Rosemary's School For Extraordinary Teens

22. shut down

I watch as Erin gets up and moves towards the door, I find myself frozen. Honestly scared.

She opens the door and to my surprise it is Oliver?

"Hey, you guys have only a few hours before you need to be gone, the school requests you find yourself a ride or make accommodations with the school for a shuttle"

Erin nods and Oliver continues down to the next dorm. Shit.

I grab the phone the school supplies off the desk and dial my parents.

"Hello?" My mother answers after only a few rings.

"Hey it's me, I need a ride home today, the school is shutting down for the next week or so" I say as Erin begins packing her bags

"Is everything alright, you don't sound too good" she asks clearly concerned

"I'm fine, we just have to be out of the school in the next couple hours" I say and she yells to my dad in the distance before telling me they are coming. I say my goodbyes before handing the phone to Erin for her to call her parents as I begin packing.

X.

Almost an hour and a half later I have gathered everything and make my way down to the foyer before walking out the doors to find it's snowing?

The snow has started to stick and everything is turning white, I quickly grab my coat out of my bag before walking down the large drive up towards the fence to meet my parents.

I watch as some of the kids start to cut across the grass over to their cars hidden in the forest when I see Dawson is one of them, I'm not surprised.

I walk out the fence and immediately find my parents car before crossing the road and meeting my dad near the trunk as we put my bag in before hugging and rushing into the warm car.

"So what is happening?" Dad asks as we pull out onto the road and start to make our way back home.

"I don't think I'm allowed to talk about it" I say confused on how this works now? Does this fall under the same rules as the school?

"Something happened and they need to shut down the school for an investigation I'm assuming" I say and they nod, understanding I'm not really allowed to talk about it.

Mom plays Christmas music the entire way home as I look at the snow and trees outside my window passing by. Honestly after the week I've just had I need a break.

After about an hour of driving dad finally pulls into the drive way and we get out and start taking our stuff inside before dad helps me carry my things up the stairs into my room.

"We told Olivia and Emily you are coming home, they said they would be around after supper" he says before leaving me to myself in my room that almost feels unfamiliar now.

  I walk over to my desk and open my photo album that Emily gave me for my birthday a few years ago and I start to cry as I look at the first page before quickly shutting it and laying on my bed before crying into my pillow. I can't look at that. What I'd do to go back to that simple life.

   The longer I lay there the more I think of how if it wasn't for my power Dawson would've been shot and probably died. The thought keeps repeating in my mind that he would be dead right now and I keep crying harder.

   I layed in my bed for about an hour before going down for supper and just as we finished up I hear a knock at the door. I know it is Olivia or Emily but I always get this feeling in my stomach that it's going to be Dawson.

  I open it to find Olivia on my door step with the biggest smile before she comes in and hugs me.

  "Hey you" she says clearly excited I'm home

  "Hey" I say before we make our way up to my room.

  "Emily is sick and won't be coming but I'm here" she says smiling and I nod before laying on my bed looking at the ceiling, I'm not in a hang out mood.

  "Are you okay?" Olivia says before laying down beside me

"Not really" I say as tears start to pool in my eyes. Fuck, not again.

  "Oh girl" she says sitting up. "What happened??"

  "I can't talk really talk about it" I say trying not to cry

  "Is it about Dawson?" She says and it takes me over the edge, I start crying.

  "What happened, did he hurt you?" She asks confused.

"No"

"Girl you have to talk to me" she says concerned

"I think I might love him" I say crying harder now

"Then go be with him" she says like it's that simple

"I can't"

"Why?"

"He's in an arranged marriage" I say crying

"What?" She asks clearly shocked.

"Yeah"

"That's a bunch of bullshit. Girl go see him, you know where he lives" she says and honestly the thought has crossed my mind already but I can't, His family would be there.

"I cant"

"Yes you can, if you don't I will" she says and I look over at her and she's serious. Olivia is my best friend for-sure and she is always pushing me to do things and I'm grateful but I really wish she wasn't pushing me right now, not on this one.

"Girl if you don't go I'm going to go see him and you know I will have words with him" she says very serious. "Nothings going to change or get fixed from your bedroom. This 'arranged marriage' is a choice, everything is a choice and he needs to make his"

"I don't think that's a good idea" I say conflicted.

"You're going tomorrow, if you think you might love this stupid boy your doing it, or else your just gunna wallow in your own misery all week and ruin it for everyone including me because come Saturday if you are still crying about him and not hanging out with me because of it you know I'll be pissed, and he will be hearing about it because I'm not scared of him" she says. She's really good and getting me to do things and as much as I hate it I know she's just looking out for me and she's usually right.

"Okay" I say finally

"Tomorrow?" She asks

"Fine" I say looking over at her

"Good"