"Blake," somebody hissed, quite loudly.
When I refused to move, they grabbed me by the shoulder and shook, hard.
"What?" I growled finally, opening my blue eyes to slits.
Coda, my best friend, was standing above me. Judging by the look on her face, waking me up was the absolute last thing she wanted to be doing, especially on a school day. Not that I could blame her. I couldn't be considered a morning person by anyone's standards. As Uncle Mark liked to put it, nobody wants to wake the bear. Hell, I didn't even like waking myself up.
"Um, good morning," she rubbed her bicep awkwardly.
"Morning," I grumbled, slowly sitting up in bed. As I stretched, my left hand hit the wall, earning a grimace from both of us. If there was one thing mama Callie didn't like, it was blows to her walls and furniture. We could roughhouse outside all we wanted, but not in her mansion, no sir.
"Want me to make you some coffee?" Coda offered sweetly, reaching up to tousle her blonde waves.
I used both hands to shove the matted brown tresses out of my face, pulling a few strands from my mouth and frowning. "I can do it, don't worry."
She sighed, putting on a little pout. "You guys never let me do anything around here."
"You do plenty. Stop stressing about it."
It had been two weeks since Coda's fight with her dad, and two weeks since my Aunt Callie and Uncle Mark had offered her a room in their massive house. Even before that, she'd spent more time at our place than she had at home, so it didn't take too much adjusting for any of us.
"Whatever," she muttered.
I tossed a pillow at her with a grin, feeling myself wake up just a tad. "Go get dressed. We have another big day in hell coming up."
As Coda padded out in her bare feet, I flopped back down on my soft, comfortable bed, wishing I didn't have to get up.
School had never been my thing, per se, but I'd always managed with Kellan's help. When him and his parents decided to move up north, I'd jumped at the chance to come with. Mark and Callie treated me more like their own child than my mom did. Now that we were settled in and the novelty of new surroundings had worn off, I decided that I still hated school. The only reason I tried to put on a decent face was for Coda.
That girl had been through hell in the past few months and the last thing she needed was to deal with my grouchy ass. Sometimes I let things slip, though, and she usually just took them in stride. That was one thing I really loved about her.
With a sigh, I slapped the palms of my hands on my rumpled bed and stood up to get dressed. If my new school didn't have such a stringent policy against pajamas, I might've just gone in the glory of my tank top and baggy sweatpants.
But, alas, I had to yank on a pair of faded jeans with so many crystals slapped on the pockets and side seams that they could blind a person in the right lighting. I was well aware of the tomboyish, cowgirl vibe I gave off to the world, but I liked the sparkles. They made me feel prettier.
With those heavily bedazzled jeans, I put on a gray T-shirt with the words Buck Off and an angry bronc scrawled across the front. Finally, I shoved my sock feet into my favorite broken down square-toe boots with the spurs still on and glanced to the full length mirror. I looked like me, which was all that mattered.
While weaving my too-long, too-thick hair into a braid, I glanced woefully at the loaded hat stand that hung from my wall. Three cowboy hats and two ball caps were stacked neatly on the pegs, and I wished with everything in me that somebody would talk the school principal into lifting the ban on hats. As much of a hardass as she seemed to be, I decided it would never happen and just flung open my door to head downstairs.
Coda, who was now dressed in a pair of jeans that were too big and a lavender shirt that all but swallowed her, was silently sipping a glass of orange juice at the bar next to Kellan. On my way to the coffee maker, I shoved him with my shoulder and gently patted Coda's blonde head.
She glanced up and smiled sweetly while Kellan shot me a glare.
"Want some coffee?" I called over my shoulder, jostling the black plastic lid when it didn't easily flip open.
"Sure," he replied, if not a bit grudgingly.
It took me a solid five minutes just to get fresh grounds and water in, and the two at the bar seemed to find great humor in my struggle. Coda would occasionally call out words of assistance or encouragement while my cousin just laughed silently.
"Ha!" I shouted, finally slamming down the lid and jabbing the brew button with more force than necessary.
"Ha!"
I spun around to find my aunt mimicking me in the doorway of the kitchen.
"Morning, mama Callie," I grinned, placing both hands on my hips.
"Hi, Blakey. What's got you so excited this early in the morning?"
I pointed to the steaming coffee maker with a proud look. "I finally got the stupid thing to work."
"Took you that long, huh?" She chuckled, moving to rinse out the cup she'd brought into the kitchen with her. Mama Callie always drank her coffee out on the front porch, a habit I found adorable.
"What's for breakfast?" I changed the subject, pinning her with an expectant stare.
"Poptarts?" She suggested, giggling when disappointment appeared on the faces of all three kids in the room.
"Alright, fine. I'll make waffles."
"Yes!" I cheered, moving to fill up a blue ceramic coffee cup and sliding it across the bar to Kellan. "I'm gonna do my makeup, but I swear I'll be back for waffles."
"You do that," my aunt chuckled, pulling out the waffle iron Kellan and I had purchased for her last Christmas.
My own cup of coffee in hand, I trudged back up the stairs to my bedroom.
Even though Mark and Callie only had one kid, they'd built a room specifically for me in the new house. We all knew I preferred staying with them over my own parents and it was a given that I'd spend as much time up here as possible. Even though that was the case, I don't think anybody expected me to go to school up here. Lucky for me, my aunt and uncle had been thrilled at my decision.
That was the thing about them; they were happy if we were happy.
Plopping down at the white desk in the corner, I set to work on my makeup.
A ridiculous amount of freckles peppered my entire face, but instead of covering them up, I left them alone. The way I saw it, they made me who I was.
I did, however, dab some cover-up on the never ending amount of pimples that littered my features, mostly on my chin and the sides of my face. Mom used those particular locations of infection as a reason to tell me not to slouch so much, but I couldn't help it. School was boring and I like to sit with my face in between my germy hands. It was comfortable.
Next, I moved on to my eyebrows.
As much as I hated to admit it, I was kind of a typical girl when it came to makeup. I took very good care to pluck and shape those stupid things into works of art. My mom always told me that the eyebrows frame the face, and if you've ever looked up photos of celebrities with their eyebrows shaved off, you'll agree.
After brushing on a decently thick layer of mascara, I tromped back down the stairs, draining most of my coffee on the way to the kitchen.
Kellan and Coda were still sitting where I'd left them, but now the whole main floor smelled deliciously like waffles. Inhaling deeply, I refilled my cup and sat next to Coda who shot me another shy smile.
"So, are you guys ready for another week in hell?" I asked, taking a sip but deciding it was too hot just yet.
I found it amusing when Kellan hunched down even more, so much that I thought his neck had shrunk into his body.
"What's 'a matter, Kel? You don't want to go back to school?"
"Not at all," he grumbled, taking a long sip of his coffee. By the looks of the nearly empty pot, I figured this was his second cup, too.
"I don't know why you hate it so much," I shrugged, half serious and half egging him on. "It's not even that bad."
"You refer to it as hell," he pointed out, to which I shrugged again.
"Yeah, but I don't dread it as much as you do. What's your problem, anyway?"
In reality, I already knew the answer that he would probably never voice. Kellan didn't like the endless amount of attention every single girl in the school gave him on a daily basis. Even though he had it in him to come off as a cocky asshole at first, like he had to Coda, my cousin was actually a very shy human being.
I, on the other hand, was the farthest thing from shy that a person could possibly be. That in itself served as a perfect explanation as to why he didn't like to be seen in public with me. Normally I'd end up saying something that sent too much attention his way or embarrass him. Sometimes it wasn't intentional, but most of the time it was. I enjoyed seeing him squirm.
Our personalities were just one of many things that made my cousin and I polar opposites. I was outgoing while he was shy. I was short while he was tall. I was brunette while he was blonde. The list went on and on. The one thing we did share, though, was the set of sky blue eyes that had been passed down from his mom and my dad, who were siblings.
Mama Callie interrupted my thoughts by sliding three plates of steaming waffles in front of her starving children.
I looked up with a grin and grabbed the syrup before Kellan could. "Thanks."
"You're welcome," she sang, pouring more batter into the iron for herself.
Coda took a bite and pulled out her pink iPhone, almost choking when she saw the time. "We're gonna be late!"
I just shrugged and shoveled in another huge bite of waffle. "Who cares?"
"Blake," Aunt Callie's voice was full of warning.
We hadn't been late to school yet, but the consequences probably wouldn't be very favorable if we were. I was on probation, of sorts, and didn't really want to mess it up.
"Okay, okay. We'll eat fast and then head out," I gave in, stuffing the second to last quarter in my mouth.
Coda began giggling and hooted with glee. "You look like a chipmunk!"
I just shot her a cheeky smile and worked hard to chew.
Kellan stood up from the bar and shoved in his stool while draining the last of the coffee in his blue ceramic mug. Another thing Kellan couldn't stand about me was the fact that I didn't care about most things. If I was late, so be it. If I got in trouble, oh well. I figured as long as I was happy and not doing anybody serious harm, it didn't matter. He definitely didn't roll like that.
I climbed into the passenger side of Coda's ridiculous little purple Nissan and she waited patiently for Kellan's Ford to roar to life. Mama Callie waved big from the kitchen window as we pulled out, taking a right turn towards town.
A few miles down the road, my best friend spoke up. "You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm good." I sent her a sharp nod and continued staring out the window.
"Are you sure?" She pressed, something she'd started doing a little more since coming to live with us. Before that, Coda was a sweet, shy little thing that seemed wounded by the world. She rarely spoke up, and when she did, it was uncertain.
Not that I could blame her. As much as the girl tried to hide it, life had been kicking her ass and she wasn't the kind to stand back up and give it hell. Instead, she just kind of continued on with her head down, as if expecting the next hard blow.
"Yeah, I'm great. Are you okay?" I pinned her with a gaze that I knew she would melt under. She always did.
Gripping the steering wheel a little tighter, she forced a small smile. "Yeah, I'm okay."
"How's the whole deal with your dad?" Now it was my turn to press.
"Um," she chewed on her lip, "I haven't seen him since. He hasn't tried to get ahold of me, either."
"What about your mom?"
She shook her head, eyes focused on the winding gravel road that would lead us to hell. "Not a word since August."
"What about your brothers?"
The mention of her beloved role models brought a real smile to Coda's thin face. "I talk to Charlie occasionally, and Torrin texts me most nights. He said we should all go out to dinner or something here soon."
I quirked an eyebrow. "We?"
"Yeah, you, me, Kellan, and him."
Taking it in, I nodded slowly. "That could be fun. Oh, by the way, we're still on for this weekend, right?"
She turned to look me in the eyes for a second. "Hell yes."
I grinned, feeling the skin around my eyes and nose crinkle. "Awesome. The Caldwell Night Rodeo is one of my favorites."
"How come?"
Sighing, I leaned against the seat with a smile. "Because it's on my home turf and I'm always a crowd favorite there."
Coda smirked. "I didn't know you were such a ham."
I snorted in an unladylike way. "I'm not. I just like being home. By the way, you and me are staying with my parents. Mark and Callie and Kellan said they'll just stay with Mark's mom and dad."
It took everything in me not to laugh as her already white face paled even more. "Like, we'll be with your parents the whole time?"
Kind of enjoying her discomfort at the thought, I shrugged. "Well, yeah. It's their house."
She nodded, obviously trying to hide the fear that showed every time my mom was mentioned in conversation.
Coda had only met my mother a few times, but she'd been mad at me during each interaction. If mom was mad, the whole world was bound to know. It makes me cringe to say I'd inherited that particular trait.
"But don't worry. She's usually in a pretty good mood at this rodeo, too," I added, trying to console my best friend.
It had taken a whole lot of work on my and Oakley's parts to drag her to rodeos in the first place, and I didn't want her to get freaked out about the first one she seemed genuinely excited for.
She nodded and skillfully guided her ugly pickup onto the cement pad next to Kellan.