When September Ends

21. Pictures

September 24th--6 days

More than ever, Skyla could feel her skin crawling. She was nervous and trying so desperately to hide it. Pauline and Isabella thought she was going to school and was going to stay at school, but it wasn't the case. Today was the day Kaley was supposed to shoot the pictures Skyla had asked her to, the pictures they had to miss school for. She didn't say a word to school fearing her voice would give her away. She didn't want anything to mess this up for her. She had to have the pictures for Isabella's scrapbook and she was running out of time.

Pauline pulled up to the curb and let them off with a wave goodbye and a cheerful phrase. "Enjoy your day!" she'd said.

Skyla and Isabella walked to the doors of Eagle Central in silence. Once they got inside, they found Kaley and Kaitlyn. Michael was with them. Kaley looked like she was nervous as a cat. Michael seemed as calm as a cucumber. Kaitlyn and Isabella began chatting immediately about some guy they thought was cute in their fourth-period class. Kaley, Skyla, and Michael huddled close together. They needed to put their heads together to figure out how they were going to pull off sneaking off school grounds.

"So how are we going to do it?" Kaley whispered. "I have to be back in time to catch the bus or my mom will freak dead out."

"And I have to be back in time for Mom to pick me up too," Skyla said quietly.

"Leave those details to me," Michael said. "I parked my car outside of the school gates, so all we have to do is get past security and we'll be fine."

"How are we going to do that?" Kaley asked. "They patrol this place like every ten minutes."

Michael smiled. "We're just going to have to catch them off guard then."

"How?" Skyla asked.

"Leave it to me," Michael stated. "I'll get us past security. Don't worry."

"Okay then," Kaley said. "When are we leaving?"

"Right now," Michael said. "When the bell rings, I'm going straight to the football field. You two should do the same, but try not to be seen by any teachers."

Skyla closed her eyes for a few seconds and sighed nervously. "That should be easy," she said sarcastically.

The three of them stepped back from each other and noticed people had been staring at them intently. Once they realized they weren't whispering anymore, they went back to their conversations.

"Bunch of nosy people," Skyla grumbled. Michael heard her and laughed. She slapped him playfully. Kaley just shook her head and smiled.

Skyla glanced over at her sister to see if she had become the least bit suspicious of their little plotting circle, but her attention was on Kaitlyn. She had some juicy stories because it seemed Isabella was hanging on her every word. Skyla was going to miss her little sister like she would miss a major organ. It pained her to think about leaving her on Earth alone. Sadness began to sweep over her, but Skyla subconsciously swatted it away. She didn't want anything to put a damper on her picture day. She was going to be happy today if it killed her.

Michael walked up and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Ready?"

Skyla nodded. She looked over at Kaley. "You ready?"

"I was born ready," she boasted.

"Okay," Michael said. "I'll meet you at the stadium." He turned around and walked down the hallway. He disappeared inside of the boy's bathroom.