Trapped by Melody Carlson Page B

to Miss Julia this afternoon. I thought you could leave here around three and then just head on home.”
    â€œBut that’s two hours early.”
    â€œI know, but I won’t clock you out until five. That will give you plenty of time to visit with Miss Julia and still get home with some extra time to spare for getting ready.”
    â€œAll of it on the clock ?” Uncle Russ can be a stickler about that sort of thing.
    She grins. “Don’t worry. I’m a co-owner here. I can change the rules if I want to sometimes. Just don’t tell your uncle. Besides, Miss Julia is a valued customer and friend. And she specifically asked for you.”
    â€œIs she still feeling pretty bad?”
    â€œI think she’s improving. But it’s hard on her being cooped up.”
    At three o’clock, I take the little bag of prescriptions and drive over to Miss Julia’s house. This time she’s dressed in pink velour warm-ups. But she still looks a little haggard and pale. “Come in, come in,” she tells me as she opens the door wider. “Welcome to my humble hovel.”
    I hand her the bag. “How are you feeling?”
    She makes a weary smile. “A little better.”
    â€œOh, good. I’m sure it takes time to get well. But you do look better than the last time I saw you.”
    â€œThank you.” She pats her frazzled-looking white hair. “I missed my hairdresser appointment this week.”
    â€œIs there anything I can help you with?”
    â€œJust come in and sit a spell.” She leads the way into the living room. “Tell me about how you’re doing, dear. Tell me what’s going on in the outside world.”
    So I sit down and, for lack of anything else to say, tell her about the Winter Ball. And then to my surprise, I tell her about Clayton and how he broke my heart and how I hope my cranberry red dress will make him jealous. “I know that sounds silly and petty …”
    She chuckles. “I think it sounds quite normal. In fact, I remember a time when I did something very similar to that.” She tells me a story about a boy she liked in college and how they were good friends and study partners. But to her dismay, he seemed more interested in her roommate than her. “And my roommate, her name was Lola, well, she was so glamorous and attractive. She looked a little like Bette Davis with her red lipstick and fancy clothes. And she smoked cigarettes too.”
    Miss Julia shook her head with disapproval. “So I tried to catch Howie’s eye by imitating Lola.” She laughed. “But smoking made me sick to my stomach, and I never looked very good in red lipstick either.”
    â€œBut did you get his attention?”
    â€œIn a way, I did. Howie took me aside one day and told me I would do better to just be myself.”
    â€œThat’s nice. So did you start dating him then?”
    She waved her hand. “Oh no, he married Lola that next summer.”
    â€œOh …” I feel disappointed and sad for her.
    â€œBut really, I was thankful. Poor Howie turned into a hor-rible alcoholic and Lola was miserable. They both died young and unhappy.” She stroked the cat in her lap and smiled. “I’m quite content with my little life, and oddly enough, it turned out just like Howie said to me years ago. It’s better to just be myself.”
    I nod, taking this in.
    â€œI’m sure you’d agree with me on that. You seem like the kind of girl who knows how to be herself.”
    I think back to the bracelet I snatched from Kelsey … and what I did … then look away.
    â€œOh, I’m sure there come times when you’re not completely sure about who you are,” she continues in a rambling sort of tone, “but that’s just part of growing up. Eventually, you figure it out and the puzzle pieces fall into place. You realize being you is the best you can be.”
    â€œI hope