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“No, that would be asking too much of you.”
“Yeah, and of course, thanks for keeping the place in order for the upcoming party. Your brother only had nice words for you.”
“Now you are the one pulling my leg. He didn’t even say a thank you when he saw me.”
“You know how it is. Expecting a thank you from him is as difficult as it comes. You can’t keep getting surprised when he acts that way, but know that he cares greatly for you, appreciates your hard work, and will always look out for you.”
Ella rolled her eyes and looked at me while I gave her the “I told you so eye.” She sighed and looked away, folding her arms, “All right, Mom, I have heard you loud and clear. Just tell him why Lucy is here, and maybe he will lay off a bit.”
“I will do that, love. See you soon.”
“See you soon, Mom. I love you.”
“I love you too, pumpkin.” She muttered, and the connection was cut immediately.
Ella sighed and placed the phone in her bag while shaking her head, “Mason keeps surprising me. He already told Mom about you,” she said as she turned and began to walk away while I followed behind her.
“Yeah, that was surprising, wasn’t it?”
“Who knows, maybe he’s just happy for me that I have a friend. HA!”
I chuckled and nudged her slightly, “Surely you have more friends than just me. I mean, I know that I am your absolute BEST friend in the whole wide world. Maybe he is just genuinely happy for you?”
“That’s where you get it wrong, honey. Genuine and happy are foreign, strange words in my brother’s dictionary,” Ella replied with a sad smile and a slight shake of the head.
“Even if he is, which I know he isn’t, we have nothing to worry about, but you have something to cheer about.”
Ella turned, frowning. “Cheer about? What is that?”
“Your mother said he had nice words for you when he called her.”
“Oh, please.” She waved me off, “I can only take that with a grain of salt.”
“You guys are unbelievable, just like your mother said,” I laughed.
Ella clapped suddenly and turned toward me. “Less talk about my brother and me. How about we get something to wear for the upcoming party?”
“We bought something before coming here. Surely, the clothes that I got will be enough.”
Ella scowled and shook her head, “You mean those pants and shirts? No way, we need something sexy, like a little black dress, or a gorgeous ball gown. I plan to turn heads that day, maybe finally get a man for myself, and leave my overbearing brother for good.”
“That seems excessive, especially since I am not supposed to be going to the party, I am just here to help you prepare for it. In regard to your brother, I bet you will miss him more when you eventually leave.”
“That will be in your wildest dreams.” Ella hooked her arm through mine. “Come on, maybe we both can find our love that day, and our lives will be forever changed for the best.”
“I doubt it,” I muttered as I walked hastily to catch up with her.
“Have some faith, my friend.” She said as we went inside to get dressed for our shopping trip.
********
“How about this?” I turned around close to the mirror, with Ella sitting on the couch, watching me with her already-picked outfits beside her, neatly placed in two bags.
“Bland,” She said with a shake of the head, “No way a man’s head will be turned when you wear that.
“Christ, Ella, you have said that for every single item that I have tried on,” I said, exasperated as I studied my reflection in the mirror, unsure what wrong Ella had seen in the short blue gown with yellow embroidery on its neck.
“It just looks like something worn for the prom. All of the things you are trying on are boring. There are going to be very important people at this party, and there is no way in hell I am having my best friend wear such ridiculous-looking clothing for an event like this,” Ella replied with a shake of her head.
