“But how? I’m grounded. Mom and Dad will never let me out.”
“Eh, don’t worry about them. I’ll sneak you out. It will be fine.”
“Really? You are the best big sister in the world,” Rachel said as she gave Sarah a huge hug.
“I’m leaving at 7:30pm, so be dressed and ready by then, K?”
“You bet! Love you, Sarah.”
Rachel skipped out of Sarah’s room and back into her room. The burning question of what to wear popped into her mind as she rummaged through her closet. She had so wished she’d bought that cute sparkle scarf and hat from the Gap.
As she looked through her closet she came across a magenta pink satin Betsy Johnson dress that she’d picked up at the Salvation Army in Pennsylvania with Dana. It was unlike her to have designer clothes, but she’d bought this dress used, and it had a big stain on the sleeve. It only cost $7, and she’d bought it to wear for Halloween one year and couldn’t part with it afterwards. It had been hanging lifeless in her closet for the past three years, but it brought back fun memories for her, so she vowed never to throw it out.
Seeing her pink dress made her miss her friends back at her old school. She hadn’t spoken to them much in the past week, but knew they were still friends. Rachel prided herself on having the types of best friends that even if they didn’t speak to each other every day, or hang out all the time, they were still very close— and when they did hang out; it was as if no time had passed.
A buzzing noise coming from inside her jacket pocket interrupted Rachel’s nostalgic thoughts. She fumbled around until she found her phone. She looked down at the screen and saw Emily’s number pop up.
“Hey, Em! What’s up?”
“Just wanted to see if you were coming tonight?”
“Oh yeah, I am coming!”
“We will pick you up at 7, ok?”
“Well, actually, I’m going to catch a ride with my sister ‘cause she’s going to help me sneak out. It will be easier that way.”
“Look at you, sneaking out all the time!” Emily said laughing.
“I know, it’s terrible! I feel bad, but I didn’t do anything to deserve this punishment though.”
“Yeah, totally.”
“So, then, I’ll meet you there. I’ll text you when we pull in.”
“Fab! Can’t wait. Should be a fun night.”
“Oh and by the way, Evan is bringing the vodka, should I put in an order for you?”
Rachel stopped, and silence filled the line. She didn’t like the taste of alcohol and didn’t want to sneak out of the house, and drink. Things were going too far, she thought to herself. She really didn’t like that her new friends drank all the time, but she figured that’s just what kids did in Westchester.
“Rachel?” Emily asked. “Are you there?”
“Oh, sorry! I’m here.” Rachel said, realizing she’d gotten lost in her thoughts.
“So? Whaddaya say?” Emily asked again.
“I’m gonna pass, Em. Not feeling so hot.”
“Ok, if you change your mind, text me.”
“See ya later!”
As they hung up the phone, Rachel continued her search for the perfect outfit for her night out at the movies. As she pushed the hangers across the bar in her closet one by one, she took a mental inventory of all the clothes she had. She didn’t realize how many she’d accumulated over the years. Many of her clothes, she realized, probably didn’t fit her anymore. She remembered wearing many of them in middle school.
Then, she spotted it: her most favorite Urban Outfitters, black Sparkle and Fade boyfriend blazer with her old beat up Gap corduroys. Now, all she needed was a cute tee to wear under the blazer. She opened up her drawer and pulled out her MTV worn in t-shirt that she’d bought on eBay.
Now that her outfit was complete, all she had to do was execute the plan she’d come up with to get out of the house. She walked downstairs and saw both of her parents in the kitchen preparing dinner. She could tell they were still very angry with her by the way they looked at her. “Rachel, what are you doing down here?” her dad asked.
“Oh, just wanted to see if you needed any help.”
“We’re fine,” her mom answered. “Only five more minutes until dinner.”
“Ok, I’ll come back then.”
“Actually, could you set the table for us,” her mom asked.
“Yes, absolutely,” Rachel answered.
“You’re in a good mood today, Rachel,” her dad said as he looked at her with questioning eyes.
“Eh, no different than usual, and actually I’m not feeling so well tonight.”
Rachel set the table and then purposely started to cough loudly so her parents would hear.
“Are you coming down with something, Darling?” her mom asked.
“I don’t know, I’m really not feeling well.”
“You look pale,” her mom said as she came over to put her hand on her forehead.
“You feel OK, but you don’t look so good.”
Rachel coughed and let out a wine, “If you don’t mind, I think I will take my dinner up to my room and go right to bed. I could use a good night sleep.”
“That’s a great idea, Honey,” said her mom. “Please bring your plate down in the morning.”
“I will Ma,” Rachel said as she began to fill a plate full of chicken and rice.
“Thanks for dinner, Dad. It looks yummy,” Rachel said as she carried it out of the kitchen.
“Feel better darling and get some rest.”
As Rachel walked upstairs, she could hear her parents’ whispers coming from the kitchen. She couldn’t make out what they were saying, but she heard the words “too harsh,” come from her mom’s mouth. She wondered if they were discussing her punishment.
Either way, she was ecstatic that she was going to the movies tonight with her friends. She felt numb to the feeling of remorse and guilt, as it related to lying to her parents. She did feel bad, but felt that she was being treated unfairly in this situation and thus didn’t deserve the punishment handed to her. If she’d done something wrong to deserve the punishment, she would follow through with it, but since she was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, she didn’t feel that she deserved this.
As she got to her bedroom, she saw her sister’s door open. She waited for her to exit and then gave her a thumbs up signal.