Page 88 of Searching for Nova

“No. We’re just friends.”

“She said that about the fat kid too,” Ted says. “One night the kid was going at it so hard he almost broke her bed.”

I really didn’t need to know that. I can’t believe he says that stuff about his granddaughter.

“Can I come in?” I ask.

The old lady moves aside. She’s short and thin with long white hair and way too much makeup. Her eyelids are covered in blue eyeshadow, her cheeks are smeared with bright pink blush, and her lips are covered in red lipstick.

“She’s in her room,” Ted barks, staring at the TV.

As I walk to Nova’s room, I hear Ted again. “You better have a condom!”

“Ain’t she on the pill?” the old lady says.

“Yeah, but so was her mom and look what happened. I got stuck with some fucking grandkid.”

I shake my head, hoping Nova didn’t hear that. I knock on her door. “Nova? It’s Easton.”

The door swings open. I smile when I see her. She’s got on gray shorts and a faded pink t-shirt. The shorts look like pajamas and are short enough that her oversized t-shirt almost covers them.

“Hey.” She smiles at me, another good sign. Maybe she’s actually going to agree to date me. I’d be shocked if she did, but maybe she’s willing to at least give it a try.

“You going to bed already?” I ask.

“It’s a sleepover. You gotta wear pajamas.”

“I don’t usually wear anything to bed.”

She pauses a moment as my words sink in. I was just kidding around, to see her reaction.

“So you’re not going to—”

“I will tonight,” I say. “I brought a pair of shorts.” I drop the grocery bags on the floor along with the backpack that was over my shoulder.

“Is that all for us?” Nova asks, pointing to the grocery sacks.

“Yeah. I didn’t know what to get so I got a little of everything.”

“Don’t let Ted see that or he’ll try to take it. He’s always eating my stuff.”

“We’ll keep it in here. But the soda should probably go in the fridge.”

“The soda will be safe. Ted only drinks beer.” She looks through the sacks and smiles. “You got me the donuts?”

“Both kinds, and the chips you like.”

She pulls the barbecue potato chips from the sack, her eyes lighting up. “You even got the name brand.”

I always get the name brand. It’s what my parents buy so I do too. I used to think it was a big deal, like Nova, but now I’m used to having money and having food. I take it for granted and don’t even think about, until I’m around someone like Nova, who has nothing. Being around her and seeing how she lives has all those old feelings coming back. Feelings of not having enough, not knowing when you’ll eat again.

“I spent the last hour cleaning my room,” Nova says, sounding proud of herself. “What do you think?”

“It looks great!” I walk over to her bed. It’s not a heap of sheets and blankets like it was the last time I was here. The bedding is straightened and she’s stacked the pillows up against the wall. She also picked the clothes off the floor and cleaned off her dresser. It’s sweet she did all this for me. I feel bad that she thought I might not come over. She was obviously looking forward to it if she took the time to clean her room.

“Nova!” Ted yells. “We’re going out!”

“Okay!” Nova yells back.

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