Helena
I had thought that Sybil was kidding when she said that she would drag me from the house kicking and screaming, but apparently not. She showed up first thing in the morning, and apparently, she had enlisted help. Mrs. Lauer and Ali were both in on the plan, a Grand Conspiracy to force me out of the house and into the mall on my birthday.
It could've definitely been worse.
Before I even had a chance to worry about Dominick coming over to visit an empty house, Ali was already on top of it. She typed a few quick messages out to him from her phone, letting him know about the change in plans. As sad as I was that we were going to miss a day with him, it was nice to see Ali being so proactive and considerate.
It was more than I would've thought to do at that age.
After we all ate breakfast together, the four of us headed to an upscale boutique. I found a pair of heels that I adored, which Sybil quickly volunteered to buy for me. Not content to leave it at that, she also found a set of sexy lingerie that she insisted I try on. The lacey, frilly bra and panties looked great on me, but the price tag was a little stiff.
"Don't worry about that, I'll get them," Sybil said from outside the dressing room.
"It's too much, you're already getting me the shoes," I protested.
"The shoes are for tutoring Joanna," Sybil argued. "And these are for your birthday. Come on, just think of how fun it will be to show them off!"
Show them off to whom? I asked myself. Of course the answer was Dominick, but Sybil didn't know anything about him, did she? The two hadn't met, and it seemed unlikely that Joanna would be gossiping to her mother about a man dropping by my dad's place for a visit.
But of course, regardless of what or whom Sybil was picturing, I had to admit that she was right. Just imagining Dominick looking at me in the fancy underwear sent an explosion of shivers down my spine, making me miss him that much further. I couldn't wait until I was back home, hopeful that he would still be able to visit for at least part of the night.
Now that was a birthday present I could get behind.
Our shopping at the boutique finished, Mrs. Lauer promptly insisted on buying me some tea. Even though there were two different tea outlets in the mall, the older woman assured us that she knew somewhere better. We all piled back into the car as she gave Sybil directions—getting lost once in the process—before we finally found it.
I had to admit that it was worth the trip. Not only was the tea noticeably better quality, but the prices were much better as well. Mrs. Lauer stocked up on her own collection, making recommendations to me as she went.
Shopping with her was a crash course in tea. Within minutes, I'd learned precisely enough to be profoundly confused. I now knew, for example, that dark tea was black. And that black tea was red. And that red tea wasn't actually tea, but did taste like tobacco.
"And where does oolong fit into all of this?" I asked, scratching my head.
"Somewhere between white and green," Mrs. Lauer answered with a shrug. "Usually, anyway. I keep telling the owner here to put up a flow-chart for newcomers, but so far he hasn't listened."
It was around that point that I decided to just nod and smile, trusting in Mrs. Lauer's judgment rather than trying to learn all of this myself in a single day. Ali kept up, though, and even picked out a couple of varieties for herself. I did make sure to get at least one herbal tea blend, imagining myself drinking a cup of the non-caffeinated beverage at night with Dominick.
After we were finished, Ali suggested seeing a movie. It was already getting late, but everyone agreed that it sounded like a lovely idea. As much as I was enjoying the trip out with my friends, I spent most of the film thinking about Dom and wishing I'd gotten the chance to spend a bit more time with him today. By the time the credits started to roll, I was eager to get home.
At which point Mrs. Lauer realized that she had forgotten to buy yarn, so back to the mall we went. From there, everyone recognized that it was starting to get late…so, of course, Mrs. Lauer suggested treating everyone to a late lunch before we finally headed back.
I have no idea how Sybil managed to keep her energy up. Her pregnancy was months ahead of mine, but by the end of the day I was completely exhausted. So exhausted, in fact, that it took me a few moments to notice something was strange.
The driveway was full.
Dominick's bike was there, parked next to my father's car. And rather than saying their goodbyes and leaving, Sybil and Mrs. Lauer were getting out of their seats.
It was only then that I realized the Grand Conspiracy went much, much further than I had suspected.