Jessica's Fate

Chapter 34

Things really ramped up for me over the next week.

Zack wasn't able to hang out with me on Sunday after prom so I ended up staying home and sleeping practically all day, either in my room or out in the hammock that I'd put up in the backyard. It was a really nice day for reading and sunbathing... erm... napping in the back yard. I went over all the fun details with Mom over breakfast and she was so happy that I'd had a good time.

I ended up taking the week off from work after I went back to school on Monday. It was if the teachers all the sudden realized that they only had us for a week and a half of classes, due to Memorial Day being a Monday holiday and then they had 2 days to give us finals before we had a week of no classes – just graduation rehearsal and "Senior" things like honors breakfasts and dinners and the chance to turn in projects and clean out lockers.

I wasn't entirely sure why we weren't doing finals at the start of that week but I supposed it made sense because there was a whole week for make-up testing in case someone needed it in order to actually complete the requirements satisfactorily to be able to walk in the graduation ceremony.

Zack told me he understood when I let him know I wasn't working. He followed it up by saying that his friends were moving or needed help with yardwork or something, I was in the middle of my French homework and I was thinking in a different language so I was a little distracted.

Oh, we still talked every night but I think I fell asleep on him every time. We managed to set up a time to meet up and run on Saturday morning but I couldn't help but think there was something just a tad bit off since we hadn't truly spoken since Prom. I felt it was time for something new. I was sure that we were due for a date or something, I couldn't help but want to introduce him to the rest of my life.

So, Friday night, before I talked to him, I talked to Mom and we figured out that Sunday would be a good day to have a big family BBQ. I quickly texted Sang and asked her to make sure that all of her guys – my brother and all my extra brothers – were able to come to spend Sunday afternoon at the house.

~Wait. Is this a big BBQ? Like... meet Zack kind of thing?~

I rolled my eyes. ~You caught me. I'm thinking it's time to let him run the gauntlet. ~

~You are going to tell him to be prepared, right? ~

~Of course. I'm not a bad girlfriend. ~

~Of course you aren't. Okay. We'll all be there. ~

~Besides, he knows you and Luke so that's having a couple friends in the back pocket anyway. ~

~True. ~

With the family participation in place, securing North to do the grilling was easy and I worked out a plan with Luke to borrow the kitchen at the diner so that I could make dessert for everyone, Saturday afternoon was going to work out just fine after my run with Zack.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I was up early on Saturday, anxious to get my run in and then work on my planned desserts for the next day. I ate yogurt parfaits and toast with Mom before heading out the door. I was a little puzzled because Zack's usual MO was to meet me at the house with my latte and then we walked to the path beyond the diner while we drank coffee before we started to run. But he wasn't there. My forehead furrowed into a frown as I pulled out my phone and checked it to make sure I hadn't woken up so early that it wasn't even time yet.

Nope.

In fact, it was already 6:59. I gave a half-hearted wave towards Marie because she was taking out her garbage as I jogged past her house. I made it to the diner, thinking maybe he was there instead but pulled up in disappointment at the fact that there was still no Zack.