Small Problem -3- School Daze by Melanie Brown

Small Problem

Part 3

“Oh. There you are.” Charlotte said from the doorway. I have a really tough time referring to my former wife as ‘mom.’ It grates on me.

I was at my computer in the room we had originally set up as my home office. It’s going to turn into my new bedroom. We could probably put twin beds in Cathy’s room, but she doesn’t want to share a room with a “freak.”

I turned around from my computer to look at Charlotte standing in the doorway. She said, “We need to talk.” She stepped into the room and sat down on an extra chair.

I frowned at her. “Talk about what? I mean, I think that ship has already sailed, ‘Mom.’ I emphasized the word mom to show my annoyance.

“What would you have had me do?” asked Charlotte. “Your former employer was planning on handing you over to Child Protective Services. God knows where you would have wound up.

I had to divorce you. I couldn’t stay married to a child. Because of all the airtight non-disclosure agreements all of us have had to sign, I couldn’t just say, ‘hubby had an accident at work, and this is how he looks now.’ For one, no one would buy it. And since you’re now a child, I have to register you Monday for high school along with Cathy or face the CPS myself.”

Scowling, I growled, “It’s bad enough that I’m now your daughter, but going back to school too? You realize how many degrees I have? I need to spend my time trying to see if this condition can be reversed!”

Looking sad, Charlotte said, “The engineers at your old job have already stated there’s no way to reverse your condition. And you no longer have access to those computers at work anyway. And you don’t have those degrees anymore. That legal team has declared that you died in an industrial accident, and there wasn’t enough of you left to bury in a matchbox. Services will be next Sunday. Remember? Stanley Moore is no more.”

I nodded. “Yeah, it’s all kabuki theater. I still don’t think I should be in high school, for crissakes.”

Charlotte chuckled. “That’s another thing you can thank me for. The company doctors couldn’t determine exactly what your new age should be. Some thought it should be twelve or thirteen. I insisted your age be fourteen. Otherwise, you’d be on your way to middle school. Even though you won’t be in the same grade, I wanted you and Cathy to at least be in the same school.”

“I don’t think I could have handled going through middle school again. Once was bad enough.” I shivered at the thought.

Charlotte said, “With you and Cathy at the same school, she’ll be able to help you navigate. It’s been a long time since you’ve been a teen and certainly never as a girl.”

I shook my head. “She hates me, remember? I’m a freak.”

Charlotte started to stand up. “I just wanted for you to understand that I adopted you out of love and a desire to keep the family together. And please start calling me ‘mom’ so we can cut down on confusion. And, with the money I’m getting from the company, we’ll turn this office into a bedroom fairly quickly. You should probably change into your nightgown soon. It’s almost time for bed.”

I laughed humorlessly. “A bedtime? Seriously? I haven’t had a bedtime since… since…”

Charlotte laughed. “Exactly. Oh, and just like Cathy, you now have a curfew. I’ll be back later to tuck you in. And stop touching your ears. You’ll get them infected.” Grinning slightly, she exited the room.

A few minutes later, I heard a whisper from the door, “Is she gone?”

“You mean Mom?” I asked as I turned to face the source of the whisper.

Cathy entered the room. “Who else, silly.” Waving with her hand, she said, “Let’s go to my room real quick.” She disappeared from the doorway. I got up and followed her to her bedroom.

She jumped up on her bed and sat. As she sat down, she patted the covers. “Come on, get up here.” I climbed up on the bed. “First, let me apologize for calling you a freak,” said Cathy sincerely. “But you have to admit. Seeing your dad as a girl younger than you is a bit freaky.”

I smiled wryly. “I can understand that.”

I could tell she was up to something by the way she was grinning. “Mom said you and me need to bond. So I thought of this!” She held out a bottle of red nail polish. “Let’s do each other’s toes!”

I moved back a little bit. “Seriously?”

Her eyes bright, Cathy said, “Sure! It’ll be fun. And we can chat about everything while we’re doing it. Just don’t get any on the bedspread. Trust me on that.”

I was already barefoot, so I just rotated around so she could get at my feet. As excited as she was, I didn’t want to say no. Especially if we’re going to bond. She giggled as she started brushing the polish on. “I never thought I’d be painting Daddy’s toes!”

Looking over at her, I said, “You don’t remember doing that when you were four?”

Laughing, she said, “Oh yeah! I forgot! Well, I can’t call you daddy now. But you know what?”

“Chicken butt?”

Giggling, Cathy said, “Nooooo! Now that we’re sisters, we can tell each other secrets. And you can’t tell Mom!”

Smirking at her, I said, “As long as you’re not plotting an assassination, my lips are sealed.”

Cathy stopped painting my toes and stared seriously at me. “I’ve decided I love having a sister.”

*  *  *

“Hey, sleepyhead,” called Charlotte as she stood at the end of my cot. Dammit. I need to remember to refer to her as Mom. Even in my thoughts.

I looked up, bleary-eyed from my pillow. I mumbled, “I’m calling in sick today.”

Mom laughed. “That doesn’t work anymore if it ever did. I need you to get up, honey. You need to take a bath. I think Cathy has some plans for you today after we get you registered for school.”

I sat up, pulling my covers back. I swung my feet over the edge of the cot and yawned. My nightgown had gathered itself up around my neck. I need something else to sleep in, or someone needs to show me how to wear a gown in bed.

As soon as my feet hit the floor, Mom chuckled and said, “Oh, look who has pretty feet. I guess Cathy nabbed you last night.”

I nodded. “I’m not likely to do this on my own. Not yet, anyway. And what are her plans for me? Not sure if I could handle any more shopping today.”

Mom straightened out my nightgown. “Well, we do need to do more shopping. But first, the shower. Remember, wash your hair first, then use conditioner. Don’t wash out the conditioner until after you wash your body. Then rinse out the conditioner. “We need to get you to a salon before school starts.”

I frowned. “I don’t want to go to school.”

Mom played with my hair a moment. “Hey, I’m only taking today off from work. So you’ll need to be in school. School will be fun. You’ll get to make friends. Meet boys.”

I shook my head. “Nuh unh. No way on the boys.”

Mom chuckled. “We’ll see how long that lasts.  Now go shower. Scoot! You can use the master bathroom. Towels are where they’ve always been.”

I groaned and trudged off to the restroom to get into the shower. As I waited for the water to get hot, I stared at myself in the mirror. I leaned in towards the mirror. I shook my head. “That’s you, bucko,” I said to myself. I poked my breast with a finger, and in a low voice I said, “Bewbs!” I shook my head. I thought that when they’re yours, they’re a lot less fascinating. Still fun to play with, though.

I stepped into the shower, closed my eyes and just enjoyed the luxury of the warm water cascading down my body. I moaned with pleasure. The shower felt wonderful. After a couple of minutes, I remembered Mom’s instructions on hair washing.

When I got out of the shower, Mom showed me how to wrap my hair up in a towel. She brought me some clothes to my makeshift bedroom.

“Remember to wear a pad. I left the package out on your cot,” Mom said.

I picked up the package and asked, “What do I need these for?” I’m not stupid. I know what pads are for; I just didn’t know why I needed them.

Mom said, “The doc said your period could start at any time. You don’t want to ruin your brand-new clothes, do you? If you’d prefer, we could just go ahead and start you on tampons.”

“Tampons?” I whined. “Are you serious?”

Mom shook her head and chuckled. “Welcome to the club.”

*  *  *

I found Cathy sitting at the kitchen counter, spooning some oatmeal into her mouth. Half joking, I asked, “What? No pancakes?”

Pouring herself a cup of coffee, Mom said, “You can have pancakes if you make them yourself.”

I said, “I was just kidding. I’ll make some toast.”

Cathy looked over at me. “You look nice, Amanda. Oh hey. Would you like to go see that new Tommy Kincaid movie? What’s it called?  Oh. Pardon my C-4. It’s supposed to be really good.”

I shrugged. “I guess. Maybe. Mom will have to give me some money.”

Taking another bite of her oatmeal, Cathy said, “Actually, she doesn’t. My bestie, Marcia, invited some of her friends to see a movie for her birthday today. It’s at the Cineplex. Mom already said it’s okay.”

I looked seriously at Cathy. “Will your friend mind paying for another person?”

Cathy just grinned. “She’ll just have to deal. So. You wanna go?”

I shrugged. “I guess so. Is Mom driving us up there?” My toast popped.

Cathy tilted her bowl and let what was left of her oatmeal slide into her mouth. Grinning at me, she said, “No. My boyfriend is.”

I squinted at Cathy and asked, “Your boyfriend? What’s his name?”

Cathy giggled. “You remember Jonathan?”

I frowned. “You mean that boy I never liked?”

Grinning, Cathy said, “That’s the one!”

I frowned at Mom. “Char… Mom. Are you cool with that?”

Mom shrugged. “He seems like a nice boy to me.”

“But… but… he’s like sixteen!”

Cathy shrugged. “It’s okay da… Amanda. He got held back one year, so we’re now in the same grade.”

I frowned. “Oh. That makes it all okay.”

Mom started reading something on her device. “Well, finish eating, you two and go brush your teeth. Both of you need to register for school.”

I frowned as I smoothed some peanut butter on my toast.

*  *  *

As we got out of the car, Mom looked around at the sky. “What a beautiful day. Being tethered to your job all day, Amanda, you managed to miss most of the days like this.”

I shook my head. “And the cycle begins again.”

Along with us, there were probably two dozen groups walking across the parking lot toward the rear of the cafeteria. All the registration activities were being held in the cafeteria. We’d walk from station to station getting information packets, having our ID pictures taken and getting information about extracurricular activities etc.

At one table, we ran into the girl’s coach. She grinned at Cathy. “Welcome back, Cathy! I was happy to see you signed up for cheerleading again. Don’t forget tryouts are Thursday.”

Smiling wide, Cathy exclaimed, “Oh, I won’t forget coach. In fact, I’ll be bringing someone new with me.”

The coach said, “Oh, that’s great. It’s good to see new faces on the squad. Do you know if she’s here today?”

Cathy pointed at me. “She’s right here, coach. This is Amanda. My new sister.”

I rolled my eyes at Cathy.

Looking confused, the coach said, “Pleasure to meet you, Amanda.” She turned to Cathy and asked, “New sister?”

Before Cathy could respond, using the cover story my company’s legal team developed, I said, “I’m actually her cousin.” I suddenly looked sad. “I lost my parents and everything I own to a fire. Cathy’s mom was nice enough to adopt me and brought me into her home.”

Looking uncomfortable, the coach said, “Oh. I’m very sorry to hear that. I’m sure things are going to work out for you. So, are you interested in cheerleading?”

Cathy interrupted. “Of course she is! I’ll make sure she arrives at the tryouts.”

The coach smiled. “Well then, we look forward to seeing you both at the tryouts.” She then turned her attention to another girl.

Cathy got an excited look on her face as she ran to another girl, leaving Mom and I behind. “Marcia!” she shouted. “Happy birthday!”

Marcia, surprised along with her mother, exclaimed, “Cat! You better be coming to my party this afternoon!” Marcia noticed me and did a double-take. She pointed at me. “What? Who?”

Cathy laughed. “I’d like you to meet my new sister, Amanda.”

Looking really confused, Marcia said, “She looks just like you! How is that possible?”

I said, “I’m actually her cousin, but her mother adopted me.” I really don’t like having to lie, but nobody would accept the truth.

Marcia asked, “Are you coming to the party this afternoon?” I nodded. “Cool! Hey, I gotta run. See you then.”

Mom said, “I think we’ve done everything we need to do. Let’s head home.”

A group of boys around one end of a table that had sports displays were making a lot of noise. One of the boys pointed at us and exclaimed, “Holy crap! They’re two of them!” Moments later, we were surrounded by five or six boys, who I had to assume were all football players. It was embarrassing having all these boys looking at us.

One of the boys looked at Cathy and asked, “Hey, Cat! Who’s this chick? She looks almost just like you!”

Another boy laughed. “Yeah, but prettier.”

Cathy laughed. “Guys, this is my new sister. I’d explain, but we have to go.”

One of the boys said, “I call bullshit on her being your sister.”

Cathy giggled. “Well, it’s true. See y’all later.” To me, she said, “Let’s go.” She turned and started running to catch up with Mom. I ran after her.

After we’d caught up with Mom, Cathy gave me a sly look. “Looks like you’ve got the attention of the football team.”

I frowned. “One more item to check off the bucket list.” Cathy laughed.

*  *  *

Watching Cathy pace the floor was making me dizzy. “What’s keeping him? Jonathan should have been here by now.”

I shook my head. “Relax already. It’s not even two o’clock yet.”

Cathy sat on the couch next to me and looked at me. “How’s my make-up?”

I chuckled. “It’s perfect. Just like it was thirty seconds ago. Relax before you become a nervous wreck.”

“Why aren’t you wearing make-up?” asked Cathy. “Mom said it was okay. I started wearing make-up when I was thirteen.”

I shrugged. “Because I don’t want to? Just seems like extra trouble to me.”

Cathy shook her head at me. “I keep forgetting you’re new to all this. You’re not a dad anymore. You need to stop thinking like one.”

I was so tempted to say, “Oh, you mean not liking that hoodlum, street-racing piece of crap you have for a boyfriend? That kind of dad thinking?” But I held my tongue. At least now I can monitor her more closely.

The doorbell rang, and Cathy jumped to her feet. “He’s here!” She rushed to the door, but before opening it, she shook out her hair and smoothed her skirt. She took a deep breath and then put on a smile. She opened the door.

“I have a package for Charlotte Moore? Can you sign this?” I’ve never seen anyone deflate so fast. Frowning, she signed the device being held by the deliveryman, who said, “Thank you.” He left the box on the porch and walked away.

Cathy looked over at me and scowled. “Can you believe this?” She knelt to pick up the package and brought it in after closing the door. She set it on the dining room table and shouted, “Mom! You got a package!”

Shaking her head, she sat next to me. “Where the hell is Jonathan?”

Mom called from her bedroom, “Can you bring the package to me, please?”

“Sure Mom.” Cathy picked up the box. It seemed a bit heavy. She carried it off to Mom’s room.

As soon as she left the room, there was a knock at the door. I looked around to see if anyone else heard the knock. I sighed and got up.

Opening the door revealed a grinning Jonathan. He said, “Hey babe!” He quickly pulled me to him and gave me a deep kiss. Holy shit! I just got kissed by a boy! It left me dazed for a moment.

“Jonathan! What the hell?” screeched Cathy from behind me. I just stood there with a goofy expression.

Looking confused, Jonathan stepped back from me. He looked from me to Cathy behind me. “What the hell is going on? Cat?” He pointed at me. “Who are you?”

Cathy stepped past me and angrily demanded, “Why are you kissing my sister!!”

Still looking confused, Jonathan said, “Sister? You don’t have a sister!”

Cathy chuckled. “Oh, that’s right. You don’t know yet. You’ve already met my sister. Her name is Amanda.” She gave my shoulder a rather lackluster punch. “Stop kissing my boyfriend!”

I shrugged. “I’m a victim of circumstances!” With a wry grin, I said, “You must be Jonathan. It’s a… a pleasure to meet you.” Why did I enjoy that?

Grinning broadly, he said, “Jonathan Goodall, at your service!” I giggled.

Cathy said, “I think we need to head out for the Cineplex.” Pointing at me, she exclaimed, “You ride in the backseat!”

“Where are we going again?” Jonathan winked at me.

Cathy noticed the wink. She punched his shoulder and said, “Marcia’s birthday party, you goof!”

Jonathan put his arm around Cathy’s waist as we all started walking to his fire-engine red Dodge Challenger Hellcat. No wonder I hated this kid. “Are you going to explain how you suddenly have a sister?”

Cathy waited for Jonathan to unlock the passenger door. She said, “I’ll explain at the theater. That way, I only have to say it once.”

*  *  *

There was a crowd standing around a table with two boxes of pizza on it in the Cineplex. Cathy pointed, “There’s Marcia!” Where she pointed were five boys who I guessed were all football players and seven girls who I was sure were all cheerleaders.

Marcia came running up and almost hugged me, but hugged Cathy at the last moment. “Girl! I was beginning to wonder if you were going to show up!”

Cathy laughed, “Of course, I was going to show up!”

Marcia looked over at me and asked, “Is this really your sister?”

Cathy nodded. “Yep.”

Marcia touched my arm. “Well, come on. Let’s introduce her to all the cool kids.”

Cathy looked around. “Oh? Where are they?”

Marcia shook her head. “I can unfriend you, you know.”

As we approached the table with the pizzas on it, all five boys stared intently at me. I was amazed at just how uncomfortable it was. I felt bad that, at one time, I participated in staring as well.

Marcia almost shouted as she said, “Hey, everyone! I want to introduce you guys to the new member of our group. Guys, meet Amanda. Cathy’s new sister.” Then pointing, she told me the names of each boy and girl. The girls all came up and hugged me. The boys just grinned and stared.

One of the boys, who should run for class president, asked Cathy, “How can you have a new sister that’s the same age as you?”

Cathy laughed. “She’s a year younger than me! My Mom adopted her.” We then recited the cover story on how I got adopted.

This was really crazy. By the time Marcia’s mother came around with everybody’s tickets, I was surrounded by six burly young men, including Cathy’s boyfriend. They were all talking and joking with me. One boy in particular wouldn’t meet my eyes when I looked over at him. If I remember, his name is Chad. Shaggy, sandy blond hair, piercing blue eyes, great physique and why the hell is repeating this description getting me all hot and bothered?

Anyway, having the attention of six young men was insane.

Chad was standing several feet from me. He looked like he was going to say something when one of the girls pushed through the line of boys and said, “Chad! Sit with me, please! Please, please, please.”

He looked away from me and said, “Well, okay, Becky. Let’s go.”

I sat next to Marcia’s mother. And that was fine. The movie was absolutely hilarious and quite exciting. Funny how I never realized just how cute Tommy Kincaid was. He has a lot of great one-liners too. One joke that was a bit rude was where near the end of the movie, they blew up a movie theater showing a Nathan Adams movie.

As we all walked out of the theater, everyone seemed to be in a good mood, joking and talking. Jonathan had his arms around both Cathy’s and my shoulders. Cathy had invited me to come to dinner with her and Jonathan as long as I kept my lips to myself. I felt something shoved into my hand, but when I looked around, I didn’t see anyone near us.

I stopped walking, which of course, caused Cathy and Jonathan to stop as well. I looked at what had been shoved into my hand, and my blood went cold.

Cathy asked, “Girl, what’s wrong?” It was a movie ticket but had writing on it. I handed it to Cathy. She immediately burst into giggles. With a wide grin, she said, “This is great!”

On the paper was printed, “CHAD” along with a phone number.

End of Part 3