The Roads To Paris

27

I wake up tangled in blankets and try to remember how I got to the couch. Last I remember, I was sleeping on the floor next to Maeve and Heaven.

I squirt my eyes looking around and realize I'm the only one in the living room. Where could they all have gone?

I walk to the kitchen and see Heaven on the phone and Ivy making breakfast

“ Pancakes!” I say diving at the stack that I see on the countertop

“ Good morning to you too.” Ivy says rolling her eyes

“ Where's Maeve and London?” I asked with my mouth full

“ They're upstairs freshening up, you should be too. And don't talk with your mouth full.” she scolds

“ Yes mom.” I retort rolling my eyes

I slide off the countertop I was sitting on and head upstairs to go freshmen up

I knock on the door to the guest room

“ Mae? London? Are you guys in there?”

There is no sound coming from the other side of the door for a few seconds then I hear shuffling. Angry sounding shuffling might I add

“ Yes. Just give us a second. We'll be down soon.” London answers for both of them

“ Well hurry. Breakfast's pancakes and I can't guarantee they'll still be there if you waste any more time.”

I walk into my room and hurriedly take a shower and dress up. I run as fast as I can into the kitchen and to my relief, there's still enough pancakes for me.
I take a plate from the rack and stack six or so pancakes on it and douse it in chocolate syrup.

There's noise like whispers when I walk into my room.
It's Heaven's voice but I can't hear the voice of the person she's talking to. I immediately assume it's something bad and begin to panic. The worst scenes imaginable flood into my mind and I pray that nothing of the sort happens.

She's on the phone for about two more minutes before she comes out of the bathroom.

Before I can ask who it is, she answers the question on my mind.

“ I just got off the phone with mom.”

“ Anything I should be worried about?” I ask

“ Well no, not really. She was just calling to ask how we were doing and I asked her if Mae can stay with us for a while and she said no problem.”

My first thought is that I'm glad everyone is OK but then I'm still curious so I have to ask

“ Why the bathroom though?”

Heaven laughs and says “ I'm just weird that way .”

I laugh at that understatement.

“ So what're we going to do about Mae?” I asked after I've sobered up

“ Is she still in a stump?” Heaven asks

“ C'mon H, you've known Mae far longer than I have. If she's still in a slump, would she wantany of us to worry about her? She'd just pretend and pretend.”

“ You do have a point.” Heaven says thinking about it.

“ Let's have a best-worst romantic movie marathon.” I suggest

“ That's not a bad idea.” London says walking in and startling I and Heaven.

“ Did I start me you guys?” she asks even though its obvious