Alonso
Dress shopping was not my idea of a good time, but I would do anything in the world for Maggie. I also pushed her to do things for herself. When other kids at school made fun of her, I taught her to insult them in Spanish. Abuela had been horrified at the words that came from Maggie’s young lips. But, I had to think that my tutelage was what allowed her to live mostly independently and to think for herself.
I picked Piper up again and together we went to get Maggie. We made polite small talk as we drove through Savannah. Piper graciously allowed Maggie to sit up front. She had even brought my sister a tall, glittery tiara to wear while shopping. Naturally, Maggie had loved it and was all too happy to wear it as we wandered the mall.
In the first store, a saleswoman approached Piper. “Can I help you miss?”
“No, but you can help my friend here. She’s the shopper today.” Piper stepped to the side so Maggie would shine. The puff of pride I felt was oddly warming and I had to ask myself if it was pride in Maggie or in Piper. Of course it was in Maggie. Naturally.
The woman’s fake smile fell, an action that did not escape the notice of myself or Piper. “I see. Feel free to shop around and let me know if I can get a dressing room started for you.” She then whispered to Piper. “Is she going to be a bridesmaid for your wedding? How nice of you to include someone like her.”
Shoulders rolled back and Piper’s head whipped toward the rude salesperson. “I’m sorry, ma’am, but if you can’t treat all three of us like actual people, we will happily take our business and money elsewhere. Do you realize I’m a reporter with Action News? Maybe you’ve seen me. I would love to do an exposé on ableist shops in Savannah and you will be at the top of the list!”
The woman stood stunned, her face bright red. Before she could begin to apologize, Maggie stepped up to her and repeated a line from one of her favorite movies. “You work on commission, right? Big mistake. Big. Huge. I have to go shopping now.”
And together my sister and Piper walked away from the woman and I could do nothing but follow in their wake.
Outside, the two girls hugged. “That was amazing, Maggie. I am so proud of you.”
Maggie struck a pose and kissed the air. “I know what I’m doing. Ali taught me well.”
Piper turned to me. “Ali?”
I shrugged. “Childhood nickname. Alonso is hard for a toddler to say.” I patted Maggie on the back. “But for the record, I am proud of you, too. People like that need to be put in their place.”
“Now, can we really go shopping?” Maggie took Piper’s hand and started to pull her toward another store.
Armed with five dresses to try on, Maggie hid away in a dressing room, aided by an overly helpful saleswoman. Piper had helped pick out colors that would look good on her skin tone and shapes that would flatter Maggie’s body. Both things I knew nothing about.
“I need to thank you for what you did back there. Not many people would stand up for Maggie like that.” I cleared my throat and shoved my hands in my pockets. My palms were sweaty and my stomach was in knots.
”She’s a person, not a pet. She deserves respect. I’m sorry if I got out of hand.” Piper’s doe eyes met mine and she tucked her hair behind her ears.
It’s just a crush, AO. And only because she was nice to your sister. You do not want to kiss Piper Campbell. You’re co-workers. Nothing can happen. Stop imagining what her lips taste like. I bet they taste like raspberries. I have no reason for thinking that, aside from it would be perfect if she tasted like raspberries. Stop it, AO!
“Oh, geez, I went too far, didn’t I?” Piper’s eyes grew larger and she rubbed her hands back and forth.
Pulling myself away from thinking about her lips, I had to reassure her. “No, no. I think you were amazing. That woman needed to be educated. And saying you would do a story - actually, that’s a decent idea. We should pitch it.”
My stammering was cut short by Maggie coming out in a royal blue dress that hit her mid-calf. Spinning around for us, she smiled from ear to ear. “What do you think?”
Nothing could make me stop thinking about kissing Piper like seeing my sister look so lovely. “Oh, Mags, you look great. I think that’s a winner.” My heart burst to see her so happy.
I looked to Piper for her input. But instead of looking pleased, her mouth was twisted to the side. “Um, it’s nice. But I really think you need to try on the pink one before deciding.”
I was about to have words with Piper for popping Maggie’s bubble, but I was surprised when Maggie agreed.
“Yeah, I like this one, but I think the pink will show my curves better.”
“Maggie!”
My sister eyed me. “Flaunt it if you got it, right?” And with that, she disappeared into the dressing room again.
The second she was out of sight we began to laugh hysterically. “Where did she learn that?” Piper swiped the tears from under her eyes.
“I have no idea. Abuela would tan my hide if she knew Maggie said that.” I shook my head. I refused to see my baby sister as a sexual being, ability difference aside. No brother wanted his sister to flaunt her curves.
“Don’t worry. the pink one is more princessy. But I think it will flatter her more and be a better length.” Piper sighed.
“Thank you for being here. You have no idea how much it means to Maggie.” I scratched my head, sure I was making my wild curls even frizzier.
“It might seem shallow to you, but back in Richmond I volunteered as a pageant coach for inner-city girls. Mostly just school pageants, but it gave them a sense of self-confidence and poise. One girl used what she learned to ace her college entrance interview and got a scholarship to Harvard.”
The more I spent time with Piper the more I learned about her and liked what I discovered. “That’s amazing. I never thought about pageants preparing girls for interviews.”
“Girls learn etiquette, poise, interview skills, and how to promote themselves in a world that doesn’t always see their worth. Especially minority and differently-abled girls. I loved working with them.” Piper looked off into the distance and looked genuinely happy.
The dressing room door opened again and Maggie came out in a pale pink gown. Piper had been right, this one suited her much more. Maggie’s waist was small, but the skirt was full and didn’t show off all that many curves. The neckline was different and Maggie looked more comfortable than she had with the strapless dress.
“Oh, yes. Maggie, that’s the one.” Piper clapped her hands together.
The store attendant came out with the other dresses in her hand. “That’s what she said, too. I’m putting the rest of these back.” She slipped away.
Tears welled up in Maggie’s eyes and she was visibly choked up.
My mind immediately went into high alert. “What’s wrong, Mags?”
She couldn’t speak. I stood up and looked from her to Piper. Piper was teared up as well.
Piper took my hand in hers to calm me. “She loves it so much she’s speechless, Alonso. They’re good tears.”
Utter confusion tore through my head. I was panicked for my sister who wasn’t actually panicked. And my hand was being warmed by the heat from Piper’s hand. My body was in overload and it took a moment to come back to my senses.
I turned back to my sister. She nodded. “I. Love. It.” Her words were broken up by smiling sobs.
My hand was still in Piper’s. Did she realize she still held me? I didn’t move, didn’t breathe for fear of her taking her hand away. Should I grip her hand in return? My pinkie twitched and I felt that jolt I had felt before when we had occasionally touched. Piper’s hand leaped back as if burned and she tucked it under her thigh.
The saleswoman reappeared with a smile. “And?”
I rubbed Maggie’s cheek. “Wrap it up. We’re taking it home.”
Over lunch, we laughed and talked. Maggie filled us in on all the goings-on in her building. Some of the residents were dating and two were caught canoodling—Maggie’s word—in the back of the recreation room. Giggles erupted from her as she told the story.
“Surely people are allowed to date.” Piper’s laughter faded as she thought a little more about the situation.
Maggie rolled her eyes. “Well, yes, but they’re not supposed to get to second base in a public area!”
I was getting way too many shocks from my sister on this trip. First the overly girly crying because of a dress and now she’s talking about people groping each other. “You’ve never done that have you, Mags?”
A pointed look turned to me as my sister’s dark eyes turned serious. “Why would I tell you if I’ve gotten to second base? You’re my brother. Ew.”
Piper laid her hand on Maggie’s. “He’s just looking out for you the way a big brother should. He wants to make sure you’re safe.”
Another eye roll came my way. “No, I have never gotten to second base, Alonso. Thanks for reminding me.” She turned to Piper and crinkled her eyes before blocking her face from me. “But I wouldn’t mind if it happened!”
Laughter burst from Piper so loud that a few other patrons of the restaurant turned to look at us. Of course, I had heard my sister, who was not exactly great at whispering. I wanted to be upset with her, but it had been a while since I had gotten to second base myself and I wouldn’t mind it happening again sooner rather than later. I laughed with them.
Suddenly it occurred to me that Maggie was treating Piper like one of her best girlfriends. Something a completely normal twenty-something woman would do. And all I had ever wanted for Maggie was for her to live as normal of a life as she could. Part of that was having crushes on boys and possibly kissing a few.
Maggie was completely smitten with Piper, I could tell. Part of me worried what would happen if things soured between Piper and me, but then I remembered we weren’t dating. We were just coworkers. My singleness was completely on purpose.
It was then that I remembered something my abuelo had said to me. Relationships built on nothing but passion will fizzle out and leave things in a bad place. But relationships built on friendship and respect - that’s where the passion builds over time instead of dying a miserable death. He had looked at Abuela and winked at her. They had that relationship built on friendship and respect. When they passed, they had been married for fifty years.
My parents’ relationship, on the other hand, had been built on nothing but a passion that quickly died out. They had tried to stay together for me, but in the end, they both had given up on each other and their children.
Maybe not all relationships started as a burst of flames only to be doused when reality hit. Maybe, just maybe, they could start as a little warmth and grow into a roaring fire that would last.
And maybe I could convince Piper Campbell to turn her icy feelings towards me into a little warmth. After all, we could only get warmer from here.