She grinned broadly. “And what about your family? How do you feel about being separated from your family and friends?”
My heart sank at her words. And just then, Oreo lifted his head from slumber, almost as if he was asking, ‘You’re leaving?’
It looked that way, but I couldn’t imagine being away from my family.
“Well, I don’t have too many friends, so on that front, I’m good to go. There’s Brooke who is the closest thing to a best friend I have, but we don’t quite click… She lives down the road and we’re in the same grade, even have some classes together, so we’re friends by default, I suppose.”
Brooke doesn’t know about my ‘secret’ (as I’ve come to think of it). Once I told her I could read her mind. She laughed – she thought I was kidding. This annoyed me so I felt like I had to prove myself. I went off on a tirade of sorts, and told her I knew she had a huge crush of Sam Weber. I pointed out that it was quite understandable that she would be jealous of his girlfriend, but she should really stop stalking the poor girl on Facebook, and I finished with a flourish and told her to stop worrying about her thighs, that they were just fine. Needless to say, she freaked, called me a psycho, and we didn’t speak for three weeks.
“We’re not really that close,” I went on. “She’s fun, I guess. Sometimes, we watch movies and play Bananagrams, but we don’t have that much in common.”
Simone nodded with a smile.
Cedric leaned forward, his presence too large for the small room. “Yes, kids like you often find it hard to fit in and make friends. They often remain distant, afraid to be found out, afraid they might slip.”
Exactly.This man got me. This man understood what it’s like.
“Is there… are there a lot of kids like me at RAMS?” I asked.
A huge grin stretched across his serious face. “There are. Most of them are like you, Annabelle.”
I was over the moon, but my smile faded as soon as I spotted Kylie with my dad in the kitchen. “I’m going to miss my family like crazy, though,” I admitted. “We’re pretty close.”
My mom’s smile was bittersweet, the kind she gets when she goes through our things and needs to give away stuff; Kylie’s baby clothes, or my old stuffed animals. I knew she would miss me as much as I’d miss her. “She’ll miss us but she’s so excited about this amazing chance you’re giving her,” she chimed in. “She’ll be fabulous, I’m sure.”
Simone nodded politely, and I was suddenly filled with doubt. Was I in? I just didn’t know.
“Thank you so much for the opportunity, Mrs. Adler,” my mom went on. “You are really wonderful, helping all these people, running that amazing school.”
Oh my… mom was really kissing her rear now.
“How did you come to found this school? How did it all start?” my mom asked. I was curious, too. That bit wasn’t in the brochure or on the website.
Simone shifted in her seat and shot a little smile in Cedric’s direction. She turned back to us and her gaze settled on me, putting me on the spot. I sat up straighter and folded my hands on my lap like a good little girl.
“Why don’t you ask your daughter?” Simone said quietly. “We’ll let her tell you the story.”
Uh-oh. Shereallywas putting me on the spot. I didn’t know. I had no clue!
My hearts sped to a jog, and I found myself breathless. Simone smiled at me kindly. “Why don’t you come and sit next to me, Annabelle.” She patted the spot next to her on the sofa.
Cedric moved over to the empty arm chair and struggled to settle his large frame in the small seat. I hesitated for about a second or two but knew I had to do this. She was giving me a challenge – everything depended on it. My mom nodded at me with an encouraging smile.
I felt a little faint as I took a seat next to her. I couldn’t avoid eye contact because I needed to look into her eyes to read her. Butterflies whirled in my stomach as I shifted my gaze to hers. “Uh… may I… may I hold your hand?” I asked tentatively.
She smiled and reached for my hand. She squeezed tightly, and I was overwhelmed by emotion. This was a woman who had lived a full life. She had grown up in a modest home, traveled the world (I saw Paris, Rome, Asia…). She was highly intelligent and full of life. There was sadness surrounding her, too – she’d lost her husband, and one of her children, a beautiful girl with golden locks. No wait… she hadn’t. She had found her again.
“You are from a modest background,” I started, “and you made your own way in the world.”
She smiled widely. “Yes.”
“You…” I closed my eyes, and focused harder. “You founded a company and made a fortune in… fashion? Beauty products?” I winced, not quite getting there. “Cosmetics, yes.”
“Yes. Adler Cosmetics.”
“Wow,” my mother chimed in. “I see those in the fancy stores. I can’t afford it… I mean I’m sure they’re great… I’m just more of a Cover Girl kinda girl.”
Geez, Mom… I need to focus.
