"I'll take the small red velvet round cake please." I asked the cashier. The guy nodded, going to grab the cake in the display window and box it up for me. I handed him the money and took the box, thanking him before stepping outside.
It was cold out and the sun was going down. I tightened my jacket around me as I walked to the corner.
"Got it." I said, holding up the cake for Danny to see. He looked up from his phone and nodded.
"Ready to go then?"
"Yeah." I nodded, then shook my head, "Wait, do you guys happen to have candles at home?"
"I think so." he nodded, then turned on his heel to lead the way back to the truck.We both sat in silence as he drove for awhile, just us two in the car.
"Thanks, again for coming back out to take me." I told him once we were already nearing the house.
"No problem." he glanced at me, then at the box, "What's it for anyway?"
"Nothing." I shook my head, then bit my lip. With a sigh I said, "It's for our sister, Lucy. Today's her birthday."
He didn't say anything, his eyebrows just raised. Then, after a moment, he said, "If you ever wanna talk about it, let me know. I know we're not super close but, you know."
I looked at him and gave him a small smile, "Thanks. I appreciate that."
Another moment passed before he spoke again, "I'm just glad now that you asked me to drive you, cause once everyone sees that they'll turn savage."
I laughed, "No kidding. I've once seen Lee and Jordan fight over the last bit of beef jerky."
He shook his head, smiling, "I swear, sometimes I don't know how I'm related to them."
"Yeah, I mean, you've got the whole mysterious thing going on, right?" I asked and he nodded, "And you're into theater too?"
"I am actually." he nodded again.
"Are you any good?"
"I think I'm decent." he shrugged. "I'm not Romeo though."
"Aw come on, I think anyone can be Romeo if they really want to be." I insisted. He tilted his head.
"I don't know. I mean, there's this play that's coming up in the spring," he said, "Its called Much Ado About Nothing-"
"Oh my gosh! Yes, I know that one." I squealed, " Jackie and I went with our mom to the broadway showing. It was hilarious."
"Wait, seriously?" he exclaimed, looking at me quickly.
"Yeah and, I mean, Jackie's probably read the book like fifty times, it's one of her favorites."
"That's...That's awesome." he grinned.
"I can't believe she hasn't told you that before." I shook my head.
We had made it back to the house now and as we parked I could see Parker, Benny, and Jordan playing field hockey while Lee disappeared around the back of the house with his board in hand.
"Hey, you know what," I said, stopping Danny as he went to open the door, "I think you should definitely go out for that play. I think you'd be amazing and I'm sure Jackie and I could help you if you needed it."
He looked at me and smiled, "Thanks. I'll think about it, that'd be pretty cool. You should probably run inside with that cake before anyone sees you."
"I definitely will." I nodded, reaching for the door. I quickly got off and we both headed inside before I bolted up the stairs.
I quietly crept into mine and Jackie's room, shutting the door as silently as possible. I let out a deep breath, smiling to myself as I held the perfectly safe cake in my hands.
When I turned though, I nearly dropped it.
"AHH!" I screamed, seeing a pair of legs sticking out form underneath my bed. There was a loud thump.
"Ow!" the person started to shimmy themselves out from under the bed, and soon Isaac appeared, laying on his stomach.
"Isaac, what the hell are you doing in here?" I put my hand on my hip, "And why are you under my bed?"
"I was looking for money." he said, rolling over onto his back and rubbing the back of his head. His eyes then looked me up and down and landed on the box in my hand, "Is that a cake form Zeedee's?"
I quickly pulled the box closer to my chest and put a protective arm over it, "Yes, it is — and it's not for you!"
His face dropped as he pouted.
"Dude, why do you even need the money and why are you looking for it under my bed?"
He sighed, "I really want to buy this pair of shoes but I spent my last bit of allowance money and I just need, like, ten more bucks."
"Why don't you just ask Lee or someone to lend you some?"
At this, he looked up at me as if I had two heads, "Do you not understand how allowance works, Converse?"
"Uh, yeah I'm pretty sure I do."
"Really? So you know that everyone gets paid the same amount each week and it's only for them to use. No one willingly lets someone else take theirs."
"Well why not? Just pay them back when you're done. It's like a business deal." I shrugged.
"I don't know if you've noticed, babe, but we're a bunch of kids living on a farm. Our business deals only consist of food offerings."
He sighed, shaking his head as if I were the one that was acting ridiculous. He then looked under the bed again to grab something.
"So, I thought the next best place to look for money was the New Yorkers." he sighed, pulling out a box, "But instead, I found this."
My eyes widened at the box and I quickly placed the cake on the dresser and went down on my knees to snatch the box from him.
"Don't touch that." I said, pulling the box to me. He furrowed his eyebrows, reaching forward and pulling the box back.
"Why not? Are they sex toys?"
"What the — No, Isaac, just give it back." I said, pulling the box back to me.
"No, I wanna see it." he huffed, pulling the box to his lap.
"Dude, it's mine-" I went to grab the box again but he turned away, his back to me. I heard him opening the box and I quickly dove forward. My arms wound around his neck and I reached for him.
One of his hands swatted at mine, while the other one still continued to rip open the top of the box.
"Converse, get off of me." he whined, trying to grab hold of my hands.
"Give me my box back."
Then, before I could react, he had completely dropped the box and both of his hands reached behind to grab my waist. With a yell from me, he hoisted me over his shoulder and threw me onto the bed.
And just before I could sit back up, I felt a heavy weight land on my back, pinning me down.
I quickly blew the hair out of my face and looked at him over my shoulder. He sat beside me with his legs over my back and one hand held both of my hands pinned behind my back.
"Seriously?" I groaned.
"You didn't wanna listen." he shrugged, grabbing the box and pulling it to his lap. He then began to open the box cheerfully.
"There's a lot of dust on this thing, Converse, don't you clean?"
"I haven't touched that since we moved here." I replied, "And have you seen your room?"
"Yes, but I'm glad you've seen it." he replied, and I could almost hear the smirk in his voice. When he opened it, he let out a breath.
"Really, this is it?" he questioned, pulling out a paintbrush, "Art supplies?"
"Sorry it wasn't what you were expecting." I grumbled. I could hear him rummaging through the box as I laid my cheek against the mattress, completely helpless. "Hey, be careful with some of that stuff. It was expensive."
"This was expensive?" he reached over, shoving an old bottle of paint that had dried paint encrusted on the lid that looked like it hadn't been cleaned in years. "Why didn't you wanna go through this stuff?"
"Because its my personal stuff, okay?" I snapped.
He stayed silent for a moment before he spoke again, "How long has it been since you stopped?"
I furrowed my eyebrows, "I don't know, a couple months now. Why?"
"No reason." he shrugged. Then, after another long time, he finally let go of my hands and swung his legs off of mine, releasing me. I quickly rolled over, snatching the box from him.
"Easy, Converse, I'm not gonna do anything." he put his hands up defensively. Then he looked around the room and his eyes landed on the cake atop the dresser. He quickly jumped up from the bed and dashed after it. "What's the cake for? Is it chocolate?"
"No and it's not for you." I quickly stood up, smacking his hand away as he tried to open the lid. He huffed.
"Converse, I'm just bored. I wanted to go to that kickback."
"Why?"
"Because Hannah was gonna be there." he said obviously.
"So why didn't you go?"
"Cause I wasn't invited? Are you normally this slow?"
"I'm not slow." I snapped, crossing my arms. "But still. Is Dylan really, like, this celebrity or something? I'm sure you can just go."
"No, I can't." he shook his head, "I don't even know why Cole took Jackie of all people. What does she have that I don't?"
"Let's see: class, smarts, manners, isn't a jerk-"
"Well clearly we can see why you didn't get invited." he looked me up and down.
"Like I wanted to go."
"Why wouldn't you? I heard your boyfriend was gonna be there."
"Peter?" I tried to fight back a smile. Peter and I had talked quite a bit since the huddle, and texted frequently, but he never really asked me out to anything. A couple of times we had been out as a group and he had opened the doors for me and never treated me badly. He was super sweet.
"Yeah, him." he nodded, looking around the room.
"He's not my boyfriend."
"Sure." he said sarcastically.
I scoffed, "Okay, and even if he was, would that be a bad thing or something?"
"No." he shook his head quickly, "Just...isn't he kinda boring?"
"Boring?"
"Yeah. Like, he doesn't seem that interesting."
"And how would you know?"
"Converse, I hear you on facetime and I sit next to you at dinner sometimes. Him talking about baseball half the time does not seem appealing."
"You listen into our conversations?" I exclaimed, "Well, what if I like baseball?"
"I thought you liked hockey."
"I can like more than — Hang on, how do you know I like hockey?"
"I saw your bag in your closet." he shrugged.
At this, my eyebrows raised, "Okay. How much of my stuff did you snoop through?"
"Not much. Just your closet and your bed. I was saving best for last in your drawers."
"Ugh, get out." I grimaced, grabbing him by the shoulders and pushing him backwards to the door.
"Aw come on, babe, I was just looking for money!"
"I don't care. You're a creep."
"You should learn how to lock your door then."
"You should learn how to not be a fucking weirdo." I said, shoving him out the door. He turned, about to say something but I cut him off, "Oh what? Yeah, bye."
And with that the door shut in his face. I sighed, resting my back on the wood. After a moment, I sat back down on the bed and pulled the box closer to me. There was a thick layer of dust on the top and I was surprised there wasn't a spider anywhere on it.
Slowly, I started to pull out old brushes and paints, even my old tools that I had once's begged my parents to get me. I found pencils and sketchbooks, even drawings and sketches that I drew years ago.
I flipped through the pages, reminiscing on the days that I sat on my bed, in the library, the skatepark, the couch, or the kitchen table and drew.
Finally, I came across a drawing of the city. I remember the day that I drew this picture. I remember sitting on the couch as the rain beat harshly against our penthouse window. I remember looking down at our view from our Manhattan home and drawing exactly what I saw.
The foggy rain, the people down below trying to desperately keep themselves dry, the way cars that swung their windshield wipers furiously against their window. I remember sitting there, and feeling a hand on my shoulder.
"This one looks amazing. My favorite one you've ever done." Lucy had said.
But the part that got me wasn't the drawing itself. It was the picture that slipped out from the page and onto my lap.
It was Lucy and I, just last year. My sister was always into pictures and making sure to capture every moment she could on camera. In this picture, her arms were wrapped around my neck as I sat on a chair in front of a cake. Well, the cake was demolished, as she had been the one to push my face into it that year.
I took the picture in my hand and studied it. Lucy had this smile that could light up a room. How she was never afraid to say anything and always gave her opinion, even if people didn't like it.
She was so amazing, everything I looked up to.
I know Jackie had looked at her teapot collection today, but I couldn't bring myself to look at my bookmarks. Instead, I stood up from my bed and grabbed my jacket, throwing it over my shoulders.
I passed Katherine in the kitchen and told her I was just heading on a walk before dinner. As I headed outside, I looked around and some of the kids were still out playing.
I walked around the dirt, past the stables and Cole's shed that he would disappear into. It was mostly quiet except for the kids laughing and the horses neighing.
Since my time here, I hadn't really given the chance to explore this place thoroughly, so I walked aimlessly.
In my hand, I held Lucy's picture. While this wasn't my New York City view like the drawing, there was still something pretty about it. I had grown to get used to all the grass and silence of the wind. I had gotten used to the way you could see the sunset until every last drop of sunlight faded over the fields.
In New York, even when the sun would go away for the day it would still be bright from all the street lights. Here, once the sun was gone, it was just dark. Darkness that would only be broken by the moon.
I had begun to follow a path into the trees. If I was correct, I assumed this would the orchard. The trees were tall and some of them had fruits and some of them had flowers that were already falling. The sun, which was already going down, seemed to lessen in light as the thickness of the trees covered it.
Soon, the sound of laughter and horses faded and the leaves started to ruffle. I walked and walked, following the path as it twisted and turned, even when it broke off into two ways I alway stuck to the original one.
Eventually, I had came to a clearing. It was a large clearing surrounded by more trees and bushes and in the center was a beautifully gazebo. Around the posts, vines clung onto them and fallen petals littered the ground, as the winter wore them all off.
I walked onto it, the wood creaking slightly at my weight. I stood in the center and I looked up. There was a small window that allowed you to look at the sky.
Did this even belong to the Walters? If it did, how did I never know about this before?
Then, I took the picture and held it in front of my face.
I stared at it, and finally, for the first time in months, I allowed myself to cry and talk to my sister.
Happy birthday. I hope you're okay. I hope wherever you are, you're still making people smile.
This is so hard, being here without you.
I don't know how to be the older sister.
I don't know how to stay strong for her all the time.
I need you. I need you so much.
I stayed there for a long time and let myself cry. In all this time, I couldn't let myself cry in front of Jackie. Lucy never cried in front of us, she was always the comforting one. I had to be that now. For Jackie.
As I stood there in the middle of the gazebo, I suddenly heard a twig snap, making me jump. I quickly turned around to the sound of it but there was nothing there. It was just trees and the wind.
I quickly wiped my tears and my nose. It was almost dinner time, and I couldn't possibly miss it and have them find me like this. So, I cast one last look at the gazebo and turned away, my picture still held tightly in my hand.
—
After dinner, Jackie and Cole still weren't home and Katherine and George were growing angry. Not necessarily at Jackie as much, but more at Cole.
I had been angry with her for skipping school and not telling me where she was. But I trust Cole, and I knew that if they were together, he would keep her safe.
"You guys don't have any idea where they went?" Katherine had asked at dinner.
"Didn't Cole say he had a shift today?" Lee shrugged.
"Yes, but when was the last time you saw Jackie as his co-worker at the auto shop?" Katherine replied sarcastically. She then looked at me, "She hasn't texted you, Y/n?"
I shook my head, "No, she hasn't."
Which technically was not a lie. She still hadn't responded to my texts, and while I did know where she was, no way was I getting involved by snitching. Not since the whole shower thing that happened the first week we'd been here, I'll pass.
Plus, I doubted that Jackie would be doing anything illegal. This was the most out of line thing she'd done in all of her 15 years, I doubt she'd take it any further.
But I had still insisted on staying up in the kitchen for them with Katherine, making sure she would get home safely.
It was finally around half past ten when we heard the car pull up in front of the house.
The door opened and we immediately heard whispers coming from the two.
"Cole, it's fine! Sh!"
"Jackie, sh!"
And soon they were passing the kitchen and heading right up the stairs, giving us the perfect view of Cole holding up Jackie and trying to pull her along.
"Ahem." Katherine coughed, making the two of them both stop. They both looked at us, but Jackie's eyes grew wide.
"Hi, Katherine! Y/n, I missed you!" she said cheerfully, waving her hand sloppily as she leaned against the railing. Katherine looked at Jackie, then Cole, her eyes wide.
"Is she..."
"Drunk?" Cole finished, "Yeah."
"I'm sorry you drank?" I raised my brows. I looked at Cole then back to Jackie. "And is that blood on your lip?"
"Oh I fell." she shrugged, as if her falling over and busting her lip wasn't a big deal.
"You took my sister drinking and made her bust her lip?" I looked at Cole, going over to Jackie and scooping her into a hug.
"I-"
"You guys can work that out later. I want to know where you guys were first." Katherine put a hand up. The two of them stayed silent, looking at each other. Then, Jackie's face slid into a wide smile.
"We went to a party." she laughed. I sighed, shaking my head. Katherine looked at me, "Did you know about this, Y/n?"
"What? No," I shook my head, "I had no idea that my little sister went to a party in the middle of the day. I'm very upset with her too."
I shot Cole a look to which he quickly said, "I practically forced her to go to."
At this, George came trudging down the stairs. "Hey, where have you two been?"
"I already did that part." Katherine said.
"Okay, well, have you done the part where they're grounded all weekend yet?" George asked.
"Really?" Jackie gasped, looking around innocently, "But I've never been grounded before..."
"You're gonna love it, J." I grinned at her as she nuzzled into my chest.
"But, dad, tomorrow's the annual camping trip, everyone goes to that." Cole complained.
Jackie continued on with her rambling, "And I've also never been drunk before either, Y/n. I didn't know this is what it was like all those times-"
"Okay, J, that's enough for you tonight." I clamped a hand over her mouth as Katherine's eyes grew wide. "I'm just gonna get her to bed now. See you guys tomorrow."
The two of us slowly trudged up the stairs as I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her along with me. When we got to the room, I started to unlace her shoes as she rambled about whatever.
"Cole just kinda went up to me and asked if I wanted to go,"
"Uh-huh." I nodded, pulling her pajama shirt over her head.
"And I was just sad because, you know."
"Yeah, I know."
"And then that girl, Erin, was there and she just really pushes my buttons."
"Right."
"And then we started playing this game of Truth or Dare."
"Like the one kids play?"
"Yeah, but theirs was intense. I didn't really like it."
"Oh really?"
"Yeah, they made you kiss people and I've never had my first kiss — well, up until Cole-"
"What?" I exclaimed, my hands dropping to my sides.
"Yeah, but I don't really remember it. Y/n, this drunk thing makes you forget stuff."
I was still processing what she had just said, but played it off, "Yeah, it does that."
I had finally got her ready for bed and stood up, "I'm gonna go get you some water, okay?"
"Okay." she nodded. I quickly went downstairs and poured a glass of water for her before coming back.
When I did, she wasn't in her bed, instead she on my bed looking out the open window.
"J, you're gonna get sick." I told her, setting down the cup on the dresser. I grabbed her a blanket, draping it over her shoulders.
"I'm sorry." she said, wiping her nose, "I'm just hot."
"It's okay." I said. Then, without any warning, she started to cry. I quickly sat down, grabbing her hands.
"Hey? Hey, what's wrong?"
"I'm sorry, Y/n." she sniffled, "I'm sorry I cut class and I didn't tell you where I was."
"It's okay." I said, wiping her tears from her cheeks.
"It's just...today was Lucy's birthday and I really miss her and I just wanted to escape for a little, you know?"
"Yeah, I get it." I nodded. She kept crying, wrapping the blanket even tighter around her.
"Hey, I think I have something to make you feel better." I said.
She looked at me, "What?"
I stood from the bed and went over to the dresser, opening the box. I gently pulled out the small cake and placed it on the little windowsill. I grabbed the candles that I had stolen from the kitchen earlier and a lighter from my drawer.
"It's red velvet. Her favorite." I said, sticking the candle into the frosting and lighting it. The flame danced around as the wind blew by and I looked at Jackie.
She was smiling, her tears stopped. She looked at me, "When did you get a cake."
"After school." I shrugged, "I thought we could still celebrate."
We both looked at the flame as it swirled around.
"Happy birthday, Lucy." Jackie said.
"Happy birthday, Lucy." I smiled.
And then, after a few seconds, the wind picked up and the flame blew out.
Jackie fell asleep on my lap that night and the cake was put back safely in its box, ready for us to eat tomorrow.
—
The next day, Jackie awoke with a killer headache, which wasn't surprising. I had decided to wait until later on to question her, especially when she was feeling a bit better.
I had let her gorge on cake though, which was still our little secret besides Danny and Isaac.
By the time the two of us had went down to the kitchen though, everyone was in a rush running around.
"Hey, girls, about time you guys came down." Katherine greeted us as she loaded snacks into a box.
"Yeah, it was a long night." I shrugged, nudging Jackie.
"I noticed. You guys want something to eat or was the cake enough?"
Jackie and I looked at each other, smiling sheepishly while Katherine cast us a knowing smile. Just then, we heard yelling outside followed by a clatter. Each of us looked, seeing Danny yelling at Isaac as a canoe laid on the side of the car.
"Uh, what's going on?" Jackie asked.
"Yeah, what's with the boat?" I crossed my arms. Before Katherine could answer, George came in from the side door.
"Oh, good morning, girls. Is Cole up yet?"
"I don't know, he hasn't came down." Katherine replied. He looked at Jackie.
"I'm gonna yell." he whispered to Jackie, then cupped his hands over his mouth, "Cole! Please come down! Now!"
Jackie cringed, cupping her ears as I patted her shoulder. Cole slowly came trudging down the steps rubbing his eyes and I could feel Jackie stiffen.
I hadn't exactly gotten the chance to confront her about Cole supposedly kissing her yesterday. It was still a mystery but judging from the way she tensed, I could only imagine.
"Where's the fire?" Cole said, leaning against the counter. His hair was all messed up, sticking up in front of his face as he had just barely woke up.
"Good morning." George greeted him, pulling out a notepad from his pocket, "Sleeping Beauty, this is for you, and this one is for you."
He handed Jackie and Cole a piece of paper. I looked over Jackie's shoulder as she read what the paper said.
"What is this?" Cole asked.
"It is a list of chores we expect the two of you to get done today." Katherine replied and Cole scoffed.
"What?" George looked at his son, "You didn't think you were just gonna, you know, hang out and watch TV all day, did you? This is what you two will do all day instead of camping with everyone else."
At this, I choked on my saliva, letting out a fit of coughs.
"Oh, Y/n, sweetie, have some water." Katherine said, quickly grabbing a bottle of water from the box in front of her and handing it to me. I took it, taking a large drink.
"Thank you." I croaked. At this Cole laughed, throwing his head back.
"What? Did no one tell you about the Annual Walter Camping Trip?"
"No." I exclaimed, looking at them with wide eyes.
"Oh I'm sorry, Y/n, I thought someone told you." Katherine apologized.
I shook my head, "You mean you go camping? Like, out in the the woods camping?"
"Yeah, what's wrong with that?" George shrugged.
"Camping is not my thing."
"Well why not?" Cole smirked, looking at me as he found this all brutally amusing.
"Because...it's just not okay!" I exclaimed again, "There's mosquitos! And dirt! And don't get me started on the no wi-fi."
"Mosquitos only come out in the summer." Cole corrected.
"Exactly!" I threw my hands up, "And isn't camping a summer thing to begin with? Don't you guys think we're gonna freeze to death in those tents or something?"
"Y/n, do you honestly think we're that insane to sleep in tents in the middle of November?" Katherine laughed.
"Of course we aren't staying in tents, we've got a trailer." George shrugged.
"And where exactly is this trailer?" I crossed my arms.
"Just in the back." someone said from behind us. We all turned, seeing Isaac at the side door.
Katherine sighed, "Look, if you don't want to come, you're more than welcome to stay here and help them with their chores."
I opened my mouth to accept, to say that anything is better than sitting in the woods and freezing, but someone beat me to it.
"You're not gonna come, Y/n?"
I turned, and Benny was standing at the stairs with a lantern in his hand. He pouted his lips and put his head down, "I really wanted to show you how to make a s'more cause you said you've never made one before."
He's right, I did say that to him once. I silently cursed myself for over sharing at his bed time stories.
I sighed, my face softening as I went to squat down in front of him. "Benny, I would love to make a s'more with you, it's just that-"
"Aw, come on, Converse. You'd really leave him hanging on a s'more?" Isaac said from behind me. I shot him a scowl, before looking at Benny again. He looked at me now, his eyes hopeful.
With a very reluctant sigh and a deep thought in the back of my head that told me I was definitely going to regret this, I said, "Fine. I'll go."
"Great." George said, patting me on the shoulder as I stood back up from my squat, "Pack for a night and tomorrow, we leave in about an hour."
So that's where I found myself, up in my room and rummaging through my closet as I looked for clothes to pack.
"How the hell did I even get myself stuck into this. I hate camping. I hate being outside." I huffed, aggressively flipping through my clothes.
"Then why'd you agree to it?" Jackie asked as she watched me from atop her bed.
"Because Benny asked me to and I couldn't say no to him." I shrugged, feeling absolutely regretful for letting his little puppy eyes get the best of me.
"Well at least you won't be stuck cleaning the bathroom." Jackie said, shuddering at the job that laid ahead of her.
"Trust me, I'd rather go pick up the horse poop." I looked at her. I sighed, finally grabbing a pair of leggings and an old pair of jeans. "I'm thinking I dress very warm and not too much. Who am I to impress anyways?"
"I can think of someone." Jackie mumbled. I turned to her, my eyes narrowing.
"I'm sorry, what?"
She shrugged, looking away from me with a slight grin on her face, "Nothing. I just think that there's definitely someone for you to look good for."
I stepped away from the closet and sat down in front of her. "What are you trying to say?"
She looked at me and crossed her arms, her face slipping into an annoying smile, "You don't happen to think that Isaac is cute by any chance?"
I gagged, pretending to stick my finger down my throat, "Ugh! Gross, J, don't ever say that's again!"
"Aw come on, Y/n, you have to admit it. He's always messing with you and he even wanted you to go to this thing."
"Yeah, so he could probably plant a bear trap on me in my sleep." I shook my head. "Jackie, he is the definition of repulsive! He's disgusting and I can't stand him! Do you not remember everything he's ever done to me? To you?"
"I feel that's just his way of expressing himself." she shrugged. I rolled my eyes, standing up and going to the bed.
"Whatever. Just know that you're wrong. I would never think of him like that, not in a million years."
—
Soon I stood outside the house, my bags already packed and thrown inside the trailer. The trailer was huge and I honestly don't know how I'd never seen it in the whole time we'd been living here.
"You sure you're gonna be okay?" I asked Jackie as I stood with her outside the porch.
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'll have Cole with me if anything." she shrugged.
"Yeah, you will." I nodded, smirking at her, "I hope nothing happens between you two?"
"What do you mean?"
"Oh my gosh? Mom never gave you the talk?" I gasped, dramatically taking her hand, "Okay, J, pay attention. When two people love each other very much-"
"Please don't!" She gasped, putting her hand over my mouth. "I know what you're talking about and I swear to you it won't happen."
I laughed at her red face, pushing her hand off of me, "You're so easy, Jack in a Box. Nothing better happen because I'll personally drive that stupid trailer all the way back here and smack him."
"I promise, you have my word." she nodded.
The horn beeped then and I turned around.
"Hurry up!" Lee yelled, reaching forward from the backseat to honk the horn. I turned to Jackie, pulling her into a hug.
"Please be careful. Call me if anything happens."
"I will. Don't get eaten by a bear."
"I'll try not to."
I finally went to the full car and took a seat in the very back. As soon as I sat down, I suddenly felt something wet wiggle inside my ear. I gasped, pulling away as Jordan sat there with his finger and camera pointed right at me.
"Ew! You just got wet willied!" Isaac laughed.
I rolled my eyes, looking out the window longingly as we slowly drove away from the house, leaving Jackie and Cole on the porch.
This was going to be a long weekend.
—
hi everyone! hope you enjoyed this chapter. not too much isaac and y/n but trust me, it's for character development and will make more sense later on. i don't know if i liked it very much tho but oh well. i thought the stuff with jackie was cute because they just have such a cute sister bond.
also, for those of you that may be confused, the camping trip and some other details are from the book not form the show. i thought the whole lark thing was actually v boring on the show so i liked the camping trip more and i have a few cute ideas for it next chapter so be ready!
anyways, this is the last update of the year! that's actually insane, like why is time speeding up???
lmk what you guys thought about this chapter in the comments and don't forget to vote!
nessa