With Friends Like These Read Online Free PDF Page B

to.
    “Look, Camille, my mom needs the phone, but I really want to take you out. I mean, I know we’re gonna do the drive-in thing, but I mean before then. We could like go to TGI Friday’s or something. How does that sound?”
    “Sounds like a plan,” I replied.
    “You wanna go tomorrow?” he asked.
    I bit my lip. “Dang, I can’t. We’re having a sleepover at Alexis’s.”
    “So, we’ll go tonight. I’ll pick you up around six. Where do you live?”
    I sat up in the bed. “Today?”
    He laughed. “What better time than the present? Is that cool with you?”
    I glanced over at the digital clock on my nightstand. It was already three o’clock. Then there was my mother to deal with. She wasn’t going to be happy about me going out with someone she didn’t know. But shoot, if I didn’t go tonight, I’d have to wait till next week. “Why don’t I just meet you at six at the restaurant?”
    “What, you’re ashamed of me?” he joked.
    “Boy, please,” I laughed. “It’s just my mom isn’t even going to be feeling me going out with a stranger.”
    “I’m not a stranger.”
    “You know what I mean.”
    He laughed. “I know. That’s cool. I’ll meet you at six at the Friday’s by First Colony Mall.”
    We said our good-byes, and I sat in bed wondering what I would say to my mother. I had really tried to get away from lying to her, but I didn’t see any other way out of it.
    I jumped up from my bed and made my way down the hall to my mother’s bedroom. I softly knocked on her door.
    “Hey, Ma,” I said as I eased into the room. She was sitting in her chaise lounge with her reading glasses on, her head buried deep in her Bible.
    “Hello, sweetheart,” she said, looking up at me. “I thought you were taking a nap.”
    I walked over to her bed. “Nah, just in my room hanging out.”
    She smiled at me, and I felt a twinge of guilt about the lie that was about to come out of my mouth. Me and my mom had been through some serious drama over the past year, and we were finally getting back on track. I hated to mess all that up by lying to her, but I knew my mother. No way would she let me go out with a boy she’d never even heard me talk about.
    I took a deep breath. “Hey, we’re going to have a sleepover at Alexis’s tonight.”
    “I thought the sleepover was tomorrow night,” my mother said as she removed her glasses.
    “Yeah, but we have another community service project we need to work out all the details for, and tomorrow is all for the kids we’re mentoring,” I lied. I had already figured it out. I would hang out with Walter until he had to go, then I’d come home and tell my mother that I wasn’t feeling good and had to come home.
    “Oh, well, then you have fun,” she said.
    I flashed a smile and headed toward the door. I stopped just before I left and turned to my mother. “I’m going to leave around five-thirty, if that’s okay.”
    My mother nodded. “Yes, sweetheart. You have fun and remember, I love you.”
    I swear, my mother gave me this sweet look that made me want to go running back into her room, begging her to forgive me for lying. But images of Walter kept me from coming clean.
    I swallowed, waved to my mom and said, “I love you, too. I’ll be careful.” Then I headed to my room to start getting ready for my date.

7
Camille
    I was trying my best not to get impatient while Walter stood yapping on his cell phone.
    “Hey, man, if my mom or dad calls, just tell them I’m in the bathroom or something. Yeah, man, that’s all I need you to do. I’ll be there,” he said.
    We had met in the parking lot of TGI Friday’s. I wasn’t gon’ interrupt, but I could tell that just like me, he had to lie to his folks to see me. I wish parents understood that telling us no only makes us want to see each other even more.
    “Nah, I don’t think they’re gonna call, I’m just saying if they do, that’s all.” Walter shook his head as if his friend could see him.