Prologue
Millie laughed as Stacy stared after Mickey Sullivan.
“He has a really nice butt,” Stacy whispered, and Anna gave Stacy a light smack on her arm.
“Lower your voice, Stacy! He might hear and come back this way.”
Stacy placed her hands on her hips and stared at Anna.
“Like that would be so terrible?”
Millie shook her head as she grabbed the notebook from Stacy’s hand.
“Is that who you’ve been writing about in your diary?” she teased.
“Give that back, Millie!” Stacy demanded.
Anna remained quiet and Millie stopped a moment to look at her as she handed Stacy her book.
She worried about Anna. She was always so quiet and reserved all the time. Lately she’d been extra quiet and she was sporting another new bruise on her upper arm.
Stacy caught Millie’s line of sight and joined her by Anna as they sat cross-legged on the blacktop.
“Hey, whatcha thinking about, Anna?” Millie asked.
Anna sighed. “You ever think about what’s out there in the world? I mean aside from city life?” Millie swallowed hard. Whenever Anna got talking about other places to live, it meant that things were bad at home.
“Sometimes I do. I remember how beautiful Texas was, but now I’ve gotten used to life here.”
“I’m going to work in one of those tall skyscrapers one day,” Stacy chimed in then stared off toward the buildings in front of her. It wasn’t that they could see the tall buildings from outside their apartment complex, but they all knew what they looked like.
“I’m going to wear really fashionable suits and dresses. My high heels will be expensive and I might even snag me a rich husband.” Stacy pressed her boobs together, forming a small cleavage and both Millie and Anna laughed.
“You’ll need to do some growing in that department,” Millie teased Stacy.
Stacy looked down at her chest. “Hey, I’m fourteen and way past training bras. I’ve been hiding these well.”
They giggled.
“Maybe you should ask Michael if they’re big enough,” Millie teased and they all giggled.
“You shouldn’t be talking, Millie. I’ve seen the way you look at Vinnie Malone. You get all goo-goo and gaga over his tan complexion and his accent.”
“I do not! He’s seventeen and he’s a troublemaker.” Millie crossed her arms in front of her chest.
“Anna, tell her it’s obvious that she likes Vinny. She always goes for the dangerous bad-boy type,” Stacy stated.
Millie eyed Anna and Anna’s cheeks reddened.
“You do like the bad boys, Millie. Every time Vinny comes around he checks you out.”
“He does not! I do not!” she was rambling on, and Stacy looked her over.
“You may be fourteen, Millie, but you have got a set on you already. You look like a mature woman.”
Millie shook her head and gave both Anna and Stacy a mean look. They were her best friends. She didn’t want this kind of attention from men. She was chubby and had large breasts, larger than both her friends’, and she didn’t like that her breast size was grabbing the attention of older men. Even if they were good-looking Italian men like Vinny Malone.
“Hey, we were just teasing you. Look at the three of us. We’re known on the streets as the triplets with the great bodies and we’re all virgins. I’d say if we play our cards right and we stick together, then we’ll have our choice of men. Good men that will treat us like gold and get us out of the projects,” Stacy stated firmly.
“Maybe you guys, but not me. I’m stuck here. It’s destiny,” Anna replied then looked at her watch.
“I have to go. I have to stop at the store then start dinner before Mom and Dad get home. I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” Anna said then hugged her two friends before leaving.
Millie watched her go then turned to Stacy.
“He hit her again,” Millie whispered.
“I know. I wish we could do something, but living with her parents is better than living in some shelter or in foster care.”
“One day, we’ll all be happy and we’ll be best friends forever.” Millie closed her eyes and wished her words would come true.
Stacy covered her hand and squeezed it.
“We’ll be friends forever no matter what.”
Millie opened her eyes to look at Stacy but instead she saw Frank.