N Y L A D Y L A N S
"You are a disgrace to society. Macaroni and Cheese is delicious! Especially the one your mom makes for Thanksgiving dinner." Delaney debating about food with Atlas has to be one of my favorite things to watch. The boy almost choked on his cereal when that came out of Delaney's mouth.
He takes a napkin, wiping away the milk that fell onto the counter. "The texture is nasty."
"But the taste Atlas." She emphasizes with a chef's kiss. "The taste is so good."
"No, cheese is gross. Now let me eat my cereal in peace."
She rolls her eyes and shakes her head. "See that Nyla?" Delaney points to Atlas who went back to eating his cereal. And honestly, I can't blame him. Cereal tastes so much better at night as opposed to the morning. "He hates Mac and cheese."
"Baked Mac and cheese is delicious. But the stove-cooked one is disgusting." I say so I am not on one side of the argument.
Thanksgiving dinner was yesterday. Unfortunately, I had to go out of town to be with my dad's side of the family. Don't get me wrong, I love my family but there is always something about the dad's side of the family that makes them stick out more than my mom's.
See, my mom's side is very calm. Both families have a special place in my heart but family gatherings are something I cannot stand.
The only reason I can't stand gatherings is that I have no cousins my age to talk to. They are either a little newborn baby or a grown adult that talks about how well his self-made business is going. I do not care. You're twenty-five and have your life together. Good for you.
Dakota stops at the bottom of the stairs in his house with a glass of water in his hand watching his sister and best friend arguing about macaroni and cheese. His eyes go back and forth between the two several times. He walks into the kitchen area they are standing in. "This is what I come downstairs to? I will settle this debate. Baked Mac and Cheese is the best."
"That's what I said too!" I agree, moving the slightest.
Delaney continues. "A whole lot of people disagree with you Atty. Kraft sells one million boxes of it per day."
He raises his eyebrow, his spoon stopping midway. "Delaney, why in the world do you know that?"
"As an avid Mac and Cheese lover I-"
Dakota shushes her. "We get it. Seriously, we do. Talking about food, both of you girls need to eat because I cannot have you guys passing out from the proximity with others tonight will cause."
"Cereal?" At offers Delaney.
"I am okay." She waves it off like it's no big deal.
Apart from hanging out with my amazing nana the whole thanksgiving dinner, it is the day after Thanksgiving Day. That means one thing. Black Friday shopping. The local mall is closed all day long in preparation for the mass amount of people making their way there tonight.
Delaney and I are huge shoppers. Okay not technically shoppers, more like lookers. Same difference. We love to walk around shops but not buy anything at all. I think it is the pure joy of being out with your friends that backs me away from spending money.
But the sales are so good this year I might just have to cave in and get some more clothing...
"This girl already has her whole shopping list planned out."
It takes me a few seconds to register that Dakota was talking about me. I cannot lie, my mind is on getting one thing tonight and it is Strawberry Icecream. I don't care how cold it is outside, if there is ice cream on sale from a cute parlor, I will be the first to get some.
"Can I have one?" I ask Atlas, pointing to the Captain Crunch piece of cereal on the top of his bowl. Not a single bit of milk touched it and I never tried this cereal before. He puts a piece in my palm and I put it in my mouth. I chew, not realizing how sweet it is. "No wonder you are so hyper in the morning. This is so sweet."
"Want some more?" He asks.
"Idiot, why would you ask a diabetic that? Her blood sugar will go up." Dakota interferes.
"So what? I eat that all the time." Delaney adds on. I guess the telepathic abilities with his sister backfired on him.
I place both of my hands flat on the cool countertop. "Want to know something crazy? The health teacher at our school quit. Maybe you guys should fill in his spot." I say rather sarcastically. "Every single student would get an F, maybe even a generous C if you guys were their teachers."
"Oh quit it. All of the freshmen would get one hundred with me as their teacher. Quiz me on anything." Atlas says all too confidently.
I think back to something we learned in science class years ago. It wasn't taught in health class, but this is close enough. "What is the network of organs that helps you breathe?"
"Seriously? Who in the world is supposed to know that, Einstein? But let me guess." He takes another bite of his cereal. As if that replenished his brain he answers with, "Cardiovascular System."
I give up.
Dakota mumbles a few curse words to himself. "The respiratory system. Like your lungs. I don't know if you know what those are but they help you breathe."
At shrugs. "That's literally what I said."
"You said Cardiovascular!" The three of us respond in unison.
He slides off his chair, bringing his bowl with him. "You guys are hearing things, I swear." Atlas laughs. "Go get ready for the mall. I call dibs on driving."
"Do you even know where the mall is?" Delaney asks him.
"Absolutely not."
*****
Being stuck in the heavy New York traffic is not ideal.
Cars are beeping though they know there is no way out until the cars in the far beginning begin to move again.
I am sure the whole city of Syracuse and Presley had the idea to go out shopping tonight. From the highway, we are stuck on I can already see the mall parking garage is packed to the brim. We would be considered lucky if we find a spot there.
"Shit," Dakota whispers from beside me. My eyes land on the radar before he can explain his fuss.
I point to him. "You Reids are the reason for this type of weather. I am telling you. It is the Reid Bad Luck." Every time I am with him the sky decides to play games with us. It is supposed to snow in a few hours and we are sitting in backed-up heavy traffic.
At and Laney overhear us and pause the movie playing on Delaneys phone. "You're kidding. Snow, really?" Atlas asks.
"Unfortunately," Dakota mutters.
It's been years since I last saw snow. I went to the Appalachian mountains once to see snow but with my luck, it melted already. Snow calms me. It is odd. Unlike my friends, I am very excited for it to snow. As long as we are not on the highway when it starts.
The person behind us honks. Atlas looks at them through his rearview mirror then immediately looks back down. "Someone help me. Milo's daughter and her chicks are behind us." Oh, what a small world. Simultaneously, Delaney, Dakota, and I turn around. "That was not your invitation to look!" He stresses.
We turn back around, not paying them another bother. I recognize the guy driving them.
"Milo." The name comes off as a click from Dakota's tongue. "What a fun person to be stuck in traffic with."
"He has a nice car," I say turning around only to look at the white BMW SUV behind us.
Atlas laughs. "Sorry D. She only likes you for your car."
"I do not," I say as I keep my eyes out of the window beside me watching the right line beginning to move. "Keep your eyes on the road. Our lane is next."
"Not when some bitch behind me is trying to cut me off. Who gave him a driver's license?"
"We ask that question to your father every day."
"See, now that right there Nyla is a violation. Don't attack my dad with his driving. It was a singular mistake that happened years ago."
No big deal. Taking the wrong exit and going to New Jersey instead of New York totally isn't a driving fail.
Dakota moves to the middle seat before Atlas merges into the right lane. The rest of the way should be smooth sailing right? Nope, we are stuck again. Right, when we thought we left the traffic we get stuck in more.
"Oh fuck this." Atlas curses and takes the exit. One thing I can trust Atlas with is his driving skills. He can drive around Upstate without a GPS. It must be from all of the road trips these kids have taken with their parents.
The Reid's and Dubois are huge travelers. Every time there is a break they go somewhere together. I never got jealous three out of the four of us got to hang out with each other on vacation. I knew my parents wouldn't let me go with them. No matter how much my parents trust our neighbors, it was always a no.
"You look bored," Dakota observes my face. He takes a good look at my eyes. "I've looked at these things way too many times to just now notice you wear contacts."
"They're clear."
"I know. I can recognize your eye color from anywhere. Do you wear glasses too?"
I shake my head no. "I have them but don't wear them."
"What is the point of glasses if you don't wear them?"
I point to my eyeballs. "That's what contacts are for."
With a few shortcuts and skillful driving, At finds a parking spot almost immediately.
Don't get me wrong, I love the mall, but I hate how many people from my school I end up seeing while I am there. Once we make awkward eye contact I am done for. That is why I keep my head down while shopping.
"Nyla, where do you want to go?" Delaney asks, walking next to me, hugging her coat tightly around her. The wind feels like one hundred pins poking through my skin when it hits my face. I throw my hood over my head, covering my ears from the wind.
"Wherever you want. I am walking around today."
She has a sly smirk on her face when she turns to look at the boys who are a little ways behind us talking.
"They hate the second floor. Mainly because they hate the long stairs we have to take to get there."
I stop and wait for them to come a bit closer to us. The crowd inside of the mall is overwhelming. That's Balck Friday shopping in a nutshell. I have never seen so many people in one place before.
I hold Dakota's hand as we maneuver through the crowd. I fail and bump into five people along the way. "Are you okay?" He asks when we get to a calm spot in the corner. We "ditched" Laney and At. Both of us concluded there is no way we are going to be with so many people tonight.
"Fine. Dakota, wait. When is the snow starting?"
He moves me away from the crowd by pulling my hand so I am closer to him. "These people are ruthless." He comments and shows me his radar. "In about an hour." Dakota definitely saw the ways my eyes lit up when he said that. "You still love the snow as much as you did back then, huh?"
"I guess so." I smile softly.
I know when Dakota is thinking about something intently. His eyes turn a darker shade of green. His lips purse to the side for all of a few seconds then turn normal. He pulls me to him, resting his chin on top of my head.
"What do you say, should we keep the tradition and go sledding at PU?"
"I think we should."
a/n:
Have a good day and see ya at the end of chapter 25!
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<3 Mina