The One with the Rude Boyfriend (Chapter 4)

Later, Debra was notified by Travis of the confrontation between him and her friends. He yelled at her about it, making Debra feel lucky as she would rather take in words than actions. Yet for a day, she avoided her friends at school and Travis basically ignored her. She was in a whirlwind of confusion.
Over the weekend, Debra rested in her bungalow all by herself while her dad and her brother went out to go to a baseball game. For a moment, she looked at herself in her bedroom mirror to see the bruise by her eye going away. She liked how blessed she was as she didn't bruise easily and when she did, it would immediately fade. Debra was just relieved to meet no disturbance, giving her time to finally find peace again.
While doing yoga in the living room filled with stripped Japanese music, she heard her cell phone vibrate on the coffee table. She walked over and picked it up: it was a call from Travis. She felt her heartbeat increase. Slowly, she answered it.
"Hello?" she said, trying to hide the anxiety in her voice.
"Hey, babe," Travis' voice poked through the phone. "Are you home?"
"N-No. I'm in Albuquerque."
"Then why do I see you through your window?"
Debra slowly turned her head and looked at the clear window sided by red curtains next to the front door. She saw Travis standing outside with his phone, looking right at Debra.
"Crap," she whispered. She then said into the phone, "Oh, I was just joking. You know how I... joke."
"Let me in."
"Okay."
Travis hung up, letting Debra close her phone. She shut her eyes tight before exhaling and walking towards the door to open it. Travis didn't hesitate to enter in the bungalow; he marched right in before Debra closed the door.
"Why joke with me?" he questioned.
"I thought you loved my little jokes," Debra nervously smiled.
"Not when you're seriously, intentionally lying to me."
"Why would I need to lie?"
Travis stared coldly into Debra's eyes, wiping the smile off her face. Seeing Travis' eyes turn black and hard weakened Debra in a wrong way.
"Hey, do you miss me?" he asked.
Debra nodded.
"Say it."
"I missed you."
"You know I'm never going to leave you, right?"
"Yeah."
Travis smiled but his eyes were still cold. He leaned in and pressed his lips on hers. Since it was happening, Debra tried to seem into it so she wouldn't make her boyfriend any more mad. She rested her hands on his chest while kissing him back. For a good while of kissing, Travis moved his hands down Debra's back into the inside of her leggings. When she felt his freezing hands caressing the skin of her buttocks after moving from just the outside of her underwear, Debra stopped kissing back. She just started resisting Travis, moving her head but he just kissed her cheek.
"Stop, Travis," she nicely ordered. Her hands went from just relaxing on his chest to pushing on his chest. "Stop."
But he continued to kiss and fondle her, making Debra more anxious as he felt like a wall going to crush her.
"Travis, I said stop," she said. She used all her energy to push him off.
That angered Travis, encouraging him to push Debra forcefully against the wall. She arched her back on the wall in pain while gaping silently and scrunching her eyebrows.
"You do not push me like that," Travis crowded her. "Okay, you do not want to go down that road with me."
Debra tried to get the right words out. "Travis, I--"
"When are you going to trust me? You act so pathetic around me and it's ridiculous. Stop holding back."
"You want me to stop holding back?"
"I love you and you need to feel comfortable in your skin."
"Oh, says the guy who beats me when I want to be myself."
Travis stepped forward. "What do you mean by that?"
Debra stepped forward, making him step back. "You know exactly what I mean. I can't do yoga, take naps, listen to the Beatles. I got to act like you so you can feel comfortable. But you want me to feel comfortable in my skin, meaning take off my clothes and give myself to you? A generous human being would be able to understand that I am not ready for that."
"So you don't trust me?"
"Boy, I stopped trusting you ever since your fist connected to my face."
"Debra, I'm trying to make you a better person."
"Oh! Well, guess what, buckaroo: hitting someone doesn't make them a better person. If you truly loved me, you wouldn't try to change me. Especially when there is nothing wrong with me."
"Okay, your friends have totally brainwashed you."
"Brainwashed? I've been like this before I even met all of them. And they never tried to change me because they're accepting, good people, unlike you."
"Calm down, Debra."
"No, I'm not going to calm down. I've been patient for too long and it's time for me to be impatient because I'm not going to let you use me like some punching bag. I might as well pull a Tyson and bite your ear off."
"Oh, really?"
"Really. What is wrong with you?"
"Ask yourself that question. I'm trying to help you so we can be together."
"If you didn't like me then, why even make this work?"
"Don't get smart with me, you slave."
"Well, this is the 2000's. And since there is no whip to crack, I can surely whip you, you cracker."
"Really?"
"Yeah," Debra said before attempting to walk away.
Suddenly, Travis grabbed her wrist and turned her around. He swung his arm to strike her but luckily, she ducked and ran under his arm. When Travis turned around, Debra socked him right in the face. The blow distracted him, allowing Debra to sock him one more time across the cheek. The impact made Travis lose his balance. While he was crouched down, Debra bopped him on the back of his head three times. Travis eventually fell down on his side. Still trying to release all of her energy, Debra kicked him in the gut twice. Finally, he felt what it was like to be hurt and vulnerable.
"I wish I had some cheese," Debra stated, "because that is how I put away my crackers."

The One with the Rude Boyfriend (Chapter 3)

After the "incident", the girls tried to get the truth out of Debra to fully comprehend the situation. However, no matter how many questions they asked her, she always gave them the same answer. It was as if she didn't want help or thought she didn't need it. So the girls came up with a plan to break the two up. When Debra was unaware, Skye stole her old-fashioned cell phone and messaged Travis that Debra wanted to meet up with him after school in Room 230, a choir room, around 4 O'clock. After Travis agreed to do such, the girls anticipated for school to end so they could wait in the empty, dark choir room. Andrea waited by the door when Travis entered.
"Debra?" he called as the door closed behind him. "Debra, are you in here? Don't play with me because remember the last time you--"
He stopped talking when Andrea turned on the lights. She stuck a broom between the handles of the door to keep it closed while Travis stared at the girls. He then looked at Andrea who walked over to her friends.
"Hello, girls," he greeted confused. "What are you doing here? And why is not Debra with you?"
"We wanted to talk to you," answered Madeline.
"About what?"
"Like you don't know," replied Andrea.
"Cool it, Andy," Madeline ordered. "You know we're best friends of Debra, don't you?"
"Of course," answered Travis.
"And a best friend will do anything to protect the one they care for. Yes, I mean anything which could mean everything. So tell me: is there something suspicious going on with you and Debra's relationship?"
"Not at all. Everything we do together is everything that I am proud of."
"So whatever you do with or to her, you are proud of?"
"A hundred percent."
"So you two are happy? Like you can actually look at her and honestly say she's happy?"
"Yes, I'm the best thing that has ever happened to her."
"Oh, she's told you that."
"She should because I am."
"Why do you think that you are?" asked Andrea.
"No, I know I am. Plus, isn't she becoming a better person? You know, a normal person?"
"She was already a normal person," noted Madeline.
"Okay, if you say so."
"I'm not liking your attitude," Skye confessed, rubbing her forehead with her eyes closed.
"Look, I'm just being honest. If she's been telling you that I've been hitting her, that is not true. If she is, I'm going to have a little talk with her."
"Wait, she has never mentioned you hitting her," said Madeline. "What made you even think of that?"
"It was just a thought. And since she's not telling you that, then that means she's happy with our relationship."
"That doesn't mean anything."
"Okay, listen, I'm not going to stand here and let you gross, little pigs interrogate and judge me all day long. So if you don't mind, I'm going to find Debra and tell her all about this because I know that she will do something about this."
"Did he just call us gross pigs?" Lizzie asked softly.
"That's it, Marky Mark," said Andrea, taking off her dangling, gold earrings. "I'm about to make you feel some bad vibrations ."
She dropped her earrings then ran towards Travis. He put out his hands to protect himself but it wasn't enough for Andrea's aggressiveness. She clutched him by the shoulders and pushed him down. She pounded him repeatedly on his back with her fists and elbows. Next, Andrea kneed him in the abdomen a few times before hitting him on the head and neck. Madeline, getting chills just by staring at them, walked up to Andrea and pulled her off of Travis. She carried her over to the girls until Andrea planted her feet on the floor to signal that she would walk and stand by herself.
"Andy, we still need to talk to him," said Madeline. "So we can't kill him yet."
Travis stood up straight from his crouching position. "What? Is that all you got? Bring it on, Jenni Rivera."
Andrea began to run but Madeline quickly held her down. Andrea struggled and kicked high to break out of Madeline's arms but she held tight.
"Boy, I will knock out your teeth and make a necklace," Andrea threatened. "You don't know."
"Ooh, I'm so scared," Travis said in feign.
Andrea jumped up and down a few times but Madeline still held on. Madeline picked her up and carried her towards their friends.
Lizzie took a step forward for her own safety. "How dare you Ray Rice our friend? Sure, she can take a hit but it doesn't mean she deserves it."
"Look, what happens between me and Debra happens between me and Debra," said Travis. "You guys got to mind your own business."
"We're her friends," mentioned Madeline. "It's all of our business."
"But it's not, isn't it? So what are you guys are going to do? Call the police on me? You have no proof. Besides, Debra won't say anything as long as I'm around."
"You won't get away with this," glared Skye.
"I already am."
Travis turned around and walked towards the door. He pulled the broom out the door's handles while the girls watched him, feeling clueless on what to do. Madeline loosened her grip, physically allowing Andrea to free herself. She ran towards Travis who was opening the door to leave but she stopped to pick up the broom from the floor. She kept the door open by pushing it against the wall. Using her free hand, Andrea chucked the broom at Travis who was walking away through the empty hall. He almost tripped when the object hit him on the back of his neck. The impact made him speed up a little bit until he disappeared into the hall.
Andrea closed the door and walked up to her friends, only stopping four feet away from them. "What are we going to do?" she asked.
"I don't know," said Madeline. "But I do know that we're not going to stop."
"Can you actually make a necklace with teeth?" asked Lizzie.

The One with the Rude Boyfriend (Chapter 2)

A couple of days later, the girls found themselves in the cafeteria at school again. They waited -- almost impatiently -- for Debra who was mysteriously missing as she would be quite early for lunchtime.
"Where is she?" questioned Andrea. "She's not usually this late."
"I know," said Madeline. "The bell is about to ring."
"Well, Debra once told me that taking your time leads to success," mentioned Lizzie.
"Well, by Debra taking her time to come to lunch, she's going to be successful at being late," noted Andrea.
"I guess so."
"I have a feeling I know the reason why she's late but I can't clearly explain it," said Skye. "I don't know; I'm worried about her."
"You've never said that you worry about us," reminded Madeline.
"Because I don't like to admit it. But I'm admitting it now: I'm worried about Debra. And I think something is up."
Almost instantly, Debra entered the cafeteria, grabbing her friends' attention. She walked in, holding hands with a Caucasian fellow with a short, brown quiff and big, brown eyes.
"Hey, guys," she quietly greeted. "This is the guy I've told you about: Travis."
"Nice to meet you, girls," he said.
The girls gave him their own greeting at the same time.
"Would you like to have a seat, Travis?" asked Madeline.
"No, thanks," he answered. "I kinda ditched class to meet you all."
"So romantic," Lizzie cooed.
"So Travis, what do you do?" Madeline asked.
Debra started, "Oh, he does--"
"Babe," Travis interrupted her, "let me speak for myself, okay?"
Debra looked away.
Travis began to answer the question: "I'm in journalism so I help write the newspaper."
"Oh, do you know Calvin?" asked Madeline. "He's such a doll. Basically because he can't say no to me."
"I do know Calvin. Sweet kid."
"What's that, Debra?" asked Andrea, pointing by her eye.
"What's what?" Debra inquired.
"That thing by your eye. Is that a bruise?"
Debra covered the side of her face, concealing the purple, bulging spot laying next to her left eye. She peeked at Travis who was already staring at her.
"Oh, it's... it's nothing," she answered.
"Then why are you covering it?" questioned Skye. The cold look on her face never left ever since the couple came in.
Travis looked at Skye. "She fell on a chair. Right, baby?" He then looked at Debra.
"Yeah," Debra agreed in a breath. "Yes, I fell on a chair. Hard. On the face."
Travis put his hand behind Debra, pinching the small of her back. She jumped at the painful sensation but nervously laughed it off.
"You seem tired, Debbie," commented Lizzie.
"Oh, you know, lack of sleep," Debra responded.
"But you take three-hour naps at home after school," mentioned Andrea.
"Well, I took them out of my schedule so I can have time to go out with Travis."
Travis wrapped her arm around Debra. "Isn't she a sweetheart?"
"Yes, she is a sweetheart," agreed Skye with a fake smile. "A sweetie. The sweetest person ever. So sweet."
"Sweeter than sugar," added Lizzie before giggling. "Which is almost impossible but she makes it work."
"Well, I got to go," nodded Travis. "The power of the hall pass is draining. It was nice meeting you all. Debra, baby, do you want to go outside with me?"
"I have no other choice," she answered quietly.
The two walked out of the cafeteria to stand in front of the entrance. The girls looked at them -- depending on from where they were sitting -- through the door and window. They couldn't hear the couple but it seemed like they were arguing. When Travis stepped closer to Debra, she stopped talking as he spoke into her ear. The girls could see a contrast between the couple's eyes while they interacted. Then, Travis leaned in, making Debra lean back. He clutched onto her buttock, agitated, and planted a long kiss on Debra's lips. He released her then walked away. Debra swept her bangs off her face while walking into the cafeteria. But when she looked up at her friends, she felt a shivering feeling inside her body making her halt.
"Are you okay, Debra?" asked Andrea.
Debra opened her mouth but words didn't come out. When she finally spoke, she said, "I got to use the bathroom."
She turned around and sprinted out of the cafeteria.
"Tell me that you guys saw all of that," said Skye.
"Oh, you were right, Skye," Madeline said, sitting in her seat correctly.
"Something is definitely up," shared Andrea.
"I was right to trust my gut," said Skye. "I felt a chill from Debra and I didn't let it go."
"I don't understand what is going on," Lizzie acknowledged.
"Lizzie, let's just say," Madeline started, "Travis is doing to Debra what Ike Turner did to Tina Turner."
"I don't know who those people are."
"Okay, what about Chris Brown and Rihanna?"
"Oh, I love them."
"Ray Rice and his wife."
Lizzie stood up in a crooked manner. "Travis is what?!" she snapped.

The One with the Rude Boyfriend (Chapter 1)

"Did you know if you eat something piece by piece," started Madeline, tearing a bit of her sandwich, "it can help you lose weight?"
"Are you insinuating that we're fat?" asked Skye.
"No, it's just a fact."
"That we need to lose weight," added Andrea.
"Now don't turn this on me. You guys half of the time don't even eat lunch."
"I once saw three flies land on somebody's pizza," confessed Lizzie. "That made me not want to touch school lunch ever again."
"Well, do what I do: make yourself a lunch. Because the only food you can trust is the food inside your refrigerator."
"Really? Then we can never go to the restaurants ever again."
"Hey, if the food at a restaurant killed people, then the restaurant would get shut down," noted Andrea.
"Okay, so no new restaurants."
"You know what?" Skye asked. "I don't need lunch at all. I do need to lose a couple of pounds; I do weigh as much as a bowl."
Andrea snickered. "You shouldn't try to lose any weight, Skye. I think your boyfriend likes you just the way you are and you know what they say: 'Boys like a little more booty to hold at night'."
"'They' as in Meghan Trainor," Madeline noted.
Skye tilted her head. "I do not have a boyfriend."
Andrea softly, but audibly, banged on the table. "When are you going to admit that you have a boyfriend?"
"Until someone cuts off my tongue."
"You know, I do have a pair of scissors in my locker," mentioned Lizzie.
"Jeffrey likes you and you said you really liked him," Andrea reminded. "Why is he not your boyfriend?"
"Because we haven't discussed that yet," answered Skye.
"Then discuss it."
"It's not that easy."
"It actually is," said Madeline. "You just make it look hard."
"Look, if Jeffrey feels the same way that you guys do, he'll say something."
"He won't say something; he'll say nothing. Jeffrey is a shy guy; he only talks when you talk."
"I'm not just gonna pressure him."
"Skye, if you like him, just take him. You can't just live fifty years being with him without sealing a deal. He might never say anything. That doesn't mean he's not feeling it. Give him what you want because you two want the same thing, there you go. You can't just leave him hanging. Let's talk to Lizzie. Lizzie?"
"Hmm?" she hummed.
"How long have you known Warren?"
"About a couple of months."
"And how long have you dated him?"
"Three quarters of those couple of months."
"And have you sealed the deal?"
"Girl, I didn't just seal the deal; I locked it up in a package."
Madeline tittered. "And do you regret it?"
"No, but I regret saying that last line because I don't know what that meant."
"See, Skye? Lizzie has a boyfriend and she's still the same. Still the same."
"And that would apply to all of you?" questioned Skye.
"Of course. I don't have a boyfriend but when I meet the one, it's a promise that I will lock him down."
"Same with me," agreed Andrea. "When I want someone, I take him because sabes que, life is too short for someone to take all the candy."
The girls then looked at Debra, who was extremely quiet.
"Debbie, do you want to add anything?" asked Madeline.
Debra looked at her friends with zigzag eyes. "No thanks," she replied quietly.
"What's wrong, Debbie?" asked Lizzie.
"And don't lie to us because I can smell a liar," said Madeline. "Trust me, I'm a liar."
Debra looked down then shrugged her shoulders. "I kinda have a boyfriend."
"Ooh!" uttered Andrea.
"And you never mentioned him?" asked Madeline.
"I was waiting for the right time," Debra responded.
"There's no wrong time to tell your girlfriends you have a boyfriend," said Andrea.
"What's his name?" asked Lizzie.
"Travis," answered Debra.
"Does he go here?" Madeline then asked.
"Yeah."
"I can't wait to meet him," admitted Andrea. "Can we meet him?"
"I-- I can try."
"Yay!" Lizzie clapped.
The girls smiled, with Debra half-smiling and Skye licking her teeth with her mouth closed.
"I would declare a toast," started Madeline, "but you girls don't eat lunch so I'm going to toast myself."

Oh, Baby (Chapter 5)

The next morning, Lizzie did what she said and found a quiet way to sneak inside her house into her bedroom to get her red backpack. She looked around the room as if it seemed different to her, even though it had been unfazed. She snuck out without her parents even turning their heads to a noise. She pulled the car keys out of bag and used to them to drive her car to school. The missing car and the empty parking space later caught the parents' attention.
Later that day, after school, instead of driving to Debra's house, she drove to her own house. During school, she took her time to think about what Debra said to her. Lizzie slowly realized that she was wrong and taking everything the wrong way. She entered her home, with her mandatory clothing on, and walked in to spot her poker-faced mother sitting on the couch. Of course, her demeanor changed when she saw Lizzie come in.
"Hi, Elizabeth," her mother greeted.
"Hi, Marie... -abeth," Lizzie responded.
"I see that you finally decided to come home."
"Yeah, I couldn't stay away."
"Well, I was worried sick about you."
"I told you I went to a friend's house."
"But I don't know which friend."
"I don't think you even know any of my friends' names."
"Of course I do. There's... Margaret and Amanda... and Deirdre and... Skinny."
Lizzie stared. "Close enough."
"But I'm your mother; it's my job to worry."
"Mom, you have to understand that I was angry. I was looking in one direction while you were looking in the other. Ha, One Direction."
"I'm sorry, Lizzie; I was being selfish. I can't expect you to accept another person in your life just because me and your father are ready to."
"No, mom, don't be sorry. I was being selfish. You guys should have as many children as you want. Boy, that would be a lot of sex."
"Please stop saying 'sex'."
"What do you want me to say?"
"I don't know. 'Snickerdoodling'?"
"Fine. Mom, you and dad should snickerdoodle all you want."
"You know what? I don't like that word either."
"Okay. Irregardless, I shouldn't have taken the news the way that I did. You weren't selfish; you were actually thinking about me. And the more that I thought about having a baby brother... the more excited I became. I'm ready."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, mom. I'm becoming an adult and I need to behave more like one. To think about it, I already am because I'm using hard words like 'irregardless'."
Lizzie's mother laughed. "I'm so happy you feel this way."
"And I'm so happy that we're having a baby. I love you, mom."
Her mother grinned then stood up. She leaped over to Lizzie and squeezed her tight.
"And since I'm becoming an adult, maybe you can let me wear what I want."
"Not going to happen," the mother said before releasing.
"Phooey."
"And being an adult doesn't mean you can snickerdoodle."
"I know. I thought you didn't like that word."
"Meh."
"What if we say 'jumping on the kayak'?"
"No, how about 'tally-whacking'?"
"What about 'pickle-tweezing'?"

Oh, Baby (Chapter 4)

After storming out of the baby store, Lizzie called all of her best friends and told them what happened. She asked them if she can be able to stay over their homes for a long while and all of them disapproved (politely) except for Debra. She told Lizzie that her father and brother were fine with having her stay over a couple of days. Lizzie tried to walk towards her bungalow until Debra picked her up on her tandem bike.
When night came, Debra loaned Lizzie some pajamas and made her sleep in a sleeping bag on the floor in front of the bed. Debra, of course, rested under the bright colored sheets of her own bed.
"How are you going to go to school without your supplies?" Debra asked, looking at the ceiling.
"Oh, I'm going to school with my supplies," answered Lizzie, looking at the ceiling as well. "I'm just gonna have to sneak into my house to get my backpack."
"How are you going to do that?"
"It's easy; my house is very simple to break into."
"That's not something to be proud of."
"On certain days, I'm not."
"Do you think you'll get away with it?"
"Debbie, if I can sneak out of the house with the clothes I usually wear, I can sneak into the house to get a bag."
"Just be careful."
"I'll try even though I won't. But I just can't face my parents."
"Why are you so mad at them?"
"Because they had sex without protection. They're adults; they should know better."
"What if they deliberately wanted a baby?"
"Then... that makes me even more mad at them! Why would they need more children? Especially after seventeen years of having just one? And seventeen years is a long time; that's like a month in Japan."
"Who told you that?"
"I can't remember."
"Because nobody told you?"
"Probably."
"Lizzie, just because your parents want another child doesn't mean they're tired of you."
"How do you know?"
"Because I have a brother. After he was born, my parents treated me and him with an equal amount of love."
"Well, you're my age and your brother is eleven. There's not much an age difference."
"Trust me, there is. When my brother was born, I started to realize that I had to grow up because I knew one day, my parents were going to need my help more than ever. I guess you can say that I sorta raised my brother a bit."
"That's weird."
"It's kind of not. My parents would risk it all to keep him safe and growing and so would I. We share DNA so I can see me in him sometimes. He's one of the best things that ever happened to me. When I can't hang out with you or the girls, I hang out with him and it's special. I wouldn't ask for a different life. Of course, there are days where he 'hates' me but without those days, I can never appreciate the good. My parents didn't have Leroy for them; they had him for me."
Lizzie wiped the edge of her eye. Hearing that speech sent a different feeling inside her body. "That's touching, Debra. A tear almost came out of my eye."
"I'm sorry."
"It's okay. And Debra?"
"Yes?"
"I'm still gonna sneak into my house tomorrow morning."
Debra sighed. "That's your choice, Liz'." She reached over to face the lit candles on her dresser. She blew them all out, eliminating the last of light inside the room. She laid down and closed her eyes. "Bonum nocte," she uttered.
"'Mama say, mama saw' to you, too."

Oh, Baby (Chapter 3)

In the middle of the week, Lizzie's parents decided to take her to a strip mall and visit a baby store. Lizzie was still feeling anxious about the whole brother/sister thing. She had been an only child for a long time that she got used to her lifestyle. But she tried to fake it for as long as she could until a brand new day came.
Lizzie's mother pulled a blue onesie off its rack. "This one is cute," she said, showing the design. "It has a monkey on it."
"Children do love monkeys," said Lizzie.
Her mother put the onesie back on the rack and pulled off another one. "Oh, what about this one? It has hearts surrounding a heart."
"Babies love hearts, too."
"Joseph, do you see anything?"
Lizzie's father spun around slowly, scanning the whole store. "Nothing that my son will want to wear."
"Joseph, it's a baby. It doesn't know what it wants."
"It's a boy?" asked Lizzie.
"Yeah."
"How do you know? Did you do it standing up?"
"Where did you-- Never mind. Your father and I went to get a sonogram last month."
"Last month?"
Her mother paused. "Did I say 'last month'? I meant 'last week'."
"Oh, did it feel like a really long week? You know, because you're pregnant?"
"Yes. Yes, it did."
"But I don't understand. If you had the child for a week, how can a doctor give you a hologram?"
"Sonogram."
"Yeah, hologram."
"Sweetie, I think we should just tell her," recommended the father.
"Tell me what? That you're not having a baby? Because if you were wrong, then I totally understand."
"No, it's not that," her mother sighed.
"Oh." Lizzie crossed her arms.  "Then what?"
Her mother bit her lip. "I haven't been pregnant for a week. I've been pregnant for four months."
"Four months?"
"Or three. Whichever's the shortest."
"You've been pregnant for four months and you knew about it and you guys didn't tell me?"
"I guess so."
"For all this time, I thought you were just getting fat."
"Well, she's not," responded the dad. "But good excuse, right?"
"Oh, my goodness. So since you're having a baby, you're just going to lie to me every day."
"No, Elizabeth," said her mom. "That's not true."
"Oh, don't call me by my full first name. Ever since you told me I'm having a brother or whatever, my life felt like it's been changing. It's been only a week and I feel like my life is changing. Like right before my eyes. Can't you understand how that makes me feel?"
"You said you were happy for me."
"Well, I lied. I'm not happy; I don't think I can actually be physically happy about this. This is a baby: a small, clueless, helpless being that you two are going to pay attention to more than you will with me."
"Well, it is a baby, Lizzie, but--"
"I know and I can't accept that. I was your only priority but sooner or later, I'm going to be number two like doo-doo."
"You won't be doo-doo."
"Doo-doo?" the father inquired.
"You know what?" asked Lizzie. "I'm going to make like doo-doo and flush."
"What does that mean?" questioned her mother.
"It means I'm leaving. I'm going to stay at a friend's house and possibly stay there forever. Because I'm not ready for you guys to stop paying attention to me. Actually, you guys don't pay me any attention anyway so it doesn't even matter."
Lizzie turned her whole body and marched across the store then exited. Lizzie's father walked up to her teary-eyed mother and wrapped his arm around her shoulders to calm her down before she could even break down.