Home > Lucky in Love(3)

Lucky in Love(3)
Author: Kasie West

“So what is the movie you’re making this time called?” I asked as we bumped along the road. “Night Golf?”

“How did you know?”

“Really?”

He smiled and scratched the back of his neck. “No. Not really. It has no title yet.”

Stan took the scenic route, driving past the anteater in her cage. I stretched up to see if I could spot her pacing. Her name was Heeboo, and she had recently become a mom. She normally walked the cage with her baby clinging to her back and it was the cutest thing in the world.

“Heeboo’s hiding from you,” Seth whispered.

“She seems to be more private now, with the baby. But she still loves me.”

He shook his head. “How can the anteater be someone’s favorite? They’re so odd looking.”

I gasped. “She’s beautiful.”

He laughed as Stan headed down Monkey Row before he doubled back and stopped in front of the amphitheater.

“I think that took us longer than if we’d walked,” I said, sliding to the ground.

“But it was twice as fun.” Seth jumped down, then gave Stan a high five.

One of the zookeepers was onstage setting up, and Seth and I got to work, straightening out rows of benches for the audience.

I took in our surroundings—the big trees that created a canopy over the top of us, the animal noises providing the soundtrack. It may have been a small zoo (well, aside from the fifty monkeys!) but everything about it made me happy. I looked back at Seth. Everything.

When the animal show ended, we headed back toward Carol for our next assignment.

“Where is Stan when we need him? Now we have to walk like suckers,” Seth said as we made our way up the incline.

“Walking regularly improves mood, balance, and coordination,” I said, then just as quickly wished I hadn’t. “I’m sorry.”

“Why? It was informative.” There was a smile in his voice.

“Sometimes random facts just pop into my head.”

“Sometimes random movie lines just pop into my head. I understand the need to share them.”

I laughed.

An elderly woman wearing a sweat suit approached us.

Before she opened her mouth, Seth said, “Straight ahead and to the left.”

“What?” she asked.

“Bathroom,” I filled in for him.

“Oh. No, I was hoping you could take a picture of me and my granddaughters by the ocelot?” She hitched her thumb over her shoulder toward the cage where the small leopard-type creature slept in a patch of sunlight. She held out a bigger camera than I’d ever seen before in my life. “You’re good with technology, right?” she asked Seth.

“Um … ” Seth caught the camera as she practically dropped it into his hands and walked toward the cage. “Because I’m Asian?” he whispered to me.

“That or she’s heard you’re an amazing filmmaker,” I said with a smile back.

“Oh yeah. You’re probably right. I forgot how far-reaching my reputation is.”

The lady and two pig-tailed girls stood by the fence, and Seth lifted the camera. “You look amazing,” Seth said, looking at the tiny screen.

“Thank you,” the woman responded.

“Oh, I was talking to the ocelot.”

I giggled as Seth snapped a picture and handed the lady back her camera.

We continued on, and Seth asked, “So, why were you texting me in the first place?”

“Oh, right. I was going to invite you to a party I’m throwing for my birthday tomorrow.” I shrugged. “But you’re grounded, so I guess you don’t get to come.” I didn’t want my voice to betray the slight disappointment I felt.

“Another reason to hate my parents.”

“It’s yourself you should hate, Seth, for your poor choices.”

He laughed. “Don’t repeat that to my parents or they’ll tell me to marry you.”

I snorted.

“Tomorrow is your birthday, huh? How old are you going to be?” Seth asked as we reached Carol. Thankfully she was on the phone so we had a minute to ourselves.

“Eighteen,” I replied.

He gave a low whistle. “All grown up.”

I rolled my eyes. “Whatever. What are you, a whole two months older than me?”

“It makes a difference.” He grinned, then added, more seriously, “Sorry I can’t come. Thanks for inviting me, anyway.”

“How long is your grounding sentence?”

“Not sure. A week. Maybe less if I do something nice for my mom.”

“Is that how it works?”

“Usually.”

“Well, go you!” I said, and immediately regretted it. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to say that so loud.”

He laughed. “I never pinned you for a cheerleader.”

“I should’ve added that to my list of extracurriculars. Who knew I was so good at it?”

“You can be my cheerleader any day, Maddie.”

We both paused, looked at each other, then laughed.

Through his laugh Seth said, “That came out weird.”

“No worries.” I knew Seth didn’t think of me as more than a friend, which was exactly how I needed it to be. School, and college, were the most important things in my life at the moment. Nothing—I looked at Seth—or no one would change that.

“Did you get it?” Blaire asked with a big smile when I walked into her house after work.

“Get what?” My arms were full of my study materials and the snacks I’d bought that morning at the store. I was still in my zoo T-shirt.

Blaire held up a big white envelope.

My heart skipped a beat. “No. I came straight here from work. Which school?”

“San Diego State.”

I dropped my armload on her table. “And? Did you get in?”

“Of course. Just like you will.”

I threw the pack of Sour Patch Watermelons at her head a little harder than I intended and she held up her hands to block the assault.

“What? We shouldn’t be confident?” Blaire asked. She picked up the pack of candy and opened it.

“I don’t want to jinx it. With my luck, I won’t get into any colleges.”

Blaire groaned. “What do you always say? There is no luck involved. This is about hard work, and we both know you’ve put in the time.”

She was right. I had worked hard. I was a 4.25 GPA student, with extracurricular experience that included volunteer work, community outreach programs, clubs, and college prep courses. I had done almost everything on the “how to earn a scholarship” list I’d printed out years ago and stuck on my magnet board in my room. I wasn’t just going to get into every college I applied to, I was going to have college paid for. I had to have it paid for.

I picked up Blaire’s envelope. It was heavy in my hands. I turned it over and over again. “Is this the only one you got today?” It was taking everything in me not to skip this study session and go home to check my mail.

“Yes. No Stanford yet.”

Stanford was Blaire’s top choice, and she’d tried to convince me to make it mine as well. Stanford, like Blaire often pointed out, was one of the best schools for veterinary medicine (my dream job), as well as the best school for primary medicine (her dream job). But even though she was right, and in my heart of hearts I knew it was probably the perfect school for me, Stanford was in Northern California, which wasn’t as close to Southern California as it sounded. Blaire had practically forced me to apply. She thought that I’d want to flee from my dysfunctional family. My family may have been dysfunctional, but they were mine, and I was the only one holding them together. The strings I was using were so frayed that I was sure without me they’d snap and everything would be broken. I needed to stay as close as possible. I needed to know I could come home regularly and check on everyone.

So my top choice was UCLA. Just far enough away to live on campus, but still only an hour-long drive back home. Plus, it was an excellent school. I wasn’t sacrificing anything by staying close.

The back door opened and Elise bounded into the kitchen. She still wore her tutu from earlier. Blaire and I immediately stopped talking about college. Elise was going to a community college and, depending on her mood, was very touchy about it.

   
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