Good Things Come in Threes

GOOD THINGS COME IN THREES

SLAM!!! STOMP! STOMP! STOMP!

Ava looked up at the ceiling. If Chloe stomped any harder she’d crash right through the ceiling and be back down in the family room with her mom. The same Mom she had just declared to be the worst mother in the world.  

Ava continued to drink her tea and read her book. At least she was number one.

 Chloe

SLAM!!! STOMP! STOMP! STOMP!

Chloe threw herself onto the bed with the anger that only a wronged teenage girl could muster when told no.

“RRRRRRR! I hate her, I hate her, I hate her!” Chloe hissed, kicking her feet and arms on the bed, in full temper tantrum mode.

Right at the moment, she did hate her mother—with all the burning, red hot, soul rending, blinding hatred one girl could rage at the mother who had derailed her entire life.  

How dare she tell her no! It was so unfair! All her friends were going—all of them except her!

Chloe’s anger morphed into tears of frustration—hot, wracking, unrelenting tears. She rolled over and cried into her pillow. And cried, and cried, and cried. How could she do that to her? She was so embarrassed.

Three Hours Ago

“Are you going?” Gizi said, running up to Chloe after classes had ended for the day.

Ava looked at her best friend. “Going where?”

“Oh my God! You haven’t heard!” Gizi squealed.  

Chloe was getting annoyed because Gizi wouldn’t spit it out, but also a little concerned, because she should know everything that was going on in the school—she was dialled in.

“Gizi! If I knew what you were talking about, I could tell you whether or not I was going.” They’d stopped walking in the middle of the hall, and Chloe had her arms folded across her chest. She was giving Gizi her annoyed face (she’d never show her her concerned face—Chloe didn’t do concerned).

“Oh my God, Chloe! The party! There’s a party at Trevor’s house tonight!” Gizi was almost jumping up and down, she was so excited.  

Now Chloe was really paying attention. “Which Trevor?” she asked, her heart hammering.

“Your Trevor, Chloe! Trevor Vos!” Gizi squealed again and grabbed Chloe’s arm.  

Chloe looked at her friend. Gizi knew that Chloe had a thing—a really, really big thing—for Trevor Vos, and she knew this information was important. He was her soulmate. The only thing though, was that he didn’t actually know it. Yet. But he would, if Chloe had anything to do with it.  

He was a senior and Chloe was a year behind him. She wasn’t even sure he knew who she was. He certainly didn’t know her name. Plus, she was pretty sure that he and Katie Black were a thing. Maybe. But there’d been a big blowup between the two of them at lunch today, so, maybe not so much of a thing anymore. And if she went to the party … 

Gizi wasn’t finished. She grabbed her friend’s arm and squeezed. “And, Katie told Trevor, in the hall after third period, that she hated him, and told him to never talk to her again.”

Chloe took a giant breath in, and smiled. This was great news! Well, not so much for Katie, but you know, it was Trevor Vos.  

She could accidentally, on purpose run into Trevor at his party. She’d introduce herself, they’d talk. He’d see that she was so much better than Katie Black. Sooooo much better. She could console him, let him know he could talk to her about anything. And, she was mature for her age. All her friends said so. 

Chloe was so excited. Her stars were aligned, and all was right in her world. Trevor Vos! She would now be able to talk to him face-to-face. Woooow.

Now, all she had to do was convince her mom that she should let Chloe go to a house party. Her dad was away on business, which was too bad because he was the soft touch. Her mom, not so much.

“Are his parents home?” she asked, knowing that would be a big deal to her mom.

Gizi leaned in conspiratorially. “No. I heard Trevor talking to Ravi, and he said that his parents were away for the weekend, and Trevor’s older brother Ryan was supposed to be home but he was going to spend the weekend with his girlfriend at university, so Trevor has the house to himself—and about a hundred friends!” Gizi squealed some more. “This is going to be so amazing!”

Chloe thought about what to tell her mom. On one hand, honesty was the best policy, right? On the other hand the odds that her mom would let her go to a house party were practically nil, especially, when Trevor’s parents weren’t home.

“What are you going to tell your parents?” asked Chloe.  

Gizi stopped smiling, and looked at Chloe “Ohhh, that’s right. There is zero chance they’d let me go. He’s a senior, and there are no parents in the house. And there’s probably going to be drinking and maybe some other stuff.” She paused and looked at Chloe, grabbing her arm again. “We have to lie. We have to make up story so believable that they won’t say no!”

The girls looked at each other. Chloe didn’t really like lying to her mom, but desperate times called for desperate measures. And it was Trevor Vos! Surely her mom had been a teenager at some point, long, long ago. She’d understand the reason for the lies! Wouldn’t she?

Gizi, on the other hand, could lie to her parents about anything because they never checked. Not that they trusted her, but she was the fifth child, and her sibs were older (Gizi had been a surprise baby, which always confused Chloe—didn’t they know about birth control!), and had adopted lassiez-faire parenting. The way Gizi told it, they figured the first four survived, so she would too.

“Okay, this is what we’ll say. We have an English project …. No, Science. That makes more sense. We have a project—no a presentation—due on Monday, so we have to do some research at the library, then we’ll tell your mom we’re going back to my house, and tell my parents we’re going back to your house.” She looked at Chloe, and Chloe could see the gleam in her eye. “We should be able to stretch it out until about eleven. What’s your curfew?”

“Eleven.”

“Perfect!” Gizi clapped her hands.  

Chloe thought about the plan. It was pretty good. The fact that she and Gizi did have science together was a bonus. “The only problem,” she said, “is my mom’s going to want to know how I’m getting home.

“Tell her I’ll drive you.” Gizi had access to the family car when it was available. Which was, unfortunately, rarely. 

“Better yet,” said Chloe, “I’ll borrow my mom’s car. She’s not going out tonight. Dad’s some place doing something for work—she never goes out at night if he’s not home.”

They said goodbye and promised to call when they got home. As she walked the short distance to her house, Chloe refined the lie she was going to tell her mother. Maybe tell her that is was on mitosis, or something to do with chemistry. She’d never know. Her mom’s knowledge of science was pretty weak. Yeah, this party was a lock. And she’d get to talk to Trevor Vos, face-to-face.  

She’d been crushing on him since she started high school. He was so cute and so popular. Sigh.  

When her mom got home around six, Chloe launched the plan.

“Can I borrow the car?”

Her mom looked up from putting the groceries away. “Why?”

Chloe was at the counter putting a salad together, and stopped to look at her mom. “Gizi and I have a science presentation due on Monday. We’re going to go to the library and look up some stuff, then go to her house and practice our presentation.

“Hmmm,” said Ava. “What’s the project on?” she said, squinting her eyes a bit—the way that made Chloe’s heart patter a bit faster.  

“Mitosis. Cell twinning,” she said trying to hold her mother’s gaze without staring.

“Hmmm,” her mom said again, pulling her phone out, and dialled, putting the call on speaker..

“Who are you calling,” Chloe asked, starting to panic.

Ava ignored her, listening to her phone ring. “Hi Willow! It’s Ava Valentine. Did Gizi say anything to you about what she and Chloe are doing tonight?

“Uh, I think it’s either going to the library and back to your house to practice, or there’s some party that I overheard her talking about.”

“Ah, okay. Thanks Willow.” Chloe’s mom pressed the end button, and looked at her daughter. “So, Chloe, which is it? Homework or party.”

Chloe put down the knife she’d been using to cut up tomatoes, and took a deep breath. She was cooked. “Party.”

“Uh huh. Where is this party?”

“Trevor Vos’s”

“The guy you have a crush on?”

“MOM!” she screamed believing that her day could not get any worse.  

“I heard you talking to Gizi tonight.”

Dang! She’d narced herself out. She had to ask herself how stupid was she.

“Sorry, Mom. I knew you wouldn’t let me go, so Gizi and I made up a science project.”

“What made you think I wouldn’t let you go?”

For one minute Chloe had hope. Maybe her mom would say yes. Then she remembered her conversation with Gizi not fifteen minutes ago.  

“Because he’s a senior, and his parents aren’t home.”

Ava nodded at her daughter. “Right.” She paused. “And do you think lying to me was the best way to get me to let you go out?”

“No, but—”

“No buts, Chloe. You’re grounded for two weeks, for lying.”

Chloe was gobsmacked. “Two weeks! I didn’t even go to the party!”

“I know, but a lie is a lie. Every action has a reaction.”

She looked at her mother. She couldn’t believe her ears. “But—”

“Buts aren’t going to help you, Chloe. You lied to me, and got caught at it.”

“God!!! You are the worst mother in the world!” Chloe threw back her head in frustration.

“Keep it up, young lady, and I will take your car keys away, as well.”

“Fine!” she said, turning on her heel and heading for her room.

“What about dinner?” Ava called after her.

“Not hungry!” said said as she stomped up to her room.

Three Hours Later

When she was finished crying, she called Gizi. “I’m busted. My mom heard me talking to you. And your mom heard you talking to me. So, I guess you’re not going either.”

There was a pause. “My mom said to make sure that I’m home by eleven.”

“That’s not fair! Why is your mom so much cooler than my mom?” Chloe could feel her tears welling up.  

“I got it! Why don’t you sneak out? We can go to the party and you can get back in, and your mom will never know.”

Chloe actually thought about it, but said no. “I can’t fly—there’s no way to get out of my room—it’s on the second floor.”

“You could climb down across the first floor overhang and jump down.” Chloe knew that her friend was an escape artist.

“No. Just go without me.”

They hung up, and Chloe started to cry again.

Three More Hours Later

There was a knock on Chloe’s door. Her mom poked her head in.

“What?!” snapped a very hungry, very red eyed Chloe.

“Gizi’s here. She wants to know if she can come up. I said you’d come down.”

“Fine.” She said still angry with her mom.  But she was really curious about why Gizi was downstairs. It was almost ten o’clock.

“Hey!” said Gizi, when Chloe came down.

“Why are you here?” asked Chloe. “And not at Trevor’s party having a great time?” She was feeling more than a little sorry for herself.

She looked at Ava, who raised her hands in supplication, and walked back into the family room, to continue reading her book.

“You are not going to believe the shit show that was Trevor’s house! There were like a hundred and fifty people there. Most of them Trevor didn’t know. Someone posted it online, and all these randos arrived. Some of them were from Fairmount High and were looking to cause trouble. There were a few fights. Someone broke the toilet upstairs, and there was water running down the steps.”

“Oh my God! What did Trevor do?

Gizi snorted. “That’s the thing! Trevor was wasted. He threw up on Katie Black. It was gross! One of the neighbours called the cops.” Gizi put her hand into her pocket and pulled out crumpled piece of paper. “Everyone there got one of these—unless they were smart enough to ran away. I did not think to do that. It’s for one-hundred and twenty-five dollars.” She looked at Chloe. “I don’t know where I’m going to get a hundred and twenty-five bucks. I’m probably going to have to go into my birthday money stash. When Willow finds out, she’s going to kill me.” She shook her head. “You’re so lucky your mom didn’t let you go.”

After Gizi left, Chloe went into the family room and told Ava what happened.

“You’re right. The party was a disaster. There was drinking, and fighting, and the cops were called. You’re not the worst mother in the world. I’m sorry.”

Ava looked at Chloe and smiled. She was not going to say I told you so.