I woke up slowly, pulling myself from a comfortable hibernation by stretching my arms out and sighing heavily. The cold air in my room made me immediately tuck my arms back under the covers. The morning light was making a weak dent in the dawning day. I could tell by the faded color of the sun's glow, that it was being filtered by a thick layer of fog. I might have rolled over and gone back to sleep, but it was Friday and I had a lot to look forward to.

I was greeted by Thad and Captain when I entered the kitchen, which didn't surprise me as Thad was always up before me.

"Pancakes?" he asked in his usual chipper tone.

He was almost always in a good mood and it made me feel safe and loved.

"Sure."

"Plain or chocolate chip?"

I really didn't care for chocolate in my pancakes, but I knew he had bought them especially for me.

"Chocolate chip, definitely."

My mom came wandering in a little later and poured herself a cup of coffee then joined us at the table. The sun had pushed aside the foggy film and was beginning to show its strength.

I looked over at my mom then up at Thad questioningly. He gave me the same look, then smiled.

'You look really nice this morning, Ally."

"You do. You look great, mom."

She chewed up a bite of pancake and replied, "Thank you."

This morning was the first time my mother came out dressed in her clothes, except when she went to the doctor. She even took it further by pinning her hair up and putting on some makeup.

"Do you have a doctor's appointment today?" I asked.

Thad nudged my foot with his and gave a slight shake of his head. I stopped talking.

"No," she answered, "I just thought I'd fix myself up a little."

"I'm going to Ben's play this afternoon," I said changing the subject.

"That's right. Are you excited?" she asked.

"Yes, I get to wear my new clothes."

"And break out of here for a while," Thad added.

"That too," I agreed.

*

We got my mom to venture out on the beach after breakfast, while I played with Captain and Thad painted. After a late lunch, I went to get ready for the play. It was scheduled to start at 4:00 pm. Ben promised that he'd meet me outside the auditorium at 3:45 and show me to my seat.

After getting ready, I came bouncing out into the living room to show my mom and Thad how I looked.

"Wow!" Thad exclaimed. "You look great!"

"Thanks," I said, looking for my mother.

"Your mom's in the kitchen."

"What time is it?" I asked, feeling a little antsy.

"Just about time to go," he replied.

My mom came in holding a steaming cup of coffee. "Oh, are you ready to go" she asked.

"Yep," I replied with a big smile.

"Well, have a good time," she said as she got settled on the couch.

My confidence began to fade with my smile. I had been waiting for my mother's opinion about my new outfit. All the excitement I'd been feeling began to slip away and in its place came the all too familiar feelings of awkwardness.

"Okay," I said, turning towards the door.

Thad reached out and caught me by my shoulders. "Doesn't Gilly look nice?" he asked my mom.

She looked up and smiled stiffly. "Yes, you look very nice, Gilly."

Once outside I headed towards the Land Rover.

"Let's take Neptune," Thad said. He walked over towards the garage and swung the doors open. I stood silent as my eyes took in a pickup truck from a long time past. It was a beautiful ocean blue color in perfect condition.

"Wow! How old is it?"

"This is a 1956 Ford 100 series pickup truck. I've been working on him for about ten years now."

"Him?"

"Well, most sea dwellers have boats and they're referred to in the feminine form with girl names. I guess this old truck is my backward version of a boat, so I gave him a male name."

I noticed that the license plate said NEPTUNE.

"He's beautiful."

Thad bowed from his waist, "My Lady, your chariot awaits."

The front seat was one long cushion in a soft medium brown leather. The steering wheel matched. The dashboard looked very strange to me. It was made of metal like the outside of the truck and it was painted the same blue color. The dials looked like old-time watches; there wasn't anything digital anywhere. The radio, actually had knobs and dials.

On our way towards town I grew quiet and withdrawn. My mom hadn't even noticed how I looked. My feelings were shattered into question marks of self- doubt.

I could feel Thad looking in my direction.

"She hates me," I said, tearing up.

"Gilly, no she doesn't. She loves you very much."

"Then why can't she see me or touch me or look at me?" I asked, starting to cry.

"Gilly, she feels responsible for what happened to you. She blames herself."

I looked over at him in shock and I could see that he was telling me the truth.

"She's lost right now and she can't find her way back. Just know that she will."

I was glad he didn't tell me to give her more time, because that was getting old. Maybe people were right when they said that I had to grow up faster than I should and maybe it was too bad that I knew things I shouldn't have to, but I did. And one thing I knew was that time, like money can run out.

*

Thad dropped me off right in front where Ben was waiting for me.

"I'll be back here in two hours, Gilly."

"Okay," I answered as I stepped down from Neptune.

"Wow Gilly, you look great!" Ben exclaimed. "Nice truck, Mr. Squire," he added.

Ben had saved a seat for me on the left side in the first row. His reaction on seeing me had made me feel good, but now as a sea of kids flowed in around us, I was beginning to get uncomfortable.

"I've got to get back stage," he told me. "Are you okay?"

I nodded, giving him a nervous smile. Watching as he disappeared behind the curtain, I took a deep breath and told myself that I could do this. I read the program that had been set on my chair and saw that Ben's part was listed third. Looking around, I caught a glimpse of Debbie. She was sitting on the other side of the auditorium in the second or third row. She was surrounded by a group of boys and I could tell by the way they acted, that they were part of the popular crowd.

*

The play was really good. Everyone remembered their lines and their places and the costumes looked authentic.

The clock on the wall said it was 5:50. I told Ben I would wait for him at my seat. I knew Thad would be here at 6:00.

The sea of kids slowly flowed through the doors like a wave being sucked out at low tide, leaving programs and candy wrappers spread across the floor. I turned back to the stage to see if Ben was coming, when I suddenly froze.

"Hi, Gilly."

I immediately recognized Debbie's voice.

"These are my friends: Jason, Kenny, Jack and Danny."

They all just looked at me, then one of them said, "Hey, aren't you that girl from the news?"

"Yes she is," Debbie said. "Now she's... how should I say this? Experienced."

I got up and started walking towards the exit. I was scared and confused and in tears.

"Hey, where are you going?" one of the boys asked.

They followed right behind me, almost but not quiet touching me.

"You want to go out with me?" another one taunted.

Everyone had left and I was wondering if going outside into the night was the right thing to do. I began to panic as terror from another night not that long ago began to flash in my head.

"Come on Gilly, be nice." Debbie insisted.

I pushed through the door and almost fainted with relief. There was Thad, waiting in his truck right in front. I walked over and jerked the door open and jumped in.

"What's wrong?" Thad demanded as he stared out my window at the four boys who were laughing.

"I want to go home," I cried.

Thad continued staring at my tormentors.

"Now!" I screamed.

"Just a minute," he said as he got out of the truck.

"Thad, no." I gasped.

I watched as he walked around the front of the truck and approached the group. Their smiles seemed to melt away as he got closer. I couldn't hear what he said, but I knew by the way he stood and his gestures that he was upset. The boys actually began to look afraid as Thad stood his ground and continued talking to them. He never raised his voice but he must have gotten his point across.

Debbie stood back by the doors watching. When Thad saw her he moved past the boys and spoke to her. It looked to me, as if she might start crying. An adult, probably a teacher came out and he and Thad spoke for a minute then Thad came back to the truck and we left.

We didn't talk for most of the way home, then he turned to me and said, "As soon as your mom is ready, I'm taking you both back home."

I blinked a few leftover tears down my checks as I looked at him. "Thank you," I said and tried to give him a smile but I wasn't sure if it worked. I wasn't sure if I would ever be able to smile again.