What I've Done (8 page)

Svetlana laughs again, sounding delighted. I can see in her eyes that she already adores my little sister almost as much as I do.

“It’s like a little pool, Barbie,” I tell her. “You wear your swimsuit in it.”

“We have cover locked for kids but I show Tasha where to find key.” Svetlana says. She taps Rose lightly on the nose. “You girls are hungry, yes?”

Rose looks to me with questioning eyes and I nod my approval.

“Yes, please,” Rose answers.

Whenever we had spent a meal away from Gabe in the past week the food portions had become smaller and smaller. I was to the point where I basically quit eating unless Gabe brought us something. As always, my priority was to make sure my sister was well fed and there was very little money left to make it happen.

Svetlana grins at Rose’s polite answer. “I will make sandwich for you.”

My stomach growls angrily as we follow her back into the house where she begins opening cupboards. I settle Rose on a stool at the massive marble island stretching through the kitchen before asking Svetlana how I can help.

“You crack egg,” she says, handing me a metal bowl. I nod and walk over to the large stainless steel refrigerator, yanking on the cool handle and peering inside. I find the carton of eggs and place them on the countertop beside Svetlana.

“You girls go to school tomorrow. Your school is very nice I think.” She takes the bowl from me once I have cracked the egg and begins mixing the other ingredients.

Tears came to my eyes when we were promised by Melissa, our new social worker, that she would get us into school right away. I decided with little deliberation that being placed in foster care this time wasn’t going to be nearly as bad as I had feared. We have a nice home to sleep in, food to eat, a way to attend school and even brand new clothes Melissa had taken us shopping for on our way here.

I have worried so many times that Rose won’t grow up to be a well-adjusted adult. Maybe without our mother’s addictions controlling our lives and living in a place like this I will finally be able to give my little sister the normal life that she deserves. Her birthday is not long after mine, and I vow to give her a real birthday party this year, with cake, streamers and party hats. I can imagine how excited she will be if we can even have her party on the beach in the backyard of this awesome house.

But if our true identities are discovered they may decide to ship us back to Minnesota and this fantasy life will be all over with. Once I do turn eighteen they aren’t going to hand Rose over to me without a job or a place to live. I have been in the system long enough to know how everything works and I had even discussed my future options once with our last case worker.

“Can I go to the beach later?” I ask Svetlana cautiously.

She turns to me with a smile. “We all go to the beach later, yes?”

I give her what I hope to be a convincing smile. “Actually, I was hoping to go alone, to meet with a friend.”

Rose sits higher in her seat. “Gabe?”

“Yeah,” I answer. I hope he will have some ideas where I can get a job. Without any identification or job history I know it will not be easy.

Svetlana’s look turns skeptical. “I think maybe you don’t run around with boy.”

One serious flaw in this arrangement is going to be the tight supervision and having to ask permission to do everything short of sneezing. It is quite the reverse of what I am used to, especially after spending the past few weeks out here on our own.

“Am I going to Westerville?” I ask, knowing we are probably still in the same school district. She nods while watching me closely. “Gabe goes there, too. I was kind of hoping he could at least show me where the school is. You know, so I’m not so nervous about tomorrow.”

Svetlana stops stirring the egg mixture and sighs. “Okay, you go with boy. I give you two hours and you come back. Deal?” She flashes a bright smile and I nod.

As I finish helping our kind, new foster mother prepare our first home cooked meal in months, I can only hope her husband is this friendly.

* * *

I am sitting on the beach for less than ten minutes, playing with the cell phone Svetlana let me use, when the sun burns brightly. I have to cover my face from the flare. When I bring my hand down Gabe appears in a dark blue polo shirt, plaid white and gray shorts and the same worn sandals he has worn nearly every day. His brilliant smile returns when he spots me. I can’t help but return his upbeat mood with an equally large smile.

“Hey!” He beams with radiance. “You look beautiful again today.”

“Thanks,” I reply. I look down when the annoying heat creeps into my cheeks. The new dusty rose colored t-shirt and dark capris I wear had been in a popular store at the mall. It was a totally new experience for both Rose and me to be allowed to pick brand new clothing out with Melissa. I had gone along with my friend Tasha a few times to shop in the past, but never had the money to actually buy anything I wanted.

By habit I had been modest with Melissa in choosing things that weren’t overly expensive but still fashionable. I am growing accustomed to my newly colored hair and have pulled it high on top of my head in a sloppy bun.

“What happened to you this morning?” Gabe asks.

“I’m sorry again that we weren’t able to meet you,” I say. “I feel bad that you went to the trouble of buying breakfast and meeting us here.”

He shrugs and plops down onto the sand beside me. “It didn’t go to waste. I just hope everything is okay at home.” My body sizzles in response to his being so close.

The ocean is still impressive again today despite the dark and direful clouds that threaten a possible rain shower. Only a few locals exercise along the shore, however, so I guess the impending storm to be keeping most people away. The sky swarms with sea gulls, their cries louder each time they skim the water’s surface in search of food. A light breeze brings a strong drift of the ocean’s scent our way and I inhale deeply-it is becoming my new favorite smell.

“You’re still enjoying it out here?” Gabe asks, watching me take everything in.

He is grinning at me in a tantalizing kind of way. He is certainly one of the most chipper people I have ever met and it has been awhile since I was last allowed to be happy, so it is kind of nice.

I nod. “I totally love it. I can see us being happy here.”

I have lied to Gabe about many things, but this is not one of them. I really love it here and hope to find a way we can stay. Being placed in foster care is really proving to be the best thing that could have happened to us.

“I’m glad,” Gabe says. “Whatever it takes to see you smile like that is good with me.” He pushes on my leg with his own and grins. We watch the gray clouds roll by and I wonder if they are about to open and dump on us. “Since your sister ended stayed home with your parents, I thought maybe today I could give you some of those surf lessons I promised, if you’re up for it. These clouds should be moving out before long.”

There is a break of clouds off to the left, but his reminder that we are finally alone gives me an idea. I can almost feel an actual light bulb flickering on somewhere in my mind. “Actually, I was hoping to go job hunting this afternoon. My parents said I need the responsibility or something like that. Do you know of anywhere that may possibly be hiring or where any of the better jobs may be?”

I don’t know if Svetlana will even allow me to have a job, but I am going to have to figure out a way to make it work.

“My buddy owns a surf shop just down the beach. I’m guessing there is some kind of opening for you there. You can pick out a board to use there, too.”

His eyes dance with mischief as he waits for me to answer. I have never once dreamed I would be learning to surf. I didn’t even think I would ever see the ocean in my lifetime. For whatever reason my mother had chosen to bring us to California, I would be eternally grateful to her. Her final decision to move us again hadn’t been so horrific in the end.

“I may have to take a rain check on surfing lessons for today. I have to be back in a couple of hours since we have school tomorrow and everything.”

“Another time then.”

He springs onto his feet and holds his hand out for me. I take it shyly, anticipating the jolt that I will feel when we touch and I am pleased when it shoots through me. He pulls me up in one swift movement and we stand looking at each other for a minute, our hands still together. I take my hand from his when I become flustered.

We see many surf shops of different sizes on our journey, but Gabe leads me to a very large, unique store standing between a small record store and cheap looking souvenir shop. A sign painted in whimsical, rainbow-colored letters reads “Tropical Pipedream.” We step inside and I am instantly drawn to a large wall filled from top to bottom with brightly colored surf boards. It is so striking it can almost be considered a work of art.

“Gabe!” a woman’s voice that is warm and soft calls out in greeting. “
Aloha
!”

I jerk my attention away from the wall in time to see Gabe embrace a curvaceous, dark-haired young woman. She wears an ill-fitting pair of cut-off jean shorts that show off her long, tanned legs and a bright blue bikini top that leaves very little to the imagination. Her round and soft face is framed by her dark curls falling all around it. Her bright smile and the sparkle in her eyes make her appear to be quite friendly, but I am disappointed when Gabe kisses her cheek.

“Kalia, this is my friend Tasha,” he tells the woman, beaming at me as if he is proud of himself for finding me.

“
Aloha
, Tasha! It is so nice to finally meet you,” she says to me.

I feel dwarfed standing next to the exquisite woman who is equal to Gabe in height. I take her slender hand when she offers it. Her smile is equally as dazzling as Gabe’s.

“Since Tasha just moved to town I promised her I would give her surfing lessons,” Gabe explains. “I thought you wouldn’t mind if we borrowed one of your boards some afternoon.”

“You know you’re welcome to use my boards anytime,” she tells him, bumping his hip with her own. Gabe puts his arm around her little waist that is likely half the size of my own. I wonder just how friendly Gabe and this woman are. By the way they are touching I fear my chances of any kind of relationship with him have just plummeted.

“Tasha is looking for a job, too,” Gabe says. “Any chance you’re hiring right now?”

It occurs to me that this woman is the “buddy” Gabe had been referring to. There is a large, bald man with multiple tattoos behind the register helping a female customer—I had immediately assumed he was the friend Gabe was referring to.

I begin to ramble. “Never hurts to have extra spending money, right? Plus my parents would love any excuse to get me out of the house. I don’t know anything about surfing but I’m a fast learner.”

Kalia’s smile widens. “As a matter of fact, I have been meaning to put an ad in the paper for extra help.” She turns to Gabe. “I’m guessing you think she would be worthy of working for me?”

Gabe’s eyes hold mine until he winks. “Most definitely.”

“Well any friend of Gabe’s is good enough for me. I guess you found yourself a job, Tasha!” She throws her hands up by her sides in excitement. “When can you start?”

“I have school tomorrow but maybe I can come in afterwards.”

I don’t even bother asking how much she will pay. It is a job for the time being, which translates into one step closer in finding a way to get Rose out of foster care one day. If I were to apply anywhere else it is unlikely they would hire me without any identification or job history.

“That will be perfect,” she says. “You better go pick out a swimsuit to wear tomorrow. I make my staff wear merchandise so the customers can see it in action.” She winks and again pushes Gabe with her hip. He chuckles along with her.

“Wow, thanks,” I say, eyeing the large racks totally packed with swimwear. The thought of parading around in something skimpy like Kalia is wearing, especially when it is so cold out, makes me blush again.

“Go ahead!” Kalia urges. “Don’t worry about the price. I want my employees to look their best when working.”

The place could almost be considered a clothing store just as much as it is a surf shop—from a quick glance around I see rows of sandals and shorts, tank tops, hats and sunglasses. I walk over to the women’s swimwear area and begin perusing through the selections. The price tags reveal the suits to be worth more than what I spent on our electrical bill every month and a thrill runs through me at the rare opportunity to wear something so pricey.

Gabe and Kalia speak in hushed voices behind me and I scold myself when I feel a twang of jealousy. I have just met Gabe and he has never made any indication that he is romantically interested in me. The spark I feel between us could all be in my own head.

A few minutes later I decide on a modest, pink and white striped bikini with black ties on the sides and at the neck. It is bright and cute, plus I know my own curves and flat stomach are at least vivacious enough to pull it off. When I bring the suit to the counter, the conversation between Gabe and Kalia abruptly ends, doing nothing to quiet my suspicions of their relationship.

“Fabulous!” Kalia exclaims, bringing her hands together and holding them at her mouth. “You will look totally adorable in this.”

“You
will
be stunning,” Gabe agrees. There is a spark of what I think to be anticipation in his eyes, so maybe he
is
interested in me after all. Again I am reminded how everything has been going so well since my mother’s death. It almost seems too good to be true.

We spend a short amount of time at Kalia’s shop where she shows me how to work the register and introduces me to one of my new co-workers, Kevin, the tattooed man I had seen behind the register earlier. When my short orientation is over, Gabe and I go across the street to grab milkshakes from a greasy hamburger stand.

Svetlana sends me a text while we are on the beach finishing our delicious treats:

EVERYTHING OKAY?