RUNES (A Runes Book 1)

Chapter 4

4. A  THE BIRTHDAY GIRL

"Are you sure you're up to this?" Cora asked for the hundredth time.

I rolled my eyes. "Can you tell her that I'm fine, Eirik?"

Eirik stared straight ahead. In fact, he'd been quiet and preoccupied since we left the park. "Eirik?"

"Hmm?"

I exchanged a glance with Cora. A naughty grin crossed her face. She leaned forward and whispered, "Do you want to make out with us when we get to Raine's place?"

"Sure," he said. We laughed. He snapped out of it and frowned. "What?"

Cora only laughed harder.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

He pulled up outside my house and let the engine idle, his way of saying he wasn't staying. Still scowling, he said, "I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"You've been rather quiet since we left the park." I hopped down from the Jeep. "So when are we leaving tonight?"

"Eight," Cora answered. "Eirik's driving." She tapped Eirik's arm. "You're driving me home, so don't take off. Raine, come with me." She gripped my arm and pushed me toward the house.

Eirik didn't complain about Cora's bossiness, which was unlike him. He must have taken my orders to be nice to Cora seriously. He reached for his camera. He was always taking pictures, and I was usually his main subject. Even at the park when he wasn't playing, he'd kept busy snapping pictures. I wondered if he'd captured the moment that girl kicked me. I paused to ask, but Cora kept tugging.

"Move it, missy. I have two hours to transform you, but right now I want to know what I have to work with," she said.

"Transform me?" I unlocked the door and allowed her to push me upstairs.

"Because your idea of dressing up is jeans, boots, and whatever top you have lying around in your closet. Your mom, on the other hand, has style. Your dad was a class act and... I mean, he is a class act." She sighed. "I'm sorry, Raine."

"Don't be." My chest tightened as I walked to the closet and opened it. For a moment, I stared at my clothes through blurry eyes.

"Raine?"

"I, uh, I have white jeans. Anything that glows under a disco light is fine, right?"

"Usually, yes, but it's your birthday and we're going to the club. Damn it." Cora hugged me from behind. "I'm so sorry I brought up your father. I don't know how to deal with this."

"Me neither." My voice shook. "Mom believes he survived the crash, but I'm losing hope. I don't want to mourn him because... because..." I couldn't finish the sentence.

"It'd mean he's gone." Cora's arms tightened around me.

I wiped the wetness from my cheeks and took a deep breath, then turned and faced her. She was crying, too. I tried to smile, but my tears started to flow again. "Can we promise not to mention him for the rest of the day?"

"Night," she corrected. "And the answer is yes. I'll focus on prettying you up." She nudged me aside.

"Prettying me up? That's insulting."

"Yeah, well, your understated style might work for school and the mall, but not the club. Not tonight," she said as she flipped through my dresses and sighed. "Just like I thought. Nothing in here. You know what? I'll come early with outfits, makeup, and hair stuff."