Prized Possessions - Chapter 2

There was no point in turning back for Hilda. She had just discovered stone cold Margret's true form. Two scenarios were available at this time. She could leave the house and confront Margret the next day. Or Hilda can stay at the house and confront her classmate right here and now. The second option made a lot more sense, so, Hilda stayed. Carefully, the dark-skinned girl backed away slowly, moving to the couch. One of her feet accidently hit the coffee table.

Margret had just put on a shirt and some pajama pants until she heard a noise. "Who's there?!" she demanded. She left the bathroom, with a toilet plunger to defend herself. Margret's steel blue eyes went wide with surprise when she discovered who her visitor was.

"H-how the hell did you get here?!" Margret asked.

"Your father let me in." Hilda plainly replied, reading a random magazine. "He's off to work by the way."

"Don't change the subject!" Margret exclaimed. "Explain yourself!"

Hilda took a deep breath and placed the magazine back on the table. Okay, first off…" She began, grabbing the red backpack her classmate had left earlier. "You forgot about this."

"And you were going to give it to me in the shower?"

"No!" Hilda blushed with frustration. "That wasn't the plan!"

"You're not helping your case!"

Shessh…we can't be going around and around like this forever. Time to get straight to the point, then.

"Fine, then!" Hilda said. "I came here for other reasons. I need to know why you act the way that you do."

"Hmph, well, aren't you nosy…"

"And I wanted to apologize for rejecting you in the way that I did. Your confession seemed so unexpected, I just couldn't believe it myself. I'm very sorry, Margret."

Hilda was a trustworthy girl, there was no reason for the honey brown haired girl to doubt her. Margret felt like she was being unfair to her crush. Despite her rude and high mighty attitude, the steel blue eyed girl had some decency and consideration in her. "I'm making some tea." The other girl said, putting aside the toilet plunger. "Don't go anywhere."

"R-right." While Hilda waited patiently, Margret began to prepare tea in the kitchen.

Hilda couldn't help but stare. Her classmate looked drastically different than what she looked like at school and in public. The Margret she seen was as short as a fifth grader. No curves, no chest.

This Margret right in front of Hilda was…just…speechlessly beautiful. She had curves in all the right places in her body. She was well endowed, which Hilda was envious of. Her chest was clearly seen through the tightness of the shirt. If Hilda wasn't Margret's crush, the other girl would've wished death on her for staring. Man, was Hilda lucky.

W-w-w-wait a minute! What am I even doing?! I do not swing that way! I didn't come here to admire her body! Bad Hilda, bad!

Margret came back with two teacups and gave one to Hilda on the small table. "I hope you like green tea."

"Thanks." Hilda said before blowing on the steam and taking a small sip.

Margret took her own teacup and began sipping on it as well. There was an awkward silence threatening to engulf them. Hilda broke the silence.

"So, what is it with you and that teddy bear?"

"Why do you want to know?" Margret asked back.

"Well, you've been seen around that bear for two years now." Hilda reasoned. "You never put it down. You take it with you everywhere, even at gym class and during exams!"

"W-well, that's because…I need it to keep me secure."

"And not only that..." Hilda added. "Somehow, it has the power to change you physically."

"You wouldn't understand."

"Try me, Margret."

Margret took a deep breath. "The teddy bear you see me carrying all the time, his name is Peter." Margret began. "Peter is important to me for a reason, you know. That's my prized possession. It's a keep sake from my mother. I got it from her ten years ago…"

The other girl listened intently to Margret's story. It came off as a brief explanation. Hilda wasn't sure if asking about what happened to Margret's mother would be a wise decision. Best not to go there, for now.

"Margret, would you mind telling me why you hide your real body?" Hilda asked, setting her tea cup down. "I mean, you look so much better this way."

"Yeah right…" Margret scoffed. "I'd rather stay a child than grow up."

"If that's the case…" Hilda disagreed. "Then that means you're missing out on the bigger things in life."

Margret gave her crush a soft glare. "What do you know? You're not in my shoes...You're such a good student. You always work so hard at school. You have friends and admirers. You have a perfect life. I'm still living in the past. You embrace the present."

"Hey, now," Hilda argued, crossing her arms. "I admit that my lifestyle right now is great. But, it's anything but perfect. I wasn't born to have a perfect life. I had to work hard to get where I am right now at school. And I succeeded without the use of a stuffed animal."

Margret bit her bottom lip. The other girl did have a point, but, it sounded so self-righteous. Hilda could never understand what it's like to long for past memories of innocence."Don't you have something special that reminds you of your past?"

"No." The dark-skinned girl denied. "I don't have something like that."

"Liar." Margret shook her head.

"What?"

"Everyone has a prized possession." Margret insisted. "It makes them look into the past and remember their weakest points during the younger days. They think back on their childhood memories. That's why we have prized possessions."

Margret did have a point. Everyone has something from the past they treasure most. But, the thing is, Hilda wasn't sure if her past was worth remembering. That's why she didn't have any possessions like that. Hilda felt like those weren't that memorable, her past wasn't that memorable.

What was going on here? Hilda had a mission. She was supposed to get to the bottom of Margret's behavior problems! Now, it looked like she was even more confused than normal. This girl with the honey brown hair was questioning her. This resulted in Hilda questioning herself.

Just then, Hilda looked at the clock on the wall. It was almost dinner time!

"Yikes, I better get going! I'll never hear the end of it from auntie unless I hurry back."

Hilda got up, grabbing her own school bag and putting her shoes on. "See you tomorrow, Margret."

"Wait!" the other girl ran towards the door. Blushing softly, Margret made eye contact with Hilda. "Umm…do you want to go out after school tomorrow?"

"Sure, I don't work on Tuesday. Maybe we can go for a movie or something?"

Margret smiled brightly. "Okay…we'll see."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once Hilda returned to her house, Whitney, her aunt, had just prepared dinner. Whitney had been taking care of her niece since her parents had disappeared into Hilda's life. She was a thirty-five year old woman with long brown hair. Her eyes were the same color.

"There you are, Hilda." Whitney said, hands on her hips.

"Hi, auntie. Sorry I'm late." The girl entered into the dinning room.

"What took you so long to get back here? Afterschool stuff?"

"Well, yeah, something like that." I had went to a classmate's house to bring her something she forgot. Long story short: we're going to see a movie tomorrow."

"Oh, then you should check out an action movie, then." The woman suggested. "I heard that 'Juko: the gun mage' is a good film."

"It depends on what my classmate's taste in movies are." Hilda shrugged. "Anyway, what's for dinner? I'm starving!"

"I'm glad you asked!" Whitney smiled triumphantly. "I did a little food shopping and learned a few good recipes on top of that."

Hilda dreaded this at times. Whitney was a cook good when it came to traditional dishes. But, when it came to new meals to try out…that was another story. "A-are you sure you don't need help?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Whitney raised an eyebrow. "Hurry up and wash your hands."

Whitney knew what she was doing this time around. There was string beans, pasta, and pork chops on the table. It's always been like this. The two of them living together, eating together, and hanging out together. Hilda had adjusted to it and enjoyed her life with her guardian very much. It was the comfort zone that kept her stable and secure.

"Hilda?" Whitney said, striking up a conversation with the teenager.

"Yeah?"

"I'm visiting Oscar this Friday. And I would like if you came with me."

Within in instant the atmosphere around the dinner table changed. Hilda narrowed her eyes at her food with a grim expression. "Why should I visit him for?"

"I talked with him over the phone." The aunt replied. "He was asking about you."

"So what?" Hilda asked, placing her fork and spoon down.

"So what?" Whitney echoed, frowning. "He's your father. You should go see him."

"How can you say that?" Hilda glared at the older woman. "You're talking about him as if he's an innocent man."

"Hilda…"

"I was only 14 when I found out about him. Oscar was a drug dealer in the ghetto. And even when I was born, he didn't quit his dangerous lifestyle. He didn't want nothing to do with me…"

It was true. Hilda's father had sold drugs for a living. He was around his early teens. The girl never knew her mother either. She had disappeared into her life as well.

"I understand that you are disappointed in him." Whitney reasoned. "But, I think Oscar's time in prison is really changing him for the better."

"I want to believe that. But…" Hilda said, rubbing the back of her head.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought that up at a time like this." Whitney sighed, putting down her fork on the side. "I'm stuffed. "How about you?"

Hilda nodded. "Yes, I'm done eating, too."

"I'll wash the dishes today. You should relax and get some sleep soon."

After taking a shower and getting situated in her room, Hilda looked at herself in the mirror. Her reelection was the same as her. She was an eighteen year old African American girl. Her black hair was tied up in a head scarf. Hilda's pajamas were a light shade of purple.

There was nothing memorable about her. She was the daughter of a drug dealer from the ghetto. That fact is good enough to have her classmates and teachers treat her differently. She'd rather keep her secrets to herself. Hilda didn't go to bed right away. She watched some Television and played some video games until 11:00pm. Then, off to bed for her.

Today was…interesting, to say the least. Hopefully, tomorrow will be a little better.