Page 36 of Searching for Beautiful
“I know. ”
All I can do is nod and wonder what just happened. I’m obviously coming to breakfast tomorrow.
“See you at nine,” Brenda calls as I follow Christian to the door.
“Okay, thank you. ”
When we get on my porch, Christian stops. “You’ll be okay?”
I nod and walk in. “Yeah, I’m good. Luckily we don’t live on Elm Street. Then I might make you stay awake with me all night. ”
He smiles at my lame joke. “You wouldn’t have to make me. I’d protect you from Freddy. Or make my mom protect both of us. ”
“Oh, big strong boy needs his mom. I see how brave you are. ” There’s a flutter in my stomach that I struggle to ignore.
“She’s tough. You’ll see when you get to know her better. ”
“I have no doubt about your mom’s toughness. ”
“Smart girl. ” He tilts his head toward his house. “I’d better go. Catch ya later, Bryntastic,” Christian turns and jogs back to his house. I watch until he slips inside.
After a quick trip upstairs to brush my teeth and grab my blanket and pillow, I curl up on the couch. Mom and I always had living room sleepovers any time we were alone. It’s kind of nice to do it again.
Thinking of her makes me remember the movie with Christian. How tonight, I wasn’t alone. How it felt good to have someone to be quiet with.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Now
Even though it feels strange to be going to Christian’s house for breakfast, I don’t even have to talk myself into it. I want to go. To laugh at his mom who sneaks cigarettes. To meet Sally or his elusive dad—if he’s even around. I suddenly feel a little guilty for not knowing. And I also hope I might find out why he left.
After changing into a black-and-white-striped sweater and a pair of jeans, I tie my red hair back in a ponytail.
After pushing my feet into my pink-and-black Nikes, I head over to Christian’s—no, Brenda’s. She invited me to breakfast. She’s the one I went to see last night. Not him.
Inside me, there’s a little kernel of thankfulness that he was there, though, because I’d needed someone, something, and just by letting me watch Freddy slash people in their nightmares, he gave it to me.
A few seconds after I knock, Brenda opens the front door. She looks almost like she did that first morning, a robe wrapped around her, but this time, she looks much more awake.
She hugs me tightly, her arms around me squeezing the heart in my chest. My body melts into the comfort of her embrace.
“Thanks for coming, mija. I cooked all sorts of food and Christian is still in bed. He’s lucky I don’t throw water on him to get him up!”
I can’t help but laugh, part of me wanting to witness Christian being awakened by a flood. “That’s okay. Did he go out or something, after I left last night?” I want to snatch the question out of the air, take it back. I want to dissect the reason it came out of my mouth in the first place. “I mean, I’m just curious. ”
Leading me to the kitchen, she shakes her head. “No, but he probably stayed up half the night playing his guitar. He’s a night owl. It helps him relax. Guitar is his form of meditation. ” When we step into the kitchen, there’s another woman standing at the stove. I assume it’s Sally. She’s definitely not Brenda’s daughter, because they’re close to the same age, and even though she has dark hair, it’s obvious she isn’t Hispanic like Brenda and Christian.
“Brynn, this is my partner, Sally. Sally, this is Christian’s friend and our neighbor, Brynn. ”
Partner? The wheels in my brain start to spin, all the little gadgets clicking into place. Oh, partner. I’ve never known a lesbian before. I don’t have a problem with it—people should be able to love who they want—but it’s just not something I’ve been so close to personally.
“Hi. ” Sally holds out her hand to me. “It’s nice to meet you. ” As we shake, she turns to Brenda and says, “Check the food. I don’t want to mess it up. ”
They both laugh. Brenda grabs Sally’s free hand and gives it a brief squeeze before she flips the food in a skillet. The gesture does something to me. Makes my eyes fight not to cloud over because it’s so easy…so natural that it reminds me of Mom and Dad.
Brenda finishes cooking while Sally and I sit at the table. I find out she runs a little coffee shop one town over and Brenda works part-time in an office. She’s also been going back to school for psychology and somehow finds the time to volunteer at
the center five days a week.
