that messed up or what?”
I shook my head. “You love them both, even with your mom’s weird quirks. It makes perfect sense. And maybe your mom’s not as tightly wound as we think she is.”
That’s when I told her about the conversation I’d had with her mother.
“You want weird,” I said as I finished up, “how’s that?” Maxine shook her head. “I know exactly what’s going on. It’s because before I left I told her that I was thinking of living with Dad for my final year.”
“But this checking-up-on-me business happened last year, not this summer.”
“So?”
“So her deciding to let us be friends,” I said, “even when she knew my history, happened long before you told her that.”
Maxine looked as puzzled as I’d been that day in the cafe.
“God, you’re right,” she said. “That is weird. Are you sure it was my mom?”
I nodded. “Unless she’s got an identical, nonevil twin.”
“So you can just come over looking however you want?”
“Apparently. But I won’t. I mean, I won’t be all sucky either, but, you know.” I gave her a considering look. “So she didn’t say anything to you when you got back?”
Maxine shook her head.
“Because I told her I’d tell you.”
“I wonder what this means for me?” she said. “Does it mean I can start dressing the way I want and seeing boys and stuff?”
“Only one way to find out.”
I could see the uneasiness rise in her, and she got this shy, nervous look that was so Maxine.
“Oh, I don’t know ...”
“This from the popular beach bunny of Fort Lauderdale?”
“It’s just too strange. Plus, it really makes me kind of mad.”
For Maxine to say she was kind of mad meant that she was furious.
“Don’t go all postal on her,” I said.
“But all these years ... obviously she knew she was messing up, so why couldn’t she just let me be me? I mean, you said she was seeing a therapist about it.”
“You didn’t know that either?”
“I knew she was seeing a therapist, but I thought it was about the breakup with Dad.” She sighed. “How hard would it have been for her to cut her daughter some slack?”
“Obviously, way hard.”
“I guess.” She gave me an unhappy look. “What am I going to do about this? Just walking back into the apartment with her there is going to be so weird, knowing what I know.”
“You want weird?” I asked. “I’ve got way more weird for you.”
And then I told her about finally meeting Adrian, how I’d talked to him three or four times now since she’d been gone. That was enough to put the whole problem with her mother on the back burner.
“Oh, my god! You really met Ghost?”
“Well, it’s not so exciting when you get past the ghost part.”
“That’s easy for you to say.”
“No, it’s true. You know what he looks like, right?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Well, that’s pretty much what you get. He’s basically just this nerdy guy—smart, nice enough, but he talks like someone who’s read way too many books and doesn’t have any friends. The ghostliness is about all he’s got going for him.”
Typically, Maxine ignored that. “I think he’s got a crush on you. Why else would he have been checking you out all year?”
I laughed. “The crush is big-time. But I don’t know what he thinks’ll come of it. I mean, he’s dead. We couldn’t even touch each other.”
“Would you want to?”
“Not really.”
“Tell me more about the fairies,” Maxine said.
I shrugged. “What’s to tell? I’ve never seen any, though he pretends to. Personally, I think all this talk about fairies and crap—that’s just covering up how messed up he was when he was alive. I’ll bet he stepped off the roof all on his own, and then, when he found he was still stuck here, he made up a story about how fairies had tricked him into thinking he could fly.”
“You think he just made it up?”
“Well, duh, of course. Though you’d think he’d come up with something more
I shook my head. “You love them both, even with your mom’s weird quirks. It makes perfect sense. And maybe your mom’s not as tightly wound as we think she is.”
That’s when I told her about the conversation I’d had with her mother.
“You want weird,” I said as I finished up, “how’s that?” Maxine shook her head. “I know exactly what’s going on. It’s because before I left I told her that I was thinking of living with Dad for my final year.”
“But this checking-up-on-me business happened last year, not this summer.”
“So?”
“So her deciding to let us be friends,” I said, “even when she knew my history, happened long before you told her that.”
Maxine looked as puzzled as I’d been that day in the cafe.
“God, you’re right,” she said. “That is weird. Are you sure it was my mom?”
I nodded. “Unless she’s got an identical, nonevil twin.”
“So you can just come over looking however you want?”
“Apparently. But I won’t. I mean, I won’t be all sucky either, but, you know.” I gave her a considering look. “So she didn’t say anything to you when you got back?”
Maxine shook her head.
“Because I told her I’d tell you.”
“I wonder what this means for me?” she said. “Does it mean I can start dressing the way I want and seeing boys and stuff?”
“Only one way to find out.”
I could see the uneasiness rise in her, and she got this shy, nervous look that was so Maxine.
“Oh, I don’t know ...”
“This from the popular beach bunny of Fort Lauderdale?”
“It’s just too strange. Plus, it really makes me kind of mad.”
For Maxine to say she was kind of mad meant that she was furious.
“Don’t go all postal on her,” I said.
“But all these years ... obviously she knew she was messing up, so why couldn’t she just let me be me? I mean, you said she was seeing a therapist about it.”
“You didn’t know that either?”
“I knew she was seeing a therapist, but I thought it was about the breakup with Dad.” She sighed. “How hard would it have been for her to cut her daughter some slack?”
“Obviously, way hard.”
“I guess.” She gave me an unhappy look. “What am I going to do about this? Just walking back into the apartment with her there is going to be so weird, knowing what I know.”
“You want weird?” I asked. “I’ve got way more weird for you.”
And then I told her about finally meeting Adrian, how I’d talked to him three or four times now since she’d been gone. That was enough to put the whole problem with her mother on the back burner.
“Oh, my god! You really met Ghost?”
“Well, it’s not so exciting when you get past the ghost part.”
“That’s easy for you to say.”
“No, it’s true. You know what he looks like, right?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Well, that’s pretty much what you get. He’s basically just this nerdy guy—smart, nice enough, but he talks like someone who’s read way too many books and doesn’t have any friends. The ghostliness is about all he’s got going for him.”
Typically, Maxine ignored that. “I think he’s got a crush on you. Why else would he have been checking you out all year?”
I laughed. “The crush is big-time. But I don’t know what he thinks’ll come of it. I mean, he’s dead. We couldn’t even touch each other.”
“Would you want to?”
“Not really.”
“Tell me more about the fairies,” Maxine said.
I shrugged. “What’s to tell? I’ve never seen any, though he pretends to. Personally, I think all this talk about fairies and crap—that’s just covering up how messed up he was when he was alive. I’ll bet he stepped off the roof all on his own, and then, when he found he was still stuck here, he made up a story about how fairies had tricked him into thinking he could fly.”
“You think he just made it up?”
“Well, duh, of course. Though you’d think he’d come up with something more
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