Hey guys, so I've been having a major case of writers block lately.
It sucks.
Also, I couldn't get on my computer for a while. Sorry this took a few days' to get posted.
Anyways enjoy, Chapter Eighteen. Oh, and also I have something I want to tell you guys' at the end, so please read it.
Btw, I'm extremely tired and trying to edit this and incase you didn't know, that is not a good combination at all. But, I seriously want to update for you guys.
So,
~Please excuse any and all mistakes because, there are probably quite a few~
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"Casper, wake up!" Somebody hissed, poking me in the side. I groaned and rolled over.
The hard ground beneath me, served as a reminder to the fact that I slept on the floor last night. I opened an eye and saw Courtney staring at me with an anxious look on her face. I glanced at the clock and groaned loudly.
"Court, it's seven in the morning, can't this wait until later." I pleaded. I closed my eyes again, and she prodded me harder in the side.
"Casper, someone's downstairs with mom." She whispered. I furrowed my eyebrows and looked at her.
"What are you talking about?" I asked incredulously.
"I can just barely hear their voices, I can't make out what their saying." She exclaimed. I sat up, and listened hard. I could barely hear the murmer of voices, drifting through the floorboards. I gave Courtney a confused look.
"Maybe it's the TV." I suggested but, Courtney adamantly shook her head.
"It's not." She responded. I shot her a pointed look and got to my feet. I stretched, and heard several parts of my body crack. Court wrinkled her nose at me.
"Don't give me that look, I slept on the floor last night." I whispered, she rolled her eyes and gestured towards the door. I tip-toed out and quietly walked down the stairs. I skipped the stair that always creaks and started making my way to the kitchen, since that's where the voices sounded like they were coming from.
I leaned against the wall, and told myself that I wasn't eavesdropping I just wanted to see who she was talking to. It eased the guilt a little but, not by much.
"Thank you so much for coming. You have no idea how much this means to me." I recognized my moms' voice. She sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "The kids' are being so brave but, I know the divorce is taking it's toll on them." She sniffled. I suddenly felt extremely uncomfortable listening to the conversation that was taking place.
"Aw, sweetie, I'm your sister. You should have called me as soon as it happened. You know I would've been here in a instant." A familiar voice spoke. No way. "I know we've had our problems in the past but, I will always be here for you Susie." I slowly backed away from the kitchen, not wanting to interrupt them. I raced back upstairs to my room and, found Courtney waiting expectantly for me.
"Well, who is it?" She exclaimed smacking my arm, as I sat next to her. "Is it a guy? Omg is mom dating someone?" She asked worry lacing her words.
"Court, calm down, it's not a guy." I said laughing a little. She dramatically took a big breath and shot me an expectant look.
"Okay, now tell me. I need to know Casper, stop messing with me." She whined shaking me. I laughed and held my arms up in a placating gesture.
"Okay, okay." I grinned. Dropping my voice dramatically, I wiggled my eyebrows. "It's Aunt Jen." I mock whispered. Courtney gasped bringing a hand to her mouth.
"No way." She whispered. I nodded my head, not quite able to believe it myself.
Aunt Jen, is my moms older sister. I haven't seen her since I was fourteen.
Her and my dad have never gotten along. Every family dinner or event that they were both at would end with an argument. Not matter how much begging or pleading came from my mom they just couldn't get along.
After a particularly terrible Christmas dinner that resulted, in Aunt Jen leaving in the middle of dinner, we haven't seen her since. The fact that she's now back, in our house, is shocking.
"Mhm, it's her." I insisted, resting my chin on my hand.
"What do you think she's doing here?" Court mused aloud. I shrugged my shoulders even though I already had a pretty good guess. She was here to support our mom throughout the divorce.
"Do you think we should go down there?" She asked nervously. I hesitated, not quite sure, how to respond.
"I think...that we should give them some...time." I stated haltingly. Courtney raised an eyebrow at me a suspicious look on her face.
"Did you hear something while you were down there Casper?" She asked. Yes. I bite my lip and shook my head.
"No, I just...think we shouldn't interrupt them." I explained. "They have a lot to catch up on." I added, after a moment. Courtney snorted.
"Yeah, three years worth of catching up." She commented. I nodded my head and pursed my lips. I can't imagine three years of not having a good relationship with Court or Carter. They're my family.
"I'm going to go shower." I stated after a moment; there was no way I was going to be able to fall back asleep now.
Courtney jumped up and started racing out the door. "Not if I get there first." She exclaimed. I started running after her but, she bet me there by a few seconds.
"You cheated." I groaned. I heard snicker through the door.
"You snooze you lose." She stated contemptuously. I rolled my eyes and mumbled a whatever before walking away.
I hesitated at the top of the stairs, not sure if the moment between my mom and Aunt Jen was over. My stomach growled loudly, making the decision for me. I walked down the stairs, purposefully stepping on the creaky stair to give them a warning, that someone was awake.
I prepped myself to try and act surprised when I saw Aunt Jen but, I didn't need to. As soon as I entered the kitchen a pair of arms were thrown around my neck.
"Casper." She squealed happily. I hugged her back, a little surprised at the gesture.
She still looked the same as she did three years ago. The same dark brown hair, large blue eyes, and puckered mouth. Only now she had, age lines around her mouth, making her look like she was permanently frowning.
Or maybe she's always had those, and I just never noticed until now.
"Aunt Jen, what are you doing here?" I asked. She pulled back a large smile on her face as she moved back to stand by my mom.
"I'm just here for moral support." She stated, the smile never leaving her face. I think she was being overly cheerful on purpose, it kind of bothered me. She was treading carefully, testing the waters, worried that I would break if she made a wrong move.
"Okay, cool." I said shrugging my shoulders, trying to act nonchalant. I walked over to the fruit bowl to grab an apple. Their eyes followed me like a hawk.
"Everything okay?" I asked hesitantly.
"Why don't you sit down." Aunt Jen said patting the spot in front of a barstool. I slowly sat down as they stood across from me, on the other side of the counter.
"What are you doing up so early? Are you sleeping okay?" Aunt Jen asked in a motherly tone. I glanced over at my real mom, she had a worried look on her face.
"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" I asked turning back to Aunt Jen, my tone a little haughty. Her superior attitude was getting on my nerves. Just because my dad left doesn't mean that I'm broken. I don't need her to play therapist with me.
Aunt Jen hesitated a little, cocking her head to the side. She gave me a puzzled look. "Well I just thought with everything-"
"I'm fine." I cut her off, shaking my head. That wasn't anywhere close to the truth, but I could care less. I didn't want or need her barging into my life and 'fixing' me. I don't need to be fixed.
Yeah I have some things I need to work through, but I don't need her help with that. I already have a mom, I don't need another one.
"Casper." My mom stated a warning in her tone. I clenched my jaw and stared at the apple in my hands.
"Thank you, I appreciate your concern, but I don't need it." I stated blankly. Taking a bite of the apple, I stood up and walked out of the kitchen.
I should have stayed upstairs.
I passed Courtney on the stairs. Swallowing the food in my mouth I grabbed her arm.
"I wouldn't go in there." I stated. She shot me a confused look.
"Why not?" She questioned.
"Unless you want to talk about your feelings, then I wouldn't do it." I said shrugging my shoulders. "Oh, and next time, I get the shower first." I called over my shoulder, slightly irritated. I walked into the bathroom, and took a shower. The shower that was rightfully mine, to begin with.
When I was finished I wrapped a towel around my waist and walked to my room. I froze when I saw Raegan sitting on my bed. Her head snapped up, a blush crawling up her skin as she glanced at me.
I felt a small ounce of satisfaction as her eyes trailed up my body.
"Like what you see?" I asked cockily, quirking an eyebrow. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms tearing her gaze away from my chest to look at my face.
"Maybe." She smirked. I grinned and walked over to my dresser, praying that the towel wouldn't drop. I pulled out some clothes. Thankfully the towel stayed on.
"Just give me a second, I'll change in the bathroom." I stated, making a move to the door. She shook her head, and walked out.
"I'll just wait out here." She explained before shutting the door. I quickly changed and called for her to come back in. Furrowing my eyebrows I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms.
"So, what's up?" I asked. She furrowed her eyebrows.
"Uhm, didn't Eric tell you?" She asked.
"No?" I answered in confusion.
"Oh, well he wants us to go get breakfast with him and Maria. Something about you not having enough time for him." Raegan explained. She wrinkled her nose after a second, "Now that I think about it, he was probably joking about that last part. He was being very dramatic." She stated. I smiled ruefully and shook my head.
"That's Eric for you." I agreed. "So, did he say where he wanted to go?" I asked.
Raegan nodded her head. "Sandy's."
"Alright cool. Let's go." I exclaimed smiling. I grabbed my phone and then we walked down stairs.
Unfortunately, we ran into Aunt Jen.
"Who's this?" She asked curiously.
"Raegan." I answered monotonously. I'm starting to see why my father never liked this woman; I don't remember her being this annoying.
"Your girlfriend?" She questioned. I raised an eyebrow at her.
"No." I stated then added, "At least not yet." Out of the corner of my eye I saw Raegan trying to fight off a smile. She was failing. Miserably.
"That just means he hasn't manned up and asked her yet." Court yelled from the living room. I scowled and went to say something back but, Aunt Jen interrupted me.
"Aren't you going to introduce us Casper?" She asked disapproval, causing the sides of her mouth to tilt downwards. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I really didn't want too.
"Raegan, this is Aunt Jen." I muttered. Raegan stifled her laughter at my expression and shook hands with my aunt.
"It's nice to meet you ma'am." She said.
"You too Raegan." She answered formally.
"Alright bye." I exclaimed, pulling Raegan out the door before the conversation could go on. I opened the car door for her, and then rounded over to the drivers side.
"What was that about?" Raegan asked.
"That woman is getting on my nerves." I grumbled starting the car. Raegan laughed loudly, shaking her head.
"Aw, is Casper getting irritated?" She asked. I nodded my head glumly. "I'm sowwy." She said in a baby voice. I shook my head, fighting off a smile. She reached over and intertwined our fingers with my free hand.
We sat silently for the rest of the drive; not feeling the need to break the silence as it wasn't awkward. At all.
I pulled into Sandy's and this time Raegan didn't wait for me to open the door for her. So, I intertwined our fingers as we walked into Sandy's. Spotting Eric and Maria in a booth towards the back we went to join them.
Raegan slid in so that she was sitting across from Maria and I followed after her coming face to face with Eric. He gave me a goofy grin.
"So, how come I had to find out from Maria, that my best friend was going on a date?" He called me out. I grinned shaking my head, knowing that he wasn't actually mad.
"Maybe we aren't as close as you'd like to think." I joked. He gasped feigning hurt.
"That's it; friendship off." He mocked a valley girl accent. I rolled my eyes and smiled as I saw Sandy carrying four drinks towards our table.
She set an orange soda in front of me, a Mountain Dew in front of Eric, a Sprite in front of Maria, and a lemonade in front of Raegan. She had our orders memorized. We smiled and thanked her before she hurried off to take orders.
"So, are you two a thing?" Maria asked.
"Nope, he hasn't asked me yet." Raegan stated. I held my hands up as both Maria and Eric shot me incredulous looks.
"I'm just waiting for the right moment." I said sheepishly.
"You know," Eric started. Uh oh this can't be good. "you could always say you don't want to kiss him until the two of you are official. That's what Maria did with me." He suggested evilly. I frowned and kicked him under the table.
"Ow, did you just kick me." Maria asked, glaring at me.
"What? No. Eric did you kick her, why would you do that?" I asked glaring at him. Maria turned to look at him too. He opened his mouth to defend himself, but nothing came out.
Thankfully Sandy came back with three breakfast burritos and a plate of waffles at that moment. The waffles were for Maria.
We ate and talked for a while, when my phone started ringing. I pulled it out and glanced at the caller I.D.
Dad.
I froze and stared at the phone.
"You okay?" Raegan asked in concern.
"Uh, yeah, I've got to answer this." I stated, hopping up. I walked away from the table and slid my thumb across the screen to answer the call.
I held the phone to my ear for a moment, not saying anything. I wasn't sure what to say.
"Casper?" His familiar voice echoed out of the phone. I was outside now, the cool morning breeze pricked my skin.
"I'm here." I answered, finally finding my voice.
"Well, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't surprised that you answered." He said, chuckling nervously. I didn't join him.
"Yeah, me too." I responded coolly, effectively shutting him up. I actually don't know why I answered the phone. I didn't want to talk to him, or at least I don't think I did. I was just so confused.
"How are you doing?" He asked. I was slightly surprised by question. Did he really just call to make small chat.
"Fine." I answered.
"Look Casper, I wanted to talk to you, so you could here my side of the story." He explained. I stiffened, clutching the phone tightly.
"You made your intentions pretty clear, when you ran off to Miami dad." I answered barely concealing the anger in my voice. I heard him sigh, and I could him imagine him running hand through his hair in frustration. A habit I picked up from him.
"Look, son, things didn't go the way I wanted them too." He said.
"You mean, the fact that I finally learned the truth?" I snapped. "Look, I don't know why I even answered the phone, it was stupid. I'm not ready for this. I've got to go." I muttered flatly before ending the call. Shoving my phone in my pocket so, I didn't throw it across the parking lot, I leaned against the building.
Closing my eyes I took several deep breaths, trying to calm down. When I opened my eyes, Raegan was standing in front of me.
"You okay." She asked. I quickly straightened and nodded my head.
"I'm fine." I lied, plastering a smile onto my face.
"Who was that?" She asked, suspiciously.
"Nobody important, let's go eat." I responded, heading towards the door.
"Casper-"
"Please Raegan." I pleaded not turning around to face her. I felt her arms slither around my waist and her cheek pressed up against my back.
"Okay but, I'm here for you, you know that right?" She asked quietly.
"Yeah, I know." I answered softly. She let me go and grabbed my hand instead.
Intertwining our fingers she smiled up at me. "Let's go eat then."
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Alright so there's the end of Chapter Eighteen. What did you guys think? Let me know in the comments and don't forget to vote if you liked it. I try to respond to everyone that comments but, sometimes I just don't know what to say or I don't see it. So if I don't respond please don't take it personally. xx
Alright now that, that is out of the way I have some bad and good news.
The Bad News: I'm going to be ending this soon. I'm going to try and wrap up Laundry Boy in the next couple of chapters. I'll have about five or six more chapters. Maybe a few more. I'm not quite sure yet. If you guys want, I might even do a couple chapters in Raegan's POV, I'm not sure yet, but I'll let you know.
Okay I guess that wasn't exactly bad news, more like sad.
The Good News: I'm going to have a new story up in a couple days. I don't want to give to much away but, I'm super excited about it. I'll definitely let you all know when it's posted, so keep an eye out for it.
Thanks for reading this, if you even did. xx