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but just didn’t know how to show it.
    Instead of getting upset, I made a caring gesture. “I’m sorry, you guys. I should’ve stuck to my word and gone with you guys the other day.”
    â€œYou don’t owe us any explanation,” Ella said.
    Randal said, “You wanted to celebrate with your guy. If any of us had a man, we’d be doing the same thing.”
    Eva was in a mood. “Speak for yourself, girl. I gotta man.”
    â€œUh, one-night stands don’t qualify as having a man,” Hallie added.
    â€œI know, right?” Randal said, as the two of them slapped hands.
    Ella looked at her sister and said, “Don’t even respond back because she’s right. If you can’t take the heat, you need to leave the pressing comb alone.”
    Everybody knew Eva was faster than the rest of us, but now it seemed all Eva cared about was being satisfied. Maybe this weekend would give us all the chance to talk to her so she could start off this year with a better reputation.
    About an hour later, we were pulling up to the house in Wexford. It was a gated community with a country club, and the property we rented had five bedrooms, four baths, a swimming pool right off the water, and a boat. My dad told us we would take it out a little later on in the evening.
    My parents appeared happier. My goal for this weekend was for me to hang with my friends and allow them to have time to themselves to bond. We did not have to worry about cooking or cleaning because my mom had hired a maid and a caterer to do the job. We were to relax and be pampered. I certainly brought the right friends along for that.
    As Ella, Hallie, Randal, and I relaxed on the beach, Eva strutted away.
    â€œWhy does she always have an attitude?” Hallie asked, saying what we all were thinking.
    â€œThere’s just a lot going on with our family right now,” Ella said. “She tries to act tough, but she doesn’t know how to deal with it.”
    â€œAnything you wanna talk about?” Randal said.
    â€œMy dad’s marrying his girlfriend. They already have one son, and now she’s pregnant again.
    â€œEva just feels like it’s a slap in our face. My dad didn’t wanna raise us, but he’s happy raising sons with this other lady.”
    â€œAnd did you tell them the other part?” Eva came up behind the four of us and said. “He has back child support due. My mama’s struggling. He’s playing house with somebody else. Just isn’t right. I’m sorry, Charli, if I’m not happy you got a brand new car. I can’t relax on the beach and enjoy this lavish house we’re staying in when my world is not right. It’s not all good for me, and I can’t pretend that it is.”
    I got up, dusted some of the sand off, and said, “I’m not asking you to pretend, nor am I tryna flaunt anything in your face.”
    â€œYou gotta admit,” Hallie added, “your life is pretty together. My dad might be about something, but he’s still a single parent. My mom is strung out on drugs somewhere, and every time I mention trying to find her and help her, he goes off.”
    â€œAnd it ain’t cool being mixed either,” Randal said. “My mom has no clue about my world or about my hair. My dad’s so busy with work. Sometimes I wonder if he stays away so much because he’s ashamed of his mixed family.”
    I so badly wanted to tell my friends that though my life looked like it was all together, it wasn’t. If they only huffed and puffed, my walls would come tumbling down too. I could not talk to them about my parents because they were with us this weekend. Besides, I didn’t want anybody examining my crazy parents.
    I had always been taught to keep my business to myself, but these were my girls. They thought I had it going on. Maybe it was better if one of us did because if we were all too messed up, who could hold us