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     Megara wouldn't admit it out loud — not even to her friends, not even to her dog — but while Ricky and his mom were staying with Megara and her dad, the two had grown close.  So close, that they'd even fall asleep in each other's rooms while watching TV or hanging out.  Mostly when their parents were fighting, and they needed sanctuary from the world.

     On this particular night, their parents had sent them upstairs almost directly after dinner because they wanted to talk in private, but they knew better.  They saw the looks given during dinner, you could cut the tension with a knife.  And this had been happening more and more recently, this little dance between their parents and them as if hiding something.  However, Ricky was smart and Megara was even brighter — there was no such thing as sneaking around those two.

     Megara sighed as she dragged her feet towards her own door, the one recently decorated with a large M in the brightest pink she could find.  The drama queen had gone to the craft store one day after school and even poured over silver glitter to make an effort that her room was hers.  Even if pink wasn't her favorite color, it was still the most annoying color she could find.

     Ricky grabbed her by the wrist, forcing her to stop in her tracks.  Megara turned slightly appalled that he had just done that, but she knew they were both way too tired to fight about it.  "Okay," she said quietly — as if agreeing to some unspoken plan — almost so low that Ricky couldn't hear.

     "Come on, I've got better speakers," he said, leading the dark-haired beauty to his room.  It wasn't a lie, that was one way Ricky's room had beat hers.  And surprisingly, it wasn't as messy as you would assume.  There wasn't much in his room except a twin bed, and an old chest of drawers from Megara's room, but she'd hung up some posters of bands on the walls and even some picture frames to make it feel more his.  Red, black, and cream colors contrast on the walls and bedsheets.  She also brought her black bean bag from her room into his for herself to sit while they watched movies, but never bothered taking it back to her room.  A picture of Big Red and Ricky together at Halloween sat next to another picture of Megara's dad taking a selfie with Megara, Ricky, and his mom.  All in all, it was a pretty bangin' room.

     "What do you wanna watch?" Megara asked as she took a seat on the edge of his cream-colored bed.  The comforter and linen sheets were other hand-me-downs from Megara, but Ricky didn't mind.  Megara then crossed her arms over her chest and brought her thumb to her plump lips, chewing softly on the dead skin.  Her short nails were painted deep cherry red.

     Ricky swiped the remote from the top of his drawers and handed it to her.  Megara simply shook her head.  "Are you serious?"

     Megara shrugged.  "Just pick something, it doesn't matter."

     "Wow, are you feeling okay?" he asked her in a teasing matter while kicking his shoes off and leaving them by the bed.  Megara rolled her eyes and looked away from him.  Ricky smiled and jumped onto the bed, creating a bounce motion throughout the mattress and rattling Megara.  "Harley Quinn it is, then," he decided, propping himself up with his elbow as he searched for the cartoon show.

     Ricky's fingers pressed against the rubber buttons on the plastic remote in an effort to conceal the arguing from downstairs — neither wanting to get involved in their parents' crossfire.  Despite that, he'd noticed how silent Megara had gotten.  It was pretty hard not to when the girl usually spoke so much that it was annoying.  He glanced over at her, the two pressed against pillows against the headboard as their eyes trained on the square TV on the stand in front of them.  He wanted to break the silence by apologizing, but Megara beat him to it.  "Stop looking at me like that."

     "Like what?"

     "Like you're sorry for me," she said matter of factly, as if obvious.  But it was, the way his eyes were drowning in pity.

     "Sorry..." he mumbled.  "I just know you're not used to it."

     "Point is, you're never supposed to get used to it, Rick.  My mom and dad never fought like this."

     Ricky nodded.  How could he argue with that?  He'd come from a household where the last couple of years of his parents' marriage weren't pretty at all.  Megara had no idea what that was like until now.  "Yeah, you're right.  Still, I'm sorry."

     "It's fine," she said quickly.

     He kept looking at her.  "At least you've got me."

     Finally, Megara turned to meet his gaze.  In her self-pity session, she'd forgotten that she wasn't the only one going through this alone.  "Sorry if I made you feel abandoned, Ricky."

     "'Tis okay," he quickly shook his head.

     "I just miss her so much," she said quietly as she turned her body to face him.  It was then he could see her eyes welling with tears.  "I can't imagine what things would be like if she were here right now."

     Ricky chuckled, turning to face her.  "If she were here right now, I wouldn't be.  And she'd probably be a better comforting person than I am, so that would probably be for the better."

     Megara laughed, even though tears were threatening to spill from the corners of her eyes.  She sniffed, and without thinking, Ricky reached forward and wiped them.  "You're not that bad of a friend, Ricky.  At least, when you wanna be."

     "Come 'ere," he said in a whisper, unsure where he got all the sudden courage to speak up today, but he was mostly on a mission to be there for the girl.  Without second-guessing him, Megara scooched closer and allowed his arms to wrap around her.  She placed her cheek against his chest, breathing in his aroma.  It was the least expected place she'd ever thought she'd be, but she wasn't entirely mad about it.

     They lay in silence, watching as the cartoon Harley Quinn spoke in sparky replies and wisecracking jokes all while Megara clutched onto Ricky's tee shirt and Ricky's hands sprawled out in her dark hair.  He smiled to himself and wouldn't say it out loud, but Harley reminded him of Meg.

     Soon enough, sleep took over them and they lay like that for hours until their parents started looking for them.  One minute the teens had been nonchalant over dinner and hardly spoke to each other, and the next they were found sleeping soundly in Ricky's bed.  That was the thing about Meg and Ricky — their friendship may have been complicated, but it was rapidly growing.

     "Just leave them," Mr. Montez shrugged.  "It's obviously fine with her."

     Ricky's mom looked at him, as if bewildered.  "Are you serious, Matthew?"

     He shrugged quickly.  "Do you know how many people she lets come near her, much less hug and hold?"  Mr. Montez motioned to the bed where they lay.  Megara's distress was evident, the way she clutched onto Ricky even in deep sleep.  Even her eyebrows seemed knitted together.  Ricky rested his chin atop her head, burrowed mostly into the pillows.  "Now, call me crazy, but something tells me she needed this."

     Ricky's mom was quiet for a while.  "But does he?  You know, he does this."

     "Does what?"

     "Attaches himself to people, mostly when he's feeling down."

     Mr. Montez thought about it for a second.  "No... I don't think that's what this is.  It's not attachment, they care about each other.  He's been right there with Meg since the beginning, throughout this whole thing."

     Ms. Bowen shook her head.  "I don't know, it's just too weird."

     "They're not making out with their tops off, Lynne," Mr. Montez rolled his eyes.  "Let's just leave it at this, for now.  It's not like we've been making it any easier on them.  And it's kinda nice to know they have each other.  It may not be ideal, but at least they're getting along."

     "That's what I'm afraid of."

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Clueless | 2022