Free Have No Shame by Melissa Foster

you.”
    She grabbed my hand and touched my engagement ring. She squeezed my hand and said, “You’re sure about this?”
    “Waddaya mean?” I asked, wonderin’ if I was wearin’ the changes in my feelin’s on my sleeve. Could she see the difference in me as clearly as I could feel it?
    “I haven’t seen you since you got engaged. Someone needs to look out for my little sister.” She squinted, “So, are you sure?”
    I’d been meetin’ Jackson down by the creek for several days, and though we had never embraced again, I was fully aware of my growin’ attraction toward his gentle nature and his knowledge of the world, which was so much bigger than mine. I found myself sittin’ on the stairs listenin’ to the news on the radio in the evenin’s. I wanted to answer Maggie with the truth: Not really. He’s different than he was, and my heart is pullin’ me toward someone else . Instead, aware of our parents watchin’ us, I said, “Yeah, and Daddy says he has a promisin’ future.”
    “Of course he does,” Maggie feigned a smile in his direction.
    “Enough of this. Come over here and give me a hug.” Mama’s cheeks were plumped up, pink with happiness. She opened her arms wide, and Maggie sank into them. They could have been sisters. I wished I had the beauty that they possessed. I wasn’t ugly, but they had a certain somethin’ that shined through dirt, worry, and fatigue. One day , I hoped. One day, I’d find that beauty in myself.
    “Pants?” Jake smirked.
    “They’re all the rage in New York, little brother.” Maggie twirled in a circle, hands by her head. She looked down at her slim figure in cotton pants that tapered to the knee then flared at the bottom. “It’s a whole different world out there, Jakey-poo.”
    Pants? Jakey-poo? It was like listenin’ to Maggie, only bigger—more outspoken than before—and she had an air of not carin’ what we thought. My eyes shot to Daddy, whose arms were crossed, his right hand rubbin’ his chin. I had a feelin’ that he was tryin’ to figure her out just as I was. I was definitely intrigued.
    Mama had baked a meatloaf, fresh biscuits, and green beans. Maggie’s favorite.
    “Tell me about New York.” I was excited to hear about the big city. She was so far away and all I could think about was how scared I’d be, movin’ away from Mama and Daddy and startin’ a life without knowin’ they were right around the corner.
    Maggie’s eyes lit up. “It’s like nothin’ you’ve ever seen. There are a million people, and I swear the noise never stops.” Maggie poked at the vegetables. She had yet to take a bite.
    “Do you have many friends?” I asked. Sometimes I wondered if it was easier to make new friends than to try and reignite friendships with those I’d left behind because of datin’ someone older. I wasn’t even sure I’d want to rekindle those relationships, given how much I’d changed. Reinventin’ yourself to be seen as the person you wanted to be, rather than the person everyone had known since the day you were born, sounded excitin’ to me—and terribly scary.
    “Does she ever not?” Jake smirked. My parents gave him a not now look. “What? Well, doesn’t she?”
    “That’s enough, Jake,” Daddy said. “Maggie, tell us about your classes. Are you learnin’ a lot?”
    She nodded, drawin’ her eyebrows together, as if she were thinkin’. She looked at Jake and said, “I have lots of friends. Everyone is real nice.”
    “That’s good, honey,” Mama said, and patted Maggie’s arm.
    Maggie tilted her eyes toward Mama and smiled.
    “How about your classes, Maggie?”
    Maggie set her fork down. She looked at Daddy, pulled her shoulders back, and said, “They’re alright, Daddy.” Her words were flat. I detected a lie.
    Tension thickened in the room.
    “Grades? Are you doin’ okay?” he asked, starin’ into her eyes.
    She held his gaze. “Yes, I’m doin’ fine.” Maggie picked up her fork again,