a story about this girl I know…”
And he narrated a story about me; that I was a girl with many problems with oversized dreams. It left me asking more questions about me as usual where in turn I almost forgot I even had puffy eyes.
I was thankful I had Liam when I had no one else. I used to think I didn’t deserve him…
We stayed there on the exact same spot where I fell.
“I know you’re hungry,” he said. “Want me to get you something?”
“Do you know where the food is?” I asked smiling feebly.
“I’ll search around.”
He stood up and extended a hand to help me up. We both walked to the kitchen and tried to find some food for the both of us. We ended up eating PB and J sandwiches.
While we were eating, I couldn’t seem to get certain thoughts off my head. And all the while I thought Liam would give up on me, he just didn’t. It made me a little more optimistic that if he’s still here, then maybe things look up.