Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 88742 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 444(@200wpm)___ 355(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88742 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 444(@200wpm)___ 355(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
“I will, Mom. I promise.”
“Oh! I don’t want to forget. Wait right here.” She leaves me standing and goes off to the kitchen. She comes back with a plastic-wrapped plate of cookies. “I made these for you two to share on your sleepover. You girls need to have a good time. You’re always working so hard.”
I take the plate, getting a whiff of chocolatey goodness. My mother, not to exaggerate or even sound biased, is one of the best bakers in the world. Whenever she bakes something in that oven, I know that it is going to be absolutely delicious.
“Thanks so much. Mamie is going to love these. We are going to eat every last crumb off this plate. I have to get going, or I’m going to be late. Mamie is expecting me soon.”
“Okay, okay. Get going and have a fun time. Bye, honey.”
I leave the house and climb into my car. Once I’m inside, I dial my best friend immediately, putting her on my car’s speaker.
“Tammy! Are you here?”
“Not yet, but I’m on my way! I can’t wait to spend tonight with you!”
“Yes! We’re going to eat ice cream, watch rom coms, and talk about boys. It’ll be epic!” That sounds like the perfect night. I’m so happy Mamie agreed to let me stay over. An entire weekend would be nice as well, but one day with my best friend and the other with the guy I’m seeing is just right for me.
“My mom also baked us some cookies, so I hope you have all of the milk we’ll need for dunking.”
“Oh, you bet your sweet ass I do. I also got your favorite flavor of ice cream and my favorite, so we’ll both have our own cartons to eat out of. I’ve done a bit of planning, if I do say so myself.”
“Perfect!” I giggle. “I should be there in half an hour. Get ready for an epic best friend sleepover.”
“See you soon, babe!” Mamie hangs up, and I turn on the radio for my drive.
It has been a while since Mamie and I have hung out. I got so wrapped up in getting my audition tape done that I didn’t hang out with anyone really. And then Brick came along. I can’t wait to have gal talk and just be around her.
I start singing along to the song that’s playing; I’m in such a joyful mood. I’m so excited for this weekend!
I pull into the parking lot to Mamie’s apartment complex and find the closest parking spot to her building that I can. Then I grab my bag before heading inside. She buzzes me up, and when I get to her floor, Mamie is waiting for me, standing in the doorway.
“Tammy, baby! You made it!” she yells so loudly, I’m sure her neighbors are a bit annoyed. But I don’t care because I’m about to spend an amazing night with my best friend.
She rushes out and draws me into a huge hug, almost squeezing the life out of me.
“Mamie, you’re going to choke me out,” I strain. That doesn’t stop her; instead, she hugs me even tighter.
“If I kill you with my hug, then that would be a great way to go, babe,” she comments. She doesn’t let go of me, keeping us in the hallway for a while. I start to wonder if this is her entire plan for the night.
“Don’t you want to go inside?” I ask. Mamie nods, her cheek rubbing against mine. Instead of letting me go, she starts moving backward toward her door, taking me with her. I shake my head, sighing, but just go along with it. We do a weird little waddle into her apartment, and I close the door behind me with my foot.
Once we’re inside, Mamie lets go of me, reaching for the cookie plate.
“Are these your mom’s famous chocolate chip cookies?” she asks while inhaling deeply.
“They are,” I tell her.
“Ugh, your mother is a true godsend. Sometimes I wonder how such a generous woman could exist in a world as cold as ours.” Mamie rips open the plastic wrap, snatching the cookie on top. She bites into it, moaning as the cookie touches her taste buds. “I wish I could eat these every day. I would give away my first-born child if I could eat these every day.”
“Speaking of your first-born child, did the whole plan B thing go okay?”
“Yes, it did,” Mamie snorts.
She places the cookie plate down on the floor and then takes my overnight bag. She walks it over to her bedroom before sitting on the couch and motioning for me to join her.
“It was super easy to get – OTC like you said. The pharmacist gave me this whole speech about how it works and what to do. I already knew most of what he was saying, but I listened because I was in a crisis, and there really wasn’t any reason to be sassy. He was just trying to be a nice person. But yeah, I got the pills, took them as instructed, and I am very much not pregnant. Super happy about that. I did not want to be having that man’s baby.” I remember Mamie was distressed about having his baby. Looking back, I can see the humor in it, but in the moment, there was just stress.