Vacation Blues

Chapter 27- Everyone Ditches Me, Except Him

Yesterday had been a weird day. It was an undoubted and uncontested fact.

And so maybe that's why I wanted today to make up for everything. I wanted it to be extra-special and extra-happy. And I knew for a fact that I wasn't the only one thinking that way. Even Hayley and Cedric (especially Cedric) looked like they were in a mood for something extraordinary.

Last night, Cedric and I had talked. A serious sibling chat, after a long time. We both had apologized to each other, me for putting my needs before his and him for shouting at me. As I had hugged Cedric that moment, I had thanked God for sending Cedric along. After all the hopeless events in my life, the fact that I had gotten someone like Cedric with me showed me that no matter what happened, things were always alright in the end.

And then there was Hayley. Always a support system. She knew I had had a weird day, and despite her having shared this weird day with me, she still buried her problems deep inside her and helped me sort mine. She heard me rant till it was 2 in the morning before yawning loudly and saying she'd listen to the rest tomorrow. And then the moment she was up today, her first words were,

"So Skye, continue with your words of wisdom."

And to top that, I had nutella sandwiches for breakfast. After two weeks of horrid breakfasts (with the exception of the two at Cameron's house), this choco-hazelnut-y goodness was heaven on earth.

I kissed Cedric's cheek and promised to not tease his animal-love for an entire week for buying that holy jar of nutella. His reply was a demand of a week free of any lame puns. But I wasn't feeling that angelic.

"So, any idea what the plans for today are?" Hayley asked me as I poured some orange juice for both of us.

"Nope. Cam said he'd talk to Sean and then tell us." I replied.

"Sean said the same thing. I really want it to be something good."

"I know right! Like the perfect kick start to the extended vacation."

"Though I'm seriously wondering, what else could we do in Malay? Does this little town have every way possible to have fun?"

I grinned.

"Coming here was the best decision ever." I said.

"Yeah! I can't believe there was a time we actually thought about going back."

"Here's to Cameron and Sean, for making our vacation memorable." I said, tipping my glass of juice towards her.

We clicked our glasses and took a sip of the juice. Hayley's phone rang and the moment her face broke into a huge grin after seeing the name on the screen, I knew it was Sean who'd called. I went to check in on Cedric, who had unpredictably been absent for breakfast, and also to give Hayley some privacy.

As I opened the door to his room, I noticed him standing next to the window, staring outside, clearly deep in thought. Even though he was looking out the window, I knew from his expressions, his mind was elsewhere. His eyebrows were knitted together and while his right arm was folded in, he was resting his head on his left. It was the "Cedric Miller Thinking Pose" as I called it.

"Cedric?" I called.

It was a while before he registered my voice and looked back to see me standing in the doorway. His eyebrows relaxed and he dropped his arms.

"Yeah?" He said.

"Aren't you hungry?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'll be there in a sec."

He sounded incredibly distracted. That was troubling.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked, sitting on the edge of his bed.