Late Night Conversations

"Wow! She's downright cranky."

"Yeah," the teenager said, making sure the grass bag was attached correctly. "Someone kept her up late last night arguing American football, of all things."

"You know your sister," I shrugged. "She started it!"

"Funny thing about that." Renzo reached for the pull cord. "I don't remember Mari really paying much attention to American football until that summer you visited."

"Seriously?" I asked in surprise. "Then why would she pick a team she knows I hate?"

"Please! Isn't it obvious? She loves to fight with you. She gets some perverse joy out of it." He yanked on the cord and the mower started. Renzo started making his way across the lawn without another word.

I watched him and shook my head, but not without admitting to myself that I enjoyed bantering with Miranda just as much as she did with me. I guess that was weird in a way, but so what? It worked for us.

"Let's get a move on," my grandmother said, interrupting my train of thought as she came out of the shed with the supplies. "We need to finish it today. It's supposed to rain tomorrow." Thankfully, my grandmother didn't have a particularly large front porch.

I quickly moved to her side and took the large primer can and as much of the rest of the supplies as Gramsy would let me take from her.

"You move the furniture onto the driveway and I'll sweep the surface clean. I just power cleaned it a few days ago, but we'll need to make sure there's nothing stuck between the cracks."

Gramsy continued to list everything we had to do, but I mostly ignored her. It's not like she wouldn't repeat herself at each step along the way.

The next couple of hours passed quickly enough. It was a little chillier than the day before, but still warm enough to paint. We enjoyed a late lunch from the chairs on the driveway as we waited for the primer to dry.

We were just finishing up our meal when someone drove up to the Ramos house in a sports car. The driver was a young, good looking guy. I glanced at my grandmother questioningly. She only hesitated a moment before she said, "That's Miranda's boyfriend, Anthony."

I don't know why I was surprised by the fact that Miranda had a boyfriend. Frankly, it would have been more of a surprise if she didn't. Mira was eighteen, beautiful in her own way, funny and had a great personality. Of course, she had a boyfriend. I watched as he beeped the horn and got out of his car. It didn't take long for Miranda to come outside. She looked happy to see him.

"The primer is almost dry," I said to Gramsy as I stood. "I'm going to go to the shed and get the paint."

"You do that. I'm going to stay right here. I don't trust that boy to keep his distance from Miranda. You know how teenagers can be." My grandmother's comments made me smile and shake my head as I made my way to the shed in the backyard.

I was on my way back when I saw Renzo emptying the lawnmower grass catcher into a paper leaf bag. He was also occasionally frowning at his sister and Anthony. There was something in his expression that made me think he didn't care for his sister's boyfriend.

"Almost done?" I asked as I came even with him. I didn't want to pry, but I'd always liked Renzo.

"Yes." He hesitated for a moment before adding, "But can you tell Miranda that I need her help when you go back out front?"

"Sure, is everything okay?"

"I guess." He seemed more focused on his sister and Anthony than me. "Papa and Mama say Mira is old enough to make her own decisions." He clearly wasn't as sure.

"That sounds...reasonable." I only half meant it. I liked the idea that Miranda's parents trusted her, but I was a younger brother too and knew how frustrating it could be when your older sister was dating someone you had a bad feeling about.

My sister Lisa's last boyfriend was a real winner. I was so glad when she finally broke it off with him. Thankfully, it wasn't long after that when she met her fiancé. He was definitely a keeper.

"I'll let Miranda know you need her." It was all I could do in the situation. Renzo nodded in thanks and started the mower again.

I wasted no time when I got out front and moved toward his sister and her boyfriend. They were on opposite sides of his car. It looked to me that Anthony kept trying to subtly shift toward her, but each time it happened Mira took a step in the same direction, carefully keeping the car between them.

"Miranda, I'm sorry to interrupt but Renzo says he needs your help." I offered a friendly smile to Anthony that I didn't actually feel. I knew it wasn't fair, but I trusted Renzo's instincts. He nodded in greeting, but was clearly annoyed at the interruption.

"Mandy, I just got here. You don't have to leave yet?"

"Mandy?" I couldn't stop myself asked in surprise. Miranda was many things, but a Mandy? No way. She always went by Miranda or Mira. I couldn't picture her as a Mandy.

"I gave her the nickname," Anthony said, obviously proud of the fact. "I mean, she's eighteen, not eighty? Right?" I tilted my head and didn't comment, but only because I didn't want to argue with a guy I didn't know.

Apparently, Miranda's boyfriend didn't like her name. It wasn't my problem, but it seemed oddly unkind of him to just pick another name for her, especially one I couldn't see her liking. Besides, I always thought Miranda, or even the shorter Mira were cool. They both fit.

My feeling on the whole Mandy thing must have been obvious to Miranda because she quickly insisted, "There's nothing wrong with the nickname Mandy."

"If you say so." My tone made it obvious that I didn't agree, but it was time for me to let go of the argument and slip away. I'd annoyed Miranda, which was always a plus with us, and it was just starting to dawn on Anthony that maybe I wasn't thrilled with his new nickname for her. "Don't forget that your brother needs your help. I have to go help Gramsy paint her front porch before she loses patience and starts without me."

I nodded toward Anthony and offered another smile, but this time his nod in response was far curter. I clearly hadn't made a new friend. To be fair, I had been a bit of a jerk with the whole Mandy nickname thing, but I had the sense that whatever Renzo's misgivings were about Antony, they were well founded.

"Who was that?" Anthony asked Miranda as soon as I turned my back on them. He didn't even wait for me to get out of earshot.

"My neighbor Mrs. Stahl's grandson. He's a friend." She paused and then added a bit more loudly for what I was certain was my benefit, "Or maybe more of a frenemy." I grinned, but didn't turn back.

"Mandy, do you really have to go?" They had to talk louder than usual since they had the car between them.

"Yes." I had to strain to hear Miranda's response. "I can't leave Sophie and Mateo inside alone for long. They're supposed to be doing school work, and Renzo needs me in the backyard."

"Okay, but will you at least think about Friday night?"

I didn't hear her reply, and that concerned me. I didn't like the fact that Anthony was obviously trying to make plans with Miranda despite the pandemic, but it wasn't my place to get involved. I got that it had to be hard to be boyfriend and girlfriend with this whole social distancing thing. Frankly, I was sort of glad I wasn't dating anyone at the time this all hit.

I guess it could be fun if it was like my sister and her fiancé. They were quarantining together, but if not, how would you deal with the separation? I couldn't blame Anthony for wanting Miranda to hang out with him Friday night. The problem was that I thought Gramsy was right not to trust Anthony to keep his distance.

I shook my head and took a deep breath. I wasn't sure what the right answer was, but I did know that Miranda was smart and could handle herself. She would have to make her own decision.

"I guess Mr. and Mrs. Ramos have it right after all."

"Parents usually do," Gramsy said easily as I joined her.

I was embarrassed because I hadn't realized I'd spoken out loud, but my grandmother being who she was, left it at that and started giving me directions on exactly how long I should shake the paint can before opening it. For a moment, I wondered if she knew why I'd said what I did, but decided it was best not to ask.

**********

I didn't see Miranda the rest of the day except in passing. I dropped off dinner on the Ramos's front porch when the time came, but it was Renzo who collected it and thanked me. I wasn't sure if Mira was mad at me or just busy. She certainly had plenty to do taking care of her siblings, and for all intents and purposes, their house. That's why I was happy when she showed up in the backyard around the same time as yesterday.

"I see you're wearing a coat tonight," she said pointedly, right off the bat. Apparently, Miranda wasn't mad at me, or at least not enough to forgo our normal teasing.

I didn't bother replying because she was right. It had been stupid not going inside and grabbing my coat the night before. At the time, I was enjoying myself too much to care, but it took me almost an hour to warm up enough to go to sleep once we were done talking.

We'd left the chair from the night before in Miranda's yard so she wouldn't have to disinfect it again. Gramsy had plenty of them and wouldn't begrudge me loaning Mira one.

"No arguing tonight." she said far more seriously, surprising me as she took the chair and put it in the same place as the night before.

"What are the odds?" I joked as I did the same with another chair.

"Please," she implored. "My parents are both home tonight and could use a good night's sleep." I could hear the concern in her voice and see it in her eyes. I met the latter and smiled, offering what support I could.

"Got it." We both fell silent for a time. I wanted to give her a chance to talk out her fears because they were obviously close to the surface tonight, but she wasn't ready yet. The problem was that by the time I realized it, the quiet had become too drawn out. It felt oddly awkward to be the first one to break it.

We were sitting and facing each other so I could see that Miranda was feeling it too. I decided to bite the bullet and dive in, but me being me, I said the first thing that came to mind.

"So...Mandy? Seriously?"

"How did I know you were going to bring that up first thing?" Miranda grumbled, but she seemed relieved that we were finally talking again.

"It's not like it was hard to figure out. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't bring it up? It's a terrible nickname for..."

"What do you have against Mandy?" Miranda interjected. "It's a perfectly good name."

"You didn't let me finish." I took a moment to crack my neck. She waited, somewhat impatiently, but I knew she'd refuse to interrupt me again now that I called her on it. "Mandy is fine as far as names go...for someone else, but it's a terrible nickname for you."

"Why?" Mira clearly looked ready to argue despite her insisting we not do that tonight. I was tempted, but I knew her concern for her parents was real, so instead, I tried helping her see what I meant on her own.

"Think about it? Do you actually like being called Mandy?" We sat staring at each other for a few moments, until she finally answered.

"I admit, it seemed a little odd at first, but I've grown to like it."

"Bull!" I retorted. "You got used to it. That's not the same as liking it." She opened her mouth to argue, but it was my turn to cut her off. "Oh sure, you probably like the idea of your boyfriend having a special nickname for you, but Mandy? Never."

"How can you be so sure?" Miranda looked annoyed, but I noticed she didn't disagree this time.

"Because I know you," I smiled triumphantly. It would have been smarter to leave it at that, but I just had to keep going. "Apparently, better than your boyfriend." I thought about my brief encounter with Anthony and lost my smile, "He doesn't seem to get you at all." I'm not sure why I had to volunteer an opinion on him, but he so wasn't the right guy for her.

"You're impossible!" Miranda jerked out of the chair. I thought I'd pissed her off enough to leave, but instead Mira grabbed the chair and violently spun it so it was facing away from me before dropping back into it. "I can't even look at you!"

Instead of replying, I took a deep breath and let it out. The idea of her leaving made me realize I'd gone too far. Miranda was her own woman. She didn't need me butting into her personal life.

"Maybe that's a good idea," I finally said, standing and spinning my chair around too. It was silly in a way, but it felt better than staring at her back. "Maybe this is the only way we can have a civil conversation."

"What's wrong with us?" It was more difficult hearing her with us sitting this way, so I shifted my chair closer to the fence. That meant we were closer than six feet apart, but we were facing away from each other. I figured that offset the distance.

"Nothing," I replied, staring up into the cold night sky. The stars were out again. "Friends fight. They tease each other too." It felt like the truth as the words left my mouth, but only part of it.

"Not as much as us." She sounded calmer. I didn't want to ruin that.

"You're right," I began slowly, trying to figure it out as I spoke. "Maybe it's because we're not really friends? Maybe we're both in such a desperate need of a friend that we're trying to force it." That didn't feel as right as my first comment, but Miranda didn't say anything so I continued. "God knows, I could use one right about now. My life is changing in so many ways this year, and that was before the pandemic. It's added another whole level of crazy."

"You and me both." I barely heard Miranda's words, but then she added a little more loudly, "Do you miss college as much as I miss high school?"

"Yes and no." I continued staring up into the night sky. Somehow it helped. "I joke about my professors and classes all the time, but at this point doing the latter on-line isn't really much different than going. What is, is the loneliness and fear. At least when I was at college, I was surrounded by people in the same situation. Somehow, that made it not as scary."

I admitted more than I planned, but I found myself relieved to be saying what was bothering me out loud. I knew I could trust Miranda to understand and keep it to herself.

"It can't be easy being here and taking care of your grandmother either." It was a kind thought on her part, but I couldn't leave it at that. Miranda was acting like both mother and father to her three younger siblings. She had it so much harder.

"Please!" I snorted. "I think it's more a matter of Gramsy taking care of me. I've been trying to figure out if she really suddenly needs so much done around here, or she figures that it's best to keep me busy." I paused because it hit me that despite my joking tone, there was probably more truth to what I said than I realized.

"It's probably a little bit of both with your grandmother."

I didn't respond, hoping she'd fill the silence this time. Miranda had it so much worse than me. She was under a lot of stress. Not only was her school life turned upside down by the pandemic, but with her mother and father both in the healthcare industry, she had the added stress of caring for her siblings.

"You were right before," Miranda began, her tone oddly distant. That was certainly not what I expected her to say. "I don't really like the nickname Mandy, but it made Anthony happy. We started dating right after Christmas. It was the beginning of my last semester of high school and I was having too good of a time to care about one silly nickname."

There was so much I wanted to say, so much I wanted to ask, but instead I kept my mouth shut and let her continue. It was hard, but I'd promised myself that if I got Miranda talking about what was bothering her, I wouldn't interrupt.

"I've been working since eighth grade when I started babysitting for a few neighbors. I was busy with that most weekends until sophomore year when I started working at a catering hall as a waitress. I didn't have a lot of free weekends with that job either. It was mostly weddings so I'd work Friday night, all day Saturday and sometimes even Sunday."

"There was a good core group around my age working there. We used to hang out together and have a good time, but I was missing out on a lot of things that most high school kids did. That's why I decided to quit for my senior year."

I started working young too. It was for a guy who ran his own lawn service. It was long hours, but paid well. I was saving for spending money to have at college so I couldn't picture just stopping my senior year like Miranda had, but I could only work until it got dark so I still had time to go out with my friends afterward.

"It was actually my mother who convinced me," Miranda continued. "I'm a saver so I had money in the bank. I was planning on buying my own car and had enough for a decent used one, but I would have needed to continue to work at that job to pay for insurance and gas."

"Momma thought it made more sense for me to wait until after high school to buy a car. She said I should take a break from working so much and enjoy my last year. She even offered me the use of her car on the weekends since she finally had enough seniority to work weekdays." I'd always liked Mrs. Ramos. She clearly loved her daughter and was willing to put herself out to make Miranda happy.

"I was still waffling so she talked to her beautician and got me a part time job working at the beauty parlor. It meant that I had to work Saturdays, but only in the morning." I couldn't see Miranda, but I could hear her smile from her tone.

"It gave me enough money so that I didn't have to go into my savings for spending or gas. Plus, and don't you dare laugh, I've always been interested in becoming a beautician. Working there gave me a chance to see what it was really like."

"I can see it," I offered. Although, to be honest, I hadn't pictured Miranda with that kind of a job until she said it. It explained how great her hair looked, not the mention the rest of her. Miranda had grown beyond the little tomboy I remembered, not that she'd lost her competitive nature. I grinned as I pictured Mira playing soccer with her younger siblings the day before.

"So, I quit the catering hall job and started making an effort to get more involved with my high school's extracurricular activities." The words were coming quicker now and I smiled. She needed to share and I was glad I was here, able to listen.

"I went to every football game for the first time. Our team wasn't that great, but it was still fun. More important, I started reconnecting with old friends and started making some new ones. A couple of them were from the so called 'in-crowd', and that's how I met Anthony."

"Truthfully, he was very popular so I was more than a little surprised when he started showing interest in me." I didn't like the sound of that, but she didn't give me a chance to interrupt. "At first, I thought it was just the whole physical thing, but eventually I saw that Anthony was actually interested in me and not just my body."

Miranda's bluntness was surprising. She'd clearly grown up since I last saw her, and that was oddly satisfying to me. What wasn't was the fact that her words were making me second guess my opinion of Anthony.

"He seemed like a nice guy and if I'm being honest, I jumped at the chance to date him when he finally asked me out. It was a bit weird because I went from knowing a couple of people in the in-crowd to being the center of it almost overnight."

Miranda was quiet for a few seconds, obviously remembering. I waited patiently. Taking the time to enjoy the sense of connection I was feeling between us.