Sanctity (21 page)

“I hope so, I really do.  I’ll make an
effort anyway.”

“Well, even if things don’t go well with
Jake you are going to look amazing in that dress.  I bet every
guy in the school will be noticing you and not their dates.”

“Let’s hope not, I’m inviting enough trouble
as it is.”

We walked for about 20 minutes in one
direction and then made our turn to head back.  It was very
nice out so we took our time and walked at an easy pace.  We
talked about school; neither of us could believe that there were
only a handful of weeks left before the end of the year. 
Summer would be there before we knew it and we talked about our
plans for the long break we would have before we started our senior
year.

Margaret had mentioned the possibility of
getting a beach house for a week or two, if she could find one that
would allow us to bring Kaley.  I couldn’t bear the idea of
putting her in a kennel, especially since she was so big.  I
was certain that a dog her size would find absolutely no comfort in
any place that would be willing to board her. 

“Do you think you’d like to come with us if
we do go?”

“Do you think Margaret would mind?”

“Nah, I’m sure she’d love to have you join
us.  Nothing is definite yet, she is looking for a place that
will let us bring Kaley.”

“It will have to be
a 
big
 beach house then!”  Danielle emphasized big and
gave Kaley a hearty pat on the back. 

Dinner was ready by the time we got
in.  Margaret, Danielle and I all sat around the kitchen table
and enjoyed the homemade chicken tenders Margaret had made for
us. 

“Mmm, so good Mrs. Donovan.  You’ll
have to give me the recipe so I can have my mom make them
sometime. 

“Of course.  They are very simple,
really,” and Margaret went into a brief discussion of how they were
prepared. 

Dani was not interested in cooking
whatsoever.  Thankfully, she was too thoughtful to give any
indication of this and even managed to ask a few relevant questions
to keep the conversation going. 

“You know,” I paused, “I’ve been thinking,
now that we are on the topic of food.  I’m starting to feel
like I might rather go to culinary school than college.”

“Wow, really?”  Danielle could not
fathom why anyone would want to do such a thing.

Margaret’s response was a little
different.  “I think that’s an excellent idea,” she said.

I was actually taken aback and surprised
that she would support it.  “You do?”  I asked.

“Well, it’s something that you enjoy doing
and some chefs go on to have really great careers.  I think
you would do really well and find plenty of opportunities if you
went through with it.”

I was ecstatic.  It had been on my mind
almost all school year.  The councilors were always
questioning us about our post-high school plans.  I never
really offered a clear intention and I had considered a few other
things but cooking was what I always came back to.  When I
thought about telling anyone though, it seemed foolish.  I was
sure all my friends were rattling off the typical doctor, lawyer or
other high profile career when they were questioned about life
after graduation, so chef seemed like an unworthy occupation.

We talked a little more about my goals and
then turned the conversation to Danielle and her plans for the
future. 

“Well, I’ll definitely go to college but
other than that, I am at a loss.”

“What do you like to do Danielle?” 
Margaret asked.

Dani rattled off a few things, none of which
had a career ring to them. 

Margaret took a different approach, “OK, so
what subjects do you excel in?” 

“I wouldn’t exactly say I excel at
anything,” Danielle laughed.

We bantered back and forth offering
suggestions for Danielle’s future.  Some of them were pretty
funny, like professional bull rider; some had merit like
meteorologist and some were just off the charts like
astrophysicist. 

“Well, it’s too bad you don’t like cooking,
it’s going to be a shame when you two break-up.”

“I know.  Can you imagine a life
without us joined at the hip?”

“No, I cannot,” Margaret said and turned to
me, “it’s getting late, Lily, let’s clean up so we can get Dani
home."

“You can’t be
serious?!”   I could not keep the anger from my
voice.  It was Friday, the night before our Spring Formal and
I was looking at Danielle, Charlie and Zach each in turn.  We
had all gone out for a bite to eat; a treat from Dani to wish me a
belated 
Happy
Birthday
.  Little did I know that
there was more than one motive.  My friends wanted to get me
somewhere public so I wouldn’t explode at any one of them had they
approached me privately.  “So Jake and Brooke just got back
together today and he is dumping me as his date.  Then add
insult to injury and you tell me he expects to take her in our
limo?”

“He said his mom helped pay,” Charlie put
in.

“Oh, Charlie, there is no way to justify
this.  It’s, it’s,” I was fighting to find the right word,
“it’s heinous!!”

“I’m sorry,” Danielle was trying to sound
reassuring, “I can just imagine what you are feeling but it’s
the Spring Formal, we’ll still have a great time.  I’m sure
there will plenty of others going stag and you’ll have your pick of
the litter.”

“Pick of the litter, huh?  From a
litter of leftovers who couldn’t otherwise find a date!  I
can’t believe this is happening.”

Zach was shaking his head
and even though he was friends with Jake he knew this was
totally 
not
 
cool
.

“You know,” I tried to master my anger;
“this is going to affect us all.  You are all going to have
sit through the night with this hanging over your heads.  Tell
him we’ll give him his money back and to get his own damn
limo!”

“We suggested that,” Charlie said.

“We did,” Dani added, “but he said he
already tried and everyone is booked because it’s prom season.”

“So what am I supposed to do, ride with
three happy couples, my ex-date and his new date and watch you all
paw each other to death while I sulk in the corner?”

“Pretty much,” Danielle chuckled trying to
make light of the situation.

“Well, I don’t think I can do that," I shook
my head in disbelief.

“Oh, please don’t say you’re not
going.  That’s just what Brooke wants.  Can’t you see,
I’m sure that is why she waited until the last minute to move back
in on Jake,” Dani was holding my hand and pleading with me not to
back out.  “And your dress; you’re going to be a
knockout.  What better way to get through the night than
looking your best and killing them with kindness?”

Charlie was nodding agreement, Zach was
looking thoughtful and Danielle was downright dejected at the idea
of me not going. 

“Alright, alright,” I sighed.  “This is
going to be the crappiest night ever but I’ll do it.”

Danielle leapt up and hugged me.
 Charlie and Zach both looked relieved, “We’ll get you through
it, I promise.”

We finished our meals in silence, each of us
contemplating the different scenarios on how the following night
would turn out.  A short while after we were done Dani’s mom
picked us up and took each of us to our respective homes. 

Kaley sensed my mood as soon as I
stepped through the doorway and lovingly cuddled up to me while I
took my coat and shoes off.  Margaret looked up from where she
was sitting in the family room.  “Everything alright
dear?”

I had no words for the moment and could feel
the tears standing in my eyes.  I may not have had any
feelings for Jake and may not have wanted him of all people to be
my date for the dance but I never had any inkling that this was how
I would get out of it. 

I confessed it all to Margaret, while she
sat quietly taking everything in.  I had to stop once or twice
to snag a tissue and I apologized more than once for being so
upset.  It was hard for me to understand why I was so
disheartened.  When the topic of the formal first came up I
didn’t even want to go.  Then I had the crazy idea to get
Dani, Zach, myself and Charlie to go together; I wanted so much for
that to have been the plan.  How quickly it all changed and I
wished I had had a little prescience of mind and kept my first
impulse and decided to not go at all.

“Oh, Lily, I am so sorry for all of
this.  Unfortunately, I don’t have any advice for you. 
It would be a shame for you not to go, especially with all the
plans we've made. Danielle is spending the night with us and
there’s the lovely dress you bought, and, well, I didn’t want to
tell you but I scheduled a spa day for you both and hired someone
to come by tomorrow afternoon to  do your hair and makeup and
Danielle’s as well.  It was supposed to be a surprise, but,
my, I am so, so sorry.”

“Aunt Margaret! That is super sweet of you
but you shouldn’t have.”

Then all I could think about was how
everyone was counting on me to go through with the formal.  I
felt trapped; obligated to go to please Dani and Margaret and to
keep the peace between Charlie and all the others, because I knew
if I was not in that limo the daggers were going to be
flying.  Danielle would hate Jake and Zach would be mad at
Danielle for hating Jake and Charlie would be upset because
Danielle and Zach were upset and that would cause Missy to get
upset.  It was likely to be Armageddon if I backed out. 
Not only was my Spring Formal ruined but the situation had the
possibility of ruining it for all of my closest friends as
well.

“Nice work, Brooke!”  I thought to
myself.  “I’m going to take Kaley for a walk and give some
more thought to what I will do.”

“Would you like me to come with you?”

“No but thank you, I won’t be long.”

I called to Kaley and we headed out on our
usual route.  The air felt nice.  It was cool and dark,
the sky was clear and the moon just full enough to be a comfort as
we walked.  I knew I would end up going, not just to keep the
peace and not spoil the night for everyone else but also so that I
could put on a good show for Brooke.  There was no way I was
going to let her think that she had gotten the better of me. 
If I could just get through the limo ride the rest of the night
would be a piece of cake. 

When I got home I found that Margaret had
made me a cup of tea.  She was just setting it on the kitchen
table with a cup for herself as I came down the hallway to tell her
my plans hadn’t changed. 

She smiled, “I’m sure it was a difficult
choice.” 

“It was,” I said, “but I’m sure it's the
right one.”  We talked about our plans for the morning
and sipped our tea.   When I was done I put my tea cup in
the dishwasher and said goodnight to Margaret.  I felt so
drained from all the stress and pressure of it all that I
couldn’t wait to just crawl under the covers and put it behind
me. 

“A spa day, that sounds nice.”  I fell
asleep envisioning a relaxing morning of massages and facials and
mani-pedies. 

I slept soundly through the night and even
though the dance and all it was bound to bring was the first thing
I thought of, I felt pretty optimistic that it would all turn out
well.  I put on some comfy lounge pants and a soft, well-worn
t-shirt before I went downstairs to rustle up some breakfast. 
There was always something worthwhile in the freezer – muffins,
scones, cinnamon buns but I was not feeling up to anything heavy
that morning.  I cut up some kiwi and rinsed some berries and
made a little fruit cocktail for myself. 

Margaret must have been up already since
there was a pot of coffee still brewing.  Though I never drank
it myself, I loved the smell of coffee.  It was so warm and
friendly “like a hug in a mug,” I thought to myself.  I
wondered what time Dani was going to be by and at how our
appointments would go.  Kaley kept me company while I ate my
breakfast and thought about what was ahead.  I unconsciously
rubbed her back with my foot while she lounged at my feet.

Before long Margaret came to claim her
coffee.  She poured herself a cup and asked “Did you sleep
well?”

“Better than I imagined I would.”

“That’s good, I’m glad you weren’t up all
night fretting.  Danielle is going to be here soon.  You
should put something on so we can head out once she’s settled.”

I nodded and polished off my fruit. 
The dishwasher was full so I rinsed my bowl and left it in the sink
for the next load.  I was not really sure what to wear to a
spa day but Margaret said it wouldn’t matter, that they would give
us robes and slippers to wear the entire time we were there. 
It seemed pretty nice out, so I grabbed some light chinos and a
v-neck t-shirt to wear with them.  I brushed my hair and
gathered it into a ponytail, then brushed my teeth and called to
Kaley for a quick walk. 

Dani and her mom were pulling in as I was
about to head out so I had Kaley wait while I helped Danielle bring
in all the things she would need for our sleepover. 

“Moving in, I see,” Margaret teased as we
lugged Danielle’s various belongings upstairs and stowed them in
the guest bedroom.

“I was just about to take Kaley for a walk;
do you want to come with us?”

“Sure,” Dani flopped down on the bed after
setting the last of her bags inside the doorway.  She bounced
back up and followed me to the foyer.

Margaret reminded us of our schedule and
told us not to be long, “Ok,” I called as we headed for the door,
“just business and back.”

We walked to the greenway and loitered
around while Kaley found a good spot.  Danielle was clearly in
a cheerful mood, excited about the spa and the formal.  I
tried to mirror her enthusiasm as she babbled about how awesome
Margaret was for arranging the day for us.