I went in and I stood at the front door for a while. I walked into the living room and barely notice Mom,who was sitting on the couch with her arms folded.
"Where have you been?"Mom asked
"Mom. I didn't see you there"I said, frightened by her voice
"Answer my question,where have you been? Do you what time it is?"Mom said
"It's half past five"I said, checking the time on my phone
I guessed I should have kept quiet. Mom looked really angry.
"Yes! It's 5:30 p.m. and you're just coming back home"Mom said, changing her tone
"Mom,I can explain"I said, trying to make her see reasons for my tardiness
"Go on!I'm listening!"Mom said, folding her arms in fury
"I was at Claudia's working on our project. I was so busy on the project that I lost track of time"I lied
"Really now?"Mom said
"Yes"I nodded
"That's a lie. The worst lie I've heard so far. Funny you should know,I called Claudia few hours ago and she told me the same thing. She sounded funny over the phone and hung up immediately. I realized something wasn't right and decided to call Mrs Jones. She told me you weren't at her house. You guys had submitted your project a week ago"Mom revealed
"Again,where were you?"She asked
I had to come clean. I couldn't lie anymore. I already involved Claudia into my mess and she's tangled in my big lie. This is Brianna's fault. If she hadn't frame me, none of this would have happen.
"The truth is I was given detention at school"I said
"Detention?"Mom said
"I was falsely accused of littering the hallway and I didn't do it. I was given detention for 2 hours after school. I had to escape before detention was over. And that's why I'm late"I said
"Then who was that guy I saw you with earlier? Was he the reason for your detention?"Mom said
"Xavier had nothing to do with it"I said, defending him
"I'm sorry I lied to you,Mom. I'm really sorry for everything that happened"I apologized
"Well,I've made my decision. You're hereby grounded for two weeks. You can't go anywhere except for school and I forbid you from seeing that boy ever again"Mom said
"Mom!"I said
"I've made my decision and that's final"Mom said
"That's not fair Mom!"I said, leaving the her alone in the living room
"Come back here Jocelyn! I'm not done talking with you!"Mom said
I climbed the stairs and banged my bedroom door really hard. Mom knew I was hurt by what she said and tried to call me back but I was already in my room. She hates seeing me sad but she had to decide on what good for me. She's my mom after all. Owen,who was in the basement getting an empty plastic bottle to reinvent as a drinking bowl for Richie,heard the whole argument and comforted Mom who was already in tears.
I lied down on my bed and used my pillows to fill my tears in it. I went silently and blamed myself for what had happened. After soaking my pillow with my bitter tears,I went to the bathroom and freshened up. I lost my appetite and played games on my phone.
After dinner,Dad noticed my absence at the table and was worried. He knew I'm a food lover and wouldn't miss a day at the table.
"Honey?"Dad said
"Yes dear"Mom replied
"Where's Jocelyn?"He asked
"In her bedroom"She replied
"Isn't she hungry?"He asked
"No. I don't think so"She replied
"I'll go call her"Owen said, excusing himself
He came upstairs and knocked on my door.
"Jocelyn! Joce..."He paused
"Please come down for dinner"
"I'm not hungry"I said angrily
"C'mon,we both know you are foodie and wouldn't miss a day without a meal. Do me a favour and come downstairs for dinner, please?"He pleaded softly
I didn't react to his request. He stood there for awhile and went downstairs to continue his dinner.
"Is she coming?"Dad asked
"No"He shooked
The following morning,I woke up with a messy hair and bad temper. Yes! A bad hair day! I went downstairs to have breakfast. Mom was making toast and scrambled eggs. Mmm! My favorite! I was still mad at her with she said yesterday and ignored the meal. Instead,I went for cereal.
"Jocelyn! How are you?"Mom said, seeing me in the kitchen
I didn't respond and reached for the cereal box in the cabinet.
"Are you hungry? I can serve your breakfast now if you want"She said
I brought a bowl from the cabinet and poured in the cereal into the bowl. I brought the milk from the refrigerator and poured some in my cereal. I brought a spoon and went to the dinning table to enjoy my breakfast. I sat down with my face down at my bowl and ate my cereal. The bus pulled in front the house and began honking. Mom packed our lunches as she always does and handed them over to us. Owen took his while I left mine. I know I'm going to regret leaving my sandwich at home but it was for a good cause.
"Bye Owen"She said
"Bye Mom"He replied
"Bye Jocelyn. Have..."Mom said
I slammed the door before she could complete her sentence.
***
"...a nice day. Do you think grounding her was a good idea? I haven't seen this way before?"Mom asked
"It's normal for teens to get upset. I remember when I had an argument with Owen back in Washington DC and look at us now. We are closer than before. Give her some of, she'll come around"Dad said
"Okay. I guess you're right"Mom replied
***
At school,I wore a long face and walked down the hallway. I went to my locker and was about to unlock when Claudia ran towards me.
"Jocelyn! Hey!"She said
I didn't respond to her greetings and remained quiet.
"Sorry my Mom got you in trouble. I did beg her to cover up for you but she wouldn't. I guess our sleepover is cancelled"She said
"Wait,who told you I was grounded?"I asked
"Owen did"She said
"Plus he said you're silence is really hurtingg your Mom"
"I know. I hurts me as well but she doesn't understand my feelings. Xavier was only trying to be nice but she seeing it the wrong way. Yesterday, helped me get out of detention"I said, closing my locker
"Detention?"She asked
"Yes. I was framed for littering the hallway"I said
"I have a hunch that Brianna has something to do with it"She suspected
"And Xavier was trying to get Jimmy to reveal the truth which then got him detention"I said
"What does Jimmy have to do with all of this?"She asked
"I don't really know. All I can remember is that he was the one who said you were in school and was at hallway looking for me"I said
"Hallway? Me? In school? That's weird! I was at the optician's yesterday to get my new contact lenses. That way I don't have to wear glasses anymore"She said
"I knew something was fishy when he left me alone in the hallway"I said
"This has Brianna Brown's name all over it. Speaking of detention, how was your date?*She asked
"It was good"I said
"Good? Are you kidding me? There wasn't any love poem, lips touching...?"She said
"No! There's wasn't! We had to escape before Mr Rodriguez came back to class. And by the time we got there,the ice-cream parlour was already closed. So we went for smoothies instead"I said with a cheerful smile
"And then what?"She said,eager to know what happened next
"Then he walked me home and we hugged each other. It felt so magical"I said
"Is that it?"She said
"Yeah!"I replied
"So that was the whole date he planned? No first kiss? No romance?"She said
"It was romantic"I said
"Really? You call that romantic?"She said
"Yes!"I replied
"Fine. Suit yourself"She said
"Speaking of Xavier, have you seen him today?"I asked, noticing his absence
"Nope"She said
"Maybe he might come late today"I said, having this doubt he won't come
"Maybe"She said
After surviving Mr Rodriguez's boring Spanish class and Mr Benson's class,I think I'll call it a day. I slept through out most of my classes. I hardly got any sleep last night. The last bell rang and school was over. Claudia waited for her mom to pick her up. She's still getting used to her new lenses and needs assistance. I walked all the way home. Xavier never showed up for school. I sent him a bunch of messages but didn't reply to any one. I unlocked the door and went in. I went to my room, freshened up and changed in to something comfortable. I opened the refrigerator and saw the sandwich I left is still here, untouched. I brought out, placed in on a plate and poured out some juice to go with my sandwich. I went upstairs and ate it while watching funny skits online. It was time for dinner and I was still in my room. I wasn't mad at Mom anymore but I just want to think I'm still am . I went to my secret stash and brought some chips and cookies. I was halfway done when I heard a knock on the door.
"Jocelyn! It's Mom! May I come in?"She said
I got up from my bed and opened the door for her.
"Can I sit?"She asked
I ignored get and continued munching on some chips. Too bad I had no dipping sauce available. It would have gone really well with my chips.
"I know you are angry with me and you've every reason to. Or maybe not? I'm only trying to do what's best for you. I'm your mom and I'm much older than you. I've seen this crooks and cons this life plays and I've studied them thoroughly. I don't want to caught in mess you can't solve or get hurt"She said softly
"Xavier isn't who you think he's. He's supportive, caring,nice and adventurous just like me. He wouldn't do anything to hurt me. Trust me,he's a good person. And I'm sorry for yesterday. I should have told where I was going earlier"I apologized
"I'm sorry too. I should have acted in less harsh manner. You got me worried and I let my emotions get the best the best of me. You know you'll be always my little Jocelyn"She said
"Mom!"I said
"Fine. My big Jocelyn. Happy now?"She said
"Yes"I nodded
"Does that mean I'm no longer grounded?"I asked with a grin on my face
"No, you're still are"She said
"Oh!"I said
"Would you like to have dinner here or come downstairs and join us?"She asked
"No. Already ate"I said, holding a pack of empty chips in the air
"You sure?"She said
"Yes! I'm sure!"I replied
"Okay then"She said, getting up to leave
"Okay! Good night Mom!"I said
"Night darling!"She replied
"Should I turn the lights off or..."She said
"No. I'll turn it off later"I said
"Don't stay up too late. You don't want to be late for school tomorrow"She added
"Okay! I won't!"I said