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Sailor Kent sat on her bed with her English book opened in her lap. She held the book in her right hand and jotted notes with her left. Her notebook was raggedy from overuse. She enjoyed English more than any other class. With her head bent over her studies, she didn't notice the face in her window.
A steady rapping caught her attention. Maddox Kelley, her best friend since childhood, grinned at her through the window, her face mottled gray from the screening. Sailor thrust the window open, and Maddox pushed open the screen. Sailor grabbed her wrist and pulled her friend through the opening.
Maddox sat yoga-style on the bed, her eyes wandering around Sailor's pretty, pink room. Sailor's room was a stark contrast to Maddox's own, with a white captain's bed pushed against the wall. She liked the high bed and wished she had one. Hers was an old child's bed with a railing and dingy white sheet. She longed to move in with the Kent family but couldn't figure out how.
Maddox's eyes lingered on the shelf above Sailor's bed, filled with dolls from all over the world. A chest full of Barbies sat in the corner, reminding Maddox of their younger days when they always played together on the soft carpeted floor. The sight brought a wave of nostalgia over Maddox, reminding her of the bond they shared.
"So, what's up?" Sailor asked, closing her book and removing her large blue reading glasses.
Maddox shrugged. Swinging from the bed, she wandered around the room. She paused at Sailor's jewelry box and opened it. A ballerina popped up and spun. Soft, tinkly music played.
"Put it back, Max," Sailor stated.
"Put what back?" Maddox asked.
"The locket Great-Aunt Maudie gave me before she passed," Sailor answered, her voice flat.
"I don't have your musty old locket," Maddox grumbled. Sailor watched her dig in her pocket and return the locket.
"You can bring back my fountain pen too." Sailor reopened her English book.
Maddox shrugged. She climbed back on the bed and opened the worn notebook. She snapped a picture of Sailor's homework with her phone.
"That's cheating."
"I'm tired of getting D's. You get straight A's all the time."
"You can't go from D's to straight A's overnight," Sailor stated flatly. "Grossy will notice."
"Grossy won't care." Maddox shrugged again. "Grossy's retiring this year. She's gonna pass everyone."
"Miss Grossman will notice D's turning to A's, Max," Sailor tried again. "It's too obvious. You gotta do it gradually. D's to C's, C's to B's, B's to A's. Got it?"
"Ok, ok." Maddox rolled her eyes.
The girls grew quiet. Sailor turned the English book's page. Maddox sat cross-legged, watching her.
"I'm not helping you cheat, by the way," Sailor finally stated. "Delete that picture, ok?"
"Ok," Maddox agreed, knowing she wouldn't. The conversation paused again. "I saw Jack Meadows outside my window one night."
Sailor looked up sharply. She didn't want to discuss Jack Meadows again. He made her feel creepy.
"I took my sweater off and showed him what I got."
"You have nothing." Sailor kept her voice blank.
"I have something." Maddox's voice drifted off. "Not much, but something."
"Yeah, whatever." Sailor picked up her pencil and jotted notes.
Maddox fumbled in her jeans pocket and pulled out a crumpled cigarette. She lit it with a match and blew smoke in Sailor's face. Sailor coughed.
"I told you not to smoke in here," Sailor complained, shooing the smoke toward the open window. "My parents are watching TV in the next room."
"So, spray some Febreze."
"That's not the point." Sailor wished her friend would leave. In fact, she wished Maddox would stop coming over at night. It annoyed her.
Sometimes, Sailor found herself torn. She wished she could end her friendship with Maddox Kelley. Trouble seemed to follow wherever Maddox went. Yet, she also felt a sense of loyalty towards her. She often envied Bethany Copley. They shared a friendship that should never have ended. Bethany was one of the most popular girls in middle school. She was always surrounded by other girls. The boys started paying more attention to her, too.
Sailor often found herself daydreaming about sitting with Bethany and the popular girls. She could have a place with them if she stopped hanging out with Maddox. A part of her felt sorry for Max. She wouldn't have any friends if she didn't have Sailor. Sailor stuck by Maddox, but the allure of the popular group was always there, tempting her to make a choice.
"Look what I got," Maddox interrupted her thoughts. She dumped her handbag's contents onto the bed.
Sailor picked up a tiny lipstick and asked where Maddox got it.
"Mom's selling cosmetics at the hair salon now," her friend answered. "I got these out of her sample case." She spread out an array of lipsticks, blushers, eyeshadows, and mascara.
"You stole them from your mom?" Sailor's eyes flew wide open.
"Borrowed them."
"You can't borrow something you can't replace."
"I borrowed them." Maddox's face hardened, her gray eyes turning to flint. The look repulsed Sailor. "Clyde ask you to the spring dance yet?"
"No." Sailor pursed her lips. She tried everything Gabrielle taught her with no result. "Jack ask you?"
"Not yet."
Sailor knew Jack would never ask. Neither would Clyde.
"I got a new dress hanging in my closet. I'm going to make up my face, and mom's going to pierce my nose," Maddox informed. "That'll get Jack's attention."
"I bet," Sailor answered, her lips barely moving.
During the preceding weeks, Jack Meadows had started paying more attention to Maddox Kelley. He leaned against the wall opposite her locker in the morning. He dropped his geography book one day, and Maddox scrambled to pick it up. She grinned widely when she handed it back to him. After that, he frequently dropped things in front of her or sat at a nearby table during lunch.
Maddox would have taken her tray to his table if Sailor hadn't stopped her. Gabrielle had told her to play hard to get with boys. She cautioned Maddox to keep her distance until Jack asked her. Her friend threw her a disdainful look but listened.
A car pulled into the driveway while the girls sat on the bed. The driver's door opened, and a lanky boy got out. He walked around the car and opened the passenger door. Gabrielle Kent got out. Tall and willowy, she wore a Happy Burger uniform. Even the ugly yellow pants set looked good on the high school junior. Her escort was Buddy Walker, who also worked at the fast-food restaurant. Halfway up the drive, they stopped and kissed.
"You better get out of here, Max," Sailor warned. "Gabby always comes in to talk after work."
"Humph," Maddox snorted. She climbed out of the window and disappeared.
Sailor continued to watch her sister kiss Buddy Walker. When she was a little older, she would have a boyfriend to kiss. She wondered if Clyde was the future boy. Gabby started going with Buddy two years ago. She wore his class ring on her engagement finger and called it a promise ring. Her parents didn't mind but wished she would wait until after her college graduation before marrying. Sailor felt envious of her older sister.
Finally, her door swung open, and Gabby came in. The elder girl waved her hand in front of her face and frowned.
"Maddox was here," she sharply stated. "One, I saw her scramble through the window and sneak over the next block. Two, she was smoking in here again."
Sailor couldn't deny it. She'd forgotten to spray the Febreze, although it sat on the nearby dresser.
"Don't take up that nasty habit, Sailor; it will ruin your complexion," Gabby instructed. "Why do you bother with that girl? Haven't you outgrown her yet?"
Gabrielle plunked onto the bed. She swiped the paper fast-food hat from her head. Crumpling it, she tossed it toward the wastebasket.
"Never work at Happy Burger." Gabby frowned. "It's impossible to wash the fried onion smell from your hair."
Sailor considered her sister. She was glad she was a younger version of her pretty sibling. They both had long blondish hair and sapphire blue eyes. Sailor would grow tall and willowy by the time she neared her high school graduation. She was glad they had grown close over the years, although they used to fight like cats and dogs.
"I'm going to volunteer at the cat shelter when I get to high school," Sailor answered. "Clyde might volunteer, too."
"Don't bring home too many strays." Gabby smiled, knowing her sister's love of animals.
"We'll see," Sailor smiled back.
The door banged open, and a nine-year-old girl stood at the threshold. She wore pigtails and a long flannel nightie.
"Maddox was here," she informed confidently. "I heard you two talking."
"Go to sleep, Kennedy," Sailor ordered, shoeing her little sister away.
"Why should I when you two are awake?" Running across the room, Kennedy plunged onto the bed. Sailor and Gabrielle exchanged a look and began tickling their baby sister. Kennedy giggled and wiggled beneath their busy fingers. Suddenly, she pushed them away. Leaping off the bed, she dashed toward the bathroom.
"Didn't make it," Kennedy stated, returning with her head hanging. "You shouldn't tickle me like that. You know it makes me pee-pee."
"That's why we do it," the older girls cried in unison.
"I hate you, both of you." The little girl stamped her foot.
"Go change your pants," Gabby ordered.
Kennedy scampered away. Gabby and Sailor collapsed into laughter.
"I'm serious about Maddox, Sailor," Gabrielle stated when she could control herself. "That girl's trouble. The older she gets, the more serious the trouble. Don't get wrapped up in her drama."
Sailor sat looking out her window after her sister retired. She could drift away from Maddox a little at a time. She could often see the danger in Max's eyes, particularly when someone was angry with her. There was the stealing and lying to consider, too. Sailor really didn't want to get caught up in all that. If Maddox didn't change, she would find herself in a heap of trouble.
It made Sailor sad, too, to lose her best friend. She and Maddox had shared a lot of good times together, but they were both growing up. Their lives would change, and they may go in different directions. Sailor would try to hang around with Bethany more often. She liked Eric and Frank too. Or she could sit with nerdy Clyde. Maddox could find new friends and continue obsessing with Jack Meadows.
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