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Show Fair Forever 41 "Not long," I answer. "Not near long enough." Mom wanted to be sure I was okay with the idea: I felt odd. I couldn 't remember Mom ever asking for permission before. She explained, 'Amanda said her mother can't come until the weekend, but she was hoping to catch the bus and come right away.' She paused. 7 could put her in my bedroom downstairs. I don't mind moving upstairs in the guestroom.' , '7 Mom was asking permission again. It was weird. 'Just let her have the guestroom,' I answered. 'She's already seen me in my underwear.' Mom didn't laugh. That evening Amanda arrived. As soon as she walked in, the house smelled of soap and berries. I remember getting up and trudging to the bathroom. I checked my hair. I brushed my teeth. I checked my hair again, and then hurried back to my room, which meant I walked about as fast as the slowest person on the planet. I crawled back into bed and panted. Amanda and Mom talked downstairs and I tried to listen, but I heard only soft sounds and nervous laughter. The floor in the hallway squeaked and the back door opened and closed. So did the door on the screened porch. I figured Mom had taken Amanda to the shore. I shuffled to the catwalk and looked outside. Amanda had walked to the end of the dock. She stood rigid and fixed like someone had nailed her shoes to the planks. She was wearing a loose skirt, blue and white, and,her hair waved with the, breeze. . : - |