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There had been a lot of changes this past month. Strangers had become friends. An enemy became an unlikely ally. Milly was spending most of her free time at FilmSoc. She was just happy that she had people to talk to.
Last week, Milly nearly threw her friendships away. She felt like they were pretenders, and they didn't really like her. But she was wrong.
Stevie invited Milly over on Saturday to hang out. Milly wore her mom's yellow dress and a white cardigan. She wanted to look like a normal human being - not a bush lady. She had never been over to a friend's place before - nobody has wanted her. She was always left out.
She rang the doorbell and waited anxiously. Stevie opened the door; her blonde hair was bunched up beneath a beanie and she wore a Greyhounds jersey.
“Perfect Milly! We just started brunch,” Stevie smiled.
Stevie’s house smelled of bacon and eggs. Her mom was cooking up a storm, and Milly was plopped at the counter with a plate. She got four rashers of streaky bacon, fluffy scrambled eggs on thick slices of white toast, and pan-seared cherry tomatoes and mushrooms. It was enough to feed an army, which made sense because Stevie had a family of eight.
“This is amazing,” Milly lit up with the first bite.
“Mom’s a genius - she owns her own restaurant on Fair Boulevard,” Stevie said with a mouth full of scrambled eggs.
Stevie’s mom blushed at all the compliments and continued to pile food on their plates. Stevie’s ten-year-old brother, Bryn, made a huge mess as he inhaled ten rashers and three glasses of orange juice in seconds. Stevie’s other siblings weren't any different. Animals! Milly was an only child, so this was all new to her.
After brunch, Milly and Stevie crashed on the living room couch. Food coma. Milly had never been this full.
“Do you want to play games?” Stevie tossed her a controller.
Stevie’s sixteen-year-old brother Gary kneed a soccer ball into Stevie’s face. He was tall and lanky with a blonde buzz-cut. Serial killer vibes much.
“You ass!” Stevie said.
“I bet twenty dollars that y’all couldn't beat us in a game,” he said.
Bryn came around the corner. He was a tiny terror. He had blonde mullet. Who allowed a little kids to get a mullet?!
“Oh, you are on!” Stevie said.
Video games? Milly was terrible at video games, but soon she was mortified as they put on their trainers. They were going outside to play a real game of soccer at the park. But Milly was still digesting…
Milly missed every pass. When she finally had the ball, Bryn, that tiny terror, tackled her. They both fell flat into the mud. There was a big patch of brown on the back of her dress. Mom would kill her. She grabbed some mud and smushed it on Bryn’s head. He laughed, and then he took a handful and chucked it at Milly’s face. Soon it was a full-on war. Milly was chasing Bryn around the field. Stevie and Gary joined in too, and soon enough they were all laughing and absolutely filthy.
Milly was horrified. Stevie’s mom had laughed and called them rascals when they arrived. Milly would have been executed for such a mess. Milly now knew where Stevie got her chill from. After a hot shower, and putting on some of Stevie’s old clothes, they joined the family for pizza around the TV. They were watching Formula 1, and Milly had no idea what was happening. Stevie was explaining how everything worked.
“Milly, you don’t have to be so polite… come have some more pizza,” Stevie’s dad said. He was a big burly man with a handlebar mustache.
“Thank you,” Milly said, getting another two slices of cheese.
Then they went to Stevie’s room. All the mess was concentrated in one corner, filled with dirty laundry and candy bar wrappers. She had an artful pyramid of energy drink cans on her dresser. Stevie had evidently tried her best to clean up, but it was a dump.
“Milly, I want to tell you something, but it has to stay between us,” Stevie said.
Milly had never kept a secret before. She knew from movies that breaking these promises sent you to the friendship graveyard.
“Sure. What did you want to say?” Milly asked.
“I like someone and I want to ask them out,” Stevie said.
“You do! Who is it?” Milly asked.
“I don’t know if I should say. I don’t know if they like me back. I could jinx it!” Stevie said.
This was the first time Stevie had acted like this - all bubbly and girly. She was so indecisive and nervous, but Milly felt the same way.
Stevie gave Milly hints as to who it would be, but they were all so vague. Milly wasn’t so good with all this matchmaking stuff.
“If you like them, tell them how you feel. It’s worth a shot,” Milly said - thinking about advice from teen movies.
Then Milly remembered Fred. He had called her ‘Mountain Queen’. He was so nice. But he had kissed that girl and Milly had caught them. So embarrassing…
“I like someone too… But he is with someone else,” Milly confessed.
“Aw no… That’s terrible,” Stevie said, “But I know a guy who likes you.”
“Who?” Milly said incredulously.
“Jojo. He has been coming to FilmSoc for the past week, asking where you were.”
Jojo? Milly knew nothing about Jojo. He was a scrawny kid with shoulder-length hair and glasses. No offense, but Jojo didn’t make Milly feel anything. He was nothing like Fred.
In the end, Stevie didn’t give up the name of her crush - and Milly thought about it all night.
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Milly had a meeting with the principal, Mr. Stephanopolus, and the counselor, Ms. Carruthers, on Monday morning. After spending Saturday with Stevie, Milly felt loved. She had almost forgotten about the incident with Rosa.
“How are you feeling after what happened last week?” Mr. Stephanopolus asked.
“I am okay,” Milly said.
“That is good to hear, Milly,” Ms. Carruthers said, “We deeply care about you.
“We want to make sure you are well taken care of. That is why we have paired you up with one of the sophomores, Angela Wu. She will be your big buddy.”
Milly didn’t need a big buddy. She had Viraj and Stevie. And maybe Zahra.
“I don’t need one,” Milly said.
She didn't trust teachers. They never stood up for her. This 'Angela' person would be the same.
“Milly, give her a chance,” Mr. Stephanopolus said, “I heard from Ms. Carruthers that you like singing. Angela writes music for the musical.”
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At lunch, Milly wanted to see Zahra. She felt like they could finally bury the hatchet and be real friends. She went to the pocket in the garden to find Zahra, but she wasn’t there. She waited for a while, but Zahra was a no-show.
It wasn’t until after school when Milly was walking with Viraj, Stevie, and Jojo to FilmSoc that she spotted Zahra. She was sitting by the bikes with the Villain Squad.
Milly probably shouldn’t have messed with them again, especially after the incident with Rosa, but she walked on up.
“Hey Zahra,” Milly said.
Zahra looked uncomfortable and hesitated, “What do you want?”
“Do you want to come sing with me again?” Milly asked.
Rosa and others laughed. Zahra shrank.
“Are you delusional, Tarzan?” Rosa said, “You can’t even sing…”
Viraj stepped in, “Milly is spectacular. She can sing you out of the park.”
“You’re delusional that you have any power at school. Wake up. Nobody cares,” Stevie said.
Rosa smiled, “Is that so? Shop much? Did you raid your brother's closet?”
In the midst of the argument, Zahra got up without another word and rode off on her bike.
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“What was all that about? You asked Zahra to sing with you?” Stevie asked Milly.
Then Milly did the unthinkable. She ran after Zahra.
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