This is the fourth part in a series, so if you have not already done so, you might want to read Part I, Part II, and Part III before continuing.
“OMG, Emoni, you have to do something about Meghan!”
“What are you talking about?” Emoni had just arrived at the party and the last thing she wanted was to be told how to manage her best friend.
“She is totally creeping us out,” said Natalia.
“Yeah, well, her mom just died. Give her a break.”
“No, no.” Eva wagged a finger so close to Emoni’s face that Emoni was tempted to bite it off. “Wearing your mom’s jewelry is grief. Dying your hair her color is seriously messed up.”
“What? She hasn’t -”
Eva grabbed Emoni by the shoulders and turned her around so she was facing the crowd. Then Eva pointed to a girl in the next room who was standing by the wall drinking a Sea Breeze. Where had she even gotten a Sea Breeze at a party like this? Before Emoni could delve too far into that question, she saw what Eva meant. The girl with the Sea Breeze was none other than Meghan, and her previously blonde hair was now brown. “Oh god,” Emoni whispered.
“That’s what we’re talking about,” said Natalia. “It’s time for you to say something to her, Emoni. It’s past time.” Emoni couldn’t see Eva, but she could feel her nodding her head enthusiastically behind her.
“Why do I have to talk to her? If you guys are so weirded out by all this, why can’t you go talk to her?”
“Because you’re her best friend,” said Eva.
“So?” Emoni knew they were right, but seriously, how do you talk to someone about something like this? Emoni had never lost a parent. She couldn’t relate to what Meghan was going through. Who was she to tell Meghan she was going about the grieving process the wrong way? Wasn’t grief different for everyone?
“This is what best friends do,” said Eva. “They have the tough conversations. They tell the truth, even if it hurts.”
Emoni let a whine creep into her voice as she said, “But I don’t want to.”
“Too bad,” Eva said as she shoved her towards Meghan.
Emoni pouted for a bit, but kept walking towards Meghan, if only because she knew her girls were right, and she might as well get this over with. She wiped the pout from her face and forced on a smile as she crossed the threshold into the room where Meghan was standing against the wall, lecturing some poor girl about the merits of various laundry detergents while she drank her Sea Breeze. Since when did Meghan care about laundry detergent?
“Hey, girl!” Emoni said as cheerfully as she could, once she was within hearing range. Meghan turned to her and Emoni shot the other girl a look that said Run! The other girl needed no further prompting.
“Emoni! I’m so glad you’re here. You know you meant so much to Meghan.”
Emoni froze as her mind raced to try to decipher what Meghan had just said. “What?”
“It just means so much to me to be here, spending time with Meghan’s friends, and you were her best friend of all.” She squeezed Emoni’s hand and Emoni found herself just staring at their two hands together.
Emoni decided to try a different tactic. She looked around for the girl Meghan had been talking to about laundry detergent, but she had wisely fled far, far away from this twilight zone. Emoni grabbed another girl out of the crowd, some poor, random soul whose only crime was standing too close to Emoni as she lived out this nightmare. “Hey, you, come here, have you met … I’m sorry, what’s your name again?”
“Anne,” said the girl. “With an ‘e’.”
“Anne, what a lovely name,” said Meghan. “And I’ve always preferred it spelled with an ‘e’. I’m Rachel.” She extended her hand, and as the two exchanged introductions, Emoni backed away.
Rachel had been Meghan’s mom’s name, and as sorry as Emoni was to leave poor Anne-With-An-E to such a cruel fate, she could. Not. Deal. With. This.
The end.