don't get me started

Daisy looked through her old clothes, hoping Irma would find something she might could use. Granted, the jeans were so washed out and soft, to the point of coming a part. Perhaps she might as well throw them away.

"Are you sure, you, can't wear these?" Irma held up a pair of the cutoffs. She was settling in the basement, Max's old room. After all, he hadn't used it in months. Most of his stuff was in Daisy's room now.

"I really need to get rid of some stuff. Everything is for the baby now." Daisy sighed, thinking how much had changed in her life, all because of her little girl Mandy.

"Well, I can use them." Irma assured her as she put them back in the trash bag they were in. "I don't really have much."

"Not even at your cousin's?" Daisy winced, wondering how Irma and Jess were getting along these days.

Irma shook her head, no. "I just came with my backpack." Irma shrugged. "My ex always packed light and he certainly didn't want me buying anything to drag him down." Irma smirked as if all she could say now about him was the stuff she hated about him.

"I dunno how you did it." Daisy loved to shop. Especially, for Mandy. Maybe that was why she was having to get rid of her own stuff now. "Granted, I keep too much. And I should live on less." But it was only a passing thought. Still, she wondered if she could live on her iPhone alone. Not a chance. She needed her laptop for studying. About then the doorbell rang.

Irma went to get the door. Holden had texted to let her know he was bringing her something.

She was in total shock to see the laptop.

"Oh My God!" It felt like Christmas and a birthday wrapped into one, just for her.

"Lets see if it does everything you want it to do, first." He set it up on the coffee table and made sure he had the right WiFi password that Max gave him.

It started up instantly and when right to GOOGLE. He showed her the bookmarks for the GED and the State high school online site for classes.

"I dunno, its been so long, you know." She tried to smile but a lump of stress grew in her throat. "Why do you have such faith in me?"

"Because, you're not stupid." He nudged her with his shoulder and it felt good to be by his side. He wasn't the kind of guy always telling her what to do and what they expected of her.

"I dunno." She kept staring at the screen on the laptop.

"What's the last school you attended?" He wanted to know.

She winced. She didn't even want to remember. She gritted a smile. She hated to tell him that she hadn't gone to school since her Freshman year, and that was years ago.

"It was on the reservation." She didn't feel too happy about telling him this.

"Great. That's a great place to start." He sounded as if there was no pressure. "It might be all you need, to get you ready for Lawrence."

Holden told her he was going to K-State.

"I'm going to move there, this summer," Holden said. "Maybe..you..could..come with me."

She looked at him out of the corner of her eye.

"You're actually serious?" She smiled. Honestly, she hadn't had anything to look forward too, in a long time.